MADISON'S P.O.V.

Between us, Madeline is the animal lover. She adores all types of animals, from irresistible to terrifying. I love animals too, but not as much as Madeline. I am one of those people who love animals, but only want to pet them and play with them. I am not crazy about caring for them unless that it is for a short time.

If the orphanage allowed pets, I swear that my sister would take the opportunity to hoard as many pets as possible. She has done it before. When we still had a house and a family...

Madeline has hoarded cats and dogs and birds. Even horses! The only reason that she would give them up is whether they already had owners. If they did, she would happily send them packing. If they did not - or she was suspicious that the owners were abusive - she would hold them hostage. She calls it protection. I call it hostage.

She ultimately had to give up all of the animals when we became orphans. She was devastated and sobbed for three days straight. She was more devastated that she and the animals had to separate than the sad fact that we lost our family.

With the exception of me, her twin, Madeline spends time with animals more than human beings. She has a better connection with the animals because they do not judge her like us humans do. They love Madeline for Madeline and always cheer her up.

I understand why she prefers animals over humans. I do not think that she is mentally ill or just weird. If I loved animals as much as she did, I would have the same mindset.

Would you animal lovers out there rather talk to one of your relatives or your pet?

It was that time for all the good orphans to go hit the hay. Of course, when Providence said that, Night and his kids thought that she was talking about real hay. So Madeline and I fed them scrumptious carrots and lettuce. Well...we tried to. But the bunnies were not having it. Literally.

The foods were still there by the time that Madeline and I were in our nightdresses and had gotten into our respected beds. The bunnies were in a large cage, so there was enough space for them to eat and sleep and hop around. But they were not doing anything. They were not eating or sleeping or jumping. They were just sitting in the cage...and staring at us.

Even with their noses twitching, those bunnies were acting creepy.

"I would say goodnight to you..." I began. "...but you have not touched your lettuce or carrots."

Night stood on his feet and put his hands - er, paws - on his furry hips. "Do you think that all bunnies are the same?" he challenged us. "Do you honestly think that all bunnies eat the same foods?"

"So...you do not eat lettuce or carrots?"

Cuddly and his siblings started pushing carrot slices and pieces of the lettuce out of the cage.

"Whoa there!" Madeline exclaimed as she tossed her covers off her. "You guys are making a mess!"

Night thumped three times in a row. When a bunny thumps, it means that it stomps. It usually does this when it is upset. And Night was clearly upset.

"My children and I will never eat carrots or lettuce!" Night protested.

"But...lettuce and carrots are good for you," my sister pointed out.

"We are not regular rabbits, which means that we do not eat regular foods. Besides, lettuce makes Cuddly sick."

Cuddly squeaked and rolled around in the cage.

Madeline climbed out of bed and walked over to the cage. "I do not want you or your babies to go hungry, so...what would you like instead?"

Night licked his lips. "How about...chocolate?"

"'Chocolate'?"

"Yes. That is exactly what we will eat. Two orders of your finest chocolate bars. And please unwrap them. Wrappers are not good for us rabbits."

"Chocolate is not good for rabbits either. Why...dogs can be poisoned by chocolate!" She shuddered. "The horror."

He thumped again. "We are not sleeping until we eat some chocolate!"

"You cannot have chocolate, and that is final," I said sternly.

"We want chocolate! We want chocolate!" he started chanting.

"We want chocolate! We want chocolate!" his babies chanted with him.

"The chocolate will kill you," Madeline pleaded.

"What do you take us for? Idiots? Us animals are not the ones who voted for an incompetent person." He lowered his voice to a whisper. "And I am not talking about Trump."

"Why are you bringing up politics in a Forlot book?" I demanded.

"I am a talking bunny. I can do whatever I please as long as I abide by the Forlot laws and by the code."

"What code?"

"The code of the secret agency that I work with." His eyes darted from side to side. "Would you girls like to know more about the secret agency?"

"If it involves animals like you, then I do!" Madeline proclaimed.

"I am happy that you are interested...but I am afraid that I have to keep my lips sealed."

"What? Why?"

"Duh. It is a secret. If I told you anything, you would be running around the town and telling your friends. I cannot risk it."

"Pfft! That will not happen," I reassured him.

"What makes you say that?"

"My sister and I do not have any friends."

"Nobody wants to be friends with us because we are orphans," Madeline added sadly.

"That is the most ridiculous thing that my ears have ever heard. If I were human, I would be your friend. Then again...I do not want to become some moron. No offense. You girls are sweet."

Madeline smiled. "Awe. Thank you."

You readers will never believe what happened next.

I felt something prickly brushing against my legs and lifted my blankets.

I spotted a hedgehog.

A talking hedgehog.