Sun Mote Copse Bill Barilko disappeared that summer

It was hard to maintain his composure when he watched with pride as his little sister struck a pose, lifting her noble little muzzle up and trying to stand as tall as possible. It wouldn't be long before she didn't have to try to stand tall- within months, he knew, she would be tall enough that she wouldn't have to be on her tip-toes, if she inherited their mother's legginess. But he did his best, and when she asked a question, he smiled. 

"Close your eyes for a minute," He said. He reached forward to tip her chin up a bit, hoping to gently lift the tip of her muzzle by touching her chin with his nose and softly raising it an angle or two. "Take in a deep breath...An' think of everyone you love. Your Neema, your Dad, Towma, Quetzal, Prim, Meerk, Me," He said, listing off her immediate family for starters. This was starting off as a sort of meditative project- but Bronco wasn't great at guiding meditation. "Now...Imagine a mud monster- a biiiiig muddy mud monster- an' it wants to MUD everyone." He said. "Being brave means standing up to the mud monster- and protecting your family...Despite how much you hate mud." He said.