How Summer Lost His Socks (part 3)

He led the way to the edge of the woods, and when they were there Fall stood very still and closed his eyes. He listened a while with intense concern, then all of a sudden a beautiful smile spread slowly across his face.

"Hear that?" he said. "Wild clocks! They ring that way on the equinox just as regular as clockwork!"

Fall raced away heading straight for the woods. Megan and Michael could barely keep pace as they followed behind, but soon they could tell very well indeed just where the ringing was coming from.

"They're everywhere!" Megan laughed.

"You bet your belly!" Fall agreed. "Come on, let's dig! Once those alarms begin to run down, they're next to impossible to find. "

So they all got down on their hands and knees and they dug and dug wherever they pleased. It was very easy! There were dozens of wild clocks buried there, hundreds maybe, thousands even! It wasn't a very long while at all before they had a big pile.

"What happens to the ones that we leave behind?" Megan asked.

"Who knows?" Fall said. "They all just go to seed I guess, but that's okay by me. They'll stay in the ground and start growing again, and when it comes time for the harvest next year, they'll be wound up and ready to ring."

"What I don't see is why Summer needs all these clocks." Michael said as they carried them back through the woods.

"As you've probably noticed he likes to sleep," Fall explained. "He finds it quite hard to wake up again so he needs the alarms to help him."