Reddin darted forward, antennae quivering, as he nudged a crumb toward the balcony’s brink. Jo Black intercepted with deft mandibles, flicking the crumb back toward Reddin, their game a gleeful dance of agility. Nearby, Zenki, a curious three-year-old boy with tousled hair and wide eyes, crouched behind a clay pot, watching the ants’ antics with delight. "You two are so funny! Don’t let it fall!"

Zenki reached to steady his bottle, but it toppled, glugging water across the tiles in a miniature tidal wave. Reddin and Jo Black scrambled, their legs slipping as the flood swept them toward the metal drain. "No, no, no! Watch out!" The water swept in, carrying both ants—and, to his horror, Zenki’s favorite bottle—straight into the darkness below.

Reddin grabbed onto Jo Black as they tumbled together, their bodies pressed close in the current. Eyes glowing like paired headlamps in the shadows, they clung to a stray root jutting from the pipe. "Reddin, I can’t hold on much longer—my legs are slipping!" But the torrent was relentless, and with a shuddering pull, it wrenched them free, spinning them deeper into the labyrinth of pipes.

Jo Black splashed down first, her tiny body limp as she fainted from the chaos. Reddin, dazed but determined, paddled desperately to reach her. Suddenly, with a wet slap, a slick green lizard—Zippy—plummeted from the wall above, jaws wide for a snack. "Hold on, Jo! I’ve got you—watch out above!"

All three—Reddin, Jo Black, and Zippy—spill out, tumbling through the grass. As Jo Black comes to, Zippy gives chase, his tongue flicking and eyes fixed hungrily. Reddin and Jo Black zigzag between towering blades, hearts pounding. "He’s right behind us! Split up—maybe we can lose him!"

Reddin spots the jar and, in a desperate bid to evade Zippy, motions for Jo Black to follow. But in his haste, he accidentally traps Jo Black inside, the glass glinting with sunlight as Zippy pauses outside, uncertain. "Jo, I’m so sorry—I didn’t mean—wait, Zippy’s stopping. Maybe… just maybe, he’s not so bad after all?" Zippy lingers, his gaze softening, hinting at a redemption yet to come as the scene fades to the promise of another adventure.