Young rabbit Toby loves walks through the snowy forest. In winter, as soon as the first snow falls, he runs to put on his favourite little boots and white coat to head out for a walk. Toby never stays home all day, but his forest friends—hedgehog Sasha and squirrel Masha—don't enjoy going for walks.
Sasha can watch cartoons for days without leaving the house, and Masha can play with toys indoors and not even notice when the day passes. It's hard to convince these friends to go for a walk even in summer, and in winter, when the frost nips at your cheeks, it's even harder!
Toby is always very sad that his forest friends miss out on the most fun winter games and stay at home. He often tells them:
Guys, you have no idea how amazing it is outside in winter!
It's cold outside in winter, not amazing," grumbles hedgehog Sasha in response.
And why play outside when you can stay home? There are more toys there, and it's warmer," echoes squirrel Masha.
The little rabbit felt discouraged time and again, but then he came up with a plan to lure his friends out of the house and show them all the wonders of winter. He proposed a wager to the animals:
Let's play snowball! If anyone gets cold or isn't having fun, I won't ask you to go for walks anymore. You can stay home and watch cartoons, but if you like it, we'll go out every day.
You're always coming up with something, Toby! I agree because I'm sure I'll freeze!" said Sasha.
I agree too, because it can't possibly be more fun outside than at home," added Masha.
Just promise to dress warmly and don't forget to bring a good mood, or nothing will work out," said Toby and looked carefully at his friends.
We promise," agreed the animals.
They decided to play snowball the next day after the argument. Toby personally made sure his friends wore warm mittens and didn't forget their hats. Outside, the sun was shining and the snow was fluffy and soft, perfect for a fun winter game!
The animals gathered in a large forest clearing, and rabbit Toby said:
The rules are simple: everyone plays for themselves, and whoever stays the driest by the end of the game wins.
Hedgehog Sasha and squirrel Masha weren't in a hurry to start. Sasha even began to get a bit cold, and Masha got bored. Suddenly, a snowball whizzed right past Masha's hat. She even cried out in surprise. And she wanted so badly to catch up with the rabbit and hit him with a snowball that her boredom quickly disappeared and she ran toward Toby shouting: "Attack!"
The hedgehog was getting colder and was about to head home when a perfectly round snowball landed right on his spines. Masha had hit her mark. Then rabbit Toby ran right up to the hedgehog and said:
Hedgehog, don't fall asleep—you'll freeze! Let's team up and chase Masha!
Let's go," snorted the hedgehog and joined the game too.
The animals ran around the snowy clearing for a long time, sometimes playing individually, sometimes teaming up in pairs. When everyone was out of breath and the game was coming to an end, they couldn't determine a winner because the three friends, in their joy, dove into the snow and now everyone was equally wet!
Wow, that was so much fun!" said the hedgehog, getting up from the snowdrift.
That's okay, I'll get my revenge tomorrow," replied the squirrel.
Guys, I'm so happy you enjoyed playing snowball! Let's build a snow fort tomorrow and play in it!" said rabbit Toby enthusiastically.
Let's do it!" shouted Sasha and Masha together.
Now it's time to dry off," suggested the rabbit, and the animals headed home.
Throughout the rest of the winter, the animals played together. Toby was happy that his friends now loved winter too. And Sasha and Masha remembered that first snowball game for a long time, because it was much more interesting than cartoons and toys, and most importantly, nobody froze!
