One evening, as the sky turned a beautiful shade of orange and pink, young Hattie the Hippo woke up from her afternoon nap. She stretched her big, round body and yawned. “It’s time to play!” she exclaimed, nudging her brother, Henry, who was still snoozing beside her.

“Not yet, Hattie,” he grumbled sleepily. “It’s too early.”

Hattie rolled her eyes. “But the sun is setting! That’s when all the fun starts!”

Just then, their friend Oliver the Otter popped up from the water, doing a little backflip. “Hattie’s right! When the sun goes down, the river becomes our playground!”

Henry finally opened his eyes wide. “Okay, okay! Let’s play!” He jumped into the water with a big splash, sending ripples across the surface.

As the sun dipped lower, the river began to sparkle under the fading light. Hattie and Henry swam around, their massive bodies gliding gracefully. They played hide-and-seek behind the tall reeds, splashing water at each other and giggling in delight.

Soon, they were joined by their friends—Gina the Giraffe, who bent her long neck down to watch them, and Zane the Zebra, who loved to cheer them on from the riverbank.

“Can we join in?” Gina asked, her big eyes twinkling.

“Of course!” Hattie said. “The more, the merrier!”

The hippos and their friends invented a game called “Water Tag.” The rules were simple: whoever was tagged had to splash their friends to get back in the game. Hattie was fast, zigzagging through the water, while Henry tried to catch her with his powerful legs.

“Catch me if you can!” Hattie laughed, her voice echoing in the twilight.

As the game continued, the moon rose high in the sky, casting a soft silver glow over the river. The hippos loved playing under the stars; it made everything feel magical.

Suddenly, they heard a loud croaking sound. It was Freddie the Frog, perched on a lily pad. “Hey! What about a singing contest?” he suggested.

The hippos giggled. “We’re not the best singers,” Henry said.

“Let’s give it a try!” Hattie encouraged. “It’ll be fun!”

So, they all took turns singing their favorite songs. Hattie sang a silly tune about mud baths, while Henry tried to sing a serious hippo ballad, which made everyone laugh. Zane did his best impression of a lion’s roar, and Gina swayed her neck to the rhythm.

The laughter and joy echoed through the savanna, and even the stars seemed to twinkle in response.

As the night wore on, the friends grew tired but happy. Hattie looked around at her friends and said, “You know what? This is the best time to play. We can splash, sing, and just be ourselves!”

Everyone agreed, snuggling together on the riverbank, feeling grateful for their friendship and the fun they had shared.

And from that day on, the hippos knew that whenever the sun began to set, it was time to play, laugh, and make memories under the beautiful African sky.

The End.