Image description: A colourful, hand-drawn illustration shows a jungle clearing where all seven Wombles and all seven Care Bears stand facing each other, ready for a friendly showdown. On the left, the Wombles are lined up, each with their own distinct hat and outfit — Great Uncle Bulgaria with his tartan scarf, Orinoco looking slightly sleepy, Tobermory in his workshop gear, Madame Cholet in a chef-style outfit, and the others in bright caps and waistcoats. They appear determined but curious. On the right, the Care Bears stand in a neat row. Tenderheart Bear is at the front with his red heart symbol. The others include Funshine Bear with a sun, Good Luck Bear with a four-leaf clover, Cheer Bear with a rainbow, Grumpy Bear with a rain cloud, Share Bear with lollipops, and Harmony Bear in calming purple. They look cheerful but focused. In the background, green jungle trees and palm leaves surround the clearing under a bright blue sky. Across the top of the image, large yellow and black text reads: THE WOMBLE IN THE JUNGL
Chapter Three – Recycle Rumble
The third round began with a clang and a puff of green steam.
Tobermory emerged from the jungle foliage wearing a leather toolbelt, safety goggles, and what appeared to be a compost-powered backpack hoover made out of a kettle, two spatulas, and a sock.
Behind him, a wheelbarrow of mystery parts rattled and bounced along on its own.
Across the clearing, Good Luck Bear was skipping in lucky circles, four-leaf clovers popping up wherever he stepped. “I’m feeling lucky today!” he beamed.
Tobermory adjusted his goggles. “That’s what worries me.”
The parrots signalled the start of Round Three, and the two charged into action — one with clever contraptions, the other with boundless belief in positive outcomes.
Tobermory pressed a button on his chest unit. His backpack hoover let out a loud fwoomp, and began sucking plastic wrappers off tree trunks and collecting them into neat compartments marked “Soft Plastics”, “Hard Plastics”, and “Mysterious Crisps.”
Good Luck Bear clapped his paws and chanted, “Litter, litter, go away — come again another day!”
It started raining lucky tokens.
Unfortunately, the tokens were made of biodegradable glitter… and ended up sticking to a wild goat.
Tobermory groaned, twisted a dial, and deployed a fleet of tiny wind-up robots made from bottle tops and coat hangers. They skittered off into the trees, sweeping up bottle caps and making polite beeping noises at confused toucans.
Meanwhile, Good Luck Bear tried to help a family of raccoons untangle themselves from an old hammock — only to sneeze, trip, and accidentally roll into a compost heap. The raccoons applauded.
Tobermory raised an eyebrow. “Was that intentional?”
“Of course,” grinned Good Luck Bear, emerging with a pineapple rind hat. “I just let the universe guide me.”
As the round continued, Tobermory constructed a litter-sorting jungle machine using bamboo pipes and coconut oil. He even welded together an upcycled hammock-chair for an elderly sloth, who sighed in delight.
Good Luck Bear, meanwhile, managed to turn a cluster of soda bottles into a flower fountain by bouncing on a trampoline made of string and luck.
When the parrots signalled the end of the round, the clearing was a bizarre mix of tidy brilliance and unexpected beauty.
“You’re dangerously disorganised,” muttered Tobermory.
“And you’re the most organised genius I’ve ever accidentally rolled into,” said Good Luck Bear with a wink.
They shook paws, surrounded by the buzzing of satisfied robots and one raccoon playing a kazoo made from a drinking straw.
The jungle was changing — not just cleaner, but weirder in a wonderful way.
Three rounds down. Four to go.
Blind Man Makes 