Mark ZuckerHamster twitched his whiskers at dawn. The burrow smelled of sunflower shells. He pushed a tiny espresso toward Elon Mouse as he cracked his third energy drink of the morning.

“Drank three already, Mark?” Elon said.
“Drank two, this is my third, bro,” Mark answered.

Priscilla ZuckerHamster comes in. “Boys, what are you up to today?”

Elon clicked his incisors. “Nothing bad, yo. I doubt I'm needed at the White House anymore. But not sure, I decided to stop checking that email. Trump’s got my number if they need anything.”

From the corner scurried Panda Wise. “Morning, mammals,” Panda Wise stated. “I bought some energy drinks.”

Mark scratched notes on a napkin. “Nice bro, what kind?”

Priscilla set down a plate of carrot tapas. “Speaking of energy drinks, Mark, did we say two was your limit? Or was it three? I can't remember. I just know your doctor was worried about your heart rate, dear.”

“That’s his passion, Priscilla,” Mark said. “He's probably trying to take everyone's energy drinks away. I bet you he is.”

“No,” she replied. “I bet you he is not.”

Elon leaned forward. “He might, Priscilla... but wait, may I please interrupt? I need volunteers for lunar burrow tests. One-way ticket.”

Panda Wise perked up and placed a hand to his ear to listen in better. “Do they allow pandas on the moon?” Panda Wise asks.

“They allow pioneers,” Elon said.

Mark ran a paw through his thick whiskers. “Priscilla and I are thinking about having kids, yo. Or pups. Or kits. Hard to label things right now.”

Priscilla smiled brightly. “We’ll call them Little Marks is all I know. And we will teach them to code.”

Panda Wise gnawed through some more bamboo, hoping the volunteer idea Elon floated comes around again.

Elon squeaked a laugh. “Coding is a must, yo!”
“Yeah bro!” Mark states.

Elon stands up. “But really, I have a moon mission tomorrow. Panda Wise, what do you say? For you, I'll even make it a round-trip ticket, bro. Mark needs you for missions too.”

Mark raised his energy drink. “To adaptation.”