we have a hope we must defend

The girl gave a nod of agreement to her father's suggestion, of course it didn't make much sense to come all the way out here every day to look after the egg, she wasn't even sure she would find the way again, and what would happen if it hatched and she wasn't there? There were all sorts of predators to gobble up little baby birds, and wouldn't that be sad?

As her father's dogs found a basket and her dad bought it closer, she popped back up on her hind legs and gingerly reached in with her left paw, scratching at the back of the nest and sliding it forward. She held her breath as it reached the entrance of the hollow, her imagination playing a million different scenarios where the nest landed in the basket and the egg bounced out shattering on the ground, but the actual transition was rather seamless, nest and egg safely nestled in the basket so she would be able to transport them back to her temporary residence. She let out a relived sigh and started breathing again, her waving tail a hazard to whacking everything at the same height. "Gotcha!" she almost whispered as her eyes remained transfixed on the little treasure in the basket. She wondered what sort of bird would hatch, if it managed to hatch at all.