“You remember crazy old Mrs. Smiley?”

“Oh, how could I forget her? Total name-personality mismatch. She used to scream at us if we ever got near those shrubs of hers. Remember how we used to see her out there trimming them with scissors?”

“Well, she came up in my docket today. Her family is trying to get her committed so they can seize her assets.”

“That’s…that’s kind of terrible actually. She was a mean old coot but she never hurt anybody. What’s their reasoning?”

“According to the affadavit, she swears that her hedgerow is the above-ground portion of a sentient and dangerous plant being she calls Bramblebraid, and by grooming it and keeping others away she is protecting the entire street from its depredations.”