Submission (#3846) Approved

Nero was always fond of going to the beach. The sound of waves crashing against the shore, the feeling of the salty breeze on his fur and the cold seawater dancing around his paws. But his favorite thing about the beach was collecting shells.

Nero would spend many hours walking along the shoreline, looking for any insteresting shells that might have been washed up. He would carefully pick them up, looking at each one before deciding, with the approval of his little crocodile friend, whether or not it was worthy to be added to his collection. He especially loved finding shells that had a hole in them, so he could thread them onto a garland later.

But Nero didn't just collect shells for himself. He had a special mission in mind - to help hermit crabs, who have grown out of their old shell, find new homes. Hermit crabs are known for using empty shells as protection for their soft bodies, and Nero wanted to make sure they had plenty to choose from while also preventing them from using trash instead.

So every time he found a shell that he thought would make a good home for a hermit crab, he would carefully place a selection of sheels near the water's edge where the crabs could easily find them. He knew that finding a new shell could be a matter of life or death for these tiny creatures, and because he had a huge softspot for many small ocean critters, he took a lot of care in his work.

One day, as Nero was walking along the beach, he spotted a particularly beautiful shell that was half-buried in the sand. It was a vibrant shade of blue with beautiful patterns etched into its surface. He knew immediately that this shell would be perfect for a lucky hermit crab - he was almost jealous that he couldn't live in that gorgeous shell himself!

He carefully dug it out of the sand and placed it near a cluster of rocks where he had seen hermit crabs scuttling around before. Then he sat back and watched, hoping that one of them would come across it soon.

Sure enough, after a little while, a small hermit crab emerged from its hiding spot and made its way over to the shell. It hesitated for a moment before tentatively crawling inside, testing out its new home. Warm happiness overcame Hero as he watched the crab settle in comfortably. It almost seemed like it was waving its tiny claws in gratitude before waddling back into its hiding spot.

Nero often finds himself thinking about that beautiful blue shell, wondering if that little hermit crab has grown out of it by now, maybe it was even passed on to another tiny crab in need.