Zero Hour

"Zero Hour" by Ray Bradbury is a science fiction story that looks at the intersection of childhood games and the beginning of an imagined invasion. It shows how the line between what kids pretend and what adults worry about can get blurry and scary. A girl named Mink and her friends play a game called "Invasion," led by an imaginary friend. As they collect things for their game, the adults start to feel uneasy, sensing something is not normal with this Invasion game. The story builds tension as Mink's mother hides, thinking some disaster is about to happen, leading to an ending where the game turns out to be more real than anyone thought, pointing to the strong and scary power of children's minds.