“Well, darn!”

Once upon a time, there was a little mouse named Jerry who lived in a cozy little hole in the wall. One day, while he was scurrying around in search of crumbs, he heard a loud “Well, darn!” coming from the other side of the wall.

Curious and concerned, Jerry scampered up to the hole and peeked through. To his surprise, he saw a farmer trying to shoo away a group of rats that had invaded his store cupboard. The farmer was clearly frustrated and exclaimed “Well, darn!” as the rats continued to scurry around.

Jerry realized that the farmer could use some help. He rallied his fellow mice and together they came up with a plan to chase away the rats. They worked together and before long, the rats were gone, leaving behind a trail of crumbs that the mice were happy to collect.

The farmer was overjoyed and praised the little mice for their bravery and helpfulness. As a token of his thanks, he decided to leave out some of his best snacks for the mice every day. From that day on, whenever the farmer saw the mice, he would shout “Oh rats!” in excitement, knowing that they were his helpful little friends.

And that, my friends, is how the crossword clue “Well, darn!” can be answered with “OHRATS“. It’s a fun way to remember the story of the little mouse who helped the farmer and became his loyal and trusted friends.