Patchwork Universe

Petra · Posted: 31 Jan 2004 11:41 am Post subject: Neighbours

How long Petra had sat with her hands clamped over her eyes was anybody's guess.

Even though the light was dappled thru jungle foliage, it seemed painfully bright to her. She took another peek between her fingers, then quickly squeezed her eyes closed again.

It was entirely remarkable!

Kalyndis · Average Joined: 22 Jan 2004 Posts: 34 Location: Kerya

Birds and monkeys could be heard squabbling high overhead, and water bubbled merrily nearby. A light mist floated between the treetrunks, shedding countless tiny diamonds of dew into the sunbeams that pierced the canopy.

Petra · Posted: 03 Feb 2004 08:03 am Post subject:

A frown rested on her face as she took in the splendor about her. With the screech of a small swinging beast Petra dived into some foliage - only remebering at the last moment to drag in her trolly bag after her...

"No your not stealing that!" she hissed under her breath to the wild things above.

Every bone in her body told her this was a dangerous place - yet wanton curiousity drew her deeper. Creeping along thru the undergrowth, she made her way towards the sound of water. That single sound had a sense of familarity to it.

Steadily she dragged her trolly bag after her.

Kalyndis · Average Joined: 22 Jan 2004 Posts: 34 Location: Kerya

She found herself on the bank of a narrow stream. Trees stretched towards their siblings on the opposite bank, green fingers interleaving to form a fragile roof. The stream ran shallow here, gurgling around and over a jumble of moss-covered rocks before it rushed off into the mists. A tiny blue and green frog sat still on one of the rocks, motionless except for two big eyes that followed Petra's movements.

Petra · Posted: 07 Feb 2004 09:37 am Post subject:

A smile came to Petra's face as she looked at the little frog. Was it smiling too? It was difficult to tell... but somehow it's presence relaxed her, and the foreign place seemed less scary.

She bent over the water to take a drink, and promptly gasped as she spied a watery face looking up at her!

Long story short - after about half an hour of cat and mouse peek shows she fathomed it was her own reflection... it was the first time Petra had ever known what she looked like. She looked nothing like the little green and blue frog.

"ooh what do you think of that," she whispered to the little frog," why I fairly glow with brightness, and see what a mess I'm in - not all shiny like you."

She made an attempt to remedy things, splashing water over her face to give her skin the same glisten that the little frog had. "There... that's better don't you think?"

She turned to look for where her little friend had gone.

Perhaps Petra was not a intrepid explorer at all, or perhaps it because of the overload of visuals quite foreign to her mind - for she found herself quite sleepy. She crawled to a mossy spot under a large fern, and curled up for a nap...

Petra · Posted: 11 Feb 2004 12:24 am Post subject:

The irritating globe in the sky had risen and fallen several times before Petra stumbled across the village huts.

She watched for a time the strange looking people who came and went from these huts, they didn't look like the little blue and green frog either - that made her feel better.

She waited patiently on the border of the community for the globe to go away again... While she waited she picked at her fingernails, which she had discovered got dirty very quickly (now that she could see them).

Kalyndis · Average Joined: 22 Jan 2004 Posts: 34 Location: Kerya

The villagers were short and stumpy, with thickly scaled green-grey hides, heavy-jawed heads and thick tails; vaguely like crocodiles walking upright. Some of them were cooking fish over an open fire, while others plucked brightly-coloured feathers from a small pile of dead birds. Several young ones ran around one of the ramshackle huts, chirping loudly and playing a game that appeared to consist of throwing rocks at each other.

One of the rocks bounced off the hut and towards Petra's hiding place at the edge of the clearing. Two of the children ran after it.

Petra · Posted: 19 Feb 2004 08:51 am Post subject:

They were rather interesting to watch...

Unbidden she gasped as two small ones dashed energetically towards her hiding spot.

It was rather hopeless, not helped by the fact she was so pale skinned (though her nose and shoulders had become pink under the sun these past days), she was no chameleon. Unsure how to best hide herself with such short notice, Petra clapped her hands over her eyes and held her breath.

Kalyndis · Average Joined: 22 Jan 2004 Posts: 34 Location: Kerya

She heard a gasp, a shrill scream, and a receding patter of tiny feet. Within moments, larger feet came running back in her direction, accompanied by sniffing and growling noises.