Green and Gray

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten - Adarra

"Hiru!" the woman yells. "Hiru!"

"Hiru?" I call. We've been searching for a while and still haven't found him. Defeated, I sit down on a log and hold my head in my hands.

"We're never gonna find him," I sigh.

"It's alright, um," she pats me on the back. "What's your name?"

"Adarra. You?"

"Call me Ez. Short for Ezra." she replies.

"Okay," I stand up and keep walking in the direction I think I came. I can't stand the thought of Hiru being by himself. He seemed so happy with me, and, honestly, I was happy, too.

"Hiru!" I yell as loud as I can manage. "Where are you?" The leaves rustle above me. I look up to the trees, shielding my eyes from the sun. I see a figure that looks much too large to be a bird. Hiru?

"Hiru? Is that you?" I call.

Suddenly, the figure leaps down from the tree and crushes me to the ground. It's Hiru, alright, and he's angry. Tears flow from his eyes and land on my chest as he pins my wrists.

"YOU LEFT!" he shrieks. "YOU LEFT!"

"Hiru! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I-"

"YOU LEFT! I- I SAD!" he tightens his grip.

"Hiru, I'm so sorry, I didn't- I didn't mean to!" I stammer.

"Hey!" Ez runs over and tries to tear Hiru off of me.

"LET GO!" he screams, writhing like a rabid animal. "LET GO!"

"Get off of him!" she yells, pulling him away and holding him around his chest. Now that he's standing up, I realize that he has no clothes. His cloth must've gotten torn off.

"What are you doing?" she demands as he squirms.

"FRIEND! LEFT!" he kicks at her.

"Hiru! Calm down!" I jump to my feet and grab him by the shoulders. "I didn't mean to leave. I'm sorry. I got lost and then something happened and I passed out, okay? I wasn't leaving you."

He stops squirming but glares at me. "You left. I sad."

"I'm sorry, Hiru. I'll never leave you again, okay?" I say as Ez loosens her grip on him.

"Oh. Okay!" he grins and throws his arms around my shoulders. I feel myself stiffen and pat him on the back. He lets go and smiles at me before turning to Ez.

"Purple girl!" he gasps and turns to me with wide eyes. "Purple girl!"

"What?" she gives Hiru a mixture of a confused, shocked, disgusted, and curious look. "This is your friend? Why is he naked? Why can't he talk? How- how did his emotions change so quickly just now?"

"He's just like that," I say. "Well, he- he's not usually naked." I step in front of him. "But he's not a good talker. He had no one to teach him."

"No talk!" Hiru declares, flaring his wings out.

"Adarra," Ez sighs. "Can I talk to you in private for a moment?"

"Um, okay," I turn to Hiru. "Stay here, Hiru, I'll be back really soon, okay?"

"Yes," he smiles and nods. I follow Ez a few yards away from Hiru, glancing back every so often to make sure he stays put.

"Kid," she says in a low voice. "You need to stay away from him. He-"

"I know, I know," I hold up my hand. "He's the angel of death. I don't trust him completely, but he hasn't done anything bad."

"Has he done anything," she ponders her next words. "Strange?"