The Argo Goes West

19, Dorothy meets Pan, part 1

There was a crunching sound in her mouth. it was sand. The sand got into not only her mouth, but also her clothes and underwear, causing her skin to tingle. Her hair is probably full of sand. Dorothy woke up with a bad feeling.

She was in the storm shelter. There were chairs, desks, and even a pot of water. Sunlight streamed in through the glass windows embedded in the mud walls. She looked out the window. A sandstorm was blowing and visibility was poor.

"Where am I?" said Dorothy, half-asleep. "No, more importantly, what was I doing?"

She thought she was talking to herself, but someone unexpectedly answered.

"You were lying on the sand after a big tornado left."

Dorothy looked at the voice in amazement. there was a boy. He had curly blond hair like Cupid in Raphael's paintings, but something strange was sticking out of it.Two horns and two pointed ears. At first Dorothy thought he was wearing a hair ornament. She wondered if he had dressed up as a sheep at a festival or party.

"Why am I lying down?" Dorothy asked the boy.

"I don't know," replied the boy, pouting his lips. "How do I know if you don't know?"

"You're right."

Dorothy was still sluggish after waking up.

"Who are you?" asked Dorothy,

"Who are you?" asked the boy too.

"My name is Dorothy Abbott. I'm from New York."

Dorothy then explained that she had just graduated from college and was on her way to San Francisco for a job.

"Yes, I remember," cried Dorothy. "I hired a stagecoach because the trains to San Francisco were all dead. I was traveling west with Old Wally and Beau... Hey, did you see them? An old man and a young man with blond hair!"

"I haven't seen them, but I've seen many harpy corpses."

"What is a harpy?"

"A harpy is a harpy. It has wings and sharp claws-"

"Oh! You mean that monster!"

"Harpies are not monsters. They are descended from Gaia, and are sisters to Iris, the goddess of the rainbow."

"I see..." she replied, not really sure. "And why did the harpies die?"

"I don't know."

Dorothy was puzzled and thought for a moment. after that,

"Come to think of it, you said after the tornado left."

"Yes, I said"

"I was caught in a tornado. I didn't notice it because I was in the stagecoach. It was a violent tremor. It's a miracle I survived. The sand reduced the shock of the crash. oh my god thank you."

Dorothy made the sign of the cross. Then she got up and started walking towards the exit of the shelter. the boy asked.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to find Old Wally and Beau. I feel sorry for them. If I hadn't taken the stagecoach to Denver, they wouldn't have had this problem."

"But it's still stormy outside. Visibility is poor and you will get lost."

"Then I'll wait until the storm is over," said Dorothy, looking down at the boy. She saw the boy's whole body for the first time. The boy was shirtless and wore woolen trousers underneath. His legs were unusually thin. His toes were split in two and looked like shaggy goat feet.

"What's wrong with you, that toe?"

Dorothy asked worriedly.

"Toes? What's wrong with my toes?"

"Your toes are weird. They're not human toes."

"That's right. I'm not human."

"What are you if you're not human?"

"I'm a Pan. My name is Giles."

The goat boy gave a lovely smile.

"No way!" Dorothy cried hysterically. "You can't be a Pan!"