The girl formerly known as "Lizard Lips" closed her eyes. She mentally expelled all of her morbid imaginations. Life...?
Life is for the living!
-blink-
The amphibious girl happily pointed at herself. She switched to the language most commonly used by the local fauns. "Hello! I'm Mudpuppy! Pleased to meet you!"
Squiggles became suddenly pensive. She squirmed anxiously before tugging on the left sleeve of Mudpuppy's tunic.
Now, the Commune had a serious language dilemma. Dhar, the fauns, the rabbits, and Mudpuppy all had different native tongues. And who knew how many "tongues" Squiggles [#//] had!
Pun intended.
Nonetheless, Mudpuppy smirked while she let Squiggles lead her (so not a surprise) around to the front of the barn. The aroma wafting from the barn was heavy with blue alfalfa and pure goatness. (So not appetite inducing.)
Squiggles paused before laboriously saying, "Mudpuppy goat water goat."
Huh?
Agitated, Squiggles' 3 eyes all glared at Mudpuppy's face. Then at the goats. Then at Mudpuppy's chest. Then at Mudpuppy's face again.
Mudpuppy's eyes grew wide. "I'm not a goat," she stammered in their reserved language. "I'm not cow either. You can't milk me." Er. Um. "Nice? Nice claws, also too? And...? You have 8 of them. 8 fingers. As in not 10 fingers. Huh. No wonder our numbers confuse you."
Squiggles' countenance looked deflated. She was obviously disappointed about not being understood! Again!!
Feeling a surge of empathy, Mudpuppy wanted to cry! So, she did.
Even Squiggles' now rearward, quadrophonic ears drooped. Nonetheless, still ahold of Mudpuppy's left sleeve, Squiggles led Mudpuppy into the goat barn. They stopped besides Mudpuppy's usual goat milking station.
Squiggles skeptically regarded Mudpuppy's chest before sniffing it with "her standard issue" (and super-cute) nose. Soon, "Her" third eye looked up at Mudpuppy quizzically.
Smirk! "Told ya I'm not a goat!"
What was the surprise was...
"Um. Friend Squiggles? Yes. I see you pointing at the milk buckets. Yes. I'm happy that you milked the goats. ...nice control over them-there claws... Thank you! But.
"Um.
"This bucket. Yes. You seem proud of it. Yes. I'm flattered that you want me to drink from it. But...
"Um.
"You collected some... Uh. I don't like goat urine in my goat milk. Sorry! Uh. It's all yours.
"O... Don't be so upset! Just... Just next time, please, please, please! Please collect -your- goat urine in a separate bucket from -our- goat milk! Alright?
"Speaking of pee... I really have to... And...
"And you're pointing at -that- bucket. Figures. You knew...? Of course, you knew. Your people. In a desert. Herd animal urine is your water — and — your minerals."
...but what about the icky stuff...? ...how does your blood burn that...? "Uh... Are you part plant or part fungus? Because urine is, um... Fertilizer?"
YOU ARE READING
ONE OF D-GIRLS
FantasyExcerpt from the Prolog: AFRICAN PROVERB: THE CHILD WHO IS NOT EMBRACED BY THE VILLAGE WILL BURN IT DOWN TO FEEL ITS WARMTH "It is better to suffer wrong than to do it." Samuel Johson "Damaged people are dangerous. They know they can surv...
