She ran across the forest, feeling light, like a bird. Or a crocodile. She couldn't remember the difference.
Tweet!
Chirp!!
She heard the crocodiles. Or birds. They were so beautiful, flying all around. She was distracted. They were calling her. She turned, somewhat alarmed.
What's happening? Is everyone okay?
She called out politely to them.
Tweet, tweet!
Okay, good!! Bye!!
She continued walking, up until her umbrella of trees shattered. She looked up. Above, there were no leaves to cover her. No trees to canopy her tan, warm skin. Nothing to hide her. Nothing to cover her imperfections. Or, just her perfections. She didn't have imperfections.
"AHHHH!" She shouted happily toward the open. The bright. The forbidden. The forgotten. She turned on her bare toes and ran back toward the middle of the forest. She smiled and laughed a little. She danced around, twisting and turning.
Then, she grinned a little and did a back-handspring. She didn't know what it was called, but she enjoyed doing back-handsprings.
"Hello?" She jerked. Her eyes wide, her head twisted toward the noise, she slowly walked toward it.
"Hello?" It was closer now.
"He-llo." She sounded it out.
"Hello!" Someone approached her through the shadows, through the sudden fog.
Through all of the darkness came a girl, a teenager, about the same age as she.
"Hi, my name's Ana. Anastasia. Nice to meet you." Anastasia stuck out her hand. The girl opposite her cocked her head and stuck out her hand exactly as Anastasia had.
"Do you know English?"
"mmm, yes." She said very slowly.
"That's okay, how about Spanish?¿Hablas español?"
"N-o."
"Hmm, well I don't know any other languages."
"Hmmm?"
"Well, to be truthful, I don't think you know much of any language at all! I'll teach you! Don't worry...so, uh, say 'I'"
"To."
Anastasia laughed. "This is going to be harder than I thought."
"Fought?"
"Exactly! Say 'th'"
"Fff."
"Close enough, right?" Ana replied happily.
"Right."
"Yes!"
"Yes."
"Exactly!"
"Exacty." The girl stuttered, trying hard.
"Sure!!"
"Hmmm..." Was all the mysterious girl responded.
"Okay, now say 'My name is...'"
"Okay, now say 'my name is'"
Anastasia chuckled, somehow not frustrated with the difficulty of teaching a language to someone who doesn't know any language at all.
"No, no. My name is Ana. Yours...should I name you? Would that be weird? Well, your name is...Faun?"
"No, no. My name is Rayia. Yours is Ana!"
"Now you're getting it! What's your name?"
"Rayia."
"And mine?"
"Mine?" Rayia questioned, sounding curious. Anastasia realized that her new, mysterious friend didn't know what 'mine' meant.
"What is my name?"
"Ana. Anastasia!"
"So, do you know English?"
"Yes."
"Okay, great!"
"Okay, great!"
"We'll keep working on it. Right now, we've got to move, Rayia. Move." Ana took a step forward to demonstrate moving.
The girl took a step forward as well.
"Move," she stated, taking another step.
"Great!" Ana replied. "Now, come on!"
Chirp, chirp!
What's up? Rayia questioned the birds/crocodiles. Anastasia turned, curious, nervous, and thinking she was going insane.
Did you just talk...To the birds? Anastasia asked, wondering if she was dreaming.
Oh, so they ARE birds, not crocodiles. I can talk to those too, I guess. But they don't talk much. Anyway, yes! My name isn't actually Rayia, it's Robin! Silly! Birds are my friends! Robin did a leap at the word "friends".
I thought I was the only one...I thought I was alone. All this time...ROBIN!!! We have to go! There's people after our kind!
Our...kind? There's more!?
Not now, Robin. Come on!
Well, alright.
Robin, listen, do you actually know English?
Mmm, yeah, some. Not a lot. Clearly not much, considering the half-conversation we just had.
Well, yeah, but it's okay. We can just talk like this for now until you get a grip on the whole English thing. The birds can listen in now, but they wouldn't tell a fly. Right, little buddies?
The birds made such noise at that comment that it could've been a battle. Robin and Anastasia both laughed at that.
This is good with me. But one thing...your name is Anastasia, right?
Anastasia laughed at this, knowing Robin meant it jokefully.
Always and forever, girl. Anyways, I just came into the forest. The edge is over that way, but the people are coming from there. They know who I am. What I can do. My...powers, for lack of a better term.
You mean our powers.
Right. Sorry, Robin. I keep forgetting that you are like me. Like us. A Badalita.
Badalita. Well, I have to say. Whoever created the name for our kind, it's beautiful.
It really is. Now, Robin, we seriously have to go. Come on! This way.
The girls jogged opposite the direction of the shore, the edge of the forest. Deeper into the woods. Thicker trees, thinner skies. Canopies upon canopies of leaves and branches. Above even those canopies were others, more subtle. Canopies of fog and dust and air and rain. Canopies that are filled up with raindrops, and whether anyone knows is a mystery. Whether any normal human being knows is a fact-they don't. But whether the Badalitas know...the world couldn't figure out.
