Coyote's overalls were two sizes too big, but if you roll up the sleeves and pant legs a few times they fit just fine. Jellyfly had handfuls of soup crackers, which she was currently stuffing in her old ripped backpack. The grownups at behind the counter had kept asking her questions.
"Where are your parents" "Do you live in an orphanage?" "How old are you?"
Ugh. Coyote was presently hunched over, knees bent, gazing with awe at the termites infested in the wood around the garden bed sitting next to them. The two siblings spent most of their time in the woods, playing and fighting off pretend villains and monsters. They discovered the mysterious garden someone had planted deep in the scattering of trees last week. It was their new favorite spot.
Out in the woods, adults couldn't ask them questions about who they were and out in the woods she could pretend she knew the answers to them. I am the captain of the Queen's royal armada, fighting off the treacherous Coyote Clan of the Southern Isles. She jumped off a moss covered stump, slashing the air as she fell. "Lower your weapons and let me board your ship!" she cried to her brother.
He simply looked at her a howled.
"Coyote," she sighed, "you have to at least try to be a pirate." But before he could respond, a loud clanking noises sounded around the forrest. It was almost beautiful, the sparkling notes that resounded from metal against metal. From the ivy covered undergrowth, a strange, a teenage girl emerged, wheeling a large birdcage behind her.
"I see you've found my garden," she wheezed. The bird made a squeaking noise, more similar to a mouth than anything else. It also had enormous big and gold wings, which looked so fluffy Jelly could feel her hands clenching with want to touch them.
"Is that a read bird?" Coyote asked skeptically.
"It sure is, little sir. Now where are your parents? Do you live close by? I'd like to interest them in my arrangement of animals."
"Our parents are dead, and you only have one weird bird." Coyote says matter of factly, smacking his lips together and bending back over to watch the termites.
"Ah, then where do you live, and with whom?" She responded, her British accent contrasting strangely with Jelly and Coyote's American twang.
"We live alone. We're not telling you where we live so you don't take us away." Jelly said, voice sounding more mature than anyone her age.
"Well then, would like to see where I keep all my other animals?"
Monday, October 23, 2017
Thursday, September 28, 2017
#2: Life is a Circus
The tree tops glistened with fresh rain from the sky. Coyote sprinted down the slick sidewalk, his old sneakers barely holding on to his little toes. No socks.
After a morning spent on the rooftop, watching the hurried adults below, Jellyfly decided it was time to go to the park. She was getting tired of stopping Coyote from spitting down at them, anyway.
The two of them dove and scurried betweens the legs of the passerbyers on the street, calling out to each other as they raced across town. At the lights, while waiting to cross, Jellyfly would hold her arms out and spin around in the falling rain. Coyote would follow suite and howl up at the darkened skies.
Adults nearby would turn and glare for a moment at them, thinking where are their parents?, before bending their heads down again against the wind and rain.
Jelly couldn't remember the last time she saw her parents, but who cares when there's a strange animal with orange stripes just ahead of you.
"It's a liger!" Coyote screamed out, hopping off a rock and stumbling towards the animal, Jellyfly right on his toes.
"Nu-uh, it's obviously a tigon!" Jelly replied, smacking her lips together with a pop.
The sound of strange strings being plucked in the distance drew them from their pending argument.
"What's that Jelly?"
"Sounds like some kind of harp or something. Let's go investigate before the free kitchen opens, today's Sunday, Coyote.
After a morning spent on the rooftop, watching the hurried adults below, Jellyfly decided it was time to go to the park. She was getting tired of stopping Coyote from spitting down at them, anyway.
The two of them dove and scurried betweens the legs of the passerbyers on the street, calling out to each other as they raced across town. At the lights, while waiting to cross, Jellyfly would hold her arms out and spin around in the falling rain. Coyote would follow suite and howl up at the darkened skies.
Adults nearby would turn and glare for a moment at them, thinking where are their parents?, before bending their heads down again against the wind and rain.
Jelly couldn't remember the last time she saw her parents, but who cares when there's a strange animal with orange stripes just ahead of you.
"It's a liger!" Coyote screamed out, hopping off a rock and stumbling towards the animal, Jellyfly right on his toes.
"Nu-uh, it's obviously a tigon!" Jelly replied, smacking her lips together with a pop.
The sound of strange strings being plucked in the distance drew them from their pending argument.
"What's that Jelly?"
"Sounds like some kind of harp or something. Let's go investigate before the free kitchen opens, today's Sunday, Coyote.
Tuesday, September 5, 2017
#1: The Day Started With...
The day started with a scream coming from Coyote, his little feet pitter pattering with the rain crying from the clouds above. He's trying to howl again, thought Jellyfly, rolling her eyes, regretting ever giving him the name. She leaned up to unzip her pale green tent, a stench penetrating her nose immediately. She couldn't remember the last time they had taken their clothes, and their bodies, to the community bathroom or water fountain. But now it was raining! Problem solved.
Growling pierced her ears again and Jellyfly was about to yell at Coyote to stop when she realized it was her own stomach making the noise. She squinted her eyes up to the cloudy sky and thought back to her last meal. Scraps of a biscuit and eggs on Thursday for her, that slice of pizza for Coyote. Today they needed to eat.
Jellyfly continued to peer up at the sky, the dark bruises of clouds looming over black hair, when suddenly a loud POP! erupted on her right. She whipped her head around, catching a glimpse of Coyote falling to the ground, a coil of wire from the box on the roof falling from his chubby hand.
Jellyfly has always wondered what was in that weird box by their tent, and now she knew. MAGIC!
She heard yelling down below and the night sky suddenly seemed brighter against the dark of the city.
"Hey, what happened to the powe--" She heard somewhere down below. Curiosity bubbled in her stomach, but she had other things to worry about at the moment. The most important was her stupid little brother and the cool new magic box.
Growling pierced her ears again and Jellyfly was about to yell at Coyote to stop when she realized it was her own stomach making the noise. She squinted her eyes up to the cloudy sky and thought back to her last meal. Scraps of a biscuit and eggs on Thursday for her, that slice of pizza for Coyote. Today they needed to eat.
Jellyfly continued to peer up at the sky, the dark bruises of clouds looming over black hair, when suddenly a loud POP! erupted on her right. She whipped her head around, catching a glimpse of Coyote falling to the ground, a coil of wire from the box on the roof falling from his chubby hand.
Jellyfly has always wondered what was in that weird box by their tent, and now she knew. MAGIC!
She heard yelling down below and the night sky suddenly seemed brighter against the dark of the city.
"Hey, what happened to the powe--" She heard somewhere down below. Curiosity bubbled in her stomach, but she had other things to worry about at the moment. The most important was her stupid little brother and the cool new magic box.
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