BRUIN (YA2020) * Writer

I feel the change. Even though I am small and never felt it before. It makes me hungry. But food is getting harder to find.
Things smell different. Damp. Dying.
I have to move leaves out of the way to dig into the ground. So much walking makes me tired now.
The warmth is starting to wane in the light and I want to eat before it gets cold and dark.
There is a black bird flying overhead. He calls to me but I don't understand him. I wish I could be up there with him.
I hear noise. Lots of it. I know what it means. I know I'm supposed to stay away.
But there is the faint scent of food on the air mixed with the foul odour the noise brings. ..and it's tempting.
I walk past the trees, to the edge of the noise.
It is vast stretching before me. Unnatural things move back and forth like ants so fast that the wind they make moves the hair on my face.
My heart beats faster.
So many things moving. I don't like these ant things with other faces inside. They are looking at me.
I see the trees on the other side of the noise. It's not really that far.I have ran across open places much bigger. Maybe even faster..than these things with other faces.
I can do this. I can do this.
I take a deep breath, and I'm running. .
The air tastes funny on the noise. The unnatural things start to change the way they were moving.
I can do this.
I'm halfway there.
I can see the green edge where the noise ends and I'm running so fast, so hard...
So fast, so hard...it hits me. One of the unnatural things that didn't change the way it was moving.
I feel the pain in my head, my neck and my back. For a second I flew like the black bird. But backwards unlike any bird I've ever seen.
I'm on the noise. The faces are looking at me. I try to get up but my legs won't work.
I don't feel hungry anymore. Just tired. And something else.
Tingly.
One of the ant things has stopped moving. The faces are climbing outside of it. I can see they have two legs, not four. They are coming closer to me. I'm scared. So scared. But I'm tired. Maybe if I close my eyes, they will go away.
The tingly washes over me...and I'm not on the noise anymore. It's light and warm.
I can still see the faces with two legs. They are standing over me...but not me...because now I'm here and not there.
They are touching me. Picking me up but I don't feel it.
They are carrying me back to the side of the noise I came from.
No! I want to roar at them ! I just came from there and I tried so hard to just get to the other side. Please take me to the other side ! But they do not hear me. They do not understand.
They lay me under a tall tree. The black bird perches above and watches silently. Perhaps he knew. Perhaps he was warning me. I didn't know. I didn't understand.
The faces are making sounds with their mouths over me. Saying things I do not understand. They open something and sprinkle it over me. It looks like the dried grass on a hot summer day.
Then they walk away. I feel the tingly again...stronger.
I look back at me..but not me. And the black bird in the tree.
He speaks and I understand him.
I can do this...
I can do this...
I can fly.

The End.

*** Author's note.
I wish I could say this is a complete work of fiction. But sadly it's not. Earlier this year while traveling I witnessed this event. It was utterly the most horrific animal /human interaction I have seen and it did traumatize me. The human characters in the story are my son and my nephew who carried the poor baby to the side of the road so as not to be hit again or cause accident with other drivers. It was not us who hit him but the car in front of us. An elderly couple visiting the country who were devastated to say the least.
My only thought lingered on the pure determination I saw on his little face and wondered what he might be thinking that compelled him to take such a risk ,and inevitably his life.
Thank you for reading.
~AD

a reply to: AccessDenied



A sad story but very well written.

originally posted by: DBCowboy
a reply to: AccessDenied

A sad story but very well written.

Thank you DB. It's an experience I'll never forget.

a reply to: AccessDenied

Well done!

Although the story killed me inside a little bit...

Where I live (Montana) I hit 1-2 deer a year.

Well technically, usually they run into the side of whatever I'm driving.

I always hate pulling over and putting them out of their misery... it ruins my week.

originally posted by: Lumenari
a reply to: AccessDenied

Well done!

Although the story killed me inside a little bit...

Where I live (Montana) I hit 1-2 deer a year.

Well technically, usually they run into the side of whatever I'm driving.

I always hate pulling over and putting them out of their misery... it ruins my week.

Thank you.
Of course deer are hit quite frequently here as well. Worst story of that I have was a mother trying to cross the road with two fawns behind her and both her front legs were broken. That was gut wrenching.

a reply to: AccessDenied

A true story for you to lighten the mood a bit...

The wife and I live on a few hundred acres about 1/2 mile from the pavement so we are used to dealing with what logging trucks do to the local fauna.

One afternoon a doe showed up at the house in horrible shape... her right rear leg was torn from her body. All that was left was a flap of skin over her hip.

She made it to our lawn and laid down to die.

With a heavy heart I got the Glock out and went out to do the deed.

My wife is the soft-hearted one of the two of us... she came out crying and asking if there was anything we could do.

The doe just looked up at her.

I told her no, the best thing this doe could hope for was a quick death because even if she survived she wasn't really going to be any good anymore in the wild.

What resulted was one of the worst arguments I've ever had with my wife.

EVER.

When she started crying I just gave up and went into the house, figuring she would see the error of her ways soon enough.

I was grumping around in the house waiting for her to come to her senses when I glanced out the window.

She was feeding the doe an apple by hand.

Now I was crying.

That was 4 years ago.

My wife took a lot of time and energy and natural herbs on that doe.

Now the doe is named Marge.

The third year she had a fawn (much to our delight) that is still doing well this year.

She's a bit of a pet now and sticks close to the house in the winters but she goes away every summer to who knows where.

So sometimes things can turn out ok.

a reply to: Lumenari
Bless your hearts. Thank you for that.
You just never know when you can make a difference. ♡

a reply to: AccessDenied

Nice story AD.... The backstory made me sad, and so when deer (and the like) are involved and I need a good pick me up.. I like to refer to this video.

a reply to: JohnnyAnonymous
Thanks Johnny. Great video .
I debated on writing it or not. But if I gave the little guy anything besides sympathy, I gave him a name and a story.

a reply to: AccessDenied

WOW. Nicely Done. Nicely Done Indeed!

originally posted by: Lumenari
a reply to: AccessDenied

A true story for you to lighten the mood a bit...

The wife and I live on a few hundred acres about 1/2 mile from the pavement so we are used to dealing with what logging trucks do to the local fauna.

One afternoon a doe showed up at the house in horrible shape... her right rear leg was torn from her body. All that was left was a flap of skin over her hip.

She made it to our lawn and laid down to die.

With a heavy heart I got the Glock out and went out to do the deed.

My wife is the soft-hearted one of the two of us... she came out crying and asking if there was anything we could do.

The doe just looked up at her.

I told her no, the best thing this doe could hope for was a quick death because even if she survived she wasn't really going to be any good anymore in the wild.

What resulted was one of the worst arguments I've ever had with my wife.

EVER.

When she started crying I just gave up and went into the house, figuring she would see the error of her ways soon enough.

I was grumping around in the house waiting for her to come to her senses when I glanced out the window.

She was feeding the doe an apple by hand.

Now I was crying.

That was 4 years ago.

My wife took a lot of time and energy and natural herbs on that doe.

Now the doe is named Marge.

The third year she had a fawn (much to our delight) that is still doing well this year.

She's a bit of a pet now and sticks close to the house in the winters but she goes away every summer to who knows where.

So sometimes things can turn out ok.

Wow... that's an incredible story. I got goose bumps all over! I'm really glad to hear things turned out that way. It's a revelation. Where I live, we have a lot of deer. They're annoying when it comes to my vegetable garden but the ones that come through my backyard have become familiar to me. When I see deer dead on the side of the road, my first thought is I hope it isn't one of mine.

Thanks for telling that story.

originally posted by: SyxPakSyx
a reply to: AccessDenied

WOW. Nicely Done. Nicely Done Indeed!

Thank you Syx. It was a great theme to create a story from.

originally posted by: Lumenari

So sometimes things can turn out ok.

I can't believe that I missed this real-life story, and what a good one it was too. Very heartwarming.

You've got a great compliment for a life-partner.


Johnny

originally posted by: JohnnyAnonymous

originally posted by: Lumenari

So sometimes things can turn out ok.

I can't believe that I missed this real-life story, and what a good one it was too. Very heartwarming.

You've got a great compliment for a life-partner.


Johnny

We have managed so far to not kill each other.

Yet.

Which is a good thing!

a reply to: AccessDenied

You're Welcome AD! I had a good feeling others would like this Theme as Much as I!
I'm not even sure where it came from, as it just popped into My Head...

originally posted by: SyxPakSyx
a reply to: AccessDenied

You're Welcome AD! I had a good feeling others would like this Theme as Much as I!
I'm not even sure where it came from, as it just popped into My Head...

Considering the number of new writer's submitting stories. ..it's brilliant.

a reply to: AccessDenied

Brilliant? Naaah. Thank You though! I'm glad it struck a Chord with Non-Writers! I have been gone from here so long, I don't have any idea how many Non-Writer entries to these contests there were while I was gone, to guage the number of them now. Sounds like it woke some people up! For that I'm Glad!!