Two vast mountains, their summits draped in lush forest, framed the horizon. Nestled between them lay a wide valley—a plain of fresh, green grass. At its center stood a solitary tree, beneath which a small burrow had been carved into the earth.
A small head emerged from the burrow, her eyes heavy with sleep as she rubbed them with a tiny fist. She yawned. Just then, a bird fluttered down and landed on her head, a twig of berries clutched in its beak. The sight of her friend so early in the morning drew a sleepy smile across her face, followed by a soft laugh.
"Good morning, Mr. Bird!" the little girl chirped, her drowsiness already melting into excitement.
"Tweet, tweet," he replied.
"Really? For me? Thanks, I'm starving!" She cupped her hands, and Mr. Bird gently dropped the berries into them.
She tossed them all in her mouth at once, licking her lips with delight. "Mmm, so yummy!" Joy radiated from her as she waved goodbye to her friend, who flapped away on the breeze. "See you later, Mr. Bird!"
She turned her face to the cloudless sky, eyes gleaming with possibility. "Hmm, what shall I do today?" A beat passed before her mind lit up with an idea. "Oh, I know! I'll go diving at the mountain summit."
STANDING AT THE EDGE OF A ROARING WATERFALL, she trembled as she looked down at the long, rushing drop below. "Eeeh, I don't know about this," she said with a nervous laugh, the wind tugging at her hair.
Pulling herself to the side, she began hyping herself up with a back-and-forth drill-sergeant routine.
"What do you mean, soldier? If I say jump, you jump. If I say dive, you dive. If I say spread your wings and fly, you say?"
"How high!" she shouted back to herself.
"That's right, soldier. Now move!"
"Sir, yes, sir!" she cried, charging toward the edge with her eyes shut.
With a fist to the sky, she launched off the cliff—peeking open an eye.
"Too high! Too high! Too high!"
As she fell, her body flattened out, her limbs flailing in all directions. She let out a short scream before smacking the water's surface with a loud splash.
The once massive waterfall shrank in an instant—now just five feet tall, its gentle stream trickled into a shallow, pond-like pool. Bubbles rose and popped on the surface as she slowly sank below the water.
Moments later she resurfaced, paddling on her back in lazy circles. The front of her body, including her face, was red from the impact. Squirting water from her mouth, she muttered, "I gotta stop letting my imagination get the best of me."
As she floated in the water, soaking up the warm sunlight, a ripple brushed against her side.
"Huh? What's that?" she wondered, glancing toward the far end of the pool.
Suddenly, more ripples appeared. The surface began to bubble, then swirl—and within seconds, the water rose into the shape of a shark fin, slicing toward her at an alarming speed.
She gasped.
"Shark attack!" she screamed, bolting upright and sprinting across the water's surface with frantic steps.
"Help! Help! It's going to eat me!" she screamed, circling the pond in a frenzy as the shark chased her. Nearby, the woodland animals paused their grazing to watch the spectacle unfold.
As the shark closed in, its head broke the surface, jaws wide open.
Glancing over her shoulder to check the distance, she slipped.
Flipping mid-air, she flew straight toward the gaping mouth.
With one massive chomp, the shark collapsed into a splash, dissolving into a wave of water.
Landing headfirst, she slid across the water, onto the grass, until she came to a stop near the animals. Arms crossed, face scrunched in frustration, she sat up.
A deer wandered over, chewing lazily. It looked at her and let out a grunt.
"What do you mean I'm being dramatic?!"
From between the deer's ears, a tiny hedgehog poked out and let out a high-pitched chirp.
"Yeah, I know it was my shark. It was a test of friendship—and you all failed."
The hedgehog chirped again, this time like it was laughing.
"What?! I was not."
The deer grunted in agreement and bobbed its head up and down.
"Agreed!? I'll have you know I wasn't even the least bit frightened. Hmph."
Chirp
Grunt
"Hey! That's mean! You two aren't allowed to be friends anymore if you're going to gang up on me like this."
Sensing her mood, the deer leaned down and began licking her face, trying to cheer her up.
Giggling, she accepted their apology. "Okay, okay—haha—I love you too."
As she stood, a sudden gust of wind spiraled around her, drying her clothes made from tall grass and leaves.
"So," she said, brushing herself off, "what should we do next?"
At the same time, the deer grunted and the hedgehog chirped.
She rolled her eyes. "Are berries all you two ever think about?"
NIGHT SETTLED OVER THE VALLEY AS THE GIRL SAT BENEATH HER TREE, HUGGING HER KNEES.
"Sure is cold tonight," she murmured, shivering.
Then her eyes lit up. "Oh, I know—I'll start a fire!"
Scurrying up the tree, she gathered an armful of sticks. As she reached for the last branch, a soft light touched her face.
A cloud had drifted away, revealing the full moon. Its silver glow bathed the plain in a quiet light.
"Wow… the sky's so pretty tonight," she whispered, eyes wide with wonder.
She'd seen this same starry sky a hundred times, but it was so vast—so infinite—that every night, no matter how many passed, she always saw something new.
She leaned back to admire the sky—just a little too far.
Snap!
The branch beneath her gave way, and she tumbled downward. But before she hit the ground, the wind swept beneath her, catching her like a cushion and lowering her gently to the earth.
"Perfect!" she grinned, spotting the broken branch beside her.
Gathering a handful of rocks, she created a circle. Inside, she stacked the sticks and splintered branch into a neat little pile.
Kneeling down, she held her palms close to the firewood. Her expression grew serious—focused.
Suddenly—whoosh!—the wood burst into flame.
"Whoa!" she jumped back. "That was close—I think I almost burned off my–"
She paused, eyes widening as she looked up.
Her eyebrows were gone.
Letting out a growl of frustration, she muttered, "Good thing I can grow these babies back on command."
Just then, Mr. Bird landed in front of her, tweeting hysterically.
"What are you laughing at?!" she snapped, balling her fists.
But Mr. Bird couldn't stop. He flopped onto his back, clutching his belly with his wings, laughing so hard he could barely breathe.
"Mmmm… Watch closely, Mr. Bird. I don't plan on burning these babies off again, so I'm only showing you this once."
She closed her eyes and concentrated. Slowly, her eyebrows began to reappear—filling in, hair by hair, until they looked as perfect as ever. Not a strand out of place.
She struck a proud pose, hands on her hips. "Well? What do you think? Pretty impressive, huh?"
Mr. Bird was silent for a moment… then burst into laughter all over again, rolling on the ground and kicking his feet like he couldn't take it.
"Will you stop laughing at me?!" she shouted, her hair frizzing with frustration.
Mr. Bird cackled as he flew off into the night, his laughter echoing behind him.
She let out a sigh. "Eh… I guess it was kinda funny."
Falling back onto the ground, she stared up at the stars, arms spread wide.
"This is the life," she whispered. "Just me and the wide open plains."
She paused, repeating herself.
"Just…me."
The words felt heavier now. A tear slipped down her cheek as she curled into herself, crying softly.
But after a minute, she wiped her eyes and opened them again.
For some reason, the sky looked… bigger. As if it were stretching further than ever before—pulling her in, surrounding her.
And in that moment, she felt something. A connection.
Quickly, she rose to her knees, placed her hands together, and began to pray.
"Please, Mother Theoria–"
She paused.
That name… Theoria. It had been drifting through her mind a lot lately.
But she'd never heard it before.
And still, it felt familiar. Like something she'd known in a dream.
She shook her head gently, brushing the thought aside.
"Universe," she corrected softly, "bring me friends like myself— friends to laugh and play with. We can swim in the pond, run through the forest, and..."
She smiled faintly, thinking of the deer and hedgehog.
"And we can eat berries together for all I care."
Finishing her prayer, she lay back down, facing the fire.
A soft smile curled on her lips as sleep took hold.
Another tear slipped down her cheek, falling gently to the earth below.