Disclaimer: They're not mine sniff. They belong to Paramount / CBS…
Trevis' adventures chapter 19: The dry spell
Four year old Kathryn struggled not to panic as she found herself treading water. A few minutes ago, flooding the forest had seemed like such a good idea.
"Trevis!" She yelled. "Trevis, do you hear me? Where are you?" She heard something rustling in the trees, and looked up and saw her treefriend hanging above her. "Trevis you have to help me out of the water."
"Sure kiddo, here just grab my branch."
"Thanks." Kathryn said, as she made it to dry land with Trevis's help. "I'm sorry Trevis. I didn't know something like this would happen." She explained, as she wrung the water out of her hair and clothes.
"Aah, no problem, kiddo! I'm sure the water will go away very quickly. See, already it's not so high. We should play something while we're waiting. Any ideas?" Trevis asked, excitedly.
"Mmmhh…not really….are you sure everybody in the forest is alright? I'm worried. The water came very quickly." Kathryn wanted to know.
"Yeah, I'm sure. It's not the first time that it's happened." Trevis answered as he hung his head down from a tree and tried to tickle her.
"Hey, stop that!" She giggled and tried to tickle him back.
"Sssssss, I'm Stinger."
Trevis climbed higher up the tree laughing and trying to escape Kathryn.
"Sssssss, I'm Stinger, dumdidum."
"Hey, do you hear that?" he asked.
"What do you mean?" Kathryn asked.
"There's someone singing."
"Sssssss, I'm Stinger, dumdidum, S-T-I-N-G-E-R."
"Oh yes! Now I hear it, too! Do you know who it is?"
"No, come on let's take a look, maybe he or she wants to play with us!"
"Oh, good idea!"
"Sssssss, I'm Stinger, dumdidum, S-T-I-N-G-E-R., dumdidum, sssssss."
Trevis and Kathryn made their way towards the singing. It was a little difficult for Kathryn as the water was still pretty high, so she had to jump and climb here and there, but it didn't matter, since she found that fun, too. Still hopping and giggling, she followed Trevis but then came to a sudden halt. Before her, between the trees hovered a big mosquito. She new them from the summer in Indiana, although this one was much bigger than the ones she knew from home.
"Sssssss , dumdidum."
Trevis was again standing next to her and she tugged at his arm "Trevis," she whispered. "Who's that?"
"I don't know kiddo," he whispered back. "Why don't you ask him or her?"
She nodded and cleared her throat. "Excuse me?"
"Dumdidum,, dumdidum…" Themosquito turned around. "Yes? Oh hello!"
"Hi." Kathryn, now suddenly shy, returned the greeting, as she searched for Trevis's hand. "Who are you?" she asked.
"I'm Stinger and who are you?" Stinger asked back.
"I'm Kathryn and this is my friend Trevis", Kathryn answered. Trevis waved.
"Hello Kathryn, hello Trevis. How are you?"
"We are fine. Thank you." Kathryn said. "Though it's my fault that the all the water is here in the forest."
"Oh, that's all good for me." Stinger told them and started to sing again. "Dumdidum,, dumdidum."
"Stinger?"
"Yes Kathryn?"
"Can I ask you a question?"
"Of course, Little One."
"You're a mosquito, right?"
"Yes, Little One."
"Ok, I know that a mosquito is an insect that lives in warm and damp areas. I learned that from my Mom!"
"Very good, Kathryn! That's right."
"Stinger? Are you a boy or a girl?"
"I'm a girl, Little One."
"Oh cool! I like girls more than boys!" She turned to her wooden friend next to her "Sorry Trevis."
"No harm done, kiddo." He beamed at her.
Then she turned back to Stinger. "But I also learned that only the female mosquito bites. Does that mean that you'll bite me now?" Kathryn asked with a small voice.
Stinger sighed. "I have to admit I'm a little hungry and was looking for something to eat when you came. But it's a little difficult with all the water."
Trevis stood protectively before Kathryn. "You'll not bite her you monster! Is that the thanks we get for being so nice to you?"
"Please calm down, I'm not going to bite Kathryn, but I have to find some food soon. Maybe you could help me?"
"Mmmph…I don't know." Trevis grumbled. "What do you think Kathryn?"
"She seems nice, Trevis and I believe her when she says she'll not harm me. We should help her."
"If you think so…" He grumbled again.
"Oh stop being such a spoilsport, Trevis. I'm still your friend." With that she hugged him tight.
Stinger laughed. "Good. With that cleared we have to find a way to drain all the water. I'm sure I'll be able to find something to eat then."
Kathryn thought about that for a moment. "Maybe we should search for the stopper!" she called excitedly.
"The stopper?" Both Stinger and Trevis asked.
"Yes, when I'm finished with my bath in the evening my mother always pulls the stopper out so that all the water drains from the bathtub. All we have to do is to find the stopper here in the forest, pull it out and the water will go away!"
"What a splendid idea kiddo! We'll do that!" Trevis hugged her, then paused. "Mmmhhh…but I never heard about a stopper here in the forest. I don't know in which direction we should go…"
Suddenly a shadow flew over them, and as Kathryn looked up she saw something fast flying towards them. "Stinger!" she screamed. "Look out! A bird! Come here to me!" With that she took Stinger in her hands and tried to hide her as the bird landed in a tree right in front of them. He was black and big, just like the ravens she knew from home.
"Hey, you took my lunch, kid. Give it back to me" The bird snapped.
"No" Kathryn said angrily. "She's a friend and you'll not harm her."
"Yes", Trevis added. "She was even so nice that she didn't bite Kathryn, so now we're searching for something else for her to eat."
"You stupid things. It's the nature of things that I eat mosquitos and mosquitos bite humans. You can't change that."
"But not, Stinger! Now go away you evil bird! We're searching for the stopper so we can drain the water", Kathryn added.
Again the bird laughed. "The stopper? There's no stopper in the forest. Ask for the wind, the wind will blow the water away." With that he flew to a nearby tree and sat on a branch, observing them. Though it was still dangerous Kathryn released Stinger. "Be careful", she said. "He's still here. So what do we do now?" she asked.
Trevis thought for a moment. "Maybe we should really ask the wind first."
"Ok, if you think so." Kathryn said. "Father wind! Father wind!" she yelled. "We need your help. Do you hear me?"
The leaves in the trees started to rustle gently. Then out of nowhere a deep voice said "Yes, what can I do for you?"
"Father wind. It's my fault that the whole forest is under water. The bird said that you could help us to drain it." Kathryn explained.
"I can surely help you, but I won't be able to do that alone. I'll need the help of the sun. With her help the water will evaporate faster and I'll try to blow the remaining water away. Please wait a moment. I have to talk to the sun first." Kathryn turned to Trevis and shrugged.
Meanwhile the bird was still sitting on the tree and keeping an eye on them. Kathryn turned around eventually and with her eyes like slits, and putting her little hands on her hips as her mother would do when Kathryn had done something bad, she glared at him. The bird grew restless, croaked once and then flew away.
Kathryn then turned back to both of her friends just as Father Wind began to speak again. "Mother Sun and I have talked, she is willing to help me" he said. "But just this once".
Even as he spoke Kathryn, Trevis and Stinger noticed that it was getting warmer and warmer. The wind grew stronger and they saw the water slowly disappear. After a few minutes they saw more and more of the forest appear as the water decreased. Soon there were only puddles left.
Kathryn smiled. "Thank you wind and sun for your help!"
"You're welcome" said the deep voice of the wind and a lighter voice, probably the sun thought, Kathryn. She turned to Stinger. "I'm sure you'll find something to eat now" Kathryn grinned happily.
"Kathryn?" An adult man appeared in the arch that just had formed. "Where are you?"
"I'm here, Daddy!"
"It's time to go home Goldenbird. Your mother and Phoebe are waiting."
"Oh yes, Daddy one moment, please." She turned to Trevis and her new friend. "So, you heard I have to go now. Goodbye, thank you for the wonderful afternoon. I learned so much." With that she hugged Trevis and winked at Stinger and ran to her father. At the arch she again turned, winked once more and than turned back to her father, who asked "So, what did you do today?"
"Oh, so much, Daddy! First there was a dry spell, and then I flooded the forest…."
"You what?"
" Yes! There was water all over all! And then we found Stinger!"
"Stinger?"
"Yes! She's a mosquito…."
"A mosquito?! Yes and she told us about…"
The End