Chapter 11: The Caterpillar

As the two blondes grumbled and rung out their clothes, they looked up and saw another strange sight. They saw multi-colored clouds fly overhead, but they were all shaped like vowels! A, E, I, O, U, and Y

"What do you think of that?" Alice asked.

Alex replied by singing. "Well, I think I've seen about everything, when I see a vowel in the sky!"

Alice giggled at Alex's joke and got up. After Alex finished ringing out his shirt, he got up also.

"Let's go see where those clouds are coming from…" Alex suggested.

Alice nodded and led the way. After climbing over large types of foliage and plants, they came to yet another unusual sight. What they saw was a large blue caterpillar leaning on a plant as it lay on a Mushroom. He was blowing smoke vowels into the sky as he smoked an unusual item. Alex wasn't really sure WHAT he was smoking, but he WAS sure that he didn't want to find out.

Alice drew closer to the Caterpillar as Alex reluctantly followed her. They climbed up on a small mushroom and leaned on the side of the Caterpillars mushroom. The Caterpillar hadn't noticed his visitors and continued blowing smoke vowels into the sky. After a little while the Caterpillar finally noticed the two blondes staring at him, and addressed them in a languid, sleepy voice.

"WHO are you?" He asked, blowing a smoke 'R' and 'U' in the process.

Wasn't really the best way to start a conversation but they went with it.

"I'm…not really sure anymore…" Alex replied.

"We've changed so many times since this morning, you see..." Alice added.

"I do not see." The Caterpillar said, blowing a smoke 'C' "Explain yourselves…"

"Well, it's kinda hard to explain ourselves since we're not really feeling ourselves, you know?" Alex asked.

"I do not know." The Caterpillar replied.

"We can't put it any more clearer because it isn't clear to us!" Alice said.

"You? WHO are you?" The Caterpillar asked, blowing smoke in their faces.

The two coughed and wheezed when the smoke got in their face.

"Well, don't you think you ought to tell us- cough-cough, cough-cough, WHO you are first?" Alice coughed.

"Why?" The Caterpillar asked, blowing a smoke 'Y'

Alex groaned and smacked his head on the Mushroom.

"Why do ya gotta make this difficult??" Alex asked.

"Oh dear, everything is so confusing…" Alice sighed.

"It is not." The Caterpillar replied to Alice's statement.

"Well it is to me!" Alice stated.

"Why?" The Caterpillar asked, blowing another smoke 'Y'

Alice sighed again. "Well, I can't remember things as I used to, and..."

"Recite." The Caterpillar interrupted.

Alex gave off a confused look, but Alice seemed to know what he was talking about.

"Oh! Oh, oh, yes, sir!" Alice curtseyed "Um... how doth the little busy bee, improve each shi..."

"STOP! The Caterpillar interrupted again. "That is not spoken correcitically. It goes…"

The Caterpillar inhaled deeply on his strange pipe.

"How doth the little crocodile improve his shining tail. And pour the waters of the Nile, on every golden scale. How cheerfully he seems to grin, how neatly spreads his claws. And welcomes little fishes in, with gently smiling jaws."

Alex was now more confused than ever.

"Well I must say I've never heard it that way before..." Alice commented.

"I've never heard it period." Alex admitted, rubbing one of his arms.

"I know, I have improved it." The Caterpillar said, blowing more smoke in their faces.

"Well, cough-cough-cough, if you ask me..." Alex began.

"You? Huh, WHO are you???" The Caterpillar asked, blowing a large amount of smoke into their faces.

The two coughed and gasped for air, Alice sneezed and blew herself and Alex off the mushroom. Alice saw that she was once again sitting on him. She quickly got up before shooting the Caterpillar a glare and storming off. Alex followed behind with another glare to the Caterpillar.

The Caterpillar looked shocked at their leaving.

"You two! Wait! Come back!" He called.

The two blondes ignored his cried and continued on their way. The Caterpillar climbed up on a high plant and spotted them a good distance away.

"I HAVE SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO SAY!!!" The Caterpillar called form up top his perch.

The two stopped at the Caterpillars last call. Alice looked at Alex, as if asking him his take on the situation. Alex only shrugged.

"We might as well go back… he may actually have something worth hearing…" Alex shrugged.

With that, the two blondes slowly made their way back to the Caterpillar.

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Authors Note: I'll be shocked if you didn't get the Dumbo reference I threw in there... Well, you all know the drill, R&R