It was a pleasant, warm day in San Francisco. Despite the similar housing styles, one house differed slightly from the rest. It was primarily the paint job, but given who the residents were, it wasn't surprising their home looked a bit wild with the safari-type paint job.
Nevertheless, the family who dwelled here wasn't wild either. However, they nearly were. The house belonged to the Thornberry family. A few years ago, the head of the house, Nigel Thornberry, was offered an opportunity to do his own nature show.
Yet after talking it over with his wife and thinking of his daughters Debbie and Eliza, who were fourteen and ten at the time, they agreed their girls deserved a more stable lifestyle than globe-trotting and being denied a normal childhood.
While Debbie was overjoyed that they hadn't taken the assignment, Eliza, who worshiped nature and adventure, felt disappointed. However, she soon cheered up when two new members entered the household.
One had been her godbrother, now adopted little brother Donnie. His parents had gone to university with hers and named them his godparents. So after they'd passed away, the Thornberrys got guardianship of him. The only thing they changed was his last name after they legally adopted him.
The other member of their family was Eliza's best friend, Darwin Crawley. He was an exchange student from England, specifically upper London. Since they'd been friends forever online, Darwin's parents agreed that he could stay with Eliza's family till he completed his education in America.
Since it was the weekend, none of the youngsters had school. So, for now, Eliza was in her tree house with Darwin, reading a book regarding nature folklore.
"Wouldn't it be amazing to encounter a genuine nature spirit? To see something only considered to be a legend?" Eliza asked after she finished reading about various water spirits.
Darwin shoved a mouthful of Cheese Crunches in his mouth before answering. "I'm not sure it would be a good idea to mess with the unknown, Eliza. These tales are to teach respect and not to tamper without unknown forces."
Eliza frowned, "I wish occasionally you weren't such a stick in the mud. Can't you even pretend for a few minutes what it'd be like?" she questioned.
"My family is exceptionally sensible and grounded. We don't tend to think beyond logical explanations," he replied as she refilled his smoothie.
Taking a sip of her fruit smoothie, Eliza sighed before nodding. "I understand where you're coming from, Darwin. I do. Regardless, I can't help but want more out of life! I'd love adventure out there in the world of the unknown."
"Well, the rest of your family seems perfectly content. Your parents have good-paying jobs at the local university teaching zoology and how to produce films. Debbie is beyond elated to have friends she can hang out with or hoping to find a boyfriend soon."
"Yep, and Donnie is safe and sound as well. At least my family spends two weekends out of the month going to Yosemite. Which regrettably isn't this weekend. Still, is there anything you do want to do?" asked the red-haired girl as she closed her book.
"We could go on a pretend adventure. I know we're twelve, but if we took Donnie to the park? We could use our imagination to pretend we're in the wild."
"Well, if that's the best we can do, let's do it. But I get to choose the adventure, okay?"
"Sure. Let's get Donnie and make sure your family knows where we're going," as they climbed out of the tree house.
Since Nigel was occupied with preparing for his next lecture, they asked Marianne, "I don't know, kids. I know the park is usually safe, but I'm feeling anxious. I'd feel better if Debbie took you there and chaperoned you, at least."
"MOM! I'm not a child anymore! We can handle going to the neighborhood park without a babysitter!" Eliza huffed indignantly. However, her mother remained firm. They went to the park after some cajoling with Debbie, who only agreed to take them if her best friend Jao could come along.
Donnie merrily climbed the jungle gym while Debbie and Jao sat on a nearby bench. Debbie kept her eye on Donnie. Meanwhile, Jao kept her eyes on Eliza and Darwin. They're under a small grove of trees, acting out an adventure of some kind.
Jao suspected they were role-playing Eliza's favorite adventure. She was the reincarnation of the princess of nature, and Darwin was the reincarnation of her faithful companion.
All in all, it went alright. They even got some ice cream before returning home. They may not be able to go around the world literally, but if you open your mind, you can all travel the world and beyond.