Had Jessa not been at the risk of anyone seeing her, she would summon her wings and go flying. The weather was beautiful today. The sun was shining, there were no clouds in the sky and it was in the mid 70's. Maybe she could take off if she got far away enough from Fraggle Rock and the Gorg's castle. Jessa began walking away from the rock when she heard the door open.
"Crap," she whispered before jumping into a pile of leaves.
Junior walked out, humming absentmindedly and carrying a shovel and a sack of compost. Jessa didn't want to stick around to watch him plant, so she escaped from the other side of the leaf pile. She kept her footsteps quiet so as not to draw any attention to herself. Jessa stayed where she was as soon as she was a good distance from Junior, though she unknowingly got Philo and Gunge's attention.
"You are in the presence of," one of them began as Jessa flinched around.
"The all-knowing," the other said before they talked in unison.
"Trash Heap! Meh!"
Before Jessa could reply with a snarky comeback, the pile of trash beside them began moving and rising slowly. Soon, Marjorie's face was visible and made eye contact with Jessa.
"Hello, young fraggle," The Trash Heap greeted her. "What wisdom can I offer you today?"
"Wisdom?"
"Of course. You came here for a reason, didn't you?"
"Oh! I wasn't seeking advice. I was trying to get away from the gorg."
Gunge and Philo turned their heads towards Junior, who was still messing about in the garden.
"I didn't mean to intrude on your turf like this."
"Nonsense!" Marjorie replied. "Everyone is welcome here."
"It's true," Philo added.
The Trash Heap then took out her handheld glasses to get a better look at Jessa.
"You're a very pretty young fraggle," she said, causing Jessa to be slightly embarrassed.
Before she could reply, Marjorie noticed her sword.
"That's a nice sword you got there."
Jessa looked down at her sword in its holster.
"Oh, this?"
"It looks familiar."
Jessa's heart skipped a beat.
"What about it strikes you as familiar?"
"That sword looks very similar to the Holy Shazzlin Sword. But I haven't seen a shazzle around here in 3 centuries."
"So you know about shazzles?"
"Oh yes. I know everything. After the war, the fraggles won the rights to the gorg's garden. And the shazzles, well, they ended up having to find nourishment elsewhere."
"I'm well aware."
"You are?"
"Yeah. I was taught that from a young age."
Marjorie set her handheld glasses down and hummed contemplatively.
"Are you a shazzle?" Gunge asked Jessa.
She was silent for a minute, shame in her eyes.
"So that is the Holy Shazzlin Sword then," Marjorie said.
"Technically, I'm a half-breed."
Philo and Gunge gasped in unison.
"Oh?" Marjorie asked.
"Yeah, it's a very long story."
Jessa turned away, the shame written all over her face.
"You're not very genocidal for a shazzle."
"I don't have any plans on manslaughter if that's what you're worried about."
"None?"
Jessa shook her head in response.
"I have nothing to gain from killing anyone. And besides," Jessa took out her sword and held it up in full view. "This sword is usually for recreational purposes."
"Far better use of it than taking the lives of others."
Jessa then put it away into her holster before the Trash Heap continued.
"Do the fraggles know this about you?"
"No. And to tell you the truth, I don't want them to know. It's none of their business and even if it was, they wouldn't understand."
"You said you were a half-breed, did you not?"
Jessa nodded.
"I'm part shazzle and part fraggle."
"A shazzle and fraggle hybrid," Marjorie said slowly. "How about that?"
"You say that like it's a good thing."
"While it isn't socially acceptable for a fraggle and shazzle to start a relationship with each other, I personally have always wondered what would happen if they did."
"Do you want to know? Other than the fact that I'm standing right here?"
"Is there more to it?"
"Unfortunately."
"We're listening," Philo said to her.
"When my parents met each other, they were met with judgment from their respective loved ones. Mom lost her friends and Dad was estranged from his older brother. Nobody else approved of their romance. And things only got worse once they had me."
Jessa tried to not dwell on her childhood too much as she told her story.
"The other shazzles didn't respect me due to my heritage. There wasn't a day that passed by that I didn't get pushed in the mud and called a slur of some kind. But I always fought back. Things always ended in a brawl. But then they killed my parents."
"Who?" Marjorie asked.
"The other shazzles. They couldn't let the union between my parents go even after so many years. They were tied to a stake and burned to death."
Jessa stopped her story there so she wouldn't break down crying. Plus, she wanted to leave out the part about her Bloodlust.
"This is why I don't associate with other shazzles. They all suck."
"I can understand why."
Jessa stared down at the grass, her fists tightening up in rage once again.
"I'm sorry about your parents."
Her fists loosened as she slowly looked up at the Trash Heap, who had a sympathetic look on her face.
"It's been 5 years… since they died and I left the Shazzle Realm. I have no desire to return."
"Fraggle Rock is a much better residence anyway," Gunge interjected.
"I live in the Terrible Tunnel."
"Why there?" Philo asked her.
"Because both shazzles and fraggles won't go in there, for one thing. And I doubt the fraggles would have welcomed me in the first place had they known."
"You don't have to tell them right now," Marjorie said to Jessa. "But sooner or later, your friends will find out. One way or another. If you want to keep your shazzle heritage a secret, don't use your powers in front of them. And the sword-"
"They don't know that it's a Shazzlin sword," Jessa pointed out. "They're all under the impression that it's a random magic sword that I found in a cave."
"But if you wish to maintain your friendships with the fraggles, you'll have to come clean at some point. Keeping secrets from the ones you care about has rarely led to anything beneficial."
Jessa looked away.
"Don't let your past destroy your future."
"The Trash Heap has spoken," Philo and Gunge said in unison.
"Thanks for hearing me out."
"Anytime, uh… what should I call you?"
"Jessa. My name is Jessa."
"That's a rather lovely name."
Jessa smiled weakly while Marjorie sunk back into her hole, walking away a second later. Junior had gone back inside the castle, allowing Jessa to walk across the garden undisturbed.
"'Don't let your past destroy your future?'" She asked herself once she was out of earshot. "Meaning what exactly?"
Jessa then heard Junior humming as he walked back out to the radish patch, prompting her to hide under an empty flower pot. Once hidden, she peeked out to see the young gorg pouring compost onto the crops. Nothing noteworthy there. Jessa turned around and moved away from Junior very carefully while still under the flower pot, trying to make it back to Fraggle Rock unnoticed. She managed to make it a few feet before Junior stopped humming and noticed the moving flower pot.
"Fwaggle!" He said while reaching for it.
Jessa turned herself invisible in time for Junior to lift the flower pot. But when he peeked inside, he saw nothing.
"I guess there isn't a Fwaggle in there," Junior said to himself before setting the flower pot back down on top of her.
Jessa rolled her eyes at his low intelligence but waited until Junior wasn't looking before she could get away. As soon as she was out of his line of sight, Jessa turned visible again and ditched the flower pot, running the rest of the way back to Fraggle Rock. She made it in there safely, landing on her feet after leaping in.
"That's enough gorg's garden for one day," she said to herself while walking back to Red and Mokey's room.
Gobo, Wembley, and Red were in the boys' room as he read the postcard from his uncle. Wembley listened with interest, but Red groaned in boredom. Jessa walked past when she heard Gobo reading and stopped to eavesdrop.
"I have discovered a giant device that the Silly Creatures go in and it takes them up in the sky. It looks like a wheel and stands at least 50 feet off the ground. Out of curiosity, I decided to check it out. I went in one of the cabs alone and once I got up into the air, I was amazed at the view. I could see all the way out to the horizon and the sun just happened to be in the right direction. All I've got to say is never take life for granted. Love your Uncle Traveling Matt."
"New postcard?"
They all turned to see Jessa standing in the archway.
"Yeah," Gobo replied. "Red and I went up there earlier."
"Did that beast try to get you again?"
"Not today."
"He snuck out there and grabbed that postcard," Red added.
"Good thing you didn't need my help this time," Jessa said to Gobo.
"Did your uncle Matt say what that thing he went on was called?" Wembley asked him as Jessa sat down.
Gobo looked at his postcard again for confirmation.
"No, he didn't."
"I don't know why you even bother reading us those postcards anyway," Red remarked.
"Oh come on, Red, you know you enjoy them," Gobo teased.
"I do not!"
Jessa snickered at their bickering, catching Wembley's attention.
"What's so funny?" He asked her.
"The way they talk to each other. It's like hearing an old couple argue."
"Yes you do, Red."
"Gobo, I would much rather eat worms from the gorgs garden than listen to your postcards."
Seeing her frustration, Gobo chuckled.
"Sure you would."
Red rolled her eyes as Jessa noticed Gobo's tail wagging while he smirked at Red.
"Gobo, your tail," Wembley pointed out, much to Gobo's embarrassment.
"What is it with all the dudes and tail wagging?" Jessa asked. "First Boober, and now you."
"Hey!" Gobo shouted. "It happens to girls too."
"Whatever, I'm up for a game of Hidey-Ho," Red said while getting up and leaving. "Wanna play, Jessa?"
"What's Hidey-Ho?" She asked.