Story Time on the Blog

Hey all. Who’s up for some short fiction? The story below was a runner-up in
the recent OWL Story Writing Contest, and it’s by blog reader Hayden.

In Hayden’s words, the story is about a phenomenon pretty unique to geese: “When one goose falls, another goes with it so that they can return to another flock together.”

Enjoy!

The Fall

I watched my companion fall. All my instincts told me to go and help her return to a flock. But the little free will I had begged me to stay with all its might.

I slowly flew down, trusting my instincts like geese had done for generations. I caught up to my tired companion. I would guard her from predators until another flock appeared in the sky. We would have to hurry. It was getting colder every second.

There was twittering and movement in the forest. I became alert and scanned the bushes for any possible predators. I wasn’t going to take any chances.

The sun was beginning to set and a sliver of a moon appeared shining dimly like a lantern. I was hoping my companion would be fully rested soon. This was just the time predators would appear. Just as my companion caught her breath and was almost rested, an animal stepped out of the forest. From where I stood it looked like a large cat but on closer inspection it turned out to be a wolf. At first I was shocked but then I communicated with my companion to fly off as far as she could go. I knew she wouldn’t get far, though. She was still too weak.

I started to hiss. The wolf stepped back a little but I could see determination in his eyes. He slowly crept forward. Suddenly, out of the blue, he swiped at me with his claws, leaving a jagged scratch on my wing.

I flew off not caring what would happen to my companion, only concerned with my own life. I flew higher and higher. The only thing I felt was the pain in my wing. Then I spotted my companion. She was flying steadily towards me. I flew toward her and caught up to her, our two wings touching for a second. Then, as if by magic, a flock of geese appeared in the sky. We flew together slowly circling up to the flock. My instincts said strongly, we would be safe.

Neat, huh?

I like how subtly the elements we asked for are used. (Note: we asked writers to include one item from each of three categories.) The three elements Hayden used were “cat,” “forest,” and “lantern,” and they fit right in without drawing too much attention to themselves.

The story also has a strong anti-bullying message. Despite the risk, the narrator stands up to a bully (in this case, the wolf) long enough for his friend to get away safe. I think that’s a good lesson for all of us, don’t you?

Craig, owlblog@owlkids.com