Embrace your fears

Raka’s curiosity seemed almost endless. It sent her to the edge of the Red Forest, time and time again. She loved the friendly giants they shared this space with. Their reach to the stars seemed so vast it was beyond comparison. More than once, she wished she could fly like a bird, or climb like a squirrel. To travel to the tops of these incredible, towering trees. She wondered what the world would look like from up there. If she would even be able to see the forest floor far below.

She shook her head, racing through the trees, careful not to catch her horns on low tree branches. She raced until she hit the large body of water at the edge of the territory. The water came from further North, and often looked terribly cold. She had drunk from the water, and dipped her toes in the shallow end before. But she had never been brave enough to get it.

It was late morning, on a warm summer's day. In fact, it was one of the warmest days she had felt so far. She was really feeling the heat in her thick Northern coat. She dipped a toe in the water, and was surprised to find it was almost warm. Well, perhaps not warm, but not exactly cold, either. She sucked in a soft breath and wondered what it would be like to hop in. She looked about herself, but neither her dad nor her siblings were about. If things went badly, there was no one here to catch her. But, she had spent so much of her life so far solo that it was almost business as usual. She took a cautious step into the shallows. Wondering if she was brave enough to go just a little further….

WC: 302

"Speech"