question that had been at the forefront of her mind interrupted her train of thought.
“Do you have a name? Or should I keep calling you Lark?”
In a flash he flew off the branch. She was concerned at first and thought about going after him. Almost as quickly as he left he returned holding small twigs in his beak. With a focused concentration he meticulously set them down and arranged them on the rock. When he was finished with his work, he looked to her and then looked to his masterpiece as if to tell her something. He nudged his head in the direction of his twigs. She moved closer so she could get a better look at what he had made. There before her on the boulder was the word Kai.
“Your name is Kai?”
He chirped and flapped his wings as if to say ‘Finally!’
“What a beautiful name! I’ll try my best to remember to call you that, although it will be hard to train myself not to call you Lark,” she teased. “Where to now? Sleeping on a rock is n’t really a good option for me. I like to toss and turn.”
He motioned with his head to the area behind her. And when she turned, she saw the dim lights of small buildings dotting the hills not too far from where they were.
“This is so exciting! I’ll get to see real people and a real city. Oh, how romantic. I’ve dreamed of going somewhere like this for so long.”
She quickly climbed down the boulder and headed in the direction of the lights. The closer they got, the louder a strange sound became. Sollara glanced around her, worried about what could be causing the noise. They passed through the last of the trees and into an open clearing. There they saw the creators of the mysterious sound.
“Sheep!” she yelled, giddy with excitement as she clumsily climbed a fence to go pet them. Kai fluttered behind. The clanging bells on the collars of the sheep had caused her mystery sound. She was excited for two reasons: one, to have cracked the mystery and two, she wanted so desperately to run her fingers through their woolly coats. She tried frantically to catch one so she could do just that, but they kept running away.
After several failed attempts, Sollara flopped to the ground exhausted, crossed her arms and legs and pouted in foolish frustration. Kai was obnoxiously chirping and hopping on the ground. It sounded to her like a hysterical fit of bird laughter, taunting her failed attempt.
A gentle nudge distracted her from her inner turmoil, and she looked down to see a little ewe nuzzle into the nook of her arm. She shot an “I told you so” look at Kai before turning back to the baby ewe. Her fingers made their way to its head and rubbed down the neck of the lamb. Its coat was surprisingly coarse. With a sense of peace and great contentment, Sollara played with the lamb until Kai once again started flying into her back, pressing them to keep moving. She reluctantly said goodbye and followed after him.
It wasn’t long before they came to a large wooden sign that had the painted word, Atxondo.
Atxondo was picturesque. From what she could see in the twilight, it had rolling, tree-covered hills, and every now and then there would be a quaint little home or farm outbuilding. Sheep were scattered across the fields, and other than the sound of their bells, it was quiet. Almost every building they passed was adorned with beautiful scalloped woodwork and paintings of flowers.
They soon came upon a large stone building by the side of the road. The surface of the old building was covered in warm, earth-toned stones that had been washed smooth by time. A large, arched double door was centered perfectly at the building’s front. The brown wooden windows were accented with dark brown painted shutters and a clay-tiled roof. To Sollara it was perfect, what she had always imagined a home should look like.
The large sign on the front said, “Goikoa Inn.”
“Please Lark. Err, uh, Kai, please can we stay here?” He answered her by
“Do you have a name? Or should I keep calling you Lark?”
In a flash he flew off the branch. She was concerned at first and thought about going after him. Almost as quickly as he left he returned holding small twigs in his beak. With a focused concentration he meticulously set them down and arranged them on the rock. When he was finished with his work, he looked to her and then looked to his masterpiece as if to tell her something. He nudged his head in the direction of his twigs. She moved closer so she could get a better look at what he had made. There before her on the boulder was the word Kai.
“Your name is Kai?”
He chirped and flapped his wings as if to say ‘Finally!’
“What a beautiful name! I’ll try my best to remember to call you that, although it will be hard to train myself not to call you Lark,” she teased. “Where to now? Sleeping on a rock is n’t really a good option for me. I like to toss and turn.”
He motioned with his head to the area behind her. And when she turned, she saw the dim lights of small buildings dotting the hills not too far from where they were.
“This is so exciting! I’ll get to see real people and a real city. Oh, how romantic. I’ve dreamed of going somewhere like this for so long.”
She quickly climbed down the boulder and headed in the direction of the lights. The closer they got, the louder a strange sound became. Sollara glanced around her, worried about what could be causing the noise. They passed through the last of the trees and into an open clearing. There they saw the creators of the mysterious sound.
“Sheep!” she yelled, giddy with excitement as she clumsily climbed a fence to go pet them. Kai fluttered behind. The clanging bells on the collars of the sheep had caused her mystery sound. She was excited for two reasons: one, to have cracked the mystery and two, she wanted so desperately to run her fingers through their woolly coats. She tried frantically to catch one so she could do just that, but they kept running away.
After several failed attempts, Sollara flopped to the ground exhausted, crossed her arms and legs and pouted in foolish frustration. Kai was obnoxiously chirping and hopping on the ground. It sounded to her like a hysterical fit of bird laughter, taunting her failed attempt.
A gentle nudge distracted her from her inner turmoil, and she looked down to see a little ewe nuzzle into the nook of her arm. She shot an “I told you so” look at Kai before turning back to the baby ewe. Her fingers made their way to its head and rubbed down the neck of the lamb. Its coat was surprisingly coarse. With a sense of peace and great contentment, Sollara played with the lamb until Kai once again started flying into her back, pressing them to keep moving. She reluctantly said goodbye and followed after him.
It wasn’t long before they came to a large wooden sign that had the painted word, Atxondo.
Atxondo was picturesque. From what she could see in the twilight, it had rolling, tree-covered hills, and every now and then there would be a quaint little home or farm outbuilding. Sheep were scattered across the fields, and other than the sound of their bells, it was quiet. Almost every building they passed was adorned with beautiful scalloped woodwork and paintings of flowers.
They soon came upon a large stone building by the side of the road. The surface of the old building was covered in warm, earth-toned stones that had been washed smooth by time. A large, arched double door was centered perfectly at the building’s front. The brown wooden windows were accented with dark brown painted shutters and a clay-tiled roof. To Sollara it was perfect, what she had always imagined a home should look like.
The large sign on the front said, “Goikoa Inn.”
“Please Lark. Err, uh, Kai, please can we stay here?” He answered her by
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