A Corn Field Of Dreams

It was a warm day, the sun was steady and the fields smelt of sweet flowers. The bees collected honey and the cicadas chirped lazily, as if it was a routine. Despite all the stillness, Vyren was inside, staring out the window. She thought nothing of going out, the air was sweet in scent but to Vyren, it was just another ordinary day. Vyren was a young girl at the age of 14. She lived in the country with her father. She did school via the internet and her laptop. She had few friends and enjoyed drawing. She had always wanted a pet, but her father would not allow it. Vyren sighed, would the day ever end? She got up from her beanbag chair and opened the screen door. It smelt of wheat on a sunny afternoon, much like this one. Vyren closed the door behind her and took a seat on the veranda. She looked out into the cornfield, like she had been doing for the last hour. 'What was in there?' she though to herself. When she was small, her father told her never to go in there. 'Probably so I didn't get lost,' she thought again. She decided to get a drink from the side of the house. She walked round to the tap and drank from her hands. As she was having a sip, she noticed something move in the cornfield. Deciding it was nothing, she went back to the drink. She turned the tap off and wiped her mouth with the back of her chin. The sun was getting low and it was starting to cool off. Then, Vyren had a crazy idea to go in the cornfield. She began to trudge through the tufts of grass. It was cooling very quickly now. She stopped in a small clearing for a rest. The sun was just peeping over the hill as she lay down. The last thing she remembered was the stars.

Vyren woke to a cool breeze. It picked up leaves and twirled her short, blonde hair. Vyren sat up. She looked up at the sky. It was a dark blue, going to black and there were many stars. She sat up and dusted the dirt off her pants. Staring around, she tried to pick which way she had come. It was hard to tell, there was no trail and everything looked different at night. Then she saw a quick flash of purple in the tall grass. She slowly crept over there to see, but when she pulled away the grass, there was nothing. Vyren shook her head, she must have been imagining it. But no, she saw it again. And again. Then she heard a noise. Different to any noise she had heard before, it was like an animal call, but more timid. It was coming from the grass. She pulled away the grass to se a small, furry creature. It looked at her, obviously startled. Even, frightened. It looked to scared to move, as though it was trying to disappear into the grass. Vyren looked into it's eyes. They were beady and black, and ever so shiny. The creature blinked once, then slowly stood up. It was about the size of a small cat, but with pointy ears and a fluffy tail. 

Vyren slowly knelt down. She reached out her arm, inch by inch to the small creature's face. It sniffed her hand, then advanced, paw after paw. Vyren saw the whole body of the creature and instantly fell in love with it. The stroked it slowly on the back. It made a purring sound, giving the hint that it seemed to be enjoying it. Vyren sat down, letting the creature explore her clothes, and climb onto her shoulder. It seemed to like it there so it curled up and went to sleep. Vyren looked at the creature, dozing on her shoulder. She giggled. Then she got back to the matter that she was lost. She spun in circles, trying to figure out where to go. The creature's tail swished onto her head and a small light glowed from it. The it took it's tail away and all was as normal. Except Vyren's mind. Suddenly, she could remember where she came from. She made her way out of the field with her new-found friend.
'What shall I call you?' she asked softly to it's ear, 'How about Aurora?' The creature purred slightly, then continued sleeping.
"Aurora it is,' she said again with a giggle.

Vyren took Aurora inside, she placed her on her bed.
'I like that name, Aurora,' she said, 'it doesn't matter if you are a boy or girl, either way, it fits!' The creature moved its tail in agreement, whilst it was still asleep. Vyren left Aurora on her bed and went to their study. The room was full of bookcases and most of them were about foreign and mythical creatures. Vyren studied a shelf, then found the right book and took it out. It was a book she had received for her twelfth birthday. She had flipped through it a couple of times, but then shelved it. She took it back to her room. Sitting on her bed, she read to Aurora. Then she found a page in the book she hadn't ever noticed before. It was a page on creatures called 'Zu.' She looked at the pictures. There were some small, furry animals that looked a lot like Aurora, but had different tails or ears. Then she spotted an exact replica of Aurora. She read some of the page.

Zu originally came from a land called Zuli (pronounced "zoo-lee") Zu are small furry creatures that live and thrive in this area. They come in many shapes and colors and personalities. Zu are colorful little creatures that weight about one pound. They are very adaptive animals, thus their appearance can vary greatly. Some Zus have long ears, some short. Some have fluffy tails, while others have nothing more than a stub of a tail. Some are colorful, some are dull. Some have exotic markings, others are more plain. They have no natural predators and live quite peacefully for their entire lives. It's quite the boring life, really. You see, Zu are very curious animals. They like to go out on adventures and make discoveries. Seeing a Zu is very rare, as in the 1200's they were hunted for their beautiful fur.

Vyren put down the book.
'Nobody's gonna' hunt you,' she said to the sleeping heap. And with that, she fell asleep next to it.

Vyren awoke to Aurora licking her face. She sat up, laughing. 
'We'd better get you some breakfast,' she said to Aurora. Going into the kitchen, she put a piece of bread into the toaster and pushed down the flippy thing. Figuring Aurora was most like a cat, she got out a bowl and filled it with milk. Aurora jumped up on the bench and watched Vyren curiously. She put the bowl on the ground and Aurora jumped down and began to lap it up.
'Well good then,' said Vyren, 'I'm glad you like it.' At that moment, her toast popped up, giving her a fright. She quickly got it out and buttered it, then covered it in jam. She nibbled it up, then refilled Aurora's already-gone milk bowl. Realizing she didn't have a shower last night, she dashed to the bathroom and took care of it. Then she put on a some fresh clothes and went back out to Aurora, who was now exploring her sketch pad. 
'Hey, whatcha' doing there?' she asked happily. Aurora, suddenly struck by tension, dived to the sliding door leading out to the veranda. Sitting up straight and tense, Aurora's ears stiffened.  
'What have you seen now?' asked Vyren. Not moving an inch, Aurora still looked out the window. There was someone out there, a boy of about the same age as Vyren. She recognized him immediately. 
'Hiya Kyle!' she said opening the door and forgetting Aurora was there. Aurora immediately ran out, circling round his feet. 
'Hey, down um, err.. who's ya pet Vai?' he said. 
'Oh, um this is Aurora, err, yeah,' she replied. 
'Cat or dog?' 
'I'm not sure,' said Vyren lying. 
'Well, I can tell you it's neither,' replied Kyle, raising his eyebrows. He stroked Aurora on the head to show he meant no harm.
'How do you know that?' said Vyren matter-of-factually. 
'Coz I gots one,' Kyle replied, his eyebrows going up and down.
'You, you have a Zu?' said Vyren slowly.
'Yes, I do. And I thought you didn't know what they were,' he said with a chuckle, 'come round to my place tomorrow and I'll show ya! And don't forget to bring your Zu!'
'Why not today?' asked Vyren.
'House is gettin' sprayed, repainted, you know. Too dangerous for the Zu!' With that he gave a quick smile and went back home.
'Well,' Vyren said to Aurora, 'it looks like you'll have some friends after all.'

Vyren's day went quickly, playing with Aurora and feeding her about every 4 or 5 hours. She read another chapter from the book to Aurora, then at six o'clock, which was early for a girl her age, fell asleep. She dreamt of Zu, in every color of the rainbow. They were talking to her.
'Hello,' said one, 'I like playing ball.'
'Visit the cloud,' said another. Before Vyren could see what was inside, she woke up.
'Well,' she said to Vyren, 'let's go meet your friend.' They both got up and Vyren put her book in a backpack. She wheeled her bike from the shed and placed Aurora in a basket she had made. Slinging the bag over her back, she rode off to her next door neighbors. Being next door neighbors would probably be no reason for a bike, but in the country, it was. Kyle lived two kilometers away from Vyren and as far as friends go, they didn't see each other often. Vyren slowed down when she got to Kyle's. She leant her bike against the wall and knocked on the door. Kyle was there, looking around.
'Hey,' he whispered, 'come in but keep your Zu hidden.' Vyren did as she was told till they got o Kyle's room.
'Hi,' Vyren said letting Aurora out of her cover.
'Hi,' Kyle replied.
'I found this book and it has some pages on Zus,' Vyren said. The two of them read it over.
'Cool,' said Kyle, 'oh yeah, I forgot to show you Kayla.' He led Vyren out to his backyard. It was quite a walk and Aurora bounded along beside them. Finally they got to a rock formation. A small creature bounded out. Kayla.

Kayla was not like Aurora at all. She was orange with a furry tail and white spots.
'Yep, she's a good girl,' Kyle said smiling at the Kayla who had just run up onto his shoulders.
'But, how do you know she's a girl?' asked Vyren, 'I called Aurora by the name because it wouldn't matter what gender it is.'
'Well, it's quite simple really,' said Kyle matter-of-factually, 'in the summer months, it is the Zus mating season. If you squeeze their ear, you can determine what gender they are of. If spots come up, it is female, if nothing comes up, male.'
'Cool,' Vyren replied, 'can you check Aurora for me?'
'Sure, give her here,' Kyle said taking Aurora gently from Vyren's arms. He squeezed it's ear.
'Male,' he said after observing his ear, 'definitely male.' 
'So your a boy are ya,' Vyren said to Aurora. Aurora jumped from Kyle's arms and landed daintily on the grass. Kayla followed, chasing him around in circles.
'Looks like they're friends,' Kyle said.

After letting the two Zu play for about an hour, and talking about every possible thing they could think of, Vyren decided it was getting late. She said goodbye to Kyle and Kayla and took Aurora back to her bike.

When she got home, there was a letter waiting for her. It was from her grandmother. Her grandma was a wired type of person. She was very mystical, and liked to tell you your future. She also made home remedies that, oddly-enough, usually worked. Vyren opened the letter carefully. It was written in black ink on special homemade paper.

14/7/02

Dear Vyren,
                You'll never guess what I have! Come see me as soon as possible! Give my love to your father and of course yourself. Take care,
                                                        Grandma.

Vyren looked down at Aurora who was curiously looking up at her.
'What does grandma have now?' she asked. Aurora tilted her head, as if to understand what she was saying, but not knowing the answer. Vyren folded the paper and put it in one of her draws. She took Aurora into the living room and lit a fire in the fireplace. She sat in her beanbag chair and stroked Aurora. What did her grandma want? 

Vyren knocked on her grandma's door. The house smelt sweet of flowers and homemade in scents. Her grandmother opened the door. She had a fire going, despite the heat, and there was another person in there. It was Kyle.
'Hello Vyren dear,' said her grandma.
'Hi Vai! What's goin' on?' asked Kyle enthusiastically. Vyren hesitated.
'Hi guys, why are you here Kyle?' she said. Kyle was patting something. It was Kayla. 'What's Kayla doing here?' whispered Vyren sharply.
'Why can't she be here?' asked Kyle. Vyren's grandma was doing something in the kitchen.
'Grandma might see!'
'That's ok.'
'And why?'
'She gave her to me.'
'Huh?' 
Vyren's grandma came in with a try of snacks and drinks.
'What's going on in here?' she asked with a chuckle.
'Grandma, what was this thing you said you had to show me?' Vyren asked suspiciously.
'Oh, I forgot. Come with me you two!' she said. She led Kyle, Vyren and Kayla into her garden. There was a large field there.
'Yeah,' said Vyren slowly, 'it's a field.'
'Yes,' said her grandma, 'but watch this.' she did a special whistle. A little cheater-like creature appeared and ran to her feet.

'This is Chetto,' she said, 'I found him in this house when I moved in. He was all alone, so I adopted him. I have been breeding them, since I found they were Zus. I gave one to your friend Kyle, when he was wandering round here, and now I want you to have one.'
Aurora's head popped out of Vyren's backpack and then he jumped onto the ground.
'Um, this is Aurora,' Vyren said uneasily, 'he's my Zu.'
'Ahh, you have already bonded a Zu! That's my grand-daughter!' said grandma with a chuckle. She scratched Chetto on the head. He did look rather like a cheetah, he was yellow and had various brown markings on him. He scampered in the door and Kyle and Vyren followed, closely behind was grandma. They sat around for a while, talking. Then Vyren decided to ask her grandma the question.
'Grandma, why did dad not want me to go in the field when I was small?' 
'Oh, that was a while back wasn't it? He did know of the Zu, and he knew they were in the cornfields, his field. But he did not know the nature of the Zu. The used to be quite vicious, but I have bred them to be good-natured,' her grandma replied. She picked up Aurora and stroked him, then studied him closely.
'I seem to remember this one,' she said slowly, as if she was unsure, 'yes, I do. Some of the Zu escaped and he was one. Well, you did find him so that's ok,' she put Aurora down and he went over to the other Zu that were eating some dried wheat. Vyren looked at the time.
'I guess I should be going,' she said picking up Aurora and walking to the door.
'Thanks grandma, see you another time eh?' she said.
'Goodbye Vyren,' her grandma replied, she turned to Kyle, 'you should be going too.'

The next day, Vyren went out to the front of her house. It was yet another warm day and she had finished her essay as well. She was watching Aurora play with a bee. She giggled as he missed it and scampered after it. Then, she smelt the most horrible smell. Motorbike fumes. She wrinkled her nose in disgust. Aurora jumped into her lap as a motorbike came veering down the road. It stopped next to her and the rider pulled of his helmet. Vyren looked up at him, carefully holding Aurora incase he ran out and got flattened. The boy stared down at her. He looked 16 and had black hair, styled like a movie star. His leather clothes looked awful but he smiled at her. 
'Hey girlie, you wanna' go for a ride on me' wheels?' 
Vyren looked at him in disgust again. 'No!,' she screamed angrily. How dare he come into their neighborhood on a bike. He was wreaking the environment, and the Zu! Vyren noticed a small head pop out of a bag on the back of the bike. It had two earrings in one ear and it's head was sprayed all different colors. It had a leather collar with silver spikes and make small shrieks of pain when the spikes touched it's fur. Vyren cared for all animals, but this was worse, this was a Zu. It shrieked again and jumped out of the bag. It had a small leather jacket on and looked like it was forced to wear it. It's eyes looked sad, like it was screaming to get out, but was sentenced to the life it had. Vyren stared at it, worried. The man shoved it back in the bag and zipped it up.
'Be quiet! Useless animal. So, where were we?' he said. Vyren didn't know what to do. She wanted to help the Zu, but if she did, the man might stop her, he looked much stronger than her. She looked down at Aurora, he was making low growling noises. Vyren couldn't control herself anymore.
'You maniac! How could you do that to a Zu? They have rights you know! And they are rare! You don't deserve to have responsibilities like that! You careless man!' she screamed at him. But, as much as she didn't want to believe it, he was still calm.
'Careless? I might be careless but you are useless, just like that stupid animal I have. What are you gonna' do about it huh?' he said. Vyren glared at him.
'You just wait!'

'And he didn't care about the poor little animal!'
Vyren was at her grandmother's house again. She was telling her what had happened minutes ago.
'That's terrible,' her grandma replied. Vyren clutched Aurora tighter.
'We should report it to the RSPCA!' Vyren exclaimed.
'Yes, let's go now and tell the town's vets,' grandma said. She scooped up Chetto, who was sniffing her ankle, and headed for the door. When the four got to the main hall, they looked around for someone of importance, or to tell them where to go. Soon, they came to a desk with a lady sitting behind it.
'We are here to report some animal cruelty,' grandma said to her while Vyren kept the two Zu quiet.
'Third door on the left,' the lady replied, then went back to her work.
'Thank you.' Grandma and Vyren made their way down the hall. It was very posh for a country meeting place. They found the door and entered it. Another lady sat behind a desk, this one was wooden and covered in pictures and animal toys. The lady turned to them.
'How can I help you?' she asked.
'We're here to report an animal cruelty,' grandma said.
'Go on.'
'Well, my granddaughter here saw it, so I guess she should tell the story.'
'Sure.'
'Err, um,' Vyren hesitated, 'do you know of Zus?'
'Why yes, I do. Aren't they meant to be evil?' the lady looked a little shocked.
'Well, no, my grandma breeds them,' Chetto and Aurora jumped onto the desk unexpectedly. The lady looked a bit more shocked, then smiled and stroked them each.
'Are these your cats?' she asked, still stroking them.
'No,' Vyren said uncertainly, 'they are our Zu.' The lady jerked her hand back. She looked confused.
'They are nice?'
'Yes.'
'Ok, um, so what was it you wanted to report?'
Vyren told the story of how the biker was cruel to his Zu.
'This is very cruel!' The lady said, shocked at the story. She held a hand out to Vyren. 'I'm Jodie and I'll help you.'

Vyren let out a sigh. There was hope.

The next day, Vyren and her Grandma returned to the building with Aurora and Chetto. They had a case now. They had help. The Zu might have a chance. When they arrived, a large, white helicopter was on the landing platform. Jodie was there and she greeted them.
'This is the helicopter that will help you spot the offending man. I would come, but I have work to do. Good luck!' she said.

Vyren and Grandma got into the helicopter, carrying their Zu tightly. Vyren sat up front with the driver, and Grandma sat in the seat behind. The driver told Vyren his name was Steve. Then, they set off.

It was the feeling of a lifetime. Vyren had never been in a helicopter before, and soaring above the town was a huge delight. Aurora yipped happily in her lap. She looked out the window and saw a bike. It had black smoke coming out of it. The driver was a man, in a leather jacket. And on the back of the bike, Vyren could just make out the face of a Zu.
'Down there!' She yelled over the noise and the helicopter headed down.

When the helicopter landed, the bike was gone. Obviously he knew he had been spotted. Vyren tried not to scream. She began to run, but then sprinted. Off in the direction of the fumes she ran, Aurora at her heals. She began to tire and started walking as fast as her body would let her. Soon, she came to a forest and on the ground, were deep motorbike tracks, and the smell of petrol was still strong. Vyren, amazed she had even kept up, ran off into the forest. It was a nice forest, one she had never noticed when she had been with Kyle. She and Aurora followed the tracks till they came to a swamp. IN the middle of the swamp, was a motor bike. And a rider. The man. The Zu was on the bank, he had obviously jumped off the bike. The man noticed Vyren as she approached.
'Hey, girlie, help me out here will ya?' he said, trying to smile. 
Vyren smirked. 'Yeah? Why should I?'
'Awwww, c'mon.'
'No!' Vyren picked up the Zu. It purred in her arms. Then, she noticed the helicopter, coming to land just outside the clearing she was in.
'Please girl! You're my last hope!'
'Tell it to the courts!'

The rescue team, along with grandma and Chetto, jumped out of the helicopter, handcuffs ready. The man on the bike sighed. He was in for some hard time.

'And I give you this medal as a reward.'

Vyren was accepting an award from the prime minister. Apparently, the man she had caught had not only shot animals from around the world, but captured them and sold them for large amounts of money. Vyren watched as he was thrown into the police car.
'And don't call me girlie!' she yelled after him. His Zu jumped into her arms. 'Let's take you home,' she said and Grandma, Chetto, Aurora and her walked off to the helicopter for another ride.

'Well, I'm glad I saved you!' Vyren said to the Zu. She had taken the horrible jacket off it, and the collar. Zu deserved to be free. She carefully took out the earrings and hoped that the holes would disappear over time. she ran a warm, soapy bath and gently massages the Zu in it. The colors came off it's head and Vyren saw the colors it was truly meant to have.

The Zu purred as Vyren massaged the pain away. She looked at it's ear. It was male.
'I think I'll call you Kipcha,' Vyren said. She didn't know why, it just sounded nice. Kipcha purred and Chetto, Aurora and Kayla entered the room.
'Uh oh,' Vyren exclaimed as they all jumped in the bath, knocking her in as well. The Zu started splashing water about and having fun. If this was what life would be like from now on, Vyren wouldn't mind. It would almost be paradise. 

Nahh, make that would be.

Zu are from
Background and wheat dividers made by yours truly.

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