The Wisdom to Choose

It was one of those days you’d read in a fairy tale: The sky was a brilliant blue that stretched endlessly past the metal and glass buildings in the distance; the clouds, an entourage of soft and fluffy globs, swayed in response to the gentle breeze; and the auburn sunlight slowly sifted between the leaves, trickling onto the path ahead of them.

The light-haired woman held her daughter’s hand as they made their way towards the inner city. She watched with a smile as the child, dressed in a bright blue cape, hopped and skipped with every step.

“What’s the ‘C’ stand for, you never said.” Adaline asked, pointing at the glossy silver letter embossed on the girl’s shirt.

“It stands for…uhm…Cap…Caprish…” the girl stopped, her tongue poking thoughtfully from the corner of her mouth, as she tugged at her shirt, “it stands for ‘Capricious’!” she exclaimed, bouncing with joy at her ability to remember such a mercurial word.

“Captain Capricious?” Adaline chuckled, “did Mamma help you with that?”

“Mhm, she said it was whissmical, like me,” Xernia nodded, smiling from ear to ear.

“I’m sure she did,” Adaline replied. With a laugh, she breathed in the cool morning air that carried the scent of freshly cut grass.

“I can’t wait to see what everyone’s going to wear for the show!” Xernia jumped into an action pose, before sounding a whoosh and circling Adaline.

“I’m sure they’ll be just as brilliant as you,” her mother said, picking her up in a spin.

“It’s going to be so much fun!” Xernia giggled, as Adaline put her down.

With renewed vigor the pair continued their journey. The sounds of speeding cars and impatient honking rang in from a few blocks away and the patient mother tip-toed to catch a glimpse of the rush-hour traffic. Craning her neck to see further, Adaline’s gaze fell on a familiar plump man with a battered straw-hat who was tending to an equally battered cardboard box.

“Hi, Mr. Lu!” Xernia waved at the man.

He waved back with hefty bravado, but his attention was quickly drawn back to the box – sitting abandoned outside the fenced garden.

“What’s that, Mom?” Xernia asked, now pointing at the cardboard box.

“I don’t know, dear,” Adaline replied, shaking her head. “Let’s go ask.”

***

The light-haired woman could see the tall sandy dunes blocking the rays of a harsh sun, just past the village before her.

A dull orange glow fell across the brick huts that lined the outskirts of the settlement. A murmur in the air and shifty looks welcomed the exploration party that had accompanied Adaline.

At the entrance to one such hut, stood a young boy with a checkered scarf. His eyes, a deep purple, stayed fixed on Adaline’s layered bow tie.

“I’m going to check in with the chief,” a battered young man said. His tousled, sandy-hair, had taken on a life of its own.  “I’m sure they felt it too, the scale showed a 4.”

Adaline nodded absently at the man before making her way to the young boy.

“Hi there, little one,” she said, trying her hardest to enunciate her words in their foreign tongue.

The young boy laughed, and Adaline turned to the aged woman who was sitting by the entrance to the hut.

“You just called him a ‘tiny apple,’” she smiled and gestured at a wooden stool just across from her. “Please, have a seat.”

“Thank you,” Adaline replied, accepting the offer. “It doesn’t look so bad here.”

“No,” the old lady started, “your machine was quite effective against the earthquake – the old god isn’t often silenced so easily.”

“That’s a relief,” Adaline said, her shoulders slumping, “I’m sorry we couldn’t protect the site.”

“Our people are safe, my dear,” the old lady said with her hand on her heart, “what more could we ask for?”

The young boy dragged an old beaten cardboard box from inside the house and spoke to the old lady – who laughed in reply and nodded.

“He wants to give you something,” she said, looking at Adaline, “as a thank you.”

Adaline watched the young boy rummage and pilfer through the cardboard box until finally, he found a carved wooden soldier from within its seemingly endless depths. Hopping over to her chair, he grinned and promptly presented the gift.

“Thank you!” Adaline smiled, studying the rough cuts and precise incisions on the toy’s surface.

He clapped his hands and spoke to the old lady in his tongue. Adaline turned to her, trying to catch the few words she was familiar with.

“He likes your…necklace,” the old lady gestured at an imaginary tie around her neck.

“Oh, the bow-tie?” Adaline chuckled, and unclipped the tie. “Here, you can keep it.” She said, handing it over to the boy.

The young boy studied the stitchery, carefully turning it in his hands. His bracelet, an intricately carved silver ring, fell around his thin wrist.

“Is that your family’s crest?” Adaline asked, leaning in to see the golden beetle that lay clasped within the bracelet.

“Ah yes…” the old lady replied. She looked past the light-haired woman, until finally, with a quiver in her voice, she spoke in her tongue…

***

“…have the wisdom to choose…” Adaline said to herself, her hand resting on the golden beetle clasped snugly in her bow tie.

“Mom, what’re we going to do!” Xernia said, on the verge of crying. “They don’t have a home!”

Tiny yelps escaped the beaten-down cardboard box. Xernia kneeled beside it and leaned over, looking between her mother and Mr. Lu with teary eyes.

“And they were just left here?” Adaline asked the gardener.

“Afraid so, ma’am,” Mr. Lu replied. “Seems someone might’ve wanted to get rid of em’…”

Adaline thought for a moment, then kneeled beside her daughter.

“Well then, Xernia, what do you want to do?” She asked, her eyes fixed on her daughter.

“We can’t leave them here!” Xernia said, stroking one of the terrified puppies in the box “…but we also can’t take them to the convention.”

“Well, you know Xer, sometimes a hero has to make hard choices,” Adaline tucked her daughter’s dark hair behind her ear.“What would Captain Capricious choose to do?”

Xernia looked down at the puppies, lost in thought. One of them, a tiny golden labrador, curled up around her arm and snuggled itself under her hand. She picked up the tiny creature and looked into its eyes. The puppy looked back into hers, tongue sticking out, and let out a tiny bark. Then, as clear as the day was bright, the little hero knew there was only one choice to make. She announced, “we’ll go to the convention next year.”

“Are you sure…?” Adaline asked.

With a nod, she jumped up, golden labrador in hand, and started walking in the opposite direction.

“We’ll find them a good home, Mr. Lu,” Adaline said, picking up the cardboard box. “Xer, wait up little apple.”

The two bid their farewell to the gardener and were off.

“Mom…what should we name him?” Xernia asked, in between her gentle hugs to the pup.

“I’m sure, you and Mamma will think of something,” she replied, swallowing the lump in her throat, as her little hero led the way.