Solo Monkey See, Monkey Do

[Baiya]

2nd of Spring, 521 AV

Baiya had never felt comfortable in the wilds, per say. She would certainly not call it home if pressed; being unable to protect herself or even feel confident in her knowledge of edibles was a major obstacle. But at the same time, she could not deny that she had a longing for the freedom and independence the wilderness brought. The sensation of rocks and dirt between her fingers was not bothersome, but liberating. She wanted to be allowed to be dirty and smelly. She loved the bugs that hummed through the air and even the thick, heavy smell of stagnant water. These factors combined made Alheas Park the perfect destination for a little sugar glider's adventure.

Alheas Park was somewhere between the prim and properness of the city and the unbridled chaos of the wilds. It was largely left alone to grow in its own way, but the most deadly of the poisonous plants- those that could injure on contact- were clipped away and kept distant from the city. The more dangerous wildlife was curated by the Shinya. Walkways were made of natural dirt and lined with plantlife, but clear from any large obstacles. This particular illusion of the wilds was exactly what Baiya craved.

She scurried up the trunk of a faedong, her spindly fingers finding purchase on the small ridges between the bark. Once she had reached a sufficient height, she turned and headed out towards the ends of the branches where she could get a proper vantage (or jumping) point. The faedong had just barely started to blossom, and though it was a beautiful sight, the many small flowers and bits of greenery did shroud her view from the rest of the landscape. She crawled carefully but quickly, thrilling in the way its thin branches bounced beneath even her lightest movements. The momentum built, though, and soon became overwhelming. At its peak, the branch began to bounce on its own, falling out of her hands and leaving her airborne.

Baiya spread her arms and used her flaps of skin to slow her descent back to the branch, turning around in the air as she did so to give the tree a scolding glare and a firm hiss. For as much gusto as she had put into the action, she was not prepared when the face of her true aggressor was looking back at her. A squirrel stared her down from only a foot away. Its huge bushy tail swiped from side to side and its ears flicked back and forth. Baiya hunkered down and gripped the branch tightly, riding out the last of the waves while observing her opponent.

The squirrel watched her back with massive, beady eyes. It stood straight and alert, but did not make a move toward her. In fact, besides its involuntary tail and ear movements, it held stock still. It was breathing heavily, and she could only imagine the fear taking over its mind. Cautiously, she moved along the branch towards it and towards the safety of the trunk with her belly hugging the branch.

She tried her best to convey her message with her body. Harmless. I am no threat. I just need to get somewhere I won't fall.

[Baiya]

A chatter rose from the squirrel’s chest growing in volume and intensity. Its foot began to stomp on the branch and its tail whipped wildly.

Okay, not working. Baiya tried to backtrack, but found herself unable to walk backwards along the thin branch and unwilling to turn her back on the squirrel. Her only choice was to win the standoff.

She wobbled precariously as she stood up on her back legs, mimicking the squirrel's pose. Her tail stood straight out behind her- both for balance and for increasing her size. She began to work up her own voice, chattering back at the squirrel until she was afraid their feuding could be heard from the city. It seemed that the squirrel was all bark and no bite, though, because when Baiya finally ventured a threatening step forward it took off in the opposite direction.

Success!

Baiya lunged forward on the branch, chattering victoriously. She chased the squirrel down to the trunk and across the branch opposite her original position. All previous endeavors were forgotten as she jumped and glided from branch to branch and tree to tree. The distance between her and the squirrel increased slowly but steadily as her muscles began to ache. She was not used to running such distances, and as such a small creature she could hardly keep up with the comparatively sizable squirrel.

Eventually she lost enough ground that she was unable to track the squirrel any longer. Slowing her gait, she glided to the next tree at a more casual pace. Her breathing was heavy and she knew her legs would be angry tomorrow, but for the moment it felt good to run and be free.

As she began to calm herself, she slowly realized that she had no idea where she was. She knew she had started in a purple faedong, but looking behind her she found endless blossoms of all colors. She turned to look in front of her again, but found that she was uncertain even which direction she was facing. Her heart began to race again. She spun faster and faster around the trunk of the tree. The dizziness didn't help, but she couldn't stop herself. Her eyes glazed over in her panic.

What if I get stuck here? What if I never find my house again? My plant will die! Oh, I'll die! What a stupid way to go!

[Baiya]

The drama quickly encapsulated her. She lay on a sideways branch, her arms and legs dangling off the side and swinging loosely. She sighed deeply, flopping her head down on the bark. I may as well get comfortable, she thought.

It was just as Baiya had almost accepted her fate that she saw something move out of the corner of her eye. Her head snapped up and she squinted into the foliage suspiciously. A predator? No. Well, maybe. Wait! Not a predator, but not a human either.

Her body froze except for her ears, which swiveled back and forth to capture the sounds of the park. She sorted through the sounds of the new leaves in the wind, the ripple of the pond water, and the chirps of birds. Beneath them all, she could hear a faint, excited, and familiar chattering.

The squirrel!

All sense of despair evaporated. She rose to her feet and bounded away towards the sound. This time, though, she stopped just short of confrontation. She watched from her safe distance as the squirrel examined the trunk of a thick, old tree excitedly. What is he looking for? Bugs in the bark? Baiya was even more mystified when she saw that he was not searching for bugs the way she sometimes did, with her agile fingers and pointed snout. Rather, he was breaking off pieces of the bark and gorging himself on something underneath.

He seemed to be enjoying it, as he pulled away to chew and chatter every few chimes. Jealousy surged in her. She wanted to plunge down onto her competitor and scare him away. At the same time, she knew she couldn't actually take the squirrel in a fight, and she may have run her intimidation tactic dry by using a bluff last time. He would know now that she wouldn't actually hurt him. No, she would have to try a different tactic.

She had never tried hypnotism in her animal form before, but she had theorized that it might work. After all, it worked against animals, and she didn't have to be able to speak to use it. The problem would be getting over the mental block.

Closing her eyes, Baiya imagined herself. She pictured her body, lit up in vibrant colors where her Djed pooled. She tended to think pulling the Djed from closest to where it was needed would be easiest, so in this case she pulled from behind her eyes. Even with her eyes closed, she thought she could feel the stirring of the magic within her, warming her eyelids like the morning sun. Or perhaps what she felt was just the sweet siren song of using her hypnotism again.

[Baiya]

Opening her eyes, she tried to establish communication with the squirrel. She chattered to get his attention, and when they finally locked eyes, she quickly pushed with her Djed.

She harnessed her own fears to fuel the emotion. She imagined, as she had only chimes ago, being stuck in the forest. There was no rescue, no escape, only predators with massive claws and angry maws. Her heart raced in response to the thoughts, but she continued pushing. She had never tried to reach a target quite so far away before, nor had she harnessed an emotion so raw and blatantly negative. Even the emotional response she was usually more than capable of seemed weakened, as if the magic shied away from the fear she wanted to produce and stretched thin in the air between her and the squirrel.

The muscles in her face began to droop with exhaustion as the effort weighed on her. Finally, with a last large push, she felt her magic make its connection with the squirrel. She was lucky that he was not smart enough to resist. If he had been of a mind, she would not have been able to insist upon the emotion much longer. As it was, the squirrel stopped suddenly in its gorging. It did not bother taking time to observe the danger; it was easier just to move on and be safe.

Victorious once more, Baiya was ready to leap forward and claim whatever prize awaited her at the tree. Unfortunately, she had tired herself out considerably, and so her victory lap was more like a lazy glide into position. She landed without grace, flopping neatly on her stomach and resting face to face with her treasure. What she saw was not bugs, but rather, a translucent sticky goop bleeding from the tree where the bark had been peeled back. It was not quite as appetizing as she had imagined, but if it was good enough for the squirrel then she was determined to eat it. Reaching out a single finger, she dipped a claw into the goop and stuck it into her mouth.

[Baiya]

The thick sap did not melt in her mouth as she had expected, nor did it taste as sweetly as it smelled. Instead, the sap coated her mouth and tongue with a bitter taste.

Yuck! Baiya spit as much of the sap out onto the ground as she could. Why was the squirrel eating this garbage? Did it have nutritional value? Maybe it was medicinal? It did seem to coat her throat when she swallowed the water.

As she mulled over the possibilities and lamented the loss of her treat, she examined the tree further. Maybe he wasn't eating the sap at all. The sap was revealed beneath the damaged bark, but around the edges where it was exposed to the elements, it had hardened and crystallized into what looked distinctly like sugar cubes or candies.

It was worth a shot. Using her small claws to pry a piece from the tree, she popped it into her mouth.

It was slightly less disappointing than the sap, though that wasn't saying much. Its taste was less bitter, and it did not coat her entire throat the way the liquid form did. But it still was not the sweet candied treat she was expecting. As she chewed, the resin lost its water, crumbling until she was left with a mouthful of sand stuck between her teeth. Assuming the best of the experience was over, she tried to fish the resin out of her mouth with a finger.

It was not as easy as she would have hoped. The sand-like qualities were slowly fading, creating an even stickier mess than before. Over time, her jaw became sore as she tried to work the mouthful. It slowly solidified itself in her mouth, creating a hard ball of largely tasteless gum.

As it formed, she stopped working on prying it from her teeth. She may have come around on the experience again. It became workable, and as such more tolerable as she chewed. It did not have a flavor, but the chewing sensation was comforting. She might even call it fun.

Baiya purred to herself as she reached back for the tree. I do believe some of this is coming home with me! She thought as she chirped happily.

[Baiya]

Baiya pulled two handfuls of hard resin from the tree and held them greedily in her tiny raised fists. Perfect! Now to...

She looked around her. The trees seemed to reach the sky, blocking any view of the city she might have had. Her path here was entirely obscured as it had been through the leaves and branches. The squirrel she had followed in was nowhere in sight, thanks to her own efforts. And now, with her hands full, she couldn't even climb.

...go home. The realization slowly welled, returning like the tide. She was more lost than ever.

Well, she wouldn't be able to walk on two feet with her hands full in this form. Baiya set the resin on the ground next to her and shifted back to her human size. Another positive was that she could hold much more of the goods, now, she mused as she picked up her stash and added a little extra to it.

The other change in this form was that her hearing was not nearly as good. She could no longer tell where the wind was coming from in the leaves, nor could she pick out individual animal sounds. It was just depths of forest. Except for the sound of the animals on the pond, where the splashing of prey birds and croaking of frogs stood out even to her human ears. How useless.

Except...wait! The pond was where she had strayed from the path! If she could find that, she could make it home! In human form her ears could not swivel and her eyes could not dilate the same way they could as a sugar glider, but perhaps that wasn't always a disadvantage.

Turning to follow the most prominent sound, Baiya began to navigate her way back to the pond with two hands full of sticky-sweet gum.

---

The sun had just begun to kiss the land as she found the pond again. As it so happened, she was hardly a bell's walk away, even navigating over prickly grounds and fighting bugs off of her loot. She could probably have made it had she just calmed down, but she didn't follow that train of thought all the way to completion. Instead, she merrily hummed as she meandered through the woods.

The sounds of the forest and the pond lingered in the background, and the rhythm of her feet hitting the ground created a song that she was somewhat sad to leave behind. Even so, carrying a bit of the forest with her was a fine consolation prize as she returned to her path home.