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I would say this one is "Surrealist Lite," since it has one surreal element that everything else revolves around.
This was made for the Thursday Prompt held by Poetigress, located here:
http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/2017718/
The prompt for this week was "in disguise"
On a rainy night in August, Mika’s contagious imagination was unleashed upon the town. She made a promise to herself on her 18th birthday that she would never allow her creativity to go to waste. Over one year later, she had managed to keep that promise.
At 6:57pm, the rain started its downpour with such a burst of energy that it felt as though the heavens had opened up. At the sight of the precious release of skyfell nectar, Mika jumped up from her college reading, donned her now-famous suit and flip-flopped outside.
Residents of the small community on the outskirts of Austin knew rain this strong would most likely flood low-lying roads, so many stayed inside. But a few people along the road to Willows Park expected a special visitor to frequent the area during the storm.
Juan, the proprietor of the convenience store at the edge of the residential district, made a bet to himself to see if he could determine when the girl would arrive. He guessed fifteen minutes.
At fourteen minutes and thirty-three seconds, Juan, and the two customers in his store (Mrs. Wimberly the dog trainer and Mr. Soto the delivery man) spotted a yellow flash hopping its way through the puddles in the park across the street. The large flippers on the feet of the figure kicked up waves of water near the swing sets as the girl stood in the rain and caught it between her upraised webbed hands. Her body was sleek and bright, like skin made out of a water-repellant raincoat. Her eyes and nose were the only visible parts of her face inside the maw of the mouth-shaped hood with its bulging eyes staring out into the world. She hopped and jumped and bounced across the playground, all the while reveling in her performance as she turned and bowed in all four directions. She knew she was entertaining her watchers, even if they preferred to stay inside.
“Who is that?” Mr. Soto asked as he put down his newspaper on the breakfast table near the storefront window.
“That’s Dewdrop,” Juan said, as his eyes remained aglow at the mention of the name. “She’s the sweetest frog you’ll ever meet near Willows Park.”
Mr. Soto looked at the store owner with incredulity before posing another question.
“As in a real frog, five feet tall?”
Juan shot Mr. Soto a look framed by a narrowed brow. “No, of course not. Dewdrop is a Flipper. That means she flips and jumps from her world to ours, but it only happens during rainstorms because Flippers need water on their skin to fill them with energy.”
Mrs. Wimberly started at the splashing Flipper girl wading through the growing puddles of the park. Mr. Soto softened his gaze a bit as he asked the next question.
“So…did she tell you this?”
“Oh yeah,” Juan smiled matter-of-factly. “She always comes in here when she’s done exploring so she can tell me her adventures. Mika once told me Dewdrop and her formed their partnership because they had made a promise never to leave each other, despite college, boyfriends, or even marriage.”
Mr. Soto nodded. “I think I get it now…”
And Mrs. Wimberly interrupted. “It’s unhealthy.” The two men remained silent at the elderly woman’s comment. “A mind wasting itself away in delusion.”
“It’s not delusion, Mrs. Wimberly,” Juan said. Though his voice was even, his eyes were rough and locked upon the customer. “Dewdrop has been coming out in rainstorms for almost thirteen months now during nearly every downpour. Ever since her friendship started with Mika, the girl has been writing amazing stories about Dewdrop’s world, including how it works, what the Flippers are like, what enemies they face…”
“Seems like reality is the only enemy here,” Mrs. Wimberly said. “Mika shouldn’t be out tempting fate in the chill cold, not to mention what the boys will think of her when they see her…lewdness.”
Mr. Soto snickered at the word. They all glanced outside in time to watch the yellow frog slip and land backwards in a puddle with a great splash. A few seconds passed and she hopped out onto the ground on all fours, where she shook off the water with hearty vigor. Juan laughed at the sight as Mr. Soto spoke.
“Does Mika ever say why she chose frogs…”
“The species name is actually Flippers,” Juan corrected.
“…Why she chose Flippers as the creature she wanted to use for her stories?”
“Flippers are wondrous beings because they never stop playing all throughout their lives,” Juan said as the yellow frog slid down a twisting slide and dove headfirst into a watery sandbox. “Flipper communities are actually centered around the constant re-invention and re-interpretation of their aquatic games. Someone suggests a new form of play, the others try it, and they learn. It doesn’t really matter whether the game actually works. The point is to encourage togetherness, to show that no matter how different their ideas of play are, they will always be accepted for their own unique natures.” Juan spoke the last sentence while staring straight at the Mrs. Wimberly.
The elderly woman brought her purchases up to the checkout counter. “You know, Mr. Rodriguez, I’ve never been much for diversity,” She said, dropping the atmosphere with a heavy weight. “This concept of ‘unique natures?’ I see it as an excuse to force me to accept things I don’t want. Things I don’t need. This childish act taking place outside? You think that won’t harm Mika later in life when she tries to make friends? She should be at home, studying, like every other normal college student.”
Mr. Soto snickered again, but halted his reaction when the elderly woman turned his way and spoke.
“Do they do this kind of thing in your country, Mr. Soto?”
There was silence for a moment. “I’m American, ma’am.”
Juan added. “So yes, Mrs. Wimberly, they do this in his country,” Juan gestured outside, “As you can see.” He rang up Mrs. Wimberly’s purchases as she eyed him suspiciously.
“Tell me, Mr. Rodriguez. Why do you find this girl so interesting?”
He stopped at the can of dog food in his hand. “You’re a canine trainer, aren’t you, Mrs. Wimberly?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Why this profession?”
“Dogs are man’s best friends. Woman’s, too. They’re loyal, hearty and very useful in sniffing out intruders on private property. I train them well.”
“And what kind of training do you put them through?”
“Obedience school.”
Juan nodded. “I see. What do you do with those dogs who don’t listen?”
“I don’t usually have much trouble with my clients. If I do, it’s usually the males who cause problems. In which case, if they persist, I recommend to their owners the process of emasculation. To quell the rebellious spirit, of course.” She kept her eyes trained on the store owner. He imagined the same gaze searing into countless canine minds. Juan, however, had seen worse fires in the eyes of criminals attempting to rob his store. In the confrontations, he remembered the hidden desperation. The more experienced ones had heavier, unwavering looks, but the vulnerability always appeared eventually, especially when they believed they had succeeded.
“Good choice,” Juan said. “Can’t have rebellion running unchecked.”
Mrs. Wimberly raised an eyebrow. “I’m glad you see my point, Mr. Rodriguez.” She handed over her money with a confident smile. “There might be hope for you yet.”
Juan saw seething anger boil under the skin of Mr. Soto. With barely a headshake, the store manager discouraged the delivery man from saying anything. Mrs. Wimberly, however, spoke up.
“It pleases me to know there are still those willing to admit their mistakes.”
Mr. Soto grunted in disgust and headed towards the back exit of the store, face aflame with barely-contained rage. Juan sighed as Mrs. Wimberly said “Have a nice day. Juan.” She grabbed her bag and walked to the front entrance while Juan pursued the angry Mr. Soto towards the back.
The eldery woman exited the store into the heavy rain and placed her dark hood over her head as she twisted closed the plastic bag to shield its contents from the rain. She walked to her car, pulled out her keys and slipped.
The bag and its contents toppled to the ground as the woman barely grasped the handle of the driver’s side door to stop her from falling. She cursed under her breath and bent down to retrieve the fallen items when a yellow flipper scooped up the dog food in its grasp and held it out to the woman.
“Are you okay?” Dewdrop asked, eyes as bright as her smile and sun-colored skin.
Mrs. Wimberly remained silent as she momentarily glanced at the female frog before attempting to pick up her own merchandise.
“You have to be careful out here. Not many can handle the storm,” Dewdrop said.
“You seem fine,” Mrs. Wimberly mumbled.
“Of course. Flippers are made for this weather!”
“As in those?” The elderly woman pointed at Dewdrop’s floppy feet.
“No, not those. Well, yes they are flippers, but I mean the species. Our world is like this all the time.”
Mrs. Wimberly scooped up her keys and opened the door to her car as she piled the items onto the floor on the passenger side. The seats were stained and old, but even then, she tried to keep them as clean as possible. The elderly woman sat down on the driver’s seat as Dewdrop handed her the dog food can, now dented from impact.
“Do you have a dog?” The frog asked.
“I’m a trainer,” Mrs. Wimberly said, attempting to keep her sentence short and uninteresting.
“Cool! Mika has a puppy named Lil’ Gaga. Named after the artist, ya know? Could you train the puppy if she wanted?”
“I have to go, Dewdrop.” She said and caught herself using the name.
“You know my name?”
“Why…is Mika doing this?” The elderly woman asked, referring to the girl in third person. “Out here. In the rain. It’s not good for her.”
“We’re exploring,” Dewdrop said. Mrs. Wimberly couldn’t help but smile a little at the sight of the tan stomach with its slightly exaggerated rounding as well as the big eyes staring off in separate directions atop the head while Mika’s eyes stared at her. “It’s how we learn so we can go back and give the information to my Flipper tribe. Puppies learn by exploring too. Lil’ Gaga does it all the time. It’s why she’s so happy.”
The elderly woman wasn’t staring at Dewdrop now, but the way her eyes focused on some unseen point in the distance made the frog in her driver’s side mirror seem like some sort of illusion in her peripheral vision. “It’s unhealthy,” the woman finally said “to daydream so much.”
“It’s not daydreaming. It’s adventure,” Dewdrop said, tap-dancing on the water as she posed. Mrs. Wimberly stifled a laugh at the hammy act as Dewdrop continued. “I know because Mika once had a dog named Cage. She named him that because Mika was too over-protective and kept it caged indoors during most of its puppy years. It lost its excitement after a while and even when it was finally allowed to live outside, it didn’t explore, but stayed in the backyard and never went further. Mika vowed never to do that to her pets, or herself, ever again.”
Mrs. Wimberly remained still for a bit after she was sure the story was over. Then, she quietly spoke. “Dogs should never be caged.”
“Neither should people,” Dewdrop said. The elderly woman didn’t say anything, so Dewdrop broke the ice. “Hey, we’re writing a story! Do you want to be in it?”
The question broke Mrs. Wimberly’s trance as she turned to gaze at Mika in Dewdrop’s mouth. “What?”
“A lot of people like the chance to be in our stories because they get to do things they never got to experience in their own lives. We could find a place for you! We could even have you train Lil’ Gaga in our stories, if you like.”
“Why?”
“Even on the page, Mika doesn’t feel safe for her puppy unless someone agrees to take care of it.”
It made as much sense as anything else Mrs. Wimberly had heard in the past few minutes.
“Sure,” she agreed and wondered why she had become so accepting.
“Cool! Sorry we didn’t get your name. We need to call your character something, but you have to choose.”
The memories flashed by and Mrs. Wimberly spoke almost involuntarily.
“Collie,” she said.
“Like a Border Collie?” Dewdrop asked. Mrs. Wimberly nodded. “That’s cute! Is it inspired by anything?”
“A costume I had as a child.”
“What happened to it?”
“It was…” unhealthy. The word echoed in her mind, spoken all those years ago.
“Well, whatever happened, don’t worry, you’re getting it back! Collie and Lil’ Gaga will be fast friends and your character will have her own costume so she can always play. And she’ll never be caged. That’s a promise. Flippers never lie,” she said as she held out her yellow webbed flipper to the elderly woman. Mrs. Wimberly saw it and moved to shake.
“No, no, no,” Dewdrop said. “Flipper clap! Like a high-five.”
Mrs. Wimberly stared for a moment and looked into the youthful, strong, happy sight of Mika’s shining face. The bright sun-colored frog was too adorable to say no too. They clapped hands, splashing water as Dewdrop giggled and waved goodbye.
“Nice to meet you, Collie! I guarantee the Flippers will remember you.”
“Goodbye…Dewdrop.” Mrs. Wimberly said as she turned to stare ahead while the yellow frog ran back to the playground, giggling between playful ribbits, croaks and hops. The woman looked away at her own reflection in the rear view where she could only see her eyes staring from within the mouth of the mirror.
From outside, the glass barrier of the windshield and its curtain of rain made it impossible for anyone to see the tears.
---
This was made for the Thursday Prompt held by Poetigress, located here:
http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/2017718/
The prompt for this week was "in disguise"
On a rainy night in August, Mika’s contagious imagination was unleashed upon the town. She made a promise to herself on her 18th birthday that she would never allow her creativity to go to waste. Over one year later, she had managed to keep that promise.
At 6:57pm, the rain started its downpour with such a burst of energy that it felt as though the heavens had opened up. At the sight of the precious release of skyfell nectar, Mika jumped up from her college reading, donned her now-famous suit and flip-flopped outside.
Residents of the small community on the outskirts of Austin knew rain this strong would most likely flood low-lying roads, so many stayed inside. But a few people along the road to Willows Park expected a special visitor to frequent the area during the storm.
Juan, the proprietor of the convenience store at the edge of the residential district, made a bet to himself to see if he could determine when the girl would arrive. He guessed fifteen minutes.
At fourteen minutes and thirty-three seconds, Juan, and the two customers in his store (Mrs. Wimberly the dog trainer and Mr. Soto the delivery man) spotted a yellow flash hopping its way through the puddles in the park across the street. The large flippers on the feet of the figure kicked up waves of water near the swing sets as the girl stood in the rain and caught it between her upraised webbed hands. Her body was sleek and bright, like skin made out of a water-repellant raincoat. Her eyes and nose were the only visible parts of her face inside the maw of the mouth-shaped hood with its bulging eyes staring out into the world. She hopped and jumped and bounced across the playground, all the while reveling in her performance as she turned and bowed in all four directions. She knew she was entertaining her watchers, even if they preferred to stay inside.
“Who is that?” Mr. Soto asked as he put down his newspaper on the breakfast table near the storefront window.
“That’s Dewdrop,” Juan said, as his eyes remained aglow at the mention of the name. “She’s the sweetest frog you’ll ever meet near Willows Park.”
Mr. Soto looked at the store owner with incredulity before posing another question.
“As in a real frog, five feet tall?”
Juan shot Mr. Soto a look framed by a narrowed brow. “No, of course not. Dewdrop is a Flipper. That means she flips and jumps from her world to ours, but it only happens during rainstorms because Flippers need water on their skin to fill them with energy.”
Mrs. Wimberly started at the splashing Flipper girl wading through the growing puddles of the park. Mr. Soto softened his gaze a bit as he asked the next question.
“So…did she tell you this?”
“Oh yeah,” Juan smiled matter-of-factly. “She always comes in here when she’s done exploring so she can tell me her adventures. Mika once told me Dewdrop and her formed their partnership because they had made a promise never to leave each other, despite college, boyfriends, or even marriage.”
Mr. Soto nodded. “I think I get it now…”
And Mrs. Wimberly interrupted. “It’s unhealthy.” The two men remained silent at the elderly woman’s comment. “A mind wasting itself away in delusion.”
“It’s not delusion, Mrs. Wimberly,” Juan said. Though his voice was even, his eyes were rough and locked upon the customer. “Dewdrop has been coming out in rainstorms for almost thirteen months now during nearly every downpour. Ever since her friendship started with Mika, the girl has been writing amazing stories about Dewdrop’s world, including how it works, what the Flippers are like, what enemies they face…”
“Seems like reality is the only enemy here,” Mrs. Wimberly said. “Mika shouldn’t be out tempting fate in the chill cold, not to mention what the boys will think of her when they see her…lewdness.”
Mr. Soto snickered at the word. They all glanced outside in time to watch the yellow frog slip and land backwards in a puddle with a great splash. A few seconds passed and she hopped out onto the ground on all fours, where she shook off the water with hearty vigor. Juan laughed at the sight as Mr. Soto spoke.
“Does Mika ever say why she chose frogs…”
“The species name is actually Flippers,” Juan corrected.
“…Why she chose Flippers as the creature she wanted to use for her stories?”
“Flippers are wondrous beings because they never stop playing all throughout their lives,” Juan said as the yellow frog slid down a twisting slide and dove headfirst into a watery sandbox. “Flipper communities are actually centered around the constant re-invention and re-interpretation of their aquatic games. Someone suggests a new form of play, the others try it, and they learn. It doesn’t really matter whether the game actually works. The point is to encourage togetherness, to show that no matter how different their ideas of play are, they will always be accepted for their own unique natures.” Juan spoke the last sentence while staring straight at the Mrs. Wimberly.
The elderly woman brought her purchases up to the checkout counter. “You know, Mr. Rodriguez, I’ve never been much for diversity,” She said, dropping the atmosphere with a heavy weight. “This concept of ‘unique natures?’ I see it as an excuse to force me to accept things I don’t want. Things I don’t need. This childish act taking place outside? You think that won’t harm Mika later in life when she tries to make friends? She should be at home, studying, like every other normal college student.”
Mr. Soto snickered again, but halted his reaction when the elderly woman turned his way and spoke.
“Do they do this kind of thing in your country, Mr. Soto?”
There was silence for a moment. “I’m American, ma’am.”
Juan added. “So yes, Mrs. Wimberly, they do this in his country,” Juan gestured outside, “As you can see.” He rang up Mrs. Wimberly’s purchases as she eyed him suspiciously.
“Tell me, Mr. Rodriguez. Why do you find this girl so interesting?”
He stopped at the can of dog food in his hand. “You’re a canine trainer, aren’t you, Mrs. Wimberly?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Why this profession?”
“Dogs are man’s best friends. Woman’s, too. They’re loyal, hearty and very useful in sniffing out intruders on private property. I train them well.”
“And what kind of training do you put them through?”
“Obedience school.”
Juan nodded. “I see. What do you do with those dogs who don’t listen?”
“I don’t usually have much trouble with my clients. If I do, it’s usually the males who cause problems. In which case, if they persist, I recommend to their owners the process of emasculation. To quell the rebellious spirit, of course.” She kept her eyes trained on the store owner. He imagined the same gaze searing into countless canine minds. Juan, however, had seen worse fires in the eyes of criminals attempting to rob his store. In the confrontations, he remembered the hidden desperation. The more experienced ones had heavier, unwavering looks, but the vulnerability always appeared eventually, especially when they believed they had succeeded.
“Good choice,” Juan said. “Can’t have rebellion running unchecked.”
Mrs. Wimberly raised an eyebrow. “I’m glad you see my point, Mr. Rodriguez.” She handed over her money with a confident smile. “There might be hope for you yet.”
Juan saw seething anger boil under the skin of Mr. Soto. With barely a headshake, the store manager discouraged the delivery man from saying anything. Mrs. Wimberly, however, spoke up.
“It pleases me to know there are still those willing to admit their mistakes.”
Mr. Soto grunted in disgust and headed towards the back exit of the store, face aflame with barely-contained rage. Juan sighed as Mrs. Wimberly said “Have a nice day. Juan.” She grabbed her bag and walked to the front entrance while Juan pursued the angry Mr. Soto towards the back.
The eldery woman exited the store into the heavy rain and placed her dark hood over her head as she twisted closed the plastic bag to shield its contents from the rain. She walked to her car, pulled out her keys and slipped.
The bag and its contents toppled to the ground as the woman barely grasped the handle of the driver’s side door to stop her from falling. She cursed under her breath and bent down to retrieve the fallen items when a yellow flipper scooped up the dog food in its grasp and held it out to the woman.
“Are you okay?” Dewdrop asked, eyes as bright as her smile and sun-colored skin.
Mrs. Wimberly remained silent as she momentarily glanced at the female frog before attempting to pick up her own merchandise.
“You have to be careful out here. Not many can handle the storm,” Dewdrop said.
“You seem fine,” Mrs. Wimberly mumbled.
“Of course. Flippers are made for this weather!”
“As in those?” The elderly woman pointed at Dewdrop’s floppy feet.
“No, not those. Well, yes they are flippers, but I mean the species. Our world is like this all the time.”
Mrs. Wimberly scooped up her keys and opened the door to her car as she piled the items onto the floor on the passenger side. The seats were stained and old, but even then, she tried to keep them as clean as possible. The elderly woman sat down on the driver’s seat as Dewdrop handed her the dog food can, now dented from impact.
“Do you have a dog?” The frog asked.
“I’m a trainer,” Mrs. Wimberly said, attempting to keep her sentence short and uninteresting.
“Cool! Mika has a puppy named Lil’ Gaga. Named after the artist, ya know? Could you train the puppy if she wanted?”
“I have to go, Dewdrop.” She said and caught herself using the name.
“You know my name?”
“Why…is Mika doing this?” The elderly woman asked, referring to the girl in third person. “Out here. In the rain. It’s not good for her.”
“We’re exploring,” Dewdrop said. Mrs. Wimberly couldn’t help but smile a little at the sight of the tan stomach with its slightly exaggerated rounding as well as the big eyes staring off in separate directions atop the head while Mika’s eyes stared at her. “It’s how we learn so we can go back and give the information to my Flipper tribe. Puppies learn by exploring too. Lil’ Gaga does it all the time. It’s why she’s so happy.”
The elderly woman wasn’t staring at Dewdrop now, but the way her eyes focused on some unseen point in the distance made the frog in her driver’s side mirror seem like some sort of illusion in her peripheral vision. “It’s unhealthy,” the woman finally said “to daydream so much.”
“It’s not daydreaming. It’s adventure,” Dewdrop said, tap-dancing on the water as she posed. Mrs. Wimberly stifled a laugh at the hammy act as Dewdrop continued. “I know because Mika once had a dog named Cage. She named him that because Mika was too over-protective and kept it caged indoors during most of its puppy years. It lost its excitement after a while and even when it was finally allowed to live outside, it didn’t explore, but stayed in the backyard and never went further. Mika vowed never to do that to her pets, or herself, ever again.”
Mrs. Wimberly remained still for a bit after she was sure the story was over. Then, she quietly spoke. “Dogs should never be caged.”
“Neither should people,” Dewdrop said. The elderly woman didn’t say anything, so Dewdrop broke the ice. “Hey, we’re writing a story! Do you want to be in it?”
The question broke Mrs. Wimberly’s trance as she turned to gaze at Mika in Dewdrop’s mouth. “What?”
“A lot of people like the chance to be in our stories because they get to do things they never got to experience in their own lives. We could find a place for you! We could even have you train Lil’ Gaga in our stories, if you like.”
“Why?”
“Even on the page, Mika doesn’t feel safe for her puppy unless someone agrees to take care of it.”
It made as much sense as anything else Mrs. Wimberly had heard in the past few minutes.
“Sure,” she agreed and wondered why she had become so accepting.
“Cool! Sorry we didn’t get your name. We need to call your character something, but you have to choose.”
The memories flashed by and Mrs. Wimberly spoke almost involuntarily.
“Collie,” she said.
“Like a Border Collie?” Dewdrop asked. Mrs. Wimberly nodded. “That’s cute! Is it inspired by anything?”
“A costume I had as a child.”
“What happened to it?”
“It was…” unhealthy. The word echoed in her mind, spoken all those years ago.
“Well, whatever happened, don’t worry, you’re getting it back! Collie and Lil’ Gaga will be fast friends and your character will have her own costume so she can always play. And she’ll never be caged. That’s a promise. Flippers never lie,” she said as she held out her yellow webbed flipper to the elderly woman. Mrs. Wimberly saw it and moved to shake.
“No, no, no,” Dewdrop said. “Flipper clap! Like a high-five.”
Mrs. Wimberly stared for a moment and looked into the youthful, strong, happy sight of Mika’s shining face. The bright sun-colored frog was too adorable to say no too. They clapped hands, splashing water as Dewdrop giggled and waved goodbye.
“Nice to meet you, Collie! I guarantee the Flippers will remember you.”
“Goodbye…Dewdrop.” Mrs. Wimberly said as she turned to stare ahead while the yellow frog ran back to the playground, giggling between playful ribbits, croaks and hops. The woman looked away at her own reflection in the rear view where she could only see her eyes staring from within the mouth of the mirror.
From outside, the glass barrier of the windshield and its curtain of rain made it impossible for anyone to see the tears.
---
Category Story / All
Species Frog
Size 120 x 120px
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