Bufo Boreas: Chapter 3 - B.B. Toad Meets a Human

It's Carol's birthday weekend, so we have a lot of company in the in our home. Zoe's boyfriend Jason blew in with the summer storm on Friday night, and since he plays a pivotal role in the ongoing saga of B.B. Toad, I decided it was time for chapter 3.

If you need a refresher on the tale of Bufo Boreas, our Western Toad, look back at my blogs in February and May. You'll recognize Mr. Toad by his face. Hope you enjoy!

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                                                                     Chapter 3

As all toads know, a house is not home. Once B.B. regained his senses (he had landed quite awkwardly), he looked cautiously around, trying to determine what he had gotten himself into. He sat motionless for some time, attempting to determine if there was any danger nearby. Once he was reasonably sure it was safe to move about in this shadowy hole, he began to explore. The hole he had tumbled into (B.B. had know idea what a window well was), measured three easy leaps long by two easy leaps wide. It was reasonably moist, reasonably level, and very reasonably cobwebbed in two corners. Spiders and toads are known to share a similar diet. If the spiders found food here, then he certainly could. After a short wait (Western toads are nothing if not patient), he enjoyed one spider for a light morning brunch, leaving the other one for another time, and then continued exploring. 

The floor was fairly level, with a mix of gravel, soil, and rocks the size of B.B. himself, along with a few moist mossy areas. It seemed ideal for digging down into to find a cozy room to sleep away the winter when the time came.  There was a bright dividing line where the mid-morning sun lit the western third of his new home, leaving the rest of his space feeling dark and safe. He headed into the shadows first, and found that the grayish wall on that side was too steep and too tall to jump out of. Nor could he get enough of a grip to climb the strangely corrugated mountain that rose from the floor high into the sky.

He turned around, and cautiously headed toward the sun lit side of this odd hole in the ground. As he crossed into the sunlight, he climbed a frog’s height onto a flat platform (what humans call a window sill), and found that it was warm to the touch. This time of day, it actually felt rather wonderful, his belly warmed by this perfect toad porch, his back enjoying the morning rays from the sun. B.B. Toad let out a toady equivalent of a contented sigh. Ahhhh.

He moved closer to the western wall. It had a strange, translucent quality to it. B.B. walked closer. He felt the smooth glass with his nose, and marveled that anything could be so smooth and so hard at the same time. It looked almost like a wall of water rising straight up out of the ground, almost as high as the shadow wall opposite. 

Ever curious, B.B. reached up with one four-fingered hand to see if he could gain any grip on the watery looking wall. Reaching high above his head, he did his best to try and grip the wall, wondering if he could climb it. He drew his fingers downward, and they made a rather pleasant screech, not unlike some of the evening conversation he had with his friends in the pond back home. Placing both hands on the wall, he gripped and drew them downward again. B.B. discovered he could make a variety of sounds and rhythms, all quite pleasing to his toady ears. He began to play his own toad tunes when suddenly - movement! He froze, planting down, wondering what it was he had seen. It seemed to come from inside the watery wall! Predator?

Do not move! B.B. shouted to himself.

As still as he could be, he stared straight ahead, two hands on the watery wall. There was movement! Something on the other side of the watery wall was slowly rising into view! Oddly yellow bristle grass, followed by two huge bug eyes, a nose, and a mouth filled the window. B.B. Toad was face to face with his very first human.

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Tell us a tale of any encounter you have had with a member of another species, in prose, poetry, art work, however you choose. We look forward to seeing your results.

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