The Forest

by Ruby Craig age 12
(Loveland, Colorado, United States)

One cold winter day, a young girl around 10, entered a forest. She loved the outdoors, and always had. Vera, the young girl, loved to run through the pathways, jump over the logs, and just sit as the forest busily went about its business. Now, on this cold day she wasn’t there to just look around and play, as usual; she was there because she hated her family, and this was the only place she knew would keep her. She spent most of her time there, and the animals and plants had grown accustomed to her. This is why she had only one other human friend, for she had many animal friends. This young girls name was Ruby.
Ruby was a girl who never was tight; she was always a go-with-the-flow person. Although she loved Vera like her sister, but her parents would never let her stay as a run-away. This is why she decided to move into the forest with Vera. As they started their long walk Ruby announced,
“This is going to be fun, I promise.”
“Whatever, I bet the animals will help us,” Vera said as sarcastically as she could.
“I promise V, we will find shelter and start building a house tomorrow,”
“I guess,” V sighed.
Vera had a dark brown hair, almost black; it was almost frizzy but poofy at the same time. She had brown eyes; they were darker when she was mad and kind of a creamy brown when she was happy. Her laugh varied depending on how funny something was, sometimes it is a giggle and other times it would be almost silent because it would be so hard. Ruby on the other hand had blond hair that was almost brown. Her eyes were a hazel, some days they would be as blue as the sky, and others as green as the grass. Her laugh was almost exactly like Vera’s though.
The two girls talked about many things as they hiked along looking for a good resting point. They talked about boys, food, shopping, animals, plants, and many other odd things. Finally they saw a clearing up ahead. There was a lake and it was beautiful, even if the sky was as grey as smoke from a chimney. The girls ran there, and fell to their knees. They had a drink then fell asleep huddled close to each other, and drifted off to dreamland.
When they awoke the next morning all they herd was a faint chirping sound coming from a rock in the pond. As they looked closer there seemed to be a little bird of some sort. Ruby dived in the water, as it was now a beautiful warm day, and swam to the rock. Vera was right behind her though. When they reached the rock they saw two birds instead of just one, they were no bigger than the palm of their hands. They were hummingbirds.

Ruby took one in one hand and Vera took the other and swam them to shore. The girls set their hand down to let the birds down, but they just sat there. Vera picked up her hand and said,
“Hello my little friend. You are now my new pet. I shall name you cookie, for you look just like a little sugar cookie.”
“You shall be named cream my little friend,” explained Ruby to the hummingbird in her hand.
The two little birds chirped in excitement. Then the real work began. All the animals in the forest started helping the girls build their new house. They finished in half a day’s work. The house was all made of pine; it had a warm feeling and was somewhere everyone wanted to be. They loved the house and let their birds roam as freely as they like, but they would always come back.
One day Ruby’s mom came out looking for her. She found the clearing with Ruby and Vera’s little house and went inside. Ruby and Vera where out wandering the forest, so naturally her mom waited. When the sun was just starting to set the girls popped in the door to grab a towel. Ruby’s mom was in the bathroom so the girls did not see her. They went and took a bath, and when they returned they saw Ruby’s mom sitting at the kitchen table. She wasn’t mad either.
“Why didn’t you tell us where you were going, young lady?” she asked more calmly than expected.
“Mom, I went to live with Vera and I plan to stay, and will you tell dad and Vera’s parents. You all are welcome anytime. Please tell us before you come through,” Ruby said.
“Thank you dear I will. Please don’t hurt yourself though. I love you and you too V. I hope you guys know that.”
“We do. Thanks mom. Love you to. Bye.”
Then, Ruby’s mom walked off and was happy with what happened there, and she would always be. As for the girls and their new pets, they were just as happy as they should be. That is all I will be telling you today. Join me next time for one about a turtle.