From: little daniel jones (ldjones@cyberus.ca)
 Subject: Story: Purple Loosestrife 
 Newsgroups: alt.barney.dinosaur.die.die.die
 Date: 1996/07/16 


"Purple Loosestrife"


We were ploughing through the open fields behind the forest that day.  The sun was 
shining, and the sky was so clear and blue it seemed as if it would never let up.  The 
place was truly beautiful.  Except for the grass, which obscured our view of anything 
below our chests.  The field was full of it -- tall grass, the kind that just sucks 
you into it.  So from our point of view, half the scene was beautiful and half of it 
was green and light brown.  Sure, half a day is better than no day at all.  Try 
telling us that.
    "Where are we?" demanded WolfPak.
    I replied, sarcastically, "Up to our necks in grass."
    "Well, how are we going to get back to the camp?"
    "Just go back the same way we came," Sherre assured us.
    We looked backwards, attempting to find out where we had just been.  After some 
prevarication, we came to the conclusion that the grass, sturdy as it was, had covered 
our tracks.  Taki called out, saying "Let's just keep going to see if it clears."  I 
assumed that it was near noontime -- since we had left the camp less than an hour ago, 
it would be easy enough to get back before dark.  Wispy clouds were forming at the 
horizon.
    "Taki." I shouted.  "Do you have your compass?"
    "Lemme check..."  He began to fumble with his backpack.
    "What's the exact time?" I asked, to nobody in particular.
    "...12:16:32" WolfPak mumbled, looking intently at his watch.
    I searched about for shadows.  There was no such luck, of course: the sun was 
directly overhead.  It wouldn't be an efficient compass for at least an hour.  The 
back of my neck tingled as a wave of confusion overtook me.
    "What do we do now?"
    "I got the compass!" Taki shouted.
    "Take a bearing," Sherre told him.
    "...........lemme see..............north is that way....lemme get the map."
    We rolled our eyes at him.  I crushed some grass underfoot and sat down on the dry 
ground.  Substantial clouds were rolling in.  Trailing my eyes overhead, I mentioned 
the clouds to Sherre and WolfPak.
    Sherre replied "Yeah, I know...And a few minutes ago it was so clear, eh?"
    As Taki found the map and went about his business of finding where the hell we 
were, the remaining three of us gazed into the heavens and watched as the clouds 
invaded our wonderful blue sky.  These were no mere fluffy cumulus clouds.  These 
clouds were denser, darker, and indicated rain.  They sported a ghastly tinge of 
indigo.  Indigo.  We looked to Taki, and the look on his face did nothing to lift our 
hopes.
    "Hmmmm.....We shouldn't be here at all." he muttered.
    "What?" Sherre said.
    "I'm not sure where we are.  There's no place on the map that corresponds directly 
to the terrain."
    "The terrain is grass.  Find some."
    "There isn't any, at least not this high, on the map."
    "Find a field."
    "There's forest, but no grass."
    "Look for a break in the forest."
    "Hm...."
    A drop of water fell onto my hair.
    "Here, it's raining.  Stop bickering and find out where to go."
    "Well, we came vaguely from that direction," said Taki, "so let's go that way." 
    "Shit, I hate rain..." said WolfPak.

    The grass was thinning out now, only coming up to our hips.  This meant that we 
were getting somewhere.  However, somewhere was not good enough.  Home would be nice.  
Greener, more flexible grass bent under our footsteps as we trudged in melancholy 
through the rain.  Thunder rolled overhead in great, resounding thumps and booms.  I 
stopped to shake some mud off my boots.  Once bent down, I hit the sides of my boots 
with the flat of my hand to shake the mud loose.  I straightened up.  And purple was 
there.  Somehow, as I was walking, I had failed to notice that we had been surrounded 
on both sides by a gigantic field of purple loosestrife.  Purple loosestrife is a 
North American wildflower with an attitude.  It competes aggressively with local 
plantlife for nutrients and root space, and most often wins.
    "Hey..." I began, and we all stopped and looked.  Purple loosestrife everywhere, 
and us walking along a strip of green grass.  WolfPak looked at me, as though to ask 
me how long I had known about this, and I gave him a look assuring him it wasn't my 
fault.
    "Scary." he said.
    A sound spread out through the air, like waves spread out on a beach.  It was a 
musical sound, almost beautiful in tone...it was the purple loosestrife.  All around 
us, singing.
    Taki fumbled the words "Whoa.  I must be crazy."
    "I..."
    "...luv..."
    "........you..."
    The song the loosestrife sang trilled through our ears ever so clearly now; the 
rain was pouring down, yet we stood and listened, glued to the spot.  Maybe it was 
terror, maybe it was joy, and maybe it was simple curiosity.
    "you..."
    ".....luv..."
    "..........me..."
    The sight of the purple became brighter.  It seemed to me that I had seen that 
shade of purple before.  I had seen that shade of purple before.  On the television 
set.  The purple loosestrife sung out clear, understandable words in the form of some 
hymn.  WolfPak began to walk, slowly and steadily, into the celebration of a Purple 
Mass.
    "WolfPak," I mumbled in warning.  He lashed out at me with a chaotic snarl and 
continued to walk towards the loosestrife.
    Sherre advanced on me, her eyes thick in terror and urgency.  "Come on, let's get 
out of here."
    "We're a...."
    I protested, "What about WolfPak?"
    ".........happy...."
    Sherre clutched the side of her head and moaned.  "Ooooohhh...It's got him.  Too 
late.  Got to leave...Agh."
    "................family...."
    Sherre weakened and fell towards me.  I caught her and propped her up.
    "Taki."
    "With a great big hug..." began Taki.
    I screamed at him.  "Taki!!"
    "Wha?"
    "We've got to get out of here.  Help me."
    "What's going on?"
    "I don't know.  WolfPak's gone into some trance.  Sherre collapsed.  We've got to 
get to camp."
    "........................and a kiss from me to you....." the loosestrife droned.
    "What's happened to WolfPak?"
    "He's been ensnared.  I don't think he hears us anymore."
    "WOLFPAK!"
    "Won't you..."
    "It's useless.  Come on."
    "...........say you..."
    Taki took hold of Sherre's legs and hoisted them up.  We scrambled away as fast as 
we could.

    "....................love............"

    WolfPak stood amidst the loosestrife, and thought of nothing.  He had found what 
he had always been looking for: happiness!  He chuckled with a sort of cool, 
antiseptic euphoria.

    "..............................me............."

    WolfPak had a vision of a creature of ultimate happiness and love before him, arms 
out in greeting.  WolfPak approached and embraced the creature with total abandon, 
resting his head on its purple chest.  His physical substance faded away as a circular 
column of light took his body apart, molecule by molecule, and pulled him upwards into 
the roiling clouds above.

    "..................................................too?"



(c) 1996, little daniel jones.

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