As noon was aproaching, Ziggy decided to take a nap in his coconut crib while Froggy remained on the small patch of artifficial grass, under the branches of the plastic tree. No matter how good intended Ziggy proved to be, he keeped pondering what if it's all a game?
He then thought he heard something, looked around, didn't see anything but just after a few moments he heard it again:
"Pssst..."
He looked left, looked right, didn't see a thing.
"Up here in the tree... " said a strange voice.
So he looked up and saw something that he had never seen before, it was green with red spots, and had a long body which seemed to be made of several rings welded together, each ring having a pair of legs. When it was moving, the last ring would rise and as it was coming down, the next one would rise and so on untill the first one, making it look like a wave, which appeared kind of funny to Froggy. And with a smile on his face he asked:
"Who are you?"
As it was coming down the tree-trunk, said:
" My name is Khaty and i'm a caterpillar... for now, but that will change soon. "
" Hi, i'm Froggy... why will it change? "
"Nice to meet you Froggy... Why? Because that's the way life is, things will never stay the same, although most of the times we expect them to do so. And the sad thing is that we are to affraid to accept changes, despite of how bad our situation is we always think that a change can only make it worse, but in fact we have to realise that if we want to change we have to suffer for a while and that's what most of us are backing down from... why should i suffer even more than i am now, i'm not really happy, but why should i suffer? i could be comfortable just the way i am. But there can never be a real redemption without sacrifice. "
Froggy was so mesmerised by Kathy's words that his eyes became almost twice the size they were.
"I'm sorry for being so ... philosophically all of a sudden, i tend to that sometimes, it's in my nature i guess"
"Oooh, that's ok, it was really interesting... hmm.. by the way... what do you think about Ziggy?"
"Well that's actually the reason i wanted to talk to you... You should be very carefully, although he looks friendly he can be very deceiving. His sweet word can make you feel comfortable, but that's actually what he wants you to do, to make you trust him so he can use you later."
"Use me for what?"
"Silly you... for his dinner of course."
"But... but he said he is a vegetarian..."
"Ha ha.. and you believed him, dear friend... never ever trust a spider... What do you thing his fangs are for?"
"Well... he said they were for tearing up the leaves from branches..."
"What branches, what leaves? All you see here is not real, it's all an illusion"
"But it looks real..."
"It does, doesn't it? ... but trust me it's not... This is what i eat, before i change... but all you see here it's inedible, it's all part of a bigger plan"
"What plan, who's plan?"
"That my dear, i'm affraid i don't know... "
"But... how did we get here...? All i remeber is that i was standing in a puddle of mud under a dump of scraps, when something grabbed me, it was so fast i coudn't react... I didn't even got the chance say good-bye to my sister and my mom. And then i woke up here..."
"Well... that's kind of the same way i got here. I was minding my on business, hanging out with my friend, we were ment to get married, after we would change in butterflys. So we were eating those delicios apple tree leaves when just as you said something grabbed me and while Alex was trying to help me, he was also grabbed and thrown away... I miss him so much... His last words were - don't be affraid, i'll come for you. "
"Oo.. i'm sorry... so.. you think he'll find you?"
"I don't know, i can only hope.. "
"You said something about a butterfly, what's that?"
"That's what we caterpillars turn into after the pupa stage. Now we are very vulnerable and ugly..."
"Noo... i don't think you're ugly..."
"Ooo... that's very sweet of you, thank you... and after the pupa stage we become into some of the most beatiful creatures in this world."
"Wow... i really want to see you become a butterfly..."
"Well. my dear, i'm affraid that doesn't depend on me, you see it takes me up to eleven days, starting from today... and with that demon over there, i don't know if we'll make it."
"There must be something we can do..."
"Hmm... there could be... do you see that wooden brigde over there?"
"Yes.."
"Well... you should try to stay out of Ziggy's way, get up on that bridge, i never saw him going there, i don't know why, he just doesn't go there..."
"And what about you?"
"Oo.. don't worry about me, i will stay up in this tree, he won't be able to get me here, you just try to stay out of his way for eleven days and after that i'll think of a way to save us, ok?"
"Ok... "
"Well i'm going up in the tree again to prepare for the worst part of my life."
"Why would you say that?"
"You already forgot what i've told you in the begining... it takes sacrifice for changes to happen. "
"Oohh... i see... well ... good luck to you."
"Good luck to you too, my dear, see you in eleven days"
Yeah, see you ... in eleven days, if i don't get eaten... said Froggy to himself with a whispering voice... Well.. let's see... what to do... i should be getting on that stupid bridge...
...to be continued
