Quietly, Quiggly stepped into the darkness as he stealthily approached and steeled himself for what was to come. Suddenly, Quiggly felt a large creature's heavy paw land on his back. He screamed as he was swung around. Stunned and dazed, he couldn't move. He was being held by the throat and dragged into the dark. He looked back to see who it was and saw one of the huge owl faces that inhabited the mountain gliding toward him. In the dim light Quiggly could see that the "face" was no more than a headless body! As if by magic, the dead owl's eyes were opened and the large beak snapped like that of a huge bird. Quiggly was terrified, and tears flowed from his eyes. "Stop! Don't you touch him!" A strange voice spoke from the shadows. The owl turned slowly. "Who said that?" she grunted. "Whoever it is, you shouldn't have done it." Quiggly said. "Quiggly, I presume," the owl said, and now he could see that the large bird's name was Lady Owl and that she was the one who saved him from that vicious beast! "I've come to bring you back to our home, where you belong. You can't stay here in the darkness and cold." "Really," Quiggly replied, surprised and shocked. "I didn't know you cared. And the night isn't that cold." He stepped forward and looked into the enormous gray face. "I'm sure," she replied. "All right then," Quiggly said. "But I'd like to know who saved me and why." "It was me." "And who are you?" Quiggly asked. "I am Lady Owl," she replied. "Oh, Lady Owl," Quiggly said. "I must say, that's a most peculiar name for someone, or is it an animal?" He asked, but there was no answer. Quiggly looked into the large owl's eyes. His fear of that dark place was now gone, and he felt safe. He looked out into the night sky. He could see the moon and the stars and realized that he was in the presence of a remarkable bird, an owl who was more than just a bird, but something much more. "I would have preferred that I be known by my given name, Quip," Quiggly said, and smiled. "It's better to be known as what you are," Lady Owl replied. Quip then took Quiggly by the hand, and together they started back up the winding path to the warm forest above. "I've been in the dark since I was in the womb of my mother, but then again, my life has been lived in the dark and my greatest journey was into the dark." THE END A SIGN "I can't talk to you," he muttered as he pushed the sign down into the hole. It landed with a dull thud. "Please don't go," she pleaded, and walked over to the sign. "Give me a chance to talk to you." "Please don't go!" she yelled at him. "I'm only sixteen years old!" "It's just not right for you to sleep in a car. I don't know what's been going on." "Who cares? Your father's on a bender. He's driving everybody crazy. I'm not going to let you continue down the road like this." She pulled the sign back out of the hole and held it out in front of her like a shield. "Look at the things I've done to save you from my father." She sighed and turned back to the sign. She raised the wooden board and dropped it over the hole. She put her hands over her face and sat down in the dirt. She thought that he might have felt her and stopped, but it was too late. The little car had disappeared, and the only thing she could hear were the voices coming from the dark night sky. "I'm through with this shit. I'm through," she said softly. "I'm not going to let him drive me crazy." She looked up at the stars. "Thank you, stars," she said. Her words were swallowed by the darkness. She then turned and pushed the sign back into the ground. She pulled her knees to her chest and slowly closed her eyes. And then she started to dream. THE PAST "I love you," he said to her. He looked into her beautiful blue eyes. She just looked back at him and smiled. Then she said, "I love you, too." He leaned in and gave her a kiss. She looked up at him and took him by the hand. He looked back down at her. "It's time to get going," she said. "Where are we going?" she asked. "Wherever you want," he replied. She smiled and pulled him down the dirt path that led to a dirt road. As they walked down the dirt path, they noticed a little car. He bent down and picked it up. He turned it over in his hand and smiled. He saw how it sparkled as the light from the sun shone upon its surface. "Let's get in," he said to her. She shook her head. "I have to walk," she said, and started down the path. He grabbed her arm and stopped her. He looked up at her and smiled. "Why don't you get in and I'll walk." She smiled back at him and started to walk. He jumped down the rock wall and walked toward her. He pulled her by the hand and they walked down the dirt road. She smiled as she watched him jump into the little car. She looked down and saw a little sign that read ROCKING HORSE WELCOME CENTER. She started to laugh. "What's so funny?" he asked, but didn't get an answer. She pointed out at the horizon. "What's that?" she asked. "It's a train." "Wow! You're in for it now. What the hell are you going to do?" He looked back at her and smiled. "What the hell are you going to do?" "What do you mean?" she asked. "Where are we going?" he asked. She laughed and put her arm around his waist. "I don't know, but I'm hoping that it will be great." He looked back at her and smiled. "This is great," he said as he leaned over and kissed her. She kissed him back and felt his soft lips touch her cold skin. She moaned as she could feel her legs growing warm. She loved his smell and she smiled as his long black hair fell over her face. She pulled his hand over her chest and pointed to a small green square under her bra. "Does that mean what I think it means?" he asked. "It might," she said as he looked back down at the sign and said, "Wow, this isn't so bad after all." He then looked back at her. She looked into his eyes and her heart started to beat. He then looked down to her lips, and then back to her eyes. She then opened her lips and his tongue slipped in. She closed her eyes and leaned forward as she let her head fall back. She felt like she was floating. Then he pulled his lips away and looked into her eyes. "My beautiful Lady Bird," he said, and kissed her neck. He then started to pull down her dress. He looked up at her. "I love you," he said. The little train moved slowly into the night. It was going to be a long night, and it was going to be fun. She grabbed his pants off the bench seat and the button fell off as she pulled it down. His cock poked out and she just reached down and ran her hand up his leg. "Hey! What the hell are you doing?" he asked. She put her hand on his leg and looked back at him. "You're going to get us killed," he said. "Your clothes aren't going to get you killed," she replied. She started to unbutton his pants. He pulled them away from her and sat back on the seat. She smiled at him and pulled his hand to her mouth and bit down. She could feel him growing inside her, and she could feel it growing within her. She sat down and opened her legs and pulled her dress down. "Wow! What's this?" he asked. She just smiled at him. He looked up at her. She just smiled and motioned for him to continue, but he seemed to be hesitant. "You're not going to get pregnant, are you?" She let go of his hand and sat back on the bench seat. "I already am," she replied. He looked down at her and took her in. "I see," he replied. She started to open his pants. She couldn't help but feel like she wanted to feel him inside her. She looked back up at him as he sat back on the bench