• she is just a child. nothing more than that. her parents were killed, looking for help. she was left alone in the boat. she clutched her teddy bear, snuggling into the small comfort it gave her. there was a grunt from outside her shelter. she blinked and looked up.
    "Mommy?" she asked. the noise outside stopped. a wet nose poked into the den. she cried out in fear. the nose pulled back with a snort and the noise died out for a second. the girl shivered and looked on, waiting for the creature to re-appear. a hand came and grabbed the edge of the rowboat. it lifted up just an inch. the girl looked up. a woman was standing there, dressed in furs and pelts. her eyes were a cobalt blue, which stood out agents her sun tanned skin. the girl shivered underneath the boat. blinking, the woman carefully reached for the little girl.
    "come now child, where are your parents?" the woman asked.
    the girl shivered. "mommy and daddy went to get help..."
    "how long have they been gone?" the woman asked.
    the little girl shuddered. "i don't know..."
    the woman sighed and looked out into the distance. "come with me, ill take you to safety, little one."
    the girl ran into the woman arms and began to sob. the woman looked out into the distance and sniffed the air. no one has been around for days. the girl was lucky to even be alive. the woman looked down at the girl with kind eyes.
    "do you like bears?" the woman asked, eyeing the stuffed teddy in the girls arms.
    "yes." the child whisperer. the woman set her down and stepped back.
    "would you like to see some magic? would you like to see me turn into a bear?" the girls eyes grew wide.
    "can you do that miss?" the girl asked, her eyes wide with awe. the woman nodded and before the girl's eyes, began to turn into a bear. a grizzly bear, with ink black fur and blue markings underneath her eyes.
    "come with e child, i will give you a ride."
    carefully, the girl climbed up onto the bear's shoulders and the woman carried her back to civilization, where some one would care for her.
    "my name is Kimmy." the girl stated. the woman-bear laughed lightly. "hello Kimmy, my name is Okelousa." the bear paused when they reached the back yard of a house. "now Kimmy, i want you to go to that house and tell the nice woman your name. don't tell her about me, because this will be our secret."
    "will i ever see you again?"
    the bear woman looked at the girl. "of course we will. your my friend."