Emerald
20 Years Later
The girl, two days away from being ten years old, stood with her nose pressed against the glass, staring into the exhibit. One arm was wrapped tightly around her mother's waist, while her other hand hung at her side. She stared in wonder at the big grey form lying on the ground regally, its eyes looking regally back at her.
"Mama, can it hurt me?"
"Yes, honey. But it doesn't have to. Usually they don't go near people. Only if they absolutely have to. The mother rubber her daughter gently on the back.
"Mama, it's looking at me. Is it smart?"
"It's very smart." The mother looked out into the famliar eyes of the wolf. It looked back at her and it suddenly felt like she and her horse were in the woods again, racing for their lives. She felt the connection between her and the animal raging like a hurricane, and had she not been in a zoo, she would have howled her throat hoarse.
The wolf stood, its huge form making the young girl tense. The breath caught in her mothr's throat as the wolf approached the thick glass, all that was separating the three of them.
Her daughter's unoccupied hand went to the glass, placed exactly where the wolf's nose was. The wolf wasn't looking at the girl, however. Its eyes were focused on the woman's.
"Alex?"
The woman looked up at her husband as if broken from a trance.
"Shall we?" he asked.
"Yes," she answered, taking her daughter's hand. "Come on, honey."
"Can we come back to see him again, Mommy?"
"Yes," Alex answered. "We will. I promise."
"Mama, can it hurt me?"
"Yes, honey. But it doesn't have to. Usually they don't go near people. Only if they absolutely have to. The mother rubber her daughter gently on the back.
"Mama, it's looking at me. Is it smart?"
"It's very smart." The mother looked out into the famliar eyes of the wolf. It looked back at her and it suddenly felt like she and her horse were in the woods again, racing for their lives. She felt the connection between her and the animal raging like a hurricane, and had she not been in a zoo, she would have howled her throat hoarse.
The wolf stood, its huge form making the young girl tense. The breath caught in her mothr's throat as the wolf approached the thick glass, all that was separating the three of them.
Her daughter's unoccupied hand went to the glass, placed exactly where the wolf's nose was. The wolf wasn't looking at the girl, however. Its eyes were focused on the woman's.
"Alex?"
The woman looked up at her husband as if broken from a trance.
"Shall we?" he asked.
"Yes," she answered, taking her daughter's hand. "Come on, honey."
"Can we come back to see him again, Mommy?"
"Yes," Alex answered. "We will. I promise."