genre: distopia/fantasy/mature 

                                      Chapter 1 

 After opening her eyes she gazed around to see where she was. The back of her head was pounding with a headache and the brightness of the day pouring into her eyes made her head throb even more. She closed her eyes again to lessen the intensity of the throbbing and managed to slip back into the unconciousness. Upon waking again, she looked around to try and recall what she was doing. It was still bright but her headache was not so bad. She sat up and observed her surroundings. The grass was nice and green and there was a forest nearby. Beside her was a large hole in a mound that seemed to go upward. After pondering for a few moments of where she was, she started asking herself where she was going. However, she couldn’t remember. Judging from the marks in the hole and the dirt on her clothes, it seemed quite safe to assume that it was from there in which she came. As she peered into the hole she noticed that it went up and up, in a rather peculiar way. Suddenly she was struck with another question: Where did she come from? To her surprise she couldn’t remember that either! As she thought about that, she came to realize that she couldn’t even remember who she was. Like a ship stranded in the ocean without a map and compass or rudder, she was totally lost. Unlike most people, she did not fall into panic although the feeling was quite discomforting. Panic would be saved for when it was needed. Now was not the time. Instead, she absorbed the situation and focused on her surroundings. She couldn’t remember who she so she gazed upon her clothing to try and get some idea. She wore a forest green dress with a light green inner garment that sleeved her arms and fringed out around the upper region of her breasts. She was wearing a belt, brown boots, and a red, hoodless cloak. The dress had a fine style to it while also being suitably plain. The cloak was a notable feature and was made out of velvet. She certainly was not royalty but it was possible that she was of noble lineage. But if she were of true noble class, how did she end up stranded in a place like this by herself? When observing the hole again, it seemed too slippery with loose dirt so she did not bother to waste her energy trying to climb back up. Instead, she stood up and tried to think of what would be the best course to take. The mound seemed to stand high and go on and on in both directions. The plains seemed never-ending in the distance and were baron of any type of establishment. The forest was the only real place of significance nearby, aside from the hole in the mound, and a forest held more certainty of having edible plants to eat so the choice became quite obvious and she began walking towards it. Things were rather quiet and inanimate. Nothing seemed to stir. No birds chirped and no insects fluttered around. For a while she started to feel like she was the only moving creature alive, but that couldn’t be so. The land seemed quite fertile so it was rather odd that there was nothing to take advantage of it. As she reached the edge of the forest she gazed at the trees. Beautiful they were but nothing out of the ordinary. The noise of flowing water could be heard faintly from within it. Water! The sound of it made her thirsty so she entered the forest and attempted to follow in the direction from which she heard it coming from. She hoped that there might be some edible berries or something somewhere near, as well. Water was the element of life and life would also mean the opportunity of nature’s produce. There might even be some good mushrooms to eat, too. The forest was nice and shady. As her eyes adjusted, she could see that the greenery on the inside was majestic. There almost seemed like a magic within the place. As she wandered in the direction of the water’s flowing orchestra, life started to reveal itself. Insects could be seen flying about playing little fluttering games and......no, the bugs seemed to be trying to mate. Some small animals were chasing after each other and......they, too, seemed to be trying to mate. "It must be spring time," she said to herself in a low tone. What was really strange was that the little chatters she heard from the animals seemed almost understandable but could that really be? Ignoring the thought, she continued to look around for water and food. During her search she heard a funny little masculine voice close by, greeting her. "Hello." Surprised, but glad to hear that there was someone else there, she turned to look but couldn’t see anyone. While standing in confusion and wondering if the person was hiding, the voice spoke again. "Down here." She immediately looked down and saw a squirrel looking up at her. Puzzled, she went ahead and asked, "Was it you who said ’hello’?" She truly felt silly to ask the squirrel a question. After all, who ever heard of a talking squirrel? "Of course, who did you think said it?" he answered. She couldn’t help but give an odd look. Even though she could not recall anything, a talking squirrel was not something she expected to find. "I don’t know. Can all of the animals in this forest talk?" "What do you think?" The squirrel spoke as though everything here was normal, but was it? "I don’t know, to tell you the truth." The squirrel looked at her confused. "Are you stupid or something? Were you a runt in your litter?" Surprised at the bluntness and lack of manners in the question, and nearly laughing at the absurdity of it, she couldn’t give an immediate answer. She was still trying to accept the concept of animals talking and was now being asked by a squirrel if she was stupid. She felt she had to be dreaming. "I am not stupid. I just seem to have lost my memory of everything. I have no idea of where I am, where I am going or where I came from. I can’t even remember who I am." The squirrel made some sympathetic noises and then spoke. "Well that’s too bad for you. Is there anything I can help you with?" "Uh, yes please," she answered almost immediately, jumping at the opportunity. "I hear water flowing, is there a creek or stream nearby? And are there any edible berries or foods here?" "Yes and yes," answered the squirrel. "There is a stream just up ahead from where you were going. There are berries and nuts all around here." "Is there anything poisonous that I should avoid?" The squirrel tilted his head. "Poisonous? No, not that I have ever known." She sighed a little. "Well, that is good to know. Can you also tell me where I can find others like myself?" "I don’t know where any other creatures like you live, but I have heard that there is a large group of them living somewhere," answered the squirrel. "It is said that they are quite stupid, which is why they need to live together in large numbers. I thought maybe you were one of them. I, myself, have never seen them. But I hear that there is a cat that lives somewhere in the forest. He is said to be quite knowledgeable, but weird. If you can find him then maybe he can help you with that." A cat? Well, it could have been something a lot stranger than that. A talking cat should be easy to accept after encountering a talking squirrel. "Thank you very much for your time." She nodded and began to continue her search for the water but the squirrel spoke again as she started to leave. "Say, can you help me?" "Me, help you? I can try, but, I ’m not sure how I can help a little squirrel." Wondering what a little critter could need help with, she knelt down in courtesy to his size and waited to hear his question. "I seem to have trouble catching a mate. I was wondering if you could tell me how females think and what they like in a male." As the squirrel stared at her, he noticed a look of confusion on her face. "Umm....," she said, clearing her throat, "female squirrels?" How could she know anything about a female squirrel’s preferences? "That is really hard to say because I have never talked to a squirrel before, until now. I suppose the only advice I could give you would be to ask other males or watch how the males interact with the females. I don’t think that squirrel females and human females have the same preferences." "I suppose not. You can’t climb trees and you don’t have much fur." She continued to kneel there in confusion, trying to figure the logic in his response. The squirrel was silent for a moment and then asked another question. "What do human females like in a male?" Unprepared for such a question, she thought for a moment. "Well, I would say that each human female tends to have her own preferences." "What you like in males, then?" She scratched her head and thought but gave no answer. The squirrel got impatient. "What’s wrong? You don’t know? You mate, don’t you?" Now she was blushing. So many direct questions and they were all coming from a little animal. But seeing that humans are largely different from other creatures it should be expected to receive any number of unexpected questions. "Umm, well, I am very selective about who I mate with, so, I suppose I don’t mate very often." She couldn’t even recall if she was married or not or if she had ever mated before. But she wasn’t about to bring that up to him. Now the squirrel looked confused. "Something has to be wrong with you. Are you sick?" "No." She gave a look of surprise at him. "Why would that have anything to do with me being sick?" "You can’t produce young?" "I can." At least she was certain that she could. The questions were getting a bit personal and she was starting to dislike it, largely because she didn’t even know. More odd questions came, many of which she was not thrilled about so she decided that it was time to search for the stream. "Look, I’m sorry I couldn’t help you with your troubles much but I need to get going. I am getting very hungry and thirsty." The squirrel tilted his head. " Oh, well, I guess that is okay. Take care, then." "Thanks," she said with a pleasant smile, "and good luck in catching a mate." "I suppose I will figure it out one day but I will also ask around. It’s kind of embarrassing, though," he said flicking his tail a few times. "Don’t let it be embarrassing. It is the best thing you can do when something doesn’t make sense to you. Asking someone else can open up new ideas and new ways." The squirrel flicked his tail again. "I guess you are right. Well, bye now. Take care of that illness before it spreads." Then he skipped off into the greenery. "I’m not......," she started to call out but he was already gone and she finished in a low tone, "sick." She couldn’t deny that talking to a squirrel would lead to annoyance but now that he was gone, she was free to pursue her objective again and follow the sound. After a short period of time, she found the stream and started scooping up handfuls of water and drank it. The water was wonderful, and after having plenty to satisfy her thirst she looked for something she could eat. Across the stream she saw bushes of berries that looked delicious. A path of stones that crossed the stream, which she had not noticed before, came to her attention and she went to them and carefully made her way across. The passing water was relaxing to hear and enjoyable to watch. She stopped to enjoy the sight of the flowing water passing beneath her. With the dress concealing her boots she almost felt as though she were floating above the water. Eventually her stomach demanded the attention of a solid food and she continued her crossing of the stream. After reaching the other side she investigated the luscious delicacies of the bush. After taking a berry and examining it, she tried it. When she chewed it an explosion of flavor burst in her mouth. It was sweet and delicious! She quickly ate several more. And then more! They were so delicious that she felt she could just eat them forever. A fine feeling started to enter her mind and she started to feel good......and relaxed..........and then.............something else. An excitement started to grow within her. And it wasn’t just an excitement, it was a stimulation, and a strong one! She was feeling a growing desire to mate! As she tried to fight the urges she couldn’t help but think, "What a terrible time to feel this way!" As she moved, her body gave more indications of this effect. "It can’t be!" she exclaimed in denial. But her senses and desires were swiftly overriding her logic and attempt to distract herself with some other thought. The craving became very heavy and she struggled to deal with the growing animalistic desire for a mate. "Why do I feel this way?" As she kept trying to think of an answer amidst the sensation she eyed the berries. "It has to be. But I never heard of any kind of berries creating such an effect! No wonder the animals around here are so into mating," she figured. For a while she fought hard with physical urges until at last she allowed her hands to help settle the craving. After the effect of the berries simmered down, she regained enough focus and started walking along the river feeling a little ashamed of herself. Eventually, she came upon two frogs who were on the other side and they, too, seemed able to talk. Wondering what kind of things frogs talked about, she decided to eavesdrop a bit. "I am the best choice in partners for you," said a small masculine voice. "I am not convinced of that," answered a small feminine voice. "You don’t see any other males hopping around you, and I could always be going after another female. But I chose you," said the male. "Then go chase after another female. You are boring, your croaking is ridiculous and I don’t want to carry you on my back for the next couple of weeks." Listening to the frogs nearly made her give a loud giggle and forget about the deteriorating sensations of her body. Was this a common episode among frogs? "Huh!" groaned the male frog. "I think I will find some other female to mate with. Good luck finding another male to make tadpoles with." Then he hopped into the water and swam off. "Better to have no tadpoles than to have them with some lump-head like you who won’t shut up about boring stuff," blurted out the female frog. "I saw you bump into that log while showing off, cicada-brain!" After hearing enough complaining and insults from the female frog, she decided to move along. "That girl frog was rather mean," she thought to herself. "But who knows what a frog’s life is like. I suppose I’d better not wonder too much or else I might find out.