Dierdre

Dierdre nearly didn’t hear the squirrel calling after her. She intended to gracefully stalk away and find her own food but the squirrel was relentless. She stopped and waited for her to catch up.

“What?”

“We could be working together, you know. I could carry my stuff on your back and give you a cut, too.”

Dierdre almost rolled her eyes. “Why would I work with you?”

“You could be trying different foods from the different trees. If the other forest folk see us together, they might see you differently. You might get some praise and nice benefits out of helping me do my work. We could go farther together, literally.”

Dierdre thought about it. They weren’t bad points. She was used to doing most of her own slow foraging but she loved the idea of being seen. Most of the other creatures had been leaving her alone because of her seemingly distant attitude. Maybe it was time for a new image. “Alright. I’ll take you up on that.” Dierdre let the squirrel climb up on her back.

“I’m Selene, by the way.”

“I’m Dierdre.”