wail raze some camouflaged creature's strange cries drove us from the well-lit night and into the darkness outside. it wasn't a child. nothing human could howl like that. i thought i saw a dark tail swaying in a tall tree. it was a mass of shadows made by leaves. it isn't just the wind that moves them. they learn through observation. imitating birds and small gnawing mammals. collapsing into careless joy. i couldn't tell if the source of the sound was wounded or trapped. a flashlight did nothing to dent the duvet draped over the shoulders of everything still breathing. i was wishing for claws to let me climb that conifer when a small winged thing took flight, and all was quiet. 231103 what's it to you? who go blather from