Borrowed Peeks: Chapter 2

 Aster follows Betsy, the giant farmer woman. The tiny Borrower girl wants to find her farm to Borrow some food. But she runs into some trouble along the way.

 Aster felt like she had been following Betsy's trail for hours. The sun was low in the sky, and the clouds were a shade of dark blue & bright red. The human bean's large & dusty bootprints had led Aster over rocks & hills. But the young Borrower girl was persistent & continued to hike, occasionally stepping down to trudge through one of the shallow craters that Betsy's boots had left behind. Aster hoped to reach the human bean's farm before sundown.

 Suddenly, something snagged Aster's dress & caused her to trip. She groaned & turned to look back at her home-sewn outfit. A branch from a large thorn bush had ensnared the hem of her dress. She gasped & pulled at it, but the patchy fabric was too entangled. One of the thorns brushed against her arm, leaving a little red mark on her light skin. She made a faint whimpering sound & looked at the little scratch. The smallest drop of red blood dripped down her pale skin. She winced. The tiny girl leaned forward & pushed her lips against the wound, kissing it softly. It was something her mother had always done to make her feel better. Her mother had warned her many times about the dangers of the outside world. And here she was, trapped by a simple thorn bush.

 Aster huffed & pulled at her dress with more determination. There was the sound of ripping fabric, but she finally pulled free. She stumbled forward before readying herself once more. She looked down at the frayed fabric of her dress. It looked more like a skirt now. She could feel the cool mountain air on her bare thighs. It made her feel more vulnerable, but it was also strangely freeing. After all, she wasn't wearing anything underneath. Most Borrowers did not wear undergarments. It was difficult enough to find little clothes suitable to wear. Some would wear nothing at all. Aster thought it was strange that human beans wore clothes underneath their clothes. But the tiny girl was still troubled by her torn dress.

 She imagined her mother would be cross when she returned home from her long adventure with a torn & tattered dress. For a moment, Aster considered venturing back into the thorn bush to retrieve the ripped cloth she had left hanging on the branch. But it wasn't worth the risk. She dusted off her knees & continued to follow Betsy's trail. If she was going to reach the farm before sundown, she needed to keep moving. She pushed forward through the tall blades of grass & into a clearing.

 The little Borrower gasped & stood in awe at the landscape before her. There was a vast green valley filled with hundreds of colorful wildflowers. Aster had never seen so many colors all in one place. The sight filled her with excitement. Before she knew it, her feet were moving with a newfound energy. She dashed through the field without a care in the world, twirling as she admired each tall flower. The low sun reflected off of the flower petals beautifully. She danced & spun around in circles. Her newly-shortened dress fluttered in the breeze, exposing her lower body. She didn't even care that her pale little butt cheeks were uncovered & put on display for all the flowers to see. The cool mountain air flowed over her thighs & her partially exposed womanhood. The sensation gave her goosebumps & tickled the small patch of fuzzy hair she had growing down there. The tiny girl freely spun around in circles again & again, until she became too dizzy & collapsed on the soft grass, giggling to herself.

 Aster lay there in the grass underneath one of the wildflowers. She brushed her ruffled jet-black hair out of her face & peered up at the stem of the tall flower. The flower was a vibrant shade of pink & its petals softly swayed in the breeze. She smiled blissfully, laid her head back, and closed her blue eyes.

 A moment later, she opened them. She gasped & sat up with a start. She could've sworn that her eyes were only closed for a couple of seconds. But now the sky was dark & twilight was upon her. She had become so lost in the moment. Only now did she remember that she had been tracking that giant farmer woman. And now she was lost in a field full of flowers. She was worried she would never find the human bean's trail again, especially now that it was dark. She cursed herself for being so airheaded.

 Aster jumped to her feet & tried to retrace her steps. If only she hadn't danced & spun around so much at the awe-inspiring sight of so many beautiful wildflowers. Now, as she looked up at them & tried to find a familiar landmark, all the flower petals looked very similar. She felt so small & vulnerable, lost in the big world.

 But she wouldn't let it keep her down. Since she had begun her adventure several weeks ago, she had spent many nights sleeping under the moon & stars. And tonight would be no different. The tiny girl sighed & leaned against the stem of a nearby flower. She lowered herself to the ground. The dirt & soft grass tickled her thighs & her partially uncovered rear end.

 Aster was disappointed that she hadn't found that giant woman's farm. She really needed some food to Borrow. Her little stomach growled from hunger. She hoped that tomorrow, she could find some more berries. She laid her head on the soft grass & closed her eyes.

 That was when she heard a distant noise. It sounded strange & deep. She hadn't the slightest idea what the sound could be. But whatever it was, it sounded massive. Perhaps it was a large predator, wandering the forest in search of prey. So many dangerous animals roamed around at night. But the bizarre noise piqued the tiny girl's curiosity.

 Aster stood to her feet & cautiously tiptoed toward the strange sound. She nearly ran straight into several flower stems along the way. But her wide blue eyes eventually adjusted to the darkness & she was able to avoid any further obstacles.

 As she neared the sound, it became louder & deeper. It was like a deep hum with a lasting groan. The sound made the tiny girl tremble from fright. But she persisted forward, pushing a few tall blades of grass to the side.

 That's when she saw the creature. Her blue eyes widened with amused delight. Cows! She had only seen such creatures in books. But here in front of her, there were a dozen of them grazing in the field. It was an other-worldly sight to the young Borrower. And in the distance, she spotted something that delighted her even further: a small farmhouse with billowing smoke rising from the chimney. She had found Betsy's farm!