A Wild World (Wild Kratts Story)

Flight Of The Draco Part 2

(reader POV)

You were still thinking about what you could have done to help Chris, when you looked up and saw he was trying to move away from Aviva and Martin.

"Guys. I'm okay. I'm okay." Chris said,stumbling away from them. You wanted to run over and see if he was really alright, but what if he was mad at you for being so close and unable to help him?

"But Chris, that was some big fall." Aviva said. You looked up at the branches above.

Tell me about it. You thought sarcastically. You shook your head again as the same horrifying moment replayed itself in your mind again. You would keep your distance from Chris for now, you decided.

"Yeah. When I fall from my chair I'm out for the day." Jimmy said, responding to what Aviva said.

"Yeah, you're lucky you touched down in that mud puddle!" Martin said. You saw him glance back at you, then look back toward Chris. It surprised you, and you looked away from him.

"I'm absolutely fine. Really. It was just a little fall." Chris said, gaining his balance and walking ahead of everyone. You looked at him in concern, but didn't try and go near him. You were a little confused when Chris suddenly perked up.

"And I'm even better now! A draco!" Chris said. He pointed at a little grey lizard on a tree. Martin took a step toward the lizard.

"Oh, it's Zippy!" Martin said. The tiny lizard ran up the tree, and you took a cautious step in that direction.

"Let's go!" Martin and Chris shouted at the same time. You walked slowly up to a tree nearby the one the lizard went up, and pulled yourself up the lowest branch. You looked at the height of the tree, and this time an unexpected memory came to mind.

"So you do climb." He said. You nodded, and he smiled.

"Care to climb to the top of the tree with me?" He asked you. You looked up at the top of the tree, at least seventy feet above your head.

"I've never climbed that high up before." You said quietly to yourself. You looked back at Chris, and he was smiling encouragingly.

"How far have you climbed?" He asked you. You pointed to a branch a few feet up.

"Only about ten feet." You said. Chris looked at how much taller the tree was than ten feet and started trying to find something reassuring to tell you. After a few minutes, he gently picked up your hand and pulled you closer to the trunk of the tree.

"Don't worry." He said. You looked nervously up at the height of the tree. You had never told anyone, but you were terrified of falling. That was why you never climbed any higher than what you were used to.

"I'm not sure about this..." You said for the second time that day. Chris hopped up to a branch a little higher than the one you were standing on. He held out his hand to help you up.

"Don't worry." He repeated. Then he added; "I'm going to be right here to help you."

You shook your head, this time to keep tears from coming to your eyes. You looked back up at the tall branches, sighed, and jumped back to the ground. You looked over and saw that Chris was just staring nervously at the tree he picked.

"Come on, Chris! We can't lose a step on this little speedster, remember?" Martin said, continuing to climb his tree.

"Uh, yeah. You go ahead. Lizards are tricky. We'll need more... climbing gear. I'll go get it!" Chris said. He stepped away from the tree like it was a venomous snake, and stared up.

"Come on Chris, I'll help you collect the gear." Aviva said. They started walking away. Martin watched them until they were gone, but you turned a went in the opposite direction.

Chris never wants climbing gear. He thinks it slows him down. You thought. You tapped your chin in thought.

So why would he ask now? You remembered how he looked at the trees after the fall. Suddenly, it dawned on you.

Is Chris scared of heights? You asked yourself. You jumped when Martin jumped down to a branch next to you.

"Come on, (____)! The dracos aren't down there, they're up here!" Martin called. You looked at the tree nervously.

"Oh, come on, not you, too!" Martin said. You could tell what he was thinking.

"Oh, no, you're getting it all wrong. I'm not scared to climb!" You said. Martin raised an eyebrow at you.

"Than what's keeping you?" He asked. You sighed. Maybe you should let him know what's bothering you.

"When Chris fell, I sort of went after him." You said nervously. Martin nodded and dropped down to stand next to you.

"I know. I saw the vine. When you jumped, you were way off from that mud puddle." He said, putting a hand on your shoulder.

"I know. I'm glad I thought it through first." You said. You looked away from Martin uncomfortably.

"You did what you could, Wild Cat." Martin said. You smiled a little at him using your nickname.

"But I couldn't catch him." You said. Martin looked you in the eye. You fidgeted under his gaze.

"No one even expected you to jump. Especially not Chris and I." Martin said. You stared at him in confusion.

"Did Chris tell you something?" You asked him. He shook his head.

"No, but it's not hard to see that you won't go climbing without him." Martin said. He pointed at the tree behind him.

"There's definitely something about being up there that scares you, even before Chris fell." He said to you. You nodded. You decided you could trust Martin with your fears.

"It used to be a fear of falling. But Chris helped me get over that." You confided. Martin nodded understandingly. You were glad he wasn't making fun of you.

"Now my fear is getting a replay of what happened with Chris." You said. Martin stared at you, so you continued.

"If there's one thing I hate, it's having someone I care about in trouble and nothing I can do about it." You finished. You sighed unhappily. Martin nodded and hugged you.

"It's okay. I understand." He said softly. You smiled at him.

"Think you can come up with me? I could use some help keeping up with Zippy." Martin said. You nodded, and Martin jumped back up into his tree. You walked up to the base of the tree next to him. You sighed, then started climbing.

After a little while, you looked at the ground below. You were already at least fifty feet from the ground. You clung harder to the branch you were on, and fear started to take over. You shook your head and tried to think straight. What would Chris say?

"Don't worry. I'm going to be right here to help you." 

But Chris wasn't here to help you. Not now. Still, you knew what he would have wanted you to do. You took a deep breath and tried to control your fear. Then, you kept climbing.

To Be Continued...