Once there was a rrakith cub named Jannil, she was
much like any other cub, happy and energetic, though also a little
shy, a bit more reserved than the others. She loved to run and
play like all the other cubs, but sometimes, especially around
people she didn't know, she would find herself becoming self-conscious.
One of the things that Jannil really loved was music,
ever since her parents had sang her lullabies as a baby she'd
always been responsive to it. Now that she was older, she loved
it even more, and would often listen to the songs playing on her
radio, laying on her bed up in her room, happily humming along
with the melodies.
She would even sing occasionally, joining in with
the songs, but only if she was alone, where nobody could hear
her. For some reason, she thought her voice sounded wrong, out
of key and odd. Perhaps it was just to her own ears, and she didn't
sound bad at all, but she was careful not to let her singing be
heard, in fact most of the time, even when she was alone, she
would only hum quietly to the music. She would sometimes get lost
in the melodies and sing along with them, but often when she realized
that, she became critical of her voice once again.
Then one bright and beautiful day, as she was walking
through the quiet woods of the park, humming softly to herself,
she heard the faint strains of music drifting gently through the
breeze. Her ears picking up as the notes caught her attention,
her tail twitching with her interest, she figured out the music's
source and began to follow it, the soft melodies calling out to
her.
Drawing closer, the notes becoming louder, she soon
neared a clearing where several other cubs of varying ages sat.
It was a small group of children and young teens, a few of them
with different instruments, their varied sounds blending together,
one older cub tapping rhythmically on a drum with her paws. The
others in the group were humming and singing as they all sat together
on the grass, enjoying the music they were creating.
Listening to them, it was a song Jannil was very
familiar with, in fact it was one of her favorites. Standing just
outside of the clearing, her shyness stealing over her once again,
she hid behind a tree as she watched and listened to them. As
the moments passed, she stole more furtive glances towards the
group of minstrels, remaining quiet, secluded in her hiding spot.
The power of the music calling her, Jannil found
herself humming once again, almost without her knowing it she
began to match the notes of the song. Caught up in the melodies,
her humming grew louder, her throat rumbling comfortably with
the music, a soft purr to its tones.
Opening her mouth, her shyness forgotten in the protective
shadow of the tree and the soft flow of the music, she began to
sing, ignoring the odd timbres of her voice. Her enthusiasm growing,
the volume of her singing followed suit, until she was surprised
when the music stopped abruptly, the off-key notes of her voice
trailing off into a nervous gasp.
Peeking out of her hiding spot, she quickly ducked
back behind the protection of the tree, as she saw several of
the musicians looking in her direction.
"Ah, I thought I heard something," one
of the teenagers said with a soft laugh. "It's okay little
one, you don't have to hide back there."
Having been caught, she poked her head out once again,
to meet the smiling faces of the others in the clearing, her ears
flattening slightly as she noticed all of them were looking at
her.
"Come on, why don't you come and sit with us,"
one of the other members of the group said, her flute resting
in her lap. "It's much better than having to listen to the
music from way over there."
Coaxed out from hiding, Jannil walked slowly into
the clearing, looking at the faces of all the friendly, but new
people. Sitting down beside the flautist, she was greeted with
a warm smile, which she returned a little nervously.
"What's your name little one?" the older
rrakith asked.
"Jannil" the cub replied, her voice now
softer than it had been when she'd been singing in the sanctuary
of the tree's shadow.
"Well hello Jannil, it's nice to meet you, my
name's Krrell," she said, then quickly introducing her to
the others in the group.
With the introductions out of the way, they soon
began the music once again, the beautiful notes of the song drifting
once more along the gentle breezes of the warm afternoon. Hearing
the melodies, Jannil soon forgot her uneasiness, swaying her head
slightly to the notes, even humming along with the beloved tune.
It wasn't until Krrell paused in her playing and
leaned down to touch her shoulder to get her attention that Jannil
became self-conscious. Smiling at her, the older rrakith whispered
"why don't you sing along, like you were before, when we
first noticed you?"
Surprised, Jannil shook her head nervously.
"Oh, come on, you were enjoying it, and you
sounded good" her new friend coaxed her.
Finally, at Krrell's gentle insistence, with the
other members of the group focused on their music, Jannil opened
her mouth slightly, risking her apprehension, and let the notes
escape her. They came softly at first, but gaining courage with
Krrell's accompaniment, the power of her voice slowly began to
grow.
As the volume of her singing grew, becoming more
audible against the notes of the instruments and the voices of
the others, the timbres of her notes mixed in with the music.
To her surprise, her voice no longer sounded flat and off-key,
instead as it added to the tapestry of the song, its qualities
were complemented by the varied nuances of the melodies.
Her addition to the music gave as much as it received
too, the different notes of her voice filling in empty spaces
left in the chords by the others. As she rejoiced in this, the
enthusiasm in her voice evident, spurred on by the smiles of Krrell
and the others, she sang with even more feeling. On that sunny
afternoon, singing along with the others, Jannil found a deeper
appreciation for music, enjoying it on a different level than
before, for as she had learned, it's not so much the singer, but
the chorus.
Copyright 1996, Will A. Sanborn -
was1@shore.net
The Rrakith copyright 1996, Will A. Sanborn and Bernard
Doove