2. The Flowers
Honeybee was in a dither. "What do you mean that the Flowers have no colors? How can I got back and tell that to my unit commander? They'll laugh me out of the colony if I tell them a story like that!"
"Word!" Shouted Hummingbird. "You trippin Butterfly. No-color Flowers? That's wack!"
"Yes," Butterfly agreed. "It sounds far-fetched, all right. But, what do you see when you look down there?"
If these are Meadow's Flowers, Butterfly thought to herself, the sight of them is altogether depressing. Not one of them attracts. Not one summons us with brilliant, glowing color. How sad!
Aloud, she said "We could stand here all day wondering and debating. the only real way to find out if they're Flowers is to ask them." And she fluttered down with the other two following and landed on a blade of grass.
Hummingbird, wings beating faster than ever, hovered just above Butterfly and spoke to a clump of 'something' on the ground. "Say, can you tell me where the Flowers at round here? We been checking out Meadow, but we can't find the place to play, so to speak. Can you help us out?"
Honeybee elaborated further: "We don't see any colors so we know there can't be Flowers here. Please tell us where to find them!"
There was an audible gasp from all the Flowers. Their petals shook in unified indignation.
"Of all the nerve!" Said Impaitents, indignant and angry. "What do you think we are? Weeds!"
Honeybee was flabbergasted. "You mean you really are Flowers?"
"Not too bright are you?" Snapped Impatients, living up to her name. "Of course, we're Flowers. Anyone with a half a brain can see that!"
Butterfly fluttered up and down angrily, then decided to challenge her: "Well if you are, why don't you have colors so you can attract us and we can get the nectar we're supposed to use to pollinate?"
The Flowers, one and all, looked at each other quizzically. "What," bellowed Tiger Lily, "is this thing 'color' you keep referring to?"
Honeybee almost fell over. She couldn't believe her ears."You mean you don't know?"
"Know? What is there to know!?" Cried Lavender, who was very excitable indeed.
"Color," Butterfly broke in, "is what Rainbow over there is made of." She nodded toward the edge of the horizon where Rainbow shimmered blissfully.
Hummingbird, who lacked tactfulness, told them flat out: "Yo! Y'all some dummies! You suppose to have color. Everthang suppose to have it. Specially y'all. When y'all vibed in at the Beginning, that was when you was suppose to take the colors y'all was assigned by Big Momma--I mean, Mama Nature. Like you, Miss Lavender, you suppose to be purple. And Brotha Bill, your petals suppose to be sportin some scarlet or rose. That way--"
Sweet William, fussing with his suit and tie, as he did every morning, bristled at Hummingbird. "Miss Thing, please take note. My name is not Bill. It's William... Sweet Wlliam. And I'll thank you to call me by my proper nom de plume."
"William," said Impatients, "stop throwing French phrases around. It's irritating, especially when you don't know what you're saying. But let's get back to what Hummingbird--"
"Call me Rufus. I'm Rufus Hummingbird, delighted to meet cha." He inclined his head politely and dipped his wings at her.
"Yes," said Impatients. "Delighted. But what were you telling us earlier about these... what did you call them?"
"Colors," said Hummingbird.
"You say we should have gotten assigned colors at the Beginning when we vibrated in?"Asked Impatients.
"And if we had, we'd look like Rainbow, over there." Said Tiger Lily.
"Not exactly like Rainbow," Butterfly put in. "She has many colors, but you should have gotten one color of your own.That's the way Mother Nature planned it, I'm sure. In order for you to fulfill your purpose. And for us to fulfill ours."
"Yes," said Honeybee, "you have your purpose and I, that is, we have ours. And we need each other to carry them out."
"So, what happened to you," asked Hummingbird, "when you vibrated into being?"
"I think the important question is where do we get this color you say we should have?" Cried Lavender, excited by her own question.
"As you say," Hummingbird agreed.
"Well," demanded Tiger Lily, "where can we get it?"
Butterfly said: "Why from Mother Nature, of course."
"And where, might I ask, is she?" growled Tiger Lily.
Sweet William said: "I heard that you can find her over the Mountain in The Cave of Sun and Moon."
"Heard from who?" Hummingbird challenged, his wings beating extra hard and fast.
"Why, from Gravpevine, of course," William said, tossing his dainty head saucily.
They all looked over at Crossroads. Grapevine hung on his sign, twined round and round his arms. It was a good place for her to hear every kind of tale from traveling passersby, going hither and thither.
"Well, do you believe her?" Asked Butterfly.
"She knows her business. Never wrong yet," said Sweet William.
"Hmm," Butterfly said. "I'm thinking we might have an answer to our problems."
"Well, I want to hear it because I really can't go back to the hive telling a wild story like this." Honeybee said, bzzing round and round.
"What you got in mind, lady?" Hummingbird asked Butterfly.
"My name is Bessie Mae Butterfly, Rufus."
Not one to be left out, Honeybee said: "And mine is Heather Honeybee."
Sweet William said with a touch of sarcasm: "Now that we have all that important stuff settled, let's get back to Rufus' question. What do you have in mind, Bessie Mae?"
"We'll all go find Mother Nature and ask her to give Flowers their colors," said Bessie Mae Butterfly triumphantly. "It's the only way."
Next- Scene 3
