The Fourth Instar

"The sun's first rays reached out and touched the rooster. In its light, the rooster turned a radiant golden color with a comb as bright and as red as a burning flame. When the villagers saw this, they realized the sun was coming out, and they cheered as if it was a grand celebration. The sun, now hearing so many friendly sounds, was pleased, and it came all the way out of the mountain." – Lin, Starry River





6.

Crandall had been digging in his pockets for the money to get into the Blooming Butterflies for only a moment when the young girl had come up to him and handed him a flat five dollar bill. "We could see that you didn't have enough money.  We wondered if your parents were coming?" the girls asked.  She had to have been a similar age to Crandall, a bit taller than he was, dark brown hair, pulled back behind the ears and wide brown eyes.  What stood out immediately, though, directly against the noon sun coming straight down on them at the outside of the entrance vestibule, was a very small and sparkling butterfly that looked painted onto the side of her cheek.  "Ah, well, actually, my dad knows that I am over here. He is right across the street. Over there" he pointed to Lake Monona, "on his boat. I come over here all the time. He lets me." He stopped digging into his shorts pockets now. His instinct was to never take anything from somebody he didn't know, but he could not help himself at this moment.  The allure of the butterflies inside, the allure of this family kindly offering him the five dollar bill.  "Ok," he quickly said, not knowing what else to say, "I will pay you back someday, for sure." The girl unfolded a sort of long poster that looked to be a list and pictures of various butterflies.  There were crosses written through most of them. "We are here to find Julia."
"You are here to find a girl?" he asked innocently.  "No, the Julia butterfly, another brush foot, same family as the Monarch but like all orange.  They are our favorite.  Have you ever seen one?" Crandall certainly loved them too, the butterflies, but would never claim to be an expert as his father might claim to be an expert of plants and wildflowers.  He assumed most of the large orange colored butterflies were Monarchs. "I really don't think so," he said, as they began to walk in together through the doors and into the building towards a the exhibition marked by butterfly stickers on the floor. "What grade are you in?" she asked. "My name is Julia, by the way. That is part of why we are so excited to see it today."
"I'm heading into sixth. I'm Crandall. It's a weird name but it comes from my mom's maiden last name. Not a lot of Crandalls out there I guess."
"It would make a great name for a new butterfly" she said.  At that moment, the rest of the girl's family began to wave her nearer to them. The introducer was beginning to narrate the tour and warn against watching for butterflies on the way out and resting on the floor inside.  "Come on along with us Crandall," she said. "We will find the Julia together."