oh i love this (Xanthe)

The quiet girl still seemed slightly nervous given her journey here but Xanthe wasn’t going to let her end up in deeper trouble. Trust was starting to form all the same.

Meanwhile contact had been made and they were asked to bring her to the starting point of the trail. So Xanthe was using her phone to get the right direction of travel. The girl took her hand as she carried her bag and coat.

Xanthe remarked “she’ll be fine now. You don’t have to worry about anything now sweetie”. Then off they went back through the jungle to the main path and back to the starting point. There’d be a new adventure for the girl and a vacation that Xanthe wouldn’t forget in a hurry.

Hayden Quinzell

Xanthe was told she might be needed to talk to later on and she was going to be round for a few more days at least. Plans that might alter as Kimberly held on tightly to her bag and Xanthe’s hat. So that left Hayden and herself back at the start of this adventure.

“I certainly wasn’t expecting this but my teams past experiences did help me. A lot of people don’t do the right thing which might explain why things are a mess back home. As a species we’ll never get rid of hate and intolerance but it can be reduced a little at a time” she replied quite calmly. This woman had courage and compassion as well as intense curiosity.

“I know we didn’t get very far but perhaps we could still explore a bit further” she suggested. “Or at least get lunch” as she opened up her backpack again.

Hayden Quinzell

Xanthe could do something about food right now even with Kimberly raiding their supplies. So she found Hayden a bottle of water and a protein bar in the meantime. She wasn’t yet that hungry herself. So giving him these items she replied “five miles sounds good to me going that direction”. One she pointed out so they could just reverse course to get out. There wasn’t much of landmarks in a jungle.

All she needed herself was water as the trek continued and she added “we did good today but how you deal with an unexpected need shows a lot about you”.

Hayden Quinzell

So with both of them supplied and walking the chosen trail she had to duck occasionally to work round the low hanging jungle. As long as she could keep the direction in her head she’d be fine. “I got looking at what was in her bag. She had documents that identified her and directions on how to get here. We might find out more later on but she’s a lot more organised than some people I know.

If she stays on this island she should do well” Xanthe replied. She felt sure of that as she looked back to Hayden. She’d seen plenty in the states even before coming here and somebody with drive like that little girl would do well eventually.

Hayden Quinzell

The idea sounded good to Xanthe. “We know she likes chocolate but add some fruit and drinks to the gift basket. I can get her a fashion doll as girls like that kind of thing” she suggested. As to how she got here Xanthe had no idea. That story would emerge in time as she addded “I’m sure she’ll be able to tell her story eventually once she feels safe. I don’t know what care facilities are here but I’m sure the hospital will be the starting point”.

Now things opened up again in the jungle as the going got a little easier.

Hayden Quinzell

She had heard about the farmers market from the adverts in the digital island newspaper so she figured it would be fresh food if it came from the local soil or from the sea. So suggested “how about the farmers market? All we’ll need is a box to put the things we gather in but once we get back to the hotel we can start”. She figured that would give the girl time to settle at least she’d need to find a toy shop and the girls sizes. Extra clothes would help.

“She’ll certainly get the help she needs then”. The island did seem to be reasonably supplied from the land and sea and a good place to live.

Hayden Quinzell

“I seen it mentioned in the digital newspaper. They also do fresh fish but we won’t need that for the gift basket and they might have food vans there as well” Xanthe replied and added “it should be fun”.

So by the time they’d trekked the five miles and made the round trip she was glad to get to the hotel and felt ready for a proper lunch. A chocolate bar could only do so much but she had suggested going to the market after they got changed.

Hayden Quinzell