This is Ria. Welcome to Little Stories for Tiny People. I am so thrilled because I have a guest and I have to say he is one of the cutest and least creepy guests I have ever been fortunate enough to welcome to my studio. My guest is… da-da-da-da! Dietrich, an adorable Egyptian fruit bat. Welcome Dietrich. Oh, sorry Dietrich. I have an email. Dear Ria, didn't you say in a previous episode you didn't want bats in your studio? You know, it's about context. You know what I mean. I'm happy to have Dietrich here. And like I said, he's adorable. Some bats are creepy. Not this guy. This is so exciting. Yeah, you can hang right there. That's fine. You want an apple or something? Yeah, I have berries. Hold on a second. Let me just open my fruit cupboard. Alright, there we go. What's that? Oh, are they here now? Okay. Apparently Dietrich's family is here. I was only expecting one bat, but I guess I could fit a few more. Yeah, let's let them in. Oh, wow. You have a big family. No, this is fine. This is fine. Why don't we get to the story? And you're all going to love it. All… one, two, three, four, oh. 17 of you. There are bats in the story. Let's get to that story. It's called Grumble and the Cave. It's perfect for bed. Maybe you could all go to sleep? That would be great. Okay, take it away, Noah. Now remember, there are no pictures. That's where my eyes and the pictures in your mind. Okay, here we go. Grumble was a salamander with a long tail and little legs and enormous eyes that were good at searching in the deep dark of the cave where he lived. Grumble didn't call it the cave. The cave wasn't a special something that needed a name. It was the whole planet, as far as he knew. But Grumble didn't even know there was a planet. How could he? To Grumble, it wasn't dark in the cave because he'd never seen the sun. In order to call something a cave, one has to have been outside of a cave. To call something quiet, one has to have heard loud sounds. And to call something darkness, one has to have known light. But Grumble didn't know any of these things. His world inside the cave was simply the way things were. These were the sounds in the cave. Water dripping down into puddles, bats swooping, rats squeaking, the occasional rumble of thunder. Oh, and Quib, Grumble's best friend, who hopped along beside him and occasionally rode on his back when need be. Quib was a small frog who couldn't see well. They had met when Grumble had cornered Quib and had been poised to eat her. But Grumble was charmed by Quib's personality. Hello, is someone there? Before you eat me, can we have a conversation? Would that be possible? Grumble had decided to keep her around and protect her from being eaten by anyone else. It was weird at first, becoming friends, but over time it was something they could laugh about together. Remember that time when you were going to eat me? That seemed so long ago. I would never eat you now, Quib. I know. To Grumble and Quib, day and night were all woven together. They were most active at what we'd think of as twilight, just after the sun has dipped beyond view and the light is rapidly fading. One night, Grumble was creeping over some rocks. Quib was right behind him, with his big, sensitive eyes. Grumble could see things in the dark, like mushrooms he liked to eat and also some creepy, crawly things. So he ate those and he kept going. A bat swooped nearby. That wasn't unusual. The bats did a lot of swooping. That was one of their favorite hobbies. Then more bats swooped. Still wasn't strange. As I mentioned, they enjoyed swooping. But then more bats swooped and more and Grumble began to wonder what was going on. Grumble, what is happening? Quib said, moving closer to her friend. She sometimes relied on Grumble to explain what she could hear but couldn't see. The bats were swooping. It's probably nothing. But this amount of swooping was not normal. Usually the bats moved on quickly to some other activity, like hanging upside down and glaring. But they didn't move on. They just kept swooping. And then, all at once, they were gone. Grumble went back to his foraging. He used his little claws to gather up a few more food items. He was about to drop a slimy something into his mouth when, ah, Grumble snapped his eyes shut. Grumble, what is it? My eyes, they're on fire. Grumble blinked but couldn't see a thing. It was as if his vision was blotted out all at once. He kept blinking, hoping his eyes would return to normal. But they didn't. Every time he tried to open them, there was a great brightness that made them tear up. He huddled himself in a ball, blinking, wishing his sight would return. Then, on top of the great brightness, he began to hear sounds he never heard before. Quib hopped right next to Grumble and held onto his arm. Something's coming, isn't it? The sounds were like tiny booms of thunder. Over and over, it sounded like this. Whoa, this is awesome. Check out those stalagmites, Dad. Stalactites. Those are the stalagmites. Oh, I always get those mixed up. Grumble tried to use one arm to block out the noise and another to block out the brightness, but neither was very effective. The loud sounds kept coming, and the brightness wasn't going away. In his brief glimpses of the things doing all this booming, check out the mushrooms growing on this wall. Grumble saw that one of them was holding the object, creating the great brightness. Grumble imagined this thing was filled with terrible magic. He was scared. For the first time in a long while, he felt the need to run. He grabbed Quib and put her on his back. Hold on. Where are we going? I don't know yet. Grumble ran. His stubby legs were a blur across the slimy ground. As he ran, the brightness got a little further back, and his eyes started to adjust back to the darkness. He sighed with relief, but he heard booms again. Dad, do you have a water bottle? I'm getting kind of thirsty. And saw the light coming behind him, so he ran on. He scampered over rocks and under rocks. He slipped on something and tripped forward, but he kept going. He had never ventured so far, and he started to feel a difference in the air. It was less damp. He kept going, and he came to an opening. In the rock face, he could feel air drifting through it. It smelled totally different than the air he was used to. The sounds came round a corner, and the light followed. The things! They're coming! Quib shouted. Grumble panicked. He thought back to the blinding brightness and the pain of the sounds. He thought of Quib and what might happen to her if the things got too close. Grumble squeezed them both through the opening in the rock. Grumble and Quib were no longer in the cave. They figured this out pretty quickly. All it took for Grumble was a good look around. Out here, there was light. It hurt his eyes, but not as badly as the brightness he'd been escaping in the cave. Out here, the light was coming down from the sky. Way above, there was a glowing orb. There were dots of light all over the dark sky. Quib noticed the difference in the air, the dryness of it. Feels like my skin is going to shrivel. She hopped around, feeling the sandy soil, saying nothing. How do you find words to describe something you never experienced before? Quib huddled against Grumble. For the first time, they realized they had spent their lives inside something. And now, they weren't in it anymore. Beneath the endless open sky, in a place that had no walls to creep along, just vast openness in all directions, Grumble felt dangerously exposed, with Quib on his back. He hustled across the sandy ground until he reached a shrub. He set down Quib under the cover of the branches. Grumble realized he was panting from exhaustion. He had no idea what to do or where to go. The two of them curled up beneath the shrub. And fell into an unsettled sleep. Hello! You! You there! Grumble felt something nudging against him. Quib, stop! I'm not doing anything. Grumble shot up from the ground, suddenly remembering the night before, Quib flew off his back into the soil. Oof! Grumble darted to his feet, agitated. Before him was a small lizard staring at him with concern. Are you okay? said the lizard. Grumble's throat was parched, and when he tried to speak, his voice was froggy. Quib, he said. What's a Quib? I'm here, Grumble. Quib said, from beneath the shrub. Grumble collected her and placed her on his back. The sky was still dark, but a bit lighter than it had been when Grumble and Quib had stumbled outside. Grumble shielded his eyes with a claw. The lizard studied them with a puzzled expression. I woke you up because you're out in the open. What do you mean? You can't be out here too exposed. The lizard said, peering around as if for predators. Grumble had no idea what the lizard was talking about. Where are you from, anyway? Lizard said, not unkindly. Uh, I don't know. Lizard frowned. You need more help than I thought. What do you mean you don't know? I don't know what it's called. Where I'm from. Where I'm from. I only just learned I was from anywhere. Well, that was strange. Lizard was perplexed. Describe it to me, he said. They huddled beneath the shrub. Lizard next to Grumble, Quib on Grumble's back. We come from an inside place. Apparently, Grumble said. An inside place? Huh. Oh, oh, a burrow. Did you dig it yourself? Grumble, who are you talking to? Burrow, no, no, I didn't dig it. Quib, it's a lizard. Oh, a lizard. Don't see many of those. Lizard crouched next to them beneath the shrub. Okay, not a burrow. Hole in the ground. Did you find this place and go into it? I was never out of it. Until now. I didn't even know I was in it. Until I wasn't. Lizard felt a headache coming on. You're going to have to show me. They skittered across the sandy soil beneath the night sky. Grumble led the way to the cave. This is how you get in. This? This is where you're from? Grumble nodded. Quib nodded too. Hmm. This leads to a cave. Lizard said, peering at the two of them with a furrowed brow. A cave, yes. You lived in a cave. Have you been in there? Quib said, piping up. Lizard frowned. Me? Oh, I don't go in caves. I don't like bats. Grumble was startled by the answer. He waited to see if Lizard might chuckle and correct himself, saying, I was only joking. I go into caves all the time. But Lizard just continued looking from Grumble to Quib with a quizzical expression. Grumble's head hurt as he turned this over in his mind. Somehow, his entire world, the one he thought was everything, was just one place that creatures might never go inside in their whole lives. Huh. But that's unusual, right? Most creatures live in the cave? No. Most creatures don't want to live in a cave. It's damp, dark, not much food. Grumble felt his breath catch. The cave was not only not the whole world, but it was a tiny part of the world that barely any creatures wanted to visit. This was a shock, but then something much more shocking happened. Something that made that earlier shock seem like pretty much nothing. Lizard peered at the sky and his expression turned dim. He grabbed Grumble's claw with his own and started across the sandy soil, dragging Grumble and Quib along with him. Ah, where are we going? Grumble, what's going on? I'll tell you in a minute. No time now. They dashed beneath the curve of an enormous rock. What's happening? Why did we? But Grumble fell silent as something extraordinary happened. The sun came up. My eyes! Grumble clutched his eyes shut with both claws, feeling the burn of a fiery brightness. Something catastrophic must be taking place, he thought. The world was on fire. He felt the lizard's dry claw on his shoulder. Relax, your eyes will adjust soon. But Grumble's eyes felt like they were being cooked. He huddled beneath the rock, cradling his head for what felt like forever, until, finally, his head stopped hurting and his eyes stopped burning. Grumble blinked and gasped. It was as if he'd been dropped on a different planet. Everything was bathed in light, caked in brightness. From the shade of the large rock, they could see daytime animals begin milling about. They were much different than cave animals. For one thing, the bats were very strange. Grumble, what are those noises? Quibb whispered. Grumble didn't know what to say. He watched the bats as they ruffled their wings. They walked differently, they flew differently, they glared in the same kind of way. What's wrong with these bats? Grumble asked, staring at them with curiosity. Lizard looked around the dusty morning landscape. What bats? Those bats, right there, Grumble said, pointing. Lizard scanned the area, squinting. I don't see any, what? Those are birds. You have a lot to learn. He told Grumble about birds. So they're not bats. No, no, birds are totally different. They're tiny avian dinosaurs. Dinosaurs. Quibb whispered. The morning was a series of wondrous discoveries. Lizard showed them around the area, pointing out items of interest. The clouds are wispy in light today, but sometimes, they're so heavy and dark, they block the sun. Wow. Really? The three of them traveled around by scrabbling from beneath rock to shrub to rock again, making sure to shield themselves from the birds circling above. Eventually, they came to a lake. Lizard guided them, swishing through tall grass to the edge of the water. Grumble gratefully dove in, taking quibb along. They drank the water and splashed around the lake a welcome balm for their dry skin. Lizard perched himself on a rock and soaked up the sun, always keeping one eye open, scanning the area. After a while, Grumble and quibb, having drank their fill and cooled off in the water, clambered up onto the rock next to Lizard. Quibb rested in the crook of Grumble's hind leg. Grumble blinked in the harsh sun. He turned to Lizard. Thank you for showing us around. You're welcome. Why didn't you just crawl past us? You must have better things to do. Lizard blinked his eyes slowly. He gazed upward, thoughtfully. I tried to always do the right thing. You were exposed. It was the right thing to help you. Grumble felt quibb nestled beside him. He thought back to when he'd met her, when he'd realized she couldn't see very well. I can understand that, he said finally. Come on, let's go, Lizard said, and skittered down from the rock. By late afternoon, they were hungry. Lizard showed them how he ate insects he found, creeping across the sandy earth. Good, huh? he said, popping some into his mouth. So dry, quibb said. Crunchy, nothing like cave food. Lizard smiled. Thank goodness. Thank goodness. But Grumble felt quibb nudge him ever so slightly. He knew they were both thinking the same thing. Lizard guided them to a spot where they could watch the sunset in peace. The three of them huddled beneath a stone. What does it look like, Grumble? Quibb asked, squinting into the distance. I don't know if I can describe it, quibb. Is it beautiful? Yes, it's beautiful. Once the sun was down, and the light was rapidly fading from the sky, Grumble and quibb both felt the exhaustion of the day of discoveries settle into their limbs. It can be overwhelming to experience so many new things at once. And despite their jaunt in the lake at midday, their skin felt like it was shriveling up in the dry air. It seemed their journey had come to an end. Grumble, we need to go back. Quibb whispered. I know. Grumble looked over at Lizard and saw that he'd fallen asleep. His scaly sides expanded with each breath. It was Grumble and Quibb's turn to nudge Lizard awake. He opened one eye, then the other. We will return to the cave now, Grumble said, feeling unsure even as he spoke beneath the beautiful starry night. Lizard nodded. I thought as much. Let's get you back to your cave. Which was it again? Lizard said, yawning. That one over. Grumble. Yes, quibb? Did he just say which cave? Yes, he wants to... Hey. Grumble stopped and fixed his gaze on Lizard. Is there more than one cave? In the diminishing light, Lizard took them on one last tour. Oh, this one smells interesting, Grumble. It does. Lizard took them around to the caves he knew of, the ones he'd assiduously avoided his whole life. I hear there's an underground lake in this one, filled with fish if the rumors are true. Grumble and Quibb felt their tummies rumble at that. It was nearly the middle of the night by the time Lizard had shown them each of the nearby cave entrances. He was obviously tired. And Grumble imagined he would be happy to leave behind this odd salamander and odder frog who seemed to know so little. But Lizard was steadfast as their tour guide, never revealing any annoyance at all. Grumble, let's go to the one with the fish. Quibb whispered excitedly. Yes, let's. The three of them, ambled back to the entrance of the cave rumored to hold fish. Goodbye, friends. Lizard said with sincerity. Thank you, Lizard. Quibb said. Grumble felt gratitude swell within him. It struck him then how incredibly fortunate he and Quibb had been to have stumbled out of the cave at night and not in the middle of the day. How charmed they were to have been awakened by Lizard and not one of the hungry birds. It seemed he had many things for which to be grateful. Goodbye, my friend. Grumble said. They shook claws and promised to meet again. Grumble watched Lizard meander away in the direction of the lake. Eventually, he receded from view, blending in with the growing darkness. Grumble, can you still see Lizard? No. But someday we will. Grumble made sure Quibb was secure on his back. He took one last look at the moon. Then together they ventured into the depths of the cave. Grumble had known as soon as he'd learned there were other caves to explore that he didn't want to go back to the one he lived in all his life. Outdoors in the sandy soil beneath the sky that lightened and darkened so frequently was not the place for a cave salamander. But while he had not enjoyed the dryness of the air, he had loved the not knowing feeling that settled over him as Lizard had shown them that he was not alone. The wonders of life outside the cave. He loved how he had no idea what would happen next, what the birds might do, what weather might erupt from the skies. A new cave gave him and Quibb the life they needed. Wet air, creepy crawly food, absolute darkness. But it also gave them that not knowing feeling they craved. They spent many months learning about their new home, its many corridors, its cavernous tunnels. There was indeed a lake. Small fish darted this way and that. It was a delight to sit for hours trying and sometimes succeeding in catching them. But occasionally he missed the feeling that came with staring up at the starry night sky and knowing that the world was much bigger than he could ever imagine. Filled with things he could never know, mysteries beyond anything he had known in the cave. Looking up at the sky gave him the comfort that can come with the feeling of being a tiny creature in an endless universe. So, every once in a while, when they were sure it was night time in the outer world, they'd creep out of the cave to visit Lizard, to study the changes in the moon, to track the planets above. Of course, Grumble didn't know they were other planets. Neither did Lizard. Certainly not Quib. How could they? Oh, Dietrich and his family are all asleep. This is perfect. I will admit I was a little bit nervous having a bunch of bats in here. But really, it was... oh, they're moving a little bit. I better go. I hope you loved this story as much as they did. Little Stories for Tiny People is written, performed, and produced by me, Rhea Pector. My in-house tech director, Peter Kay, puts my stories on the internet for all of you to enjoy. Thank you to NOAA for the super important reminder message at the beginning. Premium subscribers, thank you so much. You are making it possible for me to fully dedicate my time to the podcast and bring more stories to children around the world. It truly means so much to me. And thank you, as always, for listening in.
