Lost Tales of Ga'Hoole

“I’ve lived all my life at the Pirates’ Lair, and, maybe, despite living on the fringes as I do, this is where I belong. But you…you deserve better.” He knew she would find little comfort in his words now, but he was sure he was doing the right thing. He went on. “That little owl I knew from the Great Ga’Hoole Tree was named Gylfie. She was the smartest owl I had ever met until you came along. You’re smart, Fritha, and this,” he gestured to the tundra, “is not where you belong.”
    When Fritha was done washing the dye from her feathers, she and Flinn flew a little ways farther south and met an old gadfeather friend of Freya’s. Flinn introduced the Snowy to his daughter as “Aunt Bea.”
    Before father and daughter parted ways, Flinn gave Fritha a little dose of courage.
    “You’re going to do great things at the great tree, Fritha,” he added as she and Aunt Bea were about to take off. “Don’t forget where you came from. And remember that you can always come home.”
    Flinn was quiet for several moments after telling his long tale to his grown daughter. She was not a little owlet anymore, and deserved to hear the story from him.
    “So now you know. Do you forgive me for sending you away?” he asked, fixing his aged but still-bright eyes on her.
    “Forgive? There is nothing to forgive, Da,” she replied with the slightest tremor in her voice. “I thank you, from the bottom of my gizzard.”
    It was getting late. The sky was beginning to grow light above them. They both knew that it was almost time for Fritha to head back to the great tree—her home. She would need a good day’s rest for the long and arduous journey ahead. They bid each other goodlight and nestled down close for one last sleep before her departure.
    Fritha was on the final leg of her return journey; she needed only to cross the Sea of Hoolemere to reach home. She rested one more time. Funny how she thought of the tree as home now, despite having been hatched in the Pirates’ Lair. While it felt good to be heading back, Fritha dreaded having to tell all her friends and rybs about her “visit with Aunt Bea.” She wished she could just tell them about her da—about what a great owl he was, and how much fun she had visiting him. It occurred to Fritha then, too, that her da ought to be able to see how she lived as a Guardian at the great tree, that he ought to see for himself just how right he had been to send her away.
    No more hiding! Fritha made up her mind as the Great Ga’Hoole Tree came into view over the horizon. She shouldn’t be ashamed of who she was or where she came from. She shouldn’t have to sneak off to spend time with her da. Sure, he was a kraal, but he was a kraal whom she loved and was proud to call Da. Fritha would tell everyone at the tree where she came from and who she was. The very thought lifted her, and her flight seemed instantaneously effortless. She glided toward the light of her hollow.
    When Fritha returned to the tree, she told us all of the double life she had been leading. It initially came as a shock to many—our very own Fritha, a kraal! But it did not make anyone think less of her. I, for one, could not be more proud of her. She has reminded me that no matter where we come from, we can grow in knowledge, virtue, and wisdom.
    So far is Fritha from hiding her past that, one night, I spotted her with a single primary feather dyed pink. She told me it was to mark the anniversary of her arrival at the great tree.
    I am pleased to inform my fellow Guardians and reading creatures everywhere that I just placed the following announcement in The Evening Hoot:
    F LINN , A KRAAL OF THE N ORTHERN K INGDOMS ,
TO GUEST LECTURE AT
THE G REAT G A ’H OOLE T REE
    T HE SEARCH-AND-RESCUE CHAW HAS A YEARLY TRADITION OF HOSTING A SPECIAL GUEST LECTURE SERIES, GIVEN BY AN OWL ACCOMPLISHED IN THE FIELD OF SEARCH-AND-RESCUE SCIENCES . T HIS YEAR , THE GUEST LECTURER WILL BE F LINN , A P YGMY O WL AND KRAAL FROM THE N ORTHERN K INGDOMS . F LINN SPECIALIZES IN V ACUUM-ASSISTED T RANSPORT , OR VAT, A METHOD OF TRANSPORTING INJURED OR OTHERWISE FLIGHT-CHALLENGED OWLS THROUGH THE MANIPULATION OF AIR CURRENTS . F LINN IS THE FIRST KRAAL INVITED TO LECTURE AT THE GREAT TREE . I N ADDITION TO HIS LECTURE ON VAT, HE WILL TEACH SMALLER SEMINARS ON KRAAL HISTORY AND CULTURE , INCLUDING THE ARTS OF DYE MAKING AND FEATHER PAINTING . T HIS EVENT IS OPEN TO OWLS OF ALL CHAWS AND IS AN EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY FOR