It was a lovely morning... outside, the birds were singing, the sun was shining, and little fluffy clouds danced across the sky. Crystal dewdrops sparkled on the emerald-green grass. Regal butterflies delicately hovered amidst patches of pastel-hued flowers. Across the fields of flowers, the woods could be seen, sunny and vibrant. A breeze drifted through the open window, carrying the fragrance of gardenias. Lynne stretched luxuriously and rolled out of bed. She dressed quickly and looked out of the window. What a beautiful day, she thought. I have to go outside. Just as she was thinking this, the phone rang. "Hello?"
"Hey, Lynne. It's Jake. How ya doin' ?"
"Okay, I guess."
"Great. You remember our appointment, right?"
"How could I forget? Noon today at the tree."
"Be there, babe."
          She ran downstairs and opened the closet. She ran her gaze over all the coats hanging in there. Her jacket wasn't there.
"Mom, where's my jacket?"
"I put it in the wash. Why do you need it?", came from the kitchen.
"I'm going out."
"You haven't had breakfast yet!"
          Lynne trudged to the dining area, and sat down at the table. Her mom put a plate of waffles smothered with syrup in front of her. Lynne picked up her fork and ate as fast as she could. She nearly choked. As soon as she was finished, she threw her plates in the sink.
"Hey, mom, you wouldn't happen to have any jackets I could use, would you?"
"You can use my gray one. It's in the closet."
          Lynne ran over to the closet and peered in. Nope. Nope. Eww. Aha! She reached in and triumphantly pulled out a gray nylon jacket. She examined it and decided that it would do.
"Bye mom!", she yelled as she ran out.

* * *

          Ahhhh-free at last, she murmured to herself. She set out over the fields, stopping to admire a delicate silken spiderweb hanging on a bush of flowers. Suddenly, she drew back in alarm. On the web was a black spider with an orange marking across its body. A black widow-infamous for it's poison. She took a small bottle out of her pocket. Picking up a nearby twig, she carefully coaxed the spider from its web and into the bottle. She held the bottle up to the light, and took a closer look at the occupant. Yes, an hourglass. She started towards the distant woods again.

* * *
Deep in the forest, a little butterfly fluttered hopelessly, tangled in a spiderweb. A tiny movement rippled across the web, and the butterfly stilled.
* * *

          Lynne hopped onto the next stone, swaying precariously. A splash from the stream made a wet patch on her shoes, and she wrinkled her nose in annoyance. She stepped on each of the other stones in sequence, and surprise of surprises, she ended up on the other bank. She relaxed. She never did like crossing that stream. It was pretty, though. Lynne continued down the little path, crunching leaves under her feet. She walked on until she came to a small clearing around a fallen tree. She looked down at her watch. 11:30. Geez, I'm really early, she mused. What am I gonna do for half an hour??? She sat down on the trunk of the tree, took out the bottle, and began to examine the spider more closely. Good thing I had this little bottle handy, she thought, tapping it gently, now what am I going to do about my dear friend Jake???