"It's such a wonderful day!" Zinnea sighed as she leaned into the breeze. Zozobra only smiled in response. The weather had been pretty bad for the past week so the two creatures felt so lucky to have been given a day to enjoy. The temperature was perfect, there were a few, fluffy clouds, the birds were singing, and the joyful cries of the children playing nearby just made the picture perfect.

Zozobra especially loved how happy Zinnea was. Being a bee, she adored the good weather. She had packed a picnic lunch and they sat in the shade of a tree as they observed the details of nature. Zozobra had shaken off his jacket, tie, and hat; it was that nice out. Zinnea reached into her little basket and pulled out some nectar in a bottle that she sipped on. 

"It's too bad that some of the flowers aren't in bloom yet," Zozobra said off-handedly as an attempt to start conversation.

"I agree," Zinnea replied, setting her bottle down. "They must be waiting for the perfect time to come out."

"When they do, we should go to a flower field so you can pollinate a bit."

"Oh, I'd love that." She sighed lovingly at the thought. 

"I know I'm not a bee, but—"

"Don't you worry about your ability to pollinate with me," she cut in, putting her hand on his leg. "You're a big help. Besides, it's fun to run around and forget all the strife in the world." Zozobra smiled and Zinnea giggled. "There's my happy Gloom." 

"I'm always your happy Gloom," he replied. He opened his mouth to say something more, but his eyes were drawn to a small ball rolling over to their area. Zozobra reached out and picked it up, his eyes darting to a kid who was trotting up to retrieve it.

Zozobra was not a fairly attractive creature. He was still surprised that a beautiful creature like Zinnea fell for him in the first place. So, it wasn't a huge surprise to him when the kid froze as soon as he saw Zozobra's face. Zozobra figured that his eye color and outer shape was the frightening part. He hesitated, unsure about what to do. He was a sociable creature, but it was rare for him to interact with children like this. He was about to just offer the ball back to the child without a word, but the child had already run back to his friends.

"Are you alright, Zozo?" Zinnea asked. Zozobra shook his head a bit to collect himself. 

"I'm alright. I think I just froze for a moment." 

"I wonder what has them so anxious," Zinnea pondered as she looked over at the small group of kids.

"It's me."

"Don't say that."

"I don't mind admitting it. Zinnea, kids only love me when I'm on fire. It's somewhat satisfying that a monster gets to burn."

"Zozobra, you stop that," Zinnea said firmly, giving his hand a squeeze. "They are just not used to seeing something like you or me."

"But you wouldn't instill fear into them." 

"You only startled them. Look at me." Zozobra obeyed. "Your appearance is just different. It is, in no way, frightening."

"A-are you sure? I mean, my eyes, my teeth, and my ears? Not exactly a pretty picture." He pointed to each part with a black claw. His eyes were black and red and their outer shape made it seem like Zozobra was constantly mad. His teeth were straight, but sharp. His ears were fairly large and stuck out like sails. Zinnea took an extra look at each part, her smiling slowly growing.

"Your eyes may be different, but they are so expressive. So much more so than any creature I've ever seen. Your teeth only bring out your adorable smile. Your ears may be big, but they are strong. Strength can beat beauty." She gently brushed her fuzzy hand over Zozobra's ticklish ear and he shrugged a shoulder as he giggled. Zinnea chuckled and gently kissed his cheek.

"Thank you, honeybee," Zozobra said, smiling at her. His eyes then darted down to the ball and his smile faltered a bit. Zinnea put another hand on the ball.

"If you want, I could return this for you. You don't have to win anyone over today," she offered gently. Zozobra nodded. She stood up, the ball in her hands, and trotted over to the group of kids. They seemed somewhat surprised by her appearance, but they weren't scared of her. She smiled, talking to the kids as she gave the ball back. She waved to them before coming back. Zozobra barely said anything.

"Perhaps, it's time to pack up our basket," Zinnea suggested when she saw Zozobra's disappointed look. Zozobra agreed and helped pick everything up. He pulled on his jacket, but held his tie and hat in his hand. He and Zinnea started walking out of the park side by side.

"Don't feel too down, Zozobra. I know you're easily discouraged, but it'll all be alright. I promise," Zinnea said to him, gently patting his shoulder. He only brushed his hair out of his eyes, starting in surprise as the kids ran past him, yelling at each other as they raced. One kid caught his foot on a raised part of the sidewalk, tripping and skidding on the concrete. He cried out to the other kids to wait, but they had run too far ahead to hear. Zozobra trotted up to the kid and knelt down beside him.

"Hey, are you alright?"

"Huh?" the kid asked, turning to see. He made a small squeak when he saw Zozobra's face.

"I-it's okay," Zozobra stuttered, gently pulling the kid's shoulder. "Let me help you up. I'm not gonna hurt you." The kid grunted in pain and allowed himself to be turned over. The kid had scraped up his knees, elbow, and his forehead.

"Oh, no. You're bleeding," Zozobra said with concern.

"I am?" the kid asked.

"Here." Zozobra took a bit of his tie and gently wiped away the dirt and blood from the wounds. The kid kept still, only flinching with pain once.

"Thank you," the kid said shyly when Zozobra finished. Zozobra gave him a small smile, careful to not show his teeth so as not to scare him. His head flicked up to the sound of approaching footsteps; it was the other kids.

"Caaaaaaaaleb!" one whined. "Keep u—" the kid stopped talking when he saw Zozobra. "Who's that?"

"He's nice," the one called Caleb said, getting to his feet. "I fell and he helped me." Zozobra stood up, looking at the kids. They stared back at him, fear no longer in their eyes.

"Hey! I know him!" another kid exclaimed. "You were in Santa Fe!"

"Were you at the festival?" Zozobra asked with a smile as Zinnea joined his side.

"Yeah! You were HUGE!"

"Well, I can change my size. It's not as fun if I'm this height."

"They burned you to the ground! It was so cool!" The kids chittered to each other.

"But you look all normal," Caleb said.

"Yeah, what happens after the show?" the other kid asked.

"Well, I can regenerate myself," Zozobra explained, pointing to the black orb in his chest. "And usually I'm all alone, because the regeneration takes a while."

"You were alone," Zinnea corrected. "Until you met me." Zozobra smiled at her as she giggled.

"What do you do?" the third kid asked.

"I just keep him company," Zinnea replied. The kids kept asking Zinnea and Zozobra countless questions until their parents yelled at them to come home. Zozobra felt like he was glowing; the happy energy of children was just the purest, and it brought Zozobra so much joy. Zinnea gently took Zozobra's hand, leading back to their homes as their smiles stayed glued to their faces throughout the walk.