The beauty contest

Baja, the half snake half human judge stepped out onto the stage amid great fanfare. There was a dramatic crescendo of music, then total silence.

"Please give a warm welcome to contestants numbers 15 and 16....". The thunderous noise of the crowd drowned out the words of the announcer.

Poise and Grace glided across the stage rather elegantly. They were adorned in identical colors, except for the knobs on top of their heads. Poise had a pink knob, while Grace had a green one. Their long graceful necks were held high in disdain of those around them. They were the epitome of beauty, and they knew it.

The judges announced their names again after the noise died down, gave them glowing comments about their beauty and general deportment, and flattered them unmercifully. They bathed and basked in the glow of their well known beauty.

Settling themselves onto their beautifully decorated floral throne, they awaited the announcement of the next contestant. One of the male judges winked at the lovely swans. They may not be of the same species, but beauty was beauty no matter what the animal.

The two swans remembered their earlier conversation with two of the other male judges.

"Wow. You two are even lovelier today than you were yesterday". The long necked cob named Swain had postulated.

"Thank you Swain". The two swans had half sung, half laughed as they hurriedly escaped the strutting cob.

"Swain, you devil. You have got to stop flirting with the contestants". Steve the head judge had admonished.

"Well, it's not as if you don't do the same. You may be human, but it still counts as flirting".

"Actually, it is my job to make the contestants look and feel good about themselves. It is not the same as what you are doing". Steve was being a hypocrite, and he knew it, he did that all the time with his human females.

"You are such a plaster saint. All holier than thou, yet you are worse than everyone put together"! Swain huffed and walked away in anger.

Bringing their minds back to the contest, they heard the judge announce the next contestant.

"The final contestant is number 17, the blushing ......Lliana the duckling". There was fanfare as Lliana walked onto the stage. The applause was sketchy and piecemeal and nothing close to what the swans had received. The duckling was used to it. She had many great qualities which made her stand out, she may not be the most beautiful or popular, but she had her secret powers.

LLiana preened around the stage a bit, then joined the others who were lined up in their various display areas. She stepped slowly into her little duck pond, the water would help to regulate her body temperature and keep her stress levels low. Hoppy the toad, already in the pond, turned and smiled at her.

"You did great". She said, as Lliana returned her smile.

"Thank you, so did you".

"And now, it's time for the contestants to wow us. We will now witness a most wonderful display of their talents"!

One by one the women entered the stage and performed to the best of their abilities. Marigold the peacock dazzled with her gorgeous feathers. The tall giraffe named Skye danced a slow and mesmerizing ballet piece, her neck moving in wonderous circles. Lioness Sheba roared so amazingly loud, the gentlemen had to grab their hats as they flew off their heads. Sparky the chimp swung on her pole as she did acrobatics that were a marvel to see.

Next came Bess the large gilt (The words pig, hog and swine are all generic terms without regard to gender, size or breed. A male pig is called a boar. A female pig is called a gilt if she hasn’t had piglets yet, and a sow if she has). Bess sang a lovely sad song for her lost brothers who had been sold to the farmer. Tabby the cat performed wonders with Teeny the butterfly on her nose.

All the contestants performed marvelously. Then it was time for the two swans to do their act, as twins they were allowed to stay together. Poise and Grace bowed to the loudest of all the previous applause and sang a lovely duet. They bowed amidst the applause, and retreated to their places.

LLiana was next.

"Knock em' dead". Hoppy the toad wished her luck. She smiled her thanks.

A small harp was wheeled unto the stage. She took her place by the harp, curtsied and quietly touched the strings with her bill. As she started playing, a hushed silence ensued as the crowd listened keenly. Lliana played the most heavenly and angelic sounds. She interchanged between using her feathers to get gentle tones and her bill for stronger tones. The nostalgia, longing and yearning chords of the music resonated throughout the very hearts and souls of the audience. Everyone forgot themselves for just a few moments in time.

The audience jumped to their feet. The applause was tumultuous and deafening. Lliana bowed.

"More, more"! They shouted.

"How can she play like that. It's just not possible. Come Grace, lets sing again". Poise nudged Grace towards the stage, she was furious.

Not to be outdone. They stormed unto the stage and started to sing.

"Get off the stage". Someone shouted, as boos and jeers rang out in the audience.

"Stop trying to upstage the duckling". Owl the judge said, as he escorted the swans from the stage. They hung their heads in shame.

Lliana was asked to play again, and her performance was marvelous. When asked what her goals in life were. She replied:

"I would like to play the most beautiful music to heal the souls and lift the spirits of everyone in the world". The applause was deafening.

Lliana had won the contest.