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Child of the 7th Age · 10-19-2003, 11:57 PM

Kali at school

Kali watched as Edmund grudgingly presented the slate to his mother who took her sleeve and blotted out the picture of the squirrel with very little ado, before brushing the chalk off the underside of her arm. As relieved as the hobbit was to see Mistress Andreth, and even though he felt uncomfortable with Edmund, he'd like the picture a lot and wished that he could look at it a little longer.

Until he came to Bree, Kali had always been a country boy, first as a toddler in the shadow of the Misty Mountains and later tramping down the road with all his kinfolk and friends marching toward the west. Outlying towns like Coombe and Archet where he used to live had been set back in the woodlands; there'd been plenty of squirrels and other wild things to watch and chase and draw pictures of just outside his door.

Now all that was gone. The crowded streets of Bree were not an ideal place to find interesting animals or free-flowing streams where he could pretend to sail away. He wished he could ask Edmund about his picture, but Mistress Andreth was staring down at him and, anyways, he was too afraid to open his mouth to say anything at all.

Kali tried to make the letters just as Mistress Andreth told him and, at the end of a few minutes, he had managed to set down a wobbly line of "A's" all tramping along in a row. Just to make sure Edmund knew that he liked animals too, Kali drew a picture of a field mouse nestled under a log sound asleep, his long, wispy tail wrapped around his neck. Kali's drawing was extremely good. It almost looked as if the mouse was about to wake up any minute and scamper away.

Edmund was curious enough to crane his neck forward to look at the slate. He saw a line of dreadful letters and at the end of it the most perfect depiction of a small animal that he'd ever seen. His only outward response, once his mother's back was turned, was to stick out his tongue directly in Kali's face. Still, even though Edmund vigorously rubbed the letters away and grabbed the slate back for himself, he was careful to go around the spot where the hobbit had left his picture of a mouse.

[ October 20, 2003: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]

10-19-2003, 11:57 PM	#70
Child of the 7th Age Spirit of the Lonely Star Join Date: Mar 2002 Posts: 5,133	Kali at school Kali watched as Edmund grudgingly presented the slate to his mother who took her sleeve and blotted out the picture of the squirrel with very little ado, before brushing the chalk off the underside of her arm. As relieved as the hobbit was to see Mistress Andreth, and even though he felt uncomfortable with Edmund, he'd like the picture a lot and wished that he could look at it a little longer. Until he came to Bree, Kali had always been a country boy, first as a toddler in the shadow of the Misty Mountains and later tramping down the road with all his kinfolk and friends marching toward the west. Outlying towns like Coombe and Archet where he used to live had been set back in the woodlands; there'd been plenty of squirrels and other wild things to watch and chase and draw pictures of just outside his door. Now all that was gone. The crowded streets of Bree were not an ideal place to find interesting animals or free-flowing streams where he could pretend to sail away. He wished he could ask Edmund about his picture, but Mistress Andreth was staring down at him and, anyways, he was too afraid to open his mouth to say anything at all. Kali tried to make the letters just as Mistress Andreth told him and, at the end of a few minutes, he had managed to set down a wobbly line of "A's" all tramping along in a row. Just to make sure Edmund knew that he liked animals too, Kali drew a picture of a field mouse nestled under a log sound asleep, his long, wispy tail wrapped around his neck. Kali's drawing was extremely good. It almost looked as if the mouse was about to wake up any minute and scamper away. Edmund was curious enough to crane his neck forward to look at the slate. He saw a line of dreadful letters and at the end of it the most perfect depiction of a small animal that he'd ever seen. His only outward response, once his mother's back was turned, was to stick out his tongue directly in Kali's face. Still, even though Edmund vigorously rubbed the letters away and grabbed the slate back for himself, he was careful to go around the spot where the hobbit had left his picture of a mouse. [ October 20, 2003: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ] __________________ Multitasking women are never too busy to vote.