[Child of the 7th Age]

After that incident, Child felt so guilty that she could barely look Kali in the face. This was not what she wanted. She went to his cabin and knocked on the door.

"Kali, it's Child. Please come talk to me, and I promise not to bother you again."

Very slowly the door inched open, and the hobrim's small head peered out. "Come in," he politely whispered.

Child hung her head, "I am sorry if I have bothered you with all my questions and spying. I was only trying to help, but this is not the right way to do it. I promise not to be so curious again, unless you would like to talk."

She leaned over and kissed his soft brown curls, much as she would her daughter or son. Tears began streaking down Kali's face.

"Yes, Kali very sad, Kali talk to Child, talk about stories."

"What stories?" Child whispered.

"The stories my mother and father, my nuphrat, told me. They are gone a long time." The little hobrim sighed.

"Your cousins" asked Child, "Did the stories say what your cousins looked like? Have you ever seen them?"

Kali shook his head, "I have never seen cousins, Mother and Father have never seen cousins, even grandmother and grandfather do not remember seeing them. Only remember poems. And strange words. The words Child wants to know about."

"Kali," Child countered. "Did your mother or father ever tell you what language these strange words come from?"

"No, no, they speak words lots, even more than Kali, but there is no special name for them. They are just the words my family has always spoken."

"Does anyone else in the Sea know or understand these words you speak?"

"No, no, only Kali and his family understand these special words. And I am sad because I no longer remember as many words as my nuphrat knew. So many, many words have left me, and I can not get them back. If I can find cousins, they will help the words return."

Child thought her heart would break when she heard that.

"Kali, can you teach me and my friends a few of these strange and beautiful words? Can you help us understand what they mean? Can you teach us some of the poems and stories? Together, we can try to remember these words and make them live again."

"Maybe so," he whispered, "Maybe Kali teach Child and Rose and Pio and Veritas and Bird and Mith. Maybe even teach Angara."

"Here is nice poem for Child to teach her friends:

Adun izindi batan taido ayyadda.
A straight road once went west,

Ido katha batina lokhi.
Now all roads are crooked.

"Much more to poem," Kali sighed, "but I do not remember."

Child hugged Kali to her side. "That is alright for we have made a start."