milliways_bar | (no subject)

Entry tags:

(no subject)

"Just leave me alone, I'm not doing anything to you."
"You're in the way Sandy."
"Let's put him out of the way."

The door swings shut - a gym locker door today - with an eight-year-old Guppy with his coat and jumper hooked neatly onto the peg so that his legs dangle. He looks surprised to say the least that he's ended up back in the bar he was in the other day, but right now is more concerned about what his mum will say about the stretched jumper. He squirms, trying to lift himself up on the peg so that he can unhook himself.

And then sighs, because being stuck on the inside of a locker door is just plain embarrassing.

Little help over here?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"I read. And I skate." he says, grateful for the lack of interrogation.

"Skate?"

She won't interrogate him unless absolutely necessary-- and it may become so later on.

"On ice. Nana takes me."

"How do you do that?" she asks, blinking in surprise.

"I don't know, I just sort of do it."

"My home is all ice and snow," Katara admits, smiling a little, "but we've never done anything like that. We go penguinsledding a lot, though."

"Doesn't that hurt them?"

"Oh no, not at all - they barely feel it. Give 'em a fish after the ride, and they're perfectly happy!"

This is a totally normal activity. Srsly.

He frowns.

"That's barbaque-ic."

He possibly means barbaric.

Katara can guess. He wouldn't be the first person to call her that.

It's why her smile dims a little, but stays in place. He's a little boy, after all.

"It's the way my people live. The way I live."

"But hurting animals is wrong. They have feelings too."

Blinking, Katara stares in open surprise before laughing, abruptly relieved. "Oh, no-- no! It doesn't hurt them! Not at all! I mean, the adults don't do it and I won't be able to do it much longer either, but-- well, I mean, they're almost as tall as I am and much heavier! It definitely doesn't hurt them!"

"Oh, okay."

He nods.

...well, that was easy.

Katara just nods back and returns to her cookies, visibly relieved.

"I should get back to PE."

Asking what PE is would delay him from getting back to it, which would be counterproductive. So Katara smiles and nods instead.

"Well, it was very nice to meet you, Mr. Gurpreet."

"And you miss. Thanks for getting me down."

He hurries back to his sports lesson.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only