Chapter Six - Gnome Gnome, Someone's Home
"Pssst."
Clay looked quickly over at the knobby head darting amongst the trees.
"Psst."
He knew that little boys should not investigate odd shapes in the woods, though he wanted nothing more. Iris and Flint had strictly instructed him and his sister to stay still, be quiet and not move an inch from their hiding spot under the gnarled roots of an ancient oak. Iris was still gone, left to search for answers and possibly help, and Flint was roaming the edges of the clearing they'd just come from.
Clay kept thinking that Pa would saved them. Pa always came to the rescue when they were in trouble. This time, however, trouble had come and gone several times and still Pa had not bursting out of the forest shadows to scoop them all into his strong arms and whisk them away to safety.
"Psst." Clay looked again, realizing that he'd lost himself in thought long enough to allow Lily to slip by him. "Lils, watcha doing, Rissy said we better stay put."
Lily paid him little heed, littler still, because she understood very few words and knew he could do nothing to stop her.
There was that head again. It was short and knobby, like a bald, no not quite bald, more like wispy threads of hair, but mostly bald, garden statue. He saw lots of garden statues around his Aunt's big house in Pollydance. Although the statues didn't bounce, bob or demand attention.
"Lils!" Clay tried to whisper roughly, but his sister was already moving closer to the strange thing in the woods.
"Come on kids," the head spoke, loud enough for Clay to hear it perfectly. "I can't keep this up all day. Follow your sister boy."
Clay was startled and slightly afraid, but largely excited by the odd voice and the garden statue it belonged to. This was exactly what any child would love. And Clay couldn't resist a good adventure.
"Lils wait up," he pushed himself off the forest floor. Running as fast as his little legs would carry him he made for the dissipating figure of his sister, leaving his big brother and sister behind him.
Posted by Happy Potato @ 8/29/2008 06:19:00 PM