raku

Collection of Esperian fairy tales "Adventures of a little prankster". Once upon a time, in the hollow of a tree known as the "Sheltered Shell", there lived a mischievous animal named Raku. Raku was constantly getting others into trouble, and none of his peers wanted to play with him. No one except the little sorceress Pippa. The ever-agitated Pippa now and then, without realizing it, participated in the tricks of Cancer. Although she never knew what was really going on, she found Raku funny and she enjoyed spending time with him. When this reckless couple was together, the days flew by unnoticed. After Pippa left the forest, Raku was left all alone. He was very sad, and one day he sneaked out of the forest, intending to find Pippa. Unfortunately, he had absolutely no idea where she went, knowing only that she was where there were a lot of people. Armed with these rumors, he went to the only place he knew of such a place. And so his great adventure began. On the same day, Raku arrived in a small town. In one house he noticed two "transparent cages" with fish. He felt sorry for them, and decided to steal these "cages" unnoticed. The owner of the house, a skeleton-like old man, however, noticed him and gave chase. He chased Raku for several blocks. The old man did not lag behind, yelling after him: "Obnoxious thief! I'll catch you and put you in a cage!" Raku made a face at him, stuck out his tongue and continued to run. He didn't understand why people liked keeping animals in captivity so much. Why can't fish just swim in the river? Raku pushed on and finally broke away from the old man. He came to a small stream and released fish into it. "Aha! Great!" thought Raku, looking at the fish happily swimming around. Then he filled the "transparent cages" with water from the river and hung them on his shoulders. He realized that it would be much more convenient to wash food this way! This is not the end of Raku's great adventure. The next day, wandering with his stomach rumbling loudly from hunger, Raku smelled the aroma of fresh toast. Following the scent, he came to a huge stone house, around which stood a lot of people in iron clothes. The crafty Raku managed to get to the window, where he found a whole plate of freshly toasted bread. He grabbed a few pieces, rinsed them in one of the "transparent cages" and put them in his mouth. At that moment, he was sure that he had never eaten such yummy food before! He was enjoying his meal when suddenly footsteps were heard behind him. He turned his head and saw a girl in a shiny skirt standing in the doorway. When she noticed the Cancer, her eyes lit up as if she had seen a great treasure: "Look, you're a furry little animal!" "YOU're a little animal YOURSELF, and besides, you're bald!" snapped Raku. "Wow! You're also talking! I'll catch you!" the girl exclaimed joyfully. She rushed in pursuit of the "furry little animal", and they began to run around the room, knocking everything in their path and getting covered with bruises. The girl did not stop laughing — she was very amused by what was happening! Raku suddenly realized that he himself hadn't had so much fun since Pippa left. However, he quickly got tired of messing with this girl, and he decided to escape through the window and continue searching for Pippa. In desperation, the girl grabbed the Crayfish by the tail and begged: "Don't leave! Stay and play with me!" Raku replied, "I'm looking for my friend Pippa. The girl shook her head and said, "No, but I can help you find her! Just stay and play with me, okay?" "That's really the pipes, you'll lock me in a cage!" — Raku scratched his head in concern. The girl tried to calm him down as best she could: "Not at all, I swear! I have some goodies!" From these words, Raku's mouth watered. The girl continued: "No one wants to play with me anymore, only you! You can stay with me for a couple of days, right?" "Well... if only for a couple of days." It is not known what exactly influenced him: the promised treat or pity for the girl. However, nothing will happen if he stays here for a few days, right? So he began to sleep in the girl's wardrobe during the day, and at night they played hide-and-seek in the garden. The girl told Cancer that her name was Peggy and that her dad was the king. He is constantly busy and does not pay attention to her, and besides, he is always in trouble because of her. Over time, people began to consider her a walking disaster and began to avoid the girl. Her only friend in the palace is now constantly practicing archery and does not devote time to her at all. Raku realized that he and Peggy were very similar, and told her about all the interesting things and mysteries of the forest. He told about huge walking stones in the Bastion of the Elements, about breathing mushrooms in a Sleepy Grove and about colorful shells that can be found on the beach in the Bay of Jade Reefs. Peggy listened intently to every word he said, especially about the shells. In the end, she put a lot of effort into catching the Cancer. Raku didn't know how many days had passed. Admittedly, there were much more of them than just a "couple". He was having a great time and didn't want to change anything. Every day he gorged himself on various goodies and even celebrated Peggy's birthday, where he tasted a real cake for the first time. After the birthday, the girl, stammering, told Cancer that she had found Pippa. She kept her word and found out where his girlfriend was. A few days ago, the servants found Pippa, but... the girl was afraid that Raku would immediately leave her. Peggy wanted him to stay for her birthday, so she didn't say anything right away. Hearing the news, Raku jumped for joy. Pippa had already returned to the forest, so Raku said goodbye to Peggy and got ready to go back to see his old friend again. Before leaving, Raku turned to Peggy and said: "I'll be back, and we'll play with you again!" Peggy missed Cancer very much. Time flew by quickly. A whole year had passed unnoticed, and Peggy was going to celebrate her birthday again. The father again did not have time to see his daughter. Worse, he decided to marry her off without even asking her opinion on it! Now Peggy was engaged, and as soon as she came of age, she would have to marry a stranger! The princess wanted to talk to her father and went to his chambers, but the guard did not let her in. The King was busy with important matters, and no one dared to disturb him. Peggy went back to her room in a rage and dispersed all the servants. She threw away all the gifts brought by the courtiers— none of them was to her liking. All she needed was someone to play with. She sat down at the table, put her head in her hands and wept bitterly. Suddenly, a soft rustle was heard from her wardrobe. Peggy cautiously opened the door and burst out laughing. Do you know what she found there? To the point! A sleeping furry animal, on whose chest a bright, bright shell rose and fell in time with his breathing.