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It took a while for Old Gengoro to get the story across to the people, who were only half awake. "I see, the old lady and the girl moved into Weedy Mansion." "That sure is an old house. It needs repairing." "And grass has grown all over in the yard. It needs weeding." "It's too big a job for the old lady and the girl." "Let's go and help them---all of us." The villagers reached agreement almost at once. By that time, the sleepiness was gone from their heads. From their houses, they brought the necessary tools for helping spruce up the house. Then, they immediately set off for Weedy Mansion. Ken had a long bamboo broom. The villagers walked in a line along the narrow village road. "I am impressed, that old lady is such an early riser." "She sure is hale and hearty. That is reassuring." Impressed with the condition of the old lady, the villagers nodded to each other and walked on, nodding their heads. |
Ken had not yet had breakfast and his stomach growled loudly. Other people's stomachs started to make various noises as if playing the scales: do, re, mi, fa, so, la, ti, do! "What a nice smell!" Ken shouted, licking his lips. Then another person said, "Nice smell indeed. I am getting hungrier and hungrier." They were all attracted by the smell coming from to the entrance of Weedy Mansion. "Hello, folks! It's so nice of you to come so early in the morning." The old lady, wearing a white apron and a headband to be ready for work, moved her toothless mouth and greeted the villagers happily. Of course, these words were interpreted by Ken. He stood between the old lady and the villagers and interpreted the old lady's words for everyone to understand. The little girl just smiled and looked at Ken and the old lady. "By the way, what's this delicious smell?" The villagers asked the old lady with a single voice. "Honey, a gift from bees," she said, "It's very nutritious and melts your fatigue away. Why, I even forget my age whenever I eat soft pancakes with lots of honey poured over them." She then asked, "How old do you think I am?" "You must have been born a little earlier than me," said Old Gengoro. "Probably eighty-eight?" "Wrong!" she replied, "I am eight hundred and eighty years old this year." The villagers were flabbergasted and asked her to repeat her age again, thinking that maybe Ken heard it wrong. But, no matter how many times she was asked, she answered with "eight hundred and eighty." The girl cooked beautiful pancakes and the villagers poured lots of thick, golden honey over them, eating them one after the other, totally absorbed. Ken, getting full, happened to look up and hear a faint buzz close to his ears. Just then, he realized that the girl was standing right behind him, holding a plate with a pile of pancakes on it. And Ken saw them again, the brilliant golden wings on her back. The girl smiled and offered the plate of pancakes to Ken. "It's a secret between you and me," she seemed to say. |
Several person who were good at carpentry repaired the dilapidated house, others who were good at gardening cut the weeds, still others who were good at cleaning mopped the floor, and Old Gengoro who was good at nodding off nodded off. The villagers all did their share of the work to finish off the tasks in short order. Weedy Mansion, which had seemed to be haunted by ghosts, now looked clean and totally different. Ken cleaned the yard using his bamboo broom, sometimes giving the little girl a fleeting glance. With the yellow ribbon fluttering in the wind, the girl worked hard among the villagers. The villagers talked to the girl now and then but she just smiled back at them. "I see, you are too small to talk. But if you smile, that's enough." "Right, there is nothing to worry about. You can talk whenever you feel like it." The village women did not care about anything. They seemed to believe that it's only natural that this girl did not talk. But the women seem to understand the girl well, carrying on a one-sided conversation with her and nodding to her smile in response. Somehow, Ken was greatly relieved at such a sight. |
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