Peter, the Spider and the King pt 2
Jan. 30th, 2009 02:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
wytchcroftPart two: in which there is a spider - and Peter says "Eep!"
And so it was that the next day came and Young Peter found himself walking the winding paths up the mountain and towards the castle of the King. He had been very surprised to learn of a castle, let alone a king – the village of Lowbury didn’t seem ‘regal’ somehow. But indeed there was a castle, and there was a king.
“He... well, he doesn’t come down too often,” the Landlord had said last night, as he stood talking business with Peter in the tiny office back at the tavern. “And what with his temper, we daren’t go up. Things were not always as they are… but we love the King just the same.”
It all sounded very silly indeed to Young Peter.
The windings paths did exactly that.
“These paths are really winding me up,” said the tired boy to himself kicking the dust as he trod along. It was hard to know if you were actually going up since the paths seemed to just swirl around and around – the way ice cream does when you lick it – only dusty. Young Peter quite fancied an ice cream, walking the mountains was a tiring business.
Quite unexpectedly, as if the paths had just decided to stop and have a rest, Peter saw a large rock wall ahead of him and a dark opening to what looked like a tunnel.
He puffed out his chest. He does that quite a lot you will notice, in the course of this story, sometimes he puffed up and sometimes, like now, he puffed out. Sometimes he would puff his cheeks too, just for fun.
So he stood by the tunnel and puffed for a bit – and then clutching tightly on to his coat and bag, he walked forward and into the dark.
“I better do it on tip-toes,” he whispered to himself. And so tiptoes it was.
The tunnel itself was not as cold as he had thought it would be. For one thing it was out of the wind and for another there seemed to be gusts of warm air coming from in front of him. This would make sense since the tunnel was supposed to lead to the castle. “I imagine the King has all sorts of posh ways to keep warm,” thought Peter as he crept quietly along.
Gradually the tunnel began to widen and either his eyes were beginning to get used to the dark or else it was getting lighter too. The warm gusts continued – and he could hear a noise now as well, a sort of whoosh and chuff mixed together – a whuff perhaps. Have you ever heard whuffing?
“A posh air machine of some sort I expect,” thought Peter, wishing he had a beard he could stroke. “Hmm…” he said, “yes it must be that.”
But it wasn’t that, not at all. It was something quite different and as he stole his way forward, Peter saw suddenly what it was. A very large – no, a very, VERY large spider – right there in the tunnel ahead of him, sat in a sort of chamber that Peter had reached. Sat like a great fuzzy ball only with legs and eyes and fangs - and the warm gusts that Peter felt were disgustingly revealed to be the hot breath of the snoring creature.
“Eep!” said Peter – but as quietly as he could.
To distract himself while he summoned up his courage, the lad peered around the musty chamber that the spider was in. There were little jewels on the rocky ceiling that glinted and twinkled and were more like tiny lights than gems. Around the edges of the chamber everything was sticky-looking and covered in dusty webs – and it would have taken more than a broom to sweep them away. But gradually his reluctant eyes turned back to the hulking shape of the spider itself. Its great body seemed to wobble like jelly with every snore and its long hairy limbs trembled. Long limbs, oh yes, eight of them of course and they were sooooo long that they climbed clear up to the ceiling and beyond – through holes that had been made to accommodate them.
Under the spider, revealed only when the huge body shifted, Peter could catch glimpses of giant spider’s eggs. Gold eggs, a treasure indeed, one that might tempt any self regarding sneak thief.
Peter walked closer still, one foot after another - And then without warning one great yellow orb of an eye opened with a snap.
“Agh!” yelped Peter.
Another eye popped open and the gigantic toothy mouth as well.
"Tiptoes," said the spider shaking its great furry head "is quite the loudest way of walking. Really, it's like the clowns that entertain the King; they whisper loudly... Well Sonny-Jim - your feet are doing just the same."
“Eep!” said Peter again, but this time he didn’t bother trying to keep it quiet.
The spider looked at him and sighed. “Oh well” it said, in the usual slobbery spider way, “I suppose I should eat you then.”
end of part two...
coming up: part three - in which there are clowns, puppets, a king - and a broken heart.
And so it was that the next day came and Young Peter found himself walking the winding paths up the mountain and towards the castle of the King. He had been very surprised to learn of a castle, let alone a king – the village of Lowbury didn’t seem ‘regal’ somehow. But indeed there was a castle, and there was a king.
“He... well, he doesn’t come down too often,” the Landlord had said last night, as he stood talking business with Peter in the tiny office back at the tavern. “And what with his temper, we daren’t go up. Things were not always as they are… but we love the King just the same.”
It all sounded very silly indeed to Young Peter.
The windings paths did exactly that.
“These paths are really winding me up,” said the tired boy to himself kicking the dust as he trod along. It was hard to know if you were actually going up since the paths seemed to just swirl around and around – the way ice cream does when you lick it – only dusty. Young Peter quite fancied an ice cream, walking the mountains was a tiring business.
Quite unexpectedly, as if the paths had just decided to stop and have a rest, Peter saw a large rock wall ahead of him and a dark opening to what looked like a tunnel.
He puffed out his chest. He does that quite a lot you will notice, in the course of this story, sometimes he puffed up and sometimes, like now, he puffed out. Sometimes he would puff his cheeks too, just for fun.
So he stood by the tunnel and puffed for a bit – and then clutching tightly on to his coat and bag, he walked forward and into the dark.
“I better do it on tip-toes,” he whispered to himself. And so tiptoes it was.
The tunnel itself was not as cold as he had thought it would be. For one thing it was out of the wind and for another there seemed to be gusts of warm air coming from in front of him. This would make sense since the tunnel was supposed to lead to the castle. “I imagine the King has all sorts of posh ways to keep warm,” thought Peter as he crept quietly along.
Gradually the tunnel began to widen and either his eyes were beginning to get used to the dark or else it was getting lighter too. The warm gusts continued – and he could hear a noise now as well, a sort of whoosh and chuff mixed together – a whuff perhaps. Have you ever heard whuffing?
“A posh air machine of some sort I expect,” thought Peter, wishing he had a beard he could stroke. “Hmm…” he said, “yes it must be that.”
But it wasn’t that, not at all. It was something quite different and as he stole his way forward, Peter saw suddenly what it was. A very large – no, a very, VERY large spider – right there in the tunnel ahead of him, sat in a sort of chamber that Peter had reached. Sat like a great fuzzy ball only with legs and eyes and fangs - and the warm gusts that Peter felt were disgustingly revealed to be the hot breath of the snoring creature.
“Eep!” said Peter – but as quietly as he could.
To distract himself while he summoned up his courage, the lad peered around the musty chamber that the spider was in. There were little jewels on the rocky ceiling that glinted and twinkled and were more like tiny lights than gems. Around the edges of the chamber everything was sticky-looking and covered in dusty webs – and it would have taken more than a broom to sweep them away. But gradually his reluctant eyes turned back to the hulking shape of the spider itself. Its great body seemed to wobble like jelly with every snore and its long hairy limbs trembled. Long limbs, oh yes, eight of them of course and they were sooooo long that they climbed clear up to the ceiling and beyond – through holes that had been made to accommodate them.
Under the spider, revealed only when the huge body shifted, Peter could catch glimpses of giant spider’s eggs. Gold eggs, a treasure indeed, one that might tempt any self regarding sneak thief.
Peter walked closer still, one foot after another - And then without warning one great yellow orb of an eye opened with a snap.
“Agh!” yelped Peter.
Another eye popped open and the gigantic toothy mouth as well.
"Tiptoes," said the spider shaking its great furry head "is quite the loudest way of walking. Really, it's like the clowns that entertain the King; they whisper loudly... Well Sonny-Jim - your feet are doing just the same."
“Eep!” said Peter again, but this time he didn’t bother trying to keep it quiet.
The spider looked at him and sighed. “Oh well” it said, in the usual slobbery spider way, “I suppose I should eat you then.”
end of part two...
coming up: part three - in which there are clowns, puppets, a king - and a broken heart.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2009-01-30 08:31 pm (UTC)Poor Peter- run, Peter, run!
Well, at least I know poor Peter makes it as there is a part three!
Well done, my friend. I can imagine any child would be on the edge of his seat right now- as am I!
:)
p.s. I am experimenting with puffing right now... up or out... hmmm...
no subject
Date: 2009-01-30 08:32 pm (UTC);)
no subject
Date: 2009-01-30 08:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-01-30 08:39 pm (UTC)the unbecoming of a lady
Date: 2009-01-30 08:45 pm (UTC)and box office epic success (not to mention Jane Campion come-back) written all over it!:D
Re: the unbecoming of a lady
Date: 2009-01-30 08:51 pm (UTC):)
LOL!:):):)
Date: 2009-01-30 08:34 pm (UTC)yep - that's just what the kids did too!:D
and a big thank you, as ever:)
no subject
Date: 2009-01-31 07:28 am (UTC)shiny!!!
thanks:)
Date: 2009-01-31 07:39 am (UTC)i hope you have a nice weekend after all your travels and work!
Re: thanks:)
Date: 2009-01-31 08:37 am (UTC)(which I do like)
Re: thanks:)
Date: 2009-01-31 10:19 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-01-31 07:48 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-01-31 08:37 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-01-31 10:20 am (UTC)heee! :)
no subject
Date: 2009-01-31 03:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-01-31 03:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-01-31 05:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-01-31 08:56 am (UTC)i'd like to have a word to Peter:
спокойствие, только спокойствие! - as Astrid Lindgren's Karlsson used to say ;-)
no subject
Date: 2009-01-31 10:18 am (UTC)