Suddenly, Child heard I high, clear voice calling from across the waves. It was Kali, bobbing on the surface, and waving his hand to come on board.
Child lowered a rope over the side of the "Star", and the hobbrim nimbly scampered up the rope and landed lightly on the deck in front of the hobbit and the dragon.
"Oh, Child, I'm sorry I've been gone so long, but Levanto took us to a wonderful place! Birdie and I went with him to his city! I was allowed to go into the great city of the Mer-Folk! And they talked with me about my people, and how they would help us. And Levanto even took us to meet his King! Oh, Child, if you could have only seen it all. Birdie said that you would recognized so much of it..."
Child laughed, as Kali was running on non-stop. But what did he mean that she would have "recognized" the city of the Mer-Folk? She was actually rather miffed that Bird had been away so long, and was not there to assist with the experiment of the skiffs, (as well as the deck swabbing and daily tasks of taking care of the "Star".)
Raising her hands, she laughingly protested "Hold up, Kali! It all sounds truly wonderful, and you must sit and tell all of us about your adventure. But where is Birdie?"
"Oh...she's coming. Didn't Levanto tell you? I think she had a wonderful time as well, Child." Here Kali looked doubtfully out over the waves. "I think maybe she had TOO good a time. Look!" He pointed to a small, black and grey figure coming swiftly towards the ship.
"WHEEEEEEEEEE!!" A dolphin shape broke from the sea, soaring ten feet in the air and landing sideways with a terrific splash into the water. Again the dolphin leapt from the sea, screaming at the top of its lungs "AHOYYYYYYYY, LONELY STAR! YOO-HOO!"
Then Birdie started a whirling tail-walking dance down the length of the ship, passing by an agast Tule and Mithadan, who were still in the skiffs surrounding the ships. The dolphin gave a raucous laugh as she whizzed by the Man and Elf, and sang in a loud, slightly slurred voice:
My gal don't do much talkin',
Dances, even when she's walkin',
One and Two and Three and Four,
She dances 'round the floor!"
"Kali!" Child whirled on the hobbrim, who was leaning over the railing watching the antics of the dolphin with great enjoyment and puzzlement. "Kali! Is Birdie drunk?"
"Oh Child, the Mer-Folk cannot drink," Here Child sighed with relief. "But they do serve a type of searoom at their feasts. I had none myself. My mother always said that type of searoom wasn't good for you. But the Mer-Folk really seem to like them. Birdie liked them too." Child cringed as another "WHEEEEE" echoed across the waters. She ran to the rail, crying out. "Bird! Birdie! Get up on this ship immediately!"
"BOARDING, MY CAPTAIN!" Bird broke from the waves, rising high in a great arc towards the deck of the ship. She missed by a mile.
The body of the dolphin fell directly on the skiff containing Tule. There was a terrifying "CRASH!" and the skiff was swamped, rocking violently in the water as it half-filled with sea water. Tule sat on the floor, half-drowned, with a black-and-grey dolphin sitting in his lap.
The dolphin looked up, gave the drenched Numenorean a wink, and asked companionably "What DO you do with a drunken dolphin, ear-li in the mornin'?"
[ August 29, 2002: Message edited by: Birdland ]
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