The Dragon's Pearl Chapter 4
“Look at my big tummy!”
The man he had come to call Ryuichi-san put down his bowl of rice and laughed.
“How come a little boy has such a big tummy?”
“Because he eats a lot!” Akihito patted his stomach proudly.
“I hope there’s still room in there for dessert,” said Ryuichi-san, smiling.
“Ooh...” Akihito’s eyes widened at the trays of sweets being borne in by pretty ladies in colorful kimonos. There were so many beautiful confections, a few of which he knew and loved, but the rest looked tempting too. Seeing his indecision, Ryuichi-san pulled him into his lap and started feeding him little bites from the plates. Akihito had enjoyed himself immensely at the dragon’s feast, but this was even better - the food was just as plentiful and even more delicious, and Ryuichi-san never once said he shouldn’t eat too much or he would be ill later as his grandmother had repeatedly told him at the village fete. When one of the pretty ladies asked him if he would like more of the wonderful stuffed rice balls and he shook his head shyly, Ryuichi-san told him that as the dragon’s special guest he should make himself at home and enjoy the meal, even if his host was still away.
When the meal finally ended, Akihito could barely walk and had to let Ryuichi-san carry him out to the back garden. There they sat under a large tree watching clouds move overhead and Akihito sang songs his grandparents and his cousin Kou had taught him. As his eyelids grew heavy, he asked Ryuichi-san to sing him a song and he did, a nice song about a beautiful young man with long hair who went into the woods one day and never returned. Hearing sadness in the man’s voice, Akihito climbed into his lap and told him not to be sad because some day the beautiful young man would come back.
“I am not sad anymore, Akihito,” said Ryuichi-san, his eyes becoming soft. “I have found something even more precious and this time I will never lose it.”
Reassured by the gentle voice, Akihito smiled up into the golden eyes and surrendered at last to sleep.
“Aki-chan... Aki-chan where are you?”
Akihito sat up rubbing his eyes and, sure that he had heard someone call his name, began to follow that voice out of the room where he had been sleeping. Remembering that he was visiting the dragon’s home with his new friend Ryuichi-san, he began to look for him, but every room he checked was empty, with no signs of the tall man or any of the pretty ladies who had been looking after them, bringing them food at mealtimes and then retiring quietly to some unknown part of the house. At the end of a corridor, Akihito found a screen door left slightly ajar. He poked his head in and gasped. The room was filled to bursting with dolls. There were so many of them, all dressed in beautiful kimonos of different colors and patterns and one of them looked so familiar that Akihito felt immediately drawn to it. Taking a few steps into the room, then a few more, he finally reached the doll and using his fingers to probe the creases and folds of its clothes, became certain that this was the same doll he had helped put in the dragon’s boat on the day of the feast. Only the marble he had put in the fold of its kimono was missing.
The silence that pervaded the house made him decide to look outside for Ryuichi-san. Leaving by the front door, he stood hesitating for a few moments at the edge of the garden, then began to walk barefoot toward the road he remembered taking earlier... Was it this afternoon? Unsure as to how long he had been staying at the dragon’s house, he pushed those confusing thoughts out of his mind and hurried his steps. But when he reached the clearing he couldn’t find the path that had brought him to the house.
”Aki-chan! Aki-chan where are you?”
Akihito looked around for the source of the voice but saw only trees big and small, their leaves looking dull in the fading light. Convinced that someone he knew had called out for him, he walked further into the stand of trees and kept continuing even though he could see no clear path. Time passed and he began to wonder if he shouldn’t go back to the house and wait for Ryuichi-san there. Looking up he saw that the sky had turned dark. As he tried to retrace his steps, he became aware of a noise behind him. Quickening his pace into a run, he stumbled on a tree root and fell on the hard ground. Crying out in pain, he thought he heard the noise again, this time much closer, a low growling noise he couldn’t identify but which made his heart race and his eyes well up with tears. He stood up trembling and slowly turned around, and in the fast encroaching darkness saw a pair of yellow eyes staring back at him. Dark shapes began to materialize from among the trees, quickly surrounding him. Stumbling backward, Akihito sobbed out the first name he could think of and squeezed his eyes shut as the scary sounds moved ever closer...
The man he had come to call Ryuichi-san put down his bowl of rice and laughed.
“How come a little boy has such a big tummy?”
“Because he eats a lot!” Akihito patted his stomach proudly.
“I hope there’s still room in there for dessert,” said Ryuichi-san, smiling.
“Ooh...” Akihito’s eyes widened at the trays of sweets being borne in by pretty ladies in colorful kimonos. There were so many beautiful confections, a few of which he knew and loved, but the rest looked tempting too. Seeing his indecision, Ryuichi-san pulled him into his lap and started feeding him little bites from the plates. Akihito had enjoyed himself immensely at the dragon’s feast, but this was even better - the food was just as plentiful and even more delicious, and Ryuichi-san never once said he shouldn’t eat too much or he would be ill later as his grandmother had repeatedly told him at the village fete. When one of the pretty ladies asked him if he would like more of the wonderful stuffed rice balls and he shook his head shyly, Ryuichi-san told him that as the dragon’s special guest he should make himself at home and enjoy the meal, even if his host was still away.
When the meal finally ended, Akihito could barely walk and had to let Ryuichi-san carry him out to the back garden. There they sat under a large tree watching clouds move overhead and Akihito sang songs his grandparents and his cousin Kou had taught him. As his eyelids grew heavy, he asked Ryuichi-san to sing him a song and he did, a nice song about a beautiful young man with long hair who went into the woods one day and never returned. Hearing sadness in the man’s voice, Akihito climbed into his lap and told him not to be sad because some day the beautiful young man would come back.
“I am not sad anymore, Akihito,” said Ryuichi-san, his eyes becoming soft. “I have found something even more precious and this time I will never lose it.”
Reassured by the gentle voice, Akihito smiled up into the golden eyes and surrendered at last to sleep.
“Aki-chan... Aki-chan where are you?”
Akihito sat up rubbing his eyes and, sure that he had heard someone call his name, began to follow that voice out of the room where he had been sleeping. Remembering that he was visiting the dragon’s home with his new friend Ryuichi-san, he began to look for him, but every room he checked was empty, with no signs of the tall man or any of the pretty ladies who had been looking after them, bringing them food at mealtimes and then retiring quietly to some unknown part of the house. At the end of a corridor, Akihito found a screen door left slightly ajar. He poked his head in and gasped. The room was filled to bursting with dolls. There were so many of them, all dressed in beautiful kimonos of different colors and patterns and one of them looked so familiar that Akihito felt immediately drawn to it. Taking a few steps into the room, then a few more, he finally reached the doll and using his fingers to probe the creases and folds of its clothes, became certain that this was the same doll he had helped put in the dragon’s boat on the day of the feast. Only the marble he had put in the fold of its kimono was missing.
The silence that pervaded the house made him decide to look outside for Ryuichi-san. Leaving by the front door, he stood hesitating for a few moments at the edge of the garden, then began to walk barefoot toward the road he remembered taking earlier... Was it this afternoon? Unsure as to how long he had been staying at the dragon’s house, he pushed those confusing thoughts out of his mind and hurried his steps. But when he reached the clearing he couldn’t find the path that had brought him to the house.
”Aki-chan! Aki-chan where are you?”
Akihito looked around for the source of the voice but saw only trees big and small, their leaves looking dull in the fading light. Convinced that someone he knew had called out for him, he walked further into the stand of trees and kept continuing even though he could see no clear path. Time passed and he began to wonder if he shouldn’t go back to the house and wait for Ryuichi-san there. Looking up he saw that the sky had turned dark. As he tried to retrace his steps, he became aware of a noise behind him. Quickening his pace into a run, he stumbled on a tree root and fell on the hard ground. Crying out in pain, he thought he heard the noise again, this time much closer, a low growling noise he couldn’t identify but which made his heart race and his eyes well up with tears. He stood up trembling and slowly turned around, and in the fast encroaching darkness saw a pair of yellow eyes staring back at him. Dark shapes began to materialize from among the trees, quickly surrounding him. Stumbling backward, Akihito sobbed out the first name he could think of and squeezed his eyes shut as the scary sounds moved ever closer...