/too lazy to even attempt translating into Spanish.tomatomatonioMay 18 2011, 01:17:47 UTC
Antonio had watched the tiny little girl drag her bucket up the beach and dump the sand into a big pile for the third time. He himself had been roving the beach, gathering up shells to take back and show off to his littlest sisters who were too young to leave Spain for this vacation. Plunking his bucket down on the sand, he sat down with the girl, swiping her bucket and scooping sand back into it.
"You're doing it wrong, you know," he told her conversationally in Spanish. His English vocabulary was getting bigger, but if the girl understood him so much the better. With that, he flipped the bucket and slid it off the top, a perfectly turreted mound of sand revealed. "See? That's how a castle is supposed to look."
That's okay, I haven't had a Spanish class since seventh grade.remyleeMay 18 2011, 02:16:09 UTC
Remy looked up, a little startled when the bigger boy suddenly grabbed her bucket, but when he started talking to her, using silly words she couldn't understand, she decided he wasn't a bully. When he fixed her castle, she was sure of it.
"Yay!" She giggled, clapping her hands delightedly before scooping more sand into the bucket. "Do it again!" She knew it wasn't nice to be bossy, but right now she was too excited to remember that. And she wasn't trying to be mean...
I have never taken Spanish at all~tomatomatonioMay 19 2011, 01:45:36 UTC
Toni plopped the other bucket over next to the first tower and handed it back to the girl with a grin. So she spoke English, and was too little to understand him if he used Spanish. But she was cute, and if making castles made her happy, he would make her a little helper.
Then I won't have to display how badly I fail. :DremyleeMay 19 2011, 02:05:30 UTC
A happy smile and a nod later, Remy was carrying the bucket down to the water again. If he'd help her make castles, she'd bring the boy all the water he needed. In her mind, they were a team now. With both of them working together, they could make the prettiest castles ever.
This time the trail back up the beach was dotted with wet spots where water sloshed over the sides of the bucket as she dragged. At least it wasn't as heavy as the sand....
Luckily there was more water in the bucket than out of it when she made it back. And if it was too much, they could always use the extra to fill the moat.
Toni took the bucket from her, tipping the contents into the sand next to him. From the wet sand, he made several more turrets, handed the bucket back to the girl, and smiled at her again. "More water."
While the little girl rushed back to the water's edge and tried to haul the heavy bucket, he was busy making the base strong and sturdy. The next few turrets would go on the second level of the castle, and it would get some good height. He didn't feel any guilt at all over giving her the grunt work, because she was too little to know how to build a castle right. If she wanted a good looking castle, she would have to rely on him to get it built.
The French part of my brain took over the Spanish part a long time ago.remyleeMay 22 2011, 04:05:58 UTC
It didn't take long for Remy to figure out why he was trying to get the sand wet. Soon she was dumping buckets of water into the pile of sand next to him, scooping the wet mix back into the bucket while he shaped the rest of the castle.
A few buckets later, though, she was tired of dragging the heavy water up the beach. She needed a bit of a break, and besides, the castle needed a little something more. She leaned over to look at the shells the boy had collected, picking out a little one - sharing went both ways, after all. If he could swipe her bucket, she could borrow his shells - and pressing it carefully into the side of one of the towers until it stuck, making a little window.
Re: The French part of my brain took over the Spanish part a long time ago.tomatomatonioMay 23 2011, 02:04:50 UTC
Toni peered around the tower to see what it was the little girl was up to with his shells. It didn't look half, bad, really. And so long as she gave them back before he left, he didn't mind her decorating the castle a little.
He kept working for his part, stacking tiers of towers like a layer cake. And then, it was nearly as tall as he was, and it wasn't going to get any bigger, since he couldn't reach higher. So he motioned for the girl to follow his lead for a moat.
The upper layers of the castle were way too high for Remy to reach and decorate, but the base had plenty of shell-windows by the time her new friend finished building up the higher walls and turrets.
A moat had been the first thing she'd made, but their building had shifted the sand around enough that most of it was filled in, and the castle itself had expanded to cover the rest. She started digging in the same spot he did, going the opposite way, figuring they'd meet up and connect their paths on the other side of the castle.
After just a few minutes of digging, he left the girl to work at it a bit more while he walked down to the water to cool off a bit from sitting in the sand and sun too long. She would be fine just digging the moat, and he would let her enjoy the castle a little longer before he took back his shells.
And the Dutch arrive! oranje_windmillMay 28 2011, 07:10:10 UTC
Willem knew, as soon as he saw the little girl working, that he had to help.
She was so cute and tiny, it was horrible that she was having to do all this work by herself. And since she was so much younger them him, she could only benefit from his help.
So he went over, smiled at her, and began to dig from the other side to meet her in the middle.
The grateful smile made her even cuter, and he found himself smiling back at her. She reminded him a bit of his sister at that age, before she discovered that she enjoyed annoying him. He told her thank you in his best English. He wasn't sure at all what other languages she spoke, but he was pretty sure one of them wasn't Dutch.
Then he turned his attention back to the castle. Now that the moat was dug, it needed to be filled. He pointed that out to her.
More water? Remy was really getting tired of boys making her drag heavy water buckets up the beach.
Still, she wanted her castle to be perfect, so the moat needed to have water. Maybe when she was done, she could go get her daddy and have him come take a pciture...
"Here." She handed him one of her buckets (not the new pretty one, of course. That one was special.) And headed down to the water again to drag up another heavy bucket.
He looked from the bucket in his hand to the girl heading down to the water. He didn't see why he had to get water when it was obvious the little girl could do it all on her own, but figured he might as well do something to help.
If there was one thing he'd learned from having a baby sister, it was that little kids could get emotional over the stupidest things.
So he walked down to the ocean after her, although he only filled his bucket half way. Easier to carry that way, and after her bucket they probably only needed that much anyways.
"You're doing it wrong, you know," he told her conversationally in Spanish. His English vocabulary was getting bigger, but if the girl understood him so much the better. With that, he flipped the bucket and slid it off the top, a perfectly turreted mound of sand revealed. "See? That's how a castle is supposed to look."
Reply
"Yay!" She giggled, clapping her hands delightedly before scooping more sand into the bucket. "Do it again!" She knew it wasn't nice to be bossy, but right now she was too excited to remember that. And she wasn't trying to be mean...
Reply
"More water," he instructed in English.
Reply
This time the trail back up the beach was dotted with wet spots where water sloshed over the sides of the bucket as she dragged. At least it wasn't as heavy as the sand....
Luckily there was more water in the bucket than out of it when she made it back. And if it was too much, they could always use the extra to fill the moat.
Reply
While the little girl rushed back to the water's edge and tried to haul the heavy bucket, he was busy making the base strong and sturdy. The next few turrets would go on the second level of the castle, and it would get some good height. He didn't feel any guilt at all over giving her the grunt work, because she was too little to know how to build a castle right. If she wanted a good looking castle, she would have to rely on him to get it built.
Reply
A few buckets later, though, she was tired of dragging the heavy water up the beach. She needed a bit of a break, and besides, the castle needed a little something more. She leaned over to look at the shells the boy had collected, picking out a little one - sharing went both ways, after all. If he could swipe her bucket, she could borrow his shells - and pressing it carefully into the side of one of the towers until it stuck, making a little window.
Reply
He kept working for his part, stacking tiers of towers like a layer cake. And then, it was nearly as tall as he was, and it wasn't going to get any bigger, since he couldn't reach higher. So he motioned for the girl to follow his lead for a moat.
"Dig."
Reply
A moat had been the first thing she'd made, but their building had shifted the sand around enough that most of it was filled in, and the castle itself had expanded to cover the rest. She started digging in the same spot he did, going the opposite way, figuring they'd meet up and connect their paths on the other side of the castle.
Reply
Reply
She was so cute and tiny, it was horrible that she was having to do all this work by herself. And since she was so much younger them him, she could only benefit from his help.
So he went over, smiled at her, and began to dig from the other side to meet her in the middle.
Reply
Between the two of them, they had the moat finished in no time. No way any bad guys were going to get into this castle.
She smiled up at the boy who'd come to help her, remembering to thank him, just like her parents taught her.
Reply
Then he turned his attention back to the castle. Now that the moat was dug, it needed to be filled. He pointed that out to her.
Reply
Still, she wanted her castle to be perfect, so the moat needed to have water. Maybe when she was done, she could go get her daddy and have him come take a pciture...
"Here." She handed him one of her buckets (not the new pretty one, of course. That one was special.) And headed down to the water again to drag up another heavy bucket.
Reply
If there was one thing he'd learned from having a baby sister, it was that little kids could get emotional over the stupidest things.
So he walked down to the ocean after her, although he only filled his bucket half way. Easier to carry that way, and after her bucket they probably only needed that much anyways.
Reply
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