Fantastic Metropolis

23

The writer goes on to tell how Fosto the tin man actually led the robots behind enemy lines to liberate Zari while the rest of the characters marched with great Boppy into battle. Shucks eight forty entered the tuck shop and took up his position near the lightswitch. Knickers and Lavinia Wadset allowed themselves to be stared at dancing the chloroform chacha so Iffy Ocnus and Boppy could eclipse the sun. Zari ran unnoticed to her father and mother. Taken by surprise the dough people promptly subsided never to rise again. Everyone met up at granny honeycomb’s cottage.

Colly is deep in conversation with miss delamere Willie is throwing darts in the garden dandelion and neem neem vie for beetles among the weeds tallow is smoking a crayon. Granny is asleep. Now and then honey bees stray into the cheery bungalow exhausted by the journey they evidently find the luncheon gong irresistible. Ping. Ping.

Suddenly Boppy took possession of the crayon and the wax baby with a thump. Hey not so fast cried tallow who had by now reached the age of 3½ brother put me down! Boppy shook his head. He waited for all manner of disappearing prairie elves to pass by before their preoccupation with repetition took years off of his life apparently nobody questions the casualties of servitude.

Stop glaring at me replied Boppy you know this stuff will lead to paraffin don’t you?

24

You’ve upset the town crier Boppy said bullied the childhoods after school for the last time.

Colly croaked quietly.

Runny nosed Tallow had fallen on his face in the peanut brittle he answered by lighting up another crayon and of course spilling his beer.

Boppy let seventy five parasols waft by. Philip K. Dick novels could not induce him to give up reality for he knew the dog too well. Tallow you dunned me for eighty five cents this morning and the pooks the pooks are louder than ever. Have you lost your mine?

Mad? I? Nay old bill. It isn’t my place to look surprised in the gloomiest. You have no semicope I thought through you in a jiffy. Close we always wound up holding up liquor stories for the poor are very kind. You heard me. How would you like wax for brains?

Unhappily complaining of having nothing to do zari began to lie in ambush for the tanned yard rats hiding in the tater patch and slowly picking them off with her crossbow until only the meanest one was left.

Five bits said Iffy she’ll get him climbing into the mistletoe nursing that cough of his. Done!

25

Goodness Miss delamere was offended by a certain vulgar expression in the frog’s Parisian argot why didn’t you stop?