A Romantic Vision

Refuge

I returned to the passage, the kids urging for another story, there favourite one.
I skimmed to the side, tear the paper in pieces and the sound of it comes like a knife on a hot stone.

I gather my skirt and pour down hot coffee, I am angry.
Why does he return now?

I hear Timur forming his line, his throat repulses and starts the story.

The Cat and the Chick.

I have heard the story before, he usually narrates this at community centres when they volunteer him.

The story is about A farmer and his wife and their pet cat who loves a chick. In hunger, the couple eats the chick and replace the chick with a furry toy to fool the cat.

The twins arch up their necks, their pupils grew large. I wait for him to speak and he goes

Once upon a time, there was a farmer, he had a lovely farm. In his farm, he had cows, goats, chicken and their small chicks. He was kind and benevolent.

The farmer loved his farm animals, so did his wife. Although apart from these animals there was one beloved cat. The couple loved the cat dearly. She lived with them in their house, unlike the animals who were in the shed at the farm.

The cat was pure, white as milk, soft as cotton, beautiful like heaven.
She strolled with the farmer on the farm and befriended a small chick.
This Chick was yellow, bright and cheerful like a sunflower. The cat and the chick became good friends. She would meow to the chick, in return he would flutter her wings and all was going blissfully.

One day a dangerous storm passed by,
The entire village was shaken, the tornado took houses down, the farm was destroyed and all the animals ran away.
The couple felt very sad, they said 'oh all is gone what must we do, no drink no food, what shall we eat, what will we feed just then the chick entered drowned in need.

Their orifices expanded as they lurched him in, they took him in the hold and opened his skin, they snapped his neck into two and the chick cried 'woe to you!'

Hunger took over them as they burned him in the beams, as the house muffled the chicks screams.

I picked the girl in my arms and hit his arm.
"fancy of you to scare the kids Timur "

She loosened the grip and slipped into his arm. They still want their happy ending. Tear eyed but hoping. The girl anxious, the boy mournful, similar in height similar in agitation, the identical twins yearned for him to speak. In simultaneous nod they demanded.

He continues

The cat came wailing, she searched for him.
The farmer realised what he has done.
They wrapped cotton and dipped it in mustard, shook it vigorously and called a council, given it was then to the cat, who gladly embraced it like a diplomat.

The farmer and his wife then smiled deviously as they saw their cat fooled miserably.

Cat hurries around and meow at it but the chick doesn't flutter his wings.

The pair of eyes still yearning for him to speak.

"That's the end" he announced.
I rolled my eyes.

The kids start with their but- ugh- how- no

"it is no end, what is the moral of the story?"
Then she probes him questionably.

He ponders over her clever question and then says "Sometimes the one who we run in refuge to are the ones we must run away from?"

I collected this, he looked at me and swiftly moved away. He put the kids to their house.

Sometimes war starts in the refuge.

It is beseeching, the story. I have heard it multiple times but it's frame this time is awakening me.

"Is it from American Children Stories"
I ask.

he doesn't answer.

"Am I invisible ?" I ask.
Almost angry.

"Sometimes I wish you were," he said.

I tossed the sheet I was making and left the room.

We fight almost daily nowadays.
He has taken up a job at the local school up the street and he teaches English there.
Eighth graders.

He also tutors the twins and another boy from the neighbourhood. That is something acceptable from him.
The only thing acceptable from him.