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diff --git a/43048-0.txt b/43048-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..9668636 --- /dev/null +++ b/43048-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,226 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 43048 *** + + The Piebald Hippogriff + + By KAREN ANDERSON + + [Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from Fantastic Stories + of Imagination May 1962. Extensive research did not uncover any + evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.] + + + + + _Because this is a masculine world, the author of this fairytale is + usually identified as the wife of Poul Anderson. But a few more + incisive cameos of fantasy such as this, and Mr. Anderson may come + to be identified as Karen's husband._ + + +The edge of the world is fenced off stoutly enough, but the fence isn't +made that will stop a boy. Johnny tossed his pack and coil of rope over +it and started climbing. The top three strands were barbed wire. He +caught his shirt as he went over, and had to stop for a moment to ease +himself off. Then he dropped lightly to the grass on the other side. + +The pack had landed in a clump of white clover. A cloud of disturbed +bees hung above, and he snatched it away quickly lest they should notice +the honeycomb inside. + +For a minute he stood still, looking out over the edge. This was +different from looking through the fence, and when he moved it was +slowly. He eased himself to the ground where a corner of rock rose clear +of the thick larkspur and lay on his belly, the stone hard and cool +under his chin, and looked down. + +The granite cliff curved away out of sight, and he couldn't see if it +had a foot. He saw only endless blue, beyond, below, and on both sides. +Clouds passed slowly. + +Directly beneath him there was a ledge covered with long grass where +clusters of stars bloomed on tall, slender stalks. + +He uncoiled his rope and found a stout beech tree not too close to the +edge. Doubling the rope around the bole, he tied one end around his +waist, slung the pack on his back, and belayed himself down the cliff. +Pebbles clattered, saxifrage brushed his arms and tickled his ears; once +he groped for a hold with his face in a patch of rustling ferns. + +The climb was hard, but not too much. Less than half an hour later he +was stretched out on the grass with stars nodding about him. They had a +sharp, gingery smell. He lay in the cool shadow of the world's edge for +a while, eating apples and honeycomb from his pack. When he was finished +he licked the honey off his fingers and threw the apple cores over, +watching them fall into the blue. + +Little islands floated along, rocking gently in air eddies. Sunlight +flashed on glossy leaves of bushes growing there. When an island drifted +into the shadow of the cliff, the blossoming stars shone out. Beyond the +shadows, deep in the light-filled gulf, he saw the hippogriffs at play. + + * * * * * + +There were dozens of them, frisking and cavorting in the air. He gazed +at them full of wonder. They pretended to fight, stooped at one another, +soared off in long spirals to stoop and soar and stoop again. One +flashed by him, a golden palomino that shone like polished wood. The +wind whistled in its wings. + +Away to the left, the cliff fell back in a wide crescent, and nearly +opposite him a river tumbled over the edge. A pool on a ledge beneath +caught most of the water, and there were hippogriffs drinking. One side +of the broad pool was notched. The overflow fell sheer in a white plume +blown sideways by the wind. + +As the sun grew hotter, the hippogriffs began to settle and browse on +the islands that floated past. Not far below, he noticed, a dozen or so +stood drowsily on an island that was floating through the cliff's shadow +toward his ledge. It would pass directly below him. + +With a sudden resolution, Johnny jerked his rope down from the tree +above and tied the end to a projecting knob on the cliff. Slinging on +his pack again, he slid over the edge and down the rope. + +The island was already passing. The end of the rope trailed through the +grass. He slithered down and cut a piece off his line. + +It was barely long enough after he had tied a noose in the end. He +looked around at the hippogriffs. They had shied away when he dropped +onto the island, but now they stood still, watching him warily. + +Johnny started to take an apple out of his pack, then changed his mind +and took a piece of honeycomb. He broke off one corner and tossed it +toward them. They fluttered their wings and backed off a few steps, then +stood still again. + +Johnny sat down to wait. They were mostly chestnuts and blacks, and some +had white stockings. One was piebald. That was the one which, after a +while, began edging closer to where the honeycomb had fallen. Johnny sat +very still. + + * * * * * + +The piebald sniffed at the honeycomb, then jerked up its head to watch +him suspiciously. He didn't move. After a moment it took the honeycomb. + +When he threw another bit, the piebald hippogriff wheeled away, but +returned almost at once and ate it. Johnny tossed a third piece only a +few yards from where he was sitting. + +It was bigger than the others, and the hippogriff had to bite it in two. +When the hippogriff bent its head to take the rest Johnny was on his +feet instantly, swinging his lariat. He dropped the noose over the +hippogriff's head. For a moment the animal was too startled to do +anything; then Johnny was on its back, clinging tight. + +The piebald hippogriff leaped into the air, and Johnny clamped his legs +about convulsed muscles. Pinions whipped against his knees and wind +blasted his eyes. The world tilted; they were rushing downward. His +knees pressed the sockets of the enormous wings. + +The distant ramparts of the world swung madly, and he seemed to fall +upward, away from the sun that suddenly glared under the hippogriff's +talons. He forced his knees under the roots of the beating wings and dug +heels into prickling hair. A sob caught his breath and he clenched his +teeth. + +The universe righted itself about him for a moment and he pulled breath +into his lungs. Then they plunged again. Wind searched under his shirt. +Once he looked down. After that he kept his eyes on the flutter of the +feather-mane. + + * * * * * + +A jolt sent him sliding backward. He clutched the rope with slippery +fingers. The wings missed a beat and the hippogriff shook its head as +the rope momentarily checked its breath. It tried to fly straight up, +lost way, and fell stiff-winged. The long muscles stretched under him as +it arched its back, then bunched when it kicked straight out behind. The +violence loosened his knees and he trembled with fatigue, but he wound +the rope around his wrists and pressed his forehead against whitened +knuckles. Another kick, and another. Johnny dragged at the rope. + +The tense wings flailed, caught air, and brought the hippogriff upright +again. The rope slackened and he heard huge gasps. Sunlight was hot on +him again and a drop of sweat crawled down his temple. It tickled. He +loosened one hand to dab at the annoyance. A new twist sent him sliding +and he grabbed the rope. The tickle continued until he nearly screamed. +He no longer dared let go. Another tickle developed beside the first. He +scrubbed his face against the coarse fibre of the rope; the relief was +like a world conquered. + +Then they glided in a steady spiral that carried them upward with +scarcely a feather's motion. When the next plunge came Johnny was ready +for it and leaned back until the hippogriff arched its neck, trying to +free itself from the pressure on its windpipe. Half choked, it glided +again, and Johnny gave it breath. + +They landed on one of the little islands. The hippogriff drooped its +head and wings, trembling. + +He took another piece of honeycomb from his pack and tossed it to the +ground where the hippogriff could reach it easily. While it ate he +stroked it and talked to it. When he dismounted the hippogriff took +honeycomb from his hand. He stroked its neck, breathing the sweet warm +feathery smell, and laughed aloud when it snuffled the back of his neck. + +Tying the rope into a sort of hackamore, he mounted again and rode the +hippogriff to the pool below the thunder and cold spray of the +waterfall. He took care that it did not drink too much. When he ate some +apples for his lunch, the hippogriff ate the cores. + +Afterward he rode to one of the drifting islands and let his mount +graze. For a while he kept by its side, making much of it. With his +fingers, he combed out the soft flowing plumes of its mane, and examined +its hoofs and the sickle-like talons of the forelegs. He saw how the +smooth feathers on its forequarters became finer and finer until he +could scarcely see where the hair on the hindquarters began. Delicate +feathers covered its head. + +The island glided further and further away from the cliffs, and he +watched the waterfall dwindle away to a streak and disappear. After a +while he fell asleep. + + * * * * * + +He woke with a start, suddenly cold: the setting sun was below his +island. The feathery odor was still on his hands. He looked around for +the hippogriff and saw it sniffing at his pack. + +When it saw him move, it trotted up to him with an expectant air. He +threw his arms about the great flat-muscled neck and pressed his face +against the warm feathers, with a faint sense of embarrassment at +feeling tears in his eyes. + +"Good old Patch," he said, and got his pack. He shared the last piece of +honeycomb with his hippogriff and watched the sun sink still further. +The clouds were turning red. + +"Let's go see those clouds," Johnny said. He mounted the piebald +hippogriff and they flew off, up through the golden air to the sunset +clouds. There they stopped and Johnny dismounted on the highest cloud of +all, stood there as it turned slowly gray, and looked into dimming +depths. When he turned to look at the world, he saw only a wide smudge +of darkness spread in the distance. + +The cloud they were standing on turned silver. Johnny glanced up and saw +the moon, a crescent shore far above. + +He ate an apple and gave one to his hippogriff. While he chewed he gazed +back at the world. When he finished his apple, he was about to toss the +core to the hippogriff, but stopped himself and carefully took out the +seeds first. With the seeds in his pocket, he mounted again. + +He took a deep breath. "Come on, Patch," he said. "Let's homestead the +moon." + + +THE END + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's The Piebald Hippogriff, by Karen Anderson + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 43048 *** |