Brave Story - Miyuki Miyabe [121]
Wataru ran for the copse. As he drew nearer, he could hear leaves blowing in a stiff wind. There, in the middle of the trees, he could see a low wall of round stone, above which hung a bucket on a rope. A well! It really is an oasis. At least, he thought it was a well. It was Wataru’s first time seeing the real thing. He walked over to the rim and looked down to see water glimmering in the half-light below.
The tiled roof stood above it, supported by four sturdy wooden posts. Probably to keep rainwater out, Wataru thought, if it ever does rain here in Vision.
Wataru drew water from the well, and putting his lips to the edge of the bucket, he drank in deep gulps. It was cool and delicious. A loud sigh of relief escaped his lips. Heedless of the water dribbling down the front of his shirt, Wataru continued to drink and drink.
Catching his breath and looking around, Wataru noticed red fruits resembling tomatoes lying on the ground. They appeared to have fallen from the trees around the well. Most were overripe and squashed by the fall.
Wataru picked one up and sniffed. Sweet, a little tangy. Seems edible.
Wataru gazed up at the trees, but the branches were all high off the ground, and the trunks were perfectly smooth. He had never been one for climbing trees much anyway.
He thought for a while and then began gathering a few palm-size rocks. Taking one in his right hand, he threw it up at the branches, trying to knock down some of the fruit that had yet to fall. Wataru had played enough catchball that he had a pretty good aim.
His efforts soon met with success. Picking up one of the fallen fruits and brushing off the dirt, he carefully took a bite. Tastes like a tomato too. But it was a far richer, juicier fruit than any tomato Wataru had seen at the supermarket. Wataru was starting to wonder if all the fruit in Vision tasted so delicious.
Even better, if he gathered enough of these, he wouldn’t be thirsty—or hungry—on his journey. Wataru continued picking up the fruit. He was so absorbed in aiming and throwing rocks, that when a dusty wind blew through the wood along with the sound of hooves it took him entirely by surprise.
“Oy! Ooooy! You there!”
Someone riding on a drawn carriage was approaching the woods, waving his arm in Wataru’s direction. The voice was loud and carried well in the dry air. Wataru ran to the edge of the woods, and shielding his eyes from the glare of the sun with one hand, he looked out over the glimmering green grassland. The dust line he had seen before must have originated from this carriage, he realized. Odd that so much dust would come up from this grassland.
Then Wataru noticed the road. Maybe it’s the road to Gasara!
The carriage-like thing had slowed down, no longer kicking up dust. As it came closer, Wataru noticed something quite odd. The covered carriage was the same as anything you might see in an old Western movie, but what was pulling it wasn’t exactly a horse. It was—what is that thing?
The creature pulling the carriage looked like a cow, but its neck was far too long. Two horns grew from its forehead. It was large, with silken gray fur, and enormous hooves that spread out at the bottom like a pair of bell-bottom jeans.
“Oy! You there! Don’t eat too many o’ those baquas now, y’hear?”
The person riding on the carriage drew in the reins, and the vehicle came to a stop nearby. “Darbabas love ’em, I know. Ah, they’re sweet as can be. But not for people folk. Eat too many o’ those and yer stomach’ll tie itself into all sorts of knots.”
Wataru dropped the half-eaten fruit in his hand. The driver laughed out loud and stepped out of his carriage. “Still, that’s no reason to waste what you’ve got already. They’re not poisonous, mind you. And they are delicious, eh? Maybe I’ll help meself to one o’ them ’fore I let my darbaba at ’em. Hrmm…”
Wataru stood with his mouth open, shaking.