Tasuki was about to reach for a piece of tuna that was on Nuriko's plate,
when Nuriko turned around quickly and swiped the chopsticks.
"It WAS you," he said, "That egg was my favorite!!!"
"It was jus' sittin' there!!" argued Tasuki, "If it was yer favorite, then why didn' you EAT it already??"
"I was saving the best for last!!!" said Nuriko, "That's what people usually do when they've got something they like on their plate!!"
"Yeah well th' egg was gettin cold sittin' there all by itself," mumbled Tasuki, "It needed someone t' cheer it up!!" Nuriko sighed.
"You are hopeless," he murmured. Chiriko watched the two bicker from across the table. It was always fun to see something like this go on, even if it wasn't for the best cause. But Nuriko and Tasuki always faught over the simplest things, which made it amusing to see. Chiriko sipped his tea slowly. He had never experienced fun or family like this back home. His mother and brother were always coaxing him to study more, and since he loved it, that's what he usually did. It was his gift to the Miko, was it not? But the child in him still wished for a more exciting youth, instead of books and ink.....
Chiriko was locked in his room, studying for the government exams he was to take in the following year. It was always good to start beforehand, to learn the more challenging factors of the test. Then, he would have a longer time to figure them out so he could easily master what most men could not. A draft wafted in through the open window, fluttering the tips of the papers. Downstairs he could hear his mother washing the dishes used in dinner, and his brother playing a flute. Chiriko sighed.
"All this studying can get tiresome sometimes," he muttered to himself, closing a book and stretching back, "I'm only 12 and still I study more than my brother's friends. Maybe I should ease up a little...." He immediately dismissed that idea. His genius was his talent. Why should he put it aside when he could use it? It was silly, the games that boys his age played. They should be inside working hard to prepare for their future, thought Chiriko to himself. But somewhere in his depths, he wished that he could join them. Just once. Sitting back up, he pulled another heavy textbook off of a bookshelf, and flipped it open. There had been a question last night that challenged him. He was on a mission. To solve it. To solve it before breakfast!! This is what he enjoyed about the books and papers. He loved to challenge himself against the odds. This question would probably be on the exam, anyway. Why not solve it now, and remember how to later?
"Let's see," muttered Chiriko, finding the number and pulling a sheet of paper from underneath the book, "If the townspeople of an unknown city build fifty walls of grain against another then what----" His brain set out to conquer the words. Chiriko was filled with a sudden determination. His brush flew to the ink, and swiped madly across the paper.
"---a ravaging storm from the east by twenty kilometers---" he mumbled.
"Doukun!!" his mother cried from downstairs, "Doukun, I'm going out to buy some rice! Are you studying?"
"Yes mother!!" he called back.
"Your brother is here, I'll be back later!" she said. The door shut from downstairs, and rattled the floor on which Chiriko was studying.
"---eighty houses destroyed, ten survivors---" Suddenly, his brush stopped moving. A red light circled around his foot.
"What is this?" he asked himself, examining it. Suddenly, he gasped.
"I've got it!! I've got the answer!!" he cried, racing to write it on paper. Once it was explained out, he sat up, and grinned.
"One problem down," he muttered, "A whole city full to go. Someday, maybe I'll even be able to consult the Priestess herself about the matters of Konan!!" Happily he shut his book, and went to the windows to gaze out at the stars.......
"It WAS you," he said, "That egg was my favorite!!!"
"It was jus' sittin' there!!" argued Tasuki, "If it was yer favorite, then why didn' you EAT it already??"
"I was saving the best for last!!!" said Nuriko, "That's what people usually do when they've got something they like on their plate!!"
"Yeah well th' egg was gettin cold sittin' there all by itself," mumbled Tasuki, "It needed someone t' cheer it up!!" Nuriko sighed.
"You are hopeless," he murmured. Chiriko watched the two bicker from across the table. It was always fun to see something like this go on, even if it wasn't for the best cause. But Nuriko and Tasuki always faught over the simplest things, which made it amusing to see. Chiriko sipped his tea slowly. He had never experienced fun or family like this back home. His mother and brother were always coaxing him to study more, and since he loved it, that's what he usually did. It was his gift to the Miko, was it not? But the child in him still wished for a more exciting youth, instead of books and ink.....
Chiriko was locked in his room, studying for the government exams he was to take in the following year. It was always good to start beforehand, to learn the more challenging factors of the test. Then, he would have a longer time to figure them out so he could easily master what most men could not. A draft wafted in through the open window, fluttering the tips of the papers. Downstairs he could hear his mother washing the dishes used in dinner, and his brother playing a flute. Chiriko sighed.
"All this studying can get tiresome sometimes," he muttered to himself, closing a book and stretching back, "I'm only 12 and still I study more than my brother's friends. Maybe I should ease up a little...." He immediately dismissed that idea. His genius was his talent. Why should he put it aside when he could use it? It was silly, the games that boys his age played. They should be inside working hard to prepare for their future, thought Chiriko to himself. But somewhere in his depths, he wished that he could join them. Just once. Sitting back up, he pulled another heavy textbook off of a bookshelf, and flipped it open. There had been a question last night that challenged him. He was on a mission. To solve it. To solve it before breakfast!! This is what he enjoyed about the books and papers. He loved to challenge himself against the odds. This question would probably be on the exam, anyway. Why not solve it now, and remember how to later?
"Let's see," muttered Chiriko, finding the number and pulling a sheet of paper from underneath the book, "If the townspeople of an unknown city build fifty walls of grain against another then what----" His brain set out to conquer the words. Chiriko was filled with a sudden determination. His brush flew to the ink, and swiped madly across the paper.
"---a ravaging storm from the east by twenty kilometers---" he mumbled.
"Doukun!!" his mother cried from downstairs, "Doukun, I'm going out to buy some rice! Are you studying?"
"Yes mother!!" he called back.
"Your brother is here, I'll be back later!" she said. The door shut from downstairs, and rattled the floor on which Chiriko was studying.
"---eighty houses destroyed, ten survivors---" Suddenly, his brush stopped moving. A red light circled around his foot.
"What is this?" he asked himself, examining it. Suddenly, he gasped.
"I've got it!! I've got the answer!!" he cried, racing to write it on paper. Once it was explained out, he sat up, and grinned.
"One problem down," he muttered, "A whole city full to go. Someday, maybe I'll even be able to consult the Priestess herself about the matters of Konan!!" Happily he shut his book, and went to the windows to gaze out at the stars.......