Escher: a vignette/drabble
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He set his heels in the dirt carefully, squatting with a wrinkled nose and thoughtful child's expression. A moment slipped by, another twisting after it, before - having glanced cautiously about so as to check for any parents or an elder sibling who would protest playing in the dirt - he pressed a fingertip into the loose, ruddy layer of thin soil.
He sketched lines out with the chubby curve of his finger, gradually intent on giving shape to a half-shadowed remembrance; intent enough, then, that he did not hear his mother until she stood beside him.
"What are you drawing, Toby?" she asked kindly, though disapprovingly.
"Nothin'," he said at first, and twisted his finger to draw off at an angle. "Stairs."
"What odd stairs," she said aloud and tilted her head to one side.
His finger stilled and he rocked back on his heels. Looking at the crude angles and the stairs rising (or falling) in unnatural ways, he whispered, "I had a bad dream."
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Disclaimer: Toby and the stepmother are the property of Henson, Froud, etc. Escher's staircase belongs to the Escher estate.
Feedback: Very appreciated!
Thanks To: EclipseKlutz, who reviewed twice (thanks! - -and I apologize if I'm not being clear with my vignettes; I've been meaning to work on that!), and Lady-Misericordia. I'm not too sure I'd be the best person to ask writing lessons from, but thank you for your encouraging feedback! :D
