SEVEN BATS (Part One)

[Altawell]

SEVEN BATS


Part One


The first day at school was a frightening experience for the five year old boy, who could not understand why the school was so scary! “It will be wonderful” was what he had been told a few days ago, and the same words were repeated to him again today early in the morning.

He cried when he entered the school, and cried again when his mother kissed him on the cheek, as he heard her saying in a whispering voice to the teacher “Please keep an eye on him”.

The teacher, who reminded him of the karate fighter he saw yesterday on his new cartoon, touched his hair and looked at him straight in the eyes, and then she pretended to be small by bending her knees and her back.

“So, what is your name?”
“My Mum calls me Ta and my Dad calls me Tam”
“So, which one is your real name?”
“I don’t know”
“Well, which one do you like most then?”
“I really like the name Prince”
“Ah, I see, well, handsome Prince, we are going to have lots of fun today and you are going to meet many new friends here”
“But I already have a friend”
“Oh, that is good, what’s his name”
“Tengo”
“Wow, what a nice name, so he is the same age as you?”
“My Dad said he is only two months old”
“Is that your baby brother or baby sister?”
“He is my dog – I want to go home now, I want Tengo, he is missing me”

The boy started to cry while covering his eyes with his long sleeves.

“Look, someone wants to talk to you!” The teacher said in a motherly voice while trying to give him a hug.

“I want to go home, I want Tengo” The boy continued to cry, still covering his eyes.

The teacher took the boy’s hand and walked him towards the classroom, where a short but rather fat woman was waving at him from the door.

“This is Mrs. Smith; she will look after you as well”

Mrs. Smith was one of the caretakers in the school responsible mainly for the young children. She worked there as a helper as well, mostly you saw her at the start of a new term.

“Hello Prince” said Mrs. Smith to the disoriented boy.

The boy looked at Mrs. Smith briefly then hid his face behind the teacher and pretended to cry quietly.
The teacher simply ignored his cry and while still holding his hand, walked him straight into the classroom.

There were twelve children inside the classroom, most of them a little older than the boy, some were talking, others were playing and one was crying.

“Hi everyone, please come here and meet Prince” The teacher said with a big smile on her face. “Well, that is not really his name but since he likes the name Prince, then just for this class we will call him Prince, as a welcoming gesture from all of us”

Some of the children did come close to the boy, others simply ignored what they heard and the rest were either too busy talking or screaming to hear the teacher’s request.

“Look, that is your desk; you can sit there and listen with everyone else to the new story I will tell in a few minutes”

“What about Tengo, can I have him here with me?” The boy said while rubbing his left eye hard.

“You will see your dog later today when you go back home after the classes end” the teacher said while waving her hand towards the other children trying to tell them to take their seats.

With lots of talking and persuasion from the teacher, a few minutes later the class started to appear a little quieter than it was earlier on!

“Well, now we can start, are you ready to hear the story?” The teacher said excitedly!

“Yes, we are!” The children replied loudly from different corners of the classroom.

“Then, here we go. When I was your age, my grandmother told me a true story; well this is what she told me! I am not sure whether my grandmother was joking or not! Anyway, the story was about a prince…..”

“Is the story about me, Miss?” the boy said in a quiet voice as he started to leave his desk.

“No dear, it is about a real prince, I mean someone from a royal family, it is just a story – ok dear – now please go back and sit at your desk, like everyone else”

The boy struggled to walk back to his desk. He kept scratching his head while his eyes wandered everywhere, examining every corner and every wall in the classroom. The teacher had no choice but to take him herself and put him back in his seat.




Keep an eye on this website for “Seven Bats” Part Two
(It will be published here soon)



Altawell



© Altawell 2008

[heinzs]

Cool. Will watch.

[Altawell]

Cool. Will watch.

Hi heinz,

Thank you for writing - there will be "more or less" 7 day between each part - all parts will be published here