Ten In One Scopes, Page 3

sick from it all."

  "I can't," the plant told her. "None of us can. When we are upset, we sway. That's why we sway so much in the wind, because we don't like it, because it upsets us so."

  "Oh, I am so sorry to hear that. Is there anything I can do to help?"

  "You can promise that you won't dig us up?" a baby voice sobbed.

  "Of course I won't dig you up," Alice promised. "I only said that because of the terrible way you were treating me."

  The plants stopped swaying, allowing Alice to see the child aspidistra tucked lovingly under its mother's green leaves. Showing no fear for her safety, disappearing beneath the huge plants (she now trusted them unquestionably), Alice approached the baby plant and its doting mother.

  "I am sorry," she said, "if I upset you. Will you please forgive me?"

  "Yes, I will," said the baby plant, trying to hold back sob. "And we are sorry, so sorry that we frightened you. We are like this because we are so hungry? we are usually happy, with smiling beaks to welcome the weary traveller."

  Confused, Alice asked, "Hungry? How can you be hungry when your roots can find all the food that you need?"

  "Fertilizer, all plants need fertilizer at some time in their lives," the baby aspidistra explained. "None of us have had any fertilizer for ages. I have never had any - ever! I don't even know what it looks like!"

  "This is a most terrible state of affairs," said Alice, scratching her head, trying to work out what could be done to remedy the unfortunate situation. Raising a finger, she asked, "Can I go fetch you some?"

  If their beaks had been able to smile, every last beak skirting that path would have been smiling radiantly at Alice. They became so excited at the prospect of getting some fertilizer they began talking furiously amongst themselves. In fact, the plants' conversation became so loud, so noisy Alice could hardly hear herself think. In the end she had to ask them to stop. "Stop, stop talking, please," she said, "my ears are hurting from it all."

  It stopped; the excited talking stopped, except for one of the plants, the mother aspidistra, who said, "Do you know where you can find us some fertilizer?"

  "I, I don't know," Alice replied uncertainly.

  Smiling, Alice was sure she saw the beak smiling, when it said, "Go to the fertilizer mine, there you will find all the fertilizer we need."

  "Where is it, the mine?" Alice asked.

  "I am sorry, I don't know, none of us know where it is located," the mother aspidistra confessed. "But we do know that it most surely exists."

  Seeing how sad the mother plant had become, Alice said, "I will find you some fertilizer, I will find enough fertilizer to feed you all - I promise."

  CONTD

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