Hippopotamus

My translate of http://proza.ru/2009/09/07/633


Slonik: Listen, what do you think, if the lot of people, say, a thousand... without make-shifts...
Kolezev: I afraid now would be a stupid question. I even afraid to present it...
Slonik: So... Whether they could beat up the hippo?
bash.org.ru

The hippopotamus has a dull sight. But with such a weight it’s no longer his problem.
Folk wisdom

* * *
Kai looked at the lake and scratched his ass.  From under his feet leaped Bremen, Kai’s son, and with quiet hum begun to running in circles across the meadow.
“What are you doing here?” Kai was troubled.
“I am a hippo!” proudly said Bremen. “And I’m in a hurry.”
“I said go home!” Kai hissed and turned back to lake. “Heck, he is huge...” takes a deep breath and scratched his ass again, Kai has murmured. “Need to somehow get rid of it...”
“Who is huge?” Bremen jumped on Kai and hung on his arm. “Where is the huge?” Bremen swinging on the father’s hand as on the liana.
Kai dropped his son on the grass.
“There in the lake,” Kai pointed ahead. “There is Hippo.”
“I am a hippo!” Bremen screamed. After then he jumped and ran to the lake.
“Stand here!” Kai cried in fright, nevertheless before caught his son’s lag. Bremen felled face into the grass.
“The bug is here!” Bremen immediately shouted. “Can I eat him?”
“Go home!” Kai screamed. He was seriously scared for his son.
Bremen rose to his feet and looked on the lake.
“Look, hippo!” he said, jabbing his finger in the direction the animal that was approximately admit the bubbles in the water near the shore.
“It’s as I said. The hippo is there.” Kai agreed, pleased that his son was small quiet.
“I am a hippo!” Bremen enthusiastically shouted and with quiet “Zh-zh-zh” ran in the direction of the village.
Kai scratched his ass. Need to somehow get rid of the beast... But how to do it? Need to ask for help from village residents. Wonder, if thousand of them meet... Will they be able to beat up the hippo?

* * *
“So?” Daniel asked angrily. “Why do you stand?”
“You’re the fool,” someone shot back from the crowd. “May be you will go first?”
Daniel looked with suspicion on the lake.
“And suddenly there he was asleep?” with hope in voice he said after few seconds.
“Hence, It’s necessary to wake him up” firmly replied Kai.
“So always...” Daniel said.
Kai hit on the Daniel’s head. Daniel kept his anger.
“So, we need somebody to go ahead and find out does hippo sleeping or not.”
The crowd was silent.
“So?” Kai turned to face the people and stood in the classic pose of “arms akimbo”.
The crowd fell silent, even the rustle.
“I got it. It’s scary to go alone, isn’t it?”
“You’re the fool” someone shot back from the crowd. “May be you will go first?”
Kai looked with suspicion on the lake.
“Oh, what if he is not sleeping?”
“Hence, we will have him put to sleep,” Daniel said.
Kai hit on the Daniel’s head. Daniel kept his anger.
Quietly humming Bremen ran in the meadow. All stared dumbfounded at the boy. Bremen stopped and looked curiously looking at him the crowd jumped on the ground and said excitedly:
“I am a hippo!”
And fell in the grass.
“What are you doing here?” Kai was troubled.
“The bug is here!” instead the answer Bremen shouted. “Tad, can I eat them?”
“Go home!” instead the Kai Daniel shouted.
Kai hit on the Daniel’s head. Daniel kept his anger.
“I understand” Kai sighed. “We are afraid to walk alone.”
“It’s scary!” sounded from the crowd.
“You’re the fool!” someone shot back from the crowd.
“Fool is you are!” someone else from the crowd has shot back.
Somebody third hit on the head with someone, apparently, the fourth.
 “Oh, you’re out of your mind?” someone shouted.
They were stopped by Kai’s scream.
“Silent!” he yelled not sparing the pharynx.
“Now the hippo certainly woke up,” Daniel stated.
Kai hit on the Daniel’s head. Daniel kept his anger.
“I am a hippo!” Bremen squealed and ran in the direction of the village.
“Follow me!” Kai has demanded.
The crowd hesitantly moved towards the lake.
“Do not be afraid!” Kai urged them. “Us, the damn, a thousand. Are we not able to beat up the hippopotamus? Even without make-shifts.”

* * *
Suddenly the hippo rose to his feet, scattering circles of waves on the water surface and a prolonged yawn. The crowd scattered in fright shied.
“Don’t be afraid!” Kai screamed. “Personally I’m going to beat all of you!”
“Ha-a-a!” Daniel screamed, taking up the leading.
Kai hit on the Daniel’s head. Daniel kept his anger. And do not even stop the cry.
The crowd hesitantly stopped flied. All of them anxiously looked on the lake.
“Follow me!” Kai shouted again and ran to the lake.
The crowd hesitated, very afraid, moved ahead to him.
Kai at full speed rushed to the water, but realizing that the crowd behind him has no time, turned and without slowing down began to run in circles on the beach.
“We are hippopotamuses!” – Bremen gleefully shouted and ran for his father.
“Go home!” Kai cried.
“Hurrah!” shouted the crowd in ecstasy.
Bremen jumped into the water.
“Go back!” shouted everybody unison and ran after him.
Hippo rose up and backed deeper into the lake.
Bremen turned and ran to shore, leaving the wall spray.
The crowd rushed into the lake.
Terrified hippopotamus ran toward them. The crowd creamed and ran helter-skelter.
Hippo leaped out of the water, only a miracle no one knocking, and ran for Bremen.
“I am a hippo!” breathless of excitement boy shouted, running circles across the meadow.
“Run!” screamed everyone who could but Bremen was already running.
Hippo chased the boy but Bremen easily dodged, being a hippo.
Running up the crowd in the same way was not included in a band and passed by – but what you want from the thousands of screaming people? Bremen ran to the hippo. Sparing the throat all ran after them.
Hippopotamus escaped through the woods, breaking the trees and tearing the vines are no longer trying to figure out who is behind someone being chased. Behind him barely catching up ran Bremen. Behind him ran a frightened crowd.
“Hu-u-u” hippo shouted.
“I am a hippo!” Bremen whispered trying to catch his breath.
“Bremen, stop!” people shouted behind him.
Suddenly hippo lump to the meadow near the white rock and run directly on the stones.
“Hippo, stop!” as louder as he could Bremen shouted.
In vain. Without slowing down the hippo with a swinging hit a boulder the size of it, turned around the stone and rolled on the grass still twenty yards and stood motionless at his side.
To him ran Bremen.
To Bremen ran the crowd.
“Daddy, is he alive?” Bremen asked anxiously.
“He is a hippo!” Kai replied breathless. In truth he wanted to cry. He took his son on his hands and quietly sat near that boulder in the shadows.
Daniel sat down beside them and looked on the Kai.
“So...” Kai said trying to relieve stress. “Did we beat up the hippo?”
 “Yes, we did,” Daniel agreed. “Without make-shifts.”
Kai wanted to hit him on the head but his hand was busy occupied by his son. So he just smiled and took a deep breath.
“Yes, we did,” Kai agreed. “But no longer need to do it again. And you remember,” he turned to Bremen, “you’re not hippo. You’re human. And if you at least a thousand don’t poke you nose to the hippopotamus. Did you understand?”
“Yes, daddy, I did.” Bremen answered calmly. “Hippo is shy. And I’m not. It means I am not a hippo. I am a lizard!”

John Alexander Sidorenko. May 10th 2009.