"David Eddings - The Dreamers 01 - The Elder gods" - читать интересную книгу автора (Eddings David)

wisdom and much experience in such matters. ‘Milk,’ she advised.
‘What is milk?’ Zelana asked. ‘And where can I find some?’
Meeleamee explained in some detail, and for the very first time in her
endless life, Zelana blushed. ‘What a strange sort of thing,’ she said,
blushing even harder. She looked down at herself. ‘Do you think I might
be able to ... She left it hanging.
‘Probably not,’ Meeleamee replied. ‘There are some things involved
that are just a little complicated. Can the young one swim?’
‘I don’t really know,’ Zelana admitted.
‘Unwrap her and put her down in the shallow water here. I should be
able to nurse her without too much trouble.’
It was a bit awkward at first, but between them Zelana and Meeleamee
managed to feed the infant. Zelana felt a real sense of accomplishment -
which lasted for nearly four hours.
Then they had to feed the child again. It seemed that there was great
deal of inconvenience involved in caring for infants.


The seasons turned, as seasons always do, and summer drifted on into
autumn, and winter followed shortly after. Zelana had never really paid
much attention to the seasons. Heat or cold had little meaning for her, and
she could create light whenever she grew hungry.
The female dolphins were taking turns feeding the infant, and Zelana
noticed that the child seemed to be very affectionate. The dolphins were a
bit startled by kisses at first, but after a while they enjoyed being kissed
by the grateful child, and sometimes there were even arguments about
whose turn it was to nurse. The arguments broke off abruptly when the
child sprouted teeth and began chewing on whatever was handy, though.
Her diet changed at that point, and the dolphins offered her fish instead of
milk. She still kissed them by way of thanks, so everything seemed all
right again.
Since the child had always been fed in the shallow pool at the grotto’s
mouth, she was swimming even before she began to grow teeth, but she
started walking - and running - not long after her diet changed, and she
was soon toddling about the grotto, squeaking dolphin words as she went.
She returned to the water whenever she grew hungry, however. The
dolphins were careful to keep her more or less confined to the water at the
mouth of the grotto, but they took to chasing fish in from the deeper
waters of Mother Sea to give the child some experience in the business of
catching her own food.
When the summer of the child’s third year arrived, she ventured out of
the grotto to join the younger dolphins in their forays along the coast of
the Isle of Thurn. She spent her days now frolicking with the young
dolphins and eating the bounty of Mother Sea.
Zelana approved of that. The child’s independence freed her mistress at
last so that she could return to poetry and music.
The young dolphins called the child ‘Beeweeabee,’ but Zelana didn’t
really think that was appropriate, since it approximately translated into
‘Short-Fin-With-No-Tail.’ Despite her habits and her companions, the
little girl was still a land animal, so Zelana unleashed her poetic talents