From: li@Data-IO.COM (Phyllis Rostykus)
Subject: Re: Caramel apples
Organization: Data I/O Corporation
Date: Fri, 2 Oct 1992 23:58:16 GMT

In article <1992Oct1.230024.2626@tamsun.tamu.edu> rlm7337@tamsun.tamu.edu (Richard L. Mcmahon) writes:
>As the carmel lands in a circle around him, he aims his grin at Phee, and
>says, "you sure know the fun way to do this!" He then returns to his chair,
>prize in hand...

Phee blinks up at Carney and at the circle of carmel around him, on the
floor... giggles a little uncertainly.  Her mom would have yelled at her
for making a mess if she'd done what he did...  but no one seems to be
yelling at him.  Her face suddenly lights up.  She whistles a sliding note
that peaks high and then goes low.

The door to Callahan's opens as Fezzik shoulders his way back inside after
playing outside with Shadow.  The fuzzy, broad black dog trots over to the
little girl and happily licks her entire face in greeting.  The dog sniffs
at the caramel apple, but a high pitched "NO!  Leave it!" causes the pup to
content himself with a high frequency set of sniffs. 

Phee clutches the apple stick tight in one hand and reachs up (yes, up...
Fez's well bigger than even an eight-year-old) to grab his collar and tugs
on him until he comes with her to where the circle of caramel lies.
"Here..." she says, and points at the floor.  Fezzik sniffs the floor with
the same high frequency sniff, and then proceeds to lick and clean the
floor to a high gloss...

Phee looks up at John Carney again and grins, "That's what Lira does when
she spills som'pin on the floor...."  Then, suddenly frightened to find
herself talking to a stranger, she takes off into the bar, to find David by
Susan.  Fezzik follows in a clatter of nails, perhaps wondering if Phee
will forget about the apple, as she's done before...

She clutches David's leg tight, and hides her face against him.  David
looks down at the little girl but doesn't protest.  He just puts a hand on
her back to reassure her.  "It's O.K., Phee.  He's just being friendly.
You can trust the folks here."  Phee just shakes her head against his leg.
"Would you like to come up?" asks David.  The little girl nods, still
against the cloth of his blue jeans. 

David reaches down and hefts the little girl.  She curls up within his
arms, hiding her face against his shoulder.  The sticky apple now clutched
in both small, sticky hands.  There are probably blotches of caramel now on
David's Big Dog's t-shirt, but he doesn't seem to mind.  Instead, he
concentrates on soothing the little girl, until she relaxes within his
arms.  Soon she's nibbling the caramel off her apple.

David grins at Susan, "You haven't met the dynamic duo, yet, have you?"
Phee peers out from her safe shelter at the woman in the wheelchair.  The
little girl stares at the wheelchair with solemn eyes.  David hunkers down
with her still in his arms, and Fezzik moves in closer.  

"Here, pup..."  David shoves at Fezzik a little to send him Susan's way.
The pup, 5' in length from the tip of his black nose to the tip of his
feathered tail, and nearly 3' tall at the shoulder, puts his broad head on
Susan's lap and looks up at her with brown eyes.  The ruff around his neck
is thick and soft and perfect for petting...

----
David Kumagai
li@inigo.Data-IO.com
Newsgroups: alt.callahans