Breakfast for a Little Kau

     "Mom?" Kalleigh, tired of waiting, called down to her, "what's for breakfast?"

     "Come downstairs, sweetie, we're going out to eat," her mother replied.

     All right! Kalleigh thought to herself. We never go out to eat. The little blue Kau ran down the stairs to the kitchen where her mother was sweeping the wood floor.

     "Put your jacket on. It's a little chilly outside," her mother told her. "It's a long walk where we're going."

     A long walk? We must be going to Neopia Central! Kalleigh's friends had told her of a restaurant there that made delicious chokato waffles. Warm, brown and blue waffles with an array of sugary syrups to choose from.

     But it was the last warm autumn day when they had gone, and her mother told her they wouldn't be leaving their valley until spring came. Kalleigh dreamt about waffles for the first few weeks of winter but soon forgot all about them once the snow fell.

     Now that winter was over and spring was here in all its glory, her mother must've remembered how much she wanted those waffles. What a thoughtful mom.

     Kalleigh went to the hall closet and got out a lavender jacket while her mother put away the broom and dustpan. She put the jacket on and waited for her mother at the front door. What's taking her so long?

     Uh oh. Kalleigh forgot to feed their family's Gallion. Hopefully her mother wouldn't notice. She remembered she had a piece of hard candy in her pocket. She unwrapped it and tossed it behind the sofa. She immediately heard a crunching sound and smiled. In his favorite spot as usual.

     The orange and blue Petpet claimed the space behind the sofa as his own. He hid all his toys back there and slept there every night. When they first bought him, Kalleigh made space in her room for him in her room, but he hadn't slept there once in the year that they'd had him.

     Finally her mother came. Her white apron was gone and in its place was a light blue coat. Kalleigh followed her mother out the front door and waved goodbye to the Gallion who had come out looking for more candy. Perhaps I'll save some of my waffle for him.

     Kalleigh's mother led her along the flower-lined path past all her friends' Neohomes. She fervently wished she would be able to wave to them as they went by. She was going out to eat for breakfast and she wanted everyone to know. Silly sleepyheads.

     "Mom, where are we going?" she asked, not because she didn't know, but because she wanted to hear her mother say those wonderful words.

     "You'll see when we get there," her mother replied with a smile on her face.

     Aha, I was right! She wants it to be a surprise! She giggled to herself. Waffles, waffles! She once again tried to imagine what they would taste like. They probably taste nicer than anything I've ever had, otherwise my friends wouldn't have bragged about it for days.

     Kalleigh's mother walked the dirt path as Kalleigh skipped along behind her. La la la, she sang to herself. I want a waffle, a big blue waffle, with big brown spots, and lotsa gooey, drippy syrups, in lotsa yummy flavors!

     In no time at all, they were out of the valley and the path began winding around the verdant, rolling hills. Kalleigh had never left the valley before and every turn was exciting. If the whole world is as exciting as this, she'd have to see it all.

     "Are we there yet?" Kalleigh asked. She was beginning to feel tired. How much farther to Neopia Central?

     "Not yet, dear." Her mother paused alongside a stream that flowed next to the path. "Get a drink if you're tired, Kalleigh."

     Kalleigh took a sip of the cool, clear water. She hoped they had water like this at the restaurant. It would go perfect with waffles, or at least she imagined that it would. She looked at her reflection in the water: she was smiling and she didn't even know it.

     When she looked up, her mother had already started walking again and Kalleigh hurried to catch up. They walked down the path until they reached the next curve when suddenly her mother left the path and began walking up a grassy hill.

     Now where are we going? Kalleigh wondered. Maybe she knows a shortcut! Yeah, that's gotta be it. She followed her mother up the hill. The long grass tickled her legs and she laughed aloud. She looked down at her feet and watched the grass swish by her legs.

     She looked up and nearly ran into her mother. Why is she stopping again?

     "We're here," her mother said.

     What? Where are the waffles? I thought we were going to Neopia Central. The sudden change of events confused the poor Kau. What she saw next confused her even more.

     "Mom... Mom, you're eating the ground," Kalleigh whispered.

     "I know, sweetie; it's breakfast."

     "But that's the... grass!" Kalleigh found the idea hilarious. A fit of giggles hit her and she fell to the ground in laughter. "Ha ha ha... hee hee hee... wait'll Dad hears this. Mom's eating grass for breakfast!"

     Her mother sighed and continued eating.

     When Kalleigh's giggles had subsided, she realized her mother was serious.

     "So you're really eating grass for breakfast?"

     "Mhm."

     "What's it taste like?"

     "Well... it kinda tastes like w--"

     "Waffles?!?"

     "Uh, yeah." Her mother knew that Kalleigh had never seen a waffle, let alone tasted one. "It tastes just like waffles."

     "Cool! Can I try some?"

     "Of course."

     Kalleigh gingerly took a bite of grass and chewed. It's kinda sour and dry. This is what a waffle tastes like?

     "Taste good?" her mother asked.

     "Uh, yeah." Maybe it's one of those acquired tastes... She took another bite of grass.

     "Y'know, my mother taught me to eat grass when I was your age on a hill just like this one," her mother told her.

     "Really?" Kalleigh inwardly groaned. She hoped this wouldn't be another of her boring stories.

     "Yep." Her mother smiled.

     "Cool." Kalleigh watched her mother take another bite of grass. Maybe it's not so weird. Maybe Kaus are supposed to eat grass. Who knows.

     They wandered around the hill eating the greenest bunches for a short time but the weather was about to bring an end to their breakfast. Clouds began moving in overhead and every Kau knows what that means.

     "Kalleigh, honey, I think we had better head home before it starts to rain."

     "Already?" Kalleigh was beginning to enjoy spending time alone with her Mom, even if she had to eat grass to do so. She suddenly remembered she had planned to bring breakfast home for their Gallion.

     "Do Gallions eat grass too?"

     "I'm not sure. I've never fed him any."

     "Well, I'm gonna try," she said resolutely. Kalleigh grabbed a mouthful of grass and stuffed it in her jacket pocket.

     Her mother began the long walk back home with Kalleigh skipping along behind her singing a song about grassy waffles.

The End