Page 12 - СКАЗКИ СНЕЖНОГО ЭЛЬФА
P. 12

resembled a large hailstone. His strong hands clutched my
          thumb, his thick legs were hanging down from my hand.
          The creature was cute and funny, but I felt out of ease any-
          way. I screwed up my eyes, counted to ten, but the man
          was still there.
             ‘Why screw up your eyes? We haven’t met before, have
          we? I’m Snezhik.  Have you heard about me?’
             ‘Sounds  like  the  symbol  of  the  town  of  Snezhinsk’,  I
          smiled.
             ‘What do you mean by the symbol of the town?  It has
          nothing to do with that. I am a real Ever Snezhik. I live in
          snow.’
             ‘Yeah, right. Where is it, that snow, Snezhik? There isn’t
          any.’
             ‘Hmm, not yet.  But it’s  going to be. Just about.  We ‘re
          under crisis, you know. Not enough snow for everybody
          here, one must adapt. Snow is to be delivered soon. It was
          me who’d come too soon. I miss my snowflakes, no one
          to play with. As for you, I like you, really. So happy you
          were to see me. You gave me a kiss, I even felt I was one of
          your family. I go for you, I do. I took you for a snow maiden
          first, but now I see I was confused, you’re a girl. No matter
          who you are, I like you anyway. Do you mind making new
          friends?’
             ‘No’, I hesitated. ‘But who are you?’
             ‘Hey, are you hard of hearing? I am Snezhik, Sne-zhik. A
          snow elf. I told you so.’
             ‘An elf?  A snow elf?’  I was shocked.  ‘Where do you
          come from?’

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