Tuesday, July 7, 2009, 1:15pm EDT
Anyone who's held a puppy, kitten or small child is probably aware of just how effective the "wriggle"
defense is when they don't want to be held. Add a couple of centuries of ninja escape techniques and I really had no chance to hold onto Inari when she
woke up and attempted to make her displeasure known.
She glared frostily at me, and a comical expression of surprise flitted across her muzzle.
«Why didn't that work?» she asked in Japanese, her voice surprisingly adorable.
«Probably because,» I replied, «you've only got three tails.»
«Mouuu~» Inari pouted. «Now if only I'd been able to beat your little friend in that...» A clever look crossed her face, and she, for lack of a better
description, danced in a complex pattern on the ground, swishing her tails. I gasped as the Ouroboros portal formed. As Inari gathered herself to dive in, I
leaped as well. Just the thought of a capricious fox spirit left unsupervised in my time stream gave me chills.
''We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat
them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.''
-- James Nicoll
Anyone who's held a puppy, kitten or small child is probably aware of just how effective the "wriggle"
defense is when they don't want to be held. Add a couple of centuries of ninja escape techniques and I really had no chance to hold onto Inari when she
woke up and attempted to make her displeasure known.
She glared frostily at me, and a comical expression of surprise flitted across her muzzle.
«Why didn't that work?» she asked in Japanese, her voice surprisingly adorable.
«Probably because,» I replied, «you've only got three tails.»
«Mouuu~» Inari pouted. «Now if only I'd been able to beat your little friend in that...» A clever look crossed her face, and she, for lack of a better
description, danced in a complex pattern on the ground, swishing her tails. I gasped as the Ouroboros portal formed. As Inari gathered herself to dive in, I
leaped as well. Just the thought of a capricious fox spirit left unsupervised in my time stream gave me chills.
''We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat
them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.''
-- James Nicoll