Kabungo by Rolli

Author:Rolli
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Groundwood Books Ltd
Published: 2016-04-18T18:18:32+00:00

SIX

Flimsy Tree

There are two kinds of research: the kind you do at the library and the kind you do by sticking your nose into other people’s business.

I like the second kind best.

One Saturday, I was sitting in Lion’s Park under my favorite tree doing one kind of research — reading Life in Prehistoric Times.

I was just starting a new chapter when something caught my eye. At first I thought it was a cat.

It wasn’t a cat. It was a Kabungo. Tiptoeing. She tiptoed to a tree on the far side of the park, looked left and right … then climbed it like a lumberjack.

“It’s time,” I thought, shutting my book, “for the other kind of research.”

Before I could take a step, something else caught my eye. At first, again, I thought it was a cat.

It was a cat. It was Bun. He scampered up the trunk, like nothing.

I’m not very good at climbing trees. But curiosity is a cat. When I crept up to Kabungo’s tree, my curiosity shot straight up it. And I held on as tightly as I could.

I scraped my elbow and my left cheek and both my knees. But I made it up the tree in one piece.

I pushed aside some leaves. Above me there was a big V in the middle of the tree where the two main arms branched off. Kabungo was standing in the middle of the V, muttering to herself. There was no sign of Bun.

I climbed just a little higher. Now I could hear what my friend was saying. I held on tight to the tree trunk, peeked through the leaves and listened.

It wasn’t eavesdropping. It was research.

“Oh Mom hi Mom,” it sounded like Kabungo said.

That can’t be right, I thought. I kept listening.

“Oh Dad hi Dad,” it seemed like she said next.

That can’t be right, either. As far as I knew — I didn’t think the old man in the woods counted — Kabungo had no family.

Of course, if she did have a family, it wouldn’t have surprised me at all to learn that they lived in a tree.

I leaned forward. I squinted. I couldn’t see anyone. Unless a whole tribe of cavepeople was hiding quietly in the leaves, my friend was talking to herself.

Just then, in fact, she seemed to be hugging a big branch.

Kabungo hugs are powerful. It must have been a very strong branch.

“Big brudder!” she cried now, letting go and slapping a twig she must have brushed against. “Bad! Not scratch no!”

I raised my eyebrows. This was getting ridiculous.

“Baaad brudder,” she said, shaking her finger.

It took all of my might not to laugh. Luckily, my friend put her Basic Cavegirl Face back on, bounced over to another branch and threw her arms around it.

“Sitter!” she said. “Oh small sitter miss much Kabungo. Nice sitter soft sitter soffft …” She stroked the tree bark like it was a kitten.

Very carefully, I raised my eyebrows even higher. And then Kabungo raised hers. Because she’d noticed something.

Not me, fortunately, but something on her arm.

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