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An expected visitor
Ori set a small chair beside the round table.
'Who is coming?' asked Ben.
'An invisible guest,' Ori said.
Ben inspected the empty chair.
'We won't know if we're early.'
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A soft welcome
Ori fetched a cushion.
She placed it carefully on the chair.
'Perhaps our guest has prickles,' said Ben.
Ori considered the cushion.
'Perhaps only very small ones.'
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Somewhere for a tail
Ben looked behind the chair.
'Where will the tail go?'
'Over here.' Ori pulled the chair away from the wall.
'Is it a long tail?'
'It might be having a long day.'
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A view
They moved the chair beside the window.
Rain slipped down the round glass.
'Our guest could watch that,' Ori said.
Ben watched it too.
A very slow drop overtook a very fast one.
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Something to put down
Ori placed a saucer on the table.
'For a hat,' she said.
Ben held up his own paw to compare.
'That is a small hat.'
'We have not decided about the head yet.'
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A grand head
Ben spread his paws wide.
Ori spread hers wider.
They looked from their enormous pretend head to the little saucer.
Then they laughed and fetched a larger plate.
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The guest arrives
Ori opened the room door.
'Good afternoon.'
Ben bowed toward the empty doorway.
They stood aside for a very long moment.
The only thing that came in was a cooler bit of air.
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A difficult silence
They sat on the floor beside the chair.
Nobody said anything.
'This guest is quiet,' Ben whispered.
'Perhaps we're supposed to begin.'
Ori cleared her throat in an important way.
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A story for the chair
Ori told the chair about a seed that wanted to be a staircase.
Ben supplied the sound of growing.
It sounded mostly like hiccups.
The story grew crooked very quickly.
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An extra part
'Then a beetle came,' said Ben.
Ori moved over on the floor.
'Tell us what the beetle did.'
Ben had not known until she asked.
He found out as he went along.
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The best seat
When the story ended, Ben settled beside the chair.
Ori leaned close beside him.
Their guest had not used the chair at all.
'Perhaps it likes the floor,' Ben said.
They left a little space.
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Next time
Before they left, Ori tucked the cushion into place.
Ben put the little saucer on the big plate.
'For next time,' he said.
They had a guest to imagine, and a story that wasn't finished.
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