‘“Tashi!” he gasped. “H-How glad we are t-to see you, back s-safe and sound.” Tiki Pu gazed imploringly at Tashi.
‘For several minutes Tashi stared back, watching his uncle stew and sweat. Then he turned back to his family, who were begging him to tell the story of what happened to him.
‘“Well, it was like this …” he began and, just as Tiki Pu had done, he told them all about General Zeng and Long Awaited, leaving out any mention of Tiki Pu’s part in it. Tiki Pu was just heaving a sigh of relief when Tashi added thoughtfully, “The only thing I haven’t been able to figure out is why General Zeng should have done such a thing.”
‘Tiki Pu caught his breath. Tashi gave him another steely glance, but said no more.
‘It was later, when they were alone, that Tiki Pu learned the price he was to pay for his crime.
‘“You will find a new place to live, Tiki Pu,’ said Tashi. ‘And then you will go to Wise-as-an-Owl and offer to gather the seeds of the thunder god vines for his medicines. And by the time you have filled three bucketsful, the poppy seeds should be ready to collect and the gingko – and then you will do whatever Wise-as-an-Owl needs you to do until the summer is over. You will be very busy – too busy to cause any more trouble for my family. And if you slack off in any way, you will find that my memory of the terrible deal you made with General Zeng will come back and you will be spurned by the village forever.”
‘Lotus Blossom, who had stayed behind when the others had left, came back into the room. “Well, I think you let him off too lightly,” she growled.
‘Tashi joined her at the table. “Keeping in mind that, although Tiki Pu is a disgrace to the family, he is, after all, our disgrace. What do you think I should do with him?”
‘Lotus Blossom giggled. “Let’s see … we could …”
‘They whispered together for some time suggesting more and more impossible punishments until they were quite exhausted with laughter. They finally settled on a satisfactory penalty, which seems to have worked because everybody agrees that from that day forward, Tiki Pu is a changed man.’
Mum scratched her hives thoughtfully. ‘Maybe Aunty Fullpot isn’t quite so bad after all.’
‘No one would be, compared with that Uncle Tiki Pu,’ said Dad. And the next time they were invited over to Aunty Fullpot’s to mend the fence and clean the gutters and oh, to have afternoon tea, Dad didn’t say they were busy. But he still ate too much.
When Anna Fienberg was little, her mother, Barbara, read lots of stories to her. At bedtime they would travel to secret places in the world, through books. Now Anna and Barbara write the Tashi stories together, making up all kinds of daredevil adventures and tricky characters for him to face. Kim Gamble has done the wonderful illustrations for the Tashi stories.
Which Tashi adventures have you read?
Tashi
Tashi and the Giants
Tashi and the Ghosts
Tashi and the Genie
Tashi and the Baba Yaga
Tashi and the Demons
Tashi and the Big Stinker
Tashi and the Dancing Shoes
Tashi and the Haunted House
Tashi and the Royal Tomb
Tashi Lost in the City
Tashi and the Forbidden Room
Tashi and the Stolen Bus
Tashi and the Mixed-up Monster
Tashi and the Phoenix
Tashi and the Golem
The Amazing Tashi Activity Book
Once Tashi Met a Dragon
There Once Was a Boy Called Tashi
Tashi and the Wicked Magician
Tashi 25th Anniversary Edition Page 3