"Oh," she said to him when it was finished, "you are so beautiful."
At first, he was panicked. After all, he is a male rabbit and he doesn't want to be dressed as a girl. And those clothes, even skirts for special occasions, are too simple and simple. They lack elegance and artistry. He used to have many real clothes. But Edward immediately remembered that he was lying on the sea, his face immersed in filth, so far away from the stars, and he said to himself, what does it matter? Wearing a skirt won't hurt me.
Besides, it is sweet to live in this small green room with the fisherman and his wife. Nelly likes baking, so she stays in the kitchen all day. She put Edward on the counter, leaned against the flour jar and helped him wrap his skirt around his knees. She bent his ears a little so that he could hear more clearly.
Then she began to work, kneading dough to make bread and rolling dough to make cookies and pies. The kitchen was soon filled with the smell of toast and the sweetness of cinnamon, sugar and cloves. Steam came out of the window. Nelly talked and did it.
She talked to Edward about her children. Her daughter Lori is a secretary. Her two sons Ralph joined the army, and Raymond died of pneumonia at the age of five.
"He drowned himself," Nelly said. "This is a very, very terrible thing, the most terrible thing, watching the person you love die in front of you, but there is nothing you can do. I dream about him almost every night. "
Nelly wiped her tears with the back of her hand. She smiled at Edward.
"I guess you'll think I'm stupid and talk to a toy. But it seems to me that you are listening, Susanna. "
Edward was surprised to find that he was listening. When Abilene talked to him before, everything seemed so boring and boring. But now, what Nellie told him seems to be the most important thing in the world. He listened as if his life depended on her words. This puzzled Edward. Did those dirty things from the sea get into his porcelain brain and damage any part of his brain?
In the evening, Lawrence came home from the sea and had dinner at home. Edward is sitting at the table with the fisherman and his wife. He sat in an old wooden high chair. He was embarrassed at first (after all, high chairs are designed for babies, not elegant rabbits), but he soon got used to it. He likes to be taller, so that he can see the whole table, not just the tablecloth, just like in Duran's house. He likes to participate.
After dinner every day, Lawrence said that he wanted to go outside for fresh air, and Susanna might like to go with him. He put Edward on his shoulder, just like the first night. He took Edward across town and took him back to Nelly's home.
When they went outside, Lawrence lit his pipe and pulled Edward sitting on his shoulder. If the sky is clear at night, Lawrence will tell Edward the names of a constellation, Andromeda and Pegasus. He pointed his pipe at it. Edward likes watching stars. He likes the pronunciation of constellation names. To his ears, they all sound sweet.
Although Edward sometimes looks up at the night sky and thinks of Peregrina, when he sees her black eyes, a chill spreads all over his body.
Warthog, he would think, witch.
But Nelly, before sending him to bed every night, will sing him a lullaby, which is about imitation birds that can't sing and diamonds that can't shine. Nelly's voice made Edward feel comfortable and forgot about Peregrina.
For a long time, life was so beautiful.
Then Lawrence and Nelly's daughter came.
Lori is a clumsy woman with a loud voice and lipstick all over her mouth. When she entered the room, she immediately saw Edward sitting on the sofa in the living room.
"What is this?" She said. She put down her suitcase and lifted Edward with one foot. She hung Edward upside down.
"That's Susanna." Nelly said.
"Susanna!" Lori roared. She shook Edward awake.
His skirt turned over and covered his head, so he couldn't see anything. He always hates Lori deeply.
"Your father found her," Nelly said. She was caught in a fishing net. She was naked, so I made some for her. "
"Are you a maid?" Lori roared, "Rabbits don't need any clothes."
"Well," Nelly said, her voice trembling, "but this one seems to need it."
Lori threw Edward back on the sofa. He faced down, his arms above his head, and his skirt covered his face. One of them keeps this posture while eating.
"How did you move the old high chair out?" Lori asked loudly.
"Oh, leave it alone," Nelly said. "Your father just glued on a fallen board, didn't he, Lawrence?"
"Yes," said Lawrence, his face buried in the plate and not raised.
Of course, Edward didn't go out and smoke under the stars with Lawrence after dinner. Nelly didn't sing him a lullaby for the first time since Edward was with her. In fact, Edward was neglected and forgotten. Until the next morning, Lori grabbed him again, and B took the skirt off his face and looked into his eyes.
"You are fascinated by the old man, aren't you?" Lori said, "I heard the ears of the town. They treat you like a child. "
Edward looked at Lori in return. Her lipstick is bright red. He felt a cool breeze blowing through the house.
Where is the window open?
"Listen, you can't fool me," she said. She shook him. "We are going on a trip, just you and me."
Lori took Edward's ear and strode into the kitchen, pushing Edward face down into the trash can.
"Mom!" Lori shouted, "I want to use a trolley. I'll go out for a while and do something. "
"Oh," came Nellie's trembling voice. "That's good, dear. Goodbye then. "
Goodbye, Edward thought when Lori dragged the trash can onto the cart.
"Goodbye," Nelly said again, this time a little louder.
Edward felt a sharp pain in his chest.
For the first time in my life, his heart cried out to him.
It is calling two names: Nelly and Lawrence.
Edward was taken to the dump. He lay on orange peel, coffee grounds, rotten bacon and rubber tires. The first night, he was at the top of the garbage dump, so he could still see the stars and find comfort in their light.
In the morning, a short man climbed up a pile of rubbish and gravel. He stopped at the highest point of the dump. Put your hands under your arms and beat your elbows.
The man screamed and said, "Who am I? I am Ernest, and Ernest is the king of the world. How did I become the king of the world? Because I am the king of garbage. The world is made up of rubbish. Hahaha! So, I am Ernest, and Ernest is the king of the world. " He screamed again.
Edward tends to agree with Ernest's assertion that the world is made up of garbage, especially after the second day of the dump, a lot of garbage fell directly on him. He lay there and was buried alive. He can't see the sky and the stars. He can't see anything.
What kept Edward going and gave him hope was that he figured out how to find Lori to avenge himself. He would grab her by the ear and bury her under a garbage mountain.
But after forty days and nights, the weight and smell of garbage under him filled Edward's mind, and soon he gave up the idea of revenge and gave in to despair. This is much worse than being submerged in the sea. This is even worse because Edward is not the Edward he is now. He can't tell why it's different. He just knew he was different. Once again, he remembered the story of Princess Peregrina who didn't love anyone. The witch turned her into a warthog because she didn't love anyone. He understands the story now.
He heard Peregrina say, "You really disappoint me."
Why? Why did I let you down?
However, he even knows the answer to this question.
That's because he doesn't love Abilene enough. Now that she has left him, he has no chance to make up for it. Nelly and Lawrence also left. He misses them very much and wants to be with them.
The rabbit wants to know if this is love.
Day after day, Edward still knew that time had passed, just because he heard Ernest perform his morning ceremony every morning, laughing and screaming that he was the king of the world.
On the day 180 when he was thrown into the garbage, the rescue appeared in a very unusual form. The garbage around him turned around and he heard the dog's sniffing and wheezing. Then there was a crazy digging sound. The garbage dump turned over again, and suddenly, miraculously, beautiful sunshine shone on Edward's face.
Note: The original text is the original English version, published by KateDiCamilo and Candlewick Publishing House.