Green Eggs and Ham: Extra Bit(e)s - Looka

Atop the Wall

Ever since he was nine, Looka had been spending his spare time on top of the wall that separated his home nation of Yookia from their neighbors in Zookia.

He first went up here when his playgroup dared him to.

"I don't know. It's illegal", he said apprehensively.

"Oh, come on, Looka. Just go up and come down again. It'll only take a second", said his friend Flynn.

He looks up at the wall. At his height, it seemed ten times taller than it probably actually was.

"Hmm...I'm not sure. Why don't you do it?"

"Because if I get caught, then I'd get in serious trouble. You, though, are the Dooka's son. No one'll question it."

Looka scans the wall for easy climb points. It was perfectly smooth except for the willowoak tree right smack in the middle.

"Don't worry, I'll keep watch. Any guards come by, I'll let you know."

"How?"

Flynn mumbles something that sounded like 'I don't know'. "I'll just yell, I guess."

Looka couldn't think of an alternative, so he began his ascent.

Willowoak bark is very grippable, so it was pretty easy for an amateur like him. He figured climbing a tree was no different from climbing a pile of stuffed animals, but that was a stretch, even to himself. On the way up, he passed a squail, who perched on a branch, staring at him with sparkling, beady eyes. It seemed to be inquiring why a boy was climbing this tree. And the Dooka's son by chance as well. Looka often theorized that the Yooks and Zooks conflict was so notorious, even the animals were aware of the fact.

Finally, he reached the top. The wall was wide enough that its peak also worked as a footpath. He peered over the other side and saw the Zooks.

Now, Looka had always been taught that Zooks were some of the worst people on the face of the planet; always described as "dirty", "snake-like", "treacherous" and anything else along those lines.

But in his immediate line of sight, nothing seemed to prove that fact.

He could see buildings, homes and, much farther back, the Dookess's castle. People and vehicles wove in between the structures down on the streets. He even saw some kids playing hacky-sack, hopscotch and four-square outside. Part of him wanted to climb down the other side and ask if he could join them.

But he knew his parents would disapprove. He didn't want his mom to call him by his full title in front of whatever Zook officer arrested him or, Seuss forbid, the Dookess of Zookia herself. Besides, he already felt like he was breaking at least thirty different Yookian laws just being up here, maybe more if his parents were really mad at him.

"LOOKA!", Flynn yelled out.

The Yookian prince lost his train of thought. Realizing where he was, he looked down and saw Flynn pointing at an approaching guard. Looka quickly climbed down the tree.

"What were you doing, Your Highness?", the guard asked. "Wait til your mom and dad hear about this..."

"No!"

"I'm sorry. This is just very unprecedented. Everyone knows the wall is off limits; it's there for a reason. If word got out that the Crown Dooka was climbing it, more people will try it and the Zooks will hate us even more."

"I know. I'm sorry."

"So, if you tell me the truth, I won't tell your parents. Why were you up there?"

"Umm..." Looka shifted from his heels to his toes. He even glanced at Flynn for some backup. His friend just shrugged. Finally, he said, "A squail...took my...uh..." He knew the guard wasn't buying it, but he finished anyway. "My...pin! Yeah, that's it! But it got away and I couldn't find it."

Thankfully, his story worked. The guard just walked on after giving a nod.

"Phew. That was close. Sorry I almost got you in trouble, Looka", said Flynn.

"It's okay. I actually kinda like it up there."

——

He never told anyone else. He never even told Flynn it. Since that day, Looka continued to sneak up the wall and spend his free time there, reading books and whatnot to pass the time. The tree even had a little nook for him to rest on.

Then, four years later, on one fateful day, he noticed a girl with red hair climbing the wall herself.

Glad that he had a fellow rebel, not yet knowing that she sided with the Zooks and that she'd be the love of his life, he greets her with a neighborly, "Hey."

"I'm sorry", said E.B. "I know I shouldn't be up here..."