wuloe wetha tupiwa — The Velveteen Rabbit

Margery Williams published The Velveteen Rabbit in 1922: a nursery story about a cloth rabbit loved threadbare by a child, condemned to the bonfire after a fever, and carried at last by the nursery magic into being a real rabbit. A full narrative arc rather than excerpts, it turns on a becoming that is Phi's own: love working slow change until the change is complete. Twelve words were coined: whekelua (magic), kuenora (strange), waolia (wondrous), phimela (kiss), whishela (whisper), tiripe (quiver), piloe (spot), philuewa (butterfly), mirulo (berry), misuki (mouse), numelia (nestle), and pukate (break), favored over compression since a closer transmutation matters more than an economical one. Real is shewo (true), defined in the story by the one who knows; the Skin Horse's "long, long time" is carried by the habitual ro; and the nursery magic Fairy steps out of the golden blossom exactly where the original has her, whekelua miona, the keeper of every toy a child has loved.

Each block below carries four lines: the Phi sentence, its word-by-word gloss, a back-translation into English, and Williams's own original wording, so a reader can see exactly what the transmutation kept and what it changed.

horae thorui — The splendid beginning

ta wuloe wetha tupiwa to nai.
one soft cloth rabbit PST be.
(There was once a velveteen rabbit.)
williams: "HERE was once a velveteen rabbit,"

mua thorui shia ru horae to nai.
LOC beginning 3SG INTS radiant PST be.
(In the beginning he was truly radiant.)
williams: "and in the beginning he was really splendid."

shia theru nela wuloe to nai.
3SG thick COORD soft PST be.
(He was plump and soft.)
williams: "He was fat and bunchy,"

tupiwa na theru nela wuloe nai.
rabbit NEC thick COORD soft be.
(A rabbit must be plump and soft.)
williams: "as a rabbit should be;"

shia nolika whila lo mureli piloe nela lo whilo piloe to phelu.
3SG animal hair PL brown spot COORD PL white spot PST hold.
(His fur held brown spots and white spots.)
williams: "his coat was spotted brown and white,"

shia menoa whila shewo sima to nai.
3SG face hair true thread PST be.
(His whiskers were real thread.)
williams: "he had real thread whiskers,"

mua shia shonui horathe welisha wetha to nai.
LOC 3SG ear dawn color cloth PST be.
(Inside his ears was dawn-colored cloth.)
williams: "and his ears were lined with pink sateen."

shila holia kelua to nai.
winter festival morning PST be.
(It was the morning of the winter festival.)
williams: "On Christmas morning,"

shia mua lopia paloi wethalu thorui to se peki.
3SG LOC child foot garment beginning PST PASS squeeze.
(He was wedged in the opening of the child's stocking.)
williams: "when he sat wedged in the top of the Boy's stocking,"

thei shia paloi ta shila liro loremi to nai.
BETWEEN 3SG foot one winter green branch PST be.
(Between his paws was a sprig of the winter's green.)
williams: "with a sprig of holly between his paws,"

shia ru phelora to nai.
3SG INTS beautiful PST be.
(He was altogether charming.)
williams: "the effect was charming."

mua wethalu we phirae thena to nai.
LOC garment ALSO different thing PST be.
(There were other things in the stocking too.)
williams: "There were other things in the stocking,"

lo kerou lurekoi nela lo thero welisha lurekoi to nai.
PL stone fruit COORD PL fire color fruit PST be.
(There were nuts, and fire-colored fruits.)
williams: "nuts and oranges"

ta nurako wilemo to nai.
one railway toy PST be.
(There was a railway toy.)
williams: "and a toy engine,"

lo kaelo kerou lurekoi nela ta keli misuki to nai.
PL sweet stone fruit COORD one device mouse PST be.
(There were sweet nuts, and a wind-up mouse.)
williams: "and chocolate almonds and a clockwork mouse,"

whekai tupiwa mo ko welao to nai.
CONTR rabbit CMPR FOC good PST be.
(But the rabbit was the best of all.)
williams: "but the Rabbit was quite the best of all."

lopia ta laeno shemu shia to lothea.
child one long moment 3SG PST love.
(For one long while, the child loved him.)
williams: "For at least two hours the Boy loved him,"

pheo thena lo thaluni kau nuola to shua.
POST thing PL kin ALL eat PST come.
(After that, the kinfolk came to the meal.)
williams: "and then Aunts and Uncles came to dinner,"

ta whalo pelua kohura to nai.
one large paper noise PST be.
(There was a great noise of paper.)
williams: "and there was a great rustling of tissue paper"

lo loamira to se phae.
PL gift PST PASS open.
(The gifts were being opened.)
williams: "and unwrapping of parcels,"

lo miona theula newu loamira to therua nila.
PL person UNIV new gift PST eager see.
(The people looked eagerly at all the new gifts.)
williams: "and in the excitement of looking at all the new presents"

wuloe wetha tupiwa to se sahu.
soft cloth rabbit PST PASS forget.
(The velveteen rabbit was forgotten.)
williams: "the Velveteen Rabbit was forgotten."

Notes: horae (radiant) carries "really splendid": light reaching outward, beauty that cannot be contained, which is what a new toy's splendor is; "charming" closes the scene at ru phelora, the plainer beauty of the whole effect. The rabbit's body is theru nela wuloe, plump and soft, and Williams's aside "as a rabbit should be" keeps its own sentence and its own obligation: tupiwa na theru nela wuloe nai, the gnomic na making rabbit-shape a law of nature. piloe (spot), coined for this text, carries the spotted coat here and waits for the story's last scene, where the spots are how the child almost knows him again. The stocking is lopia paloi wethalu, the child's foot-garment, its top the garment's thorui, the opening; being "wedged" there is se peki, squeezed, the sitting folded into the squeeze. The holly sprig is shila liro loremi, a branch of the winter's green, named by what holly is in the festival: the green that winter cannot take. Canon refuses clock time, so "at least two hours" becomes ta laeno shemu, one long moment, keeping the joke's shape (a love both real and brief) without the hour-count; and canon refuses gendered person-words, so Aunts and Uncles arrive as lo thaluni, the kinfolk. The stocking's plenty is itemized, not summarized: nuts are kerou lurekoi, stone-fruit, the fruit hard as stone; oranges are thero welisha lurekoi, fruit of the fire color the compound registry already names; chocolate almonds are the same stone-fruit made sweet; and the clockwork mouse is keli misuki, the device-mouse, misuki coined for the smallest housemate. The scene ends where Williams ends it, on the passive se sahu: the rabbit was forgotten, no one in particular doing the forgetting.

lopia tholu — The nursery

sui laeno thimu shia mua wilemo molu sola nia lopia tholu tomae to liona.
DUR long time 3SG LOC toy container DISJ ON child space floor PST live.
(For a long time he lived in the toy cupboard or on the nursery floor.)
williams: "For a long time he lived in the toy cupboard or on the nursery floor,"

mawha miona sheloi shemu shia to remo.
NONE person MANY moment 3SG PST think.
(No one thought of him often.)
williams: "and no one thought very much about him."

shia woeli nilua to nai.
3SG natural shy PST be.
(He was naturally shy.)
williams: "He was naturally shy,"

shia li wuloe wetha to nai.
3SG RESTR soft cloth PST be.
(He was only velveteen.)
williams: "and being only made of velveteen,"

thelao soli mo horae wilemo shia to thiku nila.
CONS SOME CMPR radiant toy 3SG PST small see.
(And so some of the finer toys looked down on him.)
williams: "some of the more expensive toys quite snubbed him."

lo keli wilemo ru thoru to nai.
PL device toy INTS proud PST be.
(The mechanical toys were very proud.)
williams: "The mechanical toys were very superior,"

lo shia theula phirae wilemo to thiku nila.
PL 3SG UNIV different toy PST small see.
(They looked down on all the other toys.)
williams: "and looked down upon every one else;"

lo shia sheloi newu remo to phelu.
PL 3SG MANY new think PST hold.
(They held many new thoughts.)
williams: "they were full of modern ideas,"

lo shia shola lo mia shewo nai sholo ro haolu.
PL 3SG QUOT.COMP PL 1SG true be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE HAB speak.
(They kept saying: "We are real.")
williams: "and pretended they were real."

wilemo luphonu sui keloi nela muero to ki liona.
toy boat DUR summer COORD autumn PST PFV live.
(The toy boat had lived through a summer and an autumn.)
williams: "The model boat, who had lived through two seasons"

pai theula shia kolai to ki lepa.
NEAR UNIV 3SG pigment PST PFV fall.
(Nearly all his paint had fallen away.)
williams: "and lost most of his paint,"

shia lue lo shia ha keno to howela.
3SG ABL PL 3SG PROX custom PST receive.
(He caught this custom from them.)
williams: "caught the tone from them"

shia sheloi shemu roe theko haoluma shia suro nela phora to therua thelima.
3SG MANY moment INS craft language 3SG rope COORD sail PST eager describe.
(He often and eagerly described his ropes and sails in craft language.)
williams: "and never missed an opportunity of referring to his rigging in technical terms."

lao shia mena lo shewo tupiwa liona meno to ma sano tupiwa shola mia thena relo nai sholo to po ma haolu.
BECAUSE 3SG DECL.COMP PL true rabbit live DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST NEG know rabbit QUOT.COMP 1SG thing symbol be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST POT NEG speak.
(Because he did not know that real rabbits live, the rabbit could not say: "I am the model of a thing.")
williams: "The Rabbit could not claim to be a model of anything, for he didn't know that real rabbits existed;"

shia mena theula tupiwa phea miso roe wolea muhena se pilewa meno to remo.
3SG DECL.COMP UNIV rabbit AS REFL INS wood dust PASS make DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST think.
(He thought all rabbits, like himself, were made with wood-dust.)
williams: "he thought they were all stuffed with sawdust like himself,"

shia mena wolea muhena nosa serao thena nai meno to shelomui.
3SG DECL.COMP wood dust now old thing be DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST understand.
(And he understood that wood-dust was now an old thing.)
williams: "and he understood that sawdust was quite out-of-date"

miona mawha thimu thoa lo newu remo miona wolea muhena na ma haolu.
person NONE time AMONG PL new think person wood dust NEC NEG speak.
(Among the new-thought people, one must never speak of wood-dust.)
williams: "and should never be mentioned in modern circles."

we wolea whalo misheko thoru to nai.
ALSO wood large cat proud PST be.
(Even the wooden great-cat put on pride.)
williams: "Even Timothy, the jointed wooden lion, ... put on airs"

lo rena kipona ki howela miona shia to pilewa.
PL REL pain PFV receive person 3SG PST make.
(The people who had received pain had made him.)
williams: "who was made by the disabled soldiers,"

thelao shia na mo whalo remo phelu.
CONS 3SG NEC CMPR large think hold.
(So he ought to hold larger thoughts.)
williams: "and should have had broader views,"

whekai shia shola mia nua lo kulo miona nolami nai sholo ro haolu.
CONTR 3SG QUOT.COMP 1SG COM PL guide person bond be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE HAB speak.
(But he kept saying: "I am bonded with the guiding people.")
williams: "put on airs and pretended he was connected with Government."

thoa lo shia thiku tupiwa miso ru thiku nela siloma to phaelo.
AMONG PL 3SG small rabbit REFL INTS small COORD simple PST feel.
(Among them all, the little rabbit felt himself very small and plain.)
williams: "Between them all the poor little Rabbit was made to feel himself very insignificant and commonplace,"

li kori kalora wei shia phena to nai.
RESTR leather horse DAT 3SG kind PST be.
(Only the Leather Horse was kind to him.)
williams: "and the only person who was kind to him at all was the Skin Horse."

Notes: canon refuses money, price, and wage, so "the more expensive toys" cannot be ranked by cost; they are mo horae, the more radiant ones, which is what expense looks like from the nursery floor, and the snobbery survives intact. The snubbing and the looking-down are both thiku nila, the registry's see-small compound, contempt named as an act of seeing. Pretending stays what the earlier telling made it: a habitual quotative, shola lo mia shewo nai sholo ro haolu, they kept saying "We are real," since pretending is repetition, and the language gives them no way to rank themselves above anyone while they do it. The boat's "two seasons" are named rather than counted, sui keloi nela muero, through a summer and an autumn, because Phi counts moments and names seasons; his "rigging in technical terms" is shia suro nela phora, his ropes and sails, described roe theko haoluma, in craft language. "A model of anything" leans on relo (symbol): the thing that stands for another thing, which is exactly the boat's boast and the rabbit's lack. Williams's "disabled soldiers" and "Government" both fall under canon's refusals of war and rule; the makers become lo rena kipona ki howela miona, the people who had received pain, which is the truth the word "disabled soldiers" politely wraps, and the great-cat's pretended connection is nua lo kulo miona, with the guiding people, the same kulo canon already uses where others say rule. The lion himself is wolea whalo misheko, the wooden great-cat, built like the registry's big-finger thumb; his name, like every name in this text, dissolves into what he is. "Made to feel" softens to plain feeling, miso ru thiku nela siloma to phaelo, felt himself very small and plain: Phi will not make the toys the agents of his smallness even where Williams's passive hints at it, and the pity of "poor" lives in the smallness itself.

kori kalora — The Skin Horse

kori kalora sheo theula phirae wilemo mua lopia tholu mo laeno to ki liona.
leather horse THAN UNIV different toy LOC child space CMPR long PST PFV live.
(The Leather Horse had lived in the nursery longer than all the other toys.)
williams: "The Skin Horse had lived longer in the nursery than any of the others."

shia ru serao to nai.
3SG INTS old PST be.
(He was very old.)
williams: "He was so old"

shia mureli nolika whila mua soli lokue to ki wepu.
3SG brown animal hair LOC SOME place PST PFV go.
(In places, his brown fur had gone.)
williams: "that his brown coat was bald in patches"

phou whila lo pina to se nila.
BELOW hair PL sew PST PASS see.
(Beneath the hair, the sewing showed.)
williams: "and showed the seams underneath,"

pai theula shia tulira whila wei nolue kerou tiwa to ki se natu.
NEAR UNIV 3SG tail hair DAT neck stone tie PST PFV PASS pull.
(Nearly all his tail-hairs had been pulled out for the tying of neck-stones.)
williams: "and most of the hairs in his tail had been pulled out to string bead necklaces."

shia phue to nai.
3SG wise PST be.
(He was wise.)
williams: "He was wise,"

shia mena sheloi keli wilemo shua meno to ki nila.
3SG DECL.COMP MANY device toy come DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST PFV see.
(He had seen many mechanical toys come.)
williams: "for he had seen a long succession of mechanical toys arrive"

lo shia to thoru haolu.
PL 3SG PST proud speak.
(They spoke proudly.)
williams: "to boast and swagger,"

pheo soli thimu lo shia keli korua to pukate.
POST SOME time PL 3SG device heart PST break.
(After a while, their device-hearts broke.)
williams: "and by-and-by break their mainsprings"

lo shia to lumeo.
PL 3SG PST die.
(And they passed away.)
williams: "and pass away,"

thelao shia mena lo shia li wilemo nai meno to sano.
CONS 3SG DECL.COMP PL 3SG RESTR toy be DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST know.
(So he knew that they were only toys.)
williams: "and he knew that they were only toys,"

lo shia mawha thimu phirae thena so kelu.
PL 3SG NONE time different thing FUT become.
(They would never become anything else.)
williams: "and would never turn into anything else."

lopia tholu whekelua ru kuenora nela ru waolia nai.
child space magic INTS strange COORD INTS wondrous be.
(For nursery magic is very strange and very wondrous.)
williams: "For nursery magic is very strange and wonderful,"

li lo rena serao nela phue nela seroli nai wilemo phea kori kalora shia shelomui.
RESTR PL REL old COORD wise COORD mature be toy AS leather horse 3SG understand.
(Only the toys that are old and wise and seasoned, like the Leather Horse, understand it.)
williams: "and only those playthings that are old and wise and experienced like the Skin Horse understand all about it."

Notes: the mainspring is keli korua, the device's heart: what the mechanical toys boast on is the same organ they break, and pukate (break), coined for this text, gets its first work here before the story asks whether a sawdust heart can nearly do the same. Their end is lumeo, the plain word for dying, because Williams's "pass away" is death and the language does not euphemize what it can say gently. The seams are lo pina, the sewing itself showing through, and the bead necklaces are nolue kerou, neck-stones, strung from a tail that pays for them. The chapter's law arrives as a gnomic sentence with no tense at all: lopia tholu whekelua ru kuenora nela ru waolia nai, nursery magic is very strange and very wondrous, the coined whekelua (magic, the breath of becoming, with kelu sitting whole inside it) flanked by kuenora (strange) and waolia (wondrous), both coined from the words Phi already had for the meeting of the unknown: kuelo's curiosity and wao's open mouth. "Experienced" rides in seroli (mature), the third strand of the braid Williams gives the old horse.

shewo — What is Real

phoe tholu woru shua lo shia ta philo sio wiso pai moeli to ruemi.
ANT space keeper come PL 3SG one day BESIDE RECP NEAR hearth PST lie down.
(One day, before the keeper of the room came, they were lying beside each other near the hearth.)
williams: "one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room."

tupiwa shola hina shewo nai sholo to thilou.
rabbit QUOT.COMP what true be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST inquire.
(The rabbit asked: "What is Real?")
williams: "\"What is REAL?\" asked the Rabbit"

tupiwa shola wa mua thia lo rena kohura pilewa thena nai. wa ta keli manuwe mue thia weloni whano sholo to thilou.
rabbit QUOT.COMP Q LOC 2SG PL REL noise make thing be. Q one device hand OUT.OF 2SG body stand QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST inquire.
(He asked: "Are there things inside you that make a noise? Does a device-hand stand out of your body?")
williams: "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?"

kori kalora shola shewo lue pilewa ma shua sholo to haolu.
leather horse QUOT.COMP true ABL make NEG come QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The Leather Horse said: "Real does not come from how you are made.")
williams: "\"Real isn't how you are made,\" said the Skin Horse."

shola shewo rena wei thia kelu thena nai sholo.
QUOT.COMP true REL DAT 2SG become thing be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Real is a thing that happens to you.")
williams: "It's a thing that happens to you."

shola lu lopia thia ro lothea sholo.
QUOT.COMP COND child 2SG HAB love QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("If a child loves you, habitually, the way mornings happen.")
williams: "When a child loves you for a long, long time,"

shola lu shia thia li wilemo ma nila. lu shia thia ru lothea sholo.
QUOT.COMP COND 3SG 2SG RESTR toy NEG see. COND 3SG 2SG INTS love QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("If the child does not see you as a toy merely; if the child truly loves you.")
williams: "not just to play with, but REALLY loves you,"

shola pheo thena thia shewo kelu sholo.
QUOT.COMP POST thing 2SG true become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Then you become Real.")
williams: "then you become Real."

tupiwa shola wa ha kipona thola sholo to thilou.
rabbit QUOT.COMP Q PROX pain bring QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST inquire.
(The rabbit asked: "Does this bring pain?")
williams: "\"Does it hurt?\" asked the Rabbit."

kori kalora shola soli shemu sholo to haolu.
leather horse QUOT.COMP SOME moment QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The Leather Horse said: "Sometimes.")
williams: "\"Sometimes,\" said the Skin Horse,"

shia theula thimu wero to nai.
3SG UNIV time honest PST be.
(He was always honest.)
williams: "for he was always truthful."

shola lu thia shewo nai. kipona thiku nai sholo.
QUOT.COMP COND 2SG true be. pain small be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Once you are Real, hurting is a small thing.")
williams: "\"When you are Real you don't mind being hurt.\""

shia shola wa ha mua ta shemu kelu phea keli rato. sola wa ha roe lo thiku helui kelu sholo to thilou.
3SG QUOT.COMP Q PROX LOC one moment become AS device turn. DISJ Q PROX INS PL small change become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST inquire.
(He asked: "Does it happen in one moment, like the winding of a device? Or does it happen by small changes?")
williams: "\"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up,\" he asked, \"or bit by bit?\""

kori kalora shola ha mua ta shemu ma kelu sholo to haolu.
leather horse QUOT.COMP PROX LOC one moment NEG become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The Leather Horse said: "It does not happen in one moment.")
williams: "\"It doesn't happen all at once,\" said the Skin Horse."

shola thia kelu. ha laeno thimu phelona sholo.
QUOT.COMP 2SG become. PROX long time require QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("You become. It requires a long time.")
williams: "\"You become. It takes a long time."

shola thelao ha wei lo rena reshi pukate miona phina shemu kelu sholo.
QUOT.COMP CONS PROX DAT PL REL fast break person FEW moment become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("That is why it comes only rarely to those who break quickly.")
williams: "That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily,"

shola ha wei lo rena tiso shuna phelu miona nela lo rena se na moli phelu miona we phina shemu kelu sholo.
QUOT.COMP PROX DAT PL REL sharp edge hold person COORD PL REL PASS NEC gentle hold person ALSO FEW moment become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("To those who hold sharp edges, and those who must be gently kept, it also comes rarely.")
williams: "or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept."

shola lu thia shewo kelu. pai theula thia whila lue lothea ki wepu sholo.
QUOT.COMP COND 2SG true become. NEAR UNIV 2SG hair ABL love PFV go QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("By the time you become Real, nearly all your hair has been loved away.")
williams: "Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off,"

shola thia mirae lepa. thia weloni nolami luwi kelu. thia ru serao kelu sholo.
QUOT.COMP 2SG eye fall. 2SG body bond flexible become. 2SG INTS old become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Your eyes fall out. Your body's joints turn loose. You become very worn.")
williams: "and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby."

shola whekai lo ha thena ru thiku nai sholo.
QUOT.COMP CONTR PL PROX thing INTS small be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("But these things are altogether small.")
williams: "But these things don't matter at all,"

shola lu thia shewo kelu. li rena ma shelomui miona thia ma phelora nila sholo.
QUOT.COMP COND 2SG true become. RESTR REL NEG understand person 2SG NEG beautiful see QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Once you become Real, only the people who do not understand see you as unbeautiful.")
williams: "because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand.\""

tupiwa shola thia shewo ho nai sholo to haolu.
rabbit QUOT.COMP 2SG true ASSUM be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The rabbit said: "You are Real, I suppose?")
williams: "\"I suppose you are real?\" said the Rabbit."

lao shia mena kori kalora po reshi kipona phaelo meno to remo pheo thena shia mena miso ha to ma haolu meno to pula.
BECAUSE 3SG DECL.COMP leather horse POT fast pain feel DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST think POST thing 3SG DECL.COMP REFL PROX PST NEG speak DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST wish.
(Because he thought the Leather Horse might easily feel hurt, he then wished that he himself had not said it.)
williams: "And then he wished he had not said it, for he thought the Skin Horse might be sensitive."

whekai kori kalora li to seniku.
CONTR leather horse RESTR PST smile.
(But the Leather Horse only smiled.)
williams: "But the Skin Horse only smiled."

Notes: the story's heart keeps the shape the corpus already cites: lu lopia thia ro lothea, if a child loves you as a habit, the way mornings happen, and thia shewo kelu, you become Real. The habitual ro carries "for a long, long time" without a single added word, because habit is duration in Phi's grammar. Williams's "not just to play with, but REALLY loves you" stands as its own condition pair: li wilemo ma nila, does not see you as a toy merely, the same depictive frame canon cites from this text's mercy-line, and ru lothea, truly loves. The Rabbit's naive question is answered item by item, lo rena kohura pilewa thena, things that make a noise, kohura being noise as sound-without-pattern, and keli manuwe, the device-hand, which is all a winding key is to someone made of cloth. "I suppose you are real?" wears its supposing where Phi wears all its knowing, in the evidential: thia shewo ho nai, marked as assumption, so the question's shy hedge is grammar rather than phrasing. Fragility is reshi pukate, breaking quickly, the new verb's second scene; "carefully kept" is se na moli phelu, must be gently held, with phelu's own steady-pressure gentleness doing the caring. And the answer to what love costs is exact: pai theula thia whila lue lothea ki wepu, nearly all your hair has gone from love, the lue of source marking love as the direction the hair went.

kori kalora nophi — The Skin Horse's story

shia shola lopia lumani wheo mia shewo ka kelu sholo to haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP child family elder 1SG true CAUS become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(He said: "The child's family-elder made me Real.")
williams: "\"The Boy's Uncle made me Real,\" he said."

shola ha phoe sheloi torua to kelu sholo.
QUOT.COMP PROX ANT MANY year PST become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("That happened a great many years before.")
williams: "That was a great many years ago;"

shola lu thia ta shemu shewo kelu. thia mawha thimu phirae thena kelu sholo.
QUOT.COMP COND 2SG one moment true become. 2SG NONE time different thing become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Once you become Real, you never become a different thing again.")
williams: "but once you are Real you can't become unreal again."

shola ha theula thimu manolu sholo.
QUOT.COMP PROX UNIV time stay QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("It stays for always.")
williams: "It lasts for always.\""

tupiwa to laeno whunei.
rabbit PST long breathe.
(The rabbit breathed one long breath.)
williams: "The Rabbit sighed."

shia mena ha shewo whekelua pheo laeno thimu wei shia so kelu meno to remo.
3SG DECL.COMP PROX true magic POST long time DAT 3SG FUT become DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST think.
(He thought that this Real-magic would come to him only after a long time.)
williams: "He thought it would be a long time before this magic called Real happened to him."

shia mena miso shewo kelu meno to wilao.
3SG DECL.COMP REFL true become DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST long-for.
(He longed to become Real himself.)
williams: "He longed to become Real,"

shia mena miso shewo phaelo sano meno to wilao.
3SG DECL.COMP REFL true feel know DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST long-for.
(He longed to know Real's own feeling.)
williams: "to know what it felt like;"

shia mena miso serao kelu nela miso mirae nela menoa whila lepa meno to remo.
3SG DECL.COMP REFL old become COORD REFL eye COORD face hair fall DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST think.
(He thought of himself growing worn, his eyes and his whiskers falling away.)
williams: "and yet the idea of growing shabby and losing his eyes and whiskers"

ha remo nuhe to thola.
PROX think sadness PST bring.
(That thought brought sadness.)
williams: "was rather sad."

shia mena miso whuo lo ha kipona thena po shewo kelu meno to pula.
3SG DECL.COMP REFL WITHOUT PL PROX pain thing POT true become DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST wish.
(He wished that he could become Real without these hurting things.)
williams: "He wished that he could become it without these uncomfortable things happening to him."

Notes: the Uncle cannot cross into Phi as an uncle, since canon refuses gendered person-words; he arrives as lopia lumani wheo, the child's family-elder, which carries exactly what the story needs him to be: an adult of the household whose love was old enough to finish the work. "A great many years ago" counts in torua (year), the unit the age-pattern already owns, held before nosa-time by phoe the way the corpus holds counted days. The sigh is laeno whunei, one long breath, manner doing what English does with a dedicated word. "This magic called Real" compresses to ha shewo whekelua, this Real-magic, the name worn as a describer; and the Rabbit's two longings each get wilao (long-for) with their own clause, to become it and to know its feeling, because Williams gives him both and neither implies the other. The last wish sits in pula with whuo, without: becoming minus the cost, which is the wish the whole story gently refuses.

tholu woru — The keeper of the nursery

ta rena lopia tholu kulo miona to nai.
one REL child space guide person PST be.
(There was a person who guided the nursery.)
williams: "There was a person called Nana who ruled the nursery."

soli shemu shia lo rena ruemi wilemo to ma nila.
SOME moment 3SG PL REL lie down toy PST NEG see.
(Sometimes she did not see the toys lying about.)
williams: "Sometimes she took no notice of the playthings lying about,"

soli shemu shia whuo remo phea whalo howeli to wepu.
SOME moment 3SG WITHOUT think AS large wind PST go.
(Sometimes, without any reason, she went about like a great wind.)
williams: "and sometimes, for no reason whatever, she went swooping about like a great wind"

shia muo lo molu lo wilemo to reshi pesa.
3SG INTO PL container PL toy PST fast push.
(She pushed the toys quickly away into the cupboards.)
williams: "and hustled them away in cupboards."

shia shola mia tholu hiso ka kelu sholo ro haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP 1SG space clean CAUS become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE HAB speak.
(She kept saying: "I am making the room clean.")
williams: "She called this \"tidying up,\""

ha wei theula wilemo korua thero to thola.
PROX DAT UNIV toy heart fire PST bring.
(This brought heart-fire to every toy.)
williams: "and the playthings all hated it,"

ko lo keluo wilemo mo whalo korua thero to phaelo.
FOC PL metal toy CMPR large heart fire PST feel.
(The metal toys especially felt the greater anger.)
williams: "especially the tin ones."

tupiwa ha to ma ru phaelo.
rabbit PROX PST NEG INTS feel.
(The rabbit did not feel it so strongly.)
williams: "The Rabbit didn't mind it so much,"

lu shia kau hina se wapho. shia wuloe to lepa.
COND 3SG ALL what PASS throw. 3SG soft PST fall.
(Wherever he was thrown, he fell soft.)
williams: "for wherever he was thrown he came down soft."

ta howai lopia kau nuwera to wepu.
one evening child ALL bed PST go.
(One evening the child was going to bed.)
williams: "One evening, when the Boy was going to bed,"

shia rena nua shia ro nulae mueri lohau to po ma hekawi.
3SG REL COM 3SG HAB sleep clay dog PST POT NEG find.
(He could not find the clay dog that always slept with him.)
williams: "he couldn't find the china dog that always slept with him."

tholu woru sheli to nai.
space keeper impatient PST be.
(The keeper was in a hurry.)
williams: "Nana was in a hurry,"

mua nulae shemu mueri lohau hekawi ru tumoa theko to nai.
LOC sleep moment clay dog find INTS heavy craft PST be.
(At bedtime, the hunting of clay dogs was too-heavy work.)
williams: "and it was too much trouble to hunt for china dogs at bedtime,"

thelao shia li roa miso to nila.
CONS 3SG RESTR AROUND REFL PST see.
(So she simply looked around herself.)
williams: "so she simply looked about her,"

shia mena wilemo molu ponu ki se phae meno to nila.
3SG DECL.COMP toy container door PFV PASS open DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST see.
(She saw that the toy cupboard's door had been opened.)
williams: "and seeing that the toy cupboard door stood open,"

shia phea howeli to shua.
3SG AS wind PST come.
(She came like the wind.)
williams: "she made a swoop."

shia shola ha. no thia serao tupiwa howela. nua thia shia po nulae sholo to haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP PROX. IMP 2SG old rabbit receive. COM 2SG 3SG POT sleep QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(She said: "Here. Take your old rabbit. He can sleep with you.")
williams: "\"Here,\" she said, \"take your old Bunny! He'll do to sleep with you!\""

shia roe ta shonui mue molu tupiwa to natu.
3SG INS one ear OUT.OF container rabbit PST pull.
(By one ear, she pulled the rabbit out of the cupboard.)
williams: "And she dragged the Rabbit out by one ear,"

shia muo lopia pelio tupiwa to loa.
3SG INTO child arm rabbit PST give.
(She gave him into the child's arms.)
williams: "and put him into the Boy's arms."

Notes: the person the household calls Nana keeps no name here: na.na repeats a syllable, which Phi's own phonology refuses, and this text dissolves every name into what its bearer is, as the Babel text's custom runs. She is rena lopia tholu kulo miona, the one who guides the nursery, kulo standing where Williams writes "ruled" because canon refuses rule; thereafter she is tholu woru, the room's keeper, which is her office seen from a toy's height. Her storm is the simile the story hands over ready-made: phea whalo howeli, like a great wind, with whuo remo, without a thought, carrying "for no reason whatever." Her own name for the storm is a habitual quotative, mia tholu hiso ka kelu, I am making the room clean, canon's own cleaning idiom in her mouth. The toys' hatred has no word in Phi and does not need one: korua thero, the registry's heart-fire, arrives instead, felt largest by the metal toys, whose hearts have the least give. The Rabbit's immunity keeps Williams's reason in full: lu shia kau hina se wapho. shia wuloe to lepa., wherever he was thrown, he fell soft, the condition built on the bare question-word the way the grammar builds its wherever. "Too much trouble" is measured plainly, ru tumoa theko, very heavy work, and the swoop lands as the wind-simile's return, shia phea howeli to shua.

lopia nuwera — In the child's bed

lue ha shero wuloe wetha tupiwa mua lopia nuwera to ro nulae.
ABL PROX night soft cloth rabbit LOC child bed PST HAB sleep.
(From that night on, the velveteen rabbit slept in the child's bed.)
williams: "That night, and for many nights after, the Velveteen Rabbit slept in the Boy's bed."

mua thorui shia nuloe to ma nai.
LOC beginning 3SG content PST NEG be.
(At first, he was not comfortable.)
williams: "At first he found it rather uncomfortable,"

lopia shia to ru kema lomare.
child 3SG PST INTS strong embrace.
(For the child hugged him very tightly.)
williams: "for the Boy hugged him very tight,"

soli shemu lopia nia shia to rato.
SOME moment child ON 3SG PST turn.
(Sometimes the child turned over onto him.)
williams: "and sometimes he rolled over on him,"

soli shemu lopia phou koma nuwera shia to nulo pesa.
SOME moment child BELOW head bed 3SG PST deep push.
(Sometimes he pushed him deep under the head-pillow.)
williams: "and sometimes he pushed him so far under the pillow"

tupiwa to po ma whunei.
rabbit PST POT NEG breathe.
(The rabbit could scarcely breathe.)
williams: "that the Rabbit could scarcely breathe."

shia we mua lopia tholu lo laeno lunei shemu to wilao.
3SG ALSO LOC child space PL long moon moment PST long-for.
(He missed, too, the long moon-lit hours in the nursery.)
williams: "And he missed, too, those long moonlight hours in the nursery,"

mua lo ha shemu theula womu maeli to nai.
LOC PL PROX moment UNIV home quiet PST be.
(In those hours all the house was quiet.)
williams: "when all the house was silent,"

shia we nua kori kalora thelu to wilao.
3SG ALSO COM leather horse dialogue PST long-for.
(And he missed his dialogues with the Leather Horse.)
williams: "and his talks with the Skin Horse."

whekai pheo teku shemu shia ha to pa lothea.
CONTR POST short moment 3SG PROX PST INCH love.
(But after a short while he began to love it.)
williams: "But very soon he grew to like it,"

lopia wei shia to ro haolu.
child DAT 3SG PST HAB speak.
(For the child would talk to him.)
williams: "for the Boy used to talk to him,"

lopia phou nuwera wetha wei shia lo welao nowhu to pilewa.
child BELOW bed cloth DAT 3SG PL good cave PST make.
(The child made good caves for him under the bedclothes.)
williams: "and made nice tunnels for him under the bedclothes"

lopia shola lo ha phea rena lo shewo tupiwa mua liona nowhu nai sholo to haolu.
child QUOT.COMP PL PROX AS REL PL true rabbit LOC live cave be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(He said: "These are like the burrows the real rabbits live in.")
williams: "that he said were like the burrows the real rabbits lived in."

lo shia roe whishela lo horae wile to nuawe wile.
PL 3SG INS whisper PL radiant play PST together play.
(In whispers, together, they played splendid games.)
williams: "And they had splendid games together, in whispers,"

tholu woru kau shia nuola to ki wepu.
space keeper ALL 3SG eat PST PFV go.
(The keeper had gone away to her meal.)
williams: "when Nana had gone away to her supper"

shero luma leo moeli to si thape.
night lamp ABOVE hearth PST IPFV burn.
(The night-lamp went on burning above the hearth.)
williams: "and left the night-light burning on the mantelpiece."

lu lopia pa nulae. tupiwa phou shia thiku sulae menoa to ro numelia.
COND child INCH sleep. rabbit BELOW 3SG small warm face PST HAB nestle.
(When the child fell asleep, the rabbit would nestle under his small warm face.)
williams: "And when the Boy dropped off to sleep, the Rabbit would snuggle down close under his little warm chin"

tupiwa to ro whemura.
rabbit PST HAB dream.
(And he would dream.)
williams: "and dream,"

lopia manuwe sui theula shero shia to noshi phelu.
child hand DUR UNIV night 3SG PST near hold.
(The child's hands held him close, all night long.)
williams: "with the Boy's hands clasped close round him all night long."

thimu to wepu.
time PST go.
(And time went on.)
williams: "And so time went on,"

thiku tupiwa ru loshi to nai.
small rabbit INTS joyful PST be.
(The little rabbit was very joyful.)
williams: "and the little Rabbit was very happy-"

thelao shia mawha thimu mena miso phelora whila mo serao kelu meno to nila.
CONS 3SG NONE time DECL.COMP REFL beautiful hair CMPR old become DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST see.
(So joyful that he never once saw his own beautiful fur becoming ever more worn.)
williams: "so happy that he never noticed how his beautiful velveteen fur was getting shabbier and shabbier,"

shia tulira pina to si phae.
3SG tail sew PST IPFV open.
(His tail's sewing was coming open.)
williams: "and his tail becoming unsewn,"

mua rena lopia shia to phimela lokue horathe welisha lue shia nophae to ki wepu.
LOC REL child 3SG PST kiss place dawn color ABL 3SG nose PST PFV go.
(In the place where the child had kissed him, the pink had gone from his nose.)
williams: "and all the pink rubbed off his nose where the Boy had kissed him."

Notes: the pillow is koma nuwera, the head's own bed, composed the way the registry composes navel and thumb; the chin softens to menoa (face), the body-part inventory holding no finer word and the warmth mattering more than the anatomy. "Clasped close" is noshi phelu, held near, with phelu's gentle steady pressure again doing the clasping. numelia (nestle) and whemura (dream) give the bedtime ritual its own verbs, and the games are played roe whishela, by whisper, the coined breath-speech carrying Williams's "in whispers" as instrument rather than volume. The nursery hours he misses are lo laeno lunei shemu, the long moon-moments, the clock refused and nothing lost. The burrow comparison arrives on phea with the oblique relative canon licenses: rena lo shewo tupiwa mua liona nowhu, the caves that real rabbits live in, the preposition keeping its post over the gapped object. And the section's last unit stands on the frame this text already gave the corpus: mua rena ... lokue, in the place where, here holding the tenderest fact in the book, that the pink went from his nose exactly where the kisses landed, phimela doing exactly the work it was coined for.

wirae — Spring

wirae to shua.
spring PST come.
(Spring came.)
williams: "Spring came,"

wei lo shia mua thepalu lo laeno philo to nai.
DAT PL 3SG LOC garden PL long day PST be.
(For them there were long days in the garden.)
williams: "and they had long days in the garden,"

lu lopia kau hina to wepu. tupiwa we to wepu.
COND child ALL what PST go. rabbit ALSO PST go.
(Wherever the child went, the rabbit went too.)
williams: "for wherever the Boy went the Rabbit went too."

shia mua manuwe rolutha to wepu.
3SG LOC hand wagon PST go.
(He went about in the hand-wagon.)
williams: "He had rides in the wheelbarrow,"

lo shia nia whelina to nuawe nuola.
PL 3SG ON grass PST together eat.
(They ate together on the grass.)
williams: "and picnics on the grass,"

lopia phou lo mirulo loremi wei shia lo phelora thiku whekelua womu to lorima.
child BELOW PL berry branch DAT 3SG PL beautiful small magic home PST build.
(Under the berry canes, the child built lovely little magic houses for him.)
williams: "and lovely fairy huts built for him under the raspberry canes"

lo mirulo loremi noe peloru shuna to whano.
PL berry branch BEHIND flower edge PST stand.
(The berry canes stood behind the flower border.)
williams: "behind the flower border."

ta shemu lopia kau howai nuola to se ka reshi wepu.
one moment child ALL evening eat PST PASS CAUS fast go.
(Once, the child was called away quickly to the evening meal.)
williams: "And once, when the Boy was called away suddenly to go out to tea,"

tupiwa tei pheo norawhi laeno shemu nia whelina to manolu.
rabbit UNTIL POST dusk long moment ON grass PST stay.
(The rabbit stayed out on the grass until long after dusk.)
williams: "the Rabbit was left out on the lawn until long after dusk,"

tholu woru roe philu to na shua. shia tupiwa to hekawi.
space keeper INS candle PST NEC come. 3SG rabbit PST find.
(The keeper had to come with the candle, and she found him.)
williams: "and Nana had to come and look for him with the candle"

lu tupiwa ra ma nai. lopia to po ma nulae.
COND rabbit DIST NEG be. child PST POT NEG sleep.
(If the rabbit was not there, the child could not sleep.)
williams: "because the Boy couldn't go to sleep unless he was there."

shia lue suiloe ru wirua to nai.
3SG ABL dew INTS wet PST be.
(He was wet through from the dew.)
williams: "He was wet through with the dew"

muphia nia shia to nai.
mud ON 3SG PST be.
(And mud was all over him.)
williams: "and quite earthy"

tupiwa muo lo nowhu to ki tupi.
rabbit INTO PL cave PST PFV jump.
(The rabbit had been diving into the burrows.)
williams: "from diving into the burrows"

lopia mua peloru muila wei shia lo nowhu to ki pilewa.
child LOC flower earth DAT 3SG PL cave PST PFV make.
(The child had made the burrows for him in the flower-bed.)
williams: "the Boy had made for him in the flower bed,"

shia sui hewe roe thiku korua thero to haolu.
3SG DUR wipe INS small heart fire PST speak.
(As she wiped, the keeper spoke with a small heart-fire.)
williams: "and Nana grumbled"

tholu woru roe shia theko wethalu shuna tupiwa to hewe.
space keeper INS 3SG craft garment edge rabbit PST wipe.
(She wiped him off with the edge of her work-garment.)
williams: "as she rubbed him off with a corner of her apron."

Notes: the wheelbarrow is manuwe rolutha, the hand-wagon, and the picnics are what picnics are, eating together on the grass. The fairy huts become the coined magic's second scene: lo phelora thiku whekelua womu, lovely little magic-houses, built under lo mirulo loremi, the berry canes, mirulo (berry) placing the raspberry thicket that will anchor three more scenes. "Wherever he went" and "unless he was there" both build from the grammar's own small parts: the bare question-word under lu for wherever, and the deictic ra negated for the empty bedside. The dusk vigil nests its relators as the corpus already nests them, tei pheo norawhi laeno shemu, until a long moment after dusk; the search rides inside hekawi (find), whose own entry holds the seeking, and the grumble is roe thiku korua thero, speech with a small heart-fire, anger at the size Nana actually feels it. The apron is her theko wethalu, work-garment, its corner the garment's shuna, edge.

shewo haolu — The declaration

shia shola thia thia serao tupiwa na phelu sholo to haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP 2SG 2SG old rabbit NEC hold QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(She said: "You must have your old rabbit!")
williams: "\"You must have your old Bunny!\" she said."

shola wao. theula ha theko wei ta wilemo nai sholo.
QUOT.COMP wow. UNIV PROX craft DAT one toy be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Well! All this work, for one toy!")
williams: "\"Fancy all that fuss for a toy!\""

lopia mua nuwera to meilo.
child LOC bed PST sit.
(The child sat up in bed.)
williams: "The Boy sat up in bed"

shia manuwe to laeno kelu.
3SG hand PST long become.
(His hands stretched out long.)
williams: "and stretched out his hands."

shia shola no wei mia mia tupiwa loa sholo to haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP IMP DAT 1SG 1SG rabbit give QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(He said: "Give my rabbit to me!")
williams: "\"Give me my Bunny!\" he said."

shola thia ha na ma haolu sholo.
QUOT.COMP 2SG PROX NEC NEG speak QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("You must not say that.")
williams: "\"You mustn't say that."

shola shia wilemo ma nai. shia shewo nai sholo.
QUOT.COMP 3SG toy NEG be. 3SG true be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("He is not a toy. He is Real!")
williams: "He isn't a toy. He's REAL!\""

thiku tupiwa ha to hea. shia ru loshi to kelu.
small rabbit PROX PST hear. 3SG INTS joyful PST become.
(The little rabbit heard this, and he became very joyful.)
williams: "When the little Rabbit heard that he was happy,"

shia mena kori kalora haolu pheo laeno shemu shewo nai meno to sano.
3SG DECL.COMP leather horse speak POST long moment true be DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST know.
(He knew that the Leather Horse's words, at long last, were true.)
williams: "for he knew that what the Skin Horse had said was true at last."

lopia tholu whekelua wei shia to ki kelu.
child space magic DAT 3SG PST PFV become.
(The nursery magic had happened to him.)
williams: "The nursery magic had happened to him,"

shia wilemo to te nai.
3SG toy PST CESS be.
(He had ceased to be a toy.)
williams: "and he was a toy no longer."

shia shewo to nai.
3SG true PST be.
(He was Real.)
williams: "He was Real."

lopia miso ha to ki haolu.
child REFL PROX PST PFV speak.
(The child himself had said it.)
williams: "The Boy himself had said it."

ha shero shia ru loshi to nai. thelao nulae wei shia to sheru shua.
PROX night 3SG INTS joyful PST be. CONS sleep DAT 3SG PST slow come.
(That night he was so joyful that sleep came slowly to him.)
williams: "That night he was almost too happy to sleep,"

ru whalo lothea mua shia thiku wolea muhena korua to roke.
INTS large love LOC 3SG small wood dust heart PST move.
(So great a love moved in his little wood-dust heart.)
williams: "and so much love stirred in his little sawdust heart"

shia korua to pai pukate.
3SG heart PST NEAR break.
(His heart nearly burst.)
williams: "that it almost burst."

shia mirae palowe kerou to nai.
3SG eye shoe stone PST be.
(His eyes were boot-buttons.)
williams: "And into his boot-button eyes,"

lo shia phoe laeno thimu to te phelo loa.
PL 3SG ANT long time PST CESS light give.
(They had long ago ceased giving light.)
williams: "that had long ago lost their polish,"

muo lo ha mirae nulo sano nela mioru nila to shua.
INTO PL PROX eye deep know COORD beauty see PST come.
(Into those eyes there came a look of deep knowing and of beauty.)
williams: "there came a look of wisdom and beauty,"

thelao wireo kelua we tholu woru ha to nila.
CONS future morning ALSO space keeper PROX PST see.
(So that the next morning even the keeper saw it.)
williams: "so that even Nana noticed it next morning"

shia tupiwa to howela.
3SG rabbit PST receive.
(She took him up.)
williams: "when she picked him up,"

shia shola wao. ha serao tupiwa rena sano menoa phelu sholo to haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP wow. PROX old rabbit REL know face hold QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(And said: "Well! This old rabbit has a knowing face.")
williams: "and said, \"I declare if that old Bunny hasn't got quite a knowing expression!\""

Notes: the child's declaration keeps the third person Williams gives it: shia wilemo ma nai. shia shewo nai., he is not a toy, he is Real, spoken at Nana in the rabbit's defense, not to the rabbit himself. What follows states the change in the grammar's own tenses: the magic to ki kelu, had already happened; the toy-hood to te nai, ceased; the Real to nai, plainly was. "Almost too happy to sleep" is carved as its consequence, joy so great that sleep came slowly, since Phi measures excess by what it costs; and the heart's near-bursting is pai pukate, the same nearness that made the council-man almost silent, set against the coined break-verb so that love and breakage share one sentence the way Williams means them to. nulo sano, the registry's deep-knowing, is the wisdom that comes into the boot-button eyes, and Nana's grudging astonishment arrives with wao in her mouth and the knowing face held in a bare rena clause: rena sano menoa, a face that knows.

keloi — Summer

ha keloi ru waolia to nai.
PROX summer INTS wondrous PST be.
(That was a truly wondrous summer!)
williams: "That was a wonderful Summer!"

pai rena lo shia mua liona womu ta shelira to nai.
NEAR REL PL 3SG LOC live home one forest PST be.
(Near the house where they lived there was a wood.)
williams: "Near the house where they lived there was a wood,"

mua lo laeno keloi thorui howai lopia kau shelira to ro wepu.
LOC PL long summer beginning evening child ALL forest PST HAB go.
(In the long evenings of early summer, the child would go to the wood.)
williams: "and in the long June evenings the Boy liked to go there"

shia pheo howai nuola to ro wile.
3SG POST evening eat PST HAB play.
(After the evening meal, he would play there.)
williams: "after tea to play."

shia nua miso wuloe wetha tupiwa to ro thola.
3SG COM REFL soft cloth rabbit PST HAB bring.
(He would bring the velveteen rabbit along with him.)
williams: "He took the Velveteen Rabbit with him,"

phoe peloru muraki nela waeshi wile lopia theula thimu thoa phero wei tupiwa ta thiku nuwera to pilewa.
ANT flower harvest COORD wild play child UNIV time AMONG fern DAT rabbit one small bed PST make.
(Before the flower-gathering and the wild play, the child always made the rabbit a little nest among the bracken.)
williams: "and before he wandered off to pick flowers, or play at brigands among the trees, he always made the Rabbit a little nest somewhere among the bracken,"

mua ha nuwera tupiwa sulae nela nuloe to nai.
LOC PROX bed rabbit warm COORD content PST be.
(In this nest the rabbit was warm and content.)
williams: "where he would be quite cosy,"

shia korua phena to nai.
3SG heart kind PST be.
(For the child's heart was kind.)
williams: "for he was a kind-hearted little boy"

shia mena tupiwa nuloe nai meno to lothea.
3SG DECL.COMP rabbit content be DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST love.
(And he loved for the rabbit to be comfortable.)
williams: "and he liked Bunny to be comfortable."

ta howai tupiwa sonu to ruemi.
one evening rabbit alone PST lie down.
(One evening the rabbit was lying there alone.)
williams: "One evening, while the Rabbit was lying there alone,"

shia lo rena mua whelina thei shia wuloe paloi rashelo nireku to laeno nila.
3SG PL REL LOC grass BETWEEN 3SG soft foot run insect PST long see.
(He was watching the small insects that ran in the grass between his soft paws.)
williams: "watching the ants that ran to and fro between his velvet paws in the grass,"

shia mena wi kuenora limoe mue raelu phero maeli shua meno to nila.
3SG DECL.COMP two strange creature OUT.OF tall fern quiet come DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST see.
(He saw two strange creatures come creeping out of the tall bracken.)
williams: "he saw two strange beings creep out of the tall bracken near him."

Notes: the summer earns the coined adjective outright: ru waolia, truly wondrous, wao standing still long enough to describe a season. June is carried as keloi thorui, summer's beginning, the month-name dissolved into the season the way this text dissolves person-names into offices; tea is howai nuola, the evening eating, and the picnic the same eating taken together on the grass. The nest is ta thiku nuwera, a little bed, made thoa phero, among the fern, phero being bracken's own word; "before he wandered off" is phoe standing over the two event nouns the wandering was for, the flower-harvest and the wild play. That wild play is also where Williams's "brigands" goes: canon refuses outlaw-romance no further than it refuses violence, so the game is waeshi wile, playing wild, which is what the game actually is. The ants walk in as lo thiku nireku, the small insects, Phi's insect-word covering the colony the story never particularizes further; and the strangers arrive on kuenora's first narrative work, two strange creatures coming maeli, quietly, out of the tall fern, creeping carried by the quiet.

waeshi tupiwa — The wild rabbits

lo shia phea miso tupiwa to nai.
PL 3SG AS REFL rabbit PST be.
(They were rabbits like himself.)
williams: "They were rabbits like himself,"

whekai lo shia sheloi nolika whila to phelu. lo shia ru newu to nai.
CONTR PL 3SG MANY animal hair PST hold. PL 3SG INTS new PST be.
(But they held thick fur, and they were altogether new.)
williams: "but quite furry and brand-new."

lo shia to se ke ru welao pilewa.
PL 3SG PST PASS INFER INTS good make.
(They must have been made very well.)
williams: "They must have been very well made,"

lo shia pina mawha thimu to se nila.
PL 3SG sew NONE time PST PASS see.
(For their seams were never seen at all.)
williams: "for their seams didn't show at all,"

lu lo shia roke. lo shia kire to kuenora helui.
COND PL 3SG move. PL 3SG shape PST strange change.
(When they moved, their shape changed strangely.)
williams: "and they changed shape in a queer way when they moved;"

ta shemu lo shia laeno nela lemi to nai. wireo shemu lo shia theru nela wuloe to nai.
one moment PL 3SG long COORD thin PST be. future moment PL 3SG thick COORD soft PST be.
(One moment they were long and thin; the next moment, plump and soft.)
williams: "one minute they were long and thin and the next minute fat and bunchy,"

whekai tupiwa theula thimu mua ta kire to manolu.
CONTR rabbit UNIV time LOC one shape PST stay.
(But the rabbit himself always stayed in one shape.)
williams: "instead of always staying the same like he did."

lo shia paloi nia muila to wuloe thalo.
PL 3SG foot ON earth PST soft walk.
(Their feet walked softly on the ground.)
williams: "Their feet padded softly on the ground,"

lo shia kau tupiwa to maeli shua.
PL 3SG ALL rabbit PST quiet come.
(They came creeping right up to him.)
williams: "and they crept quite close to him,"

lo shia nophae to si tiripe.
PL 3SG nose PST IPFV quiver.
(Their noses were quivering all the while.)
williams: "twitching their noses,"

tupiwa keli mue kua whano to laeno nila.
rabbit device OUT.OF where stand PST long see.
(The rabbit stared to see out of which side the device stood.)
williams: "while the Rabbit stared hard to see which side the clockwork stuck out,"

shia mena lo rena tupi miona sheloi shemu rena lo shia ka rato thena phelu meno to sano.
3SG DECL.COMP PL REL jump person MANY moment REL PL 3SG CAUS turn thing hold DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST know.
(For he knew that jumping people generally hold a thing that winds them up.)
williams: "for he knew that people who jump generally have something to wind them up."

whekai shia ha to po ma nila.
CONTR 3SG PROX PST POT NEG see.
(But he could not see it.)
williams: "But he couldn't see it."

lo shia ru phirae newu tupiwa to ke nai.
PL 3SG INTS different new rabbit PST INFER be.
(They were, evidently, an altogether new kind of rabbit.)
williams: "They were evidently a new kind of rabbit altogether."

lo shia tupiwa to laeno nila. thiku tupiwa lo shia we to laeno nila.
PL 3SG rabbit PST long see. small rabbit PL 3SG ALSO PST long see.
(They stared at him, and the little rabbit stared back.)
williams: "They stared at him, and the little Rabbit stared back."

sui theula ha shemu lo shia nophae to tiripe.
DUR UNIV PROX moment PL 3SG nose PST quiver.
(And all that time, their noses quivered.)
williams: "And all the time their noses twitched."

ta shia shola misa thia ma whano. misa thia nua lo mia ma wile sholo to thilou.
one 3SG QUOT.COMP why 2SG NEG stand. why 2SG COM PL 1SG NEG play QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST inquire.
(One of them asked: "Why do you not get up? Why do you not play with us?")
williams: "\"Why don't you get up and play with us?\" one of them asked."

tupiwa shola mia ma pula sholo to haolu.
rabbit QUOT.COMP 1SG NEG wish QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The rabbit said: "I do not wish to.")
williams: "\"I don't feel like it,\" said the Rabbit,"

lao shia mawha keli to phelu shia mena miso ha solae meno to ma pula.
BECAUSE 3SG NONE device PST hold 3SG DECL.COMP REFL PROX explain DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST NEG wish.
(Because he held no clockwork, he did not wish to explain it.)
williams: "for he didn't want to explain that he had no clockwork."

nolika whila tupiwa shola wao. ha ru siloma nai sholo to haolu.
animal hair rabbit QUOT.COMP wow. PROX INTS simple be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The furry rabbit said: "Ho! It is altogether simple.")
williams: "\"Ho!\" said the furry rabbit. \"It's as easy as anything,\""

shia ta whalo tupi to tupi. shia nia miso rokai tolae to whano.
3SG one large jump PST jump. 3SG ON REFL back leg PST stand.
(He gave one big hop, and stood on his hind legs.)
williams: "And he gave a big hop sideways and stood on his hind legs."

shia shola mia mena thia ha po pilewa meno ma nohero sholo to haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP 1SG DECL.COMP 2SG PROX POT make DECL.COMP.CLOSE NEG believe QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(He said: "I do not believe that you can do it!")
williams: "\"I don't believe you can!\" he said."

thiku tupiwa shola mia ha po pilewa. mia sheo theula thena mo raelu po tupi sholo to haolu.
small rabbit QUOT.COMP 1SG PROX POT make. 1SG THAN UNIV thing CMPR tall POT jump QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The little rabbit said: "I can! I can jump higher than anything!")
williams: "\"I can!\" said the little Rabbit. \"I can jump higher than anything!\""

shia lo rena lopia shia wapho shemu to thueli.
3SG PL REL child 3SG throw moment PST intend.
(He meant the moments when the child threw him.)
williams: "He meant when the Boy threw him,"

whekai shia mena miso ha haolu meno to ma pula.
CONTR 3SG DECL.COMP REFL PROX speak DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST NEG wish.
(But of course he did not wish to say so.)
williams: "but of course he didn't want to say so."

nolika whila tupiwa shola wa thia nia thia rokai tolae po tupi sholo to thilou.
animal hair rabbit QUOT.COMP Q 2SG ON 2SG back leg POT jump QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST inquire.
(The furry rabbit asked: "Can you hop on your hind legs?")
williams: "\"Can you hop on your hind legs?\" asked the furry rabbit."

ha thilou sukima to thola.
PROX inquire fear PST bring.
(That question brought fear.)
williams: "That was a dreadful question,"

wuloe wetha tupiwa mawha rokai tolae to phelu.
soft cloth rabbit NONE back leg PST hold.
(For the velveteen rabbit had no hind legs at all!)
williams: "for the Velveteen Rabbit had no hind legs at all!"

shia rokai phea tisu molu lue ta thena to se pilewa.
3SG back AS needle container ABL one thing PST PASS make.
(His back was made from one piece, like a pincushion.)
williams: "The back of him was made all in one piece, like a pincushion."

shia thoa phero to moesha meilo.
3SG AMONG fern PST still sit.
(He sat still in the bracken.)
williams: "He sat still in the bracken,"

shia mena lo phirae tupiwa ma nila meno to soliru.
3SG DECL.COMP PL different rabbit NEG see DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST hope.
(And hoped that the other rabbits would not see.)
williams: "and hoped that the other rabbits wouldn't notice."

shia nu wi shemu shola mia ma pula sholo to haolu.
3SG ORD two moment QUOT.COMP 1SG NEG wish QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(A second time he said: "I do not wish to!")
williams: "\"I don't want to!\" he said again."

whekai waeshi tupiwa ru tiso mirae phelu.
CONTR wild rabbit INTS sharp eye hold.
(But wild rabbits hold very sharp eyes.)
williams: "But the wild rabbits have very sharp eyes."

ha shia miso nolue to laeno ka kelu. shia to nila.
PROX 3SG REFL neck PST long CAUS become. 3SG PST see.
(This one stretched his neck out long, and looked.)
williams: "And this one stretched out his neck and looked."

shia shola shia mawha rokai tolae phelu sholo to kapura.
3SG QUOT.COMP 3SG NONE back leg hold QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST shout.
(He called out: "He has no hind legs!")
williams: "\"He hasn't got any hind legs!\" he called out."

shola wao. tupiwa whuo rokai tolae nai sholo.
QUOT.COMP wow. rabbit WITHOUT back leg be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Well! A rabbit without any hind legs!")
williams: "\"Fancy a rabbit without any hind legs!\""

shia to pa hola.
3SG PST INCH laugh.
(And he began to laugh.)
williams: "And he began to laugh."

thiku tupiwa shola mia phelu. mia rokai tolae phelu. mia nia lo shia meilo sholo to kapura.
small rabbit QUOT.COMP 1SG hold. 1SG back leg hold. 1SG ON PL 3SG sit QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST shout.
(The little rabbit cried: "I have! I have hind legs! I am sitting on them!")
williams: "\"I have!\" cried the little Rabbit. \"I have got hind legs! I am sitting on them!\""

waeshi tupiwa shola no lo shia laeno ka kelu. no phea ha wei mia lo shia ka nila sholo to haolu.
wild rabbit QUOT.COMP IMP PL 3SG long CAUS become. IMP AS PROX DAT 1SG PL 3SG CAUS see QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The wild rabbit said: "Then stretch them out long, and show them to me, like this!")
williams: "\"Then stretch them out and show me, like this!\" said the wild rabbit."

shia roa miso to pa rato. shia to pa rotiku.
3SG AROUND REFL PST INCH turn. 3SG PST INCH dance.
(He began to whirl around himself, and to dance.)
williams: "And he began to whirl round and dance,"

thiku tupiwa koma to pa rato.
small rabbit head PST INCH turn.
(Till the little rabbit's own head began to turn.)
williams: "till the little Rabbit got quite dizzy."

shia shola mia rotiku ma lothea. mia moesha meilo mo pula sholo to haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP 1SG dance NEG love. 1SG still sit CMPR wish QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(He said: "I do not love dancing. I would rather sit still!")
williams: "\"I don't like dancing,\" he said. \"I'd rather sit still!\""

whekai sui theula ha shemu shia mena miso rotiku meno to wilao.
CONTR DUR UNIV PROX moment 3SG DECL.COMP REFL dance DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST long-for.
(But all the while he was longing to dance.)
williams: "But all the while he was longing to dance,"

ta monelu newu thiku palo phaelo thue shia to rashelo.
one amused new small touch feel THROUGH 3SG PST run.
(For a funny new small-touching feeling ran through him.)
williams: "for a funny new tickly feeling ran through him,"

shia mena miso wei phea lo ha tupiwa tupi theula muila thena so loa meno to phaelo.
3SG DECL.COMP REFL DAT AS PL PROX rabbit jump UNIV earth thing FUT give DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST feel.
(He felt that he would give every thing in the world to jump the way these rabbits jumped.)
williams: "and he felt he would give anything in the world to be able to jump about like these rabbits did."

kuenora tupiwa to te rotiku. shia ru noshi to shua.
strange rabbit PST CESS dance. 3SG INTS near PST come.
(The strange rabbit ceased dancing, and came very near.)
williams: "The strange rabbit stopped dancing, and came quite close."

shia laeno menoa whila wuloe wetha tupiwa shonui to moli palo.
3SG long face hair soft cloth rabbit ear PST gentle touch.
(His long whiskers gently brushed the velveteen rabbit's ear.)
williams: "He came so close this time that his long whiskers brushed the Velveteen Rabbit's ear,"

pheo thena shia nophae to reshi tiripe.
POST thing 3SG nose PST fast quiver.
(Then his nose quivered fast.)
williams: "and then he wrinkled his nose suddenly"

shia shonui mulu to kelu. shia phei tupiwa to tupi.
3SG ear low PST become. 3SG AWAY rabbit PST jump.
(His ears went flat, and he jumped back away from him.)
williams: "and flattened his ears and jumped backwards."

shia shola shia ma telua whinu. shia tupiwa ma nai. shia shewo ma nai sholo to kapura.
3SG QUOT.COMP 3SG NEG accurate smell. 3SG rabbit NEG be. 3SG true NEG be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST shout.
(He cried out: "He does not smell right! He is not a rabbit! He is not Real!")
williams: "\"He doesn't smell right!\" he exclaimed. \"He isn't a rabbit at all! He isn't real!\""

thiku tupiwa shola mia shewo nai. mia shewo nai. lopia ha to haolu sholo to haolu.
small rabbit QUOT.COMP 1SG true be. 1SG true be. child PROX PST speak QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The little rabbit said: "I am Real! I am Real! The child said it!")
williams: "\"I am Real!\" said the little Rabbit. \"I am Real! The Boy said so!\""

shia to pai nuhewa.
3SG PST NEAR weep.
(And he nearly wept.)
williams: "And he nearly began to cry."

mua ha shemu paloi shonuwa to nai.
LOC PROX moment foot sound PST be.
(Just then there was a sound of feet.)
williams: "Just then there was a sound of footsteps,"

lopia pai lo shia to rashelo.
child NEAR PL 3SG PST run.
(The child ran past, near them.)
williams: "and the Boy ran past near them,"

roe paloi kohura nela whilo tulira phelo loa wi kuenora tupiwa lue nila to wepu.
INS foot noise COORD white tail light give two strange rabbit ABL see PST go.
(With a noise of feet and a flash of white tails, the two strange rabbits went from sight.)
williams: "and with a stamp of feet and a flash of white tails the two strange rabbits disappeared."

thiku tupiwa shola no turema. no nua mia wile sholo to kapura.
small rabbit QUOT.COMP IMP return. IMP COM 1SG play QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST shout.
(The little rabbit called: "Come back! Play with me!")
williams: "\"Come back and play with me!\" called the little Rabbit."

shola pi no turema. mia mena mia shewo nai meno sano sholo.
QUOT.COMP POL IMP return. 1SG DECL.COMP 1SG true be DECL.COMP.CLOSE know QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Oh, please come back! I know that I am Real!")
williams: "\"Oh, do come back! I know I am Real!\""

whekai mawha lonae to nai.
CONTR NONE respond PST be.
(But there was no answer.)
williams: "But there was no answer,"

li lo thiku nireku to rashelo.
RESTR PL small insect PST run.
(Only the little insects ran to and fro.)
williams: "only the little ants ran to and fro,"

mua rena wi kuenora limoe thue to wepu lokue phero to moli rotiku.
LOC REL two strange creature THROUGH PST go place fern PST gentle dance.
(Where the two strangers had passed, the fern danced gently.)
williams: "and the bracken swayed gently where the two strangers had passed."

wuloe wetha tupiwa ru sonu to nai.
soft cloth rabbit INTS alone PST be.
(The velveteen rabbit was all alone.)
williams: "The Velveteen Rabbit was all alone."

shia shola wao. misa lo shia phea ha to rashelo. misa lo shia to po ma manolu. misa lo shia nua mia to po ma haolu sholo to remo.
3SG QUOT.COMP wow. why PL 3SG AS PROX PST run. why PL 3SG PST POT NEG stay. why PL 3SG COM 1SG PST POT NEG speak QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST think.
(He thought: "Oh! Why did they run away like that? Why could they not stay? Why could they not talk with me?")
williams: "\"Oh, dear!\" he thought. \"Why did they run away like that? Why couldn't they stop and talk to me?\""

sui laeno thimu shia to ru moesha ruemi. shia phero to laeno nila.
DUR long time 3SG PST INTS still lie down. 3SG fern PST long see.
(For a long time he lay very still, watching the fern.)
williams: "For a long time he lay very still, watching the bracken,"

shia mena lo shia turema meno to soliru.
3SG DECL.COMP PL 3SG return DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST hope.
(And hoping that they would come back.)
williams: "and hoping that they would come back."

whekai lo shia mawha thimu to turema.
CONTR PL 3SG NONE time PST return.
(But they never returned.)
williams: "But they never returned,"

pheo soli shemu sorae mo mulu to lepa.
POST SOME moment sun CMPR low PST fall.
(Presently the sun sank lower.)
williams: "and presently the sun sank lower"

lo thiku whilo shero philuewa to wapi. lo shia wapile to tiripe.
PL small white night butterfly PST fly. PL 3SG wing PST quiver.
(The little white night-butterflies came flying, their wings quivering.)
williams: "and the little white moths fluttered out,"

lopia to shua. shia kau womu tupiwa to kolua.
child PST come. 3SG ALL home rabbit PST carry.
(The child came, and carried him home.)
williams: "and the Boy came and carried him home."

Notes: the scene runs on the new small-motion verb: tiripe carries the twitching noses twice, the moths' wings once, and the sudden wrinkle of the stranger's nose, one verb for the body's fast involuntary weather. The moth itself is the coined butterfly's night sibling, shero philuewa, exactly as its entry provides, its fluttering split into flying and wing-quiver since Phi gives each verb its own clause. The wild ones' shape-shifting lands on the story's own echo: theru nela wuloe, plump and soft, the same pair the opening gave the velveteen body, now something the strangers can turn on and off. Dizziness is a turning head, koma to pa rato; the pincushion is tisu molu, the needle-holder; "evidently" and "must have been" both live in ke, the inference evidential, which is what Williams's words mean: conclusions drawn from seams that do not show. The dreadful question is ha thilou sukima to thola, the asking brought fear, thilou's event noun doing "question"; "he said again" counts itself, nu wi shemu, the second time; and the wild rabbits' sharp eyes stand in the gnomic present, a fact about wild rabbits rather than a past event. The refusal of the whole exchange to turn cruel in Phi's mouth is not softening: the taunts stay ("A rabbit without any hind legs!"), carried by wao and the laugh, but the language reports them as astonishment and mirth, which is faithful to what young wild things actually do. The passing of the strangers leaves the fern dancing gently, phero to moli rotiku, in the place they went through, the oblique relative keeping thue at its post; the sunset is sorae mo mulu to lepa, the sun fell lower; and the section's loneliest sentence is its shortest: wuloe wetha tupiwa ru sonu to nai.

serao kelu — Growing old

sheloi philo to wepu. thiku tupiwa ru serao to kelu.
MANY day PST go. small rabbit INTS old PST become.
(Many days went by, and the little rabbit grew very old and worn.)
williams: "Weeks passed, and the little Rabbit grew very old and shabby,"

whekai lopia shia to ru lothea.
CONTR child 3SG PST INTS love.
(But the child loved him just as truly.)
williams: "but the Boy loved him just as much."

shia shia to ru kema lothea. thelao theula shia menoa whila lue lothea to wepu.
3SG 3SG PST INTS strong love. CONS UNIV 3SG face hair ABL love PST go.
(He loved him so hard that all his whiskers went from love.)
williams: "He loved him so hard that he loved all his whiskers off,"

mua shia shonui horathe welisha wetha kerou welisha to kelu.
LOC 3SG ear dawn color cloth stone color PST become.
(The dawn-colored cloth in his ears turned gray.)
williams: "and the pink lining to his ears turned grey,"

shia lo mureli piloe lue nila to pai wepu.
3SG PL brown spot ABL see PST NEAR go.
(His brown spots nearly went from sight.)
williams: "and his brown spots faded."

we shia kire to pa wepu.
ALSO 3SG shape PST INCH go.
(Even his shape began to go.)
williams: "He even began to lose his shape,"

shia nosa phea tupiwa to se po ma nila.
3SG now AS rabbit PST PASS POT NEG see.
(He could scarcely be seen as a rabbit now.)
williams: "and he scarcely looked like a rabbit any more,"

li wei lopia shia tupiwa to nai.
RESTR DAT child 3SG rabbit PST be.
(Only to the child was he still a rabbit.)
williams: "except to the Boy."

wei shia tupiwa theula thimu phelora to nai.
DAT 3SG rabbit UNIV time beautiful PST be.
(To him, the rabbit was always beautiful.)
williams: "To him he was always beautiful,"

li ha wei thiku tupiwa thaemo to nai.
RESTR PROX DAT small rabbit precious PST be.
(And only this was precious to the little rabbit.)
williams: "and that was all that the little Rabbit cared about."

lao lopia tholu whekelua shia shewo to ki ka kelu shia mena phirae miona miso thela nila meno to ma remo.
BECAUSE child space magic 3SG true PST PFV CAUS become 3SG DECL.COMP different person REFL how see DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST NEG think.
(Because the nursery magic had made him Real, he did not think about how other people saw him.)
williams: "He didn't mind how he looked to other people, because the nursery magic had made him Real,"

lu thia shewo nai. serao kelu thiku thena nai.
COND 2SG true be. old become small thing be.
(When you are Real, growing shabby is a small thing.)
williams: "and when you are Real shabbiness doesn't matter."

Notes: the whole section is built to rhyme with what came before, because Williams builds it that way: the whiskers go lue lothea, from love, the Skin Horse's exact preposition of source; the ears' dawn-color turns to the registry's stone-color, pink to gray in two compounds; the coined spots nearly go from sight; and the section closes on the gnomic that answers kipona thiku nai from the hearth-side dialogue: serao kelu thiku thena nai, growing shabby is a small thing. "He scarcely looked like a rabbit any more" runs phea through the passive with po ma, could scarcely be seen as a rabbit, and the exception Williams grants is li wei lopia, only to the child, the restriction and the dative carrying "except." How-he-looked-to-others embeds on the bare question-word thela, how, no complementizer needed, and what the rabbit does with that question is Phi's plainest negation: he did not think it.

thero mokela — The fire-sickness

pheo thena ta philo lopia mokela to kelu.
POST thing one day child sick PST become.
(And then, one day, the child fell sick.)
williams: "And then, one day, the Boy was ill."

shia menoa ru rulo to kelu.
3SG face INTS red PST become.
(His face grew very red.)
williams: "His face grew very flushed,"

shia sui nulae to haolu.
3SG DUR sleep PST speak.
(He talked in his sleep.)
williams: "and he talked in his sleep,"

shia thiku weloni phea thero to nai.
3SG small body AS fire PST be.
(His little body was like fire.)
williams: "and his little body was so hot"

lu lopia shia noshi phelu. weloni tupiwa to thape.
COND child 3SG near hold. body rabbit PST burn.
(When the child held him close, the body burned the rabbit.)
williams: "that it burned the Rabbit when he held him close."

lo kuenora miona mua lopia tholu to shua. lo shia to wepu.
PL strange person LOC child space PST come. PL 3SG PST go.
(Strange people came into the nursery, and went again.)
williams: "Strange people came and went in the nursery,"

ta luma sui theula shero to thape.
one lamp DUR UNIV night PST burn.
(A lamp burned all night.)
williams: "and a light burned all night"

sui theula ha thimu thiku wuloe wetha tupiwa phou nuwera wetha to ruemi.
DUR UNIV PROX time small soft cloth rabbit BELOW bed cloth PST lie down.
(Through all of it, the little velveteen rabbit lay under the bedclothes.)
williams: "and through it all the little Velveteen Rabbit lay there,"

shia lue nila to se kupe.
3SG ABL see PST PASS hide.
(He was hidden from sight.)
williams: "hidden from sight under the bedclothes,"

shia mawha thimu to roke.
3SG NONE time PST move.
(And he never stirred.)
williams: "and he never stirred,"

shia sukima to phelu. shia mena lu lo shia miso hekawi. soli miona miso kau phirae lokue po kolua meno to remo.
3SG fear PST hold. 3SG DECL.COMP COND PL 3SG REFL find. SOME person REFL ALL different place POT carry DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST think.
(He held fear: he thought that if they found him, someone might carry him away to another place.)
williams: "for he was afraid that if they found him some one might take him away,"

shia mena lopia miso phelona meno to sano.
3SG DECL.COMP child REFL require DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST know.
(And he knew that the child needed him.)
williams: "and he knew that the Boy needed him."

ha laeno nela shorui thimu to nai.
PROX long COORD weary time PST be.
(It was a long, weary time.)
williams: "It was a long weary time,"

lopia ru mokela to nai. thelao shia to po ma wile.
child INTS sick PST be. CONS 3SG PST POT NEG play.
(The child was so sick that he could not play.)
williams: "for the Boy was too ill to play,"

thiku tupiwa sui theula philo mawha theko to phelu. lo philo to sheru wepu.
small rabbit DUR UNIV day NONE craft PST hold. PL day PST slow go.
(All day long the little rabbit had no work to do, and the days went slowly.)
williams: "and the little Rabbit found it rather dull with nothing to do all day long."

whekai shia to hurao numelia.
CONTR 3SG PST patient nestle.
(But he nestled down patiently.)
williams: "But he snuggled down patiently,"

shia wea rena lopia towe kelu shemu to nila.
3SG TOWARD REL child well become moment PST see.
(He looked toward the time when the child would be well again.)
williams: "and looked forward to the time when the Boy should be well again,"

mua ha shemu lo shia thoa lo peloru nela lo philuewa mua thepalu so wepu.
LOC PROX moment PL 3SG AMONG PL flower COORD PL butterfly LOC garden FUT go.
(Then they would go out in the garden among the flowers and the butterflies.)
williams: "and they would go out in the garden amongst the flowers and the butterflies"

lo shia phea luera mua mirulo loremi lokue lo horae wile so wile.
PL 3SG AS past LOC berry branch place PL radiant play FUT play.
(And they would play splendid games in the berry-cane thicket, as in the past.)
williams: "and play splendid games in the raspberry thicket like they used to."

shia sheloi loshi thena to thueli.
3SG MANY joyful thing PST intend.
(Many joyful things he planned.)
williams: "All sorts of delightful things he planned,"

sui lopia kesho nulae tupiwa kau koma nuwera to maeli shua.
DUR child middle sleep rabbit ALL head bed PST quiet come.
(While the child lay half asleep, the rabbit crept up close to the pillow.)
williams: "and while the Boy lay half asleep he crept up close to the pillow"

shia muo lopia shonui lo ha thena to whishela.
3SG INTO child ear PL PROX thing PST whisper.
(And whispered these things into his ear.)
williams: "and whispered them in his ear."

pheo soli shemu thero mokela to rato.
POST SOME moment fire sick PST turn.
(Presently the fire-sickness turned.)
williams: "And presently the fever turned,"

lopia towe to pa kelu.
child well PST INCH become.
(The child began to get well.)
williams: "and the Boy got better."

shia mua nuwera to po meilo. shia lo welisha shelu to po nila.
3SG LOC bed PST POT sit. 3SG PL color book PST POT see.
(He could sit up in bed, and look at the color-books.)
williams: "He was able to sit up in bed and look at picture-books,"

thiku tupiwa sio shia to numelia.
small rabbit BESIDE 3SG PST nestle.
(While the little rabbit nestled close at his side.)
williams: "while the little Rabbit cuddled close at his side."

ta philo lopia to po whano. shia miso wethalu to po howela.
one day child PST POT stand. 3SG REFL garment PST POT receive.
(And one day, he was allowed to get up, and to take up his garments.)
williams: "And one day, they let him get up and dress."

Notes: scarlet fever keeps the name this text long ago gave it, thero mokela, the fire-sickness, and the fever's body is described the only way a cloth animal would describe it: phea thero, like fire, so that Williams's "it burned the Rabbit" follows as plain fact. The vigil under the bedclothes is all posture and negation: he lay, was hidden from sight, never once moved, and the fear that keeps him still is held, sukima to phelu, with its reason unfolded inside the thought. The waiting is the coined nestling done hurao, patiently, and the daydream runs on the future particle through the garden, the flowers, the coined butterflies in their proper daylight, and the berry-cane thicket phea luera, as in the past. What he does with the dreams is the whisper-verb's tenderest work: muo lopia shonui lo ha thena to whishela, he whispered these things into the child's ear, the sickroom's one-listener speech exactly. The fever "turned" in Phi as in English, rato, the same verb that winds the mechanical toys; and the picture-books are welisha shelu, color-books, which is what a picture-book is to the child reading it.

moriwhe remo — The seaside plan

keru sorae kelua to nai.
bright sun morning PST be.
(It was a bright, sun-filled morning.)
williams: "It was a bright, sunny morning,"

lo wira to ki se ru phae.
PL window PST PFV PASS INTS open.
(The windows had been opened full wide.)
williams: "and the windows stood wide open."

lo miona kau womu lerua raelu lokue lopia to kolua.
PL person ALL home exterior tall place child PST carry.
(They carried the child out to the house's high outside place.)
williams: "They had carried the Boy out on to the balcony,"

shia roe sulae wethalu to se lomare.
3SG INS warm garment PST PASS embrace.
(He was wrapped in a warm garment.)
williams: "wrapped in a shawl,"

thiku tupiwa thoa nuwera wetha to ruemi. shia to si remo.
small rabbit AMONG bed cloth PST lie down. 3SG PST IPFV think.
(The little rabbit lay among the bedclothes, thinking.)
williams: "and the little Rabbit lay tangled up among the bedclothes, thinking."

wireo philo lopia kau moriwhe kerime so wepu.
future day child ALL sea shore FUT go.
(Tomorrow the child would go to the seashore.)
williams: "The Boy was going to the seaside to-morrow."

theula thena to ki se norelu.
UNIV thing PST PFV PASS form.
(Everything had been arranged.)
williams: "Everything was arranged,"

nosa li rena theala miona haolu se na teru.
now RESTR REL heal person speak PASS NEC process.
(Now only the healer's words remained to be carried through.)
williams: "and now it only remained to carry out the doctor's orders."

lo miona theula ha to shareo.
PL person UNIV PROX PST discuss.
(The people talked it all through.)
williams: "They talked about it all,"

thiku tupiwa phou nuwera wetha to ruemi.
small rabbit BELOW bed cloth PST lie down.
(While the little rabbit lay under the bedclothes.)
williams: "while the little Rabbit lay under the bedclothes,"

li shia koma mue wetha to whano. shia to sheluo.
RESTR 3SG head OUT.OF cloth PST stand. 3SG PST listen.
(Only his head peeped out of the cloth, and he listened.)
williams: "with just his head peeping out, and listened."

tholu lue mokela thinoe se na hiso ka kelu.
space ABL sick seed PASS NEC clean CAUS become.
(The room must be made clean of the sickness-seeds.)
williams: "The room was to be disinfected,"

theula rena lopia mua nuwera nua to wile shelu nela wilemo se na thape.
UNIV REL child LOC bed COM PST play book COORD toy PASS NEC burn.
(All the books and toys the child had played with in bed must be burned.)
williams: "and all the books and toys that the Boy had played with in bed must be burnt."

thiku tupiwa shola hoi. wireo philo lo mia kau moriwhe kerime so wepu sholo to remo.
small rabbit QUOT.COMP onward. future day PL 1SG ALL sea shore FUT go QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST think.
(The little rabbit thought: "Hurrah! Tomorrow we go to the seashore!")
williams: "\"Hurrah!\" thought the little Rabbit. \"To-morrow we shall go to the seaside!\""

lopia sheloi shemu moriwhe kerime to haolu.
child MANY moment sea shore PST speak.
(For the child had often talked of the seashore.)
williams: "For the boy had often talked of the seaside,"

tupiwa mena miso lo rena shua whalo morilu nila meno to ru pula.
rabbit DECL.COMP REFL PL REL come large wave see DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST INTS wish.
(The rabbit wished very much to see the big waves that come rolling in.)
williams: "and he wanted very much to see the big waves coming in,"

shia we lo ru thiku moriwhe limoe nela lo kirua womu nila to pula.
3SG ALSO PL INTS small sea creature COORD PL sand home see PST wish.
(He wished to see the tiny sea-creatures too, and the sand houses.)
williams: "and the tiny crabs, and the sand castles."

mua ha shemu tholu woru shia to nila.
LOC PROX moment space keeper 3SG PST see.
(Just then the keeper caught sight of him.)
williams: "Just then Nana caught sight of him."

shia shola shia serao tupiwa thela nai sholo to thilou.
3SG QUOT.COMP 3SG old rabbit how be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST inquire.
(She asked: "And his old rabbit, how of him?")
williams: "\"How about his old Bunny?\" she asked."

rena theala miona shola wa ha sholo to thilou.
REL heal person QUOT.COMP Q PROX QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST inquire.
(The healer said: "That?")
williams: "\"That?\" said the doctor."

shola ha sheloi thero mokela thinoe phelu sholo.
QUOT.COMP PROX MANY fire sick seed hold QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("It holds a mass of fire-sickness seeds!")
williams: "\"Why, it's a mass of scarlet fever germs!-"

shola no ha nosa thape sholo.
QUOT.COMP IMP PROX now burn QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Burn it at once.")
williams: "Burn it at once."

shola hina. tawimo haolu. no wei shia ta newu tupiwa loa sholo.
QUOT.COMP what. foolish speak. IMP DAT 3SG one new rabbit give QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("What? Foolish talk! Give him a new one.")
williams: "What? Nonsense! Get him a new one."

shola shia ha mawha thimu na ma phelu sholo.
QUOT.COMP 3SG PROX NONE time NEC NEG hold QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("He must never have that again!")
williams: "He mustn't have that any more!\""

Notes: the disinfection is the section's own composition: mokela thinoe, the sickness-seeds, germs named as what they do, so the room is cleaned lue mokela thinoe, of them, by canon's own cleaning causative. The healer keeps the epithet this text coined for him, rena theala miona, the one who heals, and his orders are only haolu, words, that must be carried through, teru, since Phi grants no one the vocabulary of command; the terrible authority survives entirely in na, the necessity stacked into every sentence of the scene. His verdict compresses Williams's rhythm rather than his content: the seeds, the burning, the foolish-talk dismissal, the new rabbit, and the never, each its own quoted sentence. Against all this stand the rabbit's plans: the waves arrive as lo rena shua whalo morilu, the big waves that come, the crabs as ru thiku moriwhe limoe, the very small sea-creatures, named by their world rather than their species, and the sand castles as kirua womu, sand-homes, which is what a child builds. hoi, the onward-interjection, is the rabbit's hurrah, and its misplaced hope is the scene's whole grief.

molu — The sack

thiku tupiwa nua lo serao welisha shelu nela sheloi serao thena muo ta molu to se pesa.
small rabbit COM PL old color book COORD MANY old thing INTO one container PST PASS push.
(The little rabbit was put into a sack with the old color-books and a heap of old things.)
williams: "And so the little Rabbit was put into a sack with the old picture-books and a lot of rubbish,"

shia kau thepalu lumae noe pelori womu to se kolua.
3SG ALL garden end BEHIND bird home PST PASS carry.
(He was carried out to the garden's end, behind the bird-house.)
williams: "and carried out to the end of the garden behind the fowl-house."

ha wei whalo thero welao lokue to nai.
PROX DAT large fire good place PST be.
(That was a good place for a great fire.)
williams: "That was a fine place to make a bonfire,"

whekai thepalu woru mua ha shemu sheloi theko to phelu. thelao shia thero to po ma pilewa.
CONTR garden keeper LOC PROX moment MANY craft PST hold. CONS 3SG fire PST POT NEG make.
(But the garden's keeper held much work just then, and so he could not make the fire.)
williams: "only the gardener was too busy just then to attend to it."

shia lo tumeki nuora na muholi. shia lo liro thinoe na muraki.
3SG PL root food NEC dig. 3SG PL green seed NEC harvest.
(He had the root-foods to dig, and the green seeds to gather.)
williams: "He had the potatoes to dig and the green peas to gather,"

whekai shia shola wireo kelua thorui mia so shua. mia theula ha so thape sholo to haolu.
CONTR 3SG QUOT.COMP future morning beginning 1SG FUT come. 1SG UNIV PROX FUT burn QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(But he said: "At tomorrow morning's beginning I will come, and I will burn all of this.")
williams: "but next morning he promised to come quite early and burn the whole lot."

ha shero lopia mua phirae tholu to nulae.
PROX night child LOC different space PST sleep.
(That night the child slept in a different room.)
williams: "That night the Boy slept in a different bedroom,"

ta newu tupiwa nua shia to nulae.
one new rabbit COM 3SG PST sleep.
(A new rabbit slept with him.)
williams: "and he had a new bunny to sleep with him."

ha ru horae tupiwa to nai. shia theula whilo wuloe mophi to nai. shia mirae shewo phielo to nai.
PROX INTS radiant rabbit PST be. 3SG UNIV white soft wool PST be. 3SG eye true glass PST be.
(It was a truly splendid rabbit, all white soft wool, its eyes real glass.)
williams: "It was a splendid bunny, all white plush with real glass eyes,"

whekai lopia ru therua to nai. thelao shia ha to po ma remo.
CONTR child INTS eager PST be. CONS 3SG PROX PST POT NEG think.
(But the child was so eager that he could scarcely think of it.)
williams: "but the Boy was too excited to care very much about it."

lao wireo philo shia kau moriwhe kerime so wepu ha ru waolia thena to nai.
BECAUSE future day 3SG ALL sea shore FUT go PROX INTS wondrous thing PST be.
(For tomorrow he was going to the seashore, and that itself was so wondrous a thing.)
williams: "For to-morrow he was going to the seaside, and that in itself was such a wonderful thing"

shia mawha phirae thena to po remo.
3SG NONE different thing PST POT think.
(That he could think of nothing else.)
williams: "that he could think of nothing else."

lopia to nulae. shia moriwhe kerime to whemura.
child PST sleep. 3SG sea shore PST dream.
(The child slept, dreaming of the seashore.)
williams: "And while the Boy was asleep, dreaming of the seaside,"

thiku tupiwa mua shuna noe pelori womu thoa lo serao welisha shelu to ruemi.
small rabbit LOC edge BEHIND bird home AMONG PL old color book PST lie down.
(The little rabbit lay among the old color-books, in the corner behind the bird-house.)
williams: "the little Rabbit lay among the old picture-books in the corner behind the fowl-house,"

shia miso ru sonu to phaelo.
3SG REFL INTS alone PST feel.
(And he felt himself very alone.)
williams: "and he felt very lonely."

molu to se ma tiwa.
container PST PASS NEG tie.
(The sack had been left untied.)
williams: "The sack had been left untied,"

thelao shia miso to thiku roke. shia koma thue phae to wepu.
CONS 3SG REFL PST small move. 3SG head THROUGH open PST go.
(So by small movements of himself, his head went through the opening.)
williams: "and so by wriggling a bit he was able to get his head through the opening"

shia mue molu to nila.
3SG OUT.OF container PST see.
(And he looked out.)
williams: "and look out."

shia to thiku tiripe.
3SG PST small quiver.
(He was shivering a little.)
williams: "He was shivering a little,"

mua shewo nuwera nulae shia keno to nai.
LOC true bed sleep 3SG custom PST be.
(For sleeping in a proper bed had always been his custom.)
williams: "for he had always been used to sleeping in a proper bed,"

nosa shia nolika whila lue lomare ru lemi to ki kelu.
now 3SG animal hair ABL embrace INTS thin PST PFV become.
(And by now his coat had grown very thin from hugging.)
williams: "and by this time his coat had worn so thin and threadbare from hugging"

thelao shia tupiwa to te sulae ka kelu.
CONS 3SG rabbit PST CESS warm CAUS become.
(So that it no longer kept him warm.)
williams: "that it was no longer any protection to him."

pai shia lo mirulo loremi to nai.
NEAR 3SG PL berry branch PST be.
(Near him were the berry canes.)
williams: "Near by he could see the thicket of raspberry canes,"

lo shia to raelu thuroa. lo shia phea nulo shelira noshi to whano.
PL 3SG PST tall grow. PL 3SG AS deep forest near PST stand.
(They grew tall, and stood close together like a deep jungle.)
williams: "growing tall and close like a tropical jungle,"

mua lo shia shomelu tupiwa nua lopia mua lo luera kelua to ki wile.
LOC PL 3SG shadow rabbit COM child LOC PL past morning PST PFV play.
(In their shadow he had played with the child on bygone mornings.)
williams: "in whose shadow he had played with the Boy on bygone mornings."

shia mua thepalu lo laeno sorae shemu to remo.
3SG LOC garden PL long sun moment PST think.
(He thought of those long sun-lit hours in the garden.)
williams: "He thought of those long sunlit hours in the garden-"

lo shia ru loshi to nai.
PL 3SG INTS joyful PST be.
(How joyful they had been.)
williams: "how happy they were-"

ta whalo nuhe kau shia to shua.
one large sadness ALL 3SG PST come.
(And a great sadness came over him.)
williams: "and a great sadness came over him."

shia mena theula lo ha shemu neo miso wepu meno to ho nila.
3SG DECL.COMP UNIV PL PROX moment FRONT REFL go DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST ASSUM see.
(He seemed to see all those hours pass before him.)
williams: "He seemed to see them all pass before him,"

theula sheo phirae mo phelora to nai.
UNIV THAN different CMPR beautiful PST be.
(Each more beautiful than the last.)
williams: "each more beautiful than the other,"

shia mua peloru muila lo whekelua womu to nila.
3SG LOC flower earth PL magic home PST see.
(He saw the magic houses in the flower-bed.)
williams: "the fairy huts in the flower-bed,"

shia mua shelira lo maeli howai to nila.
3SG LOC forest PL quiet evening PST see.
(He saw the quiet evenings in the wood.)
williams: "the quiet evenings in the wood"

mua lo ha howai shia thoa phero to ruemi. lo thiku nireku nia shia paloi to rashelo.
LOC PL PROX evening 3SG AMONG fern PST lie down. PL small insect ON 3SG foot PST run.
(In those evenings he lay in the bracken, and the little insects ran over his paws.)
williams: "when he lay in the bracken and the little ants ran over his paws;"

shia rena shia nu ta shemu mena miso shewo nai meno sano waolia philo to nila.
3SG REL 3SG ORD one moment DECL.COMP REFL true be DECL.COMP.CLOSE know wondrous day PST see.
(And he saw the wondrous day when he first knew that he was Real.)
williams: "the wonderful day when he first knew that he was Real."

shia ru phue nela moli kori kalora to remo.
3SG INTS wise COORD gentle leather horse PST think.
(He thought of the Leather Horse, so wise and gentle.)
williams: "He thought of the Skin Horse, so wise and gentle,"

shia theula kori kalora haolu to remo.
3SG UNIV leather horse speak PST think.
(And of all that the horse had told him.)
williams: "and all that he had told him."

lu theula thena lumae phea ha nai. lothea nela mioru lepa nela shewo kelu wei hina nai.
COND UNIV thing end AS PROX be. love COORD beauty fall COORD true become DAT what be.
(If the end of it all is like this, for what is the loving, and the falling of beauty, and the becoming Real?)
williams: "Of what use was it to be loved and lose one's beauty and become Real if it all ended like this?"

ta mirae phialu nia shia thiku serao wuloe nophae to mulu wepu.
one eye water ON 3SG small old soft nose PST low go.
(A tear trickled down his little worn velvet nose.)
williams: "And a tear, ... trickled down his little shabby velvet nose"

ha shewo mirae phialu to nai.
PROX true eye water PST be.
(It was a real tear.)
williams: "a real tear,"

shia kau muila to lepa.
3SG ALL earth PST fall.
(And it fell to the ground.)
williams: "and fell to the ground."

Notes: the sack scene keeps its geography whole: the garden's lumae, its end, the same end-word the sun and the discussion own elsewhere in the corpus; the fowl-house as pelori womu, the birds' home; the gardener as thepalu woru, the garden's keeper, third of the text's keeper-offices. His chores are named, not waved at: tumeki nuora, the root-foods, and liro thinoe, the green seeds, potatoes and peas seen from a garden's point of view. The reverie is the text gathering its own earlier witnesses: the magic houses, the quiet evenings, the fern, the ants over his paws, the coined waolia day he first knew, each image already carrying a scene's worth of weight. The despairing question is built entirely of things the story has taught: the end of all things like this, and the loving, beauty's falling, the becoming Real, standing as bare event nouns asking wei hina, for what. And the tear keeps the compound the registry calls the oldest kenning and the truest, mirae phialu, eye-water, given one extra sentence because Williams gives it one: ha shewo mirae phialu to nai, it was a real tear, the word shewo quietly arriving where the story's whole meaning is about to turn.

whekelua peloru — The magic flower

pheo thena ta kuenora thena to kelu.
POST thing one strange thing PST become.
(And then a strange thing happened.)
williams: "And then a strange thing happened."

mua rena mirae phialu to lepa lokue ta peloru lue muila to thuroa.
LOC REL eye water PST fall place one flower ABL earth PST grow.
(In the place where the tear had fallen, a flower grew out of the ground.)
williams: "For where the tear had fallen a flower grew out of the ground,"

ha kuenora peloru to nai. shia phea mawha rena mua thepalu thuroa peloru to nai.
PROX strange flower PST be. 3SG AS NONE REL LOC garden grow flower PST be.
(It was a strange flower, like none that grew in the garden.)
williams: "a mysterious flower, not at all like any that grew in the garden."

shia lo lemi liro lirowa to phelu.
3SG PL thin green leaf PST hold.
(It held slender green leaves.)
williams: "It had slender green leaves"

lo shia phea keru liro kerou to nai.
PL 3SG AS bright green stone PST be.
(Their color was of bright green stones.)
williams: "the colour of emeralds,"

mua lirowa kesho ta phiralea phea solai soeli to nai.
LOC leaf middle one blossom AS gold cup PST be.
(And in the middle of the leaves was a blossom like a golden cup.)
williams: "and in the centre of the leaves a blossom like a golden cup."

shia ru phelora to nai. thelao thiku tupiwa nuhewa to sahu.
3SG INTS beautiful PST be. CONS small rabbit weep PST forget.
(It was so beautiful that the little rabbit forgot to weep.)
williams: "It was so beautiful that the little Rabbit forgot to cry,"

shia li to ruemi. shia ha to laeno nila.
3SG RESTR PST lie down. 3SG PROX PST long see.
(He simply lay there, watching it.)
williams: "and just lay there watching it."

pheo soli shemu phiralea to phae.
POST SOME moment blossom PST open.
(And presently the blossom opened.)
williams: "And presently the blossom opened,"

lue shia ta whekelua miona to shua.
ABL 3SG one magic person PST come.
(And out of it came a magic person.)
williams: "and out of it there stepped a fairy."

shia mua theula muila mo ko phelora whekelua miona to nai.
3SG LOC UNIV earth CMPR FOC beautiful magic person PST be.
(She was the most beautiful magic person in the whole world.)
williams: "She was quite the loveliest fairy in the whole world."

shia wethalu moriwhe kerou nela suiloe to nai.
3SG garment sea stone COORD dew PST be.
(Her garment was of sea-stones and dew-drops.)
williams: "Her dress was of pearl and dew-drops,"

roa shia nolue nela mua shia whila lo peloru to nai.
AROUND 3SG neck COORD LOC 3SG hair PL flower PST be.
(There were flowers around her neck and in her hair.)
williams: "and there were flowers round her neck and in her hair,"

shia menoa phea mo ko seroli peloru to nai.
3SG face AS CMPR FOC mature flower PST be.
(And her face was like the most fully-opened flower of all.)
williams: "and her face was like the most perfect flower of all."

shia kau thiku tupiwa to shua. shia muo miso pelio tupiwa to howela.
3SG ALL small rabbit PST come. 3SG INTO REFL arm rabbit PST receive.
(She came to the little rabbit, and gathered him up into her arms.)
williams: "And she came close to the little Rabbit and gathered him up in her arms"

shia lue nuhewa wirua wuloe wetha nophae to phimela.
3SG ABL weep wet soft cloth nose PST kiss.
(And she kissed his velveteen nose, all wet from weeping.)
williams: "and kissed him on his velveteen nose that was all damp from crying."

shia shola kona thiku tupiwa. wa thia mia sua nai ma sano sholo to haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP VOC small rabbit. Q 2SG 1SG who be NEG know QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(She said: "Little rabbit, do you not know who I am?")
williams: "\"Little Rabbit,\" she said, \"don't you know who I am?\""

tupiwa wea shia to nila.
rabbit TOWARD 3SG PST see.
(The rabbit looked up at her.)
williams: "The Rabbit looked up at her,"

shia mena miso mua luera shia menoa nila meno to ho remo.
3SG DECL.COMP REFL LOC past 3SG face see DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST ASSUM think.
(It seemed to him that he had seen her face somewhere in the past.)
williams: "and it seemed to him that he had seen her face before,"

whekai shia kua to po ma halemu.
CONTR 3SG where PST POT NEG remember.
(But he could not remember where.)
williams: "but he couldn't think where."

shia shola mia lopia tholu whekelua miona nai sholo to haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP 1SG child space magic person be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(She said: "I am the nursery magic person.")
williams: "\"I am the nursery magic Fairy,\" she said."

shola mia theula rena lo lopia ki lothea wilemo woru nai sholo.
QUOT.COMP 1SG UNIV REL PL child PFV love toy keeper be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("I am the keeper of all the toys that children have loved.")
williams: "\"I take care of all the playthings that the children have loved."

shola lu lo shia serao kelu. lu lo lopia lo shia mawha thimu phelona. mia shua. mia nua mia lo shia kolua. mia lo shia shewo ka kelu sholo.
QUOT.COMP COND PL 3SG old become. COND PL child PL 3SG NONE time require. 1SG come. 1SG COM 1SG PL 3SG carry. 1SG PL 3SG true CAUS become QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("When they grow old, and the children no longer need them, I come. I carry them away with me, and I turn them into Real.")
williams: "When they are old and worn out and the children don't need them any more, then I come and take them away with me and turn them into Real.\""

thiku tupiwa shola wa mia mua luera shewo ma nai sholo to thilou.
small rabbit QUOT.COMP Q 1SG LOC past true NEG be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST inquire.
(The little rabbit asked: "Was I not Real before?")
williams: "\"Wasn't I Real before?\" asked the little Rabbit."

whekelua miona shola lao shia thia to lothea thia wei lopia shewo to nai sholo to haolu.
magic person QUOT.COMP BECAUSE 3SG 2SG PST love 2SG DAT child true PST be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The magic person said: "Because he loved you, you were Real to the child.")
williams: "\"You were Real to the Boy,\" the Fairy said, \"because he loved you."

shola nosa thia wei theula miona shewo so nai sholo.
QUOT.COMP now 2SG DAT UNIV person true FUT be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Now you shall be Real to everyone.")
williams: "Now you shall be Real to every one.\""

Notes: the Fairy steps out of the blossom exactly where Williams has her, and Phi needs no being it does not have: she is whekelua miona, a magic person, the coined noun's own worker-form, and her office is woru, keeper, the same word that keeps the nursery and the garden, now keeping every loved and worn-out toy. Her description is assembled from the world: a garment of moriwhe kerou, the sea's stones, which is what a pearl is; dew-drops; flowers at the neck and hair; a face like the most fully-opened flower of all, seroli carrying "perfect" as ripeness rather than flawlessness, which is the only perfection Phi grants. Her doctrine keeps its two halves in her own mouth: Real-to-the-child, lao clause first, because he loved you; then Real-to-everyone, on the plain future. The emerald is keru liro kerou, bright green stone, the gem named by its color rather than the color by its gem, keeping canon's seven-hue rule intact; the blossom is phea solai soeli, like a golden cup, and the whole scene stands on mua rena ... lokue, in the place where the tear had fallen, the frame this text uses whenever love leaves a mark.

shelira — Into the wood

shia mua miso pelio thiku tupiwa to noshi phelu. shia nua shia muo shelira to wapi.
3SG LOC REFL arm small rabbit PST near hold. 3SG COM 3SG INTO forest PST fly.
(She held the little rabbit close in her arms, and flew with him into the wood.)
williams: "And she held the little Rabbit close in her arms and flew with him into the wood."

lao lunei to ki shua shero keru to nai.
BECAUSE moon PST PFV come night bright PST be.
(Because the moon had risen, the night was bright.)
williams: "It was light now, for the moon had risen."

theula shelira phelora to nai.
UNIV forest beautiful PST be.
(All the forest was beautiful.)
williams: "All the forest was beautiful,"

lo phero phea theriko shioli to phelo loa.
PL fern AS frost silver PST light give.
(And the fronds of the bracken shone like frost-silver.)
williams: "and the fronds of the bracken shone like frosted silver."

mua shelira pelowa thei lo shiro lo waeshi tupiwa nua lo miso shomelu nia wuloe whelina to rotiku.
LOC forest meadow BETWEEN PL tree PL wild rabbit COM PL REFL shadow ON soft grass PST dance.
(In the forest's meadow between the trees, the wild rabbits danced with their own shadows on the velvet grass.)
williams: "In the open glade between the tree-trunks the wild rabbits danced with their shadows on the velvet grass,"

whekai lu lo shia whekelua miona nila. lo shia to te rotiku.
CONTR COND PL 3SG magic person see. PL 3SG PST CESS dance.
(But when they saw the magic person, they all ceased dancing.)
williams: "but when they saw the Fairy they all stopped dancing"

lo shia mua sorui to whano. lo shia shia to laeno nila.
PL 3SG LOC circle PST stand. PL 3SG 3SG PST long see.
(They stood in a ring, and stared at her.)
williams: "and stood round in a ring to stare at her."

whekelua miona shola mia wei lo thia ta newu wile melu ki thola sholo to haolu.
magic person QUOT.COMP 1SG DAT PL 2SG one new play friend PFV bring QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The magic person said: "I have brought you a new play-friend.")
williams: "\"I've brought you a new playfellow,\" the Fairy said."

shola no wei shia ru phena nai sholo.
QUOT.COMP IMP DAT 3SG INTS kind be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Be very kind to him.")
williams: "\"You must be very kind to him"

shola no wei shia theula rena shia mua tupiwa muila na sano thena thumela sholo.
QUOT.COMP IMP DAT 3SG UNIV REL 3SG LOC rabbit earth NEC know thing teach QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("Teach him all the things he must know in rabbit-land.")
williams: "and teach him all he needs to know in Rabbit-land,"

shola shia nua lo thia theula thimu so liona sholo.
QUOT.COMP 3SG COM PL 2SG UNIV time FUT live QUOT.COMP.CLOSE.
("He is going to live with you for ever and ever!")
williams: "for he is going to live with you for ever and ever!\""

shia nu wi shemu thiku tupiwa to phimela. shia nia whelina tupiwa to loa.
3SG ORD two moment small rabbit PST kiss. 3SG ON grass rabbit PST give.
(She kissed the little rabbit a second time, and set him down on the grass.)
williams: "And she kissed the little Rabbit again and put him down on the grass."

shia shola kona thiku tupiwa. no rashelo. no wile sholo to haolu.
3SG QUOT.COMP VOC small rabbit. IMP run. IMP play QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(She said: "Little rabbit! Run, and play!")
williams: "\"Run and play, little Rabbit!\" she said."

whekai thiku tupiwa ta shemu to ru moesha meilo. shia to ma roke.
CONTR small rabbit one moment PST INTS still sit. 3SG PST NEG move.
(But for a moment the little rabbit sat quite still, and never moved.)
williams: "But the little Rabbit sat quite still for a moment and never moved."

lu shia mena theula waeshi tupiwa roa miso rotiku meno nila. shia miso rokai tolae to reshi halemu.
COND 3SG DECL.COMP UNIV wild rabbit AROUND REFL dance DECL.COMP.CLOSE see. 3SG REFL back leg PST fast remember.
(When he saw all the wild rabbits dancing around him, he suddenly remembered his hind legs.)
williams: "For when he saw all the wild rabbits dancing around him he suddenly remembered about his hind legs,"

shia mena lo shia miso ta thena kire nila meno to ma pula.
3SG DECL.COMP PL 3SG REFL one thing shape see DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST NEG wish.
(He did not want them to see his made-in-one-piece shape.)
williams: "and he didn't want them to see that he was made all in one piece."

shia mena whekelua miona roe lumae phimela miso ru ka helui meno to ma sano.
3SG DECL.COMP magic person INS end kiss REFL INTS CAUS change DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST NEG know.
(He did not know that with that last kiss the magic person had changed him altogether.)
williams: "He did not know that when the Fairy kissed him that last time she had changed him altogether."

shia ru nilua to nai. lu he mawha thena shia nophae thiku palo. shia sui laeno thimu po meilo.
3SG INTS shy PST be. COND IRR NONE thing 3SG nose small touch. 3SG DUR long time POT sit.
(He was very shy; and had nothing just then small-touched his nose, he might have sat there a long time.)
williams: "And he might have sat there a long time, too shy to move, if just then something hadn't tickled his nose,"

phoe remo shia roe miso rokai paloi thumai miso nophae to rohi.
ANT think 3SG INS REFL back foot finger REFL nose PST rub.
(And before any thought, he was rubbing his nose with a hind toe.)
williams: "and before he thought what he was doing he lifted his hind toe to scratch it."

shia mena miso hi rokai tolae phelu meno to hekawi.
3SG DECL.COMP REFL DIR back leg hold DECL.COMP.CLOSE PST find.
(He found that he really did have hind legs!)
williams: "And he found that he actually had hind legs!"

shia serao wuloe wetha to te phelu.
3SG old soft cloth PST CESS hold.
(The old velveteen was gone from him.)
williams: "Instead of dingy velveteen"

shia wuloe nela keru mureli nolika whila to phelu.
3SG soft COORD bright brown animal hair PST hold.
(He held brown fur, soft and shining.)
williams: "he had brown fur, soft and shiny,"

shia shonui miso to tiripe.
3SG ear REFL PST quiver.
(His ears twitched by themselves.)
williams: "his ears twitched by themselves,"

shia menoa whila ru laeno to nai. lo shia whelina to palo.
3SG face hair INTS long PST be. PL 3SG grass PST touch.
(His whiskers were so long that they brushed the grass.)
williams: "and his whiskers were so long that they brushed the grass."

shia ta tupi to tupi.
3SG one jump PST jump.
(He gave one leap.)
williams: "He gave one leap"

rokai tolae siora ru whalo to nai.
back leg joy INTS large PST be.
(And the joy of those hind legs was so great.)
williams: "and the joy of using those hind legs was so great"

thelao shia nia whelina to reshi tupi.
CONS 3SG ON grass PST fast jump.
(That he went springing about the turf.)
williams: "that he went springing about the turf on them,"

shia phea lo phirae tupiwa roa miso to rato.
3SG AS PL different rabbit AROUND REFL PST turn.
(He whirled around, as the other rabbits did.)
williams: "jumping sideways and whirling round as the others did,"

shia ru therua to kelu.
3SG INTS eager PST become.
(He grew so excited.)
williams: "and he grew so excited"

pheo laeno shemu shia wei whekelua miona hekawi to te tupi.
POST long moment 3SG DAT magic person find PST CESS jump.
(At long last he stopped jumping, to find the magic person.)
williams: "that when at last he did stop to look for the Fairy"

whekai shia to ki wepu.
CONTR 3SG PST PFV go.
(But she had gone.)
williams: "she had gone."

shia pheo laeno shemu shewo tupiwa to nai. shia nua lo phirae tupiwa mua womu to nai.
3SG POST long moment true rabbit PST be. 3SG COM PL different rabbit LOC home PST be.
(He was a Real rabbit at last, at home with the other rabbits.)
williams: "He was a Real Rabbit at last, at home with the other rabbits."

Notes: the transformation scene is where the story's whole vocabulary comes home. The moonlit wood shines phea theriko shioli, like frost-silver, on the registry's shine-compound; the glade is shelira pelowa, the forest's meadow; the wild rabbits dance nua lo miso shomelu, with their own shadows, and freeze into sorui, the ring. The hind-leg discovery runs through the counterfactual the grammar keeps for exactly this: lu he, the unreal if, nothing touching his nose, against phoe remo, before thought, the body outrunning the mind at the moment the change is found; the tickle is thiku palo, a small touch, and the finding is marked hi, direct experience, because for the first time in the book the rabbit's Realness is something he can witness in his own body. The last kiss is lumae phimela, the end-kiss, lumae closing here what the garden's end opened. The old body leaves by cessation, te phelu, and the new one arrives in plain holdings: brown fur soft and bright, ears quivering by themselves, whiskers long enough to touch the grass, the coined quiver-verb now the sign of life rather than fear. The joy is the hind legs' own, rokai tolae siora, and the scene ends on the sentence the whole book has been walking toward, shewo tupiwa, a Real rabbit, at home.

lumae — The return

muero to wepu. shila we to wepu.
autumn PST go. winter ALSO PST go.
(Autumn passed, and winter too.)
williams: "Autumn passed and Winter,"

mua wirae lo philo sulae nela keru to kelu.
LOC spring PL day warm COORD bright PST become.
(In the spring the days grew warm and bright.)
williams: "and in the Spring, when the days grew warm and sunny,"

lopia wei wile kau noe womu shelira to wepu.
child DAT play ALL BEHIND home forest PST go.
(The child went out to the wood behind the house, to play.)
williams: "the Boy went out to play in the wood behind the house."

sui shia wile wi tupiwa mue phero to maeli shua.
DUR 3SG play two rabbit OUT.OF fern PST quiet come.
(While he played, two rabbits came creeping out of the bracken.)
williams: "And while he was playing, two rabbits crept out from the bracken"

lo shia shia to maeli nila.
PL 3SG 3SG PST quiet see.
(They watched him quietly.)
williams: "and peeped at him."

ta shia theula mureli to nai.
one 3SG UNIV brown PST be.
(One of them was brown all over.)
williams: "One of them was brown all over,"

whekai phirae shia phou whila lo kuenora piloe to phelu.
CONTR different 3SG BELOW hair PL strange spot PST hold.
(But the other held strange markings under his fur.)
williams: "but the other had strange markings under his fur,"

mua nulo luera shia lo piloe to ho howela.
LOC deep past 3SG PL spot PST ASSUM receive.
(As though in the deep past he had been given spots.)
williams: "as though long ago he had been spotted,"

lo piloe nosa we thue whila to se nila.
PL spot now ALSO THROUGH hair PST PASS see.
(And the spots still showed through the fur.)
williams: "and the spots still showed through."

roa shia thiku wuloe nophae nela shia nuko mirae ta sano thena to nai.
AROUND 3SG small soft nose COORD 3SG black eye one know thing PST be.
(About his little soft nose and his black eyes there was a known thing.)
williams: "And about his little soft nose and his round black eyes there was something familiar,"

lopia wei miso shola wao. shia phea rena mua mia thero mokela shemu lue mia wepu mia serao tupiwa nai sholo to haolu.
child DAT REFL QUOT.COMP wow. 3SG AS REL LOC 1SG fire sick moment ABL 1SG go 1SG old rabbit be QUOT.COMP.CLOSE PST speak.
(The child said to himself: "Why, he looks just like my old rabbit, the one that went from me when I had the fire-sickness!")
williams: "so that the Boy thought to himself: \"Why, he looks just like my old Bunny that was lost when I had scarlet fever!\""

whekai shia mena ha hi miso tupiwa nai meno mawha thimu to sano.
CONTR 3SG DECL.COMP PROX DIR REFL rabbit be DECL.COMP.CLOSE NONE time PST know.
(But he never knew that it truly was his own rabbit.)
williams: "But he never knew that it really was his own Bunny,"

tupiwa wei rena nu ta shemu miso shewo ka kelu lopia nila to turema.
rabbit DAT REL ORD one moment REFL true CAUS become child see PST return.
(The rabbit had come back to look at the child who had first made him Real.)
williams: "come back to look at the child who had first helped him to be Real."

Notes: the coda closes on the coinage the text plants in its first scene: lo kuenora piloe, the strange spots, still showing through the wild fur, the marking by which the child almost knows him. The almost is the grammar's: the child's guess rides phea, like, and wao, and a relative clause that names the loss without naming the knowledge; the narrator's correction rides hi, the direct evidential, inside what the child never knew, hi miso tupiwa nai, it truly was his own rabbit. The seasons pass in three words each, autumn, winter, spring, and the last sentence gives the return its reason in Williams's own order: back, turema, for the seeing of the child who first, nu ta shemu, made him Real.

What the transmutation changed

Gap log: magic → whekelua, coined, the breath of becoming, with kelu whole inside it; strange → kuenora, coined on kuelo's curiosity; wondrous → waolia, coined as wao's adjective; kiss → phimela, coined on the lips' own fricative; whisper → whishela, coined from breath and hush; quiver/twitch/shiver/flutter → tiripe, one coined verb for the body's small fast motions; spot → piloe, coined for the markings that carry the coda's recognition; butterfly → philuewa, coined, with the moth as shero philuewa; berry → mirulo, coined with rulo (red) inside, the raspberry canes standing as mirulo loremi; mouse → misuki, coined for the clockwork mouse and every fable after it; nestle → numelia, coined beside numelo (nurture); break → pukate, coined for the mainsprings, the fragile, and the almost-bursting heart. Twelve coinages in all. Compositions: velveteen → wuloe wetha and sawdust → wolea muhena, kept; Christmas → shila holia, kept, its morning shila holia kelua; the Skin Horse → kori kalora, kept; scarlet fever → thero mokela, kept, with germs as mokela thinoe, sickness-seeds; nursery → lopia tholu, kept; the doctor → rena theala miona, kept; stocking → lopia paloi wethalu, the foot-garment; holly → shila liro loremi, the winter's green branch; nut → kerou lurekoi, stone-fruit; orange → thero welisha lurekoi, by the registry's fire-color; mainspring → keli korua, the device's heart; seam → pina, the sewing itself; bead necklace → nolue kerou, neck-stones; pillow → koma nuwera, the head's bed; whiskers → menoa whila, kept; hind legs → rokai tolae; toe → paloi thumai; wheelbarrow → manuwe rolutha, the hand-wagon; picnic → eating together on the grass; burrow → nowhu, the cave; pincushion → tisu molu, the needle-holder; dizzy → the head turning; fowl-house → pelori womu; gardener → thepalu woru; potatoes and peas → tumeki nuora and liro thinoe, root-foods and green seeds; picture-book → welisha shelu, the color-book; balcony → the house's high outside place; sand castle → kirua womu; crab → the very small sea-creature; emerald → keru liro kerou, bright green stone; pearl → moriwhe kerou, the sea's stone; moonlight hours → lunei shemu; glade → shelira pelowa, the forest's meadow; lion → wolea whalo misheko, the wooden great-cat. Refusals, all canon's: money leaves the expensive toys as mo horae, the more radiant; clock time leaves the two hours as one long moment and June as summer's beginning; gendered person-words leave the Aunts and Uncles as lo thaluni, kinfolk, and the Uncle as lopia lumani wheo, the family's elder; rule leaves Nana guiding, not ruling, and Government as lo kulo miona, the guiding people; war leaves the disabled soldiers as lo rena kipona ki howela miona, the people who had received pain; violence leaves brigands as waeshi wile, playing wild; and hate has no word, so the toys' hatred of tidying is korua thero, the registry's heart-fire. Names dissolve into offices by the Babel custom: Nana is the keeper of the nursery, Timothy is the wooden great-cat, and the fairy is whekelua miona, the magic person, keeper of loved toys. Real stays shewo, defined by the Skin Horse and carried to the coda's hi: it truly was his own rabbit.