Stratení trpaslíci
Maličkí trpaslíci žijú v horách okolo Ružomberka od nepamäti. Kutajú v miestnych skalách, hľadajú drahé rudy, pekné kamienky, obzvlášť žilkovaný kremeň a keď treba, vŕtajú aj nové pramienky lesných potôčikov. Skupinka piatich sa už dávnejšie usadila v lese pri Gejdáku, pod mohutným stromom. Veselá to cháska. Miestne lesné zvieratká ich dobre poznajú. Nejednej veverici už pomohli vydlabať v strome obydlie alebo svišťovi spevniť noru. Rakom v potoku na druhej strane doliny zase nasekali skalky a vyrobili priehradky s kľudnou vodou mimo prúdu. Srnky ich tiež zavše chodia navštevovať, pretože im s pod zeme nosia hrudky kamennej soli. No a už o nich určite tušia aj v neďalekom statku, kde občas zmizne kus syra a na jeho mieste sa nájde malý kúsok magnezitu alebo achátu.
Trpaslíci si postavili svoje domčeky pod statným stromom, pekne do polkruhu. Popred domce si vyčistili cestičku, dokonca si na ne napísali čísla, aby miestna pani poštárka vedela, kam im má doručovať listy. A neďaleko domčekov umiestnili truhlicu – veľkú a ťažkú. Žiadne zo zvieratiek nevie, čo v nej schovávajú, lebo je zamknutá. Trpaslíci ju odomykajú spoločne, pokochajú sa jej obsahom, občas v nej niečo ponaprávajú a potom ju zase dôkladne zavrú.
Jedného rána, tak skoro že Slnko ledva nabralo odvahu vykuknúť spoza kopcov, pohroma! Zajac prišiel poprosiť, aby mu ošetrili zranenú labku, ktorú si vyvrtol keď plný túžby naháňal po stráni zajačicu. Ale trpaslíkov nenašiel. V domčekoch zhasnuté, doma nikto, aj súdky zaštupľované. To sa ešte nikdy nestalo! Teda s tými sudmi raz alebo dva krát hej. Ale, že by sa nad ránom z každého domčeka neozývalo chrápanie, to veru ešte nikdy! Správa lesom putovala rýchlo a než slnko vystúpalo nad stromy, okolo domčekov sa tmolila väčšina lesných zvieratiek z okolia.
Starý jazvec s nespokojným chrochtaním ovoniaval domčeky, cestičku, truhlicu aj okolie veľkého stromu. Ostatné zvieratká ho v tichosti sledovali, ani nemukli. Len zajac obďaleč fňukal, že dnes skoro ráno vstával a behal úplne zbytočne. Ale aj on šomral potichučky. Nikto nechcel jazveca vyrušiť. Zvieratká verili jeho intuícii a skúsenostiam. Každej záhade vedel prísť na korienok. No vyzeralo to, že dnes je v koncoch.
Jazvec si nespokojne sadol ku truhlici, chvíľu ju ešte ovoniaval, do zámku niekoľko krát ňufákom strčil a takto chrapľavým hlasom povedal. „Zmizli a neviem kam, ani prečo!“ Dokonca aj lúčne koníky v ten moment prestali vyhrávať. V lese nastalo úplné ticho, v ktorom sa ozvalo len nečujné cupnutie čiehosi bobku do ihličia. Všetky zvieratká upierali zrak na jazveca, takže si našťastie nikto nevšimol, ako sa srnka začervenala. „Posledné miesto kde ich ňuchám“ pokračoval jazvec „je tu, pri truhlici. Niečo s ňou robili. Ale je zamknutá týmto výmyslom“ prskol a štuchol labkou do zámku. „takže, aby sme zistili, čo sa s nimi stalo, musíme truhlicu otvoriť.“ Líška priskočila k zámke a chcela ju rozhrýzť, no múdry jazvec ju zastavil „Tu nám sila nepomôže, musíme na to ako oni, s rozumom.“
Myšiarka hneď zahúkala „Každý z trpaslíkov predsa vždy na zámke nastavil rovnaký znak, ako má na svojom domčeku. To som videla aj po tme, keď si šli truhlicu otvárať.“ Hneď na to sa ozvala aj ropucha, čo rada sedáva na pni obrastenom vlhkým machom obďaleč „Á prvý vždy zámku odomyká Čemer Hladný.“ Vzápätí si všetky zvieratká začali lámať hlavu a spomínať, čo si ešte pamätajú o tom, ako trpaslíci každý večer truhlicu otvárali. „Veď Čemer býva v červenom domčeku“ zasyčala užovka spod paprade. „Tak veru a posledný vždy chodí odomykať Hutor Spletitý“ zakrákala vrana z nízkej vetvy. „A ja som zase videl, že po Čemerovi nasleduje v odomykaní Oldo Spevavý“ šomral si medzi fúzy zajac, opatrne našľapujúc na opuchnutú labku. „Oldo je predsa sused Hutora Spletititého, to vie každý“ spokojne poznamenal ďateľ a pokračoval v odlupovaní kôry suchého pňa, v ktorom práve naháňal šťavnatú húsenicu. „Hutor občas chodil ku svojmu susedovi, aby si u neho nabral vodu“ zamľaskal spokojne mlok a posunul sa viac do tieňa. „Tak to asi nechodil k Roldorovi Búchavému, ten má rád tú horkú žltohnedú tekutinu, čo pení“ zaprskal ježko, keď si spomenul, ako raz okoštoval Roldorove pivo. Medzi zvieratkami už hodnú chvíľu rástol krtinec, konečne sa z neho vynorila krtkova tvár. Mysliac si, že to je jazvec, zadíval sa krtko uprene na veľký kameň a potichu povedal „Uprostred odomykania chodí vždy Korbel Veselý, viem lebo mi hrozne dupe na plafóny“. Aj srnka sa zrazu spamätala a dodala, že „Korbel predsa býva vedľa Roldora Búchavého“.
Takto zvieratká ešte hodnú chvíľu dumali, spomínali a nešikovnými tlapkami skúšali obrázky na zámku. No bez úspechu, truhlica im odolala. Ani po pár dňoch sa trpaslíci neukázali. Iba čo im pani poštárka doniesla poštu a škárou popri zámke ju šupla do truhlice.
Pomôžeš zvieratkám zistiť čo sa s ich trpaslíkmi stalo, kam sa stratili a či sa vrátia?
--- English listing ---
The lost dwarfs
Little dwarfs have lived in the mountains around Ružomberok since long time ago. They dig in the local rocks, look for precious ores, beautiful stones, especially veined quartz and, if necessary, drill new springs of forest streams. A group of five had settled many years ago in the forest near Gejdák, under a huge tree. Merry group they are. Local forest animals know them well. They have helped many squirrels to carve out a dwelling in a tree or to strengthen a burrow for a marmot. They have cut rocks and formed small dams in the stream on the other side of the valley for the crawfish. Deer also visit them occasionally because they carry lumps of rock salt from the underground. And somebody certainly knows about them in a nearby farm, where a piece of cheese sometimes disappears, and a small gemstone is found in its place.
The dwarves built their houses under a large tree, in a nice semicircle. They cleared a pathway in front of their houses, even wrote numbers on them so that the local postman would know where to deliver the mail. And they placed a chest near their houses – a large and heavy one. None of the animals know what they are hiding in it because it is locked. The dwarves unlock it together, admire its contents, sometimes fiddle in it a bit, and then lock it again.
One morning, so soon that the sun barely gained the courage to peek above the hills, a disaster! The hare came to ask them to treat his injured paw, which he had twisted when he was full of desire and chased his rabbit girlfriend in the meadow. But he did not find the dwarves. Lights extinguished in the houses, no one home, even the kegs with drinks were clogged. This has never happened before! Well, with those kegs it did once or twice. But never befeore would there be no snoring from every house in the early morning! The message spread through the forest quickly, and before the sun rose over the trees, most of the forest animals from the surrounding area were here.
The old grunting badger smelled the houses, the pathway, the chest, and the surroundings of the large tree. The other animals watched him in silence. Only the hare whimpered from about his unsatisfactory morning. But he, too, tried to be quiet. Nobody wanted to disturb the badger. The animals trusted his intuition and experience. He knew how to come to terms with every mystery, but it looked that this one was too hard even for him.
The badger sat unhappily at the chest, smelled it for a while, shoved the lock several times with his nose, and said in a hoarse voice. "They're gone and I don't know where or why!" Even the crickets stopped chirping at that moment. There was complete silence in the forest, in which there was only an inaudible thud of deer dung that fell into the dry grass. All the animals stared at the badger, so fortunately no one noticed the deer blushing. "The last place where I sniff them," the badger continued, "is here, by the chest. They were doing something. But it is locked by this invention," he snapped, poking his paw into the lock. "So, to find out what happened to them, we have to open it." The fox jumped to the lock and wanted to bite it off, but the wise badger stopped her. "Strength will not help us here darling, we must use the brains, as they do."
The owl hummed immediately "Each of the dwarves always sets the sign from his house to the lock. I saw that after dark when they open the chest.” The toad which likes to sit on a stump overgrown with damp moss opened her mouth widely “The first to unlock is always Hungrie Belly.” Animal started to think and recall what they remember about the dwarves opening the chest every night. "Belly lives in a red house," the snake hissed from under the fern. "Exactly, and the last one at the lock is always Talkie Tangly" crowed a crow from a low branch. "And I saw that Hungrie is followed by Singie Oldy" the hare snarled between his mustaches, stepping carefully on his swollen paw. "Singie is, after all, Talkie Tangly's neighbor. Everyone knows that," the woodpecker remarked and continued to peel the bark of the dry stump in which he was chasing a juicy caterpillar. "Talkie sometimes went to his neighbor to get some water from him," the salamander slapped and shifted more into the shadows. "I guess he didn't go to Slamie Doory then. Slaimie likes the bitter yellow-brown foamy liquid," the hedgehog squeaked as he recalled how he had tasted Slamie's beer once. A molehill has been growing between the animals for a while, and finally the mole's face emerged from it. He stared firmly at the large stone, thinkig it was the Badger, and said quietly, "Merrie Muggy always walks in the middle of unlocking, I know because he stomps on my ceilings." The deer also suddenly remembered and added that "Muggy lives next to Slamie Doory".
In this manner, the animals pondered for a while, and tried to set various signs on the lock with their clumsy paws. Well, without success. The chest resisted. Even after a few days, the dwarves did not show up. Only the postman brought them mail and shoved it into the chest through a narrow gap next to the lock.
Will you help the animals find out what happened to their dwarves, where they got lost and whether they will return?