"The umbrella is flying."
Child's Mom stopped when the child stopped.
She turned to look into the alley.
"No—"
Child's Mom's voice faltered.
She saw the umbrella hanging upside down from the treetop.
She suddenly understood.
"That must be the umbrella the wind blew up into the sky."
Child's Mom smiled.
"I wonder who the umbrella's owner is."
"She must be looking everywhere for her umbrella."
"I saw the umbrella flying just now."
The child gestured with his hands.
"Mm."
Child's Mom wasn't surprised by what the child said.
"The umbrella was flying."
The wind blew it.
"It flew and flew until it got caught in the tree."
The corners of Child's Mom's mouth curled up slightly.
The child tilted his head.
He felt that something seemed wrong, but he couldn't say what.
He shook his head.
Oh.
He nodded.
"Then, Mom, can we get the umbrella down?"
"The umbrella is so pitiful up there."
A troubled expression appeared on Child's Mom's face.
"No can do."
"Look."
"It's so high up."
"Mom can't reach it."
"Bao Bao, let's go."
"The umbrella's owner will come looking for it later."
"If we take it away, won't its owner be unable to find her umbrella?"
The child froze slightly.
Th-that's true.
The child nodded.
All right.
The child followed his mother away, looking back three times with every step.
After the child and his mother had gone some distance, the umbrella hanging upside down from the tree fell loose.
River God looked at the water collected inside the umbrella and bared his teeth in a grin.
He gripped the umbrella's handle, spun around, and turned more than halfway around.
The water suddenly took shape, like a water dragon.
It struck the wall and scattered