"Books - David Eddings - Polgara the Sorceress" - читать интересную книгу автора (Eddings David)

The first few times I made good my escape, uncle Beldin frantically
searched for me and scolded me at some length when he finally
found me. I'm a little ashamed to admit that after a while it even
became a kind of game. I'd wait until he was deeply engrossed in
something, quickly unhook his gate, and then scamper down his
stairs. Then I'd find someplace to hide where I could watch his
desperate search. In time I think he began to enjoy our little
entertainment as well, because his scoldings grew progressively less
vehement. I guess that after the first several times he came to realize that
there was nothing he could do to stop my excursions into the outside
world and that I wouldn't stray too far from the foot of his tower.
My adventuring served a number of purposes. At first it was only
to escape my sister's maudlin ruminations about father. Then it
became a game during which I tormented poor uncle Beldin by
seeking out hiding places. Ultimately, though it's very unattractive,
it was a way to get someone to pay attention to me.
As the game continued, I grew fonder and fonder of the ugly,
gnarled dwarf who'd become my surrogate parent. Any form of
emotionalism embarrasses uncle Beldin, but I think I'll say this
anyway. 'I love you, you dirty, mangy little man, and no amount of
foul temper or bad language will ever change that.'

If you ever read this, uncle, I'm sure that will offend you. Well, isn't
that just too bad?

It's easy for me to come up with all sorts of exotic excuses for the
things I did during my childhood, but to put it very bluntly I was

totally convinced that I was ugly. Beldaran and I were twins, and
we should have been identical. The Master changed that, however.
Beldaran was blonde, and my hair was dark. Our features were
similar, but we were not mirror images of each other. There were
some subtle variations - many of them existing only in my own
imagination, I'm sure. Moreover, my excursions outside uncle


Beldin's tower had exposed my skin to the sun. Beldaran and I both
had very fair skin, so I didn't immediately develop that healthy,
glowing tan so admired in some quarters. I burned instead, and
then I peeled. I frequently resembled a snake or lizard in molt.
beldaran remained indoors, and her skin was like alabaster. The
comparison was not very flattering.
Then there was the accursed white lock in my hair which father's
first touch had bestowed upon me. How I hated that leprous lock
of hair! Once, in a fit of irritation, I even tried to cut it short with a
knife. It was a very sharp knife, but it wasn't that sharp. The lock
resisted all my sawing and hacking. I did manage to dull the knife,
however. No, the knife wasn't defective. It left a very nice cut on
my left thumb as my efforts to excise the hideous lock grew more
frantic.