The Adventures of Indiana Jones and Short Round

13

Using his leg as a step and his ear as a handhold, Indiana jones mounted the ginormous Indian elephant. He could view the entire village from up here. 

  Short Round ran up to his long-tusked bull, bouncing up and down and grinning from ear to ear with excitement. Gazing down, the kid looked even tinier than usual. "I ride with you, Indy?"

  "Nope, you got a little surprise over there, Shorty."

  Short Round followed his finger and gasped in delight at the baby elephant. "Oh boy!" He ran up to the smaller version of the animal and began petting his trunk and chatting with him. A villager helped him climb on, and the boy laughed as he was lifted high by the baby's height. 

Both Shorty and Indy glanced behind them as Willie struggled to mount her ride. The kid giggled while Indiana rolled his eyes impatiently. 

  "Willie, quit monkeying around on that thing."

With the help of their guide, Willie finally flopped onto the back of her elephant backwards. It was enough for Indy, who signaled that they were ready to leave. 

  "Oh, wait a second! Indy!" Willie screeched as the procession started moving. "I can't go to Delhi like this!"

  "We're not going to Delhi, Doll. We're going to Pankot Palace."

  "Pankot?! I can't go to Pankot! I'm a singer! Oh, I need to call my agent. Where is a phone? Anybody, I need a phone."

Indiana shook his head at her hollering and sent Short Round an exasperated look, which had him giggling again. 

The journey was hot, sweaty, and smelly, but the scenery was beautiful. Leaving the barren wasteland, the elephants marched through water and past tall lush trees. 

The transportation reminded Short Round of the yaks on the Himalayan Mountains. He became fast friends with the baby elephant, whom he dubbed Big Short Round. Big Short Round enjoyed the small human's company just as much. He trumpeted with pleasure when Short Round scratched his ears or petted the fuzz on his head, and occasionally splashed him with water when feeling playful. 

There was one moment where Short Round had to ride with Indy on the bull when Big Short Round became a bit moody as toddlers do. While Big Short Round was big, the bull was huge. Sitting between the head and Indy, the kid spent that hour ogling at the sights from his new stature. Indiana placed his hands on the boy's shoulders at first because his shorter legs made it difficult to have a secure grip. Once he knew the boy wouldn't fall, Indy relaxed and mostly nodded off to the lull of the elephant's swaying.

When they entered the jungle, Big Short Round began to behave himself and Short Round was able to ride him again. He resumed their conversation instantly. 

  "You come to America with me and we get job in circus. You like that? You like America? You're my best friend."

Then he heard screeching and glanced up. Black shapes streaked against the blue sky. "Indy, look!"

  "Ooo, what big birds!" Willie remarked. 

  Indiana smirked. "Those aren't big birds, sweetheart. They're giant vampire bats."

 * * * 

Their rides were just stepping out of the water when Short Round and Indiana heard a yelp and a splash and they paused to glance back. Willie sat in the shallows, though she was probably making the water level rise with the amount of tears she shed. 

  Short Round pointed at the miserable singer and laughed openly. "Haha, very funny! Hahaha! Very funny, all wet!" 

All the elephants and guides stared at the soaked woman having a meltdown. Indiana shook his head as he wondered for the hundredth time why he let her tagalong—more like slow him down.  

  "I think we'll camp here tonight," he announced after Willie finished her rant and resorted to wordless hysteria. 

Night had fallen when the camp had been made. After a meal and washing in the river, Willie had calmed down and was attempting to dry her clothes while being bothered by her pesky elephant. In the campfire light, Short Round and Indiana played poker with the pack of cards Indy always carried in his satchel. 

  "What you got?" Short Round demanded.

  "Two sixes."

  "Haha! I got three aces! I win! Two more games I have all your money. Haha!"

  "It's poker, Shorty. Anything can happen."

Short Round discarded; Indy dealt. 

  "Where did you find your, uh... little bodyguard?" Willie asked from where she was hanging her clothes on a branch to dry. 

  "I didn't find him. I caught him." 

  "What?"

  "Shorty's family was killed when the Japanese bombed Shanghai. He's been living on the streets since he was four. I caught him trying to pick my pocket." Indy playfully nudged the boy's forehead, extracting a small giggle. "Didn't I, short stuff?"

Suddenly, Willie screamed. Having grown used to it by now, Shorty and Indy barely glanced her way. 

  "The biggest trouble with her is the noise," the man grumbled. Short Round made an expression of agreement. 

The two players fanned out their cards to see what they were dealt while Willie ran around the camp screeching. Then Short Round noticed a flaw in his opponent's hand. 

  "Hey! You cheat, Dr. Jones! You cheat! You take four card!" 

  "It was a mistake!" Indy continued to insist while Short Round continued to accuse that it was no mistake. 

  "I'm very little. You cheat very big. Dr. Jones, you cheat! You owe me ten cents."

  Indiana Jones grabbed the arm extending the accusatory finger and pulled out an ace card from the boy's sleeve. "Look at this. Look at this. You accuse me of cheating?" 

Short Round grinned guiltily, then began to continue arguing in rapid-fire Chinese. Indiana switched his language to match. 

  "You made me pull! No fun! Play with you, no fun!"

Indiana Jones threw down his cards in a sign that he was done playing. Grumbling in a mixture of Chinese and English, Short Round began cleaning up the game. The two friends exchanged smiles to show that their argument was not to be taken seriously. Then he moved away to sit against a log and count his winnings. 

  "Willie, Willie. What is that? Is that short for something?"

  Willie, who had calmed down enough, sent him a flippant shrugging of her bare shoulder. "Willie is my professional name, Indiana."

  Short Round glanced up quickly. "Hey, lady! You call him Dr. Jones."

  "My professional name." Dr. Jones flipped a dime to his young friend, who caught it and grinned.

  "Why are you dragging us off to this deserted palace? Fortune and glory?"

  "Fortune and glory," Short Round repeated, remembering what Indy had told him the night before. 

Indiana Jones proceeded to explain the pictograph that he had been given by the child to Willie. Short Round had heard it all before, so he zoned out and let the adults talk. He shoved the coins into his pocket for safekeeping. Beginning to feel tired, Short Round pulled his baseball cap over his eyes and leaned back against the log with his hands behind his head. 

He opened his eyes when he heard a thud and loud crackle. Shorty lifted the visor to peek at Indy, who was adding more wood to the fire. Willie was curled up on a blanket nearby fast asleep. 

Indiana glanced his way, noticing the kid stir. He made a beckoning gesture with his hand.

  "Hey, come closer, Shorty. It's safer and I think I just heard a tiger."

Not really bothered, Short Round crawled closer anyway, soaking in the warmth of the fire. Indiana spread out a blanket not too far away from his for his young friend. 

  "Good night, kid," said Indy as he lay down. 

  Short Round curled up on his own blanket and chirped, "Good night, Dr. Jones."