He was dizzy, aching, and felt shaken to pieces when something went off like a thunderclap just behind him; a hot wind knocked him senseless, and red fire singed his fur. The big man had been wakened by the noise, and had fired both barrels of a shot-gun into Nag just behind the hood.
When morning came he was very stiff, but well pleased with his doings. Without waiting for breakfast, Rikki-tikki ran to the thorn-bush where Darzee was singing a song of triumph at the top of his voice. The big man brought the bang-stick, and Nag fell in two pieces! He will never eat my babies again. Let us sing about the great, the red-eyed Rikki-tikki!
Stop singing a minute, Darzee. Great is Rikki-tikki with the white teeth. She hid them there weeks ago.
The end nearest the wall, you said? Darzee, if you have a grain of sense you will fly off to the stables and pretend that your wing is broken, and let Nagaina chase you away to this bush. Darzee was very like a man in some ways. The boy in the house threw a stone at me and broke it. My husband lies on the rubbish-heap this morning, but before the night the boy in the house will lie very still. What is the use of running away?
I am sure to catch you. Little fool, look at me! Rikki-tikki heard them going up the path from the stables, and he raced for the end of the melon-patch near the wall. He bit off the tops of the eggs as fast as he could, taking care to crush the young cobras, and turned over the litter from time to time to see whether he had missed any.
Rikki-tikki smashed two eggs, and tumbled backward down the melon-bed with the third egg in his mouth, and scuttled to the verandah as hard as he could put foot to the ground. Teddy and his mother and father were there at early breakfast; but Rikki-tikki saw that they were not eating anything. They sat stone-still, and their faces were white. I am not ready yet.
Wait a little. Keep very still, all you three. If you move I strike, and if you do not move I strike. Oh, foolish people, who killed my Nag! Teddy, keep still. Look at your friends, Rikki-tikki. They are still and white; they are afraid. They dare not move, and if you come a step nearer I strike. Go and look, Nagaina. The big snake turned half round, and saw the egg on the verandah.
Rikki-tikki put his paws one on each side of the egg, and his eyes were blood-red. For a young cobra? For a young king-cobra? For the last — the very last of the brood? The ants are eating all the others down by the melon-bed. He was dead before the big man belw him in two. I did it. Come then, Nagaina, Come and fight with me. You shall not be a widow long.
Fight, widow! The big man has gone for his gun! Rikki-tikki was bounding all round Nagaina, keeping just out of reach of her stroke, his little eyes like hot coals. Nagaina gathered herself together, and flung out at him. Rikki-tikki jumped up and backward. Again and again and again she struck, and each time her head came with a whack on the matting of the verandah, and she gathered herself together like a watch-spring.
Then Rikki-tikki danced in a a circle to get behind her, and Nagaina spun round to keep her head to his head, so that the rustle of her tail on the matting sounded like dry leaves blown along by the wind. He had forgotten the egg. It still lay on the verandah, and Nagaina came nearer and nearer to it, till at last, while Rikki-tikki was drawing breath, she caught it in her mouth, turned to the verandah steps, and flew like an arrow down the path, with Rikki-tikki behind her.
Rikki-tikki knew that he must catch her, or all the trouble would begin again. She headed straight for the long grass by the thorn-bush, and as he was running Rikki-tikki heard Darzee still singing his foolish little song of triumph.
If Darzee had helped they might have turned her; but Nagaina only lowered her hood and went on. It was dark in the hole; and Rikki-tikki never knew when it might open out and give Nagaina room to turn and strike at him. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. Poor guy. This muskrat just doesn't get much characterization beyond being a foil for Rikki-tikki, and we're sure he's got better qualities than the story shows. Maybe he's a fabulous baccarat player or something.
Chuchundra's main role is to offer a contrast to Rikki-tikki. Whereas Rikki-tikki is brave and stalwart, Chuchundra is cowardly and skittish. He only comes out at night because he's terrified he'll be killed, and even then he's afraid that Nag will confuse him for a mongoose.
Onomatopoeia is a sound device where a word is used that makes a sound. The words are usually spelled to represent the sound. In this case, the sound is the war cry of the mongoose. Who is Chuchundra in Rikki Tikki Tavi? Category: music and audio religion and spirituality podcasts.
Chuchundra is a very timid muskrat who lives in Teddy's family's house. Rikki - tikki encounters him during one of his nightly patrols, and quickly realizes the muskrat is typical of many of the animal residents of the garden in that he's terrified of the cobras Nag and Nagaina. What is the conflict in the story Rikki Tikki Tavi? How was Nagaina able to get away with the egg? Expert Answers info. How does Darzee help Rikki Tikki? What role does Darzee play in Rikki Tikki Tavi? Who are the characters in Rikki Tikki Tavi?
Is Rikki Tikki Tavi a hero? Who is Teddy in Rikki Tikki Tavi? How did Rikki Tikki Tavi come to live with the English family? How does the family treat Rikki after killing Karait? Did Rikki Tikki Tavi die? What happens at the end of Rikki Tikki Tavi? What does Rikki Tikki Tavi say? What did Nagaina do when she first saw Rikki Tikki Tavi in the garden?
Was Rikki Tikki Tavi a mongoose? Why did Rikki Tikki Tavi kill Karait?
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