An Encounter with a Scorpion: Reading Adventure & Quiz

We are halfway upstairs when Mum appears at the top of the stairs, a big dark shadow.

'What have you got?' she says.

I look at the jamjar in my hands: the little black scorpion still trying to climb up the slippery glass insides, his sting up over his back and the small piece of cheese which he has not eaten.

'Nothing,' I say, looking her in the eye.

'Peony, what's in the jar?'

'Oh it's just... I just found it by the rocks, I'm going to look after it. I've given it some cheese.'

Mum starts coming down the stairs. Now the stairs are crowded, and there is no way past her. I hold my hands around the jar, trying to hide the scorpion. He is skittering at the sides, only the glass between his sting and my palm.

"a big dark shadow": The writer describes Mum as a 'shadow' rather than a person. This makes her seem threatening and powerful from Peony's point of view — like a looming obstacle blocking the way.
"looking her in the eye": Peony lies directly to her mother's face. This takes nerve! It shows Peony is determined to keep the scorpion, even though she knows Mum won't approve.
"no way past her": The stairs become like a trap — Mum is blocking the only exit. Peony feels cornered.
"skittering": Making quick, light, scratching movements — like tiny claws on glass. This creates an eerie, unsettling sound image.

Skittering: Moving with quick, light, scratchy movements across a surface. "He is skittering at the sides."
Jamjar: A glass jar, originally used for jam, now being used to hold the scorpion.

1. Where does Peony first see her mother?

2. What impression do we get of Peony's mother from the opening?

3. Which word or phrase shows that Peony feels trapped on the stairs?

Her hand is reaching out to take the jar. I am holding it tight. I am scared of dropping it but it is slippery and I am also scared of putting my fingers inside to hold it better, although the scorpion is still now, flat to the glass bottom. Raindrops of sweat drip down from my neck past my heart and make a paddling pool in my belly button. 'Peony,' she snaps, 'what have you got in the jar?' She is leaning forward down the stairs, one hand holding the handrail and the other reaching for the jar, her fingers pressing around mine, looking for spaces where mine aren't. She tugs, and I let go of the jar.

As Mum brings it up to her face, the scorpion jumps, lifting his pincers and his tail again, ready to fight.

'Oh!' Mum screams and drops the jar.

"Raindrops of sweat drip down from my neck past my heart and make a paddling pool in my belly button": This is a wonderful example of a metaphor — comparing sweat drops to raindrops, and the pool of sweat in her belly button to a paddling pool. It's funny and vivid, and shows how nervous and hot Peony is. It's also written in a very childlike way, which fits Peony's voice.
"her fingers pressing around mine, looking for spaces where mine aren't": This is a brilliant detail — Mum's fingers are searching for gaps between Peony's fingers to prise the jar away. It's almost like a wrestling match between their hands.
"ready to fight": The scorpion is described as if it's a warrior preparing for battle — pincers up, tail raised. This is personification (giving it human fighting qualities).

Pincers: The scorpion's claw-like front limbs used for gripping. "Lifting his pincers and his tail."
Tugs: Pulls with a sharp, sudden movement. "She tugs, and I let go of the jar."

4. How does Peony feel about the jar? Use evidence from the text.

5. What impression do we get of the scorpion in this passage?

6. Peony says 'Raindrops of sweat drip down from my neck past my heart and make a paddling pool in my belly button.' What does this description suggest about how she feels?

The jar bounces on the step between our pairs of bare feet, then falls another two steps and bounces again. I turn to watch it, to see the glass shatter, to see what happens to the scorpion. But the jar does not break. Instead it bounces on every step, toc, toc, toc, and ends up on the kitchen tiles on its side.

I think of the scorpion escaping; Mum would be even madder than she is already going to be. I start to run back downstairs, to try and keep it in, but after two steps I feel the sting, then the burning on the side of my foot.

'Oh it stung me!' I cry.

I get down to the kitchen and climb up on to the bench, pulling my feet up behind me.

'It stung me, Mum! Please, it hurts!'

My foot is already starting to go red and swell up. The kitchen feels like winter. The darkness in my stomach is spreading out into my arms and legs.

"toc, toc, toc": This is onomatopoeia — a word that imitates a sound. The writer creates the sound of the glass jar bouncing down the stone steps. It also builds tension as each bounce could be the one that shatters the jar.
"The kitchen feels like winter": This is a simile — comparing the kitchen to winter. It doesn't mean the heating is off. The shock of the scorpion sting is making Peony's body feel cold and shivery, as if it were freezing winter.
"The darkness in my stomach is spreading out into my arms and legs": This is a metaphor — describing fear and pain as 'darkness' that physically moves through her body. It shows how the pain and shock are taking over her whole body.

Swell: To grow larger, usually due to injury or inflammation. "My foot is already starting to go red and swell up."
Shatter: To break suddenly into many small pieces. "I turn to watch it, to see the glass shatter."

7. Which phrase is closest in meaning to 'the kitchen feels like winter'?

8. How does the scorpion sting make Peony feel and behave?

Margot has her arms around me on the bench. I squeeze my eyes shut, it is black as night behind my eyes but with sparkles of colour and flashes of white. My foot is burning and I squeeze tighter and tighter. Margot is rocking me. I am trembling in the dark, trying to think about being cuddled, but only thinking about my foot hurting more and more. Then the arms lift me up and it is not Margot anymore it is Mum, and she carries me outside into the light. She puts me on the table and looks at my foot.

'Hush, Pea, it'll be OK,' Mum says. 'I'll fix it. Wait here.'

Later I learned that the most self-effacing creatures were often the most dangerous. The scorpion would lie there quietly as you examined him, only raising his tail in an almost apologetic gesture of warning if you breathed too hard on him. However, scorpions do have quite a temper: a disturbing characteristic in a creature otherwise so impeccable.

When Mum comes back I am curled in a ball, sobbing. She unpeels me like an orange. She has a towel full of ice cubes. She presses it against my foot and one kind of hurt pushes away the other.

"it is not Margot anymore it is Mum": Margot is Peony's imaginary friend. This moment is very moving — the imaginary comfort gives way to real comfort as Mum takes over. The transition from imagination to reality shows how young and vulnerable Peony is.
"an almost apologetic gesture of warning": The scorpion raises its tail as if to say 'sorry, but I will sting you.' This is personification — giving the scorpion human politeness. It's also ironic, because the scorpion's 'apology' comes with a deadly weapon.
"a disturbing characteristic in a creature otherwise so impeccable": 'Impeccable' means perfect or faultless. The writer is saying the scorpion seems perfect and well-behaved — except for its terrible temper. The contrast is darkly funny.
"She unpeels me like an orange": A wonderful simile — Peony is curled up so tightly that Mum has to unwrap her like peeling fruit. It's a warm, physical image that shows Mum's tenderness.
"one kind of hurt pushes away the other": The cold pain of the ice replaces the burning pain of the sting. This is clever because it shows relief isn't painless — it's just a different, more bearable kind of pain.

Self-effacing: Modest and quiet, not drawing attention to yourself. "The most self-effacing creatures were often the most dangerous."
Impeccable: Perfect, faultless, without any flaws. "A creature otherwise so impeccable."
Apologetic: Showing you are sorry for something. "An almost apologetic gesture of warning."
Unpeels: Removes a covering layer by layer, like peeling fruit. "She unpeels me like an orange."

9. What is meant by 'an almost apologetic gesture of warning'?

10. What is meant by 'a disturbing characteristic in a creature otherwise so impeccable'?

11. Find a word or phrase from the final paragraph which shows Peony's mother makes her feel less frightened.

12. How would you describe the relationship between Peony and her mother?

Reading: An Encounter with a Scorpion

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