12

January 3rd, day 46. Way too early as it’s still dark. Jim writing.

The rebuilding work is finally completed and the forest, amazingly, has begun to recover from the devastating fire already. And the volcano, which is really called Agrihan—apparently the whole island is the volcano—has quieted down and ceased all activity.

Lou is living with us now and we’re still with Amilek and his family.

Mafuso said at least this way he could keep an eye on her.

She spends most of the day with him and is semi-fluent in Agrihan now. As he is semi-fluent in English, they get on really well. Suddenly she’ll do whatever he says without complaining. Which is a grave cause for concern. Their growing friendship, that is, not the fact Lou is eating and getting better now. If she gets too attached to him, she will want to leave less than ever. And Staci won’t leave without Lou. Staying here forever simply isn’t an option.

Now Lou is recovered sufficiently to move around again, I want to leave as soon as we can and head for the base. It’s not that I’m ungrateful or anything, but I need to know what happened to Mum and Dad, and Nichola deserves to know we’re all right. If she won’t have us back…if Mum and Dad didn’t make it…then we need to find somewhere to live in England on our own. Staci needs to go back to school.

Or maybe Nichola could look after Staci, and I’ll find a place…maybe with Ailsa, if she’ll have me.

Anyway, the men are going hunting today, and I’m taking the opportunity to go out with Amilek and Mafuso, hoping to get a chance to talk to him. Ask what his intentions are. Lou doesn’t have a brother to protect her and look out for her. She only has me.

Jim bided his time as they set off shortly after dawn, and made small talk for the first part of the journey. When they were an hour from the village he stopped.

Mafuso turned to him. “Do you need to rest?”

“For a bit. Can we talk?”

“Sure.”

They sat on a fallen tree. Jim having started the conversation, paused, unsure how to continue. He opened his mouth, decided that wouldn’t sound right and closed it again.

Mafuso smiled at him. “I can guess what you want to talk about.”

“You can?”

“Yes. You want to talk about Lou. My intentions towards her,” he said carefully.

Jim grimaced. “You took the words right out of my mouth. You make me sound like her brother. I’m not. I just feel kind of responsible for her as she doesn’t have anyone else. Do you have feelings for her?”

“I have feelings for her, yes. But not love. I am, how you say, to be joined to someone else.”

“Engaged to be married.”

“That’s right. To Tayba. She is to be my wife in five days. I will take you to meet her. She will bear me many sons.” Mafuso stood up. “We must carry on. Kelmac is expecting us back with meat before sundown.”

Jim stood up, relieved that there was no possibility of anything more than friendship between Lou and Mafuso, but unsure of how she would take it. They checked the next trap. A rabbit lay in it.

Mafuso put it in the sack and reset the trap.

Jim asked, “How long have you been engaged?”

“Not long. Kelmac will make the announcement tonight at dinner.”

Jim grasped his arm. “Will you tell Lou before then? It would be better coming from you.”

“I will do it when we get back.” Mafuso replied. “No problem.”

Jim grinned at the phrase. Mafuso had learned fast.

They carried on checking the traps and emptying them.

Mafuso showed Jim how to open the trap, free the dead or dying animal and reset it.

Jim looked closely at the jagged teeth. “It’s rusty. Don’t you ever clean or replace them?”

“There is no need. The rain cleans them and the heat dries them.”

“They’re lethal.”

“That is the point of them.”

Jim looked up as a sudden thought hit him. “But what if, I mean, what if a child or...”

“People get caught in them? It happens. It is best to stay on the path. I have explained this to Lou. She needs to be careful with the dog.” Mafuso stood up. “We have made good time. That’s the last of them.”

“Shall we head back?”

“Yes.”

Mafuso hoisted the bag over his shoulder and was about to set off when a squealing noise and a thudding of feet came through the brush.

A wild boar charged through the trees, its eyes glinting, its head down and tusks lowered. It was headed directly towards Jim.

A bolt of fear shot through him.

Mafuso ran past him, a spear flexed in his hand. He thrust hard above the pig’s shoulder, stabbing deep. Mafuso’s arms rippled as he stood his ground, holding the spear in place, his leg muscles corded as he used every ounce of strength he possessed to keep the spear in the pig.

Enraged, the beast tried to turn, damaging itself further as it fought. And then, just like that, it was over. The boar took a reflex step, and then fell to the ground.

Mafuso waited a moment, keeping his distance while checking the boar out. He approached, put a foot on the hide and pulled to retrieve his spear. He turned to Jim. “Are you all right?”

“Fine,” a shaken Jim replied. “Thanks to you.”

“You’re welcome. We shall feast tonight.” Mafuso approached the hog, slit it open and began to expertly field dress the meat.

Jim watched in fascination, having never seen the operation.

Once Mafuso finished, he cut a pole from one of the trees, tied the boar’s feet together with vines and slipped them over the pole.

Jim knew what to do from photos he’d seen in his world history class. Jim took one end of the pole, Mafuso grabbed the other and they carried the boar back to the village.

On their arrival a huge crowd surrounded them. Kelmac and Aryna made their way through to greet them. He congratulated them on the boar.

“It was all Mafuso’s doing,” Jim explained. “It charged at us. I froze. He killed it with his spear.”

Kelmac looked at Mafuso. “Is this true?”

Mafuso nodded.

“You are indeed a great warrior. Tonight we feast in your honor. Lifesaver and warrior.”

Some of the others bore Mafuso on their shoulders around the village.

Staci and Ailsa, as always had run to Jim’s side.

Lou stood on her own outside the hut. She turned and headed slowly down the path, Deefer trotting by her side.

Jim started to follow her.

Staci tugged his arm.

“What is it?” he asked.

“You should go wash. There will be an announcement of some kind tonight.”

“But Lou?”

“She’s been in a weird mood since lunch. She’ll get over it.” She hugged him tightly. “My brother, the hero.”

Jim shook his head. “No, I’m not.”

“OK, you’re not. Either way, you stink. So go wash.”

~*~

Lou sat on her own by the river, Deefer by her side. Thoughts cascaded through her mind, the wind blew in the trees and some kind of insects chirped in the underbrush.

Footsteps suddenly echoed and Mafuso sat beside her. “Hi.”

“I wondered where you were. You were not there when we returned from the hunt.”

“I was there, then I came here to think. I hear you saved Jim’s life.”

“He is my friend. As are you.”

“Good. You’re my friend, too.”

Mafuso laid a hand on hers for a moment. “I have to speak to you. About something important.”

Lou tugged her hand away. She took a deep breath, burying how she felt. After all, she’d become expert at that recently. “It’s OK, Mafuso. I know what you plan to say.”

“You do?”

“Tayba’s a nice girl. She loves you. We were on kitchen duty together all day. She talked about you and the wedding nonstop. I hope you’ll both be really happy together.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Lou changed the subject. “C’mon. Let’s go have some of this pig you killed.”

Together they found Tayba, and Mafuso introduced her to the others.

Jim congratulated them. Then he turned to Lou. “She is beautiful, but not a patch on Ailsa,” he whispered.

Lou shook her head. “You got it bad, mate. You’ve known her a few weeks. You can’t make a life decision based on that.”

“Try stopping him,” Staci laughed. “C’mon, I’m hungry.”

They queued up for food and then all sat together.

Amilek and Keika joined them.

The conversation soon turned to the weather.

Amilek looked at the sky. “It will rain soon.”

“How can you tell,” Lou asked as she picked at the meat. “Not a single cloud anywhere.”

“It’s summer,” Amilek explained. “In summer it rains. Much rain.”

“In England it always rains.”

Jim corrected Lou. “Not all the time. We have three types of weather. It’s either raining, about to rain, or just finished raining.”

“And in the summer, we have warm rain.” Staci added.

“You are blessed it rains so much,” Mafuso said as he appeared from nowhere. He was good at the silent approach. He seemed to know when she wasn’t eating and would show up, giving her no choice in the matter. He sat, Tayba at his side. “Some years the rains do not come.”

“Then what happens?” Staci asked.

“Crops fail, animals die. Things are hard when the rains do not come. This year they will come. I can smell them.”

Staci sniffed. “Can’t smell anything except dinner.”

The others laughed.

“You will see. The rains will come in the morning.” Mafuso looked over at Lou. “Is your meal all right?”

Lou had barely touched it. “It’s fine.”

“Good. Then eat.”

She picked up the meat and took a bite. It threatened to choke her, but somehow she plastered a smile on her face and joined in, despite the fact her heart was breaking.

Kelmac stood and raised his hands.

At once everyone fell silent.

Ailsa quietly translated.

“Tonight we feast in the honor of Mafuso, whose heroic deeds brought us the food of the elders. We celebrate him and give him great praise for his deeds.”

A cheer went up.

Kelmac continued. “We also announce his joining to Tayba, daughter of Lotho and Sivelle. The ceremony will be in five days.”

Another cheer went up.

Tayba blushed and hid behind Mafuso. As normal conversation resumed, she said, “You will be staying for the wedding?”

Jim glanced at Lou. “We really ought to be heading off now Lou’s better. We can’t stay here forever.”

“Five days won’t hurt,” Ailsa said. “It would be nice to stay for the wedding. Please?”

“Lou?”

“You know my feelings on going home, Jim. Besides, it’s rude to refuse an invite from the bride. We’d love to stay. Thank you.”

“I guess that’s settled, then. Thank you.”

The next morning was wet. They awoke to the steady drumming of rain on the roof.

Staci looked outside. “Stair rods,” she pronounced.

“What are stair rods?” Keika asked.

“Bannisters that go up a flight of stairs,” Jim tried to explain, not very successfully.

So Lou tried instead. “Cats and dogs,” she said helpfully. “Torrents. Chucking it down. Couldn’t be wetter if it tried. Lovely weather for ducks.”

Keika looked outside. “Ah, much rain.”