~~~~~
His ears felt somehow exposed. The last time Agung had short hair was when he was a child. But now his heart was full of love for the girls who had deprived him of the straggling hair that protected him from the staring sun, and which he often hid behind if he didn’t want to get involved in the long discussions at Likupang.
Agung felt that the Javanese kain seemed so fiddly compared to his comfortable old kathok. He would never have managed to get it right if it hadn’t been for Raharjo’s dedicated help.
Absorbed in the ripeness of the moment, he collected dry coconut stalks for the cooking fire, while Lyana harvested mung beans in the cultivated plot behind the house. Lela and Listeri were in the house looking after Eko.
Screams came from behind the house! Screams from a girl!
Dropping the stalks he started running. Afraid now for Lyana, he ran in the direction of the screams. Rounding the corner of the house, Lyana ran into him - with two men chasing her!
The men stopped short when they saw him, about five paces away.
In half a heartbeat, Agung’s hand went to the handle of his machete. The men glanced at each other in the split moment of indecision as all three sized up the situation. For a sharp moment as time slowed down, Agung saw the coldness in their eyes, the arrogant black bearded face and the stubbled face with thick eyebrows. They were muscular and hairy chested. One held a spear and they both had large bows over their shoulders. Wearing kains, they both had knives in scabbards at their waists.
Their hands went to their knives and yanked them out – curved and glinting in the sun.
Agung’s right hand pulled out the great gleaming machete.
Even in this miniscule moment, still he struggled to believe that everything had been bliss and now everything was under attack – by these savages! They are savages! Now he wanted to dismember these savages, to hack through flesh and bone! He would break their necks and spill their guts! He growled his anger, staring directly at them, swiping the machete in front of him, letting them know – ready for the onslaught.
Both men froze.
“Tetep ana!” – “Stay there!” in Javanese.
Eko’s deep voice called from the house and through a partly opened shutter the front part of a bow loaded with an arrow poked out. And behind Agung, Lyana had taken hold of the spear that Eko kept in the alcove of their house.
The men stayed there.
“Sijine mudhun senjata!” - “Put down your weapons!” commanded Eko.
The older, taller one with a thick black beard did not move, still staring at Agung. The younger man with black stubble dropped his spear on the ground. After a further reluctant pause, they both pushed their knives back into the scabbards.
“Kita nedya ora gawe piala.” – “We mean no harm,” the man with the beard proclaimed coldy, in a dense Javanese dialect.
Agung made a gutteral sound of disgust.
“Banjur apa kowe nyerang kita?!” - “Then why do you attack us?!” rejoined Eko before Agung found words to respond.
“Kowe saka ngendi?!” - “Where are you from?!” demanded the bearded man, ignoring the question.
“Saka kene - nanging sampeyan ora.” - “From here – but you are not,” stated Eko, and then added the question “Kowe saka ngendi?” - “Where are you from?”
“Bitung - lan saka kene.” - “Bitung – and from here,” came the reply. To Agung it sounded like a threat and he growled in answer, moving the machete menacingly.
At that juncture, the bearded man stepped back a couple of paces, followed by the stubbled man, who left his spear. The bearded one glowered at Agung and spat on the ground, before turning to stride quickly towards the trees together with the stubbled one, who glanced behind as if to check that they weren’t being followed.
Agung watched their retreat wordlessly. Before they disappeared from view, he saw the shadow of another man joining the two tribesmen in the forest.
Lyana clung to him and looked up gratefully at her saviour. Instinctively, he put an arm around her and kissed her on the forehead. He was still pumped up - thinking about the men and what should be done next.
Raharjo appeared, running from the direction of the pond. Listeri turned to him, saying:
“I’m so glad to see you son – I didn’t know where you were..Two men just tried to attack us here, but Agung stopped them.”
“If Eko had not spoken to them they could have attacked,” Agung said, pointing to the forest. “They have gone away into the trees.”
“I saw three men just now walking towards Likupang – was it the same men?”
“Did you see their faces?”
“No – only their backs – one was tall – he was carrying a big bow, and a knife. Another one was well-built with a bow and knife. And I think one was an older boy – he had a small bow, and a knife.. I followed them until I thought they weren’t coming back here.”
“Likupang must be told that these men are coming,” said Agung with grim determination as he thought about his family there, and tried to weigh up the danger of leaving the family here.
“Let me go!” Raharjo said with conviction. “I can get to Likupang and tell them.”
Raharjo was clambering into his boat when he saw another boat approaching the small beach at Pantai.
“Bandri is coming!” he shouted, running back to the house.
As Agung helped his friend land the boat, Bandri exclaimed:
“Great outfit!. What happened to your hair?!”
“Java from Bitung tried to take Lyana!” stormed Agung. “They’re on their way to Likupang!”
“We all need to get back!” Bandri responded almost at once.
“But?!”
“I came to tell you – they’ve agreed the family can join.”
Agung nodded with his mouth open.
“There’s only two boats,” he said after a moment. “We can’t leave the girls here.”
“I’ll take Lela in this boat – you take Lyana in the other boat.”
Raharjo had been listening.
“I can stay here with mother and father.”
“Are you sure?” asked Bandri. “We’ll come back as soon as we can.”
“I’m sure.”
As they ran back up to the house to put the plan into action Agung gave his friend more details of what had happened.
“When did you get your hair cut?” asked Bandri.
“First thing this morning – why?”
“We don’t want the Bahoi tribesmen to see the family joining Likupang.. We have to disguise you and the girls – quickly!”
The Tropical Sun - Belief, Love and Hate Page 23