Love's Joy

by Emil Toth

  “Thank the gods you have come home.”

  “I love you both so much,” expressed Sharika.

  She broke the embrace and went to Chief Atti and his wife Ilona and embraced them and kissed them.

  “Have I surprised you with my return?”

  “I never expected you to return,” Chief Atti answered.

  “A pleasant surprise,” added Ilona.

  Atti’s eyes swept over the travelers. “So who are all these people?”

  “Let me introduce you to everyone.” Sharika waved to the peace group to approach and introduced everyone.

  Atti’s eyes widened with the introductions. Many surrounding them burst into excited conversation. Sharika caught snatches of the talk and the gist of it was they were surprised she had returned.

  Atti glared at her. “Why have you returned?”

  “I am part of the team hoping the Hun Nation will ratify a peace treaty.”

  Atti recognized the significance of the trip. “We must conduct business before pleasure.” He spoke loudly to the throng, “These people have come to discuss ratification of a peace treaty. Miklos, Pater and I are going to meet with them in my home and we will announce the outcome after it is over.”

  Atti and Ilona started out for their home, with Miklos, Pater and the Kahali group in tow and most of the villagers as well. The Huns followed the travelers until they disappeared in Atti’s home. They clogged the avenue and stood conversing in anticipation of the outcome.

  Chief Atti’s house was barely able to accommodate the large group. The moment everyone was settled he spoke, “Who is your spokesperson?”

  Elgar, the Elder answered in the common language, “We have chosen Sharika to represent us because this was her home.”

  Atti raised a hand. “It will have no bearing on what we decide.”

  Elgar was not fazed. “It was not our intention.”

  “Very well. Let us proceed,” announced Atti.

  Sharika went through the articles of the treaty slowly and made certain Atti, Miklos and Pater understood each one. The only one to draw discussion was the boundary of the Hun Nation. After pointing out hundreds of years may pass before any border dispute might arise it was accepted. Atti told the group he saw the treaty making travel less dangerous and expected commerce to commence and people to travel for the sheer love of adventure. Elgar agreed and saw it growing through the years. The formal meeting ended and wine was served as Pater announced the outcome of the meeting to those waiting patiently outside. The good news was greeted with a roar and the villagers disbursed with the news.

  A while later Atti and Sharika were huddled on a small bench outside away from the others. He spoke in a confidential voice. “What on earth possessed you to come back?”

  Sharika was stunned by her old friend’s question. “I thought you and everyone else would be happy to see me.”

  “You heard the reaction from those close enough to hear us when you told me. They did not appreciate you leaving the way you did. None of us wanted to hear you say we had a problem with inbreeding. It never set well with us, Huns. Be aware many of the villagers will cast disparaging remarks toward you”

  “I had expected some would be hurt. I honestly never thought you would disapprove.”

  “What did you expect?” he snapped. “I told you you would succeed me. You had the world in your hand and you threw it away. I cannot understand you. All I can say is you are fortunate you are not making our village your home. It would take a long time for you to rekindle friendships.”

  Sharika’s voice was filled with her exasperation, “Before I left, I told you I noticed some of our people had succumbed to physical deformities and mental deficiencies. You seemed to understand my concerns.”

  “I knew I could not change your mind so I was being kind.”

  “I had hoped I expressed my concerns well enough.”

  “Oh, you did my dear. It does not mean it did not hurt. These are my people and I thought yours. I wanted you to lead them. I was greatly deceived. You were looking out for yourself.”

  “Not true. I wanted to change the pattern. I wanted to add new blood to our old blood. I gave it a great deal of thought. It is evident I did not explain myself thoroughly to you.”

  “I heard what I heard,” he interjected.

  Trying to make her point she added, “In my travels to four tribes, I noticed the number of deformities are substantially lower than they are in ours except for the mutants. I still stand by what I did. I chose to leave and find a suitable husband to strengthen our bloodline.”

  “Did you have any intention of coming back and living here?”

  “Yes.”

  “I hope you see it was poor judgment. My poor judgment was thinking you were going to stay amongst us. I was terribly wrong about you.”

  “I am sorry, Atti.”

  He dejectedly shook his head. “Ah, it is done now. All I can do is wonder what might have been had you stayed.

  “Had I not left, I never would have met Kaathi. The moment I met her, I knew I would not leave her. I have come to love Kaathi and I am learning a great deal from her and have chosen to live wherever she is living.”

  “With your words I can see she means a great deal to you.”

  “Yes.”

  “What if your husband wanted to live away from her?”

  “I would stay with her.”

  “Tell me what is so special about Kaathi.”

  Sharika did not hesitate with her reply. “She is helping me understand myself and other mysteries.”

  Atti appeared to forget about how he felt moments ago. “I thought you knew yourself.”

  “She is showing me a more joyful side of life.”

  “Were you not living life joyfully here?”

  She cocked her head and peered at him. “Are you living joyfully?”

  In answer, he made a face.

  “Do I need to talk any more about why she means so much to me?”

  “No.”

  Atti wanted to change the subject. “So tell me about this husband of yours.”

  “He has a marvelous sense of humor and is playful. He is an apprentice Warrior Hunter as am I.”

  “Why is he not part of this group?”

  “The Kahali law states one of the Warrior Hunters has to remain in our village.”

  Atti saw Elgar was not engaged in conversation. He abruptly excused himself saying he needed to talk with Elgar. She watched him leave. She saw she did not correctly gauge the depth of his displeasure with her leaving and marrying outside the tribe.

  Sharika ate the last meal of the day with the others and afterward went to her parent’s home. They greeted and embraced each other and a steady salvo of questions came forth from her parents.

  Her mother’s first question was, “Do you have any children?”

  Sharika smiled. “We have a girl, Mariska; she is six.” Her smile faded. “And Vern is four.”

  “Is Vern a boy or girl?”

  “We are not sure yet.”

  A quizzical look fell upon her mother’s face. “What do you mean?”

  “Vern was born with both genitalia, so we are letting Vern decide when the time is right to be either a boy or girl.”

  Her father was stunned. “How is it possible?”

  “It happens more often than you think, Father. Most parents are confused and ashamed and do not talk about it. The child can be perplexed as well unless the parents, relatives and friends are supportive. They usually end up not getting married.”

  She ended her explanation and was glad she never mentioned Vern’s uniqueness to Atti.

  “Oh Sharika, I am so sorry you and your child have been burdened with this affliction. Can we do anything?”

  “No. Kaathi has been counseling us and Vern. She is helping us understand how to accept this challenge. She has also brought this to the attention of the people attending our Relationship Sessions. This has helped immensely by acquainting the
village to this natural event. Others have come forward and announced they or their children also have the same physical anomaly. Others have said even though they have a specific male or female body their emotional makeup is in opposition to it. With more and more people and children revealing their challenges it has helped others to come forward.”

  Sharika’s father listened to his daughter and the irony of her leaving the tribe to enhance her bloodline did not go unnoticed. He kept his thoughts to himself, certain she had already discovered it herself.

  The face of a young boy, living in the village, popped into Sharika’s mother’s mind. He always seemed uncomfortable in a group of boys. He was remarkably at ease playing with girls. She pushed the image out of her mind. “Why did you not bring them with you?”

  “It is too impractical. Janos is taking care of them. We left Kahali the second day of the sunny season and we do not expect to be back much before the rains. It would be a grueling trip for children.”

  Her mother was concerned. “How does Janos’ parents feel about Vern?”

  “They were confused and we talked to them a great deal about Vern. They have come to accept the challenge.”

  Her father wanted to change the subject. “What are your duties as a Warrior Hunter?”

  “On this trip I am a rower, a wood gatherer, a hunter and protector. Back in Kahali, I am a source for people to ask me anything about survival, hunting and weapons. In times of war we are the ones to give strategic advice. I am also learning, from my mentor, how to anticipate blows from an enemy.”

  “Can you tell us about the woman named, Kaathi?” asked her mother. “There is something intriguing about her.”

  “She is the one responsible for this trip. She is the one who envisioned bringing all of the tribes together in peace.”

  “How did she become a High Priest?” her mother wanted to know.

  Sharika told the story of how she attained the role.

  “I cannot believe those two High Priests were so evil.”

  “They were dead before I got to Kahali. I am glad I never met them.”

  Her father jumped in with his question. “Did your Elder say the tiny, hairless woman was a member of the Uchakwa tribe?”

  “Yes. Their numbers are small. They live in the jungle.”

  “Why does she have no hair?”

  “I honestly do not know.”

  “Why is she so small?”

  “Again I do not know.”

  “Your group is a strange conglomeration of people,” professed her father.

  “Yes they are, and they are a magnificent group of people.”

  CHAPTER SIXTY-EIGHT

  Sharika made her way to her old friend’s house and saw her sitting on a bench outside repairing a woven basket. The moment Mia saw her she dropped the basket and they ran to each other. They hugged and wept briefly and walked back to the bench hand in hand.

  “You have not changed. How are you able to stay so young looking?”

  Mia laughed. “Thank you for the compliment. I still find it hard to believe we are old enough to have children. Of course you did not know I got married and had a child. She is three and asks a hundred questions a day.”

  Sharika smiled. “I know what you are talking about. Mine were the same.”

  “How many do you have?”

  “Two, a boy Vern and daughter Mariska.”

  Mia burst into laughter. “Oh this is too good to be true.”

  “What?”

  “Our daughter is named Mariska.”

  Sharika giggled. “Well we were closer than sisters and it is no surprise our daughters have the same names. Is she inside?”

  “She is sleeping. Come.”

  They went into Mia’s house and she picked up her sleeping child and gave her to Sharika, who kissed her repeatedly while cooing to her.

  “She is beautiful.”

  “She is,” agreed Mia.

  The child fussed and Sharika laid her back on her bed. The women went back outside and sat down.

  “Is your husband taking care of your children?”

  “He is.”

  “What is he like?”

  “Before we were married he was the darling of all the women. In spite of it, he is a dear and he is a marvelous father and has a wonderful sense of humor. What is your man like?”

  “Laszlo was single for a long time. It was his choice.”

  “How did you manage to catch him?”

  “I ignored him for the longest time. It made me different from all the rest of the women. I think he saw me as a challenge and took it upon himself to make me his. Anyway it has been a wonderfully happy union. With the addition of Mariska my life has been joyful.”

  “I am so happy for you.”

  Mia pointed up the avenue. “Speaking of my man, here he comes.”

  Laszlo’s face broke into a wide smile upon seeing Sharika and he walked briskly to the women. He was as captivatingly handsome as he was when Sharika had left. He whisked his old friend in his arms saying, “Sharika, it is good to see you.”

  “It is good to see you. Has Mia put the gray in your hair or your baby?”

  “Neither. It is having to bury so many older ladies I have made friends with.”

  His statement caught her by surprise. It took a moment for her to recover. “May I ask why you are so interested in them?”

  “Mother passed away, when I was nine, and I think I never got enough of her love, so I found it in the older women. I found widows are lonely and they are not afraid to tell me they love me nor am I afraid to tell them I love them. It gives me pleasure to do odd jobs for them, tell them stories and be with them. They seem to like my company. Mia does not mind. If she did, I would sadly stop.”

  Mia literally beamed with love for Laszlo. The look did not go unnoticed by Sharika. Laszlo’s open admission surprised Sharika. When she was young, she simply thought of him as a flirt. He had much more depth to him than she expected. She knew bringing happiness to the lonely to be a noble endeavor. Her admiration of him was something new for Sharika. She was grateful Mia and Laszlo found each other and were blessed with a lovely child.

  “You seem to have a distinguished position among the Kahali,” said Laszlo.

  Sharika chuckled. “I think they were impressed I was standing side by side with Hun men killing baboons.”

  “So their women are not fighters?”

  “No. The roles of men and women are still pretty defined by tradition.”

  “Did you receive curt comments after you were appointed as a Warrior Hunter?”

  “It went on for a long time. Thankfully it gradually died down and it happens infrequently now.”

  “You have not changed physically since you left,” observed Laszlo.

  “There is a regime of exercise Jacob insists we do every day. I like it and I have some of my own I do.”

  “So, are you ever going to come back here to live?”

  Sharika cocked her head. “I suppose the future will dictate whether I do.”

  CHAPTER SIXTY-NINE

  The peace group left the Hun Nation six days after they arrived assured all of the tribes ratified the peace treaty. Sharika was the only person in the peace group facing negative emotions from the Huns. While the Warrior Hunter, Jacob, had been by her side, no one spoke harshly to her. Sharika never had any regret making the trip, but she left the village with mixed emotions due to Atti’s harsh feelings toward her.

  On the way back to Kahali, the group stopped to visit each village they had stopped at to acquire ratification. The only one they bypassed was the Wanderer tribe because it was not situated on the river. The mutants had agreed they did not have to revisit them to inform them the Nubilon people ratified the treaty.

  The return trip was uneventful. Although the sky grew more filled with clouds each day. Fortunately, the rains had not come. The group was happy to hear the Kahali drums announce their return. They heard the excitement before they were withi
n eyesight. They were greeted with thunderous applause. Elgar, got out of the canoe and waited for the others to exit. He stepped forward, raised his hands for silence and raised his voice to address the assembly, “Thank you for the wonderful welcome. I want all the council members to stand with us.”

  Elgar motioned to the council members to come forward. The Talker Healers, Kaathi, Marie and Mara together with the Warrior Hunters, Jacob, Janos, Sharika and the apprentice Elders, Manti and Waru, along with the Story Tellers, Coloma, Milo, and Faro and the Friends of All, Logan, Burk and Marka gathered alongside Elgar.

  “We bring you good news.”

  The audience broke into spontaneous applause.

  “Because of Kaathi’s insistence, the council approved of her recommendation to create a group to represent us to establish peace among all the known people near us. As of this moment, the Wanderer clan, the Homar kingdom, the Sumati tribe, the Ebiji tribe and the Hun Nation and we, Kahali, have ratified the peace treaty.”

  The crowd applauded the news.

  “For the first time in our orally recorded history we are not at war with any people. Except for the village of Sumati, we took representatives from each village to make certain the native language was spoken to clarify any misunderstandings. This was a tremendous asset in our discussions with each ruler. We anticipated having a difficult time discussing peace with the mutants. I am pleased to announce it was not the case. We saw they are experiencing trouble keeping their newborn alive and reproducing. We were surprised to see their numbers are less than two hundred including slaves.”

  Murmuring arose in the crowd upon hearing the news.

  “With the assurance adventurers will not be killed, commerce between our tribes will be conducted without fear. This will also bring about an exchange of ideas such as the Relationship Sessions. In addition people will be able to travel for pleasure and enjoyment. ”

  The news was met with shouts and applause.

  “I think it fitting I bring forward the author of the peace mission, Kaathi and let her say a few words.”

  The applause and shouting was thunderous.

  Kaathi stepped forward smiling as the applause and cheers continued. She raised her hands to quiet the crowd.