Two Rivers

by Zoe Saadia

  He let the youth soak in the water for some time, trying to be as gentle as he could while washing the cuts. Still, by the time they came out, the boy was half conscious, exhausted from pain.

  “Rest now,” said Two Rivers, making his patient as comfortable as he could upon the sandy strip of the land.

  With no mixture of mud and blood, the youth looked somewhat better, although pale and barely conscious, lying there like a dead creature, the crusted marks from the bear’s claws and the new cuts making a strange pattern upon his chest. His face looked bad, swollen and cut and bluish with bruises, but this would heal, too. The cub was not going to die. That was the main thing.

  The girl waited impatiently. “Will he be well?”

  “Yes, he will.” Glancing at her, he paused, taken by compassion. Another one looking bizarre, disheveled, and pale, the air of uncertainty surrounding her, untypical for this particular female. “You did a good thing. You saved him.”

  She peered at him with her troubled eyes huge and glittering. “You are going to leave, aren’t you? You and him?”

  “We have no choice.”

  “Why?” Her eyes were filling with tears, but her voice did not shake.

  “Do you want us to go back and try to explain the deaths of four more people?”

  “They were the ones to attack us!” she cried out, wringing her hands. “They were trying to kill us, and then I came to you asking for help. You had no choice but to kill these people. I’ll tell it over and over, repeat it as long as I need to in order to make them listen. I’ll talk to the Town’s and the Clans Councils and all the influential people.”

  For her sake, he suppressed his grin. “They won’t listen to you, not after what happened at the condolence ceremony this morning. We were told to keep away from the people of your clan, and from this same Yeentso in particular. We were told to stay in our longhouses and keep quiet. But what we did was just the opposite. We went out and killed Yeentso. And three more men, all of them good hunters and warriors, the best of the nation.” He snorted, then shrugged. There was no point in getting angry because of that. “What do you think will happen to your pretty boy now? Will the Town Council pat him on his back and tell him to be more careful next time he wants to love his girl in the woods?” He shook his head as she tried to protest. “Yes, yes, I know. You two were just talking. But even this will not predispose them to listen to you more carefully. Good girls do not spend their time with boys all alone in the woods, especially not with the boys who are frowned upon. You give too much credit to your ability to orate and make them listen.” He eyed her thoughtfully, feeling sorry for her. “He has no choice but to leave. To flee, if you want to name it for what it is. And if you really care about him, you will help him to do so in any way you can.”

  She dropped her gaze, looking thin and forlorn, just a frail young girl that she was. “You’ve been thinking about leaving for some time, haven’t you?”

  Surprised by her perception, he hesitated. “Not for a very long time, but yes, I’ve been thinking about leaving.”

  “Where to?”

  He eyed her with a growing interest. “To the lands of his people.”

  “Why?” Hugging her arms against the strengthening wind, she kept peering at the sand, her voice quiet and detached, as though someone else were asking the probing questions.

  “I can’t answer you that. This decision is based on many factors. It has something to do with certain dreams. And the prophecy.” He shrugged lightly, grinning. “We have nowhere else to go, anyway.”

  “They say you did not believe in the prophecy,” she pressed on, disregarding his attempt to lighten the conversation. “I heard you saying that, too. What changed?”

  He spread his arms wide, defeated. “I don’t know, Seketa. I truly don’t know. But yes, something changed, and it has to do with your chosen mate. He is a part of it, I know it now. An important part, girl, and not just a tool. He’ll grow into an outstanding man, both of us can see that, but there is more to it. Much more. He is a part of the change, but only with the passing of time we will know more, discover what his role in all this is.”

  “That’s why you rushed to save him so readily. That’s why you were prepared to kill your country folk in order to save him.” It came out as a statement, an open accusation. “You are doing this for you, not for him.”

  He suppressed his irritation, seeing her scared but defiant, trembling with cold, or maybe with desperation. She loved him, this wild, savage cub, he realized, truly loved him.

  “I will try to keep him from harm,” he said quietly, wishing he knew what to say. “I will not use him in the way you are afraid I would. If he’ll want to go his own way when we reach his people’s lands, I will let him go.”

  She watched him for a long while, her eyes huge and glittering, the unshed tears held back, not allowed to roll down her muddied cheeks. A few more heartbeats passed before she nodded and turned away.

  “I will go back to the town now, and I will bring you things, food and clothes and your weapons. It may take me some time, to sneak around and gather those things. Will you wait until I come back?” She hesitated. “I want to say my farewells to him.”

  “Yes, I’ll wait.” Suddenly, he found his throat constricted. “You are a wise woman, wiser than your age warrants. And your courage has no bounds. He is lucky to have your love, even if you two were not destined to be together.” He took a deep breath, feeling strange. “And who knows? He is not an ordinary person. Maybe he’ll find a way to reach you, to make you his despite all the obstacles. I would bet on this particular stake, as impossible as it might look now. I would put many of my belongings against this wild bet.”

  Something crept into the depths of the bottomless eyes, something that made the desperate look go away.

  “Do you feel it?” she asked in a small voice. “Do you see it in your mind’s eye?”

  He knew what she meant, and for a heartbeat, he hesitated. It seemed like a certain thing now, he was sure the boy would find the way. Or was it just wishful thinking, an attempt to make her feel better?

  “I don’t know,” he told her frankly, unwilling to lie. “I think I can feel it, but I’m not sure. But then, when was I sure of anything concerning feelings or prophecies? I hope he will find you, that much I can promise you. I truly believe him capable of this sort of deed.”

  Her smile shone at him out of the thickening darkness.

  “Thank you,” she said, turning around and beginning to ascend the path leading back to the town. “I do believe in your prophecy and your feelings and dreams.”

  “We will sail at midnight,” he called after her. “If you don’t manage to come back by then, I will tell him about this conversation and your trust and your confidence in his abilities. You are an outstanding woman. If I’ll have a chance in helping him find you, I will help.”

  Alone at long last, he stared at the dark mass of the water, then shook his head and went to check on the boy, who by now drifted into an uneasy sleep, spread upon the sand, breathing heavily, jerking every now and then.

  The cub will be all right, he thought, examining the youth more closely. A few days of rest and the boy would be himself again, more useful than ever.

  In the last of the dim illumination, he eyed the bluish mess of the youth’s ribs and the way he jerked with every taken breath. Maybe half a moon, he thought, but he will be all right, eventually.

  The task of choosing the best canoe beckoned, and he hurried toward the wooden tent, deep in thought. If the girl managed to gather a half of what she intended to bring, they would be off to a passable start. And she would manage, he knew. This woman was capable of many things, he believed now. If only they could have brought her along! The wildness of this thought made him chuckle.

  Chapter 19

  She watched the sun coming up from behind the trees adorning the inner side of the palisade, unstoppable and unwelcomed. Narrowing her eyes against the strengthenin
g glow, she followed its progress, her mind numb.

  Too tired to sleep, she had stayed there, near Iraquas’ platform, for the remainder of the night, doing nothing, not even praying but just sitting there and staring ahead, frozen, dead, turned to stone. The world as she knew it was gone, but as long as the night was there, sheltering, she could hide and rest and gather her strength.

  The sunrise would put the end to it, she knew, wishing for it never to come. It would make her face people, talk to them, answer their questions, maybe. It would force her to pretend, to pretend that nothing happened, that nothing changed in her life, when everything had changed and would never be the same.

  She shut her eyes, wishing the night to come back. Please, not now, not yet. Just a few more heartbeats of peace and quiet in the merciful darkness, that same darkness that still saw them together. Just a little more time to prolong the night.

  Clenching her palms, she remembered how she had run back to the town, with this same darkness just beginning to descend, limping on her cut, hurting feet, in a frenzied hurry but trying to be careful, too, to draw as little attention as possible.

  People were still chanting around Iraquas’ platform, dancing and praying. The rolling of the drums told her that, but this time she gave no passing thought to her cousin and his departing spirit. She had been too busy.

  Luckily, they all were busy too, so no one noticed her sneaking into the storage room, lingering there for just long enough to stuff a leather bag with all sorts of foods, dried meat and fish and berries, every piece of cornbread she could find, and then some more.

  She was lucky enough to discover a pottery jar with the sweetened corn flour the warriors were taking while on the raids, to mix with some water when the need to eat quickly would arise. She tucked the whole jar into her bag, caring nothing for the Mothers of her Clan, who would be appalled to find so many items of precious food missing. There would be an outcry, and the search for the thief or thieves, but it would happen later, much later, when Tekeni and Two Rivers would be far away already, facing other dangers and threats.

  The fear was back, clutching her chest in its freezing grip. To attempt the crossing of the Great Sparkling Water was an act of madness. Two Rivers was insane. He should have thought of a better solution. And yet…

  She remembered going through his belongings, shivering with fear. To pillage her longhouse’s storage room was one thing. She could always plead that she had been hungry, or sent by someone to bring the food to the mourning people, or just cry and demand to be left alone with her grief. She had every right to be in her own longhouse.

  However, to sneak into one of the Turtle Clan’s dwellings was a wholly different matter. She would have to explain what she had been doing in Two Rivers’ family compartment, and there was no good explanation to that, not a single excuse.

  So she went through his belongings in a hurry, tossing every item of clothing she found into her bag without looking, searching frantically for his bow and the quiver of arrows, finding a bird’s trap in the process and, on the spur of an inspiration, tossing the intricate thing in, too. They would need to sustain themselves for quite a while, before reaching their dubious destination.

  Relieved to be outside and inspired by the swiftness of her progress – it was still so far away from being midnight – she eyed the deserted alleys of the town, then left her bag beside the tobacco plots and ran as fast as she could toward the Wolf Clan’s longhouse. He needed to take his belongings too, his bow and arrows, and most of all – the precious claws of the bear he slew. He deserved to wear the necklace he had made out of them, for everyone to see and know how great and fearless he was.

  The tears were back, threatening to take her again, to reduce her into a trembling heap of limbs. She clenched her teeth and looked at the sun, trying to greet the benevolent deity against her will. The Father Sun was not to blame.

  As it gained power, she watched it, smiling upon her, spreading its warmth, bring her frozen limbs to life. He would come as he promised, she told herself, beginning to believe again. Two Rivers maintained most sincerely that the wild boy was capable of even greater, more impossible deeds, and now, as the darkness receded, she began to believe in that, too. He was truly an outstanding man – Tekeni, the wild boy from the lands of the savages, her chosen mate. He would do this and many more great things. Be the part of Two Rivers’ mission, but with her by his side.

  Smiling now, she remembered coming back to the shore, carrying the heavy bag and the weapons. It was a miracle that no one had seen her, a miracle that no one had wandered outside the town’s fence on that particular night; no grief-stricken people from either of the mourning clans seeking some privacy, no couples seeking some love, no playful, mischievous children even.

  No one was there to see her staggering under her cumbersome burden, or to find the bodies of four people not far away in the woods. The town seemed too busy with itself, minding its own business, for a change. Or maybe those were the Great Spirits, divine powers, or good uki, casting their spell, making everyone blind and deaf for one critical night. Was Two Rivers’ mission that important?

  She remembered her relief, finding them still on the shore, with Two Rivers immersed in examining a small, strangely bright canoe he already had dragged all alone toward the shore line, and Tekeni curled upon the sand, absorbed in his pain or the ways to deal with it.

  She had knelt beside him, dropping her cargo carelessly, making Two Rivers frown, as Tekeni came back to life, pushing himself into a sitting position, his face twisting.

  “Don’t get up,” she whispered, putting her arms around him, supporting, but also enjoying the touch, giving him her warmth. “You need to rest before your journey.”

  “I’m not going!” he said sharply, the words slipping with difficulty through his cut, swollen lips.

  “Of course, you are going. You have to.” She peered at him, her stomach suddenly light, fluttering with anticipation, with the suddenness of her hope.

  “I don’t have to. I’m not leaving you. We’ll find the way to deal with this.”

  Oh, it was music, a wonderful music of the most beautiful flute!

  She took a deep breath. “Do you think we can? How? I’m not sure there is a way, and Two Rivers said—”

  “I don’t care,” called out Two Rivers tersely, turning the canoe over and examining its bottom. “The moment this thing is ready, I’m sailing, with or without your gallant warrior.” He spat into the water. “You can try to talk him out of this madness, but remember that you don’t have much time.”

  She let her breath out, torn. If he left, she would lose him forever. If he stayed, she may have him for herself for some time, but the price might be too high, more than she was prepared to pay. Two Rivers was right. Four people were killed, and he would be blamed for their deaths, no matter what truly happened. She wouldn’t be able to make them listen.

  Heart twisting with pain at the sight of his cut, swollen face, she leaned closer, to kiss his lips carefully, anxious not to hurt him. The more passionate kisses would have to live in her memory only now. Until he came for her.

  “You won’t break your promise to me,” she whispered, swallowing the knot in her throat. “We promised, and we sealed our love this afternoon, but our plan was silly. It would never have worked, anyway, even without the filthy lowlife Yeentso. My Clan Mothers are stubborn; they would not see the reason.” Another knot in her throat swallowed, she went on, praying for her voice to remain firm, not to break. “But it doesn’t matter. We will just have to achieve our goal differently now. We have to be more cunning, more patient, that’s all.”

  She peered into his eyes, feeling his arms enveloping her, although his body tensed with an effort, his forehead glittering with sweat. She pressed closer, taking some of his weight.

  “If you stay, you die. If you leave, you do have a chance. And then, after you have helped Two Rivers, after you two have established yourselves somewhere, anywhere, com
e here and take me away, too. I will be waiting for you. I will not belong to anyone, I promise. I promised you that already, but I now will be repeating myself. I’ll belong to no one but you, and if you come and kidnap me back to your lands of the savages, I will come gladly. Even if it means that I’ll have to cook people for your evening meals and to kiss you while watching the snakes twisting in your hair.”

  She felt his laughter, and the way his body tensed, dealing with the pain the laughter brought.

  “Oh, you would deal with that, would you?” he said, his lips twisting slightly, but his eyes smiling, happy and unreserved.

  “Yes, I would,” she said, satisfied with the effect. “Do your people’s women work the fields at all?”

  “No, they hunt people for meals, instead. And they tend their husbands’ hair, to make the snakes happy. That’s all they do.”

  “Then their life is easy, and I will be happy to lead it, as long as you make love to me the way you did this afternoon.”

  His gaze deepened, glittering, taking her breath away. “I will come for you. Unless I am dead, and maybe even then. I will not break my promise. You will be mine, and it won’t take me long summers to come, either. I will not make you wait, I promise you that.”

  And then they sat silent, holding each other, sad and happy at the same time, until Two Rivers declared that the boat was ready, poring through the contents of her bag, nodding his approval.

  “So many useful things! And my bird’s trap,” he exclaimed, as happy as a young boy. “You are quite a woman, Seketa!” Straightening up, he faced her, smiling into her eyes. “I hope to see you again, and soon. This young man will make it happen, never fear.” He grinned. “I almost wish we could have taken you along now. You have more common sense than the whole female population of this town put together. And many males thrown in the pile, as well.”

  “Maybe she should come,” said Tekeni, pausing to catch his balance before attempting to step into the boat.