John sat back on the cottonwood trunk and pulled his knee up to his skinny chest.
"Yes, I did," he said after a moment's thought. "Tobias asked me if I knew anything about healing. He said that Andrew Pike said that his wife thought that the runaway slave was a healer. I told him that I wasn't Pike's runaway, even though I am, and he said that I didn't have to worry about Pike, that Pike owed him two slaves and so that I was safe with him. All he cared about was if I was a healer."
"And what did you say?" I said, trying to move the story along.
"I told him that my people knew about healing."
"And so? Did you see Miss Eloise?" I asked for the third time.
"Yes. Tobias brought me to her. Her room is filled with sunlight. It was brightly painted and the windows were open. But she had bad color and was sleeping badly. She had fever."
"What's wrong with her?" I cried.
"I was only allowed to take her pulse," John said. "But I'm pretty sure that she has a blood infection. It seems to have gone to her brain."
"Naw it ain't," I cried, putting my hands to my head. "I just saw her last week swinging on the swing in the garden with her girlfriends."
"She was probably already sick but it was only since then that the infection entered her brain."
"Don't say that!" I yelled. I didn't want to hear something that might cause the beautiful Miss Eloise to die.
"We have to go looking for herbs," John said, not seeming to be very concerned. "Tobias gave us permission to wander around the woods here gathering the medicines they think we'll need to save her life."
With that John got up and strode off into the woods. I followed him, somehow realizing that these were the first steps to an education that would take me I knew not where.
12
As soon as we were off the path John took me by the wrist and again we ran on the wind over boulders and through thick bushes, past trees that were ancient giants looming over dark forest undergrowth.
At one point we came to a field of wild strawberries. John stopped there and took off his new/old work shirt to gather the berries for our lunch. It was then that I remembered the molasses cookies Flore pinned to my shirt. We sat down on the grass and ate for a while. I was worried about Eloise but I was hungry too. Ever since I had been working in the fields I was hungry all the time, nearly starving. I wanted to help Eloise but I couldn't turn down a meal.
John told me that the forest we were in was very old and filled with spices and fungi that were wonderful for the human anatomy.
"What do gnats got to do wit' men?" I asked, trying to put together the strange sounds he uttered.
"Not gnat man" he said. "Human anatomy. That is the study of the parts of the human body."
"Who told you about gnat man meV
Tall John smiled and put a hand on my shoulder.
"I am not what I appear to be," he said. "I come from far, far away as I have already told you. This body of mine, though completely human, was created by what my people call science. Because of this I have a great deal of knowledge about the human body. I know all of the mechanics it is only the human heart that I fail to understand."
"And do you know what mushrooms will get the bugs outta Miss Eloise's brain?" I asked, unconcerned with his silly notions.
"Yes," he said. "There are a few herbs that will assist her healing. And also you need proper rest and nutrition after that infection in your hand and the burn on your shoulder. You need sustenance."
"I don' care about me," I said. "I just wanna make sure that Miss Eloise gets bettah. An' you shouldn't lie to the Master "
John held up a finger and I knew that he wanted me to remember his admonition.
"It don't mattah if you call'im Master or Tobias," I continued. "If he figures out that you jes' wanna run around an' eat strawberries he'll put you in the killin' shack and that will be all she spoke about you."
John smiled and said, "You love that little child Eloise don't you, Forty-seven?"
"She's like the angels that Brother Bob talks on and on about at his sermons."
"She's just a person."
"No," I complained. "She's the most beautiful girl in the world."
"Eighty-four is just as beautiful in her own way," my new friend argued.
"How can you say somethin' like that, boy?" I said. "Eighty-four's black and ugly with nappy hair and liver lips. She couldn't even hold a candle to Miss Eloise."
"Come with me," Tall John said.
He jumped up from where we were and led me a short way down an animal path to a wide, still pond.
"Look," he said. "Look at yourself in the water."
The water was absolutely motionless and reflective like a polished mirror. I could see my whole image from head to toe.
"Take off that shirt, Forty-seven."
I did as he told me, standing naked at the pond's edge.
When I looked down into the reflective pool I could see that my skin was very dark and that my body was like a man's but smaller. My hair was wild and every which way, but I looked like I imagined myself.
"You have a perfect face and body and the strength to run all day without aches and pains," John said. "You have big, inquisitive eyes and a heart that's open to the pain of others. You love Eloise and so she is beautiful to you, but Eighty-four needs your love too. And if you gave it to her you would see her beauty even as you see it in the white child."
"But beauty just is," I said. "I can't make somethin' lovely jes' by savin' so."
John waved his hand and my image in the pond changed into Big Mama Flore. She was just sitting there shelling peas and throwing them into a basket. My heart opened up when I saw Flore.
"Is she beautiful?" John asked.
"Oh, yes," I cried. "She's the most beautiful thing in all
the world."
"She has black skin and nappy hair," John argued. "She
has big lips and ashy elbows."
I turned away from the image in the water and asked, "Are you a angel?"
"No, Forty-seven. I'm just a helper."
"What you helpin'?"
"I'm helping you to save the universe."
"But I'm just a nig " I stopped myself in the middle of the prohibited word.
"All of my people," John said, "my whole race says a prayer for you every night. They have given you their blessings and their hope. A black-skinned, nappy-headed child who was born into slavery and who shall ride into the greatest battle in the history of the world."
When Tall John from beyond Africa spoke I almost believed what he said. There was so much confidence in his tone that you were compelled to believe him.
I took a deep breath and felt the weight of his words on my shoulders. I didn't even know where Universe was, or how big it was. I figured that it must have been at least as big as Georgia, and Georgia, I knew, was so big that it would take a strong man three weeks to walk from one end to the other.
"Boy, what you yammerin' about?" I asked. "I'm just a nigger, born a slave."
"No," John said. "You are Forty-seven. You are the hope of your world and mine and all that lies between."
"You is crazy, boy."
Instead of answering John laughed and pushed me into the pond. The shock of the cold water and of peaceful John pushing me made me laugh so hard that I couldn't climb out again. But then John held out his hand and made like he was going to help me. But the minute I pulled against him he pushed me in again. He stood there at the water line laughing at me.
"Help me out, fool," I said.
And when he stuck out his hand I grabbed on and let my weight go, pulling him in with me. He started sputtering and trying to jump out of the pond. But every time he got his footing I pushed him back again. We were laughing so hard that finally we climbed up to the shore and fell down in the mud.
That was one of the happiest moments I've had in the nearly two hundred years of my long life here on Earth. Before that day I never knew what it was to laugh witho
ut worrying that somebody might hear and come and thump
my head. I never knew what it was like to lie there next to your best friend in the whole world and not have a care.
I had eaten strawberries and cookies and went splashing in a forbidden pond.
It was forbidden because all things that were fun or free were forbidden to slaves. I didn't know exactly who owned those strawberries but one thing for sure it was a white man.
But none of that mattered because there I was, alone in the woods with the most wonderful person I had ever known. When he looked at me he liked my black skin and dusty hair, he thought that I was a hero and who was I to say no?
After a long while lying in the mud I waded out into the water to wash my skin and rough blouse. When we were ready to go John looked up at the sky and scowled.
"Clouds," he said. "We may have to find shelter."
Him saying the word shelter reminded me of something.
"How did you know where that tree trunk where we sat down on was?" I asked. "I mean you walked right to it just like you knew it was there."
"You see, Forty-seven?" he said as if I had just proven a point. "You notice things and you don't only notice but you ask why. Those are only two of the reasons why you are destined to become a great hero."
"You ain't answered my question, John."
"I've been hanging around the plantation for almost a week," he said. "Looking for you."
"Me?"
"I could sense you, hear your music among all of the music that men make with their blood."
"Music in they blood?" I said, suddenly afraid that John might be some kind of devil that drinks men's blood.
"Yes," he said with a smile. "Every living being has their own song thrilling through the strings that hold them together. I knew your song. I just had to make sure I really heard it playing in amongst the others. And once I knew you were here I had to meet you to make sure that you were up to the task."
"What task?"
"Saving the universe."
"Where's that?"
"Everywhere," he said, "all over the world and up to the stars."
"Like a ocean?"
"Something like that," John said.
"If you was free an' lookin' fo' me den why'd you let 'em make you into a slave?" I asked.
"Because of a creature named Wall," John said seriously.
"Who's that?"
"He's the one who might destroy everything unless we stop him. He found out that I had been on the Red Clay Plantation "
"What was you doin' there?"
"Looking for you. All I have done for the past three thousand years is look for you. That's because I knew that you would be but I didn't exactly know where and when. That's why I was on the Red Clay Plantation, because someone with a song almost like yours was there. But when I realized that it wasn't you I ran away. After I left Wall caught my scent and he took over Andrew Pike's body and came looking for me."
"And so Andrew Pike is under a spell?"
"Pike is dead and Wall walks the earth in his flesh."
"And who is this Wall?"
"He is, as far as you are concerned, the devil."
These words shook me to my soul. I didn't want to ask any more questions. I didn't want John to tell me any more.
Again he looked at the sky.
Again he said, "Clouds."
"Maybe it'll rain," I said, grateful for mundane conversation. "That'll be good for the gardens."
"But I can't carry you if the sun isn't out."
"Why not?"
"Because my powers, such as they are, are derived from solar energy. My body is like a battery that converts power of the sun into action. If I were to attempt to carry us home without the sun shining my energy would run out and I might even die."
"How far is we from Corinthian?" I asked.
"Sixty miles at least."
Before I could voice my dismay John grabbed me by the wrist and we took off. We ran for a short time and finally came to one of the big trees we'd passed earlier. Fat raindrops had started to fall and the sky was dark with rain clouds.
"We'll have to stay here until the sun comes out again," John said.
"What if it don't come out?" I asked.
"Then we will have to wait until morning."
"Mastuh'll kill us we do that," I wailed.
"As long as you see him as master he may very well," John said. "But if you see that you and he are equals and you realize that he needs you more than you need him then, just maybe, you will be reprieved."
My heart was beating fast and my guts were churning.
"Let's try to run back," I cried.
"It's at least thirty miles away, Forty-seven, maybe forty. We would never make it in time."
"But he'll kill us."
"Kill us and he kills his precious Eloise."
I wanted to beat the smug slave's face in. Here he had shown me the best time of my whole life and now he was going to get me killed. Why did I ever go with him?
The rains came down hard but the thick foliage of the ancient tree kept us mostly dry. The ground was mulched pretty well by dead leaves and so the space was like a big, carpeted room. When the night came on it became very
dark. John and I leaned against the bark, shoulder to shoulder. The dark and the sound of the rain, and maybe the fear of Tobias, made me very tired. I nodded and almost fell asleep.
"Do you want to see where I'm from?" I thought I heard him say.
"Might as well," I said, "seein' as it'll prob'ly be the last story I hear 'fore Mastuh tie me to that wagon wheel an' have 'em whip me till I'm dead."
I turned on my side and I'm pretty sure that I fell asleep.
I opened my eyes on a beautiful day in some far-off and wonderful place. Not only was I awake but I was running down an open road.
Somewhere in my mind I worried that I might be seen by some white man who would beat me like the slave laws demanded. I worried, but the road was broad and straight so I figured that if I saw somebody coming that I could run away before they could catch me and bring me back to the plantation.
But when I looked around I realized that I didn't need to worry. The plants on the side of the road were red and purple, without leaves, not at all like proper trees. And the sky was pink and red and the road was paved with something like glass, and there was no sun in the sky but it was still bright and clear.
"This is where I am from," a voice said.
I stopped running and turned to see my friend was standing there next to me.
It was John and then again it wasn't. He had the same
voice and his eyes were deep and kind as they had been on the Corinthian Plantation. But in this new place he was a head taller, quite a bit thinner, and his skin was more orange than brown. And above his head I could see a shimmering light that moved when he did.
You can imagine that I was amazed by the events unfolding around me. The last thing I remembered was being under a tree in a rainstorm. Now all of a sudden I was in a strange new land and my friend had grown a foot and changed colors on me.
"What the hell you doin' to me, niggah?" I said.
He pointed at me and said, "Neither master nor nigger be."
In this new place his words took on a new meaning. They brought about a vision: I saw Tobias and the cowering Pritchard in my mind. The slave master was holding a whip and the abject slave was writhing on the ground, begging our master for mercy.
I didn't want to be either one of them. I reached out in my imagination and pushed their images away. Then I turned my attention back to Taller John and his lecturing finger.
"That's right, Forty-seven," John said as if he knew what had been going on in my head, as if he saw the tableau of master and slave in my mind.
"Go beyond it," John continued. "Just because they treat you like that doesn't mean that you have to believe in them."
As the images faded from my mind I was once again aware of the strange land around me.
>
"You live here?" I asked.
"No," Tall John, the orange being from beyond Africa, said.
"But you were born here?"
"Yes," he said. "My ancestors were born here many millions of years ago. It is a planet called Elle and it is so far from Earth that it is as if it doesn't really exist."
"Far beyond the dirt?" I asked. The only time I had heard anyone use the word earth they were talking about the soil beneath our feet.
"Earth," he said again. "It is the planet you come from. Like the moon only larger and crowded with life."
"An' this place "
"My planet Elle," he interjected.
"Yeah. This place Elle is a earth too but so far away that you cain't get there?"
Tall John nodded and smiled. He was even taller now and his orange skin was tinged with purple. The light above his head brightened and I was beginning to think that he wasn't a boy at all.
"An' why couldn't we bring our real bodies here?" I asked.
"Because if I spent the rest of my life trying to get here I would hardly be any closer than I am now under that tree in my sleep."
"You as far from yo home as I am from my freedom," I said, surprising myself with the thought.
John smiled and nodded. He put his hand on my shoulder and we walked on in the strange landscape.
As we walked he spoke to me in his commanding tone.
"But I could bring us here because all I have to do is remember and the great mind delivers me."
"Like if I remembered the river you brought me to?" I asked. "I could go there just by rememberin' it?"
"Yes," John said. "Behind all of existence there is one great mind. And every single living, thinking being is a part of that mind. Once you learn to connect with it you can always return to a place or a thought that you once had."
"Like make-believe?" I asked.
"No. We are really here at this moment but as wraiths."
"Ghosts?"
"Someone ignorant of the Great Mind might see us as ghosts but no one on Elle would make that mistake."
As we walked the red and purple forest gave way to a wide plain made up of what looked like piles of stones. The stacks of rock were gray and red-brown and none were piled higher than a man. The piles were all shivering. They looked like rock-studded cocoons ready to release their butterflies.
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