by Clare Revell
The chieftain turned and smiled. “Hello, Jim.”
“I was wondering if I may speak with you.”
“Of course. Please, sit.”
Jim sat beside him. “We have been here some time. Not that we don’t like being with you all, but we should leave. Try and get to the American base and send a message home.”
“I have been there once, many years ago. There is no one there now.”
“I was hoping to find a radio. So someone can come and get us.”
“If there is not, you may return here. You are always welcome to make your home here.”
“Thank you. I shall remember that.” Jim bowed and took his leave. He hoped that wouldn’t be necessary.
Lou had closed herself off completely. She wasn’t eating, and wasn’t letting Mafuso treat her leg anymore. When Jim had tried talking to her, she was the proverbial brick wall and just blanked him. About the only thing he could do was pray.
Pray they’d find the base.
Pray that there was a radio there and they could call for help.
And pray that help would come before it was too late.
~*~
Lou tried to explain the concept of honeymoons to Tayba, Aryna, and Keika as they prepared the midday meal. Marriage was taken very seriously here. One woman bound to one man for life—no exceptions. Literally until death do them part. Like the relationship her parents had had, right up until her father had been killed. Then one was just alone.
Like she was and always would be. But that didn’t mean that Tayba should miss out on what normally happened. At least in the western world.
“It’s a two week holiday immediately after the reception, uh wedding feast. The groom keeps the destination a secret from the bride, but it’s usually somewhere exotic.”
“Exotic?” Tayba asked.
Lou grinned. “Hot and sunny and not in England. It’s their chance to be alone and get to know each other properly without the distraction of work and friends and family. But before that and the wedding, there’s the hen night.”
“The what?”
“The hen night. It’s a party for the bride and her female friends before the wedding. The groom and his male friends have one on the same night. That’s called a stag night.”
Aryna looked up from her work. “What happens?”
“It’s just a party. All the women bring presents for the bride, usually little things for the house. Or chocolate. Then they eat, drink, and play silly games. The men usually get drunk and tie the groom to a lamp post fifty miles from home.”
They didn’t understand that, so she had to explain more.
Shocked silence met her.
“It doesn’t happen very often though. It’s just a last fling with your mates before you commit yourself to someone for life.”
“It sounds lovely,” Keika said. “When does it usually happen?”
“Traditionally it’s the night before the wedding, but most people have it a few days before.”
Tayba looked at Aryna. “Please speak to Kelmac. We do not have much time. Perhaps tonight?”
“I will speak with him now.” She went in search of her husband. She was gone only a few minutes before retuning. “He agrees. We may have them tonight.”
Plans swiftly got underway.
Lou and Jim, being the token British man, found themselves expected to organize the parties.
It didn’t take long before an irate Jim sought her out. “I don’t know what to do,” Jim grumbled. “I’ve never been to one. Trust you to come up with the idea.”
“We were just talking. And I haven’t been to one either.” Lou scowled. Why was this her fault? “The important thing is they enjoy it.”
“Can’t we do a joint one?”
“No. You come up with your own ideas.”
Jim glared at her. “But it wasn’t my idea, was it? It was yours. And I’ve got three hours to plan and get my work done at the same time.”
“Jim, it’s the least we can do for them. They have fed and clothed and housed us. What little they had left after the fire, they willingly shared with us. Besides if you are leaving after the wedding, it’s a good a way as any to say goodbye.”
“Aren’t you coming with us?”
“Yeah, of course I am,” Lou answered quickly. “The others might not want to leave, though.”
Jim scowled. “You know very well the only stumbling block to going home is you.”
“Yeah, well, I have an appointment with Mafuso and a party to plan. You go plan yours and worry about going home in a couple of days’ time.” She swung away on the crutches, whistling to Deefer.
~*~
It was worrisome to Jim that she continued to use the crutches, despite Mafuso’s best efforts to convince her that she no longer needed them. Her leg seemed to hurt continuously, although she told him constantly it was fine, and that it didn’t bother her anymore. Yet she remained on the crutches.
Mafuso had checked her over. “It does not hurt? Your wounds are healing.”
She shook her head. “You did a good job. Thank you. I’ll miss not seeing you every day. You said yourself it’s healed, so I needn’t waste your time.”
He frowned, and then took her hand. “You are not wasting my time. Neither do you need the crutches to walk, you know that very well.”
“There is no way I can keep up with the others without them,” she insisted. “Or Deefer. And I can’t stop taking him for walks and stuff. Even if it is just around the village.”
“But on those…” Mafuso paused. “You are a pretty girl, but how will you find a husband if you can’t…” He broke off.
She pushed to her feet. “I know you mean well, but I’m fine like this, honestly. It’s not like I’m ever planning to get married or anything. And speaking of weddings, I have to go plan this party for tonight. See you later.”
She headed outside and over to join the others.
Jim had no idea what to do for Lou at this point. And he had a stag party to plan before he could think how to solve any other problems.
~*~
Lou could hear Staci complaining from half way across the clearing. She stopped just short of the group to watch.
Keika had explained that the fabric had come from the missionaries, and more from when the air base was still occupied on the island. The tribe hoarded it, despite occasional ships that stopped in their little bay and brought modern goods.
Staci moaned loudly about the sewing in her hand. “This is more Lou’s thing than mine. I don’t know one end of a needle from the other.”
“Which is probably why you’re here,” Ailsa told her. “It’s about time you learned.”
Staci grumbled and managed to prick herself more than the fabric. Her stitches were large and uneven and she even managed to sew the fabric to her own dress. This may have been amusing or an accident, but her comments had been loud and long and this seemed another excuse to get out of it.
Ailsa unpicked the stitches and freed the fabric from Staci’s skirt.
“Can I go now?” Staci said.
“No,” Keika told her. She took the fabric from Ailsa and gave it back to Staci. “You must learn and do your share of the work. Here, I will help you.”
Lou grinned.
As far as Staci was concerned, ‘help’ usually meant someone else doing the tasks she didn’t know how to do. She felt incapable of learning some things, and often confided to Lou that she hated disappointing people when she failed. The girl was in for a shock.
Keika showed her how to hold the fabric and needle correctly and how to do four tiny precise stitches. She then gave the fabric back to Staci. “You do it now.”
“But I thought....” Staci mumbled.
“I have my own to do. I will help if you get stuck. We have to work together here, or we do not survive.”
“If I must.” Staci stabbed the fabric with the needle and with considerable effort, managed to make her stitches smaller and more ne
at.
Finally the horn to signal stopping work sounded.
Staci sighed thankfully.
Jim came across on his way to the river to bathe. “Did you have a good day?”
“No. They put me on sewing. I hate sewing.”
Ailsa laughed. “What she means is she couldn’t sew if her life depended on it.”
Staci glared at her, then grinned sheepishly and took off towards the hut they were staying in.
Jim made to go after her, but Ailsa stopped him. “Leave her. She’s been complaining all day, but she did do the task, even though she didn’t like it much.”
Lou turned away, not wanting to see another moment of closeness between someone she liked and the person they preferred over her. She headed after Staci. “Stace, wait up.”
Staci turned. “I hate sewing. I’ve done nothing but sewing for days—I know I’ve been complaining, but I don’t do it very well and I don’t like doing something I’m not good at.”
“Well, if you don’t like it,” Lou interrupted, “then do something about it.”
“Like what? Jim keeps saying how we owe these people and need to do what we can to help.”
“You could tell him you want go home. He wants to head on to this base, try to radio back home for help. He’s only staying out of a sense of duty, but his first duty is to you.”
“But going home would mean going to boarding school if they haven’t found Mum and Dad.”
“At least you wouldn’t have to sew all day long. You could see your friends, have someone else take care of you instead of having to do it all yourself. And my mum would have you for the holidays.”
“Jim takes care of me now.”
Lou sighed in exasperation. “Stace, Jim is only eighteen. He doesn’t need this huge burden of responsibility. He feels totally responsible for stranding us here, even though it isn’t all his fault. Besides, Jim wanted to join the military. He can’t do that from here or if he’s caring for you on a full time basis. Can he?”
“No, he can’t.” Staci took a deep breath. “OK. Home, it is.”
“Are you sure it’s what you really want?”
“Yeah. To be honest the novelty wore off a long time ago. I just never had the courage to say so. I kept going because of him.”
Lou shook her head. “So you were doing it for him, and he was doing it for you?”
“Yeah. It’s that downward spiral of consequences again, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, something like that.”
Ailsa came over to them. “We must get ready for the party,” she said. She looked from one to the other. “What’s going on?”
“I want to go home,” Staci said. “I have for ages. Today just made up my mind for me.”
“Have you told Jim yet?”
“No. I’ll tell him tomorrow. I want to stay for the wedding. What will you do?”
“I don’t know.” Ailsa paused as Staci’s face fell. “Of course, I’m coming. I want to go home, too. I have no idea what I’ll do when I get there, but hopefully something will turn up.”
“Maybe Nichola will help,” Staci said. “Or, if they’ve found Mum and Dad, you could come live with us. Jim would like that.” She grinned. “Unless he’s already proposed.”
Ailsa blushed and tugged Staci’s hair. “I wouldn’t tell you even if he had.”
“I’m his sister. You have to tell me everything. Actually, when he does propose that will make you my sister and then you won’t have an excuse to keep secrets from me.”
Lou turned away, heading slowly across the clearing. Now more than ever, she was the outsider. The sooner the next few days were over, the better.
14
Lou sat quietly in the hut, rubbing her leg absently.
Keika came in and smiled at her. She unfastened her hair and began to rebraid it. “Are you all right?”
Lou took a deep breath. “If I decided not to go with the others, would I be able to stay here?”
“Here? With us?”
“In the village, somewhere; not necessarily here with you. I don’t want to impose. I could sew, help cook. I’d pay my way.”
Keika studied her for a long moment. “It would be Kelmac’s decision.”
“But would you speak for me?” She paused, switching to Agrihan. “I mean, if I ask, would you second my application to stay.”
“Why don’t you want to go home?”
“I have nothing to go home for,” she said quietly. “All that matters is that the others are safe. Once they are, and if I can come and live here, things will be fine.”
Keika held her gaze and nodded. “I will speak with him once you have,” she said.
“Thank you. I’ll find him tomorrow and talk to him then.”
“You will need to phrase your request in such a way, that it doesn’t look as if you’re abandoning your friends.”
“I’m not. It’s just better this way.” Then as the door opened and the others came in, she switched back to English. “Is everything ready, Stace?”
Staci nodded. “Yes, it is. All the food is ready and divided between the two groups, bar that last tray which is to come with us. Jim will keep the men over on the other side of the village.”
Keika smiled. “That’s good. I hope things go well tonight, for everyone.”
Staci nodded. “I hope so, too. Otherwise Lou will never be asked to throw a party again. Anywhere.”
Lou pulled herself to her feet, leaning heavily on the crutches. “I won’t be either way. Come on. Let’s go. Can someone bring the bag?”
“Sure.” Ailsa grabbed it. “What’s in here?”
“Couple of bits I need. Nothing that exciting.”
Keika picked up the last tray of fruit and led the way outside.
Ailsa crossed back to the others and she and Staci followed.
Lou swung herself slowly behind them. She took a deep breath. If this didn’t work, they wouldn’t let her stay. She had to make a good impression tonight.
Outside all the women began to gather under the huge woven leaf awning the men had fixed up for them.
Tayba looked nervous, but then she had no idea what to expect.
Lou crossed over to them and they all sat down. “The whole point of the next few hours is to have fun,” she said. “Not to make fun of Tayba or embarrass her.” She opened the bag. “Where we live, tradition states that the bride has to wear a veil.” She pulled out a cream length of fabric which Keika had found. She carefully fastened the veil in Tayba’s hair. “Just so we don’t forget who the bride is.”
Her voice was drowned out by laughter. For a moment she wasn’t sure if it was her Agrihan or if they’d genuinely found what she said funny.
Hoping it was the latter, Lou continued. “Now I’m handing over to Aryna for a moment. She has something important to do.”
Aryna took the bag from Lou and gave it to Tayba. “These are for you, from all of us.”
“For me?” Tayba asked.
“Yes. Giving the bride gifts is a custom we all share.”
“But everyone lost so much in the fire, it hardly seems fair that…”
Keika hushed her. “That does not mean you have to start with nothing. You will become the wife of our healer, second only in standing in our community to Aryna, but more importantly, you become my sister.”
For the next twenty minutes, Tayba pulled her gifts one by one from the bag. A pile of coconut shell cups, woven trays, and some of the precious cloth grew next to her.
She was moved to tears by the love and generosity her friends and neighbors had shown her. She spent ages looking at each gift as she opened it.
She pulled the last one from the bag and unrolled the fabric gently. Her eyes widened at the cross-stich picture of the sun rising over the beach. She looked at Lou.
“It’s from us,” Lou said. She’d worked hard at finishing it in what little time she had. She hadn’t wanted to give the white horses on the beach away—that one was in her bag w
ith instructions to give it to her mother. She’d started the sunrise picture just before the hurricane. “It’s cross-stich. I made it.”
Tayba looked back at the fabric. “You made this?” She asked.
Lou nodded.
Tayba hugged her tightly. “Thank you. I will get Mafuso to make a frame for it.”
All the other women gathered around to admire the picture.
Next they ate. Raucous laughter echoed across the village.
“The men sound like they are having fun,” Ailsa said. “Maybe we should go see what they are up to.”
Staci shook her head. “No way. Once we’ve eaten, we’ll be the ones laughing.”
“Why? What have you got planned?”
“No idea.” She looked at Lou. “Bet it’ll be fun though.”
Lou glanced up from the piece of fruit which she’d hardly touched. “I thought we could play the sad and solemn occasion game.”
“Never played it.”
“It’s easy.”
“Really?”
Lou nodded. “Yeah, really. I’ll explain it in a bit.”
Once everyone finished eating, she began to explain. “Everyone sits in a circle. You then turn to the person on your left, look them straight in the eyes and say, ‘this is a sad and solemn occasion,’ without smiling, laughing or breaking eye contact. But you can say it in whatever tone of voice you like.”
“That’s it?” Keiko asked.
Lou nodded. She turned to Staci. “This is a sad and solemn occasion.”
Staci raised an eyebrow. “Piece of cake.” She turned to Keiko. “This is a sad and solemn occasion.”
Easy to begin with, it became increasingly difficult as the game progressed.
Staci broke eye contact with Lou, making her have to repeat herself. Then Staci cracked up laughing and caused a ripple of laughter which spread and grew, until eventually no one could keep a straight face.
Then they moved onto some of the other just as silly games that Lou had planned. By the end of the evening, they had all laughed until they’d cried.
As she left to go home Tayba gave Lou a hug. “Thank you so much. For everything.”
“You’re welcome. It’s been fun.” The girls made their way back to the house.
“The men have gone very quiet,” Staci said. “They obviously can’t take the pace.”
