The Mischievious Twins

by Laurel Shoemaker

Mazi and Mali are fraternal twins who love to explore the world around them. Come and read about their adventures.

The Mischievous Twins

Mazi and Mali were Kayla and Anoki's eight year old twins. They frequently played together because they shared that special bond that twins have. They always knew what the other one was thinking. They shared emotions as well. When one was hurt or sad, so was the other one. They were fraternal twins male and female. So they were not identical in looks but alike in many other ways. They had their own distinct character traits as well. Mazi was the larger of the two. He considered himself superior to his sister in strength and agility. Mali considered herself wiser than her brother. She had more common sense. She could always work out answers to any problems that she had. She and Mali liked to play tricks on people. They had been nicknamed the terrible twins in their village. They really weren't naughty in a bratty way. They were just mischievous. Their mother was the village healer. She was often busy doctoring people plus she was training two apprentice healers. She had tried to raise them to have respect for others people's privacy, to be good helpers and to be obedient children. But sometimes they got into mischief.

One day it was very hot. Some of the village men were swimming in the ocean. They had discarded their clothing on the beach and went swimming naked. Mazi and Mali hid behind a rock watching the men taking off their clothing. Mazi convinced Mali that it would be very funny to steal their clothing and hide it. At first Mali didn't want to do it. But he convinced her. She went with him to the beach and they took the clothes. They hid them in one of the huts and then hid behind the large rock again to watch. The men eventually came back in from swimming, one or two at a time. They started yelling when they discovered their clothing gone. The men made such a ruckus that most of the village women came running to see what was wrong. The men stood naked on the beach covering themselves with their hands, some tried unsuccessfully to use big sea shells. Mazi and Mali rolled in the sand behind the rock laughing. They were soon discovered and were forced to admit what they had done. Their father punished them. He was one of the naked men. He made them help the village women wash dishes for a week for that naughty trick.

Another naughty trick they played was on their parents. One day the twins discovered a big honey bee's nest on a tree branch near the village. They had a real talent with bees and even though they were very young they knew how to charm bees. It was a strange natural ability with them. They waited until the sun was going down and then collected a big jar of honey. Instead of giving the honey to the village cooks or to their parents they hid it and waited until every one had gone to sleep. They crept to the foot of their parent's cot and poured the honey on their feet. Kayla and Anoki did not wake up. They discarded the empty honey jar and then proceeded to spread sand all over the floor of the hut. Mazi and Mali woke their parents from a sound sleep the next morning with cries of "Father, Mother get up! There is a fire!"

Kayla and Anoki jumped out of bed immediately with very sticky feet. They landed feet first on the pile of sand. What a mess! Mazi and Mali laughed uncontrollably for a few minutes to see the looks on their parent's faces. Kayla was good natured about it and laughed with them. Anoki was not so cheerful. One of the honey bees got in to the hut and was attracted to the honey on his feet. The bee stung him on his right ankle. He yelped in pain and was very annoyed with his children. The bee sting was swollen and it hurt, plus his nerves were upset over the cries of fire that had awakened him so suddenly. He told them if they ever did such a thing again that they would be severely punished.

Mali wanted to play with three nine year old girls in the east village. This would leave Mazi to his own devices since he did not like to play with other girls with the exception of his sister. He followed Pawin around. Pawin was 5 years older and did not like having Mazi follow him. Mazi had very little interest in the younger boys of the village. Sometimes his mother would ask him to play with them. He did this to obey her. But he really did not like to. Mazi was a very curious child. He wanted to go exploring like his father. But his parents forbid him leave the perimeter of the village.

One day Mazi was very bored because Mali was playing with Kissa, Tehya and Amina. New babies had been born, a boy and two girls, and Mali wanted to learn about them. Two of the babies were siblings to Kissa and Amina. The girls had invited Mali to help them baby sit for their mothers that day. Mali loved to play with the babies and hold them. They made such delightful cooing sounds like little doves. She liked to play with their little hands and feet.

Mazi watched Pawin and some of the men fishing. He wanted to help carry the fish and crabs. He was allowed to do this for awhile. He soon got bored with that past time. He waded about in the surf searching for sea shells. He found some nice ones and carried them to his sleeping hut where he kept collections of things that he found interesting. His mother was always complaining about the mess he made next to his hammock and he was tired of hearing her complain. One day soon he would find another place to keep his treasures. After he put his shells away he walked about the edges of the village studying some butterflies and birds. He wanted to catch a parrot very badly. Some of the people in the village where he used to live had pet parrots. These birds could talk and were very funny to watch. He had asked his father to help him catch a parrot. His father said yes he would one day soon. But he kept putting it off. Mazi decided that he may as well try to catch a parrot today since he had nothing else to do. He would have liked to have his sister's help but she paid him no mind when he called for her. She was holding one of those smelly babies.

He saw a flock of parrots perching on some branches of trees on the outskirts of the village near the jungle. He made his way near them carefully so as not to disturb them. He had a big net that his father had made for him to catch bugs. He figured that he could catch a young parrot with it if he was very quiet and could sneak up on one. He crept closer and closer to the parrots trying hard not to make a sound. Just as he was about to pounce on a nice red one on a lower tree branch a tall man stepped out of the jungle and startled him. He jumped up suddenly and the flock of parrots flew away making their screeching crys.

Mazi said, "Now look what you have done Ringo!"

Ringo looked at the scowling boy. He felt badly that he had startled him. He would have to do something nice for this boy.

He said, "Come with me boy, I catch bird for you."

"Huh?", replied Mazi.

Ringo motioned for Mazi to follow him.

"I'm not allowed to go in the jungle, my father said not to", Mazi exclaimed.

"I keep you safe, you come with me now", Ringo replied.

"Well, ok I guess", Mazi followed Ringo a short distance in to the jungle.

Ringo stopped when he saw that same flock of birds resting in a large multi-branched tree. Mazi watched as Ringo reached in to a pocket of his ragged tunic. He had some dried fruit and berries in there. Ringo placed the fruit on a fallen down tree near the parrots. He took only two small steps in doing so then backed away. Ringo looked at Mazi and then held his finger to his mouth to signify silence. The man and the boy stood silently together and watched the flock of birds. One or two of the birds looked curiously at the fruit on the dead tree. Three of them flew down to eat it. They ate some of the fruit while at the same time looking at Ringo and Mazi. The parrots flew back to the flock in the big tree.

Ringo reached in to this pocket for some more fruit and placed it once again on the dead tree. Once again some of the parrots flew down to eat the fruit. Mazi's nose itched. He was trying to stand very still but he had to scratch his nose. He scratched it. This small sudden movement from him caused the flock of parrots to fly away again. All of them flew away except for one small duller red parrot. It looked very hungry and seemed to be waiting for more of the fruit. Ringo smiled and put more dried fruit on the dead tree. The hungry little parrot flew down to eat the fruit.

Ringo took one step towards the parrot. It didn't move and sat there waiting for more fruit. He gave it more fruit. It ate the fruit. He took another step closer to the parrot. It just sat there. He put the fruit on the dead tree again but this time he stood very close to the tree. The little parrot hopped over and sat right next to Ringo's leg eating the fruit. He reached out very slowly and before the parrot knew what happened he was Ringo's captive. Ringo took a string from his pocket and tied it gently around the parrot's feet.

Mazi said, "How wonderful you have tamed him!"

Ringo replied, "Follow me boy."

Mazi followed Ringo back to the east village. Ringo carried the bird in to the center of the village with the boy at his heels.

Once they were near the huts Ringo stopped and spoke to Mazi, "You will need a small cage." "Be gentle with this bird." "Feed him much." "He will be friend for you." "He still wild." "Will fly away." "See string?", Ringo indicated the string on the bird's feet. Mazi nodded. Ringo handed the parrot to Mazi.

Mazi said gratefully, "Thank you Ringo ever so much!"

Ringo nodded and smiled. By this time the village women and children and some of the men had gathered around. Mali was delighted to see her brother's pet. The villagers greeted Ringo warmly. He was asked to stay for a meal which he accepted. After the meal Ringo helped Mazi build a cage for his parrot and made him a perch. He spent a few more hours teaching him as best as he could how to take care of his bird. Mazi thought that Ringo was the nicest person that he had ever met. Before it got dark Ringo left the village. The villagers asked him to come back soon. Mazi stood with his parrot and watched Ringo leaving the village. What a great day this had turned out to be. ~~~~~~

The Mischievous Twins Part 2

Months passed slowly for the East village. The rainy season came. Mazi had plenty of time to train his parrot. He named his parrot Ringo in honor of the man who had caught the bird for him. Ringo the parrot was a very smart bird. He learned to speak and provided plenty of entertainment for the long days of rain and frequent tropical storms. He sat on his perch saying the funniest and delightful things making everyone laugh. He sat on Mazi's shoulder often. Mazi was very proud of his pet. Sometimes the ragged man Ringo came to stay in the East village during the worst storms. He slept in the communal hut. Mali noticed that Ringo's clothes were very dirty and ragged.

She asked, "Mother, poor Ringo has such dirty ragged clothes." "Could we make him some new ones?"

Kayla answered, "Well I suppose that we could." "After all he has become a friend to all of us."

Kayla approached Ringo later that day in the communal hut bringing Zuna the head seamstress of the village along. Mali followed and hid behind her mother.

Kayla said, "Mr. Ringo we need to take your measurements please." Ringo stood and looked at the two women who were eyeing him. One of them had a long string in her hand.

He said, "What do you want?"

Zuna replied, "To measure you." "We want to make new clothing for you."

"Me no want new clothes", answered Ringo.

The women looked at one another and shrugged their shoulders. They could not force new clothes on him.

They were about to walk away when Mali stepped from behind her and pleaded, "Please Ringo, it won't hurt." "They will touch you for only a minute." "Ok?"

Ringo loved little children and he could not resist the appealing blue eyes of the little girl.

He replied, "Ok".

Zuna took Ringo's measurements from shoulder to knee. Ringo stood still feeling very embarrassed. He blushed bright red until the entire encounter was finished.

Afterward, he grabbed a spear and said, "Me go fishing."

Mali exclaimed, "But Ringo, it is raining hard out there, you'll get drenched!"

"Me no care about rain." "Me need bath", Ringo said as he left the hut.

Kayla and Zuna giggled as they searched for suitable cloth to make Ringo's new clothes. Mali felt sorry for Ringo for a minute and then joined her mother and Zuna. Mali was leaning to sew and she loved it. It took a day for the two women with Mali's help to make a new tunic and pants for Ringo. When they were finished Kayla, Zuna and Mali presented the clothing to Ringo shortly after the morning meal. He held the new clothes in his arms and looked as though he might cry. Ringo was a very emotional man and wore his heart on his sleeve.

He bowed to the women and said, "Thanks to you."

The women responded in unison, "You are very welcome."

Mali ran over and hugged him around the knees. Tears did come to his eyes then. He felt overwhelmed with this show of affection. He had missed being loved so badly since his adopted son little Gin had died.

Ringo cleared his throat and said, "I go now, but I come back soon."

"Where are you going Ringo?", Mali asked as he disengaged her gently from his knees.

He did not answer and left the village. He returned four hours later wearing his new clothes. He was damp from the misty rain that was falling. He carried a sack on his shoulder. He slung the sack on the floor of the communal hut and opened it. Inside he had gifts for the women and little girl who had made his clothes. There were flower garlands (which he had woven himself), plantains and two large coconuts for the women and some beautiful gem stones for Mali. Ringo came and went as usual afterwards never staying in the village for long. After this occasion he was even a more welcome visitor than before.

In November the dry season returned. Mazi and Mali were delighted to spend long days outside. They went wading in the surf and took swimming lessons with Mother and Father. They collected new sea shells. Sometimes they joined in games of tag with the younger children. Mali still spent time with her friends Kissa, Tehya and Amina helping take care of the village babies. The villagers had resumed an old custom of waiting for two years to name the new babies.

When Mali was busy with the babies Mazi would go to the edge of the jungle and watch the monkeys playing in the trees. His newest desire was to have a pet monkey of his own. He found a family of four monkeys who lived in a grove of trees near the village. He picked out the monkey that he liked best. A small one that had a cute face and looked as though it was smiling all the time. He left gifts of berries and dried fruit on a large rock near the monkey trees on a daily basis for a week. Some time near the middle of the week he was joined by his sister Mali.

Two of the babies were ill with the windy sickness (too much gas). The other infant was being cared for constantly by his mother Fatai who became suspicious that maybe the little girls weren't caring for the infants as well as they could be. Mali missed playing with her brother and once again became his constant companion. She helped him leave food for the monkeys and shoo away the parrots, seagulls and other birds that tried to steal the food. Mali hid with Mazi and watched the curious monkeys carry the food from the rock back to their trees.

After a few days the monkeys became bolder and began to sit on the rock while they ate the food. After a few more days Mazi was succeeding in taming the monkeys especially the small one that he wanted. He asked Mali to help him build a cage for his monkey. They searched for bamboo. They were not supposed to leave the perimeter of the village, but to get the bamboo they had to go further in to the jungle. They did not stop to ask their parents permission but went boldly into the jungle. They saw a bunch of bamboo plants ahead. They had almost reached the bamboo when they heard a noise behind them.

Large hands covered their mouths so that they could not scream. Neither twin had time to look at their captors. Dirty cloth sacks were pulled over their heads and they were carried off by the strangers. Neither twin could tell what direction they were being taken with the sacks over their heads. They struggled in their captor's arms but could not get free. Both twins were terrified as they were carried by large strong and very smelly men.~~~~~~~

The Mischievous Twins Part 3

Mazi and Mali were horribly frightened and helpless in the arms of their captors. The sacks were made of a rough material and scratched their tender faces. The sacks and the men who carried them smelled bad. Mali did not even want to think of what the smell reminded her of. It was very bad and scared her out of her wits.

She tried to scream, "Father!, Mother!" But her cries were muffled in the sack.

She gave up and began to cry steadily. Mazi did the same. But he was stronger physically then his sister. He struggled in his captor's arms putting up a real fight. But the evil man who carried him only laughed demonically and squeezed him tighter so that he could not move. The twins were being carried deep in to the jungle. They could not hear well with the sacks over their heads but occasionally caught the sounds of small animals rustling nearby. They heard the cried of birds and monkeys. It seemed forever that they were carried. But finally the men stopped and set them down on their feet. Both of the twins clumsily tried to run, but were promptly grabbed.

Mazi exclaimed suddenly, "Take this thing off of my head!" "I cannot see." "I want to see!"

His only answer was the sound of the men around him laughing.

Then he asked, "Mali are you there?"

Mali answered, "Yes Mazi I'm right here!"

Once of the unseen smelly men spoke to them in their own language, "Be quiet you two." "I will not remove the sacks." "When I want you to see me I will take them off." "If you do not obey me, I will make you hurt very badly." "Do you understand?"

Mazi and Mali were surprised that the man spoke their language. They were also very frightened at the threat that he had just made. They both nodded man.

The man shouted, "I cannot hear you, speak to me!"

Mazi and Mali spoke in unison, "Yes I understand."

The man responded, "Good." "Now from here on I will let you walk side by side and you will hold hands." "You will follow the person in front of you." "Another person will be directly behind you, so do not think that you can run away." "Look down at your feet now." "Can you both see your feet?"

Mazi and Mali looked down at their feet. They could both see their feet and answered in unison, "Yes I can."

The man said something in a language that the twins did not understand to the other men. Two men surrounded them front and back.

The leader man shouted, "Let's go!"

The man behind gave them a shove. Mali took Mazi's right hand with her left hand. They began to walk. At first they walked too quickly. They were very clumsy, because trying to walk with a sack on their head was very awkward. They kept bumping in to a man in front of them. He turned around and shouted at them in some other language. They both guessed that he was chastising them for their clumsiness. The man behind them kept grabbing their shoulders to steer them. It was very annoying.

They walked several yards and then the leader man shouted, "Halt!"

Mazi and Mali stopped immediately and waited for the next order.

The leader man said, "We have come to the shore of the bay." "Can you two swim?"

Neither twin answered at first.

The man got very angry and shouted, "I asked you a question!" "Can either one of you swim?"

Mazi quickly answered, "We were taking lessons but we cannot swim too well yet."

The leader man said, "Well then I guess you will have to ride on the backs of two of my men since we do not have a boat to get across." "Come on now and do as I tell you."

The man spoke in the strange language to his men. Two men stepped over and separated the twins.

Mali protested by shouting, "Mazi!"

Mazi answered, "It's ok Mali, just do as he tells you."

The men dragged the twins through the sand to the water's edge and lifted them on to their backs.

As they prepared to wade in to the leader man ordered, "Hold on around their waists like this."

He went to each twin and guided their little hands roughly, showing them the proper place to hold held on tightly as the men who carried them waded in and began to swim. Fortunately for them the water was calm.

"I'm scared Mazi", Mali exclaimed.

"It will be ok Mali just hold and don't let go."

Both twins held on tight to their captor's waists as the men swam the short distance across the bay. Having the sacks over their heads made things more difficult but somehow they managed. Mali was terrified every minute that she would fall off in to the deep water. Luck was with them and they reached the other side without incident. The twins were plopped down rather roughly into shallow water. The leader was near and told them to wade the rest if the way. They stepped on to a stony beach. Then after they had stood still for a few minutes the leader man approached them and pulled the sacks off of their heads.

What a relief not to have to breathe in the stench of the sacks! The first thing that they saw was him. He was medium height with long oily brown hair. He had brown eyes. He was very dirty. He carried a large sharp weapon. His expression was evil and the twins felt even more scared when they looked at him. He was painted from face to ankles with a bright red paint in many designs. His face was tattooed as well. He wore nothing but a white loincloth and a necklace that appeared to be made of small bones of some sort.

The other men came closer. They were a bit taller than the leader man. Their hair was similar but very black. They too were painted and tattooed with white loincloths and bone necklaces. All of them carried sharp weapons. Their eyes were very black and were very cold-looking. The leader man said something to his men in their own language. They all laughed showing badly decayed teeth. Mali noticed that the leader man's teeth were very white

He said, "My name is Montega." "I am a priest in my tribe." "I will tell you nothing more." "You need not know anything else since you are only children." "Now listen!" "You will follow me and if you try anything funny I will tie your hands tight behind your backs and put the sacks back on."

He turned his back to them and headed toward a big hill. The twins held hands again and were once again surrounded by the black haired men. They walked as before, but it was much easier without the sacks. The leader man headed for a set of stone stairs that began and then disappeared from sight to the right side of the big hill. To the left of the stairs was the opening to what looked like a big cave. Mazi looked around trying to get a sense of direction. The sun was directly over head which meant it must be near the noon hour. The ocean was ahead beyond the hill.

They could hear the sound of the sea gulls and of waves crashing on rocks as they took awhile to get to the top. Once there they walked out on to a cliff that over-looked the sea. The cliff top was rather narrow and grassy with some small trees and rocks covering it. The twins were too small to see around the man in front of them. They could not see what was ahead. They could only see on either side. To their left was the stony beach area and bay below.

If they looked far enough they could see the other smoother sand beach, the jungle beyond it and the beginnings of a big stone wall. To their right Mazi and Mali could see the sea waves coming in and splashing far below. The men came to a halt. The two men in front and behind each grabbed a twin. The twins were shoved forward and that is when they saw the big stone idol. The first thing they noticed was that the altar of the idol was stained with a reddish brown substance. There was a fire burning in a pit nearby. There was a bad smell in the air. It made the twins feel sick to their stomachs.

Mali shouted, "Mazi, Mazi, what are they going to do to us?"

Before Mazi could answer the leader man said, "Shut up girl!" "You and your brother are going to receive a very great honor today." "Don't you want to become a gift to our Gods?"The question did not require an answer.

But Mazi shouted, "No!" "Please let us go!" "We will find our way home alone and I promise we will never speak of this." "Just let us go!"

Mali did not shut up but began to cry hard. Big tears streamed down her soft cheeks. Mazi wanted to comfort his sister. He struggled in the man's arms. But his captor held him tighter. Mazi thought, "These men are obviously insane." The men laughed and chanted some sort of babble between the laughs.

The brown haired leader began to chant continuously, "Hou lot to ha la la shou la hee dey", "Hou lot to ha ha la shou la hee dey." As he chanted he swayed from side to side and pulled a small sharp knife from the pocket of his eyed the knife and began to shake violently.

Mali saw the knife and began to cry wondered, "Why is this happening to us?" "We were disobedient and went in to the jungle alone." "Oh no!" "What will they do next?"~~~~

The Mischievous Twins Part 4

Back in the East village the twin's disappearance had gone unnoticed for almost an hour. Then their mother began to look about for them. She could see them no where inside the perimeter of the village. She left the communal hut where she had been mixing healing potions with Pawin and Tonga. She asked her apprentices to continue working without her while she went to look for her children. She walked the outskirts of the village and then made her way around all of the huts calling their names. They did not answer.

Several villagers heard her calling and began to look with her. Finally her husband Anoki came in from fishing and grew alarmed with her. The twins were not to be found and some of the other men went into the jungle along the path that led to the big stone wall. They saw no sign of the twins. They had disappeared without a trace. Anoki and the others went back to tell Kayla that there was no sign of them. She began to cry.

Anoki said, "We must form a search party now and go further in to the jungle." "But we will use the wall." "We will call for them from up there." "I will bring plenty of rope." "We may need to climb down from the wall at some point."

The other men gathered supplies. Kayla insisted on going along with Anoki. She carried her sack of healing potions and ointments around her waist. Before she left she asked the other women and children remaining behind to be on lookout for the twins. If they returned they must ask Pawin to go to the stone wall and climb to the top. He would catch up to them at some point to pass the good news, if such was the case.

Meanwhile the twins were standing frozen in terror. Their young minds could not contemplate what might happen next. The evil Montega continued his weird chanting. His eyes were closed. His body swayed back and forth. He held a small sharp knife in his right hand. Suddenly Montega stopped swaying and opened his eyes.

He said, "It is time, come to me little one." He indicated Mali.

The man holding Mali shoved her. Montega caught her with his left arm and curled her little body close to his.

He said in a soft low voice, "Look at me little one." He tried to get Mali to look at him. But she would not. He grasped her chin and pushed it upward. She closed her eyes. He was angry now, "I said look at me!"

Mali opened her eyes and looked into his eyes. She was terribly frightened. His brown eyes were red rimmed. The pupils large and black. She wanted to close her eyes or look away. But she could not. His eyes drew hers like a magnet. She felt suddenly very faint and her legs felt rubbery. She lost all strength and lay back against his arm. He held her up. He placed the knife next to her soft throat.

Mazi cried out, "Let her go!", "Take me first!"

Montega turned and looked at Mazi. He replied, "If that is what you wish young man I will be glad to oblige you."

He handed Mali back to the man who first held her. She stood still putting up no fight. Montega raised his finger and beckoned Mazi forward. The man holding Mazi let go. Mazi walked very slowly toward Montega. Just then a strange animal cry rose from some bushes a few feet behind all of them. Montega broke his concentrated stare at Mazi when he heard this strange sound.

He told the two men standing behind the others, "Go see what is making that noise."

The two men turned around and went to the bushes to look. The cry came forth once more. They parted the bushes but saw nothing but a large rock. They moved to look behind the rock. Suddenly the man Ringo rose from behind the rock. He held a big wooden stick in his hand. He immediately swung it and clubbed first one man, then the other quickly. They had no time to raise their spears. They fell to the ground and did not get up.

Ringo stayed hidden behind the bushes. The noise of the men being hit had attracted the others. There were two men remaining. One was holding Mali and the other one had been holding Mazi who was taking his time walking to Ringo. The man who had been holding Mazi went to investigate the noises. Ringo quickly clubbed him hard and he fell like the others. This left just two men. Montega and Mali's guard. Ringo wanted to attack them but he knew it was not yet time. He feared what the brown haired man would do to the twins. He had a knife and he appeared ruthless. Montega called out for his men. They did not show themselves or answer.

He told Mali's guard, "Let go of her and go see where those fools are."

The guard dropped Mali's arm. He made his way to the bushes and saw nothing there. He stepped behind the rock, and saw Ringo who viciously clubbed him unconscious. Ringo pulled all of the men's bodies backwards and placed their spears close to his side. He sat and watched to see what would happen next.

Mazi knew that they had a slim chance of escaping but maybe they could. He saw Mali standing unguarded and knew it was now or never. He turned away from Montega. Montega reached to grab him.

He evaded Montega's grasp and shouted, "Run Mali now!" Mali did not respond. She still stood still. Mazi reached her and pulled hard on her arm. He nearly yanked her off her feet. She finally responded and began to run with him. Montega was right behind them.

He shouted, "You will not get far you wretched brats!"

Montega let out some curses as he chased them. They ran past the bushes and the rock behind them. Mazi could not slow down. He was terrified. Out of the corner of his right eye he saw Ringo swinging a big stick. Montega ran crazily after the twins. He did not see Ringo until it was too late. The big stick hit Montega across the chest. It knocked the wind out of him and he fell forward. At first Montega did not move. He lay still. Ringo approached him slowly. Just then Montega rolled over and tried to stab Ringo's leg with the knife. He almost succeeded.

Ringo swung the stick again this time hitting Montega in the face. Montega's face was a mess. He lay deathly still. Ringo did not wait to see if he still lived. He picked Montega up and threw him over the cliff. Then Ringo proceeded to throw all of the natives over the cliff until they were all gone. He left their weapons sat down on the ground. He rested several minutes and tried to get his breath back. Finally he felt calmer and could breathe easier.

He called out, "Boy, Girl!" They did not answer. He got up and went to look for them. He reached the stone stairs. They must be climbing down. He climbed down but saw no sign of them. Once he reached the bottom he looked around. They must be hiding. He looked to his left at the cave. He went to the entrance of the cave and called out to them.

Mazi answered, "We are in here Ringo." "Is it safe now?" "Are those bad men gone?"

Ringo answered, "All gone." "They not bother you now."

Mazi came out of the darkness of the cave holding Mali's hand. Mazi looked flushed and disheveled. Mali looked strange and pale. Ringo approached them looking them both over.

He asked, "You hurt boy?"

Mazi answered, "No I am ok."

Ringo looked at Mali who did not return his gaze. She kept her eyes down.

Ringo asked, "You hurt girl?"

Mali did not answer.

Mazi said, "My sister is still afraid." "She will not speak."

Ringo said, "Come with me." "I take good care for you." "I get you food and water."

Mazi said, "Ok."

Mazi took Mali's hand and they followed Ringo. Ringo showed them a big rock nearby where they could sit and rest. He started a fire in a pit just outside of the cave. He gave Mazi the bladder of water that he carried on his shoulder. Mazi gave his sister sips of water. She drank obediently. She sat listlessly making no conversation. It was as though the life was gone from her.

Mazi watched Ringo catch some fish from the bay. Ringo cleaned the fish and put them on a spit to cook. The fish smelled delicious. Mazi realized that he was very hungry. His sister made no sign that she was hungry. She seemed to have no emotions. Ringo sat with them and studied Mali.

He said, "That brown haired bad man, he make evil spirits." "Girl has bad spirits with her." "Time passes." "Spirits go away."

"I sure hope so", Mazi said as he looked worriedly at his sister.~~~~~~~

The Mischievous Twins Part 5

The search party led by Anoki and Kayla split up when they reached the top of the stone wall. Anoki gave some of the rope to the ones who would walk towards the South. Kayla went with him and three others towards the North.

They called out the twin's names as they walked. There was no answer. Only the chattering of monkeys in the trees and the squawking of various birds. Kayla tried to keep tight rein on her emotions. She was terribly worried about her children. They had always been willful. They had become very naughty for the past few years. But she could see signs that they would grow up to be well adjusted adults.

Anoki thought about the times that he had fussed them when they were naughty. He felt rather guilty because he had been spending so much time fishing and working when he could have spent more time playing with his son. His feelings ran between guilt and irritation that the twins had again disobeyed him by going out of the village and getting lost. They could not have gone far.

Anoki, Kayla and the others walked for two hours constantly calling for the children and then stopping to listen for a response. There was still none. The group stopped to rest. Kayla did not trust herself to speak. She sat down and remained silent as she took sips of water from a clay jug. Anoki could see the feelings playing on her face. He noticed the unshed tears brimming in her eyes. He reached out and took her hand. She moved closer and leaned on him for emotional support

Anoki said, "Do not worry sweetheart we will find them soon." "You will see." "They are fine." "I know it."

Kayla said nothing in return. She pulled away from him rather abruptly and got to her feet.

She said, "We should keep moving." She began to walk again towards the north. Anoki got up and followed. The others did the same.~~~~

The Mischievous Twins Part 6

The twins spent the rest of that fateful afternoon sheltering with Ringo. The sun was sinking low and soon it would be dark. Ringo saw that little Mali was overcome with the evil spirits. She did not speak. She only ate when fed and drank only when prompted. He had little experience of people. So he had little knowledge of what to do for her. He did not know that she wanted her mother and father badly. Since she could not speak she could not tell him.

Mazi however could feel what his twin felt inside. He knew that she was silently crying out for mother and father.

Mazi said, "Mali wants to be with mother and father and so do I."

Ringo rose to his feet and replied, "Come we will go."

Mazi got up and helped Mali to her feet. He took her hand and followed Ringo. Ringo began to wade in to the waters of the bay. Mazi realized that he and Mali could not cross the bay without help.

He shouted, "Stop Ringo!"

Ringo stopped and turned to look at him.

Mazi said, "Mali and I cannot cross those waters." "We just started learning to swim."

Ringo said, "I will take you across." "The girl first."

Mazi took Mali's hand and led her to Ringo. Ringo crouched down so that she could climb on his back. Suddenly Mali came to life.

She screamed, "NO!" She turned and ran towards the fire pit next to the cave. She sat down on the ground.

Mazi followed. Reaching her he tried to get her back on her feet. She refused to move.

Mazi cried, "Ringo is going to take us back to mother and father!" "Come on Mali!"

Mali turned her head and looked at the bay. Her eyes were large with fear. She shook her head from side to side indicating "No".

Mazi returned to Ringo who was waiting. "Mali will not come." "She is afraid."

Ringo replied, "We stay here." "We wait for mother and father."

Mazi shrugged his shoulders and walked back to the fire pit. Ringo followed.~~~

The Mischievous Twins Part 7

The darkness came and a full moon was rising. The twins still sat by the fire outside the cave huddled together to ward off the night chill. Ringo sat close by. He had been silent for hours. Since Ringo did not speak the language of the others well he was not good at conversation.

After Mali's earlier outburst of emotion she stayed quiet. Mazi was silent as well. He was getting sleepy. He did not want to go to sleep yet because he was waiting patiently for mother and father to come.

Ringo broke the silence, "We go inside cave now." "I build fire in there." "We sleep."

"Mazi disagreed, "No Ringo I want to stay out here and wait for Mother and Father.

Ringo answered, "Ok we wait here."

Mali fell asleep with her head on Mazi's shoulder. Mazi lifted her gently onto the sand. She did not wake up. He began to hum a tune that his mother had taught him.

Suddenly Ringo was alert, "People on other side". Ringo stood and pointed towards the shore across the bay.

Mazi stood up and looked. He saw the outlines of people carrying torches. He jumped up and down and shouted repeatedly, "We are here!" "Over here"

The torches far away were extinguished and the people began to swim across the bay. Soon the people were wading on to the stony shore near Ringo, Mazi and Mali. Mazi ran towards them. It was Mother and Father.

He cried out, "Mother, Father!"

His mother embraced him tightly. His father picked him up and hugged him. The three of them stood in a close embrace.

Then Kayla asked anxiously, "Mali where is she?"

Mazi wiggled in his father's arms and pointed, "She is sleeping by the fire."

Kayla ran to Mali and kneeled down beside her.

She lifted Mali into her arms and cried, "Mali my sweet Mali!" "I was so worried!"

Happy tears flowed from Kayla's eyes and wet her face. The tears dripped down on to Mali's body. Mali woke up and looked at her mother's sweet face. Then she saw her father walking with Mazi by his side towards her. Her frightened expression changed to one of joy. Tears flowed from her blue eyes.

She began to cry and laugh at the same time, "Mother, Father!"

Anoki came close and kneeled down next to Kayla and Mali. He began to cry as well. Mazi joined them. They remained close together for several minutes. The others gathered around. Ringo stood and watched them.

Eventually Anoki stood up and faced Ringo. He asked, "What happened? How did they get here?"

Mazi answered for Ringo, "Oh Father some horrible men took Mali and me from the jungle near our village." "They were strong and we could not escape." "They carried us here to this place." "We were up there near a stone idol", Mazi pointed up toward the cliff top. "The leader had a sharp knife." "He was going to do something bad to me and Mali." "But Ringo came and hit him and the others with a big stick." "He saved us Father."

Anoki approached Ringo and shook his hand. Then he moved closer and hugged him, "Thank you for saving my children."

Ringo embarrassed by the physical contact blushed and replied, "You welcome."

After they had talked some more Ringo, Mazi, Mali, Kayla, Anoki and the others went inside the cave. Ringo built a fire in there. They ate some of the leftover fish that Ringo had caught earlier, drank some water and eventually all slept peacefully. The next day they traveled back to the east village.~~~~