Hi all –

Thanks so much for the support!

In this chapter I am using what I believe might've been Madi and her people's native language, Swahili to build the culture of her people. I don't know the language, so Google has been my helper. Also, I am not an expert of African customs. Therefore, no offense is intended to those who are reading and know the language and are familiar with African customs.

Chapter Three

The past few days had been a wonder of experiences. Silver had become more immersed in the culture of Madi's people. With her aid, he'd begun to learn their native language, discovered more about the life of her people and now knew many of the men who worked various chores about the island. He'd ventured out to the salt pond, observing the work of extracting the seasoning from the water. He'd sat in one of Madi's history lessons, due to her other responsibilities being private and thus not open to him, and just like the previous time, he'd been riveted watching her instruction. Today he'd explored the women's work, helping with planting vegetables for the wet season and picking plants that were currently ripe. After assisting in completing those tasks, he'd gone with the men, aiding in bringing in firewood. Though he was unable to chop trees, he could retrieve the chopped timber from the ground, putting them in the hand barrow and helping transport it back to the camp. It was challenging, but rewarding work, bringing with it an exhilarating exhaustion he'd never experienced while managing the labor needed to sail a ship.

Silver had completed a full day of tasks and now that his duties were done, as it had been nearly every day he'd resided on the island, he wanted to see Madi. He eagerly made his way to Chajio – the evening gathering that was held at the center of the community. Arriving on the scene, he was relieved to no longer be the source of all the attention. For days earlier, when he'd first participated in the gathering, many were gawking and whispering at his presence. However, today that was not so, likely due to the people now being accustomed to him being there. Famished, Silver went to the large pot that was boiling to the side, with the delicious smelling meal for that evening. He pulled a bowl from the stack that stood nearby and filled the dish with the simmering crab stew. He then eyed the crowd, anxiously looking for Madi and soon sighted her and the Queen a short distance from where he stood. His heart soared with pleasance as he spied her speaking with her mother, her virtuousness bringing a faint smile to his face.

"May I join you?" Silver asked as he came to stand before Madi and her mother.

"You are our guest Mr. Silver. Of course." The Queen answered. Silver nodded, appearing confident, even as nervousness tested his psyche, just as his gaze briefly shifted to Madi, who was watching, calming him with her gentle silence.

"I understand that you've been partaking in some of the duties about the community." The Queen stated once he was settled, impressing Madi with his ability to take a seat on the stool at her side without spilling an ounce of his stew.

"Yes. I have." He confirmed, meeting the woman's stern gaze. "I thought it imperative I learn as much as possible about your community, for it can only aid in solidifying our alliance." He explained. The Queen gave no verbal response, but her expression for a moment, he thought said more –a mixture of Pleasance? Distrust? Admiration? Then nothing, except the firm fierceness of her stately demeanor. The Queen turned her attention ahead leaving Silver uncertain. He didn't know whether to sigh in relief at her not voicing a response or to be concerned that she may have thought his comments and thus him suspect, but he chose not to dwell on it. For he would learn soon enough if the Queen believed him to be perfidious. In the meantime, he would at least quiet his stomach which had been coveting the crab stew since he had the pleasure of savoring its delectable aroma.

Silver devoured the stew that was tastier than it smelled, observing as various people in the community came over to chat with the Queen and Madi, asking about Mr. Scott, whom they stated was resting, before speaking about their own lives and families, something that had been foreign to Silver until now. For his world had always consisted of lies, thievery, death, nothing of what a life of normalcy could be. Therefore, he'd deeply appreciated the occasion and had remembered the names of every family he'd met and the skill they provided to aid in strengthening their community, while admiring the kindness of Madi and her mother towards their people. After the visits lulled and most were eating and interacting with each other, the Queen quietly exited to again visit with the King, her husband, while Silver continued to study them all, the women, men, the children, the families, how they interacted with one another, which awakened an emptiness within him that he'd thought was long dead.

"Is it true, that you aided the women today in gathering firewood and harvesting peas?" He suddenly heard. The soft voice, suspending his descent into the darkness of his lonely past.

"I did." He confirmed, answering Madi's inquiry as his eyes remained on her people.

"How was it?"

Silver turned his gaze to her, and was seized by her beautifully innocent stare and softly answered. "Exhilarating …there is something peaceful about planting a seed which will bring forth sustenance that will be integral to your livelihood. I only wish I could be here to aid in tending to it, and seeing it's end result." He honestly confessed.

"If all goes as planned, and our alliance holds, perhaps you will, at the very least, witness the fruits of your labor."

"Perhaps." He uttered, then forced his eyes away, arresting the intense affection that was stirring due to their bound stare, not wanting to draw any illicit conclusions from the community around them. "So what of your day?" He asked, after steadying his quickened breath. "Are the children grasping the history of England well?"

"They are." She answered as their focus, though turned from one another, did little to stay the tenderness that was blooming for him in her heart. "I find the lesson settles better when colorful words are strewn throughout the account. It makes the lesson more vivid, and thus more accessible to the children."

"Colorful tales are always more indelible than those with stale words." He agreed.

"And you would know, being the masterful storyteller that you are."

"You believe my accounts to be a fabrication?" Silver questioned with what should have been alarm, but was instead intrigue by how she'd respond.

"Quite the contrary, I believe that your accounts are truths that have been embellished to give them more life." She clarified, again turning her eyes to him.

"I cannot deny your observation. It is in part the result of being a pirate." He replied with a small smile, studying her with regard at her intuitive mind.

"In part? So, there is another reason why you tell such colorful tales?" She asked with a lightness in her tone.

"Sometimes a colorful tale, even a fabrication, can decide your fate, whether it will be death or surviving." He blithely stated, but there was an edge in his voice to which Madi inferred that the darkness he'd faced and knavery he'd deployed to evade it, went beyond his experiences as a pirate. She instantly sympathized with what she could only imagine had been his plight and curiously desired to know more, when he uttered his own question.

"So what of your adventures on this island?" He asked. "In your years here as a child, and even as you are now, a young woman, surely you've occasionally made a wrong turn in the forest or had a jolting encounter with a wild animal?"

"I have on occasion encountered my share of adventure, but you cannot possibly believe my experiences on this island have been more adventurous than your exploits as a pirate?"

Silver opened his mouth to answer – yes, that he did think her experiences, that no doubt included exploring the hidden secrets of this island, was more intriguing than pirating, when the sudden sound of a horn ceased his response, followed by the arrival of a man, elderly in age, coming to sit at the center of the gathering. Tongues immediately quieted, those who'd been standing sat down as all became focused on the man who'd just joined them. There was a strong aurora of respect that permeated the air as they all stoically waited for what was next.

"What's going on?" Silver whispered as he briefly glanced Madi's way.

"It is Mzee Msemaji" She quietly answered. "Elder of the Historic Word." She translated to English. "It is tradition, that on the last night of the new and full moon, Mzee Msemaji performs a Kuja Kwake Na Baba, a visitation with our forefathers to conjure our past, learn from it. So, that we may have a prosperous future." She explained as she returned her eyes to him, and their gazes warm, became fixed on each other, when the ceremony began drawing their attention back to the center of the gathering.

Mzee Msemaji spoke in the native language of Madi's people, and though in the few days Silver had come to learn some of the native language, there were few words he could decipher from the Elder's story. He recognized two names that were repeated throughout - Kamau and Matata, as well as the words love (upendo), war (vita), vengeance (kisasi) and family (familia). Nonetheless, he could not grasp the narrative of the story. Yet he was mesmerized which was the strangest thing. It was as if he felt the words even though he did not understand them. He experienced the emotion of what was happening, he could only guess, due to the inflections in the orator's voice.

Once the story was done, drums began to beat, slow and methodical, and was joined by what sounded like flutes and rattles, inspiring many to rise, to quickly form a large circle and commence dancing in cadence with the music. Silver was stirred with excitement, feeling every note of the wondrous melody, while watching in awe, as they performed imaginative movements, the unique sounds becoming apart of their expression. There was a joy unlike he'd ever seen, as the people danced in their own individualized ways, but somehow in sync with each other. When he suddenly detected movement out of his peripheral and looked over to see Madi joining the celebration.

She moved into the circle with ease, taking up the dance, right on cue with the beat, driving Silver to completely abandon what had been enthralling by the others, to focus solely on Madi. His eyes remained steady on her, beholding her passion and oneness with the music, which seemed different from the spirited expression of her people. For there was a gracefulness to her movements, the way her arms swirled about her and her skirt flowed on the air, the lovely exuberance on her face, that was unlike the others that danced. She was captivating, in every way, stirring him with an acute tenderness, rousing him with a keen desire, when for an instant her eyes caught his, their gazes locking, bringing with it a fire that outmatched the blaze that burned in the pit between them. When just as quickly her eyes drifted away, focused on something else, then closing, due to the power of the music and the remarkable feelings sparked by Silver's fervid stare.

A While Later…

The celebration had gone on for quite some time, well into the evening until Madi and her people were spent and pleased with the results of the ritualistic dance. The community of people slowly disbursed, all heading off to their respective homes, talking cheerfully amongst themselves while Silver waited for Madi, who finished a short discussion with a young family, before making her way over to him.

"Did you enjoy the Kuja Kwake Na Baba?" She asked as she walked up to him, showing nothing of the bashfulness she felt at the ardor he'd waken within her while she'd danced.

"It was unlike anything I have ever experienced." Silver honestly replied, his voice reflecting the connectedness he felt during the oration and even the dance, inciting Madi with a gentle smile. "Even though I did not have a sound understanding of the story…somehow it spoke to me." He confessed as they now walked.

"The story was that of Kamau and Matata." She said and went on to tell him the story of the two cousins of the same tribe, both of whom were loved by their people. One who was a warrior who fought due to his love for his people, and the other who fought for power and vengeance, but both wanting to protect their people. She explained how they fought side by side, expelling their enemies, protecting their tribe while their views, the hopes for their people, seemed to verge further apart. With Kamau making choices in love and Matata making choices in hate, until there were no enemies left and there was nothing to do but to turn on one another. "Kamau wanted peace." She'd detailed. "And thus wanted to reach a compromise, but Matata still boiled with rage and an insatiable hunger for power. So, the cousins fought, Matata for power and Kamau to do what was right by his people, but he was defeated." She disclosed, the turn in the story shocking Silver. "But Matata spared his life, banishing him to the outer lands with his family and those that wanted to follow him, while he gained the power he desired over his people. Yet he was not satisfied. For he still raged and desired more power. So, he conquered more lands, more tribes, growing his kingdom, making the people hate him, until he marched too far to the east and came upon Tapiwa, who was a tyrant and destroyer. Matata fought with great valor, using that rage as a driver, but he was defeated, destroyed at the hands of Tapiwa as was his people. While Kamau, though banished to the outer lands, found peace and prosperity, with his lineage thriving for generations that followed." She stated, completing the story. "The tale our forefathers chose for us this day, was a reminder to us that it is wise to fight in love, not vengeance. For to fight in the latter, will only lead to one's destruction."

"That is a profound lesson." Silver quietly uttered, his mind drifting to Flint, on all the carnage the man had dealt due to his rage over Miranda's demise.

"Yes." Madi agreed. "And what you felt, speaking to you, was the spirits of my forefathers blessing us with their presence, giving us strength for the days ahead."

"Is that why you danced, after the Kuja Kwake Na Baba was complete?"

"It is." Madi confirmed, feeling a flush of heat at his question, the memory of his eyes upon her, while Silver experienced the same as that alluring moment flooded his mind. "We dance to honor our forefathers, to ask that they bestow us with prosperity and to thank them for gracing us with their wisdom and strength."

"Your faith is admirable." Silver stated in earnest as he met her eyes as she slowed their stroll to a halt.

"You're not a believer?"

"My life has not yielded any indication that there is a storyteller imposing coherence on all I have seen." He said. "But that is not to say I do not respect the beliefs of your people."

"I understand why you may find it difficult to believe, but perhaps that will change as you embark upon new experiences." She softly declared.

"Perhaps." He uttered as their gazes held with smoldering adoration.

"I should go." Madi spoke, mentally shaking herself from the moment. "My mother is with my father, and is expecting me." She said, becoming heavy with sadness.

"Has his condition not improved?" Silver cautiously asked, the question deepening the pain within her, causing her to lower her eyes.

"He is dying." She shared with strength. "We do not know when it will happen, but we do know he will not come back from this."

Her words spurred an ache in his heart and a profound sympathy for what she was going through. "I am sorry." Silver silently voiced, so close to reaching for her, yearning to ease her anguish, but unsure if she'd accept the gesture. Madi returned her eyes to him and was moved by his kindness, and subsequently thanked him for his empathy.

"Usiku Mwema." She inaudibly added.

"Usiku Mwema." Silver uttered with quietness, then eyed her with sentiment and compassion, as she slowly took her leave from him.