Disclaimer: I don't own Bionicle. I own Rikini, Ri-Koro and any other Ri-Koro related items, places and peoples. (Yeah I post four chapters and now I put a disclaimer. Don't expect another to pop up because I truly forget about these!)

Chapter 5: I Never Knew My Mother

Lewa sat on one of the small benches Nikai had gotten for him and the others. He looked around at the fairly large village. It didn't seem to have too many huts, but the large gardens took up a lot of space around every hut. It looked like every hut had at least three surrounding it. Beside many doors and walls, large baskets were filled to the brim with various fruits and vegetables, many he had never seen before. People tended to there own gardens, some were turning over soil to plant new seeds and others were already planting fresh seeds. Everyone was dressed in heavy layers of clothing to help absorb the unrelenting rain that was still pouring on their heads.

He wished he was wearing those layers right now too. He was wet down to the skin, green hair plastered on the side of his face. He was used to long rains, he did live in a tropical forest after all, but not to this extent. When it rained in Le-Koro, the rain was light and warm. Sometimes he liked to go out and play in it before Matau had him come back inside before he got sick. The rain in Ri-Koro, however, was hard and cold. He couldn't even imagine how the Ri-Matoran could live in it. And the booming thunder! In the very center of the village circle, where he and the others were waiting for the Turaga, was a large metal pole. Several times lighting had struck, always drawn to the pole. He couldn't imagine living here.

"Hello," the girl with the yellow hair he had seen earlier was standing in front of him, "Your Lewa of Le-Koro, right?"

She was about his age, with bright violet eyes and a delicate figure. Unlike everyone else in the village, save Turaga Ania, she wore nothing on her head to keep the top of her head dry.

"Um, yeah," he rubbed the back of his wet neck, "I'm Lewa."

"I'm Rikini," she smiled a bit and held up a think bundle, "This is for you. It's to shield you from the rain."

Lewa took the bundle and unfolded it. It was a large blanket with thick leather on one side and soft fur on the other. It was made to keep the wearer both warm and dry. He noticed that it had a hood built into it. He slipped it over his thin and muscular frame. It was a definite improvement in the cold weather. He tugged it around himself, it was actually very warm.

"Thank you."

"It's no problem," Rikini pulled her dress down and sat upright on the stone circle putting her weight on her knees, "I just thought that you and the others might be could in those clothes. Nikai didn't think about it. We haven't seen any other Matoran before so she didn't figure that not everyone may dress in the many layers we do. But I did!" She smiled wide and proud. Happy that she had thought of something so grown up in her mind.

"Yeah, this skywater is something else," Lewa pulled the blanket tighter around himself, "It never rains like this in Treebright."

"I thought you were from Le-Koro? Where's Treebright? Is that another village? What's it like? What are the Matoran like? I thought all the villages ended in Koro? Why doesn't Treebright?"

Lewa couldn't believe that she had gotten all that in one breath. She was defiantly very energetic.

"Actually, Treebright is what we Le-Matoran call Le-Koro. When you look up at the village through the leaves the light shines through it. It's really beautiful. I use to go down to the base of the trees when I was really little just so I could see it. It used to drive Yuti crazy."

"Who's Yuti?"

"He was…he raised me until I was twelve. He was the closest thing I ever had to a father."

"What happened to your father?"

"He died when I was still a baby. So did my mother, so I don't really remember them. Yuti was my father's best friend and his wife had died almost a year before so he didn't have any children."

"That was very noble of him. I'd love to meet him."

"He…he died," Lewa choked back the tears that so desperately wanted to fall, "About two years ago he was sunsoaring on a Kewa. Something scared it and he lost control. His saddle fell off…"

"I see," Rikini felt bad for prying, "I don't remember my mom and dad either. They died when I was little. Sometimes, if I think really hard, I can remember them a little. Not much, but enough. Turaga Ania raised me."

"The Turaga raised you?" it seemed odd to Lewa that a Turaga would actually raise a child that young. Granted Matau had always been in a large part of life, but he had never actually raised him. He had been more like a grandfather to him, there whenever he needed to be really, really spoiled. Why would an elder take the time to raise such a young child?

"Yes, she raised me."

"The Tuhunga…"

"Nikai?"

"That's her name? She called you little sister, was she raised by the Turaga too?" Lewa was curious about this new village.

"Oh no! Nikai and Naki's mother was the Tuhunga, so we all grew up as if we were siblings. They both still call me little sister and I call them brother and sister."

"So she's a bloodline Tuhunga? That's really rare," Tuhungas whose parents or grandparents had been Tuhunga before hardly ever happened. The closest he knew of was Onepu, whose great great grandfather had been a Tuhunga.

"I suppose. But I've never known it to be any different."

"Why is there a wall all around here?" Lewa moved his hand in a circular motion to represent the wall that surrounded them.

"Some say it's too keep Rahi out, but no one knows for sure. It's been here for as long as anyone can remember. Even the oldest ones, save for the Turaga, can't remember why the wall was built in the first place," Rikini sadly looked at the wall that had trapped her for her fourteen years.

"I never even knew there was a walled village, or another turaga."

"No one enters the village, and no one leaves. The farthest anyone can go is the Great Temple Kini-Nui and we can only go with Ania."

"So you've been to Kini-Nui?"

"Lots of times! Twice I tried to sneak in so I could use the large door to escape to the rest of the island, but Turaga Ania put a spell on the tunnel so we can only go if she's with us."

"So that's what it was! I got thrown back across the temple by some manna barrier. I got a big bruise too, see?" Lewa lifted up his pant leg to show off a large purple colored bruise just above his knee cap.

"Ouchie! That must have hurt. I've gotten worse though.

One time I was helping Nikai and Naki repair their hut, cause a tree lifted out of the ground and took out one of the walls. Well anyway, I wanted to help Naki put up some straw on top the roof and I climbed right on top of the roof. Naki told me not to, but that's not the point. I needed to help him straighten out this big bushel because he was having trouble. And I don't care what anyone says, I saw he was having trouble so he was having trouble. And I got on top and it's all his fault because he didn't secure it right. So I slipped on some straw and I feel from the top of the hut and I hurt my back really bad. And my leg was broken and I had this really big nasty bruise on my back, so it hurt every time I would lean against something. So I had to learn to sleep on my stomach which was really hard because I would wake up screaming because I rolled on my back and it hurt so bad."

Lewa was in awe. He knew everyone said he talked really fast, but this girl really out beat him. Not only was she a fast talker, but she did it all in one breath. That, to him, was the scary part.

"That would really hurt. I've fallen out of trees so many times, that sometimes I get a bruise and don't even notice."

"How do you fall out of trees?"

"Some times I swingvine. A lot of Le-Matoran do."

"So that's how you fall from trees? How interesting! I wish I could visit Le-Koro," Rikini sadly looked down at the ground.

"Maybe you will," Lewa liked this girl. She was nice and he liked that they had some things in common.

"Oh no. Turaga Ania would never allow me out of the village. She would never even leave herself."

Everyone went silent as the seven Turaga approached. They looked very solemn as they came towards the large party.

"Gather your things, we are all leaving for Kini-Nui," Vakama said in his wise and powerful voice.

"Well, I suppose you will all be leaving now," Rikini was sad that her new friend was leaving, and even sadder knowing that she would never see him again.

"I guess so," Lewa was reluctant to get out. He was just beginning to realize that she didn't know a life without walls.

"Nikai, Rikini. Prepare your things as well," Ania said to the two sad looking Ri-Matoran. Their once sad faces lit up as they began to run to their huts. "Oh and Nikai!"

Nikai spun around to face the Turaga, nearly slipping on some mud, "Yes Turaga?"

"Tell Naki to get some other Matoran and make an opening on the northeast side of the wall."

"But Turaga doesn't that open up into…"

"The mountains. Yes, I am well aware of it. It's time we let ourselves back into the world."

"Of course Turaga! Of course!" Nikai was so happy to finally be getting away from the walls. She loved her village, but she wanted to love her island just as much. She knew she would never love her island if she never got to see all it's wonders.

Rikini laughed and skipped all the way back to her hut, singing a happy song all the way.

AN: Sorry I took so long with this chapter. Thanks for all the reviews and I'll try to update as soon as I can. :)