Pawhatan Tribe
"Pocahontas, are you sure about this?" Nakoma asks in a worried tone to her friend, who seems to be staring off into space. With a light nudge, Nakoma shifts Pocahontas's attention back to her.
"I'm sorry, Nakoma, I'm just worried about... The event..." Pocahontas mumbles, while fiddling the outfit she usually wears. Suddenly, Chief Powhatan walks up to the young woman.
"Did you pick the right male for this event, Pocahontas?" He asks her with a sincere look.
"Father, about this event, I need to tell you the full story about… erm… our thoughts about the raid yesterday," she then lowers her voice.
"Our? Wh- what do you know, my dear? And what does this has anything to do with the event for your hand in marriage?" Cheif Powhatan finds himself utterly confused at what his daughter is saying. He then looks at Nakoma with the same expression, but she unfortunately replied back with a shrug.
"I'll tell both of you soon, just right when he comes. We have a plan," she explains bits of her story to the two, who now look at her with more confusion.
"'We'? And who did you pick?" Nakoma crosses her arms. Pocahontas would love to tell her best friend, but not in front of the father... Well, not until the lad comes himself.
"Who is the man that you chose Pocahontas, my dear?" Chief Chayton asks with curiosity. "I heard the whole event from your father, and I must say, this isn't a bad idea. To show the whole tribe how amazing my son is will get our people to trust him with the duties," he nods happily.
"Pocahontas, where's the man anyways? Oh, maybe he's too scared to even show up!" Ahiga booms while chuckling to himself. Before Pocahontas could state the lies in Ahiga's statement, the conversation cuts off by a loud shout from the entrance to the small town. Then a man, specifically a guard, came running towards the chief with a panicked expression.
"My chief, there's a white man standing outside our entrance," he states. After the raid yesterday, Chief Powhatan made sure to raise the security of his land, moreover, security from the white people.
With alarmed looks, everyone quickly walk towards the entrance of the town. The people of Pocahontas' land were ready to arm themselves with whatever they can grab, Chief Chayton's people are with arms due to the presence of a white person, and Chief Powhatan, though wants to end the whole mess peacefully, will go to battle if even one of his people are hurt. Pocahontas, on the other hand, hopes that no one would hurt or threaten Arthur if that white man turns out to be him, that is. She knows that Arthur wouldn't do anything to harm or misunderstood her people.
As they get closer to the entrance, they see a young man standing calmly next to his horse with guards aiming their spears at him. Pocahontas immediately recognises the man as Arthur, but before she could run and defend him, her father storms towards him.
"I thought that we had guards keep watch of the surrounding area?" Powhatan asks the guards sternly.
"We did, Chief, that's why were interrogating him right now. There is no way that anyone could pass many of our best guards so easily," the guard informs. Chief Powhatan diverts his gaze to the man, who's only a couple of centimetres shorter than him.
"I do not want any trouble in our land. We have an agreement that you white men shall not disturb our land, and we shall not disturb yours. What brings you here? Your presence could as well disturb the peace of our treaty, along with my temper and tolerance for your people," he booms with his chin held high. Instead of being frightened or inferior, Arthur gives a slow nod at the chief. He then did something unexpected of a common white man, something none of them have seen done by a white man, especially of a noble stature like Arthur is. Pocahontas simply watches with a smile.
Arthur lowers his hat and kneels down at the Chief before him. "Good evening King Powhatan, my name is Sir Arthur Kirkland of the British Empire from the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. I am a representative of England, and the right hand of our beloved King James I, and as a representative, I am honoured to be at your presence," Arthur informs the Chief in an utmost fluent and graceful tone. The crowd in front of him all stare at him with wide eyes and open mouth. They have never seen anyone greeting the Chief with such... formality. Some of the people thought for a second that Arthur is only doing this to show off his civil manner, but one look from the pile of mud Arthur is kneeling on, they begin to think otherwise. The fact that surprises the natives the most is his status, which also shocked Pocahontas, for she did not know that his existence is considered to be higher than others.
The Chief himself did not know what to do next, all he can do is marvel at the young man's position. Thinking that her father should get Arthur out of the mud, Pocahontas gently taps on her father's shoulder, which snaps the man out of the trance.
"O-oh yes. Please rise young man, and tell me your purpose of coming to my land," Chief Powhatan continues with a stutter. Arthur complies and slowly stands up with a straight back. He stares at the Chief with his pair of emerald eyes, which many of the towns people find themselves entranced by the unique colour.
"I was personally invited to one of your events on behalf of someone you may know of," Arthur explains calmly.
"Yes, father, I invited him here myself," Pocahontas slowly paced forward. The Powhatan tribe acted normal yet disappointed towards this news, some had flashbacks of the trauma from yesterday. Meanwhile, Chief Chayton's people are all astonished by this. Ahiga himself angrily glares at both Arthur and Pocahontas.
"I was asked to participate in the games personally by... Princess Pocahontas," he gives a low bow to Pocahontas, who seems a little uncomfortable with this new gesture. "My purpose is not to only participate on her highness's behalf, but also on behalf of strengthening the relationship between the British and the Native Americans through a cultural exchange."
Chief Powhatan gives a long stare at him, then to his daughter. He doesn't know what they are planning exactly, but from the posture and eye contact by both of them, he doesn't see a single lie. He wanted to say yes, but it would tarnish the reputation his tribe has with the other tribe, whom also, hated the whites.
"There is no way an abomination like you could participate in the events! What is this catastrophe? Why would you let a white person enter your land? They have prejudice against us!" Chief Chayton cuts in and yells at Arthur with rage. To make things worse, Ahiga moves in front of his father, cracking his knuckles menacingly.
"Get lost you stupid white man before I force you to leave," he glares at Arthur, who seems to be questioning the reason of their rage for him. Before he could retort their threats, Pocahontas jumps in front of him, arms spread in defence.
"Ahiga, Chief Chayton, that is no way to talk to our guest, or anyone for that matter. Sir... Kirkland means no harm to us nor will he do anything to us except for participating in our event. The event will consist of our traditions and nothing else, no traditions from his side of the world. Now please calm down and speak in a mannerly way," she states with her head held high. She doesn't really know what she's doing or why she's doing this, but her body automatically defended Arthur from the backlash before she became aware of it. To both of their dismay, Ahiga and his father bring down their fists and frustration.
"Hmph! Since all the games will be from our tradition, there's no way some white man from a barbarous country will defeat us in our own game," Ahiga smirks before spitting in Arthur's shoe without respect. "Pocahontas, I hope you know what you're doing before he kills and betray you."
"How dare you accuse him so blindly! I know he will not do such a thing," she glares back at him with anger. Chief Powhatan clearly sees the tension between his daughter and her supposed-husband-to-be, so then turns his head to Arthur, who simply watches Pocahontas with a shocked expression.
"Sir Kirkland," Chief Powhatan declares, cutting off the bad mood between Ahiga and Pocahontas. "It seems that my daughter trusts you that she would defend you in such a way. She is known for her keen senses, and it's hard for her to accept people whom her senses don't trust. I trust you, for now, but you will show me why I should trust you through the events. We will still be watching you for security reasons, and I'm sorry, but you cannot decline this gesture. Do you accept these terms?" With a stern nod from Arthur, the guards release him from his captivity, and allow him to approach Pocahontas, who gives him a smile upon his arrival.
"Welcome to my town."
Minutes passed since Arthur's arrival and his tour of Pocahontas's home. Though they were many people who stared at him with scared and angry eyes, Arthur didn't think bad of the town itself. It wasn't as bustling and busy as London or Jamestown, but it seems cosy and at-home. The only person who kept chatting with him is none other than Pocahontas.
"And here is your tent. You're going to sleep here, because it will get dark and I do not think its safe for you to go home in the dark. You will also get change here for the event that will start soon," Pocahontas points out as Arthur nods at her. She then stops for a second and an awkward silence began. Then, thankfully, Arthur broke the silence.
"Erm... Should I continue calling you 'Princess', Pocahontas?" He asks with a blushed expression, which meant that he shouldn't be asking such a thing as a gentleman.
"I... Was going to ask you the same thing. Should I call you 'Sir Kirkland' or no...?" She fumbles with her words with a blushed expression.
"O-of course not! Y-you never told me that you're a Princess..."
"Well, you never told me that you're a very important representative and the right hand of the king himself..."
The two continue to stare at each other before singing deeply at one another. "We never talked about status before, haven't we," Arthur asks with a small smile.
"Maybe because it wasn't too important for us," Pocahontas nods with a smile.
"You may call me Arthur."
"And call me Pocahontas... Like usual."
"Hey, Pocahontas, is that cute man with you- oh... Erm... Hello..." Nakoma blushes, shying away towards the end of her sentence upon meeting Arthur face to face. Pocahontas gives her a small giggle, though Arthur didn't quite catch what she said that made Pocahontas laugh. Nevertheless, he is a gentlemen, so instead of asking he smiles upon Nakoma's presence.
"Good evening, Miss..."
"I forgot to tell you. This is my best friend, Nakoma... And she's married," Pocahontas hugs her best friend during the introduction. Arthur gives a small blush upon his error.
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry, my apologies. It's just... You don't look like a married woman, I mean, as in your age… I'm sorry if that comment offended you in a way..." Arthur fumbles between words as he continues to blush. Nakoma blinks at him a few time before finding herself blushing at; one, his compliment, and two, his cute blushing face.
"T-thank you... Erm... That's actually very nice of you to say. Though, I know that you are doing this for our villages, but... Wouldn't your wife or maybe girlfriend get the wrong idea if you tell her about this event...?" Nakoma murmurs back, but to her surprise, Arthur looks a bit flustered at the comment.
"I think everyone presumes that I have a lover back home... But in truth, I don't have any," he comments back. Pocahontas gives another giggle to her friend, who is staring at Arthur with amazement.
"Y-you're not married?" She stutters at the realisation.
"Yes, he's not married. Nakoma, is there something you would like to give Arthur?" Pocahontas peers at Nakoma.
"Oh, yes. I forgot to give you your clothes for the event. Here you go, Sir Kirkland. We don't know what your size is, but we chose a smaller size of the men's clothing for you. I hope it fits you well," Nakoma explains before handing Arthur his clothing. With a quick nod and smile, he goes into his tent with the clothes neatly folded on his hands.
Once Arthur entered and closed his tent, Nakoma and Pocahontas walk off to prepare for the event.
"So, you call him Arthur I see..." Nakoma grins as she nudge her friend.
"W-well, we never talked about status before, so it's an excuse," Pocahontas defended herself.
"Okay, okay..." says Nakoma with the same grinning face she had before.
"A-anyways, did you choose an event that will fit him?" Pocahontas asks, changing the topic a little. Unfortunately, Nakoma replies with a groan.
"I chose one, but when I told your father, he disapproved it and forced me to choose a harder task. Eventually, I found one that might fit him and also pleased your father, but I am sure it won't be very hard… I hope…"
"Oh... It's fine... I'm glad father didn't ask about mine..."
"You chose already? What is it?" Pocahontas gives Nakoma a smile.
"It's definitely something he can win. It's-" before Pocahontas could continue talking, to her dismay, Ahiga shows up right behind her and wraps his arm around her shoulder.
"Pocahontas, I heard that you and your friend are choosing the contests along with your father. Whatever they are, don't forget that I will win for the sake of tarnishing that white barbarian's dignity! By the way, would any of you like to tell me the events?" Ahiga glares at the thought of Arthur in his mind. Pocahontas has never seen this side of Ahiga before. She finds it… scary.
"No, the events will be announced for all to hear. I also don't know what my father nor Nakoma planned. It'll be a surprise for all," Pocahontas mumbled displeasingly as she slowly inches away from her fiancé's arm.
"No surprise will defeat me!" Ahiga smirks. "Good bye for now, I need to get my equipment ready incase there's any chance of me killing him-"
"There will be no killing, Ahiga!" Pocahontas sneers at the man with curled up fists, though Ahiga didn't seem to see this as a threat. Instead, he chuckles at Pocahontas's reaction.
"I'm joking, joking! Don't worry, there are children and mothers watching. I will not do such a thing, my fiancée," as he gives one last laugh to Pocahontas, he rushes off to the field of the event.
Once she sees Ahiga run off, Nakoma places her hand on her friend's shoulder. "Pocahontas, are you feeling okay? I can sense your anger from here," she spoke softly.
"Y-yes… I am fine. I just felt my anger boiling when Ahiga said those words. I… I don't want to see blood again…" she mumbles in distress. Nakoma gives her a small, warm hug.
"We won't, and if Ahiga tries anything, I'm sure you'll do something to protect that man… like how you protected John Smith."
Minutes passed and everyone in the Powhatan tribe and the visitors of the Chayton tribe all gathered around the marked area where Arthur and Ahiga would be facing each other. Nakoma, Pocahontas, and Chief Powhatan are seated on a warm rug, a good distance from the marked circle, with spectators seated around beside them. There are two tents parallel to each other situated on the other side of where the judges are seated; one is Arthur's, and the other is Ahiga's. Guards are stationed appropriate distance between each other around the arena, incase Arthur does something 'threatening'.
Whispers from both tribes echoes the once silent forest, all are wondering about the event and what will happen to the white man if he looses. No one thinks that Arthur would win. They all see him as the 'villain', though skinny and not very malevolent-looking, they still don't see him as a companion. They all bet their lives on Ahiga, and many of them still question what the princess is trying to gain from all of this. Suddenly, all the conversations stop once they see Chief Powhatan standing up.
"Brothers and sisters, we are all here gathered to spectate this important match between a white man, and Ahiga in order to compete for the alliance of their tribes, and mainly, the hand of my dear daughter, Pocahontas. They shall compete in a series of three trials, each chosen by our judges. The man who wins either all, or two out of the three trials, will win the prizes. Now, contestants, please come forth and let everyone see you," Powhatan then sits back down on his mat beside Pocahontas. The young maiden watch with feelings of dismay as Ahiga springs out of his tent only to be greeted by cheers from both tribes, mainly from the girls. Ahiga isn't wearing his usual clothing, it seems far more fitting than usual, which disturbs Pocahontas and Nakoma greatly.
Seconds later, with an uncomfortable shuffle out of his tent, Arthur finally comes out wearing the clothing that Nakoma gave him, though, it looks a bit… loose on him. The crowd simmers down upon his arrival, most of them puzzled by this unusual outcome; a white man wearing their traditional clothing. Arthur is wearing a long sleeved shirt with ruffles that covers his hands because of its length, trousers that seem to be a little baggy on him, and long boots. He has a headband that encircles his head with feathers attached on the back. His whole outfit is coloured light brown, with the exception of the white and red feathers.
Pocahontas puzzles at the way he debuted out of his tent. "A- I mean, Sir Kirkland, is everything fine?" She asks while continues to look at him as he walk forward, hugging his arms.
"Heh, he's probably disrespecting our cultural clothes, like all disgusting white people," Ahiga sneers at Arthur as he walks to his side. The next words Arthur spoke surprise the tribes greatly, making them question just how Arthur thinks of them.
"Actually, the clothing is very comfortable. It's different from what I usually wear, but tis a wonderful opportunity to wear traditional clothing from this culture. Though, I hope I'm not wearing this wrong or in a disrespectful manner," Arthur asks sheepishly at his last statement. While Pocahontas stares at him with a gleeful smile, others are astonished at the comments he made. He actually wants to try on traditional clothing from their culture. This fact is something new to their thoughts, and somehow diminishes, a little, of the stereotypes they gave him in their heads.
"No, Sir Kirkland, I think you look… f-fine," Pocahontas happily says, though she's wondering why her heart is beating so fast from staring at Arthur. And the last word she said, she was going to say something along the lines of 'lovely' or 'handsome', but she stopped herself from blurting that out incase people question their relationship. Why would she say something like that? What does that even mean? All these questions kept popping up in her mind, but like what she did before; she dismissed her heart's messages, and moved on with the event.
Before Arthur could peacefully walk forward, Ahiga nudges him roughly and sneers at him. Although Arthur has good patience with people he should act nicely to, he is growing more and more pissed at Ahiga's personality. He finds himself trying to contain the anger, and the will to comment on Ahiga's actions. He knows that if Ahiga does something unreasonable to him again, he might pop a vein and treat this event as if he's going against Francis Bonnefoy, his rival. Alas, he knows he shouldn't do anything deadly as that, for that was his last resort. For now he needs to keep calm and compelled, like a gentlemen.
"But Pocahontas, why do I have to go against this scrawny man? Plus, don't you think his eyebrows look stupidly thick? I mean, that's a joke itself, ha!" Ahiga comments loudly with a smug on his face. Pocahontas, on the other hand, finds his comment beyond awful, but before she could pester him once more, she feels a strange dark aura emitting from someone behind Ahiga. To her surprise, Arthur snapped.
"It's okay, Princess Pocahontas, I'll talk to him," Arthur says in a somewhat ominous voice. He then walks up to Ahiga and look at him in the eye. "Prince Ahiga, is it? Since you've been running that fat mouth of yours with obscure lies, I would like to inform you that unless you are more than piles of meat with no brain, I will not lose to a beginner without skills and only knows how to swing a stick back and forth. Do you understand, love?" with the last comment being the most malevolent one, Arthur immediately glares at Ahiga with anger. At the same time, the victim himself feels a small shudder from Arthur's scary aura. From Pocahontas's perspective, Arthur looks like he's about to punch Ahiga in the face, though for some reason, it's as if only the judges and Ahiga could see the anger in Arthur's eyes. The crowd, on the other hand, only reacted to the comments that Ahiga made, but no one dared to comment back.
"Whoah… I never knew there was this side of Sir Kirkland…" Nakoma whispers to Pocahontas.
"Y-Yes… neither have I, but, is it strange that I also find this side of him… a-attractive…?" Pocahontas comments back, though finding herself staring deeper into his eyes.
"Ahem! Now that the contestants are here, we shall begin the first part of the event! One of our judges here, Nakoma, a close friend of my daughter, will present the first event," Chief Powhatan declares, disrupting the intensity of the air for the good intention of bringing the festive aura back. He also noticed Arthur's actions, and said nothing about it, because, to him, what Arthur said was the truth.
Stumbling as she got up from her spot from the sudden announcement, Nakoma looks up at the two men with poise. "The first event will be; target practice," she declares. This made Pocahontas jump a little. It made her worry for Arthur's success in this. She knows that she's doubting him again, but she can't help herself question whether Arthur experienced this sort of thing before. It also, somehow, made her anxious for Arthur's safety. But she can't aimlessly ponder about this for long, she decided that she should watch Arthur and hope for the best.
"Ha! That seems easy!" Ahiga smirks. Arthur simply sighs to himself at Ahiga's obnoxiousness, and continues to listen to Nakoma's explanation.
"Contestants will use a bow and an arrow handcrafted by our tribe. We will distribute them, now! The two men will have a bow and an arrow each. You must launch your arrow and aim it at wooden stick with a flag on top located above the tents that you came out of. The one with the most accurate shot will win the first round. The rules are; no shooting each other, a miss will be a lost, and no targeting the audience," as Nakoma finishes her speech, two tall guards hand Arthur and Ahiga a bow and an arrow each.
"Heh, looks like you won't be using your 'guns' that brings nightmares to children," Ahiga grins at Arthur, who isn't feeling any panic or concern regarding the use of bow and arrow, which surprises the viewers and Ahiga.
"I hope this is a good choice," Nakoma whispers to Pocahontas.
"Let's hope for the best…" Pocahontas whispers back with uncertainty. She had never seen Arthur fight before. She only knows that Arthur has a sword because he prefers it, but he never mentioned anything about a bow.
"Because you are just a visitor, I will go first and show you how it's done," Ahiga smirks as he fixates his bow firmly on his palm. But instead of paying attention to Ahiga, even though he's trying to ignore him from the start, Arthur fiddles with the bow, which puzzles the viewers greatly. Soon, whispers and conversations could be heard from the audience, most of them are questions regarding whether Arthur could wield that weapon or not. As Arthur continues to fiddle, the string of the bow became undone. This made Ahiga and many of the people laugh at him.
"What is he doing?" Chief Powhatan raises his eyebrows at the mistake Arthur made. Pocahontas frowns at the many men who are laughing at Arthur, but before she could make any comments, she peers in Arthur's direction and found herself unable to continue doubting the situation. With one look at Arthur's eyes, she knows that this event is not a mistake. Even though everyone is making fun of him, Arthur doesn't look phased at all, instead, he looks calm and serious.
"Don't worry Father, he's doing perfectly fine," Pocahontas reassures the man. Though she herself doesn't know what Arthur is doing, she can see it in his eyes that he knows what he's doing, and she trusts him for the decision he's going to make.
After a while, Arthur finishes his investigation and ties the string back to its rightful place. With one last laugh from Ahiga, the contest finally begin with his first shot. With his father already betting that he wins, Ahiga aims for the target and fires his arrow without hesitation. The bow is more flexible compared to the muscles in his arm, which means that if he pulled with all his strength, the bow would as well stay bent in an awkward shape.
The crowd watch as Ahiga's arrow arcs and hits the target. The crowd marvels at Ahiga's achievement, wondering just how he could do what they believe to be a near impossible target. The wooden stick with a flag hanging from it is stuck on top of a relatively tall tent, and to aim and hit at such a small target requires significant skills and training, which everyone envisioned Ahiga had.
"Now it's your turn, white man," Ahiga grins at his 'scrawny' rival, whom again, ignores him due to him being extremely tired of Ahiga's actions. As Arthur positions himself to aim at the target on his side of the tent, the viewers noticed something weird about his position; it's as if he knows how to use it. Shoulders straightened, right arm back, and left arm directing the shot, Arthur was more than ready to shoot the target. Then, Chief Powhatan notices something in Arthur's aura; it was quiet and calm, the same aura professional hunters and fighters had when trying to snipe an enemy. A-Amazing…Chief Powhatan thought.
Suddenly, just before Arthur could fire his arrow, he draws back his bow, which puzzled everyone once more. A second later, Arthur brings his bow back up, and to everyone's surprise, he is facing the wrong way. He is in fact pointing his arrow to his right, at an old lady and her granddaughter, who are both looking at him with scared expressions. The little girl clutches her grandma tightly, staring fear into Arthur's eyes with her teary golden eyes.
"What do you think you're doing?!" Chief Powhatan yells at Arthur with anger boiling up inside him. As if by order, the guards all slowly bring themselves closer and closer to Arthur, not wanting him to fire at the two defenceless citizens.
"You barbarian!" Ahiga yells as he slams his arrows to the ground with anger, before stomping his way to Arthur's direction. Nakoma looks at Pocahontas with a worried expression, but to her shock, she finds her friend staring at Arthur with utmost seriousness. She has never seen Pocahontas this serious and calm before, especially during a dire situation such as this. Meanwhile, the poor maiden knew that she shouldn't distrust Arthur like this. He's serious about something, and she should support him and see what he will do next.
"Nobody move. Stay still, lovelies," Arthur says in monotone to the two citizens before him. The guards and everyone freeze on spot, not wanting to risk the lives of their people from their movement. For a moment, the area became quiet, and only the sound of the whimpering child, and grumbles from Ahiga echoes the forest around them. 'Somebody needed to do something about this situation fast before someone gets hurt!' That's what everyone is thinking, but no one dared to move. Though the thing that puzzle them the most is that not even Arthur is moving or uttering a single word. He could've threatened them, use the helpless grandma and young girl as hostages, or even worse, kill them this whole time.
Just then, Pocahontas finally sees what Arthur's been watching.
It took a second, no, a millisecond for Arthur's arrow to go from it's starting point to the target of his choice. His arrow went on a straight path through the minuscule gap between the head of the crying child and the neck of the grandma. The gap was big enough to fit the whole arrow through without leaving a scratch on either of the victims. Not many could see it, but the ones who has good eye vision or are close enough to see the action are amazed at the skill Arthur possesses. Once the arrow is released from Arthur's finger, it begins to rotate itself with maximum velocity as it passes the gap and into the vicious mouth of the target. But it doesn't end there. The arrow, with the same velocity, charges itself halfway into the target's body, sending it flying before being pierced deep into a tree behind the two victims. A loud piercing noise can be heard when the arrow reached its goal, and small wood chips fly all over the place, leaving a deep hole that enclaves the head of the arrow, so only its long body can be seen by everyone's eyes.
Arthur takes a deep breath and lowers his bow.
Pocahontas sighs deeply to herself before giving Arthur a warm smile as thanks. She then gets up from her seat, and walk towards Arthur to get a better view at the predator. What Arthur shot could not only save the lives of the young girl and the grandmother, but also the lives of everyone near it.
What Arthur shot with his arrow was a snake.
"Sir Kirkland here shot through a vicious snake just before it could bite into the flesh of this grandmother and small child," Pocahontas explains to the crowd that did not get the chance to see the action with depth. "And, to add to the description of the snake, this breed is highly poisonous, and their poison would lead to death if not treated properly."
Suddenly, the area is lit up by loud gasps and some cheers from the crowd. They are all marvelled by the intricacy and skill that Arthur possessed to shoot that arrow. Some of the men in the village stare at him with more respect than they had before. Before anyone could comment more on this interesting outcome, Arthur walks slowly up to the two victims, and kneel before them.
"Sorry if it scared you, dearies. I couldn't risk the chance of missing the snake and hurting you two. Though I never expected it to be poisonous…Oh, did any of you get hurt from the falling wood chips?" Arthur asks with sincerity. The granddaughter, though still confused, released her tight grasp on her grandmother to get a better look at the peaceful face Arthur gave her. Pocahontas looks at Arthur with a shocked expression. So he shot the snake just for their safety? He's… amazing…Pocahontas thought to herself.
"T-Thank you," the small child smiles back at him with a small tear on her eye. Arthur looks back at the girl and smiles back at her, before gently patting her head, showing her that she should not be afraid of him.
"T-Thank you… for saving us," the elder one bows, also with a smile on her face
"How… how did you do that?" Ahiga asks with a distraught expression.
"I would like to know as well," this time, Chief Powhatan finds himself being amazed by Arthur's skill. Pocahontas gives a small smile and a nod to Arthur before heading back to her seat. The crowd all stay silent as they listen to Arthur's explanation.
"Forgive me for saying this, but, not all of my people shoot guns just like how you stereotyped them to be. For me, I prefer to use a sword and a bow and arrow instead of guns. This is probably because the bow was the first weapon I trained in," Arthur explains.
"You have… bows and arrows in your place?" Nakoma questions.
"Yes, and again, you seem to have a misunderstanding about my people. The United Kingdom, that's where I live, used to be a cluster of tribes as well centuries ago. It was not until the first century when we united as a country bound under one ruler, and during that century and this century, swords and bows are common weapons to use for battle. Gun powder was just invented recently, and I say, I am not a big fan of it. To add to my bow skills, I have really sharp instincts and detection skills, able to pinpoint an enemy miles away. These are one of the many reasons why I was able to go into Chief Powhatan's tribe without… fifteen guards finding me. Overall, twas probably my mother's fault for this ability…" Arthur mumbles a bit in the end.
"Y-Your mother? What does your mother have to do with this?" Ahiga puzzles at the mentioning of a woman's name in the topic of weaponry. Arthur looks at him puzzled.
"Why? My mum is the woman who made my first bow and the same woman who trained me to have these instincts," Arthur blankly states, though it made the whole tribe look at him with dumfounded faces. Some of them don't necessarily believe him, but with one look at his eyes and facial expression, they know that he's not joking.
"She made a bow and trained you? W-What?" Chief Powhatan mutters to himself, trying to figure out the pieces of the puzzle from what Arthur said.
"Yes, she did. She explained why a bow is better for me to start with rather than a sword, due to my weak physical stature compared that to my siblings. She also adores the woods, thus letting it become my training ground ever since I was little. My sister and mother, on the other hand, uses different weapons… Though I can see why you are in shock, today, not many women would hold such weapon, but it's slowly becoming a sport for many women due to their high level of balance and handling skills," he continues. Hardly anyone could believe what he just said. They all thought that the western world is a place for modern society and advancements, since that's what the people in Jamestown brag about the most. In reality, they are just like the tribes, but instead of separated and small, they are united and powerful. Having women carry such weapons is a new shock to them, especially at their stereotype of sophisticated, posh, high class western women.
"That does not matter! Let's get back to the event! Because Sir Kirkland used his one and only arrow at the wrong direction, my son, Ahiga, wins the match!" Chief Chayton booms over the crowd, changing the topic to what he deems to be more appropriate. Ahiga takes one look at his father before smirking.
"You're right. Even though this white man saved our people, this event states that you must hit the arrow on the target, which in this case, is the pole, so therefore I am the winner of this event. And 'animal instincts'? What stupidity this white man spouts! No white man could posses such a thing! Only people like us who are trained can do that! Plus… he probably only did it for sympathy in order to win the events. He probably couldn't shoot an arrow that high, which would deem him from the event, but I can see through his plans! We don't know if it was you who placed a snake conveniently next to an old lady and a young child!" Amiga bites back, which caused a lot of people to whisper amongst themselves again.
"You can't be serious-"
"And what's with you, Princess?" Ahiga questions with an eerie expression as he cuts of Pocahontas's sentence. "Why do you believe this white man over your own fiancé? What relationship do you have with this foul beast? Why do you have a good relationship with the monsters that have ruined our lives from the moment they set their foot onto our land? You should be agreeing with me and only me, since you are going to be mine!" Ahiga smirks evilly at Pocahontas, whom shudders at the sudden scary personality.
Before Pocahontas could retort once more, Arthur counterattacks with a light chuckle. "Wow, Ahiga, when I first saw you, I thought that you have a bad personality, but now, I take that back; you have a bloody grotty, shitty personality, you prat," Arthur comments as his smile turns into a frown, and dark aura surrounds his body.
"W-What did you say?" Ahiga stutters, though he wonders why he's backing up from Arthur.
"I can't believe that I, who has done nothing to you, is treated so badly to the point that you keep making fun of what I do. I also can't believe you have such a poxy personality, it's almost sickening to fight you. And that bloody mouth of yours should be fixed because you can't talk to people in such a disgusting manner, especially to a woman. No woman is your possession, she owns herself, she can choose what she wants, and to add to this, I am sure that even the thickest human wouldn't want to be with you," Arthur grumbles, clenching his hands to a fist. Ahiga didn't know what to retort back, but instead of words, he grabs Arthur's collar and curls his right hand into a fist. Arthur never flinched nor did he turn his head, he simply glared at him. Before Ahiga could do anything lethal, Chief Powhatan slams the bottom of his staff on the ground, making the sound echo around the woods.
"That is enough, let him go, Ahiga," the chief stares at the young prince win seriousness, Ahiga, though sluggishly, let's go of Arthur, though the two continue to grumble at each other. "Let us end the first round. And I agree with Chief Chayton's point; Ahiga wins the first round because he followed the rules, and Sir Kirkland used his one and only arrow to shoot the snake. Although we give the point to Ahiga, we still owe Sir Kirkland our gratitude for saving two of our citizens. That is all," Chief Powhatan declares, before going back to his seat.
Ahiga gives Arthur a smirk, though Arthur ignored his gesture and rolls his eyes. He clearly knows that it is the rules, but he's angry and annoyed at himself to lose a point from someone as lousy and idiotic as Ahiga. From a distance, Pocahontas could see the pouting and angry face Arthur made. He really is stubborn... Pocahontas giggles. There are so many sides of him I didn't know about... and he stood up for me again… he really is amazing.
Meanwhile, in Arthur's mind, he's currently contemplating about the series of sentences he uttered to Ahiga. Why did I snap like that...? This isn't me at all... Was it because... Of what he said to Pocahontas...? Arthur questions himself with confusion. Usually, when someone is as annoying as Ahiga, Arthur would just ignore him as much as he can, so it's unusual that he would bring out his nagging/rough personality. But before he could ponder more, Chief Powhatan declares his event to the crowd. Pocahontas and Nakoma stare at each other with worry and horror upon hearing the type of event given.
"The next event will be; hand to hand combat!"
Whoah, let's see how Arthur is going to cope with 'hand to hand combat'! And what's wrong with Ahiga's personality that's making Arthur go annoyed? Do you think he'll win this round? Well he's going to have to since he lost the first point... but... let's see shall we ;)