Chapter 3
I Have An Apple!
(I'm going to take GoldenArcher's advice and see what happens if I don't change POV this chapter. If I can cover everything I want to cover in this chapter without switching, then I'll start to limit the POV changes.)
Kai's POV:
Ugh, I hate him so much. The weaver is obnoxious, mean, and a downright menace most of the time. I knocked on the door, praying he'd be in one of his few good moods. He answered the door, staring at me.
"Hello, Gregor," I said.
"What?" he asked. Darn, so much for a good mood.
"I uhh... I need a favor. I need you to make a couple pairs of medium shirts and skirts, maybe a pair of sandals, too."
Gregor groaned. "Is it for that human?" he asked. I nodded, and held out the chief's note. He snatched it, and read, nodding his head every so often. He reached the end of the note, and shook his head once.
"I'm not doing this for free, especially for that stupid human. I don't care if the Chief said it has to be free."
I was suprised. "Are you kidding me?" I said, taking a step forward. Gregor was quite concrete with his decision.
"I will make the clothing, but I want something in return."
I breathed a sigh.
"I want an apple," he said.
Drat! Apple? Of all foods, he wants an apple?! Apples are the only things that do not grow on our part of the island! We get apples through bartering with other tribes, but with tensions growing between us and the Hashashins, some of the tribes that originally supplied our apples have become scared of giving us anything. The last thing the minor tribes would want is to be mixed up with the Hashashins, even for a second. The store has apples, but if I wanted to get one, I'd need to trade the shop most of my own fruits. I won't be able to make lunch or dinner!
"Well? Do we have a deal? Don't you want to help your human pet?" spat Gregor.
"Fine, I'll get you your stupid apple. But these clothes had better be worth it."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Noise, noise. Go find the apple, I'm making a family recipie tonight. Snap to it."
I whirled around without saying another word, walking to the store no more than a few feet away. Upon walking inside, the pink clerk immediately freed herself from any work.
"Kai! Come in, come in!" she said. Syd. Her name is Sydney, but we call her Syd, and she is probably one of the nicest of all the villagers. I smiled.
"Hi, Syd."
"What are you looking for? Oh, and how is your cute little human friend?" she asked.
I frowned. "I'm here because of Gregor-"
Syd scowled when she heard the name. Even she didn't get along with him. The only person that got along with him even remotely was Sytik, and even that "friendship" was very loose.
"Oh, what did he want now?"
"He wants an apple," I said.
Syd was suprised. "Well, I have an apple! If you want it, I can give it to you for..."
I braced myself for an astonishing price, but it never came along. Instead, she took a few steps forward, and whispered to me.
"I want... a picture of Sytik."
That's where Syd and I do not see eye to eye. Syd has an obvious crush on Sytik just like I do, except Sytik is closer to me than her. I nodded.
"Alright, I'll get you a picture of Sytik. I'll be back soon."
I turned away and headed out the door, running to Sytik's house. He was outside already, getting ready to go to the medical building. Phew. I caught him just in time. He looked up at me and smiled.
"Hi, Kai. What's going on?" he asked. I blushed, and smiled.
"Hi, Sytik. Listen, this will sound really stupid, but I need a picture of you."
He smiled warmly.
"Let me guess: You want to hang it on your wall, don't you?" he joked, smirking.
I blushed madly, and laughed, rubbing the back of my head.
"I need to give it to Syd. She has an apple, and I need it so I can get some clothes for Lila," I explained. Sytik sighed.
"I'm really sorry, Kai. I don't have a picture of myself. If you want one, you'll have to see someone who has a camera. Try Fajor, he's got one."
I wanted to groan, but I couldn't. Fajor was a yoshi a little ways out from the village who worked with weapons. He makes swords and weapons of all kinds, but rarely has customers.
"Will you be at the medical hut?" I asked, hugging him goodbye.
"Yes, of course."
I smiled, and turned to walk down a dirt path. The dirt path stretched off the main road into the woods. But, that path is crawling with Shy Guys.
I started running down the path, and the commotion of the village faded out. Something smacked me in the back and knocked me to the floor no more than five minutes into my walk. I turned around and saw a shy guy, laughing at me. He was holding some cloth above his head, and I looked down, and...
...
He had my top! And he was laughing his annoying little laugh as I did whatever I could to cover my breasts. I ran full speed into the freaky little shy guy and knocked him over, sending my top free of his grip and him tumbling to the ground. I whirled around to face him then, and in a split second, I had swallowed his body and turned him into an egg.
I've no intention of letting him hatch, even though he'd be a yoshi. I'm going to use him in case of another shy guy. So, I spent the next few minutes putting my top back on, and then I continued. The egg continued behind me. The reason why our eggs follow us is because of something in the egg that tracks the mother. The baby won't leave it's Mommy until it's born, and the only exception is when we throw the egg in self defense. Most people find it sick or strange that we might throw our babies, but the egg is almost indestructable. It only bounces around and comes to rest in another spot; the only thing well and truley busted is the tracking device inside the thrown egg. It will not follow us after we throw it, and nobody knows why.
But, if my parents threw me across a field, I wouldn't want to be near them, either.
As I walked, the brush and woods grew denser, and after no more than ten minutes of walking, I found...
"Yeek!"
I quickly dove out of sight. I was sure that the figure I was looking at was a Hashashin, and Hashashins are one of the only things we cannot turn into eggs. They are so advanced with armor and weaponry, however when you get through it all, their bodies are as fragile as ours. One strong enough blow can end the life of a Hashashin... if you could get through the armor they wear. A Hashashin wears leather-like armor on all of the body, and despite how light and flexible it is, it can stand up to arrows, spears, and most swords. The only weapon on this island that might have a chance at penetrating the armor is a heavy battleaxe.
And yet, with the armor on it's body, I couldn't tell just what this Hashashin was. I knew one thing for sure: it definetly wasn't a yoshi, and while I've never seen a Hashashin before, every nerve in my body was screaming "Run, Kai! Run! It's definetly a Hashashin! Run for it!"
But, I didn't run, even though I knew the Hashashin saw me. It approached the bush I hid behind, and I could hear a chuckle escape it's mouth (wherever it might be).
That chuckle sent chills down my spine. It sounded so cold, so strong, so scary... and I was certain that the Hashashin was going to kill me...
But, he didn't. Instead, he patted me on my head, and spoke.
"We are not at war yet. Taking your life would do nothing for me," he said, in that cold, strong voice. I didn't say a word, and only waited as the footsteps took the Hashashin further into the jungle. I waited a few more minutes, and when I was sure it was clear, I stood, and continued, throwing my egg at a Shy Guy before he could make a move. A hut became visible in my field of vision, and I smiled, pushing myself to run to it. Fajor was a nice, level headed fellow when he needed to be. Not only that, but he's also very, very strong. There's no way to properly describe his strength, except for this:
He lives alone in a hut that is virtually unprotected from enemies in the middle of "No-Man's Land", which is unclaimed territory (and the most violent of it all), and to this day, nobody has been stupid enough to come to his home with ill intent. That is how strong Fajor is. He has skills that could rival all of the tribes on this island.
But, even though he's so strong, he alone wouldn't last against an entire army of... any tribe.
I shook my head to clear it of the thoughts, and knocked on his door. A few moments later, he answered. Fajor was a rare colored yoshi: Grey. Some villagers say his color is a sign of great strength, while others say he was just born like that, and to stop being critical of what he looks like.
"Hello, young lady. Do you wish to learn the way of the sword?" he asked.
I smiled, but shook my head. "No, I... I understand you have a camera."
His stern look softened, and he smiled.
"Would you like me to take your picture?" he asked, and again I shook my head. Questions and answers were definetly Fajor's Achilles heel.
"I need to use your camera to take a photo of my friend," I said.
"Why does your friend not come here? Why does he send you?"
"I need the picture, not him. I need to give his picture to someone else so I can get an apple."
"And you need the apple for?" he asked. Goodness, he's a wary fellow, too.
"I need to use it to get the weaver to make some clothes for my friend. The weaver says he won't make the clothes unless I get him an apple."
Fajor sighed angirly.
"Gregor, you never seize to irritate me. He puts you through this trouble for a mere apple?"
I nodded, and again Fajor sighed.
"I apologize for his behavior. He's a brilliant fellow, mind you, but his downfall is of knowing that. He knows how good he is, you understand?"
I felt like a bobblehead. I kept nodding. Fajor turned away and walked inside his hut.
"Come. I will get you your camera."
I walked inside his hut, and it seemed that no matter where I turned my head, a sword or other weapon met my gaze. It almost seemed like the weapons called out to me. "Use us.... use us..... we're bored here on his wall! Use us!"
But, I've no use for those weapons. Fajor returned from another room, holding the camera out for me to take. I smiled, and gratefully took the device.
"Bring it back once you have finished with it, but take your time. I've no use for it at the moment."
"Thank you, Fajor," I said. As I turned to leave, he stopped me.
"If you ever need a weapon for defense, you know where to find me," he called.
I smiled, though I was sure I wouldn't have to use such things.
"Thank you," I called one last time. With that, I left the hut and began heading back to the village. It was late, and most of the other enemy tribe members were likely with their villages at this time, probably to eat, and I mentally slapped myself. I left nothing for Lila at lunch! I'll be sure to make her something good for dinner, and while I'm at it, I'll make myself something for getting through this, too! I made it back to the village without a struggle, and walked into the medical hut. Sytik turned his head when he heard me enter, and smiled.
"You've got the camera," he stated, and I nodded. Then, I waited for it to load up, which took maybe 2 minutes. When I saw a red light go on, I told him to smile, and took the photo. It was a very nice picture of him, too. I wish I could've kept it...
But, I couldn't. I had to give it to Syd, like it or not. I thanked Sytik for the picture, and he smiled again.
"Anything to help our village guest out. I dropped off a banana and a tomato at your house for Lila. She was sleeping when I came by."
I nodded. The poor thing has been through a lot.
"Thank you again Sytik, I appreciate it," I said, turning and getting ready to find Syd. I ran to the shop, and up to Syd.
"Hey, it took you a while," she joked. I groaned.
"You have no idea the trouble I had to go through to get a camera. I hope this is enough," I said, holding the photo out for Syd to gawk at.
I knew she liked it, judging by her eyes growing to the size of watermelons.
"This is a great picture! Sytik..." she sighed, then remembered I was still there. She blushed a little.
"You wanted an apple, right?" she asked, turning away to check the boxes of fruits. I responded in the affirmative, and she came to me with the apple I worked so hard for.
"This is the least I can give you for that picture. If you need another apple, I'll give you one free of charge," Syd said, handing me the elusive fruit. I smiled, and left the hut, heading for the Weaver. I knocked on the door, and he opened it, staring at me for only a moment before his eyes lowered a little to look at the apple I was holding out to him.
"I've got your apple, now make those clothes," I said, handing the fruit to him. He continued staring.
"Make sure those clothes are both medium, understand?"
No response, he kept staring.
"Eyes up here, Gregor!" I snapped, and he looked at me.
"They don't match, either."
I had to restrain myself, and he turned away.
"I'll have your clothes ready tomorrow morning. Pick them up then," he said, and he slammed the door shut on my face.
All that trouble. A shy guy attacking me, hiking through the jungle on an empty stomach, everything I've done today was done for Gregor's word. Yawning, I walked back into my hut, and I let out a yelp.
Lila was trying to stand!
"No! No, no! Stop it! No!" I called, rushing to her aid before she fell over. I helped her sit on the couch again, and she refused to make eye contact with me. She looked... ashamed of something.
"Why on earth would you do that? You're not ready to walk yet!" I gently scolded, placing an arm around her and trying to look at her face. She frowned a little.
"I'm sorry, Kai. I just wanted to see if I was well enough to help you around the house," she whispered. I pulled the girl into an embrace.
"You're still much too injured to do a thing. I've got the chief preparing a wheelchair for you so you can see the village," I said in a lighter voice.
"...I've got quite a debt building up. I'm sorry, Kai. I just want to help," said Lila.
"If you want to help me right now, then let yourself recover. Feel better, and you can help me garden and clean up around here when you heal, okay?" I asked.
"Okay. Thank you for everything, Kai," said Lila.
I released her from the embrace, and I turned away.
"I'm going to make us both some dinner, okay? How does salad sound?"
"It sounds good, Kai. Thank you," said Lila.
I sighed a sigh of relief as I headed for the garden, and started to think about the photo again. I still had the camera. Maybe I could get Sytik to take another photo, this time for me?
I couldn't think about it right then. I had to make dinner, and then collapse on my bed.
It had been a long day.
End of Chapter
A/N:
I've gotten another review from GoldenArcher, but it was anonymous (I know what you mean by long email XD)
The chapter name was suggested by my cousin. He is helping me out with this story now, because I've helped him with a lot of his stories.
Still, my score card is still way ahead!
XD Poor Kai, going through all that trouble for an apple!
I think that I'll start limiting POV changes now, seeing that I covered everything I needed.
Please Review! I could really use some support and some suggestions!