Whoo! I finished it! Hahaha! I LOVED writing this part! It was soo much fun.
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN ANY OF THE BOONDOCKS CHARACTERS, BUT I DO OWN SAMMI WILLIAMS/AI SAMSON AND HER FAMILY.
"Time Capsule: Part One"
Woe is thee whom sits
with great desire by thy windowpane watching
the bitter gouts of autumn rain
crash down upon the earth
in singsong arias that are its fame.
Woe is thee whom sits
with thy chin underneath thy palm
and eyes over glazed in
fantasies of long passed memories
and lost prospects from far ago.
All thy regrets and somber realizations
clouded together like the gray clouds hanging in the sky
that comes forth to haunt you for your lack of determination.
Woe to thee whom says even once
"I could have,"
"I would have,"
"I should have"
and lives only to stare out thy window
and dream that they "did" so as to
shamefully hide away from
the truth that they "didn't."
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
:(Huey):
As adults, people like to think back to their reign of scraped knees from jumping that one "big kid ramp" just to prove themselves to the neighborhood kids; and they sigh, yearning for that period of life once again. And, ironically enough, during that reign, they would always daydream of life as adults and beg the stars that adolescence would end. Life is a funny thing. No matter where you may be in life, you'll always be yearning for something else. Some want fame. Some riches. But I guarantee you that everyone, and I mean everyone, wants youth; even the adolescent. We want the power to look young as well as the power to make our own decisions without impediments. I once was told that the period of youth was the golden age. And when I asked why, they said to me, "Because you have the power to do anything you want without distractions or being held back." Now us "young folk" would disagree. To us, school and chores would be classified as a distraction and even a means of being held back. And when I point that out, I got in reply, "School and chores ain't nothing compared to the real world. With thinking like that, you'll get eaten alive." I suppose it just depends on the person and how they were raised.
But, as I was saying, everyone is always caught thinking of a different time in his or her life. Pondering all the "I would've," "I could've," and "I should've" as well as the "I hope," "I dream," "I wish," "I want" fantasies. So does that means that we should all just live in the here and now? Should we all rise up and do as we please? It's all so very confusing. A person is raised based on certain "morals" and "common sense," but as you grow you realize that some of these teachings are a bizarre load of nonsense. What then? Nothing. We just go about our way and hope someone else will strike the question to make a change. No one wants to be known as the fool, or so is their excuse. But tell me this… who's the real fool? The one living their life waiting until it's too late? Or the one that got up and made a stand? Who's the fool then?
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
"Psssst!" Riley hissed with his hand cupped over his mouth. He had on a black beanie that covered over his chocolate cornrows and his black hood was on to shadow his face in the dark of the night, "Iceey! Pssst!" He was standing right in the yard of Sammi William's house attempting to wake her at around midnight and was becoming very annoyed. He grunted with discontent and searched the ground with his olive eyes for a rock to throw. "ICEEY!" he rasped out trying not to wake any neighbors, "Wake up!" He threw the rock after checking around him and it rapped the window louder than he expected. In a state of panic, he ducked under the bushes just a story bellow what he hoped was the right window. After a few moments of silence, he poked his head out of the bushes and returned to his previous spot on the lawn with a pocket full of small rocks. "ICEEY!" he called out a bit louder. The night was quiet despite the lullabies of the crickets and the cool wind but Riley didn't find it comforting at all. He continuously threw the rocks up at the blank, dark window until he was out again, "ICEEY! WAKE UP!" He yelled a bit louder out of annoyance. Silence. "ICEEY! GET UP, DAMN!" his yell seemed to echo down the empty street and he immediately dropped down to the ground as an attempt to hide in the shadows.
A dim light switched on in the window above and the red curtains were pulled back slowly. There stood little Sammi with her black afro puff knotted from sleep and rubbing her eyes. She unlocked her window and opened it to hang her head out, "Ayo?" Riley jumped up and spread out his arms in anger, "Took you long enough, nigga!" Sammi yawned and crossed her arms over her window frame to look down at him, "Huh? Riley?" She squinted down at him, the sleep obviously still in her eyes. After she rubbed them once more, she scowled, "Nigga, it's passed midnight! What the hell are you tryin' to do? Serenade me? I ain't no damn Juliet! Get the hell out my yard!" Riley flinched at her words and looked up at her in disgust, "UHG! I ain't serenadin' to YOU! I ain't serenadin' to NO hoes or bitches!" Sammi leaned out of her window threateningly, "Then what you want?! Why'd you wake me up?! What's so damn important?!" Riley crossed his arms and grinned, "We gon' go see somethin' real coo'! C'mon!" Sammi growled and shut her window promptly only to come out moments later in her rainbow tights, large black nightshirt, black penguin slippers, and adult-sized camouflage jacket. "This better be good," she rasped as she threw him a death glare. Riley only grinned, "You know where Cindy live, right?"
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
"Man, is it chilly out here or what?" Cindy's high-pitched voice was becoming almost unbearable to them now. The whole walk from her house to the hill all she did was talk and talk and talk. "I love, Cin, but if she don't shut up soon, I WILL shoot her!" Sammi whispered over to Riley. Riley looked over his shoulder to the smiling, still blabbering Cindy, "Fo' real. You ain't lyin'." The neighborhood looked so much different at night. It was so empty and calm and even soothing. "And THEN..." Cindy's voice broke through shrilly causing Riley and Sammi to wince. "Ok, ok. Cindy," Sammi stopped in her tracks and turn on her heels to face the still chatty Cindy, "Cindy. Cindy!" Cindy stopped for a brief second, her mouth shaped into a small "o," before she spoke again, "Oh, sorry, girl! Am I talking too much? My mom always tells me that I get really, really, REALLY talkat—" Sammi's eyebrow twitched and she was trying very hard to keep a smile on as she quickly covered Cindy's mouth. "Cindy, don't take this the wrong way," Sammi cooed as the corner of her lips began to twitch from the forced smile, "But I really need you to SHUT... THE FUCK... UP. Ok?" Cindy blinked innocently and nodded her head vigorously causing Sammi to remove her hand ever so slowly, "There's a good girl." Sammi glanced at her once more before she turned her back. "Geez, Iceey," Riley commented with an eyebrow raised, "You know how to handle them." Sammie shook her head and sighed from exhaustion, "Are we almost there yet? I'm tired as a motha'." Riley cocked his head questionably and that alarmed Sammi, "Please tell me you know where we're going..." Riley scratched his head for a moment and then grinned, "Oh, yeah! It's just up this hill!" He pointed happily up to a lonely tree based atop a grassy hill overlooking the entire city. Sammi squinted her eyes to focus on the hill. Where there two people up there? Or was she hallucinating from lack of sleep? "Oh, and Huey and Jazmine are already there waitin' fo' us," Riley slipped in casually.
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
"So what's this happy little reunion for, eh?" Sammi clasped her hands together happily as she reached the top of the hill. Jazmine was leaning against the tree with her eyes in a daze and wobbling with each gust of wind and her little teddy-bear dangling at her side, "Something about stars and planets." Sammi raised an eyebrow menacingly at Riley, "And why the hell am I here?" It was then that Huey looked over at her with his blank expression, "The planets and the moon are being aligned for the first time in centuries tonight. And its been said that each person who witnesses the occurrence partakes in an extraterrestrial account." That was when Jazmine perked up and her rouge puff-pigtails bounced happily, "If you make a wish, it'll come true!" Jazmine cuddle up to her bear tightly and giggled softly to herself with her green eyes closed softly. Before Huey could correct her, everyone else spoke up. "Yeah, yeah! I'ma wish fo' those rims Santa didn't get me! Ooh! No! I'ma wish fo' a solid gold chain with my name in diamonds that as big as rims!" Riley burst out excitedly. "I'm going to wish for a pony!" Jazmine added with another giggle and squeeze of her bear. Cindy scoffed and flipped her long blonde braids snottily, "Man, ya'll are wishin' for baby stuff! I wantta meet Tupac!" All Sammi did was gaze at them and stare bewildered. "What would you wish for, Sammi?" Jazmine asked with wide, sparkling eyes. Sammi crossed her arms and leaned back against the tree, "No comment, thanks." Jazmine blinked and turned to Huey with a huge smile, "What about you, Huey?" Silence.
"Why are we here again?" Sammi asked finally. "Tsk! Cause I want my wish!" Riley replied matter-of-factly. "And I came BECAUSE?" Riley crossed his arms snottily, "Because I say so, h—…." Sammi raised an eyebrow threateningly and cracked her knuckles to scare him, "Excuse me?" It worked. "Nothin'," was his reply as he looked up into the velvet sky of navy blue, "Ooh! Aye! Look!" He pointed excitedly to the sky as the last shining sphere swayed under the moon. Riley crossed his fingers and grinned brightly, "C'mon! Rims! Chain!" Sammi just rolled her eyes and scoffed, "What a waste of my life. Wishes don't come true and there ain't no extraterr—ooh!" Her aqua eyes widened drastically and she gazed up into the sky. There was a glow of majestic colors glorifying the trail of aligned planets, moon, and a few bright stars. The moon seemed to glisten far grater than before and each child soon forgot about wishes or sleep. They each sat down in a daze as the colors spread and danced around the midnight sky gracefully to the melodies of the night. The twinkling of the stars and the swirling of the aura sent them into a state of hypnosis and their eyelids bagged lazily over their eyes. Were they all dreaming, or was that grassy hill with its one lonely tree shrinking away from them in the blackness?
The ringing of a shill monotone alarm sent Huey up with a start. But was that Huey? Yes, it was but much, much older. His russet afro had grown in size and his face was more defined and chiseled from age yet still held that same air from when he was young. But his body was much different, no longer was he a small little child. No, he was a man. His wine eyes lay upon his alarm and he turned it off in silence. Beside his, the black sheets of his bed stirred lightly. "Good morning," a chocolate face perked up from behind her mass of nappy, frizzy curls of dirty blonde hair. She knelt up on her arms slowly and then turned over to place a small kiss on the nape of Huey's neck. "Morning," Huey replied drearily. The girl's hazel eyes glistened as she smiled and pulled herself out of bed to stretch. She was an athletic looking woman with soft curves in the just the right places and her voluminous hair flowed down to the middle of her back. Just above her lower back, above the fold of her pink sweatpants and just bellow the end of her white tank top, there was the tattoo of a black panther bordered in vines and barbed wire. "Ready for another adventure?" she asked as she neatly smoothed out her side of the bed. "Actually," Huey started as he got out of bed slowly, "You're going to stay here today." She scoffed and put her hands on her hips, "Oh, no you're not, Mister Freeman! You're not sitting me out this time!" Huey furrowed his eyebrows and replied, "Niecee, you almost got shot last time we went out on the field."
Niecee waved her hand in a careless motion, "All part of being in the Black Panther Party! I knew what I was in for when I joined! I'm not afraid to die for what I believe in, Mister Huey Freeman!" With that she crossed her arms with pride and glared at him sternly, "Therefore, I REFUSE to stay in this house!" Huey shook his head lightly; she had the same visions as he but was much more spirited in expressing them. In fact, that was precisely why he liked her. He had met her in a protest to liberate one black family from the grasp of industrial cruelty years ago and she, with her strong voice and wooing speech as well as hard determination, had become leader of the protesters and given the family liberation in no time flat. But it was, in fact, in Niecee's blood. Niecee Moira Davis, the revolutionary granddaughter of the revolutionary Angela Davis. But her surname wasn't originally Davis until she had it legally changed in the proud honor of her idol grandmother.
Huey raised his eyebrow in response, "Just be careful." As good as her leading abilities were, Niecee would always step down to the leadership of Huey and when he would as her as to why, she would simply respond, "Sure, I have the voice and the air. But, Huey, you're the soul. You're the mind. Without either of those, no voice or air is necessary." And that would be it. For today's mission, or "adventure" as Niecee put it, they had set up a protest in the front of the city hall announcing the vast flaw in the American government for waging war on an innocent African country. They would have taken this protest to the White House, but their pictures were posted in every airport, bus stop, and police station that they were not allowed to step anywhere near the states of Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Southern New York, or West Virginia. Why? Because the last protest they had planned to station in the yard of the White House had been ratted out to the government and they were let off with a warning and ban from said states. But that was a lucky break, considering the judge sympathized with Niecee's pleads for the want of a better nation. It also helped considering the protest wasn't the "big one" the duo planned in the years ahead. If that had been the case, they would've been executed on the spot. It was times like that that Huey realized what a good benefit it was having an intelligent woman on his side.
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
"You're late, Riley," Jazmine pointed out as she sipped her coffee. Huey and Niecee were sitting just beside her to her left chatting about the menu. "Aye, sorry. I had a lil' somethin' to take care of befo' I got here," Riley thumbed his nose and took a seat across from the slender light caramel redhead. Riley had done some growing up, too. He still had his cute baby-face that girls swooned over, but he now had the body of a "true thug" as he called it. Jazmine smiled weakly at him, "Should I even dare to ask?" She had matured alot since childhood and had grown to be a very lovely woman. Her hair wasn't as poofy or frizzy, so she allowed it to hang gently over her shoulders and would sometimes even take time out to straighten it. But today, she had it pulled back into a sloppy bun. Riley chuckled and raised an eyebrow, "Prob'ly not. What's these extra chairs fo'?" He gestured over to his left (Jazmine's right) at two empty chairs. "We're having some specials guests join up this morning," Jazmine replied with a smile. Every Thursday, they would all get together and catch-up during breakfast, just the four of them. Having two random, extra people, to Riley, would ruin the bonding time. "Who?" he asked as he furrowed his eyebrows together. "You know them, Riley. Calm down," Huey stated as he set down his menu. Riley glanced over at him and then at Jazmine, "How come I'M always tha one outta the loop?" To that, Niecee replied sternly, "Because YOU'RE the one that never answer his phone!" Riley "hmph"-ed and crossed his arms defeated. "Oh! Here they are!" Jazmine exclaimed jumping up happily. "Hey, baby! What is up?" the tone of Cindy's voice completely recognizable, "Riley! My man! Long time no see!" Riley looked over his shoulder at her and waved lightly, "Yo, lil' mama." The last time he'd seen Cindy was a month ago when she'd invited them all out to California to watch her MBA finals match. She always had been skilled in basketball. "Hey, there, Riley," the second woman smiled. Her voice was excruciatingly familiar, how did he know her? She removed her big, dark glasses to reveal stunning aqua eyes with a black tattooed star just under the far corner of her right eye. Her complexion was a creamy bronze and her hair was down with the top most layer braided tightly and tied with small white ribbons. She wore a black cropped jacket with white fur around the hood and her white shirt was tight, but flattering, against her stomach . And she wore some of the most baggy dark jeans Riley had ever seen, yet strangely enough they fit her hips perfectly. "Come on, Esco! I know we haven't seen each other in years, but I know you know my voice! We've talked enough for you to remember!" she urged presenting herself with an eyebrow raised, "Listen carefully to my voice." Riley just stared at her with his eyebrows furrowed in concentration before her let out a huge gasp and stood up, "SAMMI?!"
She hushed him quickly and grinned widely, "Took you long enough, nigga. Damn. Slow as eva'!" She laughed and embraced him happily, "I missed you, Riley." Then she turned to the entire table and smiled, "I missed you all actually. Been so LONG. We have so much to catch up on!" She took a seat beside Riley and rested her elbows on the table before resting her face on the back of her hands like that of a love-sick teen. She gazed over all the faces at the table and stopped to raise an eyebrow at Niecee, "Ooh, so is this the lil' revolutionary like yourself I've heard so much about, Huey?" She reached out her hand across the table and smiled, "I'm Ai Samson. But you can call me Sammie. Pleasure to meet you." Niecee smiled and shook her hand politely, "Niecee Davis. The pleasure's all mine." Sammi folded her hands neatly on the table and Niecee gave her a questionable look, "Aren't you... you look so familiar. But I can't pin down just where I've seen you." Sammi chuckled, "Ever been to Asia or see any Asian channels?" Niecee nodded slowly, "Is that how I saw you?" Sammi shrugged, "Well, I'm an Asian rapper. And I'm assumin' you've never been to Asian then. My face is posted all 'round that bitch. It's a breath of fresh air comin' back to the US and not havin' to deal with so many damn fans and shit." Niecee nodded and smiled, "Yeah, I figure it would be. From my intake, fame is stressful." Sammi scoffed, "Hell yeah it is." Jazmine piped in, "When's your next tour?" Sammi paused, "Ehh... after I finish my vacation and get my ass back to the studio to finish my next album. But enough about my life. I came here to see what's poppin' with ya'll. How's the ranch, Jazzy?" Jazmine spun her spoon around in her coffee as she spoke, "Nothing really new with that besides the fact that Betsy had a calf a few weeks ago." Jazmine owned her very own ranch full of horses and even ran her own lemonade producing company. She got paid without even lifting a finger.
"Well, Huey and are are going to a protest later this evening," Niecee said simply. "Really? What for this time?" Sammi asked as she cocked her head. "The unfair war against the Mozambique people." Sammi squinted her eyes, "That's STILL goin' on? Damn! Why won't the government just leave 'em alone! They didn't do shit except listen to what THEY told them!" Riley roughly added in, "Man, we all know the white man ain't happy unless he bringin' a nigga down." Cindy scoffed, "Just makes you hate bein' the same race as the haters." Jazmine nodded, "Amen to that!" Niecee leaned over the table and added, "And we all KNOW they were hating because Mozambique was advancing alot quicker than the US!" Sammi rushed in, "Yeah, their white asses just got scared!" That was when Huey spoke, "Let's just face it, the white man doesn't want ANYONE darker than him to be better than him. So they've always got to start some argument." The conversation faded to an end after Sammi commented, "Those bitches..." and took a sip of her glass of water. "So, Esco, how's the thug life treatin' you? Get shot again yet?" Sammi asked after a long pause.
"Nope, not since we was at The Hype when we was sixteen," Riley replied a bit disappointed. The Hype was a well-known nightclub that had started up when they were ten and it was known for holding scandalous skeezes and stunts evolving around the business of thugs, drug lords, and pimps. But still, good people go to it as well since it's know for it's high-maintenance ways and adequate services not evolving around that dangerous world. "You know, Iceey, I miss havin' you around to ride wit'. You always had my back. Nowadays, I can't find NO niggas that can do shit right!" Riley added in as he leaned over the table to stare Sammi in the eyes. Sammi grinned, "That's cause no bitch can do like ME!" Back in there teenage years, they met up with a gang that went by the name The Arsenic Grims or TAG for short.
Back in those times, both Riley and Sammi were bent on becoming a part of the thug world. So they dropped out of their third year in high school and took the blood oath as well as got the tattoos to brand their alliance. The tattoo was visualized as such: a navy blue Grim Reaper profiled with his ominous scythe held out before him with his head bent over with an expression of disturbingly wicked humor. The image cut off to the black shadows of the sleeve and torso with three large, gothic letters spelling out T-A-G just underneath. And both still had this gruesome gang brands hidden across their back's. But, Sammi managed to run away from that life. She started going to a community college the entire end of their teen years and did so well she managed to snag a scholarship to Julliard College in New York for her amazing voice and music skills. So, she simply accepted the scholarship, changed her name, and fled the gang to college, then eventually to Asia. But, as for Riley, he remained in the gang and hasn't mentioned a word of her in front of other members. As far as they were concerned, Sammi Williams was dead.
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
"FREE THE SHACKLES OF PERSECUTION!" the massive crowd of African-Americans cried out before the large silver gates of City Hall. Police cars were lined up on the streets at the edges of the protesters. One of the most major roads in the city had to be blocked off because of the protesting and the major was becoming very irritated. "I don't have the authority to control what is going on in Africa! Stop the foolishness!" he would scream out, his face red with anger. But they persisted. This message HAD to be passed on to the White House, with or without the major's help. Huey and Niecee were standing at the top ranks of the crowd closest to the gate encouraging their comrades. Their eyes gleamed with determination and they scowled up at the American flag waving lazily in the wind in the front of the building. They were on their way to their revolution. Just a few steps more to get their names out there, get their ideas out there. And then they would change the world.
"ATTENTION CITIZENS OF WOODCREST!" a black suited man announced on an intercom, he was inside the gates looking out at them, "IF YOU DO NOT EVACUATE THE PREMISSES IMMEDIATELY, WE WILL USE MILITARY FORCE! I REPEAT, WE WILL USE MILITARY FORCE!" Oddly enough, the man in the black suit looked very familiar to Huey, "White Shadow..." The government was holding a conspiracy that they didn't want found out, and Huey could see right through it.
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
:(TO BE CONTINUED...):
Ok! So this is actually going to take a few parts to finish. Haha. I got REALLY into it. I hope you understood the transition between childhood to adulthood. If not, it'll all be explain in due time.
So, yeah! You know what to do!
Fin