Chapter Three:
Bollo
Salem tended to Bollo, the gorilla, as he lay in his exhibit sick and possibly dying. She carried in various medicines and herbs to try and save the kind ape. Sighing she shut the door to the enclosure and sat beside the gorilla.
"Salem, you take such good care of me." He said, in his gruff voice. Salem smiled and propped him up some more.
"It's my job Bollo, but thank you." She said. She began mixing the different herbs together and feeding them to her sick friend.
Vince and Howard watched as Bollo continued to spiral downwards in health, and Salem try and keep him alive and reverse the illness that had afflicted him. The worry showed on her face when she was out of the enclosure, but never in front of their friend.
"It may be my time to go soon, Salem." Bollo said, looking at the woman still mixing the medicines. Salem faltered and began to mix faster.
"Don't talk like that Bollo. You're going to be fine." She said, letting her stubborn streak show. Bollo chuckled at the girls determination.
Vince watched how hard she tried to save the ape in adoration. He wished he could help her, but knew nothing about medicines for animals, nor did he want to mess it up or be in her way. While Howard rambled on about death in an overly poetic sense. Howard soon walked out of the cage and ran into Fossil.
" Ah, Moon, walk with me." Fossil said, as he started rambling on about the gorilla sponsor and some crazy plan of having him dress as a gorilla.
Vince was talking to Bollo, sharing some heartfelt memories, and moved him into the small building for very sick animals. Watching over him while Salem was gone on break that she reluctantly took.
Howard entered the enclosure shortly afterwords, when the grim reaper appeared through the bars, coming to collect Bollo's soul.
Salem entered the building just as Bollo popped up saying he felt better. Salem smiled.
"That's great news Bollo." She said happily, as she escorted him back to his enclosure. Vince followed her and their gorilla friend smiling, letting his eyes travel over his new female friend.
"Where's Howard?" She asked, looking back at Vince in his enchanted state.
The small funeral was held, Salem had to hold back her laughter as everyone else started to chuckle. She walked away from the group and went back to work with the other animals. Salem had a feeling that there was something odd about Howard's death.
After work, she decided to do some research of her own. Having read something about limbo and different animal beliefs,she found the book on monkey hell and how, if there was a mistake, the reaped soul would be taken into limbo. She looked into one of her magic books and found the way to limbo through a small spell using enchanted chalk and drawing a door.
"Vince? What are you doing here?" She asked.
"Me? What about you Salem? Do you know how dangerous this is?" Vince said, in a panic.
"Excuse me, can I help you?" One of the reapers said. Salem spaced out while Vince talked to the reapers, still not pleased over her appearance in limbo. Soon they were in monkey hell where Howard was tied up and being told of his punishment of being burned to death. While Vince smarted off and ended up getting the trio tied up and ready to be burned.
"Really? Isn't this a a bit uncalled for?" Salem said, struggling against the ropes. The King started to ramble on while she continued her struggling and Vince began to talk to the Ape of death about his hair and fixing it. Salem broke free while Vince worked on the Ape of deaths hair, and began to untie Howard.
The king released them all and began singing. Feeling the beat, Salem started dancing to the song.
"Okay, you rock." She said, bowing to the king as they were sent back to the zoo.
"What were you thinking Salem? What if things wouldn't have worked out the way they did? What would you have done then? You could have been killed!" Vince and Howard went on and on about her little exploit once they were back. She sighed, looking at the two of them.
"I would have been fine." She replied calmly, trying not to go into too much detail about how she had gotten there or any of the supplies she had needed to get there and back, as they walked to their apartments.
"How did you even get there anyway?" Howard asked, calming slightly. She hung her head and looked at the ground.
"Well?" Vince questioned her. She sighed and threw her head back in exhaustion.
"Let's go to my place and I'll explain, alright?" She said, not wanting to get into these kind of things, but knowing she had to if she was going to keep being around the troublesome pair. Vince trying to hide his concern for her with an aloof attitude and pose. Howard was just curious as to how she had managed to do something so extraordinary.
Upon reaching the apartment Salem turned to the pair as she unlocked the door and led them in.
"I used a gateway spell. Using magic chalk, a flat surface and an incantation. There, happy now?" She said, rushed and embarrassed as she showed them the door and how it worked, before erasing it from the floor, ending the spell and cutting off the portal. The men just stared at her in awe.
"You didn't tell us you were a shaman." Howard said, while Vince stared at the floor curiously.
"That's because I'm not." Salem started.
"Then how do you explain your using magic?" Vince asked, trying to hide the desperation in his voice, hoping that what she said wasn't true.
"Anyone can use magic, it's just a little tricky sometimes, and you have to exercise caution." Salem said. Her explanation didn't sit quite right with them. The Trio looked at one another as Vince and Howard grabbed one of Salems wrists each and began to drag her to Naboo's.
"You know, If you would have asked I would go willingly with you!" Salem said, struggling against their grips. They men looked at one another and released her, it was silent as the trio walked to Naboo's stand and entered through the door.
"Naboo." Vince said, poking his head through the beaded curtain. Naboo turned away from his desk and looked at the approaching trio.
"Yes, what is it?" He asked, examining the new girl with indifference. The men explained what had happened in limbo and monkey hell, as well as what she had confessed to them just moments before hand.
"Well, she is right. Anyone can use magic, they don't have to be a shaman to do so, but-" Naboo paused and stared at the girl, taking her hand gently and examining it.
"She has more magic in her blood than normal human beings do." He finished, releasing her. Salem looked at her hand and at Naboo.
"Really?" She asked. The other two men in the room looked at her accusingly.
"How come you didn't say anything to us? After all we've been friends for a few weeks now." They began to question her. She backed away slowly.
"I didn't know! I'm just as shocked as you guys are!" She said, her heart rate increased as she backed away from the men still sorting out what they were feeling towards the girl. She looked at Naboo helplessly.
"She's telling the truth. She's got an honest face, and if you'd look closely, you'd see you're scaring the poor girl." Naboo said calmly. The other two men looked at Salem, and saw how scared she was of the events that had just occurred. Vince looked away, a storm of various emotions running through his body, glancing up at Naboo. Howard looked at her closely and backed away to give her some space.
Salem calmed her nerves and excused herself. As she walked down the paved path back to her home she heard footsteps following her. Vince and Howard quickly caught up with her.
"We're sorry, Salem. We should have known you'd tell us something as important as that." The duo said, slightly ashamed of their behavior. Salem sighed, turning to look at the two men before her. She opened her arms and put one around each of the mens' necks in a hug.
"It's alright you twits, now, let's go home, shall we?" She said with a small smile on her face as they walked back to their apartments for the night.