A short story

What I heard that afternoon completely took me by surprise. It sounded like a gunshot, though at the time, I couldn't be sure. Everyone with me looked in the direction the sound had come from.

There was a long silence, no-one daring to speak, then a rustle in the bushes and the sound of footsteps thumping the ground so quickly that it was not long before they died away. The people with me still stood in silence. The only thing that seemed oblivious to the sudden disturbance of the afternoon was the shining sun, still gleaming golden in the blue sky. Something skidded nearby, bringing everybody back to their senses. They blinked and looked around. A wolf, the obvious cause of the skidding noise looked at us. It sniffed the air and pounced onto a nearby bridge. Then it ran into the bushes.

Everyone with me stood around, unsure of what to make of the recent sequence of events. The strange silence was extremely unnerving. I decided to speak up. A leaf blowing away distracted me for a millisecond and I looked up to see Susan opening her mouth to speak.
"Daddy, what was that?" she asked.
We all turned to look at her,
"I don't know...," he said. "None of us do."
Everyone, all six people other than me started talking to each other about what had just happened.

The leaf that I'd been looking at began swirling up and up.

"Silence," I commanded before I could think about what I was saying. Immediately the people were quiet. The water suddenly felt colder, and clouds covered the sun.
"Come on let's get changed," I said. To my surprise, everyone listened. We had been swimming and were all freezing.

When we'd got changed, we stepped into the forest and began walking in the direction of the Range Rover 2000. I could sense the tension in the air. Everyone could.

Thinking back on it, I sometimes think it is funny, how everyone can get flustered by a sound that can just be a party popper. But immediately I always think no. There was more to it than that. Then a weird sequence of sounds. A certain tension hung in the air and a shiver ran down my spine. The forest air smelt damp and rotten. It didn't feel like a party day anymore, where we would get home and play blind man's buff.

The drive home was long, but no-one said a word.

When we got to our destination we were greeted by my mom and a big potful of soup.
"How was it?" she asked.
"Great," I said.

Getting Home

CHAPTER ONE - Bad News
NARRATED BY JOLENE
My name is Jolene Evans. I live in Edinburgh, Scotland. I moved here when I was two years old and I don’t remember my first house in London. I came here before the war started and came back when the war ended. The war changed my life; it changed every one’s life here. And it all happened because oil producing countries were refusing to sell oil to England, Scotland and other western countries.

It was winter. The ground was covered with a thick layer of snow. My brother was making us a cup of tea. The whole family was silent, war had been declared that morning. It was half-term and my school had been hit in the first wave of missile attacks. “What if the kids had been in school this morning?” my mother kept repeating. The whole household including our dog, Sebastian were in shock. I was scared, my family was scared, the whole country was. If we wanted to be safe we would have to move to the countryside. And we would have to move soon – very soon.

CHAPTER 2- Abandoned

NARRATED BY JOLENE

“Have we got everything?” my mother asked.
“Yeah,” I replied.
“Yup,” chorused my siblings.
“Lets go!” said my father enthusiastically.
Everyone stared at the floor.
“Oh cheer up, let’s see some happy faces,” my dad encouraged.
My sister gave a half-hearted smile and my mum tried her best not to look nervous as we walked out of our front garden. The car ride to the station was only five minutes but it felt like forever. The war could last for two days but it could also last for twenty years. I was worried that it would be the latter and it was clear that my family thought the same. I would miss my house. At least the move was temporary. I stared out of the car window at my house: it got smaller, smaller, until it was only a tiny speck in the distance. Then it faded into the grey horizon.

Waverly Train Station was packed. Everyone was agitated, making arrangements to travel to a safer place to live in during the war. Luckily, my parents had booked our tickets. I held on tightly to Sebastian’s lead. There was an announcement saying that our train was going to depart in five minutes.  We rushed through the crowds. By the time we reached the platform the train was about to leave. I ran as fast as I could. My brother got on first. Then my mother. My dad and sister got on at the same time. There were so many people trying to get on to the train.

I fought my way desperately through the crowds. I was too late. The doors were already closing. I saw Mum banging on the window shouting for me to come quickly. Sebastian whimpered and I jumped up and down trying to get the driver’s attention; it was useless. The train drove mercilessly away.

Everyone at the platform stared at me. Embarrassment. That was all I felt for two seconds. Then panic. It was rising up inside me urging me to run, to kick the train I had missed. A fluttery feeling was now in my tummy. I felt weak and helpless. I forced myself to think clearly. All I had to do was wait for the next train.

Sebastian could see that something was wrong. His eyes were wide with panic.
“Don’t worry, we’ll catch the next train,” I reassured him.

He did not calm down. I realised it was my tone of voice. I sounded nervous. You can’t normally hear your own voice but that day I did. I felt nervous and it was obvious that Sebastian sensed it.

Sebastian looked up at me and I bent down to stroke him. He calmed down a little, but I felt a sudden urge to ease myself. Everyone around us had stopped staring. I put my dog on a bench and walked away to the WC.


When I came back there was an announcement. The noise level shot up as if a thousand horses had marched into the station. I’d missed the next train but that was not the bad thing. There had been a bomb. That’s what the announcement was about. The bomb had blown up that train. People were rushing around. Their friends and family had probably been on that train. What if it wasn’t just that train that had blown up. What if it was my parents’ train too?

I saw a woman with her face buried in her knees. A man looked pale as he staggered to a pole where he supported his weight. Everything was chaotic. Members of staff tried to slow down the flow of people, but I could see that even they were very shocked.

I was worried that we would be trampled so I grabbed Sebastian and made for the nearest exit.

Outside it was quieter. I did not know where to go and what to do. The only thing I could think of was asking someone. I felt abandoned because my family was gone. A little girl walked by followed by her father. I decided to ask.

CHAPTER 3 - Memories

NARRATED BY SEBASTIAN

Jolene asked the man and his daughter about night buses.
“Um, excuse me, Sir. Er…do you know where I can catch a night bus? My train just got blown up.”
Jolene did not get any answers from the man – only questions about the train. She blurted out everything that had happened in the last day. The man looked astounded.
“The bus stop is not far away. If you like…I can drive you there. Your dog too,” he offered, pointing at me.

It was obvious that Jolene would never go anywhere without me. After a moment’s hesitation, she said, “Yes, please”.

Jolene grabbed my lead and we followed the man and his daughter to their car. The man said that his name was Bob and Jolene told him who she was. After Bob unlocked the car, we jumped in. I sat with the little girl in the back. She patted me.
“What’s your doggy’s name?” she asked Jolene.
“Sebastian,” Jolene replied.
“Hello Sebastian,” said the little girl. “My name is Flora.”

“You must be hungry, have some of these sandwiches,” said the man to Jolene. This is egg and this is – aah, hold the tray for a minute.” The car swerved  “Wait, how do you drive this thing? Whoa, sorry. This one is tuna and lettuce,” said Bob. Jolene took one of each and sneaked some pieces to me. I enjoyed the food but I could not ask for more (in the way that humans understand) because Bob did not know that I had already had some. Jolene guessed that I wanted more and she gave me some. After some time, I dozed off. I found myself dreaming about Jolene’s stamps that she always keeps in her pocket. In my dream, the queen came off and started shouting at me. I stole her crown and then it turned into a river of melted gold. The river carried me along with it until we got to a waterfall. I fell, dreading reaching the bottom…

I woke when Jolene led me out of the car. It seemed like she’d already thanked Bob. “He gave me some money,” said Jolene. Tired, I slowly followed her.

An announcement told us that the next bus was coming in two minutes. When it stopped, Jolene paid the driver and got on with me. “Lucky we did not miss this one.” She chuckled. I did not respond. We were still lost. I fell asleep again on the bus. This time I had no dreams. I woke two stops before our destination which was two-thirds of the way to our new house.  Jolene had fallen asleep and was still napping. I was not sure what to do. An old lady saw me and started patting me.

“Hello,” she said, “You’re a Husky aren’t you? Are you with that girl? Where are her parents?”


I looked up into her eyes. Then she said, “You’re keeping her safe, right?”
I wagged my tail.
“There’s a good dog.”

She was holding a sandwich and broke off a bit for me. It was the second time I’d had a sandwich that day, but I still enjoyed it. The woman smiled at me. A man walked up behind her and said “hello” to her. They started talking about how buses these days were different to the ones that they used when they were children. The man was talking about the poles that always used to be red and the woman about how the bus conductors had special coin dispensers.

Jolene woke up a few minutes later.
“Hello,” the woman said to her.  “You’re travelling with the dog, aren’t you? Here,” she said, giving Jolene a toffee eclair sucking sweet.
Jolene replied and asked for a street name.
The woman told her that she should get out at the bus station that was coming up soon.

“Thanks,” said Jolene.

It was our stop. Jolene said goodbye to the woman, and I wagged my tail. We got off the bus.

What would we do now?

There was nowhere to sleep. The only option was the dirty streets that we were standing in. They were not at all inviting. That was when we first realized the situation we were in. No food. No drink. No toilets. Nowhere to sleep. Nothing. Nothing! I sat down on the dirty street floor. Jolene stood around; I don’t think she knew what to do. She paced up and down stepping on the crisp packets that people had littered earlier. It was freezing. Then she spotted a bus driver and asked if there was a waiting area.

We walked in the direction that he pointed to. We saw a kiosk with cushioned seats, so we opened the door and we sat down. We were the only ones there.

It had been around three hours since we missed our train and it was pitch black. The stars had already appeared and they were twinkling beautifully in the night sky. The last time I had seen a sky like this was when I was only a baby. It had been night before I was to be sent to live with a family of humans. The people who my mother and I lived with were also going to send my mother away. We talked with each other in a way humans would not understand. Soon it was dawn. When dawn turned to late morning, I was sold to a family.

It was dawn. Jolene was awake. She stroked me for a while. We went out into the street and walked for about five minutes.  A woman walked past. “Hello,” she said, cheerfully. “It’s cold out here. There is a library just round the corner that I work in, you can come in if you like,” she said with a smile. “It opens early,” she said with another smile. We walked round the corner to the library. I’d never been in one before because they normally had signs outside saying that dogs weren’t allowed in. Inside, the light was dim. There were computers and endless shelves of books. Jolene opened an old looking book. It looked interesting but she put it back almost as quickly as she took it off the shelf. I don’t think it was because she thought it was boring. Jolene looked like she’d had an idea. She walked over to a computer and switched it on. Jolene typed something in and clicked a few times. Then she started to write some more. As I read over her shoulder, I saw she was writing an email.

It read:
“Dear Millie,
I don’t know if you have heard what happened to me: I missed the train I was supposed to take with my parents. The next one was hit by a missile. I don’t know if my parents are safe. Please can you ring them? I don’t know their mobile numbers and my parents never gave me their email addresses. We did not think I would need them.

I had to spend one night without sleeping last night because there was nowhere to sleep. I spent it in a waiting room. I am in a library now. The street the

library is on is called Redsworth Avenue. Please, please can you do me a favour by telling them where I am and that I’m all right. Please tell them to pick me up?

Lots of love,
your cousin, Jolene”

Jolene clicked send and then sat back in her chair. She looked relieved.
“My parents will get us,” she mumbled, it sounded like she was trying to convince herself. I nuzzled her leg. She looked at me with damp eyes.
We sat there while Jolene looked at the latest news about the war. Thirty-three people had died from the missile that hit the train.
She was about to shut the computer down when a new email appeared on the screen. She clicked it and started to read.


CHAPTER 4 – The Search

NARRATOR: OMNISCIENT

The email said:

“ Dear Jolene
Yes,  I have heard about what happened to you. I just phoned your parents and told them about the email you sent me. They are so glad you are safe and they told me that they had sent people to look for you at the train station. Your mum and dad were frantic with worry.

Do you have a telephone in the library? They could not find Redsworth Avenue on the map. You can get a taxi to your new place. Your mum said that she will pay for the taxi  when you get there. Keep safe.

Lots of love,
Millie ”


Jolene shut the computer. The woman who had told her about the library walked in. “Hi, can I help you?,” she offered.
“Um... do you have a telephone I could use?” Jolene asked uncertainly.
“Certainly, it’s over here,” said the woman.
“Do you know a number I could dial for a taxi?,” asked Jolene.
“Certainly,” the librarian said. She took out a leaflet with a number on it, and handed it to Jolene. Jolene dialed the number and asked for a taxi. When she put the phone down, Sebastian walked over to her. After patting him for a while, Jolene saw a taxi parked next to the library. She said goodbye to the librarian and she and Sebastian walked over to the taxi and stepped in.

The journey was long. Jolene gazed out of the window. She saw many houses and flats along with shops and supermarkets, at first. As the taxi went further away from the city, the number of shops and supermarkets lessened and soon there were only a few houses. When the taxi was even further from the city, Jolene saw more and more farms. Soon the taxi stopped and parked outside a small cottage. The door was number eighteen. They had reached their new home. Jolene could not control her excitement and relief. She ran around, with Sebastian barking at her heels even before knocking on the door.


CHAPTER FIVE - A Reunion

NARRATOR: OMNISCIENT

Jolene’s brother opened the door and was shocked to see her standing there. He hugged her and called everyone in the house to come. Jolene’s parents ran over and told Jolene how worried they had been. Her sister grinned and asked lots of questions. After they had said hello, Jolene’s family fussed over Sebastian. Soon Jolene found herself telling everyone what had happened. The taxi driver had been reading a newspaper in the car and Jolene’s mother ran outside to pay him. When she got back, she hugged her daughter.



It was still wartime. Missiles were still being shot. There were still food shortages. But all Jolene’s fears had disintegrated. She was with her family. And that was enough.

Water God’s Wave

This was written in 2010 for a school project called Impact where parents are encouraged to work together on improving the childrens' writing skills. A friend of mine has been begging me to write a sequel.

Chapter One

I rushed out of the room into the men’s toilets to escape the loud Michael Jackson music playing in the cafe. Immediately, the smell of chlorine hit my nose bringing back memories of the pool. The pool that swallowed her up. Images flashed through my mind. First Mum, Dad, Nick and I sitting by the pool laughing, eating our sandwiches. Then, the race. We were seeing who could swim to the other end of the pool first. Mum was winning and then something weird happened. A huge wave rolled over my mother and she drowned.

Now at the toilets, I tried to stop them but tears kept rolling down my cheeks. I have never cried so much in my life. A few minutes later, I washed my face and tried to look as if nothing had happened. I walked out of the toilets. Only I knew what really happened to Mum.

“Hi Dan.” It was my father. “Are you okay, Dan?” he asked.

“Yeah, Dad,” I replied.

“No, really son, what’s wrong?”

“I told you Dad, nothing,” I answered.

“Just tell me,” he said in a concerned voice. I told him I was thinking about Mum.

“Wass’up, bro?’’ My brother appeared next to me, trying to be cool. “You don’t look happy,” he said. I ignored him and soon he forgot.

A waiter came to our table, offering drinks. I ordered a Coke, my brother a Sprite, and my father a glass of still water (How boring!). When my Coke arrived I took a sip. I was still thinking about my mum.

My mum was one of only fifty people left in the Xusin tribe that inhabit Topswe state, Mexico. They believe in three gods: the god of water, the god of earth, and the god of the heavens. My mum once took a trip out to Houston and met a man, my dad, whom she married. A year later she had me. We all lived in Houston. Six months ago, when I was 14 and three quarters, mum took Nick, my younger brother and I back to Akahamba, her village. We went to see her father who was the leader of the tribe and was dying. My mom would then inherit the golden sabre tooth fang that had been prized and protected by her ancestors for hundreds of years. It was while we were in Akahamba that I saw something that changed my life forever.

“DANIEL, FOR THE LAST TIME, WE’RE ABOUT TO LEAVE!” shouted Dad. The whole cafe stared at us. “Stop dreaming,” he said, a little less loudly. I drank the remains of my drink. Dad, Nick, and I walked out into the car park.

Chapter Two

In the afternoon, Dad went out jogging and Nick went to karate class. That left me to feed our pets. I have a black cat called Hecate. I’ve had her for a long time. My brother keeps chickens. I think that they’re weird animals to keep as pets but my brother really likes them. It took me a long time to find the cat food. In the end, I found it behind the bread bin. Carefully, I poured the cat food into a blue bowl and placed the bowl on the ground. Afterwards, I put some cream into another bowl and placed that one on the ground as well. I called Hecate. She came in through her cat flap rapidly and I patted her on the head. When she started to eat, I went outside to give some food to the chickens. They liked seeds more than bread so that was what I gave to them.

I couldn’t sleep that night. Not just because Hecate was meowing loudly as he tried to catch a moth, but because thoughts about my mother were still in my head.

My thoughts were about our last day in Akahamba: the day before the accident at the pool. My mum was bathing in the river. I was bored so I walked around Akahamba. Everyone in the village was friendly. When they saw me, they waved. I waved back and carried on walking. When I got tired. I sat down on the ground. There was a tree stump next to me, and a few boulders. I leaned against them.

I heard a noise. It sounded like a fire crackling. Then, a man’s voice. He was singing some kind of a song. A prayer, I guessed. It got louder and louder and quiet again. I peeped around the side of the boulder to see. It was my uncle, who lived in Akahamba. He was standing by a fire. I didn’t greet him because it would disturb his prayers. Instead, I waited and listened. My mother’s name was mentioned. The fire became blue for a minute and then orange again. “Speetsir  ekeye Esminah,’’ he chanted. An offering of fish and seaweed was thrown into the fire. Then my uncle took a woven cloth which had his name on it :“Maximus”, and a picture of the sea, and placed it next to the fire, still chanting “Speetsir ekeye Esminah.” After a while, I walked back to the house I was staying at, guessing my mum would be out of the river and I would be able to make supper with her.

When I saw her, I told her what I had heard and seen. “Uncle Maximus was chanting some sort of spell near a fire. Your name was mentioned and when he said it, the fire went blue. Uncle Maximus also threw some fish and some seaweed into the fire. I described the cloth with the picture of the sea. He also said something like ‘Speak sir okay yeah.’” My mother’s face went pale.  She was silent. “What, mum?” I asked, “What does it mean?”

“It is a spell to the water god,” she replied. Her voice was quivery. “An evil spell.  When someone wants to kill someone else, they need a woven cloth with their own name on it. The cloths are very powerful and have been banned for the last 20 years. My brother means to kill me. He said speetsir ekeye, not ‘speak sir okay yeah.’ That means ‘kill her’. The sacrifice of fish and seaweed means that the prayer is to the water god. Maximus wants to rule the Xusin tribe and inherit the golden sabre tooth fang.”

“I will counteract his spell. I must do it quickly, or the god of water will decide to listen to Maximus and it will be too late to do anything.” She went outside to prepare an offering to the water god.  She came back half an hour later looking pleased. Then she whispered to me: “Please, Daniel, say nothing about this. We do not want Maximus to know that we know what his plan was because news in this village travels fast and if he knows we know, then he will try again. We’re safe, so let’s put this behind us.”

We left the village the following morning after saying goodbye to my Grandfather. He died two weeks later.

Chapter Three

Hecate jumped on my chest and woke me up. I pulled her off and placed her on the ground by my bed. Then I threw off the bed linen and leapt onto the floor. I flung open the curtains expecting it to be a warm and sunny day. Much to my disappointment, the day was as grey and foggy as a pigeon’s feather. I sat back down on my bed. Last night my dreams had not been good. The nightmares were a replay of what happened in real life. I dreamt that after spending one more night in Akahamba, my mother and I went back to our home in Houston.

They were very excited at our arrival and Nick suggested that to celebrate, we should go for a family outing. The cinema was closed so we went to the local pool. We ate peanut butter sandwiches and then raced each other to the opposite end of the pool. Mum was ahead and then, there was an announcement that the wave machine was going to be switched on. All of a sudden, a huge wave started to roll out towards my mother. It went on top of her. It had lost its momentum by the time it reached us because we were way behind her. When the water calmed, her body was floating on the surface. The ambulance came but they were too late. My mother was dead. We were told that the day before, a member of staff had forgotten to empty out the water from the wave machine and that the next morning they added even more water to it, thinking it was empty. So, when they turned the wave machine on, water came gushing out like a fist into a punch bag.

The dream was such a vivid reminder of the day I lost my mother. The door creaked open and Dad stepped into my room. “Hi Dan. Aren’t you gonna get up now? It’s 10 o’clock already. I’ve made a Spanish omelette for breakfast.”

I smiled and stretched. “Daniel, I was thinking about yesterday. Is there anything you’d like to talk to me about, Dan?’ he asked.

I thought for a moment and then nodded. I had told him about Maximus and the spell before but he didn’t believe me. That was six months ago. My father did not believe in magic and had been too grief-stricken to talk to me about it again. I felt that now was the right time to tell him again.

“Ok, Dad. I just want to tell you how Mum really died.”

My father sighed. “I know how she died, Dan. A stupid member of staff forgot to empty out the water from the wave machine and after more water was put in, too much water came out when it was switched on. “

“No, Dad. It was Maximus. He wanted to rule the tribe. He asked the God of Water to take Mum.”

“No, Daniel. I know what happened. I don’t want to hear this story again. You’ve been through a lot. Let’s move on.’

He started to get up.

“Dad,” I said. “I won’t talk about this anymore if you take me and Nick to Akahamba one last time.” I wanted to prove to everybody that Maximus had killed my mum when we got there.

“I’ll think about it,” said my father.

Two weeks later we were in the car on our way to Akahamba. Dad had agreed to take me there to stop me talking about Mum and Maximus. Maybe he also liked the idea of a holiday and was just pretending he didn’t.

Chapter Four

After five hours, we were in Akahamba. Dad parked the car and we all got out. A friend of my mother’s was waiting for us. Her name was Jasmine. She had a smallholding where she grew maize and wheat. We had arranged to stay at her place for the holiday. She greeted us and led us into her house. A hot meal was on the table. It smelt amazing. “Sit down and help yourselves,” she said.

“The soup looks delicious, thank you,” said Dad, smiling. We sat down together and ate.

When lunch was over and we had all chatted a lot with Jasmine, Nick, Dad and I went for a walk. I told Dad that I wanted to explore alone and we agreed to meet at five o’clock in Jasmine’s house. Really, I did not want to explore. I wanted to tell Tsen, a village elder, about how mum died. I walked to his house, nervous yet excited. Slowly and softly, I knocked on his door. A few seconds later, Tsen opened the door. When he saw me, Tsen’s mouth hung open in shock. He probably had not known that I would come to the village that day. When he recovered, he smiled a big smile. “Daniel! Hello! How nice it is to see you again. Wow, you’ve grown. Come in, come in,” he said.

“Hello,” I said, grateful that he was so happy to see me. After declining a cup of tea, I told Tsen what had actually happened to my mother. Tsen told me that my uncle Maximus was now ruling Akahamba. He also told me that what I was saying was very unlikely, but if you are a village elder, and people respect you, you have to respect them too, so he told me that he would arrange a discussion with my uncle the following day.

The next morning, Maximus, Tsen, and I were sitting in Tsen’s house. (I’d told my father that I was going to walk by the river and see if I could spot any salamanders). I had already explained what I knew about Mum’s death and Maximus had already denied asking the god of water to kill her. “Your mother was a great sister. I would never want her to die,” he said. “I did not say speetsir okeye, I said “steeptil wonteyen.” that means bless her,” he said.

“But you used the woven cloth!” I argued.

“No, that was definitely not a woven cloth, or as we call it here, a culta; they are banned in this village. It was a… It was an um… sepitntarisa. Yes. A very long word to remember,” he said.

“A sepitntarisa is an embroidered cloth used for blessings,” said Tsen. This has been sorted out, I must excuse myself now,” he continued, getting up. “This meeting is over.”

I knew that Tsen was going to talk to my Dad about me accusing Maximus of killing mum. When Tsen had gone out of the room, Maximus walked towards me. “You must really miss your mother, I miss her too,” he said.

“Yes,” I replied, not sure whether to trust him now.

“Your mother used to play the guitar. She was famous for playing it in Akahamba-- not many people were as good as her,” he told me. “Her guitar is with me. Now I would like you to have it.”

“Thank you,” I said.

“The guitar is in my house; come, I will give it to you,” said Maximus.

We ambled out of Tsen’s house down a winding pebbly path and into the woods. It was not long before we reached a tall house. Maximus took me into the house that had once belonged to my grandfather and we walked upstairs. I was led into a small room with green curtains. My uncle opened an old looking brown cupboard. Inside was a handsome guitar. It had yellow flowers painted around the sound hole and blue ones on its head. Maximus took out the guitar and handed it to me.

“Thank you so much! I love it!” I said. Now I felt embarrassed that I’d even thought Maximus was responsible for my mother’s death. He seemed so kind. After talking about the guitar for a while, I needed the toilet. Maximus told me where it was. I was just walking back from the toilet when something caught my eye. It was lying under a sofa in a bedroom. Immediately I recognized what it was. I grabbed it and stuffed it into my pocket before walking into the room that my uncle was in. Then I remembered that I should go back to Jasmine’s house now because Dad would be back soon. I told my uncle this and he handed me my mother’s guitar. We walked to the front door and said goodbye to each other.

When I reached Jasmine’ s house I knocked on the door. She opened it and I stepped in. “Hello,” I mumbled. “Hi,” she said. I placed my guitar on the floor and slipped off my shoes. “Wow! Where did you get that?” she asked. “Your Mum loved playing it!”

“Uncle Maximus gave it to me,” I replied.

“Really? I didn’t know he was that kind. We’re not that happy with the changes he made since he became the leader. He’s destroyed the tranquillity of Akahamba by letting tourists come whenever they want. The tourists litter all over the village. Maximus has set up post card stalls everywhere and done lots of things to make more tourists come. I think he just wants money and fame,” she said.

“I think that too,” I said, surprised that I was not the only one who knew that Maximus was not as good as he seemed.

Chapter Five

That night I placed what I had taken from my uncle’s under my bed safely. It was a culta. I was sure of it. The culta was the same one that I had seen while my uncle was praying to the god of water. I was one hundred percent sure after seeing it that my uncle had been lying to me. He was responsible for my mother’s death. It was the evidence I needed to prove to my dad, Tsen, Nick and the tribespeople that Maximus was guilty. Unfortunately, Tsen was away at a meeting so I would have to wait.

In the morning of the following day, I managed to quiz the postman, a fisherman and Jasmin’s about Maximus and about how he was using his power. They all told me what Jasmine had told me and that they weren’t happy with it.

I was going for a walk because Dad and Nick had gone swimming (I hated swimming after what happened to my mother). I hdn’t got very far when I saw Maximus walking towards me. He did not look happy. He took me behind a bush. “I heard that you’ve been asking about me!” he shouted. “I know you know what really happened. If you tell anybody, I’ll…,” he said, taking out a dagger with blue gems on it from its sheath on his waist. Maximus always took it around with him but I didn’t know he used it. He pointed it at me.

“I will tell everyone, it’s not right what you did. You killed my mother! You killed your own sister!” I yelled back. I prayed for anything to happen that would stop the dagger that was coming slowly closer and closer towards me…

Chapter Six

There was a rustling in the bushes. We both looked up. It was my father with Nick. “STOP THIS NOW!” he shouted. I broke free from Maximus’s grasp I and ran with my father and brother as fast as I could back to Jasmine’s house. Maximus did not follow us. He stood there, shaken.

We stopped at Jasmine’s doorstep, panting. It took a long time for us to recover from our shock. Finally we sat down on the dust earth. “I’m sorry I didn’t believe you,” Dad said to me. I just nodded in reply. “I saw him threatening you and I was scared, really scared, son.” We sat in a lingering silence. All of us needed time to let the shock of the day sink in.

Jasmine opened the door and we went in. Seeing us so quiet, Jasmine asked what had happened. My father told her over a cup of steaming Jamaica tea. After that, I told them both about the culta I had found in Maximus’s house and that I needed to show it to Tsen.

Dad, Jasmine, Nick, and I strode to his house. When he opened the door we told him what had happened as briefly as we could. I then showed him the culta. Tsen’s mouth hung open in shock. “I…I…thought that…”

“Yes, we know,” said Jasmine.

“That vicious man! He does not deserve to be leader. He does not even deserve to be in this tribe!”

He sighed deeply and shook his head. His shoulders drooped. “Maximus does not belong here. He’s evil. He will have to face the whole tribe. I’ll call a meeting with our people telling them about what he’s done,” he stated.

And this is exactly how it happened that evening: Firstly, a gathering of the people with Dad, Nick and I for once involved in my mother’s tribe. Secondly, a discussion amongst the tribal council. Thirdly, the decision to banish Maximus, who had not turned up. For the meeting. He had left before that evening. Or so we think. We never saw him again.

Chapter Seven

Back at Jasmine’s house, we sat talking about the events of the last few days. That was when I asked a question. By the look on their faces, they probably had been wondering themselves about the same thing: Who would become the leader?

Whilst we were deep in our discussion, there was a tap on the door. Jasmine got up and opened it. Tsen was standing on the doorstep, looking solemn. We all stood up.

Tsen started talking: “I have had another meeting with the Council. We have agreed that you should be the leader of Akahamba.” He was looking at me.

My jaw dropped. Dad took a step back. Bowing his head slightly he told Tsen, “I’m not sure Daniel can take on the role and all the responsibilities. He’s fifteen years old. His life is in Houston. He still has High School.”

“He is the rightful leader. In a few years, he can decide whether this is the place for him or not. We will wait.”

Chapter Eight

We agreed that the best thing to do would be for me to come back for ceremonial events with Nick and Dad. I will get to know the people that my mother had once known. It is as if the Gods of Earth and Heaven had brought a part of her back to me.

The Cave in the Forest

Melissa lived in a small, blue, thatched cottage on Monserat. She had six cats and four dogs, as well as keeping two goats and a cow for milk. Unfortunately there were also a few mice running around her parents’ smallholding.

The day was the hottest it had been in four weeks. Melissa was cycling home from school for the second time along the shortcut she had discovered the previous day. She watched a lizard climbing hurriedly up a mahogany tree and smiled.  Melissa loved watching nature.

Her bike crashed into the tree. She lay sprawled on the dry, cracked earth beneath the tree. After a few moments, she got up stiffly and started to pick up her bicycle. It was then that she spotted a small cave at the side of a volcano. Melissa leaned her bike against the mahogany tree and walked over to get a closer look. Light streamed in through the holes in the cave’s roof.  It was not at all like the dark caves in the spooky stories Melissa had read. In fact, it was beautiful. Melissa took a step forward into the cave. The floor had been weathered smooth by centuries of wear from water dripping in through the cracks in the roof.

Melissa admired the cave for a few minutes before remembering that she had to go back home to milk the cow and goats. She stepped out of the cave and ran to her bike. Quickly, Melissa got onto her bicycle and cycled home. When she got there, Melissa parked her bike and ran off to milk the cow and goats.

Once she finished her chores it was not as warm as it had been earlier in the day, so Melissa cycled back to the cave to explore some more. This time, she took eight pieces of plantain so she could stay longer without getting hungry. When she got there, Melissa parked her bike outside the cave and ran into it. She decided to go deeper this time and when she did, she saw the most amazing thing: it looked like an ostrich egg but it sparkled and had all the colours of the rainbow on it. Melissa stared at it for a long time. It must be some sort of egg. I wonder what egg it is. Melissa thought. After that, she picked it up and examined it carefully. It weighed as much as a small cat.

Soon after that, she ate some of her plantain. After eating a bit she touched the egg again. As soon as she took her hand away, the egg started to rock. It rocked back and forth a few times and then it cracked. The crack spread around the egg before it broke in half. Out of the egg came the sweetest baby eagle; or at least it looked like one. It was an eagle down to the waist but from there it became a lion. Melissa stared in wonder at the tiny animal. It looked up at her with wide brown eyes and crawled towards her. The girl put out her hand to stroke the small creature. It felt softer than cotton wool.

“Aren’t you adorable,” Melissa cooed. “But what are you?” She remembered that when she was in year two she had studied mythical creatures. It was then that she had seen a picture of a strange animal. The one in front of her resembled it perfectly except for being a lot smaller. Melissa tried to remember what it was called.

“You’re a gliffin,” she said. “No, what’s it called?” “I know,” she exclaimed. “You’re a griffin!”

“Cheep” uttered the griffin. From her pocket, she took a big piece of plantain and placed it on the ground in front of the griffin. The griffin sniffed it and looked up. “Go on, eat it,” Melissa encouraged. The creature ignored the piece of food and pecked at an ant on the floor of the cave. In a split second, it came to her. The griffin needs meat, thought Melissa. If it does not get any, it will die. Finally, Melissa waved at the puzzled griffin and ran to her bike.

Although it sounded crazy, Melissa knew that she had to find food for the tiny creature and she needed to do it fast. She did not know where she would find meat. It was very expensive in the village. When she reached home, Melissa placed her bike next to the shed and ran into the house. When she got into the kitchen a disgusting sight met her eyes. A dead mouse lay on the ground under the stove. The mouse’s head had been torn off and Melissa guessed that a cat had been playing with it. She made a face and kicked it further under the stove. As well as not wanting to, Melissa had more important things to do than clean it up. She walked to the larder and checked in it for some meat. There was none. She looked in the cupboard. There was none there. She opened the oven door to see if there were any meatballs left over from last night’s supper. Her mother always put leftover food in the oven to stop the ants finding it. It was completely empty!

How could she have forgotten, there was a mouse right under where she was looking! Melissa took a rag from the cupboard and wrapped the mouse in it. She held it by the corner at arm’s length as she walked outside to her bike. Melissa dumped it in the bike’s basket and shot like a bullet over to the griffin’s cave. The griffin was fast asleep so she placed the mouse next to the lonely chick. Melissa cycled home feeling happy that she’d done a good deed.

After rushing through her chores the next morning Melissa raced over to the cave. She wanted to check on the griffin before finding it some more food. When she got there the griffin was cleaning itself and there was no sign of the mouse. “Did you enjoy your supper?” she grinned, patting the small creature’s head.

The ground vibrated as a frightening creature limped slowly into the cave. It was the size of a large cupboard, had huge white talons and its eyes were fierce. It held a deer in its beak; the beak looked like a hammer’s claw. Melissa shut her eyes and screamed.

The big griffin glanced at her for a moment, and then put down the deer.

Together mother and baby griffin devoured  the deer, completely ignoring Melissa.

One of her wings was covered with blood and had a bandage round it. Slowly Melissa stepped out of the cave and the baby griffin whimpered as she left but as she turned and looked into its eyes Melissa had a feeling that their paths were destined to cross again.

The Crystal and the Horse

Aidan was a hard working alchemist. He had spent the whole morning looking up in all sorts of books where to find the legendary Moon plant, which was said to turn copper to silver. Now he was tired and decided to take a stroll outside for some fresh air. He stepped out into the chilly night and let the cold air fill his lungs.

As Aidan trudged through the desolate snow filled park, he heaved a sigh of relief. It was so nice being outside after a whole day of being cramped in his small and stuffy house.

There was a scream. Everything went quiet. Even the birds stopped their usual scrabbling around. An eerie silence filled the night air, followed by a scratchy noise in the bushes.

Aidan ran, but he didn’t know where he was going. All he wanted was to get away from the creepy park. Soon afterwards, Aidan found himself in a dark forest. The trees were covered in lichen and moss and the ground was littered with damp leaves. The smell of decomposing twigs wafted through the air. Aidan stopped to catch his breath, and that was when he heard footsteps behind him. He barely had time to turn around when a figure dressed in a black hooded cloak started to chase him. Out of nowhere, another one appeared and the sound of footsteps doubled.

Aidan started to run again. He ducked under the low branches of a very young oak tree, leapt over a stream and almost tripped over a log. He couldn’t go on for much longer.  His legs were aching and he was nearly out of breath.

Before very long, Aidan was forced to stop. He could hear the footsteps of his pursuers becoming louder and louder but he couldn’t run any more. All of a sudden there was a whinny. A white riderless horse with a sleek coat appeared and walked up to him. Without a second thought, he climbed onto the horse’s back. The horse didn’t need to be told; he galloped away as fast as lightning. After fifteen minutes of running, the horse slowed into a canter and then stopped in a clearing.

As Aidan dismounted, he collapsed. He was tired, shocked, confused. Also, he didn’t know what to do. After a while, Aidan muttered a quick thanks to the horse, expecting him to ignore it. Then Aidan heard a voice. It said, “You’re welcome.”

Aidan looked around for a person but there was nobody there.

The voice repeated itself, “You’re welcome.”

This time, he saw the horse’s mouth move.

“What did you say?” the tired man asked.

“Can’t you hear me?” exclaimed the horse.

Aidan was astounded. The only time he had come across the concept of talking horses had been in books, but never in real life. Aidan walked away. He needed to have some time to think and get used to things. Weird things are happening. I’ve been chased for no reason that I know of. There’s a talking horse. Where am I? When will I get back? Questions buzzed through his head. After a long time, Aidan walked back to the horse and sat down next to him.

“What happened?” Aidan asked at last.

The horse paused. “A few hours ago, a knight --Don Orogoth was his name --  was seated upon my back; we were riding to a party. Then, we reached the forest that you and I met in. We stopped for a drink by a tiny stream and just as Don Orogoth stooped down to drink, he tripped over something and fell half into the tiny stream. When he got out, he saw what he had tripped over. It was a big crystal, about the size of an ostrich egg. After admiring it for a while, he decided to give it to the host of the party. Don Orogoth placed it in a sack, got onto me and we began our journey once more. But no sooner had we started, a figure dressed in a black hooded cloak, jumped out of the bushes, he (or she, we couldn’t see its face) could run amazingly fast. I galloped away as quickly as I could. I could sense that the figure intended to do us no good. Unfortunately, the figure some how managed to capture Don Orogoth. I tried to kick our attacker but it split into two, one half defending itself, and the other dragging the poor knight away. After that, the half that was fighting me, disappeared into the trees. At the time, I did not know what was happening but now, I presume we were attacked because someone else was looking for the crystal. Luckily I have it with me.”

“Then shouldn’t we give it to them?” Aidan asked.

“What are you talking about? It’s dangerous! They’re evil! They will cast a bad spell with the stone,” replied the horse.

“So what shall we do?” asked Aidan. “We’ll find a place to sleep for the night and then hide the crystal,” answered the horse.

They trotted for a while till they reached a small farmhouse. Aidan knocked on the door. A man opened it and when Aidan asked if he and his horse could stay for the night. The man replied, “Of course.”

It turned out that the man who opened the door, was not the farmer. In fact, he was the farmer’s son. He told Aidan to wait at the door while he told his father that they were staying for the night. A few moments later, the farmer’s son reappeared with his father and introduced Aidan to him. The farmer’s name was Arthur.

That evening, the horse slept in the stables and Aidan slept in the spare room.

Unknown to Aidan, at midnight, there was a knock at the door. The farmer, Arthur, put on his dressing gown and crept downstairs. Cautiously, he opened the door. A strange person dressed in along black hooded cloak stood at the doorway.

“If you see a man and a white horse, let me know. I will be here.” The stranger handed Arthur a map and pointed to a small patch of land. The stranger then turned and left.

Arthur was quite shocked at the visit. He sat down at the table and wondered what to do. He didn’t know whether to trust Aidan or the stranger who came to the door. The stranger did look a bit scary but then again he had just met Aidan. Arthur stared at the map.

Finally he made up his mind…

When Aidan came downstairs the following morning, Arthur told him the someone had come to the door last night asking for Aidan and that the person had told him that he would be in the forest. Aidan thanked the farmer and walked to the stables. He spoke to the horse and they discussed where they should go.

Aidan reported to the horse his conversation with Arthur. “Lets go in the direction of river opposite the forest,” suggested the horse. “That would be the most obvious thing to do, but we can’t totally trust the farmer,” Aidan replied. “ true, but where can we go then?,” asked the horse. Aidan told him that it would be possible for them go in neither direction, and instead go to the meadows and hide the stone.

It was not long before they got there, but Aidan was still tired. They sat down to rest for a while. After some time, the horse got up and stretched his legs. “Come on Aidan, we better hide the crystal before its dark,” he said.

Aidan stood up and yawned. “Alright,” he mumbled. A few minutes later, Aidan and the horse were talking over where to hide the crystal. Aidan thought that they should hide it in the bushes but the horse thought it would be better to bury it. In the end, they went with the horse’s plan.

That night, Aidan made a shelter out of sticks and leaves to sleep in. It was not much but it would give them protection from bad weather.

They woke up early the next morning. Aidan offered the horse to live at his house because the horse had nowhere to stay. The horse said yes. The journey back was very long and they got lost several times; otherwise they were unharmed.

When they got to Aidan’s house, Aidan made the horse promise never to speak to or in front of anybody except himself; you never knew whether people meant to do you good or not. He was worried someone would come asking for the crystal.

It was not long before the horse settled into his new home. When Aidan ever went to feed the horse, they would always chat about their adventure. This time it was something different that they talked about. The horse had just finished a mouthful of hay. All of a sudden he asked “What about Don Orogoth?” “Well, That’s another story…” Said Aidan.