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Kiri was not happy. She paced the chief's hut like a caged viperwolf, circling carelessly the interior perimeter of the living space.
“Watch it!” Tuk yelled as Kiri’s foot brushed against the hammock she was working on. Kiri mumbled out what sounded like an apology, but her mind was clearly elsewhere.
Eventually, the girl stopped in her tracks and let out a frustrated groan. “Why can’t we just go help out the boys with the huts?”. Spider, Lo’ak, and Aonung had been occupied many days with flooring and wall repairs, while Kiri had been confined to the opposite side of the island helping with rope spinning and weaving. She was a prisoner of Tsireya’s as far as she was concerned.
“Maybe because you’re supposed to be helping us,” Tuk nodded to a large pile of rope. “I’m telling mom if you make us do all this work by ourselves.”
She unceremoniously plopped down next to her younger sister and Tsireya with a pout that made Tuk roll her eyes. Sometimes, her older sister acted like she should be the younger one.
Instead of beginning her work, Kiri simply scanned over the rope in front of her. “You know, it wouldn’t be that hard to bring this to the South side....”
“Kiri, you’ve only mentioned that every day.” Even patient Tsireya was becoming a little less patient with her friend. “I don’t want Pril near the construction.”
At the sound of her name, Pril peeked her head through the flap in the tent. She had been playing just outside in view of her sister.
“We gonna see the canstruction?” Pril asked excitedly.
“No!” Tuk and Tsireya yelled simultaneously, making Pril jump.
“Come here, Prilly,” Tsireya soothed her. “Go sit with Kiri.” The toddler, rather child but even at four Tsireya wasn’t ready to make that concession yet, ran over to Kiri and settled right in her lap, happy to be invited in with the others.
“Play with Pril, it may distract you more than weaving.” Kiri always had a soft spot for the children of the village.
“I don’t want to be distracted, I want to see Spider. It’s only a twenty minute walk, so I can be back within the hour.” But still, Kiri found her fingers subconsciously reaching for the girl’s hair and undoing her braids. It was one thing to work apart from Spider, she understood they had different skillsets and roles within the clan. But for him to be gone from before dawn until after eclipse three going-on four days in a row was more than ridiculous. This was only a reminder she hadn’t even been able to do his hair up this morning, as the boys had left before she even woke up. He probably looked like an Ikran had built a nest on top of his head.
“Spider will be fine without you oogling over him every waking second,” Tuk groaned. She thrust her hand in Kiri’s direction, turning to Tsireya. “Do you see what I have to put up with? Every day? Not that you and Lo’ak are much better.”
“I like Lo’ak. And Spider,” Pril jutted in from her little spot, playing with her fingers as Kiri worked on her hair. “I wish they were here.”
“See, Pril agrees.” Kiri gave her a gentle squeeze of thanks.
“Well, Spider and Lo’ak are busy, just like we are, so they won’t be visiting today.”
Pril and Kiri pouted at Tsireya’s words. They looked like twins, save for the fact that one was a Metkayinan child and the other fully grown Omatikayan.
“When Lo’ak moves in with us, Reya, do I still get to sleep in your hammock?"
Tsireya blushed, clearly flustered, while Tuk grinned. “Where did you even get that idea, Pril?”
“Tuk told me.”
Tuk just shrugged under the dagger-like eyes shot her way. “Yeah, Lo’ak told me he was moving in with you instead of to your own hut”.
“He did not tell you that.”
“Well… maybe I overheard him talking to dad about it,” Tuk said slyly.
“How is that fair!” Kiri exclaimed, cutting into the conversation with furstration. “I’m older than Lo’ak by six moons, and Mom and Dad are letting him move out with his mate before me! It’s because I’m a girl, isn’t it.”
“Stay calm, Kiri.” She did not want this talk around Pril, not anyone really. “Lo’ak and I discussed very future plans for when our betrothal period is up, that included him moving in with us so I could continue to care for Pril and my father. But they are very distant plans.” She shot a discouraging look at the two older girls, not one for gossip.
“Well I think it’s all unfair, all this waiting we have to do...” In the meantime, Kiri was stuck on the far side of the crowded Sully hut, with Spider in between Lo’ak and Tuk on one side and her parents on the other. Originally, she had been next to her parents, but after being caught sneaking one too many times, they had decided Spider would be the one to sleep next to them. He was terrified of even turning over in his sleep in fear it would bring Jake and Neyteri’s wrath.
“I’m already eighteen, and we're both done with all the tribal rituals. Mother became mates with father when she was eighteen.”
“Yes, we all know that, you remind the whole village of this every week.” Tuk turned to Pril. “Pril, don’t fall in love like these two knuckleheads. I don’t know what they see in.. bleh.. Spider and Lo’ak.”
“I want Spider and Lo’ak for me,” Pril said smiling, making Tuk laugh and Tsireya shush her little sister. Yes, they were all terrible influences.
“Let’s just focus on our work,” Tsireya firmly suggested. Tuk found it funny to see calm Tsireya getting angry, but she decided not to push any more buttons.
The three woman worked in silence, only interrupted by the delighted squeals of Pril admiring her braid crown in the reflection of the water outside.
For a few minutes, Tsireya felt herself in a trance, her fingers moving in the same rhythm of the waves. It was so peaceful, being at one with the sea, even while on land.
“I’m just gonna go check on Spider.”
Kiri was lucky Tsireya didn’t have anything in her hands to throw at her, because it would not have been a pretty sight. She was also lucky that at that particular moment, a certain desired man walked through the door, holding Pril on his shoulders.
“Y’all aren’t talking about me, are you?”
“Monkey boy!”
Kiri jumped up, throwing her arms around his neck. His familiar shape and scent immediately enveloped her. “Oh Spider, why do you have to be gone so long. Is this what adulthood is? I hate it.”
Spider laughed, careful to keep Pril balanced.
“I missed you too, Kiri. I’m just here to grab a hammock and net for one of the huts we’re working on.”
“Can I come see it?” Pril asked on his shoulders.
“Yes, I’ll come too!”
“No”, Tsireya and Tuk groaned.
“Babe, I can easily carry them myself,” he said to her disappointment, his eyes wide with mirth at his betrothed's persuasive tactics.
“Spider, tell Kiri she can’t leave until she helps us,” Tuk whined.
“How many nets have you made today?”.
Kiri looked at the ceiling, ignoring his question.
“Kiri…”
She threw her hands up. “Look, it’s not my fault rope is so boring. There’s not even anyone sick or hurt right now, at least that would keep me busy.”
“I don’t think I can help with that, at least, I certainly wouldn’t want to.”
“I might be able to help with that,” Tuk said mischievously, while Spider nervously backed up.
“How much longer until the repairs are done?” Kiri asked. “Will we have you home for dinner, at least?”
“I would like to know that too,” Tsireya mumbled under her breath. She was used to working with Kiri, but four days straight of Spider-free Kiri was wearing on her. She thought Kiri with Spider could be a little suffocating, but they honestly weren’t bad. This, this was bad.
“This evening,” he promised. “Look babe, if you can make two nets today without driving Tsireya and Tuk more crazy then they already are, I’ll give you a personal tour of the work we’ve done before dinner.”
“Me too?” Pril asked.
Spider looked to Tsireya who gave a nod of approval. “Of course, everyone can come, but you’ll have to walk with your sister. I don’t think Kiri is in the mood to share me.”
Kiri didn’t even mind the teasing.
“Stay, so I can fix your hair,” Kiri grabbed Pril to set her down.
“Kiri can give you a crown like me,” Prill said, spinning around to show off the complex braid.
“As wonderful as that sounds,” he said apologetically. “I’ve gotta get back with the guys.”
“Oh, it will take only a few minutes.”
“I hate to agree with Kiri,” Tuk said, her head tilted to the side, “But you do look like your Tulkun was using your braid in a game of tug-of-rope.”
“Umm, hurtful.”
Kiri firmly guided him to the floor. “Stay still, or I will personally walk down with you and fix your hair up on the roofs while you work.”
The five of them chatted while they worked. Spider even started Kiri’s net for her while she braided. Kiri was right, things were so much better when Spider was there. Tuk was going to miss them, even though she knew she’d still get to see them every day.
“Thanks for the braid, Kiri.” While It wasn’t a crown, she had twisted it into a bun that fell down to his shoulders, his kuru tightly balled up. This had been his normal style for the last few months, since Kiri had decided she liked him with his hair up. “And thank you ladies.” He gave a little bow to Pril, who had ‘helped’. “Make sure you tell Kiri she’s not allowed to leave this hut until she’s made two perfect nets. Wouldn’t want me having to wait at the house for you, would you Kiri?”
She gave a playful hiss.
That evening, the four girls walked together from one far side of the village to the other.
“I wonder what houses the boys worked on, I don’t see how there could have been that much damage from last week’s storm.”
Tuk and Tsireya shrugged.
Kiri spotted Spider with Aunong and Lo’ak from far away, talking together on a freshly expanded path.
“Hey Tsireya!” Lo’ak yelled, giving a wave. Tsireya blushed.
“Looks like Mom and Dad are with them,” Kiri noted with curiosity.
“Yeah, I heard Dad was helping them out some too,” Tuk said casually.
“Ugh, everyone but me. All well, what’s done is done.” Kiri went straight for Spider’s hand when they got close enough. “Ready for the tour, Monkey boy.”
The young man looked nervous, rubbing the back of his neck with free hand. “Of course yeah, glad y’all can all be here.”
Tuk was smiling excitedly, but Kiri didn’t notice.
“Well, here’s the new path we built, Aonung did the most work on this.”
“Nice, very nice.” Tuk said aloud, as if she were an architecture critic. Lo’ak elbowed her in the ribs.
“And this is the hut we built,” Spider said, gesturing to the tent at the end of the path.
Kiri admired his work. “I didn’t realize y’all were building a whole new hut, no wonder it took so long!”
He nodded, and the others stayed back a bit to give them space. “Yeah, Lo’ak and I did the floors and walls, and Dad helped us seal everything. Your mom added a few extra touches.”
“Well, let’s see inside,” she said happily, pulling Spider with her. “Who lost their hut in the storm, who’s house is it?”
She looked around at a single wide cot in one corner, some flowers laid out in another, a nice rug, and… was that a picture of the family on the wall?
“It’s, well, it’s our house, actually,” he said nervously, waiting for her response.
She froze, dropping his hand and her mouth falling open. She spun around, feeling her eyes well up with tears. “Spider… you don’t mean..”
“I know how much you’ve been wanting to become mates, how much we’ve both wanted it. And well… I talked to your parents some more and finally got their approval. And…” he was cut off by a giant squeal from Kiri, followed by a bear hug.
“Oh, my monkey boy. I’m just, I’m just so happy. Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
Jake poked his head through the door flap. “So I’m guessing you’ve told her the news?”
“Oh, thank you, Daddy” she exclaimed, hugging her father. The rest of the family began to file in.
“Did all of you know?”
“I did!” Pril said.
Tsireya laughed. “Pril, you did not know. This is Kiri and Spider’s new house.”
“Oh,” she said. “Cool!”
“Yeah, thanks for your help with building, everyone,” Spider said, wrapping his arm up and around Kiri’s waist. “And for keeping Kiri away long enough for the surprise.”
“It was nearly impossible,” Tuk exclaimed, while everyone laughed.
“Why didn’t you just say you were building someone else’s house, and I could have helped?”
“I thought you might get suspicious we were building it at the exact spot in the reef where you told me you want to settle.”
Kiri looked around and saw they were in fact right by the forest's edge where she liked to go foraging. She hadn't even noticed. “Oh, sweet Spider.”
Jake cleared his throat. “Now, as you know we’ve expressed we wish you would wait until you were a little older to finish your betrothal period,” he grabbed Neyteri. “Your mother and I both understand you are adults now, and need to make your own decisions.”
“We’re so proud of you both,” Neyteri said, smiling. Just four years ago, this conversation would have been much different, but Neyteri had now completely accepted Spider into the clan.
“You’ll always be my baby girl,” Jake said, wiping a tear away from his eyes.
“Alright, time to go children,” Neyteri said, hurrying the children away before any jokes could be made about what would happen next.
In the quiet of the house, their house, Kiri found herself crying.
“Kiri, are you okay? Is this okay, springing it on you like this? I knew you wanted to even earlier and I just thought…”
Kiri cut him off. “Happy tears, Spider.”
“Ahh, good.” Then a few tears of his own started to fall.
He reached over and pulled out a basket, unloading a spray of fruits and edible roots, many of them recognizable from her own village..
“Another gift from your mother. She was saving them from when we went to visit your grandmother.”
“But that was months ago, even before my 18th birthday.”
“Well, between you and me, please don’t take this out on your dad, your mom was fine with us bonding sooner, it was your dad that wasn’t.”
“No,” she couldn’t believe him. “But anytime I talked to them, she was the one to bring up waiting longer.”
“Well, you know how she is, your dad’s protector.”
Kiri was frustrated with her father, but thought about Spider’s words: his protector. That’s who she would need to be for Spider.
“But it doesn’t matter, Kiri. I talked to them a few more times since then and they finally agreed last week, and now…” he gave her a nervous smile… “Now we get to become mates.”
Kiri blushed. “Are you going to take me to the cove of the ancestors?”
“Yes, but first…” he paused to pluck a purple berry into his mouth. “We’re eating. I’m literally starving, I was too nervous to eat breakfast or lunch.”
Kiri smiled and joined in on the small feast. “Not nervous now?”
“Still insanely nervous, but I want to make sure everything is perfect.”
“And when we get back, we can try that other part of mating? The one that makes babies?” for lack of a better term.
Now it was Spider’s turn to go bright red as he almost choked on his bite of dinner. “Y..y..yeah. We can do that.”
The waiting had been cruel, but now it was all over. He was everything she had been waiting for, not just since their first kiss, but for her whole life. They would finally belong to each other.