Home isn't Enough - Short Story

I.

Be quiet, Davie! It'll hear us," I whispered harshly. Why did she pick this moment in time to start crying?

"I-I know, but it wouldn't-t be l-like this if Maki and Lito were here with us," she hiccuped. Davie never did know how to control her emotions.

Footsteps fell onto leaves, and I panicked. Swiftly, I put a shaky hand over my sister's mouth. Slow breaths, in and out. I felt him gaze through the thick underbrush. Light that penetrated the branches of our tall trees shone down on him, enhancing his appearance.

I saw him look away, wandering in the other direction, and knew it was our only chance to do the deed. I nodded in the direction of the jaguar and looked at Davie. She hesitated, but nodded also, beginning to wipe the tears from her eyes. We swiped our weapons from the plant-covered earth, and I pointed toward my eye, and made a slicing motion on my throat. Davie understood and continued to look up toward me and watched me count to three. On three, we pulled our arrows up, and prepared to launch them right into the eye and neck of this beast.

He looked straight at us, roared loudly, and pounced toward us. I waited.

"HATI, WHAT ARE YOU DOING? WE SHOOT, RIGHT?" And waited.

"Not quite," I mumbled, too occupied with thinking up the right time to make the shot. He was coming close, really close, but it was not the right time. His stomps echoed in my heart and ears, and Davie's nervousness almost became mine, but the time came.

"NOW, Davie!" Our arrows flew through the air, and a millisecond after, the sounds of the jaguar were silenced, only heard again because of the thunderous moans of suffering.

Davie and I turned to each other, screaming after a moment of silence. "JADIA! WHOO! Did you see that? I was barely scared, hafa!" Davie yelled, hugging me tightly.

I scoffed(she was obviously scared for her life), but I smiled widely and agreed with her. I lifted up my hand, making half a heart. Knowingly, she repeated my gesture, and leaning down, we bumped heads gently. David grinned at me. I did the same, remembering where this small but influential move came from.

Davie burst into my room, running angrily until she came upon my bed. She stopped in front of it, and dramatically waited, huffing and puffing, until I finally gazed up at her. It seemed she was satisfied, because she gave a slight curve of a smile, before sinking back into her sadness again. I rolled my eyes, and asked, "What do you want? Who upset you now?"

She shyly played with her feet, before mustering up the courage to say, "We were playing outside during break, and Sobi pushed me to the ground and it hurt." She rubbed her arms, and pulled up her legs to reveal a big purple bruise.

"Did you tell him to leave you alone?"

"I tried, but he ran away before I could."

Sighing angrily, I stood up and walked down the stairs, stomping until I went outside and looked around the village. There he was. The little devil. I tapped his shoulder and gave him a piece of my mind, making sure he understood every word I said. After I was finished, the look on his face told me that there was no reason for Davie to worry about his taunting anymore.

When I sat back down on my bed, Davie hugged me tightly, profusely saying thank you until I had to tell her to stop.

"I swear you are the best sister."
Smiling, I put up half a heart, and expectantly slid my eyes over to her, hoping she would understand. And she did, completing the heart with her left hand.

"We will always be together. You are my hafa, I love you," I said, butting heads with her gently.

We had entered the dilapidated place we called our home with the jaguar in tow. Gazing around, I imagined the beauty that our home, and village, once was. Our home, the talk of the town after my father had built for us, refusing to live in the original place that his forefathers, had lived in for centuries. He built it after him and my mother were pronounced the phio and difer of the Lacandon people. King and queen. What a pair they were.