Julie and the Monkey Witch

Chapter 2

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Hani's funeral was that night. Oranta's funeral pyre may have been disrespectful (to say the least), but Hani's was mournful and solemn.

Manti said a few words, and so did P'li. There wasn't much to say, other than that, she was too young, and she did not deserve what had happened to her. And that whoever did this would face Teo justice.

For now, though, that was not on their minds. A young woman had been killed, and vengeance should be the last thing on anyone's mind.

Mournful, but also celebratory music played to mourn her loss, but to celebrate her arrival in the Afterlife. Death was natural, and the Teo treated it as such. But, this was no ordinary death. People savagely cut down received a special place in the Afterlife, where their soul would receive eternal comfort, especially in the case of violent deaths. Still, it was best to be safe than sorry, and they prayed for Hani's spirit to go to the Afterlife in peace so she won't come back and haunt them.

Among the mourners was a girl named Unaki. She was the young Paea woman who was the center of the last adventure, kidnapped by her aunt Oranta so she could take the sorceress's place as the Monkey Queen. Because of her (although it was not her fault), Oranta attacked the village, ran off with Chief Manti, and tried to kill him. And now she was dead at Unaki's hand by Julie's knife.

"What happened?" Unaki asked Julie in a soft, shaky voice.

"Hani was killed," Julie said. "Something mauled her to death."

"Oh, my," said Unaki. "How horrible!" Fear gripped Unaki's expression, making Julie place her hand on the girl's shoulder and give her a reassuring smile.

"We'll find out what it is," she said. "And please, give your condolences to P'li and his family."

"That I will," said Unaki.

Julie spent the rest of the night off to the side, watching Unaki talking to P'li. From where she was, they seemed to be hitting it off, or at least, Unaki was doing her best to make sure he was feeling better. It was probably the latter.

The funeral itself had turned into a celebration, like the wakes and funerals she went back home. Those started mournfully, and quickly turned into more of a laid-back and festive atmosphere, with people usually talking about things other than the deceased. Hey, it helps people move on.

And in a way, Julie found herself hoping P'li and Unaki would get together.

"Are you okay?" Kainak strode up to her and sat down.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" she asked.

"I dunno, you tell me," he replied. "You're upset about the way the tribe reacted to the researchers, aren't you? And by the way, it's written all over your face."

"It's that obvious?" she asked. "Ah, well. I kinda thought we were past this, y'know?"

"Yeah, I don't blame you," he said, sitting down and stretching his legs out. Huli looked down at his loincloth, and back up to his face, hoping he wasn't looking. "Were you looking at me?"

"No I wasn't," she said. "And quit looking at my chest."

"You were looking at my chest and loincloth," he laughed, making her roll her eyes. "You know, I'm glad you're attracted to me, you don't have to lie."

"Yes, I was looking at your loincloth and hot bod," she laughed. "Take it easy, Tarzan."

"Alright, now let's get back to the tribe," he said.

"Yeah," she said. "I kinda thought things were getting better, like the Tribe trusted them. I mean, they did help."

"Outsiders," said Kainak. "I don't think the tribe really trusted them as much as you hoped, because... well... they're outsiders?"