"This is place that people would trade during the day in this capulli. The small markets are called tiyanquiztli. Each capulli had its own tiyanquiztli for the its denizens. The twenty capulli were split between the four large camps. This meant that the Aztec had a very organized city layout, especially for a city as large as this was." Levi announced, sipping from her water bottle. Dani rolled his eyes. 'It's not obvious or anything' he thought sarcastically.
"And can you tell us about any of the culture of the Aztec?" Señora said, trying to keep herself excited, but even she was fading quickly.
"Not really, there isn't much to tell about the marketplaces of the Aztec." Levi sounded confused. "It's mostly information."
"Okay." Señora replied, a bit discouraged. "If you don't mind, Levi, we might start getting back to the hotel."
"Señora, what's that?" Dani caught sight of something in the distance. It looked like ruins of something that had once been impressive.
"Good eye Dani!" She responded, regaining some of her pep. "That's the Templo Mayor. Inside the Sacred Precinct, there are many smaller temples to gods, like Quetzalcoatl, as well as major temples like the one to Huitzilopochtli. Now, does anyone remember what those two where the gods of? Martha?"
"Um, Quetzalcoatl was the god of wind and wisdom, while Huitzilopochtli was the god of war, right?"
"Yes, that is correct! Plus Tlaloc, god of rain was also an important deity to the Aztec." Señora cheered, and the whole group seemed to brighten. "We will be going there tomorrow, so you'll see it again."
"That will be fun." Dani remarked.
"I certainly hope so." Señora said, smiling. Levi seemed to get sullener, the spotlight taken from her.
"I'm not really a fan of the tour guides that tourists get for the Templo. They're very superficial." Levi seemed to pout, as Señora started to lead them back to the bus. No one responded to her, unwilling to hear her voice. Then after a minuet; "Aw, shoot."
"Is something wrong, Levi?" Señora turned around to look at the boring woman, who was frowning at her water bottle.
"My water's empty."
_______________
Dani felt a pull on his navel when they passed the Templo in the bus. He winced slightly, looking out the window at the Templo. He touched where it had hurt, but it didn't twinge like the plaques did. It had been momentary, but he still felt the pain were it had been.
"Dani, are you alright? Your mother did sent a you with some kind of lidocaine cream, correct? Do you need to use it?" Señora inquired, very close to Dani's ear.
"Oh!" Dani jumped, surprised. "No, I'm fine, I must be hungry or something."
"Alright." Señora said, bust something in her voice told Dani she didn't believe him.
Dani watched as the sun set behind the top of the ruins. It looked like it was on fire.
_______________
Later that night, with Keyes in the other bed across from him, Dani was wide awake. He checked his clock, watching the red colon blink. It was two in the morning, and he was so tired, but he couldn't sleep. His navel still buzzed, like a muscular twitch that wouldn't go away. Finally, he threw the covers back, and pulled on some clothes. As he got out of the room, Dani made sure to shut the door quietly, so he didn't wake Keyes.
He nodded at the front desk, who just blinked, like this was normal. Pushing the doors open, Dani stepped out into the cool Mexican night air. He walked the streets he'd seen from a bus that afternoon, retracing the many winding streets filled with smells of any city, not just Mexico. Dani walked for a while, without a concept of time. It was like sleep walking, but more... purposeful. He felt a little tug in his navel again, and instinctually, he turned to the left.
Right in front of him, rising like a great rift in the structure, was a rift-like crack in the rocks of a temple near the Templo Mayor. There was a scattering of pigeon feathers at the base of the black crack, and it looked just wide enough for Dani to fit.
Why he wanted to see if he could fit into the crack, he didn't know, but his stomach tugged again. 'If it ever gets out that I followed my stomach here, I'll be even more of a misfit than I already am. Marble will probably get me to go to a shrink.' Dani realized. 'Well, then just don't get caught.'
Dani strode up to it, the darkness looming over him like a great monster. He placed a hand on the side of the entrance, to make sure that he didn't just crash into a wall. The feeling in his gut purred, like there was a beast in it. Slowly, as to not upset anything in the preserved site, Dani stepped into the darkness.
And choked.
Or more specifically, he was being choked. By someone else. Or something else, but it didn't matter, only that Dani felt something cold and sharp against his throat.
"Quién eres tú?" a voice drawled. "Cómo te llamas?"
"Me llamo Dani." Dani coughed, gripping the hand that held him. It was cool to the touch, and smooth, like the person was wearing a leather glove. "Lo siento, no sabía a dónde fui." He said.
"Mentiroso." The voice said. "Qué eres?"
"American!" Dani wheezed. "I'm an American! ¡Estadosunitdos!"
"I understand English, stupid." The voice said. English, this time. "I'm not dumb, like you, apparently. Now, answer my question. What are you? You smell like one of those Ahuizotl scum, but I can't tell if it's because you've been hanging around one or what."
"What did you just say? Ahui-what?" Dani gasped for air.
"You really think I'm gonna pretend I buy the whole playing dumb thing? I'm not a fool, and you should know that."
"I just don't know what you're talking about." Dani coughed. "Please let me go."
"No. I'm not that dumb." The voice sounded offended.
"I'm just a kid." Dani pleaded. "Don't hurt me."
"I don't really care. You made a mistake when you came here. So, what are you?" The voice sounded like it was getting more impatient as this exchange went on.
"I'm a human, if that's what you're asking. My gut lead me here."
"Liar. You're not human." The voice snapped. "So, tell me, what are you?"
"I'm trying to tell, you I don't know what you are talking about, so can I please just go? I have to go to my tour tomorrow." Dani yelped, not knowing why he thought that piece of information would be helpful.
"Oh my god. You're one of those Arizona kids." The voice sounded a little scared. "You've got to be kidding me."
"What?" Dani questioned breathlessly. The voice didn't respond, tightened the iron grip on his throat, systematically cutting off his oxygen supply, easing him to sleep.
_______________
"So, today, we are working with a different tour group than yesterday." Señora announced, and the was a collective sigh of relief that went through the group. "This is the group I usually use, so say hello to Zammi Coatl and her daughter, Dra." She gave a polite applause that the rest copied. Dani grumbled it under his breath, but didn't say anything.
He hadn't felt well since that morning, and the skin around his throat felt sore and tender. Dani had had a strange dream that last night, and he was wondering if maybe it wasn't a dream, but the thoughts of sleepwalking were interrupted by the appearance of the guide.
A woman stepped forward, and something in Dani's stomach hit the floor.
She was hauntingly beautiful, in the way a ghost is beautiful, and Dani seems to recognize her, but he didn't know how. Maybe a dream or something? He could never seem to remember them for some reason. He itched at his arms, uncovered for once. She had strong features, bold and proud, but similar cheekbones to Dani. Despite her pure white hair, she looked only in her late thirties.
"My name is Zammi Coatl, and like your Señora said, this is my daughter, Dra." She announced, her voice accented by something that Dani didn't recognize.
"Hi." The girl next to her drawled, and waved a hand. Dani looked at her, then blinked. She noticed this, and ducked her head, stuffing her hand in her pocket. Keyes, who was standing next to him again, nudged Dani with his elbow.
"Dude, she's spotted." He hissed his breath. And he wasn't wrong. She had vitiligo along her arms and neck, dipping below her severe V-neck. The lightened patches of skin made a frantic pattern across her body, recognizable and unique. She had a similar face to her mother, her carved features shockingly beautiful.
"Today," Zammi drew the attention back on herself. "We are going to go to the Templo Mayor, the temples to the god Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc." She looked at Dra.
"Mamá, quiero-" Dra started to say, but Zammi cut her off.
"No, Dra." She replied.
"So, shall we get started?" Señora inquired, looked a little uncomfortable. It wasn't her place to get involved with their dispute.
"I would hope so. It's not far from the Templo, but I assume no one wants to walk in this weather." Zammi gestured out the two front doors of the hotel, where the sky look thunderous.
"We can take a bus if we need to." Señora agreed. "Let's hop to it, people!" she clapped her hands together, with more enthusiasm than before.
"Yes, Señora." The group chimed in unison, moving to get on the bus.
"Ah, Dani, before we leave." Señora touched Dani's lower arm gently. "Your mother sent me a text message that you should be using your lotion every day."
"Marble's a little over protective. You should have noticed that." Dani replied. "And yes, I have been. It's just gotten a little better."
Dani didn't tell her that it was unusual that they'd stopped hurting so suddenly. The plaques weren't supposed to just disappear, like if they were enchanted. That wasn't how that worked. He rubbed his upper arm self-consciously, and looked away.
"Don't itch it."
"Right. Thank you, Señora." Dani answered, and removed his hand from himself. She gave him a kind, maternal smile.
"Don't mention it, Dani."
_______________
"The Templo Mayor is sixty meters, or two hundred feet, tall and has two shrines on the top, one to the god of war and the other to the god of rain." Zammi gestured to the top of it. "Right now, we are inside the coatepantli, or the serpent wall. The temple to the serpent god, Quetzalcoatl, is different from the others. Does anyone know why?" she looked around.
Dani, for some reason, held up his hand. "Yes, the young man in the red?" Zammi called, pointing with a finger.
"Is it because the base of the temple is circular instead of rectangular?" Dan replied.
"That is exactly right. The base is circular. It is also the temple that, during an equinox, the sun shone directly on the temple, because of its orientation between the shrine of Huitzilopochtli and Tlaloc." Zammi said, seeming a little surprised.
"Doña, what are some stories about the gods of the Aztec?" Martha asked. Zammi looked at her.
"Good question. When you get back from the museum, I will tell you them. Now, on to the museo." Zammi announced, gesturing to the small museum. "On you go."
Dani took out his phone and snapped a few pictures of the scene, not moving. He moved toward the temples, determined to take a picture of them. This was proof he'd been here.
"You're supposed to be with the rest of the group." A voice said.
Dani froze, because that voice was so familiar to him. It was like deja-vú, and he searched his memory to remember when it was from. "I'm just taking some pictures."
"Yes, I realize that. But you're not supposed to be here because you could get lost." Dani looked over at the person talking. Dra Coatl smirked, raising a light brow.
"What's on the other side of the temple to Quetzalcoatl?" He questioned. Dra furrowed her brow, but twitched like she wasn't expecting that question.
"Nothing. Why do you ask?"
"Call it a gut instinct." Dani started to walk towards the back of the temple, and Dra hurried after him.
"Uh, can you please go back? My mom's gonna throw a fit if she thinks I haven't done my job." Dra hurried after him, her sandals crunching the ground below them.
"You can tell her it was my fault." Dani replied.
"I really don't think it's safe to go back there." Dra tried again.
"You sound afraid. A little adventure too much for you?" Dani mocked, raising an eyebrow. "With a hair color like that, I was expecting you to be more rebellious." Dra looked at a piece of her shoulder length hair, a golden-red color that didn't look right on her tanned skin. "And not to mention your contacts." He continued.
"I'm not wearing contacts." She blustered. Dani rolled his eyes.
"No person I've ever seen has had such bright green irises. Or pupils like that." Dani looked back at her, expecting her to look sheepish or annoyed.
Instead, she looked scared. Her face was pale and her eyes wide, the green catching the light, revealing flecks of yellow sparking with in.
"Okay. I'm coming." She said, suddenly very adventurous.
"That's the spirit." Dani drawled, smiling.
"I just have one question." Dra said. "What's your name, kid?"
"Dani. With an 'I'." Dani responded. "Why's your name Dra? Is it short for something? Cassandra, maybe?"
"Nope, not Cassandra. It's just Dra."
"That's strange." Dani informed her. "I've never heard a name like that."
"Dani spelled 'D-A-N-I' isn't any less weird." Dra told him. Dani chuckled despite himself. He liked this girl.
"You're not wrong. You're not wrong, Dra Coatl."
"I never am, Dani...?" she trailed off politely.
"Linds. Dani Linds."
"There's literally nothing here." Dra complained. "It's just some rocks." Dani rolled his eyes in exasperation.
"That's literally the whole temple is rocks. Nothing is going to change that."
"But there's nothing here. Nothing exciting at least. That, or I misread you for a geology student." Dra drawled at him.
"No, I just feel a pull to this place." Dani admitted.
"And dragged me along for the ride? How gentlemanly of you."
"For a Mexican Native, you speak English perfectly. Maybe with a little accent, but very well. Like a native speaker almost." He commented, looked at her.
"My mom's been doing this tourist gig for years. I have to know English because most people only know enough Spanish to ask where the toilet is." Dra said dryly.
"Oh. Fun." Dani turned back to the temple wall, searching it's many cracks for something different. "Hey!"
"What?" Dra sounded nervous, like she was expecting something bad. Dani turned around and held up a feather. It was an iridescent gold, catching the light and changing into subtly different shades of yellow and cream. "This is beautiful." Dani said, awestruck.
"Where did you find that?" Dra asked tightly. Dani looked up at her.
"Are you okay?" He asked, because her jaw was locked.
"Just tell me where you found that." She repeated, her shoulders much tenser and more aggressive than before.
"I think we should head back now, Dra." Dani responded slowly.
Dra blinked, shaking herself. Then she smiled. "Yeah, defiantly."
So, I take Spanish as a class in school, and I'm pretty good at it. However, if there's any native or functionally fluent speakers who are reading this, and you're like 'No, no, that's not right,' Shoot me a message.
For non speakers, it goes like this:
?-Who are you? What is your name?
Dani- My name is Dani. Im sorry I didn't know where I was.
?-Liar. What are you?
Don't be a Silent Reader! Vote, comment and add to your bookshelf so I can feel a little less alone.
QOTD: Who do you think the person who choked Dani out is?
WASH YOUR HANDS!