Attack of the Legumes

While talking to Ed and Doc Sutherland was wonderful, I ended up feeling a bit lost after I signed off. I missed them. I missed other humans. Hell, I missed just eating a normal meal and sleeping on more than a pile of grass in a cave. But I was also grumpy with myself for feeling that way, and I was more than a little nervous I would start sliding back toward that hopeless, miserable place I’d been a few days before. I thought back to Eyani’s expression when I’d snapped at him.

No, definitely not going back to that.

I wanted to feel comfortable with the clan. They’re people too, dammit, and there’s no reason why I couldn’t find solace for my loneliness by spending time with people. Even if they do have four legs.

A very old friend of my family always told me the best way to avoid feeling down was to “get up and move.” So I put my computer away, gathered up the solar charger, and set off to find something useful to do.

Nandi and Eyani were both sitting in the shade of a tree a few meters away. They looked suspiciously preoccupied with a leaf Eyani was holding up. But I gave them the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps it was a very interesting leaf.

I asked Nandi if there was anything I could do. He wasn’t terribly helpful.

“There is little to be done that Tee knows,” he said, almost seeming apologetic. “Tee cannot carve, and Tee cannot hunt. Tee does not know what plants heal hurts.” I tried not to look too deflated at this. He seemed to understand, though, and tried to cheer me up by telling me I’d probably be able to help with these tasks someday. Or, as he put it, “Under one tomorrow’s sun.”

So, without any real direction, I wandered off to find something to do. Eyani was supposed to be guarding meat, which sounded pretty boring, and Kohric needed Nandi for some unknown task. So I puttered around the shrubby area between the plains and the beach, looking for interesting plants and animals.

I didn’t get terribly far before I ran into the Terrible Trio. I’m beginning to think the three of them are joined at the hip, because I never, ever see them apart. I made the hand-greeting gesture at them as I approached, and was rewarded with funny, teasing faces and an offer to go swimming again. I stuck my tongue out at them.

Little buggers.

I was dying to prank them back, but I couldn’t decide what to do. What if I went too far and did something damaging? I didn’t want to hurt anyone, or violate some taboo. So instead I tried for a more neutral conversation, and asked them about what things were good to eat, like the koh fruit, and whether there were any dangerous creatures.

Nohwasi eyed me suspiciously, clearly scanning my frame for a hidden biofoam canister, and then settled to help his cohorts answer my questions. He still hasn’t quite gotten over his first experience with my, apparently.

They went on at length about what things were good to eat, and even began a short-lived argument about what the best fruit was in the area. But their attention soon turned to the wildlife. They told me it was unwise to wade out too far into the water, as there were many aquatic predators that prowled the deeper areas. They also told me how to watch out for some of the flying creatures when they were breeding on the beach, as brooding parents would come screaming and biting at you in a protective rage.

Then they began telling me about the most dangerous creature; a tiny, green, caterpillar-shaped creature the size of a thumb, called a “langu”. It was apparently deadly poisonous, and would crawl onto you if you sat still too long. I’ve always been the type that immediately starts feeling a creature crawling on me if someone’s talking about it, and the grass gently brushing my exposed legs was starting to make me twitchy

Just as Ikaylay was finishing his description of the creature, Sodo suddenly leapt to his feet, yelping and scrabbling at his hind leg. The other two quickly jumped away in terror. Sodo brushed furiously at his thigh, sending a small green object flying in my direction.

“Langu!” Ikaylay shouted.

I couldn’t help it. I produced a yelp almost as good as Sodo’s and scrambled away from the thing as it came at me.

It landed at my feet and didn’t move. I hesitantly peered down at it, and realized not only wasn’t it moving, but that it had no legs. Or a head. Or any other visible body parts. It looked like a funny shaped bean, honestly. Then I realized the three little buggers were making the keee-ing Azu-nah version of hysterical laughter.

Hell. I walked right into that one.

I picked up the dread langu bean and threw it at Sodo, glowering. He and the others pranced out of the way and wandered off, laughing.

I’m so getting them back now.