Khalja Ajinai of Clan Khatagin

The young man grips his cane, and slowly stands from crouching. He turns one of the freshly picked leaves over, and runs his thumb over the hairs on its silvery underside. When crushed, these leaves will make a good lather, and he tended to prefer that to the harsh soap made from ash and animal fat. He placed the leaves in a pocket of his satchel before cutting a strip from a nearby tree: white bark above a dark trunk. This would remove the pain of toothache, and help when he would inevitably have to remove the ruined tooth of one of the clan’s warriors – if they would trust him. The young man was gaining traction and respect as a herbalist, slowly but definitely, since the tribe’s previous healer left them. He hobbles further along the animal track back from the stream, noting each plant and its medical or nutritious use, as taught by his predecessor and friend.

He sighs, then smiles wistfully, remembering the first time he harvested soap bush, and being scolded for pulling up the plant by its roots. She was gentle, a good teacher, and one of the only members of the tribe to view him as a person and with value, rather than a drain on the tribe’s resources, and something to slow them down when travelling. He knew from very young that his deformity would always set him apart, as he could never be a warrior or hunter like the other men. But he watched others, listened intently to the old stories, and learned. It was the uncommon wisdom of their spiritual leader, may ancestors watch over her spirit, that guided him to his true path… and connected him with her granddaughter, his truest friend.

He emerges from the bushland and pushes through tall grasses, swaying gently in a warm afternoon breeze. He reaches out to the grasses and lets blades pass through his fingers. The wise woman’s granddaughter had had such heavy responsibilities, and was forced to grow up fast. Their friendship was one piece of freedom, where she was allowed to be a child, and then an adolescent, and slow down a bit. He saw her as just a person, too, and that allowed her to relax and explore who she thought she was, or wanted to be. He smiles again as he remembers how their closeness lead to closeness, confusion, frustration, and then laughter and another piece of understanding as it became clear that the tastes of each lay elsewhere. And once again, the two had found refuge in friendship, it being their place to grown and learn within the demands of a rigid social structure.

The tribe’s tents came into his sight, and he looked over the plains, down towards the lowlands and cities, where the sun was starting to set. As years had passed, his companion’s role in the tribe had become more onerous and she agitated. All seems peaceful here. He wonders if Su Ana was finding her great events, and finding her place to influence them. He wonders how much longer this peace on the plains would last.