I stayed in the fields helping with the sowing and got to know the names of the three children with Kuku where Lobe, the boy who brought us to the fields, Thabo and the little girl was Lugi. They where orphans Kuku had brought to stay with from a neighbouring village. When it was almost noon, we said our goodbyes to the kids and Kuku walked us back to her house. She went with just me to her sleeping quarter and gave me a little pebble in a silk clothe, she carefully tied the cloth on my baki before saying;
"Throw this pebble when you reach the palace gates, don't look back when you do it, and don't tell anyone about it."
"Even nanny?" I asked.
"No one! even nanny" she replied smiling at me. I never would have taken the pebble from her, if I knew what I know now but then again I wasn't meant to know and definitely wasn't my decision to make. But I know too that Kuku wouldn't have given it to me if she knew just how heavy the little pebble would become.I want to think that would be the case.
We went back to my uncle's house. Food was already prepared, she had prepared nshima-- a solid porridge made out of meali meal, pumpkin leaves and chicken...As soon as the food was put on the table I was reminded of how hungry I was. Landa Mwane who had gone hunting was not yet back, so we went back without seeing him after eating.
When we reached the palace gates, four strong looking guards with crossed spears at the entrance checked my bearers and my carrier, I was now seated on the carrier and nanny walked on the side of the carrier. When they saw me, they made way and at that moment I remembered the pebble Kuku had given me, almost as if someone had whispered to me to threw the little pebble. I untied it from my baki and threw it behind me and didn't look back like she instructed me to do.
The bearers had moved less than ten steps when I yelled out in pain, and passed out.
*******
I woke up to me kneeling to a grim - Looking old woman who sat on a bed. I was back in Kuku's bedroom , this woman was not Kuku, because Kuku was also kneeling besides me.
The woman had long thin nappy grey hair, she had on nothing from west up.I could see her old deflated breast that looked like two dried mice. She had wrapped her waist in a black chitenge with red stripes. She looked at me and asked Kuku,
"Are you sure about your decision? we have never had a royal do this before"
"She is a royal who will live like a peasant, her life won't amount to much and am sure she is the right one"
"You have so much love for this child, why would you imprint suffering on her?"
The woman looked at me unconvinced.
"Because I love her, is why am doing this, and you taught me to never show weakness even in the face of a loved one, and besides it is very hard to find an antidote for us in this life, so she will live longer" Kuku said looking at me with sadness in her eyes but with a visible determination too.
I was at peace knowing she was there with me and was never scared the whole time I was with her.
"You can start imprinting then."
My grandmother nodded to the old woman, looked at me and smiled.
She got a small Sharp knife and gently, she cut six small vertical lines. Each one longer than the previous one on my neck, she made a paste of dried grounded chillis, charcoal powder, burnt lion penis, burnt lamb heart and water from a never ending stream. She mixed those up before drawing blood from her and the old woman and adding to the ingredients, she rubbed the six cuts with the paste she made with the ingredients. I cried as soon as I felt the chilli in my freshly cut wounds.
"It will be ok." She said soothingly, as she blew on my neck"
"Are you sure she will be ok?" the woman asked Kuku
"We can't do anything now but see how it will all turn out later" she said with regret then,from the actions she had thoroughly thought about since the time I was conceived.
She laid me on the bed besides the old wrinkly woman. My eyes lost the battle of trying to elude sleeping.
I finally came to but wasn't awake fully. My parents and healers were trying to wake me up, I was just with Kuku for less than thirty minutes but I had been laying unconscious on the bed at home for four days. No one knew what was wrong, the King and Queen had consulted the royal healers, priest and priestesses but they all said I was as healthy as I could be and neither was I possessed by any nfiti , nothing was wrong with me.
"Why is she not waking up if nothing is wrong with her" the king yelled at the healer,
"My king, she will wake up when the deities wills, otherwise there is nothing man can do"
When i did fully awake in the evening, nanny was on a big round legless stool and as soon as i opened my eyes, she rain out to inform the king and queen.
"Evening queen mother, I greeted attempting to kneel as soon as she entered my room"
"No, don't kneel"
"How are you feeling" I heard the king ask from the door of my room"
"Very good, nothing is hurting, I was with Kuku"
In my father's head they thought Kuku had interceded on my behalf and with that the gods brought me back.
"We thank Kuku"my father said, we wouldn't have known what to tell king Chani who is coming for the engagement in two nights.
my mother looked at him grimly, she turned to me but said nothing