"Peirce. Peirce. Peirce!" Someone called his name while he was asleep on his bed, smiling as he drooled. Suddenly, he was tapped by the person calling him.
"Uhmmmm?" he mumbled. He sat up, still smiling, and slowly opened his eyes while scratching his neck. He saw Sniffia anxiously looking at him from the edge of his bed, then he looked at his locked door. He yawned, and noticed his orange bag on Sniffia thighs. Suddenly, everything became clear with a blink.
He scrambled backwards in the bed, breathing heavily in panic. "Please don't kill me! Remember, I saved your life back at the mountain! Please! I'm begging you!!" he wailed as he jumped from the bed to the floor. "Ouch! My leg!" He rushed to the door and unlocked it. Sniffia gazed at him, wondering what was wrong with him again.
Pierce's grandma opened the door. "What is going on here, Peirce?" she calmly asked.
Peirce looked at his Grandma. "Grandma, she didn't do anything?" Peirce asked, his voice wobbly.
Sniffia giggled.
Peirce blinked sharply as he looked at Sniffia sitting calmly on his bed. "Huh! She's smiling?" He shook his head. "I must be dreaming," Peirce said scratching his chest. His Grandma giggled also. Peirce looked at her. "Mama? Not you also."
"Calm down, Grandson. She saved you,"
Peirce was confused. "But how? I saved her. I brought her here… didn't I?" He concentrated but he couldn't remember.
His Grandma gently sat on the bed with Sniffia. "This lovely young lady told me everything. How you saved her, walking from the lagoon back to the village with her on your back for days until you were exhausted. You passed out before actually reaching your dear Grandma's house. She carried you the rest of the way." Grandma said with a smile. "For saving this lady's life, I will forgive you just this once. Even though I told you not to go very far from the village, which you did, and stole one of my codex's while I was at the meeting with the elders."
Peirce lowered his head, feeling sorry. Then he looked at Sniffia. "How long was I asleep, Grandma?"
"For three days," both Grandma and Sniffia answered, together.
Peirce sighed.
"Then how did you know where Grandma live," he asked as he walked to his Grandma.
"She knows, you know Grandson she is a great tracker, while you were asleep, she helped me looked for herbs at the woods in healing you, she is quite a darling. And what should you tell her?" she asked grinning, Peirce sighed again, lowered his head,
"Thank you for saving my life. May the greatest force in the world be with you. So be it." He said,
Her grandma stood up, "very well Grandson, be ready for tonight naming," she looked at Sniffia with a smile, "thank you once again for bringing my Grandson home."
Sniffia bowed, "Yes ma. You are highly welcome." She looked at Peirce, "Thank you, my hero," she said with a smile, Peirce shrugged his shoulder and flashed a awkward smile to her direction then he looked at his grandma,
"But mama, I don't want to go, going there will be a waste of time,"
"Nothing will be a waste of time, Grandson, in short, you are not going alone I heard Sniffia was also invited by Node," she said, Peirce looked at Sniffia, she waved at him with a smile, he shook his head, looked at his Grandma,
"Mama can I talk to you in private," he whispered, his Grandma giggled, Sniffia looked at his Grandma,
"Should I leave?!"
"No!"
"Yes!"
"No! my Grandchild and I will." she looked at Sniffia, "we will be back, my dear,"
"Okay ma." She replied, They both went outside, Peirce slightly closed the door behind him,
"Mama. I... "
"Don't say anything, talking to her I for those three days I noticed she is different from every other child I know, you are lucky to have her as your friend,"
"Mama, me, lucky, look at me," he stamped his chest, "I don't think so, she tried killing me back at the mountain then at the lagoon,"
"If she tried to kill you, then why did you still save her by bringing her here to the village?" Grandma asked,
Peirce tried to talk but couldn't find a word for a reply, he lowered his head, slightly clenching his fist, his Grandma touched his head affectionately, "I know you, you saved her because you needed to,"
"But mama, I don't even know why I saved her, we are Inhumane and she is Humane, we are totally different. But." He stared at his hand, "but why did I safe her?"
"That is for you to know," his Grandma replied, he looked at his Grandma,
"You think so? There is a reason?"
"Yeah, definitely."
"Okay mama, if you think she isn't bad, she isn't bad, I believe you, Mama. I will get ready for the naming tonight," he cheered,
"That's my Grandson," she said gently pinched his cheeks, he smiled then hugged her, "I love you too, Grandson." Grandma said with a smile, "That's reminds me, don't tell anyone that she is a Humane, you know what it means, if they knew she is one of them." Peirce broke the hug and nodded then went to opened his room door and entered while Sniffia was still on his bed, looking at the ceiling, Peirce went to his wooden drawer, checking out his clothes he took from it,
"You drew this?" Sniffia asked staring at the ceiling,
"what?" he stared also, "oh, that, yeah,"
"What about it?"
"Hmmm," he spread his clothes on the wooden drawer and sat down on the bed looking at the ceiling, Sniffia looked at him in shock, then moved a inch away, "when ever am depressed, I looked at the drawings on the ceiling, most especially the bubbles here," he said pointing to the drawing right above where he always placed his head when sleeping, then he looked at Sniffia, "tonight is special, well not for me but for them, most especially Node, but there is something we need to do," he said scanning the whole room,
"What did we need to do?" she asked in a low tone,
Peirce scratched his head,
"Well. You are different from us and you can't glow in the dark, but don't worry I have something," he stood up, off his shirt and his shorts, few seconds later after wearing the clothes he brought from the wooden drawer, he looked at Sniffia, she rubbed her eyes and looked away, "Uhmmmm! I thought... I was alone, never... had someone apart from Grandma here in my room before, did I… " Peirce stammered, Sniffia sniffled and shook her head, brooding over where in the world did he have that scar, below his back.
"Let's go."