"Snow!" I heard Agilisi call out to me.
"Yes Agilisi?" I answered running to our very tiny living room.
We lived in a very small house. It had just two bed rooms. My Agilisi's and my mum's which is now mine.
Agilisi had taught me to be content with the
Little things we had. In fact, she did not see the things we had as little, but very large and a gift from God that we must always appreciate and never complain.
Our town was very small and we were not poor, but we we did not have much and we were comfortable.
Although there were girls like Nina and her friends who had had their parents work out of town and made money. They had TVs in their house and usually boasted about them.
Instead of being envious and filled with jealousy, I was rather curious and interested and that was always a disappointment to them.
"Gather my things we are going for some cleansing tonight." She told me. "There is an Kalona Ayeliski that has possessed someone in the village."
Agilisi was a spiritual healer. She had rare magical powers. Everyone in the village knew about her. She was humble and powerful and they all feared her. Even my Duda had always feared her when he was alive.
He used to be worried she would put a curse on him and he knew that if she did, it was going to follow him.
Agilisi performed several rituals. She cast demons away, aided in normal and abnormal births, she saw far beyond the normal eyes, she saw spirits and she had visions, it was impossible for Agilisi to be deceived. It was like she knew everything.
When I was six and playing at a very dangerous part of our forests, Agilisi had asked me where I had gone to. I had wanted to lie, but I was so scared my body was shaking all over and the fear made me say the truth.
I had never for once told her a lie.
I went into the only other empty room we had which Agilisi used to store all her herbs, spiritual items and all and brought out her special bag that she carried with.
When I came to her, she checked my eyes.
"Are you fully awake child?" She asked me.
I nodded. "Yes Agilisi."
"Good." She brushed my blonde hair which was also an indication that I was not completely Indian and smiled. "Because this demon might be strong and you need to be strong so that it won't posses you after I have casted it out."
Then she picked up a bundle of sage from the table and lit it with the holy fire.
We had a fire in our house that we always kept burning.
Agilisi told me that no matter what happened, we should always have that fire burning. It had been passed on from from over generations and it had never for once gone off.
It was a special type of wax and whenever it was about to die down, we added up to it. Grandma had taught me specially how to make the wax myself.
"When I'm gone one day. It would be yours to guide and it would guide you too." She had told me.
She used the sage over my body and moved it all around me. The sage was going to be a repellent for the evil spirit.
"Good Girl." Agilisi smiled at me. Then she turned to the corner of the house and whistled.
"Une." Agilisi said and then our Owl came from outside and into the room.
I hurriedly went to get his cage and he landed inside and I closed it shut.
Une was our spirit owl. The story was that my Mama had found him in the woods when she was just six and brought him back home. He had followed her in fact.
His full name was Unetlanvhi but we called him Une for short. It meant Divine spirit.
We the Cherokee's believed strongly in Owls and since then Agilisi took him with her for her rituals to strengthen the force of the divine spirit.
It was like he was human. Like he was a spirit. He didn't act like an animal. Sometimes Une did things that would startle me, but never Agilisi. Nothing on this planet could shock Agilisi.
"Are you ready?" She asked me.
I nodded and then she took Une's cage from me and together we left our house to perform the exorcism.
Soon I found Us three right in front of Nina's house. I was about to say something, but then Agilisi shushed me gently.
"We have to be very gentle not to disturb the spirit." Agilisi told me. "We are still not sure of anything yet."
I nodded and we went into their massive gates and finally found our way into the house.
I had never been into Nina's house, but I always saw it from afar. Nina said people like me could never have the liberty to come into her house.
But then ironically, here I was right in the middle of their outrageously large living room.
"Can you sense it?" Agilisi asked me.
Funny enough I could. The dark energy was so strong and it hovered all around the house.
There was a butler waiting for us at the foot of their steps.
"Welcome ma." He greeted her. "Your presence is needed up stairs in the bedroom."
Agilisi nodded and followed the butler.
As we passed, the servants were whispering amongst themselves and I followed on with Agilisi.
The Butler opened a large door for us and we entered a room filled with a catholic priest and about three of his followers, Nina was standing in the room shaking, her father was sweating and pacing the room, while her mother was the unfortunate victim of possession on the large bed.
She had been strapped to the bed and was sweating and struggling to break free.
The priest was shouting some incantations and using his bible over her and a cross of Christ along with a rosary.
Agilisi hurriedly walked to the side of the bed and touched Nina's mother.
"How long has she been like this?" Agilisi asked Mr Wohali (who was Nina's father)
He shrugged. "About a week?"
"And you are just sending for me?" Agilisi demanded angrily.
"We called the father and she had been better. We thought she would be better." He said worried, hoping that that would have pacified Agilisi that he had made effort, but it seemed it only made her angrier.
"Your wife is at the final stage of the possession." Agilisi said as she soothed Nina's mother's temple. Then she turned to me. "I told you Snow this is a big one. Start the rituals."
I nodded and started bringing out the sage to burn and cleanse the room.
Then Agilisi turned to Mr Wohali. "You had better hope and pray to the divine one that your mistakes would not be fatal."