People were busy harvesting their crops from their farms in preparation for the pit. Even though the king provided things they will need, the population is too much and the food rations might not be enough. The citizens joined their heads together to bring more food.
Hassana and her family were at her father's farm harvesting the millet, guinea corn, corn, fruits and tubers he planted. Dalhat was cutting the crops together with his father and tying them up in a bundle. He have complained so many times until hassana's ear was ringing with his nagging while hassana and her mother were picking the fruits from the trees and placing them inside a large basket.
A large mango caught hassana's eye but it was too high up the tree. She was sitting on a branch eating a mango and passing down other mangoes to her mother.
"This mango is sweet. Have you tried one inna?"
"No, but be careful up there."
If she could just hop on that branch and stretch her legs, she could reach it, right? However, how her mother was staring at her, she dare not or will be scolded for the rest of the day. Just then, her father called turai and she went over to him. This gave hassana a chance to take the next step.
"What do you think you are doing?"
Petrified, hassana turned around slowly only to see dalhat staring at her. Mtsw. She even thought it was her mother. How did he even sound like her?
"I am trying um…..to get…..that….that mango." She exhaled, tired from stretching out her arm.
"How's the progress?"
Bully! He can clearly see she was unable to get to it and he dare mock her!
"May be you can do better than I!" snapped hassana.
"I can do that but shouldn't you be in that drylands gathering herbs or something?"
It's torturing to think of going to that drylands gathering something. Thank Allah her uncle already gathered all his apprentices and gave them the task of gathering herbs and everyone is to go at different times and location. Her group will go gathering next tomorrow. Some are to go to the drylands, some market, some mountains, some river. How she love going to the river and luckily, her group were to go there. Who told dalhat she will be going to that torture area?
"That's my problem not yours. Please allow me since you are not...."
"Shift aside and watch how the master of climbing trees do it."
He suddenly hopped unto a branch, catch other branches and he was standing next to her with a stupid smirk on his face. She just wish she could slap that smirk out of his face but at last, she need him to get her mango. Looking up he saw the mango she was after and like a monkey, he was over there plugging and looking at it desirably.
"Don't even think about it!" snapped hassana again.
How can she spot her mango and this unruly twin of hers is trying to finish it.
"Is it yours? Or is your name pasted on it? This one…..is mine!"
Haba, hassana broke off a slim branch and tried to swap his legs with but then again like a monkey, he jumped to a higher branch, laughing and putting out his tongue at her. Anger surged into her heart but she can only stare. Now she have to bargain. That's how her brother is and she easily forget that.
"What do you want in exchange?" she said looking away from him.
"Do you think am that cheap as to want….."
"I have sweet buns and sweet balls and kwakumeti coconut shreds, you name it."
In no time the greedy boy requested all the sweets she offered but hassana is not to be trampled upon. She gave him only two choices to select from, if not he might as well as forget about it but just then he requested something else. Something else that angered hassana to her core.
Mamuda a guy opposite their street have been pressurizing her for a long time. He have been sending letters of affection and sweets to her but she have been declining knowing his intensions. Then he changed tactics and is now bothering her brother. Rubbish!
That mamuda is a thug, he have no job, no support, no good manners, simply filled with bad attitude. He is always causing trouble everywhere he went. Always fighting with people, ganging up with his colleagues and fighting another gang of thugs and carrying dangerous weapons about. Who will want to destroy her life by liking such person. What's there to like? Even though he is not too ugly, what has his beauty gain for anyone?
Now her brother dared to ask her to listen to that fool because he give him some pocketing change. Rubbish!! However, hassana is not willing to let go of her mango because of that fool of a person. Anyway, she was the smartest one among the two. How could she let her anger cause her a loss.
"You know what dalhat, tell him to meet me at the river two days from now."
"Really!!! Don't worry sister, I will relate to him your message."
And just like a little boy been outsmarted, he handed over the mango, jumped down the tree and hopped away happily. Stupid! And that fool, she'll deal with him. It's so easy to trick dalhat and the worst part is that you could use the same trick over and over and he would never notice.
Hm, now she have to go over to the other trees and see what she can get. There are a few fruiting trees around the farm. Some of which her father planted. She have also planted some long ago such as giginya a palm fruit, coconut, tabo a green ball like fruit with sweet green paste within, dinya a black plum, agwaluma African plum and tiyo, a yellow sour fruit. Thank Allah they are all ripe for the picking but just then....
Hm, a snake. A big silver and white skin snake appeared. How beautiful! Hassana bent over looking at it and it stared straight into her eyes.
"Really! Unbelievable! So dalhat doesn't stay at people only, he even have to go and trouble animals too. What's his problem?"
It's like a memory rushing into her brain from the snake. The snake was having a great time ready to shed under a rock when dalhat spotted it and decided to not let it have it peace. He stoned it, stick it, even kicked it. The snake was feeling helpless when he heard a man called out to the boy. That was when it felt relieved and shed Its skin in peace.
Dalhat is something else, he was even threatening the snake by promising to return and finish what he have started which means killing the snake. Now why will he kill it? They only kill snake if it is troublesome and follows people or bites people. Besides, this one have a mate and it's trying to impress her only for some human to bother him.
Hassana wondered why the snake didn't even bite dalhat. Then she saw another memory of a lady helping out a silver snake from a trap of two big stones. The snake was trapped somehow in between the stones and she happened to pass by and helped. Oh, so she have ever helped it once and it is returning the favor by not biting her blood. She knows some snake can be vengeful no matter what, just not this one. Lucky boy.