The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum - View Single Post

Aylwen Dreamsong · 06-19-2003, 03:18 PM

The statement made by the leader of the Grey Parrot clan sent up a fierce discussion between all of the young. Several children were struck with the grim reality that if they did not go home...they would never be able to go home. Others were still prepared to go out with their fellow young.

"What will we do?" spoke up little Rijal through the heated talks of the other young. It was a simple question, and a question that covered just about every single worry the young were now faced with.

"We will stay as a tribe. We have not needed the Elders for a long while," snapped Najah, eyeing the tents in the distance that housed the despised Elders. "We will not need them if they send us away. We have Jasara...they have old women and men who are stuck in the past. To them, the past will always be a shadow that follows them around. I would rather leave and let the memories fade."

"Things never go the way I want them to," murmured Nasir grimly. He always feared that the day would come when the rebellious group was shunned by the people the young didn't realize they needed. "But I cannot abandon you people, and my leader at such a time."

"At sunrise I fight to stay asleep because I can't bear to look at the faces of the elders, knowing that I am against everything they stand for," one little girl interjected from the back of the group, near Munir. "We will be dead."

Jasara listened to all of this, eyes wide. She alone stood over the group, taking in every child's words. This was her biggest fear. That perhaps the voice in her head was wrong...and that everything would come tumbling down on her. She could only take so much. Jasara's father would probably not take Jasara back...after all, Jasara was the cause of the rift in the tribes. Khasia may be accepted back, but certainly not Jasara.

"It only breaks my heart to see us seemingly stand in the shadow. To me it feels akin to the darkness spreading over the land recently," piped up Munir from behind several of his fellow children who had shielded him from his own father. That was how far it had gone between the young and old...that children had to hide from their parents in shame and fear.

"What should I do?" whispered Jasara nervously to the voice, hoping that no one had heard the hushed voice coming from above them.

The shadows are your friend. You do not need the elders...they will not stand long, answered the voice menacingly, though Jasara was used to the cold tone. Despite the little light from the night sky, Jasara blinked once or twice with a vision in her eyes of a great and lidless eye. Jasara quickly wiped this sight away from her mind, and focused again on the group.

"So the Elders' leniency has come to an end, as such things do," Jasara began, over the loud voices of the children and teenagers. "And now another threat has come, all prepared to hand us the worst. But tell me, can a tribe or community of old and aged folk survive for long without a great portion the young to continue the line?"

Jasara paused for a moment of tenative, absolute silence. Then she spoke three words that hushed everyone around her, hitting them like a harsh slap on the face.

"I think not."

"But my family!" cried a few children. There were few other choruses and variations of this, including repetitions of Ismat's words, "We will be dead to them."

"Silence!" roared Jasara, surprising the whole group. Jasara had let the voice in her head speak through her using the girl's voice to quiet the children. "All you who are scared of what the elders think and what they will do can roll up their sleep-bags tomorrow and leave. The rest of us will continue on our own, if need be. We will be our own tribe. We have everything and everyone we need."

"Lets go then, lets make our escape. We wait, and let the old come and shoo us away like rats," came a familiar voice, slightly shaky to begin with but continuing on to be more confident. Khasia stood, face filled with emotions that Jasara could not distinguish. "There is no other choice. For some it is too late."

In more ways than one, I'm afraid, Jasara! snickered the voice that beckoned to Jasara.

[ June 19, 2003: Message edited by: Aylwen Dreamsong ]

06-19-2003, 03:18 PM	#42
Aylwen Dreamsong The Melody of Misery Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: The Island of Conclusions (You get there by jumping!)... Posts: 1,147	The statement made by the leader of the Grey Parrot clan sent up a fierce discussion between all of the young. Several children were struck with the grim reality that if they did not go home...they would never be able to go home. Others were still prepared to go out with their fellow young. "What will we do?" spoke up little Rijal through the heated talks of the other young. It was a simple question, and a question that covered just about every single worry the young were now faced with. "We will stay as a tribe. We have not needed the Elders for a long while," snapped Najah, eyeing the tents in the distance that housed the despised Elders. "We will not need them if they send us away. We have Jasara...they have old women and men who are stuck in the past. To them, the past will always be a shadow that follows them around. I would rather leave and let the memories fade." "Things never go the way I want them to," murmured Nasir grimly. He always feared that the day would come when the rebellious group was shunned by the people the young didn't realize they needed. "But I cannot abandon you people, and my leader at such a time." "At sunrise I fight to stay asleep because I can't bear to look at the faces of the elders, knowing that I am against everything they stand for," one little girl interjected from the back of the group, near Munir. "We will be dead." Jasara listened to all of this, eyes wide. She alone stood over the group, taking in every child's words. This was her biggest fear. That perhaps the voice in her head was wrong...and that everything would come tumbling down on her. She could only take so much. Jasara's father would probably not take Jasara back...after all, Jasara was the cause of the rift in the tribes. Khasia may be accepted back, but certainly not Jasara. "It only breaks my heart to see us seemingly stand in the shadow. To me it feels akin to the darkness spreading over the land recently," piped up Munir from behind several of his fellow children who had shielded him from his own father. That was how far it had gone between the young and old...that children had to hide from their parents in shame and fear. "What should I do?" whispered Jasara nervously to the voice, hoping that no one had heard the hushed voice coming from above them. The shadows are your friend. You do not need the elders...they will not stand long, answered the voice menacingly, though Jasara was used to the cold tone. Despite the little light from the night sky, Jasara blinked once or twice with a vision in her eyes of a great and lidless eye. Jasara quickly wiped this sight away from her mind, and focused again on the group. "So the Elders' leniency has come to an end, as such things do," Jasara began, over the loud voices of the children and teenagers. "And now another threat has come, all prepared to hand us the worst. But tell me, can a tribe or community of old and aged folk survive for long without a great portion the young to continue the line?" Jasara paused for a moment of tenative, absolute silence. Then she spoke three words that hushed everyone around her, hitting them like a harsh slap on the face. "I think not." "But my family!" cried a few children. There were few other choruses and variations of this, including repetitions of Ismat's words, "We will be dead to them." "Silence!" roared Jasara, surprising the whole group. Jasara had let the voice in her head speak through her using the girl's voice to quiet the children. "All you who are scared of what the elders think and what they will do can roll up their sleep-bags tomorrow and leave. The rest of us will continue on our own, if need be. We will be our own tribe. We have everything and everyone we need." "Lets go then, lets make our escape. We wait, and let the old come and shoo us away like rats," came a familiar voice, slightly shaky to begin with but continuing on to be more confident. Khasia stood, face filled with emotions that Jasara could not distinguish. "There is no other choice. For some it is too late." In more ways than one, I'm afraid, Jasara! snickered the voice that beckoned to Jasara. [ June 19, 2003: Message edited by: Aylwen Dreamsong ] __________________ ...Come down now, they'll say. But everything looks perfect from far away - Come down now! But we'll stay.