Between The Crystals

Ch 38 Braiding a Circle

I rested on the rock a while longer and watched the canopy hopefully, but my latest visitor seemed to have scared off the large bird that occasionally dropped the nuts. I hadn't seen a single glimpse of the Saursune since it left.

After resting a while, I wandered back to the crystal in case something like a tiger showed up. At least one tiger around here was a confirmed man-killer. I slowly gathered huge tasseled leaves that were ideal for weaving baskets and piled them beside the crystal.

Once I had a couple of waist-high piles, I sat in the leaf litter beside the spires. For a lack of anything else to do and no food to be found, I began tearing the leaves into strips and braiding them into a small crude basket.

Most kids could have built better baskets, but I rarely had a chance—or the materials—to practice. I made a few more baskets before giving up and leaving the remaining foliage for those back in the village. Basket weaving definitely wasn't one of my skills.

I gathered a few more piles of leaves before the tiredness and unrelenting humid heat forced me to take another break. I sat beside the crystal and drank more water, hoping it would help the hunger pangs. Humans couldn't starve to death in two days, but my stomach refused to accept that fact and leave me in peace. I kept an eye on the distant tree, but the bird never returned.

Distant rustling of plant leaves had me lifting my head. Something was coming this way at a quick pace. The crystal was within reach, so I reached out a hand to touch it instead of standing up.

The rustling slowed, sped up, and slowed again, no longer coming directly toward me. It resumed, tracking to the right. I turned my head, keeping a sharp eye on the foliage in case whatever it was came this way.

After it made almost a full circle of the area, I had a suspicion of who my guest was. Saursunes seemed to love circling an area. I also had a pretty good idea of what—or rather, who—it was looking for.

Sure enough, a few moments later, the Saursune bounded high enough to see over most of the undergrowth. His head turned in my direction as gravity pulled him behind the bushes again. The rustling resumed, coming this way. I found the amount of noise he was making to be very uncharacteristic. Usually I never heard them, unless this one was trying to make sure I heard his approach?

A green head pushed its way between a couple of shrubs. He paused and tilted his head as he looked at me and stretched out his neck with a rather deep crooning sound. His teeth were visible, but a split second later, I realized he was carrying something in his mouth. Something yellowish.

His eyes moved slightly to the left, then back. I realized he was watching my hand on the spire. My heart rate had sped up at the sight of the alien, but I was more curious than scared.

I slowly lowered my hand and set it in my lap.

He immediately walked forward on all fours. His eyes flickered across the piles of leaves stacked behind me, lingering on the empty baskets. Chagrin flooded through me as he inspected my abysmal handiwork. He lowered his head to sniff one, and his jaws opened slightly, letting two oblong shapes drop into it.

Yellow mangos.

The Saursune backed up a step, tilted his head at them, then looked at me.

It took me a second to recall my manners. "Thank you." I glanced between him and the fruit, hoping, but not quite certain. Tentatively, I asked, "Uh, are those for me?"

With a deep hum, he lowered his head and used his nose to push the basket until it bumped into my knee. Whether he had understood my words, which wasn't likely, or my hesitant tone, which was far more likely, the message was clear. They were for me.