Puron Psych

62

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On their way to the village center, Harper kept Yanpu busy with conversation. Hyde followed behind them silently.

Getting to the village and seeing so many decorations was an eye opener. The wooden signs were coated in blue, and yellow and orange paint. Across many of the tall torches were leafy banners.

What was once a wide-open area was now closed with people and different activities. Children on the left side, near the River, were playing with a woven ball, a sport Hyde recognized immediately.

Near the path to Aleki's hut was a large campfire with pillows placed around it. Many women sat on those cushions while their husbands or other family members roasted fish over the fire.

Upon entering, Aleki, who was by the fire, spotted them from afar. He immediately ran over to them with a wide smile on his face. He switched to their native language, motioning his hands downward and announcing to all of the people there.

Everyone, including the children, stopped to listen to the announcement. Harper looked at Hyde, wishing that a part of him knew what Aleki was saying. But from the blank expression on his face, she knew that he was also in the dark.

Aleki then turned back to them and grabbed onto Hyde's wrist. "This is an official welcome...to Alkapoltua."

He raised Hyde's hand high in the air, and the men began to pound their chests. The women stomped their feet in a rhythmic way, matching the men's sounds.

Then they stopped when Aleki placed his hand high. "We hope you both can enjoy your residency here. In fact, some of our village women have special connections to the main island. They can provide information if you are looking to send the boy to the main island to advance his studies."

"We're good. Thanks." Hyde snatched his wrist away abruptly.

Aleki cleared his throat and waved his hand at the fire. "You must eat first. Send the boy to play Fuf with the others."

"Oh, um, actually—" Harper tried to intervene. She wanted to spend as much time as she could with Yanpu for the day since she didn't have to work and he didn't have any school.

"Go and play with them." Hyde signaled to Yanpu. Their eye movements coordinated. Yanpu got the message and quickly ran off to entertain the other kids.

"What are you doing?" Harper hissed. "I wanted to—"

"He wants to have fun," Hyde shrugged.

"Don't interrupt me. I wanted him to stay close. And you know he doesn't pair well with other children his age."

"You might disagree with that after today." Hyde winked at her. He had spent the entire morning training Yanpu to come out of his shell. His tactics may have been a bit forceful, but a simple threat was all it took for Yanpu to put effort into his learning.

"What do you mean by that?" Harper narrowed her eyes, to which Hyde only responded by ignoring her question and speaking with Aleki.

"I'm starving. Where's the meat?"

"Of course! Just come and sit over here." Aleki walked over to the fire. "Ak poltu ha mann... Make room for our guests." He told the other villagers and they quickly moved to other cushions.

One of the women was raking through her daughter's long wavy black hair with a wooden brush. When she looked at Harper, she smiled and began asking questions.

"You both are unique."

"Huh?"

"Where are you from?"