"Tomorrow,
tomorrow when I die,
I don't want you to be sad,
To this place,
To this place I will return
In the form of a hummingbird,
Woman,
When you look at the sun,
Smile fondly
There
There I will be with our father,
Good light will I send you":
-Icnocuicatl, Lila Downs.
The news ran like fire through the city. The excitement was obvious, and each citizen hung banners and hosted dances and songs in honor of Camaxtli, their war god. The aztecs' answer came two days later.
The tlaxcaltecan batallion left that very same night. Iztacíhuatl was one of the women, kids and old men that cheered for all of them, but she was there for one warrior and one warrior only: Popocatépetl.
He had given her a kiss before leaving, and her lips were still throbing.
The night flew by in a blur of colors, lights and music, but by the time the morning came Iztaccíhuatl felt empty. The fact that she wouldn't be seeing Popocatépetl that day, or the next one, overwhelmed her.
She wasn't worried, or sad, or even hopeful. She was just sure, sure of her warrior's skills. But that didn't mean the days were any easier.
The princess wasn't one to just sit around and wait, so she started to look for a sacrifice in honor of Camaxtli. Human? No. She was no bloodthirsty aztec, no thank you. Animal? It made her uneasy, but she guessed it would work.
Sighing, she got up to prepare it.
Camaxtli's temple was a majestic stone circle with a hay ceiling, in which center an enormous statue in his honor stood proudly. Tenochtitlán's Emperor had tried to steal it many times, even if the aztecs adored Huitzilopochtli. It was there where Iztaccíhuatl kneeled with her sacrifice, giving multiple prayers so the god would make her people-*cough* and Popocatépetl *cough* return safely.
One of Iztaccíhuatl's many flaws was impatience. After a few days of waiting went by, she grew restless and even considered sending a messenger to check if Popocatépetl was alright.
The city folks assured her that war could take weeks, months or even years, and Iztaccíhuatl's prayers started to become more frequent and including Tonantzin* besides Camaxtli.
The princess tried not to give it much thought, concentrating instead on the task at hand. Many years ago, her father had given up trying to make her stop working, and the women had all became accostumed to her presence.
From her back came squeals and excited yells, aside from a few heavy footsteps towards her.
Iztaccíhuatl's heart jumped. Could it be...?
"Izta," said someone, sad and low.
It wasn't Popocatépetl. He called her Iz, and his voice could meje her body explode like stardust. She turned around, and felt cold when she saw Citlatépetl standing her with a grieving face.
"I'm so sorry, Izta. Popocatépetl has died."
Iztaccíhuatl felt she had no life. She was sure she had died, or that pain wouldn't exist.
It was as if she had left her body, but could still feel every tecpatl piercing her skin, leaving her a bloody mess.
She hadn't believed it at first. In the middle of the shock, hysteria had made its appearance. "You're lying!" she had screamed, or so people said, she had almost ended Citlatépetl right then and there, lost in her wildness.
She didn't remember a thing.
Zyanya, her father, and almost every other citizen had tried to shake her out of her state, but everything Iztaccíhuatl could do was sit on her bed, not seeing a thing, feeling everything and nothing at once.
She lost track of time. Her weight dropped continuously, her body felt overwhelmed by the weight of a huge rock on her chest.
Sometimes she had panic attacks. Her eyes hurt, her throat too, her head also; and one day Zyanya had to tie her up so she wouldn't accidentally hurt herself.
She screamed.
Tears flowed out of her eyes like waterfalls, and then throbbed so much she felt they were going to fall.
She didn't know how she was going to survive this, but she was sure that her warrior wouldn't want her to follow him; and her pride was too big to let herself go. So she tried, she tried to keep opening her eyes in the morning, even if with that there came hope-oh the hope-and then it was crushed by the knowledge that he wasn't there anymore.
It couldn't be.
But it was.
"She gets worse every day, " Zyanya's voice talked in whispers in her darkened room. "She has tried to eat, but she doesn't keep down a thing. It's like her body is destroying itself."
"Isn't there anything you can do?" her father, tense and pained.
"Bring back Popocatépetl," Zyanya shrugged, Iztaccíhuatl moaned.
Popocatépetl.
Iztaccíhuatl didn't do anything other than sleep, swimming in memories of her time with the warrior. The few times that she woke up she tried to eat and keep it down, sometimes succeding, sometimes not; and maybe let Zyanya help her take a bath-she couldn't do it alone anymore.
Citlatépetl tried to visit her once, but Zyanya and the Chief didn't let him.
They tried to bring her back using every method they could think of, and she tried to make it work. But she couldn't. Each day her chest hurt more, each day her body weighed more on herself, each day her chance at living went farther.
Zyanya was arranging her pillows when it happened. Iztaccíhuatl rose, wheezing in a desperate search of air, and then fell back on the bed. Her body convulsed and she gasped for air, unable to breathe.
Zyanya yelled for the chief to come, trying to give the princess air while she wheezed. Her chest shrieked and stung, tears running down her face.
Popocatépetl.
Voices. Screams. Frenzied faces. The chief. Zyanya. No one else.
"Breathe!"
"She can't, there's got to be a way-"
"Call a priestess, something, quick!"
Iztaccíhuatl had never seen her father cry. In between all the black spots staining her vision, she saw them: wet trails running from his dark eyes, carving sad paths on his hardened face.
She wished to live, for him. She wished to live, for Zyanya. She wished to live for both, but her heart gave up before she could try to.
*Tonantzin: Aztec God Mother, the Lady Of Guadalupe's apparition happened in her temple, so now they're linked. There stands the Basílica of Guadalupe, and many call the Lady Tonantzin, both because of that and because it means mother.
------♦--------♦--------♦------
Woops. Think I just killed a character.
Remember it's a legend, the plot isn't mine, I didn't want to let her die... heh...
*fading*
-IAmACaticorn
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Lava: The Legend of the Volcanoes
Romance"Tomorrow, Tomorrow when I die I dont want you to be sad. To this place, to this place I will return, in the form of a hummingbird Woman, when you look to the sun, smile fondly There, There I will be with our father, Good light I will send you." -I...
