Chapter Five

For the next three months, Krull spent countless hours with Anna, teaching her the language. She struggled a great deal at first, but could speak fairly well after a while. She understood a lot better than she spoke, and Krull felt the need to soon unveil her to the clan.

Members of the clan had been anxiously waiting for a long while now to discover what they called “Krull’s Secret.” Ever since the day the strange girl was brought to their land, the mass of people had been extremely curious about the foreigner.

“Anna, I am so proud of you,” Krull began, one bright early fall morning.

Anna, now accustomed to her living environment a bit more, grinned excitedly. “Why is that?” She sat down her plate and smiled at the old man sitting across the fire from her. Eva was comfortably resting her little blonde head on Anna’s lap.

“You have learned so much so quickly,” he replied, sipping his broth. “You are quite astute for a woman, you know.”

Anna’s smile faded. “What that supposed to mean?”

Krull nearly dropped his bowl of broth all over himself. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me,” Anna muttered, causing Eva to inch her way off of her lap. She folded her hands across her chest defiantly. “You think I stupid because I woman? How dare! Fucking male chauvinist pig! I cannot believe in today’s society that an enlightened man such as yourself would belittle yourself to believing such a farce! I am so disgusted with this conversation! I leave now!”

“I told you not to speak your foreign language in my presence!” Krull reprimanded. He stood up to stare her face to face. “I know you were saying some horrible things about me and you should be ashamed of yourself. If it wasn’t for my kindness, you would be dead.”

Anna’s face hardened. “I wish I dead.”

Krull sighed and motioned for Eva to leave the cave. “Anna…you don’t mean that.”

“Yes, I do.”

“I know things have been difficult for you,” he began, soothingly. “I know you are not from around here. I know your customs in your old tribe were completely different but this is your new home. You need to learn to speak and act like Clan. Reina has sent you here for a reason, my child.”

“Reina! Ha! Of all the stupid…”

“Anna?” Krull asked, losing his patience quickly. “For the last time, please speak Clan. It bothers me to no end when I cannot understand all your prattling! I need to know all of your feelings at all times for my research. You are the key to understanding. I cannot understand you and you I if you do not cooperate.”

“Yes, sir.” Anna slumped back down on the floor and sighed heavily. “I hate here. I want home. I feel…feel…” She swore and hit the wall, unable to find the word. She hated not being able to communicate with this man. How could he help her find her way home if she couldn’t explain what home is? She felt disgusted, aggravated, pissed off, and frustrated. All of those emotions she was helpless to convey.

Krull could only watch sadly as the girl began to cry. He didn’t dare touch her, since she looked a little less than stable at the moment.

“Anna,” Krull began, after a few moments of silence. “Tomorrow you will be introduced to the Clan. The others are getting impatient and it is time you became part of society.”

Anna covered her mouth with her hands. She wanted to run away. “No! No!” She cried, frantically. “No I want meet! Please, sir, not meet!”

“Anna, tomorrow you will be introduced. I recommend a bath before tomorrow morning.”

Krull made his way towards his sleeping fur, feeling completely wretched for forcing the girl to do something she clearly wasn’t ready for. But Wakr was getting impatient and the Clan had a right to meet the newcomer of the tribe. It was now or never. If Wakr allowed her to stay, she would be forced to interact with the other children of the clan. If not, well, that would be dealt with in time.

~~~~~

“No…no…no,” the girl whispered to herself over and over again. Krull walked proudly in front of her, as he approached the Great Circle. The Great Circle was where the entire clan would gather, all in a circle, to discuss important events and celebrate special occasions. Today’s special events included the induction of Anna into the clan. Or rather, the hopeful induction.

Krull bowed slightly, as much as his bones would allow him, to Wakr. He was waiting in the center of the circle, and immediately stared at the red-haired girl. Anna’s gaze remained dejectedly planted on the soil.

“Is she ready?” Wakr asked, concerned with the girl’s behavior.

Krull bit his lip. “She is a bit nervous, that’s all.”

Wakr didn’t reply, only stared at the girl’s awkwardness. She was a little paler than everyone else in the clan and her flaming red hair was undoubtedly the most unusual thing about her.

Zac glared at her venomously. Everyone in the clan was “oohing” and “aahing” about the foreign female and no one was paying a bit of attention to him. She wasn’t THAT special and besides, HE was becoming a HUNTER! The hunter was the third most important position in the clan, besides the leader (who was a hunter as well) and the maharishi.

From that moment on, he hated her. He hated the way everyone would ignore him to pay attention to that freak! She was stealing all of his thunder. A girl! She was the enemy. She would have to be destroyed.

“Ladies and gentlemen of the Clan, I welcome you to the Great Circle,” Wakr began, proudly. He finally tore his eyes away from the young, frightened girl long enough to bow slightly to his loyal followers. They hooted and reached for their wonderful leader, loving him almost blindly. “Now, today we have been blessed by the magnanimous Reina for we have my second youngest son’s induction into the Hunters and the presentation of an outsider.” The audience gasped and whispered, pointing to the trembling girl hiding behind Krull. Zac just shook his head angrily.

“First, let’s bring my son Zachary to the Holy Center of the Great Circle,” Wakr began, after the commotion had calmed down. He motioned for his son to approach him. And, like all those times they’d practiced, Zac kneeled in front of his father, the Great Leader. Zac beamed as he noticed all of the smitten faces of the little girls, whispering about how handsome he was, and how brave he was to become a hunter.

He frowned as he noticed the one girl not impressed in the least. The fire-headed freak was totally unmoved by his entire presentation and the anger welled up inside of him. No woman in the clan would be unimpressed by his induction! Women fawned over hunters, especially young ones like himself, because they’d grow up to be strong and daring.

But not her. She was like stone. Oh, did he ever hate her!

The rest of his induction ceremony went extremely well, despite the burning fury from the girl’s lack of interest. Zac received his hunting charm, a bear’s tooth, and boastfully showed everyone with pride. His mother grew teary as his sisters felt honored to be from the same cave. Today should be his day, Zac thought to himself. Today everyone will love me like I am a god.

But eventually his ceremony did end and the clan was finally permitted to see what had been mysteriously hidden from them for so long. The crowd became a hushed whisper as Krull gently tapped Anna’s back, urging her forward.

“No, Krull,” she begged, the tiniest whisper she could concoct.

“Yes, Anna. It is time.” The maharishi made his way forward and raised his hands to get the crowd’s attention. They bowed their head slightly in honor of the miracle man. “Good people, you have been kept from this present from Reina for too long. It is time that you are introduced to Anna.”

Anna obediently stepped forward, head down. She could feel all the burning stares of people who didn’t understand her. People called her ugly. People called her beautiful. Some even called her deformed and a curse.

Krull held his arms up again and the crowd quickly quieted down. “Anna has no home. She doesn’t know where her home is. She is lost and defenseless in an unkind world towards females. If she was placed in my path for some mystical reason, who am I to ignore the call of Reina?”

One man stood up. “Begging your pardon, but is she really female? She looks like some sort of monster animal with that flaming fire-colored hair.” Zac smiled to himself as the girl put her head down in shame.

“Of course she is female,” Krull replied, trying not to sound as agitated as he was. “I have examined her and nursed her back to health. Besides, I highly doubt Reina would allow some monster animal to come so close to our dwelling.”

Another man stood. “Is she going to become part of us? I mean, do we have to worry about mating her and everything? That’s not going to be easy you know. She’s so weird looking that I find it difficult to see her with a mate.”

Taylr looked at the girl sympathetically as a tear streamed silently down her cheeks. She wiped it away quickly hoping no one would notice.

“Well, it is up to our Great Leader to incorporate her into the clan,” Krull answered, noticing Anna start to cry. “If Wakr decides to allow her to stay, I think all will pan out in the end.”

The original man stood again. “What does she eat?”

Krull sighed as even Wakr grew somewhat annoyed. “Lanek, she is a human girl. She is no different from our females other than her hair color. Her eating, sleeping, and mating habits are exactly the same. She is a human female.”

A young boy stood up nervously. “Can I touch her?”

Anna’s head jerked up and she glanced over at Krull. Krull returned her glance and smiled reassuringly.

“If you come softly, you may touch her.”

“What about me?” Another young man asked, giddily.

“And me!” Another asked.

Her eyes widened as a flock of young men gathered around her, pulling at her hair and poking at her flesh. She felt like a piece of meat that the vultures were scraping and picking at. Claustrophobia overwhelmed her as she sank to the floor suddenly. The crowd gasped audibly and the young men stared at each other confused.

“She’s scared!” Taylr shouted, standing up and rushing to the circle. He hurriedly bowed to his father and Krull before shoving all the other boys away from the shivering girl. He carefully pulled her head into his lap and brushed away those soft red locks hiding her flushed face. “It’s okay. Don’t be frightened. We’re just curious, that’s all. We’re not trying to frighten you.”

Krull bent down next to him and motioned for Taylr to return to his place outside of the circle. He helped Anna return to her feet as much as his sore back would let him. Wakr’s eyes flashed with uncertainty as he studied the girl’s unstable reaction.

Lanek stood for a third time that evening. “Is she going to be all right?”

Krull nodded as Wakr took the hint to end tonight’s gathering. The people dispersed, still buzzing about the strange events that had taken place tonight. There were still so many unanswered questions left in the hearts of the people.

“Krull, my wise brother, would you mind stepping into my cave so we can discuss this matter?” Wakr asked, as the girl stood unsteadily on her feet. He turned and made his way towards his family, hugging Zac one more time.

“I sorry I embarrass you,” Anna mumbled, as she and Krull began their short journey home. “I was just so… with all groping and I got scared. I wish I have been stronger for you.”

Krull smiled. “You didn’t embarrass me. But I had to let them touch you or else they would have thought I was hiding something from them. I wanted them to realize that you are a normal female with one tiny extraordinary feature.” He winked at the girl. “Well, I should say two extraordinary features.”

“May ask you a question, Krull?” Anna began, biting her thumbnail. “Why that boy so nice to me?”

“I think he likes you.”

“He not even know me!” Anna insisted, blushing. “How he like me in a place where I’m freak of nature?”

“I think he believes that you share a common feeling,” Krull explained, a little out of breath from the excursion. “Before you, Taylr was the only human with blue eyes like the sky. No one dared pick on him, fearing Wakr’s wrath, but I know he felt insecure. He probably feels it still.”

“What happen if Wakr no allow me stay with you?” Anna asked, reluctantly.

Krull didn’t reply, which gave more than a hint for Anna not to push it. When they arrived back to the cave, Krull tucked both his biological daughter and his theoretical daughter in their warm furs and kissed them goodnight. He only prayed Wakr was in a good mood from his son’s newest honor and would be lenient.