10. Amma

Chapter 10

Amma

D o you think she is going to wake up soon?

I hope so. I am hungry.

Maybe we should wake her up.

Amma groaned as the voices of her pets broke through her dreamless sleep. It had been a while since she had slept so soundly and her whole body felt relaxed. It had also been a while since she had been awakened by the whispering of her pets.

"Why are you guys even awake?"

We want to go outside, but Suni is blocking the way, Mike said. He may growl if we try to climb over him.

Or bite us, Sam chimed in .

She opened blurry eyes and blinked at the entrance to the cave. There was something blocking the light, but she couldn't make it out. "There's still light out there. Which means the suns are still up and I want to sleep. Go back to bed."

Food! Sam demanded. At home we would have already had two breakfasts .

"You know what?" Amma rolled onto her back and glared up at the ceiling. "You act like spoiled children. I am not about to get up right now."

But – Sam started.

"Don't." She closed her eyes. "I am going to get more sleep. If you want to go outside, then you deal with whatever is in the doorway." She waited for her animal friends to argue, but they kept quiet. She was just drifting back to sleep when she heard scraping outside.

"Amma," Suni's deep voice caressed her ears. "I heard you talking. Are you up for the day?"

"Would it matter if I said no?" Amma sat up and scrubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands. "I doubt anyone is going to let me sleep anymore."

The shadow at the door moved. "If you want to rest more, I will get first meal started," Suni said. "Join us when you are ready."

Amma dropped onto her back with a grunt. "You guys go outside. I need to clean up and change." She turned her head and watched the two squirrels and Astro run out, leaving a dust trail in their wake. At least she knew they were safe from flying predators with the three warriors.

She waited a few minutes before climbing to her feet and getting ready for the day. Amma used the hollowed-out rock she kept water in to do a quick washup. The water was cold, but she powered through before slipping on a fresh shirt and pair of leggings.

She would need to do laundry soon before she ran out of clothes. Her mother had only packed five pairs of leggings and four shirts. Her bra and underwear she had had to wash every day. If only she could find the equivalent of lavender or sage to make a batch of deodorant. She shoved everything into her backpack and shrugged it on before exiting the cave.

The last rays of sunlight were disappearing and giving way to the night sky. Amma found she felt the closest to nature during these times. After relieving herself in a hole she'd dug for that purpose, she migrated to her favorite spot where a gap in the foliage gave her an unobstructed view of the sky.

She raised her face to the sky and took a deep breath. "I thank the suns for bringing life. I welcome the moons as they start their path across the sky. I welcome the spirits of my ancestors and the path they have left me to follow. I give thanks for the powers the Goddess has given to my family, and the magic running through our veins." She raised her arms to the sky, reaching as high as she could. "May my day be blessed and may the day of those who travel with me be blessed. So mote it be."

"Beautiful."

Amma spun to find Suni standing directly behind her. His face was turned toward the moons and his eyes were closed.

"Do you greet every day the same way?" he asked.

"Yes," she answered. "It reminds me I am part of a bigger whole, and together we are blessed. Every day, the Goddess gives us life and control of our magic. Right now, all my cousins who are in this world are looking up at the moons and doing the same thing I am. We may be far apart, but we are together."

"It is like the warrior's creed," Suni said. "We learn it before we pick up our weapons."

"I would love to hear it one day."

"You will when we return to my village. Gar and Roan will have a coming-of-age ceremony."

"I look forward to it." Amma walked to the fire and sat down near where Gar was stirring a pot. "What are you cooking?"

"It is a type of porridge that hunters eat while away from home," Gar answered. "It is ground meal with fruits and vegetables chopped into it."

"Like oatmeal." Amma leaned forward to investigate the pot. "It doesn't look like oatmeal, but it smells good."

"The flavor depends on what fruits are used." Suni joined her by the fire with leaves and vines in his hand. "Personally, I like it when tuluku is used. It is a yellow fruit with a sour bite that tastes good with the ground meal. Gar, what did you use?"

"Not tuluku," Gar answered. "It is not the right time of year, and they are still too green to eat."

"I know this," Suni said with a lifted eyebrow. "What did you use?"

"Kini," Gar grinned. "It is sweet, and I think Amma will enjoy it. My sisters do."

"Can't wait to try it." Amma said.

"At home, we have many different types of tea and juice as well," Suni said. "When we get back, I will show them to you."

"I'm starting to have a list of things to look forward to." She leaned toward him. "What are you making? Are those the same spicy leaves we used last night?" He was using the vines to shape the leaves into a bowl-like shape.

"Yes," he answered. "I am making bowls so we can eat. After we finish the kini, we can eat the leaves."

"Nothing wasted." Amma loved the idea. Earth could learn a thing or two.

Suni handed Gar one of the bowls, and he filled it before handing it to Amma. She took a sip and was surprised to find the meal had the texture of grits. She had always loved grits with butter and bacon. Suni handed her a strip of dried, salted meat and she hummed in contentment. "This is better than oatmeal or grits. I could eat this every morning."

"You would like it better with tuluku," Suni said and smirked. "It has a more wholesome taste."

"Suddenly you are a food critic?" Amma teased.

"I know what I like." His eyes hooded.

Amma ducked her head so he wouldn't see her small smile. She had never been good at flirting. It always came across as awkward and she felt stupid afterward. The second her bowl was empty, Suni tried to fill it up again. "No, Suni, I'm good."

"You do not eat enough." Suni frowned.

"I eat exactly what I should," Amma said. "If I was still hungry, I'd eat more."

Suni shrugged and filled his bowl for the second time. "At least eat the leaf."

Amma unwrapped the vines and stuffed the leaf into her mouth. It was just as spicy as she remembered, but the juices from the porridge gave it a slightly different flavor. "I'm starting to think those leaves should be eaten with every meal."

"They can be," Rown said. "My dam loves them and has all kinds of ways of cooking them. I like when she rolls them in batter and fries them." He licked his lips. "Delicious."

"Okay, I have to try that." Amma's mouth watered at the idea. She loved fried foods and spicy fried leaves sounded right up her alley. "I could eat thousands of those."

"You can eat thousands of leaves, but not two bowls of porridge?" Suni teased.

"Junk food over real food. That is a model I live by."

"I like her," Rown said. "Suni, when do we leave?"

"As soon as you are finished eating"

"It will take us two rotations to return home," Gar said. "What do we say if the chief wants to send out a search party for you?"

Suni huffed through his nose. "Tell them I am a seasoned warrior and will return soon."

"Just make it back for our ceremony," Rown said.

"Nothing but death will stop me," Suni promised.

"If you will excuse me, I am going to make sure I haven't forgotten anything while you guys work out the last kinks to our plan." Amma left the males by the fire and returned to the cave to find her animal friends laying on her bed snoring in a tangle of limbs, having taken to each other like they had been born brothers. She smiled and bent over the sleeping cuties. "Hey guys, wake up. We are getting ready to leave."

Can we leave later? Mike stretched with a big yawn.

" Now you want to sleep?" Amma picked Mike up and touched his nose with hers. "Suni is going to help visit Jo and find the others."

Not Jo . Sam scampered up her leg. She can stay lost.

"Sam," Amma said, and glared at the innocent-looking squirrel. "That's not nice. She has already been found. She has a strong mate, and I'm going to tell her what you said."

I'm sorry. Sam bumped her cheek with his nose. I will be more kind.

"I know you will," Amma said. "Pick a shoulder, you two. Astro, are you coming with us?"

Astro stretched out as far as his little body would go, claws extended. Adventure!

"Yes, we are going to have an adventure," Amma promised. Astro jumped into her hands, and she helped him get settled on top of her backpack.