Hannibal's Elephant Girl Chapter 6

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Hannibal’s Elephant Girl


by

Ariion Kathleen Brindley



Chapter Six

I couldn’t believe Yzebel gave me the bracelet. Made of thick copper, it was wide and intricately engraved. The center consisted of a large circle enclosing a picture of something I couldn’t make out. The closer I looked, the more detail I saw. I put it on my wrist, but it slipped off, over my hand.

“Here,” Yzebel said, reaching for the bracelet. “Let me show you.” She examined it for a moment. A gap measuring the width of her thumb separated the two ends that curved around the wrist. She pressed the ends toward each other, let go and then squeezed them once more, bringing them close together. She made a motion for me to hold my hand out and then sprung the bracelet open a little to put it on my wrist.

It fit snugly with just enough room to move around, but not slip off over my hand.

“Beautiful.” I held my hand out to admire it. “It’s the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. Thank you, Yzebel. I’ll never take it off.” I waved my wrist toward Jabnet so he could see the beauty of it.

He narrowed his eyes on me in his hateful way. “I’m going to bed.”

His mother told him goodnight and he took our lamp to go inside the tent.

I moved another lamp closer to examine the bracelet in brighter light. Suddenly I realized what had been engraved there. “Elephants!” I cried. Two columns of finely carved elephants marched up the sides, toward the round section in the center. The round piece partially covered the last elephant on each side, giving the appearance that the elephant had walked right under it.

“Did you see the elephants?” I turned my wrist toward Yzebel.

Yzebel smiled and nodded.

The round center part contained a small polished area, shaped like a bean, with something resembling a boot extending into it from the top edge. Flakes of blue clung to the open area making me think it might have been colored at one time, but I couldn’t make out the meaning of it. There appeared to be symbols inscribed around the outside of the circle, but I had no knowledge of words. I asked Yzebel if she knew any words.

Yzebel shook her head and then said, “What happened to the wine jug I gave you for Bostar the baker?”

My shoulders slumped; I’d dreaded this. I toyed with my bracelet and then let out a deep sigh. “You might take the bracelet back when I tell.”

“No. You worked hard for me tonight, it’s yours to keep. When you were gone for so long, I sent Jabnet to find you and he said you threw my wine jug down and ran away. He brought the broken pieces back to me.”

“That’s true I suppose. On the way to Bostar’s tent I crossed Elephant Row, where all the elephants live. When I saw those beautiful animals along both sides of the trail, I had to have a closer look at them. I thought I would go only a little way and then turn around to go see Bostar for your loaves of bread. But then I saw Obolus and he was alive! I thought for sure he had died at the river.”

I told her about Obolus pulling me from the river and how he ran backwards into the tree and then lay unconscious after he fell and his head hit the boulder.

Apparently this came as a surprise to Yzebel. “He fell?”

“Yes, I thought I had killed him.”

“Why were you in the river?”

“Someone threw me in the water last night.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. It seems like I had been asleep for a long time. I can’t remember anything before the river. I went under the water and Obolus grabbed me with his trunk.”

Yzebel chewed her bread and took a sip of wine. “But you don’t remember who threw you in the river?”

“No.”

She took her last bite of bread and held me with her steady gaze. Finally she said, “Go on.”

“When I saw Obolus on Elephant Row, I dropped the wine jug and--” I stopped to think about that. “No, wait, the jug didn’t break. It fell to the ground, but I’m sure it didn’t break, I would have heard it shatter. When I came back from seeing Obolus, there was only a big purple mud puddle so I assumed it had broken, but now that I think of it, it must have only turned over and spilled when I dropped it. And then someone came along and took the jug away. But it’s still my fault. I should never have dropped it.”

“Hmm, it had a stopper in it, too. I don’t think that would have popped out when it hit the ground.” Yzebel glanced over her shoulder toward the dark tent where Jabnet slept. She turned back to me. “But you still got the bread from Bostar?”

“Yes. I sat in the dirt on Elephant Row, crying, when someone asked me if I had lost something. I turned to see Tendao standing there.”

“Tendao!” Yzebel leaned toward me, her eyes wide. “How do you know Tendao?”

“You told me of him.”

“Me?” She straightened up.

“Yes, today when I first came here. You asked me where I got Tendao’s cape.”

She glanced at the cape I still wore and leaned on the table, bringing her face close to me. “Tell me exactly how you came to wear Tendao’s cape.”

“The soldiers laughed and made fun of poor Obolus and me at the river after he hit his head on the boulder. I didn’t understand what had happened and the men frightened me. I worried about what they would do with me. I was cold and shivering. And then I felt this cape touch my bare shoulders. I jumped away and turned to see a young man. He had no beard and his eyes were a soft brown, just like yours. He held the cape out to me and--”

Yzebel interrupted me. “How old do you think he is? Hannibal’s age?”

“No,” I said. “Younger than Hannibal, but older than Jabnet. Is Tendao Jabnet’s brother?”

Yzebel didn’t answer. She studied her hands which were now clasped tightly together. After a while she swallowed and turned to gaze out into the darkness.

My life, as far as I knew, began on that day. But so much had happened: Obolus saving me, the threatening soldiers, the tall man in the red-violet robe who wore a turban, Tendao, Jabnet, Yzebel, Obolus again, alive this time. Then Tendao to help me a second time, Lotaz with her many bracelets--but none more beautiful than mine--the big slave, the girl spinning yarn--I was still curious about her, the jolly Bostar, the noisy soldiers at supper time and Hannibal, the handsome Hannibal. He reminded me of the river, powerful and deep. But the river almost killed me, why did I compare Hannibal to the river?

“I’m sorry,” I whispered to Yzebel. “I must learn to hold my tongue.”

“Yes.” She turned back, taking my hands in hers. “Tendao was Jabnet’s brother.”

I wanted to know what happened, but I saw Yzebel’s tears. No, I would keep my curiosity under control--for now.

“Come,” Yzebel said, getting up from the table and wiping her cheek. “It’s late and we must make a bed for you.”

The tent had more room inside than I expected. Jabnet slept on a pallet beside a large wagon wheel in the back. Another bed lay on the right, near the front.

Yzebel set the lamp on a wooden box in the center. She untied a cloth bundle and dumped out three animal hides, each had one side tanned, and the other side was covered with thick white fur. These she spread out on the ground, opposite her bed.

“Will that make a good bed for you?” she asked.

I nodded and smiled. It would indeed be nice. I thought it would be a soft and warm place to sleep. Yzebel picked up something else that fell out with the hides; a dress. She held it up against her body and glanced down at it. She looked at me and then back to the dress. It was one of her dresses. The hem fell to her bare feet.

“Get a knife from the hearth,” she said.

I ran through the tent flap, grabbed a knife and hurried back.

Yzebel held the dress up against my body. “Hold it up to your shoulders,” she said, “like this.”

I held the dress and Yzebel took the knife from my hand. She knelt in the dirt, glanced up to see if I still held it the way she instructed, and then began to cut a wide strip from the bottom.

“When the priests took my husband away,” Yzebel said while working on the hem, “they also took Tendao. He was only a boy and I haven’t seen him since that day. When you came to my tent this morning, wearing Tendao’s cape, I was shocked.” She trimmed the bottom edge of the dress to even it up. “And then you saw him again on Elephant Row. Now I want to know if anyone else has seen him and why he doesn’t come home.” She stood up, took the dress from me and told me to take the cape off. I did and laid it on my bed. And then I held my arms up and she slipped the dress over my head.

When Yzebel stepped back, she put her fingers to her lips, trying to keep from giggling. I glanced down at myself and began to laugh. Jabnet rolled over in his bed, mumbled something and went back to sleep.

The sleeves came down over my hands and the garment hung more like a tent than a dress. Yzebel still grinned when she picked up the piece she had cut from the bottom. She used the knife to cut a long strip. She made a motion for me to turn around, put the strip of cloth around my waist, gathered all the slack in the dress to the back and tied a knot in the makeshift belt. Then she stood up, pulled the drawstring in the neckline tight, bringing it up off my flat chest and tying it at the back of my neck. Next she cut the sleeves off just above my elbows.

I twirled on my tiptoes, watching the hem of my dress flare out. “Thank you, Yzebel.” I came to a stop facing her. “It’s wonderful.”

“It’s not perfect,” Yzebel said, picking up the scraps of cloth. “But it will do until we make a new one for you.” She laid the cloth and the knife on the box.

I stood there, watching Yzebel put her things away and thought of how much she had done for me--as if I were part of her family, even talking of a new dress. I ran over to hug her.

Yzebel put her arms around me and held me for a moment. “Now,” she said, pushing me out to arm’s length, “we better get some sleep. First thing tomorrow we must go find fresh meat, durum, wine and…”

“Bread from Bostar,” I finished for her.

We laughed. Then, before blowing the lamp out, she told me to get into bed.

I lay down, pulled my cape over myself and listened to Yzebel getting into her bed. “Good night, Yzebel.”

“Good night…what was that name you chose for yourself?”

“Obolus,” I said. “But now that he’s alive, I won’t take his name. I think Liada is a nice name.”

“Liada?” Yzebel said. “Where have I heard that name before?”

Tendao, I wanted to say, but I kept quiet. I didn’t want Yzebel’s older son to be the last thought on her mind before she went to sleep.

After a moment Yzebel said, “Liada is a fine name for you. Good night, Liada.”

“Good night, Yzebel.”

I raised my left arm but it was too dark to see the bracelet. I ran my fingers along the sides and felt the carved elephants making their trek up to the mysterious hideaway. I wondered how many were under that strange round center of the bracelet.

I was very tired after such a long and eventful day, but still my mind ran over all that happened. I thought of Hannibal, Tendao and Obolus. I knew they should be asleep, and wondered where. I had no idea where Hannibal or Tendao slept, but I knew exactly where Obolus was. I tried to visualize him lying on his bed of straw or dozing while he stood and swayed on his feet.

I sat up on my bed and stared toward Yzebel. I heard nothing but slow, measured breathing and knew she was asleep. I quietly picked up my cape, slipped out of the tent and walked in the bright moonlight toward Elephant Row.

When I turned down the trail winding along between the elephants, I saw a few of them lying down, some eating hay, and one sucking up water from a watering hole with his trunk to squirt it into his mouth. Several dozed in sleep while standing. I was surprised to see so many awake. One big fellow tried to reach a melon that had rolled beyond the length of his trunk. I picked it up and when he opened his mouth for me, I shoved it in.

The peaceful atmosphere of the place was remarkable. The ones who were awake seemed to respect their fellow elephants’ sleep, keeping quiet while eating or moving around, being limited by the chains on their feet. All the baby elephants were sprawled out on the ground beside their mothers, except for a tiny one who was nursing.

I didn’t see any elephant handlers or water boys, but I found Obolus lying on his side, sleeping soundly. Being careful not to wake him, I crawled into the crook between his coiled trunk and his neck. I smoothed out my new dress, spread Tendao’s cape over myself and curled up, feeling safe and warm. I would stay only a little while and then run back to Yzebel’s tent and get into my bed.

##

I awoke to bits of hay falling on my face. From the pale light I knew it would soon be dawn, but I didn’t realize where I was. At first I thought I lay in the forest, between two trees. The large gray posts rose up from each side of me and met above my head in a massive, gray, wrinkled sky. I tilted my head backward and saw a big mouth munching an armload of hay.

“Obolus,” I whispered. “When did you get up?”

The big trunk swung toward me and brushed the side of my head. I took hold of it and felt the intake of air when he sniffed my hand. I held on to pull myself up and found his feet were positioned so close to me that it almost seemed he held me. I didn’t know how, but he had managed to get up without disturbing me and then stood over me while I slept.

I ran my hand along the great curving tusk that extended far out in front of him. If it were possible for me to lie upon it, my head still wouldn’t reach the tip. He had two of these great tusks, one on each side of his trunk. They reminded me of beautiful teeth, and they were very smooth to the touch.

“I see you’re having breakfast already, my friend,” I said.

He made a rumbling sound deep within his chest, and right away I heard an almost identical sound from across the way, followed by a heavy thump. Obolus lifted his right front foot and let it drop, making an even louder thump. An answering thump came from farther up the trail. I don’t know what they were saying, but these big animals were having a conversation, I was sure of that.

“Did you notice my bracelet?” I held my wrist up for him to see. He blinked and reached for more hay.

“See that melon over there?” I pointed across the trail to a large green watermelon lying beside another elephant’s haystack. I wasn’t sure whether he looked where I pointed or not, but his trunk curled around my forearm.

“I’m going to get it for you and then I have to go. Yzebel and I have lots of work to do this morning and I must hurry back to the tent before she wakes.”

I glanced up and down Elephant Row to make sure none of the men were around and then I ran across the trail, grabbed the melon and ran back to Obolus. Right away he raised his trunk and opened his mouth. I couldn’t be sure, but there seemed to be a big smile on his face when I shoved the melon into his mouth. When he tilted his head back and crunched down on it, he made a funny noise through his upraised trunk. This brought a low trumpeting sound from the previous owner of the melon, followed by a foot stomp from each of them. I hoped I hadn’t started an argument between those two big fellows.

A whisper of lavender tinted the eastern sky when I picked up Tendao’s cape and shook the hay off. “Good-bye, Obolus. I have to hurry back to Yzebel’s tent. But I’ll be back soon, I promise.”





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