Given

Chapter 1:2

Pronunciation Guide:
Kebi=Keh-bee
N'kun=En-kun

***

Dayo hugged her, chuckling against the top of her head, but his laughter soon died away. He pulled back and squeezed her arm affectionately. "I'll miss you, kebi. Not a day will go by that I won't pray for your safe return, and not just for the sake of the tribe."

She touched his fingers where he squeezed her. "Thank you, but I'll be fine. The Sha will protect me while I'm away, and if nothing else I know which end of the spear is for stabbing."

Dayo chuckled again. "That you do. See you tonight."

Yenni went back to grinding and mixing ingredients, so focused that the faint creak of the doors to her sitting room barely registered. It wasn't until her bedroom doors burst open, spilling a flock of pretty, chatty girls into her room, that Yenni whipped her head up from her work. The group was led by her sisters, twin paragons of Yirba style and grace. The women surrounded her in a flurry of color, beads and fragrance, and she couldn't help but smile.

"Time to dress, kebi dear," chirped high-cheeked Ife.

"We ran into n'kun cutting through the inner courtyard, looking more harassed than usual," said doe-eyed Jaiye. She waved a hand, setting her gold bracelets jangling. "One thing led to another and—Ah! You're really going to make us work today!" She eyed Yenni's paint stains as she kissed the back of her teeth.

"You call it work? All you do is supervise and dictate," said Yenni.

Ife fanned her nose. "Draw a bath," she called to no one in particular. "Oh, don't you pretend not to like it. You always come out stunning." She flashed Yenni her charming, gap-toothed smile.

"Yes," said Jaiye. "Almost as pretty as us."

Her cousins among the group giggled. Yenni wanted to seem angry, but she burst out laughing at her sisters' teasing. Tonight they coordinated in slim, flowing gowns that showed off the flawless, dark skin of their arms. Both dresses had a pattern of bird feathers, one orange and blue, the other pink and yellow. And each sister wore a tall, regal head wrap, Jaiye's gold, Ife's a shimmering rose. A wave of sadness chased Yenni's mirth. She would miss them.

They had her stand on the tile of her sitting room, trying on this and that, holding up earrings and necklaces, and occasionally having girls run to their wing to get something from their own stock. An hour passed, and as the second approached Yenni's mood soured. No matter how she loved her sisters, nothing would convince her that getting dressed was meant to be such a production. How did they all stand it every day?

At last, the twins settled on a vibrant green gown, the material sheer and layered, the sides accented with yellow beading that emphasized her female figure. They sat her down among a pile of printed cushions and had her young cousin Bisi, the maid with the nimblest fingers, oil and re-braid her hair.

"Why must my hair be perfect if it will just be under a wrap?" Yenni said, wincing as her maid pulled her hair against her scalp.

"Because that is what's proper," said Ife.

Close to an hour later, her hair was twisted up in small braids to a bulb on top of her head, to help hold her head wrap in place.

"You have such nice, healthy hair, but I wish you would stop cutting it," said Jaiye. When not wrapped up, her hair fell in neat locks down to the middle of her back.

"It's better for hunting," said Yenni. Her sister frowned, but the other twin gently took Yenni's chin. 

"Hmm, I think it suits her." Ife preferred to shave her hair close to her head. It was how most told the two apart. But Yenni found both styles too much upkeep.