The First Jumper (first draft version)

The First Jumper 14: Awakening

The next time Little Bear opened his eyes, he was again helped into a sitting position, and again he was given water.  When he had drunk, he was given a few berries, and just one bite of meat.  He was able to get this down, which made him feel bloated.  He was still so weak, he could barely hold his head up.

Someone was holding him, but he could not see who it was.  Another person came running over, and the shape looked vaguely familiar.

He still had not spoken, and when the shape spoke to him, the voice sounded familiar, too.

"Little Bear?" Willow said, ignoring Tiger's scowl as he came up beside her.

"Bbblll?" said Little Bear.  Drool spilled over his lip, and he looked at her without comprehension.

Willow stared at him for all of ten seconds, before abruptly turning away to take Tiger's arm.

Tiger smiled in grim satisfaction, although his face also bore a trace of sadness, as he turned away from his old friend, with Willow.

Little Bear had no comprehension of what had just happened.  He was still trying to make sense of where he was.  He tried to move his arms, and his leg twitched.  He tried to move his legs, and hit himself in the face with his hand.  

He gradually realized that the person holding him up was a woman, and her face looked vaguely familiar to him.

“Ab,” he said, looking at her.  She was looking at him, now, but said nothing, although she was smiling.

“Ab-ul” he said.  He wondered why there were two of her.

“Apple,” she said, softly.  “Yes, Little Bear, that’s me.”

Little Bear became aware that some men were standing by his feet, looking down at him.

“We leave in three days,” Cave Bear told Raccoon.  “No more.  We should have been gone long since.”  He walked off, leaving Raccoon to sigh in grief over the condition of his son.

With great concentration, Little Bear managed to get his eyes uncrossed.  When he saw the single human standing in front of him, he also realized he should know this person.  For some reason, he was important.

“Hello, my son,” said Raccoon.

Little Bear frowned in concentration, scrunching up his face with effort.  “Rcoon,” he managed.

The man by his feet simply turned away.  Little Bear could not know it was because he was bitterly disappointed that his son was not more whole.

He turned to the woman holding him, and said, “Abbel”

“Yes,” she said again, her eyes blinking hard, “I’m Apple.”

Then she laid him back down, got up, and ran away, rubbing at her eyes as she did.

Alone on the ground, Little Bear tried to make sense of what he had seen.  He needed to get up.  He wanted to get up.

But his legs and arms simply didn’t obey him.  After several minutes of struggling, he managed to thrash his arms about when he wanted to move his arms, and his legs when he wanted to move his legs.  

Then he found that he could move his arms in certain ways that would help him get over onto his chest, from which he could push back up to a sitting position, even when no one was holding or helping him.  He had to hold his head up, but he could manage it.

Sitting with his head precariously balanced on his neck, he could watch the goings on in the camp.  

It was late afternoon, and the hunting party had returned.  Women were working at the kill, a large antelope.  Pieces of liver and other internal organs were passed around, some cooked, some consumed raw.  Soon meat would be over the fire.