PREVIEW
It had been half a moon’s passage since Le hu a had spoken harshly to the ali’i moi [governing chief] of Kau a’i and no word had come of what her punishment for the affront was to be. But there was the ongoing punishment of thinking about what such a punishment could be.
The touch of her ku mu [teacher] awakened her and she was immediately afraid. The kindly woman held out a soft ka pa [bark cloth] sheet and draped it over the shoulders of her startled dancer. The seriousness of the situation was made clear when the kumu then gathered Lehua’s few possessions and put them into a net bag.
However, she did not put one thing in the bag. The feather lei po’o [head garland] that indicated Lehua’s nobility, she put on the frightened girl’s head. Then carrying the bag, she led her pupil down, out of the sleeping ha le [house] toward the thatched common area.
This was not like the pitch-black meeting with the chief. Lehua had no trouble seeing who her visitors were this time. The sun had already greeted the sky below the horizon, and two young warriors were clearly visible in the early morning light. The ha lau [school] gate guard stood haplessly aside, hoping not to be scolded for his inefficiency.
Kumu Mo ha la turned and handed Lehua her bag, bent, breathed on her cheek, then whispered, “Don’t be afraid. They will not dare hurt you.” Then she turned, dismissed the gate guard, and went back up the trail toward the kau hale [living quarters].
Lehua turned to stop her, to at least say goodbye, but the moment was lost. She greatly admired this master teacher of hu la [sacred dance], that she had come to Ka ua’i to learn from three moons before. Politics were interfering with that pursuit again.
As Lehua approached, the men’s nervousness was apparent. At the last minute, both warriors prostrated themselves in mo e before her.
“The ka pu [sacred taboo] has been lifted. Stand up and tell me why you disturb the peace of goddess Laka’s sacred place with your weapons.” Her fear made her command sharper than the threat appeared, but she was taking no chances.
The two, both more than ten years older than the slip of a girl they had come for, leapt to their feet. One stepped forward holding out his hand at arm’s length, palm down. Bowing his head slightly, he said softly, “The king has sent us to bring you to him in Wai lua.”
“King Li ho li ho is at Wai lua?”
The kane [man] looked up in sudden confusion. “Oh, no. King Ka umu a li’i is in Wailua. He has been there since the end of ma ka hi ki [harvest season].”
“And what does the ‘king’ of Kaua’i want of a hula wa hine [woman]?” she asked, aware that these common soldiers would never know the reasons for their mission. But she was stalling for time. She needed to think.
Was this what she had feared ever since the meeting that dark night? What might the ruling chief of Kaua’i do to her? Would he dare to harm a member of an ali’i [noble] family so close to the throne? Not likely, but he could hold her hostage in some negotiations with King Liholiho.
In what might have been an effort to speed up the proceedings, the youth spoke again: “There is news that King Liholiho and Queen Ka’a hu ma nu are to visit soon. Our king wishes to have all the ali’i together in Wailua when they arrive.”
Lehua considered the answer. It could be true. This summons could be an innocent attempt on Kaumuali’i’s part to greet the new monarch in regal style.... She had just decided that this was the case when she heard the sharp chirp of the ania niau bird. Turning, she saw Ma ka wrapped in a kapa shawl part-way up the trail shivering in the predawn breeze.
Lehua tossed her bag to the nearest warrior and turning said, “I must say goodbye to my kokua [servant].” With that she climbed to where the whimpering girl stood. “What are you doing here,” she asked. “You were in Wai ni ha with your sick aunt.”
But Maka hushed her, and turning so the soldiers could not see her face, “They are lying. They are not from the king. They are from the ’o ha na [family] of Ke a we, the chief who ruled Kaua’i before Kaumuali’i. They have always wanted him defeated and the Ka me ha me has to rule this island.”
Lehua started to speak, but Maka was too quick. “I don’t know what they want to use you for. They have a reputation for bad behavior.” Again Lehua started to speak, but was again too slow. “I’ll go down and tell them that you have to say goodbye to the ka hu na [priest]. Go to the ledge and wait.” With that she turned and bounded down toward the waiting soldiers. On the way she dropped the kapa from her shoulders and the soldiers were immediately distracted.
After a few moments climb up-trail, Lehua ducked into the fern-hidden side path and was soon poised for the last step up onto the secret ledge. She was worried—what did the fussy old chiefs want with her? She was thinking back, going over everything since her excited arrival at the school with her aunt, three moons earlier. A sudden movement from above caused her to look up. The mai kai [handsome] Pa ke [Chinese] was reaching down to help her up. Without thinking she gave him her hand and in a moment they stood facing one another.
Finally.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“Yes,” she nodded. Then realizing she had stood too long staring into his face, she quickly strode past him—all memory of her arrival replaced by the one when he had stepped out of the u ni ki [graduation] crowd and kissed her.
The kiss--that strange thing that the newcomers had brought to the customs of intimacy in her culture....
Why did she feel warm all over when he looked at her?
