2 She Calls Him Dir, He Calls Her Mai

"You're beautiful," the boy had told her, his eyes filled with pity. "You should not be sacrificed to God."

Mai had already spoken her 50 words of the day, so she could only cast a curious glance at the boy. Even with a day she realized that the boy before her was important; all of the villagers treated him with reverence.

The boy leaned in closer to Mai. "I'm sorry," he apologized, "the village needs something to hold on to. You're that something."

Shaking her head, Mai smiled. She did not blame the villagers nor did she blame God. The voice had told her that she should, that she should have blamed the world for her fate. Mai had smiled then, too. It was almost as useless as her sacrifice as blame does nothing but brew bad feelings. She was stronger than that.

"Why are you smiling?" the boy's eyes widened in surprise. "You're going to die!" He yelled, "How can you be okay with that!?"

Mai's smile grew wider and gratitude filled her eyes. The boy before her was to be the next village chief. He could change the tradition of sacrifice. Mai remembered the knowledge that the voice had given her; she could pass it on to this boy. The village can better themselves rather than wait for God to help.

The boy's yelling attracted the attention of a passing villager, and the villager stopped, heaving the woven basket of clothes to a better position on her hips. With pursed lips, she looked at Chief Owansu's grandson, "What are you doing, Aldrich?"

"Nothing," Aldrich sprang from his crouched position on the ground, almost touching Mai. That fleeting feeling of warmth shocked Mai.

"Aldrich!" the woman growled and grabbed Aldrich, pulling him away from the sacrifice. "You cannot touch it- the sacrifice is for God."

"She," Aldrich mumbled, averting his eyes. The grip of the woman on Aldrich's arm tightened, and she narrowed her eyes.

"You cannot talk to 'her'," the woman emphasized 'her', clearly demonstrating that she did not feel as if the sacrifice needed a human pronoun, "Aldrich, she is not worth your time."

Mai once again watched the interactions between the boy, Aldrich, and a villager. She was curious- he received a warmth that she can only imagine. Even the voice that spoke to her held a restrained and detached worry.

Aldrich turned to Mai and frowned, his eyes not willing to accept the veiled disgust and contempt the female villager felt for Mai. He shook off the villager's grip and turned away from the two of them. However, he discretely sent a signal to Mai; unfortunately, Mai did not understand what the signal meant.

The female villager sent a look of disgust towards Mai and then she left, lugging the large basket of laundry with her towards the village stream.

Mai faintly smiled at the villager that she was to be sacrificed for. She found it ironic- the villagers all hated her, yet they must deal with the sacrifice to better their lives. She felt like the woven grassroots basket that the villagers made during the spring. They used the basket to hold onto their ornamental beads to make their crafts, but once the basket is worn down and can no longer hold the beads, the basket is torn apart and used to feed the cows.

"Look up," the voice told her with a stern tone. "You cannot be sad. You chose this route, now bear the consequences."

Mai raised a brow and looked up, not a sliver of fear or sadness in her eyes. Instead, an understanding that even the voice was surprised to see could be felt from the undulating waves within her pupils. The voice felt a profound peace around the girl and the voice felt angry.

"Why don't you ever fight back!" the voice whispered, hurt. However, Mai could not hear the voice for the voice did not project its thought to Mai's head.

Since she had completed saying her fifty words of the day, Mai could only stare at the sky in patient resignation- although she had questions and wanted answers that only the voice could answer, she was bound to silence, a friend that she was used to.

She felt comfortable in silence and believed that she was able to think better in its maternal embrace.

It was during her contemplation over silence when she heard a voice whisper from behind a bush. "Come here!" It was Aldrich.

Mai turned her head inquisitively and viewed the figure that crouched underneath the bush. He held a tree branch over his head, but the leaves were of a different kind from the bush, and Mai knew that any villager would be able to tell of the boy's hiding place. Aldrich noticed Mai's attention and he beamed, gesturing with his hands for her to hurry over. Mai looked around her area. There were no villagers, so Aldrich would not be in trouble once again.

Walking closer to the boy and crouching down so that they are at the same eye level, Mai tilted her head to show him that she was confused.

"Don't worry," Aldrich said, "I don't feel the same way as the other villagers. What they're doing to you isn't right, and I'm going to find a way to stop it." He vowed, his hands shaking in quiet anger that the tree branch that he was holding in his hands made vibrant sha-sha noises.

You don't need to, Mai mouthed the words, unsure of whether Aldrich would understand despite the sound not flowing from her lips. Aldrich noticed her quiet mouthing of the words and he grew contemplative, his eyes paying close attention to the words that Mai was shaping with her lips.

"You. Don't. Meat. To?" He asked, confusion in his eyes. "What do you mean- oh, you meant 'You don't need to'." He grew solemn once he understood what she had told him. "I want you to live, Mai. I don't want the stain of another young girl to be on the villagers' hands."

Mai shook her head and smiled, pantomiming to Aldrich for him to let go of the tree branch and lift up a hand. It took three times for Aldrich to understand, and Mai quietly giggled when he had put the tree branch on her head instead of the ground. She carefully grabbed the branch and placed it on the ground, avoiding a direct touch of Aldrich's hands.

When Aldrich raised his hand, Mai raised hers at the same time, and a small distance between the two hands formed, yet it felt like the chasm of an eternity. Aldrich noticed their two hands and he grew tempted to touch Mai, yet he knew that she would be punished if he were to do it.

"It's okay," Aldrich said, "I'll find some way to save you." He then stood up, his hand leaving its companion alone. Mai faintly smiled and clenched her fist. She chose to do this.

Mai stayed in the bush until one of the villagers noticed that she was no longer in the thinly disguised pen that they put her in. They sounded an alarm until Mai had popped her head out of the bush, a small cut on her shoulder. The village chief starved her for three days as punishment for both of the offenses.

Thus it was on the fifth day of her release from God's house that Mai saw Aldrich once more.

He had hid once again in the bush, but he was hesitant to allow her to crouch once more. He saw that her already thin shoulders grew thinner, and her translucent skin grew lighter.

"Are you okay," he asked, knowing that the answer was no.

However, Mai smiled and nodded to Aldrich. She did not blame them. She blamed no one. "Thank you," she said. Twelve words left.

Aldrich stared in shock at the girl. It was the first time that he had ever heard such a beautiful voice. He felt as if the singers in the Kingdom of Ymir could not compare to those two words from her- they matched her inner and outer beauty well.

"You spoke," he said the obvious out-loud. "You have a beautiful voice."

Mai nodded and smiled once more, trying to express her thanks. "Mai," she said, pointing towards herself. Eleven words left.

Aldrich looked at her in wonder, surprised that the girl had named herself. He placed a hand on his chest and said, "Aldrich."

Nodding, Mai mouthed the words 'I know' to the boy. Aldrich grinned and stood up from the bush. He felt happy that he was the first of the children to hear Mai's voice. However, he soon realized his objective; he had coincidentally found Mai's mother. Although she was no longer a part of the village, Aldrich had come to realize that the sacrificial offering ceremony required the birth mother of the sacrifice. Therefore, he had waited numerous times behind the bush during the three days that Mai was gone to tell her this.

"I know where your mother is," Aldrich solemnly told the girl. "I can take you to her."

Hesitation flashed past Mai's face and doubt sprouted in her heart. She realized that she had a small desire to see her mother- she had a small desire to understand the warmth that the others received, and she could only dream of.

"You cannot," the voice told her. "You will be caught seeing your mother, and the punishment will not end in just three days like the last one."

Mai took heed of the voice's words, and the small hope within her chest was forcibly extinguished.

"No, I can't." Mai told the boy, shaking her head.

Aldrich deflated like a balloon, and his enthusiasm dampened. "Why not," he whined. Although the boy was wiser than other children his age, and he had been exposed to the more liberal ideas in the Kingdom of Ymir, he was still a young boy that was spoiled by everyone in the village. He could not understand why Mai did not jump at his offer.

"I am the sacrifice. Not human."

Aldrich looked at her in shock, "No, you are human."

Mai shook her head. "It's okay," she said.

Aldrich shook his head and anger laced his words. "Why are you saying that it's okay when it clearly isn't! You are going to die, Mai!"

Mai smiled and pointed at Aldrich, her demeanor calm. "Dir."

"What?" Aldrich paused, confusion in his face.

However, Mai was unable to answer him. She had used up all of her words, but she hoped that he would realize that 'Dir' was her nickname for him. He would be the only one to know her name from the village, and she will be the only one to have a nickname for him.

"Dir?" Aldrich asked before he realized what Mai was trying to convey. "Alright, Mai," he said, "You can call me Dir."

They smiled, and Mai was happy that he didn't realize the other meaning of the word. 'Dear'. He was the darling of the village, and he was also her first and last, dear friend.

When Aldrich stood up to leave Mai, Mai mouthed 'Dir' at him, her smile showcasing her pearly whites.

"Bye, Mai," Aldrich said. "We aren't finished with the previous conversation, but I'll let you go today."

Mai nodded, mischievously. Although she could no longer speak after her fiftieth word, she still had her ways to redirect conversations. Although that was only with the voice since most of the conversations with the villagers that assisted her were terse and were usually one-word questions and one-word answers.

"Do you like him?" the voice abruptly asked, neither of them realizing the small amount of jealousy hidden in the voice's words.

Mai thought for a moment before she slowly nodded her head. She did like him- he was kind, patient, and cared for others. He was also her first friend.

The voice remained silent for a few seconds before it spoke once more, "I'm glad you found a friend, Mai." The voice had subconsciously emphasized 'friend', however Mai failed to notice. She just nodded, agreeing with the voice that had stayed with her since she was 6-years old.

Mai once more returned to the task that the village had originally asked of her to do from inside God's house: weave rugs. Now Mai weaved the rugs outside, enjoying the taste of the wind and the sun shining down upon her.

It was at that moment that villager chief Owansu had found Mai. He stood before the girl, yet he ensured that he was outside of the markings of the pen that they made for her. Chief Owansu looked at the girl and was dissatisfied. Although she was more beautiful that her mother, the girl was smarter than the average villager. Owansu was afraid that she would revolt her fate.

"Sacrifice," Owansu said, his tone stern and cold, "come here."

Mai had noticed the chief long before he had stopped before her, but she ignored his presence. The things that he asks of her were not always pleasant.

"Sacrifice!" Owansu grew angry that the girl failed to immediately perk her head at his call. Did she think that being let out of God's house allowed her to disrespect him? Owansu grew angrier at the thought and bellowed, "Come here!"

Mai slowly put her weaving material down before she glanced up, her eyes holding a cool indifference that only fueled the flames of Owansu's anger. Walking towards him with slow, steady steps, Mai stood before the man.

"You stupid thing," Chief Owansu said underneath his breath, but Mai could still hear him. Once Chief Owansu had finished looking down at the sacrifice before him, he carelessly threw words at it. "An important guest came from the Kingdom of Ymir. You must present yourself before him, but you must not speak." Chief Owansu's voice dropped down an octave, threats lacing his tone. "If you break any of your vows, I will ensure that you will no longer be able to leave from God's house until the next spring!"

Mai slowly nodded at Chief Owansu, her eyes with no inflection at all. She had long regarded the man as a fool, but she forgave him. The man had the village's interests at heart.

Chief Owansu grew smug at the sacrifice's meek acceptance. He turned his head and nodded at the female villagers that he had brought along with him. Leaving behind orders to dress the sacrifice in the sacrificial clothing, Chief Owansu left to find his grandson.