Prologue (3)

The night had completely covered in the village of Ekule. Babida the lumberjack was unsuccessfully trying to have some sleep after though a long and hard day of work. The reason was that he couldn't help reminiscing about the unexpected encounter in the bushes he had earlier in the afternoon.

The image of the dark in complexion young maiden with whirling hair and dressed in a pink silk robe with cords on the waist fastened in the form of a butterfly knot could not get away from his mind.

The mighty woodsman was hit by a wave of love that shook him in all directions and made him lose control of himself. For the first time in a long moment, he felt weak. The fascination he was having for the unknown pretty maiden was now viral.

"I wonder where the young maiden in pink dress dwells?" Babida the lumberjack whispered to himself.

"I bet she lives in the neighboring village Okala in the west, for I have never spotted her around here," he persuaded himself.

"Therefore, tomorrow early morning I will travel to Okala and look for her," he decided.

"I must first try to get some rest," he added as he laid his head on the pillow, and stretched his hands and feet to the edges of his ebony-made bed, then finally fell asleep.

Before dawn, Babida the lumberjack rose up. He geared up and completely changed his appearance. Indeed, with the help of the mirror in the tiny bathroom of his cabin and the sharp blade of his ax, he got rid of his enormous beard and made his mustache clean-cut. He then applied lemon juice on his face to eradicate the dead cells and the recalcitrant pimples.

Thereafter, he took a bath that was longer than usual before spraying rose-made fragrance on his armpits, neck, cheeks, and voluminous chest. He squirted too a few drops of the perfume onto the palms of his hands and rubbed slightly his face and the rest of his body.

Lastly, he wore a long perfectly white boubou with a brown kufi hat and covered his feet with brown leather sandals.

Done with clothing, he took the way to Okala and arrived at the main arteries of the village. They were crowded and noisy as always. Charcoal merchants, butchers, fish sellers, tailors, jewelers, customers, passers-by, and running kids were animating the streets.

Babida started his inquiry. He asked passers-by if they knew the whereabouts of a slim and black-skinned woman of eighteen years of age or a little bit above with curling hair who could wear to perfection a silk robe, notably a pink one with a butterfly knot on the front side.

People had no idea who the young Miss was. Desperate, Babida held on for a moment. He stood in a corner, thinking about what he would do next. A group of three kids about twelve years old who were playing in the area and had remarked on him walked up to him.

One of the teenagers, who seemed to be the chief of the band, spoke to him and affirmed with an imperious tone: "Ho! I know someone who can help you find whoever you are looking for."

Babida was very disturbed by the small boy's lack of tact but chose not to scold him. He preferred to focus on how the latter could assist him in his love quest.

"Oh really? Well, I'm all ears, speak!" The logger reacted.

"Look to your left, straight! Over there is the Witch's street," the toddler said while showing the direction with his index finger.

"Go there and all your questions will be met with answers!" He commanded.