“Where’s the firewood?” Ailani called out to Lagi just as he came into view. The lights of the fire behind her cast her in a deep shadow, but he didn’t need to see her to know her voice, know her silhouette. Samaria was trailing just a few steps behind.

“I couldn’t find any,” he lied.

“Well that’s alright. I’ll send Keone out to get some after the feast.”

When Lagi reached the camp, Ailani handed him a new cup and grasped the hand that took the drink in both of hers, pressing tightly and looking into Lagi’s eyes with a welcoming smile.

“You’re a bit warm,” she said calmly. “Best to try not to stray too close to the fire.”

Lagi pulled away his hand quickly, causing some of the spirited liquid to spill over the brim of his cup and trickle onto his feet. “I-I-I,” he stuttered. He had no idea what to say about this. He had been able to cool down some following the incident at the stream, but it had left him flustered and confused. He wondered if he wasn’t close to dying. Maybe the gods were angry at him for how he treated Kaipo. This was their way of cursing him, killing him from the inside. How could he say that to a woman he considered a mother to him? “I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”

“I always worry about you, ku’uipo.”

Lagi knew this was true, and he couldn’t help but feel guilty for it. Since his mother had been banished from the tribe, Ailani took him in when no custom obliged her to. She raised him from the time he was eight, taught him all the things his mother should have, preparing him for his first fire and comforting him when it never came. And she never abandoned him, still. Even now, she was his mentor in the tribe, always finding a job, a role, a place for him when he had none.

Ailani, of course, had no one else. Maybe, Lagi thought, she only saw him as a replacement for her own children who she was never able to have. Or, maybe, he was a replacement for her husband who died in the notorious battle between all four tribes of the island. Maybe, though, he wasn’t a replacement at all. Just a burden she assumed for the good of the tribe. Whatever the reason, it hurt Lagi to know that she had done -- would always do -- so much for him and that he could do so little in return.

Just behind Ailani, Lagi saw that people were already gathering for the feast, and he silently pushed past her to take his place.

“Samaria!” Ailani said brightly, finally seeing her emerge from the darkness. “I didn’t know you had gone.”