Kiyomi and the Unspoken Power

The first time I heard the drums, I thought they were beating for me.

It had been a day of great celebration. My father's hunt had been successful, and the village was in high spirits. The hunter's daughter would be married off to another tribe, and we would benefit greatly from the trade. With news like that, it was no wonder the people were so joyous, and why they had decided to beat their drums so loudly. Their thundering beats filled the valley like a storm, shaking the ground beneath my feet, rattling leaves off the trees and causing small rocks to fall from the surrounding hillsides. They sang along with the sound of the drums, raucous melodies that followed each beat in perfect harmony. A few of them danced wildly as well, shaking their heads and shoulders to accentuate their movements. It was quite a sight to behold--I had never seen my people so happy before.

As I watched them dance, however, my gaze drifted slightly higher than where I should have been looking. I didn't mean to look at all of them like that, but I just couldn't help myself. He was beautiful--that much was undeniable--and his clear skin glowed golden in the afternoon sun. His eyes were wide and full of life, ones that seemed as if they could see right into your soul. And his hair...it was dark as ebony and flowed like liquid moonlight down past his shoulders when he moved it out of his face with one graceful hand. And that body of his...well...let's just say that it certainly didn't seem like he needed those clothes to hide anything from anyone!

We made eye contact for just a moment too long, and before either of us could look away again, he nodded his head at me and waved slightly before disappearing into the crowd of dancers behind him. My heart started racing almost immediately after he did so--he was absolutely beautiful! I felt something inside of me stir at that moment that I hadn't felt since I was a child--a feeling of excitement coupled with anticipation--but this time it was somehow different than what I was used to. It frightened me more than anything else ever had in my entire life.

Suddenly there came a familiar voice from behind me, one belonging to my good friend Aliko. "You looked rather mesmerized by our dancing." She laughed softly as she took a seat next to me on our little cliff overlooking the village below us. "I hope you're not going anywhere soon! You're about to be married off!" She sighed wistfully for a moment before continuing with her teasing tone. "But if you are leaving...you should probably tell your father beforehand so he doesn't kill someone over it." She smirked playfully at me while she said this last part; she knew how protective my father tended to be over me when it came to other men outside of our tribe's borders.

I chuckled quietly in response, but didn't say anything back to her right away--my mind had been far away from her jesting remarks up until now. It wasn't until several moments passed that she realized something was wrong with me--after all, this wasn't really my normal behavior around her at all! When she finally noticed that I wasn't returning her playful banter back to her like usual, she turned towards me curiously and put her hand on top of mine gently in an attempt to get my attention. "Hey Kiyomi? Are you alright?" Her brow furrowed slightly in concern when she noticed how distracted I truly was by whatever had caught my eye earlier on down at the village below us; apparently even she had taken notice of how distracted I was by our visitor!

Feeling flustered, I pulled away from her suddenly as if stung by a venomous snake or bitten by some poisonous insect. This drew out a look of confusion mixed with bewilderment on her face. She raised her eyebrows, and her mouth hung open ever so slightly in shock; apparently, this reaction threw her off even more than before! This caused me to blush deeply and avert my gaze downward towards the ground between us; there seemed to be nothing else for me left but heavy silence now! How could I possibly explain myself? What could I possibly say?

"Kiyomi?" Aliko asked hesitantly after several moments passed without an answer from me or any real movement on my part. That got both of us moving again: one way or another, we needed answers now! Finally able to gather up some courage within myself, I turned towards her slowly with a pleading look on my face meant only for her eyes alone--Aliko knew what this look meant better than anyone else alive in our village! Smirking deviously back at me as if reading my mind, Aliko stood back up and started walking away with a wicked smile etched across her face. As soon as she did