Part III
The story makes more sense if you read the first two parts, but you do you. :)
Disclaimer:
This story is set in 1930's America and reflects cultural norms for that time/place. Some of the characters here act and speak in a manner that is sexist/racist. I promise they'll learn better by the end of the story. :) Also, a couple of the characters here are based on real people. Please don't sue me if I turned your great-great-grandma into a sex goddess. :P
Flagstaff, 1929
"Oh, you ARE a big boy!" Tala said. She bent over the bed and reached into the unruly bush, looking for the base. "Gotcha."
She tugged with both hands, and a particularly large specimen of celery came out by the roots. She was almost done harvesting her autumn vegetables from the garden bed.
Elizabeth came marching into the clearing with a basket tucked under one arm, talking to herself animatedly. Her hair was un-tied and blowing around wildly, and she weaved around awkwardly avoiding gopher holes.
Tala looked at her with concern.
"Sorry I'm late," Elizabeth said when she noticed Tala staring. She plopped herself down on the edge of the garden and started to dig up one of the plants.
"Are you okay? You look like you were just ravished by a band of wild savages."
"Ha ha," Elizabeth said sarcastically. She wasn't in the mood for humor, but the irony of Tala, who was an actual savage, making THAT comment wasn't lost on her.
"Well... you're close," she continued. "Just one." She glanced up, giving her friend a meaningful look.
"Clyde? Um... isn't that a... good... thing?" Tala asked.
Elizabeth took a deep breath and sighed heavily. "Almost."
"Almost?" Tala laughed in spite of herself, earning a dirty look from her frustrated friend. "Do I need to schedule you another doctor's appointment?" she snickered.
"No!" Elizabeth stared up at her madly. "No! Ever since that damned appointment..." she trailed off, evidently thinking better of what she was about to say.
"What?" Tala arched an eyebrow, her curiosity piqued.
Elizabeth whispered conspiratorially. "Ever since that damned appointment... Every. Single. Morning. For over a week!"
"That sounds pretty good to me," Tala replied. A vision of Clyde's cock springing free from his pants danced across her mind's eye.
"Ugh. It's so short, skinny, and white," Elizabeth stated.
"What?! I saw Clyde at the doctor's office, and he is NOT short OR skinny!" Tala looked up at her friend incredulously.
Elizabeth held up a tiny, malnourished-looking carrot that she had just dug up. She screwed up her face in an expression that might have meant 'look-at-this' or possibly 'explain-yourself.'
Tala glanced at the offending vegetable, and opened her mouth, but no words came to her. She felt her face growing warm.
Elizabeth started to giggle. She had never seen Tala look embarrassed before.
Tala laughed hesitantly. "Why didn't you just... finish... yourself?"
"What? I... I wouldn't know how!" It was Elizabeth's turn to blush.
"Wuuti Qootsa!" Tala exclaimed in her native language. "Are you joking? Please tell me you're not serious?"
Elizabeth turned her body away from her friend, reflexively adopting a defensive posture. "It's a..." Her voice tapered off. "It's a sin!" she whispered. Even as she said it, she thought it sounded lame.
"Please!" Tala rolled her eyes towards heaven. "The only way Jesus is going to stop me, is if He comes here down here to finish the job Himself!"
Elizabeth took a step backwards, jaw dropping, hands moving to cover her gaping mouth. She glanced nervously towards the heavens, checking for fire and brimstone, hoping she wouldn't get blasted if God struck Tala down right there on the spot. A hawk that circled above them seemed unconcerned.
Tala laughed at Elizabeth. She couldn't help but like the woman. She found Elizabeth's innocence somehow endearing. Tala had an instinctual urge to... to what? Protect her? No, that wasn't quite right. Tala thought that what Elizabeth needed was experience. She needed to be stripped of her innocence, before some evil person came along and shattered her into a million pieces. She needed to be... seduced... corrupted. The thought was exciting. Tala wondered - was this what attracted Clyde to her in the first place?
"Whaat?!" Elizabeth said, bringing Tala back to the world. "Why are you looking at me like that?
"Like what?" Tala smiled.
"You're like a shark watching a tuna!" Elizabeth said.
Tala widened her grin, showing as many teeth as she could, embracing the role of hunter. She waggled her eyebrows at Elizabeth and reached out, taking her by the hand. "Come on!"
Elizabeth let herself be pulled along. "Where are we going?" she asked, giggling as she went.
"To eat tuna!" Tala deadpanned, before chuckling at her own joke.
Elizabeth was dragged in Tala's wake, offering no resistance as she was led across the clearing, over a round-topped hill, and up a crooked path that was lined with volcanic rocks. They were both still laughing as they arrived at one of the cabins.
"Oh, is this your place?" Elizabeth asked breathlessly. She had mostly acclimated to the elevation, but her forced march had been at a quicker pace than she was used to.
"Take your shoes off," Tala commanded, opening the door and stripping away her own shoes. "Come in."
As Elizabeth stepped into the dim cabin, her eyes strained greedily to see everything. She was curious what an Indian's cabin might contain. As her eyes adjusted, she found the room to be a mixture of strange and familiar things.
The main room was dominated by an enormous four-post bed that had obviously seen better days. The posts were made of ornately carved wood, a fancy European style of some sort, but they were all scuffed up. The bed might have had a canopy once, but no longer. It seemed big enough to accommodate a whole family. The middle was an ocean of quilts and blankets, none of which were quite large enough to cover the whole mattress. These came in bright reds, oranges, and yellows that seemed foreign, but the overall effect was warm and inviting.