Page 131 of Ashes of Gold
“The world is changing, is it not?” She tucks the gold coins in a pouch, then stuffs them in my bust. “Titube will finish you up, then.” She presses her hands together then sets them both on my bare right shoulder. “My Queen.”
“Thank you so much, Lalae.”
She dips her chin and disappears behind the door. There weren’t many spaces inside the mountain still intact for this sort of thing, but the grandest room they could find is the one they put me in. I told them I didn’t need all that, but they insisted. And tradition is very important to our people, so I kept my mouth shut from then on.
I try to take a step, but Titube holds my foot still.
“Not yet,” she says, holding my foot above a pile of dust. “Okay, now.”
I dip my foot in the soft pile of earth.
“Now the next one.”
I dip my second foot in the pile of golden ash. My feet shine metallic from the ankle down. Titube’s tiny hands work around my calves, tying golden twine. “We pray that strength from our roots would wrap around us, lift us up. That we would walk on the soil they built with pride.” She loops the end of the twine at my ankle in a bow. “It is what the twine represents.”
“Ah, I see.”
“When the world is right again, maybe one day you can escort me to my turning out? Memi says it is when I get to wear nice robes like this one.”
“It’s a plan, then. I would love that.”
She stands, her cheeks pushing up under her eyes. “Now you are finished, my Queen.” She bows, backing away, but before she can run off, I take her by the hand.
“Wouldyouescortmeinto the Kowana ceremony?”
Her eyes are moons. “You mean it? M-me?”
I nod, tucking her hand under my arm, and we depart the room as the creaky door swishes closed behind us.
The ceremony is quicker than I expect it to be. Waves lap the edge of the mountain, cool air gusting the hem of my robes. My people sit in an arc around us, done up in stripes with dotted faces. Ornaments loop in and out of their hair, and thetingof gold beads rings throughthe air with each breeze. The Ancestors’ burial ground is under our feet, and the sun is almost hidden behind Yiyo’s crest as I complete the last ritual of the ceremony. While I’m on my knees, Bati sets a cloak of fur across my shoulders.
“From Father Mishon Ide Beerchi,” he says.
“Mwaaa!” Barks of glee erupt from the Beerchi in the crowd.
“And from the Mother Moi Ike Yakanna,” Bati says. The ground rumbles under their pounding in revelry. He smiles, raising his voice above the cheer, and presses a golden javelin into my hand. “And last but certainly not least. A gift from Gahlee, me and my brothers.” He hooks a beaded strand between my wrist, then my finger. It twists once on itself in an infinity pattern. He traces his fingers along it. “Leading is a never-ending battle between believing you are good enough to do it and understanding how capable you are of making a grave misstep.” Bati traces the threaded symbol on his own robe, and whistles flit through the branches from his brothers. “The eternal balance of humility and pride, my Queen.”
I tilt my head in a bow before rising to my feet.
“It is with the highest honor,” he bellows, “I present Rue Jelani Akintola, daughter of Moi Mother Ike and Mishon Ide Beerchi, direct descendant of Aasim Ade Akintola and Naomi April Harris, daughter of East Row andQueenof Ghizon in her own right.”
Hollers blare in my ear and the sounds of plucked strings flit through the air. Music takes over the ceremony, and somewhere garlicky onion goodness is heating up.
With the ceremony over, I slip my bare feet into my Maxes and join the dancing. I loop arms with Bati, who might look ancient but moves like he’s still got it. We circle and I spin, twisting my hips,grinding to the beat. The best I can, anyway, in this gown. When my dance is done, I’m hip to hip with a Beerchi who got me looking like I can’t dance compared to his moves. I sway with him, rocking to the beat until my feet are sore and my cheeks burn from grinning. I catch sight of Julius, who’s trying to teach Bri how to bop. It’s not going well.
“I’m going to catch my breath for a beat, if that’s cool.” The Beerchi dances off, looping a Yakanna around the waist.
My gaze moves to Jue and Bri in the crowd like a moth to a light. “I never properly thanked you two.”
Jue squeezes my hand and Bri pulls at pieces of my fabric. “This isactualgold, Rue.”
“It is?” I don’t know why I’m surprised. I shouldn’t expect anything less.
“Yeah,” she says, squinting. “And you’re welcome. I’m so glad it worked.”
“I wish we could have seen how it went down,” Jue says.
“Oh, it was ham. For a minute there I thought we were done for. What exactly happened at the grave site?”
