the snowed odyssey — 2

Little Harmoni did not delay in interrogating Yéti with a soft and innocent voice. She wanted to know where she was. Panicked and afraid, he retreated when he heard his voice and dared not answer it. He therefore let long seconds pass before informing her that she was in her dwelling in the middle of the mountain, far from any human civilization. Yeti was obliged to go out to get food, to a place near the cave, so as not to be absent for too long. As usual, he found cattle that he then made leather on the fire, inside his cave. However, when he was out, he never took the little girl with him. No one should be aware of the presence of a human among his people. He was entirely unaware of what other people might react to, and so he did not take more risks than he was already taking.

A very strong bond had already been established between them. Indeed, Harmoni still felt the need to be taken care of.

She trusted him so much that Yeti felt disarmed.

He was not used to taking care of a little girl, let alone a human.

A few weeks passed during which Yeti became affectionate for this little girl who needed the attention of a father. Harmoni did not seem to be aware of her situation, she was moved and happy to have a person present by her side. What surprised Yeti most during the time they spent together was the touching innocence of the little girl. Indeed, Harmoni looked at him with a mixture of fun and naivety. It often happened that the girl asked many questions, she asked him where she came from and why Yeti was not like her. Yeti also took time to explain to him everything he knew about the origin of the world, and in response Harmoni laughed. When she laughed, Yeti felt in such deep happiness that he could not regret having taken the girl under his wing.

One day, when Yeti was returning as usual from his daily hunting, but this time it was different, he had a surprise. Two of his peers were standing in front of his dwelling. Of course, since Yeti had made the crazy decision to take care of Harmoni, he could no longer spend time with his friends. He didn’t really go out, except for hunting, and his friends had noticed it. He understood not much of what was happening to him, but his ears murmured because the screams of his friends were loud.

He was called a madman, a fool, and even a traitor, and he quickly understood what was the subject of these attacks.

It was Harmoni. He had not much to answer them because it was he who had decided to bring her back. He eventually lowered his eyes and contemplated the snow, while his friends were trying to shake him, to make him aware of his act. He cried out with all his strength, his decision had been made and he did not want to go back on it. They threatened him. They were going to end up telling the Trackers everything. Yeti did not take time to think, he thought of Harmoni. He went to get her, not forgetting his backpack, and not even a minute later, they’re on their way. They had fled.

They had already taken the road for a few hours. They remained on their guard, anxious at the slightest noise that seemed suspicious to them. Yeti thought of what had happened before, and the only thing that had counted in his eyes was Harmoni. The behavior of her peers had hurt her, but her main concern was to take care of her. Their escape thus lasted several days. They were not spared any difficulty. In fact, to travel this long road was complicated for Harmoni, who was still very young. Nevertheless, they had no other choice. During this long journey, their complicity only grew. Harmoni showed him all sorts of things on their way: snow, trees, hills and mountains. It even happened that the little girl was pissing. Yeti tried hard and well to preach her, but he always ended up laughing at her. After having rested one night, which was also difficult for Harmoni because it was not made to live naturally in the cold, Yéti explained to her with a few words that she could understand, that they were on the run. To ensure their safety, they decided to change places every day.

In this way, no one could know where they were.

Yeti thought it was the best solution. He didn’t know what had happened to his house after he had escaped. Per his friends had gone to report them to the Trackers, but he thought it was impossible. His peers’t dare. Yeti refused to believe it. If his friends showed up in front of humans, they would not hesitate to kill him and take the little girl with them, but this bloody show risked traumatizing her. He quickly removed these thoughts from his head, he no longer wanted to think of these things. He wanted to admit that they were both in a complicated situation, but to imagine that the Trackers were already at their disposal, it seemed impossible to him.

In the woods, while they were doing their usual round, the Trackers heard a noise that seemed strange to them: the sound of a branch cracking on the ground. They all began to advance cautiously towards this noise. Who was there? Maybe it was an animal? They decided to go and take a look around the forest. Both held their bow as long as the situation remained suspicious. One of the Trackers cried out that it was a false alarm. Indeed, it was just an arctic lizard crawling through the bushes. The pressure went down again. They resumed their patrol, each on his side.

Meanwhile, a little further, Yeti and Harmoni survived as they could. Indeed, they had livestock and plants, but they lacked water. Yeti could survive, but Harmoni began to weaken. Yeti, seeing the little girl crying and increasingly thirsty, decided to take her on her back and head to a fountain. Water seemed easy to find, but yet it was at the border of the forest. He had to take that risk if he didn’t want to see the little girl die of dehydration. Tired, they used their last forces to reach the source.

Yeti took care to leave the little Harmoni under a blanket, removed her scarf for more comfort and went to fill several bottles.

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Thank you for reading. ♡