One night the wind picked up. At first it was just a gentle breeze that helped to cool them down. Then the wind became stronger and eventually it was blowing very hard.
“We have to get to the bottom of the dune!” ordered Hyena. “This is dangerous!” Hyena marshaled the little group down the slope and found them a hollow between the dunes. They huddled together to wait for the wind to calm down. But the wind kept on blowing and blowing and there was sand everywhere. They quickly got covered in a layer of red sand. But still the wind kept on blowing.
“You have to lie low, Suricate!” he ordered when Meerkat lifted his head, to feel if the wind was perhaps calming down. Meerkat lowered his head again and huddled with the others.
Then, even though the wind was making a very loud noise they heard the sound.
“Crunch, crunch!” It was quiet for a while, but then they heard it again. “Crunch...crunch!” The team went very quiet. “Crunch…” it sounded again. Then Hyena giggled.
“You must remember to close your mouth when the wind is blowing, Suricate!” Hyena said. Meerkat’s mouth was full of sand. The grains of sand were crunching between his teeth. The others struggled not to laugh, but it was difficult.
Then they tried to get some sleep, but Meerkat could not get the sand out of his mouth. “Crunch…crunch.” That went on all night while the wind kept on blowing and blowing. Nobody thought that it was funny anymore.
~~**~~
The wind kept on blowing. All through the next day it blew and blew. Monkey was getting very tired of huddling down in the hollow. He wanted to stretch his legs and run around a bit.
“You have to lie low, Monkey!” Hyena ordered. “This wind will blow you away!” But Monkey was restless and kept on fidgeting.
“Can’t I walk around just a little bit?” Monkey asked again after some time. Hyena lifted his head a little to check if the wind had calmed down. But the wind was still blowing awfully hard. “No, Monkey, it is dangerous…” but before he could finish the warning, Monkey had stood up.
Immediately the dangerous wind grabbed Monkey! It lifted him into the air and he lost his footing. “Help!” he shouted. The wind dropped him for a short second but before he could scurry back to the safety of the hollow, it picked him up again.
“Help!” Monkey cried out desperately. For one long second everyone was frozen in shock but then Hyena shot up and with two giant leaps he was on top of Monkey, holding him down with his body. He lay low for a moment to catch his breath.
“Monkey, grab onto the fur on my tummy! We have to get you back to the hollow!” Hyena ordered. Monkey was too scared to grab onto Hyena.
“Grab on, Monkey!” Hyena shouted again. Then Monkey grabbed on and slowly Hyena crawled back to the hollow, with Monkey hanging upside down under his tummy.
“I’ve told you to stay down, Monkey! You must listen!” Monkey and Meerkat thought that Hyena sounded very cross and angry, but Ostrich could hear the frightened wobble in Hyena’s voice.
Then everyone was quiet. Except the wind. The wind was very noisy all through the night.
~~**~~
“Wake up, Everyone!” Jackal called. Sun was awake and the wind had calmed down. It was a lovely day. “Get ready, let’s go!” Jackal urged.
In no time at all, the team was ready to go. Everyone was in a good mood and eager to find the place where Sun went to sleep.
Monkey looked up at Sun and shouted: “We’ll catch you, Sun!” Everyone laughed. “Very soon we’ll catch you!”
That day they reached the place where the dunes flattened out. It was still very hard to travel, but now they did not need to travel around the dunes. They could walk across it. There were very many of it, but they made good progress. Everyone was in good spirit and they travelled for many more days.
Jackal was in front, with Monkey and Meerkat behind him. Then Ostrich followed, with Hyena loping along at the back. Sometimes Meerkat would run ahead, chatting to Jackal, and Monkey would hitch a ride with Ostrich. Hyena was always at the back.
~~**~~
“Look at all that water!” cried Monkey early one morning.
There had been a very thick blanket of fog hanging in the air and for a couple of days they couldn’t see what was around them. They had to travel carefully, trying to follow Sun. But now the fog was lifting slowly and they could see a little bit more.
“This is a very big lake!” Monkey could not contain his excitement. “There!” he pointed when Jackal came trotting up from behind. Jackal squinted to see where Monkey pointed. He sniffed the air.
“It is not a lake, Monkey!” Jackal shook his head. “It is the sea,” he added importantly.
“Look, we’re standing on solid rock. It is not sand anymore!” Meerkat said when the rest of the team had joined up.
Suddenly the fog lifted and there was bright sunshine all around them. They all looked down from where they stood on the rocks. A narrow beach was below them and the waves rolled onto the strip of beach. When there was a big wave, the water rushed up to cover the beach completely. And when it was a huge wave, the water crashed onto the rocks on which they were standing.
“The sea? I’ve never seen the sea before!” Monkey danced around excitedly. “Come Meerkat, let’s go and swim in the sea!” he shouted.
“No Monkey! No Suricate!” Hyena ordered. “Stay here!” Meerkat hesitated, but Monkey didn’t listen to Hyena. He scrambled down the rocks towards the sea.
“No! Monkey!” hollered Hyena. “Don’t go there!” But Monkey was already on the narrow strip of beach and before Hyena could leap after him, Monkey had reached the water.
Monkey had never seen the sea before and the waves looked very pretty when it rolled and crashed onto the beach. The water rushed and bubbled and frothed. White foam sprayed everywhere. Monkey waited a short moment for a big wave to roll closer and with one giant leap he jumped straight into it…
The wave crashed over Monkey’s head and Monkey was upside down in the water. It rolled and tumbled him. It grabbed him and dragged him deeper and deeper before the next wave picked him up again and rushed him back to the beach. It was freezing cold. It was so cold that Monkey couldn’t feel his little legs. He couldn’t find his footing and a wave snatched him every time before he could stand up. And every time it took him back to the ocean, deeper and deeper.
There was a short moment of calm and Monkey coughed and spluttered. He swallowed a big mouthful of salty water before the next wave rushed him back to the beach. It rolled him out into the shallow water and that was when he saw Hyena!
Hyena came charging towards him, his lips drawn back in an ugly snarl that bared his big teeth! Monkey scrambled to find a foothold in the shallow water, but he lost his balance as the sand washed away beneath his feet. Monkey shrieked!
Hyena was almost upon him when the next wave came rushing towards him. Hyena’s mouth was wide open and all that Monkey could see was Hyena’s enormous fangs that stood out like pointed spikes! As Hyena’s mouth closed, Monkey gave one final shriek and then all went quiet…
~~**~~
Meerkat stood petrified at the top of the rocks. He had hesitated to go with Monkey, because Hyena had hollered at them. Then Hyena had rushed past him, shouting and yelling at Monkey.
Meerkat could see that Monkey did not know anything about the sea. The sea was very cold and Monkey was almost drowning! Monkey would not be able to run away from Hyena! Meerkat could see that Hyena was rapidly closing the gap between himself and Monkey.
Meerkat’s heart was beating in his throat. He could see Hyena, his mouth open, his big teeth bared! Monkey tried to scramble for a foothold, but then Monkey lost his balance as the sand washed away beneath him and the next wave came rushing up.
Meerkat had lost his voice. He held his breath and he thought that he would faint! Monkey gave one final shriek as Hyena’s big mouth closed around his head. Then Monkey went limp and all went quiet…
~~**~~
<
br /> Slowly, slowly Hyena dragged Monkey out onto the beach. He had Monkey by the scruff and he carefully pulled him away from the rushing waves. When Monkey was safely out of reach of the water, Hyena sat down to take a deep breath. His heart was beating wildly in his chest and for a minute he thought that he would faint. Monkey had almost drowned!
Monkey coughed. Then Ostrich and Jackal arrived and together they nudged Monkey until he had turned and was lying on his side. Monkey coughed once more to get the water out of his lungs. He slowly opened his eyes. That was when Meerkat found his tongue and he exploded into anger..!
~~**~~
“Hyena!” cried Meerkat. Meerkat was spitting angry! He charged down the rocks and came to a stop in front of Hyena. Hyena was still trying to catch his breath.
“Why do you always try to scare us, Hyena?!” demanded Meerkat. Hyena was sitting at the end of the beach, where the rocks started. His head was hanging low between his shoulders.
“Why, Hyena?” Meerkat demanded again. Meerkat was trying to look Hyena in the eye, but even at full height, standing on the tips of his toes, he was not tall enough. So he jumped onto a rock and ordered: “Come and sit here!” and when Hyena did not respond immediately he commanded: “Right here, Hyena! Sit in front of me where I can look you in the eye!”
Hyena shuffled closer, to sit where Meerkat had ordered. He kept his eyes on the ground but Meerkat would have none of it.
“Look me in the eye, Hyena!” Meerkat fumed, “And tell me why you always show us your big teeth!” Hyena had nothing to say.
“You ignore us! You almost never speak to us!” Meerkat accused.
“You always sit to the side! You never sit with us!” Meerkat was pointing a little finger at Hyena. “Why are you so snooty?” he asked.
“Meerkat,” Ostrich tried to interrupt Meerkat’s outburst. Ostrich didn’t like arguments or yelling. But there was no stopping Meerkat now. Meerkat was wild.
“And why do you insist on calling me Suricate!” Meerkat punctuated each word with a poke of a finger on Hyena’s snout. Hyena sneezed.
“That is quite enough, Meerkat!” Ostrich did not raise his voice, it was not necessary. Something in his tone stopped Meerkat’s tirade.
~~**~~
When Ostrich was sure that Meerkat had calmed down, or at least had stopped his yelling, he herded everyone up to the top of the rocks, away from the beach and the dangerous waves. Monkey was feeling a little better, but he was very quiet.
“Meerkat, how could you not notice it?” Ostrich accused softly when everyone was sitting down at the top of the rocks.
“What did I miss?” Meerkat was a curious little animal and he was not used to missing anything that went on around him. Ostrich sighed, almost sad.
“Hyena is very shy, Meerkat!” Ostrich tried to explain. But still Meerkat did not understand.
“Shy? How is that different, Ostrich?” he asked. “And what has that got to do with Hyena not sitting and chatting with us?”
“It is not easy for Hyena to speak to just anyone, like you can, Meerkat,” Ostrich explained patiently. Meerkat had never thought that talking could be difficult for anyone. So he had to think about it for a little bit. But Meerkat would rather talk than think.
“So how will Hyena make friends if he is shy?” he asked.
“It is very difficult for him, Meerkat. So, he waits for you to first invite him to be a friend.” Hyena was feeling very embarrassed and he shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. He moved away a little bit, to sit behind Jackal and Monkey, trying to hide from everyone’s view.
“Will he sit and chat with us then?” Meerkat still struggled to understand.
“Maybe, Meerkat,” Ostrich sighed. “But sometimes Hyena prefers to sit and listen to everyone else talking instead. It does not mean that he is unfriendly or snooty!”
“But why does he call me Suricate?” Meerkat was frustrated. “Why, Ostrich?” but Ostrich did not answer him. Meerkat ran up to Hyena, who was trying to appear as small as possible behind the others.
“Why, Hyena? Why do you keep on calling me Suricate?” Meerkat demanded. Hyena kept his eyes on the ground. It took him a while before he had enough courage to speak.
“B-but you’ve never asked me to c-call you Meerkat, as all your f-friends do,” Hyena eventually stammered. There was a very long silence, not one of the others said a word or made a sound. For once Meerkat was very quiet while he stood thinking. Then he felt himself blushing and he had to swallow a big lump in his throat before he could speak.
“Call me Meerkat, Hyena,” he said gently. “All my friends do.” He smiled up at Hyena.
At first Hyena shifted embarrassedly, but then he returned Meerkat’s smile shyly.
“Thank you Meerkat,” was all that he said, before he dropped his gaze again.
~~**~~
“Sun is getting ready to go to sleep,” Ostrich commented.
The team had sat on the rocks above the strip of beach for the rest of the day. Sometimes they talked, but sometimes they were content to sit silently looking out over the sea. The waves crashed onto the beach and as the tide came in it covered the small strip of beach completely. Sometimes the waves crashed into the rocks below. But now that nobody was in danger, they liked the rhythm of the waves crashing and receding and they were happy to sit and watch.
“How will we follow Sun?” asked Monkey eventually. Nobody answered.
“How will we go further west if this big sea is in our way?” Meerkat added his voice. Meerkat and Monkey were sitting next to Ostrich. But between them they had made enough space for Hyena, so that he could sit with them.
Sun was hanging low in the sky. He looked hot and red and tired.
“We cannot go any further to follow Sun,” Jackal was sitting next to Ostrich. “We cannot cross this dangerous sea!”
“But how will we find out if Sun is starting the fires?” Monkey asked.
“What will we tell Lion?” Meerkat asked concernedly.
All the time Sun was slipping lower and even lower while they were watching. And then, before their very eyes, they saw Sun slipping into the water, far, far away over the ocean.
For a few minutes the water around Sun turned orange as Sun sank lower and lower into the ocean. Then Sun was in over his head and the sea covered him completely. Slowly the orange in the sea faded and then it became dark.
“I can’t see any fires,” Monkey was excited. “Sun did not light any fires when he went to sleep!”
“Yes, I can’t see any fires either,” Meerkat got up and looked all around him.
“Sun did not light any fires,” Ostrich said, “Even though he was hot and red and tired.”
Hyena did not speak, but he nodded his head in agreement. Jackal stood up and sniffed the air. He couldn’t smell any smoke or fire either.
“We have seen where Sun goes to sleep,” Jackal declared. “Sun did not start any fires!”
“Yes,” everyone agreed. “Sun did not start any fires!”
And with that, Meerkat grabbed Monkey and they danced around and around, until they became tangled up into a single ball. They shrieked and laughed and they rolled around, bumping into Hyena, so that he could help them to get untangled. Everyone laughed. Hyena also laughed.
That night they slept on the big rocks, high above the ocean. They were very happy.
~~**~~
They started their return journey early the next morning. They had found the place where Sun went to sleep at night and they rushed back to tell the Animals all about it!
Meerkat had learned that not everyone was the same. Sometimes others were shy and could not talk as easily as he could. So he stood in front of all the Animals, and told them how Hyena had saved Monkey. Hyena had saved Monkey not once, but twice! When he was done, Meerkat went to sit next to Monkey. They made space for Hyena between them, so that he could sit with his friends.
The End
Youn
g Elephant and Mouse have been best friends ever since Young Elephant had saved Mouse from drowning in the river. Read how Mouse migrated with the elephants in ‘What’s the matter with Elephant?’
The End
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Other Books by Salome Byleveldt
African Fable Series:
How Giraffe came to be at the Pyramids
How Ostrich came to climb Kilimanjaro
How Hyena came to cross the Namib
What’s the matter with Elephant?
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