Akata Witch (11 page)

This time, they didn’t take a cab to Anatov’s hut. Instead, they took the strangest vehicle Sunny had ever seen. It looked like a combination of a large semitruck, a mammy wagon, and a bus. Chichi called the colorfully decorated thing a “funky train,” and they caught it on the main street.

“Just ignore the smell,” Chichi said as they climbed on.

Inside were rows and rows of beat-up red plush seats. Almost all were occupied. Sunny and Chichi sat on one side, while Sasha and Orlu sat closer to the front.

There was no roof, but when the vehicle moved, the smell of sweat, perfume, cologne, stock fish, and cooking oil hung in the air, thick and oppressive. The open top also didn’t dilute the loud hip-hop that played from huge speakers in the back, or the raucous laughter and conversation of the passengers, most of whom were their parents’ age.

Then there was Sunny’s sneezing. It started almost as soon as she sat down. And the sneezes were hard and consistent. She sneezed for the entire ride. When they finally got off, her eyes were red and her nose was sore from blowing. The driver felt so sorry for her that he only charged her one small gold
chittim
instead of two.

“You were sneezing like that in Anatov’s hut, too,” Chichi said. “I think you’re sensitive to juju powers. The train is filthy with it.” Sunny’s only response was to sneeze again.

She was still sniffling when they walked up to Anatov’s hut. It was lit with bright halogen lamps that smoked with and smelled of burning insects. There were several sticks of incense burning, but this time she didn’t sneeze.
No juju power used in them this time
, she guessed.

“Sit,” Anatov said. Tonight, he wore a blue, green, and yellow dashiki and long jean shorts.

They sat in the wicker chairs before his wicker throne. Sunny honked one more time into her tissue, sighed, and sank tiredly into her chair. It was quite comfortable. She looked at the decorated walls and spotted something. She frowned and squinted. Her eyes widened and she grabbed Chichi’s arm and pointed. “What the
hell
is that?” she asked. It looked like a red grasshopper the size of her hand.

“It’s a ghost hopper,” Orlu whispered. “They’re harmless.”

“You sure?” she asked. Then she blinked, realizing something. “I saw one of those at my house!”

“You could do a lot worse. Some people would love to have those instead of what they have.”

“There are more, aren’t there?” she said. “More creatures I can see now?” A tiny bronze
chittim
fell into her lap. She picked it up and smiled.

“Millions,” Orlu said.

“You should see the night birds in Chicago,” Sasha said. “I went up to the Sears Tower one night, that’s where you can see a lot of them. They look like small dragons.”

“No way!” she said. She’d been to the top of the Sears Tower once. It was beautiful up there.

Anatov threw himself dramatically into his throne and looked at his students. “Welcome to Leopard school, Sunny,” he said.

“Yeah, welcome,” Orlu said.

“Welcome,” Sasha said.

“It’s about time,” Chichi said.

“Thank you,” she said, blushing. “I’m glad to be here.”

Anatov clapped his hands together and grinned devilishly. “So,” he said, leaning back in his chair, “how did you do it?”

“Do what?”

“I met your parents,” he said. “I stopped by and said hello to your mother in her office at the hospital and your father at his law firm.”

“You went to
see
them?” She was horrified.

“Chatted with your father a bit, pretended to be one of your mother’s old patients. Intelligent, hardworking folk. But strict. Especially your mother. So how
did
you get out?”

“I’m albino,” she said with a sarcastic smirk. “I’m practically a ghost. What ghost can’t sneak out of a house?”

Anatov laughed. “You don’t know how close you are to the truth. At least in your very specific case. But really, how did you do it?”

“She worked an
Etuk Nwan
,” Chichi burst out. “From her free agent book. Isn’t that great?”

“The book said it was one of the easiest charms,” Sunny said.

“Yeah, for someone with experience,” Chichi added.

Anatov cocked his head. “What kind of sheep head did you use?”

“Well, the lady at the market looked at me like I was crazy when I asked about the
ebett
, the sleeping antelope. So I just got a regular sheep head.”

Anatov laughed. Even Sasha and Chichi snickered. “Yes, I strongly doubt you’ll find an
ebett’
s head in your local Lamb market,” Anatov said. “An
ebett
is an albino sheep that can sleep so deeply it gradually becomes invisible. Its spirit goes to the spirit world until it wakes. You’d
never
find one in a Lamb market.”

“So why’d the charm work, then?” she asked.

“You answered your own question,” Anatov said. “You’re albino. I thought you read that beginner book.”

“I did. But it’s fresh. I’m still processing—”

“Reread chapter four,” he said. “The one about one’s abilities.”

She nodded.

“I would ask these three to tell you about their abilities so you’ll get it, but it’s hard for people to talk about their own ‘bad’ qualities,” Anatov said.

“But the book said Leopard People are proud of their imperfections,” Sunny said, hoping to sound as if she knew something.

“Lesson one,” Anatov said. “And this is for all of you. Learn how to
learn
. Read between the lines. Know what to take and what to discard. Sunny, we don’t teach as the Lambs do. Books will be part of your learning but experience is important, too. You’ll all be sent out to see for yourselves. So you have to know how to
learn.
For example, that book
Fast Facts for Free Agents
.” He spat the title as if he had little respect for it.

“It was written by a woman named Isong Abong Effiong Isong, one of the most knowledgeable Leopard People of all time, of the world. She passed the fourth level. The problem was, for her learning experiences, she chose to move to Europe and then America, where she thought the truly civilized ideas were being knitted.”

Sasha scoffed.

Anatov nodded at him. “Exactly,” Anatov said. “You know the deal. Anyway, while there, she developed the idea that free agents like you, Sunny, are the scourge of the Earth. She believed them ignorant and misguided. You can imagine what this African woman thought of us African Americans.” He paused. “Prejudice begets prejudice, you see. Knowledge does not always evolve into wisdom.

“That said, when you read her books, you have to
really
read them. Be aware of her biases toward those not from her homeland and those who are not of traceable spirit.”

“So, she’d probably want to kill me,” Sunny mumbled. “I’m Nigerian, American,
and
a free agent.”

“What a bitch,” Chichi said.

“But useful,” Anatov emphasized. “Sunny, wade through her vile way of speaking. You’ll see that her book is good. She’s the only scholar who took the time to
write
a book for free agents. Just know that most Leopards as a whole don’t often consider your kind. Free agents are so rare.

“Now,” he said, slapping the arm of his chair, “the book spoke of Leopards as if we are the most confident beings on Earth and beyond. Don’t get her wrong, we are a confident people. And we
do
embrace those things that make us unique. However, we have insecurities and problems like any other humans.

“You all know why Sasha’s parents got fed up and sent him here to live with Orlu’s family,” Anatov said. He glanced at Sasha, who looked at his hands. “A troublemaker through and through. Though he respects his parents, he has no respect for authority. I can tell you from personal experience, to be a young black man in America with a hatred for authority is a recipe for disaster.

“You see, Sasha can
remember
things,” Anatov said. “He has what Lambs would call a photographic memory. He can read something and remember it word for word. On top of this, he has a lot of energy. You see the problem? He knows too much. He’s always ahead. So how do you expect him to respect just anyone? How can you expect him to sit still? This young man is like a thousand volumes of juju.

“Chichi here, she is the same. It’s rare to find two people so similar who come from different parents and countries. Chichi would never have survived at your Lamb school, Sunny. She’d have spent most of her time being punished for mouthing off. You know her; you must agree she has a big mouth.”

They all snickered.

“But like her mother, like Sasha, she can read a thousand books and remember what’s in all of them. Most people would dismiss Chichi and Sasha as disrespectful, uncouth children who can’t even get though a year of school. They’d insist they were destined to be criminals and streetwalkers. Doctors would prescribe Ritalin for their ADD and then throw their hands up, perplexed, when it didn’t work. But as Leopard children, they’re destined for great, great things. These two could probably pass their second and third levels if they were emotionally mature. Which they are
not
. Not even close.”

Chichi frowned deeply at this and Sasha rolled his eyes.

“Now in Orlu’s first few years of Lamb school, the teachers told his parents that he would never be able to read,” Anatov said. “When Orlu tried, the pages looked like gibberish. When he tried to write, his hand wanted to write backward or combine the letters. They said he had a learning disorder called dyslexia.”

Sunny glanced at Orlu, but he wouldn’t meet her eyes.

“The moment the teachers told Orlu’s parents this, they were elated. Orlu wasn’t too happy. He was ashamed. The influence of Lamb society is strong. But his parents knew that this was the key to what their son would be. And to have such a serious ‘disability’ meant his talent would be amazing. And it is. Orlu can undo things. Throw a juju at him and he can undo it and make it harmless or useless without ever knowing what he’s doing.

“Everyone can work juju charms, some of us better than others, but few can undo them on instinct. Once I started teaching Orlu how to hone this skill, his ability to read kicked in,” Anatov said. “When I am through with this boy, no one will be able to harm him with any kind of juju.

“And that brings us to you, Sunny.” He paused. Everyone looked at her and her skin prickled. “Your name reflects the sun, like the color of your skin, no?” He grinned. “An ugly, sickly color for a child of pure Nigerian blood. Everything about you is ‘wrong’—your eyes, your hair, your skin. Otherworldly.”

Sunny frowned but held Anatov’s eyes.

“What has the Supreme Being endowed you with, eh?” he said. “They say your kind has one foot set in the physical world and one foot in the wilderness—that’s what we call the spirit world. Do you believe you have that ‘here and there’ quality?”

“No,” she said.

“Believe it. To be Leopard and albino is often a rare gift,” he said. “Can any of you guess what she can do?”

“That’s easy,” Chichi said. “She can make herself invisible.”

“And why is that?”

“Because she has the natural ability to go into the wilderness whenever she wants. That’s what makes her invisible.”

“She can mess with time, too,” Sasha added. “For the same reason. Time doesn’t exist in the wilderness.”

“Right, but that is a more difficult skill to harness. Sunny, all these things experienced Leopard sorcerers can do. But they will need their juju knives, powders, and other items to do it. You can do these things without any of that, once you learn how.”

“Don’t forget the premonitions,” Chichi added. “That’s what happened with the candle, right,
Oga
?”

“Right,” Anatov said. “Because you can go into the wilderness, you are susceptible to wilderlings showing you things for whatever reason.”

“Wilderlings?” she said. Her mouth went dry.

“Creatures, beasts, and beings from the wilderness,” Anatov said.

“So, because I’m a Leopard albino, I can—”

“Yes. Certain attributes tend to yield certain talents. Very, very tall people tend to have the ability to predict the future through the stars. Very, very short people tend to make plants grow. Those with bad skin usually know and understand the weather. Abilities are things people are able to do without the use of a juju knife, powders, or other ingredients like the head of an
ebett
. They just come naturally.

“That’s enough for now,” Anatov said. “Orlu, Chichi, last lesson I had you go out to the street folk and talk to them. I wanted you to see them, to understand how it is they live. I had you go out with sacks of food. So?”

“We went out and helped,” Orlu said. He looked at Sasha as he said it. “But two men tried to rob us. Chichi blew lockup powder on them. We left them on the side of the street groaning with cramped muscles. We were lucky they only had knives.”

“Knives?” Sunny cried.

“But most of the people we met, they were either homeless or just too sad to go home or were trying to find home. They were happy to see us,” Orlu said. “Well, maybe they were happy to see the food we brought them.”

“They thought we were angels,” Chichi said.

“And did you sit and talk with them?” Anatov asked.

Orlu and Chichi nodded.

“What did you learn?”

“That all those people . . . they have stories and lives and dreams,” Orlu said.

“And that sometimes right is wrong and wrong is right,” Chichi added.

Anatov nodded, looking pleased. “Sasha, from what I understand, the scholar you worked with in the United States, José Santos, sent you and his other students backpacking from San Francisco to some small town deep into Mexico?”

Sasha nodded. “For two months. I perfected my Spanish. We were robbed three times at gunpoint. . . .” He laughed. “It was great.”

“I met José once, years ago. I admire him,” Anatov said. “Now, you two—you four—are my students. My job is to guide you.” He looked mainly at Sunny as he said this. “You will learn about yourselves from me, you’ll learn new and old juju, and I will help you, if I can, to pass your levels. And I’ll send you out there into the world to catch your lessons. Fear? Get used to it. There will be danger; some of you may not live to complete your lessons. It’s a risk you take. This world is bigger than you and it will go on, regardless.”