Unusual Snake
"Mom!" Agnes heard her seven year old daughter scream from the front of the house. Her voice had that extra pitch that could only be given by terror. "Mom! COME AND SEE SNAKE!!"
She abandoned the plates she was washing, she didn't even hear the crash as the ceramic plate slipped through her wet fingers. She dashed out of the kitchen, picking the matchete on her way as she dashed out of the house.
Her daughter, Mary, was still screaming hysterically as she hid behind me. The snake was long and black, not too fat, but it wasn't one of the thin harmless ones as well. It looked dangerous as it crawled leisurely through the carpet grass, warm from the evening sun. Agnes felt great anger wash through her as the snake slithered through her daughter's playthings. She watched it crawl over Mary's doll. And she knew at once those toys were as good as garbage.
"Stay right here." She told Mary as she sprang forward. Agnes had grown up in one of the most remote villages in Orlu, a place where before one turned twelve, he would have at least killed two snakes. Now, living with her husband in his village, she thought she had left the snakes behind, she thought her daughter would be safe to play as much as she liked... She would teach this reptile a lesson.
Machete raised, she advanced on the snake. Coming up behind it as it began to crawl over Mary's dollhouse, upsetting her tiny pot.
It was as she got too close that she noticed her shadow fall on the snake, alerting it of danger. She took two hurried steps forward just as the animal turned and she brought the matchete down- really hard. It had a sharp blade, and the head was severed in one strike.
Letting out a deep breath, the matchete dangling from her right hand, she watched as the reptile jerked and spasmed before laying still.
"Is it dead, mom?" Mary asked, snapping her back to earth.
"It will not try to hurt you again." Agnes promised her as she turned so Mary won't notice the blood splattered on her toys.
Just then, the gates swung open and her husband walked in with his briefcase. His greeting froze on his lips as he saw the matchete in her hand. Then he stood stock still as he saw the dead snake.
"No!!!" He cried, dropping his briefcase as he rushed towards them. "Why did you kill this snake?"
"Are you seriously asking me? It could have injured our daughter. She's doing fine, by the way. Just as I am. Thank you for asking." She muttered angrily, the euphoria of killing the snake evaporating.
"No, you do not understand," he turned to face her. "This is not an ordinary snake, it's an ancestral snake of my people, like a spirit. It would never attack Mary, she is an indigene. And it won't attack you either, because you are my wife."
"What the..." Befuddled, she stared at him. From the look on his face, she could tell he was not joking around. "I did not know that."
"Go and pack as much as you possibly can, we need to get out of here."
"We do? But why?"
"We are leaving this village this instant-"
"It is just a snake. How can-" she stopped talking as her eyes fell on the ground. His eyes followed. Mary's toys were still scattered, some of them still had the blood splatter over them.
But there was no snake anymore.
"Where the hell did it go?" She muttered shakily, feeling panic begin to rise. She was sure she had severed it's head, there was no way it could have survived it. "I killed it, the snake should be here. Why is it not here?Where-"
"Look at me, baby!" Her husband said, using his fingers to turn her face to his. "The snake is going to come back, maybe with some friends. And it will be coming for war. I'm not ready to get into a battle with my ancestors just yet.
"So we are leaving. Right this instant."
This time, she couldn't think of any objection.
The end.
Thank You for reading.