The Hawaiian Romance Of Laieikawai Part 30

Then she started to kiss her.

And as the girl was about to give the promised kiss, Malio said, "Let our kiss wait, first give my brother a kiss; when you two have done, then we will kiss."

Then said Laielohelohe, "You and your brother may go away, do not bring him into my presence; you both go back to your own place and do not come here again. For it was only you I promised to greet with a kiss, no one else; should I do as you desire, I should disobey my good guardian's command."

When Malio heard this she returned to her brother and said, "We have failed to-day, but I will try my supernatural arts to fulfill your desire."

They went back to the house, then she directed Halaaniani to go and spy upon Laieikawai.

When Halaaniani came to Keaau as his sister directed, he neither saw nor heard of Laieikawai.

CHAPTER XXIV

On his arrival there, Halaaniani heard there was to be a great day for Kakalukaluokewa, a day of celebration for the marriage of Laielohelohe with Kekalukaluokewa. And when he had carefully noted the day for the chief's wedding feast he returned and told his sister this thing.

When Malio heard it she said to her brother, "On the marriage day of Kekalukaluokewa with Laielohelohe, on that day Laielohelohe shall be yours."

Now Aiwohikupua's sisters were wont to go down to the sea at Keaau to keep watch for their husband, to make sure if he were dead or not.

As Aiwohikupua's sisters were on the way to Keaau, they heard of the festival for Kekalukaluokewa and Laielohelohe.

When the great day drew near, Waka went down from Paliuli to meet Kekalukaluokewa, and Waka said to Kekalukaluokewa: "To-morrow at sunrise call together all the people and the chiefs of the household to the place prepared for the celebration; there let all be a.s.sembled. Then go and show yourself first among them and near midday return to your house until day declines, then I will send a mist to cover the land, and the place where the people are a.s.sembled.

"When the mist begins to close down over the land, then wait until you hear the birds singing and they cease; wait again until you hear the birds singing and they cease.

"And after that I will lift the mist over the land. Then you will see up to Paliuli where the cloud rises and covers the mountain top, then the mist will fall again as before.

"Wait this time until you hear the cry of the _alae_ bird, and the _ewaewaiki_ calling; then come out of the house and stand before the a.s.sembly.

"Wait, and when the _oo_ birds call and cease, then I am prepared to send Laielohelohe.

"When the voice of the _iiwipolena_ sounds, your wife is on the left side of the place of meeting. Soon after this, you will hear the land snails[67] singing, then do you two meet apart from the a.s.sembly.

"And when you two meet, a single peal of thunder will crash, the earth tremble, the whole place of a.s.sembly shall shake. Then I will send you two on the birds, the clouds and mist shall rise, and there will be you two resting upon the birds in all your splendor. Then comes Laieikawai's disgrace, when she sees her shame and goes off afoot like a captive slave."

After all this was arranged, Waka returned to Paliuli.

Already has Halaaniani's expedition been described to look after his wife Laieikawai at Keaau, and already has it been told how he heard of the marriage celebration of Kekalukaluokewa and Laielohelohe.

On the day when Waka went to Keaau to meet Kekalukaluokewa, as we have seen above,

On that very day, Malio told Halaaniani to get ready to go down to the festival, saying: "To-morrow, at the marriage celebration of Kekalukaluokewa and Laielohelohe, then Laielohelohe shall be yours. For them shall crash the thunder, but when the clouds and mist clear away, then all present at the place of meeting shall behold you and Laielohelohe resting together upon the wings of birds."

Early in the morning of the next day, the day of the chief's marriage celebration, Kihanuilulumoku was summoned into the presence of Aiwohikupua's sisters, the servants who guarded Laieikawai.

When the lizard came, Kahalaomapuana said, "You have been summoned to take us down to the sea at Keaau to see Kekalukaluokewa's wedding feast.

Be ready to take us down soon after the sun begins to decline."

Kihanuilulumoku went away until the time appointed, then he came to them.

And as the lizard started to come into his mistress's presence, lo! the land was veiled thick with mist up there at Paliuli, and all around, but Kihanuilulumoku did not hurry to his mistresses, for he knew when the chiefs' meeting was to take place.

When Kekalukaluokewa saw this mist begin to descend over the land, then he remembered Waka's charge.

He waited for the remaining signs. After hearing the voices of the _ewaewaiki_ and the land sh.e.l.ls, then Kekalukaluokewa came out of his house and stood apart from the a.s.sembly.

Just at that moment, Kihanuilulumoku stuck out his tongue as a seat for Laieikawai and Aiwohikupua's sisters.

And when the voice of the thunder crashed, clouds and mist covered the land, and when it cleared, the place of meeting was to be seen; and there were Laielohelohe and Halaaniani resting upon the birds.

Then also were seen Laieikawai and Aiwohikupua's sisters seated upon the tongue of Kihanuilulumoku, the great lizard of Paliuli.

Now they arrived at the same instant as those for whom the day was celebrated; lo! Laieikawai saw that Halaaniani was not dead, and she remembered Kahalaomapuana's prediction.

When Kekalukaluokewa saw Halaaniani and Laielohelohe resting on the birds, he thought he had lost Laielohelohe.

So Kekalukaluokewa went up to Paliuli to tell Waka.

And Kekalukaluokewa told Waka all these things, saying: "Halaaniani got Laielohelohe; there she was at the time set, she and Halaaniani seated together!"

Said Waka, "He shall never get her; but let us go down and I will get close to the place of meeting; if she has given Halaaniani a kiss, the thing which I forbade her to grant, for to you alone is my grandchild's kiss devoted--if she has defiled herself with him, then we lose the wife, then take me to my grave without pity. But if she has harkened to my command not to trust anyone else; not even to open her lips to Halaaniani, then she is your wife, if my grandchild has harkened to my command."

As they approached, Waka sent the clouds and mist over the a.s.sembly, and they could not distinguish one from another.

Then Waka sent Kekalukaluokewa upon the birds, and when the clouds cleared, lo! Laielohelohe and Kekalukaluokewa sat together upon the birds. Then the congregation shouted all about the place of a.s.sembly: "The marriage of the chiefs! The marriage of the chiefs!"[68]

When Waka heard the sound of shouting, then Waka came into the presence of the a.s.sembly and stood in the midst of the congregation and taunted Laieikawai.

When Laieikawai heard Waka's taunts, her heart smarted and the hearts of every one of Aiwohikupua's sisters with her; then Kihanuilulumoku bore them back on his tongue to dwell in the uplands of Olaa; thus did Laieikawai begin to burn with shame at Waka's words, and she and her companions went away together.

On that day, Kekalukaluokewa wedded Laielohelohe, and they went up to the uplands of Paliuli until their return to Kauai. And Halaaniani became a vagabond; nothing more remains to be said about him.

And when the chief resolved to return to Kauai, he took his wife and their grandmother to Kauai, and the men together with them.

When they were ready to return, they left Keaau, went first to Honouliuli on Oahu and there took Kapukaihaoa with them to Kauai; and they went to Kauai, to Pihanakalani, and turned over the rule over the land and its divisions to Kapukaihaoa, and Waka was made the third heir to the chief's seat.

At this place let us tell of Laieikawai and her meeting with the prophet, Hulumaniani.

Laieikawai was at Olaa as beautiful as ever, but the art of resting on the wings of birds was taken away from her; nevertheless some of her former power remained and the signs of her chiefly rank, according to the authority the sisters of Aiwohikupua had over the lizard.

CHAPTER XXV