We have to find her and nail her

Simgha!? Dhammaputeri directed her whining voice of inquiry at Simgha.

You're too young for me Puteri. Don't bother me.

C'mon, stop your stupid jokes. Where is she?

Who?

The woman who was sitting under the tree?

Who is she, Puteri? I thought I was falling in love with her.

Whad'ya mean?

I meet her a couple of evenings every week. She was the kind and gentle woman that I thought she was and now? Now I find out from your grandpa, she's the vampiress that's causing the plague on the island. I am really disappointed with women, Puteri. I am so disappointed.

Dhammaputeri stood slightly scratching her face with her finger, and looking rather guilty.

Not at you Puteri. You are not a woman yet. But you will soon be.

You love her? Grandpa inquired of Simgha.

Well, I don't know. He paused for a while.

I really really really liked her. He paused again and looked out to the back garden.

Okay, I admit. I yearn for her. My heart aches for her. My body writhes in pain ...

Alright, alright Simgha. That's too much information. Especially with my little granddaughther around. It's good that you love her.

I don't love love her. I like her. I love her but I like her, you know what I mean?

Mere semantics, Simgha.

What happened Simgha? What happened to her?

I dunno. Perhaps, your grandpa has an explanation. I saw her flee as I neared the house.

The presence of your uncle had awaken the slumbering dragon, Puteri. We have to find her. You and Simgha have to find her.

Grandpa, I'm half a water pot, grandpa. As you say half a water pot is dangerous knowledge.

Puteri, between you and I, we are one and a half water pot. Your uncle, my son, he's only three quarters of a water pot and that's really dangerous. His sincerity to help is endangering himself and the village.

Well, I'm an empty water pot. Simgha whined. And I love her.

Don't worry Simgha, she told me she loves you too. Dhammaputeri tried to assure him.

Not with the Dragon King awaken in her. Grandpa Bhratya the Righteous warned.

We have to nail the dragon down. We have to literally nail him down.

Right. Nail him down. Simgha nodded his head like he understood. Right, my dad told me that a wood splinter should be nailed into the head of a bunti-anak and then she would turn into a beautiful woman and then the man who nailed her would have to marry her.

Old wives' tales. Simgha.

Ya. Old wives' tales. You're right. Simgha nodded in ignorance again. Ya, how could it be true because what if it's a girl who nailed the vampiress, would the girl have to marry her then?

Stop spouting nonsense, Simgha. Dhammaputeri was kinda annoyed by his naivete by now.

It's true we have to nail her, but with the splinter from an angsana root. And at a very specific spot behind her neck.

It's true? You mean my parents were kinda right?

Not exactly. Also, not any angsana tree. The splinter from the root of an old, very old, very very very old angsana tree.

Why?

The spirit that dwell within the angsana tree is one of the few rare spirits ordained with the might to seduce and bind the dragon spirit. That is why it's roots have to be thick and strong and mature.

Okay, you've said that your angsana is more than two hundred years old. It's got really strong roots. Look at the seats you and I carved on the roots of your tree.

Yes, our angsana would be the tree, but we need to coax and persuade the spirit of our tree to bleed a drop of its blood where we could slice a splinter off its root.