SHAHAAB Complete Hausa Novel Document by SHAHAAB

An elderly woman of about sixty-six years entered a modest home belonging to lower-middle-class people. She immediately began lamenting, "Haba! This is unbelievable—we're seeing her status diminish before our eyes. They dress her in cheap fabrics, put her in a skirt, then adorn her with jewelry. And today, she's out there snatching this orphanage girl—all they do is chase after her!"

She finished speaking and sat on a small wooden stool. Ummah, who was sitting nearby peeling onions, greeted her, "Welcome, Hajja. Do you mean she still hasn't given birth yet?"

The one called Hajja replied, "She hasn't given birth till now. This girl is suffering—they say she's seen up to four places."

Ummah widened her eyes. "Four?!"

Hajja clicked her tongue and said, "She's seen Hudu Hadija. There's another girl who just keeps running away. They barely feed her enough to survive. Whenever I go there on Fridays, she's trembling, afraid her body might give out."

"And she's a slender girl—you'd think a tall woman would be the one struggling with childbirth?" Ummah remarked.

Hajja said, "That's exactly who it is—she's there, looking like a stick."

Ummah asked, "Hajja, what do you mean 'a stick'?"

The one called Hajja replied, "Stand up straight—that's what I mean by 'a stick.' This poor thing is worn out. Look at how tall she is. She keeps saying she'll manage on her own, but you stay quiet and watch. When she comes down, I'll go back."

A young girl emerged from Hajja's room—she couldn't have been more than eighteen. She was of average height, wearing a tightly wrapped hijab.