Waye Shi Part 1 Complete Hausa Novel

“Nanne! Nanne! Nanne!! … get up, didn’t I tell you?”

The girl called Nanne stirred slightly, then continued sleeping.

“Will you open your eyes, or should I wake you up with water?”

Inna said, shaking her again. Hearing this, Nanne pouted and sat up, rubbing her eyes as her long, tangled hair fell over her face.

“Get up, wash your face, and go out before Salisu leaves. You know we agreed on this since yesterday.”

Nanne raised her head and looked at the clock fixed on the wall of the room—it was 8:15 a.m. Altogether, the sleep she got after the dawn prayer hadn’t even reached two hours. She had completely forgotten that she and Inna agreed she would go early this morning to tell Salisu what kind of cotton he should pick for her at their uncle’s farm, where cotton harvesting was scheduled for today before the company buyers would take the best ones. She intended to use it to weave ceremonial shawls worn by brides on the day of the bridal bath (this is a tradition of a certain ethnic group from Niger).

“Oh Allah, Inna, if you knew how exhausted I was when I lay down, you would have let it be. One of the others, like brother Umar, could have told him.”

“You know I won’t see them before they leave, so get up, freshen your face, and go before Salisu leaves. I know they’ll soon be heading out, because I’ve been hearing the sound of vehicle engines since earlier.”

Nanne gathered her hair back with her hand and tied it up. She went into the bathroom attached to the room, poured water into a kettle, washed her mouth and face, then came out. Inna handed her a hijab from where she was sitting.

“Oh no, this one is too crumpled. Let me check another.”

She opened the wardrobe, pulled out a slightly longer one and put it on, then took the large nylon bag that Inna was pointing at.

“Explain it to him exactly the way I told you yesterday, please.”

The way Inna softened her voice almost made her laugh as she left the room. Since they lived on the first floor, she could see the large courtyard below. Because it was morning, there weren’t many people around—only a few workers passing back and forth occasionally.

Their family house, located in a neighborhood in Katsina, was an old structure built with solid stone blocks that hardly cracked even with a nail. The entire building had three floors. From the massive iron gate set into the tall perimeter wall surrounding the house, one entered a wide compound spacious enough to host large family celebrations. There were large car shelters and flower gardens surrounding the entire open space.

Along the building itself was a long veranda stretching across the width of the compound, with six rooms in a row belonging to her male cousins. In the middle was a large door leading inside to the section of their uncle’s house on the right, which included a large guest living room and two rooms with a bathroom. On the left side was the family kitchen, which itself had two sections: one with storage cupboards, and another used as a firewood area with heaps of wood and large cooking pots.

Beyond that, on the ground floor, there were two large storage rooms for farm produce. A wide staircase rose from the middle of the courtyard and split left and right, leading to the women’s quarters of their uncle’s four wives, each having a living room and two large bedrooms, each with its own bathroom. There was also Inna’s section—their grandmother and the uncle’s mother—with a large living room, one bedroom, and a bathroom.

The second and top floor was a wide open terrace, the largest space in the entire house, surrounded by walls in such a way that if one wasn’t careful, they wouldn’t even notice the ground below. Clothes were dried there, food ingredients spread out, and people relaxed there because it had different kinds of chairs and flower pots. From there, one could see the entire neighborhood—mostly scattered houses, many unoccupied, and some still under construction.

Among all of her uncle’s children, Nanne was the seventeenth. There were also two girls, daughters of Aunty Amarya, who were older than her.

Her uncle’s first wife was Hajiya Nasiba, known as Hajiya Babba. She was from Katsina town, while her husband was originally from Niger. She had six children: Ahmad, Nasir, Muhammad, Ishaq, Farida, and Aisha—four boys and two girls. Ahmad and Farida were already married, leaving three boys and one girl, Aisha, still at home.

Then there was Mama Rabi, who was also from Niger and was her uncle’s relative. She had four children: Ibrahim, Sulaiman, Umar, and one daughter, Jamila. Her eldest son, Ibrahim, was also married.

Next was Mama Halime, also from Niger but not related to him. She had four daughters—Khadija, Maryam, Nafisa, and Zainab. Only Khadija was married.

Then there was Aunty Amarya, who had five children. Her first delivery was twin boys, Salim and Suraj, followed by Sadiq, Safiya, and Surrayya.

Among all of her uncle’s children, Nanne was the only one without her mother in the house. Her mother was a Fulani woman from Adamawa, living there with her relatives. Her uncle married her during a dispute with Mama Rabi that led to a divorce. Around that time, he traveled to Adamawa to attend a Nigerian farmers’ conference that lasted almost a week. There, he met Nanne’s mother among the cleaners where they stayed.

At first, his friends teased him, saying he should return home with the Adamawa Fulani woman after seeing him asking her questions. The joke soon became serious, and before they left Adamawa that week, they went to Nuratu’s family home, where the marriage was agreed upon. It was then they learned she was a widow who had previously been married and had two children.

When he returned, he informed Inna, his mother. She didn’t stop him, but his wives strongly disliked the idea. Mama Rabi was the most affected, as she was already struggling to regain her dignity among her relatives at the time.

However, destiny had already been written. Within a month, the marriage between him and Nuratu was completed, and she moved into Mama Rabi’s section. Despite being a widow, her husband openly showed her affection, which deeply upset the other wives, since he didn’t hide it—even in front of his children.

A year and a half later, Nuratu gave birth to a daughter who resembled her, though she inherited her father’s lighter complexion. Her father named her Sa’adha, but Nuratu nicknamed her Nanne, and the name stuck.

From Nanne’s birth onward, Nuratu’s behavior changed completely. She became extremely rude in the house, disrespecting everyone—from her husband to Inna. Advice and discipline were tried repeatedly, but things only worsened. Eventually, her husband reluctantly divorced her with a single pronouncement, even though he still loved her. She intended to leave with Nanne, but he stopped her. She left alone and returned to Adamawa. Later, they learned she went back to her former husband after completing her waiting period.

At that time, Mama Halime was breastfeeding her daughter Zainab. When asked to include Nanne, she flatly refused, swearing she would never breastfeed a co-wife’s child unless she too was divorced. Aunty Amarya, who had only recently weaned her second son, Sadiq, also declined. Hajiya Babba wouldn’t even be approached—she kept to herself and avoided family conflicts, and her children were already grown.

In the end, it was Inna who took Nanne in, though initially she too resisted because she was deeply hurt by what Nuratu had done to them.

With the help of fresh cow’s milk brought daily from her uncle’s farm, Nanne grew up in her grandmother’s care. Inna poured all her love onto her, treating her as if she had no one else in the world. Anyone who wanted to make Inna happy only needed to do something kind for Nanne.

Three times during her childhood, her uncle sent Nanne to Adamawa to visit her mother. However, Nuratu often sent her errands through relatives.

In the entire household— including the many workers in the house and farms—Nanne could count those who truly cared for her on one hand. Many disliked her, while others acted as though she didn’t even exist. This was for two reasons: first, the stain of her mother’s behavior still followed her, as much of the hatred directed at Nanne stemmed from Nuratu’s actions after her birth. Second, Nanne herself was notoriously outspoken and fearless, confronting anyone when provoked—even senior men in the house, though she did fear them slightly.