LOTF Ch. 2 Fire on the Mountain viewpoint: Ralph

We set the forest on fire

It was a great plan, this signal fire thing. But the problem was, there never really was a plan. It was just an idea. No beginning or end. I had come up with it at the meeting. I had also come up with another idea. The conch is now used so that whoever has it, is the only person who can speak. Apparently this rule applies to all but Piggy because whenever he had, everyone would cut in being very errant. He would complain that no one was listening to him and was clearly martyred that no one was. A little one with a mark on his face came up to tell about some beastie thing. I had to induce him to hold the conch because they were so frightened. He seemed to think the beastie was real, but it was just a nightmare! And then. And.. then. I had to open my mouth and say the word fire. Everyone went crazy, ebullience radiating off them in great waves. Everyone scattered. Some to go get firewood and others to the top of the mountain where the fire was going to go. The fire ended up being pretty big but we couldn't keep it going for long. Everyone again scrambled to get it back to the roaring monster it had been, but in the confusion a patch of trees caught fire! Piggy, who was completely freaking out, pinched my exasperation and replaced it with horror. He said that he couldn't find the boy with mark on his face. That he had went to play where the fire now was spreading and was not back. I watched as the flames ate everything in their path. Heat wove through the air in thick clumps, suffocating me. Or maybe it was the shame that blocked my throat. How could I be a good chief when I let someone die so soon?