The Plrivage's household was lit up by the warm candles and filled with the orange radiance of the fireplace; it was supposed to be a night of joy, eating, and chatting between the three family members like always, but there sat only Liyu on a chair facing directly at the front door, waiting anxiously while joining palms, and mumbling out loud prayers.
Within the forest, the darkness of the night was brightened up; tens of individuals were carrying light, wandering around in the depth of the unknown, shouting names, hoping to hear something back. They were in an endless search for those who had vanished, clinging to the slight hope that progress was being made and the finish line was close, but as each day went by, those flickers of light gone out slowly, one by one, until there were only a few left...
Among those who were still there was Orista, who made his way through the heavy rain; those who followed behind him were shivering in the coldness and weakened by the unfavorable weather, the difficult terrain of the dense forest, but Orista was determined—well, more like desperate—his face swollen, bags appearing under his eyes, his body aching from the constant walking. He was exhausted; it had been many days since he had gone home or even seen any glimpse of sunlight.
But then the group found something: footprints. They followed suit; it was their first real sign that their search wasn't all hopeless, but when they thought they saw light at the end of the tunnel, it suddenly ended. No traces or continuation were left.
Orista looked down to search for something, anything, but what he saw truly took a toll on him, not physically but mentally, leaving his face all pale and white, tears starting to flow down the man's face, joining with the rain that was falling down his head. His spirit seemed to be crushed when he saw a book—a dense one, covered in black coating—that was well kept but now surrounded in dirt and stained by dried blood.
*********************
5 days before.
Up on the elder tree, there was a kid standing on a small branch, who was crossing her arms, head facing the sunset, the view spread across the whole village, going over the mountains and across the horizon.
"I'm going to be king of this land!" her voice said loud and clear. It wasn't an assumption, wasn't an "if," it was a statement, a strong and powerful one.
"Jisso, get down; you'll hurt yourself." There I sat down under the tree, sitting with my back facing the trunk, reading my book while babysitting a delusional kid. "That branch is highly unstable, and you got heavier too!"
"Shut up! It's rude to comment about a girl's weight!" she yelled, puffing her little cheek, face all red. It was quite a cute sight to see. "And who do you think I am? Why should I follow the order of a mere kid! I'm the future king after all!"
"Just don't fall..." I sighed and went back to focusing on my book, not bothering to talk back anymore; it would be a waste of energy to argue against a monkey.
This used to be my favorite spot, somewhere I could get some privacy outside of home. Don't get me wrong, I like the house, but Orista and Liyu can be a little obnoxious sometimes; they are lively people, maybe too lively.
But this was all ruined when this girl, Jisso, came out of nowhere around a month ago and claimed this tree as her own. From what I heard, she is a daughter of a retired knight who settled in this village not long ago. The knights are respected across the kingdom, even the retired ones; people see them as heroes, ones who fought for this kingdom. Everybody around here treats their family and her like royalty; that is also where she gets that 'I'm better than you' attitude from.
Not like I can't find other spots to read my book, but the problem is in this girl herself; she kept climbing up high and wiggling around the branches and kept on falling in the process, every single damn day.
I'm afraid if I don't come here every single day and catch her stubborn ass, then she might actually fall to the ground and hit her neck or something. All eyes would be on me because of her status in this small community, and everybody just assumes I'm her bestie or something.
"Jagger!" Jisso, now hanging upside down on the branch, eyeing me down, said, "Read me a story!"
I tried to ignore her, but then she started throwing small crumbled leaves in my direction; it was annoying as hell. I closed my book and looked up at her. "Stop it! And my name is Phileas, not Jagger; that sounds like a jester's name."
"Nuh uh, I'm Jisso, and you're Jagger," she smiles widely while pointing at my face from up there. "Now read for me."
It's getting old keeping up with this girl's antics. I don't even care anymore. "Just come down, and I'll turn the page."
"Kay!" She started to loosen the muscles down her joint and started free-falling, "Catch me!"
"What the heck?!" Without a second of notice, I stood up, dropping my book, and raised my arms out.
I missed the angle, and the girl dropped on my head instead; her back hit directly into my face, my knees gave out moments later, and both of us came crashing to the ground.
I think I was unconscious for a split second, like the soul came out of my body and was about to ascend. With sheer will, I managed to sit back up, using both hands as pillars. I slowly regained my vision and saw the girl there, sitting on top of my stomach. She was crossing her legs and putting her hand on top of each other, up to the knee like some sort of princess sitting on her fancy chair. "Nice catch! Now start speaking, farm boy!"
I can't; I just can't stand it any longer with this girl!
*********************
A few hours have passed.
I read for Jisso some stories from the book that Orista gave me two years ago when I was just four. It was a fairy tale book, a big dense book with a black coating. Within it are hundreds of stories that came from all over the land. It's a book made for kids and toddlers, certainly not meant for those who are adult-minded.
But I enjoyed it very much. Like those grown men still attached to superheroes and power rangers, it has some kind of childish charm that I can't help but adore. I've read these stories a dozen times already, but each time I always feel eager and excited to read them again, each and every single time.
As for Jisso, she is quite fascinated by these stories too, maybe even more than I am. She keeps quiet and listens carefully when I read, her wide eyes open, and follows every word and sentence deeply. She always asks questions afterward, mostly dumb and childish ones, but they never bother me. I answer her every single one because I am passionate about this book and love to talk wholeheartedly about it with someone. Also, Jisso is quite adorable when she talks so enthusiastically about something, quite the contrast to her usual self.
Before long the sun was setting. Has it been that long? I thought it had only been a few hours; time really does fly when you enjoy the moments.
Jisso stood up first; her movement was quick and swift. She dusted the dirt on her clothes and turned her head toward me. "Jagger, bring that book next tomorrow, the next day, and all the days after that too! I want to conquer all the stories!"
I chuckled a bit when I heard that while closing the book and standing up: "All this talk about conquering and reigning, why do you want to rule a kingdom so badly, to become a king?"
"Huh? Easy, because kings are the freest!" Jisso said, looking toward the sunset, "They don't have to listen to anybody, aren't forced to be someone they aren't, and have the power to control their own fate!" She looked back at me, smiled, and waved her hand. "I'm going home now; see you tomorrow, farmer boy!"
"Need me to tag along?" I was kind of worried about having a girl walking home alone when it's nearly night, even though if danger actually came, my current seven-year-old boy wouldn't be able to do anything to protect us.
"I don't need a boy walking me home; I'm not weak. A king shouldn't be weak!" She said as she was rushing down the hill, running alongside the river while waving at me till her shadow completely disappeared out of my sight.
That girl is really something, I got up on my feet; my knees were still weak from that incident from before. I still don't know why she purposely let loose; maybe she got used to me saving her all the times and expected the same treatment again. God, I should really do something about that.
But I can't help but smile when remembering all the times she said all of those things, her voice filled with so much determination, the fiery passion burning brightly within her heart. Sometimes I wished I had that, because right now I don't really have a goal of my own, just living by the days, but for me, living to the next day and being surrounded by people who cared for me was enough.
I opened the door; the candles were all lit up, and the house was all lit up with the warmth of the fireplace coursing through the air. I stepped in and saw Liyu setting up the table. "Welcome home, Feli, we've been waiting for you." Orista, holding his forks, was already eyeing the big plate of meat on the table. "Welcome home, boy; come and sit down."
"Yeah, alright." I sat down on the empty chair next to Orista. I washed my hand in the bowl of water on the table, wiping my hands with the towel next to it. Liyu came and sat down on the opposite side right afterward.
Just when we were about to dig in, a sudden knock on the door could be heard; Orista dropped his forks and mumbled something, maybe some curses; before leaving his beloved meat behind, he came to the front door.
I just sat there, not worried much about the situation, but then I heard crying and sobbing; it was from the woman, must be the one who knocked. From here I can see Orista; his face looked quite shocked upon hearing her words. I wondered what kind of words that woman could say that leave such an impact on him.
After a while, Orista came back; his face looked directly at me. "Feli, you played with that Jisso girl earlier, right?"
"Yes?" I said I was confused and didn't know what was happening.
"Did you see her go anywhere? You heard her say anything?!"
"She only said she was going home." Now I'm worried myself. Did something happen?
Orista nodded and sat back down. He didn't push or say anything else, but I know something was wrong, really wrong. What happened to Jisso?
Liyu was just as confused and worried as I am; she placed a hand on Orista's arm and asked gently, "Honey, what is wrong?"
Orista sighed deeply and looked at her before turning his head right at me again.
"That Jisso girl hasn't come home yet; her family is searching for her."
What? I was completely shook. I just saw her moments ago; she said she was going home. Her place was even closer than mine; she should be there right now. I'm worried, like my heart is about to give up from the anxiety, not wanting to ask for any more information, scared of the answer up next, but I have to, I don't want to be left in the dark.
"Have they found anything yet?"
Orista nodded his head, but his face became more distressed. "They found something, but it only caused more panic and worry." He paused for a moment before saying, "They found her clothes lying in the nearby forest, all torn up and bloodied."
After hearing that, my brain felt all fried up. I couldn't withstand the information, like it was constantly being rejected out of my head, my mind trying to reject it, denying it was reality. I feel so dizzy; my head feels so light. I can't think right anymore. Is what he said the truth? Something happened to Jisso? I should have walked her home back then.
My eyes became all blurry, and I couldn't make sense of anything anymore. Before long, I started to fall from the chair. I could hear Orista and Liyu screaming my name and footsteps rushing toward me before it all went all blank.