I have been frequent to this Tavern for a month now.
I was allowed to travel outside the Palace without any suspecting from the emperor. I was going back home for a visit and the Grand Temple. I was skeptical at his easy approval. Only to find out the next day, my eyes widened and twitched at the mountain of official reports on top of my clean and empty official desk. A note was attached to it, 'Please finish the report scrolls before noon.'
I almost shout out loud in frustration.
I spent the next three days finishing the bundle of scroll reports. Well, after I finished all the official works. As a crown princess. Somehow I wonder if what he told me before about annulling my marriage with Ephraim was true or just lips service.
On the third day, I was troubled with the tight security on my tail, a term that I had not anticipated. Emperor Aleq insisted that I should take the guards with me or no outing at all.
Knight Cal and Knight Rub were assigned to protect me, and we have become friends. But, friends or not, their top priority was to keep me safe. As of now, they were sitting leisurely at the tavern, watching me closely. I let out a sigh of helplessness at their persistence.
I was in the middle of taking a break when Darak walked past me. I looked up, and our eyes met. He awkwardly looked away, but his eyes never seemed to leave the sight of the magical pendant around my neck longing and turned away in distaste. I sensed his frustration at the whole situation. Well, that's what you get when you trick me! I snorted and glared at him. I was frustrated with him too.
But, considering his predicament, I decided to make peace with him. On the other hand, I'm not playing fair to him. I don't even explain to them who Mr Rabbit is, what he looks like, his gender and other details. I was foolish to assign them the task without providing any information about the person. They might not even hear of the name or if Mr Rabbit is a person or not.
I took pity on him knowing his actual situation concerning his sister.
During the fuzzy ordeal, I couldn't comprehend what I should be doing. I followed the order blindly to go inside the room. Without knowing what was awaiting me on the other side nor what kind of power I just acquired, I walked into the room in trembling hands. My knees felt weak, but with the support from Ulan beside me, I being ushered into the room reluctantly.
The room was dark. Though, the moonlight shone through the window illuminates the room. I caught a glimpse of a black lump on the corner. A repeated mumbling and rumbling words make it eerier if one never faced such conditions before. The familiar view makes me remember the routine clinical physiological assessment I led every morning in the University Shanghai special ward.
During my working hours at the university, I handled those routine assessments with special cases or more like a high level of mental illnesses where the subjects can be timid like this, and sometimes they will be highly dangerous of hurting themselves or our staff. My speciality was to evaluate their behaviours and how far their imagination gets them to think they are what they are. Also, how far are they from reality?
Such interview to the family members only makes them more depressed. Nobody loves this part at all. The history-taking from them always posed a depressing atmosphere. Especially how the subjects' life before they ended up like that. The final result of multiple examinations on the patients will determine their recommendation which grade of illness they were which they shall be sent for more evaluation. Subjects with a high level of imagination were admitted into the Special Ward. And I was in charge of that Ward.
It interests me to know how one can get such an imaginative way of seeing something different from an average person. Some of them even claimed to be ancient Emperor of the Song Dynasty. And these people were treated as if they were insane. Did they?
It calmed me to know the familiar scene before me. I smiled, relieved.
"Una, don't be afraid. These people come to visit you." Darak said, standing next to me. I wasn't aware of his presence at all. And when did he arrive? Am I that nervous? "Una?" Darak approached her and slowly pulled her up to her feet. She obeyed him and sat on the bed beside her as Darak sat beside her. He signalled me to come closer. I strode carefully towards them until I stood in front of her.
Now, under the moonlight, she looked vulnerable, young and beautiful. My eyes narrowed at her typical behavioural disturbance.
"With your power of the god's tears, touch her," Darak instructed me what to do. I'm reluctant to do it. She is sick! What with the superstition about god's tears got to do with healing his sister. In the end, Darak dragged my hand forward to get me to touch her.
'No!'
A pat on her head.
As I predicted, nothing happened. Darak glared at me with frustration.
My eyes focused on Una, and suddenly, she fell backwards in a limpy body.
'Huh?' What just happened? Did I make her sleep or she just tired herself and decided to take a nap?
Kirai's surprised noises made me aware of their presence as well. They stood there, crowding at the doorway and saw what happened. Everyone's expression tensed up. Darak was already at his best to wake his sister up, but nothing happened. Another thought that came to me made me suck in my breath in surprise. Her case is similar to Coriane's. Can she be like that too?
Another mystery is yet to be solved. Nobody knows what happened to these women.
Looking at Darak's reaction every time he saw me, he blamed me for what happened to his sister. I went to visit Brother Jacob the same day after the surprising night. I asked him about Coriane's condition. Before she put to sleep, it was as I assumed it was High Priest Romou's doing. 'Only in sleep, they won't cause trouble or hurt themselves.' I nodded and agreed with that method. Aye. Sedating them is the best way to do just that. I was impressed with High Priest Romou's way of handling things like this.
Now, it makes sense why High Priest Romou has to be away. To seek something that he won't be able to get from staying here. I am sure he was looking for Mr Rabbit. But he did say he can't bring me with him.
I let out another sigh.
Ah, another thing about this voice inside my head. The wind blows softly as it slaps my face gently. I ignored the voice.
Kirai had gone to the Grand Temple as soon as the first light broke while I went back to the Palace alone. She has a bad premonition after that ground shaking that night. She decided to check something out, only to have another surprise awaiting her. Something nasty had tore Willow's tree trunk apart, and they were bleeding.
Now, Kirai had to stay at the Grand Temple to coax them down. Reason for the wound? I had a whole ear of lectures from Willow about some scavengers stealing their sap. How would I know about it if I was miles away from them?
Another wind blew.
"Stop calling me that name!" I unconsciously let out a furious shout. Every head turned to me in surprise. I look away with a flustered face. "How should I know what scavenger did that to you?" I hissed at the Willow under my breath.
Another wind blew.
"What?" I was surprised at her claim. "What do you mean?"
A new wind blew from the north.
It was Ara's voice.
All those voices caused chaos inside my head.
The first time I knew about this was the following day after Kirai left for the Grand Temple. A wind blows through me several times as if it teases me and makes me tremble with the morning cold wind. Then, a voice echoes through my head.
"Where are you?" I turned around, trying to locate pip. "Can I see you?"
I realised too late, and I laughed out of my own mistake.
I spent my time chatting with this new element as it blew its breeze left and right then around me, making a whirling spin that made the dry leaves blow up to the air.
'Happy element.' A giggle escaped from my lips, watching Pip moving swiftly around me. But the next thing that happened made me frown with a headache-listening to the ancient trees whining continuously.
All these were made possible with the teardrop pendant that High Priest Romou gave me. It represents the trust that High Priest Romou has for me. The awakening of the teardrop pendant symbolised a great power within that person as to its predecessor. It reminds me of what Kirai once told me: He never gives any present to anybody but a simple blessing. Is He the companion of the Goddess of Star after all? But why teardrop pendant? Is this the way to connect with High Priest Romou? I touched the warm pendant with my fingers.