"Are you sure you will go beyond that forest again? What if you g-get hurt?" Hakurei is surely bugging me too much about this small matter. I promised Oz that I will come to fetch him so we can celebrate the lantern festival together.
It has been days now after I played with that weirdo—sheesh, don't tell him that I called him a weirdo in my mind. It's just he was so odd but funny. The theatre room that he showed me before, was stunning and to think he performed something in front of me was basically adding spice to my boredom day. Well, actually it's not. I mean, he saved me from those wolves after all.
After we spent our days together. I departed but he gave me this special gift. This gift was so expensive and amazing. It's shiny and one of a kind. A dress, he gave me a dress and now I'm wearing it. It has a lot of these shining ornaments, naturally, I'm not the kind of girl who would wear something that will catch anyone's attention but I promised him to wear it on this special occasion.
When I said special occasion, it means this one. Lantern Festival.
"What are you even wearing? Y-you look a noble kind of a person! A-and it's totally making me uncomfortable!" Hakurei keeps on complaining about what I wear or what I look but I know deep down inside he was just happy to see me wearing such a beautiful dress or I'm just assuming things.
"Erm." As soon I shifted my eyes in the other direction, the villages kiddos eyes were gazing at me, not—probably at the dress that makes me so uncomfortable. Tap, tap. I dusted my dress for no reason. Those children would eventually twitch their eyebrows unpleasantly based on what I was doing. "What?" and finally, myself cracking a word of curiosity on their stares.
"Would you not do that? Are you showing because you wear extravagant clothes and we're not?" Didn't get the idea of that. "No?"
"Then please could you leave the village? Look at everyone's eyes were onto you. Only you." I scratch my head, unable to bark again to their complaints. I whispered to Hakurei, "So… how did me, wearing these clothes becomes my fault?"
"They are jealous, Krahn. You should be aware of that." I glanced one more time to those children, that dark stare wasn't leaving so perhaps it's good for everyone to excuse myself instead.
Hakurei and I went outside the village, he was actually worried about me going into the deep forest again. To be honest, I don't have any news of that kid before. Did he manage to leave and go back to the capital? No, I haven't heard anything from the children so I presume that something might have happened to him. Oz and his butler were so sketchy, but they are good people. Although I'm not sure if they considered that young noble's life to be spare.
Sigh, Hakurei was so dramatic. He holds both of my shoulders while having those heavy looks on his face. He is more problematic than I am. "Krahn, that forest is no good. Please don't go in that place."
I sighed back and did the same thing, I tapped his shoulders and squeezed them tightly. "But I made a promise. And remember, Krahn doesn't run away from her promises. If I promised to save you, then no matter how hard it is I'm going to save you. The same goes for promising this 'guy' I will fetch him and enjoy the festival with you, him, and I. We three can surely be best friends!" I positively replied with my shiny tooth. Cling, oh I can hear the sound effects of it.
"But best friends are only meant for two people." He is sobbing about this. "Who told you that? That is a lie! Best friends are not based on numbers, it is based on the person who you trust! And that counts Oz, Hakurei! Sure, he is a nice guy but he is also lonely. He only has us, and we will bring him in the joyous days we celebrate and create a good memory with him."
Oh, however. His face wasn't that delighted at all. I don't think I can convince him without Oz here. He won't understand what I am trying to say at all. Never mind, I'll just bring Oz here and then poof, they are best friends. Sometimes things are just that simple. People only intend to make things so complicated.
"Alright. I'm going. Wait for us in the heart of the festival. I'll bring you the wonderful person you haven't met in your entire existence."
"…but I already met her…" It was so faint that I barely heard his reply so I tried to ask him one more time, "What?"
"Be careful. Just don't be late or might your brother come finding you to me again."
"I'll keep that in mind."
I took my leave after his few reminding's. I don't want to look back and see his sulky face once more because somehow it guilts me. No matter how I think, the place I'm visiting is mysterious and indeed dangerous. And so, we need to think positive to cross that line. That dangerous line, that scary border, but on the other side. There is Oz waiting, waving happily to me.
When I got to the foot of the forest, everything is so peaceful. The river's water was streaming peacefully—is that right? It sounds normal. Those river fish would jump, and swim and I got a little time to gaze and watch them for a while. "Ha…" I heavy breathed, my mother said that breathing this way is making bad luck but that's actually a myth. There's no way that a heavy sigh would bring bad luck, is it?
And I already did it so no taking it back. "I can actually see my reflection in the river. This is like a mirror." I can see myself, how beautiful I am and this dress. "I look like a different person." I round, sway together with the wind. Good thing that the moon's light was so bright, I can clearly see my beauty even though it's dark.
"Sheesh. I don't have time for this! I need to fetch Oz already or we're gonna be late for the festival!" I complained to myself as I began running toward the direction of Oz's mansion.
The dress is a bit heavy but I can manage to run. I paused for a moment when I noticed something is strange. I'm pretty sure that I'm already at the half spot of the forest, where I was supposed to see Oz's house roof but it was odd that right in the spot I was. There's this orange light that's shining harshly bright in the sky.
"What in the world could that be?" and a circle, I think I saw that kind of circle in mother's book! I can't be wrong about it. It is a "Magic circle!"