WE RETURNED TO our house after that. Officer Ecclestone was called by whoever, so she had to leave right after sending us home. It was already three in the afternoon. Aseyana and I hadn't talked about it until we entered my room.
"I tried calling her soul," Aseyana explained. "But she is locked up. She can't get out. All I heard was a piercing scream every time I helped her out of it. The vessel where her soul is imprisoned is sealed. Her soul might scatter if we forced her out."
"What should we do then?"
"I need to find the witch," she suggested. "To do that, I have to get that Moroi. I will need him to get a connection and find out who is the witch behind this." She sat down. "The Morois are afraid of the sun. So, I will keep watching the surroundings at night and—-"
"You don't have to do that. I'll get the Moroi for you."
We turned to look at the owner of that voice and found Magnus standing beside my opened window.
"Uncle Magnus!" Aseyana exclaimed, excitedly running to her uncle and hugging him. The latter reciprocated her feelings.
I walked towards them. I looked outside the window before closing it. I had to make sure no one saw my window suddenly opening with a blurry shadow entering my room. "My mom welcomes you. Why do you have to come here in such a manner?" I muttered.
The two continued their heartfelt reunion while I watched from the side. The scene would have been better if Yasha had been here. Then, I would tell Magnus how she loosely told his weakness to me.
"Did you miss me?" Magnus came to my side, taking my hand to his palm.
I awkwardly looked at Aseyana, who was watching us with interest. "I didn't," I replied, trying to get my hand from his, but to no avail. "But maybe I will in the future."
"As long as you will," he said while nodding seriously. "That would be a great progress."
"You two—-" Aseyana trailed, pointing at the two of us.
Magnus smiled. "You have your aunt now."
"No," I quickly said. "Don't call me aunt. And can we focus on the main point?"
Aseyana smiled teasingly. I almost wanted to hide my face in my palms. This was so freaking embarrassing!
Oh, dear! Let's move on, please!
And thank goodness, we did!
"I need the Moroi alive," Aseyana began to explain. "And at midnight, I will perform a spell to locate and know who's that witch. But," she hesitated, "Uncle Magnus, you can't leave Grandi Valentina at night."
Magnus's smile broadened. "You are here, are you not?"
I noticed Aseyana stilled.
"You have nothing to be afraid of," said Magnus. His voice softened. "I won't ask you to lift the curse. I only need you to help me walk the night temporarily."
Aseyana didn't respond right away. Then, moments later, she turned to me. "Can I borrow your necklace?"
"Sure!" I took it off and handed it to her.
She enclosed it in her palm and chanted. When she opened it, the necklace turned gold. Yes, ah! This family truly loved gold! She then handed it to Magnus.
"I changed the spell in this necklace," she explained. "Wear that at night, and you can freely go wherever. Tatia is with me. So, you don't have to worry about her well-being."
"I know," Magnus replied, wearing the necklace. Then, he looked at me. "Do you have time this afternoon?"
"I will take a look at Aunt Jas," said Aseyana. She rushed out of the room right after.
Horrified, I subconsciously tried to follow her. But I forgot Magnus had my hand enclosed to his. So, my escape wasn't successful!
I didn't look at him, but I heard a sigh.
"Do I look that scary?" he asked sadly.
"You don't," I answered helplessly. And honestly, I added, "You're the most handsome man I have ever seen." I wasn't exaggerating. In my eyes, he was! His gloomy face instantly lit up. "But I don't know how to handle a relationship. It's my first time. This is too awkward."
Anyway, didn't we agree to date once the case was over? The case was not over yet!
"So am I," he blinked.
A two-thousand-year-old amateur? That sounded like a scam.
"So, shall we date before the night comes?" he offered kindly. His gentlemanly attitude was hard to reject. So, I agreed.
I have nothing particular in mind to visit on a date. He seemed the same. He gave me a list of places where couples go. And all those places were either too childish or formal for my taste. In the end, I suggested we visit the monastery. I couldn't help but notice how relieved he was when he heard my suggestion.
My mouth twitched. I didn't think I could give an impression of a 'princess-like' woman. How could he think of those places when thinking of dating me?
"Can you enter a holy place?" I asked, intrigued about this kind of matter. Undead or not, they were creatures of the night. They were monsters. Humans feared them.
"Of course," he answered, kissing my knuckles.
I took a deep breath.
'Ignore it.'
'Ignore it.'
I focused on the road to get my mind off his lips on my hand.
"Everyone is a sinner," he added. "If we are not allowed to enter it, no one can."
"How can that be the same?"
"How can it be not?" he shrugged. "Regardless of our natures, we are still creatures made in this world. We are also given the chance to change."
If he said it that way, it somehow made sense.
"You've been alive for two thousand years," I said. I would be asking everything I was intrigued about! "How was your life like?"
His eyes narrowed as he stared at the sky. "Darkness," he said.
I paused. I stopped walking, so he also did. He was holding my hand, after all.
"Being immortal, being an undead—-" he smiled, "—- is a curse. Nothing great comes from seeking something you are not supposed to. Our family experienced blood again and again. There was not a time when our lives were at peace. Having such a life, that seemingly long years seemed not long anymore."
I had no words. Humans seek eternal life. When they failed, they would be filled with regret. But how confident a human could be that he would not regret being immortal once he attained it? Looking at Magnus, I could tell eternal life was not equivalent to happiness!
After a while, we reached our destination. The children were happily playing outside as usual. And the nuns were looking out for them from the side.
I introduced Magnus to Mother Clemencia first. After a bit of chitchat, Magnus and I went to watch the children—- or more like, I watched them play while Magnus played with them. Fascinating. The guy was good with children.
He looked happy. Genuinely happy. This guy would undoubtedly be a good father in the future. I don't even know why I was thinking of such a matter. It might have something to do with his smile. Someone cold and pretentious when associating with others but could show genuine emotion over something like this meant he liked it. He liked children.
Then, it only meant he didn't like me. If that was the case, why?
I was curious. Since he didn't like me, why bother proposing to date me? But…
Although he didn't like me romantically, he was trying to get on my good side. He was serious about dating me.
Unable to get the answer to that, I toss it on the back of my head. Whatever his intention was, I would link it to my beauty—- for now. Maybe he took a liking to my beauty. I'm so beautiful, after all.
—
After the 'date', Magnus took me home. Then, he (probably) started his hunting. On the other hand, Aseyana and I readied the ingredients for the ritual later.
"Is this it?" I asked, observing the so-called ingredients of my friend, witch. This was prepared by Aseyana beforehand. I only helped with aligning it to the right place.
I took a deep breath. After this, I would be changing house. Who knows what kind of thing might come here after this ritual? Better be safe than sorry.
"Yes," Aseyana answered.
"You don't need a blood or something?" Don't get me wrong. I'd been seeing blood since encountering the supernatural creatures. I couldn't help but associate witches with blood, flesh, or any other maniacal materials to attain their goals.
Aseyana chuckled. "No, I don't need it." She clapped, and the candles lit. "These things are older than my father. Their spiritual link to the world is enough to provide me with the magic power I need."
"If that's the case, why other witches don't use it?" I gave the ingredients a deep look. I couldn't tell they were older than the current year. These pieces of wood, ashes—- wait, were these ashes from humans or…
Well, there was no need to dwell on it. I shivered.
"The ashes are from the dead plants," said Aseyana while looking at me teasingly. "As for your question, not all witches can handle the power these ingredients could provide. They might end up using their lives to succeed. So, they always use the blood and flesh of someone with a unique identity. After all, it's better to sacrifice anyone but yourself."
"Well," I pursed my lips. "Witches are not omnipotent, after all."
"They are not," Aseyana agreed. "But they can certainly do everything using any means. It's still wise not to fight them head-on."
I nodded in agreement.
"Now, we only have to wait for Uncle Magnus to come with the Moroi."
"No need to wait that long."
Thud!
"It's here."
Aseyana and I looked at Magnus. My gaze then turned to the hideous monster lying on the floor. Oh dear, I am so changing my house! There was no doubt about it!
"That was fast!" Aseyana exclaimed.
"We should not delay this further."