----Ziana POV----
It's my first time spending my vacation in the highlands. The highlands was filled with mountain ranges, pine trees, terraces and the rivers flowing from the waterfalls.
The temperature can range from 18 degrees celsius to 24 degrees celsius. At 3:00 am, roosters and chicken begin crowing as the sun quietly approaches. Every morning, the clouds gather bellow the mountain as though they were tasked to fetch water from the rivers.
People begin busying themselves doing things that they specialize in: weaving traditional fabrics into sheets, clothe for the dead and attires; gardening; wood-cutting; checking mudfish-trap; household chores; mining; carpentry and farming.
My cousin Arianee dragged me to a place where people refered to in the city as rice terraces. There was hay everywhere: kids prancing around in a rowdy and violent fashion. It felt different from the children in the city who were distant, polite and wary of each other at the same time.
"Relax! Ziana. Kids here might appear rude, but they won't talk behind your back or bully you for any silly reason."
Arianee assured me by leading me to a place we could sit on while watching the other kids who looked all active and aggressive in their display of enthusiasm.
I saw the hand of my watch point at 5 but the number of kids keep on increasing. It came as a surprise for me for their parents did not come looking for them yet.
"Ah, Sanus is here." Arianee whisper shouted in a mix of excitement and fear.
I saw a girl who instead of mingling with other girls, challenged a guy to a fight. If you look closely, her most striking feature is her eyebrows which is mysterious, thick and hard-angled. She had straight, silver hair that reached only up to her shoulder: a trait unique among the many black-haired children who were with her.
"Arianee, they're not hostile to each other, right? I mean, why are they fighting anyway?"
"Actually, Andrew and Sanus are just playing."
"That's playing?"
Questions swimmed in the vastness of my mind as I saw the one called Andrew and Sanus challenging each other with smiles in the middle of the fight. [weird]
Arianee and I sat on a higher elevation where we can view all the ongoing activities. I didn't want to join them even though my cousin told me to at least introduce myself because my stay only amounted to two weeks. I shivered in the cold afternoon, regretting that I insisted on wearing a skirt.
"I told you to wear my pants but you didn't listen!" Arianee reminded me.
I slapped mosquito to death as blood is squished from its dead body.
"Go away!" my cousin yelled as she used her jacket to drive the blood suckers away.
When I looked to the direction of the fight, it was over and the winner is Sanus. [Crap! I didn't get to watch everything. Damn mosquito!]
"Don't worry! I recorded everything." Arianee showed me a camera on its stand behind her back as though she knew exactly what I was thinking.
"Okay, can we go there? You know, take a vid while joining so that I can watch it back in the city." I said, trying not to sound too eager.
"Let's go then!" Arianee handed me the camera stand, carefully saving the video and starting another one as she set up near the makeshift arena.
----Sanus POV----
"Sanus, wake up!" my mother pounded on my bedroom door.
[ugh] I lazily moved about my room trying to get out of bed and *crash!!* my feet got caught in the sheet causing me to trip and fall off of the bed.
"Crap, man!"
I started retaining memories at the age of four. Now, I'm attending kindergarten from 1:00 pm to 4:20 pm. I really don't feel like going today. Firstly, the sun is far too hot for my body to take. Secondly, I'm still lazy and I would rather continue sleeping. But, I can't do that. My mother will shout my name at the top of her lungs like there's no tomorrow. God, you know how embarrassing that can be.
I rushed to the outdoor bathroom and bathed like a duck: pouring cold water on my body and then drying myself. I grabbed my bag, running to the zig zag road when the forest came into view.
My path is blocked by an enormous fire, eating away at everything it could reach: the trees, the grass sticks and the poor animals who were not able to run away. Wether to be happy because I don't have to go to school anymore or contemplate over how easily life is lost: all I could do was follow with my eyes, the black smoke rising to the sky.
I went on a full on dash, going back to the barangay: thinking it's better to ask for help from the adults.
+1Week Later+
Today, my sister who got adopted by my father's sister and my cousin Jackson came down the mountain to play with me. Too bad, I was in a sour mood. One of my friends: Legarda was sent to the city because of the fire he caused.
Apparently, it was him who accidentally burned the forest which almost set a teacher's house ablaze. It was above the school so it means the school was nearly burned down as well.
Not only that they were made to pay for the damages caused on private property and were made to butcher 3 pigs in order to appease the spirits of the mountain, including the people of both barangays.
I was there, sitting on a swing that resembled a fishnet when a lollipop kept on being waved in front of my face.
"Look Sanus, I have a lollipop and you don't!"
Alexis bragged to me before scurrying away, knowing full well that I have anger management issues. She poked her head out from the door because I'm still lazily swinging at the porch. "Jackson gave it to me!" she continued.
Then there came a cry from a baby which is my 4rth sister.
I thought, [ it's a good thing my aunt is here. She'll be the one looking after her.]
My parents had been very busy going around tilling their farmlands left and right:
One thing I always wanted to tag along with, thinking about catching ladybugs even though they poop on my hands and it's stinky. The problem is, I wasn't allowed to since my body can't endure too much heat.
"Hey, grumpy! Here's a lollipop d'ya want it?"
Jackson shove in front of me a lollipop with a red wrapper. Legarda's eyes flashed in mind to which irritated me greatly. Standing up, I went to my father's tool room and carried with me my father's moonfish. It's a cutting tool in the shape of the moon, connected to a one meter handle.
I then started chasing after him with my weapon, intending to cut him apart.
"Oh my god, Sanus! Put that down!"
My aunt who is carrying 4rth sister shouted after me but I ignored her.
"Come on, man. What's wrong with you? I just wanted to give you a freaking lollipop!"
Jackson explained, frightened by my sudden outbursts. Alexis on the other hand, just started bawling in fear of my actions. Despite being scared, she also chased after me as I went after Jackson who kept running away: looking back a few times to check whether I'm still hot on his trail.
"You're crazy!" he yelled, a little confused and mad at the treatment he received.