At the tip of his toe touching the front door entrance, the door opened with a screeching noise, sounds like someone was pulling it forward, Derrick felt reassured at this point, he knew where he was to go, straight we followed him Richard with confidence, even though the house looks creeping inside. He was feeling comfortable and making jest about Derrick's reactions.
We got to the extreme end of the hall before taking a right turn in which a beaded curtain covered the entrance, Richard walked in and beckoned on us to follow suit.
The room was gloaming with a red bulb, smoking in-cents around the room, I felt like coughing out but holding it, Derrick who was all shivering coughed out loud, placing his hands on his nose, trying to prevent the smoke from penetrating.
Richard hush me from speaking arrogantly about the place. While we were all looking around the room, covered with skulls and calabash around.
Richard clapped his both hands twice and knelt down almost immediately, just then an old tattered lady walked out of a skull curtain, all dressed in a black cape and a dread-lock falling down from her head, she looked retched and black in completion, she walked towards us with her back facing us, she stood up with her wooden stick framed by a wood maker.
She smiled for a minute, beholding her spoilt teeth, and the melancholic voices she made before asking us to sit down. I wasn't scared at all, but a sudden bold feeling cropped out inside of me, Derrick, on the other hand, was terrified, he held my elbow without letting it go, at this point, he was wishing for me to transform into a ware wolf for his own confidence.
She brought out some cowries and a calabash, placing it on the floor with a controlled hand she groaned out with a cracking voice.
"The great Seer, we great" Richard knelt down immediately, and he looked at us to do the same, quietly I did but Derrick was shivering all around.
She is just an old lady living in her house without a helper and I never saw her as diabolical, to say the least.
"I see you came for answers," she said, placing my palm on her hands, I was a bit terrified at her actions, but held it back, I brought out the orb and showed it to her, she nodded with a smirk on her face, then she took it with both arms and zoomed closer to the little shimmering light inside.
After a while, she started narrating what she had seen and heard while she was growing up,
She explained how the Elrufai community sorted for rescue from the universe seeing that they were losing the battle during the cold war.
"O Yes, the god of Aurora and Soi responded to their prayers "
At that point goosebumps cropped out from my skin, I was numb and wished I wasn't there.
She went ahead to explain how the goddess of the moon gave out powers to some families for protection.
"But these families became proud and arrogant, wanted to use their powers to their own advantage, they accepted wages from any family who needed their protection or support." the old lady cleared her throat each time she talks about it, then she gazed at the orb for a while, placed it on an old wooden table at the center of the room,
"Anyone who has this orb is seen as the protector of the kingdom," she said shining her eyes in my direction.
"Have you transformed before"? she looked at me like I was already a wolf
"Noooo, I don't even know about it until now" I stuttered, she smiled and nod her head in confirmation of what I said
The whole story she gave sounded fake and untrue to me because Elrufai community has been a peaceful city since I was born, there was never a time people were scared of the community or fought each other.
"Ma'am, please what happened afterward, " I asked out of my curiosity.
"My son", she shook her head in disbelieve,
"Many sorted for the orb to be theirs and wanted to rule the kingdom, it became a fighting battle between families, but one day the last family who were in the custody of it, woke up and saw it disappear.
"disappeared?" I said to myself quietly, Richard and Derrick looked at me suspiciously, owing to what she just said, their countenance says it all. We left her house in silence, everyone was in deeper thought wondering what might happen next, the old lady only told us what she saw and not what those families had encountered.
"Do you believe her-" Derrick asked me, waiting to hear my view, but that wasn't my thought.
"How did you know about this old woman" Inquisitive to know her origin I asked Richard.
"My mum has been here for some historic information about my family" Richard was so sure about what the old woman said and he believed all that she said
For me I needed more answers to what she said, what happened to those families that went contrary to what they were told, and why was the orb in my wardrobe at home all of a sudden. I needed to know more about the whole story-
"You need to understand that am here for you if you need my assistance" Richard held my shoulder like I was some little child of his, giving me his support in whatever I wanted to do with my life, hmm how dumb of him to see me in a little form.
I got home that day, and told my parents about what the seer said, at first my mum was shocked at my finding, she looked worried and fidgeted.
"am surprised at what you just said," she looked at me in surprised form, but my dad on the other hand never cared. He nodded all through what I was telling him. She started gas-lighting old people and their mental state, especially those left by their loved ones, they feel everyone has abandoned them hence they sort for a remedy by rebelling against anyone that comes around them, interpreting things that they haven't heard about as if it were real, she explores more advantages of old people's memory that at a point I started doubting what the old lady told me.
"Don't be deceived by them and besides what makes you feel that you are a ware wolf" she said looking at me, I quickly brought out the orb from my bag and showed it to her.
She was shocked to see such and immediately took it from me to hide before my dad got to notice any of such was with me, she dragged me by my elbow to the kitchen sink, held my mouth with wet hands, and gave a sign to shut my mouth.
"How did you get this" she whispers, I tried telling her but she kept of hushing me while she looked around in fear, I was confused by her actions and body language.
"Mum, please what's going on?" at this point I was confused and needed answers from anyone.
Seeing that my Dad was coming closer to where she was she quickly through the orb in the kitchen cabinet and turned quickly to smile at my dad, he felt a bit awkward at her appearance but paid less attention to it.