7. The reading.

You know that feeling of getting caught right in the middle of an act? When doing something bad, I mean. No body cares when he's caught doing a good deed, in fact, we feel proud of ourselves when caught doing a good thing, right? Like caught when eating the extra ice cream in the middle of night when you always claim it was your junior sister that couldn't even make a comprehendable sentence. We all had our moments.

I (aka Que) remember sneaking out of school through the back gates in grade 10 when I was in highschool with my friends (Soph and Kevin). No, I wasn't a bad girl. Just a random act in the spur of the moment. My friends had jumped over the fence and I was the last to go, let me tell you, it wasn't easy for the little fatty I was, and a sincere advice, don't.

So I was struggling to get myself over the fence with my upper half already over, the hard task was getting my heavier lower half across when I got that feeling, daring me to get the rest of my body across. I just knew it's over and froze, when my traitorous friends caught the look on my face they bolt leaving me hanging like a fish on the line. I simply jumped back, turned around with my head glued to the ground and wait patiently for whoever caught me to issue his command. Boy, was I lucky it wasn't Mr. Sam, our P.E coach and the descipline master.

Yeah.

That was exactly what Que (aka me) felt while crunched in the grass fighting the life threatening flies and froze. She had been going on with the flies for a while with her eyes glued to the cabin, totally neglecting her surroundings.

Slowly, she turned around and looked between the trees, she so badly hoping it wasn't some wild beast waiting to pounce. As she search for the danger waiting to pounce, her eyes fell on a pair of black eyes staring straight at her.

"Sweet mother of Jesus!" she exclaimed dropping the book she had been clutching.

[It's over, I've been caught.] She gulped, her heart beating haphazardly.

The eyes silently followed the book to the ground, then glanced at her again. It switched back and forth between the book and her a few times.

Some part of her kept screaming at her to turn around and run, but that would be a waste of energy on her part. This person (not a wild beast, sigh) knows the ins and outs of the forest and can easily catch her. Not to mention they might not be human at all. Since she's here, she might as well get over with it.

She remain quiet all the time observing the person cus honestly she don't know what to say to salvage the situation. It was obvious she was spying. She silently pray the person is sane in her heart. Neither of them spoke.

The person, she couldn't tell whether it's a male or female, a demon or ghost because of the height and broad build, was covered from head to toe. Not even a strand of hair can be seen from underneath the cap and scarf wound around the neck. "It" then turned around and headed to the cabin.

Que breathe out the air she had been holding in, bent down and picked her book. She debated on following the person and explaining herself, cus it looks like that is the owner of the cabin, aka Sheryl the shaman, she came looking for in the first place. But then again if she had somehow offended the person and he/she spared her now, wouldn't following him/her be throwing herself in danger?

She wonder if the person is truly a human at all.

Before she can get a hold of her train of thought, the person's voice rang.

"Aren't you coming?" It had a lower pitch so she take it it's a female?

When Que just stared at 'her', she added, "You aren't here by coincidence."

"Y-yes, wait, how did you know?" What a stupid question.

Sheryl stared at her blankly then looked pointedly at the book she was still holding as if she was stupid for asking.

Did she know that from the book?

"Oh," she put it back in the bag walking towards her face slightly red.

"My apologies, please. I was directed here by a friend."

She ignored her and resumed walking. Que decided to keep quiet and not embarrassed herself any further.

They entered the cabin through the backdoor, the woman asked her to wait at a table beside the window. Que sat there observing the interiors of the cabin, looking for anything out of normal that would confirm her suspicion. There are few animals hides on the wall and skulls hanged like trophies. She might enjoy hunting or could be a demon that feasts on animals. Both options made her a person she shouldn't mess with.

Although the place looked cramped, it's tidy enough. There weren't any strange smells so she don't mind. She half expected to see glowing stones and jars of strange looking stuffs as soon as she walked in. Wasn't that how all the abodes of the shrinks she'd visited over the years looked like? Was she lost? Had she came to the wrong place?

While Que was having her mental conversation, the woman

came out of the room wearing less with her hair slightly wet. She had a sickly pale skin, that explains why she was wrapped up outside. She walked to the kitchenette and started brewing a strange smelling herb which was quite strong.

"Actually, I'm looking for a lady named Sheryl." Que rummaged through her bag for the crumbled then straighten out piece of paper.

"I know. I was informed me." Sheryl answered without sparing her a glance.

Que pursed her lips and remained silent. Something about the woman seems off, she couldn't put her finger on it.

When she was done, she placed two cups of piping hot liquid on the table and pushed one to her. The woman had a big wart on her left nostril which kinda reminded her of Nanny McPhee. How had she not noticed that? If there's anything she've picked up from watching all those witch series, it was that they all shared a trait in form of a big mole somewhere on there faces. Stretching out her palms across the table, Sheryl beckoned Que to do the same. Que obediently took off her gloves and placed her palms on the cold palms of the woman as a fleeting thought passed through her brain. Imagine the woman falling face first on the table dead as their palms touched. She was jerked by the sudden movement as the older lady who looked at most in her early 30s clutched her hands tightly.

Que watched as black lines began rapidly appearing on the back of the white hands clutching her's. The woman pursed her lips and appeared to be in pain.

"When Lady Amira told me about you, I had no idea it was like this." She had her eyes closed. Que tried prying away her hands but the woman's grip was strong.

Muttering some incantations, her body started shaking.

"What....Oh..my," She gasped. "Like a thunderstorm during a tornado. I ....see darkness. Raging darkness....and a bright light from within, shackled and subdued, overpowered by the darkness."

"Unlike anything I've ever seen. The darkness feasts on all the energy field it comes across, destroying anything in it's path." Sheryl rasped her nose bleeding, Que was really struggling with all her might to pry her hands away. "Unless it's tamed, it'll consume everything in it's path. Free the light child, free the light. And you shall be free." She was overcome by a fit of cough letting go of Que's hand.

"H..how am I supposed to do that?"

"That is beyond me. This is all I can do for you. Now, please leave."

"Wait, but who could? I don't know anyone" she pleaded. Sheryl clutched her chest coughing blood, she was struggling to even sit up now.

Seeing that, Que wasted no time in thanking her and left. Afraid the woman might die if she stays any longer.

The sky has turned considerably darker when she came out. She glanced at her watch which says 4:05. She can return home around 7 pm if she find a ride....

"Blast it! I don't have a ride home." Que cursed to the dark sky. How would she go back now?

*

Que sat rigid in the backseat of a car, shivering in her soaked clothes like a church mouse in the middle of the night.

3 hours ago.

She debated going back to the cabin and begging Sheryl but recalling the state she had left her, she could only brace herself and begin the arduous journey of walking back home, hopefully she got a ride along the way. She had walked for 3 hours straight without any sign of a vehicle when it suddenly started raining. She felt like crying but couldn't even find the strength to, that was when vehicles started passing by but her joy was short lived when all the cars zoomed by without sparing the pitiful her, a glance. Some even took it upon themselves to splash muddy waters on her. When she had given up all hopes and started moving her frozen limbs again, God took mercy on her and send her a kind-hearted soul. A car stopped and the driver, who was an elderly man with a bright angelic halo, asked where she was going. She gave him the address and he offered her a ride. Which brought us to her current situation.

Though this elderly man berated her severely for being out in the rain at a quiet place alone at night, and it dimmed his angelic halo a little bit which she can still see from her point of view, she's still very grateful. She hugged herself and exhaled.

The car stopped in their street and she thank the driver for the nth time and left. She ran into their small home and she had to stop herself from barging in.

She opened the door with chattering teeth and frozen fingers and took off her wet shoes and coat by the door before heading inside. There she met Jiji at the living room who looked ready to bolt away when their eyes met. But that was expected, she was used to that face. What she wasn't used to was the fact that there were other people in their house beside Jiji.

Sitting on the opposite couch was a boulder full of shaggy brown hair that took up more than half of his face. He had a turban wrapped around his face which had Que thinking about Alibaba and the forty thieves. Her eyes flickered to his waist for the saber to complete his look but there was none. Fake.

Beside him was a man looking all the part of a ice cold CEO cladded in a form fitting grey suit but had an unusual spikey silver hair which honestly looked odd on him. Both of them had their faces twisted, as if suffering from constipation. Well, who knows.

"Hi." She greeted the visitors feeling self conscious as they eyed her from head to toe like a prey. Their dark globs pried at her as if seeing right through her.

"You must be Que, we were just talking about you." Spikey said with a fake smile which had her shivering. Forcing a smile, she nodded.

"Hmmm. It's getting late, Mrs. Jonas, we'll be going now. Thank you for your time, hope you'll brief her on the offer." He addressed Jiji before shifting his gaze back to her. "You are old enough to recognize opportunities when you see them, make the most of it. You won't get anything like it again." His lips curled up in a mocking snare and that was how he got himself on her (my) blacklist, to stay there permanently.

They walked around her and left while Jiji offered to see them out.

Exhausted, Que walk straight into the bathroom with her squashy socks and prepared a hot bath. She would worry about whatever the creepy guy mean tomorrow.

Soaking in, she let out a deep sigh. Praise the Lord for the blessings of hot baths. She let the warmth sink into her bones, and the milky coconut scent from her soap wafting in the air. There was alot on her mind which she choose to worry later and recharge her brain with a good night sleep. Her legs were swollen and numb from 3 hours of trekking. The bath was comforting and she dozed off for a while dreaming about dark storms and lights. Little did she know that was the only sleep she'll have in days.