22: Helmeayess

I had this very sweet dream again after the ambush of the hunters. When I open my eyes, I saw Haris' Violet eyes again hiding behind his masquerade mask. He's holding my cheek and staring at me. We're still holding hand to keep me warm. What is he doing?! He slap me hard all of a sudden

"Ouch!!"

"That was probably the best way to wake someone up," he said. But for me pinching the nose is the best.

"You can just whisper at my ear to wake me up if you want!" I caress my cheek, he's so ungentle. He may have a grievous past but he should know his place! When we walk outside the cave, the weather is calm, I can hear birds singing on the branches of the trees surrounding us. I also saw Maruwie with her normal and cheerful status.

I have no idea what she's saying but I guess she's thanking me for healing her. And this place, is a mountain dress with thick snow. While looking around, I never noticed Haris changed his clothe when I turn my look to him again, he's now wearing white coat with fur hood. His pant is still black and boots with fur on top too. Before he's wearing black and now white.

"How..." he cover his mouth with both hands and exhales, he's even wearing a white gloves. When he exhales, there appear a measuring tape on his palms, he round it behind me and tie like a ribbon on my tummy

"What kind of clothe do you want?"

"Wait, you're telling me to change clothe right here?!"

"Instead of traveling with a woman with tattered clothe, I look like chained with a harlot..." I glare at him. How cruel! He can just describe me like a beggar but as a harlot....!

"Well, Mishublahblah's dress looks cute but..." he pull the tie on the ribbon and my clothe changed that looks like Mishu's dress. A blue cloak with fur hood too and white dress until below the knees. My new blue boots is soft made by a cotton too. Now I don't look like a beggar nor harlot now.

"Whoa! Thanks," I greet.

Then we continue our journey, I want to play snow ball fight with Maruwie, I know Haris will decline. But in reality, I just toss snow balls above to the air again and again while Maruwie is trying to catch those. As we walk onward, I can see a wider view of the whole place, a field covered by flowers are gone, now I'm here in an ice cream place.

On top of the mountain where we're free from trees, the only way down is to slide. But at the bottom are trees again.

"Oh by the way, what is this place?"

"Helmeayess mountain. Also a Kingdom or maybe now a village."

"Right, everywhere we go, everyone are victims of the tragedy."

"Let's try this one." He stamp his feet to the snow and a snow board appeared. It's big, has rope tied on both corner on the front line of the board.

"So we'll use that to slide down?"

"Yap, it's fun if you try." He sit and face the opposite direction, behind.

"So I will be driving this board?"

"Yah, and I'll just push from behind."

"Come on, I don't know how!"

"You're just like a riding a horse."

"I don't know how to ride a horse..." then we just stare at each other, I guess he's thinking that this-girl-is-an-idiot. Afterwards, he asked me to sit in front and him behind me. I hold tight the rope and he's holding the rope too, just to guide me how to control it. Well its kinda awkward that we're both like riding at the same horse.

He gave Maruwie a signal and he push us down. I scream, I don't expect too much speed caused by gravity on pulling us down. We're going down and down, and down until we're here on trees again. He grab my hands and pull to the right to dodge the tree in front, my heart is beating faster from fear with mixed excitement.

I just have to turn direction to refrain those trees, I do it until without Haris' support. And for me, this is worst than riding a horse and funnier too. I'm starting to enjoy this ride, and of course accidents are inevitable. Onward is a cliff, if we got to the other side then we're safe. Maruwie pushed us faster and we fly in the air, I keep my grip on the rope.

I'm not good on landing so I hope snows are soft enough to bounce there once I land. Maruwie changed her shape again to catch us and land successfully. From here, I can see how high we came from, I can't believe I survived that high! We laugh together, he's right, it give so much fun yet fear too.

"I told ya! It's fun." I simply smile at him. I noticed something hiding behind the tree, a kid, boy. Maruwie shrank to lessen his doubt to approach us.

"Hey kid, you love reading that book?" He's holding a book. I never recognized that before but when Haris said it, the kid show himself. Haris called him to come closer. He's such an innocent looking child.

"I don't know how to read..." the kid said.

"I see. I'll ask you something, choose any tree around you," then the kid pointed a tree on the west.

"Now, open your book randomly." As he did, Haris ask him to choose any word. I read it for him. He chose the word 'Power'. I instantly taught him how to read even a single word. Haris show him a 4 leaf clover card and gave it to me. He ask him again to open the book randomly and found the card where he open it.

He's amazed, even me. I just found myself folding a real 4 clover leaves.

"How did you do that?"

"Because of that." Haris pointed the tree the kid chose before, and there carved the word 'Power'. How did that happened?! I almost forgot that he's just a magician not a wizard.

"Power means the capacity to do impossible things normal people can't. That book came from Mr Holland. If you finish reading it, you'll have your power too." his jaw dropped after what Haris did and said.

"Follow me!" and he pulled us up. He's taking us down the mountain, I'm relief that he's safe traveling alone here. Or there could be something mysterious about this kid. I look at Haris, I talk through eye contact, looking to the kid then to him. Haris show me the sign of 'H'. A human. Too obvious, if this boy isn't a human then Haris should have killed it. I just wanna be sure.

On the bottom of the mountain, a house with a roof buried in snow is built here. The boy took us inside the house to warm while calling for someone, he just keep shouting 'Mother'. We stay here in the living room, I stood near the fire while waiting. Haris is roaming around

"It looks like your first time here," I said.

"Yah. I haven't seen this house before. The last time I came here, there are kids playing snow balls and kingdom with facilities made in crystals... but I guess those are gone now," he made me frown. However, that's the truth. Here came an old nun to entertain us. She serve us hot coffees, perfect match for the weather.

We sit in the opposite sides of the table next to the furnace. I can hear the noise of children. Which means this is an orphanage.

"What brings you here?"

"Your kid." she laugh.

"I'm sorry about that." I shook my head.

"That's fine!"

"When did this kind of orphanage exist?" Haris asked while looking around.

"You must be Haris, Mr Holland's apprentice, right?" he nod. "This is my home, I live with my family here until the tragedy happened. All of them died, only me survived. Same happened with the kingdom before. I adopted all the children who lost their parents and I consider them a family. Some of them died in extreme trauma and committed suicide. And others left this place and travel could be to find help," then she took a sip on her coffee.

"The royal bloods died, but until now the kingdom is standing still without people living there. We eat bread day and night since that incident. I even forgot how meat taste like. Luckily, no wolves attack us here. So I can keep my commitment to teach them like a mother."

"Why would you let that boy leave this orphanage and hike up the mountains?" Haris asked, I think also that's a complain.

"That kid, his name is Eliohn. Ever since he received that book from his deceased parents, his ways are more smarter and braver. But as far as I know, he doesn't know how to read. Mr Holland gave that book to his grandparents and promised to pass it generation to generation. I don't know what's written in that book either." she took another sip while looking at me.

"You look exhausted judging from your hair." I'm startled and caught Haris pulling back his smile. "Let me fix it." She cut my hair with her nails and brush it with her fingers.

"How did you do that?"

"I call it my personal gift. There, you look like a princess now." She even braid the sides and leave some strands untied. And she added some pin with floral design. When I heard a bell, she said it's time for lunch. She take us in their dining room to eat with them. Their long dining table is enough for them to eat together.

While she's calling for the kids, Haris covered the table with the white blanket with my assist, as we pull out, different kinds of delicious foods are served on the table.

"What's with that kindness?"

"They've forgotten the taste of the meat, so we must treat them special during our visit here."

"Really, or you simply like kids?" he look at me and roll his eyes and I pout. When the kids arrived, it's easy to read how delightful they are with the foods and at the same time, they're ashamed with us except Eliohn.

"Did you used your power for this?" he ask Haris and he smile at him.

"Hey guys, don't worry. My friend serve that foods for you! And please, enjoy your meal!" after saying that they all eat together and happy talking with me, saying that I look like a princess and powerful though I really am but not that powerful. The nun is tired restraining them with the loudness of their voices. But the most important is we enjoy our meal.

After they eat, they wash their own dishes and play outside again, snow ball fight. I look at them how fun they enjoy this world, while Haris beside me is daydreaming. We're sitting outside the house in front of the door

"You wanna play with them?"

"I'm not a kid anymore."

"But we're still young." I create a snow ball and throw it to his face. I pull back my laugh, he made a snow ball too and when he throw it it became a water, covering my face isn't effective.

"Serves you right." I glare then grin at him. Eliohn sit beside me, asking a favor to teach him how to read. I let him sit in the middle of us, Maruwie is having time to play with the kids. And unlike ordinary kids, Eliohn is way too smarter just like the nun testified. Teaching him the meaning word by word will took me century so I just taught him vowels and consonants. Good for beginners.

Good thing he doesn't know how to read but he know the meaning of the words. Haris read the book for him and while he's listening, he's slowly falling asleep. Just like me before. He lay on my lap and sleeping deeply, I hope he'll enjoy being inside the story. I carry him like my own child and take him inside his room to the bed.

"Are you sure he'll be fine?" I ask

"Why not? He desire power like you do." I'm excited to know what will be his borrowed gift.

"Haris, I wanna see the kingdom."

"Valid reason?"

"I just wanna see it."

"Close your eyes and imagine it."

"Ugh come on! Just a single glance since I know it's dangerous." He sigh and cover my eyes from behind, "I said, close our eyes." But when I open it, we're here at the middle of houses built in crystals, not from afar is the castle shinning too. And it looks like I remember someone with these. We changed location.

"This is Helmeayess kingdom."

No one lives here. No corpse but dried blood strains can be seen. The wind here is extremely cold and shivering. I walk and roam around, there could be kids playing here before, people who enjoy any occasions, and rulers who have fun with their jurisdiction. I want to see the inside of the castle. But Haris stopped my pace through pulling the chain.

The ground is shaking slowly until a multiple piercing crystals attack us, Haris covered me and blocked the ambush.

"At last! I found yah!" That voice... Mishuzyñel! "I've been looking for you everywhere right after I recovered. I just want some rematch." she's talking to Haris. Yet he's controlling his temper.

"Those kids... you killed them... aren't you...?"

"Hmm? Oh those weaklings? I have the right to do that. From the first place they are my people!" I knew it. Mishu is one of the rulers of this kingdom! But she killed them?! Judging from her bloody clothe, she did a crime. She sway her hand widely and crystals appeared from the ground going to us and slowly melting, it became water when it reached us.

"Oh pathetic! What are you doing here?!" she shouted. Behind me is a water forming a human body, a prince with scales. The most charming prince I've seen before

"I'm sorry but leave this relative of mine to me," he said.

"Aishmalen."