57: Rejected

The rain continues to shed drops. It's enough for Poc to know my goal, that gave him relief—considering I'm not a total additional riffraff to this world. He said we have to leave, with his single snap, we came back inside the house. I came back to where I was standing before, in front of the window—watching the rain, but this time, it's not raining.

The wings turned to zero visibility and he sat on the dining chair behind me. I thought something that will surely wroth him!

"Poc! Let's go save Annabelle!"

His eyes widen in a manner of tempered. "I thought you want to save Queen Aronah!"

"Why not? Can't we do that both?"

"Just forget that we met!" Now he's abandoning our friendship—as if we had it before.

"If you're planning to do so, we should come up with a better strategy," said Ms. Tough while she's drying her hair through the towel.

"What's wrong with you guys?!"

We gave him a sharp gaze as a response to his rant. Eventually, he agreed.

※ ※ ※ ORC ※ ※ ※

He's stepping down to the mountain going to the circus with a mouth endlessly complaining about Ms. Tough and my decision. For now, he's holding my soft arm. This is a part of our plan to sneak—to become a doll. I finally felt how difficult it was for Ashti back then.

And for Poc's role, he have to hide his wings until the right time. It's sunset, the darker the creepier. I told Poc to enter the tunnel and the darkness ahead vanquishes his pride. He's even arguing if I was guiding the right path.

He walk ahead, I can feel his doubt on every step. A shining smoke halo accumulated above him to light the way. To be honest, I'm not sure about the road since I came there unconsciously. He came down the stairs. The floor is wet.

Then things are recurring, there are various paths without assurance on where to go. I told my empty idea to Poc about this, and he's almost ranging.

Something's shivering me.

Poc heard the scratching sound going to the path on the right. He led his footsteps going to that sound. This hallway is exactly going to the room we're looking for. Poc squinted on the doorway, looking horribly startled.

"What's inside?" I whispered.

He held me close to the doorway to squint too. I found her scratching the walls while mumbling to herself. Seems like she's so stressed up. Later on, she stopped. And that is when I realized that Poc is standing in tremor. He hid himself behind this wall while covering his mouth to refrain noises.

I know that witch noticed us.

"You really think I can do it?!" he exclaimed and thought of running away. I was about to say that it wasn't part of the plan but then at the exact moment he turned back, Annabelle is there—grinning at him.

She grasp his shoulders, "Welcome to my home, kid!" she giggles. Afterwards, she took Poc inside the room like a terror mother. He failed to hold me and I fell. I took the advantage to hide.

"Let go of me, you old scumbag!"

She leaned his wrist on a steel table and took a knife.

"Are you lost? Don't worry I'll take care of you like I did to those children!"

"Those?! What, you boiled and cooked them and eat for your appetite?!"

"Wow! You knew a lot!"

I stretched my neck and shoulders when I shifted back to my size. Behind Annabelle, I tap the cane on her nape to steal her attention. She was delighted, "You?!" then turned disappointed. It was a great chance for Poc to escape from her clenches and hide behind me. He girded his arms from my waist.

"How could you ruin my feast!" she took her hammer while I was just staring straight to her eyes and seeing things everyone abhorred.

A great massacre.

I offered her my hand, "Come with me. I need to talk to you."

As expected, she declined. Instead of lending me her hand, she raised that hammer against me. Before the another expected happen, I hit her hand with the tip on my cane and let the hammer fall. That was enough, then I gave Poc the sign to fly. He released his big wings and I immediately took her on my arms before we departed.

Those wings destroyed the floors and the roof above until we finally got it out. We're spinning rapidly—like he's just flying alone—still I'm holding her tight until I felt the ground on my soles.

When I let her, she fell down on her knees—panting. Her oldness could be the cause, she couldn't handle such situations.

"I'm sorry. We just thought it was the best way."

Gradually, she raise her head, looking at Poc. "You're scared!" then she laugh.

I look behind to Poc and he's just standing, not in the air. It pictures like he got weaker through fear. With my big surprise, Annabelle tackled me with that hammer again! I stoop down and Poc caught the ambush. He covered himself under that metal-covered wing. She bash again then the wing pushed her.

The current bones she have can no longer support her firmly, as a result, she stumbled easily. I told Poc to leave the place and immediately, he flew going to the sky.

Apparently, I'm not scared. But I'm worried. She's unconsciously laying on the rough ground, not until I realized it's fake. Commonly, she's appearing behind her victim yet she was unfortunate enough for me to dodge it. Nevertheless she pursue on swaying that weapon against me. And I kept on evading.

"Annabelle! Kindly listen to me! I don't want to hurt you. But we need you in this war!"

"I never gave care for this world! Only for my own!"

I caught her attack, I mean it. I lay side ward, when she targeted my thighs, I separated it. Once the hammer collided the ground, I clamped it between to twist and throw away. I jump to stand and face her with my head bleeding.

"Trust me. They can't harm you anymore. No one!"

"No one can fool me again!"

"I'm not fooling you! I will protect you as much as I can."

"Hmmm... you're a good actor. However, I don't see fear in you." She walk away from me. "You are just a boring vessel."

I scowl. Such a heart-hardened person! Before she ever made a step inside the tunnel I chased her and hindered her way.

"I saw what happened. I know you were there during the massacre and great is your trauma as a result. You're looking for happiness, but vengeance is not the answer."

"I don't intake then release breath to listen to your lectures."

I bit my lip with her savage reply. In the end, I didn't uttered a word. I just watched her back going farther and farther until she disappeared in the dark. I wipe the blood on my head and winced when I touched the sore.

According to Ms. Tough's prediction, the Road to Convincing 1 failed. Yet this is necessary to continue on the Road to Convincing 2. I considered this the hardest road I ever took. And for the meantime, Poc serves as the eye of the sky. He's watching me and giving signal for Asnoed for the Road to Convincing 3.

If that still fails, Ms. Tough's decision is to brainwash her.

"Her gift is a great competence in this chaos. She can control fear, and she will teach you how," that's what she said.

I look around, feeding my skin in silence to a place which is suppose to be the obstreperous one.

Light diminishes darkness.

That is the second Road. Using the power of the cane, the circus was edified and embellished. All the messed stuffs and trapezes are cleared. Even the tattered tents and stalls; also those rotten rides are shimmering. The only missing in the puzzle is the light.

It would be a hassle to search for their electricity bolt so with my single clap, the electricity conveyed throughout the circus—to save my laziness. Strolling around this isolated place is peaceful and... boring.

I played dart on one of the stalls and I got three bulls eye. On another stall again I picked a white stuff rabbit. I'm caressing this toy on my way to the ferris wheel, which contained the most playful light here. When I hopped in, it started. It is a pleasure to witness the twilight on top. I look down to scare myself in height.

And it really did scare me because Annabelle is there below.

The rotation came down and stopped on the bottom, I opened the door for her and she's just glaring at me with a raging eyes.

"Don't just stand there, you only look like a ghost, the funny one."

She ride with her eyes locked on me—always holding that hammer.

"You wanna say something?" I asked.

"I dislike lights. I dislike the changes you've made in this place."

"Is this place yours?"

"Yes."

"You built it?"

She didn't answered.

"I heard this place saying 'Thank you' for cleaning it up," I said sarcastically.

"It would be happier for you to leave," she said; still glaring.

"Only you wanted that."

She finally look somewhere far. "This could be my first time talking to someone fervently."

When we finally reached the top, I looked at the far twilight—still caressing the bunny.

"I was just wondering how am I suppose to torture you; either unwrapped your skin and gouge your throat. Or maybe, yank those eyes and shatter your skull with my hammer."

It's an obvious weird fact that she started opening a topic about torturing the person she's talking to even though she consider everything as fervent.

"Am grateful to be that person in your first time. Honestly, the world is a big space than you could imagine to lock yourself inside that dark corner."

"I don't have spare time to meet the sun," she said. But I continued,

"You have so many people to meet. Someone who will laugh with you, protect you, and appreciate your existence. Someone who will love you."

She gripped the hold of her hammer. "The word 'Love' isn't part of my own dictionary!"

She broke the pillar, the ride tilted.

"Anna- stop! You'll kill yourself!" I said with a confidence since I can save myself.

"Then so be it!" She slammed the boundary and then the floor for the total of a great fall; the worse thing is, we're almost at the top. I jump down despite the vertigo whereas Annabelle, I still intended to save her from the intense tumble. Biting the bunny's ear is necessary to spare both of my hands.

She fell earlier than me, I'm trying to reach for her arms and her unwillingness to lend me her hand made it more difficult. So I thrust the bunny and it expanded to catch her. I opened the umbrella for a swimmingly landing.

She came down and wobbled but I supported her. Before some of the ruined parts collapse on us, I took her away from this ride and then I covered her from the spattering rumble.

"Who the hell are you?!" she asked. Then I realized I haven't introduced myself.

"My name is Haris, and I didn't came from hell."

"Haris? A prince?"

I shook my head, "This cane has the power of a god. And only me can handle it. This is why I can perform impossible stuffs like that bunny before using the power within it. In short, I'm not a royal-"

"Haris... I'm not interested on interacting with you. So stop wasting your time with me." She turned her back on me.

"My time is precious. And if you're part of it, you're not a waste."

She look at me over her shoulder with the shuddering raucous voice of a hag, "Leave... if you still value your life, kid." And those words gave me a glimpse of fear, but I didn't faltered.

I watch her walk away and along those steps of rejection, my disappointment increases. It's darker, her mood to murder will outgrow. Since the Road to Convincing 2 failed, we'll proceed on 3.

Strange.

I can't sense Poc above the sky. In contrast, I felt multiple beings. The Callions arrived. That was according to our plan 3, and my duty is to save her.

Three Callions are coming on front of her, and she walk like she didn't saw something odd like those. I run to her for expecting to save her and again she altered the expected. With the single sway, those three died. I came closer behind her and she swiveled the hammer, a cringe is crucial to dodge her ambush.

"Granny, what's with that hammer?"

"None of your business."

"Not a business, just my curiosity."

More Callions are approaching! I supported her behind and she can handle few Callions in front of her, not all. Before the other one could scratch her, I whacked it and boot and blow and kneed then stoop again when I felt the swiveling hammer against me again. She hit a Callion close to me.

The numbers of Callions are increasing. I can't believe they've seized the two nations rapidly!

"Stop sticking your nose in this, kid."

She grin and wander her eyes to every Callions around us, and they were all quailed. One after another, they withdraw from our presence. She gave them the fear... even me. I made a few steps backward from her. I bit my lip and squirmed my eyes until I'm calmed again.

She giggles, "I know everything that happened today is part of your plans. I'm sorry to say, I don't like your games." Therefore she turned her back on me again, going inside the tunnel. I squeezed all the idea I could do, still nothing changed her.

And the most embarrassing is, I didn't saved her, she did.

"Thank you for the help!" I screamed.

In the end, I was left alone here. The sky is crying again, offering its sympathy. I use umbrella and decided to come back to the house since I'm sleepy.

I yawn.

※ ※ ※ ORC ※ ※ ※

When I got into the house, I just found Ms. Tough sipping a hot chocolate on the sofa. Poc and Asnoed aren't here yet. I sat beside her and sighed the heavy exhaustion.

"The Road to Convincing 1 is to take her outside that base and inveigle her, the sweeter the ambiance the weaker her mood to murder could be. It was also important for her to be aware of our presence. The Road to Convincing 2 is to embellish the malfunctioned circus to get her attention then inveigle her. And the Road to Convincing 3 is that Asnoed will lure the Callions to take them to the circus and I am oblige to save her. And once that happened, she'll be more convinced to come with us through the essence of guilt. So as a result, everything was reduced to naught."

I face down, "No matter what I say, she's rejecting me."

She placed the cup on the mini table and drew closer to me with those seducing eyes adhered to mine. She didn't have to do that! But her message is different.

"It is impossible... to straiten a stem of a tree that grew with curves," she said. And I tried to analyse it for a second. "You're expecting for a change of heart, without a single thought of how to change her past. That is why I will brainwash her and create mendacious memories with an obligation to train you."

"No. Ms. Tough you saved the people before without that kind of gift, right? Then we can do it again! We just need to come up with an even more better strategy."

She smirked. "You're too persistent." Then she took the cup and sip again.

All of a sudden, the ground shake and I felt a rumble outside. A perilous one.

"Where is Asnoed and Poc?"

"Outside. The mission is still undone, isn't it?" She glance at me with sharpness. And that made me thought something terrible! I came outside the house and my surprise is as big as this one!

"Oh freak..." I said to my idiot self.

Across that hill, it's a Callion. But not just a Callion, the mother.