Destination

Emilia's P.O.V

I opened my eyes to the sound of chirping birds. My lashes fluttered and I wanted to stretch, but when my hands hit something, I remembered I was inside the car.

Have we reached? I looked around. Where is this place? I turned back. Cassie seemed to have woken up too. She squinted her eyes, observing the place. Dawn wasn't in the car, but when I looked out, at the right, I saw her talking to a middle aged woman. I plugged my phone out, and checked the percent. It was full, and the time was 9:30 P.M. just how long have I been sleeping? They were still talking and I was getting bored trying to make out what they were saying.

"Em, your pendant. It's glowing". She pointed with a loud gasp. "Huh? It..". She was speechless as the pendant looked normal.

I wouldn't have believed her if I didn't see it earlier. "It glowed, I swear". She cleaned her eyes and looked again, then shook her head in disbelief..

"I know". I said, but she didn't seem to believe me. She was probably thinking I had agreed with her, just so she could drop the matter, so I added "I saw it too, back in the forest".

Now was the time to ask her what she saw. "Cassie, you were looking at something back there, what was that?".

"I saw something speed past. It was so fast, I didn't get a glimpse of what it really was. I thought it was only a fiction of my imagination. I don't know..". She shrugged.

I thought about it for a while, then shook the thoughts off, as the middle aged woman came along with Dawn. She gave me a wry smile, and I returned in a like manner.

"Emilia, Cassie, this is Ma Xahila, and she'll be taking us to one of the free houses in the area, plus she is going to be our neighbor. Please get in Ma". She said, and looked at me, silently asking me to go to the backseat. I groggily did, and the woman got in..

Dawn drove a few meters, and I took time in observing the environment. It was a small yet lively town. People seemed to cooperate with one another, and they seemed so carefree and cheerful. Although it was night, the place was beautifully lit with candle lights and bulbs hanging in front of people's houses. There were no big houses as far as I've seen, but there were a lot of small portable houses. We got to a small cottage-like building, and the woman signaled for Dawn to stop. "This is it". She alighted and helped in bringing down our stuff.

"My house is over there". She pointed at a distance. "My children must be hungry, so I'll prepare something. I'll bring some for you guys too". She said with a smile. Heh, she doesn't seem so bad..

She glanced over at me before walking away. I helped in taking the bags inside. "So where is this place?". I asked..

"Wittilech". Dawn replied casually as she arranged the furniture. The cottage-like house wasn't small at all. It looked small on the outside, but was actually big on the inside. There was a little furniture around, which made things easier. There were also beds, though there was no bedsheet on it. Heh, doesn't matter, does it?

The cottage-like house had two rooms, a living room, one toilet, a kitchen, and a small space we'd probably consider as a dining room. It was small and cozy.

"I'll sleep here with Em". Cassie declared as she pointed at the room where the window view was staring right at the bushes and thick trees. It'll probably have the best ventilation. Dawn shrugged, then signaled me to come help lift mum. We both walked outside, carried her with so much effort and entered the room..

There was a mat on the floor, and a pillow placed too. We laid mum on the bed. Dawn was probably planning on lying on the mat.

"I heard they give the best treatment, so mum will be fine soon". She said softly and we both looked at her. I hoped so. We've — Dawn had spent a lot of money trying to cure her, but it was all in vain.

By the time we finished unpacking, an hour had passed already. There was a knock on the door and I went to get it.

"Hello". There were so many voices saying just that word, it was hard to tell who owns which..

"Hello?". Who are they and why are they here? I gave them a friendly but questioning look.

"Oh, don't mind us. We came to check who moved in here, and say hi". They waved a basket across my face. "Take it". They said, after seeing my reluctance.

I took the baskets from them, and looked in it. Lots and lots of candies.

I stepped out, closing the door behind me. "Why, thank you".I said.

There were about fifteen children, ranging from ages 5-14, I guess. The smaller ones scurried off as soon as I thanked them, while the big ones stayed, peering at me.

"So what are your names?". I asked, rubbing my palm together.

"Thea". The girl with curly hair said.

"Dray". The boy with blonde hair said.

And the rest… Well, I didn't grab it. I was interested in those two because they looked more mature than the rest.

"What about you?". One of the little boys asked.

"Emilia".I replied with a smile.

"Alright Em. We'll head home now. The much bigger ones would come in the morning as they are not home now". Dray said and I nodded. I entered the house, dropped the basket of candies and was about to go to the room when I heard another knock .

I opened the door. Ma Xahila held a bigger basket. "This should do for the night". I took the basket from her, showing her my white set of teeth. I went to the kitchen and dropped it, then retreated for the night, wondering how tomorrow was going to be..