Chương 33: [XXXIII] - Moon and Stars
As she slowly moved closer towards us, her skin tone became more pale and bright. Making careful and anxious moves, yet she didn't seem to be scared of two other people standing in the hallway on her way. A girl with short, lush hair in the color of milk, messily covering her head. A chubby face sticking from under wavy bangs. However, from a sweet overall appearance of this girl came a mournful gaze. Two downturned eyes in the color of light lavender, not reflecting any light. Her face was full of melancholy, lips turning downwards made her seem sad and sensitive.
Yet when she noticed me, all devastated and crying my tears out, something was shaken inside of her. Giving a look at my eyes, her expression changed immediately into something else, like a sudden spark.
Her eyes rapidly moved from mine, to the ground, to the walls next to us. And then again to mine eyes. This cycle repeated, as if she could focus her thoughts on one thing, this made me curious for a second if she was ill.
But just right after that thought, she immediately stopped, and then just looked at the old man which was still standing before me. However, his reaction was normal, and the expression turned to an entirely neutral one.
Who was this girl?
"Welcome Stella. It's nice to see you, just right in time when our new friend had just arrived. Finally, the last one… Asha, this is Stella, one of the chosen. I hope your cooperation will be fruitful, and you will get along." — The old man introduced us with a smile on his face.
The girl in question… Her name was Stella.
Shorter than me, she kept a distance between us, hesitantly storming me with her eyes. I still couldn't throw away the feeling that this girl was somehow pitiful and deeply hurt. Her stare could tell it all.
Suddenly, The old man's face changed to a one that remembered something forgotten.
"Oh… What time is it… Ah. How much it tears my heart apart, I just remembered I have an urgent matter to attend to. So, Stella, I would like to ask you to accompany Asha to the dining room, and take care of his needs…"
The old man turned towards me, and looked deep into my still red from tears eyes, which now weren't filled with so much grief as a few minutes ago.
"Forgive me for leaving you in this state. I hope that when I find some spare time, We will talk over everything that worries your mind. Excuse me now."
Gently touching my shoulder, He walked next to me, and went into the corridor that stretched far behind my back. His slow steps echoed and disappeared completely after a short while.
I was left all alone now with a total stranger, a girl with weird behaviors which hasn't told anything since we met.
And she still tried to avoid my gaze, and at the same time peek inside my soul with her pale eyes.
My emotions calmed down a little, yet a stinging feeling inside me was still there.
I didn't want somebody like her to see me at my weakest, a rueful state of an abandoned human being, if I can even call myself that.
If I want to become someone strong, not being pushed and humiliated by anyone around, I need to cover myself up with hard and tough crust of a person who isn't shaken by their emotions so easily.
Cold like ice, Hard as stone. Calmness and composure… Can I follow such high expectations up?
I wiped the left up tears on my face with a faintly shaking hand, and decided to appear as a tough person for once. Even as for such a sensitive girl as this one appeared to be. Confidence over all.
"Hi. I'm Asha. Nice to meet you. I hope we can cooperate in the future." — I reached out my wobbly hand towards her, trying to maintain cool, wondering how much fake did my introduction sound like.
But the girl didn't reach her hand in return, as I expected.
She hesitated for a while, with her hand moving forwards and backwards in impulses, as if she wasn't sure if shaking hands was the right thing to do.
Since the old man disappeared, her eyes weren't moving fast as before. They were now more calm, trying to focus on mine, with breaks from time to time.
When she didn't give me her hand after a while, I just put my hand down, and wondered, what is the issue with her.
But before I could make any assumptions, the loud rumble in my stomach echoed through the corridors, ending the anxious silence in between me and Stella.
Her, being more surprised than I was, she immediately seemed to remember the quest given to her by the old man. Turning around, the girl waved with her hand, showing me to follow her.
I hesitantly went just right behind her, still having in mind that I probably hadn't eaten for days.
Her steps were hesitant and fast, with her short legs making twice as many steps as mine long did. Her bright hair jumped up and down, looking pleasantly nice from the back.
We walked through the dark corridors for a short while, not saying a word to each other.
Then, we finally arrived at a spacious place, that wasn't closed behind any doors.
A room quite big in space, it was faintly light up by the small lamps in the ceiling.
But as the girl walking in turned the switch on, the place brightened up a little, showing me all of the entirety.
In the middle of a gray flooring, a long minimal table was standing, stretching from one wall to the other. With simple chairs tidily surrounding it from all of the sides, they created a perfect symmetry. One at each narrow end of the table, by the white empty walls, and five on each long side of the table. This could fit twelve people to be exact. And behind it all, a countertop stretching all along the back wall, with the same style cupboard above it. Everything being as minimal and simple as one could imagine, this all looked just like a geometrical drawing rather than a kitchen one could eat and drink at.
As I was standing in the transition from the corridor to this room, Stella quickly went up to the table, which, I noticed, had some items lying on it.
She searched through them thoroughly, but after a short while I could feel something was wrong. Stella started to toss them all around, like if eagerly looking for something. Her moves seemed nervous, as the longer she searched for something, the less hopes she had for finding it.
Then she stopped, and slowly turned towards me, showing eyes full of sorrow. Her face being as still as stone, but eyes… Somehow, showing all of the emotions gathering inside. As if she was on the verge of crying, but something stopping her inside from doing it. Just like me, asking myself to remain strong before.
But before I could react in any way, a terrifying giggle went through the unstable air of the dining room.
"Looking for something?" — A laughing voice came from the side of the room.
A silhouette of a person emerged from the other passage.
His silver hair swaying as he marched, a man with a teasing smile holding something small in his hands.
This… Guy…
Silen… A man worse than a nightmare…
The least I want now is him seeing me here… Or his inevitable bullying would start, not ending in a good way…
Backing up into the corridor, I tried to erase my presence here, hiding behind a wall, just slightly sticking my head out to watch his actions.
He spun the item in between his slender fingers, and smiled foolishly at the girl standing in the middle of the room, which expression turned significantly. Into a scared and pitiable now. Her eyes were filling with anger and despair, but somehow I felt she was unable to let all of the emotions out, as an action. No words, no movements.
Holding herself in the place she was standing, she hesitated to do anything, as the man was playing like a kid with an item I felt had a meaning to her.
"You want it? I know you do. Say some magic words and I might consider giving it to you." — He waved at her with the object in his hand.
But she couldn't let any words out, just loud breaths and sighs...
…Is she going to stand there still?
Her desperate eyes looked at me, hiding behind the wall where the man couldn't see me entirely. I glared surprised, seeing this weird situation like an image just from the school corridor. The bully and the bullied. And in the past, I was in the second position.
But now, I was just an observer, not knowing how to react at all.
I've just sent her a gloomy face, having in the back of my mind that showing myself would lead to worse things. Yet, If I was on her place, I wouldn't bear to hold my anger in. Ambushing this irritating egoist, to show him where is his place.
In the blink of an eye, which none of me and him had expected at least, she swiftly moved toward the oppressor.
Her pale hand flashed through the air, and reached for the thing Silen held.
But missed, as he moved backwards, surprised from the sudden attack.
"Woah, hold on. I didn't ask for a violent kitten." — He dodged every attempt of her to get the thing back.
"You wanna play?" Then come get me, hahaha."
He jumped right and left in the room, with me seeing only his back. The silver hair of his was springing, shining like falling water. And the girl was clumsily trying to block him, yet she seemed to be afraid of making direct contact with him.
After a while of a cat and mouse game, she stopped, exhaling loudly, with a miserable face.
Silen was visibly disappointed, yet inside, content.
"Ah, you tired already? What a pity… Wanted me to stop? Why just don't say it…" — He marched to the side, showing me her entire person, which was to start crying any second now. — "Oh, I forgot."
"You're mute. How lame. If I break this stupid thing, would you be able to communicate at all?"
His teasing words were cruel and painful. Enough to make a single tear fall off Stella's face, which face was now full of disgust and despair.
"Finally made you show me a face other than a stone doll." — Silen pleasantly admitted.
The thing he was holding, he unexpectedly dropped it to the ground below him, just right next to his foot.
Just when he lifted his leg, attempting to crush the object beneath it, something struck inside me, like a lightning bolt, making my body beam with energy.
Maybe it was the empty face of the girl, which didn't have enough strength to stop this man from destroying something that was so meaningful for her. Maybe it was her disability and not being able to express what was happening inside her, a war of feelings and thoughts. Maybe it was the audacity of this man teasing a poor person like this, allowing himself to cross the line of admissibility.
I've had enough of this show.
I don't mind crushing him. At all.
Rushing at Silen from the back, he didn't have any clue what was coming at him.
Not having any time and space to react, I didn't feel any force opposing me when I grabbed this man by his arm. Pulling him back, I mowed his leg, when the other one was still in the air.
When his face showed up to me, being uncovered by the storm of his shiny hair, a face full of shock and surprise could be seen, piercing me with his wide opened eyes.
But all of that happened in a millisecond because the man was sent falling to the floor right next to me. His body crushed to the ground with an impact, leaving him astonished, with his eyes glaring openly at mine.
"You sick fuck! Having fun from teasing her?! Not on my watch!" — I shouted at him from above, almost spitting on his face.
But there wasn't any fear and fright on his face. Just a mere expression of wonder and surprise.
However, after a split second it all changed, when the man returned to his stupid smiling face.
"Ahhh… Look at you. Didn't expect our little rebel to recover so fast." — He laughed at me, turning his body to the side.
I glared at him with disgust, and went to pick up the item which was the cause of all of this.
A small, pen-like object, heavy when lifting, but with weird energy coming from the inside.
I walked up to Stella, and returned it to her, which made her spirits lift up a little.
Her eyes were still sorrowful and trying to cope with all of the emotions from a while ago, but something inside of her has definitely awakened. Looking into my eyes, her glare expressed gratitude, but at the same time astonishment beamed through them.
With her shaking hand, she took the item, and turned it on. A faint green light came on its surface, and a quiet ding could be heard.
She immediately started to write something with it in the air.
Glowing green letters started to appear in the air, shocking me, as I haven't seen anything like this before.
Just when the last letter came to be born in the still air, the words "thank you" were pulled together, before my eyes.
Wow, I've never come upon a technology that allowed one to create visions in the air, lasting until the writer doesn't delete them.
I've just faintly smiled at the girl, thinking I've done what should have been done by anyone, and nothing more.
"What a sickening fucking happy end. Boring." — A dull voice came from behind me.
Turning around, I saw him hesitantly standing in the middle of the room. Giving me a mad glare, he cracked his neck from the stiffness. But it changed quickly again, to a joyful one.
"You're more fun than her." — He exclaimed, suddenly seeing his eyes spark, jumping towards me, to ambush.
Too quick for me to react, I closed my eyes instinctively.
Although before I could feel his flying punch landing an impact on my body, his hand magically withdrew from my face, as if the time was turned backwards.
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