“I want to go first, Barb.”
I turned around after putting firewood behind the house. I frowned in surprise. “Where are you going, Mom? I thought all needs are still complete.”
Mom shook her head. “Not for that.”
“Then for what?”
Mom sighed. “It has been too long. I will try to find information about your dad and Gran.”
My heart beat suddenly. “Mom, it can be dangerous!”
My mother smiled soothingly. “I understand your concern, Barb. However, honey, I need to know where my husband is… your dad and your gran, too. I'm afraid….”
I took Mom into my hug. We both were worried all this time; it is just that we rarely expressed it. Just letting hope soar between the two of us without us having to say anything.
“Be careful, Mom,” I whispered.
Mom nodded and let go of my arms. “I'm always careful.”
Her sm
“I thought you were a vampire who wanted various things in our area.” I blinked. His voice was soft, reminded me of BTS's Park Jimin; Korean singer group that I admire. To my surprise, he did not sound scary at all; almost friendly, in fact. “Area?” I parroted not to understand. The wrinkles of the exotic-skinned youth deepened. “What pack are you from?” the young man began to scatter. “How come you are here? Looking for new food? There are only wild boars here. Do you like pork? Where is your house? What is your name?” I really could not say anything. The question strafed me like a bullet fired nonstop. Excessive parables, but it feels like that. I tried to answer the question as much as possible. I do not want to make this youth's infallibility fade. “I am… well, I don't know what pack you mean. You mean like the one on the films? And… I live alone with my mother in this forest,” I explained doubtfully. “I was just walking and… no, I
“I guess I have to go,” I said quickly. I foolishly took steps at a normal human speed. As a result, Justin managed to stop me again and get in my way. “Are you a wolvire?” Justin asked suddenly. I looked at him confused. “My name is Bara, not Wolvire.” Justin patted his forehead like he was out of mind because of my foolishness. “I mean ‘wolvire’; stands for wolf-vampire.” “Uh, yeah, that's me,” I muttered like a fool. I just forgot what the mean, that’s all. “You don't know anything about the wolf pack… did your parents keep everything from you?” I almost opened my mouth wide open. This is confusing to me. Is Justin the kind of person who is okay if I tell him who I really am? I decided to take safe steps. “Yes, I just found out about myself a few weeks ago,” I said cautiously. “My parents thought I could live as a normal human being.” Justin snorted. His gaze turned doubtful. “I can
The wolf pounced on me until my body fell and crashed into the forest floor, but that's all. The wolf whined happily and immediately stepped out of my sight as he jumped up and down like a puppy.If I had a history of heart disease, I would have met a handsome angel who was ready to punish me in hell.I looked at Justin from below. “What was that?!”I stood in one light strand. However, the next thing that happened made me regret to standing up. I hope me still lying on the ground. It will be better if I can pass out at once.The black wolf in front of me evaporated like a thick gray mist on a cold morning. In less than five seconds, the misty wolf was replaced by another young man of Justin's age who stood with his hands on his hips. He grinned at Justin and me.I practically slapped Justin's arm muscles and made my palms heat on my own.“Who is he?” I whispered to Justin. “He's just juggling, isn’t he?&r
David grinned. “Didn't you guys discuss about hiding your relationship? Like dating, for example.”Secretly my heart felt relieved. I glanced at Justin who looked as relief as me.“We're not dating, David. We just met,” I said patiently; the effect of feeling relieved. If not, it is certain my voice will go up a few octaves.“And you fall in love with him, either does him.”I wanted to knock his head with dark brown hair so hard.“Damn, can you keep your mouth shut and go all the way from here?” I rebuked.“It's enough!” Justin scolded. “David, don't disturb her.”David laughed. “Oh, what a sweet bird. ‘Don't disturb her!’ A very caring lover.”Justin suddenly pounced forward. His body turned into a black wolf in the air, and when the wolf Justin dropped his friend, David turned back into a black wolf.“Stop, both of you
Only about a hundred and fifty yards we made a jump, Justin and David stopped at a narrow opening with tall trees encircling it. My shoes stepped on the surface of the ground that was more humid than where we were before. “What do we want to stop here? “ I asked in surprise. They said nothing, but David reached into a hole in the bush. I was afraid the young man would peck at a snake, but when David pulled out his hand, nothing happened. Justin took my hand and the three of us retreated to one side of the tree. A second later, the round opening before me collapsed underground. I was shocked and retreated to further back. “Come in.” David jumped into the dark round hole without any hesitation. I gripped Justin's arm. “What does it mean, ‘come in’?” Justin released the grip of my hand and turned to hold it. “The third count, we jump,” he said. “What?” I cried. “One….” “Wait, Justin!” “Two….”
We entered a dark alley lit only by large candles. The hallway was not as long as I thought as we passed by with echoing steps. Uncle Alvaro turned another hallway, then walked for a few meters and stopped in front of a door. My heart was beating as he knocked on the iron door. Nothing happen yet, but, my throat has been blocked by an imaginary stone. I miss Gran and Dad, and cannot wait to ask Mom how she found this base. The door opened, but the person standing behind it was not someone I knew. I looked at her in surprise. She is a tall girl, but a bit chubby. Her shoulder-length hair was black. Her iris eyes are light blue. I vaguely smell the vanilla scent from her body. “Who's she, Dad?” asked the girl. “‘Dad?’” I slipped involuntarily. “Are you David's little sister?” The girl looked down at me. I suddenly felt midget. “Big sister,” she murmured; still watching me. “He's my little brother.” Uncle Alvaro rubbed my shoulder
That night I slept in the same room as my family. Family. My chest was tight when I remember one of them is gone. “Barbara….” I curled even closer to the wall. Mom's soft voice made it even more unbearable. They say Hugo—the man who attacked Gran's house—took Dad's body with him for whatever reason. I had raged at Gran because he did not want to stop that person. “I'm very weak, Bara,” Gran whispered earlier. “I can no longer fight Hugo. He is too strong.” I understand that. It is just that I am still too disappointed, still too hurt in the heart to accept Gran's condition at that time. My feelings are like falling to pieces. I walked out of the shared room feeling frivolous. Mom called me in weakness, but I just muttered unclear to her. “Do you think that I don't feel sad either, Bara?” cried Mom; the tone was so hurt. I stopped, and then turned a little to her. My lips lifted to form a
The intruder was still threatening Arga's head with the same steps as me. I turned my head. “Who are you?” “We go out first,” whispered the intruder. “Unless you want me to say it now with one life for my demon in return.” The way he said it made me shudder. I wring my fists nervously as we arrived at the main room (?)—I don't know what the right name is, so let me just say it that way. What time is it? Why is there no one at all? I stopped in front of the first step to the top. “Just go up, Barbara,” the intruder whispered again. I took a deep breath, and then climbed the steps with the stranger still holding Arga behind me. My back was bristling without being able to hold. A drop of cold sweat fell on my forehead. My eyes glanced at dozens of windows at the high wall of the bunker. Once again, where are they? Why did no one hear our echoing steps at all? I almost gasped when we finally reached the top door. Th
She changes her fate with a slash of something supernatural, once a month, and Erza can't escape. The slashing magic was sent by a witch from across Sulawesi, even though she had been exiled to a tall tower away from the hustle and bustle of humans, right in the Valley of Panic. Even though the distance stretched for hundreds of miles, why was the union of witches so eager to always punish her?This must be a curse, because after all, entering the supernatural world with the lure of immortality was fooling. Erza, who was able to get out of there, must have been lucky. She is now immortal, but no one should expect everything to be young. In order to remain immortal, she absorbs the life energy of other living beings around her.That is because the leader of that damn organization's decree was announced for Erza to be exiled, a decision which of course was correct.Well, Erza is lonely, but that doesn't mean she's suffering. Instead, she was entertained by the sma
When Hugo left me alone in the cave, I lay back down on the stone bed with the thin mattress and musty blanket. My eyes stared blankly at the ceiling of the cave with chaotic and erratic thoughts.My thoughts and memories are as clear as crystal, from my childhood to the present. In less than a month, I had become a completely different person from what I was before—cold, cruel, heartless, and evil. Moreover, during that time I killed someone I seemed to have loved very much before—my mother.My eyes blinked. There was a wet curtain covering my eyes, blurring my vision for a moment. My throat tightened, as if I was holding back a cry that if released would make me feel like a wailing child. However, there was one other feeling that held back all my feelings: ignorance.I was sad, devastated, shocked by the fact that I used to be just an ordinary girl who wouldn’t be able to make my mother cry. Nevertheless, I also felt the chill I felt when tha
Like a flower that loses its beauty; so is the present that is happening to the whole country.Darkness forces beauty to mourn, darkening the happy atmosphere without being prevented. Gloom, that's all that's left.An eclipse comes between freezing snows. However, it actually lasted longer in retaliation for the delay.They said the darkness was created by a child. Dark and terrible poems about it began to surface.The girl fell like drops of rain from above the horror. She stood like a haughty tower in the distance. She limped in a gray cloud, like dawn breathing death.Someone once said in a tone like being watched by the darkness itself; her body winced, like stepping on embers of silence in the darkness that was painful.They said the girl had a sad sigh. The past without burden has become a memory, she said, missing it feels like a thirst for blood. Now the cruelty of maturity is a problem.People ask themselves: how does all thi
I finally woke up.I gasped for air and jolted awake until my body half rose from where I lay. I gasped, plopped down on the pillow again and closed my eyes for a moment. My head was so dizzy, like it was spinning.I was starting to feel like I was going crazy.All the flashbacks I have had just now have completely drained my sanity. Why should I experience someone else's experience? Not only did I witness memories like before, but also I actually experienced them; their every thought and deed, every detail I should not have known.Why?All of this brought me to a thought that I quickly pushed aside. I do not need to think about it anymore if it will only make my brain hurt.I opened my eyes and watched the roof of the room I was sleeping in. The roof looks like it is not the roof of a house, but… I woke up suddenly and my vision suddenly darkened. I closed my eyes again for a while before finally opening them again.I have déjà vu. I got out of bed slowly and l
Another flashback of Aria that Barbara had ____________ “He's really annoying. Who does he think I am?” Aria muttered to herself in disgust. The girl now lives in a city in Bangka Belitung, where everything is so annoying to her. She just came back from hunting wild boar then changed clothes, and went straight to the kitchen. While hunting earlier she almost ran into a wolf-shifter who almost knew who she was. Moreover, he dared to call Aria with a girl who was not human but smelled strange. It was all because of the secret seal she had placed on her body, a mystical seal, so that no one would find out whom she was. Aria has also been equipped with anti-enemy magic by a witch that she trusts, so that Hugo and his subordinates won't know about her. She was actually quite anxious when she heard about the news of another wolvire in the city of Koba, and she almost died wondering how two wolvires could have been bor
I don't know what happened to me, but vision after vision filled my brain, the more I felt I was them. I want to stop it all, but helpless. The thoughts of this girl named Nadira came to my head again. It had been ten years since the incident, but Nadira could still taste the rancid smell of white blood with the tip of her mind. Often times the girl closed her eyes and took a deep breath, so that at least the glint could be reduced. Nadira thought time would cloud the memory, but she seemed to have her hopes up. At the very least, she had managed to fool herself into thinking that what she was doing was the right thing. Or she thought so. Nadira looked away. The teenager stared at the distant forest through the window beside her, wondered how her mother (she refused to think of Maya as a stepmother) could become INDICENT's right hand man without the public knowing. Which then ended with a creese from… she forcibly stopped the memory. Nadira took a deep breath
[FLASHBACK] Nadira once committed a crime. Nadira was only seven years old at the time. One night, Nadira woke up to hear a noise downstairs. Nadira thought they were her parents, but she was surprised because her mother suddenly sounded screaming like someone who was scared. Her parents had never fought before, so little Nadira found it strange. Nadira, who was curious, finally walked out of the room, which she had left it dark so as not to be caught. Nadira closed the door carefully, and then quietly peeked through the grille of the stairs. Little Nadira then gave a soft breath. At that time she saw there were five people in black robes in the living room. They were holding some kind of blade. They surrounded her mother who was sitting terrified on a sofa. Nadira wanted to help, but she was too scared. Her heart wondered where her father and two brothers were. The little girl bit her lip, holding back s
FLASHBACK Rio Sanjaya ordered his dark horse to stop for a moment with a watchful gaze. The surrounding trees were violet under the bluish moonlight. After listening to something for a while, Rio stomped his horse back on his way without haste. Many times his eyes darted to the edge of the path he was passing. The movement in the thickets brought Rio to a halt again, his horse grunting and neighing softly. Rio drew the double-edged ax he threw onto his back. The handle of the object was rather long and silvery in color. Each blade bears a sign of a roaring tiger. “Whoever you are, come out,” Rio said his voice was firm yet still. Even so, a drop of sweat seemed to be dripping down his forehead. The scrub rustled again. There was a sound of broken branches and a few seconds later the bushes opened, revealing a large man in a black robe and a blue mask. Other figures with almost the same appearance began to appear one by
ARIA JONATHAN [FLASHBACK] The girl yawned. Who wouldn't get bored if you sat for hours in the car without meaningful activities, like sleeping, for example? She had thrown her phone and favorite fiction book in her bag, after nearly an hour of staring at it with a fading enthusiasm. She did not know why her ability to kill herself a.k.a sleeps anywhere and anytime suddenly decays. It was at times like this that irritation almost frustrated her; barely. How far did she have actually go to get to that damn boarding school? One year, maybe. This is really annoying! Aria glanced at the man in his forties who sat behind the wheel sarcastically. She was sure that Mr. Baga's butt was almost blistered. Aria herself has changed her sitting pose at least a million times. She wondered how an ordinary human could possibly sit that long. Aria feels in vain with herself as a wolvire. “Sir, you are human, are