Eona had to stay for another week in the hospital before she was discharged but she had to spend a few more days at home before she was allowed to go out. When she decided to pull everything out of her school, her mother wanted to accompany her as she processed her papers for transfer, but she chose to do it alone because she knew how she'd act once provoked, especially after what happened to her. The school's Chairman tried to convince her to stay despite what happened. He even made his grandson Jayson - who by that time looked like he had been assaulted, apologize to her, but her decision had been finalized way before she came to school and no one would be able to stop her. She couldn't risk having it done to her for the second time because her own life would be on the line.
"I'm sorry…" was all she could say to the old man who had been kind to every student he had under his care.
The Chairman sighed as he signed her honorable dismissal. "First, it was Mr. Rivendell who withdrew from the school. Now, you."
"Shaun?" He transferred? No wonder she had not seen him until now.
"He said he had to leave. As if there's going on with his life that he can't postpone anymore."
"Do you know where he transferred by chance?"
"I think he's completely dropping out of school," the Chairman answered with regret as he handed her all the documents she had come to get.
Eona was surprised and was out of words. She never once thought Shaun considered the possibility of dropping out. After all, he's intelligent and one among the students who never failed to meet the teachers' high expectations. Does it have something to do with the call he received that day? He looked bothered at that time. She gave out a deep sigh. All she could do right now is wonder, because no one will be able to give her any answers. No one even knew exactly where Shaun lived. After she thanked the school's Chairman, she left as her thoughts wandered to what had been happening around her. While walking, Eona checked her email and she smiled when she saw her admission to Hillcrest Academy had been approved even if it was already the middle of term. She was advised to personally submit her papers before the set deadline for interview and instead of doing it at a later date, she decided to immediately be done with it, so instead of hailing a cab to go home, she went to Hillcrest directly from her previous school to settle everything she needed.
***
"Are you alright?" Wisteria gave Eona a worried frown as she gathered her things and put everything in her bag.
"Yeah, just thinking about some things." She answered as her thoughts went back to her friend, Shaun.
She had been trying to locate where he went but it was all in vain. The last time she saw him was that night in the hospital when he went there with someone. No one knew where he was at and she couldn't reach him through his cell. It's as if he disappeared completely without a trace.
Wisteria raised her left eyebrow in question. "Maybe we should head home? Let's just visit the shop I was telling you about some other time."
Eona shook her head as she followed Wisteria, who stood up carrying all her things with her. They were given an assignment to research about folklore which was due immediately, so they stayed at the library longer than they were supposed to.
"No. It's alright. I want to see it for myself too."
Every class ends at exactly four thirty in the afternoon and club activities are until six. It's already thirty minutes to eight and the school ground is as silent as it could be. If not for the lamp posts which were spread out everywhere at equal distances from each other, Eona would deem the place a haunted one. But, even with the eeriness surrounding the place, she was amazed. Her new school is beautiful even at night. It looked like it had secrets waiting to be discovered.
"Was the shop a newly established one?" She asked as she looked around while walking. Her eyes were feasting with the night scenery her new school was making her see.
"Yup. I went there once and it's one of a kind. The owner is handsome and his assistants were too. As if one of the requirements for working there was to be good looking. It's more like a host club than a store if you ask me. So don't be surprised if you'll see a lot of women there. It's because they wanted to have a glimpse of the store's employees."
"Why do I get the feeling that we were going there too for the same reason?"
Wisteria laughed but didn't deny what she said, making Eona think she was right.
"What's important is that there was this rumor that the things sold there were previously owned by supernatural beings. Who knows? We might find something that we could use in our assignment."
"Seriously?"
"It's just a rumor. You know, to entice people. To raise their curiosity to such a degree that they'll want to see the store for themselves and see if it's true."
Eona remained silent and drowned herself with her own thoughts again. Though her family had just settled down in this place, she did not plan to roam around to familiarize herself because sometimes, strange things happened to her which normal people couldn't comprehend. There were times when she felt like someone was watching her silently from the shadows. There were even times when she could hear whispered words even if no one was around - as if she could hear the thoughts of the people around her. Her family thought her weird when she first told them about those things. They even deemed her crazy the second time and so she decided to keep everything to herself up to this point. It was hard for her to trust people regarding such matters because her own family did not even believe in her. Wisteria and her hadn't known each other for long, thus it was hard for her to open up to her, to tell her things that kept on bothering her. In fact, she only met Wisteria when she went to submit her transfer papers at Hillcrest for the first time last Friday…
_
"Why are you avoiding the sun?"
Eona glanced at the woman who was staring at her like she came from another universe. "I can't be touched directly by the sunlight."
"Huh?"
She sighed. "I'll burn."
Wisteria's complexion went pale in an instant and Eona already expected what she was about to say next. "You're a… a vampire?"
Eona subtly looked around them. Almost everyone within hearing distance glanced in their direction, which made it a little more awkward for her. "I'm not."
Wisteria stared at her for a minute before grabbing her hand and pulling her into the sun. She almost screamed when she felt her skin burning upon contact with the direct sunlight. It's not that long since she got out of the hospital for the same reason and now she's burning again. When Wisteria saw what was happening she immediately pushed her back into the shade.
"I'm sorry, are you alright?"
Eona wanted to curse. Her arm felt like it was burning literally. Her complexion was fairer than most and the burnt part of her arm looked like it was painted red.
"Didn't I just tell you I'd burn? Which part of it did you not understand?"
"You… you want to go to the infirmary?"
She glared at her. "No, thank you very much…"
_
And to think they'd end up being classmates after that.
"When you become silent like what you are doing right now, I can't help but worry about you. You can tell me things, you know? Even the weird ones."
"I'm just thinking about the first day we met."
Regret flashed through Wisteria's eyes as she glanced at her bandaged arm. "How's your arm?"
"It just needs a little time to heal. Don't worry."
Due to the abnormalities in her DNA, she was not allowed to be touched directly by the sunlight. Her skin will immediately turn red as the sunlight burns her cells and healing always takes longer than the last. It was the very reason why the glass walls and windows of their house, no matter where they lived, were always transitional. And her health condition was the very reason why she had to transfer schools in the middle of the year. Because she was not like anyone else, because she really did not let herself be graced by the sunlight directly, someone from her previous school deemed her as a being who was out of this world.
"With your condition, you should have just enrolled as a Night Class student," Wisteria suggested as she pointed at the group of students walking on the other side of the courtyard. The uniforms they were wearing had the same crest and design like theirs but the color was different. "Their classes were adjusted in a way so that it wouldn't intervene with whatever's keeping them busy during the day. After all, the school was originally built for them. Thus, it was the one adjusting to accommodate them."
"The school's Chairman suggested the idea but I opted to be included in the Day Class. It would be impossible for me to adjust my timeframe if I was included in the Night Class. Why are there two classes anyway? Can't the school accommodate its students all at once?"
"It can. The Day and Night classes used different buildings after all. But I think the circumstances of students in the Night Class are a little bit special. Actually, it was just a few years ago when the school decided to open up its gates for us…" Wisteria tried to think of the right word to describe the Day Class students, "…normal people."
"So if we are called normal people, does that make them not normal?" She frowned. "What are they, supernaturals or something?"
It was at that moment when one of the two remaining students, walking towards the Lunar Hall which the Night Class students use exclusively for their classes, looked in their direction. He is looking at her like she's a subject under a microscope. It's like he heard the words she just uttered. Her curious violet eyes met his mysterious aquamarine ones. His eyes even seemed like they glistened for a moment as he stared at her directly. Like a light had just passed through them quickly. And at that moment, she felt like something just entangled her with him - like an invisible thread just connected them with each other.
Did he hear her from that distance?
Her heartbeat raised a tempo or two with her own unrealistic thoughts. It was only when Wisteria called out her name that she looked away from him.
"You're being influenced by our research paper."
She frowned. "Says the one who mistook me for a vampire."
"Well, you are literally avoiding the sun and you get burnt immediately by it. Can you blame me?"
She playfully smacked Wisteria's arm, at which Wisteria only laughed in return. Eona once again glanced towards the Night Class' direction for the last time, only to find that two pairs of eyes - one were the aquamarines and the second one were forest greens, are now looking directly in their direction. She cursed in silence as goosebumps went over her. Why are they staring?
After exiting the gates of their school, Eona's phone rang. It was her grandmother on the line. Ever since that incident which made her end up in the hospital, they seemed to have been monitoring her activities more closely than before. She pressed the answer button and held the phone in her ear.
"Yes, grandmother?… No, I'm with a friend." Eona listened to what her grandmother said on the other line. "I'm fine. We'll just have to visit this particular shop, then I'll be home."
Wisteria was observing her silently and she could tell Eona was only a little away from sighing deeply.
"Don't worry. I won't be following any strangers into the dark. See you in a bit, grandmother. Bye."
Eona was left staring at her phone when she dropped the call. Sometimes it's suffocating her when her family wants to know almost everything she's doing whenever she's out of their house. As if they're making sure she hadn't done something out of the ordinary. It also didn't make her doubt any less that they were hiding something from her. That they're afraid she'll learn whatever it is.
Wisteria chose to remain silent as they walked side by side. She may not have known Eona for long but she could tell she was not in the mood to talk after her conversation with her grandmother. It was a little while later when they finally reached the shop Wisteria was talking about. The store is not small. In fact, it was quite big with glass walls where you could see what was inside. The word RELIQUIAE was written in cursive writing above its two-way glass doors.
"So, what can you say? Beautiful, isn't it?"
Wisteria is beaming. Excitement is clearly written in her eyes as if she's about to go treasure hunting.
"And look at its name, so unique."
Eona chuckled. "It's 'corpse' in another language."
"Huh?"
Eona pointed at the store's name. "It sure does sound beautiful, but it is still 'corpse' in another word. Who would name their store with something associated with the dead?"
Someone chuckled just after Eona said those words, which made them both turn around. Two men dressed in black vested suits are standing behind them with amusement glinting in their eyes. One with unruly black hair and ashen blue eyes, while the other has gray hair and pale blue eyes. Is it possible for human beings like these two in front of them to be that good looking?
"I told you someone would know what RELIQUIAE means sooner or later."
"Don't think of the name. Think of the money."
"Yeah, but I like our other job better." The first one added before they laughed as they bumped their fist in the air between them.
When the two noticed them looking, they only smiled innocently as if they hadn't said their thoughts out loud. The two passed them on their way and opened the door for them.
"Welcome to Reliquiae, madames! We hope you find what you were looking for."
Wisteria entered the store with determination and Eona followed her without any other choice. After all, she's also curious as to what things she'll see inside.
"Just look for either Lancer or me, Archer, if you need anything."
Eona glanced at the guy with ashen blue eyes. So his name was Archer. She only nodded and he just smiled before the two went towards a room at the back of the store. The store itself is wide. It was like a mini-museum. Various things were displayed neatly above black felted long tables and shelves. All of them were uniquely beautiful. The items on display were arranged according to its type - jewelry, books and the like.
Lancer and Archer.
"What weird names..." She thought.
They look close, like peas in a pod. But they don't seem to be brothers. They must have bonded because of the same circumstances. She could see Wisteria in another aisle eyeing something in the jewelry section while she engaged herself in looking at nothing in particular. She continued walking around until she reached a part of the store which customers didn't notice at all. It was the furthest area from the entrance and she couldn't see nor hear anyone from there. Unlike the ones put at the front where customers can freely inspect them, the things that are displayed there are put inside glass shelves, surrounded by a thick red cord at a certain distance to keep anyone from touching them.
"Are these more important than the ones put on display at the front?"
She couldn't help but be curious, especially when something caught her eye and undivided attention. It is an opened black velvet box sitting on a high-rise glass table with a crystallized rose flower placed inside it. She stared at it, unblinking. She felt like the rose was pulling her in until she lost her balance and almost stumbled into it. If only someone had not pulled her back, she could've broken something.
"Careful." A male voice almost whispered from beside her.
Was she that distracted for her not to hear him approaching her? She turned towards him to apologize, only to be met by a man with silver hair and mirthful golden eyes. She blinked. Once. Twice. She had to make sure she was not seeing something out of this world, but the longer she stared at his eyes, the more golden they appeared to be. She had heard of golden browns but not an entirely golden color like the ones he had.
She composed herself. "Sorry."
He only smiled at her as he stood beside her. He then focused his attention on the flower she was looking at before and a certain kind of longing passed over his eyes for a moment.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" He said but she remained silent. "It was said that the crystal that covered every petal of the flower was made by the Monarch who used his blood power to preserve its life and beauty. The flower's name is Seliniakó Triantáfyllo. Though in your native tongue it's called the Lunar Rose. He crystalized the flower for the purpose of making it a gift because it only blooms for about two full moons every hundred years. But after the Blood War, which involves all naturals and supernaturals took place, no one knows where they grow anymore."
What he said piqued her curiosity. "Monarch?"
The man nodded. "He is an honored being with a strength above all others and wields a power at the expense of his own life force to protect life itself. A vampire of Royal Blood who bears wings of crimson."
"Vampires don't have wings. They have fangs."
He smiled as if he knew something she didn't. "He actually has both," he then whispered to himself.
"Vampires aren't real." She pointed out, which made the man chuckle like she had just told a joke.
Instead of retorting, he changed the subject instead. "Are you going to get that?"
She looked back at the flower and frowned. "Didn't you just say it was a gift? I couldn't possibly get something that was meant for someone else."
"You just said vampires are not real. Don't you think the stories that accompany these things aren't real either?"
"Then where would the stories that accompany these things come from if not for the twisted truths due to passing of time?"
"Hmm, you have a point. But, you're not supposed to believe anything you hear."
"That is why there is this thing called 'research'."
The man just smiled but he remained silent. He looked as if he was enjoying their battle of words, which he started by telling her something that almost sounded believable.
"Is it for sale?"
"It must be. Siegrain has put it on display after all."
She thought for a moment before shaking her head 'no'. She felt like the crystallized flower was not supposed to be owned by her. When she found the right time to say goodbye to the stranger, she excused herself and went to find her friend Wisteria.
"Did you get anything?"
"No."
"Why?"
"I was just not interested," she answered, even though the crystalized flower in the corner caught her interest more than any other thing that piqued her curiosity, especially after what the golden-eyed told her about it.
What's with those things he mentioned? Monarch? Royal Blood? Wings of crimson? Blood War? And what's with the naturals and supernaturals? It sounded like he was talking about the human race and all of the creatures that dwell in the night. They're researching folklore and tales about vampires but they never read anything about what he just said.
"Let me just check these out then."
"I'll be by the door."
As Eona waits for Wisteria to finish purchasing the things that caught her interest, she checks her phone and finds a text from her mother, Helena.
"Your grandmother and I will be coming home late tonight," was all she said in her text.
She pursed her lips. Her mother coming home late from work is nothing new and sometimes she's with her grandmother too. When Eona was young, she never once questioned how her mother lived, how they seemed to be living a life beyond normal circumstances and how it was that their family had been working for the same family for generations. She didn't even ask where or who her father was, because no one mentioned his name at their house. She chose not to respond to it and decided to put her phone back in her bag.
"Let's go." Wisteria called out to her and she nodded, but when they were about to exit the door, Archer stopped them.
"Yes?"
"This is yours, Miss."
Eona eyed the black paper bag he was handing her. "I didn't buy anything."
"It's a gift from Blaze, the owner's friend."
Archer gestured at someone on the other side of the store. He was the golden-eyed stranger she had met before. So his name was Blaze. He is currently talking to a blonde man who looks to be of the same age as he is. He must be the owner. If she remembers correctly, Blaze called him Siegrain a while ago. When both men felt them looking in their direction, Blaze waved his hand in the air with a smile.
She focused her attention back on Archer, who still had his hand extended towards her direction. "I don't accept gifts from strangers."
"Blaze means no harm, believe me." When she was about to refuse, Archer continued. "I was told to throw this one away if you're not going to accept it. Your choice."
"You're really going to?" Wisteria asked, wide-eyed, because she knew how much one of the things found in the store costs. Not one can be considered cheap.
"I will."
After contemplating, Eona sighed before accepting it with gratitude. "Please tell him thank you."
Archer then gave them a slight bow after he handed her the paper bag before leaving them.
"So… what did Mr. Golden Eyes give you?" Wisteria finally asked when they were already out of the store. She couldn't contain her curiosity any longer.
Eona opened the paper bag and pulled out the medium-sized black velvet box which looked familiar. When she opened it, she was surprised. It was the crystallized rose she had been intently staring at a while ago. What she didn't expect was when the moonlight shined on it, the flower slowly started to glow in a soft red hue. Both of them gasped in awe.
"It's beautiful…" Wisteria whispered and she could only agree in silence. "I don't remember seeing this displayed at the store."
"It's on the farthest side where everything seemed off limits."
"And yet the owner's friend gave it to you."
"We talked about the flower for a while. He said some things about naturals and supernaturals in between. About someone and a war which seemed to have erased the existence of the flower. He sounded believable, but who knows if he was just speaking tales to have a conversation? I didn't think he was going to give it to me."
"So that has a story like that behind it?"
She shrugged. "Who knows?"
"Take note of everything he said and we'll find out about it when we have time. That is going to be the content of our output next week."
"You believe him?"
"It's not that I believe in him completely. He just gave me the idea to dig in deeper into the matter and make it into our output paper."
At around eight, they parted ways when Wisteria was picked up by their family's driver. She offered to drop her home on the way but Eona refused since Wisteria's house was completely in a different direction from hers. She familiarized herself with the metropolis' surroundings as she walked towards the train station. A few students and different individuals walked here and there, each with their own destinations. The metropolis seemed peaceful since it was not the evening rush hour yet, so she never expected to be suddenly grabbed by someone and be dragged roughly into the forest.
"Let go!"
"Shut up!" The man snarled with a hiss which made her heart thump rapidly inside her chest.
He was moving fast. Faster than an average human being. He didn't care if branches slapped her face along the way or that his nails were digging in her skin. He just ran away from the busy streets of the city while dragging her along with him. Eona didn't know how far they were now from the metropolis. All she could tell was that they were already in the middle of the forest in such a short time. When they came to a stop, the man faced her and what she saw would surely bring nightmares in her sleep. The man had bloodshot eyes. Very much like the one in her memory. He was untidy, as if he'd been staying in the dirty alleys for a long time. But what made fear envelope her whole being were his protruding fangs behind his upper lip.
A vampire.
She was able to get away from him but her arm was wounded due to his nails and fresh blood trickled from it. She didn't know what was happening, but the way this vampire was looking at her, she knew she had to get away from him.
"Run…" her mind told her and she did.
Without knowing where to go, she ran. The forest she was in was unfamiliar but she didn't have time to worry. She could feel that the vampire was just right behind her. Like a predator would, it enjoys toying with its prey. In that situation, she is unfortunately the latter. With observant eyes, she glanced around the area while she was on the run. Due to the dense forest, the place is darker than it should be and the light of the moon couldn't pass through it. She couldn't hear the busy streets of the metropolis anymore. She must have run away from it and deeper into the forest.
She couldn't hear anything unusual so she let down her guard a little only to meet with the vampire she was running away from. Adrenaline rushed through her veins. She was able to dodge him when he was about to grab her again. She crouched down and gave it a round kick which landed at the side of his head accompanied by a stab on his heart using a random branch she picked up. With the concentrated force she used, it sent him towards a tree. She didn't stay to check whether he was alive or she had killed him, instead she continued running.
She has been running for a long time. The pain in her chest was starting to become unbearable, but the second she stopped to take a breather was the very same time she was harshly pushed onto a cliff high enough that she knew it could kill her. Eona screamed out of fear. A human's natural reaction to danger, because she knew she wouldn't be able to survive the fall and it seemed to be the longest few seconds she had ever experienced in her entire life. She fell, back first at the bottom of the cliff, breaking her bones in the process. She didn't want to cry, but her tears still flowed down her cheeks. With the unbearable and agonizing pain she felt in her whole body accompanied by oozing blood which she was sure was her own, she just knew she wouldn't be able to see the sun tomorrow. Even with blurry eyesight, she could see someone looking down at her from above and not even a second later, another joined. She must have succeeded in killing the one who pulled her into the forest because she couldn't see him anywhere.
She saw them jump down the cliff where normal human beings couldn't have landed safely. She already expected what was gonna happen next. She'll either die by their hands or die because of her injuries. She stared at the moon and waited for them to drain her dry. The spirit to fight had already left her completely. They were, after all, vampires. Beings which her family told her to be nonexistent. And now they're going to be the reason of her death. But they never came near her. They haven't been able to. In fact, another person held her injured body carefully like she's going to disappear any minute. She knew he was talking to her but she couldn't hear any words. Her senses are leaving her. She couldn't even feel his touch. Everything was just numb. But, before darkness completely engulfed her being, she had a glimpse of who was cradling her as if she was going to shatter like a glass if he didn't do so carefully.
A Night Class student. The very same one who possesses those beautiful aquamarines. But this time the color of his eyes was completely different as they glistened dangerously under the moon.
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