Chapter 6: SAME
Unconsciously, Dustine find himself smiling because of what Dawn said. His smile full of sincerity.
When Dawn vanished his sight, and he assume that she is already safe ahead, he turns and went back to the territory as fast as he can so that no one can see him. He went straight to his place, drinking his favorite.
Dawn keep herself running on the forest because even though she is outside of the territory, she’s still in the forest and no one knows what awaits you there, especially that she still feels sick.
Her breathing became uneven when she heard a rustles nearing in her side, then an audible footstep. She forced herself to come down so that she can focus and make up a plan for her escape. Since, she can’t run fast because her head is throbbing and her body feels so heavy.
“E-Excuse me,” she gasped when she heard a husky voice. It’s obviously from a guy.
Dawn double think if she will face the owner of the voice. However, because she is afraid that it might be a guard or someone from the territory she just run away.
“Miss?” there it goes again.
So, Dawn face it so that she can run away and go back to the house, where her best friend is, but funny how she didn’t know that Xio is inside the dungeon cell also in the Dustine’s territory.
“Yes? Do you need anything, Mister?” she asked the stranger.
The man looks back and forth before saying; “Yeah. I’m James, James Nikcolaii. And I think I lost my track here. I’ll be going to Canagan, but I found myself here in the forest… I think I am lost. No. I’m lost,” He stated.
Dawn stared at him. “And then?” the man taken a back of what she said. “What do you want me to do?” she maybe sounded rude but she means it.
The conversation made her sick even more. She wants to get out of the forest and go back to the house where she belongs. She doesn’t want to stay there any longer but how can she goes back when her feet and body didn’t feel good?
“Do you know at least where the way to get out of here?” the man asked frankly.
Dawn nodded. She memorized the forest a long time.
“Yeah. But if you’re in hurry I think I can’t help you faster… My body feels sick.”
She tells honestly, and she is hopeful that the man in front of her will help her at least. So far, it’s a win-win situation for them. Dawn will guide the man’s way out and the man will help her to get out fast, just like what she wants.
“Miss, I’m in hurry. Can you tell me at least the exact and right directions that will guide me?”
No.
The first word comes in Dawns’ mind.
“I want you to help me stand or walk. Then I’ll help you way out. I’ll guide you out.” Dawn’s mind is made up so, she said it with finality.
James blinked twice. Because of Dawn bluntness.
“S-Sure.” He just said because either him has no choice but to grab Dawn’s offer.
“That’s nice. Come here and allow me to hold on you so that I can walk a little bit faster.”
He obliged for what Dawn asked for.
They are walking in the forest, Dawn’s one arm encircling on James shoulder. Dawn leading the way out just like what she said.
When they are about to reach the road to Canagan they saw a battalion of people protesting, it’s more like they are making noise, they are making a violent disturbance.
“What’s going on?” James asked, curiously.
Even Dawn, didn’t know what’s exactly going on. She just left for a night and this happened. But she knows some of the rally people are not from Canagan. They are outsiders, an immigrant. The people are holding baggage’s in their hand as they were fighting to the villager of Canagan. Both the immigrant and the villagers are furious.
“I don’t know.” She answered in whisper.
She was taken aback when a woman, carrying a child thrown away to her feet. The woman is in the ground, sitting because some of the people pushed her away. Both the woman and the child are crying and the people of Canagan, including Mrs. Oreio, shouting at the woman. While some of the other people pushing outsiders out.
‘Oh my god! What a welcome scene. I guess I don’t want to leave this place for the whole night if this is what will happen if I come back.’ Dawn didn’t voice out her thought away.
She held a gripped tightly on James shirt, it’s a bit crumbled by now, while watching the woman and the people in riot. It’s such a big mess, and it’s causing Dawn a head ache.
“YOU’RE NOT ALLOWED HERE!!!!!! GET OUT!!!!”
One of the people shouted at the woman in Dawn’s feet.
Dawn feels so helpless and she pitied the woman and child. Even if her feet and body feel good she forced herself to sit on her knees to help the woman.
“What are you doing? You’ll cause too much damage for what are you doing. That’s too risky, get up!”
James begged Dawn not to include herself in the riot but Dawn never listened to him, she just want to help the woman and the child.
So, James just help them also. He made the woman stand and simply walk her on side while the people provoke her busy arguing with each other. Luckily, no one saw them while walking away. In her Dawn’s mind, she wanted the woman and the child to be safe and that’s all that matter for her, right at the moment.
Dawn face James and say; “Let’s go to my house.”
Even though James have different agenda why he is in the Canagan, nodded and obliged of what’s Dawn’s said.
Dawn again lead the way to her house.
She sighed in relief that no one sees them sneaking out of the riot. The riot that eventually lay down, when the people went at peace.
James staring at Dawn for so long, as she opened the door house for them to enter, because Dawn seems familiar in his eyes. He shakes his head and divert his attention into something when Dawn notice that he is staring at her.
The house is made out of woods but the window and the wraparound porch help to enhances its beauty. There are also plantation of flowers and fabricated grass in front, that the dazzling color of them glow together with the sun rays.
“Are you his husband?” the woman asked him because she notice his stare at Dawn too.
Because of shock, James nearly choked by his own saliva. He didn’t saw it coming. When he already got back to senses and the woman sink in.
He answers; “No. Just like you, she just me help me out.”
The woman seems contented by his answer but she also sheepishly smiles because she knows that if ever they were creating a great couple and relationship together.
“Come on in. I think my best friend left for a reason but I know she will come up for a moment later.” Dawn open the door widely so that they can enter fully including, James.
Dawn at first get shock when there’s no Xio showed up to greet her or at least welcome her home and urge her to tell her, -Xio- of what happened to her but there’s none and she just think that Xio is out for work, which is definitely not because Xio is inside of the dungeon cell in the Dustine’s territory.
“Please let me out. I’m begging you.” Xio once again cried for help.
When the guards approach together with the master Dustine, Xio made a scene so that they can notice her and what Xio did was successful because Dustine notice her and her cries.
“Master, why did you stop?” one of the guards asked him when he suddenly stop mid-way out of the dungeon.
It’s been hours passed since he made Dawn out of the dungeon and from their territory. There is no time that he felt guilty of what he did. He just makes sure that no one would notice that one of the rouge are out of there place.
“Is it one of the rouge?” he asked the guard instead answering the question.
All of the guard, nodded to answer his question.
“Yes. We caught her but she keeps on insisting that she is one of the rouge and she needed to get back for her best friend.”
Something inside of Dustine’s mind snapped when he remembered that he encountered the same story with Dawn.
“Were they are talking to each other?” Dustine asked in himself in his mind.
7: She’s Back Slowly, everything happened fully sinks in. “Is there any reason why you are here in our place?” Dawn asked the woman who asked for her help. The woman named Rebecca Monest and Rocco Monest, his child, from the city of Wholmstoker. This is the city after the rural province of Canagan. Rebecca seems surprise by Dawn question. She suddenly lost of words of to answer her question, but looking at her son, she manages to answer; “I don’t know exactly why are we here. My husband just drags us here together with some of our neighbors, the one you saw in the riot.” “Don’t you have any idea why he did that?” this time it’s James who asked Rebecca a question. Yes. James is in Dawn’s house, he never left as he enter her house because he found out that Dawn can help him, for his real reason why is he in Canagan. Rebecca nodded. “I h
8: Blood When Dawn finally opens the window and she face the door, she flashes a smile and walk through Xio. Although she never expects that Xio would be home at this time of the day. She usually goes home at afternoon or late in the afternoon. “It seems like, you finished your work this early ha.” Dawn jokingly uttered. Xio think for a moment, she didn’t get what Dawn said and when she looked at her clothes, flashbacks of what happened earlier clouded her mind. She thinks that Dawn assume that she is out for the work, which is not true but she can’t really tell Dawn what happened to her. So, she smiles and says; “Of course, you’re back. You ditched this house without me knowing. Where did you go?” She asked and chuckled after. “I... ah, went to work. They happened to have an emergency and I’ll help them. Sorry for not allowing you to know it because you’r
9: The BookDawn’s face in horror and looked up to Xio, who’s now turned her back to face Dawn leaving the plates unclean.“W-What happened Xio?” she asked, a bit scared and confused.Xio, as well is confused, didn’t know what happened. She takes her blazer off and saw a blood on it, on the right shoulder of the blazer. It looks like the blood stained in her clothes a long time because some of it already dried on the clothes, and some aren’t dry enough. She’s sure that the blood is wasn’t from her.She recalled what happened in the forest together with the guards and their so called ‘master’, -which is Dustine that she doesn’t know-, she is about got of that place when dozens of people locked her way out, with a strange blood on the side of their mouth and one of them tried to seduce her, she even touched by that one man and maybe he i
10: Blue-eyed Bat“Where can I have it?” Dawn asked Seta, and she pointed out one corner of the room, that havea zip code design five tier tall corner shelfThere are pile of antique books, neatly place in there but the book covers are almost rotten.“You can see the book you are looking in that shelf. Just look for it.” Seta once again point the shelf and Dawn nodded as a response.Dawn felt James presence in behind and then she realized what was her reason why she is in the book shop in the first place. She looked around the library and found out that there isn’t a guy, just like what James told her earlier. The library isn’t that big, it’s like five-hundred-meter square, without second floor, but there are a lot of books place in an eight vertically arranged bookshelves, minus the book tier in the corner.‘Is James just fooling me?’ she thought
11: JasperWhen they got inside, Dawn hurried into her room to place the book she got from the library. Luckily, Xio didn’t notice that she went into her room to hide something from her. It’s just that she didn’t want her to know that she would create an investigation about the place she went through.“Where’s Rebecca and Rocco?” she asked, as soon she got out of the room and noticed that somebody was missing.James and Xio’s conversation got interrupted when they heard Dawn. Xio went to her and clung her arms around Dawn's arm, being clingy again.“She said she wants to search for her husband and I let them because who am I to say no, right? Maybe she got
12: Make ChaosDawn blinked a second, trying to open her mouth but nothing came. She was star-struck by Jasper's presence. She is wondering what’s happening in her life, first Dustine, second James and now him? Dawn realized that she was staring at him for so long.“Where are you from and why is that?” she asked, referring to the shifting he did.James chuckled a bit before making himself feel at home in Dawns' room. He sits on the edge of her bed before saying; “Come on, Dawn. I know you know what creature I am, don't you?”Dawn sighs. She knows that he is a vampire. Only a vampire can do what he did. “Sure. But why are you here?”“I’m Dustine’s best friend, we are buddies.”“And?”She crossed her arms into her chest walking in front of him and eyed him once again. He is very different from Dustine’s personality, so how d
13(1/2): DUSTINE KIRBY’S POV The sun is beginning to set beneath the horizon; the skies turn in a deep mixture of orange, pink and violet. The weather is good, almost winter. I was busy watching the outside when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around only to see Jasper, my best friend with his usual playful grin. He put one of his arms on my shoulder and teased my ear as always. I grabbed his arms and twitched it so he pulled away. “What’s up man? Want to have fun?” he asked, full of silliness. I wonder why he got it here. As far as I know he isn’t allowed to get out of their territory, not until he found a woman to marry. “NO! My grandfather will get mad.” I answered. I walk until I get to sit on the couch, and he follows, sitting in front of me. I leaned in and closed my eyes, and an image of that girl flashed in my mind again. ‘Dawn,’ I remember her name now, it suits her, beautiful like how the l
13(2/2): Dawn Pauline’s POV For the second time around, Jasper left me hanging again. After he told me to make chaos flew away like a bat because he said he had an emergency, and I’ll make sure if he showed up again I'd slap him again. Now, we are in the park in the neighboring rural area as Xio promised to me. I can say that it is fun here, well, all of the people here are partying. It’s not even noon, but there’s a group of men drinking beer. They have a bulky body that seems to scare anyone, but I’m not scared. “Dawn, do you eat?” Xio asked and I nodded. I’m not that hungry but I want to try their food. “Yeah. Sure.” Then he pulled me to one of the eatery here. The savory aroma of the food that they are cooking is mouth-watering. Xio ordered us food and paid for it as well, before we settled into a table with our order and ate. The restaurant has its nice place because I can see the beautiful scenery of the forest in our s