Chapter three - Promise

I could tell that something was different about the village and I voiced them to my mother. She brushed it off, claiming I was seeing things and that life in the village had not changed nor the attitude from the people.

I believed her… until that day.

~~~~~*~~~~~~

“Where’s Torako?” Mother had asked as she entered our small kitchen. She had been outside with the vegetables; she had set herself in sorting those she will sell and those we will eat. The pretty from the ugly.

“I think she‘s outside, perhaps playing with the other kids.” I answered as I sorted out the beans on the table. I was put to the task to separate the “good” ones from the “bad” ones and while the thought of it was easy, putting it to task was not. I heard her sigh; I looked up from the dozen I had in front of me. “What?”

I could tell she was thinking over what to say and I had a vague idea of what the subject might be about. Could it possibly be about our abilities? Was she going to reveal more about it?

“Go and find your sister.” She said instead.

“Why?”

She dropped the basket she had been carrying on the table, hard enough for some of the beans to roll off from the table. That was enough for me to know she was serious about the subject, but I was still curious. “It’s not even twilight yet, why shou--”

“You should have known better than to let her go outside by herself. Now go and find her.”

The urgency and seriousness of her voice was enough for me to go for my shoes and search for Torako.

The loud voices of the children shouting was enough to catch my attention towards a small hill at the other end of the village. Having been walking and jogging in search of Torako, I did not want to waste my energy by running up the hill and not seeing her, instead I had taken a tentative step towards the direction.

“Freak!” The wind carried out the shout.

“No!”

It was Torako! I quickly sprang up towards the hill as fast as I could as I listened to the kids shouting and jeering.

“Monster! Leave the village!”

“Yeah, leave the village!”

“Don’t let her touch you or she’ll turn you into a rock!”

Once I reached the top, I could see a group of six children surrounding Torako who stood submissively in the middle of the group. It was then that a boy a couple years older than her raised his arm and in a flash threw something towards her direction.

“Hey!” I screamed out angrily as I both felt and heard my blood pumping between my ears, my face heating up as I saw what just happened before me. Without hesitation, I threw a piece of crystal towards the boy with all my might, narrowly missing another’s face but still hitting the older boy’s shoulder. It was then that the other kids sprang away, shouting and screaming. Ignoring them, I quickly ran down to Torako’s kneeling form, ignoring the piece of pink crystal I walked by

“Get the fuck away or I will not miss this time,” I warned the older boy who stood shocked whether by what I’ve done or by the sight of Torako. Without another second to waste, the boy ran.

Torako’s sobs shook her body as she held her bowed head between her hands. “Torako,” I whispered in a soothing voice as I knelt in front of her. “Look at me. They’re gone.”

Torako shook her head, her small ponytails swaying back and forth. As I looked at her, I saw a small drop of crimson fall onto the dirt ground. With my throat already dried, I swallowed as I sharply pulled her up to face me and what I saw made me wince.

“Oh, Torako; I’m so sorry.”

The rock that I believed to have missed Torako had indeed hit her; it was on the right side of her forehead where a small gash was apparent. Now that her face was tilted up at me, a small droplet escaped from the wound and trickled down the side of her face. With a thumb, I brushed it away, smearing her cheek with the red color.

“It hurts, Guren, it hurts!” She wailed.

I pulled her to me, closing my eyes as I felt her cries shake her body.

It was at that instant that everything changed.

I became her protector; I made her that promise that I will never let harm befall on her.