Creatures of the Light

Ninth Light

Ninth LightCreatures of the Light

© All Rights Reserved

##### Ninth Light #####

--------------------------------

Lullaby,

Humming my name dearly,

Never let this melody go,

Let me sink into its sweetness.

My sight is so blurry, much because of the blinding light that is shining upon me.

But even the painful glare of the amiability above can not stop me from looking up to Valline’s eyes.

I can not see those crystal blue orbs since they are closed. But I can see the way his eyebrows curve, and they make him look as if he is in melancholy. Or worse, in pain.

I want to ask what is causing him to feel such unpleasant emotion. But when I try to speak, I find the gap of mouth being tight-lipped by Valline. His lips are being pressed against mine, softly yet shakily, as if he is afraid that I might shatter to pieces like a fragile statue.

He must know best that I am not that breakable, though. And he should be less worrying about that right now, since I should be back to my original appearance now as a Noirmelns.

Yet, I can let go of this feeling that I should be aware of something.

Valline seems to notice the movement from my lips when I try my attempt to speak, but he decides to ignore it. It is not like I do not enjoy the kiss, but the expression that his face is showing is rather concerning. So I try to move my hands instead, which are wrapped in his palms. He too seems to feel the tug I am making when I try to release my hands from his hold, and yet again completely ignoring it. Since nothing is working, I decide to do the unthinkable and kiss him back instead.

He is shocked by this, but I continue on moving my lips against his anyway. At first his lips become stiff because of my unexpected action, but eventually, he begins to relax ─ joyful even ─ as he begins to stroke me back with those pink lips of his. And it does not take long before the osculating turns into a much more intimate one, having both of our mouths open and our tongue licking each other.

I am drunk by the kiss, until I can hear someone intentionally clear their throat in an audible sound.

Finally, Valline and I pull out at the same time, turning our faces to find quite an audience circling around us. I raise my eyebrow, silently asking them why they even bother to spend their time to watch us.

“What’s with the commotion?” I ask bluntly.

Everyone has many different kinds of expressions showing in their faces. I can see my family and friends circling us. Banri is standing close to my two most trusted right hands, Link and Artro, while Crease and Shrade are linking hand to hand beside him. Even Valline’s family is somewhere near the back of the crowd. What I do not understand is the reason why they all gather here, and now, of all places and timing. But it is Artro who answers my question.

“This commotion, my dear cousin,” he gestures the crowd, his eyes glint with so much amusement, “is for your supposed funeral.”

Really?

I look down at where I am lying down, which resembles a box. I raise into a sitting position and spot almost a thousand of black roses placed around me. The bed that I am lying on also turns out to be a coffin. So this really is a funeral. And they thought that I was dead.

My eyes turn sharply at Valline, who is still looking at me in surprise.

He must have thought that I was really dead. Otherwise, how else can I explain the trails of dried tears on his cheeks? And those red eyes? The thought of losing me must have tormented him so much that he cried himself until his eyes turned sore.

But I can also how relieved and happy he is, just by perceiving at how his eyes are now shining upon my figure. And I have never seen something as beautiful as him right now.

“Oh Valline, you should have known better that I would not really be dead,” I tell him as I pull myself forward to hug him. I can smell his sweet scent, and it brings comfort to my nostrils, body, soul and mind.

“I know, Arsene....” his voice is pulsating, caused by a joyful cry. “But when we found your body.... and you were not breathing.... I thought we actually have lost you....” He circles his arms around my slim waist and pulls me harder against him.

“I’m not going anywhere, Valline. Ever.” I mean the last part very much. I can never be away from him. And now, not even death can kill me. I have made sure of that.

“So, does this mean we’re good? You’re not trying to threaten me anymore?” I ask, rather warily by the boldness of my question. I am this close to drifting to unconsciousness. But it seems like even my persistence can not easily be conquered by The Devil’s force.

I can hear him chuckling softly with a little hint of viciousness, like how he usually does. But it does not go any further like that. “Yes, I guess you can put it that way. We are in good terms, but to think that you have been taking my marriage proposal as threats....” He chuckles some more. “But there is one catch, though.”

That takes me on guard. Well, as on guard as I can, with a mind barely slipping to conversant.

“Would you like to be my─”

But my soul is already in transition of returning to its body, and I do not have enough time to listen for the rest of his sentence.

My fingers are turning the pages of this diary that I have placed on my table, when the side of the page makes its mark on my pale skin by creating a paper cut on its surface.

It is night time. Everybody has been dismissed politely back to their homes, and Valline and I are already back at ours ─ well, it is technically the Noirmelns Castle, but I consider this as his home, too, as he considers the Blancort Resident to be mine likewise. We have gone to sleep a couple of hours ago. But my mind just can not rest at this hour, so I leave the bed with Valline still sleeping as peaceful and as soundless as ever, only to approach my crafting table.

I do not remember having any book that resembles the book that is placed in the middle of it, though. It is small, and not that thick either, which is far from the ones I prefer. The cover is pure black and as simple as that. And when I opened it, I discover that the pages are new and white clean, with nothing written inside.

Whose belonging is it that it could possibly get lost on my table?

As my black blood drips from my freshly cut wound, it lands on the surface of the white paper, staining it, and disappears soon, just like how the little injury on my finger does.

This gains my full attention, as I place myself on the nearest chair.

I stare down to the opened diary, looking at the surface of the page, which is still as empty and clean.

Surely this must not be just any book. There is magic in this, and more mystery that the possible list of spell that it has received. And I tried to find out about it. I will not be able to sleep with this curiosity pounding inside my mind.

As if it just listens to my thoughts, the book gives a reaction.

Like a body surfacing from the water, words in black ink appears on the page I am currently opening. And the words stunned me a little bit.

‘I see that you have settled back to your old life, so I do not need to ask how are things like how pen pals do. But I hope you can keep the agreement we have made, on us being friends. I know that we can not meet that often. That is why I gave you this diary instead. It will be the communicator device between us.

─D.’

I can feel various emotions running through me right now. Fear? Definitely. Shocked? Out of the question. Thrilled? Like how when someone is about to walk into an open abyss, knowing that she must not step ahead, yet still too full of curiosity and just decides to ignore the pounding warnings in her head. Those kinds of feelings are swirling inside me.

The Devil? My pen pal? The fact that he is writing to me is out of the otherworld already, even when he is using an unordinary diary as the medium, which I am highly confident is a piece of his own creation.

He could create a skull right away from his empty hands before. Surely something as insignificant as a diary is not so hard to be made at all.

Ignoring my concerns, which is beginning to show its head at the back of my mind, I pull my very expensive-looking feather pen and sink it into a small bottle of ink, before I start writing a reply.

‘Well, this is slightly unexpected. But if The Devil himself is asking this politely for a writing companion, what reason do I have to decline?

─A.’

I am slightly unsure about the initial part, but I guess it is not that much of a big deal. It does not take long for him to write a reply, since I think he pretty much do not necessarily have to write it down. And thus, begins a long night indirect conversation.

“White Prince,” I mutter out loud while we are all sitting on the dining table, having a peaceful yet silent breakfast the morning after. I am sitting at the edge of the table, while Valline sits on my right.

Valline is having his spoon in his mouth, about to swallow the corn soup, when he hears those two words and choke. He tries to regain his composure soon, placing the spoon on his plate and brings a napkin to his lips. But he still can not get that blush off of his face, which is beaming as bright as a tomato right at the moment.

The color really suits him. It makes him ten times more adorable, even when his face is no longer a child’s.

“Where did you hear that from?” He turns to me, still looking very red on the face.

Of course I have known about it after that very long message exchange last night. But I am not going to tell him that.

“It is certainly from somewhere, but I can not believe that you have been keeping that nickname from me for all of these times,” I say in a rather disappointed tone.

“That’s because you were not supposed to find out!” he cries out loud, which sounds even cuter. “Who told you? Was it Carvel?”

My eyes widen. “Among all the people you can mention, why Carvel? It is not like the two of us can stand each other to even have a single decent conversation, without trying to murder each other.”

“It is him who always tries to cause trouble, I must admit, but he is a pretty decent man, once you get to know him.”

“Well, I do not live with him for years like you do. But seriously, Valline, why didn’t you tell me about your nickname?”

“What else? Because it is embarrassing, of course.”

“That does not how your fan mails sound like, though.”

“How did you even know that I got fan mails? Did you sneak up and engaged a talk with Carvel? Or is it perhaps Marlyn who has been telling you about these sort of information?”

“Valline, Marlyn might have showed some respect on me, but that does not mean that we are practically best friends who can gossip about these kinds of things. Let alone Carvel. Seriously, I am not even the type that can easily get along.”

“But─”

“Having a husband and wife morning fight, I see,” Link appears late for breakfast, pulling a chair at my other side and across from Valline’s. But of course, he bows politely beforehand. “Your Majesties,” he refers with respect.

“We are not fighting. I am just teasing my husband, since it apparently brings quite a color to his cheeks,” I answer him with a smile.

Suddenly aware, Valline takes a good look of his reflection by using his spoon, and scowls. And if it is possible, he even looks twenty times ingratiating.

Creatures! I can never get tired of him.