The Asters of Ogaza

Friends . . .and Enemies

          Marjani and Jael strolled towards the training fields, waterskin in their bags filled to the brim. Marjani had been feeling out of ‘it’ lately, and convinced Jael—who wouldn’t stop talking about how Angel thinks he’s better than everybody else and she’s a liar— to come with. Intense physical training always makes everything better, she believed.

          “Forget about him, Jael. He’s just . . .a boy, like every other boy. We can absolutely handle them, and I did. He’s going to stop playing superhero now.”

          Jael crosses her arms. “It doesn’t cancel out the fact that he called me a liar. I mean, can you imagine that? He spoke to me like he was my Mama and I was just his silly five-year-old.” Marjani shrugged. “Speaking of, do they still leave together? Zina and Amare.” Marjani nodded. “Have you figured out why, though? Maybe when we find the reason, we can be able to put an end to Master ‘I am your pompous Captain and you shall obey me’,” Jael said.

          “It’s not like I care anyway. I just really want to know why the Princess is so interested in Zina who doesn’t even reciprocate the care. It’s at my detriment because all she sees is Zina, never anyone else. Maybe, never me. Plus, Zina always has her nose in that stupid sketch book anyway so.”

          Jael’s ever googly eyes that comes more alive at the sight of gossip and a chance to create more. Her sly grin that emphasized the yellowing of her canines. Even her ebony skin that seemed to glow more at the mere mention of the need to pull someone down, especially Angel. They were all on full display now.

          “The ‘stupid’ sketch book could have the answers. All the answers we’re looking for. You can figure out why the Princess adores Zina, and I can figure out why Angel is such an annoying person!”

          “I don’t know,” Marjani shakes her head. “Chances are unlikely. It’s a sketch book, not a diary.”

          “Just get it first. When I look through it, I’d definitely find something.”

          They got into the training field and Marjani stopped short, because there she was. The Princess, in all of her strength and beauty, sparring with a dummy.

                   Jael rolled her eyes in disgust. “I still wonder what it is about this Princess that gets you so . . .excited. For all we know, she could turn into full witch mode and kill us, right now. Do you like her?” She fixed her large eyes on Marjani in a way that made her back up.

          “No, what are you even talking about?”

          “You seem obsessed. Just letting you know, because I’m your friend. And this,” she demonstrated with hands. “is such a questionable behavior.” She walked away from Marjani and properly into the fields, bowed to the Princess and went to retrieve items so she could channel all her “Angel anger” towards the dummy.

          Marjani finally went in too, and she went straight for the Princess whose hands were now on her knees as she panted. Marjani guessed she must have been sparring for a while so she just stood, holding out her waterskin. Princess Haile c****d her head to see whose shadow was in her way.

          Marjani bobbed her head, bowing would make her collide into the Princess. “Your Majesty, I just got here. And, you look . . .famished. So, I thought I would give you this.” She was blushing so hard; it was difficult to maintain eye contact.

          Princess Haile looked from the waterskin, to Marjani. “I have mine,” she said, walking towards a bag that could only be made for royalty. “Thanks for the concern.” She took out her own and gulped from it. It was way bigger than Marjani’s.

          Marjani nodded awkwardly and just stood there, not knowing whether to leave or stay, as she seemingly just got rejected.

          “Did you send my regards to Zina? I haven’t really seen her since she was at my quarters.”

          A cloud of fury settled above Marjani’s head. Zina was in the Princess’s quarters? The Zina who probably doesn’t understand the privilege she had to have gone there? Why did the Princess only ever ask her about Zina, and never about her? A small ‘how are you?’ would send her soaring up into the skies. She nodded awkwardly in response to the Princess’s question.

          A smile broke out of the Princess’s formerly rigid face, and Marjani wondered if she would only get to see that smile at the mention of the name ‘Zina’.

          “Good,” Princess Haile said, took her sword and returned to practice.

          Marjani took her own materials and placed herself beside Jael who was doing really well at hurting ‘Angel’.

          “That didn’t end well.” Jael said, noticing how upset her friend was.

          “Zina. She keeps coming up every time. Don’t I exist? Am I Zina’s keeper?!” She struck the dummy with all her might and Jael grinned.

          “Zina is to you what Angel is to me.” She went close to Marjani and whispered in her ear. “Get me that sketchbook, and all this would go away. Poof!”

                                                          ****

          Amare had sworn he didn’t know much about the tattoo, or what it even meant. All he knew was that his Mama and some other women had done that for him and he could still remember how painful it was. His sister got one done for her too. Zina refrained from probing when she saw that she was making him remember them. Hurting him. But the moment she got back to her room, she wrote Pa a letter, telling him she had seen the thing that was special to their family leisurely tattooed to the arm of someone whose family she was very sure had no relationship with theirs.

          Amare and Angel sat under the white star apple tree, their backs against it. The place had now become their thing (all three of them), like their sacred little hideout. Amare sat cross legged, while Angel sprawled out, both allowing the chirping of the birds above and the sweeping of wind through leaves be the only sound that could be heard.

          Zina came soon, two white star apples in hand and sat opposite them. Angel gave her a small smile that vanished almost as quickly as it flashed, and she and Amare exchanged curt nods. She held her hand to Angel, handing him one of the fruits.

          “For you,” she said trying to read his eyes.

          He smiled again and though a little hesitantly, he took the fruit. “Thank you, Warrior Z.” his eyes went back to the ground.

          “These ones are ripe and sweet. I had one of the Royal guards specially select them for me.” Angel smiled and thanked her again.

          Amare held out his hand and Zina eyed him confused. “What?”

          “Isn’t that mine?” He pointed at the other fruit. Zina didn’t respond and started tearing the fruit open. His eyes widened. “It’s not? Really, vulture? You couldn’t get one for me?”

          “You’re tall, reach up and get one. There are quite a few up in those trees.”

          Angel chuckled. It was impossible for anybody to reach up and even get to half of the tree. He tore his into half and stuck it in Amare’s mouth. “Here. I really don’t want to witness you both strangling each other.”

          Amare kept his flaming eyes on Zina. “But Angel is tall too. Why didn’t you ask him to reach up and get one?”

          “Well, maybe it’s because I care about Angel and do not care about you?”

          Amare scoffed. “You’re so pretentious, vulture. You don’t care about me and yet you cried over me and kissed me?”

          Angel’s hand froze midair as he was about raising the fruit to his mouth. He shot them both questioning glances and Zina reached out to slap Amare twice on his arm.

          “Amare! Stop saying that! I will never kiss you, stop fantasizing.”

          “In my fantasies, you’ve done much worse.” Amare’s cynical smile jumped out and that was it. Zina was glowering at him, speechless. Amare knew how to shut her up and he did it.

          “Hey, the both of you, this is a public place, and there’s . . . a third party here. Can you not get into the details?” Angel tried to be serious but burst out laughing instead.

          “Tell that to Amare!” Zina sulked as she threw a seed into her mouth. “I’m glad you’re laughing like this, Angel. You haven’t properly smiled at me in two days, and I’m not okay,” Zina said, placing her hand on her heart like it was causing her physical pain.

          Angel tsked. “Don’t exaggerate it.”

          “It’s true,” Amare chipped in. “You’ve been kind of distant. Hurt, even. And it sucks to not have the Angel we know around.”

          “Angel is still here,” He waved his hands above his head. “He’s not going anywhere. It’s just . . .” he fiddled with the licked-up seeds of his fruit. “I was having a bad day. Or days. But I’m working on it now.”

          Zina sighed. “Want to share?”

          Angel looked from boy to girl. “Only if you two promise not to keep things away from me. I don’t need to know everything. But looking at yourselves with nervous eyes when I ask where you’ve been, it’s suspicious. And it comes off as though you don’t want me to know. It makes me feel sad, alone. Because, even though I talk to the other Asters, none of them know me as much as Amare does, and none of them would make me laugh like Warrior Z does. None of their bickers would ever beat yours.” They giggle when he says this. “So when you’re gone, I always feel the absence. Maybe it’d be a little better if you tell me where you’re going.”

          Amare heaved, and cast Zina a ‘should I?’ look. She responded with a single nod. “We’re sorry we made you feel like that. It’s just . . .Zina is helping me get over Mama and Adara. Just like you help me too. I’m also helping her get over her parents. She believes that going out and doing things that they loved when they were alive would help you heal. Or going to places, pretending they are with you. That’s why she found me in the forest. She was going to pick the flowers her Mama loved, while I was playing animal pretend, like I used to with Adara.”

          “We’ve been acting ‘sneaky’ because we didn’t want you to worry.” Zina added.

          “We’re sorry.” They both echoed.

          Angel looked at them with the tenderest eyes, before extending his arms for a hug. They both went it. “I’m sorry. And thank you, for telling me that. I’m rooting for you, and I really hope that you can get to heal properly. It would be really amazing.”

          They both smiled and exchanged another nervous glance. They weren’t exactly lying to Angel. They weren’t telling the whole truth either, but that was what it was. A half lie, a half-truth. It was better than keeping him completely in the dark. A diluted truth wouldn’t hurt anybody, right?

          “Now, tell us what was bothering you. But first, guess what? Amare might actually be obsessed with me.” He rolled his eyes and Zina took out her necklace to show Angel. He squinted at it, and then his eyes took back it’s normal size when he realized.

          “Isn’t that, the flame in Amare’s tattoo?”

          “Exactly! And this is my family’s special necklace. How did that get to him?”

          “Woah!” Angel covered his mouth with his hands in surprise. “You’re soulmates.”

          “Eww.”

          “No, you’re my soulmate.” Zina and Amare said in sync.

          “Don’t ‘eww’ me. I don’t want to be your soulmate either.” Amare hissed and when Zina was about to retaliate, a Royal guard approached them.

          “Greetings, Asters. I have a message for Young Master Amare Steves,” he said in monotone.

          Amare cringed at the sound of ‘Young Master’. He had never been called that before. “That would be me.” He raised his left hand to his chest level.

          “You have a very important guest who would want to see you right now.”

          All three of them shared questioning glances.

          “A guest, for me? You must have the wrong person.”

          “I don’t, Young Master.” Amare rolled his eyes. “He didn’t want me to reveal his identity, but instructed me to do so when you hesitate. Your father is at the Royal lounge waiting. You must come now.”

          Amare’s jaw became rigid instantly, his eyes darkening and his breathing ragged.

          “Amare,” Angel called and gave him a nod, encouraging him to go.

          “What does he want?” His baritone voice had become even deeper and Zina let her jaw drop in awe.

          “You can only know if you see him. Go,” Angel advised.

          Amare sat reluctant for a minute, before pushing himself off and brushing past the guard. Whatever his father wanted to have come all the way here, it must not be good.