The Blood's Elegance

Chapter 25

Chapter 25

SPRING IS FOR FESTIVAL V

Seth was clinging to my hand tightly. I understood that he probably did not want me to be lost in this place. The sun in the sky was already whispering its sleep, and the big full moon was glowing in the dark blue clouds. When everyone had already separated from us, it was hard to tell who among these people were our friends. The combination of colors was confusing. I doubted that our company could tell who we are, too.

The plaza was very big. The space was vacant for this festival. We were far from the line of houses where the Thompsons’ house was situated. Both sides of the roads were indeed filled with booths and stores or vacant lots with chairs and tables for people to rest. The walking citizens in gowns and suits brought me to the era of elegance. It was dead long ago. Long gowns, fancy dresses, nice tailored suits, beautiful masks and hats, and soft gloves… it was everywhere. When will this kind of fashion be used again? After thinking, I guessed people wouldn’t prefer these kinds of clothes because of the hot surrounding.

“Hey.”

I faced Seth when he pressed my palm. Under the mask and hat, he was unrecognizable. Still, I loved the mystery lurking around him.

“Yes?”

“Do you want to go somewhere?”

I roamed my eyes around the place, and I couldn’t tell the purpose of each store. I just knew that they were stores because of the people going in and out of the place. “What are we going to buy?”

“What do you want to buy?”

“Souvenirs?” I asked back.

His eyes flew to certain stores. “What else?”

I shrugged my shoulders. My ignorance in this festival was comparable to my ignorance about Marcadel and Imperial.

“I will show you around later, but we should stay here for now because this is a very good spot, and the festival is about to start.”

“Start? I thought we were late.”

He glanced at his wristwatch. It was nearly six in the evening. “No, this festival officially starts by six o’clock. Let’s go by food while we wait.”

He guided me to the nearest food store. All the seats were occupied as they wait for the entrance ceremony. Long lines to the counter standing by to be served, and we were by the end. Good thing, the cashiers worked quickly to accommodate all its customers. We ordered snacks that can be eaten when we walk or stand. A few minutes later, my hands were full of snacks, and we were enjoying our food while standing straight for the official start of the event.

I bit on the bread in my right hand. “What’s the name of this festival?”

He removed the crumbs near my lips. “Aracebellos.”

“Which means?”

“Both Drake and I were correct about the history of this festival. Presiarella was divided into two before. What I told was the story of the west while Drake told us about the story of the east. The events happened in different times. Now, it is being celebrated as one because of its similarity in the usage of masks, gowns, and suits. I don’t know the exact meaning of the word, but I think that, of course, it is connected in their history.” He opened his snack and took a bite on it. His head turned in the other direction. “Here it starts. I can hear the drums.”

Just like what he said, I heard a faint beat of the drums. The crowd cleared the way. The members raised their torches, giving light to the official start of the festival. They started marching along with a hit on the musical instruments. Stomp and stomp. The loud bang of the drums echoed in my chest. Five members with fired batons in their hands, coming from the second line, advanced and formed a vertical line with more than two meters of distance. They turned around; the fire followed their movement. My mouth opened in awe. They wore the same costume as us, and they moved as if they had no problem with the heaviness and heat. The fire dancers moved in sync, they were now in front of us. The batons swiftly danced in their fingers, creating a trail of light after the fire. The members who hold the torches walked after the fire dancers. They stomped their feet according to the beat. Behind them, a large horned devil came into light. He had a scary face―red eyes, pointed nose, and sharp teeth. Its hair was as black as coal. The man who carried the demon costume was topless. His upper body was painted with red and black tattoos. He had long black fingernails that he used to scare the children, which I hadn’t notice earlier, in the street.

“Roar! I will kill all of you!” the man growled at everyone and clawed the thin air. His deep rough voice added emphasis to his threat, causing the children to scream and hugged anyone who was beside them. He pointed at the children and, with wide-awake eyes, tilted his head. His long pointed tongue ran through his black lips. “I will start with you!”

The man laughed wickedly. The children hid behind adults. If what Drake and Seth told me was true, then it was not a good idea to bring young people to this festival.

The man continued filling the street with his loud evil voice. He stopped in front of the group of ladies and chuckled. How frightening it was that even with our distance, it rang inside my head. His chuckle turned into a menacing guffaw. Our eyes met. I stepped back; the food in my hands died in my squeeze. My heart was pounding so fast inside my ribcage.

The man approached me. His face halted inches away from mine. I felt like I was a small animal locked in a bottle, deprived of oxygen. He whispered, “I will kill you.”

Surprisingly, his breath smelled like a mint. This helped me to remember that he was a human and not a real devil. My nightmare ended when he left my sight.

I sighed and closed my eyes.

“Are you okay?”

I forgot about Seth. His arm was wrapped around my waist, supporting my body to keep me from falling on the ground. I regained my composure and looked at him to assure him that I was okay.

“His job was well-done. His laugh was living inside my head for free.”

“It’s because of the speakers.” He nodded to the one behind us. “There were speakers installed everywhere connected to the microphone attached to the man. It was put in low volume but high echo, so it will sound more realistic. The goal was to frighten the attendees.”

I glanced at the one he pointed. “I thought I was really some sort of under his spell.”

He caressed my back with his thumb. “Don’t worry.”

“But what was that for?” I asked, referring to the skeleton floats that passed after the horned demon.

Seth looked at it, too. His hand did not leave my back part. “Like I said, both Drake’s and my stories were correct. This is related to his story. The demon earlier represented the creatures who killed the Presiarellans. As you can hear, he was scaring the watchers, threatening them like what the monsters did. The floats was called ‘Deadfloats.’ It represented the murdered bodies as if commemorating what happened to them.”

“So dark.”

“Indeed.”

I lost count of the bodies that passed in front of us. What I know was that they were more than the fingers on my hand. While walking, they threw us some candies. I didn’t know how my hands manage to catch a few when it was so full of the snacks we bought.

“The guys must be here, too. Do you want to search for them?”

I smiled at him. “Let’s give them their alone time. Surely, we have time to spend tomorrow?”

“Ah, yes.” He nodded. “Tomorrow is what we called as the ‘School Parade’ wherein we will visit some schools who had prepare booths for the festival.”

“Is this considered as a holiday?” I joked. It seemed like this is a very big event.

“As a sign of respect to the Presiarellans, yes, but this is the only holiday where students are required to attend their schools to celebrate this festival.

“I see.”

We strolled along the street. We were surrounded by different people celebrating this event. On the east, there was a concert. Well, I was sure I wouldn’t even recognize who was it. Can’t help it. I only knew a few bands, and I wouldn’t care about others unless they were introduced to me by my friends, it was the favorite of my crush, or I accidentally heard one song on the radio which captivated me, and now I in love with them. The last one was the very least to happen.

“Who was having a concert?”

He pulled me to the other side when a bicycle almost hit me. “I heard they invited five local bands to perform for tonight.”

“Five?”

“Yes, it’s a five hours on-going concert. The most famous will be performing by ten. Do you want to go there later?”

“Do you?” I asked back.

He softly chuckled, and I swore that that was so soft it melted my heart. Darn. “If you want to watch, then we’ll go there.”

“I will just see whether I will enjoy it, but what about you? What if you get bored?”

“Thanks for the concern, but I prioritize what makes you happy.”

I punched his shoulders. “That’s cheesy. Stop.”

We both laughed at it.

“Are there other things we could do before we go there?”

He did not have to think for so long. Did he memorize the schedule of this festival? “There is a waterbath,” his voice turned low, and he said it slowly.

“What’s wrong with the waterbath?”

“Waterbath is done in a waterfalls together with other citizens. This part of the festival is conducted because it is said to remove the trace of our smell, so the monsters will not come after us.”

“Then?”

His gaze dropped on my clothes. “Of course, you can’t swim wearing that dress. You will need a bathing suit.”

“And what’s wrong with it?” I examined his face. “You are thinking of something silly, aren’t you?”

He grinned.

I flicked his forehead. “You, p*****t”

He raised his hands in his defense. “A committed man only thinks of hitting the girl he likes. Therefore, I am not a pervert.”

I flicked him once again, then put my hands down. “You are not committed to me, you, i***t. That makes you a pervert.”

“In my mind, I am committed to you,” he uttered in a flirting tone. “When I like someone, I do not think about other girls because for me, I have to be loyal to the girl that I like.”

“I am not the girl you like.”

“Are you dense?” He was seriously looking at me before his lips curved. “Stop denying what I feel. I am the one responsible for it, At least, allow me to enjoy this.”

He had me speechless. I understood what’s going on between us, but I didn't take it seriously. Relationships that aren't serious were fun, but I had no idea what it feels like to be in love for real. Was that the path we are taking? I was playing for years, going in a relationship then breaking up with a guy with no hard feelings. What's the difference now? I was afraid that it is what I think it is. I did not want to recognize it yet. I realized it was deeper than I thought it would be, and this was freaking terrifying me. I was not ready for commitment! I was too young for that, and I had enough fun that it was time for me to be serious, but there were other things where I could act seriously like my career.

“Do you want to go there now?”

“Sure.”

“Great. I know a*****e where we can buy a swim suit and leave our clothes.”

I stopped him and squinted my eyes at him. “Have you done it with someone?”

He nodded.

My brow raised. “With a girl?”

He did not answer.

“Seth,” I muttered and crossed my arms. “Have you?”

“No, no,” he assured with panic in his voice. “With my friends only.”

“Good.”

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