Nefarious

Chapter 10

Chapter 10 

Dance

“Aking reyna! Alondra!”

Sumusugod papalapit sa akin ang isang lalaking hindi ko alam kung saan nanggaling. Matangkad ito ngunit hindi kasing laki at lapad ni Konstantine. Balingkinitan ang bewang, mahahaba ang mga binti at braso, at isang nakakabahalang ngiti ang nakaukit sa pulang-pulang mga labi.

Napaatras ako dahil sa likuran ng lalaki ay mga sumusunod na ilan pang mga tauhan, ngiting-ngiti at naiiyak sa tuwa.

Yayakap na sana ang nauunang lalaki pero mabilis ang pagharang ni Konstantine.

"Alejandro!" His voice boomed inside the castle.

His large back prevented me from seeing their hopeful, happy faces. A stampede of hugs and kisses that would surely trample me over didn’t occur. Konstantine faced them alone and only after a few moments did he go back to my side. The happy faces turned confused if not sad.

"Alondra?"

“Hindi ho ako si Alondra,” iling ko.

Nabanggit na naman ang pangalan na iyon. Siguro ay napagkakamalan nila akong tunay na may-ari ng bahay at tinawag akong Alondra.

The man that was rushing to greet me before stood a couple of feet away, smiling apologetically. He wore a dirty-white linen tunic with a belt on his waist hanging loosely, suede breeches, and mid-calf leather laced boots. He was tall and lean but he looked almost too friendly that it felt strange. 

It was stranger when I looked back at the people huddling closely behind him not because of their similar medieval style clothing but because of another thing that seemed to be their common denominator. They were all deathly pale – the exact opposite of the whole town’s complexity.

From where I stood, I could perfectly see the unusually paper white skin tone. The brightly lit hall did nothing to cleanse their skin from its natural gloom. It was so thin and pale that I could make out where their veins appeared and ended, looking like black ink spilled raggedly on their limbs. The color of mist and dirty snow on their skin made their onyx eyes pop out, the bags under them making it look like it was sagging.

“Ang aking pangalan ay Alejandro, magandang binibini.” Yumuko ang lalaki sa harapan, ang isang kamay ay nasa dibdib at ang isa naman ay kumukumpas sa ere.

Bumuntong-hininga si Konstantine sa aking gilid pero wala namang sinabi pa.

“Hi, Alejandro. Ako si Celes---”

“Celeste Ambrosia. Ikaw ang laging tampok sa usapan ng mga tao sa sentro. Celeste Ambrosia, ang babaeng mangkukulam at nangangain ng mga bata. Ikinagagalak kong makilala ka, binibini!”

Mas lalong napabuntong-hininga si Konstantine. Napanguso ako.

“Mangkukulam? Ang Lola Adina ko rin dati ay isang mangkukulam! Ngayon ay nag-aaral pa lamang ako,” magiliw na sabi ng isang dalaga.

“Maaari mo ba kaming turuan, Celeste?”

“Hanggang kulam lamang ba ang aabutin ng iyong kakayahan? Maaari mo rin bang kulamin ang kumukuha ng aking mga tanim na gulay?”

“Ikaw ang pinakamagandang makukulam na aking nakita, binibini!”

Mula sa pagiging mahiyain ay parang isa-isa silang nabuhay ulit. Papalapit na naman silang lahat, ang ngiti ay hindi nawawala sa pulang-pulang mga labi. Mas lalo akong napanguso. Hindi ko alam kung matutuwa ba ako dahil sa kauna-unahang pagkakataon ay mag nag-welcome sa akin pero hindi pa rin maalis-alis ang bansag. Si Celeste Ambrosia, ang mangkukulam na nakatira sa bahay ni Alondra.

When I didn’t know what to say, I looked back at Konstantine who was now clutching his temples with his thumb and forefinger.

“Is that what they really say about me?” I whispered to him, humor touching my eyes.

“Please forgive me and my servants. This is the first time that the castle has had another visitor perhaps in a long while. I am terribly sorry, Celeste.”

“It’s fine,” I assured him and looked back at the waiting eyes once more.

“Hindi ho ako mangkukulam. Pasensiya na po…” dahan-dahan kong sabi.

Nanlumo man ang kanilang mga balikat ay mas lalo silang ginaganahan na makipag-usap ilang minuto lang ang lumipas. It was overwhelming and heart-warming at the same time. Eyes like midnight feasted everywhere on my face down to the patches of my skin. Si Alejandro na nangunguna sa gitna ay humakbang sa kanan para idistansya ang sarili sa pulutong.

“Bagama’t wala sa aking itsura ang pagiging utusan, ako ang nagmamando ng buong kastilyo at naglilingkod sa panginoon nito. Maaari mo akong tawagin kung ikaw ay may kailangan at ako ay darating.” Muli itong yumuko.

Kung gaano kaluma ang suot nito ay ganoon din ang dila. Hindi ko na lang sinabi.

“Anu-ano ang mga pinapagawa sa’yo ng pinaglilingkuran mo?” tanong ko sabay sipat kay Konstantine na napakunot-noo.

I gave him a small smile, his knitted brows not enough to stop my curiosity. 

“Ah! Maraming-marami binibini! Paghahanda ng umagahan. Paghahanda ng tanghalian. Paghahanda ng hapunan. Paghahanda ng dugo---”

“Alejandro,” Konstantine cleared his throat.

That made him shut his mouth and pretended like he was zipping it. Alejandro went back in line.

Nilingon ko si Konstantine na tumaas lang ang kilay sa akin. Mukhang naiinip na ito ngunit wala nang sinabi pa.

I wasn’t wrong when I assumed that Alejandro was the castle’s majordomo and Kostantine’s trusted right hand man. The way he relaxed his shoulders that always seemed so tense when outside told me that he wasn’t only comfortable in his own home but also with the people living in it.

It was stupid of me to think that this castle could live on its own. Konstantine couldn’t man this large estate alone and so he needed servants to do it for him. Tons of it. It only heightened my discoveries that always seemed to prove how wrong and unlawful this town had been to condemn the castle and possibly all its occupants.

“Ako si Therese! Kung iyong gugustuhin ay ako na lang ang magiging tiga-silbi mo! Magaling akong maglaba at magpakulo ng tubig!” Isang dalagang kaedaran ko ang humakbang at ipinakilala ang kaniyang sarili.

Her long, black Victorian dress made her hands and feet disappear. The black coif hat mostly covered her face as well but it only made her chinky eyes stand out. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t have handmaids before or any type of maid and certainly didn’t want one now.

Isa-isa nang nagpakilala ang mga tao roon ngunit hindi ko matandaan at mabilang. Para silang padagdag nang padagdag. Si Cerberus sa isang gilid ay nainip na at nagpasyang dumukdok sa mga baitang ng hagdan. Mas hinigpitan ko ang yakap sa sarili gamit ang kapa ni Konstantine dahil nagsisimula nang matuyo ang aking mga damit.

“That’s enough,” Konstantine declared, turning everyone’s smile frozen.

Napakamot ako sa ulo.

“Celeste needs to take a bath and change clothes. See to it that she is escorted to her chambers and readied for supper. Therese…” He motioned with his two fingers. “You may help the young miss.”

Nagtatalon sa tuwa ang dalaga at dali-daling pumunta sa aking tabi. Wala akong nagawa kung hindi ang lingunin si Konstantine na tumango lang sa akin.

“We will see each other again at supper.” He lightly bowed before leaving me with Therese.

I had no choice but to follow her, not quite paying attention to her babbling. Humahaba ang leeg ko habang nililingon si Konstantine na paakyat na rin gamit ang kabilang hagdanan. Alejandro was fast on his side, their voices only reaching my ears in deep mumbles.

When Konstantine said help, I didn’t think it was literally all the help that I did and didn’t need. Therese was very devoted to her service like it was her life’s work. She helped me get out of my clothes and into the hot golden tub, the best thing yet that the castle offered. Her services included washing my hair while I laid back, lathering lavender soap on my hands, scrubbing me squeaky clean, and eventually doing my hair and make-up while simultaneously fixing my dress.

It was mostly awkward and me begging her to at least turn around when I cover my dignity. I doubted there was any left. Therese only stopped when Alejandro knocked on the door and announced dinner.

“Binibini,” yuko niya sabay abot ng kanang braso.

I was already having enough of the castle’s grandeur. It was truly magnificent and timeless but it was making my head ache. Everyone was fussing about dinner and I even had an escort that spoke like he was the local version of Shakespeare.

Nevertheless, I took his hand and went down the flight of stairs.

Sa isang malaking bintana ay namangha nang makita ang suot na damit. Hindi ko halos nakita ang sarili kanina dahil bukod sa nahihiya ay nagmamadali si Therese. Ayaw raw niya akong ma-late. Hindi ko alam kung paanong ipapaliwanag sa kaniya na hindi naman talaga ako mali-late.

The halter dress was ghost white, the long skirt flowing smoothly down to my calves. It was simple and adorned only with tiny crystals that didn’t seem to have any weight. A long, white cape graced the steps I took, swaying with my every movement. Never in my life, not even once, did I wear this kind of dress.

“Celeste Ambrosia,” Alejandro announced.

I looked down where only the candle lights served the dark room, tiny flickers of fire dancing below. The large spacious floor was supposed to be the dining room, judging the long table that carried tons of food that could feed a small village at best. Instead of the suit of armors, broken sculptures of weeping angels lined up on the wall.

Konstantine sat at the head of the table, eyes never leaving mine while his hand played with a glass of red liquid. He was at the middle of room so dark that it looked like his midnight cape were extending to its walls and ceiling. Lights flickered, showing the glint in his wicked eyes when I approached the table.

“Must all this be really necessary? We can just have a small dinner. This is…” I looked at the insane amount of food on the table.

“Extravagant? Too much?” He helped me finish.

Dahan-dahan akong tumango.

Konstantine stood up. His strides were precise and only looked at me like I was more than the things he just said. He was swallowed by the shadows that I squinted my eyes and tried to get it used to the dark.

There were flashes of movements and the sound of his cape flaring. My eyes followed every movement until he was walking towards me again.

“Shall we dance first, my lady?” He bent low to whisper on my ears.

I shivered while hearing the string quartet.