Knight (3 page)

She scrambled to stand up on her feet, but her quivering knees made the action harder than it usually was. She also had the wound on her foot and the mild injuries she got from the attacks.

Her cerulean blue eyes were trained straight to Valeriana's, who looked back and forth between the beast and the woman in confusion.

The strange woman seemed momentarily shocked seeing her. “You—” They stared at each other for a few seconds until the wolf growled, which made the both of them snap back to reality.

“Stay back.” She narrowed her eyes as she said this.

“You don't have to tell me that.” She replied, staring at the growling wolf as she backed off, limping as she did.

She clutched the bracelet that her father had given her during her fifth birthday. It held a sentimental value to her and was one of the most treasured possessions she had. Unwittingly, she was twisting it around her wrist, a mannerism she developed over the years when she tried to find comfort while in a nerve-wracking situation.

Valeriana attempted to back off and sneak away while the demon was busy, but the lady was apparently watching and stopped her before she could even do a disappearing act.

“Stay where you are!” She commanded as the wolf lunged for her once more. “You are not going anywhere!”

The lady's movements were a dangerous flurry of incessant attacks that appeared as a blur.

“Are you really saying that? Usually they'll be saying
run
than
stay
!” She exclaimed. “Whatever, I'm out of here.”

Valeriana continued to limp away when a dagger came flying towards her and landed inches away from where she stood.

“Holy crap.” She gasped, seeing the tip buried on the rough pavement

“Next time, I won't miss! So do as you are told!”

Valeriana turned back, eyes wide. How could she throw a dagger that far when she was already busy fighting off a demon?

The stranger brought her sword down speedily, letting it slice through the air. The demon showed resistance at first and managed to fully evade her first attempt, but she was able to land a strike the second time she struck. The beast backed away, terribly wounded.

She swung towards it again, her speed matching that of a lightning racing through the skies. Her weapon cut the beast in half in its wake, causing it to completely erupt into flames. Valeriana struggled to breathe as the creature released a tormented roar before slowly vanishing, golden embers carried away by the wind.

As it burned and was reduced to nothingness, the lady pointed the tip of her blade straight to Valeriana's neck, flashing a look of intimidation with her sharp, cautious eyes which immobilized her completely. As soon as the beast was gone, the tension and feeling of boding evil in the atmosphere dissipated.

“Who are you? I do not recognize you as a colleague.” Her breathing was labored and beads of sweat dotted her forehead.

Valeriana gazed at the sharp tip of the sword, down to the graceful curve of its blade. The well-polished metal sharply reflected the light. It was definitely a real sword. There was no denying it. She then moved her gaze to the hilt. The lady's hold on it was firm, her fingers wound around her weapon with confidence.

The girl faced the stranger with narrowed eyes. “Oh, I am
not
a colleague of yours alright. I don't know what freaky business this is but I don't want to be a part of it.” She noticed the gleam of the blade as it reflected off the light of the sun.

“You haven't answered my question.”

“Look. I just ended up here by accident.” She hissed as she cradled her left arm. “Gosh, this isn't really my day.”

What exactly would her mother do if she went home like this?

“You are . . . a human?”

“At least I'm not the monster from a while ago.” She replied mockingly, wondering why she was asking her these questions.

“Impossible.” The lady paused, gently putting her weapon away. “A human cannot hear and see demons. Who are you?”

“A proud citizen of Earth, obviously.” She said, a hint of sarcasm in her voice. “That thing that tried to kill me. What was it?”

Only then realized how tired she was. The rush of adrenalin from a while ago was fading.

The stranger continued to murmur to herself while she waited. Heck, she was clamoring to leave. She didn't want to stick around and see her life being cut down next.

“Look. Can I go now? I still have to get myself treated.”

She walked towards Valeriana in a manner as though she was approaching a wild animal. ”Are you alright?”

The girl relaxed at this gesture, but still put up her guard. “First, you point that sword at me, and now you ask me if I'm alright? No, I'm obviously not alright.”

“Let me see your wounds.” She said. “I can guarantee you I will not hurt you.”

It wasn’t as though she had a choice.

The woman pulled off her gloves and tenderly touched the lines that broke the skin of the girl. Valeriana flinched as she felt a small sting erupt as the lady's fingers came in contact with her wounds.

“It's nothing major. Mild injury. It should heal in a few days. Did it bite you?”

She met her eyes. “My foot.”

The lady hastily searched one of her pockets and opened a vial of a green liquid.

“Drink this.”

“What?”

“Drink it.” She opened the thing and practically shoved it down the girl's throat.

Valeriana almost choked as she swallowed the unknown liquid, practically gagging as the taste exploded in her mouth. “That tastes awful. Are you trying to kill me?”

“It's to neutralize the poison inside your body. I'm actually saving your life.” She answered and lowered herself on the ground. “I can stop the bleeding, but that's all I can do. You must heal on your own.”

She took out a bottle from her pocket and her foot out of her shoes before massaging the wound with the concoction she had with her. Valeriana was nervous seeing her do what she did seeing as she did not trust oil soaked leaves being rubbed on her flesh.

“I am sorry. As much as I hate involving people who absolutely have no business in my affairs, I do not think I can turn a blind eye.” She said.

Valeriana felt confused. “Um . . . what?”

The lady opened her mouth to speak when a howl echoed from the distance. She gritted her teeth in sheer irritation and frustration before turning to look at Valeriana in the eye. “Seems my hunt is not over yet.” Finally, she turned to Valeriana. “Do you have a name?”

The girl was frozen that she couldn't bring herself to answer.

“What is your name?” She repeated.

Feeling slightly hesitant, she answered, “It's Valeriana.”

“Valeriana . . .” The lady turned her back on her, as though she was contemplating about something deep she wouldn't understand. “You did not see anything.”

“Uh . . . okay.” Valeriana reluctantly nodded.

“You just knocked your head a little, tripped on your own foot or fell down the stairs. Any reason will do.” The lady then sighed and shook her head. “Stay quiet. Speak of this to no one. Do you hear me?”

Valeriana gulped loudly in trepidation.

“Do you hear me?” She repeated.

“Yes.”

“Now that we are clear, I'll be taking my leave. We shall see each other again.” The lady stated. “When that time comes, prepare yourself.”

Without further ado, the woman left. In style.

And by
in style
, that meant running towards the nearest wall, shooting off the ground, walking on the wall towards the top of the building, and disappearing from Valeriana's line of view.

Maybe she was hallucinating.

Her knees buckled and she fell to the ground. She didn't realize she was holding her breath until she released the air from her lungs and breathed in deeply. She blinked a few times and scanned the ground where she saw the beast vanish. There were scorch marks on the pavement.

She
stood from the ground and closed her eyes, trying to regain what little was left of her sanity.

While a little bit dazed and confused from the recent events, she limped out to the streets and sank to the ground next to a homeless man. He eyed her questioningly.

She dialed Xandra's number and heard Paramore as the line tried connecting. After a few seconds, she picked up. “Val, where are you? Are you alright?”

“I don't know . . .” She whispered. “Don't worry, though. I promise I'll be there. I'll see you off even if I have to die trying.”

“Are you sure? Why don't you just . . . go home? I'll be better if I know you're safe and well.”

Valeriana struggled to stand, feeling her knees tremble and pain spike up from her wounds. “No. I'm fine, Xan. I
will
be there. Just wait for me.” She cut the call and tucked the gadget back inside her pocket.

She glared down at her aching foot. There was blood on her shoes where that strange creature bit and the oddest things popped into her mind that moment.

“I hope I won't turn into a werewolf like those crappy movies.” Valeriana muttered and half-dragged, half-hopped out to the street to hail a cab.

“Do you need to go to the hospital, miss?” The driver's brows creased as he gazed at her through his rearview mirror once she finally got inside.

“No. Quite the opposite, actually.” She breathed as she leaned back. “Please take me to the airport.”

The cab pulled over in front of the airport and Valeriana spied Xandra and her parents waiting in front of the gates. Her best friend's face was creased with worry as she restlessly rocked on her heels and played with her fingers, throwing her gaze in every direction.

Valeriana rapped on the back of the driver's seat and said, “Sir, I'll just be a minute. Do you mind waiting?”

“Alright.” He said, a bit startled. “Don’t take too long. Airport policy—”

The girl then disembarked the cab and pulled herself to stand up. “Xandra!”

Her best friend jumped when she heard her name being called. Xandra whipped around, her black hair swishing as she met Valeriana's gaze. The look on her face was priceless as she ran forward and crushed Valeriana in a hug.

“Oh my god, Val. I was so worried.” She said, breathing against Valeriana's unruly hair.

“Ouch. Wait.” The other girl lightly hissed as her best friend accidentally brushed against a tender spot on her back. She tapped on her shoulder and pulled away, grimacing.

“Sorry!” Her brown eyes glinted with guilt, her eyes raking over her body. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I just . . . well, I hurt my foot.” She said, looking down at the aching limb.

“What about the thief?”

“He got away.” She answered. Xandra began fussing around her, though her rant fell on deaf ears. Her eyes flew over her BFF’s shoulder to see her parents making their way over.

“Good grace! You just made me lose a few years of my life!”

“I'm sorry.” Valeriana chuckled.

Mr. and Mrs. Hernandez examined her with incredulity as they came behind their daughter. Anna, Xandra's mother, carefully placed a hand on Valeriana's shoulder and squeezed it comfortingly while her husband rested his arm around his daughter.

“Dear lords, Valeriana. Are you alright, dear?” Anna's blond hair washed over her shoulder. “You look like you need to go to the hospital!”

“I'm totally fine, Mrs. Hernandez.” She took Xandra's hand into her own and felt her chest tighten at the thought of not being able to hang out like they used to.

“I think we can spend a few minutes and bring you to the hospital ourselves.” Stated the father.

“Oh no! Please don’t bother doing that at all. I can’t have you go that far. You’ll miss your flight.”

Anna went to her husband's side and massaged his arm, sadly watching their daughter and her best friend engage with one another.

While Valeriana was outgoing, she wasn't a social butterfly. She preferred a small group of close-knitted friends over hanging out with a bunch of people she hardly knew for the sake of having fun. She chose to form more intimate relationships, which was why letting go for her was harder than anything else.

Xandra had been with her since their childhood days. Over the course of twelve years, they were with one another. It was hard to think that they had to be separated.

She thought she wouldn't cry, she told herself she wouldn't. She would have that huge, crazy smile on her face so that her best friend would remember her without any of the crying. Even so, the sudden wave of tears flooded her eyes. Before she knew it, big and fat droplets of salty water trickled down her cheeks and sobs started tearing through her throat.

Xandra had the same reaction seeing her face. “I love you, Val.” She said, their bear hug resuming. The warmth of her best friend and her trademark scent of cherry blossoms washed over Valeriana's senses. She closed her eyes, wanting to file this memory deep into her brain.

“I love you, Xan. My god, I'll miss you.” She murmured, pressing their cheeks against one another. She would never get enough of Xandra and the comfort she brought.

“I'm sorry to leave like this, Val. I'll be back, I promise. I'll always be with you.”

Valeriana made the strangest sound that sounded like a strangled cry—a cross between a dolphin and a dog. Xandra could not believe what she heard and pulled away, laughter bubbling from her chest. Valeriana could not help but laugh as well, wiping off the tears and snot on her face.

“Oh my god, what kind of sound is that?” She howled in laughter, sounding more like a horse under an asthma attack.

Valeriana snorted at that and shook her head. “I don't know. What about the sound you just made?”

They all laughed, even Xandra's parents.

They dried their faces and composed themselves, sniffing loudly as they held each other's hand.

“Gosh. I'm really sorry. Instead of giving you good memories, I just had to send you off looking like this.”

And another round of laughter.

“I think this gives me the reason not to forget about you more.” Xandra told her, sadness coating her words. “My best friend sets out to see me off only to get victimized by a thief she had to chase down the street. I'll remember seeing you limp while you run to me.”

“Please don't remind me.” She groaned, shaking her head.

“But really. I'm going to miss you so much . . .” Xandra trailed off, her eyes becoming teary once more.

“Don't give me those eyes.” Valeriana chuckled. “I'm going to miss you too. I wish you didn't have to move away.”

“Oh, honeys. I really wish we could stay.” Mrs. Hernandez said. “College is really expensive here, though. Not to mention Emmanuel wanted Xandra to see what it's like living in the Philippines.”

Xandra's father nodded. “We'll come visit.” He said in his accented English.

At the mention of her best friend's home country, Valeriana felt herself breathing out loudly. Thinking about the distance between them made her head ache, but it was inevitable. Xandra needed to see what her other heritage had to offer.

“Which school are you going to over there?”

“Oh, you know . . .” Xandra shrugged. “I got qualified to attend the University of the Philippines, remember? It's a top-tier university, currently the best in the whole country. They say it's similar to Harvard, which will make things a bit easier for me when adjusting.”

“I'm happy for you.”

“What about you?”

“I haven't decided. You know I go where you go. But this time, I can’t . . .”

“What do you want, exactly?”

“Probably something different from high school. Maybe like Hogwarts.”

They giggled.

“Unleash your inner sorceress, then.” She told her. “And I will, too.”

And they hugged once again, one last time.

“By the way, Valeriana dear. Wasn’t your bag stolen?”

“Yes.” She answered.

“How will you get home?”

She looked at the waiting taxi and realized she didn’t have anything to pay with. Valeriana's cheeks were dusted with a blush as she hung her head in shame.

“Here, take this.” Anna said, pulling out her wallet and handing over a couple of bills to the girl. “This isn’t much but it’s enough to take you home, I assume?”

She looked down to see more money than she even needed at the moment. She withheld the guilt rising from her stomach, swallowing heavily. “Yes. This is more than enough. I'm sorry to bother you like this . . .”

“You aren't a bother.” Emmanuel smiled kindly at Valeriana. “You are family.”

“Thank you . . .” She tearfully bowed her head.

“Take care on your way home, Val. Make sure not to get kidnapped this time.” Xandra joked, though her eyes started getting glassy for the second time around. “Man, if I saw that thief, I’ll give him a good beating myself!”

The cab started honking, the driver looking impatient behind the wheel. Valeriana lunged for her best friend one last time and said the last part of her goodbyes.