MOONSHINE-The Coven of Huntresses

CHAPTER 3-being reviewed

Last night, as I had predicted in the end I was not able to close my eyes.
Partly because I was worried that the creature might return at any moment, and partly because I could not give a sensible explanation for the gesture that had pushed the eternal to reach the castle. I had been constantly turning in bed, hoping not to hear any squealing inside the room or on the roof.
In the end, however, at some point fatigue had won over my body and, probably because of this I was able to sleep for a couple of hours. It would have been more correct to call it a nap, even if in substance nothing changed. It was already morning and the faint rays of the sun had begun to illuminate the room. «What a bad night» I murmured in the empty room, pulling me up to sit.
I had my body completely sore. Snort, aware of having spent another sleepless night.
I was sick and tired of going at this pace. And then again that dream, one of the many memories that sometimes came knocking at the door, as if they did not want to leave me.
It was not the first nightmare I had and certainly would not be the last. But the thing that bothered me most was that for some bad joke of fate they always came to visit me.
Sometimes they were lighter. On those occasions I felt like a complete stranger, a third person who was standing there, watching what was happening and could do nothing.
I felt like the spectator watching the scene. Sometimes I felt like reliving them all over again on my skin, with a lot of shivers and anxiety. Those were the worst times.
It was exhausting not being able to control them. They arrived when they wanted or when I least expected. Lately they had taken the habit of popping up at the least opportune moments and this was a huge annoyance.
For some years I had tried to get rid of it with herbal teas from some healer or using light sleeping pills, but nothing seemed to have a lasting effect.
They had become a painful habit.
I had to get up from bed by putting the equipment and blades in the sheaths that had moved during sleep. I touched the tips of the two lupus bone daggers by passing the index and middle joined. The edge was slightly rough.
I needed to sharpen them as soon as possible.
I bent down closing the zipper of the leather boots.
I had come to the close of closing, when she felt the steps of the servant before she even knocked on the door. I had them memorized in my head, they were light and very graceful. I moved the attention to the door.
I imagined her wondering on the other side of the entrance, with her fist pointed in mid-air, whether or not to knock. Not wanting her to wait outside forever, so I did what I thought was best for the situation. I invited her in.
«Come on» I said as I finished tying my suit.
The girl named Yveline entered the room, accompanied by a squeaking of the door.
He dragged something behind him that he could not see well. But the smell that began to settle in the room seemed something really delicious. «Good morning, Slayer, I hope you had a good night. I brought your breakfast with the best delicacies of the kingdom. The king hopes you appreciate it and wishes you a good stay at the castle» he announced, placing the cart in the middle of the room.
She stood by it, her hands crossed on her lap as she looked at me with those emerald eyes.
She was a little too emaciated for my taste and that uniform made it even more evident. It was a feeling I did not like, especially when I thought of the enormous wealth that King Avor had.
He certainly had no money problem, that could not allow his servants to have some more pieces of bread under their teeth.
There was a moment when I was really tempted to ask her why she had that strange look. As if he was expecting something at any moment...Was she waiting for me to move first or was I just frightening her?
He stood there, with that insecure pose, tangling his fingers nervously.
For the first time in my life I was uncertain about what to do. I had never been served or treated like this, but I also did not want to be considered a real or anything like that.
I considered myself exactly like you, an equal, if not for the title of huntress.
You were waiting for me to dismiss you? Should I say anything?
Decided not to be too careful. It was useless to dwell on it.
I had no time to look at these things, so I approached cautiously. «Thank you» I said. Yveline nodded, moving slightly, leaving room for my view. My eyes were wide when I saw what was on it. My guts started to stir at the sight of all that elaborate food.
There were so many dishes that I wondered how much an adult man could eat. Surely more than half was thrown away.
The thought of poor people working for him and suffering hunger made me a movement of anger that I could barely control. I had lived hunger.
«Does the king really eat so much?» I asked her. I couldn't stop myself. For a moment he was silent, as if he did not know what to say or how to answer. «No madam» he muttered shortly afterwards.
I stopped to look at her just for a while to confirm that she did not run away as soon as I had approached a little closer to her, then took from the first shelf of the cart a couple of slices of bread, which you will butter abundantly under her gaze. Fat was one of the energy sources I needed most.
It was at that very moment that I noticed something had changed in the expression of his face. I caught something like a spark of curiosity.
Also, I was amazed that she hadn't moved even a millimetre. Usually people didn't like being around me. They were always keeping each other at a distance. Perhaps because they knew what I was capable of and were extremely afraid of it?
I had never hurt innocent people, but being considered a night shift weighed more than I wanted to admit. The thing that burned me most, and that many did not know is that I had no choice. I never wanted to be a slayer, and especially not to be looked at with those eyes.
As if suddenly evil had come knocking on the door. I was tired of that too.
I looked at her, with the intention of offering her something to eat, but I did not see her anymore.
She had gone away more silent than a spirit.
I ate the slices of bread thoughtfully as a doubt crept into my mind.
Did you think I wanted to be private during meals like the king? God no, it would be very embarrassing. My eyes were wide at the idea and I ate the bite.
A sense of melancholy struck me with the force of a hurricane.
I was surprised to reflect for the umpteenth time on something that I had already been thinking about for some time. How terribly I wanted someone to keep me company without obligation or constraint.
I was used in the first training and since childhood to think only for myself and face the worst situations, without counting on the help of anyone. Only and exclusively on my own strength.
Until recently I never thought of aspiring to something that made me feel alive and not just a shell of flesh and bones. And I must admit that I had done it several times in the last few months.
Living outside of the Moonshine in this way changed me as I never thought. Until now I had never needed to take much care of my image outside the Coven.
I had always allowed wherever I went, whatever they said or thought they wanted to say, and perhaps I was wrong to let them do it for real.
On the other hand I was the Slayer. A title I had not chosen, but it fully explained my abilities. Even the rumours about me were not so pleasant and this was beginning to overwhelm my mind.
Every time I had to do a task, I did it in a clean and fast way and that said a lot about why I didn't spend more than a few days in the same place and wander from village to village.
I had always been judged as a ruthless, bloodless killer.
But what people didn't know was that it all belonged to an old part of me buried deep down. I didn't like killing anyone.
Not even the nocturnes, however much anyone hated them and was terrified of them.
I'd be lying if I said that Callista's death didn't change me.
He had triggered something inside of me, although his wound was hard to heal. It was probably still open, so I had trouble closing it. To accept it.
I finished eating with great difficulty. My stomach had almost closed.
He left the room with the intention of taking everything I had left in the kitchens.
The trolley was carried along the main corridor until it reached the west wing.
I knew they were there after carefully studying the map that I had managed to get delivered by King Avor. It was now worn and yellowed by time, but still functional.
Now thanks to that I was aware of any way out and into the castle.
The dead-ends and the intricate maze of underground streets that soldiers used to control the external situation, from inside the walls.
When I arrived, I saw Yveline sitting next to an old woman on a wooden stool, which looked very much like her, with a baby wrapping around her leg.
The old woman was shaking her hand to her chest «Mother, I always tell you not to strain yourself too much» she scolded her «I will bring you the healing oils as soon as possible, be patient» she tried to cheer her up. As soon as he looked up, aware of my presence his eyes fixed on my «Madam» greeted me with reverence, carrying instinctively hands behind the back to hide the little one from my sight. So he had family.
Something leaned into my chest and compressed my rib cage.
«Why are you here? Did you not enjoy your meal?» she asked, worried, looking at the cart still full. «I can make you some more if you like» he proposed with a slightly trembling tone of voice. He was holding his breath «On the contrary» I said.
I grabbed a clean silk napkin from the second shelf of the cart, then took in hand the best piece of roast meat and approached it. Did not want them to suffer from hunger.
Yveline reflexely took a step back. I stopped, realizing that she was not yet ready to trust me too much. «What do you want from us» she asked in a hard way, with an instinct of protection that I admired. I don't blame her for asking this question. After all, anyone who made a gesture like this always wanted something in return.
Hand her the piece of pulp «Eat, you are too thin or you will not be able to take care of your baby». She widened her eyes and stood still as the old woman coughed as if something had gone sideways. «You are mocking us» the old woman said in a whisper. «Absolutely not. I want you to eat and distribute it to the rest of the servants too» I replied undeterred.
When I stopped talking there was silence in the air, except for the whistle of the stove and the light simmer of the dishes they were cooking.
The little one pointed to me, muttering something he could not hear.
His mother looked up again, looking for the truth in my eyes. It was what I gave her, I did not want to lie, so I backed away from the door. Then Yveline nodded, thanking me silently.
«It is for us» he declared «I am grateful to you» he said.
«What are you called?» I asked her even though I had already heard her name when the king had called her to accompany me into the rooms. «Yveline» she said, this time with a solid and graceful voice. I found myself repeating it in my head several times, it suited her very well.
«I must ask you to accompany me to the village this afternoon. I have to buy a cape and check out a place, so I need someone who knows Irvin like the back of his hand. You can buy the healing oils for your mother in the market» I proposed. He weighed carefully my request, looking for any possible deception.
I was beginning to suspect that you were also caught up in the rumors.
«All right, I would be very pleased Slayer,» she said. «Call me only Tess!» I asked her before I left. «I'll wait for you later in my accommodation». 

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AUTHOR SPACE: 
Hello to all! 😊This message is for all english readers!!I wanted to thank you for the beautiful comments that I received. ❤️❤️❤️This makes me really proud of my work and especially of my commitment. 
Thank you very much for the stars! ⭐⭐
I also wanted to take the opportunity to tell you that I have just published a new third chapter... If you want and if you like go read it... I wait for you! 😘
I'm trying to get up to speed with the original language version which is almost complete but under careful revision. So if you would like to read the other chapters of my story later on just write me a little comment and I promise that I will translate other chapters into English!
Having said that, I wish you a good read!! And thank you for everything!! 🥰

(if you say I believe we could communicate in this way 😉)