Depression Plutus (Curse #4)

CHAPTER 45 You're Welcome

OTTILIE VIRSES POV


Dumating ang araw ng linggo, himala at napirmi ang prinsipe sa bahay. Sabay kaming nga pala kaming nag-aalmusal ngayon.

Habang kumakain, hindi ko mapigilan na pasimpleng nakawan ng tingin ang mahal na prinsipe. Hindi pa din ako makapaniwala na sa katulad niyang demonyo ako nagkagusto. Nawala na lang ng basta-basta ang first kiss ko sa asungot na 'to. Pambihira.

Hindi ko man aminin, masarap sa pakiramdam ang halik niya. Bumaba tuloy ang tingin ko sa mapupula nitong labi, paanong naging gano'n kalambot ang labi ni Plutus? Wala sa sariling napakagat ako sa labi ko ng muling bumalik sa ala-ala ko ang paglalapat ng mga labi namin.

"If you want me to kiss you, all you have to do is ask. I have all the time in the world right now," he said without looking up from his plate.

"A-ang kapal naman ng mukha mo!" I stammered.

Muntik na akong bawian ng buhay ng kumindat ito sa'kin. He was so handsome, and I hated how his smile had such an effect on me. Para makabawi sa pagkakapahiya ko, inilihis ko na lang ang topic. I decided to tell him what my brother had said yesterday about our father supposedly being dead.

"You seriously believe your brother?" He said as he glanced up from his plate.


"Yes...?" Hindi ko siguradong sagot.

"You shouldn't trust him so easily. I sensed some dark magic lingering around him. What if your father and your brother are both behind this and just been keeping it from you? You should only trust what you've figured out so far and not let that moron twist your head around." He muttered while looking at me intently.

Napasimangot ako sa sinabi nito. Ayaw ko man aminin pero may tama si Plutus. If my brother truly had my best interests at heart, why didn't he tell me sooner? He'd just let me believe my father was still buried at Paradise Cemetery.

"Siguro nga, tama ka," mahinang saad ko habang nilalaro ang natirang pagkain sa plato ko.

After breakfast, I decided it was time to investigate further, starting with my father's belongings in his room. I'd cleaned it often enough, so I knew there were a lot of old papers and things stored away. I scoured every corner, every cabinet, looking for anything that could help the case. When that search turned up empty, I made my way to the attic, where even older belongings were kept.

As soon as I stepped inside, I coughed hard as a cloud of dust rose into the air. The room was crowded with old boxes, stacked on top of each other. I started rummaging through them, and after a while of searching, I finally found a useful one. Hidden deep within one of the boxes, I discovered a dusty, old grimoire.

The spells in it were terrifyingly advanced, dealing with resurrection and body-part harvesting. My pulse quickened as I realized this was beyond anything a student would know, specially my brother. I was more certain than ever that this had to be my father's doing.

My heart was pounding as I hurried downstairs to find Plutus. I found him in my workshop, casually lounging in my hammock, watching a movie on his tablet. I called out to him, dragging a chair beside him and thrusting the book in his direction. He raised an eyebrow, as he set his tablet aside.

"What's this?" he asked, flipping through the old faded pages.

"It's... it's a grimoire I found in the attic. It explains the murders in detail, resurrection, body harvesting, all of it. It has to be him. I think my father faked his death to stay hidden while using students from the academy for some twisted ritual to gain immortality."

Walang duda, nakakasiguro na ako na ito ang dahilan kung bakit may mga parte sa katawan ng biktima ang nawawala. My father is planning to create a perfect body, a shell to transfer his soul to gain immortality.

Plutus nodded slowly, a smirk forming. "Immortality, huh?" He chuckled, shaking his head. "Some people will do anything for it, but living for thousands of years isn't all it's cracked up to be. Human are indeed foolish creatures."

A wave of sadness washed over me. The father I'd known had been kind and warm, but he was different now. Hindi ko lubos akalain na magiging ganito kaganib ang ama ko sa walang hanggang buhay.

"Human on this earth are born with greed from the start. Don't blame yourself for this. It's your father's fault, not yours."

I nodded, his words making me feel slightly better. "Thank you." Then, softly, I added, "I'm going to catch him, and I'll put a stop to this madness."

Plutus grinned. "So, our next plan is to catch him. Won't be easy, you know."

I looked him in the eyes, determination replacing my sadness.

"I know."

~~~

Lunes na naman, ang bilis lang talaga ng araw. Mabuti naman at okay na sina Jenna at Dylan, nag-aalala ako na baka mapagbintangan sila. Ngayon, balik daldalahan na naman ang dalawa, excited na naman sila sa bagong experiment na gagawin nila. Balak ata ng mga 'to na maging scientist, kung ano-ano na lang kasi ang sinusubukan.

Samantalang ito naman si Plutus, nakadukdok na naman sa lamesa nito. Everything was peaceful until a commotion erupted outside our classroom door.

I glanced over, curious, and then froze. My eyes widened as I recognized the girl from the bus stop, the one who had called me names and brought along her boyfriend to try to intimidate me. She looked almost unrecognizable. One of her eyes was swollen and bruised, her lip was split, and her arm was bound in a sling.

And, to my utter disbelief, the guy she'd been with that day was there too, but in a wheelchair. Both of his legs were in casts, his hands were wrapped up in slings, and his face was a mess of bruises. He even had a large bandage on his forehead.

As they reached us, the girl dropped to her knees, sobbing, while the guy, on the verge of tears himself, started begging for forgiveness.

"Please," the girl wailed. "I'm so, so sorry! I swear we didn't mean to hurt you! Please forgive us. We'll transfer to another school, we'll do anything, just forgive us!"

The entire class fell silent, shocked, with whispers and murmurs rippling through the room. Anong nangyari sa dalawang 'to? Bakit bugbug sarado silang pareho? Napapakamot ako sa ulo ng wala sa oras dahil sa tindi ng sinapit nila.

But then a groggy groan came from beside me. Plutus finally lifted his head while rubbing his eyes lazily. He gave me an amused, lazy look.

"They're not gonna stop until you forgive them," he muttered, his eyes glinting mischievously. "It's up to you, witch. If you forgive them, they'll leave the school completely unscratched. But if you don't..." He trailed off, leaning in to whisper, "I'll drag them both to hell."

Kusa na lang kumunot ang noo ko sinabi nito. So, siya ang may pakana kung bakit nagkaganito ang dalawang 'to? A wave of guilt suddenly hit me. I cleared my throat, trying to keep my composure.

"O-oo na!" I finally said, waving a hand dismissively. "Pinapatawad ko na kayo."

The girl let out a sob of relief, while the boy shot a terrified look at Plutus, almost as if silently begging for his permission to leave. Plutus simply ignored them, already laying his head back on his desk to resume his nap. The couple didn't waste a second, they scrambled to leave the classroom as fast as they could, both of them still shaking with fear.

"Uy girl, iyon 'yung mga nambully sayo diba?" Singit ni Jenna habang nakatitig sa papalayong bulto no'ng dalawa.

"Deserved. Matagal ng bully sa paaralan natin ang dalawang 'yan, mukhang nakahanap na ng katapat," napapailing na dagdag ni Dylan.

Napapa-iling na lang ako sa asungot na katabi ko. Ngayon, alam ko na kung saan nagpunta ang isang 'to no'ng gabi na mabugbog ako. Gustuhin ko man magalit, pero hindi ko magawa. Hindi ko pa din nakakalimutan iyong pag-aalaga niya sa'kin buong magdamag.

Sabihin niyo, paano ko kakagalitan ang prinsipe na 'to?

Then I saw Plutus smirking into his arms. "You're welcome, witch," he muttered, sounding almost smug.

To be continued...