My Mother Immortal

Chapter 9: Unforgotten

Eyes. Eyes watching. For a whole week, Hanalea had felt someone watching her, and wherever she went, the same gaze that caused her neck to prickle like an insistent itch followed her. Whoever that was, he or she would soon get hungry. All Hanalea had to do was wait for that to happen. Shielding her eyes from the merciless sun, Hanalea thought, It's almost noon. Almost, but not quite.

Physical education, Hanalea's least favourite and most loathed period was over, and there was just one more period to recess- the hated Maths.

The seconds slowed into minutes, the minutes lengthening to hours, the hours blending with the suffering heat that oozed through the windows and walls from outside to form a mind-numbing, torturously concentrated soup that baked Hanalea slowly from the insides, while the fans put up a feeble defense against the noxious temperatures.

Hanalea struggled desperately on, her gaze fixed on the clock while willing time to just do her a favour for once and just make those hands move. She could just see the perpetual top-scorer in Math, Rinesse and the Second in Math, math genius Nico sitting ramrod straight, scribbling down notes like copying machines, and thought of her own disastrous math grades.

At least I am the best in class for English, Hanalea consoled herself. At that, the bell rang, and she packed her things quickly, feeling rather accomplished at making time fly.

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Eurayion lay on the rectangular structure that sat on the rooftop, the door just below him. In just a while, his target would emerge out here, for her break, the thing they called "recess". She came up here on odd days to eat, so he knew he would see her.

Besides tailing his target, Eurayion had more pressing matters to attend to. His stomach growled for the umpeenth time, and he rolled over, hugging his arms to his chest. He couldn't believe he had forgotten his lunch, and despite it being a beautiful day, Eurayion could not bring himself to enjoy it. He was not affected by the heat, (most of his species usually were not, except for half-bloods) but greatly concerned about the condition of his innards.

He heard a faint click as the door to the roof below him opened, and rolling to the edge, he peered down to see Hanalea, swinging an umbrella in one hand with her lunch in the other walk casually across the roof, then walk back towards the roof structure where Eurayion and the door was.

She sat down three metres away from the structure, opening the umbrella and putting her lunch box on her lap. She unwrapped the cloth around it, and strangely, after taking a few bites, put the box down, stood, and simply walked off, closing the roof door behind her.

Eurayion, driven wild by hunger by now, leapt off the roof structure, landing gracefully on both feet, and was about to advance forward when something heavy and metallic slammed into his back with such great force, he flew a metre and crash-landed onto the baking ground.

"What do we have here? A girl? Or possibly a boy?" Hanalea sauntered over to Eurayion, and poked him with the tip of her foot. "Are you still alive?"

Eurayion rolled over, and before he could get up, Hanalea promptly sat on his chest, crushing his arms with her feet. Although light for her age, she still managed to pin him down most effectively.

"Who are you and why have you been stalking me?" Hanalea examined her fingernails, picking the dirt out of them leisurely. She never beat around the bush.

"I am not obliged to tell you." Eurayion replied haughtily.

"Did I hear you wrong? I can end your life right here and now, you know. Stalking is a downright crime."

"You will know everything eventually. There would come a time when I would need your help. Putting that aside, are you really capable of killing a person?" Eurayion studied her carefully, waiting for her reply.

Hanalea let out a short laugh, then started rocking back and forth, her shoulders shaking, raucous, maniacal laughter erupting from her throat. "Kill someone? Me, capable of doing so? I once killed half of my class when I was nine. It was something like an accident, I suppose. It wasn't really my fault, you see? It just.... happened."

Hanalea brought her hands up to her face, which was now twisted into a tortured expression. "Look, there is still blood on my hands...I cannot wash it away, no matter how much I try."

For a moment, Eurayion thought he had caught a glimpse of Hell, for behind Hanalea, he could suddenly see a large group of translucent children, their mouths stretched into grotesque smiles, blood pouring out of their eyes, their clothes shredded and dripping with blood, and they began to whisper :

Hanalea... Don't forget us....You alone will remember...as it is your curse.