A Tale of One Deviant (Book One)

Chapter 61: Six Months Later, 14th Month, Zerlo

Okay, back on track. No more flashbacks to the party.

     Today is the fifteenth of Zerlo, Creik-day, five days until I left for the party.

     Today was also the anniversary of the war with the Demons, exactly twenty-seven years long now. It was a sad day for Bytriste, but it was quickly forgotten when the week ended and winter solstice festival swung around a week and a day later as Eontre-day. It was the first of the week.

     Today was a day of mourning, since it was the anniversary. There was a service being held in the little sanctuary at the back of the house, where I had first awakened.

     The villagers whose family members had been lost were allowed to attend if they wanted, along with all of the people in the mansion.

     Obvious people like Magaris attended, along with a few I hadn't expected since they were all so nice that you didn't expect they were hurting.

     I was in my coma last time they held this type of congregation, so I didn't know. I felt out of place since I hadn't lost anyone there, so when I asked to leave I was let out.

     A Church member had been called to lead the gathering, someone I'd never seen before. They were awfully quiet when it came to general gestures, but preaching out of The Book was another matter as the voice filled the room, giving solace or reminding people of deeper things they should pay attention to.

     Father was sad on this day as well, having been on the battlefield as well leading all of the men who had never been brought home. His wife had gone missing a few days after he came back from his second to last campaign, so it most certainly hadn't been a fun time.

     Chord and Anthem were from another continent entirely, so they were not involved with the war. In fact, they were extremely wary of the Church member and stayed away the whole day.

     Hera and Adri weren't old enough to understand anything other than the fact that it was a sad day, so they went around giving white flowers meant for hope in this world called gelunia.

     Once their baskets were empty, they went out to refill them with a maid who was normally very talkative, now very quiet today.

     She was someone who had lost her husband three years ago, shaking as she walked them by the hands out the door.

     I had no place to retreat to, since my house was now full of mourners.

     So I wandered around until I made my way outside, to the maze I hadn't entered since the first time I met Aloire.

     That long black strip of dead leaves was still there, almost two years later. It never regrew or fell away, just stayed there. The gardeners had tried to cut it away a few months ago, but had failed when their tools broke on the leaves which had grown thorns.

     It was like they were made out of metal.

     And, in a way, they were.

     When Father was called out to be told about the part that couldn't be cut, he had them dispose of it while confirming a very dire fact: a Demon had been here. When, no one knew. How it got in, another mystery. Why it was here, something many people wanted to know. What it did...people hoped for the best that nothing wrong was done.

     I had followed Father out when they told him about the part that couldn't be disposed of, having forgotten what Aloire did.

     Father had spotted my reaction of surprise when I muttered something, saying instantly, "You know something."