Fake Princess
CCCLXXXI Chapter
I glanced to the side as I stared at one of the women wearing a bird mask walking past us, the woman kneeling with both hands grabbing a tray of flowers on top of her, he stood up again and walked with the tray away from us.
Two other bird-masked people who suddenly emerged from the crowd of residents walked up to us, he said, the masked male and female bird stopped their footsteps beside us and grabbed each of them a tray of dried skin.
They stood up again and walked after the previous woman with a tray in their hands. “You guys, follow the three of them,” I glanced back at the old woman who had opened her voice.
My head slightly looked to the side as Izumi's shadow had risen, I gave my body to stand up with one hand firmly grasping Cia's palm. I walked side by side with Cia following Haruki's footsteps, the sound of the stream getting clearer as my two feet moved forward.
Waving burning torches neatly arranged on the riverbank, the fire on the torch occasionally swayed following the wind that blew around it. I glanced back as footsteps followed, staring at the convoy of villagers following us from behind, complete with torches burning in the hands of some of them.
Our footsteps stopped when the three people carrying the tray stopped their footsteps by the river. My eyes glanced to the left, as I stared at the eight people who were carrying the wooden box belonging to the woman before. The eight of them slowly descended the wooden box to the ground, followed by a wolf-masked woman who had been standing in front of the wooden box.
One of them, who was carrying the box, raised his hand to open the curtain that covered the curtain, when one did so. The wolf-masked woman who had previously stood still, stood still, his feet were getting closer to the box.
The old woman slowly moved out from inside the wooden box, her aged body moved in waves aided by the previous wolf-masked woman. “Pure yourself in the river, once done .. Replace the clothes you are wearing now, with the animal skin we have prepared. If everything is finished, you are officially one of us,” he said, but we took turns with one hand holding his back slightly bent.
Haruki stepped forward followed by Izumi and Eneas who were walking behind him, as one of the women poured the petals on the tray she was holding into the river, The more they stepped forward, the more their bodies sank into the river water. The old woman raised her hand that was pointing towards the river when our two eyes met.
I walked by holding Cia's hand beside me, I felt Cia's grip on my hand strengthen as we walked deeper into the water. I held Cia in front of my chest when the river water had touched my waist, my grip on Cia's body grew stronger as the river water rose to touch my neck.
I took a strong bite on my lips as the cold river water became more bone-chilling, my two eyes slightly glanced at Cia as the sound of her teeth grinding right beside me. I looked back at the old woman with the villagers also standing behind her. The old woman raised both her hands in the air, a song of unfamiliar language made my body shudder.
The wind was getting stronger when the song sung by the old woman was still heard. I turned towards Cia, my puckered palm, touching the softness of her cheeks that gradually turned pale as the rays from the torch struck her face. Cia buried her head on my shoulder, I got stronger embracing her as the sound of her teeth grinding touched my ears.
Haruki turned his head towards me, his head nodded slowly, “go first Sachi, we will follow,” Haruki said slightly glancing towards Cia who was in my arms.
I nodded slowly looking at him, “well,” I said in a trembling voice.
I bowed with my breath as hard as I could, my feet that were frozen before. Kugerakan slowly split the river water, approaching the crowd of people who were still watching us from the riverbank.
“Follow her, then change your clothes,” said the old woman again followed by her eyes that glanced at the bird-masked woman carrying a tray in her hands.
I set foot following the bird-masked woman as she stepped away from the villagers with one hand holding the tray, while the other held a burning torch. Both my hands moved stronger and more strongly embracing the body of Cia in my arms, I looked at the back of the woman wearing the bird mask, a word did not come out of it.
The woman stopped her footsteps in a hut in the middle of the forest, she turned to look at me with one hand pointing the tray in her hand towards me. I stepped forward to approach him, grabbing the tray he had in his hand earlier with one of my hands. The woman turned back and walked open the door made of bamboo ties in front of us, I walked with Cia entering the hut when the woman did not come out.
The atmosphere inside the small hut was bright when the fire burning in the torch in the woman's hand struck the torch attached to the bamboo woven wall of the hut. The woman said a word that I did not understand when the tray in my hand was placed on the wooden table in the hut.
I looked at the bird masked woman with a slight frown, “wear the clothes, I will wait for you guys in front,” she spoke again, this time the language she spoke can be understood.
The woman stopped her footsteps in front of the door, “call her, if you need help wearing it,” she said back out of the hut.
I lowered Cia's body as she closed the door again. I grant my body to kneel before Cia who clasped both hands, she still bowed reluctantly raising her face. Slowly, both of my hands undressed the clothes Cia was wearing, “do we have to wear the same clothes as they were wearing?” I murmured softly as my eyes glanced back at the pile of animal skins on the tray.