Chapter 1. The Kid and the Cat
Duran village is a farm village located at the foot of a mountain. Its specialty is cashmu bread made from the milled grains of cashmu, a plant that grows at the periphery of the mountains all throughout the season. Today is a peaceful day with nothing unusual aside from the peculiar visitor they received two days ago.
The man which appears to be at his early twenties is covered by a tattered winter cloak made of a gray animal fur. His unshaven beard complements his silver hair that screams unkempt. With his towering height of 190 cm and pale white skin, he looked like a lost beggar when he first entered the town.
Entering the only inn in the village, the owners were hesitant at first when he asked for food and lodgings for a week. With utmost respect despite the appearance of the man, the couple that owns the inn asked if he has the money to pay for it. The man then showed them 15 silver coins afterwards. Seeing that the man had enough money to pay for the accommodations, they then began serving the rare guest.
While the couple was busy serving the unusual guest, a little kid of around 8 years old, with a pale skin that complements her frail appearance coupled with her amber hair that is cut short till her shoulder, ran towards the door.
“Annisette! Where are you going? I told you that it is furiously raining snow outside. Do you want to freeze to death?!”
“B-but Breen is..!”
The kid replied, stream of held tears are streaming at the edge of her brown eyes.
“I understand how you feel but…Breen is most likely dead. It’s been a week already.”
“He’s not dead! Uuuuuuuuuuuhhhhh!”
The mother of the child grabbed the hand of the child quickly. After reprimanding her, she then told the child to go upstairs, into her room.
“Seriously, what are we going to do with that child? I know that it’s hard to accept that Breen is gone, but now’s not the time to search for him. According to the elders, the storm will continue for another week.”
“Now, now dear. You know that that child loved Breen so much. It’s understandable that she would go to such length. It’s a pity that this weather hinders us from searching for it.”
Her husband began wrapping his arms around her; comforting the distraught mother.
“Excuse me. I’m sorry for intruding but… who is Breen?”
The couple was surprised by the voice that suddenly spoke. It’s a delicate voice that carries a calming feeling to those who hears it—quite contrary to the almost-beggar appearance of the owner.
“Oh sorry about the commotion dear guest.”
The mother told him after regaining her former composure. She then began to continue wiping the washed dishes.
“Breen is a cat. It’s been with my daughter Annisette since she was still very young. That pet had been part of the family for a very long time.”
The mother’s voice has a hint of subtle loneliness in it as she uttered those words.
“Where is it now?”
“That’s…”
The couple then began to explain the situation to the stranger.
It was around a week ago. Annisette was tasked to collect cashmu grains at the foot of the mountain. Due to the previous harvest, the plants were scarce, and so together with her cat Breen, she climbed higher in order to find more. Suddenly, a snow storm began to ravage the village. The husband Raul, together with the men from the village searched for the missing daughter. Luckily, they were able to find the little lady. She was cuddled inside the hole of a massive tree trunk. Aside from losing her consciousness, no other adverse effects were reported.
Immediately after regaining consciousness, she was dumfounded to realize that Breen was not with her. She then began to search for him even under the extreme weather conditions.
Everyone knew how much the little lady cherishes Breen. Everyone was able to sympathize of her loss, but everyone came to accept that the little cat is probably dead by now. And they all knew how harsh the weather could be during this season.
“I see…”
The stranger replied. While thinking some thoughts, he then continued eating the served food.
****
It was midnight.
A little girl cladded herself in thick blanket. After grabbing a piece of large bread and making sure that her parents are asleep, she then stealthily went downstairs and then outside the door. She doesn’t seem to mind the furiously pouring snow storm outside.
After successfully opening the double door that leads towards the outside, she then began marching under the raging snow storm, leaving behind footprints that are immediately covered by snow.
She continued marching towards her destination, at the foot of the mountain where she last saw Breen.
-I haven’t seen the corpse yet. He’s still alive. He’s still alive. He’s still alive.
With this mantra-like reasoning, she steeled her resolve along with her whole body. The snow storm is not something to take lightly especially by a child.
~SHHHHHHHHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
The storm continued pouring down without mercy. Snow piled up for several feet that Annisette could hardly move. Aside from the real threat of extreme cold that could eventually proceed to frost bite, the danger of being buried underneath the snow alive is another hurdle that the little kid needs to overcome.
By some sort of miracle, Annisette eventually reached the foot of the mountain. With the snowstorm clouding her vision, she began to seek solace underneath a massive old tree.
A few moments passed by and she then heard a loud ominous sound coming from above.
~RRRRRRUUUUUUUUMMMMBBBBLLLEEEEEEEEE
The piled up snow began to cruise downwards. A massive avalanche of snow is now approaching the frightened kid.
A loud scream which pierced the heavens themselves were heard that night.
Annisette died.
****
Rosette woke up.
She had a terrible dream. It’s about her daughter Annisette. In a stormy night the same as this one, she cladded herself in thick blanket and stealthily went outside. After some grueling struggle, she died.
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Unbeknownst to her, she began crying. With tears in her eyes, she then glanced at her husband Raul. Surprisingly, he’s awake and is also carrying the same expression as her. With just a single glance to each other, they understood that they both had the same dream.
Without bothering to fix their selves, they immediately went towards the room next door. While suppressing their anxiousness, they tried to open the door—it’s locked. They then knocked at the brown-black wooden door instead.
~Knock knock knock
“Annisette? Are you in there?”
“Annisette?”
No response.
The couple began to have an ominous feeling. Various thoughts and emotions ran inside their minds.
“ANNISETTE???”
“HONEY? HEY ANSWER US IF YOU’RE THERE!”
~BAG! BAG! BAG!
Still no response.
Raul then kicked open the door and was flabbergasted to see that there is no one in the room. While having ominous thoughts, they immediately grabbed hold of their fur coats and went outside.
After some grueling journey, they were able to reach the foot of the mountain. Relying on the visions in their dream, they began to climb higher—towards the massive tree in the dream. In there, they saw a figure of a man in tattered cloak. It’s a figure that gives a reminiscing feeling to the couple. Although clouded by the storm, they knew the figure smiled into their direction and then left.
What appeared after the apparition was gone is the little lady snuggling underneath the tree; her shivering body trying to resist the unruly cold.
“ANISETTE!”
The couple began to run towards her while shouting those words. While panting greatly due to anxiety and fatigue from the journey, they began to hug the child tightly as if there is no tomorrow.
“What are you doing here?! Do you know how dangerous it is to go out on a storm like this?!”
With his pained and worried face evident even under the mask of snow, Raul hollered towards the shivering child. His wife behind him has a complicated expression on her face—filled with a mixture of relief, anger, and anxiety.
The child was flustered to see her parents. The mountain is vast but they were able to locate her immediately.
“H-how did you find out that I’m here?”
The child asked with a confused look on her face coupled with a bewildered expression, her pale face even paler from the extreme cold.
“W-well, it’s…”
The couple was unable to state the reason. It’s truly absurd to say that they both had the same dream, the same premonition.
“We had…a…dream.”
Rosette finally replied towards the bewildered child. She was just plainly thankful that the child is still alive. She doesn’t care anymore what Annisette might think.
“A dream...what happened in the dream mother?”
You died.
If only they could tell those words to that child. Following the vision or dream that they had, they remembered what happened next in that dream.
“Avalanche…”
With a frightened expression on their faces, they immediately grabbed the child and ran from their spot.
Avalanche. That’s the ending scenario in the dream that they had. And so far the dream had been accurate, therefore following the scenario; an avalanche would cover the mountain in the next few moments.
~RRRRRUUUUUMMMMBBBBLLLLEEEEEEEEE
Massive pile of snow and rocks covered the spot they were previously in and is still continuously roaring downwards towards their direction. After running with all they’ve got, the avalanche finally stopped. In just the nick of time, they were able to evade the perilous disaster.
After surviving the incident, they immediately went home.
****
That night, the couple had a dream. In the dream appeared the same clouded figure that they saw in the mountains. For some reason, the figure seems to be familiar. Just like before, the figure is smiling.
[Annisette is destined to become a great person someday. She will become the pillar that will uplift the life in this village. Take care of her.]
“Who are you?”
[I am Mirtua, one of the Gods in this world.]
“A God… how can we ever thank you?”
[Pray.]
Following this statement, the dream ended and the couple woke up. After looking at each other, they understood that for the second time, they both had the same dream. Immediately, the two of them kneeled and prayed—prayed to the God that saved their daughter.
After praying they went down to serve the only guest that they currently have in the inn.
“Today seems to be a good day to both of you eh?”
While smiling, the guest who still wore the same beggar-like tattered outfit asked the beaming couple. The gentle smile is coupled with his eyes filled with glints of amusement.
“Yes dear guest. Something great happened.” The wife replied while gleefully wiping the tables.
“Is that so?” Still smiling, the guest gave the wife a letter sealed by a blue stamp.
“What’s this?”
“It’s for the future of this village.”
Rosette looked toward the direction of the man but what surprise to find no one. Only she and her husband Raul were there. With a confused demeanor, she opened the letter. After reading the contents, she dropped the glass she was holding and immediately called for her husband to rush over.
“H-honey!”
Raul rushed over and began to read the letter that caused his wife to be agitated to such an extent.
Life is nothing but a fleeting thing.
All things are passing.
Everything changes.
Cherish every moment you have right now.
When something is gone, it is gone forever.
Live with your all and the universe of fate will grant your every desires.
Live.
Cry.
Love.
With tears in their eyes, the couple kneeled down and prayed.