The Creature of the Woods (BxB)

Chapter 19: The Cleric

*Hansel*

We stared at him, but Araki acted immediately and went forward to put me behind him. The Cleric made an inquisitive head angle, looking at Araki in observance.

"You are a creature of the woods. A Tree Demon, perhaps? What are you doing here?" He glanced at me. "You are protecting him, yes? Well, it seems that this time, you guys succeed." He smiled wide, as if he was a neighbor suddenly told that the couple next door is having a baby. Wow. What an analogy.

However, he behaved himself and made a genuine sad smile. "I'm sorry. About your cousin."

"It's fine."

"Why do you know about our artificial sun? And how did you know I'm not human?" Araki interrupted, still hiding me behind him.

The Cleric glanced around, and as if on que, he went away, making a coded glance to follow him. We did as told, but Araki is still on guard. I cannot blame him. We walked, ending at the nearest park, and it has to be the old granary. At least in this wide space, nobody will be able to hear us.

"I'm a Priest of the Parish since Jerry's assignment."

That got my attention to the young Cleric, then I shoved Araki's protecting hand to come forward to him. "What? Just how old are you?!"

"My, my. Don't start with my age. Let's just say I'm older than Harry Juno."

He's older than my father. He looks like an early-20s man.

Right. This person is not human.

"I am human, though." He said, as if reading my thoughts.

"You're not." I dead panned.

"Tsk. Well, there's no point hiding it. Let's just say I'm a Fairy. Would you believe me?"

"No." I dead panned again.

"Okay then. I'll tell you my secret." He leaned forward, like a woman with the latest gossip. Man, this Priest is playful. "I'm a human, and I use this certain papaya soap. Ta-da. Awesome, right?" He grinned playfully.

I narrowed my eyes on him. "Seriously."

And there. He faced away then whistled.

We're getting nowhere here. "Okay. How did you know about us and everything?"

His face lit up and began skipping --- yes, skipping --- through the fields. "Follow me."

Araki looked at me worriedly. It's my first time to see this person despite of my three months of staying. Well, I don't visit the church, how would know who's in there? I followed suit, and Araki sighed as he follows me. This is better than nothing.

After five minutes, Araki shouted. "Hey, human, where are you leading us?"

"Ask your boyfriend. He knows."

"I'm not his boyfriend. And no, I don't."

"What?" He stopped and faced me. "You don't know where the Provincial Church is? It's right in the middle of the fields. It's the only facility there."

I shook my head side to side.

His face showed upset as he began brisk walking through the fields, fuming and muttering about how children these days don't even have time to visit the Church. This 45+ year old priest is something.

We reached an old, but well-kept Church in the middle of the fields. It is a big Victorian style castle, with sophisticated metal works and fascinating mosaic windows.

"This doesn't look like an Old Spanish style Church at all, unlike most of the old Churches in this country." My voice echoed through the empty dome-shaped altar.

"The Irish Dominican Priests made this Church, and up until now, it is the head Church for supernatural connections. We are real priests, but we specialize as a linking organization to human realms between the others. So, it's normal that we get involved with this."

He went to the single door path way from the Altar. Behind the door is a long hallway walk, quite dark but illuminated by electrical lamps on the side. At the end of the hallway are multiple double doors, and each has large spaces between them, which means each room is a size of the church itself! But how did that happen? The Church doesn't look this big from the outside.

"You're probably thinking how superficial the space inside is." The Priest faced us with a proud smile. "It's magic." He opened one of the doors and signaled us to get in.

The room has none of its lights on. It is spacious, like predicted, but there is only one item right in the middle of the room. That item is luminous, and that gives the light in the dark room. A weak white light.

"Let me guess." I faced Araki. He nodded, confirming my guess. It is their Artificial Sun. A stone. A big stone a size a car.

"It should be brighter than this." Araki went near and touched the stone. And by then, the stone began pulsating its luminosity. In each pulse, the light becomes brighter. Araki's eyes widen. "We must bring this back to Ilalim. It reacted to me. It should be alive if we bring it back there."

"That's what I guessed." The Priest said. "That's why I brought you here. I'm giving it back."

"Why is it with you?" Araki asked, in a non-malicious way, at least. Actually, he sounded very thankful.

"Because it's our duty to keep peace between the realms. This is the only chuck that we got, and were hoping we could return it to the Tree Demons. But none of us has connections to them. Unlike other realms, underworlds are the hardest to attain diplomacy with. We have talked to Jerry once, and even offered protection, but the King doesn't like any other humans. We understood that he was only being cautious because of the Artificial sun looting incidents. But we still decided to help. And I'm sorry," he faced me sadly. "We weren't able to save your Uncle. And now, your cousin. We could have risked it, you know."

"It's fine now. For now, we must bring this chunk back to Ilalim. Their country is dying. This should do a little." I said, maturely swallowing a bile of accumulated throat salt from impending tears. But I'm done with the tears. Only actions now. "Cesar Dick said they have stones with them. We should get their base. I'm going to talk to my father and ask him to find it."

But I cannot force the tears back to where they come from. I went out of the room while Araki is still being fascinated with their sun. I slammed the door quietly then leaned my back on the wall, looked up to the empty Victorian ceiling as I try to hold them back. They can't. They fell. I cried.

"Don't cry, young one." A recently familiar voice said beside me. I jolted away for the lack of sound, or even an evidence that door has been opened. "And don't fret, I have something to tell you."

The Priest looked at me with a smile as if delivering a relieving news. "I can feel it in your soul. You are enchanted to love forcefully. That is quite sad, isn't it?"

"I already know that. We know that, but it was only an accident."

"Ow." He said, his voiced laced with sarcastic surprise. "An accident? An accident that made him reach all the way here? To where their Artificial Sun is? Son, no matter where I see it, you were used. Big time."

"Dont' say that!" I raised my voice in anger, fully facing him with my fist clenched. "Araki is not like that. It was only an accident. We're actually looking for a cure. He said he ordered a cure from Germany and it will come in a year, if not sooner."

"Oh really?" He said in the same sarcastic surprise. "But I thought it's common knowledge for all creatures that the Church always has complete set of antidotes against enchantments. Oh my, I think not really."

I glared at him, suddenly not liking his presence. But he faced me with a happy but sly smile as he reaches a small vial to my hand. "Drink this. Sleep on it, and when you wake up, all those feeling are gone."

Hesitantly, I reached for the vial.

But I don't believe Araki only used me. I will have to talk to him about this.