-chapter one-hundred-one-
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"Do you want to play hide and seek?"

I NODDED.

Nauna siyang maglakad kaya sumunod ako. We reached the garden, but walked further down, passing the fountain and the rose bushes. Napatingin ako sa paligid. I've never been here before. Papa won't allow me to go further than he ordered, or guards will take me.

We arrived in front of a large and tall bush. May isang entryway ito sa gitna. Other than that, sarado na at parang nashape siya na isang box. I tilted my head to Rae's direction. Nakatitig lang siya sa'kin.

"Are we playing hide and seek here?" turo ko sa maze.

Tumango siya.

Napakurap ako't napatingin muli sa maze. It must be large. I don't know if two kids should play inside.

"Won't your Papa get angry?"

Umiling siya. "Father is busy."

Malalim akong huminga. At least, he's talking to me now and inviting me to play.

"Okay."

Binalingan niya ako at isang ngiti ang bumusilak sa mukha niya. "Let's play!"

"Okay. What should we do?"

"We enter the maze and play rock-paper-scissors to determine who will walk right. Right has fewer puzzles than left. Then the first one who will come back here!"

Tumango ako at napalunok. Sinundan ko uli siya papasok ng maze. I won in our jak-en-poy game so I took the right part. Tama ngang hindi marami ang pasikot-sikot dito. It only has a right and a left, while Rae has five paths to ponder on.

Hindi ko alam kung ilang minuto na ang nakalipas at nasa loob pa rin ako ng maze. The sun is slowly sinking, already erasing the scorching heat. Hinawi ko ang isang ligaw na sangay at hinanap ang daanan ko kani-

Nanlaki ang mata ko. Wait- there was a pathway here earlier. Alam ko 'yon dahil hindi pa ako nali-limang minuto sa pinanggalingan. But now... I'm facing a huge wall.

Where did the pathway go? No⁠- are they shifting? Are the walls shifting to block the true pathway and lead us further to the maze?

Kaya siguro mula pa kanina ako naliligaw.

Tinitigan ko ang berdeng haligi. If the true path is blocked, and the opened way is fake, then I should wait.

The sun is already hiding behind the tall maze when the wall opened. Shadows are casted in the path I'm running on. The maze is quiet but the bushed wall seems to be so noisy. If I listen closely, there's the soft tremor in the ground and a sound of something moving.

Pinagpatuloy ko ang pagtakbo at paghanap ng daanan. And when the sun did sink, when the sky is no longer painted in blue but a fading orange and rising grey and dark, when the lights of the maze turned on, I fell on the ground, tripping on a rock. Basang-basa na ang mukha ko sa pag-iyak. I sniffed and raised my arms to wipe my tears.

Mas lalo akong napaiyak nang makita ang pasa sa tuhod. Napahagulgol ulit ako dahil paniguradong papagalitan ako ni River at Mama.

My wails must have been too loud because the wall in front of me shifted. Replacing it was a black shoe, brown shorts, white shirt, distressed face and a crumpled hair. Muli akong humagulgol nang makita si Rae. His eyes lit up in panic and he squatted in front of me, awkwardly rubbing my hair.

"I got lost!" iyak ko.

Tumango siya at binuksan ang mga kamay. I sniffed before diving in for a hug. He patted my back.

"I'm sorry. But, I got you now." mahina siyang tumawa. "Found you, hider."

Rae's Mama and Kuya looked at us disapprovingly. They made us change clothes and reprimanded us for using the maze. Mabuti na lang at hindi pa tapos sila Papa sa ginagawa. We ate dinner in their mansion that time before going home.

Papa puts his toolbox in the car's compartment. Pinadyak-padyak ko ang paa mula sa backseat. Papa came in to do my seatbelt before sitting in the driver's seat.

"We're going to fetch your Mama first." nakangiting anunsiyo niya.

"Okay!"

"I heard you played some games. Did you have fun?"

Ngumuso ako. "I got lost, Papa."

"What? Suddenly you're bad at directions, Verr?" tumawa siya kaya mas lalong humaba ang nguso ko. "We won't have our little darling to navigate us inside the mall, huh?"

"I only got lost because it's a maze!" depensa ko.

Sandali siyang natigilan. "Mazes are really dangerous. Lalo na't nags-shift ang walls sa kanila. Did you find your way out?"

"No! Rae found me."

The car stopped when the traffic light showed red. Papa tapped his fingers on the steering wheel.

"That's good. We'll always get lost once in our life, so we should always have someone who will find us. But not everyone is that lucky," lumingon si Papa sa'kin. "So if you encounter someone who's lost, you should always help them find their way, okay?"

Kuminang ang mata ko. That sounds really cool! "Okay!"

The light showed green and we moved again. I greeted River and Mama when we got by the work building. Mama gave me some candies, while River flicked my forehead. I stuck my tongue out and annoyed him until he made me tell what happened on my day.

I fell asleep on his shoulder.

From then on, when Papa has to work, Rae and I will always play games. I wasn't really fond of them. I'm more interested in the books in their library. But I always get persuaded with Rae's enthusiasm.

Hindi ko alam kung bakit but Rae is very attracted to games. Maybe it runs down their family? Board games, word games (which I enjoy) or video games. He always drag me into one of those.

"Whoa! Look!" turo ni Rae sa television kung saan pinapakita ang isang babae na lumalaban.

Binaba ko ang libro at napatingin doon. I set aside the toy I was fixing and sat down next to Rae. The girl in the TV is fighting some really huge dragon. Napakaganda niya kahit na lumalaban. Her huge silver sword glinted as the sun directly hit it. At talagang sumugod siya kahit na bumuga ng napakalaking apoy ang dragon.

Pumalakpak kaming dalawa nang makitang natalo niya iyon. She went to the tower to save a sleeping boy.

"She saved him! She saved him!" bulalas ko. "That's so cool!"

Excited na tumango si Rae at bumaling sa'kin. "I know what game we're gonna play today, Rie!"

I tilted my head.

"We're gonna play treasure hunt!"

Rae places five mini toys on the ground. A dragon, a mermaid, a scale, a bird and lastly a lion.

"We'll make Mother hide them then we're going to find them!"

Kumunot ang noo ko. "But your house is big. We can't find them."

"We can! Mother will give clues."

"Hmm... 'kay." tumingin ako sa paligid. "Where's your Mama?"

Tumayo siya at sabay naming hinanap ang Mama niya. We found ourselves standing in front of a large door. I remembered this as their home office. Rae tiptoed to open the door.

Dahan-dahan kaming pumasok. Rae's ?Mama is very beautiful. With raven hair that fell to the back of her knees. Long eyelashes that hides her hazelnut eyes. Doll lips that perfectly fits her face. I never get to always see Rae's Mama. She's usually busy with their company because Rae's Papa is always busy with games. However, when she's free, I always see her staring at our direction with a fond look in her face.

Ngayon ay may kasama siya sa kwarto. It was a guy. Taller than Rae's Kuya, Rius. His hair is dyed white with a mullet. Ngumiti silang dalawa nang pumasok kami.

"Oh~" lumapit ang lalaki at lumuhod sa harap ni Rae. "Rae-Rae is very big now!"

He raised his hand to pat Rae's head, but Rae was quick enough to dodge. Umatras siya at nagtago sa likod ko.

"He doesn't like me anymore!" ngumuso ang lalaki na nagpatawa sa Mama ni Rae. Lumipat ang tingin niya sa'kin. "Who's this gorgeous kid? Rae ha sa girlfriend now?"

Muli niyang itinaas ang kamay para hawakan ang pisngi ko, but Rae slapped it away and glared at the man.

"Uncle Val! Don't touch her. She's my best friend!"

Rae's Uncle Val shakes his hand and grimaces. "Geez. He grew up so protective. I liked it more when he's just squirming like a baby."

"That's just how time works, Valence." came Rae Mama's soothing voice. "Rae, Rie, what brought you here?"

Lumapit si Rae sa Mama niya. Ipinakita niya ang limang laruan na hawak.

"We're gonna play treasure hunt, Mother. But you need to hide them first."

"I see," she exhaled and tapped her finger on her cheek. "However, dear, me and Valence will actually be going out."

"But it's only for a few minutes!"

"We are supposed to leave now." problemadong sabi ng Mama ni Rae. "There will be a party in the Alcesta mansion. Valence here has personally sent the invitation to his younger brother's birthday. And we're suppose to go out to buy clothes and gifts."

Kumunot ang noo ni Rae. "Valdimir?"

"Yep! He'll probably recognize you now, even though he was just so little when you first met." biglang nag-ilaw ang mata ni Uncle Val. "I know! Why don't you two come with us to the mall?"

Nagkatinginan kami ni Rae. "Mall?" Rae asked timidly.

"That's a good idea, Valence. I promise when we get back, I'll hide your five treasures in a way that you'll have a hard time finding!"

Ngumuso si Rae. "Well, if I can play afterwards..."

Ngumiti ang dalawa. May dumating na maids at binigyan kami ni Rae ng coat. I frowned.

"Do I come too?"

"Of course!" Uncle Val answered. "The Lazarus young lady will be thrilled to meet you!"

I blinked. I don't know any of those names. Sumunod ako sa kanila, Rae falling behind to match my steps.

We were almost to the garage when Rae's Mama stopped and ordered one of the maids to call Kuya Rius. Hindi nagtagal ay dumating ito.

"Mom?" tanong nito habang inaayos ang salamin.

"We're heading to the mall for a bit. We'll attend the Alcesta's dinner party this evening." she kissed her Kuya Rius's cheeks. "Will you be alright guarding the house or do you want to come with us?"

Umiling si Kuya Rius. "It's alright. I have some academy works to do, anyway." lumipat ang tingin niya sa'min ni Rae. "You two, behave and don't wander off."

"Yes, Kuya."

"Yes, Kuya Rius!"

Tumayo si Kuya Rius sa may garage as the car left the main house. Si Uncle Val ang nagmamaneho while Rae's Mama sat in the front seat. I planted my face on the window and stared at Kuya Rius.

"Rae," I whispered. Napatingin siya sa'kin. "Hindi ba sad si Kuya Rius to be alone in such a huge house?"

Rae tilted his head. "Father is there."

Ngumuso ako. But, Rae's Papa rarely goes out. Hindi ko na lang iyon sinabi at sa halip ay sinagot ang,

"I guess you're right."

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-chapter end-

I'm not sure kung nasabi ko na ages nila pero ito kasi next chapter flashback ulit bago tayo bumalik sa 'ngayon'.

Here, Reverie and River are six years old. Hiraeth or Avraeth is two years older, so he's eight. Sa squad si Hex ang pinakamatanda, twenty-six. Feyre's next twenty four. Sa taong ito, they're twelve and ten respectively.

Voldmir is two years younger than Reverie, so here he's four years old. Minerva is 15 years old and Priamos is 14 in real time. Dito nasa womb pa lang si Priamos. This is fourteen years from the current year.