Little Red for Mr. Rydding Hood: The Lost World of Agartha 1

Chapter 9

After the dinner that was longer than all the dinners Princess Loaisa had because of literally everything, a girl close to her age led her to the small cottage or one of the low-buried houses. It was not really underground, but the floor was low enough that anyone could reach the roofing outside once on the flat surface.

It was like the usual nipa hut if not purposely built on a low land surface. They said it was to prevent heavy rains and strong winds from sweeping the entire house though it looked strong enough. The girl was named Margaret whom Samuel informally introduced to her as she would be one of her ‘bunkmates in the cottage as how Samuel addressed it. And she was yet to hear from Margaret as the girl had not spoken anything to her yet.

Her long black hair was braided behind her, stiff and straight, just like the rest of her. Her body and her face. There was no reaction from her at all. She was silent and as they took the way to the cottages and near the ruined palace, Princess Loaisa started to feel uneasy. Not knowing if she needed to strike a conversation with her, or unlike the rest, the girl did not want her around.

It was the fact that Princess Loaisa had not said anyone about her royal blood, and she felt like she was betraying everyone for not speaking the truth. And this was the reason she was hesitant to anyone who was not welcoming to her like the rest. Like the blue-eyed man, and this girl, Margaret.

There was nothing in the cottage but the two adjacent wooden handmade double-bed. Two ladies were taking the spot on the bed across from the door, and to the right was for Margaret and Princess Loaisa. Margaret was on the lower bed so she would be on the upper deck. On the floor was a mat laid for five other women to share with and three blankets for them.

There was a single pillow for her and a thin blanket for Princess Loaisa. The pillow felt soft but thin. After several squeezes on it, she realized they were real feathers. Probably from the chickens, or grass, or anything soft to fill in the makeshift pillow. But not too loaded, that made it like she was lying on the hard bed directly. There was not even a thin cushion, and Princess Loaisa knew it was not her place to complain.

There was little light by the wall. Like a small bulb and she knew it was powered by whichever made the electric fences working. For sure, the King would be amazed at how the people down here invented such things.

Margaret was not in her bed when Princess Loaisa went down on her own. In fact, she was the only one inside. The rest were out and did not wake up the guest, knowing she was as exhausted from last night. She was fully aware of that knowledge because it was rare for Princess Loaisa to wake up late.

Outside, a cool, almost wet wind blew on her face. She made sure her hood covered her hair as she wrapped the soft cloak around her. It was refreshing to know that the wind in the south was as fresh as the North. Fresher, even. It made her known that the air she liked to breathe in the morning was the air the people here were breathing.

The sun was yet to completely rise, and Princess Loaisa knew she was still early. But the people around here were too early. There was no noise from the kids, though. They must be sleeping in one of the cottages, and only the elders woke up early to do their chores. The air brought the aroma of the coffee towards her direction and food being cooked, letting her know some were busy inside. The men outside chopped trees and arranged them on the corner for bonfires and for cooking food as well outside the tent. The women were arranging wet and washed clothes on the other side before the sun showed up. Some of them were heading to the west holding a basin containing clothes.

“There’s a small stream out there.” Samuel’s sudden appearance surprised her, but she quickly composed herself, smiled at him, and made a slight bow that surprised the young man. She quickly bit her lower lip and hoped he noticed nothing odd. Princess Loaisa was either used to people bowing to her or her curtsying to them. She hoped Samuel wouldn't recognize it as a royal thing.

Which he did not. After an off frown on his face at her gesture, he looked away to look at the women heading west and to the forest for what he said was a stream.

“Do people in the North do that in the morning?” His voice was cold. Distant.

Princess Loaisa stared at his indifference. She believed they wouldn't ask anything about Northumbria anymore. But it must be curiosity. She was curious about this place all her life, too. But unlike her delight and longing thinking about Visayas and Mindanao, Samuel was not delighted at all. If she was not mistaken, it was bitterness. Loathing. He may be asking about Luzon and the Malacañan Palace, but nothing about it would fascinate or move him.

It was written on his face and Princess Loaisa could see his anger was too transparent. It was like a light pinch on her heart and the longer she stared at his expression, the stronger the pain built inside her. So she looked away from his suffering.

“I have never seen a stream,” she said in a whisper instead, realizing it would be better to answer his question. He was not that interested, anyway.

This surprised Samuel. “There was no stream in the North?” That was not a good question again though. But his surprise was far greater than the awareness of the question he spoke.

She shrugged and made sure to keep the conversation light. “What do you do in the stream?”

“Take a bath!” he quickly replied, too much glad and proud there was something in this place he could boast to her but eating wolves. “Wash clothes. Drink. Everything!”

“That sounds amazing!” Her smile widened, and it was a genuine one that star-struck Samuel. He blinked at her vibrant smile and slowly turned red. This alerted Princess Loaisa.

“Are you okay, Samuel?”

He hardly nodded. “You’re too beautiful. You know that?”

It was Princess Loaisa’s turned to be red by the sweet compliments. She was used to hearing them, compliments, but she thought it was only because she was a Princess. Hearing it from someone who did not know her state in life made her heart warm. It was a genuine compliment, and she has no idea how to respond the way she would respond to their people in the Malacañan.

Their short morning encounter was interrupted by the man working on the chopped woods, shouting to Samuel and telling him to lead Princess Loaisa to the tent already for breakfast. She happily obliged, but Samuel made sure not to serve wolves’ to hear but fruits and vegetables.

When they were done, Princess Loaisa couldn’t help but ask him about Margaret.

“It’s selective mutism, they believed. She talks to anyone she likes and does not say a word if not needed. But she’s kind and sweet. You’ll be fine around her.”

“Is she in the stream?”

“Do you want to go there? It’s really close to here. I can take you there, but I’ll be busy later. Margaret is on the cliff, I think.”

“Cliff?”

“The cliff.” As they stepped out of the tent, Samuel pointed to the ruined palace and somewhere behind it. “There’s a cliff behind the palace. Not high, but enough to cause anyone death if they decide to jump from the top.”

“What are they doing there, then?” She hoped the children were not allowed to play there.

“The rest are in the stream. Margaret likes to stay alone on the cliff and staring ahead at the sea. You will know her story soon enough. And as much as I want to tell it to you myself, I believe my day will start now.”

She followed his line of sight and to the men near the chopped woods. They formed a circle of dead animals. Princess Loaisa recognized they were the rogues they encountered yesterday. Her step towards them halted as she took a closer look at their state. There was a long and thick stick stuck from their mouth to the bottom. They were attached by buried logs on both ends and tied by a tight rope. The arrows still stuck on them.

“We don’t eat them raw, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Samuel said to her as he noticed her distorted face watching the busy men. “We left them under the sun and―”

“If you must excuse me of the details,” he cut him off to avoid hearing more. “Please?”

He chuckled and nodded. “I should apologize, then. You’re not used to it.”

“Thanks,” she muttered under her breath and refused to look back at the corpse again.

Samuel had to leave her to help with the men, and she was more than grateful to spare herself of the details of how they processed the wolves’ meat for food. Nana Sora, who heard her conversation with Samuel, politely smiled at her.

“Samuel is always enthusiastic about telling everyone anything related to how we leave here.”

“Everyone? Does that mean, I am not the only… uhm merchants, who got lost here?”

She shook her head; the smile never once fading from her lips and it created beautiful lines on the corners of her eyes. “You and Mr. Hood alone. He’s only been here with us for three months now and he’s a great help to the men… One of the men you met. The one with the blue eyes,” she added after recognizing the confusion on the young lady’s face. Nana Sora’s eyes glinted as her fascination with the man's rare blue eyes appeared on her face.

Suddenly, her heart hammered. The blue-eyed man just got here for three months?

“He’s Mr. Hood?” She felt the urge to laugh, but she had to stop it. If she were a man, she believed she would have used that to name herself instead of red. But then, why would she think the man was only faking the name? She hardly met anyone other than the royal family and close friends. There could be a lot more of the same name around Agartha.

Nana Sora nodded with a smile. “Like you, he’s still getting used to eating any kind of meat. Look at his body and you won’t think he’s only taking fruits, vegetables, and bread these past few months.”

Princess Loaisa was used to seeing well-built men around the palace, especially her brother, Prince Jofre, and the King and the palace guards. The hunters looked strong and physically fit, too, though not much muscled compared to the blue-eyed man. This comment with the old lady made her aware of how ‘sexy’ the blue-eyed man, Mr. Hood was and remembered how her sister Princess Liliana described knights in shining armor in her stories.

“You can join Margaret on the cliff,” she added and gently tapped Princess Loaisa’s shoulder. “You see, she was the only one here around her age. She’s twenty and Samuel and the other boys won’t understand how girls around your age valued feelings.”

“Aren’t we all?”

“Living this life? When you reach my age in this life, you will learn to shorten your priorities. Not everything will matter. You should learn not to let everything matter. It’s only what’s important and closest to you: family.”

The old lady’s words kept on echoing in her head as she headed alone at the back of the palace. The field was wide and the palace’s exterior alone was taking up so much of the land space. From its side, she looked up to the open corridors. She doubted there would be an exciting place inside even if it was once home to the vampires. Literally everything was burnt down but the walls and pillars.

When she reached the back of the palace, it was as spacious as expected but not as grand as the outback of the Malacañan Palace. The cliff was still meters away and not yet visible. Tall trees scattered around outside the border of the palace’s field, and if she did not know that Kent was the end of Southern Agartha, Princess Loaisa would believe going straight to the trees would leave her to another border that was not meant for her. Luckily for her, she learned a few things from the old Book of Tales in the Malacañan library.

She could smell and taste the salty water from the sea, making her remember Samuel mentioned it and she was excited to see it herself.

The sun was visible now. Margaret must have come here to see the sunrise because it was really a nice place to watch it. Stopping, she turned around and watched the Southern sky. She kept asking then if the Malacañan Palace was visible from down here. Now, she knew the answer: no. It was just too far to be in sight. All she could see looking up was trees and the bright sky ― the sky of Agartha.

Sighing, she continued her steps towards the cliff, wanting to be there, and saw what it looked like before Margaret decided to go back and they met on the way. But her attention was caught by something as her eyes landed on the figure leaning on the tree on her left.

It was quite distant from her and the land was a little bumpy, and going a little lower on that side, where more lines of trees rose. But even with the back facing her, and half covered by the tree, Princess Loaisa knew who owned the muscles. Her conversation with Nana Sora appeared before her eyes.

The blue-eyed man, Mr. Hood.

She hesitated at first whether or not to approach him or not. He was alone. He must have wanted no company. But she noticed something odd. Without thinking, she forgot the cliff and Margaret and trailed the bumpy surface down to rush to him.