The Forgotten Locket: Chapter Three

The third chapter of The Forgotten Locket!

CHAPTER THREE

               “Don’t worry, Anita,” Alphonse assured her. “I don't mind hearing more about you.”

“Well, actually, that’s about it,” I said, scratching my head. I wished that my life was all swashbuckling adventures like Alphonse and his brother got to have...

It must be so exciting, I thought, sighing. Hunting for the Philosopher’s Stone, running from bad guys, fighting with alchemy, having adventures…

“Are you okay?” Alphonse asked. I looked up from my teacup into his empty, glowing eyes.

“Ah, yes,” I said. “I was just daydreaming. Your life with your brother sounds so exhilarating. I wish I could have adventures like that…”

Alphonse suddenly went very quiet and put both of his hands in his lap. He looked down at his feet.

“It’s not always fun,” he said softly.

“What do you mean?” I asked him.

“Well, my brother is without his right arm and left leg, and I don’t have a body. That means I can’t sleep, eat, or feel anything. I can’t feel the warmth of another human anymore… I can’t touch my brother or feel anything.”

It felt like a needle had slit my heart. I never thought of how torturous it must be to endure being trapped in a suit of armor forever… But what an unusual punishment for only trying to save a life. It almost made me angry inside to know that such a sweet person like Alphonse was put into a giant clumsy piece of metal for trying to save his deceased mother. Alphonse and his brother must have really had it hard. I guessed that having their lives wouldn’t be as thrilling as I had first thought.

“Well,” said Alphonse, standing up and pushing in his chair, “I suppose I should go. It was very nice to meet you, Anita.”

“Oh,” I said, my heart sinking. “It was nice to meet you, too, Alphonse.”

“You can just call me Al, if you want.”

I smiled at him but was sad to see him go. I led him to the door and saw him out.

“Please stop by any time, whenever you want,” I told him, waving as he walked out the doorway.

“I’ll be sure to do that,” he said, happiness returning to his metallic voice. “And maybe I can convince my brother to come along next time!”

His brother...

 

 

“Kimi, I’m only fourteen,” I stuttered.

“C’mon,” Kimi said, her cheeks tinted pink. “One drink won’t hurt!”

“Why did you come over with that, anyway? And why are you in a kimono?”

“What, do you live under a rock, Anita-chan? Today is the Sakura Blossom Festival two towns over.”

Can’t I just have one day with no excitement? I groaned in my head.

“Eh? I’ve never heard of it,” I said, standing beside the open door as Kimi walked in with the big bottle of Scotch and set it on my kitchen table, her wooden sandals clicking against the floor.

“You had to bring such hard alcohol? Why not just rice wine?” I muttered under my breath.

Kimi turned to me and winked. Her face was delicately painted, mascara flaking softly against her smooth cheekbones and her beaded veil dressing her forehead. Her chocolaty brown eyes shimmered when the light hit her irises at just the right angle.

“C’mon, kiddo, I brought you a kimono for the festival,” Kimi said, handing me a yellow and fuchsia silk garb tied up by a sash. I took it into my hands and unfolded it to see what it looked like.

“It’s beautiful, Kimi,” I whispered, scanning the dress up and down. There were gorgeous silky paintings of vast mountain ranges and roaring ocean waves, pink cherry blossom petals floating in the breeze. The Kanji symbols for “love” and “harmony” were scattered across the sash’s stitching.

“Go slap that baby on and I’ll drive you to the festival, princess!” Kimi stuck out her tongue playfully on the word ‘princess.’ I rolled my eyes.

“Well, okay, I guess,” I sighed. “But you have to buy me a strawberry cake when we get there.”

I ran upstairs with the kimono, my bare feet slapping against the wooden stairs. Halfway up, a gray ball of fluff emerged from the bathroom door downstairs and shot past me; it perched itself on the top of the railing.

“Hi, Kio,” I said, passing right by the kitten and walking into my room, slipping out of my day clothes, and adjusting the silky kimono. I’d named my new cat Kio, but I wasn’t exactly sure why. I didn’t particularly like the name, but it seemed to fit him. All he did was sit in a high place and stare at you with his huge eyes, acting as if he was plotting your death. He did seem to like Alphonse, though. I had a bizarre feeling that Kio knew something about me that he didn’t like. That would be pretty stupid to assume, however. A cat, knowing my secret?

I shook my head and snapped back into reality. I tied the sash in a neat bow across my waist and smoothed the dress down. I looked into the mirror and reached into a cupboard, pulling out a sakura blossom hairpin that Kimi had given me as a welcoming gift.

Did she give me this specifically for this festival? I thought, clipping it into my hair. It seems kind of unlikely, but what the heck. I have it, so I might as well wear it.

   I stared at my reflection. I saw almond-shaped eyes, short blonde hair, and a stupid antenna-like strand of hair that stuck up like a piece of grass in the back of my head. I lifted my hand and pressed it down over the hair, but when I released my hand, it popped right back up into place. I sighed.

There’s no use... Whatever, I better get back downstairs before Kimi gets mad.

I stood up, smoothed the kimono once more, and trotted down the stairs. I went into the kitchen and stood in front of Kimi.

“How does it look?” I asked her, doing a little twirl and playing with the loose end of the sash.

“Great,” she replied, giving me a thumbs-up. “Now let’s get going. It’s almost six o’ clock.”

 

 

The festival was beautiful. Pink petals fluttered in the warm summer breeze and white strings of lights dressed every building, illuminating the sky. The tiled floor of the Square was covered in blossoms. Stands after stands were selling bouquets, bottles of wine, and sparklers for the younger children. There were carnival games, sweets, and pedestals lined with flowers as far as the eye could see. I wanted to see everything.

“You should’ve brought a date!” said Kimi, who stood beside me and held her bottle. She winked at me.

“Yeah, right,” I said. “I barely know anyone around here yet.”

“There has to be some cute guys you’ve met, right?”

“N-no.”

I immediately thought of Alphonse, but I didn’t see how anyone could consider him cute. He was nice, but I didn’t really know what he... looked like.

“Sure, whatever you say,” Kimi snickered. She looked to her right and saw a gambling stand, her smile lighting up.

“Don’t tell me that you’re the gambling type,” I muttered. She grinned and patted me on the shoulder.

“You go explore, Anita-chan,” she said. “I’ve got something to do.”

Kimi, leaving me alone, hurried over to the stand and sat down with the crowd of drunken men who were wasting their yen on the games.

I sighed and glanced around, looking for something interesting to do first. Games, food, drinks, toys, fireworks, flowers... Nothing I really was interested in. Then, to my sudden intrigue, I saw a street vendor that was selling sakura mochi cakes, and my stomach beckoned me towards it. My mouth started to water.

Cake... Well, it couldn’t hurt, right? It is a festival, after all...

I lifted my foot to start walking, but just as I did, some stupid guy ran right in front of me. My ankle buckled and we crashed into each other, both of us toppling to the ground. Something hard, like metal, hit my shoulder as we collided. I rubbed my head and sat up.

“Watch where you’re going!” hissed the guy I ran into, who sat up as well.

“You ran in front of me!” I retorted. “It’s your fault!”

   Suddenly, we both caught each other’s eye and our gazes locked. He looked about as shocked as I did. He had narrowed, golden eyes and golden-blonde hair, tied back in a braided ponytail. A strand of hair stuck up on his head. We both were silent, scanning each other and registering what had just happened.

I felt my cheeks burning and stood up, swiping dust off of my kimono. I bowed quickly and looked back up at him as he stood.

“I’m s-sorry,” I stammered. He bowed in return, blushing in embarrassment.

“No, I was in a rush. Er, sorry,” the boy said, shaking his head. He backed away and ran off, before I could say anything else. I noticed a circular locket-typed object dangling from a chain on his pants, and it looked strangely like something that I’d seen before. I watched him run out of sight.

He was... Interesting, I thought. Weird kid...

“Anita?” said a familiar voice from behind me. “Are you okay?”

Huh? I turned around.

“Alphonse?”

Reviews

[lynne]

ah, yes ^^ Yet another exciting chapter. Can't wait to read more >

[Keevan]

Al-kun isn't scary! :3