Time for another Risa story. This one is pretty eh, but is slowly leading up to Risa's true identity.
Gently, I place the sack of golden pomegranates on the table. "The task is completed."
The greed in the eyes of the bank tellers flicker upon seeing the shine from the pomegranates. "Now we will certainly make a fortune off of these fruits, thank you!" one of the men shakes my hand. "I'll make sure that you receive a hefty reward from us."
"Is that all you need?" I ask apathetically, retrieving my hand back coarsely.
The men nod all at once. I exit the house and take one more look at the deep-sapphire sky, it is certainly an interesting color for it. Each one of the trees is completely in the nude, guiding me away from the bank. I am happy that I have missions like these to do, otherwise I would be severely bored on Angel Island.
"Wait! Wait, warrior!" I recognize the voice of one of the bank tellers. "You must do one more task."
"That is extra money for you to pay," I inform him nonchalantly.
He tells me the next duty in an excited matter. With plenty of free time, I assure I will do the extra task without fail. I trek back on the same, snowy road I took to find the ring that he "lost". Doing another task for these greedy men bothers me, but I cannot refuse a task. I spot a shadow coming towards me. It transforms into an elderly woman, wearing a rose cloak that is unsuitable for this season.
"Good evening young lady," she tilted her head slightly, already hunched over. "Are you an attendant to my grandsons in that house further down?"
"Somewhat. They have requested another task for me-"
"And you've agreed?"
Obviously. "Yes."
"You are so young, but obedient. That is good for a child to be obedient." Far away from here, thunder crashes, interrupting our conversation. At the same time, my arm begins to tingle.
"Miss, I must be on my way," I politely dismiss her, but then she takes my hand unexpectedly. The woman first caresses my hand then scrutinizes my dry palm. Without warning, she takes the other hand with her bony, spider-like hands.
"So much sadness is written on these hands," she observes, as if in a reverie.
"I prefer not to be touch if do not mind," I take my hands back. However, the elder persists about my hands.
"I see a lot of blood on those hands and water…tears. Why do your hands tell me all of this, traveler?"
"A curse." Why did I even say that? That is something that I never tell anybody-but this woman seems to know what I have been branded with. Mentally, I suppress the memories that want to be unleashed. A shot of pain courses through my arm-I really should be on my way.
"I know of a place that can remove such things," she leans on her cane.
"Take care," I step past her and continue on the road ahead. I have a mission to focus on and I have no time for distractions of any kind.
'
How does that woman know of my curse? Nobody else seems to notice-it is not something obvious. I thought by covering the marks with long sleeves would be enough-apparently not enough. I must have been too careless while running around here. This woman could see it just by touching my hands. When I reenter the bank, I toss the diamond ring on the table. The three triplets' eyes glower as they happily hover over the ring.
"Amazing, how did you find the ring in this terrible snow?" one of them asks without looking at me.
"I just did."
"Thank you so very much for your service. But, my brother has another task for you."
I glance out the window-no indication of it being night or morning. "I have time." I depart from the house again, with another new task to fulfill. The avarice of these men multiplies every time I come back with a new object. To my dismay, I see the old woman I spoke to earlier emerge from behind a tree.
"Those men in there are my grandsons," she starts, wobbling over to me the same manner Father used to. "Whenever they receive, they always want more and more-they've always been like that."
I nod understandingly. "I realize that."
"And you're still going to help them?"
"I will not refuse a task-"
"Is that part of-"
"Stop please. I rather not discuss the matter, just let me get on with my mission."
It is hard to make out her physical expression due to the dark shade of sapphire in this world. To me, she has an amiable expression that many elders have when they have found peace. "I know of a place where you can find a way to remove the mark. An ancient library resides far away in the mountains that contain books that have the knowledge necessary for subduing, or even eradicating the curse. Please, heed the words of this old woman."
There were plenty of libraries at home, but none contained a book that could eradicate curses-otherwise I would be a completely different person. A different person with a different life, it disquiets me for some reason. I am too used to being like this. Before the old woman feebly enters the house, I touch her frail arm.
"Miss, where do I locate this library specifically?" It certainly does not hurt to follow my curiosity. After she points me in the right direction, hopefully, she warns me, "There are monsters along the way, you should be very careful."
"I will."
Finding the answer to getting rid of this mark will be worth it in the end-no Risa. Do not get your hopes up like you did before. For all I know, this could produce no result and it will not be different from that other time long ago.
"Risa I will be leaving the village for three days," said Father hoarsely. "Look up at me."
"No Father I won-graaah!" I squeezed my arm, trying to eradicate the pain that shot through me. He patiently watched me scream and scratch at my shoulder blade until I finally looked up at him.
"I want you to be stronger than you are now. Train every day and listen to Miriam's requests, understand?"
"Yes Father," I place my hands on my eyes. No matter how hard I tried to cry, I could not. The pounding rain beat against the roof and covering the Village of Willow in a humid fog. As soon as he departed, I ran outside, not minding the rain beating against my small head. There has to be a way to get rid of this, there has to be, I silently encouraged. I cannot live like this.
There is no reason to think about this, that was a long time ago. I almost never think about things that used to happen before. Looking into the past is dangerous activity for me-it unsettles my nerves and makes me think that the memories are happening now.
"That would be me."
It does not take me a long time to recognize the voice that fed my anger, my hatred, and my strength on Angel Island.