Chapter 2: Tainted Soul

A/N: Disclaimer: Refer back to Chapter 1.

WARNING: LANGUAGE, ANGST

Supper came and went in Heat's eyes. When he had decided to take the semester break, he had decided to visit his grandfather in the country. It was convenient, he thought, and was something that he deemed he had postponed for quite a long time. When was the last time he had seen his grandfather…?

'Not since I was five…maybe…' he internally mused, holding his chin in his two fingers.

And now that he was there, he couldn't say that he was disappointed in what he saw. He had been in town in less than a day but he already felt at ease and relaxed.

'Just like the way a vacation is supposed to feel…' he thought with a lazy grin.

It was then that he caught sight of a flash of silver.

He blinked slowly and stood from the wooden chair that he sat on. Looking for his grandfather, he found him upon the opened balcony of the old Spanish house and walked over to him, "Hey gramps. You looks like you have a lot in your mind." the redhead spoke as he leaned over the railing, looking at the plantation that lay before his eyes.

He was amazed though at that second. He looked on how the fireflies danced slowly to an inaudible melody, how they hovered over the bushes and the shrubs at the garden below…

He let his eyes meander even further and saw the rice fields beyond…

Turning to his right, he saw only thick trees, old and dignified.

"There's nothing on my mind my boy."

That was his grandfather.

Heat turned to him, "Sure?"

The old man smiled slowly at him as he adjusted his glasses, "I'm just glad that you have finally decided to give this place a chance."

"Haha…" Heat softly chuckled as he closed his eyes and shook his head, "Oh man…You know how kids are gramps. For them, the city's where all the fun is. Places like the suburbs and farms are just…too calm for their tastes."

"You're still just a boy Heat."

Heat made a face and then grinned, "If I were gramps, I wouldn't be here."

The old man chuckled and sat on the nearby bench slowly, "I suppose you're right Heat."

Heat turned and leaned back on the railing, facing his grandfather, "Say, you said that this place wasn't safe at night. Why is that? Has there been a significant increase in the crime rate?"

The mayor shook his head. His grandson still brought the city with him. He was completely ignorant wasn't he?

"Crime," the old man began as he leaned further back on the bench's backrest, "isn't the issue in this town."

"Then what is?" Heat asked, totally confused.

The man smiled almost ruefully and sighed, "It's fear."

Heat blinked, "Fear…? I don't understand."

The old man wasn't surprised, "You will. Not now, but soon." he finished as he stood up.

He was leaving!? He didn't even manage answer his question properly!

"But gramps…!"

"You need your rest Heat. We'll talk more about this some other time." said the old man, "You had better get some sleep."

"But…!"

"Not buts!" scolded the old man.

Heat rolled his eyes mentally but yielded all the same, "Alright. I'm letting you off the hook for now but…"

His grandson really was incessant wasn't he? Or perhaps, he really had something in his mind that he would like to share…

"But what?" he asked.

Heat froze for but a second; it would seem that there was something within his grandfather's eyes that didn't seem right. Was that a look of…impatience…?

"You said this place wasn't safe at night." Heat said boldly, curiosity etched onto his sharp facial features, "Why did you say that?"

Feeling protectiveness sweep his system, the old man hardened his face, "What I told you is the truth. And crime doesn't have anything to do with it."

Heat blinked his eyes numerous of times. That just didn't make any sense…!

"It does." retorted the old man gently, "Do not leave the house at night. And lock your windows at all times…"

Heat froze. Okay, if before he thought that his grandfather was finally beginning to lighten up, he was wrong.

That thought was suddenly exacerbated as he watched his grandfather pull out something from his pocket.

"Here," the old man said, holding out the object for Heat to take, "take this and wear it around your neck at all times."

Heat didn't know whether or not to take the object. He didn't know if his grandfather was being serious or not.

However, his doubts were laid to rest as the old man replied…

"I know you don't believe in these things Heat. But please…just do as I say. Please." he pleaded with the young man, firmly, his old grey eyes never leaving his grandson's fiery red orbs, "Please."

Heat sighed. How could he say no? Even if he knew that he would look absolutely stupid wearing the damn thing, how could he say no? Even when he knew that it would smell pretty darn awful, how could he say no?

"Alright gramps. I'll humor you this time." the young man said as he took the garlic necklace and wore it around his neck.

He resisted the urge to cringe and wrinkle his nose out of discomfort as the garlic's odor had immediately attacked his olfactory nerves.

The old man smiled in return and nodded, "Come on inside, it's getting quite late."

Heat agreed and walked beside him when another question popped into his mind. Again though, as though he couldn't control his thoughts, the redhead's subconscious drifted over to the culture of the little town...and most specifically on how they viewed religion and women.

"Say, gramps…" Heat began, "today…when I was passing through town and the town's church, there had been an incident."

"What sort of incident?"

Heat suddenly furrowed his eyebrows, "There was a girl. A girl with short black hair. A group of youth threw a rock at her and hurt her…pretty bad."

At that, the old man suddenly stopped and looked at his grandson firmly, "Stay away from that girl Heat."

Heat raised an eyebrow, "Why?"

The man shook his head, "Just do as I say."

Heat frowned, "Gramps, that's not good enough for me." he spoke firmly, "That girl got hurt for no apparent reason…No one helped her and it even looked as if those people couldn't care any less about her!" he said angrily, his voice raising slightly, "What ever happened to having a close-knitted warm community that you used to tell me!? Where was that!? It seemed to me that those people are nothing but resentful bigots! And here you are telling me to stay away from her as if…as if she were a disease-carrying leper!"

"That's enough!"

Heat held his tongue. Although he felt upset at the situation, he knew that there was nothing he could do to press his argument any further. Right or wrong, the mayor was still his grandfather, and as such, required respect.

The old man could read the young man well; as if he were an open book. Although he was proud and glad that he saw nothing but innocence and integrity burning within Heat's countenance, he couldn't help but feel wary as he believed his grandson's virtues to be misplaced…

"I know you mean well Heat…But…there are just some people that you shouldn't trust. You know that already." explained the old man.

Heat frowned, "She's just an innocent girl." he reasoned.

The old man slowly shook his head, "In sin, no one is innocent."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Heat snapped, "Why does everyone dislike her? Why do you dislike her?"

Sighing, the old man gestured for Heat to take a seat on the living room. The young man obliged and sat, eager to hear the answer to this silly but explosive mystery.

"That girl was born without a father. Her mother had never married; at least, it was never declared. No one knew who her father was…"

"She's an illegitimate child." Heat commented flatly, unimpressed. It wasn't really uncommon for children to be born out of wedlock in his opinion. Things like that happened a lot in the city, he mused…

"Perhaps so. But that wasn't all." continued the old man, "Before becoming pregnant, the girl's mother was believed to have been a witch."

"A witch?" Heat asked in disbelief.

His grandfather nodded, "Yes. A witch. That woman lived at the outskirts of the town…near the mountain and the forest. She hardly associated with the people; a recluse."

"Surely, you don't believe that, do you?" Heat asked.

The old man shook his head, "Whether or not I believe she was a witch isn't the point."

"Then what is?" prodded Heat, attempting to mask the irritation and impatience in his countenance.

"Any one associated with that woman mysteriously died…" he trailed off, "or disappeared."

Heat laughed, "Come on, you don't really expect me to believe…" his words died in his mouth as his grandfather's serious and hardened facial expression answered his query.

"Really?" Heat asked with complete disbelief.

His grandfather nodded in response, "People who had gotten themselves, most especially men, who had been lured by the woman's beauty all had either been killed…or had disappeared."

Heat opened his mouth to speak but his grandfather cut him off, "I'm not telling you to stay away from that girl because of dislike…or hate. It's because when neither I nor anyone from this town can explain how those men were killed or how those people disappeared, it's enough to say…that I do not wish you the same fate. And I do not want to take any chances."

Heat shook his head as he chuckled, "Gramps, she's just a girl. What can she possibly do that's so…evil?"

Evil. Heat couldn't come up with any other word other than that. He supposed that the word was fitting…

'Especially when everyone here seems to treat her as such…' he thought with a bit of pity for the girl.

"I do not want to speak of this any longer Heat." the old man spoke solemnly, as he stood, "As for you, get some sleep. And please, please just stay away from that girl."

A moment later, Heat found himself alone.

He frowned again.

He still didn't understand why.

He suddenly remembered something and his hand dug into his pocket. A moment later, he took out the silver rosary and looked at it meaningfully, thinking of the black-haired girl.

xxxx

The redhead stirred lightly on the bed. The air was chilly and there he grabbed the thick blanket and pulled it tightly to himself, hugging it.

His eyelids were completely closed and his eyes moved, indicating that he was fast asleep…

He was completely unaware that a pair of eyes watched his sleep…

Pale hands reached for handles and pulled lightly.

The figure hovered above him directly, an unreadable expression upon its face.

The hands reached out to touch him…

Only to stop at the final moment.

Heat stirred once more in his sleep.

Groaning a bit, he turned and slept on his belly, still unaware of such a presence…

xxxx

The redhead walked into his room; he had just finished his morning shower and couldn't wait to taste breakfast.

Feeling a breeze enter his room, he walked over to his window and there found it slightly ajar. He raised an eyebrow, "Huh. I could've sworn I closed this last night…"

He then shook his head; it must've been his grandfather.

Speaking of his grandfather…

Heat turned to his bed and noticed the necklace of garlic on the blanket. He frowned; he really wasn't all that thrilled to be wearing it around his neck.

'I was wearing that thing all night and I could smell myself all night…' he internally drawled, reminding himself of how much he had to scrub himself just to get that gnarly garlic odor off his skin.

His frown deepened though as he remembered that he promised his grandfather that he would wear it.

He sighed. Well, he wouldn't wear it, but he supposed that it wouldn't do any harm if he kept it in his pocket.

xxxx

The girl walked over the shrubs, gazing at the wild flowers warily as she did so. How her hands ached and pained for a single touch…

Her hand suddenly lifted up and there she reached for the pink blossom in front of her but suddenly stopped.

It might die…

She shouldn't.

She shook her head. There was no point in fantasizing…

Everything and everyone she touched die…

Turning away from the aforesaid wild flowers, the girl faced the lonely path in the earth and started for home.

She had gathered all the herbs that she required…There wasn't a point in staying out.

As she moved onward, although her steps were as light as ever, they made her feel…burdened. Her hands ached to touch the divine beads…

She closed her eyes.

"I…I must find it." she told herself.

Her heart leapt at that only to sink a moment later as she realized that getting it back was no easy task. It was in someone's custody now.

And by the looks of it, it now was in the possession of someone powerful in the village.

She frowned. She knew that the young man was related to the mayor of the village. Obtaining it from him would prove to be a challenge. Getting close to him in public was hard enough…

She sighed.

There was a part of her that wanted to abandon the idea and simply acquire a new rosary but then again, another part of her simply refused to hear it.

And the answer why was a simple one.

It had been her mother's.

She closed her eyes tightly; painfully as her thoughts wandered over to her. It had been the only memento that her late mother had given her.

"Miss, is this yours?"

The question and the voice interrupted her from her thoughts that she suddenly found herself face to face with the young man that she had met previous only a day before…and more importantly, she found herself face to face with her missing rosary…that was dangling from his hand.

"Uh…" she breathed out, her eyes still on the holy trinket, before shifting over to the young man, "You have my rosary." she said unfeelingly, the moment of her silent awe lost forever, "What are you doing with it?"

Heat scratched his head and sweat-dropped. Well, there went the notion of "thank you".

He handed it over to her and she took it without hesitation…or any word of gratitude for that matter.

"You dropped it in the park. I found it…and I thought that I'd return it to you some other time…" he explained.

The girl nodded curtly before turning and leaving.

Heat raised an eyebrow, "Hey wait!" he called out to her, "Don't I get a thank you or something?" he asked, a bit frantically.

The girl stopped and spoke, "Thank you." she said coldly, before resuming her walk.

Heat made a face. She was really playing hardball. Wasn't she?

Well, he wasn't about to let her win! He could tell that she was good person. The reason why the town disliked her was not apparent to him. And their prejudiced treatment of her, affected not his opinion of the back-haired woman.

He lightly jogged up to her and blocked her way. She gave him a questioning look that was crossed with annoyance but said nothing, and instead turned to the right and attempted to evade him once more.

But he persevered.

"Come on. I'm sorry I'm bothering you…" he told her with a small smile, "It's just that, I would really like to know your name."

The girl was taken aback by what she had heard.

This was a first.

This was the first time that a person had actually bothered enough and cared enough to ask her about her name.

Everyone else who did, did not ask the way this man did. And everyone else who asked for her name, asked for more than that…

"Just your name." he told her, his cheerful smile on his face.

"How did you find me?" she asked flatly, deliberately ignoring his request.

Heat scratched his head. She was a toughie.

"I…guessed." he reluctantly said.

She raised an eyebrow but said nothing and again, stepped past him.

"Wait! You didn't tell me your name!" he called on again as he followed her.

Reaching the level of irritation that she knew she could no longer control, the girl turned with her eyes ablaze and snapped at the man, "Why don't you be like the rest of the town and just leave me be…?"

Heat blinked; surprised.

Taking in his surprised countenance as a sign of defeat, the woman left once more.

Heat stood rooted on that spot, watching her back. He blinked. He could tell that whatever she had told him wasn't out of dislike or anger…

It was merely a result of how people had treated her.

xxxx