We looked at each other for what seemed like an immeasurable amount of time. Commander Swan looked utterly stunned and took a step back while I remained frozen in my place.

"Charles? You alright?" Mr. Black approached and placed a concerned hand on his friend's shoulder. "You're looking a bit pale,"

That seemed to awaken the commander from his reverie. He blinked several times before answering.

"I-I'm fine," he replied. "My headache seemed to have returned, that's all,"

"Well, it's not going to get better while you're still covered in rain," Mr. Black took one of the towels in my arms. "Here,"

Commander Swan took the cloth from his friend with an uneasy smile before glancing at me again. Brown eyes met brown again then Mr. Black patted his back and led him towards the rest of the party. As he walked away, he glanced over his shoulder to look at me.

Throughout our whole exchange, all I could feel inside me was…confusion.

I was sure I've never seen the commander before – Americans did not linger in San Diego; they were mostly in Intramuros which was a few days travel from here. I have never heard of him until a few days ago as well.

So why did it feel like I knew him?

By the way he looked at me, it appeared like he knew me too.

A presence behind me made me aware of my surroundings again and I almost jumped when I felt a hand on the small of my back.

"Only me," Edward's soft voice whispered and I relaxed. "Is something wrong?"

I shook my head. "No, no. I'm…everything is alright,"

"Hm," he sounded contemplative for a moment. "Are you sure?"

I opened my mouth to give my automatic response – that indeed, there was nothing out of the ordinary but I held back. Edward has been nothing but honest with me and I wished to be the same with him. Besides, I also wished to speak to someone about how I felt.

"No," I told him softly. "May I…tell you about it later?"

"Of course. You know you can confide anything with me," I was surprised to feel his lips press against the back of my head.

"Edward, there are other people…"

"Shh, it's alright," he chuckled quietly. "No one was looking. They are all busy speaking with the new guests,"

He was correct. The Blacks seemed to be the life of the party as they interacted jovially with everyone regardless of status and color. Commander Swan was having a conversation with Lord Cullen but seemed to be quite distracted.

Suddenly, Lord Cullen turned his head and called out Edward's name.

"Edward, son. Come here and meet the commander,"

Edward cleared his throat and stepped away from me, his hand grazing my sides as he went. I looked around then and fortunately, no one seemed to have been paying attention to us.

I realized that I had been staying at the same spot for a long period of time now with one of the towels still in my arms. I quickly moved from my place to find some use for myself.

As I hurried towards the kitchen, I encountered a wall of flesh and almost staggered to the floor. It was Father Marcus with Father Aro behind him as always, looking towards the direction of the Blacks.

"My apologies, padre," I murmured but they simply ignored me and walked towards the Americans.

Before I could walk any further, one of the servants shoved a tray with various finger foods into my arms.

"Go serve the new visitors," she ordered me and left no room for argument as she had already walked away.

"…have an education?" Father Marcus was asking as I came closer to their group.

"Of course!" Mr. Black chuckled and gave Jacob's back a sociable slap. "Jacob here has studied business at some university over at Massachusetts, haven't you m'boy?"

"It was Harvard, dad," Jacob smiled at his father as he clarified.

"Yes, of course. Harvard. Anyway, I knew he had to have some sort of education because this old dog's not going to be 'round forever and someone has to take over my life's work," he chuckled then reached over to my tray. "Thanks. I can use something to eat,"

I offered the food to Jacob and the friars as well but they both waved their hands off, stating that they were full.

"So you are well educated," Father Marcus' face was appraising as he eyed Jacob from head to foot. "Very impressive,"

Jacob's face reddened a bit. "Thank you,"

"Indeed," Lord Cullen cut in with Edward and Commander Swan by his side.

"You are very much like my son here," he continued, placing a hand on Edward's shoulder. "Although he studied medicine in Europe,"

"I could never handle medicine," Jacob admitted then laughed. "I'm afraid I'm too scared of the sight of blood,"

"Are you married?" Father Marcus inquired suddenly, interrupting something Edward was about to say.

"Oh heavens no!" the older Mr. Black replied, laughing loudly. "Jacob's mother was-"

"I was speaking to your son,"

"Oh," he blinked and turned to Jacob. "Well, he's had his share of young women but there's no one at the moment is there, m'boy?"

Jacob's cheeks reddened again and I felt sorry for him. I knew how it felt like to have blood constantly rushing to the surface.

"No, dad. There isn't,"

"Ah. There you have it, then,"

"Interesting," Father Marcus' hand went to his belly. "You know I have a goddaughter. Her name is Tanya and she is quite the catch here,"

"Oh? I don't believe I've met her yet,"

"She must be off with Lord Hale's daughter Rosalie. Two of San Diego's finest ladies, those two. Very lovely and very respectful. I'm sure you'll all make fine acquaintances, Tanya especially,"

"Well…I'd love to meet her, then,"

"Excellent. Santiago!" the friar bellowed and I jumped from surprise. Father Marcus' voice was always so loud from far away and even more now since he stood next to me.

"Let me help you with those," Jacob began to bend down to pick up some of the small cakes that have fallen from my tray but Edward was suddenly there, completing the task.

"That won't be necessary. I've got it," Edward said at the same time Father Marcus forced Jacob to stand upright.

"Leave the work for the servants," he told him before glancing at Edward. If I wasn't mistaken, he faced him with what seemed like a snarl on his face.

"What is it, padre?" Kapitan Tiago was all smiles as he came closer.

"Why won't you bring Tanya here? I'm sure she'll be very pleased to meet Mr. Black's son,"

"Of course," the captain bowed slightly before scurrying towards the balcony. Moments later, he returned this time with the elusive Lady Tanya. She wore a lovely gown bought new for the occasion and her face was partially hidden by her matching fan. I felt a twinge deep in my stomach as her eyes settled longingly on Edward but it quickly disappeared when I felt his hand on the small of my back again.

"Jacob, this is my beautiful goddaughter, Tanya. My dear, this is Jacob Black,"

"Pleasure to meet you, miss," Jacob flashed her a grin. Lady Tanya giggled softly in response.

"I can already see a blossoming relationship," Father Marcus clapped his hands in approval.

I quietly excused myself to replace the soiled food and as I passed, I saw Lord Cullen frowning at Jacob and Lady Tanya as they spoke quietly to each other.

The party carried on until past midnight. Still, everyone appeared to be full of life in spite of the late hour, noisily chatting with each other. Kapitan Tiago was laughing rather loudly at a joke Mr. Black must have told him and Lord Hale and Lord Cullen seemed to be in a deep discussion with Jasper regarding news back in their homeland. The only person who was silent was Commander Swan.

I noticed that he spent almost the entire night seated on one of the abaca seats, quietly watching his surroundings. He seemed distracted even on the occasion of someone speaking to him and I wondered if he was confused regarding my familiarity as well.

After all the guests had gone home and the chores were finished, I made my way to Edward's room despite my growing fatigue. I had been on my feet throughout the duration of the gathering and I was tired but I wanted to see him.

He welcomed me into his arms the moment his door opened and encouraged me to rest fully on his bed.

I could not resist the call of his comfortable mattress and laid my head on the plump pillow he used for himself. A scent that was distinctly Edwardfilled my nostrils and I closed my eyes.

Edward joined me not long after and wrapped his arm around my waist. He tucked my head underneath his chin and pulled me close.

We laid there together for a while in silence as the flames from the nearby lamp diminished little by little. When they died completely, Edward finally spoke.

"Are you ready to tell me what the matter is?" he murmured as his hand travelled up and down my back.

And so with deep breath, I told him.

By the end of my tale, Edward looked a bit confused too. But unlike me, he had an answer after a minute of pondering.

"Perhaps," he said slowly. "Commander Swan is related to you in some way,"

I gasped.

"Be related to…Edward, that seems impossible," I whispered.

I felt him shrug. "Just an intelligent guess. It makes sense if you think of it. You know none of your relatives, you resemble a beautiful American or English woman more than you do a Filipina and you mentioned that the commander recognized you as well. You even told me that you had his eyes,"

When he stated his reasons that way, the possibility suddenly cemented itself in my head. What if Edward was correct? And if he was, why did the commander never come for me or look for me?

With all these heavy thoughts circling my mind, I fell asleep more tired than ever.

Over the next few days, I saw very little of the commander. Edward said he wished to see him again to solidify his idea but was never given the opportunity since the man made himself scarce.

The rest of San Diego were the opposite, however, as the town became busier and busier in preparing for the upcoming fiesta. The streets became more colorful and a big stage was set up in the plaza for the various entertainers who would be performing every night for seven days.

The Church was doing its own preparation as well. Father Marcus never failed to remind anyone he passed of the misa sa bisperas ng pista so when the day for it finally arrived, the small cathedral was overflowing with people. Many were even forced to stay outside.

I managed to get to the church early enough to secure myself a place inside but all the seats have already been occupied or if not, specially reserved. I overheard some people saying that the pews were for the Hales, the Cullens, Kapitan Tiago's family and the American newcomers.

Sure enough, they all sat down there when they arrived. I saw them take their places after thanking and smiling at Father Marcus who wore his best robes for the occasion. My eyebrows knitted when I could not find a familiar head of bronze hair. Did he decide not to come?

However, that question was answered when I felt hands on my sides.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him in whisper as people began pushing each other to get a better view of the altar. "Your seat is there,"

"Mm, indeed it is, but I would rather spend the next three hours of sermon with you rather than down in front," he responded. "Besides, it is too hot there. At least we are near an opened window here,"

Now that he mentioned it, I realized that it was sweltering and sweat was already beginning to gather at the back of my neck. I could only imagine how much heat was present in front where the windows were closed.

After a few minutes, Father Marcus finally approached the pulpit to begin the sermon. He looked over everyone in attendance and smiled widely at the number of people who attended before he opened the Bible and read.

For the next few hours, I did my best to listen but I found it difficult to do so. The heat seemed to have increased and Father Marcus began to lose sense. The message he delivered were said again and again but only with different words.

His repetitiveness seemed to have affected everyone else as well. People were beginning to lose interest, choosing instead to sleep, chat or even leave the church entirely. Children ran up and down the aisles and almost knocked the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary to the floor.

I looked back at the pulpit to see Father Marcus' reaction. I thought he would roar angrily and command everyone to pay attention but instead, he simply continued with his sermon. However, I noticed that the more people refused to be still and quiet, the longer the reading grew.

Because of this, it was nearly nightfall when the sermon was over and my legs hurt from standing too long. Edward offered to carry me but I declined with a blush. It would have been quite a sight to see a young, handsome visitor from England carrying a servant girl through the dusty roads.

"Wasn't that just ridiculous," Edward chuckled and shook his head. "I don't believe I've understood anything after the first half hour,"

I smiled. "I began to get lost somewhere in the middle as well,"

"I don't know how this country can deal with a church like this," he sighed. "The way he just prolonged our misery…"

"Your father never did approve of how the friars ran this country,"

Edward and I both stopped walking and turned around almost immediately. There stood Pilosopo Casyo, an old man I knew since I was a girl. Many thought of him to be baliw – insane and not right in the head. It was because of the words that he spoke, the incredulous stories he told.

But I knew he was wise. What he taught the eager children of my youth, myself a part of that, were sensible and true. In fact, by the way he answered my questions then, I believed that he knew all.

Did that also include Edward's father?

Misa sa bisperas ng pista – literally translated, mass at the eve of the fiesta

Pilosopo – obviously, philosopher

Baliw – crazy

To Kayvinne. Because you asked me to.