The stars twinkled innocently down on earth. The moon shone brightly, as if promising a serene and peaceful night. A calm wind past, softly whispering sweet dreams to every person it touches. Gently, the leaves being held by firm branches swayed gracefully to it. Through the calmness of the wind, a few dried leaves fell to the ground. Chirping noises from the night creatures completed what seemed to be an ordinary night.

 

What an ordinary night indeed. Or is it really?

 

A little cottage resting atop a hill, with fumes of smoke coming out from the chimney seemed to be not in peace unlike the rest of the sleeping town. Set apart from all the residents of Spinster’s Town, the said cottage has been ridiculed countless of times. Despite that, nobody ever dared to cross the path of the older one residing there for years. Truth be told, no one has ever gotten a good glimpse of that said lady for she has chosen to live a solitary life. But her solitary life has changed or so it seemed. It started as a simple tale until it was passed from another to another. A tale of young boys who were fooling around in the forest near the cottage swore they saw a young girl playing at the edge of the forest.

 

The said girl at the moment was gazing through the window. Her curious brown orbs looked up at the moon. Curiosity was part of her nature but she never ask, only watches; she never talk that much, only listens; she rarely even smile, only blinks. If not for the steady rise and fall of her chest, one would think she’s a living corpse.

 

“It’s time”

 

Blankly, she tore her eyes away from the bright moon and swayed around. Turning her head to the side, she looks up at the woman with slightly grayish hair in front of her. The woman said it was time. Time for what? She doesn’t know and she didn’t bother asking. As the woman held her hand out, the little girl reached out for it curiously and without a word.

 

“Let’s go?” the woman gently asked.

 

The little girl of age eight looked up and just blinked. A motherly smile spread across the woman’s face. Squeezing the child’s small, delicate and fragile-looking hand, she led her out of the cottage. Hand in hand, they entered the poorly lit forest – the heavy branches bearing different sizes of leaves blocked the light coming from the brightly smiling moon.

 

The rustling of dried leaves and snapping of dead branches broke the silence and the stillness of the forest. The little girl took big steps to keep up with the quick pace of the woman. The latter seemed to be immersed in her own thoughts, making her oblivious to the struggle of the child. Not voicing her complaint out, the little girl just blinked up ahead.

 

An hour it seemed to pass when the woman finally slowed down. “Sandara, do you fear seeing death?”

 

She blinked. “No”

 

A small smile lit the woman’s face. “Good” she said with approval. “What you’re about to see is born from good concern for the well-being of this town we’re living in. Sacrifices are inevitable, it seems. You’ll understand someday”

 

The crackling of flames and unsettled breathings overwhelmed their ears. Stepping into the clearing, a group of people in a few horizontal lines greeted them. A ceremony seemed to take place at the moment. Not wanting to disturb the event going on, the woman silently joined the front line, bringing the girl beside her.

 

“Let’s all kneel and pay our respects to our long lost Mother”

 

Everyone knelt in unity. Murmurs of incomprehensible words filled the air. Slowly, the murmurs rose in volume but still, the words remained a set of blurry mumblings. A strong gush of wind blew, making all of them burst into tears. The revered “Mother” as what this group calls has spoken, it seemed.

 

“Time and time again, our Mother has been understanding and selfless for never failing to forgive our mistakes and oversee our shortcomings. But we should not test her patience with us. Tonight will be different. Tonight, a sacrifice will be coming from us, not from the people who dared cause misery to our Mother. It saddens me to loose a brother, a family. But with the thought that this is for our dearest Mother, my worries fade”

 

The speaker let a murmur of agreement passed from his audience.

 

“And now, I shall step aside and let our selfless brother part his last words”

 

A figure broke from the neat line. Stepping into the cemented up-landed plate-like sacrificial table, he faced his brothers and sisters with fierce determination in his face. With voice full of emotion and conviction, he declared, “It is an HONOR to give my life to our Mother”

 

A dagger was held out, glittering at the moonlight’s beam. The air was charged with silence as menacing as death itself. The selfless brother held his chin up, wearing a smug look of pride in his face. “For you, Mother” he announced and shoved the dagger straight into his heart with steady and confident hands.

 

The little girl blinked as the person dropped lifelessly to the smooth plane of the concrete table. With curious brown orbs, she looked into the empty and glassy eyes of the person. Her head moved to the side as she admired the beauty of the moon reflected in his lifeless eyes that were wide open.