Blood Moon

B1-C1

BOOK 1

"Little princess, lovely as the dawn, we'll named Aurore."

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Binasag ng liwanag ng araw iyong dilim sa langit. Lilang ulap, asul na alapaap, kahel na sinag ng araw ang unti unting lumunod sa madugong kulay ng buwan.

Madugong buwan. Kagabi ay nagkaroon ng lunar eclipse. Parang naligo sa dugo ang buwan. Her beauty was tainted when she became so bloody last night. Para bang iyong perpektong ganda ng buwan ay biglang nabura noong naging pula siya.

But it didn't change the fact that I was still fascinated with the blood moon. Para sa akin, isa sa pinaperpektong gawa ng Diyos ang buwan, maganda, maliwanag, makinang—pero kagabi, noong nagdugo ito ay doon ko nakita ang halaga niya. Na kahit pala ang isang bagay na perpekto ay nasasaktan at dumudugo rin.

Two soft knocks fell on my door. Sumilip roon si Mama dala dala na ang aking bag.

"Aurora, the school bus might be here already." She said. Tumango lamang ako at muling nilingon ang aking repleksyon sa salamin. A bile rose to my mouth upon seeing my reflection. Gray doe eyes, long thick lashes, pink lips, small nose, long blonde hair. Iilang beses ng ibinato sa akin ang salitang 'maganda' pero kahit kailan ay hindi ko iyon matanggap.

Nobody wants to befriend me because I am pretty. Na si Aurora ay perpekto kaya hindi siya tatanggap ng mga kaibigang mas mababa sa kanya. Na si Aurora ay mayabang kaya mas dapat lang sa kanya ang maging mag-isa. I am too pretty, and because of this beauty, I don't deserve any friends.

Today is my first day at my seventh school. Magmula noong Grade 7 ako hanggang ngayong Grade 10 na ako ay wala akong permanenteng paaralan. I am a victim of bullying—in all forms. My parents kept on transferring me to other schools in high hopes that maybe things will be different but they're wrong.

Noong una ay sinusubukan kong makipag kaibigan. Na itong gandang dala ko ay mawawala rin. Katulad lamang ako ng buwan, maganda kapag maliwanag pero nagdudugo din at nawawala. I am not perfect. I am not beautiful. But nobody ever cared. Nobody listened.

No one in this world is pretty. I have seen beauty in ugly faces and I've witnessed the devil inside the most angelic faces. Bakit kailangan nating tingnan ang panlabas kung mas mahalaga ang kalooban? Why would we measure beauty in things that time would eventually kill?

Bumaba na ako mula sa kwarto ko. At the living room, I saw my father watching another documentary about the small moon planet hovering just above earth. His coffee was already cold and yet Papa was still watching the show intently.

I sat beside him and took his bread before taking a bite from it. Papa gave me a look before he rubbed by hair.

"What are you watching?" I asked, kahit alam ko naman kung ano ang isasagot niya. Papa is obsessed with everything about the moon and the people that live in it. I guess being an archaeologist turned him into an obsessed-with-the-moon freak. Memoryado niya ang bawat detalye tungkol sa Selene, their culture, traditions, beliefs, the royal family and the number of mages the moon has. Alam lahat iyon ng Papa.