Self Written Recount Text

The Burnt and The Frozen

    Once upon a time, there lived a young man with a handsome and cold personality. His name is Eidos. He worked as a skilled wood sculptor, he often made beautiful sculptures for sale. Being famous for his beautiful works, many nobles went to order him. Of course he is liked by many people because of this advantage. Not only that, many girls fell in love with him, including the flower of the village where he lived. There was even a rumor that one of the noble's daughters had fallen in love with him. However, everyone could tell that he was very talkative and almost expressionless. This made the girls even more curious about him.

    One day, he and his two friends, Giouto and Zinio, were going to the forest. Giouto, who is a baker, goes to look for firewood, Zinio, who is known as a reliable hunter, wants to catch the big male deer that the residents are talking about, while Eidos only accompanies them because he has promised to have some breads from Giouto.

    "Hey, don't you remember the rumors of a female ghost in this forest?" Giouto asked, looking down to collect firewood.

    "Which rumor?" asked Eidos who was sitting on a tree branch.

    “My mother used to tell me that there was a ghost of a witch who roamed here. I don't remember exactly how the story went. " Giouto replied.

    "Ah, ladies do like to gossip. After all, it was just a story made up to scare the children from playing in the forest. In this forest the only possible danger is the wolf, even that is rarely found." said Zinio.

"That's true." said Eidos. They also continued their respective activities without suspicion. Their conversation did not continue until all the affairs in the forest were finished. Zinio couldn't find the deer he wanted, but he still brought a mouse deer, rabbit, and partridge to eat. Giouto keeps his promise to give Eidos breads, he also gives Zinio breads to cheered him up.

    After returning from Giouto's bakery, Eidos returned to his house to continue his carving. During several hours of working on his sculptures, he decided to stop and go to his room to rest. He turned off the lantern and lay down on the bed. Unfortunately, even though he had closed his eyes for a while, Eidos still couldn't fall asleep. It felt like something was stuck in his heart. Finally he decided to go outside for a while for a walk in the hope that he would feel sleepy and sleep well.

    Eidos lit his lantern and took him out of the house. The cold wind hit his body as soon as he opened the door of his house. This is a sign that winter is near. He quickly grabbed his coat before continuing to step outside. After putting on his coat, he continued walking aimlessly away from his house. After a while, Eidos arrived near the forest area he had visited this afternoon with his friends. Of course the forest looked much darker and creepier at night. Without hesitation, he walked into the forest area accompanied only by his lantern.

    The sound of an owl was heard and a sound of flapping bird wings flashed over his head. There were no signs of danger or anything strange about to happen, but the atmosphere around him felt different. He walked further into the forest, then he heard the rustling of a leaf being stepped on from the opposite direction. It seemed that he wasn't the only person in the forest that night. Out of curiosity, Eidos approached the source of the sound to confirm.

    Eidos was shocked when he saw what he found. He nearly passed out in fear. A woman with a disheveled appearance sat silently leaning against a tree. Her hair was long black, her skin was pale white, her body was wrapped in a shabby white dress which made her look even more sinister. Upon noticing Eidos' arrival, she turned her head and looked up to find the woodcarver silent in shock. Eidos saw the woman's eyes which were light gray like a full moon. His fear faded slightly when he saw the green-purple veins on the girl's hand. That means this woman is a living human being and not the forest guardian ghost that Giouto was talking about this afternoon.

    "Are you okay?" asked the girl. Eidos was surprised, he should be the one who asked this girl.

    "I should have asked you that, miss. I'm all right, meanwhile you sit in the forest at night like this. Are you okay?"

    The girl chuckled. Her tiny lips look very cute when they smile. "I am alright. My place is here."

    Eidos again felt scared to hear that. The girl immediately continued her words after seeing Eidos's expression. “I mean, I come here often. I like it here. You must be confused, right? Yes, I just like it, for no other reason. Whether this forest is dangerous or scary, I know everything. I've been fine all this time."

    He breathed a sigh of relief. Even though it was strange, Eidos was sure that this girl was indeed a human like him. "What's your name, miss?" he asked.

    "I'm Chines, what's your name?"

    “Eidos. Nice to meet you." Eidos half bowed in his respect.

    “It's very late at night and cold, I didn't expect winter to come this fast this year. I'm going back to my house, would you like to come to drink cinnamon tea with me? ”

    Not a sound thing to do at night, which is to visit a stranger's house for the first time we meet. However, Eidos believed this girl was a good person and intended to do good to her. Hence, he agreed to his invitation with a nod.

    "Good." Chines put her hands on the ground to support her body, but Eidos reached out to help her up. "Thank you." she said.

    Chines walked deeper into the forest. Eidos was sure he had never explored the forest this far before. At first he was worried about wild animals coming because he didn't have any weapons to protect himself, but after he saw a small hut hidden behind tall pine trees, Eidos was no longer worried.

    When they arrived at the small old hut, the host actually prepared cinnamon tea for herself and the guest. Eidos was touched by Chines' kindness. He looked around and found an empty furnace without any firewood. He wondered why this girl didn't light the fireplace in this cold air.

    "Miss Chines, why is your fireplace empty?" he asked, placing his teacup on the table.

    “Oh, about that… I never turned it on again. I am scared." Chines tried to smile even though she looked worried.

    "Excuse me if I'm presumptuous, but what's the reason you don't light a fireplace in this cold?"

    "I'm afraid of the pile of wood with a big fire burning, that’s it..."

    Hearing that, Eidos understood. Maybe Chines had an bad event with regards to big fire, so she has trauma. "Then, may I who lit the fireplace? I understand that you are scared, but I want to light this fireplace for your good too, I am afraid you will get sick if cold. Please accept my kindness as my thanks for this sweet tea."

    Chines looked a little hesitant at Eidos' words, but then she did nodded in agreement. Eidos said goodbye to quickly get some firewood outside and came back again to light the fireplace. It didn't take long to light the fireplace that. Chines smiled and thanked Eidos. That night, Eidos stayed over and slept on Chines' hut and returned to her house at dawn.

    From that day on, Eidos often met Chines at night and returned home in the early morning. Chines began to dare to light his own fireplace and often cooked for Eidos. To repay her kindness, Eidos repaired parts of the Chines house that were damaged, such as a weathered roof or broken walls. Their friendship is becoming ever closer and closer. He never told anyone else about their friendship. Eidos knew that bad rumors about him and Chines will arise if he told this to other people.

    But one day, when Eidos went out at night to visit the Chines, she was not at his house. This made Eidos confused, anxious, and sad at the same time. He then returned to his house, hoping that the next day he could see Chines. When the morning came, Eidos silently ran through the forest to once again go to the hut, but to no avail. He also surrounds the Chines house looking for clues about the girl's departure. When he got to the bedroom, on the bed was a piece of papyrus in what appeared to be a letter left by Chines.

    'Don't come back to see me. Don't go looking for me. Fate didn't allow us to be together. Please leave safely. I love you.'

    After reading the letter, Eidos hurried out of the hut. He decided to closed his house and did not accept or work on carving orders. He left a message to Giouto and Zinio that he will be going somewhere far away for a while. Armed with a bag of gold, 2 pieces of clothing, an ax, and a rope, Eidos ran inside the forest in the direction of Chines' hut and walked straight further through the woods. From the moment the sun had just risen until the sun was about to set, Eidos still hadn't find signs of Chines in the vicinity.

    He screamed out of frustration. It seemed that his scream was a bad choice. A wolf is seen walking ducked from a distance approaching Eidos. He was surprised to find that the wolf walked faster and faster. Hurriedly he took out the ax from the bag he was carrying and threw it, the throw landing on the wolf's back. The wolf was still hobbling along which made Eidos slowly retreat away from him.

    Without realizing it, his hand slipped because a lump of ice broke and he fell into a lake. In this position, Eidos felt very panicked. Since long time ago, he has never been near the water. He could only close his eyes, hoping for a miracle to come. Shortly thereafter, right before Eidos drowned, there was a hand that was smaller than his, pulling on his wrist with all its might. Somehow this girl was able to pull Eidos out of the water. She immediately patted Eidos on the back and took off his wet robe and wrapped his body in a wide thick scarf.

    She burst into tears while hugging Eidos. "I told you, don't look for me..." Eidos who just came to his senses was coughing because of the large amount of water he had swallowed. His breath was wheezing and after his eyes could see clearly, he found Chines hugging him while crying. Seeing the person he was looking for was next to him, there was a feeling of relief as well as regret in his heart. Eidos spread his arms and hugged Chines even tighter.

    "Please listen to me carefully. You and me can't be together anymore. It's too dangerous for us. Don't come to see me anymore, go safely, ”asked Chines, holding Eidos's hand.

    "Why do I have to go? Didn't you say that you love me? " asked Eidos hoarsely.

    Chines cries even more and more. “I do love you, Einisch. Please stay away, I don't want you to get hurt. "

    “My name is Eidos, Miss Chines. I'm not Einisch. " said Eidos.

    "Now your name is Eidos and my name is Chines, different from back then."

    "What do you mean, miss? I can't understand what you are saying. "

    Chines sighed. "You know about the rumors of a ghost witch in the forest?" Eidos nodded, of course he still remembered Giouto's words that day.

    "They are talking about me." Chines wiped her tears that flowed back again.

    “I'm not a ghost, but hearing about witch… Well, it all happened many years ago. At that time I was named Zenleuf, Zenleuf Efcharisto, daughter of Count Marnke Efcharisto. "

    As long as they know Chines, from the beginning of their meeting in the middle of the forest, this girl does have unique facts about her. But Eidos had never been this surprised before. How could he not, the news about the tragedy that befell the noble family spread throughout the Patoma Kingdom, even neighboring kingdoms. It is true that this event had happened for many years long before he was born, but this tragedy was told orally from generation to generation like a folk tale.

    “Since childhood, I lived like a noble princess. But I didn't really feel happy and decided to run from home. Until one day I met a middle-aged man who owned a wooden furniture shop. He has a grandson named Einisch. Since that day, I often find time to run to his house in the forest. But in the end I got caught. I was locked up in the guard of the servants and every door was guarded by guards. I was arranged by the son of Earl Afxisi, Trachys. I can't fight back because it's an agreement between two families in order to strengthen our fathers' political power. A few days before our engagement, I bribed the bodyguards and fled to meet Einisch. When I got to his house, his grandfather said Einisch was near the lake because he was sad to hear that I was getting engaged. I walked over to say that I would soon divorce after 3 years of marriage, but suddenly Einisch lost consciousness and fell into the lake. I couldn't take his hand then, he died after drowning. I ran but it was too late, some of my father's bodyguards came and saw everything. I was sentenced to be burned alive for being accused of being a witch who killed innocent people. Then I found out that this was all the work of a daughter of the Viscount who was blindly jealous of the news of Trachys and I's engagement. She deliberately paid witch to curse Einisch until he fell and drowned to the lake and distort the facts in order to be able to marry Trachys. "

    Eidos was at a loss for words, his tongue tingled and couldn't reply to Chines' words. He didn't know that his relationship with Chines was much more complex than he knew. He did not know that in his previous life, he was a character that everyone was talking about. He had no idea that Chines' phobia of fireplaces and his phobia of lake water were the result of the tragedy.

    “I want to ask you to trust me, but surely you have heard from people about Zenleuf's pitiless figure. I feel unworthy to love you, even to meet again in this new life. I can only hurt you in the past and almost do the same now. ”

    Eidos pulled Chines into his arms and hugged him tightly. He whispered, “Zenleuf, Einisch doesn't hate you. Einisch died not because of your fault, but because other people were jealous of Zenleuf's perfect figure. Chines, Eidos doesn't hate you. Eidos did not become close to dying because of your mistakes, but because of carelessness in searching for you. Eidos wants Chines to know that he can't live without the only woman who manages to keep him up at night just to enjoy a short time with him. "

    From that day on, Chines knew that their love would last. All the sad tragedies of the past happened not because they couldn't unite, but because many were against the immortality of love. In the end, their true love blossomed again. Chines was brought to the village where Eidos lived and he introduced her to his family and friends. Of course Giouto and Zinio are the most excited when they find out that the handsome and cold Eidos has a sweetheart as beautiful as Chines. Many girls were jealous at first, but seeing Chines' kindness and cheerful disposition, they blessed this relationship. Eidos and Chines, also known as Zenleuf and Einisch, finally got married after all the time they had spent together.