WALKÜREN - THE THREE MARIAS Chapter Seven

 

WALKÜREN - THE THREE MARIAS

Chapter Seven

 

- Teacher...

- What happened, Carlinhos?

- Is it true that there is a dragon on the moon?

- A dragon? On the moon?

- Yeah... it was my uncle who said...

- I don't think so...

- Well, my uncle said...

- You're wrong, teacher...

- That's right, Quinzinho...

- Why, teacher?

- Because, Carlinhos, there are no dragons on the moon...

- No?!...

- No, right, silly... the moon is made of cheese...

- Who told you that, Marquinho?

- It was my grandfather, a teacher... and he said that when the cheese is big, a mouse comes from the sky and eats it...

- Wow... and how did your grandfather find out about this?

- Ah, teacher... he said that it was his grandfather's grandfather's grandfather who first told this story...

Rosa laughed... and the children laughed along with her... she was already at the head of the little ones class for a long time, and she loved what she did. There was always a new story about the children, and so she always learned something from them... she always told her colleagues that she wasn't the one teaching the students... they were the ones who introduced her to a new world every day. Her class was the first year, and her job was to teach them the first letters. And, playing with the kids, she managed to get them through the basics in a really short time. As she always said...with love it's easier to teach the little ones. How long has she been teaching? Four, five years? She wasn't sure... what she could say was that this was the happiest period she had ever experienced in her life. When she remembered her married time... to say she felt chills is an understatement. Yes, it was a sad time for her... and it left her so complex that she swore to herself that she would never allow herself to be dominated by another man.

From time to time she recalled how she got rid of her partner. It was like waking up from a nightmare, with the help of two demonic angels. When she remembered how they had ridiculed him…not just him, but her friends, too…she ended up laughing to herself. If someone, before the event, had told her that she would one day raise her hand against that man... well, she wouldn't believe it. But not only did she face him, but she ended up getting involved in other adventures later. And she, who had never picked up a gun in her life, ended up exchanging fire with malefactors... yes, really meeting those two girls was a watershed in her life. Maria Izabel she always saw when she decided to walk downtown. After all, "COISAS DE WOMAN" the shop of Izabel's dreams, was on the main street. And it was a well-requested store. People from neighboring towns traveled to their village to buy the pieces that were not found in any other store in the region. In addition to Izabel and her husband, Juca, two girls worked at the store, who helped during working hours, paying attention to the customers who kept coming into the store. Yes, the movement was intense... As for Grace... well, there was almost no news about that one. Ever since she'd moved to the Capital to care for her sick mother, they'd lost touch. After all, the postal service wasn't that exquisite... the letters arrived... but it was a long journey between sending and receiving them... All they knew about Graça was that she had opened a store, where the main was her sewing workshop. From what was said, her clientele was select, because her services were really of quality. What a strange world, isn't it? Three crazy women who lived exchanging punches and shots with bandits simply gave up their adventures to live a peaceful and calm life...

Yes, that time had already passed in their lives. Now they were all settled, without that madness of riding a horse carrying weapons on their waist, sleeping in the open air, eating what they hunted or fished... yes... now they had another life. Anyone who saw Rosa these days would not even remotely think that she was once an ocelot, ready to pounce at her opponent's first flinch. We can say that the children tamed her, with the unpretentious affection they offered her. And, slowly, little by little, her heart softened and today the ocelot was a peaceful kitten...

The bell rang, announcing the end of the morning classes... now Rosa would have lunch and the afternoon... and didn't she have the afternoon free, without any commitments? Well, she could take the opportunity to walk along the banks of the river... it had been a while since she'd been there... so long that she didn't even remember anymore... The time she remembered, and that wasn't the last, was the week that Graça left for the Capital... the three of them walked along the riverbank, at first in silence, just admiring the beauty of the place. after walking a little, they sat down on a fallen piece of wood, still in silence, watching the waves that formed with the wind that blew over the river... and they stayed like that for a long time. The first to react from the lethargy that had taken over the group was Graça. Always the most daring, she was the natural leader of the group...

- Girls...

- What's up, Grace?

- Did you understand anything of what happened?

- I didn't understand...

- Neither do I, Graça... what are we talking about?

- Guys... remember the meeting with the delegates and Maria's father?

- Meeting...

- I vaguely remember...

- So, guys... even the doctor was with us....

- Yeah... I think I'm remembering...

- Remembering what?

- I don't know... I think we talked to my father and the others... then we left...

- And where did we go afterwards?

- We took our horses...

- And then?

- After? Funny... I don't remember...

- Neither do I... strange, isn't it?

- Sure... after all, we went out on the street, we took our horses... and then...

- Yes, you are right...

- It's weird though...

The three were silent, again, trying to remember what happened that night... Rosa, remembering that day, still doesn't understand exactly what happened at that time. All she knew was that something had happened. But, exactly what...she couldn't remember anything. Even her teaching position was obtained in a strange way. Not knowing exactly why, she decided to go for a walk that morning she was admitted. She went into the school to talk to the principal, to find out if they needed a substitute, an occasional one. Although he wasn't in need of money... the part he had received from the reward was really worth it, he wanted to do something to occupy his thoughts... and then... the inspector of students entered the principal's office desperately... there was a class of children who simply did not have a teacher... the class was listed in the school register, but there was no teacher to take care of it. Needless to say, the principal didn't even ask Rosa too many questions, she soon shoved her into the room with the little ones... and Rosa just loved it. The chemistry between her and the kids was excellent, and at the end of class the principal hired her to take over the classroom. And then, one more mystery... where did the previous teacher go? What happened to her? The strangest thing about this story is that no one, neither students nor school staff could remember this person... it's as if she never existed!