My father rose earlier than usual. The roosters' head were still stuck under their wings on this seventh day of the fourth moon. The creaking of the bamboo bed stirred me up from my slumber. I sat up on the side of the bed with my feet dangling, barely touching our bamboo laden floor. I wiped the sleep from my eyes as I watched father took one fruit of palm, lit it and put it back on the small shallow pot. Soon the other dried palm fruits caught flame and lit the room with pale yellow.
"Why are you up so early, father?" I asked from a small voice of a child.
It was then that my father noticed me being awake.
He put the shallow pot at the center of the floor and sat beside me. "Go back to sleep, Noan." He said as he tucked me back to bed. "I will go to the Datu's house early today. I have to help in the preparation of Prince Zula's journey." He added.
"Why does Zuzu have to go?" I asked, barely remembering the face of the son of our Datu.
My father smiled. "His Royal highness has to go on a trip to learn. He needs to study and train so he could soon replace Datu Sanday in ruling our Kedatuan. (ruled place of a Datu; a barangay; a kingdom)"
"Will we see ZuZu again?" I asked after a yawn.
"Yes Noan." My father pulled the blankets back towards my chest. "And you have to stop calling Our prince Zuzu. He is Prince Zula Kalun. You will call him Your Highness. And like I am to his father, you will be his Oripun. A special Oripun."
I was not able to ask another question because sleep conquered me. But the thought of being Prince Zuzu's special Oripun made me excited.
Oripun or Alipin (the lowest social class of pre colonial Philippines. This class relies solely on the repayment of debt or obligation contrary to the sold slaves on western and Islamic systems.)
It was the sound of Kulintang. I realized I slept past the wake-up calls of the roosters. I hastily took my small Pudong (headdress) and ran out the house. I almost tripped at the stairs on my haste upon seeing the parade of Timawas and Oripuns.
I ran towards the road and saw the other commoners on bowed positions, knees bent and feet behind while the upper body is pressed to the ground with hands crossed, palms touching the ground and the back of the hand is where the forehead rests. I remember my father taught me how to do it.
The sound of Kulintangs got even louder and at my left I saw the palanquin of the Prince laced with silk and gold carried by eight Oripuns. I immediately assumed bow position, but I really wanted to see his face because I can barely remember how he looked. We were not allowed to go to the palace uninvited so it's very rare to see him.
I tilted up my head to take a peek. He was squatting down with his silken garments and a Pudong with intricate patterns worthy for a royalty. My father said, Prince Zula was the purest of his kind. He was from four generations of pure Sultanate bloodline.
Then to my surprise, he turned his head towards the direction of our house and his eyes caught me.
I was given a short moment to realize it was rude to stare so I pressed my head hardly on my hands, with my lips almost touching the ground.
I saw his face clearly. Though for a short moment, I noticed how long his lashes were. He's got thick brows and his eyes, they were so black though I thought they were piercing through me coupled with his stoic face.
"Stop." I heard someone said. And a chorus of stop echoed throughout the road. The parade halted. All feet halted.
Then I heard someone spoke "what is it your highness?"
"One moment" I heard the Prince said and a moment later, I could feel someone standing right above my head.
"Rise, Noan" I figured it was the Prince. I could hear my heartbeats now. Was he angry because I looked at him?
I slowly stood but my head is still bowed, and my eyes remained fixated on my feet.
The Datu came down on his palanquin too from the front of the parade. And I could see that he was walking towards us with my father on his back.
"Zula. What is this?"
"A moment, father." Zula answered and I could barely breathe when his hand went to my chin and tilted my head from bowing. I was trembling. But my eyes remained looking down, desperately staring at my feet. "Look at me, Noan."
I swallowed and did as I was told. I was caught by his eyes and I can't look down. And without leaving his gaze from me, he took off his gold bracelets.
"Each of these, left and right, signifies that you are now mine. From now on, you will await my return and dedicate all the things that you will do for me. You will study, educate yourself, and ask the babaylans of their knowledge and crafts for when I return, you will use them to serve me."
He said it without falter. His eyes still fixed on mine. And I felt peculiar. It was a feeling of drowning but without the wanting of breathing air.
He took my hands and put his bracelets on each of them.
And just like that, he turned and sat back on his palanquin staring straight ahead.
I could hear the Datu took a deep sigh of breath and patted my father on his shoulder before walking back to his own palanquin.
My father just stared at me for a moment before giving me a wink. He then followed Datu Sanday.
A horn was blown and once again the parade moved towards the shore.
I have never seen Prince Zula once again.
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