Ember looked at herself in the cracked mirror. Her burgundy hair was distinctly ruffled. Her lips, as red as her hair, were a point of focus on her pale face. More so than even her eyes which were also red. She smiled seductively at herself before proceeding to the kitchens. It was very busy but she ignored it all. The large kettle in the far corner was whistling shrilly. She heaved it off of the fire and poured water into two large teapots on a tray. An old, plump woman walking by stopped to look at Ember. While Ember was distinctly human, the woman had a mousy look about her. "Ember," she said breathlessly. "The Lord is in a meeting so be sure to take extra cups."
"How many, Mistress?" Ember looked at the taller woman.
"There will be all four of the Lords and all of their sons so... nine."
Ember nodded and pulled out nine cups. She lifted the huge tray up in her hands and shuffled carefully out of the door. Once free of all of the people she was able to walk properly and head up the stairs. She looked distinctly weak and small but she ascended the stairs with surprising speed with the huge tray in her hands. She reached a door on the third floor, balanced the tray on her knee and knocked on the door. A second after she heard her lord summon her. She opened the door and carried the tray in.
She had never seen the office so full. Nine men, no... Nine inu youkais were sitting around a table that had replaced the hard wood desk that had once been there. They were all ignoring her entrance and continued their arguing. Knowing that this business was not for her ears she ignored them as well. She lowered the tray on a nearby tea table and turned back to her lord. She stood silently until Lord Inu Taisho addressed her. "Ember." He said in a tired voice. "What do you have for us today?"
Nine pairs of eyes shifted to her. All of them were unnatural colours. Her Lord Inu Taisho and his son Lord Sesshoumaru's were like melted gold. The Southern Lord and his two sons' eyes like solid silver. The Lord of the North and his son's were as black as a night without a moon or cloud or stars. And finally the Eastern lord and his son's eyes were as white as snow. She felt fear strike her as she saw all of those eyes. Instead she focussed on Inu Taisho. "Unfortunately not the selection I usually have, we are low on tea leaves. But today I have blueberry with sage and strawberry with lavender."
There was a mumble of choices from the lords and their sons. Ember poured cup after cup of tea and handing them to the Lords, careful not to touch their hands. She knew how a lot of youkais acted when they touched human flesh. Even then she got several glares and growls from all of the lords except Inu Taisho and Sesshoumaru. They may not think her worthy as a person, but they did respect her. When she was finished she turned back to Inu Taisho. "Shall I be expecting you in the dining hall for lunch, my lord, or shall I bring it here?"
"Up here, thank you, Ember."
"It is my honour, my lord."
She bowed and backed out of the office. She returned the tea pots to the kitchens and knocked on the Mistress Maid's office door and entered. "What is it, Ember?" she asked without looking up.
"I need a few extra hands at lunch. Lord Inu Taisho wishes lunch for himself and the others in his office."
The Mistress looked up. She had a flicker of fear in her eyes. "How many hands will you need, do you think?"
"Four. Two more people."
"Alright... Take Tylis and Suki and teach them what will be expected of them."
Ember nodded and left. She called for her two friends Tylis and Suki and led them out to the grounds. They sat down some feet away in a triangle in the long grass. Like the Mistress Maid and most of the other servants Tylis and Suki were both mouse youkais. Despite that they were still taller than Ember. They were both excited to get out of the castle for a while but their smiles slid off their faces when she told them what they were about to do. Tylis, the younger of the two, was especially frightened. "But," she whispered. "We aren't trained to do this. It's too risky."
"There are nine Lords, Tylis," Ember said softly. "I can only carry three platters at a time. And can you imagine what will happen if one lord gets their lunch before another? The two of you don't even have to do anything. Just help me carry the food. I have to be the one to give them their food. I know what to do and if I screw up... well... my life's expendable."
The two glared at her. They have heard her say this many times before but not until now did they say anything about it. "Why do you always say that, Ember?" Suki asked. "You're valuable here."
Ember snorted. "I'm a human. The only human here and probably the only human in any other Lords' castle. Youkai Lords hate humans. The only reason I'm still here is because my family has been serving Lord Inu Taisho and his house for centuries. I am expendable. You guys are at least fast enough to avoid an attack. If I get attacked I won't know it until I'm dead."
"So why do you have to serve the food. Tylis or I could do it."
She smiled pityingly at Suki. "You may be older than me, Suki, but how naive you are." She said softly. "I've been learning how to do this since I could carry a tray... So since I was about five. There are such subtle things that you have to do to avoid being killed. With Lord Inu Taisho and Lord Sesshoumaru it isn't so bad because they know who you are... but the others? I can't tell you how many times they've tried to kill me individually and now they're all here together. If one of us does one thing wrong then we're all as good as dead."
"Like what?" Tylis whimpered.
"It doesn't matter. All you'll have to do is stand there and not look at any of them. Keep your head down, don't speak and for the life of us all, stand still."
Tylis' twitching leg immediately froze. Suki was biting her lip. "What if they attack you or one of us?"
"Let them. If you try to avoid their attack they'll grow angry. But you two are safe, I think. They're most likely to strike me. And even if they do I will only say this. Do not move. Do not speak, hell don't even utter a sound. Just stay there. If I die then one of you will have to finish handing out the lunch. And someone bury my body in the woods... whatever's left of it."
The two looked too frightened to say anything. It was hard for them to think that their Lord and his guests would ever attack a servant. They had to remind themselves that servants were cheap and that, unlike messengers, it was not considered treason to attack a servant. But their Lords Inu Taisho, his wife Lady Inu Kimi, and their son Lord Sesshoumaru, had always been good to them. They'd never had to worry about being attacked. But, of course, they'd never had to worry about the subtle actions Ember was mentioning now. Ember looked up at the sky. It was nearing noon. "We'd better get going." She said softly. "It'll be hell to pay if we're late."
They walked back up to the castle to gather the lunches of rice and stew. Each of them took a tray with six bowls each. Three bowls of rice and three bowls of stew. On Ember's tray there was also a jug of sake and nine small cups. Once again she knocked, waited to be welcomed in and opened the door. She and the other two servants walked in. As they were told Tylis and Suki kept their heads down and kept very still. Ember put her tray down and again waited to be noticed. When Inu Taisho addressed her she told them what they had for food and there was sake if they wanted. They all agreed except for Sesshoumaru and Inu Taisho. She placed the food bowls in front of her two Lords first. Then she had to serve the others very quickly so that they wouldn't get angry. She served the younger son of the Southern Lord last. That was when she made her first mistake since the other Lords arrived. As she pulled her hands back from his bowls she accidently brushed his arm with her hand.
He moved so fast that Ember didn't realise what he was doing until she was gasping for breath in the air with the Lord's hand wrapped around her throat. Even then she didn't dare grab his hand to pry his hands off her. She closed her eyes and kept as still as possible. It was Sesshoumaru's voice that she heard next. She didn't hear him speak that often. Whenever she did though, it was always cold and dangerous. But now there was nothing but pure hated as he spoke. "Put her down or I'll rip your arm off." He growled.
"What's one less human in the world?" the Lord growled back.
"She is not your servant to kill."
Ember was beginning to get light headed from lack of oxygen. Suddenly she was dropped. Her ankle twisted and she fell to the ground gasping for breath. She touched her throat with a trembling hand and felt blood drip into her palm. She rolled onto her hands and knees to stand up. The Lord who grabbed her growled again. "Next time tell your pet to keep her filthy hands off me."
Sesshoumaru growled and helped Ember stand. She thanked him and tried not to limp back to her tray with the empty sake jug on it. She, Tylis and Suki left the office. Just before she told the room that she would be back with supper in a few hours. Ember made it down two flights of stairs before collapsing. Her ankle was badly swollen and she was terribly shaken. Tylis burst into tears. Suki too was shaking. "Are you alright, Ember?" she whispered.
Ember nodded and waved them off. "I'm fine. I've have worse. Lots worse."
Suki and Tylis both looked at the three scars on her arm. The reminder of the last time the Eastern Lord had come on his own two years ago. She hadn't done anything that she could think of. Only that she was human. The eastern lord had raked her arm with his claws as a warning. A warning to what though she wasn't sure. She had just made sure that she approached the Eastern Lord with more caution than before. Ember stood carefully and slowly. She tested her ankle and found that it stuck out at an odd angle and couldn't put any weight on it. It was broken. "Damn," she hissed.
"What can we do?" Tylis asked nervously.
"First take those trays back to the kitchens. Then bring me some bandages. I need to bind it tight or I won't be able to walk back up those stairs later."
"Couldn't you just take the day off? You're already injured." Suki whimpered.
"No. I have to take them tea later and dinner if they want it after. I'll need your help again."
Suki and Tylis looked at each other but stood up and headed back to the kitchens. Ember leaned back against the wall and took a deep breath. She bet her lip and pushed the broken bone back into place. She bit down in pain and she tasted blood. She whimpered and trembled but soon the pain ebbed away to a dull throb. By then Tylis and Suki had returned. But they were also joined by Lord Sesshoumaru himself. The three of them bowed, Ember's being rather bad because she was sitting against the wall. "Back to your duties." He said, looking at Tylis and Suki. "I will tend to Ember."
Tylis handed Sesshoumaru the bandages and the two of them went back to the kitchens. Sesshoumaru knelt down and lifted Ember's ankle gently into his lap. His hands were cool and it took everything for her not to jump. He ran his hand along her ankle to make sure it was back in place before opening the bandage. "Please, my lord," Ember whispered through gritted teeth. "Wrap it tight."
Sesshoumaru only nodded and began to wrap her ankle. Tight enough that she could put weight on it but not so tight that she lost feeling in it. She stood up, bracing herself against the wall and tested her ankle. Though it hurt it supported her weight to just stand there. She took a tentative step forward and immediately collapsed. Sesshoumaru caught her around the waist before hitting the floor and hoisted her back up against the wall. Under her breath she swore in a language she thought not even her lords knew. But Sesshoumaru raised his eyebrows. "Language, little one." He warned.
"All apologies, my lord." She groaned.
"How did you come to learn that language, little one?"
"Library." She muttered and wiped sweat off her brow.
"Have you the time to teach yourself a language?"
"My only duties are to serve you, Lord Inu Taisho and your guests' tea and meals when the soldiers are away. When they're back I serve a group of ten tea and lunch and that is all. So I usually have a few hours between each serving to read and learn."
Once again she tried to walk forward. This time she was able to limp down the rest of the flight of stairs before losing her footing again. Again Sesshoumaru caught her around the waist. "Perhaps you should spend the night in the infirmary."
It was the closest that Sesshoumaru had ever come to sounding concerned. Ember shook her head. "I have work to do my lord. I'll be alright. And surely you must have better things to do than make sure of that."
"Lord Roku insisted that we break so that he could wash your blood off his hands."
Ember touched her neck. Dried blood flaked off onto her skin. The wounds were shallow and would be fully healed by the following week. Her ankle would be the one that would take longer to heal. She detached herself for the third time and limped towards the kitchen doors. Sesshoumaru followed her cautiously. She leaned on the door and poked her head in. With his sensitive ears Sesshoumaru heard her tell the two servants who had helped her before that they would need another servant for dinner as well as them. Then she slumped to the ground and looked up at the ceiling with a disgusted look on her face. "What troubles you, human?" Sesshoumaru asked approaching her.
"Nothing troubles me. But the idea of the infirmary bothers me greatly. The nurse does not like me for I am human and many of my injuries are trivial. She could heal my ankle in an hour but the whole time I would hear nothing but her constant speaking about how humans are inferior and such. I get enough of that from the mistress maid, the other servants and you and your father and the other lords no less. I know it's true but I don't need to hear it all the time and it does get rather tiring after a while."
She looked from the ceiling to his face and their eyes met. She jumped a little, blushed and looked away from him muttering some kind of apology about looking him in the eye or something. Even his ears didn't catch it. He narrowed his eyes. He knew plenty. He had read almost the entire library. But he didn't know any of the rules or laws of servants and slaves among their masters. All of them, Ember especially, seemed comfortable around all of the lords. But was every move they made a manoeuvre they've learned to make in order to save their own lives? Sesshoumaru did not like that. He and his father had never laid a hand on any of their servants, especially Ember and her ancestors. They should not be afraid of him or his father or his guests.
Ember seemed to have fallen into a daze. Her eyes were half closed and her breathing was level. Sesshoumaru walked towards her and lifted her up. She jumped at his touch. "If you expect to continue your work you will have your ankle healed."
She blinked, not looking at him directly. "Yes, my lord." She said in a monotone whisper.
A low growl rumbled in Sesshoumaru's lungs. He could not help himself. He wanted her to fight back. That was the nature of humans, not to take orders quietly. The growl must have scared her for she grew tense and still. "I can take myself to the infirmary, my lord, if it is more convenient for you."
"You would not make it up the stairs without help."
He began to help her limp towards the stairs. She clutched to the back of his kimono and the railing to brace herself. She figured that it would have been faster if Sesshoumaru had just carried her, but he was annoyed enough by taking her up to the infirmary. She kept her mouth shut just in case.
The infirmary was on the same floor as Lord Inu Taisho's office, the third. This was often a convenience for Ember since she would usually come from the office with an injury. But now she thought it was a terrible inconvenience. Really, who would have ever thought of putting an infirmary on the third floor? Why not on the bottom floor where everyone could find it? When they finally got there the nurse was tapping her foot impatiently. She stepped forward and helped Ember to a bed where she sat her down. "Useless human," she snapped. "Why didn't you come to me at once? Lord Inu Taisho said that you broke your ankle and yet you did not come. Pride! That will be your downfall! You should have come to me immediately. I wouldn't doubt if there would be permanent damage to your damned foot."
Ember looked like she was about to snap back but she glanced at Sesshoumaru first. She closed her mouth and allowed the nurse to rant on and unwrap her foot. Sesshoumaru observed the two carefully. The nurse swore like a sailor and insulted Ember like no one was there to listen. Ember always looked like she was about to fight back but kept quiet probably because of Sesshoumaru. Every once and a while she would look over at his feet as if to make sure he was still there. Finally the nurse unwrapped the bandages and put one drop of a black liquid on her ankle. "Now rest here until your ankle is healed." The nurse snapped and walked away.
Ember started muttering under her breath so quietly that Sesshoumaru could not hear her. She seemed well practised in speaking below an inu youkai's hearing range. After a moment she spoke directly to him. "You need not stay any longer, my lord. I will be healed soon."
"If I know you at all I know you will move before you are ready. I will stay until you are healed.
"Oh, come, Lord Sesshoumaru,"
Ember looked up and saw the son of the Northern Lord. She bowed clumsily for he was looking straight at her and she avoided his eyes. He chuckled and looked back at Sesshoumaru. "She is surely not foolish enough to move before her ankle is healed."
"You don't know her family, Lord Adamar." Sesshoumaru said darkly. "She, like her mother and grandmother, would sooner returned to the kitchens than sit still for a mere hour."
Adamar laughed. "Humans are an interesting kind."
Ember bit her tongue. Once again she was being considered a representative of the humans. She hated it but knew better than to speak. She remembered her grandmother who had a large scratch on her face from speaking out of turn. She moved her attention to her ankle, checking the healing process, hoping she could leave soon but her bone was still mending and while Sesshoumaru sat there she had no opportunity to escape until it did. Adamar and Sesshoumaru were still talking about human nature as if it was an interesting debate. Ember ignored them both. She had no desire to listen to the youkai wonders about humans. But then her name was called. "Ember, was it?" Adamar asked.
"Aye, my lord." She said and bowed clumsily.
Adamar sat on the end of the bed and touched her ankle. Ember had to force herself not to jump in pain. His hands were cold and hard. He was not quite so gentile as Sesshoumaru had been. A smirk spread across his lips. Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes. It was then that Ember noticed that he was right beside her. She didn't like being surrounded by Lords when she had no idea how to get out safely. "Fear me not, little human. I have trained in the art of healing."
Adamar ran his forefinger along the broken bone of Ember's ankle. Her foot suddenly felt ice cold, then warm and then the pain faded away. She wasn't too impressed. Her ankle was already healing without his help. She smiled and thanked him anyway, continuing to avoid his eyes. Adamar took her chin in his hand and made her look up into his black eyes. He was close. Too close. She couldn't stop herself when she pushed him away and nearly fell off the bed. Sesshoumaru snarled warningly. Adamar stood sharply, growling back at him. "Do you think I would really harm her, Sesshoumaru?" he snapped.
"Yes." He snapped back. "You and your father and all of the others. Look at this!"
Sesshoumaru grabbed her arm and half dragged her up to show Adamar the scars. Adamar laughed cruelly. "From the eastern family no doubt. What proof do you have of mine?"
Ember didn't have the time to object. She only just managed to cover her breasts as he tore off her shirt. Her small stomach was as pale as the rest of her skin. However, even paler than that, there was a ragged scar much like the ones on her arm ran across her stomach. One of her more life threatening injuries, caused by Adamar's father. She felt herself burn red as both lords stared at her. "Ah..." Adamar said after a while. "I see."