The silence of the winter night was broken by a chasing inside the deep forest.
Five men riding horses were chasing after a young woman. Her long red hair was loose and flowing like wild fire in the dark night. She was wearing a short white yukata, which was dirty and torn. Her skin was burning with the cold wind; her feet and legs were already numb, while she was running with all her might trough the blizzard.
"Don't let the bitch ran away!" one of the men yelled. The woman was extremely agile and she was choosing the most difficult paths to ran, knowing that the horses were not going to able to pass easily. She was tired and hurt, but it was her only chance of freedom.
Her wrists and ankles were swollen after being chained for so long.
She missed the sea, the feeling of the cold water on her body. She needed the sea to wash away all the wounds on her body and the memories of those horrible days she spent under that man's torture. Her connection with the sea showed her the way and she followed her heart.
She ran faster, even such under terrible conditions and despair.
She could already smell the sea and she closed her eyes, hoping that she would be home soon.
There was a cliff ahead and the woman was about to jump, when an arrow was shot, going through her thigh and staining the white dress with her blood. With her last strength, she was able to jump and her body sank on the gelid ocean.
The man stopped the horses by the cliff and ran to look down.
"That idiot!" the taller man, said, angrily.
"What are we going to do?" the younger man asked, concerned. "Muramasa-sama ordered us to bring her back alive!"
"It is not like she is going to survive that fall anyway." A overweight man scoff. "A fish cannot swin without its tail."
"Let's go back. We can catch another one." The taller man said, turning around to his house.
"With a softer bite, right?" they all laughed before leaving the place.
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The scarlet eyes opened slowly. She was so tired and her whole body was hurting. There was a soft white blanket made of fur over her and she was on a futon. She could hear the fireplace crepitating. It took her a while to realize she was not at home and she sat down, scared.
"Ah, you are finally up." The young man with dark hair and golden eyes looked at her. He was sitting on the other side of the wall.
The woman moved to the edge of the room and her body was glued to the corner. She started to growl and showed him her pointy canines. Her scarlet eyes were menacing.
"Hey, hey, calm down!" he stood up and looked at her surprised. "I'm not going to hurt you."
She went to his direction, making him retreat, returning to the corner of the room again. He realized she was not aggressive, but fearful, so he kneeled down and got distanced a little.
"My name is Ryoma.I found you unconscious on the beach yesterday, you had a bad wound on your leg, so I brought you in. You have been sleeping since then." The woman looked down and realized there were some bandages on thigh and she was wearing a dark blue yukata that was too big on her. She touched the clothes and looked at him. He averted his eyes.
"I'm sorry, I had to change your clothes, you were all wet." He looked at her, embarrassed. "But, I didn't do anything weird with you, I swear."
Her attention was called to the familiar and dear sound of the waves crashing near. She stood up and limped to the windows, opening them. The blizzard had stopped and there was only snow falling softly. She took a deep, relieved breath when finally seeing the sea again and a small tear ran down on her beautiful face. Ryoma looked at her confused.
"Hey, are you okay?" he got closer. "Are you in pain? I can…"
When he was about to touch her, she turned around, growling one more time and almost bit his hand.
"Hey!" he was upset. "I told you already, I'm not going to hurt you. Can you at least understand me? What's your name?"
The delicious smell of soup spread on the room and she looked on the kitchen's direction.
"Ah, food is ready. Do you want to eat?"
She was looking at the pot with a hopeful expression and he was amused.
Ryoma waited a while for the soup to not be so hot and poured on small bowls. He returned to the room and offered to her with a small piece of bread, placing it in front of her, on the floor. The woman was still suspicious and she picked up the food quickly, eating with her hands. Ryoma was extremely surprise with her reaction.
"You are really hungry. How long have you been without eating?"
She was licking the bowl, her whole face inside of it. Ryoma noticed she was disappointed when the food finished and put his own bowl in front of her, with a small smile on his face.
"Here. You can have more."
She ate more slowly this time, the warm meal spreading a good sensation all over her body.
"You should rest. It's an ugly wound; you won't be able to walk for a while. Do you have anyone or anywhere to go back to? What happened to your hands and legs? Did someone hurt you?"
Coming close, the young woman touched one of his fingers and looked at him with gentle eyes.
"Are you thanking me or apologizing for trying to bite me?" he asked, softly. "You can stay here as long as you like. I'm a fisherman, but since the weather is so cold, I will stay home those next days. I live by myself, so you can be at ease."
He placed another futon on the other side of the small house and watched while she returned to the bed. She still seemed so tired. He watched when she went under the covers and took a deep, relieved breath. She was sound sleep just after a while. Ryoma wondered where she came from and how dis she ended up in such situation, before starting to sleep as well.