The Noble Fugitive
Summary: With nothing but a trunk and a pouch of coins, a dauntless nobleman dared to run away from home. In the struggle to remain as inconspicuous as possible, he refuses to reveal his name and he tries so hard not to attract attention to himself. That is, until he saw a woman kicked another man on the shin. Narusaku AU
Chapter I
Steam Train
The waiting area of the train station bustled with life. Murmurs of excitement, mostly from the younger ones, pervaded the atmosphere as people from all walks of life arrived with their trunks full of clothes and other valuables.
Naruto chose to wait near the second entrance of the train station to avoid the crowd. His gaze drifted from one person to the next, observing each one as they come and go. The system was organized. There were two entrances and an exit. People with no tickets were not allowed beyond the second entrance. Passengers who just arrived stepped out into carriages waiting immediately outside the train sheds. Departing passengers passed through another way.
He looked around and marveled at the elaborate design of the station which looked like it was conceptualized and built by a team of highly-skilled team of architects and engineers. Then, he sighed heavily. He blamed the sudden interest in the passengers, station, architects and whatnot on boredom brought by the long hours of waiting. On normal days, when he was not bored, these things were not a matter of interest.
But the steam train was a different story. It never failed to excite him.
The booming train whistle, the clicking and whirring valves gear, the smell of oil and coal mingled together and the sight of the train's body made up of polished brass, copper and bronze brought a rare kind of childhood fascination in his chest. To him, it was a combination of everything that stirred the senses. It reminded him of childhood, happiness, romance and a mixture of other pleasant things.
He sat on his trunk and took a pouch from the pocket of his brown frock coat. He poured the contents onto his palm. A few coins enough to buy him meals to last for two days came out.
He silently berated himself for forgetting to bring his second pouch. As someone who came from a wealthy and well-distinguished family, he was not used to having only that much money.
Irritated at the sight of the coins, he hurriedly returned them into the pouch and back to his pocket. He took two deep breaths and finally managed to calm himself. He just needed to find a way to have more money. As of now, he didn't know how he would go about it but he was sure about one thing, a foul mood wouldn't help him in this situation.
He removed his hat and used it to fan himself. People started to gather near the rail as soon as they heard the whistle of the steam train that was fast approaching. When the train made a creaking sound against the rail at the screeching halt, people gathered and waited for the doors to open. Naruto made sure all the passengers were already out before he decided it was time for him to join the crowd.
He stood up, straightened his coat and put his hat back on.
"Let me go," he swore he heard a feminine voice among the sea of noises. He looked at the crowd gathering near the train for any signs of a woman being harassed by a group of thugs. Nothing
Dismissing it as part of his imagination, He picked up his trunk. He heard another yell. It was louder but indistinct and all he could make out was one word-'help'. Based on the desperate tone, the owner of the voice must be in dire need. He imagined there were at least three older, muscular, good-for-nothing men ganging up on an innocent lady, probably for some money. Pick pocketing was on its height after all.
The voice seemed to come from the second entrance. There were a lot of people there a while ago but the moment the train came, the passengers rushed inside and gathered beside the rail.
He could choose to ignore it and just go. It was easier. But then again that wasn't him. He turned abruptly and rushed out of the second entrance.
The sight that greeted him was unpleasant yet breath-taking. It was those men, who looked like thugs, fierce and mean, that ruined the scene.
And the breath-taking part was her
For a moment, his breath caught in his throat. Her appearance reminded him of those beautiful women commonly depicted on paintings. The narrow cut of the lady's, light red, long-sleeved dress showed off her slimness. The high V-neck exposed lesser skin but it highlighted her neck in the most tempting way possible.
He shook his head and focused on what was happening in front of him rather than the woman's physical attributes. His mood darkened. Hands shaking in barely controlled anger, he suppressed the urge to suddenly barge in and beat the men senseless. They were an eyesore. As someone who was raised in a fine household, he was taught how to respect women and people in general. Any act of violence against innocent people was something he would not tolerate.
Aside from him, two train officials and around seven people gathered around the scene but no one dared to move closer for fear of what the five men would do. The three of them surrounded the lady, while the other two blocked their way preventing them to reach her and extend their help.
"We're not here to hurt you. We only need the lady. Once you interfere, something bad will happen." One of them addressed the people around in a voice that promised physical pain for whoever will not heed the warning.
He used to charge blindly at the bad men in situations like these but this time, he wouldn't-at least not yet. But this was only because he didn't want to draw attention to himself. By this time, he was sure that his parents finally discovered that he was missing. They might have already sent people to locate him. Right now, remaining as inconspicuous as possible was as important to him as saving someone in danger.
"Don't make this hard for us. Come!," One of the men grabbed her arm forcefully, making the pink-haired lady lose her grip on the black ornamented handbag she was holding.
The blatant display of violence elicited collective gasps from the people around, prompting others to take a step forward in an attempt to help only to be stopped by the two men's outstretched arms. The way a handful of people were held back easily made Naruto think that they weren't just ordinary men, that underneath those coats they wore were muscled arms that underwent lots of physical training.
He figured he needed to use both hands to deal with them but the risk of leaving his trunk on the floor was too great. His lips curving into a confident smile, he took the first few reckless steps towards the men. If he couldn't let go of his trunk, then he just needed to find a way to beat them using his only free hand.
He halted when he heard one of the men shout in pain. With widened eyes, he watched as the woman pulled her hand and broke free from the man's grasp. Caught off guard, the man screamed in pain the moment her right foot connected with his shin.
Naruto's jaw hung open at the display of strength. Some people around them had the same expression. Others had their mouths agape. His surprise, however was short-lived. It was soon replaced by an unexpected pride that swelled up in his chest as he found himself silently cheering for the stranger.
His affinity to her might be because her fiery temper reminded him of his own mother. All the exclusive balls he attended so far made him realize there was quite a few like her in this age. All the women he met or were introduced to him so far were all of the silent, shy and submissive type.
Upon seeing their fallen companion, the other two men went on either side of her and grabbed her by the shoulders. She screamed in pain. That was all it took for Naruto to finally decide he had watched enough. Forget remaining inconspicuous. He was going to help her once and for all.
The woman continued to struggle by moving her arms. Too caught up in her attempt to escape, she didn't notice a new figure approach them from the back. She became aware of the presence of her savior only when she noticed the pressure on her arms finally gone. The men dropped on the floor with a loud thud. She looked back.
Nothing could have prepared Naruto for that. Up close, where he had a better view of her eyes, she looked even more stunning.
The woman picked up her handbag and dusted it with the back of her hand.
The men around them slowly started to stand up again. Naruto and the woman readied themselves to fend them off.
The loud whistle of the train informed the people around of its near departure. There was only a minute left before it closed its doors and finally leave the place. Naruto and the woman exchanged worried looks.
Without warning, he took her hand and made a mad dash for the train. The men ran after them. After going through the second entrance, Naruto expertly waded through the crowd. At the rate they were going, he was sure anyone who made contact with them would stumble a bit to the side.
Seeing how fast they ran, people avoided their path for fear of being hit. Others who were far away craned their necks to see what the fuss was about.
The men were fast but Naruto, with the woman in tow, was faster.
The whistle became louder. The train was getting nearer. They were only inches away and they could still make it. Naruto stepped inside and pulled her hard for her to make it in time. That exact moment when the doors closed was also that same moment when the force from his pull caused her to be thrown forward right into his chest.
People inside the train gasped.
Both let out a sigh of relief. As soon as they recover from what just transpired, Naruto immediately let her go. "Sorry for grabbing you," his gaze trailed to her hand "and also for pulling you too hard,"
They exchanged glances. "Thank you…Thank you so much. If it weren't for you they would have taken me away. If I ever meet you again, I'll repay the favour and help you back,"
His grinned "No worries. I'll willingly help anyone in need. You don't owe me a favor or anything,"
She smiled back and curtsied before turning her back on him.
"Wait!"
She looked back "What is it?"
He opened his mouth, about to ask for her name but kept them shut again.
"N…nothing. Just be sure to be careful next time," Truthfully, he had a lot of questions he wanted to ask. He wanted to know who the men were, why they were after her and why she had no one with her when it was clearly dangerous these days for women to travel alone.
But he stopped himself. He didn't want to sound impudent. Face flushed, he unwillingly turned his back on her. Then, he felt the pocket of his coat for that bump just to make sure the pouch that contained his money was still there.
It was missing.