World of Flowers

Chapter One

"Help... Help me..."

"Her fever's spiked."

"Please, my head hurts... It really hurts..."

"Kenshin! What are we going to do about her?! Is she going to die?"

"Please... please, please, please..."

"Hanayo." His voice was raspy, but gentle in her ear. she could feel the warm waves of his words against her skin. "You agreed to this, remember? You knew the risk."

"Please... It hurts. Kenshin... I'm begging you... Help..."

A long sigh left him and she could feel him moving away. "Inject her with thiry mililiters morphine."

The door slammed and she heard people rummaging around, whispering. Bottles and equipment clanked and she whimpered when he pushed her shirt up.

"It's going to be okay," she heard a voice devoid of all emotion ring out before something broke through the skin on her hip, and liquid spread through her veins.

Hanayo opened her eyes a few seconds later.

Her head pounded and the room swayed around her, blurry and disoriented. She passed a dry tongue over her lips, almost coughing when she realized they tasted like sweat. The young woman brushed strands of hair from her sticky face, rising in the dark room and heading towards the mirror.

She did look like hell. Chapped lips, tangled, snaggy hair, and a defeated look in the eye her hair didn't cover up. She almost backed away, but something on her forehead caught her attention. pushing her hair up, she leaned in, pushing her hair away.

The mark was shiny with sweat, and showed a dark green X in the middle of her forehead with long swirls coming off either side. She dropped her hair back over it, backing away.

"Shit," she breathed. "Oh, fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck."

Curse mark. Separation and segregation. The superior versus the weak. The main... against branch.

Shaking, she checked around her room. It looked just like it had the last time she'd left it. Yes, she remembered now. She'd gone to talk with Kenshin, he'd asked her if he had her consent to experiment on her, and, for some stupid, stupid reason, she'd allowed him to brand the mark to her forehead that very day.

How long have I been out?

Hanayo wandered to the window, brushing the curtains aside so she could gaze at the sky. She spotted the crescent moon in the middle of the sky and figured it had to be around midnight.

Turning, she crept towards the door, pushing the heavy oak open once she was close enough. The hallway was barren, empty of objects and sound. She slipped out, intent on taking a bath. They were downstairs, which meant she had to make her way down two flights of stairs and cross the building. The water would be cool by now, but she didn't mind. Maybe it would ease her a bit, since her body was uncomfortably warm.

On the way to the baths, she only cam across one doorway that emitted light. Her footsteps didn't pause, but she felt a shiver run up her spine.

Kenshin. A handsome Hyuuga man with alert eyes and an intelligent mind. Every women, excluding herself, wanted to be with him, and every man wanted to be him. In Hanayo's opinion, though, he had one major flaw: he was power hungry. Almost murderously so.

He'd proposed the idea of separation, and since had been working on a cursed seal. Everyone was on edge in the Hyuuga compound, wondering who would be chosen to have the seal put on them and who would have power. Several other people had been chosen for the experiment, and she hadn't seen them since they went to his office.

She found her way to the bathroom, ridding herelf of her clothes and neatly folding them, placing them in her spot. The water was a little more chilly than she'd expected, but she forced herself to sink until her shoulders barely broke the surface.

Her hand raised, slipping under her hair. Why had she agreed to this? She knew what had happened to the others. What could have possibly possessed her to say yes?

A groan left her and she splashed her face with water, feeling a bit better. Had Kenshin said something about this being the safest mark yet? The conversation was very blurry.

The rest of the bath was spent with a relaxed mind. She didn't think of the new mark adorning her forehead, nor of the consequences getting such a thing might have later. Once she was finished, she pulled on a different article of clothing. It had been a good thirty minutes, but when she emerged in the hall, Kenshin's light was still on.

After taking a few steps, his door opened and he stepped through, teeth grit, from his hand, he released a vase, which shattered against the opposite wall and fell, scattering the ground with tiny slivers of glass.

Grumbles arouse around the hall, and Hanayo almost panicked. She wasn't ready to face anyone at this moment in time.

Kenshin spotted her almost immediately, and she felt her heart beginning to pound.

"Kenshin, um, sama, I'm sorry, I just wanted to... I was taking a bath," she said, quietly.

There was a small bit of silence before he nodded. "Are you feeling better, Hanayo?" asked the man quietly.

"Yes, Sir," she replied, almost breathless.

"Alright. Head back upstairs and get some sleep, or at least try." He chuckled. "Being out for three days might make one rather... restless."

She nodded shakily and walked forward, stepping around the glass without mentioning the scene she'd witnessed. The only pause taken was when his hand reached out and gripped her shoulder.

"Take care of yourself," Kenshin murmured to her. She stayed frozen as his hand slid down her back slowly, trailing along her spine. "You look tense."

"I'll try, Sir," she managed to get out. he moved away and close the door, and only then did Hanayo hurry out of the hallway, trying desperately not to think.

Hello everyone. This is a new story focusing on the curse mark of the Hyuuga clan. I can't fine much information about when this technique was used, but I'm going to assume when the first Hokage was in power.

So, yes, this story will deal with dark and/or mature themes. Just in case people don't like reading that stuff.

I hope you like it, and have a great day.