.:. 4 .:.
Yui Komori rummaged in her pouch and cringed as her fingers brushed the scarcity of coins. She needed a number of things from the market-place, yet her status and income refused to oblige. Reiji had left four years ago, and without his sustainable earnings, each day was a constant struggle. If she miscalculated the budget for fabric, she would be forced to sacrifice food for a day or two.
Her father would soon notice her unhealthy pallor and tight collarbones, and with a kiss on her brow and a murmured verse of good health, he would slip bread and cheese into her basket. Yui disliked being pitied upon and she knew to avoid him on those days. She would occupy her mind with books and nibble at her fingernails; anything to sate her protesting stomach.
"A bag of flour, please," decided the woman. "That will be all."
"Sixty, miss," the merchant replied, his gaze sweeping over the letter pinned to the cloth of her breast. It caught the sunshine like a brilliant ruby, conspicuous and foreign against the backdrop of her plain bodice.
"But Sir!" Yui gaped. "That is thrice as much as I would usually pay!"
Long, oily strands swayed with the shake of his head. "Take it or leave it," he crossed his arms to seal the finality. "My price shan't be lowered for you."
"Then I shall leave it."
Pink irises fluttered to her empty basket, and with a sigh of resignation, she went on her way.
It was her first public outing since donning the scarlet letter and it seemed that everybody was intent in making her as miserable as possible. As she lifted her hem to avoid squalor, she was painfully aware of the glares, sniggers and whispers which lurked at every stall. With the aim to infuriate the small-minded village folk, she angled her chin and hummed an optimistic tune. With each tread of her boot, people scattered, as though she was a virus carrying the plague.
They feared what they could not understand.
She needn't venture to the market often; she was mostly self-sufficient. Yui owned a goat which produced milk, several hens for eggs, and then there was the stream to gather water. To make bread, she would purchase flour, followed by yarn and bolts of textile for garments.
Yui was accomplished at needlework; it was her solace during the many months of solitude. Every week she would hand over her finished creations to Subaru and he would sell them to high-ranking villagers. They would pay a fine price for a new frock for their wives.
"Oi! Cricket!"
She was passing the tavern when she heard Subaru's call. The building was dozing with the aftermath of a night of drinking and activity. The shutters were drawn and the hanging sign—which illustrated a cherub Cupid and his bow—creaked and flapped. It was an abandoned site during daylight hours.
Shifting the basket in her arms, she turned and smiled. Subaru bounded towards her, having split from the company of a group of men wearing white-wigs and high-collars. Mud splashed up onto his boots and breeches while his hair—which his father had no doubt forced him to tame—spilled forwards and shrouded an eye. He waved, the black of his cloak billowing behind him like the wings of a bat.
"Subaru," she sighed his name in relief. "On official business, I see." Her neck craned to find the impressive figure of Karl Sakamaki, but not his heir; she frowned. "Without your brother?"
"The lazy bastard is bedridden," he clicked his tongue. "A splitting migraine, he says. But I'd wager it's to avoid of the tedium of business."
"He's ill? Let me hurry back to the cottage, I'm sure butterbur grows by the riverbank—"
"Don't waste your time," Subaru grumbled, his disinterested stare roaming across the bustling street. "The doctor's already at the castle."
"Mr. Gibbons?" Yui questioned with surprise. "Master Shu allowed him to fuss? After the last time—"
Subaru snorted into his forearm. "When a leech wriggled up his nose?"
Yui exploded into laugher, high-pitched with a sweet, melodious ring. "Yes! Oh, and how he sulked! He gathered Margot into his arms—do you remember her?—that old, smelly, worm-ridden cat? He wouldn't dare speak to us for hours!"
The shrill sound attracted disapproving glances; it was unsightly for a woman to manifest a ruckus in a public place. However some were directed towards her companion. The village whore and the young lord exchanging jokes? It was scandalous! Yet Subaru never did care for the opinions of strangers. The only judgement which mattered would be those rare few who had earned a place in his heart.
He blinked at her; this wasn't the girl he had grown to know over the duration of her condition. Her smiles would ache and never meet her eyes. But now here she stood, with her shame blazing upon her chest, giggling like a child. Subaru Sakamaki did not understand women and their strange, unpredictable personalities.
"What?" said Yui, breathless. "Do I have something upon my face?"
"Hah?" Subaru flushed and cocked his head to the side. "Your ugly features, that's what."
"Do not be unkind."
He exhaled and threaded fingers through his hair. "You... you haven't laughed like that in a long time."
"The memory of childhood is a happy one," she recollected. "It makes me forget the weight of this letter... if only for a moment."
Subaru pursed his lips, and with a furrow between his brows, he focused on a point past her shoulder. "You and him are damn pathetic. I don't know where he gets the energy to be so fucking stubborn," his eyes flitted downward to meet hers. "He hasn't forgiven you, Cricket."
"Who?"
Subaru scowled. "The King. You're to be hanged tomorrow eve."
Yui startled as she remembered Kanato's words—'You must wear it. Or when the vile creature is born, you will be hanged.'
With wide eyes, she clutched her chest. "S-Sorry?"
"My brother," he rolled his eyes and lightly jabbed her forehead. "You stupid imp."
"Yes, well," Yui hedged, laughing off her anxiety. "Perhaps I do not deserve his forgiveness," she gave a rueful grin. "I still love him, as I do you, Subaru." The youngest's expression was confused with a hint of red dusting his cheeks, but Yui ushered him not to digress from the previous topic. "Is your brother well?"
"That bastard—your husband," he elaborated at her raised eyebrow. "Is attending to him. He's a cunning man... I wouldn't trust him to shovel my horse's shit."
To be brought up in such a wealthy, affluent family, Yui was in awe of his crude language. Conversely, Shu had always spoken well. It was often drawled with frequent pauses in recent years, but nonetheless, his speech reflected his rank. Subaru—despite his rudeness and temper—mimicked his elder brother's accent growing up. Yet during his adolescence, he sought company in Ayato—who had the common tongue—and the many felons who would visit the tavern. To be taken seriously, Yui supposed, he had to adapt.
"Cunning?"
"He has..." Subaru waved his hands as they walked, weaving through the sea of people like two slinking fish. "A certain way about him. Cryptic questions and secretive smiles... Fuck, simply being in the same room as that bastard makes me uneasy."
"Subaru," she looked upwards. "I didn't know you were well acquainted with him?"
"Huh? You aren't telling me you haven't heard?"
"I barely venture out of my cottage... so no, I have not."
"He's residing at the castle," he revealed with a sour twist to his lips. "As if the place wasn't filled with enough pompous brutes."
Yui stopped abruptly, hanging her head to gaze upon her murky reflection in a puddle. Many cursed her manners for making an obstacle of herself in the street, but she didn't seem to care. Her hands smothered the lower part of her face, and Subaru couldn't decipher if she was pleased or dismayed by the news.
"He was staying at the tavern," she murmured, watching as the water rippled with the tremors of cart wheels. "Now he is not."
"Jeez, didn't I just fucking say that?" Subaru fluffed the hair from his eyes and circled back on his heels to face her. "Well," his tone mellowed. "At least four-eyes is outta the triplet's hair, right?"
"Right," Yui issued a small laugh and perked up after realising her stupor. "I do not believe Ayato would be impressed by attending to his every whim. Both men like to think of themselves as superior."
"I don't know who the hell they think they are," he grumbled with a set jaw. Then, as though remembering something, he laughed. "Ayato told me all of the shit he used to request—all fancy bed-linens and hot water... you'd think he was royalty!" his head shook. "Fucking great. Now we have something else to waste our money upon."
Unexpectedly, Yui jolted, as though pushed by an invisible entity. The baby homed inside of her kicked and unsettled, and with an array curses falling from his lips, Subaru steadied her. Her vision was a mingling of indistinct, colourful blurs, face ashen with nausea.
"Hey!" his voice reached her, but it was distant and echoed, the sound one hears when plummeted underwater. "If you're going to faint, at least give me prior warning!"
"I... I'm sorry." Abashed, Yui regained her feet. "I'm afraid I haven't eaten this morning."
He narrowed his eyes and snatched a loaf from a nearby crate. His thievery didn't go unnoticed and the merchant brandished a fist. "You scoundrel! I'll have you whipped!"
Subaru's upper-lip curled, like a ferocious animal flashing its teeth. He was streetwise, always carrying a pin-sharp dagger in his belt, and often, Yui caught sight of it when his cloak billowed. It was crafted with the finest silver, and embedded into the hilt were three sapphires. He was fascinated by it—when static, it was harmless. Yet when held, it harnessed the ability to kill. His fingers itched for it now.
"M-Master Sakamaki!" the trader blundered. "If I had known it was you—!"
"Whatever," Subaru waved a hand in dismissal and shoved the bread to her lips. Yui spluttered with the force and took a bite to satisfy his brutal coddling. "Your basket's empty," he noticed all of a sudden, the words ringing with accusation.
Yui nodded. "It is."
He was silent, but his fury manifested itself through his eyes. They were trained upon her, and Yui, similar to the merchant, became fearful. Her attention scurried to her wrist to idly tug at a loose thread.
"Their prices were horrendously steep."
"I fucking knew it," he growled. "Those bastards didn't accept your money—they wouldn't sell to you."
"They didn't openly refuse, but they did charge me the price of a pearl for a bag of flour," she admitted, twirling a blonde curl around her finger. "It seems that gold is not worth its weight once touched by the hands of an adulteress."
A week had passed since Kanato stood on her doorstep to deliver her sentence. Subaru didn't find out about her punishment by her own lips; no, it came from his father's gloating. At breakfast and supper, the subject of Yui Komori's mark of shame was inescapable. Karl Sakamaki was proud of what he had cast upon the girl, and he relished in every ounce of her misfortune. It was a message to other women—be unfaithful and this will forever be your prison.
Shu was clueless on the matter; he hadn't left his bed-chambers in days. He wouldn't care either way, Subaru had concluded, so he kept the news to himself. With each passing year, his brother's health and motivation deteriorated, and although he would never admit it, it worried him. Subaru worried about a lot of things; his suicidal mother, who frequently prised off the wood barricading her tower window, and Yui, the clumsy fool who lacked self-preservation. It drove him to madness.
"They have no right!"
Yui yelped as he latched onto her arm. He dragged her along the narrow streets and she hopscotched the foul waste with a ruche of her skirt. "S-Subaru you mustn't!"
"Shut up!" he yelled without sparing her a backwards glance. The youngest was unaware of his own strength and his nails riveted her skin. Yui suppressed a cry; she knew he had good intentions, and more importantly, she knew it was never wise to cross Subaru Sakamaki when his temper struck. "What the hell did you want?"
Her brain was wiped of thought. "Um," she mumbled. "Cloth... and flour. But really—" He skidded to a halt and Yui, who hadn't foreseen his decision, collided into his chest. She squeaked and rubbed her nose.
"That's it?"
Subaru's expression was bewildered, and it was in moments like these that Yui realised their difference. He expected her to list meats and vegetables and spices—after all, that was his staple diet. The young lord, who had the world at his feet and an endless fountain of gold, could be ignorant to those who lived on the breadline. Yui Komori had been his friend for over a decade, and he never viewed her for what she truly was. Perhaps if they had met in adulthood, he would judge her by her sex, status and shame.
Yui smiled, and around the edges played a whisper of jest. "Am I in need of anything else?"
"A gag," he quipped. "And a brain."
"Oh, Subaru," said she as her fingers straightened his awry cravat. "You are intolerable this morning."
"Shu usually handles these things," he exhaled. "Meeting with the officials, I mean. I can't tolerate the fucking eloquence of it all! No, you know what? Fuck them. Phonies, the whole lot of them. I don't give a shit about them, and they don't give a shit about me. But you know what they do give a shit about? The gold rattling in my pocket. I'm sick of it. You're lucky that you don't have a penny to your name, Cricket. At least people hate you openly."
"I do not believe they hate me," Yui pondered. "They hate my moral judgement. They do not see me as a human like themselves who dreams and loves; instead, all they see is a letter. What poor souls we are," she matched his sigh. "Objectified by wealth and shame."
Subaru gave a distracted hum in agreement as he bargained with a merchant for her goods. Yui pushed her pouch under his nose, but he swatted it away like a pestering fly. He had more money than he knew what to do with, he insisted, and it was a heavy weight in his pocket. She thanked him and insisted on a loan, but with his menacing glare, she dropped the subject at once.
With his fame and disposition, the trader was generous. It was unfair how the rich were gifted with discounts when they were the only ones who could afford it. The system was corrupt; once rich, always rich. Once poor, always poor.
In a trance, Yui's stare had found a young boy, no older than seven, hidden behind a barrel. Eyes the colour of a cloudless sky, he was timid, his grubby hands shaking as he swiped fair hair. He was malnourished and thin, the cloth on his back continually slipping from his shoulder. Yui wanted to weep at the sight of him, and subconsciously, her fingers traced the swell of her stomach.
With a kind smile, she crept towards him, but he flinched and retreated at the looming shadow. It was probable that he had been beaten for loitering on the doorsteps of businesses. "Please, don't be afraid," she soothed as she crouched down beside him. "I'm Yui. Are you lost?"
He shook his head. Dirt-caked nails were pinned to his mouth as teeth nibbled at skin. By her own habit, she knew of his hunger.
"Your parents?"
"With God," said he with a croak of dehydration. "Fever took 'em."
Her eyes crinkled with sadness. "Dear, what is your name?"
"S-Sora."
"And what a fitting name that is." Yui twisted to the Sakamaki behind her, whose arms were bundled with purchases, looking down upon the child with a discomforted pull of lips. "Subaru, do you have a handkerchief?" He patted his chest and plucked out a small white cloth. It was embroided with the initials S.S.
Yui wiped the tears and muck from his face which soon revealed a set of handsome features. A cluster of freckles peppered high cheekbones, sandy eyebrows a smooth and gentle curve.
"I would run and buy you some bread, but those silly merchants do not have my favour today. Here," she took his hands and placed her pouch into his palm. "You need this far more than I do. Buy yourself some food and a cloak to keep warm. In the church, the minister is kind and he will give you board in return for simple chores. Do you understand?" Mutely, the child nodded. "Be safe, Sora."
Dust sprung up as he scrambled to his feet. He stood tall and kissed her cheek before rushing off and disappearing amongst the crowds. Yui laughed while Subaru emitted a sound of disapproval.
"Kindness is your weakness, Cricket," muttered the youngest. "In this world, people will tread over those with a soft heart."
"I disagree," challenged the woman, looking down upon her overflowing basket. "If we do not have kindness, how can we have hope?"
.:.
Arguably, Shu Sakamaki's bed-chambers possessed the finest view. Located at the rear of the castle, it was quiet, the adjacent rooms unoccupied. Furniture was wreathed in dust cloaks until an event was held—such as a ball—then life would be breathed into them once more. How he detested such things. Tittering women and raucous laughter provided him with a headache and wavering patience. He would leave and sleep anywhere quiet. He had no qualms sleeping under the apple tree; it gave him a betraying sense of freedom compared to the suffocating stone walls.
His room overlooked the forest, and with a gleam of blue and white foam, the river could be found. In winter, one could see the upheaval of smoke from the chimney of Yui Komori's cottage. From the height, he heard every fluctuation in the weather—the pattering of rain calmed him, yet the wind awoke and chilled him to the bone. Tapestries in shades of gold hung opposite the four-poster bed while a chest housed treasured possessions: instruments, sheets of compositions and letters.
Two unpleasant things faced him as he lay on the mattress with a hand sprawled across his forehead; Reiji Kasei and his bureau. The wooden surface was engraved with years of frustration at the unwanted responsibility of his position: broken quills, slammed fists and scorch marks.
Reiji was burdensome company. He was relentless in finding the man who had tempted his wife. His glare penetrated the souls of men, planting a seed of torment in the hope of flourishing a second scarlet letter.
The curtains were drawn and the room was dark, the only light being the quavering wick of the candle beside the bespectacled doctor. He sat at the desk with a quill in hand, the scratching of the tip against parchment agony to his ears. A migraine was unbearable; his skull was shattering.
"Must you create further noise?" Shu groaned as his fingers massaged skin. "Or do you derive pleasure from others pain?"
Reiji sipped from a teacup of blue and white china. "Why, that it quite an accusation. I am simply in charge of your care. Applying my medicinal expertise is the least I can do to repay my keep."
The doctor had grinded butterbur leaves and mingled them in a cup of water. With each mouthful, it temporarily soothed the pain. But Shu hadn't the energy to continually sit up and drink, so he ignored Reiji's orders; he chose to suffer.
Shu shifted onto his side and squeezed the pillow. "A woman would have provided me with more entertainment. Bending over to hold the cup to my lips... ah, she could do little not to expose herself to me. Dresses are exceedingly low these days. Much to my delight, of course..."
"Your tongue is filthy," he chided, and to punish him for the lewd remark, he clattered the teacup onto the saucer. Shu moaned and clasped hands over his ears. "You speak of a woman—any woman? Or one in particular?"
"I am a man..." he straightened and fumbled for the glass on the nightstand. There were exceptions; he would cave when the pain tampered with his vision and caused a wave of nausea. "Shouldn't any woman do?" he drank and reclined against the bed-frame. "No... I find myself fussy. Most women are noisy and bothersome... their laughter makes my ears bleed."
"My wife's laughter was a pleasant sound," Reiji recollected. "Wouldn't you say?"
"That is one man's opinion. I find it shrill and barely tolerable."
"Indeed," there was a mocking undertone. "I recall how insufferable she seemed to you on Midsummers Eve all those years ago."
"To bring up the Komori girl means you still suspect me... right?" He released a weary sigh and returned the drink to the stand. Lying down, he covered his eyes with a flannel. "She and I had a quarrel many years ago. The issue... has never been fully resolved."
"The issue?"
Suddenly, the door widened with the appearance of a cat. It scurried into the room and pounced onto the bed, padding over the covers until it rested upon Shu's chest. With a low chuckle, he lifted the flannel and cracked open an eye. "Are you intent on bothering me?" the master asked, and the animal rolled onto its back and pawed the air. "Fine, stay, but don't mewl. You better not have fleas from your idle wandering..."
With black vision, images surfaced of his old albino cat. Fur as white as a pearl, the Komori girl affectionately named her Margot. She had discovered her as a kitten in the forest, hidden in the cavern of a tree and riddled with disease. Margot was a runt, and the three of them—Yui, Subaru and himself—nursed her back to health, and it clung onto Shu with the neediness and affection of a mother cat.
One day, instead of studying, he snuck out to the stables to play with her. But his governess caught him and reported his behaviour to his father. Karl Sakamaki would not tolerate whimsical behaviour from his heir and as punishment, he grabbed the cat by the scruff of the neck and tossed her from the window. She broke her back and became paralysed. Sniffling, Subaru ended her pain with a rock to the head. They told Yui that she had ran away, and naively, she believed them.
The cat which currently lay upon his chest was ginger and striped, twinning the pattern of a tiger-lily. He had stumbled across the feline on a walk through the forest five years ago. Wildflowers sprouted beneath his boots, and there, amongst them, was an orange creature grooming itself. Amber and blue met, and with a head shake, Shu carried on his way. But he was soon halted with the light crunching of leaves; it was following him. He palmed his forehead and exhaled, when another disruption sent the birds fleeing. Yui Komori, a child no more, manifested through the trees. She was breathless and rosy cheeked.
"Lily? Lily!" Her blonde locks flung madly as her head snapped to the side. "Where are you?" she gasped when she laid eyes upon his silhouette. "S-Shu—?"
"This thing..." he plucked the cat into his arms and it nestled into his chest, elongating a purr. "Belongs to you?"
"No," she clarified as hands rubbed bare skin. She was barefoot and clothed in a flimsy nightgown; he itched for his cloak. "She's a stray. I only fed her a little..."
"Hn," with disinterest, he focused upon the hollow of a tree, similar to the one she had found Margot in many years prior. "It won't stop following me."
"Foolish girl, come back inside at once!" Reiji's voice echoed through the clearing. "Running outside, barefoot? I won't have it!" It became louder and closer. "You will do well to behave like a lady if we are to be sharing the same roof!"
Shu's smile was strained. "Your husband does not appreciate your spirit, it seems..."
"Animals have always loved you," she ignored his comment, her pink eyes welled under the moonlight. "Keep her... a castle is a fine place for a cat to live. Don't let her run away this time, okay?" she turned with the intention to walk back towards her cottage, yet as though struck by something, she craned to face him. "Lily... her name is Lily."
"Obviously... I did not believe you were screaming at the flowers."
With a nod and a feeble laugh, she spun on her heel. It was his words this time which stopped her from returning to the call of the doctor. "Lilies are toxic to cats. Another wise choice of yours, Cricket Girl..."
A sob was lost in the rustling of leaves, and when Shu swivelled his body, Yui Komori had vanished.
"Hm?" Reiji's figure towered over him. "What's this? Have you fallen asleep? Your energy levels are a disgrace. It is only good manners to stay awake when one is talking to you. My, and a cat certainly cannot be helping. Those things are a nuisance—a walking disease."
"The only nuisance is you," Shu murmured.
Frightened, Lily jumped from his chest and snuggled into the creases formed in the quilts. Saddened at the disappearance of warmth, he sat up and curled an arm around his knee. "Animals... have always seemed to like me. Whereas my brother," his mouth broke into a weak smile. "They fled and bit him... and how he would sulk."
Hands tied behind his back, Reiji strolled towards the window and drew the curtains. "Ah, Subaru Sakamaki," the doctor pondered, his form paled by the moonlight. "I remember him as a youth... always at the surgery with broken bones and bruised skin. How old is the boy?"
"He was twenty-one this past winter."
"He is loyal to my wife," Reiji continued, the breeze swaying black strands. "Defending her at the castle door? Why, one has to admire his bravery... or could it be foolishness?"
"Investigate him... but you may wake to find a dagger in your throat."
The doctor arched an eyebrow and met his patient's stare. "Hmph," he folded his arms. "Has the pain lessened?" Yet by the flatness of his tone, it was clear that he hoped it hadn't.
"My suffering brings you great satisfaction... It is worthless attempting to conceal it."
"Perhaps. After all," there was a tiny, malicious curve to his lips. "Torture can reveal many truths."
"No..." Shu began, drawling with distraction. "The pain hasn't lessened... nor do I believe it ever will." Absentmindedly, he ran a finger along the cat's slinking spine. "My mother had a similar affliction. She was a cold, stoic woman. Her emotions: stress, sadness, guilt... would not transpire outwardly. They would rise into her head and she would be bedridden for days. I am a selfish man... those days were happy ones. Carefree... I was finally spared of her wrath."
A frown distorted his features. "For me to speak so openly... you have surely slipped something into my drink."
"I believe guilt manifests itself in many ways," Reiji remained nonchalant. "But this time, my hand is innocent. Nightfall and fatigue are simply potions for honesty."
"Leave," Shu clicked his tongue and flopped his body down against the mattress. "I'm going to sleep... and I would rather not have prying eyes upon me while I rest."
Reiji hummed and gathered his belongings into a leather briefcase. "As you wish."
He turned to leave when a small object, partially shrouded by sheets of unfinished compositions, caught his eye. The surface bounced back the moon rays with a glimmer, and he pushed up his glasses to see a gold ring with vines of metal capturing a stone of rose quartz. Shu, who was not as idle as the doctor was led to believe, whipped out a hand to enclose the jewel safely in his palm.
"A man should not touch what is not theirs," he warned.
Reiji's upper-lip curled. "A truer statement has never been spoken."
A/N: Hi!
Now, I know somebody will always be disappointed when the father is named, but I will not be able to please everybody and for that I apologise. This was wonderfully phrased in a review by Tigerlily. But what I will clarify is that the father is not an OC. Personally, I love OC's—if they have depth and purpose—and I do intend to incorporate two or three (Yui's child is one as is Sora) for plot purposes.
In case any of you were wondering, Ayato (and possibly Laito) will make an appearance in the next chapter because I know, as of late, my focus has been on Reiji, Shu and Subaru...
Lastly, thank you to all of the Guest/Anonymous reviewers, to ExilEden and to Faith of Soul for your feedback. I really appreciate it! I was lurking on Tumblr the other day when I noticed that fyeahdialovers recommended this fic, which was super sweet! Thank you :)
I can't say for certain when the next update will be because 1) I only have half of it written and 2) I'm visiting family in the countryside for a few weeks. Signal is rare and decent Wi-Fi is another. Try to bear with me D:
allyelle~