Disclaimer: I don't own RK or any of the characters in it. Yada yada yada! Ja, ja, oiu, oiu, si, si! You all know this already!
Authoress' note: Big huge sorry for the very late update! I'm so embarrassed when I read about the reviews I give out to people! "Please update soon!", "Keep writing!" and etc. But you see, I had to study for my end of term exams and I was never allowed to go near the computer!! It's also fasting month so I've been really tired!
Chapter 7. Snow Dragon.
As the morning light shone in through the windows, a small figure started to snuggle deeper into the covers that covered her. It was a beautiful morning, bright sunshine, blue sky, singing birds on flowering trees, but the little figure refused to get up and face the day.
This little figure was none other than the hateful little Tokio. She knew the sun was up but there was something unpleasant that was nagging at the back of her mind. Something she didn't want to remember.
Tokio squirmed in her futon as one hot, bright ray of sunshine hit her directly on the face. Turning her head to one side, she tried to remember what it was that upset her so much. It had something to do with yesterday. It always did.
Turning onto her other side Tokio suddenly winced in pain. The jolt of the pain immediately refreshed her memories and brought her back to what had happened last night-the fire that burned down her house and her parents! Tokio also remembered the cause of the pain that was spreading on her shoulder. Saito had pinched her viciously there and Tokio didn't know which was more painful; the memory or the pinch itself.
Yanking her yukata down, Tokio took a look at her shoulder and saw that it had turned blue black in colour. Giving an angry sigh, Tokio threw up her covers in frustration and sat up in her futon. Minami, the lady she had met yesterday, was the one who had given her her yukata and Tokio felt something for the woman she had never felt for a person before. Gratitude was something Tokio was not familiar with and she was feeling that for the lady. Tokio, however, did not know how to thank someone.
Tokio sat in her futon as she looked about her.
The room she was in was extremely well kept; clean and equipped with small but solid furniture. The room wasn't big but neither was it small and was decorated prettily. There was a slender glass jar of purple orchids on a small desk by the window and the walls had lovely paintings of flowers and sceneries on them. It was obvious that the room was done by a woman or belonged to one.
Whichever it was, Tokio was not pleased by it. The room only made her pissed.
Being such a neglected person, none of her parents had ever bothered to help decorate Tokio's large room. Instead, it was the servants of her household who had been in charge of that. Her parents had left it all to the servants to decide what to do with the room; all they had done was provide the servants with the money needed.
And as a result, Tokio's room had been dull and plain. No flowers could ever be seen on her bulky desk and Tokio had never thought of asking the servants to do it.
Tokio looked away from the flowers in the jar and looked out the open window. There were birds singing melodious little songs on the big flowering tree that was just beside the window.
Walking towards the window, Tokio shouted at the birds.
"I'm awake now, you know! So why don't you just shut up!" she cried.
Suddenly Tokio could hear the shoji being pushed open.
"Gosh! Now that's anger!" gasped a voice from behind her.
Tokio whirled around to look at the person who had spoken. She saw a pretty girl, about her age with long silky brown hair and honey tanned skin holding a tray that was filled with what Tokio guessed was her breakfast.
The girl smiled at Tokio when she noticed Tokio's gaze traveling to the tray she was carrying.
"I brought you your breakfast! Okasan said it's not the best tea I've made but it was short noticed!" the girl laughed warmly. Her laughter was quite beautiful; syrupy and sunny. Like a cup of golden sunshine had been lodged in her throat.
"I wasn't expecting any visitors this early in the morning…" the girl began to trail off as she started to kneel down to place the tray on the floor.
"My name's Yuki by the way. Okasan named me after the snow…" she said as she made a gesture that invited Tokio to eat.
Tokio simply stared at Yuki icily. Then she turned her head and refused to face Yuki as she spoke to her.
"I'm not hungry!" was the cold reply she gave.
Yuki was no ordinary little girl. She did not get offended by Tokio's cold answer. Instead, she looked at Tokio in shock.
"Not hungry!?" she asked in disbelief "Why, girl, did you eat something already?"
"Are you deaf or something!?" Tokio snapped rudely "I said I wasn't hungry so I'm not! What's so difficult about that to understand!?"
Most people would get hurt if not intimidated by Tokio's rude language but Yuki was not one of those people. She stood her ground and wasn't the slightest bit afazed.
She gave a casual shrug as she picked up the tray and made her way to the shoji.
"Suit yourself, girl. Just don't blame me when your stomach's rumbling!"
Tokio snorted at that. Yuki made her way out and bowed to Tokio before she closed the shoji.
Tokio continued to look out the window. Unbeknownst to her that Yuki and Minami were talking about her in the kitchen.
"Okasan! That girl is a snake! She's deadlier than a tiger and twice as mean!" Yuki cried out as she began complaining to her mother, who was cleaning the dishes.
Minami sighed before answering her daughter. Yuki was always a bit hot tempered. It was difficult for her to just be understanding to people like Tokio.
"Yuki, please be more understanding to that girl. She's just lost her parents in a fire yesterday" said Minami as she wiped a plate dry.
Yuki blushed at Minami's answer. She had forgotten that Tokio had lost her parents only yesterday.
"You also said she was betrothed to Saito-sama…" Yuki said slowly as she recalled whatever else her mother had informed her of the girl.
Minami nodded, pleased that Yuki had listened to what she had told her about Tokio.
"Yes, she is".
"I think she suits him!" Yuki said finally, after thinking a while.
"And why's that, Yuki?" asked Minami, curious to find out what Yuki would say.
Without hesitation, the young girl replied confidently, "She's like him in a lot of ways! She even looks like him!"
Minami laughed at that. Trust Yuki to make you laugh. Besides being quick tempered, Yuki was also funny at times. And in this case, Minami couldn't help but agree; Saito and Tokio did resemble a lot to each other.
Wiping the last dish dry and clean, Minami turned to look at her daughter.
"Be nice to her, Yuki-chan! Just be patient and hopefully she might start to open up to us…" her eyes twinkling as she said this.
Yuki blinked at her mother for a few seconds, and then she broke into a grin.
"Hai! Okasan!"
"That's a good girl!" Minami said smiling brightly, "Now, why don't you get little Miss Grumpy-kins out in the garden for some fresh air?"
Nodding happily, Yuki shot out of the kitchen to get Tokio.
She found Tokio right where she had left her; standing by the window, looking out to the garden.
"Come on!" Yuki grabbed Tokio's hand and pulled the girl out into the garden before she could manage to breathe a word.
"B-but! I hate going outside!" Tokio protested.
Yuki ignored her as she continued totug at Tokio until they reached the garden. Tokio looked around her and was momentarily in awe. The garden was quite beautiful; it had a koi pond, and lovely patch of blooming flowers.
Yuki bent down to sniff some of them and Tokio saw her closing her eyes as she did so, as if she was savouring the scents.
"They're pretty aren't they?" she asked Tokio, fingering the flowers gently.
Tokio blushed and looked away, nodding her head once.
"I really like playing outdoors! You can watch the caterpillars wrap themselves up in their cocoons and grow into beautiful butterflies…Hear the sparrows sing in the sky…" Yuki trailed off, caught in her imagination.
Then she turned and asked Tokio, "What do you do for fun?"
Glancing at Yuki, Tokio took her time answering the question.
"Nothing really. I like to read, I guess…" she muttered stiffly.
Yuki stood up and smiled at Tokio in a new light. She liked reading as well and thought that it was an extremely beneficial hobby. But Yuki didn't even need to know what Tokio's hobbies were to find out if she were smart. Even an idiot could tell how clever Tokio was just by looking into her cold, green intelligent eyes.
"We've got a huge library in our house at the back" informed Yuki, proudly.
"You can always go there if you like."
Tokio didn't reply. She didn't know how to so instead, she just kept her lips pursed.
Not long after that, a cry rang out from the house. It was a baby's cry and Yuki dashed in to answer the call. She emerged from the house a second later with a small child in her arms.
Tokio's eyes widened to size of saucers as she gaped at the baby Yuki was holding in astonishment.
"What's that!?" she cried, taking a step closer to look at the baby.
"What? Oh? This?" Yuki asked, looking from Tokio to the baby."This is Ryu. He's four months old!"
Toki's eyes, which were already huge enough, seemed to grow just a fraction more. Her mouth made a small 'o' shape.
"Four months old?" she echoed.
"Yeah… Never seen a baby before, Tokio?" Yuki asked teasingly, although she knew Tokio realy hadn't seen a baby before.
"Mmm.." Tokio blushed, but her hands were already reaching out for the baby's.
Ryu clasped his small starfish hand round Tokio's fore finger the minute they came into contact. Tokio gasped in delight. She looked at his hands; delicate and perfect. Then she turned to look into the Ryu's face and saw the gentlest eyes she had ever seen.
"He likes you!" Yuki nodded in approval.
Tokio snapped out of her fascination with the baby and wrenched her hand out of the baby's palm.
Blushing furiously, she turned and looked the other way. Yuki laughed at Tokio's reaction.
"You're a right queer one, Tokio!"
And '...' was Tokio's reply.
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'Minami-san, forgive me for bothering you again but I would like to visit you this afternoon. I apolagise for the inconvenience this may cause you. I have some things to discuss with you and my betrothed privately.'
Faithfully,
Saito Hajime
Minami reread the note again and folded it carefully in her hands. The messenger boy had brought it minutes ago and she most curious about what it was that Saito wanted to talk to her about. She could understand why he would wish to speak to Tokio as they obviously needed to sort things about their future as husband and wife.
Thinking of the girl made Minami wondered for a moment what would her reaction be like if Saito suggested something that didn't suit her. What a nightmare that would be!
Chuckling silently, she made her way to the girls to inform them the news.
PS: I hope you all like the update! Currently working on the next chappy so wait for it , aight?
