15 June 1897.
That afternoon, Yu dragged Mika back to the castle with him. They each had their rifles, but it was doubtful if they would even fire, give how soaked they now were. Yu's soggy book on Shakespeare stuck out of the back of his pants, but he just ignored it.
"I can't leave the castle with you. If I do, I have to run separately! If I'm with you, they'll definitely catch you," spluttered Mika.
"Nope! I can't leave you behind, Mika," said Yu flashing a smile back at him.
"It's too dangerous!" said Mika urgently as they ducked under some tree branches. "You know how to fight and hunt, so you can survive on your own. You know enough German to get by without me. I'll only hold you back!"
"I'm not leaving without you, Mika," Yu stated firmly as if this illogical decision weren't up for debate.
"But if you're with me, you'll die!"
Yu stopped running.
Mika caught his breath as lightning lit up the sky and thunder rattled the earth. His wrist hurt from Yu's grip.
"Mika," said Yu as he turned around and grasped both of Mika's hands once again, "you're my friend. Friends don't leave friends behind. If we're going to Hell, then we're going together… Besides," continued Yu, smiling gently, "even if you weren't my friend, I couldn't leave you behind here."
His friend? No, Yu couldn't be Mika's friend. If they were friends, then—
"You can't be my friend!" exclaimed Mika, fear leaking through his voice. "If you're my friend, then, even more, Ferid will definitely—"
"But he's going to kill me anyway, right?" said Yu, interrupting as he lightly rubbed his thumbs against Mika's palms. "Besides, if we weren't friends, then would you have told me all this? If we weren't friends, then you would've just continued acting like a jerk like you had back when we first met, to try and chase Guren and me away. I didn't realize it back then, Mika, but thank you… You only acted that way to try and save us."
Yu stepped forward to try to give Mika a reassuring hug, but Mika responded by stepping back and looking at Yu with confusion. Yu ignored Mika's awkward reaction and stepped back to a proper distance, continuing to rub Mika's palms as he prayed Mika would be too distracted to notice they were still holding hands.
"And besides," continued Yu, smiling gently, "you're only lying about our friendship in order to protect me. Doesn't the fact that you care so much about my well-being make us friends?"
Oh, thought Mika, suddenly realizing why Ferid had given him such a knowing look every time he denied being friends with Yu. This entire time, Ferid had already considered Yu to be Mika's friend and marked him as an "interesting" target.
Without realizing it, Mika had already put Yu in grave danger. The horrible realization dawned on him, making him feel like it was crushing him under its wicked grasp, and, so, he trembled.
Sayuri Hanayori rushed inside with the hotel's linen just as the rain started. Her wavy brown hair was plastered to her forehead and her shoulders were damp, but she managed to save the laundry before it became soaked with rain water. Just like every day, the twenty-four-year-old unmarried woman worked hard with her chores. She panted heavily, shivering from the chilly rain. After catching her breath, she used her sleeve to wipe the water off her face.
"I've gotten the rest of the linens, Sir!" she announced after she returned to the Golden Krone Hotel.
"Thank you, Dear," said her father from the registration desk. He was a man in his forties but looked closer to his sixties and smoked too much, reeking of tobacco every day. His daughters used to complain about it every day when they were growing up. So did his wife. With age, stress, and tobacco, his hair had faded to a murky gray color, and his had deep wrinkles as if he were crying.
"By the way, Father," she began as she set the basket on the counter and sheepishly brushed a curl or hair behind her ear, "have you heard anything about Mr. Ichinose recently?"
"Mr. Ichinose? That oriental-English fool who walked right into the fangs of Castle Bathory?" asked her father snidely. His beard parted to reveal his wide mouth. "Not at all. He must have already met his demise. The people who venture there rarely return, especially around St. George's Day. Even if they do return, you wouldn't want to meet them."
"Hm," she murmured. "Well, that's true…"
"I don't understand," he continued, voice raspy, "why you don't just move to another town or even a city to find yourself a husband. You're already getting up there in years."
"You know why," she said with a sigh. "If I left, it would only be you and mom here to manage the hotel. Mom can hardly walk up the stairs anymore, and your cough gets worse every year."
"We can just hire some local kids to work here. People keep… disappearing, or else move away anyhow. We hardly have any guests as is, so it's not like there is much left to do. In another decade, this will be a ghost town with naught but us elderly, stubborn old fools residing here. Soon enough, the rest of us will die off, and this place will be just as empty as the other ghost towns on this mountain… It's better for the young people to leave as soon as they can, before it's too late."
"It's not like cities any safer," she replied logically.
"Yes," agreed her father, "but at least, the people there don't have to worry about being feasted on."
"Hm," she murmured, her gentle brown eyes frowning as she considered her options. She could certainly move away, leaving this dilapidated hotel to her parents while she fled to somewhere safer. She was already almost beyond a marriageable age, and most of the men who traveled through here were not as attractive, rich, or intelligent as Mr. Ichinose. He was by far the best-looking man she had seen in over a year, and her heart hadn't fluttered like that for someone since she was a teenager.
Sayuri leaned against the desk, holding her hand to her chest as she fiddled with the childish heart-shaped locket on her necklace.
As she recalled Mr. Ichinose's narrow eyes and his full, lonely lips, a blush colored her cheeks. Although he was a gentleman, his hands were still rough from use, and he had firm muscles like a soldier. It was clear he was cunning and worked hard. Sayuri really wanted to get closer to him. He felt dependable, like they could survive no matter what if she married him.
Even so, it had already been six weeks…
Sayuri frowned as she rubbed her thumb against the warm metal of the locket.
Against her warnings, he had entered Bathory Castle on one of the most horrific nights of the year. She gave him her rosary to protect him, but he had yet to return… Undoubtedly, he had ended up like those children five years ago and had been devoured by the demons who resided there.
She gazed somberly out the window at the heavy, gray downpour drowning the lands with water. Perhaps it was time for her to finally make her move and flee this cursed land.
She tucked the worn locket in her blouse and prayed she wouldn't lose anyone else before she finally met the person just for her.
"We need to talk," said Yu, walking toward Guren as he dripped water onto the numerous rugs decorating the castle floors. Guren was once again sitting in the library. As the thunder roared outside, he continued writing in his notebook while flipping through the ancient text he had be using since before they'd arrived.
"Oh?" asked Guren, raising an eyebrow at the water dripping down Yu and the puddle forming beneath his feet. "Mika locked you out in the rain, so you've decided to you're ready to go home?"
"No!" said Yu defensively, clutching his hands into fists. He flinched as his voice came out louder than he intended. Going by what Mika said, there were ears everywhere, so he had to take care not to speak too loudly. Considering how paranoid Mika appeared, then speaking aloud about any of this would be a very bad idea.
"Can I borrow your pen?" asked Yu cautiously, deciding to use the strategy Mika recommended. "And some paper?"
Guren gazed at him with a thoughtful expression and then pushed the pen and inkwell toward Yu. Flipping to the back of his notebook, he casually tore a page out and handed it to Yu.
Yu grabbed them gratefully as he stood at the table. He thought for a moment before scratching out words in hiragana and katakana. His note included the occasional kanji as well, but he had never been proficient at writing in Japanese. He scowled as he carefully made cumbersome strokes on the paper and then passed it to Guren. Water from Yu's hands smudged some of the ink and made the paper damp.
Guren frowned, reading the note.
When interpreted into English, it said something like this:
Mika says we're in grave danger. Ferid hunts and kills people around here, and Mika isn't really his son. Mika says we need to escape after dawn and get as far away from here as possible. I want to take Mika with us. I can't leave him in this place.
Guren sighed, his face becoming solemn.
"And how do you know if this is even true?" he asked quietly, returning the paper to Yu.
Yu frowned, hoping Guren's speech was too ambiguous for the "ears" of the castle to pay any attention. He anxiously scribbled his response down and handed it back. With another thought prodding his mind, Yu quickly took the note back and added another sentence.
I saw human remains in the woods where Mika took me. This place has given me the creeps from the start, and even the villagers tried to warn us.
"I see," said Guren, staring at the note seriously while he tapped his finger against the desk. Water continued to drip off Yu to the floor. "Where is he now?" asked Guren vaguely.
"Taking a bath since we got soaked in the rain," answered Yu, watching Guren's reaction carefully.
"And how do you know he's telling the entire truth?" asked Guren coldly.
"Because I know—"
"Don't even say that it's because you know him. You've only known him for a month and a half, and he spent the first week of that being as rude as he was permitted and the rest of those weeks trying to avoid you. Then, out of the blue, he reveals this big, dark secret. Why?"
"That's… That's because…" Actually, why had Mika suddenly opened up? Ever since Yu told Mika about his past, Mika had moments where he looked deep in thought and where his expressions betrayed deep pain. Today, Mika led him away when Yu started asking about his mom, but he looked like he had been struggling for a while.
"I think it's because... we're friends," said Yu softly.
"So, it took you a month and a half, but you finally accomplished the assignment of making friends with Mika, hmm?" asked Guren with a sad smile. It somehow made Guren appear worn and aged several years older than he was.
Yu looked at him with a puzzled expression.
Guren took the quill away and wrote a reply on the note, once again writing in Japanese:
If Mika is telling you the truth, then he's put himself at risk. If he isn't, it's quite a prank. I have finished my business here, so we can secretly leave tomorrow morning, as you asked.
Yu's expression lit up.
However, Mika isn't revealing everything. If they have been hunting people, then he would have to be involved somehow. If he is not the prey, then he could either be one of the hunters or he might be assisting them. In that case, he is not as innocent as he claims. Otherwise, why else has he been kept alive here so long? What is his relationship with the count?
Mika is still hiding secrets.
Yu frowned and clenched his wet fists as Guren underlined that last word.
Guren looked at him seriously and then sighed, adding one final line:
We cannot entirely trust him.
Yu bathed quickly and toweled himself off before running up to Mika's room. His hair was still damp, but he didn't want to leave Mika's side longer than he had to. He knocked loudly on Mika's door and then barged inside. He shut it behind him.
Mika was sitting at his desk. He turned and glared at Yu, who had intruded on him once again without any regard for his privacy. Mika sighed and turned back toward the mirror in his hand as he examined his neck.
"You got the knocking part right," said Mika coolly, his tone annoyed, "but now you need to learn to wait until I tell you to come in."
"Well," said Yu coyly, feeling relieved that Mika was still safe, "until now, you would always just ignore me and never tell me to come in. Does this mean you're going to invite me in from now on?"
Mika stiffened. Yu grinned until he realized what was in Mika's hand.
"Hey, wait!" he asked. "Is that a mirror? You actually have a mirror?! Do you know how often I've looked for one since I arrived here?" he rambled, approaching Mika and inspecting the mirror.
It was appeared to be made of silver or a similar metal. Angelic wings spread out from the handle in Mika's hand, and feathers curved around the mirror in remarkable detail.
"Whoa," said Yu. "That's a really nice mirror." He took it from Mika's hands without asking and looked it over. An inscription was on the back. All that Yu could distinguish was that it was in cursive and… not English. He frowned. "What's this say?"
Mika hesitated, making Yu look at him curiously.
"'To Mika from Ferid, with love,'" answered Mika slowly.
Yu fumbled with the mirror, nearly dropping it. He awkwardly returned the mirror to Mika with an expression between disgust and bemusement. Why would someone gift something of such exquisite craftsmanship to his fake son? Guren's question about Mika and Ferid's relationship echoed in his mind. He had the revolting suspicion that Mika was neither Ferid's fake son nor a mere target for him to hunt down.
When Mika spoke in the woods, he had implied Ferid would chose to come after him than to come after Yu and Guren. He had spoken as if he had no doubts about this fact.
A mixture of rage and pain churned in his gut.
What was the nature of Mika and Ferid's relationship? Yu highly doubted Mika helped Ferid with the hunt after having such a traumatic past. It was more believable to think that Mika was plotting Ferid's murder instead. In that case, what did Mika mean to that unearthly man who made Yu's skin crawl? Why did Ferid torment him and then always keep him by his side, imprisoned here in this castle, even when Mika loathed him to such an extent he wanted to run away?
What was he? Was he Ferid's pet, or was he—
Yu couldn't ask.
Yu absolutely couldn't ask.
Mika accepted the mirror, smiling mirthlessly as he studied the fading yellow bruises on his otherwise pale and slender neck. When Mika lightly touched the bruises, Yu was nearly overwhelmed by the urge to claim Mika for himself and replace the bruises with hickeys.
Just how strong was Chess to hurt him that badly and to require Horn and Crowley to yank her off him?
Mika is still keeping secrets, echoed Guren's voice in his head. Yu swallowed.
Yu wanted to ask Mika about the bruises, but he felt like he couldn't. No, he felt like he shouldn't. His mouth felt dry, and a drop of water slid down his neck from his damp hair.
"Why aren't there any other mirrors in this place?" asked Yu instead.
"…Superstition," answered Mika carefully, making Yu feel more curious.
"Is that the only mirror in the castle?"
"No. The others here have mirrors, but they keep them hidden."
"Why is that?" asked Yu.
Oddly enough, Mika frowned but did not answer, which Yu thought was odd. Mika had told him so much personal information already that there was no reason for him to hide details about the mirrors from him.
Yu gazed at Mika pensively.
"Well, I chatted with Guren, and he said it's fine if we spend all day out hunting together tomorrow. He said he could just eat some bread to avoid starving," said Yu calmly. Of course, they hadn't discussed anything like that. Yu was actually referring to their plan about absconding with Mika. Frankly, Yu had been surprised by how easily Guren agreed to it, but he supposed mentioning the corpse deep in the woods worked well as evidence. Guren had always favored Yu anyway.
"Mm. Understood," replied Mika calmly. He looked exhausted from earlier. Whether it was from running around outside all day or from telling Yu so many secrets about his past, Yu didn't know.
Mika placed the mirror back in his drawer, hiding it from sight.
"Hey, Mika," said Yu, lightly touching Mika's shoulder. Mika flinched, and Yu drew his hand back. "Uh… I am… I am really looking to going hunting with you tomorrow."
"Mm," hummed Mika noncommittally. He looked down. His blue eyes looked somber and nervous.
Yu swallowed, desperately wanting to comfort him.
"Mika," he whispered, leaning closely to his friend, "can I stay in your room tonight? Just in… Just in case…"
For once, Mika didn't jerk away from him. However, he shook his head.
"No," he stated simply. Then, he abruptly leaned up to Yu's ear and whispered softly, "They would definitely notice."
Yu's face turned bright red when Mika's breath hit his ear, and abruptly stood straight up. As startled as he was, his heart pounded, and he regretted moving away from Mika. Honestly, he really hoped Mika would do that again.
"I'm heading to bed," stated Mika, quirking an eyebrow at Yu's behavior, clearly clueless about why Yu was behaving so red-faced and awkwardly. "I'm too tired from earlier."
"Haha," laughed Yu awkwardly, praying his blush would hurry up and fade away. "Yeah, you do get sick easily, right? And then, we were stuck out in the rain… Hahaha… Right, right… So I will just, uh, let you get some sleep," he muttered clumsily, backing up toward the door.
The last thing Yu saw before stepping into the hall and shutting Mika's door was Mika's bewildered expression. Yu's face turned bright red once more, and he closed it quickly.
He crouched down in the hall, clutching his burning face as he sighed at the floor.
"What's wrong with me?" he muttered to the head of a bear skin rug. "Why can't I be suave in my actions as I am in my head?"
