Chapter 11: Fear
His Majesty looked down upon himself and softly ran his palm down the front. Attired in a classically sophisticated three-piece suit, the color of deepest navy with thin grey lines, he looked every bit the part of a royal bred brute. Satisfied with his appearance, he lifted his head and walked further into the lavish ballroom. The floors were polished to a lovely sheen and beautiful sheer curtains the color of golden champagne decorated the spacious room. The chandelier hung in the center, large and sparkling like a million diamonds amidst the backdrop of the setting sun. Realizing just how romantic it all was, the king couldn't help but chuckle. A few moments later, the silence was broken by the sounds of the double-doors creaking open. Turning about nimbly on his heel, Kuu looked up and felt his heart still with anticipation.
Queen Juliena strode into the room and completely took his breath away. Looking absolutely stunning in her vintage A-line dress, with a grand V-neck line and shimmery metallic embellishments, she was elegant nobility incarnate. Her long brown hair was pulled up, away from her face in a subtly messy yet distinguished braided bun. With her head held up high, a dewy glow upon the apples of her cheeks, she strode over to her handsome husband.
As they met, he gracefully fell to one knee, swept up her hand in his and pressed his lips to her silken knuckles. Then he bowed his head to her. "My ravishing queen, will you do this old man the honor of a dance?" When she didn't respond, he lifted his chin to her, with an eye cocked open playfully.
Long, brown lashes blinked once, twice as her red lips spread into a lovely smile. Affectionately squeezing his fingers, Juliena curtsied perfectly. "The honor would be mine, Your Majesty."
King Kuu pushed back into a stance, raising her hand up. He led her to the center of the ballroom and swung her majestically towards him. His free hand took position upon her waist and he pulled her closer. Green eyes basked in the warmth that her blue ones offered. "You look breathtaking, my darling," he said.
A small flush of heat cascaded over her complexion. "You look rather dashing yourself," she replied. After sharing a snicker, the King began the dance, leading her around the room in a waltz for the ages. The only music they required was the soft sound of their laughter and beating hearts, their love resounding around them like magic.
Lilac eyes watched with the duo with admiration. Reino had snuck in through the back to ensure that everything was in order. When greeted with such a picturesque scene, he smirked and held at bay. They two were sinking so joyously in one another's company that they probably wouldn't take notice if the world had disappeared around them.
"Must be nice to be so insanely in love," a deep voice said from behind the elder son. When Reino looked back, he saw that it was the King's general. "It must be rare to find such a bond."
As he listened to the quiet musings of the old man, a sudden thought began to invade his peace of mind. Bobbing his head up and down, Reino came to a realization that made him sigh loudly. "Yes, I suppose it would be rare indeed." He patted the general on the shoulder, who seemed to be baffled by the prince's sudden demeanor. "Please, watch over them and make sure they stay happy today. Don't let anything interrupt them."
The general placed his fisted hand upon his chest and bowed his head. "Yes, your Highness. Please, don't worry sir."
Turning away from them, a determined flame came to life in the royal's eyes. He strode through the kitchen, checking in with the chef in charge, and ensuring that everything was nothing short of perfection. Exiting Reino picked up the pace and practically ran to his brother's bedroom.
"Sir?" The three guards looked up at the prince curiously.
"Step aside," he ordered with urgency. "Something important has arisen."
Without much more hesitation they stepped aside and allowed him access. Not bothering with the etiquette of knocking, Reino stormed into the bedroom and quickly slammed the bedroom door shut behind him, the sound of which startled a napping Kuon.
"What the hell?" He whined groggily. Kuon heaved himself up and lazily pulled his legs up with him. After rubbing the drowsiness from his eyes, he raked the hair from his line of sight and gawked at his brother with mild irritation. "Don't tell me it's time for that stupid celebration party already."
"Absolutely not," Reino replied, voice dripping with cautionary undertones, which immediately sobered up the younger Hizuri. "We have a problem, brother."
"What's the matter, Reino?" Kuon swung his legs off the edge of the large bed and stood up. He walked over to his elder sibling and met his stare with mirrored concern. "I really don't like your face right now." When the silver haired prince remained silent, Kuon felt the world around him tremor uncomfortably. "Kyoko…" he whispered simply.
With one nod, the name was acknowledged. "She never showed up and I cannot seem to shake this horrible feeling within me."
Kuon stormed over to the bar on the right side of the lavish bedroom and snatched up the black t-shirt that lay atop it. "This isn't good."
"You are positive that she would still be here, regardless of her current feelings for you?" Deep down he knew the answer to that question. Even after spending just a handful of time with the young lady, Reino knew that she had a strong sense of character. But his habitual necessity to weigh all the options was needed to alleviate the mounting worry that filled him. But unfortunately, those words fell on preoccupied ears.
Inside his body, Kuon could feel a storm starting to brew. The pit of his stomach became dark and empty, vertigo creeping slowly up his throat. His heart started to thrash uncontrollably within his chest, gurgling the sickening feeling of dread that was overwhelming him. His palms found the cold hardness of the wooden bar top and pressed harshly into it as his mind ran wild and unhindered with all of the possibilities.
"I…I couldn't stop it."
Her weakened, trembling voice resonated in his ears in that moment. Kuon's eyes widened with a terrifying awareness.
"I made a sacrifice. I couldn't stop him from touching me. No matter how much I fought it, he wouldn't…stop. He p-promised that if I allowed him to… I had to save myself, I had to protect the only thing that's all mine."
"No…" Kuon mutter aloud. "He wouldn't fucking dare!" His fingers formed tightly into fists upon the bar.
"What?" Reino asked impatiently moving his feet closer to his brother. But his words continued to fall on deaf ears as Kuon swam in his lost, painful thoughts.
"An engagement ring?"
"Yes. This…is my fate, Kuon."
"No… please, no." Kuon mumbled like a madman. He ran his fingers through his hair and cursed himself over and over again for ever allowing her to run off last night. He should have given chase and brought her back. He should have begged and pleaded for forgiveness. I should have fucking protected her… "We need to go and hope we're not too late."
Reino grabbed Kuon's arms and slowed him down. "Wait, brother. You are making no fucking sense to me right now. Please, tell me what it is that you know! Tell me what I'm missing."
"There's not time goddammit!" Kuon shouted desperately. Recognizing that he was unleashing his fears on an undeserving person, he licked his lips and sighed. "I'm sorry, Reino. But there is no time to explain. Please, just let me go and find her."
"Do you know where she—"
"I have a very good idea as to where she would go to seek refuge if she truly is in trouble." Kuon's voice trembled with his body. His green eyes appeared hollow and aged. "Please, let me go."
Contemplating his brother's appeal, Reino finally started to understand the depth of Kuon's affections for this woman. He nodded slowly. "Only if I can come with you. You're in no condition to do this alone."
With an understanding in place, the two princes rushed off to find Kyoko.
"Sho, please… you're not yourself!"
Her desperate and horrified voice echoed in his ears like a haunting ghost. Closing his eyes, Sho buried his head into the hot water of the bath and tried to erase Kyoko from his mind.
"Please… Please, don't do this… Sho, please…don't take this from me…"
"I won't allow you to leave me like this. I'll have what I was promised… I won't allow anyone else to have you, Kyoko! He won't want you when I'm finished. No one will."
His lungs began to burn as air quickly eluded him. Reaching up for the edges of the wooden tub, Sho grabbed on and hoisted himself above the water, gasping oxygen in large gulps. His chest rose and fell, rose and fell heavily. As images of his sin assailed his mind over and over and over again, he could feel the dark tendrils of insanity threatening his resolve.
"Fuck!" He shouted, slapping the water with unfathomable amounts of irritation. "Why are you still in my head?!" He yelled. "Just leave me the hell alone!" Grabbing fistfuls of hair, he buried his face in between his arms and screamed and screamed. "Goddammit Kyoko!"
Saena heard the tormented voice of the adolescent as she walked by the bath's door. Her feet suddenly came to a stop as her ears eavesdropped on his agony. The female lawyer had assumed that her daughter was still at the royals and believed this tantrum to be nothing more than the woes of teenage jealousy. As much it annoyed her, she found satisfaction at the boy's pain. He was such a spoiled brat that he deserved no less.
"Your screams… Your pain, I can't take it!" Sho continued through gritted teeth. "Those eyes and that… the blood… I can't forget… I'm so sorry, Kyoko."
Saena's eyes widened at the subtle confession. What the hell does he mean 'the blood'? She thought angrily. Unfamiliar maternal instincts kicked in and she stormed into the bath.
Startled, Sho looked up at his former mother-in-law to be and growled. "What the fuck are you doing?"
"Shut up, you piece of shit little punk," Saena barked back ferociously, silencing all quips from the Fuwa heir. "What the hell do you mean 'blood'?"
Brown eyes grew wide with surprise. His mouth fell open, but he found that he just had no words for the old woman.
"Tell me," Saena demanded.
Tsking, Sho looked away and sunk back into the water. "It's not what you think," he finally answered in a hushed tone. "They are just nightmares that I have been having lately. Nothing more."
Narrowing her menacing stare, she stepped a bit closer and folded her arms over her chest. "You better not be lying to me, Shotaro. If I find out that you are lying, I will destroy you." Saena then spun on her heel and stormed off.
Sighing with relief, Sho dunked his head once more in a mundane effort to baptize himself of his sins.
The storm raged on around them as the Hizuri siblings shoved their way through the thick forest. The needles of moisture painfully sprayed across Kuon's complexion, but he refused to be deterred from the task at hand. A loose branch caught the fabric of his hoodie and yanked the shield from his face. Long flaxen locks quickly soaked up the rain water like a thirst-ridden beast. Golden tendrils began to stick to his neck and cheeks, clinging desperately to his temples and ears.
"Kuon, slow down!" Reino begged from behind, unable to match the speed of his younger brother. Unlike the royal heir, he was not used to trudging through such vivacious natural grounds. Try as he might, he just could not maintain the pace. But it was not just the affinity for this forest that kept Kuon going, it was his burning anxiety for Kyoko, which was becoming more and more apparent to Reino with each step they took.
Please, please, please be there, Kuon thought with quickly blossoming desperation. Furrowing his brows with ferocious determination, he picked up his speed. If she was not to be found here, he didn't know what he would do, where else to look. Once upon a time, not too long ago, she had confessed that this was her only solace from the hell she called life. It was sanctuary. Recalling the ways she screamed and cried, remembering her bruised body laying beneath the sun, the prince couldn't think of anywhere else to even begin searching for her.
Up ahead the mouth of clearing came into his view. "There it is!" Kuon shouted louder than he wanted. Feeling the impatience starting to seep into his veins, he broke into a run and ran as fast and hard as he could.
Noticing the distance between him and his brother getting larger, Reino cursed and gave chase to the fast little sibling. "Kuon, wait!" He shouted. Taking a deep breath, the silver-haired prince also picked up his pace, but was not paying attention to where he was running off to and eventually collided into Kuon's stalled back.
Kyoko was lying on her side in the creek. Her clothing was in tattered shreds, barely covering her form. Even from that distance, Kuon could see the dirt and bruising along her body. He felt as if all the wind had been sucked out of him as he trembled at the sight of her.
"Kyoko!" He shouted and immediately ran to her side, falling to his knees. The harsh rocks scraped up his knees through the wet denim pants that clad him. Shaking fingers reached out to touch her arm and he gasped at how icy her skin felt to him. Emerald eyes took in her appearance, making his heart falter further into guilt and rage. Grabbing her arms tenderly Kuon pulled Kyoko into his arms and gently pressed his lips to her forehead. "I'm so sorry, I couldn't find you sooner…"
"Here take this," an out-of-breath Reino offered up his long wool coat, wrapping it tightly around her shoulders. He didn't see much of the young girl, but he saw enough to know that her condition was extremely severe. "We have to get her back."
Nodding, Kuon scooped her up into his arms and stood up. Her head fell limply against his shoulder, her breathing faint. The prince noticed the light blue tinge of color that painted her lips. "Reino, I'm going to run as fast as I can. I'm sorry if I lose you."
"Are you sure that's a good idea, Kuon? What if you—"
"I will not. I know she's very sick. I have to get her back immediately. Please, find your way home, brother."
Bobbing his head slowly in understanding, Reino watched as Kuon retreated into the forest and then ran off. After he was gone, the older Hizuri knelt by the creek where her body lay and examined it carefully. Seeing splotches of red upon some of the pebbles, he reached down and touched it lightly with his fingers. Sniffing his fingertips, Reino felt a large lump taking root inside of him. This is not good at all…
I'm sorry this was a short chapter. I'll go back to writing longer chapters with the next one. Until next time.