Disclaimer: All characters and locations belong to their respective owners.
XII.
Bonds of a Family
Sakuya hardly said a word on their journey back. She had only spoken once, right as Tewi led them out of the forest and bade them farewell. Sakuya hadn't thought to bring any spell cards with her (nothing had interfered with the peace the manor settled into following the return of the spring season), so she could not fly nor walk on a sprained ankle.
Aya and Momiji offered to carry her with the power of flight. The maid did not object, just nodded her head and held her arms out at her side. The crow and the wolf hooked one arm around her shoulders and, with Aya's wings and Momiji's spell card, took to the skies.
By mid-afternoon the mansion was in sight. Circling south and west, they touched the damp dirt road. Adjusting the weight of the girl between them, the trio started forward, step by coordinated step.
As they approached the gates Hong Meiling, who was at her post and awake, pushed off the brick pillar and ran up to them. "Sakuya, what happened to you? You look like you went to hell and back!"
"Eirin happened, that's what," Aya said tiredly.
"Eirin?" Meiling looked at Sakuya's downcast face; saw the angry bruises purpling on the girl's jaw and cheeks. "She did this to you? I don't understand. You asked her, didn't you? Why would she do this?" So Remilia had told Meiling about the interview her servant had.
"Because Eirin doesn't want to look at the past," said Momiji brusquely. At the gatekeeper's strange look, she went on: "Eirin is Sakuya's older sister. Eirin didn't want to see Sakuya, so she tried to kill her and Aya."
"But…But why?"
"Liars who lie often believe their lies to be the truth and nothing but. I would guess it's because some secrets, like Eirin's, don't want to be known by outsiders who have the evidence that tell otherwise."
"Sakuya." Meiling put a hand under the maid's chin and lifted her head. The stare she received was devoid of life. "Sakuya, are you okay? What's wrong?"
"She's been like this since we left," said Aya. "I think…with the adrenaline of the fight wearing off, she's gone into shock."
Meiling sniffed and clenched her fists. "This isn't fair," she said in a tight voice. "This just isn't fair."
"Miss Meiling, we need to let Lady Scarlet know of our return," said Momiji. "Please take us there, for Sakuya's sake."
The gate guard scrubbed a hand across her eyes, sniffed again, and nodded. "Anything for Sakuya's friends. Let me take her." The tengu passed Sakuya into Meiling's arms, and together they passed through the gates and into the mansion.
"Sakuya!" called the voice of Remilia Scarlet. "Sakuya, is that you?"
"Over here, Milady," Meiling hailed the vampire.
Remilia came running out of the dining hall. "What's wrong with her?"
"Sakuya was attacked," said Momiji. "Eirin refused to listen and attempted to kill her."
"How dare her!" Remilia raged. "To do such a thing to my most trusted servant...that two-faced bitch is asking for war!"
"Picking a fight should be the least of your concerns, Lady Scarlet," said Aya. "Can't you see the state Sakuya's in?"
"No one lays a hand on my servant! Not you, not your friend, not the fairies, not Meiling, not Patchouli, no one! A person who targets a member of the family targets all of us! I don't care who Eirin Yagokoro is; come nightfall, her head will be MINE!"
"Miss Tengu has a point, Milady," said Meiling. "I understand your frustrations, but this isn't the way to go about it! Imagine how Sakuya would feel if she heard you say those things about her sister!"
Remilia laughed. "Sister? That woman is a liar! A cheater, a swindler, a murderer, and a breaker of taboos! A family may fight and argue, but in the end a family sticks together. Family members protect each other, care for one another. That's why the big sister is born first! Big sisters watch out for their little sisters no matter what! A sister never ever threatens the life of another sister! And Eirin Yagokoro…is not that kind of sister! She is not Sakuya's family!"
"You're not taking Sakuya into consideration!"
The vampire unfurled her webbed black wings, half-raised and poised to strike. "You are not the master of this manor! You are not the one in control of destiny! If I deem it Eirin's fate to die by my hand, so be it! If I deem it Sakuya's fate to kill her sister, so be it! If I deem it your fate to obey your mistress word for word, then so be it! The same goes to Shameimaru and Inubashiri!"
Meiling frowned. In a move that shocked Aya and Momiji, the gatekeeper pressed Sakuya's body against her bosom and took one step forward. "Then…I will challenge that fate and make you see the error in your words."
Remilia flashed her fangs, wings flapping menacingly. "You dare to defy me, Dragon of China? Hmph, be that way. I'll be happy to bite you to death!"
"…I won't allow it."
"Sakuya!" Aya and Momiji gathered around Meiling. Sakuya squirmed in the redhead's arms, but she did not meet their eyes. Her face buried deeper in the guard's chest. "I don't want you to fight. I don't want anyone to fight. I…I hate fighting."
"Sakuya, is Eirin still at Eientei?" Remilia asked with the tone of a worried and upset parent. "If she is, then you need only point me the direction. I'll give her a licking she won't forget!"
"I won't tell you. I won't allow any fighting to occur."
"Are you kidding me? Look at what she's done to you! She must have hit you so hard the marbles in your head are starting to run loose!"
"Well, I think I've lost those marbles a long time ago. An insane person knows when she's insane, Milady. You've seen it yourself, just look at Flandre. Locked away for hundreds of years with nary any interaction, I'm surprised you haven't put her down yet."
"WHAT?" The word echoed like church bells sounding the alarm of an invasion. "You…I may have told you about my and Flandre's turning, but you don't know jack-squat about us! You can't imagine the shit we went through just to make it through the day! I had to do all the hunting and killing to bring in food. I was the one who had to go out and find medicine for my sister when she caught the plague! I was the one who stopped her from wiping scores of villages off the map when the hunger became too much! I locked Flandre up because I want to protect everyone for her own good!"
"You can't say the thought hasn't crossed your mind, Milady. Big sisters protect their little sisters, remember? You said so yourself."
Remilia sputtered, stumbling back as if she had been struck. "You're wrong! I've never…I wouldn't…!"
Sakuya chuckled darkly. "I rest my case."
The anger drained from Remilia's features like liquid sucked through a straw. Her wings retracted their threatening posture and drooped as a flower that has been starved of water. She turned her back on the quartet. "Get her out of here, Meiling," the Scarlet Devil rumbled. "I don't want to look at her."
"But Milady—"
"Didn't you hear me? Get that girl out of here, before I change my mind and kick her ass!"
"Go on, Meiling," Sakuya said quietly. "Put me down."
"Are you sure you can walk?" Momiji asked.
"I think I'll manage. Meiling, what are you waiting for? Put me down right now."
Meiling flinched at the irate forcefulness, but she relented. She gently lowered the maid to her feet. Sakuya wobbled unsteadily and turned in the direction of the adjoining hallway by one of the staircase. Her hair blocked any hint of emotion in her eyes. "Miss Shameimaru, thank you for defending me. However…I don't think I can thank you for attempting to put a stop the fight. I apologize if my words hurt you. If you'll excuse me, I should like to be by myself. Many thanks for accompanying me, Miss Shameimaru, Miss Inubashiri, though the encounter was…not what I expected." She walked away, limping.
"What was that just now?" Meiling wondered aloud, more to herself than to the tengu. "I've never seen Sakuya behave that way around you, Milady."
Remilia scoffed. "It's not my problem anymore. You shouldn't make it yours, either."
"Milady…?"
"You two, the bird and the dog. There's nothing else for you to do here," Remilia said. "Your scoop isn't worth the printing paper. I suggest you close the book on it and look for something else."
Aya was taken aback, no, almost livid, at the thought. "We need more than written information to publish it. You can't tell us to drop one story and start another, not when we've gotten this far!"
"Yeah, you're right," the vampire acquiesced. "I don't have any right to say what you should or shouldn't do. But within these walls, I am the queen of this domain. Sakuya is family, and as the matriarch of this family I will do whatever it takes to protect them…even if I have to hurt outsiders or another family member to accomplish it." She started walking. "It's not blood that keeps two people together, but the bond for which they share. It's a chain you can tangle up but can never break, not unless you desire to destroy the heart that keeps you alive."
"Lady Remilia—" Meiling began.
"You've got a gate to guard, dragon. Show those two the way out and resume your position." And, as if she had read the girl's thoughts: "You leave Sakuya alone. That's an order." She entered the dining hall, and as if by magic the doors slammed softly behind her.
Aya almost threw her hat off in frustration; instead she squeezed her hands into tight balls and stomped her foot. "So that's it? This is how our story's supposed to end? You're just gonna tell me to abandon Sakuya as she is?" She screamed this last bit at the closed portals. "Remilia!"
"It's no use," Meiling said. "Once the Mistress has made up her mind, there's no changing it. I know you want to help, Miss Tengu, but I doubt Sakuya's in any mood to talk much less see anyone at this time. I'm sure she's had it rough, what with the…complications she's faced."
"Then it's just as Lady Scarlet said," said Momiji. "At least not now."
"I'm afraid so."
Aya cursed Remilia Scarlet's name. She whirled briskly on her heel, not sparing the girls a second glance. "Let's go, Momiji. We can show ourselves the way out."
Momiji didn't wish to make Aya more upset as she was. She thanked Meiling for her services and bid her goodbye.
"Aya!" she called out, hurrying down the steps and across the courtyard. "Aya, wait!" The wolf caught up to the crow, keeping abreast with the pace. "She never said we could stop writing. We can continue; we just need a few days for this to blow over—"
"I can't wait a few days!" Aya barked, whirling on Momiji. Her normally docile eyes were clouded with confliction, an emotion she rarely if ever displayed. "We're on to something, don't you see? That picture Reisen gave us showed Sakuya a glimpse of the life she's missed out on! We need her to cooperate, we need her to look deeper and uncover any other memories that may have surfaced from Eirin's revelations!"
"Which is why I'm saying we should give everyone a wide berth and let the storm ride itself out. They didn't expect any of this to happen, and I don't blame Lady Scarlet for reacting in such a manner. This was a secret she had under wraps for forty years."
Aya scoffed. "There's no such thing as secrets, Momiji; it's just another word for the truth." She unfurled her own wings with a crack-like snap and turned away again, but Momiji caught the leaden weariness sobering her face at the last second. "Everything else holds little meaning," the crow tengu murmured softly.
She spoke no more for the rest of the day.
(In all her one thousand years of living, Aya Shameimaru had never felt more conflicted. However, it will not be the last time she will encounter a moment quite like the one she experienced at the Scarlet Devil Mansion.
(Lies may wound, but truths will scar. No salve or poultice can heal such hurts, not even mistakes from the past.
(And because of those mistakes, the innocent and the damned will suffer…and remember.)
