CHAPTER THIRTEEN

The dark haired man dressed in the purple clothe given to him by the people of the island sighed as he gazed out the glassless window at the small village. He didn't know how he would get away, but surely the lifeboat he'd been on hadn't been ruined. It was possible though, but there had to be something he could use on the island if that were the case. Turning his head, he stared at the door with a frown, 'But first, I need to get past those guards.' He had a feeling that no one was going to want him to leave the island, not when they thought he was their Ou.

Just at that moment, one of the guards looked in on him, "Is there anything you need Ou-sama?" Despite Tetsuhiro having mentioned his name to them, they still were determined to refer to him by that title. A title to which he had not been born to and nor did he want, at least not when he couldn't be with Tatsumi Souichi and the fact that he was worried he'd disappoint them all in the end anyway.

"I'm fine, but... is there any way to get a... tour of the island?" Perhaps that would enable him to learn a bit more, maybe even find something to help him escape the bizarre situation he had been thrust into by a quirk of fate.

The guard grinned, "Of course Ou-sama. You are perhaps becoming more interested in your land and its people?"

He didn't like to lie really, but he was sort of interested, though he didn't want to stay there for long. It wasn't home to him, not when home was where the heart was and he'd left it with Senpai whether or not Tatsumi Souichi had wanted it.

The guard called for someone and soon there were two more men, these ones big and burly. Tetsuhiro was certain that they must have worked out everyday since their youth to get quite like they were. Along with them were three young ladies who stared at him coyly. That only made him more nervous, because of what the elderly woman had told him earlier.

"These two are Shirou and Takashi and their cousins Kiki, Keke and Koko. They'll be your guards and tour guides."

There was little Tetsuhiro could think of to say, other than, "Thank you..." because he did not wish to offend them and he had said he wanted to get out and see the island.

The way that those women were staring at him just unnerved him. He didn't think they were interested in his person either, but because of his title, though either way he wasn't interested in them. He'd already let it be known that he was gay, but he supposed he could be thankful for them not being men who were interested in him.

The guards at least, so far didn't seem to have an inclination toward him. For that he was also thankful as he was led out of the room, down the hall and out the door into the thick foliage of the islands wilderness behind the village.

Shirou, the darker of the two men cut through the foliage, with Takashi at the very back, Tetsuhiro between everyone as they made their way around the island. It wasn't too big, but it wasn't a small island either.

He had to admit, though he wanted to be back home in Japan, the island did have its own allure and vibrant colors. He stilled as he saw something, which he didn't think should be there. He recalled Senpai's father talking about the plant, but it was an extinct species, Adiantum lianxianense. Had it not been for that, he probably would not even have noticed it. Maybe there were other such discoveries yet to be found on the strange island. Why hasn't it been found before now? Sometimes even modern technology seemed to overlook things, and people thought everything that could be discovered had already been.

The others had stilled when the one they called Ou-sama had done so, each of them gazing at him and finally once voiced, "Ou-sama...? Are you alright?"

Tetsuhiro nodded, after a moment, of course they'd been asking him that, but he still wasn't used to being referred to as Ou-sama. "Yes, I'm fine, but that plant."

"It is just a plant, isn't it?" asked one of the young women who had been walking with him and the guards.

"That may be, but it's listed as extinct throughout the rest of the world. Such a discovery would be monumental, especially if there are more things here that can no longer be found."

"That is sad," spoke Keke, the taller of the three women. "To lose something forever, for it never to be seen again. It makes one realize that humans too are just as fragile and could one day become extinct."

Kiki and Koko glared at their sister, "Don't say things like that!"

Tetsuhiro sighed, "But it's true. There's something I'd like to know... why doesn't anyone else know about this island?"

It was the guard, Takashi who spoke in a deep and foreboding voice. "That is because, we are in a zone where none of today's technology works. My mother was also like you and wound up stranded here. She, as you are, was lucky."

"Lucky?"

"Yes, you see, the people here do not take kindly to strangers who come here without permission, even though there is no way to get that permission since no one knows. They will lock them away or kill them, if neither of those they might sell them to someone who lives on the island. My mother was sold to my father, but lucky for them they had fallen in love at first sight and my father had saved up enough just barely to save her from the clutches of someone much crueler."

Throughout that, Tetsuhiro's heart had sank at the thought of any of that having happened to him. Maybe it was a good thing they had mistaken him for the reincarnate of their Ou. While he mulled over that tidbit of information, there was a loud bang heard in the distance and a blood curdling scream of terror. It startled him, but not thinking, he ran toward the sound, only because it seemed as though something had happened to someone.

"Ou-sama!" The guards called after him, trying to catch his arm, but he was just a little to quick for them. "Don't, you'll be killed if you go near there!"

Tetsuhiro paused only for a moment, but continued, it was wrong to abandon someone, and he was sure whomever had screamed was frightened, as he had been when he'd found himself completely alone on that plane.

As he rushed through, the branches scratched him, pricker bushes catching onto his pants leg, but he shrugged it all off, holding his arm in front of his face as he came into a clearing. What he saw, caused him to still in shock, 'What the hell...is that?'