CHAPTER 24
The next day dawned calm and pleasant. No hint of the coming events permeated the fresh air of the second day of the festival.
Of all the invitations that Kyoko received that morning, what pleased her most - and she readily accepted - was the picnic promoted by the Takarada family with the support of several other noble families, including the Hizuris. Therefore, she went on the trip with Tina, Julie, and Kuu to where Rick and Kuon were already, considering it was their duty to participate in the games that took place on those occasions.
After a nearly two-hour ride, they entered Takarada territory and saw the circle of men who shouted incentives to whatever demonstration of strength and agility in progress a little further on. Below the hill where they stood, the valley destined for the event was already colored by the dozens of tents whose colors symbolized the noble families gathered there, including the white and blue of the Hizuris. Finally, a little further on was a river, giving an even more idyllic air to the place.
Kyoko smiled excitedly. As much as that was notoriously an occasion to see and be seen, judging by the way several people flirted openly, she focused on the almost fairytale beauty of the landscape and the purpose of just having fun. It would be her first picnic, just as the evening's soirée would also be her first.
After refreshing herself in the Hizuri family tent, Kyoko was invited by Tina to meet Lina and Kouki, who were probably in the Takarada family tent.
For some reason, the discomfort she felt at hearing their names put her on the alert.
As they walked there, greeting the passers-by who tried to convince Kyoko to accept this and that invitation, her restlessness only increased. She had felt the same urgency the day before, when Tina had told her about Kana's schemes to get an influential husband. Maybe her sixth sense was demanding something from her, but Kyoko could not remember or fathom what.
Until a passing comment from Tina motivated by her concern over Kyoko's noticeable discomfort made it all terribly clear.
"Do not worry; we're almost there. See? It's that black and red tent next to the Ymir River."
"Ymir River? I thought that was the Little Angel River..."
"Little Angel? I have never heard of such a river in our kingdom..."
Tina did not know that a person could pale so quickly. In the next instant, Kyoko was dashing toward the river.
As much as Kyoko ignored much of the history of sixteenth-century families, concentrating only on Kuon and the curse, her research in the twenty-first century made her aware of the history of the region as much as of the rumors about the tragedies that claimed the lives of three heirs.
According to some occultists, all deaths resulted from the same curse.
Damn it, why had she taken so long to remember? Why did not she pay more attention to the uneasiness she felt every time Tina mentioned Kouki and Lina, or even Lord Takarada?
The family that had lost their little angel to the river's fury. The third and final victim of the alleged curse that had fallen upon the most influential families in the region, leaving all three without direct heirs.
The tunic that Kyoko wore was interrupting her unbridled run, just as it would disrupt her swimming, so she removed it with her petticoat without even stopping the run. Around her, she vaguely listened to the women's scandalized sounds and the malicious remarks of the men as they witnessed Lady Kyoko running with the equivalent of the underwear for the sixteenth century.
If she could waste time looking around, she would see a stunned Kuon watching her from the top of the hill before finally identifying the white and gold point she was running toward, which could only mean a child struggling to hold onto a stone. Then she would hear all the desperation in his voice as he shouted instructions as he ran down the hill.
Finally, Kyoko would realize the moment when the buzz caught the attention of the parents inside the tent, who for a moment of distraction had lost sight of their daughter and were in utter despair since they heard that Maria had been dragged by the current and that Lady Kyoko had just dived after her.
Kyoko did not notice any of this because she was too focused on running as fast as she could and not losing track of the girl who emerged and submerged in the icy waters, clinging to rocks on the way and being dragged right after. Thanks to such concentration, Kyoko easily located Maria after diving into the river.
Hell came next.
Like any panicked person, the girl did not realize that her desperation to cling to Kyoko was just drowning them both. With her lungs, muscles, nostrils, and eyes burning, Kyoko wondered if she would survive the attempt to rescue Maria, whose body seemed to weigh a ton thanks to the frilly dress she was wearing.
For the umpteenth time that the two were swallowed down by the river, Maria's movements slowed until she finally stopped struggling, which was a blessing, but also proof that she had lost consciousness.
Kyoko had arrived too late. Maria had drowned, and the same was not far from happening to her.
The others could only pray and run to the river and along its shore in search of a glimpse of the two, since it would be more difficult to locate them from the water. Not to mention that the sound of the current and the screams of the spectators would preclude the hearing of any request for help.
The seconds lengthened in endless minutes, and the women, especially Lina, wept, fearing the worst as they tried in vain to follow the strides of the men running ahead.
As hard as it was to think about her niece's death, Tina wondered how her sister would survive the loss of the daughter. Even without knowing that Lina would gradually fade to the point of succumbing, as had happened in the original timeline, the bond between them was strong enough for Tina to know that her sister would never overcome such tragedy.
Tragedy for which Kyoko already blamed herself, considering she could have avoided it. It would be easy to prevent Maria's approach to the river and the childish curiosity that made her skitter along the slippery rocks.
The drowning girl was in all the local history books, for God's sake! What kind of cruel joke was that, where she only remembered something so important when it was too late?
Kuon was the first to reach the shore where Kyoko and Maria were. Soon it was Kouki and Rick's turn. When the sisters finally reached the three men, for some reason Kouki was struggling in the arms of the other two while Kuon begged him to stay calm, to give Kyoko a chance.
Maria was lying on the grass, her closed eyes and purplish lips the terrible sight that no family deserves to see. Kyoko, in turn, was leaning over the girl from time to time.
The horror was immediate, as was the understanding of the anger that compelled Kouki to try to break free of the two men and attack Kyoko. How could a person commit such an atrocity? How could Kuon and Rick prevent Kouki from punishing the woman who was desecrating his daughter's body?
"Just watch, Kouki! See what Kyoko is doing! Watch Maria!"
Then an indignant scream erupted from Lina, who threw herself at Kyoko, knocking her away from Maria's irresponsive body. There was a confusion of slaps, scratches, threats and curses that seemed to last for an eternity, but it was only a few seconds. Kyoko, stunned by the attack and the urgency to reanimate the girl, tasted blood in her mouth before anyone could remove Lina from above her.
As soon as she felt free again, Kyoko returned to what she was doing. Of all the shitty part-time jobs she had, waitress at a public pool was the worst of them. On the other hand, now she could defy fate or whatever entity responsible for that bad joke for the chance to fix something very, very wrong. After months of removing chewing gum from the floor, it was time to put into practice the first-aid classes she had followed discreetly from her workplace.
In short, it was time for the universe to show her that there was a purpose in everything she had faced. If all the difficulties she had to overcome were summed up at that moment, at that chance that only she could give to that girl, her mediocre life would have been worth it.
While Kyoko counted seconds and compressions, Kuon was telling Kouki and whoever else wanted to hear that Kyoko was forcing Maria's body to work again.
"She closes her nose so the air can only go down... You can see that Maria's cheeks inflate. Lady Kyoko is not profaning Mary's body: she's putting air inside her and forcing her heart to beat!"
Gradually, Kouki began to understand the pattern in what Kyoko was doing and the spark of hope that the eccentric maneuver would work made him stop fighting the hands that held him captive. Kuon, realizing that he no longer posed danger, released him and let him go to the wife, immobilized by Ruto.
If Ruto was there, it was certain that Lory was there too, but no one remembered looking for him. The only thing that mattered was watching Kyoko's effort, her face bruised and her bottom lip bleeding from Lina's aggression, forcing Maria's body to "work again", as Kuon had defined.
After an indefinable amount of time, an uncomfortable little voice began to stir in everyone's mind: Kyoko had been trying for so long! How much longer for her to convince herself that the girl was already dead?
Little by little mourning seized the people gathered on that stretch of the bank of the Ymir River, which would soon be renamed Little Angel in eternal memory of the life the river had claimed for itself. Only Lina's painful howls in her husband's arms could be heard above the silent mourning of the majority of those present. Even the curious gathered around, who were informing the people who could not see what was happening, were silent.
When everyone - except Kyoko - seemed to have given up hope, a spurt of water poured from the girl's mouth. Then another, and another, followed by a painful whimper that immediately drew Maria's parents to her. Tears of mourning turned to tears of joy while witnesses to what appeared to be a miracle watched the scene between astonished and exultant.
Kyoko, in turn, laughed and shed a tear of relief at having saved the girl, after all.
"Take this, curse! You will not have the lives of the three heirs!"
When something heavy and warm was placed on her shoulders, Kyoko finally felt the cold, the fatigue and the pain in her body. Someone had put a red robe around her. Looking up, she saw a middle-aged man with eyes as deep and mysterious as the night sky smiling at her.
"I knew you'd come back to fix everything. Thank you, time traveler."
Before losing consciousness, the last thing Kyoko thought was that the man had spoken directly in her head.
A/N - Hello, dear readers! How are you doing?
No one had mentioned the tips I gave about Maria throughout the fic, so I do not know if anyone was expecting it. Some people mentioned Rick, but the essential thing in his death was the remorse that corroded Kuon, and this part was more than exploited in his relationship with Kyoko. So yeah, Rick will be fine in this fic. :)
If I'm paying tribute to the fairy tales, I could not leave out the story of Princess Rosa created by Ren, could I? ;) Except that here neither the princess nor the queen die...
In the end, I could not squeeze the second day of the festival in one chapter. There is still the long awaited conversation between Kyoko and Lory and the soirée at Takarada Castle!
A big hug to everyone and thank you very much for accompanying me on this crazy journey! XD