Chapter 35: Where is Your Perseus?
(In which the Princess continues to try not to die)
Dripping water echoed in the silence that followed Haya's words. Her eyes bored into mine as she tried to intimidate me, but I refused to let my fear show. Karin must really make her feel small. After what Suigetsu told me, I felt that I was beginning to understand her. She was so angry and forceful, because she was tired of being squished into a mold that didn't fit her. She wanted control of something.
And, to survive, I would give her control. Or, rather, the semblance of control.
Matsuri sniffled twice, but her face was blank as she scooted closer to me. This would be hard and horribly humbling, but I would have to do this for her. Matsuri had done nothing but be a good friend.
"What're you going to do?" I asked.
The dripping water was persistently annoying. Coupled with the adrenaline rushing through my veins and the heart beat in my ears, it felt as though I was submerged once again in the swollen river, close to death.
If only Gaara was here like he had been that time.
Haya grinned at my fear that I no longer attempted to mask. She seemed pleased as a cat who'd just caught a particularly fat mouse. And, I was that fat mouse. "Just wait and see. I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise."
Well…maybe not a fat mouse, but a good, healthy mouse that'd probably be delicious.
Haya gestured to Suigetsu, who took hold of my shoulders. Sakura came forward with gags and forced one into my mouth. The fabric was dirty and the taste of it made me feel like I was going to be sick. I tried to spit the rag out, but Sakura tied a strip of cloth around my head to prevent that.
Then Haya approached with a large, brown cloth bag and I, seeing the mean glint in her eye, fought and struggled against Suigetsu's and the rope binding my hand's hold. My muscles burned with the effort and the skin of my wrists seemed rubbed completely off, but I managed to knock Suigetsu off me for a while and kick Haya hard in the gut.
Spitting with anger, Haya backhanded me. The gag muffled my whimper. Within seconds, all the hope of making it out alive had vanished. Suigetsu forced me to bow before Haya, and she slipped the bag over my head and secured it with a bit of rope.
I panicked until I realized that I could still breathe, just that the air was musty and too warm. I wish I could pull the bag off and take a deep breath of fresh air, but my hands were securely behind my back.
Suigetsu's hands left my shoulders, and I heard Matsuri struggle to avoid my fate. Eventually the sounds subsided and all I could hear was the dripping water. I was forced up onto my feet, and soon, we were being herded out of the room and into what I guessed was the hallway. The room was colder, and the sound of the water grew distant until I could no longer hear it.
We walked for a few minutes, taking several turns before I could feel wind on my skin, and I knew we were outside. Being marched away from the castle, gagged and with a bag over my head, I felt like one of those horrible criminals who were to be beheaded. The thought clutched around my heart like fear. Then, I realized how scared I was and began to cry.
"Ho, stop there. Who do you have here?"
We stopped.
"A couple of prisoners. These maids are to be executed for being a part of the disappearance of the Lady Ino and Lady Matsuri," Haya answered easily. I gasped into my gag. How long had we been down in the small room? My stomach pinched with hunger at the idea that it had been more than a day, and a feeling of desperation came over my limbs. My muscles felt tight and tingly, and I knew I needed to do something and fast. This could be my last chance to save us.
I began to struggle violently, strengthened by the knowledge that all I had to do was get the bag off my face to blow their cover. An elbow sank hard into my gut, and I dropped to my knees with a muffled cry.
"It seems you have your hands full there, would you like one of us to go with you?"
"That's awfully kind of you, but I think we can handle the two of them. Thank you all the same," Haya answered in the most polite voice I'd heard from her. I thought I would have died before hearing her speak nicely and then wished I hadn't thought about my death at all.
I was hauled roughly to my feet by the back of my dress, the collar digging painfully into my neck and blocking off air briefly. Not wanting to make things easier for them in the least, I kept my body limp and wouldn't walk. I heard Suigetsu's frustrated growl and he grew fiercer in his attempts to force me to stand.
I was going to die anyway, right? There was nothing left to fear.
After several hauling ups and droppings, he gave up on trying and began to drag me away from the castle. It hurt, my body scraping against the ground and I could feel the angry heat of rug burns on my exposed skin, but I was slowing them down significantly and would draw unnecessary attention to the group.
Haya seemed to realize my intentions because she said, "It's no use, Suigetsu. You're going to have to carry her."
Suigetsu growled again at the prospect, but scooped me up off the ground. I struggled some, but he pinned down my limbs and I couldn't move. I allowed myself to relax, telling myself that I was conserving my strength for the later, last fight. But, really, I was just bone weary.
We walked for a long time. I dozed off towards the end and was rudely awakened by being dumped unceremoniously on the ground. My muscles were sore from being in the same attitude for so long and I could feel my heart beat in my various rug burns. Times like this made me wish I had never climbed down that balcony.
Our bags and gags were removed and I gulped in a huge breathe of air, glad to have fresh, cool air in my lungs. I looked over at Matsuri and saw that she had a black eye. The sight made me angry, and I was prepared to give them hell when another sight froze me.
There was another person in the clearing, who I remembered, though the last time I had seen him he had been framed by a tent and fire light. He noticed my frozen stare and chuckled, "I see you remember me, Andromeda."
His words set my limbs free, and everything in me told me to flee. I jerked in response, forgetting that I was tied up in my panic and falling over. I opened my mouth to say something or to scream, but my breathing was too harsh. I couldn't get enough air to my lungs. I kept gasping, tears running down my face.
"What's wrong with her? What did you do to her?" Matsuri demanded.
Haya smacked her harshly and then laughed suddenly. The noise of it was sudden and too high, making Matsuri jump nervously, her hand on her cheek. "She's scared witless," Haya jeered.
"She's hyperventilating," Sakura said quietly. I tore my eyes away from the man and turned to look at Matsuri. The worried furrow in her brow helped me calm down. I was worrying her. I didn't want her to be afraid. I needed to be strong. Sakura said I was hyperventilating, so I wasn't dying. Not yet. I just needed to focus on taking deep, even breaths.
Sakura turned to the man and asked, "You know her, Tero? Why did you call her Andromeda?"
"She prevented me from getting that Marugame prince. If she hadn't knocked him out of the way and woke up the other one, we probably would have beaten the lot of them," the man, Tero, answered. I shivered, remembering how the arrow had barely missed Kankurou's head. "As for why I call her Andromeda…she knows why. Don't you, little one?"
He cupped my chin in his hand and pulled my head up to look at him. "Where's your Perseus now?"
I pulled my face away and asked, "Who gave Matsuri that black eye?"
Haya laughed her horrid laugh again, "That was me, Brat. What are you going to do about it?"
It was better to be angry than scared, I thought. Allowing the anger to build inside of me, I tried to think of the worst fates I could, "I'll gouge your eyes out with my own nails! I'll tie a brick to your ankles and let you sleep with the clams! I'll tie you to a post and let the crows eat you!"
Haya smacked me. My hands strained in their ties. How I wished I could smack her back. "I'll slap you until your bones bruise." Haya smacked me again.
"Quit your shouting," Haya demanded. "You couldn't do any of that, not now. Kill her, Tero…wait. No, kill the other one first, in front of her."
"No, don't touch her. Let her go. She has nothing to do with this. Matsuri won't say anything. She'll go back to the castle and say that we went to pick flowers by the castle gates to surprise Lady Hinata with a beautiful bouquet and the Akatsuki captured us. She'll say that I was killed, but she managed to get away. You'll be safe, and you can go back to your Kingdom after I'm dead," I said, talking fast in fear they would cut me off. "Please, don't hurt her. Please, please, please. She had nothing to do with this. Sakura, she's innocent. Please."
"This is great fun," Haya said before Sakura could respond. "I love seeing the proud Brat grovel. Grovel some more, and maybe we'll save your pathetic friend."
I cleared my throat, choked with emotion and the knowledge that no matter what I said, they would kill her. "Please, she's never done anything to any of you. She's no obstacle of any kind. She is no harm. She'll return home soon, and she won't even be near enough to cause you harm if she wanted. She's loyal to her word and will do what you tell her. Please, please don't hurt her. Kill me now and be done with it."
"Ah," Haya said, as if listening to calming music. "That's enough, I think. Tero, kill the girl now. Suigetsu, don't let the Brat look away."
Suigetsu grabbed my face and forced me to stare at Matsuri. Tero unsheathed his sword and approached Matsuri. I screamed, "No! Tero! Tero, it was me! I'm the one who stopped you! You could have killed me all that time ago and returned home!"
The man paused and looked over his shoulder at me. To keep his attention, I continued on, "It was me, Tero. And, you asked where my Perseus was. Well, he's here. He's coming and he will kill you. He only knocked you aside then, but he will kill you now. I hope with all my being that his blade doesn't miss its mark."
"Tero," Haya admonished as the man stepped towards me and away from Matsuri. The man shrugged his shoulders, as if he didn't care what she said and took another step.
"You're pathetic compared to him. You've trained so hard, but you'll never best him. He's the greatest warrior ever, and he will kill you easily. Just like he knocked you easily to the side," I said, laughing hysterically. Was I going crazy? It felt like I was cracking under a great, great pressure.
"Kill the other first!" Haya shouted, sounding like she was on the verge of a temper tantrum. "Sakura, make the brute listen!"
"Tero, do what Haya says" Sakura said.
The man's muscles quivered, unwilling to disobey a direct order from his princess, but also unwilling to let her words go.
"Yes, little Tero. Listen to Haya. You can't touch me anyway. I'm safe. Protected. He will come and he will kill you," I pressed, wishing the words were true – that Gaara really was my Perseus and would come to my aid right before the sea monster emerged and slay it when it did.
Tero growled and came at me with his sword. He must have had some twisted sort of honor. All the men I knew would never attack a woman, especially one that was tied up. She went to tell him this when he halted suddenly, his sword above his head in mid-swing.
For a split second I felt swell in my heart. It must be Gaara coming to my aid, but as Tero crumpled to the ground, the person standing behind him and wielding a sharp rock wasn't Gaara, but Matsuri.
"Don't touch her, you brute!" Matsuri shouted at the fallen man. Suigetsu let go of my face and leapt up, his hand on his hilt and ready for action. Haya hissed in annoyance, angry that Matsuri had taken advantage of her distraction to cut herself free.
"And, you," Matsuri crossed over to Haya and slapped her with a force I hadn't known she was capable of. "Don't touch her, either!"
The sound resounded in the silence, and Haya touched her cheek with disbelief. Matsuri backed up a few steps. The expression of shock slowly changed into one of complete fury.
"Run, Matsuri!" I shouted, breaking the spell that had fallen over everyone, and there was flurry of action. Matsuri turned and high tailed it away into the surrounding forest, and Suigetsu chased her. Haya stomped her foot and shouted. Sakura was trying to revive Tero. I used a tree branch as leverage and stumbled to my feet to follow after Matsuri and Suigetsu.
I could see the two of them just up ahead and hear Haya following after me, shouting profanities the whole way. I ran as fast as I could, but my bound hands prevented me from pushing branches out of the way and they pulled at and ripped through my clothes and hair, slowing me down.
Matsuri and Suigetsu had already broken through the last line of trees and were barely visible. I could hear Haya's labored breathing and picked up my pace despite the ache in my side. I had emerged from the forest when I saw Matsuri turn to run along the edge of a cliff. The world seemed to slow as the ground beneath her feet broke off from the cliff and brought her down with.
I screamed, falling to my knees as her shocked face disappeared from view. Suigetsu stopped running and Haya caught up with me, but still I screamed her name. The brown haired maid slapped my face, but I wouldn't stop. I couldn't feel the pain anymore. I couldn't feel anything except disbelief that Matsuri was gone and terror that it was for forever.