In the Darkness
A Mai Otome ShizNat Story
Chapter 6
It was approximately two a.m. when the brunette lifelessly opened her tired, sleepy eyes. She was laying on the bed, laying on her left side, and was facing a slumbering blunette. Her right hand was resting on the blunette's waist, and a white comforter was covering their bodies, keeping them warm from the waist down.
Ruby eyes stared ahead for a long moment, eyes adjusting to the new type of light. The moon was shining bright tonight, the moonlight coming in through the windows. It was illuminating the whole place, giving everything inside a bright, silver color.
"She has company tonight, father"
A voice said, but her mouth was closed. Not a word was uttered, not a sound was heard in the room. The voice, it was in her head.
"And she doesn't seem to be in the usual setting"
Same Time,
Unknown Location
"Hmm, you're right, son" The older of the two said once he had looked up to stare at the massive screen in front of them.
At the moment, he could see everything the brunette could see, hear everything she could hear. Right now, she was their eyes and ears. They were in her head, controlling her mind, her body's movements.
And right now, they could see a beautiful, sleeping blunette. And they could clearly see the blue Gem adorning her left ear. It meant that this blunette, she possessed the powers as well, she was like the mysterious brunette.
"What should we do, father? Should we disconnect?"
The father thought about this for a little while. Then, decided, "Nonsense, let's take a look around. We might find something of value, something that could lead us to the source"
He walked over to his son's side and stood next to him. His son was laying down on a bed with his eyes closed and a transparent helmet on his recently shaved head.
Every night, before connecting, he shaved his head and injected himself with the same serum they had used on the brunette. He did this to be able to use the helmet that linked him to the brunette's mind.
Out of the two, only he could do it. He was younger, stronger, and also closer to brunette in age. Connecting drained a lot of his energy as well as the brunette's, his father was a little weak and wouldn't be able to handle it.
The transparent helmet on his head did both, connect to the woman's mind, and project and record everything he was seeing on the screen ahead of them. They recorded, collected data so that they could later analyze it. They could miss a lot of things, a lot of details while live. The recorded data helped them go back and look at the footage, helped them plan what to do and where to search next.
This technology that they were using was very old technology, technology that no one used anymore because the process alone was lengthy, was very stressful on the body, and it was nearly useless since the effects eventually wore off.
It was the only method they could use on the brunette though. After a long year of trying, of torture tactics, they found that they couldn't break the woman, couldn't persuade her, couldn't make her take their side. She was not easily fooled; she was too smart, and her mind was too strong to manipulate.
So, they began the long process of moving her memories around in her head. It took them nearly a year to do just that, to alter her memories, to induce amnesia. The only way they could control her was by blurring, distorting all the information in her brain. By making her forget, making her extremely vulnerable and confused. Confused to the point of not even remembering her own name.
They also did a blood wash, removing most of those curious particles that were in her bloodstream so that they could study them, perhaps even replicate them. And injected a neon-yellow serum in her nervous system every night for a whole year. This serum did both, induce amnesia, and give them access to her nervous system. That way, while she was deep asleep, while she had no control over her senses, her body, or her mind, they could slip right in and take over, take total control.
Unfortunately, the human body is in deep sleep, in 'full state of rest' for approximately one and a half to two hours at most each night. So, they had a very small window whenever they connected to move around, a very small window to find what they were looking for.
To find the source.
And they were also racing against the clock. Once the brunette recovered all her memories they wouldn't be able to control her anymore. It didn't help that the brunette had those curious particles in her bloodstream, healing her even faster. And the neon-yellow serum slowly deteriorated, weakened as the memories returned.
That's why no one used this old technology anymore. It was nearly useless. It took too much effort to administer, and it brought very little successful results.
But Father was desperate, and desperate times called for desperate measures.
"Slowly move from the bed, my son. We do not want to wake her lovely companion" The father instructed as he watched the screen, his hands folding over his chest.
The son did as was told. With his mind, he controlled the brunette, he told her what to do.
Right now, he was her.
He slowly removed his arm from the sleeping form, slowly uncovered the comforter from his body, throwing it on the floor. He slowly left the bed, and gently, silently walked around the small room, making sure not to make any sounds, not to wake the sleeping blunette.
He touched the surfaces as he went, looked at items. Everything in this cabin seemed so interesting, so outdated compared to the previous setting they had been in.
Then, he instructed the brunette to walk towards the front door. Once there, he opened it and slowly stepped outside. It took him a while to react by what he saw.
"Father, can you see this? Can you hear this?" The son said in awe as he looked at the view ahead of him.
There were so many colors, so much life on this planet. The dark brown of the wet mud, the lighter brown of the oak trees, the brilliant green of the thick grass, and the different colored flowers and leaves.
And there were so many sounds as well. So many different sounds. The sound of the light rain, the sound of the chirping birds, the crickets, the wind, he could also faintly hear water, perhaps a stream. Everything was so lively, so vivid, so… beautiful.
In his planet, however, there was nothing but desolation left. Half the planet was covered in ice, the other half in sand. Everywhere they looked there was ice and sand. Mankind had destroyed everything. The thirst for power, for technology, for advancement, had destroyed everything, had led them to nuclear war.
Unfortunately, the planet was the one who took the strongest hit. The war killed it, it was near inhabitable anymore, the air nearly unbreathable anymore. They were slowly dying.
"That's called nature, my son" The father explained, not really caring about what this planet had to offer. All he cared about was power, all he cared about was the source. He wanted the source. "Don't get distracted, keep going"
About Forty Minutes Later,
Planet Earl
Back at the Cabin
"Cold" Natsuki huskily said with her eyes closed. She was suddenly feeling cold, feeling a breeze hit her bare feet. Somehow, the comforter that was previously covering her body, keeping her warm, had ended up on the floor.
It was the middle of summer, but at this time of night, the temperatures dropped significantly due to the high altitude.
Her hand instinctively reached out for the brunette next to her, wanting to hug her, to cuddle her, to steal her warmth, but only found the empty space.
She slowly opened her Emerald eyes and raised her head a little, "Shizuru?" She softly, sleepily called out, thinking the brunette might've just gone to the restroom.
She rested her head on her pillow again and waited in silence for a few seconds but heard no reply. And also noticed that there was no sound coming from the restroom, the lights weren't on either. That's when she raised to a sitting position on the bed and saw that the front door was wide open, and that the comforter was on the floor.
"That's odd…" She let out, slowly getting out of the bed and grabbing the long robe on the chair near the stairs that led to the second floor. She noticed Shizuru's robe and slippers were still there, next to hers, left untouched.
She tied the knot of her robe as she walked towards the front door. Once she got there, she looked around but Shizuru was nowhere in sight.
"Shizuru?" She called out a little louder but there was no reply. Only the sound of the crickets, and a scared running rabbit could be heard.
Natsuki walked down the short set of wooden steps and kneeled, that's when Emerald eyes noticed the tracks, the trail of footprints on the wet, muddy ground.
She decided to follow the footprints, knowing they would surely lead her to Shizuru.
And after twenty minutes of walking through the woods, twenty minutes of going through bushes and ducking through branches, twenty minutes of walking around boulders and climbing through muddy slopes, she found the brunette.
"There you are..." Natsuki was glad to have found her, but also couldn't help and feel concerned.
Shizuru was standing not too far ahead. She was looking down, her feet submerged on the lake. Natsuki found this completely odd, completely out of character. What exactly was Shizuru doing? What was she looking at?
She went ahead and slowly walked towards her direction. In every step that she took, there was a slight hesitation.
"Shizuru?" She called her name, but the brunette didn't turn around, didn't even acknowledge her existence. Shizuru didn't move at all.
She went ahead and walked in the lake, her feet now submerged in the cold water as well. She kept on walking until she was by her side.
"Hey, Shizuru?" She reached out for the brunette's shoulder, touched her. That's when she gained her attention, when she got some sort of reaction out of her.
Just a second ago, all Shizuru could see was darkness, all she could hear was emptiness. And suddenly, there was a beam of light. A beam of light accompanied with a faint, white noise. The light was starting to blur, and her vision, her sight, was starting to come back to her. Clearing.
"Ara?" Shizuru softly let out, somewhat disoriented and confused, blinking rapidly. She was awake now, and she was slowly coming back to her senses.
"Ara?" She slowly looked around, looked at her surroundings, and then turned around to settle her eyes on Natsuki's face. She was confused as to where she was, and how she got there. Why she was in the lake of all places at this time of night.
"What are you doing, Shizuru?" Natsuki softly asked, a worried expression on her features. When she held her hand, she noticed how cold Shizuru felt. "How long have you been out here?"
"I… I-I don't know" Shizuru shivered, answered honestly, and then looked at the water, at her feet. "W-Why are we in the lake, N-Natsuki?"
Natsuki didn't say anything, didn't answer her question. She wasn't sure how to reply to that anyway. She also didn't press any further, Shizuru seemed so confused, so lost, so disoriented. She knew she wasn't going to get anything out of her, not in this condition.
"Come, Shizuru" Instead, she grabbed her hand tighter and guided her out of the lake. Once they were out, she removed her robe and wrapped it around Shizuru's shoulders, trying to keep her warm. Shizuru was visibly shivering now. "Let's go back to the cabin and warm you up"
They silently walked back towards the cabin, and when they got there, they both had to take a warm shower. Especially Shizuru, she really needed it, she was extremely cold, she was wet from head to toe, had a few scratches here and there, and was also covered in mud.
Natsuki figured she had gone out while it was still raining, and had probably injured herself while walking through the bushes and branches.
Luckily, there was some gas left on the tank, so she was able to use the stove to brew warm tea after their shower.
"Does Natsuki know if I have a tendency of sleepwalking?" Shizuru thoughtfully asked as she tasted some of her warm tea.
She had fresh, long pajamas on and was covered in a large, fuzzy, warm blanket. Natsuki had already attended to her scratches and cuts. They weren't deep, just minor cuts that would fade in a few hours' time with the help of the nanomachines in her bloodstream.
Sleepwalking. It was the only logical explanation the brunette could find. Nothing else could explain how she unconsciously left the bed, left the cabin in the middle of the night, and walked all the way to the lake. She had no recollection of doing this. None whatsoever. Her mind was completely blank of the occurrence.
Shizuru drank some more of her tea as she watched the pensive blunette. The warm, spicy liquid warmed her right up, made her blood flow.
"To my knowledge, no. It's the first time I've ever seen you do this" Natsuki pensively replied, green eyes settled on her untouched cup of ginger tea the whole time. Shizuru's suggestion did make sense though. "We should ask Youko when-"
"A-Ara, more tests?" Kyoto-ben couldn't help and frown, interrupting her lover.
If they talked to Youko, that's what would happen. Tests. More and more tests. More time at the lab. More of being poked at like if she was a science experiment. She didn't like that, she was tired of it. But apparently, she had no choice in the matter. She had to do what she was told.
Natsuki placed her cup of tea on the coffee table. She held onto the brunette's hand and said with a frown, "I know, Shizuru. I know you don't like it. I'm sorry, but we-"
"But it's only sleepwalking" Shizuru quickly added, interrupted the woman, making her slightly jump. "It's normal. There's nothing wrong with me. It's only sleepwalking"
Natsuki didn't think the brunette would react this way. She wasn't sure what was happening right now, why she was using that tone of voice. Why she had snapped at her.
"Shizuru, it's just a precaution" She softly, calmly replied. She watched as Shizuru quietly set her tea on the coffee table in front of them and then stood from the couch. …Oi… Shizuru was visibly upset now.
This sight wasn't new to Natsuki though, it's not like they hadn't argued before. They had argued a few times before the brunette had gone missing. Especially on their third year as a couple, more so because of her so called 'Issues'. That's the only thing they really ever argued about.
"It seems I do not have a say in this, so this conversation is over" The brunette announced, displeased. "I'm going to sleep. I have a long day of tests ahead of me" She handed Natsuki the blanket that was previously keeping her warm. "Natsuki can sleep on the couch. I don't-"
"I know, I get it, you don't have to say it" Natsuki interrupted the woman, sighing. She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples in irritation. "You don't want to be touched, right?" She finished the brunette's sentence for her. That's what Shizuru always said when they argued and she didn't want her in her bed.
Ruby eyes narrowed at Emerald ones because of this, fists tightening and pursing her lips. She couldn't even do that anymore, finish her own sentences anymore. She couldn't do anything on her own. It was so frustrating.
"If I were Natsuki, I would not come anywhere near me. I would be afraid for my safety… Do we have an understanding?"
Natsuki didn't say a word. The way the brunette had said that, so calmly and with that look in her eyes, it brought chills down her spine, and not in a good way. Those eyes of hers, those eyes said it all.
"Oyasumi" Shizuru calmly said. Then, she walked over to the bedroom area, climbed on the large bed, covered herself with the comfy comforter from head to toe, and tried to fall asleep.
"You're as stubborn as ever you know!" Natsuki couldn't help and shout from the couch, one eye twitching, her cheeks pink from annoyance. "This is ridiculous" Then muttered, trying to make herself comfortable there. She lay there and covered the lower part of her body with the thick blanket Shizuru had left behind.
Today had gone so well, she doesn't understand what happened, how things suddenly turned on her. And why they were arguing about this.
"Why do I always end up on the couch?" She muttered to herself as she raised again and fluffed the cushion below her.
Whenever they fought in the cabin, that's where she ended up, the couch.
Back in Garderobe, she just went to her room and slept in the comfort of her own bed. But not in the cabin though. In the cabin she took the couch. It's not like she ever slept when they argued, anyway. Sleep always eluded her. "I should invest in a better couch"
After twenty minutes of laying there with her Emerald eyes closed, twenty minutes of laying there trying to fall asleep, and miserably failing at it, Natsuki felt as the brunette approached her and raised the blanket, felt her lay next to her, felt as she hugged her, then felt as she kissed her cheek.
"Natsuki, are you asleep?" Kyoto-ben whispered, the tip of her nose lightly touching the blunette's soft cheek.
When Natsuki opened her eyes and faced her, the tip of their noses now touching, Shizuru closed her eyes, leaned the short distance, and tenderly kissed her lips.
"Kannin na, I shouldn't have reacted the way I did" Shizuru whispered once their lips had parted, "I'll do whatever you ask, I know it's for my wellbeing"
Natsuki sighed and wrapped an arm around the brunette's waist. In those twenty minutes of complete silence, of deep thought, one particular sentence the brunette had said resonated in her head.
She moved a little to lay on her side, wanting to see the brunette's face better. She wanted Shizuru to look her in the eyes when she said this; To look her in the eyes so that there weren't any doubts later.
"You do have a say in all of this, Shizuru" Natsuki gently touched the brunette's face. She caressed her jaw, her thumb grazed her lower lip, unable to touch her cheek because of the long, thin, fresh cut she had there.
"Youko will advise what she thinks should be done. And if there is something you don't feel comfortable doing, or something you just don't want to do, you do have a say, Shizuru. It's your body, you are allowed to say no" She then added, "It would be better if you cooperated, whatever Youko suggests, she means you no harm... But you do have a choice" She leaned forward for a short brush of lips, just a small caress, "Don't ever feel like you don't have a say. You do. Your voice matters, your opinion matters"
Shizuru couldn't help the blush on her face as she nodded, then buried her face in the blunette's neck. "Ookini, Natsuki" Came the muffled sound. "You don't know how relieved these words make me feel… I feel like I have no control over anything. Everything is decided for me"
Natsuki frowned, knowing there was truth in Shizuru's words.
"Natsuki is frowning again" Shizuru let out with a small yawn. Feeling extremely sleepy, her energy leaving her.
And within seconds Natsuki's frown turned upside down, "What? How do you know? You're not even looking at me, Shizuru"
"Because Natsuki's job is to worry" Shizuru sleepily said with eyes closed and a soft smile on her face, repeating the words the woman had told her just a few hours ago.
After a few seconds of silence, Shizuru continued, "I try my best to protect this world, to make this world a better place for Natsuki, so that she could be happy, so that she doesn't have to worry… I don't like it when she worries" Then, softly added, "And here I am, being the cause of her worries. That was not my intention. Kannin na, Natsuki"
Natsuki's lips couldn't help and quiver by these words. This was not the first time she had heard Shizuru say them, or at least something similar to them. She knew that Shizuru must be talking from memories now, talking from past experience when she said that.
A few years back, the leader from Aswad, Midori, had asked Shizuru while in battle why she used her strength to protect this world. And Shizuru had answered, then and there, that it was for the person she cares about. For the person she loves. That's what Shizuru had said, she was there, she heard it clearly.
Shizuru was the one person she trusted most, the one person she knew would do the right thing, make the right decisions while out in missions. That's why even though she preferred to have Shizuru by her side at all times, she sent her out, because no one did a better job than Shizuru. No one did the work as meticulously and as carefully and as fast as Shizuru. Shizuru could've said no, could've asked her to send someone else so that they could spend more time together, but she never did. She gladly took whatever assignment needed to be done.
And now she knew why. Shizuru did it for her. She always risked her life for her, always did it so that she didn't have to, so that she could remain in Garderobe where nothing could touch her, so she could be safe and sound.
"Arigato, Shizuru" Natsuki gently kissed the brunette's head. By the rhythm of her breathing, by the serene falling and rising of her chest, she guessed that Shizuru had already fallen asleep.
"You protected me and took care of me all these years, now let me protect you and take care of you" She hugged her tighter, keeping her warm against her body.
And then, slowly, in the comfort of her lover's embrace, she finally fell asleep.
When Natsuki woke up in the morning, she briefly awoke the brunette and guided her to bed. She told her that she'd be right back, that she would head to the nearest market to buy some groceries so that they could eat breakfast, and also fill up her motorcycle's tank since it was almost empty.
When she returned, the brunette was still deep asleep, so Natsuki went ahead and put the groceries away and crawled back into bed with her, stayed there with her until she awoke.
When Shizuru woke up, between whispers and laughter and kisses and caresses, their playful mood turned into sexy mood, so they made love for the second time in less than 24 hours.
The rest of the morning and part of the afternoon was spent exploring the woods. They went for a long walk, talked, had a picnic and even took a brief nap under one of the large oak trees by the lake.
They said goodbye to the cabin at around four p.m. and headed back to the city. It took them about two hours to get there since they had made several stops along the way. They bought some nicknacks and an array of tealeafs from different local shops.
When they arrived at Wind Bloom, they headed straight for the restaurant where they would be having dinner. After that, they took a long walk around the streets of Wind Bloom, ice creams in hand.
And Natsuki could've sworn she had spotted Nao with a group of people, heading for an alley, but she disregarded it. Tonight was about Shizuru. She'd have to ask Nao about what she saw tomorrow morning.
At around nine p.m. they headed back to Garderobe. They separated then, both women went to their respective rooms to shower and ready for bed.
After Shizuru had showered, put on her night gown, and had brushed her long, thick hair, she sat on her bed, diary and pen in hand.
Tonight, instead of reading, she decided to write. She didn't know how to begin or what to write, but decided not to ponder any longer and wrote whatever came to mind.
She started with today's date, and then, wrote a simple sentence, a total of five words: This weekend was the happiest.
She closed the diary and left it at that, words couldn't describe how she truly felt, she just couldn't put it into words.
A few minutes later she heard a soft knock on the door.
"It's open, Natsuki" Shizuru smiled as she said this, only the blunette came to her room at this time of night.
"Hey" Natsuki said as she stepped in the room with a huge smile on her face. She closed the door behind her and walked over to the bed, hands in her robes pockets, and joined the sitting brunette. "I just wanted to wish you goodnight" She leaned downward and gave Shizuru a soft kiss on the cheek.
Shizuru giggled because of this, because of how timid and sweet Natsuki was. "Natsuki should try that kiss again, I think she missed" She raised a suggestive brow.
"You know I have horrible aim" Natsuki couldn't help and grin, refering to the prior day at the festival, how she couldn't hit one single balloon with the toy gun she was provided. It was irritating. All she could say to Shizuru was that the toy was defective.
Then, Natsuki tried again, she leaned downward and captured her lover's lips, engaging in a long, amorous kiss. Her hands went for the brunette's face, her fingers caressed her cheeks, but had to stop their kiss for she had felt her slightly jump and grimace.
"Oi, gomen" She said, sitting in front of Shizuru to inspect her face. The cut was still there, which Natsuki thought very odd. ...This should've healed by now...
Emerald eyes then roamed the brunette's arm. Her scratches were still there as well. They were very small wounds, so the nanomachines should've taken care of this already.
Why were they still there? Were the nanomachines not working?
Natsuki then couldn't help and swallow. Couldn't help the fast beat of her heart against her chest. Couldn't help the sudden loss of blood that left her face. Couldn't help and worry. Just couldn't help it.
Usually, when the nanomachines stopped working, it was because of one thing. It was because the Otome had had intimate relations with someone of the opposite sex.
Shizuru went ahead and kissed the pensive blunette's forehead. "No more worrying, ne?" She whispered to her as she caressed her face, "They're just scratches, they will heal in a few days" Then dragged her in the bed, guided her to lay next to her, covering her with the comforter as well.
"Can you stay with me until I fall asleep?" Shizuru covered her lips as she let out a small yawn. She was really tired, today had been a long and exciting day.
Natsuki slowly nodded yes and then wrapped her arms around the brunette, giving her a soft kiss on her forehead.
"Goodnight, Shizuru" She had a million questions, a million possible scenarios running in her head.
First thing tomorrow, she'd have to ask Youko what the hell was going on. Ask her to go over the test results with her again. Ask her if someone had done something to Shizuru, if they had forced themselves on her. What other explanation could there be for the nanomachines to not be working?
...I swear. If someone harmed Shizuru in anyway, I'll find them, I'll find them and I'll kill them with my bare hands... Was the furious, angry thought in Natsuki's head.
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And thanks for the Reviews/Comments
"For the love of ShizNat"