"But life has a habit of taking those you want closest and throwing them across oceans."
-Anonymous
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Of Impulse and Fey
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Walking on eggshells is the only proper idiom to explain the next few weeks. I stayed at work longer just to stay out of the house, unfortunately leaving a fuming Reito alone with Natsuki. (I got many angry text messages about my irresponsibility during my more important meetings.) Still, by the time August came around, our original routine was back into order with a few minor changes. Natsuki would still greet Reito every morning, in her canine self, and he would provide her with a more robust breakfast. I'd tumble in, have my usual friendly spat about Reito's cooking, and then be off to take my shower. Natsuki would go outside to the backyard instead of following me up to my room.
Natsuki had grown cold and brusque toward me now. This left me empty and yet filled to brim with despair. There were no more friendly kisses, no more pats on head, and more small hours of us lounging on the couch while I ran my fingers through her fur. Whenever she passed me, I would do my best not to flinch. I had no idea why I would do the action, it just started to happen. Reito noticed the new relationship between Natsuki and me and asked several times what had happened between us since the night of the unveiling. Not wanting to talk about it just yet, I claimed oh-so-innocently that I didn't know what he was talking about and that I was only giving her the space and respect that I figured she wanted. Knowing me so well, he let the subject drop for the time being. He knew that when I was ready to talk about it he would be the first to know. Besides, he was asking me with half his head on. Reito was too busy worrying about what he was going to get Chikako, his current lady friend, for her birthday.
Reito had called me ahead of time to let me know that he would be out this evening. I assumed he was tired of being alone with Natsuki, so he swung by Chikako's for an impromptu date. I'm sure the date was also inspired with the fact that Chikako was going back to university soon, and they wouldn't be able to spend as much time with each other. I am happy for him, I really am, but I was nervous of being alone in the house with Natsuki. Our relationship hadn't bettered after the night I shooed her out of my room. I had just come home and parked out back. I was presently sitting in my car pondering about how I could sneak into the house without Natsuki coming down to see me.
"What the hell am I thinking?" I sputtered, outraged at myself for thing of such a thing.
"I will not allow her to make me feel like an intruder in my own home any longer." Marching up the back porch, I stomped my feet for good measure. Daring Natsuki to come down and meet me with her cold emerald eyes. When I opened the door, there seemed to be no one in the house. "Huh, well so much for looking like a bigger idiot," I muttered. Although it had not been a particularly busy work month, I was truly exhausted. I wanted to calm the waters between us, but with the withering looks I had been receiving as of late, I hadn't the heart. Slumping in the deep recesses of my couch, I gently massaged my temples. This was more of a mindless habit than to actually relieve the headache that began to develop there. Sighing, I sat back onto my shoulder blades and waited for the full dark of the evening to come and wash the room in pure moonlight. I didn't feel like turning on the artificial electric light yet. My mood lower than the floor beneath my feet, I wanted to wallow in the darkness for a little while.
When darkness finally came, I slipped off my pinch-y shoes, and brought my knees up to my chest with deliberate movements. I wrapped my arms around my knees, and let my head rest on the tops of them. I had forgotten how soothing it was to the soul to watch the moon in its entire glory filter through the gigantic windows. Suddenly nostalgic, I began to hum a soft tune my mother would sing to me often. "Why are you sitting alone in the dark, human?" I gasped and whirled around to see Natsuki, in her humanesque form, half hidden in the shadows. Still as gorgeous as ever, I thought glumly. "I was relaxing."
"That is an odd way to relax."
"Why do you say that?"
"Sitting alone in the dark and singing to yourself seems more like wallowing to me."
Damn.
"I see," I stated curtly as I unwound myself from the couch. "I shall be in my room if you need anything. Reito should be home within the hour," I said, soundly annoyed with the fact that I was so easy to read. "I didn't mean anything by it, human," Natsuki rasped. Something was off. I could feel it as I stepped toward her to reach the stairs. "What's wrong?" I asked wary of what may come next. "Why would anything be wrong?" She stated stiffly with her eyes flashing in defiance. Narrowing my eyes, I tried to look over her body that she adamantly hid in the shadows. Not being able to see anything, I backpedaled to turn on a nearby lamp.
A small resounding pat of blood hit the floor from her dripping left hand. Her beautiful navy hair matted itself against a nasty congealing wound on her chest and left arm; later I figured she did this to hide the damage from on lookers. "What happened?" I demanded, rushing forward to catch her as the last of her strength failed her. My eyes were searching all over her excessively pale face. She managed a final wheezy breath before I felt her dead weight.
The thought of calling an ambulance extinguished itself immediately. I thought about calling Reito, but decided against it for I did not want to spoil his date. I could handle this myself. Quickly laying her on the ground, I hurried to grab the medical kit we held in a small closet underneath the stairs. After spending some time cleaning off the wound, I came to find that it was a terrible slash from her right shoulder to her left shoulder and curving itself down her left arm until about the elbow. It gushed like the dickens and I checked for the telling bright red hue blood takes when flowing from an artery. Sure enough, whoever had done this slashed their way very well into the subclavian arteries. That's if she has any. I had spent some time as a nurse before I ran off to be a call girl. I had a fascination for mending inflictions and healing pain.
Panicking at the rate of her blood loss, I barely registered that her laceration was somehow reconfiguring itself right before my eyes. This must have to do with her alien self. Anyway, I dutifully continued to clean off the wound while it mended itself. Once the bleeding staved off, I reached for a salve and froze. What did I know about Natsuki's alien anatomy? Even though she seems human enough, she was, in fact, not human. Hell, she could be allergic to the salve for all I know! Natsuki groaned and I applied the salve before dressing the wound without giving it more thought. Pulling back to take a good look at my handy work, I gave myself a mental pat on the back for not primarily focusing on the softness of Natsuki's breast. (I did have to strip her naked from the waist up to deal with the infliction.) Wanting her to be comfortable and warm, I hauled her up the stairs in a bridal scoop. "I'm not so sure I like the fact that you fit perfectly in my arms," I said gently to Natsuki.
She was unbearably cold from the shock of blood- or whatever the substance- loss. Quickly reaching my room, I did my best to accommodate her by piling heaps upon heaps of blankets over her. After doing so, I gave myself another quick mental pat for not pitching us down the stairs. When I was seventy percent sure she wouldn't' die on me, I went back downstairs to clean up the aftermath. If I had stayed a fraction of a second longer, I would have heard Natsuki weakly calling out for me.
Reito scolded me for not calling him that night. Partly because he was worried about Natsuki and partly because he felt that he could dress wounds better than I could. Bloody bastard just wanted to cop a feel. Natsuki had yet to wake up from her comatose state for the past two weeks. Reito and I took turns watching over her. Reito also took it upon himself to be my nurse, making sure I ate and slept despite everything. By the third week, I resolved to stay at home full time. Kami knew I wasn't really paying much attention to work anyway. I managed to coerce Reito to go and take Chikako to the hot spring spa that I booked for them too. He was so busy helping Natsuki and me that he wouldn't have managed to get Chikako a decent enough present on time.
I was waiting for my teakettle to boil at the moment. I was so nervous about leaving Natsuki's side that Reito came home with those baby walkie-talkies one night. I had it beside me right now. Rubbing the kinks out of my neck, I clipped the walkie to the elastic of my shorts and nursed my tea while heading back upstairs. Sitting in my usual spot next to the bed, I placed my cup on the bed stand before interlacing my finger with hers. I found that Natsuki rested better when in contact with others. I suspected that she felt less lonely and afraid. Over the first couple of days, she twitched a lot in her sleep until I figured this out. Somewhere along the line of holding her hand and resting my head on my free arm on the comforter, I fell asleep. When I woke up it seemed like she was beginning to wake up herself.
"Water," she rasped. I obliged, trying to keep my trembling fingers under control. I was starting to fear the worst for her health. Before I could ask if she needed anything else, she already slipped back under. Sighing dejectedly, I simply replaced the warm wet cloth on her forehead.
Natsuki was sitting upright in my bed when I brought her breakfast the following morning. I brought up a bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup, so as not to upset her stomach with anything too rich. She ate in silence. Between the clinking of her spoon going from the bowl to her mouth, I remembered a peculiar question I had thought of when caring for her. "Why did Jack's daughter tell him that you were under a spell by the fey?" Pausing in her repetitious movements, she slid her gaze toward me, as if she just noticed I was there. When she processed my question, she put down her spoon and blushed awkwardly. "I spoke to her by accident. I…enjoy the company of children. Therefore, to make sense of the situation for her, I assimilated the truth to something she already believed in. Simple enough, really." I made a small "O" shape on my lips before she went back to her soup. This time a comfortable quiet fell over us.
I let my mind shift over several thought trains. As badly as I wanted to find out what happened to her that night three weeks ago, I wanted her to tell me when she was good and ready. I wanted her to trust me. So, to occupy myself, I let my mind go wherever it wanted. I was thinking about Chikako and Reito when another question hit me full force. "When is your birthday? Well, what day do you think it is? I'm not sure if your people had a calendar." This time she sheepishly set her spoon down in her now empty bowl. "August 15 from what I could tell," she said not quite looking at me, "Your planet's calendar is not that much different from ours, except for the fact that we have thirty days of February and no leap years." Weren't we in August already? I hadn't been keeping track of the days since Natsuki fell into a coma.
Curious, I went to my desk to seek out my pocket book. "That was last week!" Why hadn't I asked her this before? Oh right, because I thought she was a dog and then she stopped speaking to me. "So it seems, our bodies carry an innate calendar," Natsuki replied coolly. "Well?" I asked expectantly. "Well?" She repeated, puzzled. "Isn't there something your people do for birthdays? Something special?" I asked while sitting back down. "There is nothing you can do here that I did when I was back home," the suddenly cold beauty allowed. It was a touchy subject I guessed. "Well," I tried again, "is there something I can do for you then?" Her mouth opened immediately to most likely to tell me that there was nothing I could do when she stopped. She took her time before answering, "There is one small thing I do wish for."
"Anything," I responded with sincerity.
"I know that your company has access to sensitive information. I wish for your help in finding Tomoe."
I was not expecting that. "Erm," I said shifting in my seat that became a little uncomfortable just now, "I would love to." Helping her avenge her people on the last of the cretins who ruined her life was fine with me. The only revelation that bothered me was that she would probably leave me once the task was fulfilled. Natsuki eyed me strangely before becoming satisfied that I was honest with my answer. We fell back into a companionable silence after I set her bowl aside so she could rest peacefully.
The human looks rather pretty with her eyes glazed over in thought, thought Natsuki as she carefully stared at Shizuru's glassy red irises. Natsuki was surprised that Shizuru had not asked her what had occurred the other night before her coma. She wondered why. Gently probing into her thoughts, Natsuki slid around the edges of Shizuru's mind to keep from being noticed. It wasn't as if that would do any good anyhow, her mental walls were still stubbornly fortified. Everything in but never out, how troublesome. Although, she could not see what was going on in her head, she could hear what was going on. It didn't take too much energy to do so, and so far Natsuki hadn't checked to see if her mental walls were sound proofed. Visualizing that she was pressing her ear against seemingly titanium walls, Natsuki was pleasantly surprised to find that Shizuru's walls echoed.
She was singing that song again, the song that Natsuki had heard the human humming when she walked into the house that evening three weeks ago. The bluenette listened in, blissfully hearing the ruby eyed woman's head voice. As she listened in, Natsuki felt for any cracks along the walls. Even the smallest nick could provide more information about the taller earthling. She found one. From the little scuff along the wall Natsuki had inflicted when trying to give Shizuru her name, the emerald-eyed extraterrestrial felt fear and sadness seep through. The fierce emotion of concern lanced right through her making her jerk back from the privacy of the female human's mind palace. "What are you thinking about, human?" Shizuru blinked rapidly before giving Natsuki an apologetic smile for being zoned out for so long. The human had a dazzling smile. "Sorry, I was thinking about my parents."
Natsuki wasn't one to pry, nor to be curious, but to hell with it, "Oh? Where are they?"
"I'm not sure. They disappeared a little over three years ago now. Just after I moved here."
"Three years? And you never heard a word from them?"
"Not a single one, although, I keep hoping that I will someday."
The human entered the realm of her thoughts once more with a slightly pained expression on her perfect features. Three years ago is it? That is as long as it has been since the death of my planet. Looking back over, Natsuki felt something tug at her heart. She wanted nothing more than to gather the fragile human into her arms and cradle her until all the pain floated away. Is this what sympathy feels like? Not trusting her next actions if this went on any longer, the bluenette cleared her throat rather loudly. The taller woman smiled again in apology before politely asking, "Is there anything else I can get you?" Natsuki shook her head and watched the taller woman clean up the bed stand before leaving the room, with eyes clearly begging for solitude. Another emotion shot through Natsuki, this time the urge to protect her human, but let it go. Shizuru was, as it were, not her human.
Shizuru was not hers to protect.
It had been a long time since I had told anyone else about my parents. The dull, hollow ache was still resounding deep within my chest and abdomen. I had never known any other type of torturous pain. I was currently stirring a mix of cake batter for my wolf-turned-human while mindlessly staring out the window. I wanted Natsuki to experience a human celebration for birthdays even though hers had already passed. This was also a great excuse to keep my mind off my parents. Gently, I placed the glass bowl aside on the counter top and took in a deep breath. Now was not the time to dwell on negative thoughts. I had Natsuki's spontaneous birthday celebration to do, even if it would never compare to what she did back home. It wasn't until I was about to place the chocolate cake into the pre-heated that my head came back around. It was a chocolate cake! Despite Natsuki not being an actual dog didn't mean that she didn't carry the same fatal reaction to cacao like a dog would, not to mention her alien self. What did I know about Natsuki's body? (Never mind the fact that I knew her upper torso was just the same as mine expect sinfully softer.) Chewing on my lip, I closed the oven door and set the cake batter on the island in my kitchen.
I wanted to ask her if she could eat chocolate, but I also wanted to keep this a small surprise. "I suppose I'll take my chances," I said opening the oven again and throwing the round tin in there. If she can't eat it then Reito and I will have cake for a week. I make a damn good chocolate raspberry cake, and I will not let such a masterpiece go to waste! Nodding my head in silent affirmation I turned around and yelped in alarm. "Yes, I can eat chocolate," She said with an aggravating smirk. "Do you always have to sneak up on me like that?" I asked half-embarrassed from the situation and half-exasperated at the fact that she was so light on her feet. "No, but it's fun to watch your behavior at being startled. Besides, I was enjoying the view." I must have squeaked in at the blatant compliment because she was now looking at me with another infuriating smirk, "It is not as if I have never seen your body before, human." And she was right; I thought while feeling my face begin flame. She had seen me naked so many times before. My wolf also told me that everyone on her planet was classified as a female, so it was no wonder that she was attracted to females, but it was a shock that she found me attractive, a human nonetheless!
I was so giddy at this revelation that I completely forgot that she was still healing. Natsuki slowly limped further into the kitchen and inhaled deeply. "It smells very good in here human. I almost thought that the male earthling was back home," she stated while gingerly taking a seat on one of the stools for the island. I was cross between taking the commendation and poking her non too gently at her laceration. She implied that I couldn't cook. To be fair, she has never actually seen my cook… "Thank you," I said opting to play it cool. I didn't want to upset her and I didn't want to hurt her either. I still had no idea what kind of strength she was capable of, wounded or not. We stayed in another good natured silence, it seemed to the right thing to do lately, whilst I was preparing the Belgian chocolate and raspberry icing for the cake. "How did you know I was worried about whether you could eat chocolate or not?" I inquired when the oven signaled me that the cake was ready.
"Although I couldn't read your face, your body language helped me to figure out what was on your mind. When I saw the chocolate batter, it only confirmed what I thought was the problem."
"So it's not like you could read minds, eh, Sherlock?" I said with a small laugh. How more ridiculous could this get if she had such an ability? I would have to keep my thoughts guarded and secure all the time, how exhausting. "Well," she stated and felt my smile fall, "our people never spoke, not verbally anyway; we were of a hive mind. Since my people and the humans are quite similar, it isn't really hard to connect to your minds." I simply stared at her, trying to process this new bit of information, quickly coming back to focus when some icing fell onto my hand. Licking it off, I barely registered that her eyes flashed with an emotion I had never seen from her. Before I could name it, it was already long gone. Shaking it off, I questioned as cautiously as I could, "Have you tried to 'connect' to my mind?"
A/N: Alrighty! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I'm sorry if there are typos/ continuity errors (I just realized I made a huge mistake in choosing the wrong last names for Shizuru and Natsuki ^^; I really hope ya'll hardcore fans can forgive me because I can't go back now). That aside, I hope you all have a fantastic weekend ahead, and for those of you in school, FIGHTING! Next chapter next Friday :)