The knot unravels

Chapter 6 of A Knight's Prophecy

Summary: The aftermath of Chapter 5
AN: Yes I know, I disappeared for a long time. My apologies. I'm back for now.
AKP mainstory chapter 5? Pls save me from the nothing i've become ((WAKE ME UP))

Warning: death, attempted rape


The brilliant sunlight burst through the few gaps in the room, and Eli muffled a tired moan, trying to bury her face under the pillows.

She had good reason to, after all.

She lost control of herself, once again, even though she promised not to. And - and she did not know if anyone had gotten hurt. Nico, Maki, Nozomi -

Nozomi!

She spun around, the bed creaking as she frantically groped around for her lover.

No, no, was she - was she gone this time?

Eli shook her head, clutching at her hair painfully.

What did she do?

What exactly had she done last night? It was all a blur - Nico and her were talking, she said something, and they flared up. Something -

Eli winced as a spike of pain stabbed her brain.

Something?

She couldn't remember. Was it her sister? Was Nico actually angry because their families were brought up in that attempted conversation? Understandable, since they had both lost their families.

"Why?" Eli gasped, still unable to comprehend Nico's rage from the day before.

"Nozomi." She muttered, and staggered out of her bed. She hurt, as she always did when she overexerted herself. Her muscles were stiff, but she convinced her leg to move bit by bit towards the stairs leading to the main room.

She had to find Nozomi. Was Nozomi even here anymore?

"She has to be." Eli mumbled, and her left foot moved too quickly, throwing her off her balance. Eli didn't even manage to close her eyes and brace for the impact of her body slamming into the stone steps.

"Whoa."

Lucky for her, she didn't have to. Surprisingly strong arms had prevented her from taking a dreadful tumble down, and she looked up as Maki hoisted her upright. That girl looked delicate, but she had been a knight after all. Eli was pretty sure that if she had a fight with Maki, sans her rage-fueled strength, it would be hard to have a clear victor.

"You okay?"

Maki's eyes were puffy, slightly, and she looked as though she had not slept.

"I'm fine." Eli mustered the strength in her traitorous feet, and tried to smile despite her worry. "Where's…. where's Nozomi?"

Maki tried to force her eyes open, and patted Eli's shoulder twice.

"She's in the kitchen, washing up. She had expected both you and Nico-chan to wake up past noon, but apparently she was wrong. I'm going to check on Nico-chan."

Maki patted Eli's shoulder again, and Eli found her feet eagerly plodding down to the kitchen.

"Nozomi!"

"Ah, Elicchi!"

In their haste, their toes and foreheads greeted each other, and Eli couldn't help but laugh and cry with sheer relief that Nozomi was here. Not a hallucination. She was alive and well, and not dead from yesterday's… rampage.

"Elicchi, are you alright?"

Nozomi bent down, and swept Eli's bangs aside to check her forehead. Long slender fingers reached for Nozomi's face.

"I am. I'm always alright with you."


Nico was already out of last night's clothes - she had shuddered before tossing them into the shared wash basket. She stretched and winced as her lower back ached, the same sore spot digging and knotting her muscles, scraping her bone - and all of a sudden, the pain was gone.

It was something she had grown used to.

The door opened, and Maki entered.

Right. Maki was a new addition, and this was the first time Nico had to deal with her. When it was just Nozomi, Eli, and Nico herself, such fights would be quietly buried, and everyone would give each other space. Sometimes, no words would be said, just quiet acknowledgement that grew less tense with each passing day.

But Maki had entered.

And so Nico braced herself.

Maki said nothing, not a word, and Nico was both relieved and worried until she noticed the dark hues of red on Maki's face.

Oh.

Right.

Her clothes.

It was Nico's turn to sport that same shade of red, as she frantically put on her top.

"I didn't see anything." Maki mumbled, although it was an obvious lie.

Nico did remember Maki's very enticing purple eyes staring at her - Well, Maki was staring at some part of her.

"Of course you did not." Nico replied, and turned around, fully dressed this time round.

"Slept well?" Maki smiled, tiredly, Nico noted.

Nico nodded. It wasn't a complete lie. She never slept well after those attacks, but this time…

"I'm sorry. I lost control of myself - Nozomi said it happens from time to time." Nico bit her lower lip. "I really am sorry."

"I know." Maki simply replied, and reached for Nico without hesitation. "I know."

Recovering wasn't a fast process. Maki knew that. It took time, it took support, it took patience, and hope. And if Nico didn't have them, she would.

Healing was always easier with company.


Two weeks had passed since Nico's breakdown, and Maki had managed to garner a few answers from everyone. Apparently, Nico and Eli could not really get along, and it was more than their personalities. Nozomi refused to say more, and Eli had shrugged, saying that Nico had lost her family, so everytime the topic of family was brought up seriously, it would trigger the black haired girl.

Nico refused to reveal much about herself, and admitted that she wasn't sure how she became a dragon shifter. It was one day when she suddenly sprouted wings, terrified and unable to control them. Her parents had rushed into the woods with her, trying to calm her down. As such, the whole family moved into the woods, where no one else resided. And that was it. That was all Nico had to share.

Eli shared that she was from a foreign land - Galanthus - which was covered in a sheet of ice and snow. She had made friends with one of Nozomi's knights, who would also act as messenger for the two princesses. They had met more through letters, but there was a bond, a special chain that tied the two princesses together. As Eli spoke, her face shined with a childlike excitement. It died when Eli mentioned Nozomi sending chocolates, and she excused herself.

That conversation was never continued.

And so that left Nozomi.

When Nozomi prepared her trip for supplies once again, Maki seized the opportunity to accompany her. Nico's eyes had narrowed, but a brief peck to the cheek from Maki calmed her down immediately. It was their thing now, yet none of them spoke about feelings. It wasn't time for that. Nozomi and Eli would look on endearingly whenever a small moment like that happened.

"We'll be back in 4 days. There's no one to visit there anyway." Nozomi promised, and looked at Eli. "I trust the both of you will behave?"

Eli shrugged, and Nozomi frowned.

"Elicchi…."

"Yes, we'll behave!"

"Same thing, Nico-chan."

Nico grumbled but nodded. "No promises about flying about though."


Nozomi had expected Maki to ask her about her past. Her cards had already warned her. But her cards had also told her that it was time to reveal it.

After all, it was just her past, and not Eli's, or Nico's. At least that was something she deserved control over.

"What do you want to know, Maki?"

"Everything."

"Well, when I was a young girl, my father went on a trip to Galanthus, and told me there was a princess there. She was my age, and we managed to find many similar interests, although fighting was definitely not one of them. He encouraged me to write to her, and we passed our letters back and forth. The change in handwriting is still something to marvel about. It was not a secret that both Elicchi and I were infatuated with each other. I found out that she was incredibly strong, something she attributes to her genetics. And she's also terrified of the dark."

Maki smirked at that information.

"This beautiful friendship between Elicchi and I was so well known to the extent that my knight, Umi, had to become our messenger. It wasn't just letters, I made her deliver gifts as well. It turns out that Umi and Elicchi became quite good friends too. And what a godsend Umi was! She smuggled top quality beef back from Galanthus, although Elicchi insists it was a gift and not a contraband item. That was delicious."

Nozomi licked her lips and continued.

"Then I decided to make chocolates for Elicchi one day. I made sure to flirt quite openly in the letter, and Umi told me Elicchi's reaction was amusing. So I decided to make her some for Valentine's."

Maki had expected Nozomi to giggle, but the older girl frowned.

"I sent Umi there one last time. My chocolates reached, but I never heard from Elicchi after that."

Maki patiently waited for Nozomi to continue.

"Shortly after Valentine's, before I could compose my next letter, the castle of Galanthus was attacked. The princesses went missing, and were presumed dead. The kingdom fell into disarray, and from what I heard, enemies swarmed the castle, looting and killing until there was nothing left."

Maki bit her lip now, her fingers tapping against her trousers.

"Of course, I rushed there, with Umi right by my side. By the time we reached, it was all over. I climbed up stairs with no walls, and sank down onto the floor when I realised that Elicchi wasn't there. I can't remember what happened, but I cried and cried, and I wished so badly that I could meet her, that I could have stopped the attack somehow."

Nozomi laughed, and picked a flower from the road, twining it around her finger.

"I even did a card reading. The moment I put the last card down, I felt a burning sensation, a jolt running through my entire body, and i could feel and hear only my heartbeat. Umi was concerned and reached out to hold me before I fell. I was just dizzy, and got up rather soon."

Maki started tapping her fingers faster."

After that, we got intel. Elicchi wasn't dead; she was abducted by a dragon. The few locals and guards who survived told us so. That was good enough for me, although I was rather concerned as to what a dragon would do with Elicchi."

Maki wondered if this dragon was a certain dragon she knew.

"After I returned to Syringa, my home, I planned a trip around the different kingdoms in a bid to find Elicchi. No one knew of it, not even Umi. But of course, I was foolish, and the first time I journeyed out, I was still dressed like how I normally would. Basically, my outfit screamed "princess". It was sudden - someone lunged at me and I was knocked down from my horse before he galloped off. I was scared, so scared, and I didn't want to die like that, not before meeting Elicchi."

Maki held her breath, expecting the worst.

"He tried to have his way with me, but I fought back, and that was when he decided to take out his dagger. Straight to the throat. It really hurt, and it wasn't a fast one, since he was drunk and clumsy."

Maki raised her hand, biting her knuckle. She was glad Nozomi was walking in front of her.

"It was just darkness, but then I blinked and found myself back in Galanthus, wobbling to one side and Umi catching me. I thought it was a dream, and I am very sure Umi was very concerned for my neck that day, since I kept touching it. I don't know how it happened, a miracle, maybe. But I saw it as my second chance."

"I tried again, but this time, I dressed more humbly. Unfortunately, in my haste, I picked the fastest route and was assaulted by bandits. Woke up in Galanthus again. I tried again and again, and I remember having to give up my horse at one point since he was the one causing my death - a tumble down a cliff. So I saved both him and I. And from there I slowly made my way around, trying to find out rumours about a dragon. Then I found out that the Dragon had been challenging people to rescue the princess. That narrowed the search down for me. A few mishaps along the way, but things got easier the more I died. I already knew the information from the locals, so I spent less time talking, and more time walking."

Nozomi stopped to catch her breath. She turned around the face Maki.

"And I finally met them."

"How was it like?" Maki managed to ask despite the swirling pain and fear in her head.

"Elicchi was dead."


This time Maki could not stifle her gasp.

"She was dead, and I realised that I had to move faster, talk less. So I talked to the Dragon first, got all the information I needed, and asked the Dragon to pierce my heart. It's the least painful way for me."

Maki bit her knuckle hard enough to draw blood.

"So I tried again, and again, and each time, I would wake up at different places, nearer and nearer to my destination. It was a sign that things were working out well. A sign that I was fast enough. And well, here we are. It was a long journey, but it was worth it."

Maki looked at Nozomi's smile, one that was practised and plastered on. Her eyes were tired but shining. Maybe it really was worth it.

'How many times? How are you even sane? Why?'

"Was… was the Dragon Nico-chan?" Maki clenched her fists.

Nozomi looked at Maki, apologising with her gaze. "Yes."

"So Nico-chan has killed." Maki whispered.

Nozomi did not say anything.

And their sounds of their shoes pressing into the dirt accompanied them for the rest of the journey.


AN: I'm sorry I took so long to update this. I went back to University after procrastinating and ignoring the necessity of a degree in today's society. I also took on part time work for MONEY so that left me with little time for everything else.

That said, I have had a good 2018. I travelled to Europe for the first time. And as late as this message finds all of you, I hope you had a great 2018, and a better 2019.

Thank you for patiently waiting