Chapter 8: What's Wrong With Us?
Aoi ignored the calls of Reito and Kazuya for the moment. She wiped her eyes, letting raindrops replace the tears down her cheeks. It soaked her hair, making strands cling to her face and neck. If it were not for the rain she would not know what to do other than disappear so that no one saw her weakened and pathetic state. Disappearing would only look guilty in some shape or form, but it was something she was surprisingly used to doing. The more time she gave herself, however the less her mind fixated itself on the mysterious figure and the more Natsuki and Shizuru returned to her list of priorities.
She grabbed the two swords she threw to the ground earlier, wet and covered in soil and blades of grass. Aoi stood up and took a deep breath, letting the energy return to her body and regaining her composure as if nothing had happened.
Walking in the direction of Reito and Kazuya's voices, they met halfway. An improvisation of a sling was fashioned for Reito's mauled arm and new people from the outer party that fought the hoard were among their group, "Is it as we fear?" Reito asked when he saw neither Natsuki nor Shizuru with Aoi. His face looked grave for once rather than the impenetrable calm he had about his character.
"Perhaps. I can't find them in this area… I think they fell into the gorge." Aoi told them, walking towards the steep cliff face. The drop was great, but the scent trail ended there and that was where she last saw them. She felt in her gut the two women were perfectly fine. Maybe bruised and battered, but not dying. "I'm sure they're still alive. They wouldn't die just yet. Natsuki is tough and Shizuru is an elite with her people after all. Neither should be underestimated." Aoi said with a dose of confidence.
One of the newest members of their group stepped up, "Once we get to the village, we'll send out you and our best that know the area to search for the two. It's not safe to go down currently." He then looked over at Reito, "Right now Reito needs help, he isn't doing too well…"
"Nonsense…" Reito shook his head and then broke out into a fit of coughs. His face was already reddening and hair soaked—in short, he looked a complete and disoriented mess. Kazuya supported him, hands red with contact on Reito's skin, and face holding back a pained expression.
"Fever and infection is setting in, you fool," Kazuya scolded, "You're temperature is so high it's burning my hands." Reito grumbled.
"We shouldn't delay," Aoi motioned for everyone to get moving, "For your sake, Reito, and for Shizuru and Natsuki's we have to hurry."
Kazuya threw Reito over his shoulders despite the protests and complaints. It was almost comical seeing a small person like Kazuya carry a man so much larger than himself, and despite that urgency of his injuries they knew he would be fine with the proper treatment once returning home. The healers, as well as Saeko, would make sure of it. Their only concern were the women trapped out in the wilderness, as well as the hoard that had not retreated, but rather gathered in wait at a distance. They started off in the direction of home, silent and attentive at first.
"Hopefully we'll find them as soon as possible so they won't have to survive through a night in this rain and cold…." Aoi looked over her shoulder and to the darkness beyond the limits her eyes could see past the trees. Please be alright guys…
Shizuru lunged forward and sliced through the last of the orphans that forced her down the cliff. Searing hot blood covered her forearm and she grimaced and rushed over to the river that cut through the gorge. Dunking her arm in the cold water, Shizuru gritted her teeth and closed her eyes. She concentrated on the rain pelting her body and soaking her clothes as she counted to ten and felt the burning sensation disappear. If it were not for all the fighting and activity her body currently had to go through, the cold wet air would cause her to shiver violently. For all she knew, the adrenaline could be preventing her from feeling her injuries if she had any.
From such a fall, she was surprised she was not at least sprained somewhere on her body. Shizuru pulled her arm out before the cold water could numb and stiffen her arm and took a few quick steps back. The river current had increased dramatically because of the rain, making her cautious not to be dragged into it and whisked away. "Natsuki!" The knight looked about for the wolf, but it was dim—she tried to listen for a sign, but the current and rain drowned out any noise around her.
Walking about, a visible trail of torn cloth and blood, whether Natsuki's or the orphans, appeared. She followed quickly, afraid it would wash away. Several meters up the path she ran alongside the rock wall next to the river. Sounds of combat came within earshot and Shizuru turned the corner to see Natsuki backed to the wall. Two orphans laid dead around the grounds and three more cautiously circled the wolf, closing in. Natsuki was limping, weakly facing off against the orphans and Shizuru ran forward to help once she saw her injuries were even greater.
Two orphans lunged and Natsuki raised her arms to cover her face and throat. Shizuru stepped in between them and, with one motion, sliced through both of the dog-sized creatures. She looked over her shoulder to see Natsuki gone, but the sound of the last orphan yelping followed by the sound of crushed bones told Shizuru that Natsuki had gone in for the last kill. Defeating the last orphan must have taken everything out of the younger woman. When she turned to face Shizuru, her body collapsed and the knight ran forward to catch her.
"There's a cave over there…" Natsuki pointed, her voice low and weak, "Aside from hunters using it sometimes, it's abandoned."
Shizuru nodded and supported her as they walked towards the empty cave, thankful it wasn't occupied by bears or any other creature of the sort. Their pace was slow with Natsuki's limps and she nearly stumbled as they stepped inside and out of the pouring rain. "Sit, sit." Shizuru told her, helping Natsuki lower herself on the ground, back resting flat against the wall. She settled down with somewhat of a sigh and Shizuru had to catch her breath, seeing Natsuki's body drenched to the skin, hair a mess. Seeing someone so strong and closed off in such a state felt otherworldly to Shizuru.
The knight knelt beside her and examined the wolf, noticing Natsuki's left leg gashed from an orphan's claws and impaled by a large stick. Her foot appeared broken as well from its unnatural position. A million thoughts at what could have been done to prevent her friend from being so injured rushed through her mind, but a poke on the forehead from Natsuki pulled her away from it, "Oi," her tone was surprisingly gentle, lacking its usual roughness, "It's not anyone's fault. This could not be helped."
"Ara, can you read my mind?" Shizuru rolled up her sleeves with a bit of effort since the water made the cloth stick to her skin. Natsuki twitched slightly when the work-worn, calloused hands touched her leg, "Kanin na," the brunette looked up, a guilty expression.
Natsuki groan, "Whatever… It's broken, which is a problem,"
"Can't you heal quickly?" Shizuru tilted her head, carefully placing a hand at the base of the stick impaled in Natsuki's calf. Her other hand held the end of it, but Natsuki's eyes were averted and unaware.
"Quick, but not that quick—"
Shizuru quickly snapped the end of the stick and pulled it out the other side, the sickening sound of blood and flesh accompanying it. Natsuki yelped and stiffened, punching the wall behind her with the side of her fist. Shizuru threw her hands up with the stick still in her hand, "Kanin na, Natsuki!"
"Give me a warning next time!" the wolf hollered, taking a deep breath. She looked down at the hole in her leg and grimaced, tilting her head back, "Stop with the 'kanin na' this, 'kanin na' that, it's fine. It didn't hurt!" Natsuki grinned sheepishly through the pain running through her leg.
"Kanin na… Natsuki," Shizuru shot her a glance and realized she said it again. She rubbed the back of her head with a smile, "I just thought no warning would be best instead of anticipating it." Shizuru took her sash and wrung the water out of it, replacing it with the water from her deerskin. Immediately she started cleaning the injured leg.
Sighing, Natsuki shrugged and then grimaced at the sting of the cloth, "As I was saying… we heal fast but not that fast. It will still take a few days, perhaps a week." She explained, voice still shaky, "I cannot transform until it is healed either. Shifting would worsen a broken bone,"
She understood the basic principle behind it, "I see," she nodded. Transforming involved the bones moving and stretching, a painful process they eventually had numbed themselves to from what Natsuki had told Shizuru in the past. Shizuru could only imagine the pain and, perhaps, permanent damage that shifting would do to a broken foot. Finished cleaning the wounds as best she could, Shizuru set the cloth aside and rested a hand on Natsuki's leg. She looked up with a smile, seeing the wolf's face redden, "Ara, it is good your wounds have already clot and stopped the bleeding at the very least. But I cannot cover it. Our clothes are soaked and covering a wound with wet cloth will only increase the risk of infection."
"That is another problem…." Natsuki mumbled, looking outside where the rain remained relentless in its downpour. Shizuru shivered and the wolf looked at her, clearly concerned, "It's only a little warmer inside this cave, but it's cold tonight and it will only get colder."
"With wet clothes we could risk hypothermia, illness, or freeze to death," Shizuru added.
Natsuki placed a hand on the knight's arm with a gentle squeeze, "Especially you. You're more vulnerable." She sighed, seeing Shizuru's face shift from calm and complacent to cautious and guarded—the same expression when she proved herself time and time again she was not weak.
Shizuru could not tell if Natsuki was, again, having little faith in her or just simply being a worried friend. The offense she took earlier to her pride got in the way of seeing that the younger woman was genuinely just concerned about Shizuru getting sick or freezing. Natsuki only currently saw herself as a liability to Shizuru. "I will be fine, Natsuki. You are worse off than I am and I would concentrate on helping you." Shizuru pulled back and distanced herself a bit.
A scoff. "Isn't that the truth?" Natsuki fell silent for a few seconds and Shizuru drifted off into thinking about what they should do next. They were trapped in the cave. The weather was too tumultuous to walk in, Natsuki was in no condition to walk anyway, and orphans were lurking in the darkness, surely. Natsuki shifted and Shizuru looked up to see… was that a blush? Indeed, the darkest of blushes Shizuru had ever had the liberty of seeing, "Listen… this won't be the time to act modest so hear me out, got it?"
Shizuru nodded.
"I need you to dig a hole big enough for us, at least two feet deep."
"Ara, are we digging a grave?" Shizuru had to make the joke.
Natsuki smirked, but forced it to disappear. It was a dark joke, but she found it funny, "No, but it will keep our body heat in better. We're going to have to take our clothes off as well to keep each other warm…" She lifted her arm heavy with the weight of wet cloth, "These really won't be good to keep on and they will take a while to dry."
"That makes sense. We need to do what is necessary to survive tonight, I'll have to agree to this." Shizuru said and got up, "I'll get to work, just relax, Natsuki," She left her waterskin there for the wolf's use. They would have to make it last for the night and get more from the river once the current calmed. Food was another matter entirely, but she figured they would be fine for quite a while without nourishment. As Shizuru stepped deeper into the cave to escape the air outside, she searched for soft ground, as well as objects to dig with. However finding nothing in sight to dig with, she knelt down on one knee and began the grimy task of digging their hole for the night, alternating between using her hands and her naginata. Luckily the ground was purely soil and mostly dry. The rise at the entrance kept most of the water from leaking in, but the wind still blew the rain in their direction, as if to mock them.
Occasionally, Shizuru looked over her shoulder to check on Natsuki, who appeared to be in a daze. She had to wonder if the girl hit her head from the look in her eyes—she would have to check soon. Natsuki on the other hand wanted to help her friend desperately instead of just sitting there completely useless. She could not believe at first that the knight so readily agreed to such an embarrassing survival method. Then again, she felt it necessary and also necessary to suck it up for the night. Her own body's higher average temperature would keep Shizuru safe from the elements and to be able to help in that way was satisfying enough.
"Are you sure you don't need any help…?" Natsuki asked after a few minutes of digging. She asked for perhaps the fourth or fifth time.
"Natsuki needs to rest. It's okay." Shizuru looked over her shoulder and smiled.
The wolf averted her gaze, "Okay… if you say so." She looked up and said rather quietly, "Thank you. Thank you so much, Shizuru."
It surprised the knight, being thanked by the rough and tumble girl, and it brought a warmth to her chest and an overwhelming sense of happiness. Shizuru, once again, looked over with a bright smile, "You're welcome, Natsuki."
After a few more minutes, the small hole was prepared and ready for them to rest within for the night. Natsuki wished by then their clothes had dried, but they were still soaked to the skin. She should have moved further from the cave entrance and away from the rain entering inside. She wanted to avoid having to strip down. Damn the rain, she cursed in her mind. Shizuru helped her up and over to the hole where they sat and undressed, backs turned to one another.
Natsuki did not know why she was getting so bashful. They bathed at the falls together with Aoi several times before. They were friends. They were both female! She was not as comfortable with nudity as other wolves, but she never previously had such problems being around women quite as much as the knight. Shizuru just felt so different. Her face reddened when she accidentally looked over and Shizuru, without hesitation, shrugged her shoulders and began to wriggle herself out of her clothes. She was beautiful, surprisingly possessing a powerful looking body behind the composed and soft face. Shizuru herself could not help but spare a side glance Natsuki's way when she was not looking, seeing the figure she had seen countless times, but never got used to seeing. She never wanted to get used to it. So beautiful, she thought.
Once wringing the water out of their clothes and placing them on the ground, they both laid down next to one another, listening to the rain pour outside, avoiding eye contact, and having the same, simultaneous thought, What is wrong with me?