Disclaimer: I do not own Rurouni Kenshin.
Written By DemonicShdAngel
Chapter Four
Her heart was pounding, her lungs were panicking for air, her head was pulsing, and that was when she knew. She knew the feeling too well, knew the feel of not being able to go into consciousness even when her mind was functioning correctly like the back of her hand. This had happened too many times to her before. She was completely paralyzed from head to toe. Even if she wanted to open her eyes, she couldn't. She couldn't move.
The moment the spell placed upon her body seemed to lift, her had immediate went to the pendant. Her hand stayed on the fabric above the necklace and she knew that she was no longer in the kimono she found herself in, in the slaves' cabinet. For once, she didn't want to know what happened and how she got changed. She had a feeling it had to do with the redheaded King that ruled the Shadow Kingdom. After all, he was the one that caused her to become immobile in the first place.
Slowly sitting up, the teenager looked down at her new wardrobe and wasn't very surprised to find herself in a white yukata with her wet lavender locks flowing down to her waist. Every inch of her felt clean, pure, and even the dirt that had been in her nails were now gone. She hadn't expected to find herself washed up so nicely, yet still she felt nothing.
Remembering that the castle that she had entered had red rose slaves to do all the work, Kamiya Kaoru had the impression that the slaves had most likely cleansed her. She frowned at the thought.
Tiredly, Kaoru lay back down on the soft bed she had been resting on and closed her eyes. She felt drained and looking at the elaborate decorated room didn't seem to interest her anymore. It was as if someone had sucked all happiness out of her.
Should any of the slaves have entered, she was sure that they would have screamed. She knew that the way she was dressed made a great contrast to the black sheet covered bed and knew that her face was probably as white as her yukata. It wouldn't bother her if the slaves thought she was dead. Her humor had left her in her sleep.
Gradually, Kaoru opened her eyes and looked up at the black curtained canopy above her. Not a single ray of moonlight entered the room, then again it could have been morning, but the darkness of the room betrayed none of it. There were no lit candles to help her see, but her eyes had somehow adjusted enough for her to be able to see in the black room. The furniture and items in the rest of the room were probably black as well, otherwise such a dark shade of a color that no one could tell.
Kaoru didn't know why she didn't feel odd that she had awoken in another's room. If it had been another other time while she was still back home, she would have thought that she had a nightmare, but she her mind knew better this time. She knew, because the bruise at her neck was still pulsing where Battousai had met her skin. There was no point in building false hope.
What would have scared her though—if she were in the right state of mind--was that she wasn't afraid at what could happen to her in her vulnerable stage. For some odd reason, she had given up before she even tried to fight against the beast she knew lurked around in the castle. She knew she wouldn't win.
Now as she laid waiting for her fate, she felt weak and bored, despite the fact that so much should have been running through her head at the moment. Of course she remembered everything, but what made her who she was had vanished. Her spirit, her soul, and her ability to feel for others had abandoned her completely. Nothing was left. Only memories she felt nothing for remained within her mind, but not touched her unfeeling heart. They were just there, taking up space.
At one point in her life, the sound of the door opening while she lay vulnerable on the other side would have terrified her, but now she didn't even flinch in recognition to the noise. Subconsciously, she knew there wouldn't have been a sound at all if the person who entered didn't do it on purpose to announce his arrival.
The Crimson Rose merely kept her eyes fixed on the canopy while the shadow of her host moved over to her with a silent grace worthy of the gods.
"I'm glad to see you awake, koishii," the deep and rich voice finally spoke after a few moments.
Turning her head ever so slightly, she was able to meet the same pair of glaring gold she had seen earlier when she was capable of feeling sympathy for the man. Those same eyes looked over her figure once more before meeting her own ocean depths again. The smirk on his red lips met his eyes all too well.
Seconds later, Battousai lay beside her, his weight not disturbing the balance of the bed at all. Had his flaming auburn hair not stood out, it would have seemed to any slave that was careless enough to enter the room that only Kaoru laid there. For his dark clothing allowed him to blend into the night all too easily.
Reluctantly, Kaoru closed her eyes again as a pale white and slender finger brushed her drying hair behind her ears. With each light brush against her skin, she could her body unconsciously shiver. The warmth that came along with the chill left the Crimson Rose in a daze of inward delight. It was like nothing she had experienced before. She could feel a sense of comfort and security return to her in a flood of delight when a pair of possessive arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her into a firm lap.
Not wanting to fight the feeling, Kaoru leaned into Battousai's chest willingly. All that mattered at the moment were the emotions that were currently consuming her along with the darkness around her.
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"I still don't believe it," whispered Battousai's most trusted Captains and old friend while he stared out the window of his mansion; it was beyond midnight from the way the moon was slowly beginning to set. Out of habit, the chocolate haired man ran a hand through his spikes, making him resemble the appearance of a rooster.
"You saw it, I saw it; everyone saw it. What don't you believe, Sagara?" asked the third Captain of the Royal Guard calmly after taking a long drag of his cigar.
Sagara Sanosuke sighed while he walked across his study and sat down behind his wooden desk, which faced the window he had just been staring at. His eyes fell to the man with the same look of a wolf and ignored his amber eyes to look out the window again. He might not have been a part of the King's Royal Guard, but he was one of the most respected men in Shadow Kingdom for being able to befriend their dark ruler. None of it would have been possible if he didn't happen to be the Crimson Rose's brother.
"She can't have returned. But I know what I saw. The girl that Lord Battousai was carrying was undoubtedly the splitting image of my younger sister, but it's impossible. Suppose she did survive the attack, she would have died of old age! The only reason we're still alive is because that damn curse," growled Sano before rubbing his aching head. He never did like thinking so much, especially at such a late hour.
Hajime Saitou blew a ring of smoke into the air before he stood up straight after leaning against one of the poles near the doorway. He walked passed the many book shelves that aligned the walls and sat before the younger man with his cigar between his fingers with practiced perfection.
"I would prefer not having to talk to you at all Sagara, but I have no choice. As two of the five Captains that control the Royal Guard, we need to keep the slaves in order before they even think to start a rebellion. The General, Battousai, has ordered us to take care of that before we seek him again. If you wish to examine and see if the Crimson Rose really is genuine, then let's get moving," said Saitou as he crushed the remains of his addiction on the ashtray that Sano had placed on his desk when the cigar got shorter.
Giving in before he could take back his decision, Sano stood up.
He walked a few steps to the exit before stopping and turning to look at Saitou again.
"Where are we heading to first?" asked Sano, finally realizing he had no idea where they should start.
"To the Black Seed Fields of course you moron. Unless you want to choke to death in the mines with those green clover slaves," snorted Saitou as he stood up in his blue and white hakama and gi, his sword hanging at his hip threateningly; indicating to those that saw him that he was not one to mess with.
Rolling his eyes, Sano led the way in his own white attire towards the stallions that awaited them outside of his manor. If all went well, he'd be able to see his sister look alike before the end of the day. His job would be simple enough, as long as the slaves didn't create any problems. But first, he was going to see to the Black Seed Field in which they had found the girl. Hopefully he'd be able to find some truth there before he headed back.
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Misao stood up and stretched her aching limbs from having to bend over all night and collect the Black Seeds into her basket. She wasn't going to be able to get any sleep unless she filled hers and at the moment it was only three quarters full. Regardless the night air being slightly cold, Misao could still feel her perspiration slowly trickle down her back and certain parts of her body. She groaned at the odor she was producing and knew that taking a bath in the river nearby would be out of the question.
Looking around her, she noticed that each row in which the Black Seeds grew were occupied and not a few rows to her right was Tsubame and two more down was Megumi.
"Get back to work you worthless slave!" barked out one of the guards around the fields when he noticed Misao had stopped picking.
Misao bit back a scream as the familiar crack of the whip hit her left shoulder. Apologizing quickly, the teenager went back to work, furiously trying to collect her basket full so she could go to bed. If her life and other's weren't on the line, she would have slapped and screamed at all of the guards that dared hurt her and her friends. She was smart enough to know that she could never do such a think, for she'd be risking torture for not just herself, but her everyone else in her quadrant as well.
Ignoring the biting pain and the blood that seeped through her rags near her left shoulder, Misao hissed when another whip hit her shoulder again. She could feel the whip dig through her flesh and leave behind a trail of blood where it had connected with her skin. The defiant slave knew what the guard wanted and she wasn't going to give the scumbag the benefit of seeing her cry from the agony that ripped through her body with each lash at her skin.
The guard didn't stop his assault until he made the slave shake so much that her basket tipped over when her right hand moved to touch her badly bleeding shoulder.
Smirking, the man shouted out, "Pick them up! You won't be getting any sleep unless you pick each and every seed up!"
Mumbling a 'Yes, sir', the blue violet slave complied; wincing each time she had to slightly move her left should to get the basket that dropped from her hold. If the pain hadn't gotten to her, she wouldn't have been so careless as to let her only escape for the day fall to the ground and scatter.
Sighing, Misao knew that she was going to have to deal with the blood that clung to her skin and rags until she could sneak off to the river for a bath. By then, the blood would have become permanent. It was what she got for being so careless as to stop and stretch even for a second.
Just as she finished collecting the fallen seeds, the ringing of the gong echoed through the fields making the blue violet slaves rush out of the fields and drop their pickings into the carts that aligned the front and back of the fields.
After dropping off her batch, Misao raced towards where the others were rushing to stand in perfect rows like they always did for roll call.
"Are you alright, Misao?" whispered the younger slave as Megumi followed to stand next to their injured friend.
Nodding reassuringly, Misao gave them a smile while the two watched the blood spot of her close expand. Making sure that the pain didn't reach her face, the teenager looked straightforward for the others to do the same.
It was then that she saw two Captains with the King's golden dragon medallion on their obis, ride on their brilliant black horses down the aisle between the two large groups that the slaves had put themselves in for each roll call. The Captains' eyes moved up and down the rows on either side, the height of the horses making them seem more intimidating than normal.
Misao was too busy looking at the horses as one of them stopped in front of her, since she was the first in her row, that she didn't notice the pair of brown orbs looking at her. She had never seen a horse this close before, let alone any of the other creatures. So intrigued was she that her entire attention was on the magnificent beast. The slave took a step back when the nostrils of the horse suddenly flared and its eyes stared at her expectantly.
Finally looking up, Misao avoided the gaze of the Captain that loomed over her. She averted her gaze to the clouds behind him while she moved her face in his line of sight. Slaves were killed for looking straight in the eyes of their superior; it wasn't uncommon either that slaves were killed for such a mistake.
"Milord," said Misao finally when she noticed that the man wasn't about to move on. She gave a bow and couldn't help but wince visibly when she had to move her left shoulder to bow.
Misao closed her eyes and waited for someone to lash out at her physically for not bowing earlier, but to her relief and utter shock, the blow never came.
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