Preview from last chapter:

Leota could only hang her head as four of her 'babysitters' shackled her wrists in manacles that hung from the ceiling and her ankles to the floor.

Xavier smiled, "You remember this room, don't you, Chan-chan?"

"Hai," Leota said meekly, "this is the room from which I cannot see the moonlight nor hear the rain fall."

"Well now this cell is your throne room."

"Pardon?" Leota asked as she looked up.

"This cell, Chan-chan, shall be the place where you receive torture fit for a queen," Xavier said, a gleam of mischief shining in his gray eyes, "and now, let us begin Her Majesty's suffering."

And so, once again, did the whistling of whips serenade Xavier as he sipped his red wine and watched his rebel slave give in to the one thing he could now see plainly on her face and hear in her screams.

Pain.

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Chapter Sixteen:
The Pain of Truth

Tora was worried. Heh, there was the understatement of the year. Inu-Yasha had come back and asked Kagome where he could find a blanket. Kagome had begun to question, but Inu-Yasha silenced her with a glare.

When Inu-Yasha returned he held Kouga, wrapped in the blanket, bridal style since the wolf had been mumbling about chest and back pains.

"What happened to him?" Kagome exclaimed as she stumbled around the kitchen to make some tea.

"I don't know, Kagome," Inu-Yasha said sadly, "I was watching him and he suddenly keeled over."

Lifting a corner of the blanket, Tora was glad to see that Kouga had put clothes on. When this was done, the tiger didn't know; but he was glad all the same. What Tora wasn't happy to see were the light pink phantom lines resembling scars on Kouga's chest, back, arms, and legs.

Sighing, Tora shook his head, "It's started. The breaking of Ookami-sama has begun. Soon, she'll be nothing but a ghost of her former self; a mere memory of the woman we once knew. I can't let that happen."

"Tora-san, are you okay?" Kagome asked, brown eyes full of concern.

"No, not at all, K-chan. I need to do some talking."

At that moment, miko, hanyou, and tiger looked down to see a dark pink line appear on Kouga's cheek.

"What the……?" Inu-Yasha began, startled to see another appear almost immediately over the first, creating a cross-shaped mark.

"They're using knives." Tora thought, closing his eyes.

Kagome looked at Tora, "You know what's going on, don't you?"

Looking at the young woman, Tora nodded, "Hai."

"Well then tell us!" Inu-Yasha yelled, surprising everyone including himself.

"Knives," Tora sighed, "they're using knives now. Before, they were using whips, then cat of nine tails. Now, though, they seem to prefer knives."

"What do you mean by 'they'? There's no one here except us!"

"No, Inu-san. You forget that Ookami-sama and Kouga-sama are linked. When you found him, Kouga-sama had already deepened the link between them."

Kagome quirked an eyebrow, "And just what does that mean?"

"As a miko, I believe you should know this by now."

Putting her hands on her hips, Kagome narrowed her eyes, "Well I don't."

Tora couldn't help but chuckle. Kagome was just too cute when she was peeved.

"It means, K-chan, that not only does Kouga-sama hear, see, and feel everything Ookami-sama does; but we get to see the effects. Which means that every mark we see on Kouga-sama is on Ookami-sama."

"The only difference is that Ookami-dono is shackled in the middle of a windowless cell and has literally rivers of blood pouring down over her skin. And she's naked." A tired voice said from behind the couch Kouga had been laid on.

"So, Kichi, you finally decide to speak. Good." Tora smiled cynically.

Ignoring Tora's comment, Inu-Yasha picked Tatsukichi up by his throat and pinned him against the wall with one hand.

"What do you know?" The hanyou demanded, "If you don't tell us, I'll tell Kouga that you had a hand in raping his woman!"

Tora grimaced, for he could only imagine what sorts of things the wolf would do in reaction to information like that, "Still, Inu-san could be a valuable asset when it comes to plotting against Houshi-sama and Sango-sama."

"Maybe if you asked nicely," Tatsukichi gasped, "I'd tell you."

Blinking, Tora shook his head, "Hold it, Kichi-san, you'd go against Master Xavier's Laws? You would give away information to your enemies?"

Tatsukichi nodded, "Hai. I'm done with Xavier and his abuse. I should have been done with it years ago, but I wasn't brave enough. That's when I heard about Tora-sama and Ookami-dono. I wanted the same freedom that they had found, but I couldn't. Now, though, I will."

"I'm glad to hear that, Kichi-san, 'cause I need to ask a favor of you."

"What's that, Tora-sama?"

Tora leaned in close to the freedom-seeking man and whispered his request.

Tatsukichi's eyes grew as wide as dinner platters.

"Think you can do that for me, Kichi?"

"You're fuckin' nuts!" Tatsukichi exclaimed, "Why the hell would you do that?!"

Tora shrugged, a determined look on his face, "To save my partner."

Confused, Kagome asked, "Partner?"

"Hai," Tora nodded, "Ookami-sama doesn't kill very well if I'm not there to 'watch and learn'. Xavier knows that."

"What's that gotta do with anything?" Inu-Yasha asked.

Tora turned to look at his friends, "I'm gonna go to Xavier before he comes to see me."

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Rice Krispie Cereal really needed to be taught a lesson in the etiquette of noise making.

Snap the whip.

Crack the skin.

Pop the joints.

Though part demon she may be, even Leota's quick-healing body couldn't heal fast enough. There was no part of her that wasn't bleeding. She swore that she was crying blood.

"One hundred ninety-two!"

Leota coughed blood, the red liquid splattering onto the floor. Hell, even her insides were bleeding. It hadn't been so bad when three of her guards whipped her all at once; however, at about one hundred fifty, they'd begun going one at a time.

"One hundred ninety-seven!"

Choking on her own blood, Leota noticed that her guards stopped their whipping and allowed her to start breathing as best she could before they began again.

"One hundred ninety-eight!" Cried the third guard as he raised his arm to strike.

"Stop."

The three guards immediately put their arms behind their backs as they lowered their heads. Contrary to them, Leota lifted her head to see that she was face-to-face with Xavier.

"S-S-Sir?" She asked, wondering if she'd won back his favor yet.

"Hello, Pet. I'm impressed by your stamina. You stopped screaming after lash number five. Congratulations."

"Arigatou, Xavier-sama."

"You're welcome. Now tell me, how many times has the whip touched you?"

"One hundred ninety-seven times, Sir."

"Very good. How many lashes did I say you were to have?"

"Two hundred, Sir."

"Do you know what I'm going to do now?" Xavier asked as he cocked his head.

"Deliver the remaining three, Sir?"

Xavier chuckled as he reached for something beyond Leota's line of vision, "Exactly, Chan-chan. Now, I'm going to give you a choice. Would you rather have three lashes with the regular whip or one lash with the three-tailed, steel-tipped one? Your choice, Chan-chan."

Leota inwardly cringed. She was no fool; one lash was better than three, but three tails with steel tips...

"If I ask him for one lash, that'll make him proud of me. It will also rip my flesh apart, what little I've got left."

"Chan? Have you decided?"

Swallowing, Leota said, "Yes, Sir."

"And which have you chosen?"

"I have chosen," Leota began, placing a pleading look into her eyes as she lifted her gaze once more, "one lash, Sir. Please, Master, if it so pleases you, I would take one hundred more with that whip that you do so favor."

Xavier looked surprised, "My word, Chan-chan. Never in my days have I heard such a request; however, you are too dear to me to whip three hundred times. Two hundred is enough, I think."

"Do you really, Master? I freed most of your slaves, I ran away from you, and I thought I'd killed you."

"Though this is true, I don't hold it against you. I understand that I was hard on you and suddenly announcing that you were to become my pleasure slave must have been too much. I should have waited, really I should have. Can you forgive me for that, Dearest?"

Leota had to blink, even though it hurt to do so. She had never known Xavier to ask for forgiveness.

"M-Master Xavier?"

For the first time in her life, Leota saw genuine concern cross Xavier's face, "Yes, Chan-chan?"

Feeling that she could truthfully confide in this man she had learned to hate all her life, Leota heard words come from her lips that she did not remember telling herself to say, "They hurt, Master Xavier. I didn't notice it before when the whipping was going on, but now that it has stopped, they hurt. Please, onegai, I can barely breathe without the pain racing through every pore. Make it stop, please?"

"You wish me to make it stop? Is the pain truly too much for you?"

Leota nodded, her head feeling as though it were about to detach itself from her shoulders, "Hai, Xavier-sama. I hurt everywhere, really I do. Please, make it stop."

"I don't see why the torches aren't lit. If they were, I could see what troubles you."

"Everything, Master. I've been ripped to shreds as it is."

"Ah, surely you exaggerate, Chan. Guard! Light a torch and bring it to me!"

One of the guards that had whipped Leota ran to get a torch and most likely lit it with his lighter. Leota had thought he looked like the smoking type. Soon after the clicking of the lighter, the guard brought the torch to Xavier, taking the long way around Leota's immobile body.

"Here you are, Master Xavier."

Xavier didn't acknowledge the guard. He was too busy bringing the torch closer to look at Leota's body.

"You," Xavier said to the guard that had brought the torch, "turn on the overhead light. I need to see whether or not my eyes deceive me."

Leota blinked, "Overhead light?"

"Ah, how quickly I forget that you haven't been here the whole time. Soon after you left, I had an overhead light installed in this room. I don't know why, really, but I think it necessary at this moment. You may wish to close your eyes, Chan-chan, because I know the light will hurt them. Don't you agree?"

"Yes, Master."

Closing her eyes as she'd been told, Leota heard the click of the switch and heard also the sharp intake of breath. The next sound wasn't too hard to hear, seeing as how it was right next to her.

"How did this happen?! Why does my most prized possession look like pulled pork in a meat locker?" Xavier demanded, the guards cringing at his tone, "Answer me!"

"B-But Sir," a guard dared venture, "you ordered two hundred lashes for the woman. So, one hundred ninety-seven were delivered, thinking you would give the remaining three."

"You should have known to stop once you ran out of places to hit! Look here, guard. I can see three ribs in this one spot! Your sole purpose is to protect this woman, meaning you should have said something to me the instant you ran out of places to hit!" Xavier raged, hitting the guard with the end of the whip that he would normally hold on to.

The other two guards cringed, and even without her sensitive nose, Leota could smell their sweat and fear; the former not too hard to detect.

"We understand, Master Xavier." One of the others said.

"Well apparently you didn't!" Xavier exclaimed, turning to the shadows and motioning for the other three guards to come forward, "Release her at once!"

"Yes, Milord." They said, setting about their task with their set of keys.

Once she had been released, Leota felt like a piece of driftwood. Thankfully, the other three guards allowed her to lean on them as though she were merely a sack of potatoes being carried home from the store.

She smiled inwardly, for if she'd actually done the action, several muscles around her mouth would have been pulled, "I will have to reward these three when I am able. Perchance I can request of Xavier to allow me to keep them as personal guards rather than temporary? I know that once someone else of importance comes along, the other three will be appointed to that person, but I wish to keep these three men."

Master Xavier's voice broke through her thoughts, "Chan-chan?"

"Hai, Xavier-sama? What is it you need?"

"I need nothing from you, Chan. I only require that you rest, all right? I'll have you taken someplace where you can rest in a quiet environment."

Leota tried shaking her head, "No, please, Sir, I wish to be in a place where I may speak with others. That is, if you would allow it?"

"Of course, Chan-chan. I have forgotten many things about you. You must promise me, though, that you will rest the second you are placed in bed, understand? I do not wish you to speak until you are comfortable doing so. Promise?"

"Yes, Xavier-sama. I understand."

"Good. I shall send for you once you are completely healed, all right? That is when we will talk about your future here. Agreed?"

"Yes, Sir."

Xavier smiled then, a caring smile that seemed to contradict all four years Leota had spent with him from age seven to age eleven. What had caused this great change in Xavier? Why was he being so… nice?

Without realizing it, Leota found herself being carried from the cell where she'd been tortured to the makeshift medical center. Her three guards took her around the staff and directly to the bathing area. While the other two guards gathered various soaps, herbs, and other things of that sort, the guard that had carried her laid her on a smooth wooden table on her stomach.

"I'm sorry that my comrades were so hard on you."

Leota blinked, "P-Pardon?"

"They're usually not like that," the guard continued, lining things up on a table that was beyond Leota's line of vision, "I don't know what could have possessed them to do so much harm to you."

"I'm sure it's not their fault. They must've heard some things from guards that've been here awhile." Said another.

"Names," Leota said suddenly, "what are your names?"

The three guards looked down at her as though she'd just appeared out of nowhere. Looking at each other, they shrugged.

"My name is Lee." Said the guard that had carried her.

"I'm Keisuke," said the second, "and this last guy is Hebi."

Leota thought for a moment, "Snake? They call him Snake?"

"Is there a problem?" Keisuke asked.

"No, there isn't; however I would like to know two things."

"All right, what do you want to know?"

"Why do you call him Hebi, the word for snake?"

"We call him that," began Lee, "because he's as sneaky as one. What's your next question?"

"Why does he not speak for himself?" Leota asked, wondering if the guards had noticed that her wounds were healing as she stalled for time.

Keisuke shrugged, "He doesn't like to. We've asked him the same question for years and he just doesn't say anything. We don't know why, but we think it has something to do with stuff that's happened in his past, 'ya know?"

"I see," Leota said, wincing as a large gash on her back closed, "my name I'm sure you already know, most people do. You can ask around the building and I'm pretty sure that everyone knows me or at least knows of me."

Lee smiled, "There's no doubt about that, Ookami-dono. I've been hearing things about you ever since we got here, which was two years ago."

"Ah, so you've served under Xavier for a while. You know of his workings, then, yes?"

Keisuke shrugged, "We know enough to stay clear of the whip."

"Heh, but that's the fun part. If you don't get whipped at least once in your life, then you're trying too hard to please Xavier. If you haven't made any mistakes, then you're not trying anything new. My belief is that if you haven't discovered anything, then you're not living a life that I'd want to live. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Hai, but we don't wanna have to show our faces in the intensive care sector!" Keisuke laughed.

Leota shook her head, "I know every nook and cranny of that place. Trust me, when you're in that room for the time I was, you get to learn that place damn quick. I even know where Maria hides her chocolate."

"Seriously? I've been trying to find that stuff for months!" Lee exclaimed, "Could you tell me where it is?"

"I don't know," Leota said, deciding to show off by sitting up, "she's really protective about that stuff."

"No shit. You even mention the word 'chocolate' and she flips out."

"Yeah, I've seen how protective she is. I'll tell you once I've bathed 'cause I'm thinking I smell like week-old garbage left to rot on a street corner in summertime." Leota said, sliding off the wooden table and walking off towards the hot springs that Xavier had discovered when he'd moved his headquarters.

The three men blinked.

Keisuke leaned over to Lee, "Didn't she just look like a piece of livestock on a meat hook?"

"Yeah," said Lee, "and we didn't treat her wounds or anything. We just sat and…"

High-pitched laughter met their ears, "It seems you boys haven't heard enough about me or else you'd know how quickly I can heal myself. All I need is a little time and some company. They don't call me a witch for nothin'."

Keisuke, Lee, and Hebi turned to find Leota already getting out of the water and drying off with a towel that had been left by the side of the spring. She didn't look at them, deciding that the floor was much more interesting.

Lee swallowed, "Ookami-dono? Do you know why Master Xavier is acting all weird?"

"Nope. Haven't got a clue." Leota said, trying to figure out that very thing as she wrapped the towel around her waist.

"Do you want to know?"

Stopping in her tracks, Leota spun around to look at the three men that were to take care of her for the duration of her stay. It was true she felt as though she were in a hotel rather than the place of torture from her nightmares.

"Hai, I do wish to know. Tell me."

"Master Xavier knows that you were with a man when Tatsukichi kidnapped you. He wants to erase your memories of that man and replace them with memories of nothing but you happily serving your master. He wants you to believe you've been here all your life. That's why he's almost sucking up to you, Ookami-dono. He still wants you for himself."

"He's just using a different tactic to get you." Keisuke finished.

"Except now that these two have ruined my plans," an annoyed voice rang through the room, "I'll just have to force you to return to me, as was to be my first choice."

Two loud shots were heard as Lee and Keisuke fell to the ground, blood pooling around their heads.

Leota was stunned, "No…"

"Yes, Chan-chan. I saw that mark upon your shoulder. I didn't even need Tatsukichi to tell me you were lying with a man when he took you. From what I hear, you've caught yourself a good-looking one, too; however, that's beside the point. The point is, Dearest, that I've got you on my property again, and I'm not about to let you get away."

"You… you… bisexual freak! They were innocent men! You could've just erased their memories!" Leota yelled, tears forming in her eyes at the loss of her newly made friends, "Bastard! Murderer! How dare you…"

"How dare I what? You can't say that you haven't killed, Chan-chan. I know you have; I made you do it, and soon, you'll be doing it again."

"No! Never again shall I take up a blade in your name! Never!"

"That's too bad, Chan, it really is. I'll just have to do things the hard way, won't I? Come now, don't make me do this the hard way. Your body is too beautiful for me to do something like that." Xavier said softly, taking a few steps towards Leota, whose body was shaking with anger.

Leota bared her teeth, "Don't you dare come near me. I don't know exactly what your 'hard way' is, but I can assure you that there is no way in the seven hells I'm going to let you do it!"

"It's not like you have a choice, Dearest." Xavier said, raising his gun as his yellow eyes leered at her, "My demon blood overrides yours."

There was a small puff of air, and soon Leota's eyes were growing heavy. She couldn't hold herself up, no matter how hard she fought to. Someone caught her as she fell, but the arms of whoever it was did little to comfort her, for they were as cold as snow.

"Kouga-kun…" She thought, feeling herself being carried once more, "Help me."

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A/N: Woohoo! Another chapter finished! Happy Holidays! :-D Hope you all like this story, and I'm sorry that it's focusing on Leota rather than Inu-Yasha and Kagome's currently nonexistent love life… I'm not fulfilling my summary! ::cries:: Please forgive me! ::bows::

All right, I'm done… really… ::sniffles:: Okay, I'm good. Anyhow, please send me your ideas, all right? Thank you!

Ookami-chan