Chapter 7

The two travelers left early the next day, hoping to reach Orran by late afternoon.

Shizuru had expected the rest of the journey to be uneventful, but when they reached the fork where the forest path met the main trail, she was surprised by the crowd.

Bustling groups of people trekked on foot, chattering over the sound of the river that ran beside them. Some were carrying heavy packs filled with trinkets, and many — young and old — carried small, red lamps. A dark blue smoke wisped out from the top of them, sending misty columns into the sky.

Mourning lamps, Shizuru thought. But what for? The lamps were commonly lit at funerals to pay respects to the dead, but for this many to be carried, something more must have happened — it couldn't have just been a commoner's death. Shizuru followed the stream of people with her eyes. All of them were heading to the bridge to cross the river, and from this distance she could tell that it was already teeming with people.

Shizuru pulled on her hood and turned to Natsuki, gesturing for the woman to do the same. "It's better to walk on foot now," she said. From the look of the crowd, they were only one of the few traveling with a horse. Having Natsuki sit high up meant catching too many eyes — too dangerous.

When the dark-haired woman dismounted, the two proceeded ahead, merging with the rest of the flock of people. They moved slowly, matching the pace of the others and sticking closely to the side of the horse. At one point, Shizuru turned to a nearby traveler. She kept her face hidden when speaking, keeping her tone conversational. "Are you heading to Orran?"

The traveler — a man wearing farmer's clothes, holding the hand of his young son — looked back at her. "Yes, and I reckon everyone else here is too. It's the week of mourning, after all."

Shizuru raised a brow. "For whom?"

"Oh, you haven't heard?" The man looked surprised. He tugged on his son's hand, pulling him forward. "The Third Queen and the Princess have passed. I heard there was a fire at the Star Palace." He pointed to the pack on his back. "They set up a shrine in the city. You can place your offerings there."

Shizuru murmured a thanks and led the horse further into the crowd. So the Queen and the Princess — she paused at the thought.

The Princess? In her mind flashed the luxurious cloak Natsuki had worn when they first exited the tunnels, and her eyes flicked to the woman nearby. Natsuki seemed to be walking heavily, hands clenched at her sides, with green eyes focused on the blue smoke above. Could it be?

It was no wonder Yamada had been so secretive — had told her not to ask questions. What else would the man have been trying to hide?

As they made their way onto the bridge, Shizuru put her thoughts away and tightened her grip on the reins. She had caught the sight of two figures roaming through the throngs of people. Their dress — thick leather and metal armor — made them sorely stand out. Shizuru recognized them as members of the royal guard. But what are they doing here?

The men were scanning the faces of those passing by and occasionally stopped some of the travelers with questions. They seemed to be looking for something — for someone.

From below her hood, Shizuru could see one of the guards look in their direction. He gestured at his partner with the subtle movement of his chin, and they slowly pushed their way through the crowd, directly toward the two women.

An array of thoughts ran through Shizuru's mind. Being on the bridge offered little options for escape, and there were too many people around for a fight. It wasn't in their best interest to stir up too much attention, especially if her hunch about Natsuki's identity was true.

"Stop," one of the guards said as he neared, holding up a hand. The man reached up, grabbing the horse's reins near its mouth. "Are you heading to Orran?"

"Just passing by," Shizuru replied pleasantly, keeping her head down. She watched as the man's companion circled the horse, inspecting it.

The guard holding the reins looked skeptical, but nodded. "We'll need to search your pack." He made a movement to his partner with his eyes and continued speaking. "And take off your hoods, we need to see your faces."

"By all means." She pinched the edge of her hood as if to pull it off, but paused, glancing at the smaller of two men. He seemed slightly distracted, perhaps a bit more agitated by the crowd.

Let's see... Shizuru concentrated on using her gift — her Voice — and grasped the man's mind gently. She wasn't sure how effective it would be with this light a touch; despite the guard's size, his mind beat strongly where she held it, and she didn't think he'd be easily swayed.

Well, time to find out, she thought. She whispered sternly, yet not loud enough to be heard. "Jump off the bridge."

As the last word left her lips, the man began to move awkwardly, nearly stumbling. He headed to the side of the bridge and clamored onto the post — only to push himself back to the ground. The veins on his neck were strained, as if he was fighting with the thought in a stalemate.

His companion saw this and went over, pulling him to his feet. "What's this? What's wrong with you?"

Shizuru pressed her words further into the guard's mind. "Drag him into the water."

This time Natsuki shot her a confused look, but Shizuru pressed on, gripping the man's mind harder.

She could feel him surrender, and it wouldn't be long now. He grabbed at his partner, who struggled back in a battle of tangled limbs and clenched teeth. Many in the crowd had stopped to stare, forming a circle around the men. The chattering grew.

"We need to leave," Shizuru said hurriedly. She took hold of Natsuki's wrist and they began to run, melding into the swarm of people.

For the first time in many years, the tranquility of the palace grounds was broken.

Reito stared out the window of his study in the Great Archive, looking at the servants running about. It was a busy time; the sudden passing of the Third Queen and Princess meant funeral preparations needed to be made. Each palace would be lighting a mourning lamp soon — the Sun Palace would be lighting red smoke, the Moon Palace would be lighting purple, and the Star Palace would be lighting a deep blue.

As the current Master Scholar, Reito was expected to join the other members of the Star Palace in mourning. And on behalf of all the palace scholars, he would be lighting a lamp of green smoke to pay his respects.

The man had already changed into formal robes of green and gold, and his dark hair had been combed back. Now I look just like my father. Reito sighed and turned to look at the small vial of scratch on his desk. He had been studying the black liquid for days now and had found nothing too significant — only that it seemed to be more potent than the blue scratch he was used to seeing. But what he didn't understand was the color — after so many decades of harvesting blue, why did scratch suddenly become black?

Well, I'll leave that thought for tonight. Reito ran his hands over the front of his robes, straightening the creases, and left the room.

By the time he exited the doors of the Great Archive, he could see a small group of scholars waiting for him. Each member was holding onto a hook that led down to the body of a large red lamp. Perfect timing, Reito thought. They walked together, passing by the man-made gardens, and continued down the path connecting to the Star Palace.

The front of the Star Palace was grand, and the long, winding steps were lined with billowing bouquets of blue and gold flowers. White ribbons were tied to each one with words of prayers inked with black.

The scholars made their way up the stairs with stoic faces. When they reached the top, they were greeted with the sight of another red lamp guarded by ten men. A few officials stood nearby, but standing directly in front of the lamp was someone Reito recognized as the Great Healer, Sakomizu.

In silence, the scholars set down the lamp they were carrying and moved to surround it much like the guards did. Reito followed suit, nodding respectfully to the officials, and stepped in front.

It was only then that he turned to the man on his side with a placid smile. "Great Healer Sakomizu, I hope you are well."

"Yes. You as well, Master Scholar," Sakomizu responded politely.

Now that the formalities were over, Reito dropped his gaze down to his feet. It was a waiting game now. Once they saw the smoke from the Sun and Moon palaces, they could then light their own.

I hope they hurry, he thought, keeping his eyes trained on the lamp. The dark-haired man stayed like that for a while, feeling oddly comfortable in the silence; his head was empty for the first time in many years, almost as if in meditation. Then suddenly feeling a spark of boredom, he broke the spell and shifted his gaze discreetly to the healer beside him.

Sakomizu definitely looked older than when he had last seen him. There were heavy bags under his eyes, and his shoulders were slumped tiredly. The poor man. Reito wondered how Sakomizu was feeling — if the toll of treating the Third Queen wasn't enough, this incident with the fire had surely burdened the healer.

Just then, Sakomizu shifted, moving his arm to straighten the collar of his robe. There was a glint — the reflection of light off a gold bracelet.

Reito paused, his brows furrowing in surprise. Hadn't he seen that very same glint during the night the fire happened?

That day he had been in his study, and as was his habit, he had gone to look out his window. The sun had already set, but he could still spot the billowing clouds of smoke coming out from the Star Palace. In the chaos, he had run out of his study and toward the building, calling for his scholars help where they could. And as he had neared the burning palace, he had seen a man with a torch from afar, followed by some guards. Reito had forgotten to take his own torch in his haste, but he still managed to see a glint of light reflecting off a metal band as the group fled.

Of course, he had thought the sight to be strange, but he hadn't managed to catch any of the faces. In fact, he had been waiting to see if he could find out who it was before reporting the matter.

If this was true — that Sakomizu had some responsibility for the incident — then there was a possibility the scholar could use it to his advantage. He doubted that the healer had the fire lit maliciously; no, Sakomizu had always been one of the closest to the Third Queen. What a mystery, Reito mused and suppressed a smile. For the first time in a long time, things were finally starting to get interesting.

There was the sound of a gong from further away and red smoke from the Sun palace could be seen, growing and wisping in the sky. Not long after, another peal sounded, and a column of purple clouds came from the Moon palace. It was their turn now; from behind Reito, another gong rang, and one of the officials handed him a small torch. At the same time as the healer, the scholar bent down and lit the lamp, causing it to smoke.

It was nearly mid hour when Reito was allowed to leave. When he saw Sakomizu staying behind, he waved at his scholars to go without him.

"Healer Sakomizu, care for a walk?" Reito said to the man, keeping a polite smile. "It's been so long since we've been able to chat."

From the expression on Sakomizu's face, it was clear he did not want to, but Reito knew it would have been rude of him to refuse.

"Of course," Sakomizu replied, pushing up his glasses. "Unfortunately, I won't be able to stay very long."

"That's perfectly fine, I won't take too much of your time." Reito gestured with a hand. "Shall we?"

As Sakomizu moved, the guards who had been surrounding the lamp followed suit. Reito turned to the healer with the same pleasant smile. "Perhaps it's best to leave them behind… the topic I want to talk to you about is — how to say this — a bit sensitive."

At the words, the healer furrowed his brows. He didn't argue, though, and nodded to the guards to stay where they were.

Once out of earshot, Sakomizu spoke first. "What is it that you wanted to talk about?"

"I just had a question."

"Yes?"

There was a pause before Reito replied.

"When you lit the Star Palace on fire, was the Third Queen already dead or was she still alive?"

In an instant, Sakomizu's face turned red with emotion. "How dare you — " He nearly shouted but stopped when Reito raised a hand, subtly pointing at a servant passing by.

"Careful healer, there are ears and eyes watching everywhere."

Sakomizu took in a breath, calming himself. He then turned to Reito and whispered angrily. "How dare you accuse me. I've already spoken to the general — I was making my way to the Moon Palace when the fire took place."

Reito looked at him unfazed. "The night the fire took place, I saw you leaving the palace well after the fire had been lit. Your gold bracelet gave you away."

"You must have been mistaken."

Reito chuckled. "I have the gift of memory — unfortunately for you, I don't forget." This part might have been true, but for all intents and purposes, Reito was bluffing. Although it was likely that Sakomizu had been the culprit, he wasn't completely sure. He had not actually seen their faces that night, after all.

Fortunately for Reito, Sakomizu didn't put up much of a fight.

The healer clenched his fists and said sternly, "What do you want?"

"What do you mean?"

Sakomizu frowned, clearly annoyed. "You haven't told anyone yet — or else I wouldn't be standing here right now. You must want something. Why else are you here questioning me?"

Reito narrowed his eyes, and the smile on his lips grew almost predatory. "Well, to put it directly, I was hoping we could help each other. When you were studying as a healer, you took a special interest in the properties of moonlits, correct?"

"So what?" Sakomizu said. "That was a long time ago."

"Well…" Reito stood up tall and faced the healer straight on. "Do you know anything about black scratch?"

Sakomizu's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

So you do. The scholar's smile grew. "So, what do you say, healer? Shall we help each other?"

By the time the two snuck into the city of Orran, it was just before sunset.

They had reached the entrance of the Swinging Door — their home for the night. The outside of the building was plain; stacks and stacks of reddish stone made up all sides, and there was but one small wooden sign with its name scrawled on.

With a soft rap, Shizuru knocked on the door. The sound of sliding caught her attention and part of the door moved, revealing two dark eyes that peeked through a rectangular slit.

"Face?" It was the voice of an older woman.

Shizuru lifted her hood slightly, just enough for her red eyes to be seen. There was the sound of wood sliding again, and the rectangular slit closed up. Immediately after, the door opened with a clamor.

"Come in quickly," the older woman said, waving them in. She looked to be middle aged, with mid-length hair sprinkled with white strands; her face was thin and pointed, and she held an expression that was neither sweet nor sour.

The pair stepped inside, and the door closed shut behind them. Shizuru looked around. Circular tables brimming with people filled the place, and it was loud with the sound of boisterous voices echoing against the walls; pints of beer clinked against each other, and the strong smell of food wafted in the air. In the bustle, no one paid them any heed.

The older woman clapped her hands once, catching Shizuru's attention. "Follow me," the woman said. "You may refer to me as Lin."

The two followed Lin to the far side of the room, meandering between the tables, and through a back door. Here, there was the clatter of pots and pans as orders were yelled; sweating cooks played with open flames, frying up food. Lin moved fast, and they quickly made their way out another door, where they turned through a few corridors before exiting.

The smell of fresh air felt good against the earlier scent of fried oil. They were outside now, but the space was tight — barely enough for a person to move through. Both ends of it were blocked off by stone walls, and the only escape was either from above or through a red entranceway in the adjacent building.

My, does this never end? Shizuru thought, amused.

The group squeezed through to the red door, and Lin unlocked it with a click. When she pushed it open, the three women stepped inside.

It was a small space. Two beds were placed on either end of the room, and a single table sat in the center without any chairs. Between the two beds, a window was carved into the wall; it was open now and the shades were pushed to the sides.

How… homely. Shizuru wasn't quite sure what she had expected from Yamada, but at the very least, something more than this.

"Food is served in the other building," Lin said curtly, interrupting her thoughts. "You should also expect your stay to be a bit longer than you're used to. But when it's time, you'll be told your next destination the night before you're to leave. "

Shizuru peeled her gaze away from the window and nodded.

"Then you should be set." Lin stepped one foot outside. "The city is large, and your dress is common. So as long as you two don't cause any trouble, you should be able to go where you please. Now, if you need anything else, there's a red bell in the other building — ring it and someone will head down."

With that, Lin left, closing the door with a clatter.

On the other side of the room, Natsuki seemed to have already chosen a bed; she dropped her cloak with uncharacteristic roughness to the floor, climbed onto the bed without a word, and lay on her side facing the wall.

Now then… Shizuru went to the empty bed and folded her own traveling cloak into a precise square. When she was done, she sat down lightly beside it. Although there was still a bit of light outside, she could see the shape of the nearly transparent moon against the sky.

They sat in silence for a moment. Then Shizuru, unable to help herself, spoke.

"Sleeping already? The sun has barely set."

Alas, there was no reply.

With the lazy eyes of a cat, Shizuru regarded the dour woman before her. She tried to imagine Natsuki atop a gleaming throne, draped in royal silk… She could barely picture it. Even so, she felt herself urged by a sense of growing fascination.

"Rather sad news about the Princess and the Queen, don't you think? Perhaps we ought to light a lamp ourselves."

Natsuki still said nothing from where she faced away from Shizuru. She shifted slightly, and a lock of long dark hair slipped down from her shoulder.

Shizuru pressed on. "But I've been thinking…" She touched a long finger to her chin. "It almost seems a little suspicious."

Again Natsuki did not speak, but she had gone very still, as if not breathing. Shizuru felt her own pulse quicken. Just as I thought…

With the lightness of an air current, she continued, "I almost wonder if the two of them survived, after all. If perhaps they escaped."

Natsuki sat up like she had been shot.

For the length of a slow breath she faced the wall, body held so tight it was nearly trembling. Then she turned, and Shizuru almost started back in surprise. Against the dimming sunlight, Natsuki's face was nearly white — but her eyes burned a proud, violent green.

Shizuru's heart quickened with fervid satisfaction.

Yes, she thought, this could be the face of a Princess.

"If you already know," Natsuki said in a low voice, "why bother asking?"

Some long-practiced instinct urged Shizuru to keep the game going, to probe until the truth was drawn out.

"Know what?" she said coyly, leaning forward and resting her chin lightly on her hand. Natsuki's fists tightened.

"Enough games." Natsuki stood to her full height and her eyes, locked with Shizuru's, did not waver. "So what if it's true? Yes, I'm the Princess of the Star Palace, daughter of the Third Queen, and yes, I'm not dead."

"How interesting — " Shizuru started to say, a smile growing on her lips. Natsuki cut her off.

"But still — you're wrong about one thing." Her voice dipped lower, sounding hoarse. "My mother did not survive."

Over the span of a split second Shizuru looked up into Natsuki's eyes, and here she came to a realization — they did not shine with the fading sunlight after all, but with tears. Then Natsuki tore her eyes away and was gone with the slamming of the door.

Shizuru sat in stillness. There it was, then. She thought she would have felt some triumph at discovering such a thing, but instead something hollow had settled into her chest.

Raising her head, she glanced out the window, catching a glimpse of misty blue smoke in the darkening sky.

From what she could recall, there weren't many members of the Star Palace, and the Third Queen had only borne one child. No full siblings, no other close family — Natsuki was alone then.

A common story, she told herself. A stroll down the streets would find you dozens of destitutes who had been through that and more — even herself. What sympathy could be had for a Princess, raised in love and luxury? Why shouldn't she learn cruelty, like the rest of them?

But the words died in her mind just as quickly as they had come.

For a moment, unbiddenly, she had pictured Natsuki with her hand in the soil, exhaling that sweet scent and making the flowers regrow.

Hours had gone by since Shizuru had left the Swinging Door, and she had watched the shrine long enough to predict the movements of the mourners.

Both young and old stood silently in a line waiting for their turn to pay respects; and once in front, they stepped forward alone. First, the mourner would kneel with both hands in their lap as they said three prayers — one for the deceased, one to Eibin, and one to the Mother.

To end each prayer, the mourner would then place their hands on the ground in front of them and slide them apart as if smoothing out the creases in fabric.

Their final task would then be to light a red lamp. The item was to be hung on one of the many ropes extending from the shrine — that is, if they could find a spot. In fact, there were so many lamps now that the shrine keepers struggled to keep up with the never-ending line.

From the corner where she stood, Shizuru stared up at the large structure.

Four wooden pillars had been erected for the base of the shrine — each painted in gold. Flowers had been carved in it, winding up to the top and erupting as a bouquet of paper lanterns shaped like moonlits. Between the four pillars hung a tapestry of old inked text — more prayers, no doubt — and surrounding it was a series of small white ribbons. The many ropes attached to the pillars extended downward to the ground, and the red lamps tied to them gave off a rosy glow.

It's beautiful, Shizuru thought without a smile. A part of her meant it — had truly believed it to be — and yet, she couldn't help but to feel a twinge of disdain. It was almost funny how extravagant the whole thing was. All of this, spurred on by the death of the Third Queen — a person who most of the mourners had never met or seen.

And yet… Shizuru's red eyes watched the flickering lights with a hint of pain, and in that moment she imagined pinching each flame out until it was nothing but blackness. Dark, just like the days following the incident at the Head Sanctuary.

She would have never wanted such an excessive display in the aftermath of that day. But there was something about even one red lamp, lit by a stranger's hands…

Shizuru cast her gaze to the ground and turned away from the shrine. It doesn't matter anymore, she thought. Her mouth curved into an aching smile and she steeled her mind once more.

For the next little while, Shizuru spent her time wandering through the market looking at trinkets. The stalls here were quite different from those at the capital, and instead of the familiar smells of hot oil and fish, there were the dewy scents of sweet bread and candied fruit. She watched with curious eyes as one stall owner used his gift to summon a small fire in the palm of his hand. He then moved the flames near a pile of sugar resting on the top of an apple; the white granules melted almost instantly, spreading slowly over red skin.

Shizuru wasn't particularly fond of sweets, but the sight was so enticing she thought about getting one herself — that is, until a clamor brought her attention elsewhere.

"Watch yourself!" The annoyed voice belonged to a different shopkeeper nearby.

A figure dressed in black had stumbled against the side of the stall's display, knocking some of the items to the ground.

Shizuru's brows shot upon recognition — surely it couldn't be…?

She moved closer to get a better look and her earlier thoughts were confirmed by the sight of the figure's face. Natsuki?

Natsuki's complexion was paler than usual, almost sickly; her breathing was labored, and she moved slowly, with every footstep dragging against the ground. It wasn't long before she lost her balance, and Shizuru stepped forward, hooking an arm around her before she could fall.

"Natsuki," Shizuru called, looking down at the pale face. Her eyes were dulled, void with life, and Shizuru wasn't sure that the woman had even heard her at all. There was something very wrong — had she been poisoned? Just how long had she been walking around like this?

Wrapping another arm around the thin body, Shizuru lifted Natsuki up and headed back to the Swinging Door.

When they arrived in the room, Shizuru laid the unconscious woman down on one of the beds. She had rung the red bell in the hallway on their way back, and she could hear Lin's steps approaching now. The door was already opened and the older woman stepped in without knocking.

Lin set a bright lamp on the table and moved to the side of the bed. "What was the girl doing when you found her?" she asked, lifting a hand over Natsuki's closed eyes. Natsuki's breathing was now fast and shallow, and the sheets beneath her head looked wet with sweat.

Shizuru stood against a wall with her arms loosely crossed. Her eyes turned to Lin. "I'm not quite sure myself."

Lin didn't ask any more questions. Instead, she closed her eyes and moved a hovered hand over Natsuki's body as if to scan it. She frowned after a moment. "There's nothing wrong," Lin said and moved her hand over Natsuki's body again. "I see nothing strange — no drugs, no illness."

Shizuru uncrossed her arms and approached the bed. "Are you a healer?"

"No. Just my gift," Lin said, opening her eyes to stare down at Natsuki's face. There was a slight pause before she spoke again. "For your companion, there's nothing more to do. Just watch her for the night, see if she gets worse."

"And if she does?"

Lin headed toward the door. She didn't take the lamp with her. "Call for me again and I will take another look."

"Very well." She gave Lin a polite smile and the older woman left, closing the door behind her.

Shizuru turned her gaze back to the bed.

In the moments that had passed, Natsuki's hands had gone limp, and within her palms a few bits of tattered white fell out. Shizuru picked up one of the pieces and held it near the lamp for a better look.

Moonlit petals — but why? …Had the girl been out saving flowers again? Shizuru raised a brow at the peculiar thought. What nonsense.

After a while, Natsuki's breathing slowly evened and the color in her face seemed to warm up. It was a good sign; at the very least, Lin had been honest in her assessment.

Shizuru gathered the rest of the petals and placed them on the table. When she went back to the bed to pull a blanket over Natsuki, she spotted something strange — Natsuki's shirt had shifted slightly, revealing a sliver of skin near her hip, and there was a mark drawn on it, as if someone had taken a brush against the surface.

Shizuru traced the coiled symbol with her eyes. This is no ink, she was the mark of a Kiss.

How could this be?

Although all royal-born were given gifts, they did not have markings like the common people — at least, they shouldn't have.

So then was Natsuki lying about being part of the royal family? Well… Shizuru furrowed her brows in puzzlement. She had run into the best of liars, but Natsuki didn't seem to be one of them, especially not with her earlier reaction.

Then what was the truth?

Like a fish lured into biting bait, Shizuru gave into temptation. She had more questions than she could ask, but she needed some answers. Fortunately, there was one man she knew that might be able to give her some.

I need to send a message to Reito, she thought, and headed out the door to ring the red bell once again.

In the darkness of night, Ro stood tall, listening attentively to the messenger whispering in his ear. The men he had sent to Tago earlier had gone further up to Orran to investigate. Unfortunately, it seems they had run into some trouble.

The man whispering recounted their story. The two guards had fallen off a bridge into a river, but were able to swim back to shore, nearly fainting with exhaustion. Before they were taken to bedrest, they spoke of a strange woman traveling with another female companion. The guards hadn't seen her face, and she had seemed cooperative enough, yet it seemed whatever happened to them was the result of her gift.

The general frowned. The affected guard hadn't been able to describe what happened in any usable way — just that he had felt an indescribable urge to follow strange thoughts.

Perhaps the woman had a gift of persuasion, Ro reasoned. But for what reason would she attack his men if not to hide something? Whatever this was, let this be the last of it.

"Tell the middle leaders to handle this," Ro told the messenger. "I want both women captured alive."

A/N:

Hi everyone, hope you're all doing well and taking care of yourselves out there. As always, I'd like to thank to everyone who reviewed last chapter and the chapters before - I appreciate all the encouragement and nice words :) ...This story has really been a labor of love, and I'm glad to have readers following along! Next post should be in a couple weeks again, hope to see you all there.