"Passions are like the wind, they are necessary to give movement even if they cause hurricanes."
-Berbard de Fontanelle-
"Serpent's Curse"
By: FenixPhoenix (Giselle González)
Chapter 6: "Unexpected"
Shinna Yuya waited with Kyo in awkward silence for their guests to arrive. They hadn't done much during the day and Yuya wondered thus, fearfully, if Kyo would retreat into his former self when the group reunited. Yuya was not looking forward to that Kyo that never showed how important she was to him. The man who hardly noticed her and who called her servant. Yuya closed her eyes and prayed with all her heart he would not change into that demeaning person.
The only consolation during their waiting was when the moon claimed the right to soar into the sky. It was only then when Kyo would show he cared by lying down next to her and wrapping his arms around her protectively. They did not kiss or did any of the other things that, like a brand new lover, Yuya was hoping for. Instead, he would just lie there beside her, snuggling close, silent as a tomb. Every night, Yuya wondered if Kyo was afraid that whatever Koga had done to her was contagious, or if he was simply afraid of hurting her in some way or another. Damn, Koga. If only they knew what he'd done to her! She could still hear his whispering promise whenever she closed her eyes.
'You will bloom like a rose during winter, Yuya-San… and, like a flower, you will wither away.'
Yuya shivered and Kyo pulled her closer. She shut her eyes, not wanting him to see the fear that probably shone in their depths. Truth was, the unknown, was a damn scary place to be at.
-o0o-
Onime no Kyo relaxed a little when the shoji to their room slid open to reveal servant number two, Yukimura, Akira and Sasuke. It had been two weeks since he'd sent the letters and Kyo was pleased at their fast response.
The disheveled group beamed, more at Yuya than at him, as they made their way inside. He noticed his servant's eyes moving up and down Yuya's body, probably scanning for any sign of injury –or so Kyo decided to think; else he would have to beat the crap out of him for ogling her.
After they had settled down and Yuya had served them all sake -much to Kyo's discontent, for it was his bottle- they waited for him to address the situation that had resulted in their gathering.
Kyo cleared his throat and placed Koga's gift in the middle of the room. Then, without further fuss, he gave a short but accurate account of what had transpired, starting from Yuya's first encounter with Kenta. Kyo decided to omit some details of how the second group of aggressors had attacked Yuya. He didn't want her to become more uncomfortable than she already was. It wasn't because he was ashamed that he hadn't been there to protect her, no… not really. He was just doing this for Yuya. Fuck it! He wished he could believe that if only to get rid of the constant guilt he felt. It was bad enough that he'd allowed Koga to get close to Yuya the second time!
At the mention of Koga's name, Yukimura seemed to pale. Kyo focused on him, noticing the widening of his blue eyes when he described how Koga had attacked Yuya with a weird black bladed knife. By the time he was finished, there was palpable silence in the room. Kyo turned towards Yukimura and glared when the man remained silent.
"What do you know about this?" he asked stoically; but the look in his eyes demanded that he hold nothing back.
Yukimura snapped out of his thoughts and sighed. "I think we'll need someone else for this one," he said cryptically. He turned to look at Sasuke and gave him a nod. Sasuke stood up and left the room without a word.
Kyo said nothing, trusting that Yukimura would explain himself when the time was right. If he was honest, though, Kyo was not looking forward to the General's plan. Yukimura was not someone who would scare easily and, by his expression, it was clear that whatever had been done to Yuya was bad, really bad. Kyo fought to mask his fright, a deed that was becoming more difficult by the second.
"Sasuke should be back in three days tops," Yukimura said, sipping the sake in his cup.
"But… what do we do meanwhile?" Benitora paced the room impatiently.
"We wait," Akira shrugged. He seemed to be the least affected by all of this and Kyo envied him for that.
Night was quickly upon them as the three newcomers chatted with Yuya about banal things while Kyo, for his part, simply closed his eyes and retreated to his thoughts. After a while he finally spoke.
"Leave us."
Since Kyo had failed to indicate –by speech or body language- whom he had asked to leave, the entire group stood up at the same time. Kyo frowned when he saw Yuya on her feet and heading towards the exit.
"What do you think you are doing, woman?" he growled.
Yuya's eyes widened and she felt bright heat settling on her cheeks when the rest of the group -who'd understood Kyo's message correctly- passed her by with a smile and –in Yukimura's case- a wink. The group disappeared behind the paper door, leaving them to the privacy of the room.
"Come here," Kyo ordered, lying down on the futon intent on getting some sleep.
Shinna Yuya was quick to obey. She tried to hide her smile when he wrapped his arms around her, but knew he must have seen it. It was not much Kyo didn't gasp. Yuya grabbed his hand and was glad when he entwined his fingers with hers. Now that her fear of Kyo ignoring her had vanished, her mind whirled on a thing that, up until now, she had not considered. Who would have ever thought Kyo would be the cuddling type?
"You're an idiot," he mumbled sleepily.
Yuya's eyes widened. She tried to twist around to look at his face, but he kept her still. She frowned. Had he perhaps read her thoughts? Was that even possible?
"For what?" she asked, too curious to ignore. But Kyo did not answer and soon, she heard his breathing becoming deep and even. Kyo was asleep and Yuya decided she really liked the sound of his peaceful slumber.
-o0o-
Onime no Kyo waited with his group for Sasuke to arrive. It had been three days since Sasuke had left and only yesterday they'd received a message that he was on his way back. When Kyo had enquired where Yukimura had sent Sasuke to, the General had answered with his usual vagueness. To get an expert, he'd said. Kyo had been unable to get more information out of him, much to his irritation.
Two sets of steps approached and Kyo waited, with barely contained anticipation. Who could this so called expert be? The rice door slid open to reveal Sasuke. He stepped inside and Kyo reached for his muramasa in reaction to the second presence. He positioned himself as a barrier between Yuya and the newcomer. Then, he glared at Yukimura who was simply smiling innocently, as though he'd done nothing wrong. Fucking Sanada!
"Good afternoon," Sakaki Kenji greeted, breaking the awkward silence. He smiled unconcerned but Kyo would not be placated by a fucking smile!
Unperturbed by the reception, Kenji stepped inside and took a seat near Yukimura, who quickly offered him a cup of sake. Kyo's sake no less! Kenji thanked Yukimura and sipped at the cup. In a blink, his demeanor changed, his smile vanishing to be replaced by careful curiosity.
"Pray tell, Sanada-san, why have you called me?"
"We have a problem," Yukimura replied, grabbing the anemone flowers Koga had left and placing the vase in front of him. The blue eyes that had been amused seconds before now widened with fright.
"What is the meaning of this?" Kenji asked, turning angry eyes upon Yukimura.
"It means you were not the only one who pissed the cub," Yukimura's eyes jumped from Kenji to Kyo and back again.
Kenji turned, not to Kyo, but to Yuya. With an expression of profound sadness, he said, "Yuya-san…I am… so sorry."
Kyo didn't like those words, and the anger they produced was proof of that. Kyo also didn't like the tone, so serious and shaking with fucking pain. The tone was filled with pity that was uncalled for, unwanted!
"What do you know about fucking Koga?" he asked, keeping his emotions masked and locked inside his heart. His inner battle was no one's business but his own and he would deal with it at a more convenient time.
Kenji sighed, "I know that when he strikes… he strikes where it hurts the most."
To be Continued…