Hi everyone! I hope you had a good time welcoming the new year!
First and foremost, I must apologize to you all. I haven't updated in almost seven months which, even for me, is a long time. I moved away from home halfway across the country and started university, and this autumn's been pure hell at times. I had a couple of complete breakdowns during the night and the stress has been simply too much to even think about writing. I have my reasons, but I would still like to apologize. I'm sorry.
Secondly, I want to thank you. Your support has been amazing, and I was honestly close to tears when I saw that I'd gotten over 200 reviews and 99 favs. Truly, thank you: dentedileone, ElleinadOtaku0w0, rosesinthenight, strwbrie, kurasuchi, marilu (unfortunately I don't understand your language, but I'm taking a guess and say that you like this fic and want more romance soon? Anyway, thank you for reviewing, it's nice to know people from many different places enjoy reading my story ^.^), mazzal, Neil (indeed, those two are a very dangerous combination. Unfortunately Otae doesn't get a very big part in this fic, since this is mostly centered around the main couple and their siblings, but at least she got to appear! The quote you liked so much is just something I found quite some time ago on the Internet, but I must say I'm also quite fond of it. Sorry you had to wait so long, thank you for reviewing again! ^.^), Oxenstierna D. Yuki-Rin, domo-chi (never again shall I abandon a fic, fear not! It might take me years (hopefully not...) but I will write this one all the way to the "the end"! Your reviews are always so lively I can't help smiling ^.^ The answer to your question is very late, and I'm sorry for that, but the ice came from Shinpachi. After he said he had an idea for a little revenge, he showed Kagura the cellar where they keep ice and things that need to say cooled. Kagura then took some ice to keep the drink freezing cold. The glass in Shinpachi's forehead is from when Kagura threw the glass into the wall. Shinpachi got a shard stuck in his forehead and forgot to pull it out. Sorry if my storytelling confuses you at times, I'll try to work on it. Thank you for reviewing ^.^), little101, C.A.M.E.O.1 and Only, LeChatDit, tufi, OrangeStrawberries, Zubatattack, arkee, Crepe-lover, Shinichi's Lover, Sell Chan, awesome-sadist, Hachibukai, blueberry761, lulu.c1t4, Erigay, Mrs. Okita Sougo (I'm so sorry you had to wait so long! Still, thank you for reviewing!), Anonymous (Thank you so much! I'll try to keep up with the expectations. Thank you for reviewing ^.^), LoveMadness, Daniloveswriting and VenVen! I probably wouldn't have been able to pull myself together in order to write more if you hadn't given me so much love and kind words. Really, thank you. This unworthy writer - who honestly doesn't deserve such devoted readers - is eternally grateful for your support.
This chapter doesn't tie well with the previous one, but I couldn't figure out a smooth transition so this is what I have to offer. It's another confusing time-skip, but please bear with me. I'm not very good at keeping things in order... Anyway, this chapter might upset some of you, but the drama won't last long, mostly because I want to keep this fic more lighthearted than the one I'm probably taking as my next project after this is finished.
I hope at least some of you are willing to forgive me, read this and maybe even leave a review. You're probably pissed off at me, but please remember that I have my reasons (listed above) if you do review. Flames will only make me lose interest in writing.
...I was far too serious this time, wasn't I? -.-"
Please enjoy the long-awaited new chapter! ^.^
Friends are important but family comes first
"Oh, this will be great! I get to see everyone again! It's been way too long," Kagura cheered and was practically bouncing in her seat in the back of their car.
Sougo, who sat on her left side, was far less excited. "Oh yes, this is going to be the best cocktail party ever. I get to meet your entire bizarrely obsessed clan at once, oh joy," he dryly commented, stubbornly facing away from her and looking out of the window.
Kagura lightly swatted his arm and gave him a frustrated look. "Would you stop that already! And it isn't a cocktail party, it's to celebrate the Yato clan's 300th anniversary, so it's really important. You'd best behave and not embarrass me," she snapped at him.
"Me, embarrass you? That's my line and you know it, China."
"What did you say, you -!"
"Besides," Sougo continued, easily ignoring and cutting into Kagura's outburst "why am I invited if it's your clan's anniversary? You're the one who's entering my family."
Kaura blushed lightly but kept her glare. "Because," she started condescendingly, making his brow twitch in annoyance. "you and I are engaged, have been for several months now, yet you've never been properly introduced to my family. Sure, they're always scattered around so we've never really had much of a chance to, but now we do. Most of them don't give a flying donkey's crap about such things but there are some purists who are rather picky about partners. They want to make sure there's no dirty blood in the family tree."
"That pathetic, brainless cousin of yours is one of them, isn't he?" Sougo asked with a sideways glance at her, his voice dripping with poorly hidden acid.
Kagura was surprised by his tone, but nodded nonetheless. "Yes he is, but then again so is his mother. She's even worse, she's like the head of the purist faction," she explained, forgetting her earlier frustration with her fiancé. Well, it was always like that, first they're fighting about something completely unimportant and the next second they're chatting about something equally unimportant.
It might've been Kagura's imagination, or the dim lighting in the car, but Sougo's eyes seemed to darken suddenly. "He'll be at the party, won't he?" he asked, his right hand in a fist.
Kagura frowned at the change in him. "Of course, all of the Yato are required to attend, no exceptions," she warily answered and looked down at his fist. "You're not going to start a fight, are you?" she asked nervously. "I know you don't exactly like each other and you have a little conflict going on after that stupid ass duel, but this night's really really really important and -"
"I won't," Sougo answered, trying to get his growing annoyance under control. 'She doesn't understand anything, does she? Clueless, un-cute, stupid China… ' "Unless he gives me a reason to," he muttered darkly under his breath, making sure Kagura wouldn't hear.
Kagura grinned, relieved. "Well, that's okay then. Oh look, we're here!" she suddenly exclaimed and pointed forward.
Sougo turned his gaze forward and looked at the brightly lit mansion. The Yato mansion was known for its sturdy structure, making it more of a fortress than a noble's mansion. It was quite an imposing structure and a lesser man would've gotten cold feet just looking at it, not to mention imagining the clan that resided inside. Sougo wasn't all that worried, though. He had survived years of knowing the head and his son, almost a year's engagement to the head's daughter and a highly risky duel with his fiancées cousin. He could handle a few more with ease.
They pulled over in front of the entrance and the driver stepped out to open the door for Sougo. The next step should've been for the driver to open Kagura's door and Sougo to help her out but, forgetting all etiquette – and growing far too impatient at Sougo's deliberate slow walking – she threw her door open and jumped out on her own. Or tried to. Otae must've been harassed by the gorilla guard again because she did the most sadistic dress-choice ever: a deep red dress with a tight bodice and – Kagura's worst nightmare – a train. As you might have already guessed, her intended smooth exit from the car ended up with her nearly crashing face first into the gravel. Her face was saved by her ever-smiling big brother at the last moment.
"Why would they give you such a dress when you have trouble walking in a straight line even in pants?" Kamui asked, awfully amused by his sister's predicament.
Kagura glared up at her brother and straightened up, finally getting her feet properly under her. "The maid in charge was feeling murderous today. How many have already arrived?"
"Some, I think a lot of them are coming after midnight. This winter's been busy for everyone," Kamui answered with a shrug. "If you want to see grandma Kaguya before she goes to sleep, you'd better hurry up."
"Grandma Kaguya's already here?!" Kagura squealed and rushed off towards the doors.
Sougo, who had been giving directions to their driver, turned just in time to see a flash of red as Kagura's train disappeared through the doorway. He lifted a brow at Kamui, who smiled serenely back.
"I'll just let you know right now that at Yato parties no one is ever announced. People just come and go as they please, and any outsiders are beaten to the brink of death and fed to the dogs," Kamui explained cheerfully. "We don't get many party-crashers nowadays."
"Shocking," Sougo said sarcastically and started on his way to the party. Kamui matched his walking speed and walked next to him.
"How are things with Kagura?" Kamui asked in a manner that people usually used when they talked about the weather.
Sougo glanced at him briefly. "Not bad but not good either," he answered, clearly not wanting to elaborate.
Too bad, Kamui didn't care what he wanted. "That's not an answer and you know it. C'mon, we never get to speak in private!"
"And I'm already missing that," Sougo said with his passive voice.
Kamui, instead of getting offended, cracked open his eyelids and gave a pleased grin which, considering it's Kamui, looked quite feral. "And when do I get to call you brother?" he asked, referring to the wedding.
"Haven't discussed it," Sougo answered, wanting nothing more than to escape from this annoying pest. He could never be sure about what was going on in Kamui's head and he didn't like not knowing.
Kamui's eyes flashed a little. "Hmm, I see," he hummed, but Sougo had no idea what he meant. "You know, making them wait is like trying to empty an ocean with a bucket: it might seem like a good idea at first but it's doomed to fail in the end."
"It's a stupid idea to begin with," Sougo retorted, not really understanding what Kamui meant with his odd metaphor. The redhead just grinned and waved to some people, steering Sougo towards them. Sougo could see Kagura among them, and when she noticed them she speed walked to them and took his hand, grinning from ear to ear. Sougo could only steel his nerves and prepare himself for the upcoming introductions.
Kagura hadn't been happier in months. She was positively radiant as she exchanged news with her relatives. Everyone was always on the move, some even in far-away countries, so they hardly ever got together like this. Mostly everyone had congratulated her and Sougo on their engagement and, after a little bit of grilling, had accepted Sougo into their midst. But, as Kagura had suspected, her aunt Akira had given them a disgusted look and ignored them since then. Kagura told Sougo to remind her to "slug the old cow" as soon as the party was officially over.
"Kagura-chan, my darling daughter, how have you been?"
Kagura turned to beam at her father and ran over to give him a hug. Well, he had to actually catch her since she managed to trip over her dress for the 47th time that evening.
"Papi! I'm so happy to see you! Your arm isn't acting up in the cold, is it?" she asked as she pulled back to inspect her father's prosthetic left arm.
Umibouzu smiled at her concern and flexed his left arm for show. "Not at all. I'm in perfect shape!" he boasted.
"Except for your head."
Umibouzu deflated. "Mmust you be so cruel, my dear?"
Kagura grinned. She hadn't gotten a chance to see her father in weeks, either, since he had been on a mission.
Umibouzu recovered and smiled at his daughter. "And you? Are you happy?" he asked, giving her a meaningful look.
Kagura blushed and averted her eyes. "Well, I guess. I've gotten used to my new life at the palace and he people are nice enough," she said, avoiding her father's probing gaze. She knew she wasn't giving him the answer he wanted.
"And your relationship with His Highness?"
Kagura swallowed and, much to her annoyance, blushed harder. "Working on it…I guess," she mumbled.
Umibouzu's gaze softened. He could see it, if only because Kagura shared so many traits with his late wife: his daughter had fallen in love. It was questionable how deep that love was and how much of it she understood, but it was a fact that Kagura, his rash, violent, crude yet loyal, sweet and protective daughter was in love with a man. And by the rumors he had managed to catch it seemed like those feelings were more or less mutual. Even if the mere thought of it made his blood boil, he knew that it was for the best. His daughter deserved to be happy.
"Papi? What's wrong?" Kagura asked nervously, quite obviously worried by her father's long silence.
He shook his head. "Nothing. Where is His Highness, by the way? Didn't he come with you?"
Kagura gestured to the other side of the room where a group of people was throwing knives at moving targets. "Haku and Chika dragged him over there to have some male bonding."
"I see, that's great. And Kyo hasn't given you any trouble?" Umibouzu knew about the restriction order his nephew had been given, and while he doubted Kyo would be stupid enough to anger the crown prince, Umibouzu had to make sure.
Kagura frowned at that. "No, he hasn't even greeted me since the fight. Every time I see him he runs away as if I have some sort of disease. I wonder why," she said. She was actually pretty hurt by that, even if she despised him for handling her like a possession and almost killing her fiancé.
"That's obviously because your darling fiancé would torture him to death if he found out Kyo had any kind of contact with you…" Umibouzu mumbled darkly.
"What? I can't hear you," Kagura frowned.
Umibouzu smiled a little. "No, it was nothing. Now then, why don't we try dancing for a little bit? I heard you had finally learned waltz!"
Sougo sighed heavily as he slumped down into a relatively isolate chair. He had been clearly informed that no one present gave a damn about how he acted, in fact, the more laid-back the better. This suited him just fine, since he didn't have the energy to play polite and courteous. He had to admit that while it was rather interesting and actually quite fun to engage in killing sports with Kagura's relatives, they were a bit too much all at once. He was exhausted.
Sougo scanned the room with his eyes and soon enough spotted Kagura stumbling on the dance floor with her father. The corner of his lips twitched up at her obvious enjoyment of dancing with her father, even if she kept stepping on her train. Her grin was wide enough to show her teeth and he could swear her eyes were sparkling. It was a very pleasing sight, indeed.
"She's radiant, isn't she?"
The unexpected female voice snapped Sougo's gaze from one redhead to another. The unfamiliar woman in front of him had shoulder-length hair the exact same shade as his fiancée's, but had more curves and held the kind of elegance Kagura could only dream of achieving. Sougo, however, could see the sly, calculating look in her dull green eyes as she looked at the dancers, most likely focusing on Kagura. 'Like a fox,' he thought warily.
"If you are referring to my fiancée then yes, I must agree with you," he answered, switching to his court mode. Polite, distant, guarded.
The woman smiled coyly. "Of course I was talking about her. She's the unrefined gem of the clan and her father's treasure. It was quite a shock to everyone when she was married off so suddenly, not to mention out of the family."
"You think me unworthy of her, then?"
"Oh no, I think quite the opposite, Your Highness. My cousin's daughter has started to finally bloom under your care, and I believe it is thanks to the engagement."
Sougo looked at her doubtfully. "I don't exactly agree with you on that, but thank you for the acceptance. Pardon me, but did you say your cousin's daughter?"
She finally turned her gaze to him, her eyes unreadable but smile kind. Sougo didn't trust her one bit. "Yes, I did. Her mother was my cousin, though I'm closer to her children's age. Don't look so doubting, there are crazier things than big age differences between cousins in our clan," she laughed softly.
"That, I can believe."
She shook her head amusedly. "Where are my manners, I haven't even introduced myself. I'm Sakuya," she introduced herself and curtsied.
"Pleased to meet you," Sougo answered with a nod of his head. She was suspicious, in more ways than one, and Sougo didn't like how her eyes looked at him: assessing, calculating, like she could somehow see inside his head.
Sakuya laughed again. "Oh please, don't be so guarded. I wouldn't dare try anything on you and if I did, a certain someone would have my head. I'm also already taken, so don't misunderstand my natural way of communicating for anything it's not. That has happened in the past, unfortunately," she said in good humor.
Sougo was spared from answering by a quickly approaching red figure. The obvious shift in his focus caused Sakuya to also turn around and face the fiercely glaring Kagura.
Sakuya smiled kindly. "Oh my, look at how you've grown, little Kagura!"
Kagura didn't stop until she was standing next to where Sougo was seated, and Sougo was surprised by the way she almost blocked him from Sakuya. Kagura was still glaring, and her voice held venom. "And you haven't changed at all, Sakuya. It was nice seeing you too, but now you'll have to excuse us," Kagura said and bent to grab Sougo's left arm. "My fiancé has promised me a dance," she snapped and started dragging said fiancé away from Sakuya who looked, confusingly, amused.
'How dare she!' Kagura seethed as she pulled Sougo along. 'How dare she get all comfy with my fiancé!'
Kagura had been happily dancing with her father when she noticed Sakuya talking with Sougo. Sakuya had had that look in her eyes again, and all the smiling and dainty laughing had made Kagura's blood boil. Finally she couldn't take it anymore, left her father and stomped angrily over to the two. 'And why was he talking with her anyway? Even if he doesn't like me he could at least stay faithful!'
"China, my hand's going numb from your grip on my arm," Sougo suddenly pointed out.
Kagura gave him a nasty look and one last painful squeeze before swinging his arm away from her. As he nursed his hand and tried to get the circulation working, Kagura crossed her arms angrily and glared at him. "Well?" she snapped at him.
Sougo looked puzzled at her. "What?" he asked with a slight frown.
"How was your talk with dear old Sakuya? So sorry to have interrupted, seemed like you were having a good time, too," she venomously sniped at him. She was lashing out at him for some strange reason she couldn't understand. She just felt so angry.
Now Sougo was fully scowling at her. "Why are you so angry at me when I've done nothing wrong? You're always like this, yelling at me for something as unreasonable as talking with someone you apparently don't like." He was getting angry, too. Kagura knew she should calm down, or at least not fight it out with Sougo in the middle of her relatives, but her mind was so messed up and all she could focus on was the feeling of anger and something else that kept crushing her chest and twisting her stomach painfully.
"She's a bloody vixen, everyone knows it! And there you were, joking and talking and doing god knows what else with that hateful bitch when all you ever do with me is call me names and fight and argue! Sorry I'm not beautiful or big-chested or smart or whatever enough! I hate you!" she ranted, furiously wiping her eyes to keep angry tears at bay. She didn't even know what she was saying anymore, she was just blurting out whatever her jumbled mind conjured.
She finally got her eyes clear enough to see Sougo's reaction, which normally would've had her rolling with laughter but now simply made her heart ache. He was staring at her, wide-eyed and speechless, completely frozen. And Kagura hated herself for allowing her mouth to blurt out those things, those unintended harsh insults, her insecurities, and the opposite of what she really wanted to say. But it was too late to take it back. He wouldn't believe it to be a joke, either.
She had messed up big time.
Everyone around them was quiet, which only made the sudden bang of the opening front door all the more ominous. A palace servant rushed in, looking around desperately.
"Is His Highness in here?!" he finally yelled.
The crowd parted to show the engaged couple, still facing each other. Kagura had bowed her head, trying to hide her tears and humiliation from everyone, especially the man in front of her. Sougo seemed to snap out of it and, after a hesitant look at Kagura, turned to the servant. The servant didn't seem to even notice the tense atmosphere he had barged into and continued his panicked yelling.
"Your Highness! You must return at once, you are needed by Her Highness Mitsuba's side!" he desperately explained. "She has collapsed!"
The shocked silence instantly broke into heated conversations and exclamations of shock. Kagura didn't need to look up to know that Sougo had already bolted out of the room, leaving her behind without hesitation. Her chest hurt terribly as she choked out a broken sob and fled into a hidden room, unnoticed in the sudden confusion and flurry of action.
Kagura curled into a tight ball in the small space. The evening she had looked forward to turned out to be a nightmare come to life. She had completely embarrassed herself in front of her whole family, ruined her relationship with her fiancé and now she had heard that Mitsuba, her sweet, loving and understanding future sister-in-law, had collapsed, and by the sound of it, it was serious. Mitsuba had said at Kagura's birthday ball that her condition had worsened. What if it was fatal? Kagura let out a pained whimper at the thought and curled up tighter, her tears smearing make up over her cheeks.
Someone entered her hidden room swiftly, a burst of light followed by complete darkness again. Kagura looked up in surprise and was even more surprised at the sight of her brother's silhouette in the dark right in front of her. She quickly buried her face into her knees again, refusing to acknowledge his presence.
She could feel him sit down next to her silently. She tried to reign in her tears and sobs, hating to know her brother could see her crying like this.
"He really left without you," he softly murmured. His somber tone startled Kagura enough to make her look up at him. He was looking thoughtfully at his hands, leisurely propped up on his bent knees.
"First he couldn't respond to your words and then he just leaves you crying there and rushes off. What a disappointment," he continued.
"But it's his sister! She's collapsed and could d-d-d-" die. Kagura couldn't finish her sentence when a new wave of tears burst forward.
Kamui didn't answer. They sat in silence for a long while before Kagura couldn't take it anymore. She had to speak, even if the one listening was her heartless big brother.
"I hate it. Why am I the only one who gets like this? Why am I the only one hurting?" she choked on her words before painfully sobbing out. "Why am I the only one in love?!"
Kamui didn't answer anything. He just wrapped an arm around her shoulders and sat there, listening to her crying.
Please don't kill me.
~poakkis