No Rest for the Wicked
Chapter XVII: The Parting Glass
by: Pocahontas X
"Of all the money that e'er I had, I've spent it in good company. And all the harm that e'er I've done, alas it was to none but me."
the PARTING GLASS, ED SHEERAN (COVER)
(CCC)
"I just want to why you were driving so recklessly in such horrible weather."
The female cop had decided she wouldn't leave until she spoke with Natsuki regarding the accident that occurred on the tumultuous path of the Imperial Highway. The other driver had escaped relatively unharmed, but he was still pretty shaken up about the entire thing.
However, he wouldn't walk out of this without any consequences. Namiko could practically smell the alcohol on the minor's breath from a mile away, and she was sure the police officer could too.
"Would you just give it a break? The girl's just lost her father for fuck's sake! Have a bit of decency, will you?"
Surprise blossomed on the old woman's features as the cutting words flew from Riku's mouth, the last person she'd expect to lose her temper.
"Dad…" Nina murmured, tugging on her father's elbow.
Riku's pale blue eyes were furious. "I understand you're trying to do your job, but can't you see she's in pain and shock?"
The blonde woman frowned deeply. Riku was looking directly at her, and even though there wasn't any functionality to that eerie gaze, she felt as though Riku was looking right through her. She rose from the kneeled position she adopted at the silent teenager's bedside and took a commanding step forward.
"I suggest you watch your tone," She said, her voice like ice. "However shocked or pained she may be, she still broke the law and endangered not only her life, but those around her as well."
Shizuru cradled Natsuki's tender skull to her bosom protectively as the tension between Riku and the cop grew thicker and thicker with each fleeting moment.
"She wasn't the only one." Riku replied scathingly. "I don't hear you interrogating the other guy. Yeah, you know, the idiot who was driving just as recklessly, while intoxicated, I might add."
"Riku, that's enough." Namiko interjected firmly, though she agreed with everything Riku was saying. But the woman wielded far more power than she or Riku possessed at the moment, and she feared things could get out of hand very quickly.
"Daddy, please," Nina urged desperately. "Just let it go."
"You cops make me sick. I bet the little fucker's father is the one who signs your paychecks. You'd probably let him get away with murder too. Tell, me. Is this the first time you let him off the hook for a DUI?"
"One more word and I'm taking you in." She threatened.
"Riku!" Namiko bounded over and took Riku's clenched jaw in between her thumb and index finger, pulling her head down to her level so she could whisper, "Be silent!" Into her ear.
"But Obaa-san…"
"Enough!" Namiko hissed. The old woman's eyes were angry, but that anger was not directed at Riku.
She believed Riku was right in every way, hell, she'd said the very thing Namiko had been too wise to utter aloud. But she didn't want this already horrible day to get even worse by Riku being thrown in jail for speaking her mind.
Riku frowned deeply, but did what the matriarch asked of her and took a few steps back. Nina wrapped her arms around her dad's waist in an effort to assist her in calming down.
"She's right, you know." Nao whispered, looking every bit as agitated as their dark-haired companion.
"I know, but she's angry and that temper could get her into a lot of trouble." Namiko replied, glancing in Natsuki's direction. Her gut-wrenching sobs had ceased for the time being. Her face was hidden from view, nestled in Shizuru's bosom while the girl stroked her hair, whispering sweet things into her red-tipped ears. "This night must not get any worse than it already has been."
Nao's respect for the Kruger matriarch increased tenfold. Now here was a woman who'd just lost her only child, remaining strong for all their sake's. Nao wasn't blind. She could see pain plastered on her face, see the sorrow swirling in those agonized green eyes that shimmered with the tears she so desperately wanted to let fall.
Nao sighed and reached out to touch the woman's hand. It shook beneath her fingertips.
The cop cleared her throat. "Does she have a license?"
Nao nodded. "Yeah, but she left it in her wallet and her wallet's in her backpack. She didn't take it when she left. It's in the car. I could get it if you want proof."
Her pale blue eyes softened very slightly and she shook her head. Her face remained impassive, but she didn't seem as cold as before. Perhaps Riku's words had an effect. "No. My work is done here."
She slipped her badge into her coat pocket and slipped past them. Riku's eyes rose and followed her as she did so, as if she was actually watching her as she made her hasty departure.
"I'm sorry…"
Shizuru looked down as the words, spoken so softly she thought it was her mind playing tricks on her, reached her ears. Red-rimmed eyes stared back at her, simultaneously swirling with so many emotions that it took Shizuru's breath away.
A shudder passed through her. "I just wanted - needed - to see for myself, you know? I mean, this can't be real, right?" She laughed breathlessly. "My dad's the best engineer in Japan, she doesn't make mistakes. She's not careless. She wouldn't be oblivious to something so serious like a fuel-leakage. She's…"
"... Gone…"
"I'm so sorry, Natsuki." Shizuru whispered her throat and nose began to burn and her vision blurred as a sudden onslaught of tears came rushing in. Her fingers sought out the intense warmth of Shizuru's belly where her little girls resided, peacefully unaware of the tragedy that had just taken place.
A single salt-infused rivulet slid down Natsuki's cheek. "I don't know how to be a dad, Shizuru, and now the only person capable of teaching me how is gone. What am I going to do?"
"We're going to get through this, Natsuki," Shizuru murmured against the soft skin of her forehead, "I promise you we'll get through this."
Another sob broke through the flimsy barriers she'd built for herself. She pulled her only source of comfort even closer, unmindful of the pressure Shizuru's body put on her fractured collarbone.
"I need her." Natsuki mumbled into the fabric of her dress. "I told myself a long time ago that I'd never need her again because she left me… but I lied. I need her. I need her so much right now."
Shizuru knew Natsuki was referring to her elusive mother, and it broke her heart because the one thing she needed was nowhere to be found. Shizuru kissed her head as a wave of protectiveness washed over her. She wanted to take all of Natsuki's pain away and bury it within herself if that was possible. She didn't want to risk throwing it away where it could be found again.
What was she supposed to say? She couldn't bring herself to speak on the behalf of Natsuki's mother. "I know, darling," She said softly, "And I would go to hell and back to find her for you."
She was too exhausted to shed anymore tears. Her eye-lids felt like they weighed tons. She wanted to be strong, but she couldn't conjure up the will to do so.
At that moment, an older woman with rapidly greying brown hair and withering beauty stepped into the room. Her hands were stuffed in the pockets of her lab coat, her features sympathetic. She'd heard about the explosion on the news, and soon all of the hospitals, including this one, would be filled to the brim with the injured.
"Is there an adult I can talk to?" She inquired gently.
Shizuru gestured to Namiko, who was still trying to calm an extremely irate Riku down in the hallway.
"Miss Kruger?"
The old woman's bloodshot green eyes met the newcomer's pitch black ones. "Yes?"
"My name's Yuri Nishimura. I'm your daughter's doctor."
"Granddaughter." Namiko corrected.
"Huh?"
"Granddaughter. Natsuki is my granddaughter." She replied softly.
"Oh, forgive me," Dr. Nishimura said apologetically, "You two look a lot alike."
"She's the spitting image of her mother with her father's eyes." Namiko breathed quietly. "People used to say that about my daughter and I, only they thought we were sisters at times."
"I'm so sorry for your loss."
"As am I." Namiko briefly closed her eyes so she could regain control of her emotions. "What do you wish to speak about?"
"I'm sure you're aware of the extent of your daughter's physical injuries. Her fractured clavicle, her bruised ribs, and the gash on her temple that required seven stitches." Nishimura said.
"Yes."
"Well, I'm more concerned about her mental state. What she's going through right now is called bereavement, the deep grief following the death of a loved one. It's a normal response to loss; however, it may evolve into a more serious disorder such as complicated grief and major depressive disorder."
"I'm aware." Namiko replied. "She's in a great deal of pain, a pain I have now gone through twice in my lifetime, first my wife and now my only daughter. But I will do everything in my power to make sure she heals from this. I will take care of her, for she is my granddaughter, and my daughter's living memory."
"You're a strong woman, Namiko Kruger." Nishimura breathed.
"I have to be. For all their sake's."
"Hospitals can have a negative effect on victims of shock." Nishimura said after a few moments of silence. "I would highly recommend she recover in the comfort of her own home. I could show you how to redress her bandages and care for her wounds."
"She'll stay with me. They all will. That house will bring them nothing but haunting memories. I am the contact on her emergency card and the sole guardian if something were to happen to her father." Namiko explained.
Paperwork was exchanged after that, followed by a quick demonstration on how to tend to Natsuki's wounds. Shizuru silently offered to take over the task of doing so. Namiko thought Natsuki couldn't have chosen a better girlfriend.
"Her stitches are eligible to come out Friday, but she'll have to manage the sling for at least four weeks. If she has any trouble speaking, sleeping, eating, or if she gets tired too quickly bring her back immediately."
Namiko and the others nodded.
Riku shrugged off her jacket and threw it over Natsuki's shoulders so her sling wouldn't get wet. She could hear the storm outside even over the noise of the busy hospital. "Everything will be alright, kid." Riku said softly.
Natsuki didn't reply as Shizuru led her to the car. Namiko shared a few more words with the doctor before she got into the passenger's seat. The sudan was really only built for four people so Nina ended up sitting on her dad's lap, something she hadn't done since she was a little girl.
The ride home was mostly silent. Little blocks of ice in the form of hail crashed onto the sleek red paint of the Mercedes' exterior, leaving tiny chips in the coating along the hood, roof, and trunk. Namiko hadn't witnessed a storm so ferocious in quite some time.
The skies were pitch black and humming with tension. Lightning flashed and crackled in the distance. Not to be outdone by its nearly silent counterpart, waves of rolling thunder howled soon after. If the trees hadn't been rooted in place, they might've been stolen by the ever growing tempest.
When they reached the house, Namiko could see Duran scratching and clawing on the front door, eager to go out and greet his mistress.
Shizuru gently grabbed Natsuki's hand and tucked her under her arm protectively. The dark-haired girl was slightly comforted by her girlfriend's lovely, familiar scent. It reminded her of better times, times when life didn't seem so cruel, times spent lounging on the couch kissing and cuddling without a care in the world.
Then her dad would walk in the room with that charming, ever-present smile and demand that they get one of their own. Shizuru would always giggle and Natsuki would always try to hide her blush in the skin of her girlfriend's neck.
Thinking about her father made her feel nauseous and frozen on the inside. She now felt like she was missing a part of herself. No, that didn't seem right. She'd lost a part of herself long ago because of her mother, and now another part of herself was dead and gone with the one of the only people that ever made her feel happy and safe.
She felt as lost as an abandoned dog.
She was so caught up in her own thoughts she didn't realize they were inside the house until the warm air heated up her freezing body and Duran's fur brushed her knees as he darted to and fro, unable to make up his mind about which individual he sought to comfort first.
He whined and tugged on loose sash of Namiko's kimono. The old woman smiled and pat his head. His blue eyes, frozen like the arctic, were locked unblinkingly with her own forest green orbs. It was almost as if he was trying to speak to her with his eyes since he couldn't use words.
"Take her to her room," Namiko whispered to Shizuru, "She needs rest. I'll make some tea for everyone."
The brunette nodded and latched onto Natsuki's uninjured elbow, directing her to the staircase.
It was only when Namiko couldn't see her granddaughter's troubled face that she allowed herself to truly break down, entirely unmindful of the fact that her other grand-children and her adoptive were still present.
Nao rushed to the old woman's side, her own tears cascading down her pale, frostbitten cheeks. Nina clutched her father's hand and hid her face in Riku's soaked bicep.
Upstairs, Shizuru reclined in bed and pulled Natsuki against her chest. The younger girl had exhausted herself completely and fell into a troubled sleep almost instantly. Shizuru's crimson eyes weren't fixed on any particular object as she stroked her beloved's head soothingly, trying to come up with things she could do that would hopefully would ease her distress.
Natsuki's hand unconsciously traveled up her body to rest on her belly. She'd almost forgotten she was pregnant with everything that was going on. Suddenly, being young and expecting didn't seem like the worst predicament anymore.
Seconds turned into minutes. Minutes turned into hours. Shizuru's eyes burned with fatigue. She glanced at the clock on the nightstand of Natsuki's room.
8:57 PM.
She'd been sitting there shrouded and darkness and overwhelmed by silence for four hours. Natsuki hadn't moved a muscle since they got home. She must be starving.
The brunette carefully disentangled herself away from her girlfriend's tight hold, brushing her lips across her furrowed brow before exiting the nearly pitch black room. The journey downstairs was swift and relatively silent, the only source of noise coming from the creaking of the old stairwell.
When she reached the grand living room, Namiko was there as well. She was standing on the veranda watching the rain beneath the safety of the canopy. Her hair, almost as black as the night sky pooled at her feet. Her ever-present guardian was beside her, sitting on his haunches with his back straight and his ears alert, looking every bit like a pure-blooded wolf from behind.
He glanced behind him as he picked up Shizuru's footsteps. Namiko's head also turned, and Shizuru almost gasped aloud when she looked at her face. Her bloodshot green eyes, almost black with grief, the tightness of her lips and the subtle furrow of her brow. Yet, her chin was still tilted skyward as if she were balancing something important on the tip of her nose.
She looked like a queen who'd lost everything. Her throne, her kingdom, her life. She'd never seen so much pain dwelling in a single soul before.
"How is she?"
Her voice was clipped, husky and strained from all the crying she did in the living room and in the safety of her own room hours before.
"Sleeping." The former heir said softly.
Namiko casted one last pained look at the storm before beckoning Duran back inside the house. The faithful hound weaved his way around Shizuru and curled up in front of the couch. "Good." Namiko replied, then she looked at Shizuru, really looked at her.
"The school sent everyone home for the day because of the weather. Your parents must be worried sick about you." Namiko fretted.
Shizuru looked away and unconsciously clenched her fists, a gesture Namiko's observant eyes didn't miss. "I doubt it…" She muttered.
"Reagan mentioned you were staying with the three of them, but she never explained why." Namiko gently clasped Shizuru's hand. "Does this have something to do with your parents, sweetheart?"
A deep, pained exhalation of breath from the nostrils. The furrowing of delicate skin in between fine brows. A mouth too pretty to do anything but smile did the opposite. "My father and I aren't on the best of terms." She said.
"And your mother?"
A sad sigh. "She died a long time ago giving birth to me."
"I'm sorry." Namiko squeezed her hand a led her over to the loveseat and eased the young woman down next to her. "You said you and your father aren't on the best of terms. Is there something more to that?"
Shizuru bit her lip. Her eyes snapped shut briefly to calm the storm brewing in her eyes. There was no way around the truth. The damage it would bring wasn't worth it. "He disowned me."
A gasp of shock. "Why on earth would he do such a thing?!" Namiko demanded.
"Because I'm pregnant." She whispered around tears.
Namiko's eyes darted down to her belly once, twice, three times before they met her own shimmering orbs again. The old woman was stunned into silence.
Moments passed without a word, and Shizuru was starting to feel anxious. Her palms grew moist despite the icy weather, her heart jumped in her throat as she waited for the old woman's response.
"Is the baby Natsuki's?" She asked finally. "Natsuki is the father?"
"Yes."
Namiko made a noise that couldn't quite be categorized. She looked like she wanted to laugh, cry, and scream all at once. Her delicate hand released its grip on Shizuru's, but before her anxiety increased yet again, Namiko pulled Shizuru into a strong hug.
"You foolish, foolish children," She almost cooed, her voice lacking anything negative. "But who am I to talk? I had Reagan when I was only seventeen."
Shizuru sniffled beneath the safety of Namiko's chin. The old woman rubbed her back soothingly. "How did you do it?" Shizuru inquired quietly.
"I had Ren." Namiko replied. "My mother died months before and I never knew my father. She never spoke of them. Whoever they were they didn't stick around long enough to get to know me. I was all alone before she found me and carried me through six miles of devastation to this very house where she nursed me back to health. I was terrified when I found out I was pregnant at such a young age, but she promised me that she'd always be there for me to support me and help raise our baby. It helped that she was already an adult too - twenty-four and in her prime."
"I won't lie to you, Shizuru. It will be hard. Sometimes you'll feel like you're on top of the world. Other times you'll feel like you're in hell. But I can promise you one thing." She placed a gentle kiss on top of Shizuru's head. "You'll be alright… both of you… If you stick together, you'll be just fine. And remember, it takes someone really brave to be a mother, someone strong to raise a child, and someone special to love someone more than herself."
The brunette buried her face in Namiko's kimono as her long overdue tears consumed her body. "We… We're ha-aving t-twins." She choked out.
"Oh dear." Namiko released a strangled laugh. "I'm afraid I don't have a heartfelt quote for twins yet… The first pair of twins in the entire family. You are truly special, Viola Shizuru."
"I'm not a Viola anymore…" Shizuru reminded her.
"You may have lost a family, but you've gained a new one." Namiko said gently, stroking her hair. "He can take your name, Shizuru, but he'll never take your heart."
"It has already been stolen, I'm afraid." Shizuru replied. Namiko sighed restlessly as the two fell into another heavy silence.
A flash of lightning briefly illuminated the dark room, revealing the figure at the top of the staircase. Awoken by the chill that came with the absence of her body pillow, Natsuki leaned against the wall, vaguely listening to the conversation below.
"How far would you go to protect the ones you love?"
A familiar voice echoed in her troubled mind as a picture of the elusive stranger, Shinobu Namikaze, appeared in her subconscious.
"...I would do anything…" Natsuki whispered.
Another flash of lightning, brighter and longer than the first tore the sky apart, once again lighting up the entire house without need for electricity, but Natsuki had already slunk away, disappearing into the shadows like she was never there to begin with.
To Be Continued…
(CCC)
Once again, sorry for the wait! Next chapter will be up soon.
Chapter Preview: Namiko plans her child's funeral, Natsuki searches for way to help support her family, both her current and her future, Namikaze returns, and Saeko's torn between two different lives.