Chapter 10: Second Chance
Hard to believe.
Not even his father was this eloquent.
Opposite to him Shizuo had slipped the first day they met. No. That wasn't the only occasion.
He was genuine.
A brute maybe in the way he handled various things. But good at heart.
… at least as long as he didn't find out Izaya was a guy.
It wouldn't be pretty if he ever came to know of this charade.
The cracking sound of firewood searing by flames startled Izaya for a moment. A glare was directed at the spark taking off into the air and a sigh left his trembling lips.
Despite all efforts he couldn't deny being shaken. This whole incident, the fear for his life, for being discovered. Hand finding its way to his temple Izaya couldn't help but notice the slight trembles shaking his limbs still.
He was tired.
Very much exhausted.
A short glance was directed towards the bowl filled with water. The cloth was still resting there, waiting to fulfill its purpose.
Right.
The wound.
Moving towards the remedy his skin gladly reminded him of the long cut's presence. Tugging and itching, Izaya tried to suppress any show of discomfort as he dragged the cloth over the sensitive skin.
A soft knock resounded from the door and Izaya tensed.
He expected Shizuo to return. Maybe to continue convincing Izaya of his good purpose. Izaya wasn't quite sure whether he was looking forward to or dreading that kind of thing.
Instead it was the old woman he got to face. Rough hands wrapped clumsily around a batch of clothes as she forced her way inside the chamber.
"I brought you some clothes dear, and new bed sheets," she announced curtly, while dropping the fabric with enough force to execute a rat. Sleeves were rolled up as she started replacing the sheets. "Your husband told me to bring you some soup, too. It should be done in a bit. He really seems like a lovely man. Even asked for a healer, sadly this area is too rural to attain any." The housekeeper chattered away like an endless stream of water.
Izaya couldn't help but feel his lips curl into a soft smile.
It was assuring. The way she acted and the gentle voice contradicted her very masculine stature. A motherly flair accompanied her in every motion.
"He did?" Izaya questioned tentatively. Seeing as she called Shizuo his husband and not "the king" Izaya figured they were traveling incognito.
"He must really love you he spent an unsum of money for this dress," the woman continued, pulling forth a piece of dark red fabric.
Of course he could afford that sort of thing.
Shizuo was the king.
He had a lot of money to spare.
Placing the dress onto the mattress next to Izaya the housekeeper hummed in approval.
Casting a short glance towards the piece Izaya couldn't help but notice its familiarity.
Shizuo had actually paid attention, it seemed.
It was very similar to the one he wore to the castle.
Hands stopping their busy rustling, the woman looked at Izaya's chest.
"Dear, are you okay? Do you need help cleaning that?" She inquired, offering every help Izaya could possibly need.
Very motherly indeed.
Izaya shook his head with a soft smile.
"No, madam, thank you very much." Overall pleased by his response the innkeeper nodded.
"It´s a pleasure honey, just call if there is anything I can do for you."
Anything she could do, huh?
Izaya found himself hesitating.
How much did she even know? Was there anything worth asking? She would surely reply to her best ability.
Brushing over the sheets the woman grasped the pillow next as Izaya spoke up.
"... uhm, if it's not too much to ask, can I ask a few questions?"
Delighted that Izaya wanted to talk to her, the woman nodded.
"About what?"
Alright.
Careful now.
"It's my first time in these lands and so far I only heard rumors. About the recent king, his son-" Izaya wanted to approach the topic slowly to not give away his intentions and identity, but his carefully constructed conversation was crushed the moment it left his lips.
Puffing her cheeks the woman huffed in offense.
"Baseless! Bastards and whores must have thought up such horrible things!"
Obvious surprise must have reflected on his expression because the woman bit her tongue as soon as she had exploded.
"Ah, forgive me, I didn't mean to startle you."
Izaya tried to suppress a chuckle at the unexpectedly honest burst. She seemed very much genuine in each and every action. Among aristocracy this type of treat was considered weak, so Izaya fancied it all the more in her.
"So the king wasn't that bad?" He repeated his initial question, hoping to gain more intel.
"Oh the king was, may god forgive me for my words. He was a devil of a man, torturing people for fun, even his own sons would you believe?"
Aggravated by her own story the woman's expression turned sour. "The poor prince Kasuka even fled the castle with his wife to escape his father´s grasps. He was a horrible man through and through."
Izaya swallowed softly at the news. He had expected parts of the rumors to hold some truth, as they always did. But usually there was at least some sort of exaggeration. In this case it seemed the man was even worse than what he had heard.
"And the new king?" Izaya asked slowly, not quite sure he wanted to hear her response.
Expression relaxing almost immediately the wrinkles on her angry face relaxed.
"He is a blessing for the land," she nodded to herself, "A demon on the battlefield maybe, I wouldn't know, but a person so warm, the sun would hide in shame."
Ah.
Izaya couldn't help but doubt such praise. He had seen the king. The way he cut down those people- what she said was just too much of a contradiction.
"Forgive me if I sound rude, but you don't seem to have met him in person, how do you speak with such confidence?"
Eyes far away the woman snapped her gaze back to her lovely guest. Pride filled every fiber of her voice as she answered.
"My son works at the castle. He was employed the day the king died, but he knew the prince way before that."
Oh god.
So this was where this was coming from.
"And you take your son's words for granted?" Biting his tongue a bit too late, Izaya realized the way his words must have sounded to her. "Sorry- that was-" but the woman shook her head.
"No, no, you are right. After an evening like this I won´t blame your distrust sweetie."
A moment of gentle silence followed as the innkeeper let Izaya's words settle.
"Have you been called to the palace as well? Those were the king's guards weren't they?" she suddenly asked and Izaya's body tensed.
"...something like that."
It was to be expected that she recognized the king's emblem on his armor, yet her bringing that fact startled him a bit.
For first impressions he really liked that woman and prying too much might as well shut her off.
A gentle smile spread along her lips.
"You have no need to fear, dear," she assured quickly, "I don't know the last thing about ruling a kingdom or going to war, but I can judge a fine man by his deeds. And from what I heard of my son, he is doing plenty of those."
Izaya couldn't help but be a bit flabbergasted. Not the slightest hint of uncertainty swayed in her voice.
It was apparent that she really loved her son.
Genuinely.
Somehow Izaya could almost envision some kind of bubbly servant breaking dishes in the kitchen but lifting everyone's mood just by being present.
Made him feel curious. Almost made him want to look for the son once they returned to the castle.
"Now I have to leave you dear, I have some bread that needs to be kneaded for tomorrow's breakfast and a soup simmering," the innkeeper suddenly announced, leaving the last bedsheet at Izaya's side. Izaya couldn't help but give her a smile in return.
"Thank you very much for your company."
The woman blinked, as if she were suddenly hesitating, before bowing curtly.
"The pleasure is all mine."
Izaya smiled and the door closed.
Funny.
Moments ago he was on the brink of death, yet this woman radiated happiness and calmth to an extent that seemed infectious.
It made him feel warm and somewhat protected- which didn't make any sense but certainly helped.
Looking at his hand Izaya noticed with delight that it had stopped trembling.
… they sounded genuine. Every last one of her words that is.
And she didn't seem particularly stupid either.
Running this inn on her own, doing her accountancy, the cooking, everything- she seemed too capable to dismiss her as unreliable.
Picking himself from the bed he finished changing the sheets and grasped the fine fabric of the dress she had brought.
Looking at it he couldn't help but hesitate.
Now that his mind had calmed down considerably he couldn't help but wonder if his judgment had been too rash.
He hadn't exactly given the king an easy time.
Or a chance for that matter.
What he showed him so far had only been courtesy and gentleness.
He had accused him of only playing a role in public - funny, considering it was actually Izaya who was doing so.
… great. Now he was feeling guilty.
Sighing softly he resumed his action of wiping his wounds. The one of his collarbone was fairly shallow and at least a clean cut. On his leg, however, a color of blue and violet spread. That bastard had not cut but rather hit him with that blade, ramming it god knows how deep.
Efficient of course.
With something like this a woman wouldn't run far.
And while Izaya was a man and could stomach a fair amount of pain, it would also slow him down considerably.
Loud noises and clattering sounds suddenly thundered through the air.
Hitting his knee in a stumbling attempt to rush to the window, Izaya reached for the ledge.
It was dark outside- of course, it was in the middle of the night. The only source of light stemmed from the moon, halfway full and not the greatest help.
Bits and scraps of metal lit up on the ground and Izaya squinted his eyes.
He could spot him.
The king, Shizuo.
He seemed to be giving out orders. As quick as they had rushed to the inn, the horses neighed and turned, leaving no one but their commander.
… he probably ordered them to return to the castle ahead of them.
Letting his eyes wander he watched the blond as he let himself sink onto a tilted tree.
It was a pitiful sight really.
He was clearly blaming himself for what had happened and Izaya couldn't help but feel a tinge of guilt.
It wasn't his fault that he got abducted, but his reaction had probably not exactly been helpful.
Grasping the dress he threw it over his frame. The fabric was soothingly warm slithering across his skin as though it had been tailored just for him.
The door was opened and he descended the flight of stairs.
A smell of food and cooking vegetables rushed from the kitchen as the king's future wife stepped outside.
It was freezing. The temperature had fallen even lower than before- or maybe Izaya had just been too stunned to notice earlier.
Feeling his ankle act up at being moved, Izaya grit his teeth momentarily before approaching the blond.
"Stargazing? Is this what monsters do at night?" It was a quiet night. Apart from what had happened back at that unforsaken place Shizuo enjoyed the silence.
A voice coming from behind when he had but sent all his soldiers home was not something he expected. Turning around surprise reflected on his expression as he faced Kururi.
He hadn't expected her to come out, not to mention talk to him after all that had happened.
"You shouldn't move, you are still-"
"Very capable of discerning my very own condition. Thank you very much." Izaya quickly clarified, letting himself sink onto the trunk.
A soft hiss escaped his lips when his ankle grazed the tip of a plant and he felt Shizuo tense.
He looked like he was about to carry him right back into the inn, but decided against it.
Eyes trailing back to the forest and sky, Izaya noticed he was avoiding his eyes.
"Aren't you scared of me? You are all alone. Who knows what I might do?"
Ah.
The guilt tripled.
Izaya had brought on this topic hadn't he?
"Well," he started slowly, deciding to give the man the benefit of doubt for a moment. "Will you harm me?"
Shizuo blinked at the question, obviously quite stupefied by the direct approach.
"...of course not," he answered, the words tripping clumsily as they formed his response.
"Then I see no issue."
…
This woman was a strange one for sure.
Accusing him one second and assuming the worst, only to trust a simple response on a whim.
Shizuo wasn't quite sure whether to be glad or beware of such uncanny behavior.
No.
Looking downwards at his hands, stained in dirt and blood he felt as though he should be honored; she was even willing to extend a word.
Slicing open the predators must have been quite the sight to behold- for a lady nonetheless.
Any noble lady would have fainted.
Not her.
The guilt weighing down on his chest increased only further as he kept his gaze low.
"... what brought about this change of attitude?" He questioned slowly, not daring to face the wife he had failed to protect.
"Direct aren't you?" Izaya hummed, only barely grazing the surface of the enigma that was the king.
Shizuo shrugged. "Tiptoeing around a topic is not my forte."
It had never been. Not when his father acted according to his guests.
With a frown on his face Shizuo recalled the dozens of occasions he had been forced to attend as a child only to have people laugh and gossip behind each other's back.
Made him feel sick to this day.
"It should be considering you are a king. Aristocracy basically lives off gossip between the lines." Kururi shrugged, matching the king's thoughts so much he couldn't help but flinch.
Gaze traveling towards his future wife he couldn't help but wonder if she was part of that scum.
Oddly enough her expression didn't show delight- a frown deeper than his own and a soft sigh pictured her words in a brighter light.
"Sounds like you are just as appalled by that as I am."
She snorted amused- it was funny he has never seen a woman do that.
But no shame reflected on her face, no sign of a mask replaced her features.
"Maybe." She shrugged coy, not giving away her intention while clearly setting a statement.
It was…. refreshing.
"I came over because I wanted to apologize."
to be continued~
Yohohohoo~ Another update~ xD
Things are finally getting a little lovelier xD
How do you like the innkeeper? xDDDD It's the first time i thought up a character that isn't a sadistic asshole x'DDDDD
refreshing i would say lmao
Anyway I hope you liked this update haha and see you again next friday ~ :3 :3 :3