Though it was frowned upon, no one came looking for her in the gardens. She was lucky enough to have royal lineage, so they weren't worried about teaching her proper etiquette or bringing her up to speed when dealing with the other nobles.
Akitoki had obviously forgotten about his promise, as she hadn't seen him since his earlier dismissal, leaving her free to displace the weeds around the herb beds. She did so in secret, though no one seemed to care unless her clothes got dirty, and she was careful enough to plan out her schedule so that she came here right before bathing.
Kagome never understood why it was considered high breeding to have everything done for her. Where was the fun in that? The adventure? How was she supposed to learn anything new when her daily activities consisted of needlepoint and gossip? At least at home, she'd been allowed to practice archery.
A startled cry and the smell of sulphur had her jumping to her feet, and she watched in horror as the southwest tower fell. Feet frozen to the ground, her chest seized in panic at the thought of any hard coming to the beast, but a plume of smoke rose from the rubble, followed by spurts of indigo flames.
Cries erupted as the adjacent wall fell, and Kagome suddenly found she could move again. She rushed into the castle, ushering servants and nobles alike to the opposite end. One of her ladies-in-waiting gripped her arm as she tried to run, large brown eyes unseeing when she looked over her shoulder. "My lady, you need to come with us."
Kagome shook her head. "I need to make sure everyone's safe." The woman put up no fight, choosing to follow the swarm. Kagome waited until everyone had turned the corner, then ran in the opposite direction, covering her mouth to slow the intake of smoke. She called out as she passed each room, looking for stragglers, but it seemed everyone had escaped.
Everyone except the prince.
Eyes watering, she pushed forward, one hand on the wall to guide her. The stones grew warm the closer she got, soot covering her hair and clothes as she tripped over fallen debris. Her voice soon grew hoarse, and still, she kept going. There was light up ahead, but she couldn't tell if it was sunlight or something more sinister.
The dragon had always been so docile. What had set him off? He was intelligent enough to know if the peach was tainted, and she'd taken it from the kitchens herself. They weren't poisonous to dragons, were they?
Sucking in as much air as she could, she crawled through broken beams and singed tapestries, finally breaking through into what was left of the courtyard. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust, dragging unsoiled air into her lungs and coughing when she did it too quickly. The screams of the residents were far away, leaving only one remaining.
Akitoki.
Kagome stood her ground as she stared up at the beast, her betrothed writhing in his talons. "Why are you doing this?" she screamed, voice cracking from smoke. "You could've easily escaped without harming anyone!" 'I could've easily freed you,' went left unsaid, hands clenching into fists.
The beast's eyes had turned scarlet, tiny teal pupils staring down at her in contempt as Akitoki scratched at its scales. "What are you doing? Go get the knights!" She wanted to scoff. The knights' focus had been on getting everyone else to safety, assuming their leader had done the same.
Had he always been that helpless? That pitiful?
He knew of her ability with a bow, and with a sword—he'd expressly forbidden her from practicing it publicly—and now he was denying his rescue? Kagome shook her head. No, he just wasn't thinking straight. She was the only one who looked into the eyes of the beast and never felt fear.
"Release him!" Her voice was softer this time, and she stepped toward him. "You have your freedom. No one will follow you." Akitoki cried out as talons squeezed, bones on the verge of breaking. "Please," she begged.
The dragon stilled his movements, allowing the prince to breathe as he lowered his head to her level. His pupils flickered between teal and gold, and she took another step toward him, hoping he would see reason.
"You foul ingrate," Akitoki said. "She is of no use to you! Release me, and I will see that you are not harmed!" The gold disappeared as the beast snorted, and Kagome was sent rolling. Ivory wings spread wide, kicking up anything that wasn't nailed down, and he leapt skyward, his roar making her teeth chatter.
Cursing loudly, Kagome waited until the ground stopped shaking, then steadied herself on wobbly knees. The knights would take care of the castle. It was up to her to bring back the prince.