Author's Corner

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY EVERYONE! *pops champagne* It's been three years since I started writing this and published the first chapter here. I can't believe it's gone so fast. If you've been reading this since the beginning, thank you so much for sticking with me, and if you're a new reader, then welcome to the party! I'm already pretty invested in this story on my own, but it's thanks to all of you that I continued writing and publishing it online for people to read. A lot of sweat, laughter and tears go into making this, and I hope we have many more years together as we continue this journey. Because let's face it, I'm a slow writer and this thing is probably gonna end up being 500 chapters long (*audience screams*: enougH!) Immense thanks to every single one of you and I hope you carry on enjoying your read!

Trigger warning: blood and gore.

EIGHTH BLOOD

Chapter 39: The body

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Her scream attracted quite the audience.

Servants and nobles alike flocked to the bridge and followed her line of vision to the monstrosity in the branches. Most stood frozen in shock, whereas others gasped and covered their mouths. Through the haze that had enveloped her, Octavia thought she heard several vomiting on the grass. Not that she could blame them. Hanging from the trees was a mutilated animal carcass. Its stomach had been cleaved open and its entrails were wrapped around the branches like snakes, still wet and glistening. A swarm of flies buzzed in the air around it. The stench was overpowering. Octavia couldn't breathe—

"Look at me."

She managed to tear her eyes away from the carcass and meet Koga's baby blues. What was he doing here?

The blood continued to drip down her face, coating her lips with the taste of old metal. She was already numb by the time his hand gripped her arm and tugged her away from the puddle so that no more could fall on her head. She trembled as his hand shifted to tangle in her hair. "Don't faint," he whispered.

"What?"

"They'll never let you forget it if you do."

Kanetsugu marched onto the bridge and examined the sight before him with murder in his eyes. "Begone!" he roared, snapping open his wings and scaring away the spectators.

Octavia watched them leave in a trance. Only then did she redirect her attention to the carcass. The empty sockets where its eyes had once been ensnared her, making it impossible to look away. She could feel Koga's hand cupping her throat as Kanetsugu glared at her.

"What happened?" he barked. "You were the first one to see it. Who did this? Was it you?"

Koga stepped between them. "Leave her alone, jackass. She had nothing to do with it."

Before Kanetsugu could respond, Cyril joined them on the bridge. He craned his head to get a good look at the carcass and shuddered. "It's happening again."

"What is?" asked Kanetsugu.

"During the twelfth century, Touga-sama received a warning from a group of insurgents called the Black Drakes. The message came in the form of a dead horse planted out in the open for all to see. It promised vengeance for their fallen brethren."

"Why a horse?" Octavia asked.

"It was symbolic," Cyril replied. "Horses represent freedom and power. By killing one and desecrating its body, the Black Drakes were threatening to tear down Touga-sama's empire and replace it with one of their own making. Or so we thought." He looked like he wanted to stop there, but he continued for their sake. "After the horse was discovered in the stronghold, a great fire tore across the Western Lands, engulfing everything in flames. The blaze lasted for fourteen days and nights. It was a living nightmare."

"I remember my old man telling me about that," Koga mumbled. "I was just a kid when it happened. Our tribe took in a whole lotta orphans that year."

Kanetsugu had fallen silent.

Cyril squeaked and bowed his head as Sesshoumaru appeared on the bridge. "M-My lord!" he stammered. "Allow me to inform you of what has transpired in your absence—"

"That won't be necessary," Sesshoumaru interrupted. "I can see all I need to know with my own two eyes." He turned to face Kanetsugu. "You didn't have anything to do with this now, did you?"

"No, my lord. I swear it. On mine and Kannika's lives."

Sesshoumaru's eyes slid to Octavia's. "You were the one who found it," he stated rather than asked.

"Yes."

"Did you see anything suspicious beforehand?" She shook her head. "I see. That is most unfortunate."

Before she could answer, a familiar voice carried through the gardens, demanding her full attention. "Octavia-san!" Rin shouted, running towards the bridge. "There you are! I've been looking everywhere for you. What are you all doing—"

"Stop." Rin did as Sesshoumaru commanded and froze on the path. She shot him a puzzled look but kept her thoughts to herself. "Good," he said. "Now close your eyes."

Rin obeyed without question.

"Wait for me!" Jaken screamed from behind her. "You wicked girl! Why are you always in such a hurry . . ." His voice trailed off when he found her standing as still as a statue with her eyes scrunched shut. He poked her with his staff and called her name.

Koga cleared his throat. When Jaken saw Sesshoumaru, his worries melted away and he stood taller, holding the Nintoujou with pride. It took him longer than it should have to notice the ribbons of meat in the branches above them.

"Aieeeeee!" he screeched, falling onto his backside. "W-W-What is that!"

No one answered.

Gagging, Jaken dropped his staff and clamped a hand over his mouth. "How revolting!" he groaned. "Who would do such an awful thing? And why?"

"Why do you think?" said Koga. "To get a reaction."

"What do we do now, my lord?" Kanetsugu asked Sesshoumaru.

His gold eyes narrowed as he stared up at the carcass. "Dispose of it before anyone else sees," he commanded. "Then find whoever is responsible and bring me their heads."

Kanetsugu nodded. "Yes, my lord. I'll ask the servants if they noticed anything unusual this morning."

He caught Octavia's eye before he left and shot her a hateful glower. Koga saw and bared his teeth at him, but Sesshoumaru intervened before things could get out of hand. "I suggest that you take a bath, human," he said. "You look and smell terrible."

"Can I open my eyes now?" Rin asked.

"Turn around and start walking first."

She did as she was told. Jaken and Cyril remained on the bridge with Sesshoumaru, whereas Octavia darted after Rin without saying goodbye. Koga bowed his head in farewell before following her inside. Rin was silent as Koga escorted them to Octavia's room. She walked several paces ahead, avoiding conversation altogether. Koga didn't seem to mind, but Octavia found Rin's behaviour strange. Had something happened whilst they'd been away? Or was she angry about being left behind?

Octavia decided to wait until they were alone to ask and shifted her attention to Koga. "I didn't expect us to meet again so soon," she said. "What are you doing here?"

"I thought I'd come and see how you were getting on," he answered. "Imagine my surprise when I found out you weren't here. Since I was feeling considerate, I decided to stick around and keep an eye on things until you got back. Where were you, anyway?"

"It's a long story. I'll tell you about it sometime."

"I ain't got nothing else to do."

"I think your tribe would disagree. They've probably forgotten what you look like by now."

"I doubt it. You don't forget a face like mine in just a few short weeks."

"You keep telling yourself that."

He grinned. "Well, shit. No need to be mean. Lucky for you, I'm feeling pretty magnanimous today."

"That's a big word. Do you know what it means?"

"Sure do."

"Impressive. Do you know any more?"

"Resplendent is my favourite at the minute."

"What does that mean?"

"Why don't you take a look at your eyes in a mirror and let me know?"

She howled with laughter. "You're ridiculous."

Rin rolled her eyes as she opened the door to Octavia's room. She slipped inside without saying a word to either of them, but left the door open a crack. Octavia flashed Koga an apologetic smile and bowed her head. However, before she could leave, he reached out and captured her elbow. "Don't do that," he said. "I ain't no lord or nobleman."

"You're the leader of the Eastern Wolf Tribe," she countered. "That's more important than half of the people here."

"And you're the first ever human to be named an ally of the Lord of the Western Lands. They should be bowing to you."

Warmth crept into her cheeks and she smiled wider. "Thanks. I'll try and remember that."

"Well, if you ever need reminding, come find me, okay?" He kissed her knuckles and said, "See you around, Octavia. I can call you that, can't I? It's not too inappropriate?"

With eyes like those, he could call her anything he wanted.

"Octavia is fine," she said. "Say hello to your tribe for me, won't you?"

He chuckled. "Yes, ma'am."

As he sauntered away, the saying 'hate to see you go, but love to watch you leave' came to mind. There was no way that his hips did that on their own. He had to be doing it on purpose. Banishing the dirty thoughts, she turned the door handle and entered her room. Rin was sitting on the bed with her arms crossed and her eyes full of judgement.

"What?" Octavia asked.

"Why him?" Rin snapped. "This place has plenty of other handsome men to choose from. What does he have that they don't?"

Octavia blinked. "It's not like that. We were just messing around—"

"Did you tell him that? Because demons don't think the way we do. Especially wolves. I don't want you to get hurt, Octavia-san."

"I won't. Koga's harmless."

"Is that what you think? Did you know that his tribe used to devour humans?"

She flinched. "No, I didn't."

Rin's eyes blazed. "Do you remember when I told you that I was mauled to death by wolves?" Octavia nodded. "Who do you think let them loose in my village?"

Octavia's heart stopped. "You mean he . . ."

"Yes," Rin said. "It's his fault that I died."

"Does Sesshoumaru know?"

"Oh, he knows. But since the Tenseiga brought me back to life and their tribe abdicated from eating humans, he decided to let them live. Which is fine. I don't want anyone's blood on my hands. But it doesn't mean I have to like it."

That's why she was so quiet. She hasn't forgiven them for what they did to her. And why should she? If it were me, I'm not sure I could forgive them, either.

"I'm sorry," Octavia whispered.

Rin perched on the end of her bed and patted the spot beside her. "You don't have to apologise. I was just worried that you'd get into trouble. You seem to have a knack for it, after all." Octavia joined her on the bed. Rin studied the blood on her face and grimaced. "Sesshoumaru-sama was right. You do need a bath. What is that stuff, anyway?"

"Uh . . ."

"It looks like blood. It's not yours, is it?"

"No. It's animal blood."

Rin arched an eyebrow. "Why are you covered in animal blood?"

"I was gutting a deer?"

Rin scowled at her. "I'm used to everyone else treating me like a dumb little kid, but I didn't expect it from you."

Octavia's chest tightened. "That's not what I—"

"Sesshoumaru-sama got into your head, didn't he? He means well, but he still treats me like I'm eight years old. I know how it feels to suffer. I've seen my share of horrors. I don't need sheltering from them anymore. I'm not as weak as you all think I am. I'm stronger than I look."

"I know you are."

"Then why does everyone keep hiding things from me?"

Rin's eyes shone with tears and her voice cracked. Octavia reached out and took her hands. She threaded their fingers together and said, "When I was little, people used to hide things from me, too. At the time, I hated them for it, but looking back, I'm glad they did. They made the right choice. It didn't matter how strong I thought I was. They weren't doing it because they thought I was weak. They hid things from me because they were protecting me. I was no stranger to suffering, either, but that didn't mean I needed to suffer more. I didn't understand it at the time, but I do now, and I'm grateful for it."

A tear rolled down Rin's cheek and landed on their intertwined fingers.

"So what if Sesshoumaru coddles you a bit too much sometimes?" Octavia continued. "He's not doing it to belittle you. He's doing it because he cares about you. He can't stand the thought of anything bad happening to you, and neither can I . . . I missed you so much."

Rin wiped her eyes on her sleeve. "You're an idiot," she sniffed. "I missed you, too."

"Of course you did. I'm amazing."

"More like stinky," Rin giggled. "When was the last time you bathed?"

"I've been busy."

"So I've heard. How long have you and Sesshoumaru-sama been on a first-name basis?"

"Not long. Why?"

Rin blinked the rest of her tears away and shook her head. "You really are an idiot, you know?"

Octavia grinned. "At least I'm consistent."

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Sesshoumaru didn't speak as Jaken and Cyril dragged the carcass away.

He had spent the last four hundred years trying to forget the days he'd spent trapped underground whilst the surface had been burning. He had been a child at the time, but the memories were as clear as if they'd happened yesterday. He remembered the cramped tunnels and the constant stench of death. He remembered the weeping and the moaning that had kept him awake at night. But most of all, he remembered how his mother would pull him close and sing to him. Her songs contained no mention of orange trees, though.

You're not alone.

What difference did it make whether he was alone or not? Death didn't care if you had company.

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Author's Corner

Writing Octavia's interactions with Koga is always a nightmare because they're both shameless flirts who can't keep it in their pants. Thanks for reading, anyway!