EIGHTH BLOOD

Chapter 41: The calm before the storm

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Octavia had never seen the stronghold look so alive.

In honour of Tanabata, star-themed decorations had been put up around the castle, and wagons full of bamboo had arrived from the east, ready to be erected in the gardens. Servants hurried from one place to the next, completing their duties, and security was tighter than ever. There was now a guard permanently stationed outside her door, who accompanied her whenever she left the confines of her room. He was a bird youkai named Sou, and he was a man of few words – which didn't bother her – but it made conversations between them a little one-sided.

As it was the final day of preparations, Sesshoumaru had requested that she remain in her room. She'd tried sweet-talking her way out of it, but her new bodyguard had seen through her scheming and given her the silent treatment. Annoyed and embarrassed, she'd slammed the door in his face and stormed out onto the engawa, where she'd spent the next few hours sulking. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't hear the door opening and closing behind her.

"Sou looks miserable," Sesshoumaru said.

Octavia's breath hitched as she spun around to face him. Her traitorous pulse quickened as she locked eyes with him from across the engawa. It was the most he'd said to her in days. "Does he?" she asked. "I can never tell."

His eyes narrowed. "If you continue mistreating him, I may replace him with someone less docile."

"I'm not being a bitch on purpose. I'm just tired of being told what to do all the time. And I'm bored. Why can't I help set things up for the festival? I promise I won't get in the way."

"You would be more of a hindrance than a help."

She frowned and crossed her arms. Instead of lashing out, she took the opportunity to study the subtle changes in his appearance. The haori he was wearing was almost identical to his usual one, but the red parts were now a silvery purple, and the obi around his waist was white with pale blue stripes. Even his armour seemed a lighter colour than usual, and his hair was cinched at the bottom with a magenta ribbon that matched the markings on his cheeks.

"You look different," she mumbled.

"You don't," he said. "I suggest that you make more of an effort tomorrow."

"Why?"

"Our visitors seem rather keen to meet you."

She frowned harder. "What visitors?"

"The other warlords and their respective families," he replied. "We take it in turns to host large-scale events such as Tanabata. The last time we were all together was in the Southern Lands over four hundred years ago."

"Why has it taken so long for you all to come together again?"

"It wasn't a priority."

"But now it is?"

She thought she saw the faintest of smirks. "As I said, they wish to see you."

She rolled her eyes. "Great. What am I, the Mona Lisa? Why didn't you tell them no? We have enough on our plates already. As far as I'm concerned, they can piss off and—"

"Silence, human. You will mind your tongue in their presence, or I will make good on my promise of removing it."

Her stomach twisted. His icy glare shattered her bold persona and made her chest ache. "Did I do something wrong? Because I thought things were good between us, but now it feels like you want nothing to do with me."

His eyes widened, but the disgruntled look didn't dissipate. "The fault lies not with you but with—"

"It's not you, it's me? Really?"

"It would be inappropriate if we behaved as we did before," he said. "I suffered a momentary lapse in judgement. My actions towards you were appalling at worst and misguided at best. The safest course of action would be for us to move on and pretend it never happened."

She laughed. "Wow. You're such a fucking cliché."

Her kimono had loosened at the front. She only noticed when his eyes darted down to her exposed chest, where the Mark of Erebus was stark against her tanned skin. She was about to yank it shut when she saw his throat bob. Their eyes met and she lowered her hands, opting to leave her kimono open.

His pupils dilated as she walked towards him and said, "What am I to you?"

He didn't answer.

She moved closer. His jaw clenched when she reached for his sleeves and grasped them between her fingers. His youki swelled and encompassed her, stealing the air from her lungs and turning her legs to jelly.

"You are mine," he rasped. It took every ounce of willpower she had not to kiss him. "Your power belongs to me now. You will use it to carry out my bidding and mine alone. If you serve me well, I will see to it that you're rewarded, but if you don't, you'll regret having ever looked at the Bone-Eater's Well. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes," she hissed. "You always do."

The moment he withdrew his youki, she let go of his sleeves and averted her eyes.

"You're angry," he said.

"No shit," she snapped.

"I was simply answering your question—"

"Spare me the excuses." She sighed. "I can't keep doing this. Every time we take a step forwards, we take another two backwards. It's exhausting. You're either my friend or my keeper. Which is it?" His silence was answer enough. Her eyes burned with tears as she turned her back on him again. "Get out."

She waited for him to reprimand her, but the only sounds she heard were groaning floorboards and a door creaking open behind her. He hadn't even tried to convince her otherwise. She squeezed her eyes shut to hold in her tears as the door closed with him on the other side.

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Octavia lay awake in her bed that night, imagining various ways she could get back at Sesshoumaru for making her feel so stupid. The more she thought about it, the angrier she felt. Not just at him, but at herself, as well. She should have known better than to get attached. He was a demon, for Christ's sake. She should have seen this coming from a mile away.

A soft tap on the door distracted her from her thoughts and demanded her attention. She leapt out of bed and hurried over to the door. Her heart was in her throat. What if it was him? Had he come to apologise?

I suggest that you make more of an effort tomorrow.

Her hand paused on the door handle. She smoothed down her hair and adjusted her kimono. After making sure that she was at least semi-presentable, she turned the handle and opened the door. She hoped her disappointment wasn't too obvious to Sou, who was standing in the doorway with his beloved naginata. "Did I wake you?" he asked.

She shook her head. "I couldn't sleep. Is everything okay?"

"You have a visitor."

Octavia's eyes widened in surprise as Rin stepped out from behind Sou, lacking her usual smile. She looked paler than usual, and her hair looked flat and greasy. Octavia reached out and pushed Rin's fringe out of her eyes to touch her forehead, which was scalding hot and dripping with sweat. "I don't feel so good," Rin murmured.

"I'm not surprised. You're burning up."

"She's bleeding," Sou whispered.

Octavia frowned and searched Rin's body for injuries. "Where?"

The guard squirmed and averted his eyes.

Oh.

Octavia cupped Rin's cheeks and smiled at her. "It's okay. I know it hurts, but you're gonna be fine. I promise. I'll look after you until the pain goes."

Rin looked at her through lidded eyes and nodded.

"Is there anything I can do?" Sou asked.

Octavia was touched by his concern. She made a mental note to be nicer to him in future. "Can you take us to the nearest bathhouse?" she asked. "The tub in my room was emptied earlier, but the ones in there should still be full. She'll feel better once she's clean. Then we can find her something to eat."

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Sou kept watch outside the bathhouse whilst they searched for a suitable tub. Moonlight streamed in through the tiny windows, making the water shimmer. Octavia helped Rin undress and clamber into a rectangular tub full of lukewarm water. Rin clutched her lower abdomen with a grimace. Octavia brushed her hair out of the way and kissed her temple, before picking up a sponge and using it to scrub her back.

"You can't go in there right now," Sou's voice echoed from outside.

"We'll do as we please. Now, step aside."

The shoji slid open and Kannika entered with one of her handmaids. Her eyes bulged when she saw Octavia and Rin, who were equally shocked to see her. Sou bowed his head in shame and apologised for his failure, whereas the handmaid blushed and shifted awkwardly. Octavia wondered why she was acting like that, until she noticed the lipstick stains on the handmaid's neck. She looked away before it became obvious what she was staring at.

Kannika's brows rose when her gaze fell on Rin. "Fuko," she said to her handmaid. "Go and see if Aya and Suki are awake. Bring the bath oils back with you. I think we left them in my room."

"Yes, my lady."

Kannika glided across the washroom and knelt beside the tub. Octavia gasped as the demoness rolled up her sleeves and combed her fingers through Rin's dark hair, removing the knots. Even Rin seemed at a loss for words. "Do you understand what is happening to you?" Kannika asked.

Rin nodded. "I think so. Kaede-sama told me about it."

Fuko soon returned with two other handmaids and a large basket full of creams and oils. They set the basket down on the edge of the tub and focused their attention on Rin. Octavia studied them as they worked, taking in the details of their appearances. Fuko was a tanuki, hence the black rings around her eyes and tail; Aya was some kind of elemental youkai, as evidenced by her ability to summon flames and heat the water with her hands; and Suki was a snake. She was also very naked. Her top half looked human enough, with creamy white skin and full breasts, but her lower half was covered in scales and coiled around the tub Rin was sitting in like twine.

Octavia felt self-conscious all of a sudden. Were demonesses specifically designed to be beautiful? How could she compete with any of them? No wonder Sesshoumaru wasn't interested. Why would he be when he could have someone like Nagisa or Kannika instead?

Rin giggled at something Fuko had said and reached for Octavia's hand. It was just enough to make her feel wanted again. She'd grown weary of the constant tug-of-war between her and Sesshoumaru. Maybe it was time to cut her losses. It wasn't like there were any unresolved feelings between them. Whatever she felt for him was purely physical. There were plenty of other attractive people that she could waste her time with. Like Koga, for instance. Her loyalty to Rin made pursuing a relationship with him impossible, but she hadn't ruled out fucking him. A one-night stand had never hurt anyone, after all.

She caught Kannika's eye and regretted doing it straight away. The demoness's intense gaze reminded her of Sesshoumaru.

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Sesshoumaru was nothing short of furious.

She had no right to be angry with him after all the trouble she'd caused. What had she wanted him to say? That she was important to him? That he spent every waking moment thinking about her? She was delusional. Besides, she was the one who was sending him mixed messages, not the other way around.

What am I to you?

He had been asking himself that question a lot lately. When had her magic become little more than an afterthought? That was the reason he'd agreed to help her, wasn't it? Her attachment to Rin had been useful, yes, but it hadn't been what had swayed him into taking her with them. Her power had intrigued him. It still did, but it wasn't all he was fascinated by. He kept thinking about her voice in the darkness, the way her eyes surged with light when she laughed, and the sensation of his hands on her waist. It was shameful to be having such repulsive thoughts about her, yet they persisted despite his attempts to banish them.

Kanetsugu was waiting for him inside the main stable. When he saw him enter, the bat youkai bowed his head in greeting. "Good evening, my lord. Apologies for calling you out so late. I hope I didn't wake you."

"What have you found?"

Kanetsugu gestured to a dark stain on the ground. It was animal blood. The scent was unmistakable. "The horse was one of ours," he explained. "I was so focused on finding the killers that I never even thought about where it came from. It didn't seem important. Turns out it was." He pointed to an empty paddock. "A few days ago, someone walked in here and stole a horse in broad daylight. It couldn't have been a stranger. Someone would have noticed if it was. I'm willing to bet that this was an inside job."

Sesshoumaru's eyes narrowed. History was repeating itself. The traitors that had called themselves the Black Drakes were long gone, so what was this? The work of a copycat, perhaps? It was unsettling, to say the least. "Have you compiled a list of suspects?" he asked through gritted teeth.

"Not yet. It's going to take time—"

"Do what you must. But bring them to me once you've found them. I want my face to be the last thing they see before they perish." He lowered his voice and added, "You should have seen the look on your father's face when mine drove a blade through his treasonous heart."

Kanetsugu recoiled at the words.

Sesshoumaru had been a child at the time, but executions were public events where everyone was welcome. His father rarely executed criminals himself, but the Black Drakes had been an exception. Sesshoumaru remembered smelling the blood before he saw it. He remembered the way they fell after his father plunged his sword into their chests. Sesshoumaru had been too far away to see the light fade from their eyes, but he'd known the exact moment each traitor had stopped breathing. The rush he'd gotten from hearing their last breaths had been indescribable. Each death had reminded him that he was alive, and that the horrors he'd witnessed underground hadn't been for nothing. Watching them die had made him realise that there was light left in the world, after all. Vengeance was beautiful. It was fast and clean and right.

"I'll let you know if I find anything else," Kanetsugu said.

"Good," Sesshoumaru replied, then walked away without another word.

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