‘haunted’
Once again Li swung his fist at Sakura’s face. Scowling with concentration, she darted to his side and pushed his fist aside, then twisted and yanked. This time she did it correctly, and Li found himself flat on his back and trying to swallow a slight groan of pain.
“How was that? Did I do it right this time?” Her expectant smile appeared above as she bent over to look into his eyes.
“Not bad,” he grunted. “I was almost going full speed that time. But you’ve got to remember, Sakura, that you won’t always know when someone is going to punch. In a practice like this, you’re prepared for it. You won’t be in a real fight.”
“I know. But I have to start somewhere, don’t I?” She held out her hand to help him to his feet, but he waved it away and stood on his own.
“Actually, I have to admit that you’re picking this up pretty quickly. Are you sure you’ve never done anything like this before?” She grinned impishly and shrugged.
“No, I’ve never done anything like this before. But when I was younger, I used to always watch my brother and Yukito practicing for their classes. I loved watching them, even though I would never be allowed to participate in something like that. It was ‘unladylike’. I was particularly fascinated by the gymnastics that they practiced.” She took a deep breath, then to Li’s astonishment, she performed a perfect back flip. “I wasn’t supposed to do that, of course.” She smiled at Li’s surprised expression. “But I couldn’t help myself. It looked like so much fun. Yukito helped me learn. He was good at everything.”
She lost her smile as she remembered, and Li cleared his throat. “So I suppose you think you’re pretty good, then, huh?”
“What?” She looked at him, startled, and he gave her a cocky grin.
“Think you can do this?” He executed a neat aerial, and straightened to see her staring, obviously impressed.
“Um, of course I can do that.” She imitated him perfectly and beamed with pride, her momentary grief forgotten. Li grinned. He didn’t want her thinking about that man just now.
“How about this?” This time he did two backflips and a back tuck. He’d never appreciated the gymnastics portion of his training as much as the sparring and swordfighting; it had no immediate value as far as he was concerned. But Master Wei had always lectured that training of the entire body was crucial to maintaining grace and stamina, and so he had practiced. She obviously had too, as she repeated his motions and then threw in an extra aerial twist at the end to show off. He remembered now how quickly she had hidden in the branches of the tree that first day, right before the soldiers rode in to the clearing.
“There. Beat that.”
“Gladly.”
- - - - - -
They’d reached the road at last, and Ruby was walking even faster now that she had smooth terrain beneath her hooves. Tomoyo watched the sun; it was beginning its slide down the sky, approaching the treeline. How long would it be before they noticed she was amiss? And how would they ever find her? It didn’t matter; they wouldn’t be able to rescue her from an entire troop of soldiers. All that did matter was her holding out long enough so that they could escape. It didn’t matter how much it hurt, it didn’t matter what they did to her, she would not reveal Sakura’s location. They were so close, too; Ruby was walking past the cherry orchard now. Just a short distance away, Li and Sakura were patiently waiting for her, totally unaware of how close to danger they were.
Tomoyo was afraid, very afraid. She wasn’t sure how strong she really was, not sure if she could withstand torture. Eriol felt her shake slightly as she began to sob, and he felt a touch of pity. It was obvious that she was very frightened, and he felt sorry for her. She looked like a nice girl. But if she was aiding and abetting the princess, then she had only herself to blame. Without the princess, the General was having a tricky time of maintaining order in the kingdom, and Eriol didn’t appreciate lawlessness. His thoughts were interrupted, as it happened, by the very definition of lawlessness.
“Hold it right there,” sneered a voice. A horse broke out from the forest on the left, the man on her back wielding a crossbow. “Stop where you are.” Four other bandits broke out of their cover now too, surrounding them on the road. Eriol swore under his breath.
Of all the worse timing…
“In the name of the king of Hapeynia, let us pass. I am a soldier in the Royal Army and conducting business for his majesty.” Surreptitiously he slipped his knife out of his sheath, and began to cut the binds around Tomoyo’s wrists. He didn’t want to, but as his prisoner he owed her protection from harm.
“Soldier of the Royal Army,” the ringleader repeated, amused. “Well, boys, we respect the Royal Army, don’t we?” There were snickers all around. “We’ll be glad to let you go on your way, just as soon as you hand over your money and your lovely companion.”
Tomoyo squeaked a little, and Eriol patted her comfortingly on her leg.
“Shhh…” he whispered. “It’ll be all right. I won’t let them hurt you. I need you to lean forward and to the left. Just a little.” Trembling, she complied.
The man who had spoken was prodding his horse closer to them, now, still aiming his bow at them.
“Well, soldier? Are you going to get off your horse and do it the easy way? Or will we have to make you fall off your horse?”
“You’re not taking my horse,” Eriol snapped, his voice cold and clipped. “I’m warning you, turn away and let us go on. This is your last chance.” They all burst into laughter at that declaration, and the leader only came closer.
“I guess that’s his answer, boys.” Ruby was fidgeting underneath them, turning slightly to Eriol’s subtle signals so that he had a clearer shot at the leader. “Go ahead, make him fa - ”
He never had a chance to finish his sentence. In a motion so fast that nobody even saw it, Eriol hurled his thin dagger straight at the leader’s throat, piercing his windpipe. The man gave a choking gurgle before falling off his horse, the rest of his men shocked into silence.
Tomoyo was no less shocked to find herself being pushed roughly to the left, as Eriol snatched at his crossbow hanging on Ruby’s right wither. She yelped as she hit the dusty road, and Eriol winced a little as he released the trigger and planted an arrow in another man’s chest. That had hardly been gentlemanly, but there was no other way.
“Go!” he shouted. “Run!” Stiffly she picked herself up and backed away uncertainly. “I mean it, Tomoyo, get out of here!”
He drew his sword and eyed his opponents, their shock replaced now by murderous determination as they fanned out to surround them. Eriol wasn’t interested in running, he needed to put these men in their place. They were criminals.
“I’ll say it again,” he ordered, “stand down.”
They didn’t respond, which was expected, and the three of them closed in.
“Show me again.”
“Right.” Li punched in a slow motion and allowed her to grab his wrist and circle underneath to back right up to him. “There. Can you feel how you are in position to me? This is where you conduct the throw.”
“But you’re so much heavier than I am. How do I do this?”
“It’s important that you get your weight under me, then push up with your legs. That’s where your main strength is.” Obediently she bent her knees and tried to push up, but when she tried to pull him over her shoulder, she lost her balance and they both toppled onto the grass. She yelped a little with surprise, but then she realized that he was trying to hold in laughter.
“Are you hurt?”
“No, I’m all right. I guess I didn’t have the proper stance.”
“I guess you didn’t. That technique is a little advanced anyway. We’ll try it again some other time.”
“I’d like that,” she said softly. Neither of them had moved from their tangled positions on the ground, and she blushed when she realized how entwined their bodies were. She was sweaty and her heart was beating fast thanks to all the exercise, and now she felt as though she could barely draw breath.
Li felt his body temperature rising, and his face growing warm again, and hastily climbed to his feet.
“Um, well, I think that’s enough for today. There’s no point in showing you more than you can remember.” She nodded quickly and stood.
“Right. Well, thank you for the lessons. I appreciate it.”
“No problem.” He looked away, to be looking at anything, and for the first time noticed how low the sun was in the sky. “Where’s Tomoyo?”
“Uhh…” Sakura felt a tingle of anxiety as she looked at Li’s face. “She should have been back by now, shouldn’t she?”
“Definitely. She wouldn’t keep us waiting.” Li paced a little, then pulled on his shirt. “Maybe I should go back, see if anything is wrong.”
“No, if you go, we should all go. We can’t keep splitting up like this.”
“I can go faster on my own.”
“I know, but - ” She broke off as they both heard it. Thin and distant, but clearly audible, a woman was screaming from the far side of the orchard.
Ruby reared and struck at one of the approaching horses. She was a combat horse, after all, trained for battle, and she wheeled and snorted, searching for anyone else stupid enough to get within range of her hooves.
Tomoyo watched Eriol brandish his sword and battle with the three remaining bandits. She wasn’t really sure what to do, but then one of the attackers spotted her and turned his horse toward her. She was a far more attractive target than the armed soldier, and he laughed and spurred his horse into a run. Tomoyo screamed and bolted for the orchard.
Eriol fumed a little as he watched her run, afraid for her safety, but there wasn’t anything he could do to help, at the moment. He had to deal with these two first.
Tomoyo was running, faster than she’d ever run in her life, terrified of the man pursuing her. They were off the road now, and his horse was forced to go at a slower pace, but he was still gaining on her. Like a desperate hare, she wove in and out of the cherry trees, praying that in the dusk the horse might trip and fall on the large roots. But no such luck. He was getting closer now, and she was sure she was going to die. When she collided with someone else, she lost her head and screamed again.
“Shh! Tomoyo, it’s me. Calm down!” It was Li, holding her still as she struggled and fought. “What’s wrong?”
“He’s coming! He’s coming!”
“Who’s coming – oh.” Li looked up at the horse approaching. “Just go on. Sakura is right through those trees.” He pointed casually as he activated his sword. “I’ll deal with this.”
She scurried away as the bandit approached, raising his own sword as he came closer… closer…
Expertly Li blocked his swing and sliced the man’s leg, drawing a scream of agony on his part.
“Do you like to attack defenseless girls often?” Li queried in an icy tone. “It’s not so much fun when someone fights back, is it?”
The bandit only growled and turned his horse back to charge Li. Once again, Li blocked the blow and cut into the man’s ribs. This time he fell off his horse and yelled again when he hit the ground. The sword flew out of his hand and he reached forward to pick it up, but Li stepped on it.
“Did you want this?” The older man snarled and leapt to his feet in an attempt to tackle Li at his waist, but Li slid to the side and struck his temple with the hilt of his sword. He grunted and staggered a little, then regained his balance. Li watched him darkly, feeling a fresh anger well up within him. This - thing had been chasing a helpless girl, and laughing. This was fun for him. And who knew how long he’d been doing it.
“Someone like you killed my father and destroyed my mother’s life.”
The bandit should have probably realized he was in real danger at this point, but he only spat and threw a ribald curse at him. Li ground his teeth and kicked him sharply in the chin, knocking him flat to the ground. Before he could move Li was pinning his chest down with one foot and leveling his swordtip at his throat.
“Still no apologies? People like you think you can do whatever you like to others. You don’t think any of your victims can stop you. Tonight you were wrong.”
“Wait,” the man gasped. “Okay. I beg for mer -”
The rest of his sentence was lost in a gurgle of blood, as Li slit open his throat.
“Too late.”
The orchard was quiet for a moment without the bandit’s labored breathing, and Li dropped to his knees in the grass as his sword withdrew into pendant form. Finally! At long last, he’d used his hard-won skills for the reason he got them in the first place. After all these years, he’d slaughtered a criminal like those who’d hurt his parents. Alone under the stars, he waited for the sensation of virtue and vindication to flow into him as any true warrior must feel.
He waited a while, but there was nothing.
“Tomoyo! Tomoyo, thank goodness!” Sakura ran to meet her when she saw her coming, and clung to her with relief. “I was getting so worried!” Kero flew in for a hug, as well, and she returned it happily. “Where’s Li?”
“Taking care of my attacker.” Tomoyo shuddered slightly. She almost felt a little sorry for the bandit. Not quite, but almost.
“What happened?”
“Uh…” For some reason, Tomoyo hesitated when she opened her mouth. Why? She needed to tell Sakura what had happened. “Er, I - I was bathing in the river - ”
“Come on, time to move.” Li appeared by her side out of nowhere, a dark look in his eyes.
“Um, Li?” she tried timidly. “I have to tell you somethi - ”
“I don’t feel like talking,” he snapped. “Let’s go.” Li was strapping the tent onto Sakura’s back again, and Tomoyo pulled the waterbags over her shoulder. He was obviously in a bad mood, and she really didn’t want to direct any more of that towards her by bringing up the soldier. It was dark anyway, and they were bound to lose him. He might even be dead; there was no guarantee he’d survived that fight against two armed bandits on the road.
She knew that that was what she should hope for, but she found herself rather wishing that he were all right.
What am I thinking about? He’s a soldier, the enemy. He’s out to capture Sakura and take her back, just like the rest of them. But he let me go, let me go so that I could run and try to save myself.
She found herself blushing a little in the dark as she remembered how strong he was and how he had held her so tightly.
I don’t know. I just don’t know. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. I’m sure I’ll never see him again.
She nodded determinedly to herself as she followed Li through the trees. Never again.
- - - - - -
“What was all that about?” Yukito asked when Touya finally returned to his corner. The prince shrugged.
“I don’t know. Just a feeling. I don’t like Gorrell, he’s got a bad aura around him. And I think he was going to ask Sakura to dance.”
“The General? He’s one of the best commander-in-chiefs that’s ever served, you know that. Look at how well he maintains order in the kingdom. He’s obviously devoted to his task.”
“I don’t care, I don’t like him. I don’t want him anywhere near my sister, and I don’t care how perfect his record is.”
“Well, it hasn’t always been perfect,” Yukito amended. “There was that one slip-up all those years ago. And it was a bad one.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I don’t really remember. We were just kids. But Yue remembers. He says that Gorrell was in charge of transporting a prisoner from the palace to the prisons outside the city. And the prisoner escaped.”
“Really?” Touya narrowed his eyes as he scanned the ballroom again. Now the General was nowhere to be seen, and that was almost as worrying as when he was approaching Sakura. “Who was it?”
“The mage, Salfrek. Imprisoned for using magic in forbidden ways. He would have probably faced death for his crimes, but he used his powers to escape the transport, killing several soldiers in the process.”
“Salfrek,” Touya repeated. “Never heard of him. If he’s so powerful and dangerous, why hasn’t he been mentioned before this?”
Now it was Yukito’s turn to shrug. “I guess he knew better than to try and attack anyone, drawing attention to himself. He disappeared. Your parents assumed that he escaped Hapeynia a long time ago. Not much point in him sticking around.”
None at all, except for revenge, thought Touya, but was jerked out of his conversation.
“Touya, there you are! Have you been hiding all evening?” The queen had appeared out of nowhere and grabbed his arm before he had a chance to dart away.
“Good evening, mother,” he said innocently, and she gave him a shrewd look.
“Don’t you ‘good evening, mother’ me, young man. You have been shirking your duties, and I won’t have any more of it. Now I want you to meet a nice young lady who’s visiting the country.”
“But - ”
“No excuses. Princess Anna of the Daniyan Isles, may I present my son, Prince Touya of Hapeynia.” The young woman before him curtsied with a properly bashful smile.
“Good evening, your highness,” he growled, and bowed. Nadeshiko beamed at her son.
“Why don’t the two of you dance? It will be a nice way to get acquainted.”
“I should be delighted,” Anna cooed, extending her hand for his. Touya threw a despairing look at Yukito, who was barely managing to contain his laughter, and grudgingly took her hand in his. There was no getting out of it now. He was a prisoner.
- - - - - -
The moon was well into its journey across the sky when Li finally called for a halt. They’d left the orchard far behind, and had crossed the fields of some farmhouse that they couldn’t see. The growing wheat wasn’t tall enough to conceal them, but there was a deep ditch with a creek winding through the fields, lush and green with overgrowth. He could see that both girls were exhausted, so he found a space just wide enough on the bank to erect their tent.
“We’ve come far enough. Time to rest.”
He pulled off his shirt and splashed his face with water from the creek. Killing that man had evoked so many nagging doubts. From the very first day, he had struggled to master his sword for the purpose of stopping men like that. It had been his one aim, and yet now that it had finally happened, there was no sense of fulfillment. The warm metallic feel of the pendant against his skin, familiar for so many years, was suddenly charged with uncertainty. Did he not deserve it after all?
Preoccupied with his thoughts, he forgot to question Tomoyo about her attacker, and why she had been running from the direction of the road instead of the forest. Instead he just stretched out on the grass and gazed at the stars.
Sakura hugged her friend again. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
“I’m fine, Sakura, honestly. He never laid a hand on me. I’m just a little shaken, that’s all.”
“You’ll feel better after some rest. Take a lie down, and I’ll sit up to watch.”
“Are you sure?”
Sakura nodded, trying to stifle a yawn. “I’m sure. You’ve had a far more traumatic evening than I did, I’m sure of it.”
Don’t doubt that, Tomoyo thought grimly, and curled up with Kero inside the tent. Soon she was asleep, breathing deeply and evenly. Sakura watched her face relax, and smiled.
I don’t know what I would have done without her; I’m so glad that she’s all right. This is my fault, what she’s going through. She’s putting herself through this for me.
With a little sigh she returned her attention to their other traveling companion, the one on his back and watching the stars. He’d been rather distracted since Tomoyo’s return earlier that evening, only grunting his replies to her questions and looking through her instead of at her, at something that only he could see. Not that his sulky attitude was anything new, but to her it seemed tinged with sadness as well.
“Are you all right, Li?”
“Fine.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive,” he snapped. “Do you mind?”
“Sor - ” She stopped herself just in time. “Good night.”
He didn’t reply, but closed his eyes and tried to sleep. It was impossible. There were too many questions running through his head.
The sword is mine. I’ll never give it up. But if killing that trash couldn’t make me feel good about using it, then what will?
- - - - - -
Eriol concluded his report and waited for the abuse to begin. It was not a long wait.
“So,” the colonel began, “you had the personal handservant of the princess herself in your custody, and you allowed her to escape?”
“Sir, as I’ve pointed out, I did not know at the time who she was. I merely had my suspicions that she was connected to the princess.”
“But you let her go.”
“I did not let her go,” Eriol replied, his voice sharper than he intended. Blackstock raised his eyebrows. “Sir. I had no choice. We were surrounded by bandits, and I was forced to pull her off my horse so that I might be able to engage them in combat. She ran, and one of them pursued her. By the time I had dealt with the other two and followed their tracks, there was nothing but the dead body.”
“And no trail leading away from it?”
“None. They could have gone in any direction.”
“I’m a little confused, captain. You say the girl ran off the road. How did she do this if her hands were tied behind her back?”
“I cut her binds, sir.”
“You what?”
“I released her hands so that she might have a chance to defend herself.” Eriol straightened his back a little in response to the colonel’s stunned anger.
“That girl was the best chance we had of locating the princess, and you – you cut her bonds? What were you thinking, soldier?” He stood and banged his fist down on the wooden table with vehemence, making everyone in the room jump a little. Eriol remained still. “What in the name of the gods were you thinking?”
“Sir, she was my prisoner. I had a duty to protect her from harm, and she would have been helpless before that bandit with her hands tied. Under the circumstances, I felt I had no other choice.”
“No choice,” Blackstock repeated, disbelief mingled with fury in his voice. He stepped toward the captain, hand restlessly tapping the hilt of his sword. “Have you forgotten what the objective of our mission is?”
“I was under the impression, sir,” Eriol answered icily, “that our mission was to defend the people against criminals and outlaws, which these men most certainly were. This was the reason I joined the Royal Army. I did not sign on to deliver helpless young girls into their arms.”
“You watch your tone, captain,” Blackstock warned. “And don’t forget your place. I will not be lectured to by my underlings!”
The colonel was starting to look dangerous, and Eriol decided to keep his mouth shut. He didn’t mention, though he wanted to, that he had at least found the girl, which was more than anyone else had accomplished. And even though she’d escaped, they at least had a general idea of the whereabouts of the fugitives now, which was more than they’d had in two days. Neither did he mention that there might have been the faintest hint of a trail leading east across the orchard, but he hadn’t even dreamt of following it. Clearly the mysterious swordsman was still with the princess, as evidenced by the bandit’s body, and Eriol wasn’t about to take him on, alone. He was good with the sword, but no expert. He knew his limits.
“You’re dismissed, captain. Get out of my sight.”
“Sir,” Eriol growled, and saluted before turning on his heels and striding out of the inn’s main room.
Of all the humiliating, degrading… This is ridiculous. He actually thinks I should have just allowed Tomoyo to be taken by those men rather than set her free. Poor girl. I’m almost glad that I didn’t make it back here with her, if she really was the princess’ companion. He probably would have tortured her to get the location of the princess. No wonder she was so scared.
He kicked at the dirt viciously, making Ruby snort and shake her head disapprovingly.
“Don’t you start, too. I’m in a bad mood. Come on, it’s time for you to be stabled down. I need to get to bed. It’s been a long day.”
- - - - - - -
Sakura couldn’t help herself. She hugged him harder and started to cry.
“I miss you so much!” she sobbed. Yukito hugged her back and kissed the top of her head.
“Shh. Don’t cry. There’s always a way. I may not be able to watch you anymore, but you’ll be fine. You’ll make it.”
“I don’t care if you’re watching me or not. I just don’t want you to be dead! It isn’t right, you shouldn’t be gone.”
“I know. It’s not right. A lot of good people died that night.” She only cried harder at that. “But Sakura, you can’t give in to the grief. You have to be strong, you have to make it right. Everyone is counting on you.”
“I’m so scared. I’m not up to it; I’m not up to this challenge. I don’t know what I’m doing at all.”
“Few people do,” Yukito pointed out, that gentle smile on his face. Didn’t he ever get upset about anything? Even his own death?
“Death is not so bad,” he said, answering her thoughts. “It happens to all of us, you know.”
“I know,” she replied, frowning. Things were blurring now; Yukito kept flickering in and out with Yue.
“My creator told me once, many years ago, that there was no force on earth that could delay death. We all have our time. It was my time.”
“But I love you,” she sobbed. “You shouldn’t have died trying to protect me.” Yue had never been affectionate to her like Kero, but he stroked her hair back from her face anyway.
“It was my duty. And now you have your duty. You must find the Cards, use them to fix what was wronged. Don’t be frightened. You have more allies than you know.”
Now it was Yukito that she was looking at again, and she buried her face in his shirt and clutched at him even more tightly.
“Please… please don’t leave me. I can’t do this without you!”
“I’m sorry, Sakura. But this is the way it is. You’ll be fine.”
“Please,” she cried over and over again. “Please… please… don’t go…”
The sound of her own crying was what finally woke her. Someone was still touching her, though, wiping at her tears as he shushed her gently. In the starlight she could barely see Li’s face.
“I’m sorry,” she cried, before she remembered that she wasn’t supposed to say that. “I – I was just…”
“Dreaming about him. It’s okay.” She felt so embarrassed, and she knew she ought to back away. His shirt was off again, and they were so close. But even with an inch or two between them, she could feel his body warmth and liked it. Crying alone was always worse.
“The death is everywhere,” she mumbled between hiccups. “All around. There’s so much of it in my life these days.”
“I think I know what you mean.”
“I’m so tired. So tired of all of it. I just want to turn my back on the whole mess and forget about it.”
“You know you can’t.”
“I know.”
She seemed so fragile. Without realizing it, Li was running his fingers through her hair. It felt so strange to have a girl so close, as they lay on the bank of the creek beneath the stars. Strange, but nice.
“Go to sleep. You’ll feel better in the morning.” Sakura felt limp. All the crying had left her drained, and she gave a tiny nod before snuggling up to him and closing her eyes.
It wasn’t long before she was asleep, her expression peaceful as she lay in his arms.
She was so beautiful, so delicate. Li had to look away from her face, up towards the moon again. He didn’t know what was going on, what was happening here. He only knew that he didn’t want it to go any further. There was nothing but pain to be had when the royal family was concerned.
I should just get up right now. I’ve led them far enough away from my home, the army won’t be back in my valley anytime soon. I should just get up, and walk away from this.
But he didn’t. Instead he draped an arm over Sakura, and watched the stars.
- - - - - -
Touya drained the last of the water from the cup and pushed it across the floor, where the soldier picked it up. None of the guards were allowed near him, unless there was a sword at his throat. The General hadn’t forgotten the prince’s training with the King’s Own, after all, and wasn’t taking any chances.
He probably had no cause for worry. Touya was beyond the point where he could attack anyone, he was sure. He looked at his hand carefully; it was shaking. They were feeding him again, at least, but he was still falling apart. The humiliation of being chained up and the all-consuming anxiety for his sister’s well-being was tearing at him every day. He wasn’t sure how much more of this he could take.
Carefully he stretched out on the stone floor and tried to get comfortable for another of his naps. Not that he particularly wanted to go to sleep. Once it had been his release, but now… now these memories were haunting him, scenes from the Midwinter Ball kept nagging at him. It was driving him crazy; he couldn’t think why it was so important. It was so painful to have to go there again, to have to see his parents and Yukito again. They were so blissful, so unaware of their fate. It was killing him.
“No, it’s not killing you, Touya. You’re much stronger than that.”
He yelped in surprise and sat up so fast his head spun. His mother was standing over him, so real that he almost bowed when he stood to face her. But she wasn’t alive; she hadn’t come back. A pair of feathery white wings sprouted from her back now, almost covered by her thick long hair.
“M – mother?”
“Hello, Touya.” Her beautiful green eyes were filled with pain as she gazed at him.
Of course, he should have been expecting this. He’d been seeing ghosts and spirits wandering the palace since he was a boy; he’d had quite a lot fun when he was younger by teasing Sakura about them.
“You’re here.”
“I’m here.”
“Why haven’t you come to see me before this?”
“I knew how painful it would be for you. Death must be accepted, understood. This will only delay the process. But I just couldn’t help myself. I had to come see you; your suffering cries out to me. You are my son.”
Touya leaned against the wall behind him and looked down at the chains on his wrists.
“Did it hurt?” he asked dully. “Was it painful for you?”
“It was quick. If there is nothing else that can give you comfort, hold onto that. Your father and I passed from this world in a heartbeat. It’s you that bears the agony of the family. It is a difficult road, but it suits you best. You always were the strongest one.”
Touya straightened his back a little, in spite of the fear that brushed the edge of his mind. Was he really the strongest? If that was true, then why was he here?
“Sakura,” he whispered. “I have to know. Is she all right? Is she unhurt?”
“She grieves, of course. Nothing can save her from that pain. But she fares well. Your struggle to protect her, even from in here, has not been in vain. She’s free because you were strong. Take heart at that.”
Touya’s eyes were starting to burn with unshed tears. “I miss you.” Hesitantly he reached forward, but her hand was like an insubstantial and cold mist. She wasn’t tangible. And now she was fading from sight. “Mother… don’t go…”
“I have to. This is no longer my world. But it is yours. Fight for it. Protect it. You’re the strong one, Touya, you can do it. We believe in you.” Touya felt the tears run down his face and drip off as he tried to hold on, tried to keep her from going. But she passed through his touch and disappeared, leaving only a wisp of vapor behind.
It isn’t right. She shouldn’t be dead. This pain is too much to carry. I can’t hold on much longer.
He slid down to the floor again and rested his forehead on his knee.
I can’t do this. I c-can’t do this…
Disclaimer: I do not own these characters
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