inthenameofotome-blog

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Trials of the Heart Part Two: Memories and Lies

The following morning, I was in the garden with the sun rise, passing maids seemed to laugh at my clothing. I looked down at what I was wearing, the same usual clothes I wore for farm work, a white and brown kimono. Plain mostly but was useful when you needed to get dirty. Watching the koi fish in the pond, a foot step approached me. Instinctively, I swung my body around to see who was behind me. Surprised, Masamune smiled on me as I looked at him,” You have good instincts, lass. Though I don’t think those clothes will suit for our planned tour, come with me,” he told me as he dragged me by my arm. Without a chance to protest, I was being dragged down the hallways to a room that was tucked in the corner of a hall. From the outside the room looked like any other room in the castle, though that was not the case. Opening the door, he motioned for me to follow him inside, there my jaw dropped. Kimonos lined the walls from top to bottom in every color or design you can think of. I was in awe, I had never seen so many variations of Kimono before. “Go on lass, find one you like,” he prodded. Wide-eyed I shook my head,” These are not mine, I can’t just take what I want,” I said in disbelief. He smirked,” You think Nobunaga would want you wandering around town like that? People know you are staying here, it would reflect badly on him,” Masamune explained. With some coaxing, I gave in and scoured for something I liked. An hour passed as I looked around the room, I had not found something that stood out to me. Then, near the back of the collection, a purple color stuck out to me, from the side I could see golden butterfly trimmings. Fixated on it, I pulled it from where it was and measured it against my body uncertain. It was then that Masamune walked over,” That one huh? I have just the things to go with it,” he told me with a smile. He left somewhere in the room and came back with an obi and what looked like a hairpin. It was the shape of a lotus flower and around it was a butterfly, on the back of it was a golden clip so it was easy to slip on the hair. I was breathless, it was a beautiful hairpin. I bowed accepting everything he had handed me. With the clothes picked out, he escorted me back to my room and motioned for me to go inside and change with the wave of his hand. I didn’t understand why he was being so kind to me, but I appreciated it all the same. After I got the kimono on with the help of a few of the maids, I put the hairpin in my hair and then left my room and met up with Masamune. He had been outside waiting for me to get ready, leaning against one railing. As he saw me in the kimono, he nodded in approval,” It suits you,lass,” he told me with that signature smug look of his. “Now, you are ready for the tour I promised you,” he said as he got up from the railing and waited for me and walked with me to the market. As we arrived the market, my eyes grew wide; there were so many stalls from food to clothing, it was hard not to get overwhelmed with how much there was to look at. For the rest of the day Masamune took me to see anything in town that caught my interest, all day we were going this way and that. I was having a good time though it was hard to tell what he was thinking. Once the sun sunk behind the horizon, he took me to his favorite restaurant, there we ate dinner and talked about anything we could think of. Once we were full, we left the restaurant, the food had been so good. Once we were at the door to my room I bowed,” Lord Masamune, thank you for today,” I told him with a smile. He smiled and nodded at me,” You have been through a lot, lass. I can tell you are still full of anxiety thinking over what Nobunaga wants to know. If nothing else, know this you aren’t as alone as you think. If ever you need to talk to someone you can find one of us, though I would personally advise against Mitsuhide he is as sly as any fox in that forest, “he warned. I looked at him confused, not sure how to respond but I nodded anyway. Standing there looking at him, there was something that was bothering me, and I had to get it off my chest. “Tell me something Lord Masamune, why are you being so nice to me? I am the daughter of your enemy,” I said confused. He looked at me thoughtful, as if thinking of the right way to answer me. “You are his blood, yes but you are not him lass. Now, if you were to be hiding him from us, that would be a different story. Get some rest, it is late, and Nobunaga will want information from you,” he told me as he walked off waving at me. Once he disappeared around the corner, I turned and went into my room and went to sleep. Come morning just as Masamune had said, someone was knocking on my door waking me up. Groggy, I sat up and walked to the door and opened it an inch, just enough for me to see who it was. On the other side of the door, Hideyoshi stood waiting and then he noticed the door cracked,” Oh morning Luciel, Lord Nobunaga wants to see you, I will wait for you to get ready,” he told me. That is awful nice of him I thought as I nodded and closed the door. Once ready in the new kimono, I left my room where he was waiting. Before leaving, he looked at what I was wearing from top to bottom,” You look cute, Luciel,” he told me with a smile. Flushing red in the face, I bowed and thanked him and then followed him to the main hall and followed him inside. Reaching the Dais Hideyoshi and I bowed to Nobunaga, then Hideyoshi left to sit as I was left to stand waiting,” You are here, good. Time for you to fulfill your part of the deal. I want any information you have,” Nobunaga told me as he crossed his arms. “I remember, I will tell you what I know but I will need a map to do so,” I informed Nobunaga. He nodded and took one out and some markers placing it in front of me. “Ok, these are the places I know he has been to, maybe if we look, we can find a pattern and figure out where he will go next,” I told them as I placed each of the markers. Leaning over, Nobunaga studied the map carefully,” There’s a pattern,” he told me as he pointed at each area,” these spots are the small villages all dealing with a bandit problem,” he told me. I took another look at the map,” It’s not just that Lord Nobunaga, these are all villages congested together. He would look for a place to speak to them all though,” I said thinking out loud. “Why is that?” Nobunaga asked with a smile on his face as if he wanted to know if we were seeing the same thing. “Because, he’s recruiting,” I told him looking up. “Very good, girl. The biggest area would be over here, near the Uesugi territory,” he said placing a marker. “It would seem, you helped us more than I thought you would,” Nobunaga said with a grin. I gave him a wry smile as my eyes returned to the map,” I have a request,” I said as I looked to him, he looked back at me sternly,” What is it?” he asked me as he sat back up into his seat,” I want to talk to him, even just for a moment, within earshot if need be. There are things I must know,” I told him. He thought for a moment and had a smile as if he was planning something,” I will allow it but only because you will be his bait. So, if you have something to say to him do it then,” he told me with a stern expression. Hearing what he had in mind I swallowed hard, I would have to make a choice, could I really betray my father? Telling them what I knew about where he has been is one thing, but to lure him as their bait that was a hefty task. To betray him to the one person he has hated for as long as I could remember, could I do that? I bit my lower lip as I looked at the ground, I pulled my hands on either side of my legs into tight fists that turned white. As Nobunaga made his intention, he dismissed us from the main hall. I left for the garden I had come to love. I was at a mental crossroads, but I knew what had to be done though I didn’t like it, he had walked his path and I had to walk mine I thought to myself. A few days passed since the meeting with Nobunaga, soon he would move out against my father. Needing to think on what I would do when the day came, I took a walk to the market. As usual, it was bustling with people, I found a shop that sold dango and sat down and put one in my mouth allowing the taste to melt in my mouth. After I ate, I wandered around the market until dark and then made my way back to the castle. Feeling someone behind me I turned around to find no one there. Something didn’t feel right, my breathing quickened as my heart sped up, I felt paranoid for some reason and looked around the rooftops and alleys for whoever it was that was sneaking around. Then, I felt something hit my arm, looking down I saw an arrow in my arm with a note tied to it. I removed the arrow carefully and removed the note, only one word was written, ’traitor.’ As I continued walking to the castle, I felt light-headed in the distance I saw a shape though it was blurry. Not long after I saw them, I fell to the ground barely conscious. I could hear feet scuttling around me, then it felt like was lifted into the air. Someone is carrying me I thought to myself as I struggled to keep my eyes open. I did not understand where I was being taken to though I stared to feel hot. “it’s so hot,” I muttered a few times to no one in particular. Eventually, I felt myself be placed on something soft, a bed I thought. Then, I felt something cold and lost consciousness completely. I don’t know how long I was out for, but when I woke a rag slid from the top of my head and there was a shadow outside of my room. At first, I was a little shaky on my feet but once I got my balance back, I opened the door. Two soldiers had been placed outside of my room, I looked at them in surprise just as they did. One of them bowed,” You need your rest, miss. You have been out for three days,” he informed me. “Three days?” I mumbled not sure what to think. “Why are you posted here though?” I finally asked as my brain seemed to sluggishly move. “For your protection, miss.” One soldier answered. Letting that process, I closed the door and returned to my bed. As I looked at the door one shadow left, I was still trying to place together everything that happened from my leaving the market to making it back to the castle. “I was carried by someone,” I muttered. “You passed out from a poisoned arrow,” a voice said as the door opened, I looked up and saw the man from the main hall who was always wearing yellow,” You’re…Ieyasu?” I guessed as I put my hand to the side of my head. “That’s right, you are still affected by the poison, so you need to lie down,” he told me with that same cold look I recalled from the main hall. Reluctantly, I did as I was told with a frown,” I don’t want to go back to sleep though,” I whined. He shook his head,” I really don’t care,” he snapped as he put a spoon of something bitter in my mouth. “Uuugh, what the hell did you just give me?” I asked as I wanted to vomit. “Medicine, to help with the poison,” he responded as he took the rag and dipped it in cold water and then replaced it on my head. By the time I was fully well again, almost a month had passed. Waking up someone was walking in, one of the female assistants that always helped me put my kimono on. “What is it?” I asked. The girl smiled at me,” You look better, I am glad. Everyone has been worried about you. Though some won’t admit it,” the girl added with a giggle. I stood and walked over to her,” I am sorry for worrying you,” I told her and went to bow but she stopped me,” No, don’t bow to me, miss. Let me help you dress so everyone can see that you are better,” she told me with a flushed face. I smiled and nodded as she helped me put the kimono on. As I closed my door, I heard a small sound, looking down I saw a small tiger cub,” Well aren’t you the cutest little tiger,” I told it as I kneeled. The tiger looked up and ran up to me making small little chirps at me to pet it. Laughing at it, I pet the tiger and stood back up to continue to the castle. To my surprise, the tiger followed me all the way to the main hall and into the main hall where all the warlords were meeting. As I closed the door, they all went silent and looked over at me. Nobunaga smirked,” Good to see you up and about again,” I bowed to them all,” I apologize if I caused worry or delays,” none of them knew what to say in response. “Nonsense, you are well and that is what counts,” Nobunaga told me as he motioned for me to come closer to them. They had the arrow I pulled out of my arm, they seemed to be investigating it. “Something tells me that your father knows that you are with us,” Nobunaga told me as he placed the arrow back on the floor in front of him. I nodded,” Now that I am well, I think we should try to find them,” I said as I looked at the arrow in front of Nobunaga. There were a few that protested, in particular Masamune and Hideyoshi but Nobunaga held his hand up to silence them,” I agree. They may know you are here, but they do not know if you are healed or not, we can use that as an element of surprise,” Nobunaga told the others in the room. Reluctantly Hideyoshi and Masamune nodded,” We will just have to make sure something doesn’t happen to her,” Hideyoshi said looking fired up. “I’m not that helpless,” I told him. None of them seemed to believe me as I said this as no one said anything. Later that day, we were heading out for where we believed my father was hiding. They believed that since I was attacked either he wasn’t far from here or he ordered them to attack me. Riding horseback for a while, though I was placed between the others we made it to the destination. Looking around we saw people clustered together in one spot,” That has to be it,” I mumbled. Finding a section with a wall separated from the cluster, we hid the horses there. As the army hid behind it with the horses, I walked out with a hood over my head from a cloak I had been given. “So, this is where you have been, this is your meeting?” I asked projecting my voice, so everyone heard me over him. The man on a platform looked at me with wide eyes, “Luciel, how are you here?” he asked in surprise. “Do you mean that as how did I find you or how am I still alive?” I asked him narrowing my eyes. He didn’t know how to respond to me at first, he walked down the platform as people watched the scene unfold. “Luciel this is not the place nor the time, we must rise against Nobunaga and stop his tyranny,” he told me as he grabbed either side of my arms. I pulled myself free from him,” Do we now? You have yet to answer my question. Did you or did you not have some shoot me with a poison arrow in hopes I would die?!” I demanded. He looked taken aback,” I would never- “I cut him off before he could finish by shoving the note in his face,” THIS is your handwriting, FATHER,” he stepped back seeing the note. “So, it wasn’t my imagination you did go to them,” he muttered as anger filled his eyes. “Correction, they saved me from being sold off thanks to you leaving me alone in that village. One citizen oversaw the bandits there,” I informed him. He tilted his head back as he laughed,” No, dear daughter. I oversaw her. She was told if you grew too smart about them to deal with you, but it seems once again you bypassed everything, so tell me how you found me,” he asked me laughing. “You made it easy, you always travel to towns of clustered villages, so I noticed with the help of Lord Nobunaga that you were in fact recruiting not going to meetings,” his eyes darkened at my response. “You left me to die, I protected that village for several years thinking you would return but you never intended to return,” I said with anger,” You are supposed to be my father!” I yelled at him shaking my head. “I think I have asked what I needed to, you had your fun and now it’s time to close your curtains,” I told my father as I pulled a bow from beneath my cloak nocking an arrow to my bow. “You would kill me?” He challenged grinning,” I should but no, I am making it so you can’t run,” I told him with a smug look on my face. I let the arrow fly free landing right into one of his kneecaps, then I sent a second one through the other knee. He let out a scream of pain as he fell to the ground. Nobunaga and his army filed out, picked him and bound him and placed him between a few soldiers. It took all the will I had to not shake from what I had to do. A shadow lingered above me, as I looked up it was Masamune. “That had to be rough, lass. I know the feeling, though different. My father had been taken prisoner by another clan, I had the choice of killing him or letting the enemy have their way. He yelled at me to shoot, so I did. He died in the gunfire, but like you I had to do what had to be done, let’s go back now,” he told me as he placed an arm around my shoulder to comfort me as we walked. By dusk, we had made it back to the castle my father was taken to the dungeon and I didn’t even want to know what plans they had for him. In my mind, I accepted that he had died with my mother. Sitting in the garden under the moon, I looked up as a small tear fell from the side of my face. I now had no family to call my own, what would I do now? They don’t need my help anymore here, so where will I go now? I wondered. I thought the threat my father brought was over, but I couldn’t be more wrong. I didn’t know at the time that he had many men under his command that would do anything to get him free of Nobunaga. A few weeks after the capture of my father, I was informed that he had passed away in the dungeon. I looked at the one that told me, Hideyoshi and shook my head,” No Hideyoshi, he died with my mother many years ago. That man you captured was but a shell of a human,” I told him as I turned away from him and walked off. He watched me go seeming concerned. “You know, you surprised us all Luciel,” he told me causing me to stop. I turned around to look at him,” What do you mean?” I asked confused. “None of us expected you to immobilize him with your bow, you were right when you said you weren’t helpless. Please, accept my apology. I thought you weak because of your being a woman,” he said as he bowed to me. “Don’t bow to me, Lord Hideyoshi, I know that I don’t look like much in appearance. Just don’t forget that I had to protect a village from bandits for several years,” I reminded him with a small smile. “I won’t forget again,” he promised as he returned the smile. With that, I returned to my room for the night. One morning, I heard whispers outside my door, sitting up I looked at the shadows on the wall,” Looks like Hideyoshi and Masamune,” I muttered. Dressing myself, I approached the door and just as I was about to open the door, I overheard them. “She hasn’t been the same since she had to help with the dealing of her father,” Hideyoshi said,” You can’t blame the lass, that was her last family member,” Masamune retorted. Hideyoshi let out a sigh,” You always know how to cheer her up, find some way to help her, people are worried about her,” Hideyoshi told Masamune. All he got in response was a smirk and Hideyoshi growling at him went the other direction. Thinking it was now safe to open the door, I pulled it open to see Masamune standing in front of it,” Morning lass, “he greeted with a smile. I returned the smile,” Good morning, Lord Masamune. I heard you and Lord Hideyoshi arguing about something,” I mentioned. He shook his head at me,” No need to fret, he is just worried that you may resent Lord Nobunaga for what you had to do,” he assured me as he leaned against one railing. “I don’t resent him, Lord Masamune. I have decided that my true father died with my mother when I was a small child. Her death transformed him. He blamed it on Nobunaga though I never found out why, but in the end, he was fanatical and couldn’t be allowed to roam free. He may be gone now, but I can’t help but feel that the danger hasn’t passed,” I told Masamune as I looked at the ground. He looked at me with a serious look on his face,” You aren’t far off as usual, there still is activity from his group. So, we need to find the rabbit hole to get rid of them,” he told me with a frustrated look. I had an idea on the matter, but they would never allow it, I thought in my head. “If you need my help, I will do what I can,” I told him with a smile. He shook his head,” Not this time lass, you surprised us all doing what you did, you have guts that is for certain, but I won’t let Nobunaga endanger your life like that again,” he told me protectively. “Alright, I won’t do anything reckless,” I told him with a smile. He nodded at me in approval and went on his way. That night, at sun down I decided that I had to figure out how to help them find the rabbit hole. I couldn’t think of anyone else that could get into their circle but me. Information on what happened to my father had been suppressed by Nobunaga, he didn’t want other members thinking they would just take his role. I knew better though, I grew up around his rebellion members. Putting on a hakama with my kimono, slipping my bow and side quiver under my cloak which I placed the hood on my head I slipped out of the castle grounds and into the forest. Entering the forest, I checked for a trail I could follow which took some time to locate. After finding the trail I found a small camp that turned out to be several small camps. This was a huge problem, they were as big as a normal army. While I was investigating, the maid that always helped me out of the kimono rushed into the main hall bowing to Nobunaga,” m’Lord, miss Lucil is gone. Her bow and her cloak,” she told him in a panic. Nobunaga had already foreseen my plan without my knowing and had Masamune tail me as if he knew what I would do. So, he had just smiled at the woman and assured her that I would be brought back soon enough. A twig snapped behind me, I turned around and saw Masamune crouched behind me. I looked at him in disbelief,” Now, lass. Nobunaga saw you doing something like this. We all knew they would rise up and grow so of course he wanted them found, but for you to go alone that is reckless and I don’t want you trying it again,” he scolded. “Take me with you next time,” he said with a smile. I couldn’t help but shake my head and agree to his proposition, he was a strong samurai, so it wasn’t a bad idea to have him along. Behind a bush, we watched as several of the members paced this way and that. “The leader was supposed to be here yesterday; his daughter survived my arrow I heard. But there is no saying what she will do next,” one member said irritably. Seeing the bigger camping tent, I decided that was the target of the higher up members, we saw shadows moving around in the tent. Normally, I would have sent flaming arrows down on them but with this being a large forest I didn’t want it spreading and involving innocent people. Masamune looked at me and pointed at a certain angle,” fire an arrow there,” he told me. Looking where he was pointing, I nodded and notched an arrow and let it go. One body in the tent fell, causing people to flood out of the tent. Masamune grinned at this,” perfect” he said as he rushed in on the camps. As he rushed in, his scouts covered his back from the protection of the trees. Between all of us, the camps here had been wiped out. Once it was over, we searched the place for any clues of any other gathering spots. I found a map in the bigger tent and on it, markings of every spot my father had been,” his members are spread out in every area he has visited, we will have to send small parties to each area,” I told Masamune as we looked at the map together. He nodded in agreement and escorted me back to the castle, where I got a lengthy lecture from Hideyoshi on recklessness. I smiled and nodded at him,” It won’t happen again, Hideyoshi, I will bring Lord Masamune with me next time,” as I said that Hideyoshi was at a loss for words. Taking advantage of that, Lord Masamune escorted me to my bedroom and bid me a good night. I bowed to him and went in my room to rest for the night. After our excursion, Masamune had given Nobunaga the map we had found the other night. Smiling, Nobunaga did just as I had advised and sent parties all over the map wherever my father had been. He wanted to be sure that not one of their members were left standing. During this time, I was left to wait at the castle, bored out of my mind. I was forbidden from going anywhere at the time since there was no one to help me if something were to happen to me. So, I reluctantly obeyed to their orders only because Masamune had asked me to stay. I was feeling drawn to him more and more each day and I couldn’t explain why. Just seeing him, made my heart jump I couldn’t wait for his return, I worried over his well being it was like I was a mother hen worrying of her chick. Going crazy with my chaotic emotions, I confided in one maid that helped me day in and day out. The one helping me dress this time, was an older woman with gray hair and kind blue eyes. She smiled at me as she did my hair for me,” Tis love m’lady,” she told me as she finished my hair. I turned around and looked at her,” love? But he and I haven’t spent too much time together one on one,” I told her as I tried to figure the logic part out. “M’lady, come sit and let me explain my experience with you,” she offered. I nodded and sat next to her,” Love does not happen just because you spend many days alone with a person, it happens over time yes, but it can be from watching the person through their deeds or interacting with them regularly. Lord Masamune often gets you gifts to cheer you up, so perhaps m’lady tis not just you feeling this,” she told me with a warm smile. I nodded in understanding, “Perhaps, you are right. Thank you for helping me understand,” I said with a small bow. She smiled at me and returned the bow,” It is an honor to help you, m’lady,” she told me as she ducked out of the room since she had finished her job. I sat there for a moment letting what she said sink in, is it possible that Masamune could like someone like me? I wondered as I looked up at the night moon. I had a hard time believing it, but I guess anything could be possible. I heard hooves coming in through the town, hearing the amount I did I knew they were back and bolted from my room after putting something decent on and went to find Masamune. As if he were psychic, he turned and looked at me smiling and he waved at me. Breaking formation, he pulled his horse over towards me, pulled me up onto his horse almost as if he was longing to see me. I smiled up at him as he rejoined the ranks and with me on his horse, he rode back to the castle.

[inthenameofotome-blog]

Trials of the Heart Part One: Bandit Troubles

War, it is everywhere you look on one side the Oda army and their allies, on the other the alliance of Uesugi and Takeda. Where does that leave us, the people? Caught in the middle, that’s where. While they go to war, our homes get pillaged and burnt to the ground by bandits. Many of the bandits have sunk to selling girls to the highest bidder. A lot of this is caused by hunger and poverty, though some of these bandits are just sick. As for me, I am the daughter of the man who leads a rebellion against Nobunaga. My name is Luciel Tihomira, and unlike my father I have other plans, I rather fight those causing the real problem within our homes, the bandits. My father claims the problem is Nobunaga, but I can’t help but feel there is more to it than that. The sunrays pierced through the window of my room, grunting I sat up and stretched. Another day was starting and there was a lot of work to be done. Crops needed to be watered and animals to be taken care of. Just as I am ready to start my work an alarm goes off letting us know bandits are within sight. “Just great,” I muttered to myself in irritation. Though I had been planning to grab my farming gear, I grabbed my bow instead and opened my window wide enough for my arrows to fly through it. Kneeling under the window so I am not spotted as they come into the village, I wait for the bandits to arrive. I did not have to wait long, they were soon pouring into view from the nearby forest. There had to be at least ten or twenty of them if not more. I nocked my arrow and waited until one of them was close enough, once they were, I let it fly free. The man had fallen from atop his horse screaming in agony, from the look of it I may have gotten him in the ribs. As his comrades worried over him, a select few of our villagers stole the horse away and hid it. This was the routine we had developed over time in order to survive these bandit attacks. Having lost a few of their men to our archers, which like me were hiding in houses firing on them from windows, the bandits fled to the forest though there was no saying how long until their return. Putting my bow back against the wall by the window, I walked outside like everyone else to see the damage that was done and make sure no one was missing. Just as I had begun my checks on the villagers a woman had ran over to me in a panic,” Luciel, please help me. My daughter is missing,” she told me through her weeps. “Don’t worry, she can’t be far I will search for her,” I assured her as I placed my hand on her shoulders. “Thank you, oh thank you,” she said through her hugs. Thinking back, I should have known better then to go alone but at that time my father was away for a meeting with his rebellion members. He had warned me about being too trusting but there was a girl in danger, so I risked it. I ran back to my room, grabbing things that could be of use to me on a rescue mission. A rope, some smoke bombs my father taught me to make, and anything that could help with survival. Once I felt I was ready, I left for the forest, no one had tried to stop me they watched me disappear into the forest depths. As I entered the forest, I creeped around at first looking for a possible trail to follow. To my surprise, there wasn’t a trail but an ambush instead. Bandits were waiting for me, they knew I would come. One of the bandits took my bow from me and the other bound my hands. Then the woman who had pleaded for my help walked out from behind a tree. “You?!” I yelled in disbelief. “Yes, me. You have been a thorn in my side for some time now. I thought for sure you would follow your father’s footsteps and join his rebellion, but no, you focused on the bandts. MY bandits. This, I had not expected; unlike your father, you looked at the real problem, us. Now, you must disappear,” she told me with a smug grin on her face. Before the bandits blindfolded me, I memorized how she looked. She had her black hair, in a tight bun and she wore a red and gold kimono with dragons adorned on it. Her eyes were like water, a deep blue color. When they had removed my blindfold, I looked around to see where I was. There were several girls with me chained by wrist and ankle to the floor of what seemed to be a merchandise wagon. Around us were several bars holding it together, like a cage. Though onlookers couldn’t tell there were people in it, as there was a kind of fabric tied from the top to the bottom all around the wagon to hide us from view. To anyone else, it was a merchant’s wagon delivering goods. As I looked at these other girls, I noticed that each of them was a missing girl from surrounding villages near my own. “This is not good,” I mumbled to myself as I realized the situation, we were all on. These bandits planned to sell us to the highest bidder, though where they were taking us, I did not know. It seemed like days had passed as we traveled through the land, some of thegirls cried as the days passed by. They were afraid and had every reason to be our fate was not known at this point. Unlike these girls, I played scenarios in my head of how to help us escape day in and out as we traveled. After what seemed like a week passed, I heard hooves outside of our wagon, it was then that the driver whipped the reins controlling the horses to make the wagon move faster. “We must be in Azuchi,” I mumbled under my breath. Then, I heard a voice call out to the driver,” Halt in the name of Lord Nobunaga!” they yelled as the hooves grew closer to the wagon. I looked to the girls around me and tried to get them fired up enough to want to escape,” If you want to be free help me tip this wagon. Nobunaga’s men are outside, so this is our last chance to freedom. Unless you WANT to be sold off,” I coaxed as the hooves drew closer. Reluctantly they agreed to help me out. With my direction, we had synced a rocking motion tilting our weight all on one side and then the other. After a few times of doing this, the wagon tipped onto its side just as I thought it would. With the wagon falling on its side the way it did, it attracted the attention of Nobunaga’s men just as I suspected it would. Seeing the wagon fall, several of Nobunaga’s men rushed to the scene; one man cut the strings holding the fabric in place. To their surprise, there wasn’t merchandise inside the wagon. As they saw us chained to the wagon, their eyes grew wide, this was not what they were expecting to find. Not that it was an unusual thing to go on, but it was rare when they could catch the bandits on route to their destination. One soldier, a man with sandy hair and yellowish-brown eyes wearing a red and green kimono over his armor went to action immediately calling orders on all sides. “Don’t let that driver escape, arrest him! The rest of you, help get these girls free from that wagon,” he ordered as he went to help subdue the driver. The soldiers nodded to him and each went in different directions to do as they were ordered. One man helping us get free looked familiar from when I was a child and lived in Oshu. This man wore a black and blue kimono with his armor and had an eye patch over one of his eyes. The other eye was blue which stood out against his coffee brown hair. “You alright, lass?” he asked as he helped me up from the wagon,” Yeah, I’m fine but these girls need to go back to the smaller outlying villages, their parents are worried. These girls have been missing for quite some time now,” I told him with urgency in the tone of my voice. The man nodded at me and left to meet with the other man about what I had just told him. Not long after he left me there, he returned with his companion following behind him. The moment they neared me, the other man asked,” Is it true what you say? You all come from the small outlaying farming villages?” he asked with urgency in his voice. “I will tell you, but at a price,” I told him with a smug expression on my face, the two looked at each other and then the sandy haired man asked,” What is your price?” I took in a deep breath and straighten my posture and answered,” First, how do you expect me to trust you when you won’t even tell me your names?” I asked as I crossed my arms across my chest. The two men looked taken aback by my response, the man with the eye patch laughed for a moment,” You are an interesting one, lass; though, you have a fair point. My name is Masamune Date,” he responded still laughing. My eyes widened, this man had been my idol as a child, I hadn’t seen him in person sinehe was young, so I hadn’t recognized him. “So, it’s true, the lord of Oshu has come to Azuchi,” I whispered under my breath. His companion, unlike Masamune was shaking his head in disbelief,” You two are similar in a manner of speaking. To answer your demand, my name is Hideyoshi Toyotomi. Now, what was your other demand?” he asked as he told me his name. I bowed to each of them in respect,” My name is Luciel Tihomira, and I need your help with a bandit problem. I know you will know my last name but for now I ask that you let it be. There are people’s lives at risk as we speak a woman feigns victim among the innocent in my village. This woman is why I am here, and she called the bandits there, her bandits,” I explained as calm as possible. The two men looked at me as if deciding what they should do. Here, they had the daughter of the leader of the rebellion against Nobunga. They could get information on his whereabouts but on the other side of the coin, she was asking for help to save lives of innocent citizens. After a moment of thinking they both looked at Luciel,” Very well, we will help you but there will be a price and only you can pay it,” Hideyoshi explained and Masamune finished what he said,” The fact of the matter is this lass. We have been looking for your father with no leads, we need your help to find him and stop what he is trying to start. It is up to you to help, but if you do not, we won’t be helping with those bandits,” he explained. At this point I glared at them, rage boiling through my blood,” You mean to say, that because I might know something you refuse to help these innocent people without that information as your price?! Are you that cold hearted?!” I nearly shrieked at them in anger. These people did not know much of what was going on with the war, they only wanted to get by. They did not deserve to live in fear as they have been. One again, they looked at each other thinking of how to respond to what I had said. They then looked at me and let out a sigh,” I suppose you are right, we were being selfish,” Hideyoshi admitted and then he bowed in apology to me. I had not expected that, much less my idol doing the same thing. I backed up and shook my hands in the air fretting about their bowing to someone like me,” I-It’s fine,” I stammered,” I want to help these people since they have taken care of me since I moved here with my father,” I explained to them. “You mean, you weren’t always here in Azuchi?” Hideyoshi asked me curious. I knew he was searching for information for a lead, he wouldn’t go back to Oshu unless there was no other choice, so I saw no harm in answering,” No, we were originally from Oshu,” I responded. Hearing I was from his home, Masamune got a large smile on his face. “That explains it, I’ve heard Oshu women are strong willed and you are my proof to that,” Hideyoshi told me with a wry smile. “Well, that aside we need to get these girls home,” Masamune said interrupting Hideyoshi. Sighing at being interrupted he nodded,” you are right about that, we need to get them home but first I need to send a message to Lord Nobunaga in case this takes more than a day,” he informed the two of us. Hideyoshi called one soldier to him that had accompanied them, he handed a letter he had just written and handed it to him,” Take this to Lord Nobunaga, no stops no distractions,” he told the man with a serious expression on his face. Swallowing hard, the soldier nodded and ran to his horse and off he went to deliver the message. Hideyoshi then turned us and the girls they had wrapped in blankets,” Don’t worry, we will get you all home. I know you may not like this wagon, but this is the only way we can get you all home at the same time,” he told them as he held a concerned expression. The girls nodded to him in understanding, then they bowed as if to thank him. He waved his hands at them,” No, no. It is not me you should be thanking. Luciel asked us to help and with her quick thinking got us to notice all in the wagon. So, it is her you should thank,” he told them honestly. With the help of the remaining soldiers on standby, Hideyoshi and Masamune got the wagon back on its wheels. Masamune checked the wheels to make sure there wasn’t any lasting damage from when it was tipped over. Seeing that there was none, Masamune nodded to the girls’ guiding them onto the wagon one at a time. He looked to me as if to wait for me to board and I shook my head,” I won’t board that wagon again,” I told him with a serious expression,” Just get me a horse and I will follow you,” I told them. Masamune let out a small laugh and nodded as he found me a horse,” You are an Oshu woman through and through,” he told me with a proud smile. I smiled at him and Hideyoshi shook his head, seeing that Masamune couldn’t help but get excited when meeting another person from his home. Once the end of the wagon was secured so none of the girls would fall out, I was charged with leading them to the villages. I didn’t mind, though I was surprised to find how little they knew about the area outside of the main Owari towns. Because of the wagon, our travel speed was rather slow, we took at least three days to get back to the village. I had plans of revenge on this woman and I wanted my bow back from her bandits. In my mind, there was no mercy for her or her lackies. As we arrived, people went silent it was no secret that the men of Nobunaga were not welcome in these villages, once they saw me and I saw their angry expressions I knew my life here was over. With how much hated Nobunga, they would list me as a sympathizer and ostracize me from the village. However, they appeared to forget their anger once they saw the missing girls were returned safely. Dismounting my horse, I looked around for that traitor. She was trying to slip into the forest unnoticed. “ Masamune, Hideyoshi the woman I told you about she is slipping into the forest for back up,” I told them as she tried to sneak away. Noticing this, Hideyoshi chased after her while Masamune stayed in the village making sure the girls got to their respective homes safely. In the forest, Hideyoshi much like myself had been surrounded. Though, the bandits hadn’t expected one of Nobunaga’s men to follow the woman. Her eyes grew wide as she saw him staring right at her readying his weapon,” You are under arrest,” he told her,” And what charges do you have against me, mr. samurai?” the woman asked him with a smirk on her face. Walking closer to him she tried to seduce him with her looks and smell, though to her surprise it did not work on Hideyoshi,” Human trafficking being one charge, trying to seduce a soldier of Nobunaga could possibly be added as well,” he warned her as she had touched his arm in a suggest manner. Hearing the warning, she backed away from him. “You have no proof I was behind those girls being sold,” she snapped. “No, but you just told me the proof I needed,” Masamune told her as he entered the scene as I followed behind the two. The bandits now fearful backed away from the two samurai, though they were too slow because between two of them attacking the bandits, no one was left. The woman, however, was taken into custody and brought to the same wagon she had used to sell innocent women. As she was locked away in the wagon, dirty looks once again turned to me. I had brought soldiers of Nobunaga to my home; thus, I was now a traitor in their eyes. Shocked at the response they received by the villagers, both Masamune and Hideyoshi looked to me and they came to realize that it was not them that was getting the dirty looks, it was me. After Masamune thought on it, he took Hideyoshi to the side, “These people will not allow her to stay here after today. If they do it will be a very miserable existence for her,” Masamune told Hideyoshi. He too had seen what Masamune did and nodded,” I believe you’re right. She will have no where to go after we leave. I think it’s best if we take her back to Azuchi Castle and ask Nobunaga for her to stay within the castle town,” Hideyoshi told him. The two nodded in agreement and approached me, each placing a hand one of my shoulders, they were showing me sympathy without making it obvious to the villagers. Hideyoshi turned to me, looking into my lavender eyes,” You have a choice to make now Luciel, will you stay here or go to Azuchi castle with us?” Hideyoshi asked as he and Masamune looked at me. I ran my fingers through my silver hair in thought. I knew if I accepted their offer, I would have to betray my father. I looked around me, seeing the people that took care of me from a young age, showing so much hate for bring help with the bandit problem. Sighing, I nodded to myself telling myself what needed to be done. “I will go with you to Azuchi Castle,” I told them. I clenched my first, anger filled my heart. I was only trying to help protect them from the bandits and in response, I get casted out. Knowing they would question me about my father, I saved them the time and energy,” I know you wanted to know more about my father, but I am sorry to say he was always vague with me. The last time he was here, was two years ago. Since then I have not seen him, I just know he told me he had a meeting with his rebellion members. After that, I have not heard from or seen him,” I told them. The two gritted their teeth, their hope for a good lead was gone. If there was one thing my father was good at, it was hiding. I went to my room and gathered my things before leaving I had searched the house, I shared with my father for anything that could be helpful. It was to no avail, he didn’t leave a single crumb for them to follow. He knew he was being hunted and he had no plans to be found. Leaving my home behind, I nodded to the two men as I put my belongings in the satchel bags around the horse, they allowed me to use. However, I planned to take my father’s horse with me as well so the horse they allowed me to use, was to be used as a storage horse. Checking that we were all ready, Hideyoshi mounted his horse followed by Masamune and myself, we then left the village behind us. I looked back once,after that I never looked back again. Like the way to the village, the way to the castle was also slow. Though we did not have a wagon full of girls to protect, we had a villain that would go out of her way to cause suffering on those around her we had to make sure did not escape. On the way to the castle, Masamune and Hideyoshi took turns watching the wagon as we continued on our journey to Azuchi Castle. I had been expecting another ambush by her bandit friends, though one did not happen. I knew they were out there, but I suppose the felt a twinge of fear when they say Hideyoshi and Masamune guarding her. As we came through the gates leading to the Castletown of Azuchi, I did not expect to see what I did. The people loved Hideyoshi and Masamune. Wide-eyed, I watched as women flocked to Hideyoshi and people greeted Masamune. Some of the people, were so kind they had even greeted someone they didn’t even know, me. Seeing this side of the story, made me wonder even moreso than before, if my father had not been mistaken about Nobunaga and his allies. Perhaps, I thought he had to do awful things to get his ultimate goal. I have seen evidence that people would defy him to the death, so I couldn’t help but wonder if a lot of the rumors were unfounded. Once the two men could finally get free, they led me through the town up to the castle which towered above the town we were in. I had never seen a castle up close before, so to me it looked amazing. Seeing my reactions to things, made Masamue chuckle I couldn’t help but wonder what it was that he was thinking. I hadn’t known him long, but he seemed to be a person that was hard to know every detail about. Reaching the castle gates, Hideyoshi helped me off my horse and then Masamune showed me where to take both horses I had been using. On the castle grounds, there were several places for horses, I smiled at this knowing my horse would always be well taken care of. Once I finished securing the two horses into their stalls and feeding them, I caught up with Hideyoshi and Masamune. Together, the three of us entered the castle. I don’t think I felt more nervous in my entire life. Walking through the doors, I felt tight-chested and my hands began to sweat. I bit down on my lip, not knowing how this would turn out. I have heard many rumors about Nobunaga being a tyrant and killing any that did not serve him to his desire. As we arrived the main hall, where meetings were often held between Nobunaga and his vassals Hideyoshi lead the way into the room. I looked around as we passed the other men sitting opposite of the dais, one reminded me awfully a lot of a snake with his golden eyes and fox-like grin. Another looked to be unreadable, he looked kind by appearance, but appearances could be deceiving, there was one other man he looked cold outwardly and was cloaked in yellow from head to toe, his kimono he wore almost matched his hair, his eyes stood out since they were a sea-green color. The two in front of me had suddenly stopped moving. “We have returned from our business in the outlying farming villages, m’Lord,” Hideyoshi reported as he bowed to the man sitting on the dais. This must be the infamous Oda Nobunaga I thought to myself. The man my father hated to his very core and I still to this day did not understand why. He looked like death itself, he wore a black kimono and had matching hair to go with it, his eyes were a shade of red; from the distance they seemed to be rathe cold. Then, I was taken by surprise he smiled at his vassals. “Welcome back Hideyoshi and Masamune. I hope that your mission ended in success?” he asked as they returned to their full height. Masamune smiled that same cocky smile he always wore,” You could say that, I mean the bandits are dead and the woman was behind their attacks is behind bars,” Masamune explained. Hideyoshi on the other hand, saw it as both a success and failure. “We succeeded in the request to help with the bandit problem, however, we found no leads on the man behind the rebellion,” he hung his in shame as he said this. Masamune shook his head looking to the side at Hideyoshi,” That may be, however, we found his daughter. Though she doesn’t seem to know his whereabouts, perhaps she will know where he has been and then we can figure out his pattern of travel,” Masamune suggested. Nobunaga sat up in his seat, now interested in who it was that they brought in with them. “Come forward, girl,” he ordered as Masamune and Hideyoshi moved on either side of me so he could see me clearly. Taking a deep breath in and back out, I walked closer to him as he asked. He inclined his head at me as if looking me over from head to to, the he stood and walked over to me. “Are you aware of the problems your father has started for me?” he asked me as he pierced me with those cold, red eyes. I could only nod,” I have heard mention of his hate for you, Lord Nobunaga. However, I do not know much else. He always spoke of his hate for you since before we left Oshu,” I informed with a bowed head. He looked at me for a moment,” Raise your head, woman. You have done nothing wrong, if anything you have impressed me. Knowing we knew your father you still seeked our help to aid the people of your village with a bandit problem, despite knowing how they would treat you, you still made sure they would be safer before you left. Then, to top it off you come here to my castle knowing the potential of being imprisoned by association,” he told me with a sly smile on his face. He sat back down on the dais, “You are welcome to stay within Azuchi Castle for as long as you would like. Granted, that you tell me what you know about your father. It can be anything, even the places he has taken you,” Nobunaga told her with a smile. I had to think for a moment, this was the biggest decision of my life. Did I remain loyal to my father and risk certain death, or did I tell them what they wanted to know? I bit lower lip, nervous as I thought this over for a minute. Sighing, I knew what had to be done, though I did not like I knew if I didn’t give them at least a little information that may or may not help, I would be the one in the real danger. Bowing to Nobunga I told him,” I accept your proposal, I will tell you what I know in exchange for a place to stay; I can’t promise the information will help you, but it is all I have,” I told him as I stood back to my full height. Nobunaga nodded and with the wave of his hand, he dismissed me. As I left the main hall, Masamune had followed me out. “I will show you a spare room with a good view,” he told me with a smile. I nodded and followed him to the room he spoke of. When we arrived, I was breathless, across the room was a large garden it was so beautiful. It had a small waterfall the merged with a pond full of koi. Around the pond there were several kinds of flowers that adorned the ground and grass alike. I was more drawn to the lotus lowers that were on the muddy water meant for growing rice. I smiled and turned to look at Masamune and bowed,” Thank you for finding me a room with such a view, it is beautiful,” I told him with a smile. He smiled at me and nodded in response. “Tomorrow, I will take you on a tour of the market, so be ready bright and early,” he told me with a teasing smile. I was not sure what to think of him yet, but I do admit that he was growing on me.

[inthenameofotome-blog]

Love of the Fury Part One: Destined Meeting

It had been a rainy night, a young woman had been traveling from across the sea, the full moon was a tint of red. She looked up at the sky an let out a sigh, in her mind a red full moon was a bad omen. She was still getting used to Japan, she loved it but sometimes Ronin gave her trouble for being a woman. Her long black hair blew in the wind, the wind then brought her the scent of human Ronin. “Great, just what I need,” she muttered to herself as she noticed men surrounding her. Alarmed, she placed her hand on the double sheathes on her back which held her kunai, she had other weapons on hand as well. 

“Well, well, well, what do we have here boys?” One of the Ronin asked as he approached her as if he had the advantage. She moved her eyes around as each man approached her, this is bad she thought to herself. Crowded fights were not her forte. There was only one option, she had to get away from them and she had the perfect way to do so. She put her hand in her satchel, grabbed a smoke bomb and threw it onto the ground causing smoke to surround her and the men around her. Using the smoke as her opportunity, she ran from the men as swiftly as she could. 

Not long after the smoke cleared, shouts followed her as she ran to hide from the crowd of men. There had been at least seven Ronin, they were always drunk or causing trouble, or both she thought to herself as she continued to run. She then noticed a small alleyway she could squeeze into as they ran past the area. Breathing hard, she tried to catch her breath from the running. To her dismay a plank of wood fell close to her, the men heard it and ran to her location to see if it was her. 

Letting out an exasperated sigh she stood and ran again, almost tripping over the wood she hurt her foot. A searing pain went through her leg, though she did all she could to not make a sound so she would not give her location away. This slowed her speed down quite a bit, making it so she had to run a little and find a hiding spot so she would not stress her foot too badly. She leaned her head back against the wall of a building enduring the pain of her ankle,” must’ve sprained it,” she whispered to herself. 

The voices of the men drew close again, so she moved again, that was when she met him. A man with dark red hair and dark amber eyes. She was drawn to him almost instantly, as if it were love at first sight. He looked her way for a moment, he was wearing white and red clothes under a blue coat with white stripes and had white bandages around his hands. His eyes widened as he saw the young woman, she was soaked because of the rain. 

He looked over to his men,” Go on without me, I will see to her. I won’t take long,” he promised them. His men nodded and walked ahead of him. He was surprised with how tall she was for a woman, putting that thought to the side he noticed her wincing as she put weight on her foot,” you shouldn’t move on that ankle, you will only make it worse,” he warned her as he leaned down and checked her ankle,” You have a pretty nasty sprain,” he informed her. So, she had been right about that she thought to herself. 

“Why did you stop to help me, a stranger?” She asked him confused. He looked up at her and smiled, “I saw that you may be injured and wanted to help. Not everyone needs a reason to help someone though,” he explained. She returned his smile with some shyness to it. Their moment didn’t last long as shouts were soon heard once again,” Great, they’re almost here. They don’t give up,” she said with an exasperated sigh. He looked down the street and saw the Ronin that had been chasing her. 

He narrowed his eyes angrily, “Don’t you worry ma’am, I won’t let them touch you,” he assured her as she was leaning her head against the building in pain. As the men approached them, he took his spear in one hand and readied a stance as he stood in front of the young woman. She watched him surprised, fighting was nothing new to her but having someone protect her instead of the other way around, that she was not accustomed to. She couldn’t take her eyes off him, not because she was in love, but from awe and respect for someone that would go out of his way to protect a stranger. 

He slammed his spear to the ground,” You have disturbed the peace, so you will be punished for it. Chasing a young woman to the point she gets injured is dishonorable!” he yelled at them angrily,” I, Sanosuke Harada Captain of the tenth division of the Shinsengumi shall defeat you all if you refuse to back down!” he declared as he lowed himself into a fighting stance holding his spear with both hands. This had caused the men to back away slightly,” A mibu wolf,” one of the men whispered in fear. One by one, the men ran in the other direction not wanting to deal with a member of the Shinsengumi. Once the men had scattered, he leaned his spear against the building and picked the young woman up and then asked one of his men to carry his spear for him. 

Surprised she looked up at him, her amethyst eyes meeting his dark amber eyes. He smiled as if to reassure her that it would be ok. “I don’t need to be carried off like a princess by a white knight,” she told him with a surprised tone in her voice. He laughed at her analogy,” No, but your ankle must hurt bad, so I rather carry you to our headquarters to have it treated over you making it worse. There aren’t any doctors awake at this hour otherwise I’d take you to one of them instead,” he responded with a smile. 

“So, your name is Sanosuke Harada huh? That was quite the intimidating speech you gave them, since I already know your name, I suppose I can give you my name. My name is Xai Celestial,” she told him as she looked up at him as he carried her. From time to time she looked back at the men following them back to the headquarters. Each step he took, and her ankle hit part of his body, pain was sent up her leg. He looked at her with concern noticing that she was enduring a lot of pain,” It’s nice to meet you Xai, endure a little longer we are almost there,” he told her with a concerned look. 

A little farther and he felt a weight on his shoulder, when he looked down, he saw that she had passed out from the pain. He looked at her with concern and continued to the headquarters. Wanting to get her to the headquarters quickly and since she had passed away, he sprinted there, the men followed behind keeping pace with him. Within five minutes they arrived at the gates, though to an angry man. His purple eyes narrowed as he crossed his arms. 

“I told you your curfew, be lucky that I don’t make you take the punishment for breaking the rules,” he snapped. He looked over and then noticed a woman in the arms of Sanosuke,” Why did you bring a civilian here?” he asked coldly looking her over head to toe with his eyes. He moved his black ponytail behind his shoulder and approached Sanosuke,” she faint? Her ankle seems swollen too, let’s get her inside since you brought her here there is no saying what she may or may not here. If it comes to that there is no saying what will happen to her. Do you accept such responsibility on your shoulders for bringing her here?” he asked him as he looked Sanosuke square in the eye. 

“I accept responsibility, Vice Commander Hijikata. I apologize for being late, I had stopped to help her. At least seven ronin were chasing her, why I don’t know but I doubt it was a good reason, I will take any punishment you decide on,” he told the man with a serious tone to his voice. Hijikata thought for a moment and let out a sigh,” Let this be a warning. I will let it slide since you were helping someone. Hard to know what they would have done if they caught up to her,” he admitted as he led him into the headquarters common room. Once there, he laid her on a futon that Hijikata had rolled out, he smiled at him knowing that he wasn’t often this lenient. 

After laying Xai down, Sanosuke left the room and came back in with a first aid kit. Bending down on one knee he opened the kit and took out some bandage and wrapped it around her ankle so that it wasn’t too tight but tight enough to support the ankle so that I could heal up. After he finished wrapping her ankle, he took a cushion and placed it under her foot so that she could elevate her foot. Sanosuke looked over at Hijikata,” I will sleep in here tonight so that I can be here in case she needs something,” he told him as he pulled out a second spare futon. Scoffing Hijikata shrugged and muttered,” do as you wish,” then he walked off to go to bed himself. 

The next morning, the common room was crowded with the rest of the captains of the shinsengumi. Most of them were looking in shock at the fact that there was a woman sleeping in the common room. Sanosuke greeted them as they came in. A man with dark brown hair and blue eyes approached him,” Where the hell did you find a cute girl like her?” he asked clearly jealous. Sanosuke laughed,” Shinpachi I didn’t bring her here because I wanted to. She was being pursued by a group of ronin and hurt her ankle, with no doctors around at the time I brought her here to treat her ankle,” he explained. 

Shinpachi nudged at him sheepishly thinking he was just covering up, Sanosuke shook his head at his best friend sighing in exasperation. To shut him up he pulled his green bandana over his eyes. Shinpachi let out a yelp of surprise and took a minute to fix it, once he fixed it he shot his friend a playful glare. Another man that approached didn’t look to be a full-grown man despite being such, he had long brown hair in a ponytail with bluish eyes, he wore a yellow top mixed with purple. “Hey how come you two get all the fun?” He asked complaining. 

“Heisuke, I already told all of you, I only brought her here because at the time there were no open doctors. It was also raining, and she was soaked, and I didn’t want her to get sick,” Sanosuke explained once again showing signs of irritation since no one was listening to him. A man with a smirk on his face approached the two of them, he looked at the sleeping girl and then back at Sanosuke,” That’s what you say, but how are we to know you don’t want to say that to avoid punishment?” he asked with a smirk as he leaned over to touch her hair and Sanosuke stopped him with a glare. 

“Because, I was there when he came in with her, now knock your shit off Souji,” Hijikata snapped as he entered the room. A man with sandy brown hair, and hazel eyes, he wore a blue kimono and bowed sarcastically as Hijikata entered the room,” Good morning, Sannan,” Hijikata greeted. There was a man that had been standing in the back silently watching, he had purple hair in a low ponytail which trailed over his shoulder and bright blue eyes, he bowed to Hijikata as he entered the room,” Ah, Saito there you are was wondering where you were. I will have some work for you later,” he told him as he sat down. Saito nodded at him,” understood,” he muttered quietly. 

In the hall as the men were quieting down and finding their places to sit, two men entered the room. A man wearing a yellow kimono with black hair in an updo which showed some balding and then another man wearing a black kimono laughing as they entered the room, he too had black hair though unlike the other man his hair was not balding, and he had light brown eyes instead of hazel. Hijikata looked up as the two entered,” Kandou, Inoue I’m glad you made it for breakfast, though Sanosuke was going to wake our guest so we may all eat,” Hijikata said in greeting to the two as he shot Sanosuke a looked as if it had been an order. 

The two men looked over where Sanosuke was sitting in surprise,” oh my, there’s a young lady here,” Inoue said with a tone of surprise. Kondou had a look of surprise as well,” This is unusual, she doesn’t know anything does she?” he asked before Sanosuke shook her lightly to wake her up. Hijikata shook his head to affirm that she knew nothing that she should not. As she stirred, she opened her eyes and looked around and tried to sit up though it was obvious that it was not comfortable for her to do so. Sanosuke noticing this, helped her to sit up by letting her lean on him as he sat her up and repositioned her foot so that it was not being strained. “Where am I?” she asked quietly with a confused look. 

“You’re at the Shinsengumi headquarters,” Sanosuke explained,” I had to bring you here since it was late and a doctor wouldn’t help you if you were with me,” he continued as he held a somber look. A smile crossed her face which caused hearts across the room to skip a beat. “I appreciate you helping me then, most doctors are useless these days anyway,” she admitted as she sat up a little more. “The pain has gone down thanks to your help, anyway I don’t think I have met your comrades,” she said as she looked at the other members sitting around the room. 

Kondou sat down and looked at her with a smile,” Well, welcome to our headquarters. You are welcome to stay as long as you need to heal up. I am Isami Kondou, I am the commander of the Shinsengumi. Next to me is Genzaburou Inoue,” he told her as he motioned at the man next to him who had bowed at her,” It is a pleasure miss-“He motioned at her as if asking her name,” Xai Celestial,” she responded with a smile. “Beautiful name, I am the captain of the sixth division,” he continued. 

Kondou motioned at the next one in their sitting circle, a sly smile crossed his face,” Souji Okita Captain of the first division,” he shrugged and tilted his head to the next person,” Hajime Saito, captain of the third division,” he told her quietly with a bow and then looked at the person sitting next to him,”Heisuke Todou, captain of the eight division!” he said excitedly in what was almost a shout. Shinpachi hit him on the top of the head causing him to rub the top of his head in pain,” Shinpachi Nagakura, captain of the second division,” he told her with a smile as he sat back down from hitting Heisuke. 

Sannan nodded at her with a smile that was hard to distinguish if it were sincere or not,” Keisuke Sannan, I am the other Vice Commander much like Toshizo Hijikata,” he said motioning at Hijikata who was scowling at Heisuke for acting out once again. He then looked over at Xai,” Like he said my name is Toshizo Hijikata, there are two other members but you may or may not see them, they come and go,” he explained as he crossed his arms,” now that everyone introduced themselves let’s eat,” he said as he picked up his chopsticks. 

“Well, it is nice to meet you all, thank you for allowing me to stay though I am unsure why you told me your ranking and your name,” she admitted as she ate some of the rice rather slowly since it had too much salt. Shinpachi noticing the expression looked around,” who used too much salt again?” he asked rather disgruntled as he shoveled the rice in his mouth. No one answered his question, as everyone was eating their food. 

As soon as most of the men left the room, Xai checked her ankle noticing that it was nearly healed already. She touched it lightly when none of the men were looking her way so that she could finish the healing of her ankle. Then she removed the bandage,” Looks like it is better guess it wasn’t as bad as it felt,” she said with a smile. Stating that, she stood up to test her ankle out and like she had expected there was no pain. Sanosuke smiled at her,” I am glad your pain is gone, what do you plan to do now?” he asked her curiously. 

She thought for a moment, “I will probably go back to town and check into the hotel I was supposed to show up at last night. Given what you guys said about your reputation around here, I will just tell them I got delayed by a day,” she told him with a shrug. He smiled wryly and nodded,” probably a good idea, otherwise they may not allow you to stay there,” he told her with a somber look. Xai looked at him sadly but nodded and picked up her satchel, she shrugged it onto her shoulder and then started on her way out. Though she was stopped by Sanosuke,” Let me at least walk you out of the headquarters,” he offered. With a smile she nodded accepting his offer. The two of them then walked out the door together, he walked her to the gates that he brought her through the other night. “Be more careful so this doesn’t happen again, can’t always be there to help you,” he advised with a smile. “Don’t worry, Sanosuke I will be careful, that only happened because of the rain causing a plank of wood to fall on my ankle,” she explained. The two nod at each other and with a wave she left for town. 

Going the long way so it wouldn’t seem that she came from Mibu took longer than she had expected, as it was nearly sundown by the time, she reached Kyoto. Sighing, she looked around looking for the hotel she was booked to stay at. She then spotted it, a brown little building with the words ‘Ikedaya Inn’ plastered on the side of the building. “There it is,” she muttered to herself as she crossed from where she was standing and walked inside. 

“Oh, welcome to Ikedaya Inn,” a woman at the front said with a bow though she had not been expecting a customer at the moment. “Hello, my name is Xai Celestial, and I had reserved a room. I had planned to check in yesterday, but the rain delayed my trip from Edo,” she explained. The woman smiled at her and nodded,” Ah yes, I am glad that you made it safely your room is right this way miss Celestial,” she said as she motioned for her to follow her to her room. Xai followed her and as they reached the room, she thanked her and the two bowed to each other and then the woman walked off to return to her duties. She looked around the room, it was on the small side with a rolled-up futon in the corner with a blanket folded next to it. “I still can’t get used to how different it is here,” she said to herself as she looked out the window. Despite having no where to go overseas where she was from, she missed it all the same. She closed her eyes to stop herself from crying. 

It was then that she sensed someone above her room’s roof, looking up she removed part of the roof and heard footsteps moving away from the room, not appreciating being spied on, she jumped up there herself crouching low enough that she could move across just as quickly and cornered the person close to her room. The spy had in fact been a man with long brown hair held a ponytail with purple eyes,” who are you and why are you watching my room?” she asked him angrily. The man looked at her shocked,” You could tell I was there despite how silent I was,” he stammered. “Of course, I could, I can feel energy from people around me. Tell me are you one of those two members Hijikata spoke of that I would or would not meet?” she demanded as she held him by the scruff of his shirt. 

“Yes, now if you would kindly release me, I will tell you why I am here, preferably in your room,” he told her as he grabbed at the hand that was grabbing his kimono. “Fine, but no funny stuff as I move in front of you,” she warned as she made her way back to her room. Once in her room, she backed away from the hole in the roof and he jumped down and joined her and then another man appeared after him. She raised a brow at the two of them. “Ninja, huh?” she asked to no one in particular. The two looked at her in surprise but said nothing, “First let’s get to know each other I am Susumu Yamazaki, and my companion here is Kai Shimada,” he told her as he motioned at the bigger man. He wore a green kimono with a black trail where it folded. The other man wore a red kimono, he had his black hair in an updo, and he smiled at her with kind looking amber yellow eyes. She thought for a moment as she heard their introductions. 

“I would normally say it’s nice to meet you but right now I am not so sure since you were spying on my room. Where I am from, they call that a peeping tom,” she told the two of them irritably. They looked at her confused,” So, you aren’t from Japan normally?” the two of them asked. She shook her head,” No, I’m from overseas, why I am here though is my business that I don’t wish to share with you,” she told them in a mater of a fact tone. “I’m assuming I don’t need to tell you my name either since you work for Hijikata,” she said a little irritated. The two of them nodded to confirm that she was right, she shook her head and looked at the ground. 

“Anyway, know that we weren’t sent to spy on you but to warn you of an attack that will happen here soon,” Yamazaki informed her as his partner nodded his head as to confirm what he was saying. She stood there and thought for a moment,” So be it, I have nowhere else to go so I suppose I will just have to know of the attack and make sure innocent people aren’t dragged into it,” she told him with a small smile. “I appreciate the warning though you could have just come through the door and then you wouldn’t have alarmed me in the manner you did,” she told him as she crossed her arms. He smiled at her wryly,” I suppose you are right about that, though he ordered us not to be seen by the other members- “she raised her brow and tapped her foot,” perhaps a message then?” she said growing more irritated by the second. 

The two men averted her eyes and then bowed and excused themselves having finished their jobs. As soon as they left her room they returned to the Shinsengumi headquarters, they looked as if they wanted to drop where they stood. Hijikata looked at the two of them,” Is there a problem?” he asked with a raised eyebrow. Yamazaki shook his head, “No, vice-commander, just surprised that she could tell we were above her room despite not having made a sound,” he informed him which had caused a surprised look from Hijikata as well. 

He thought for a moment on what he had just been told, he realized she may need some actual observation. “This woman appears to be rather unique, they to observe her from a distance without being caught if possible,” he ordered though he got two nervous looks in response. He gave the two of them an exasperated look and dismissed them. That was when Souji came into the room,” able to find them when they are silent she sounds like fun,” he told Hijikata as he let out a laugh,” I wonder how she is in a fight,” he wondered aloud as Hijikata shot him a glare as a warning which caused him to leave the room. 

At the inn tension could be felt in the air, sitting in her room Xai could hear every conversation going on around her. She closed her eyes as she focused on a certain conversation, talk about an attack and then there was word about the place and time. “It would seem those two were right about their information but will they see through their trickery I wonder,” she wondered aloud to herself. She then stood and changed from the purple kimono with yellow butterfly decorations to a black garb that was easy to move in. There was a piece that covered her mouth and black boots and gloves. If she was to warn the innocent people she wanted to be an unknown person.

[inthenameofotome-blog]

Fighting Fire with Fire Part Five: Battle of the Wills

Joy spread through the army of Oda upon Luciel and Masamune's return, she was unharmed and many were happy about this. With Kennyo in custody, there was only one they set their sights on for vengeance, Kenshin Uesugi. This meant clashing blades with the one that had helped Luciel get away, Shingen Takeda. This was unavoidable as he was the ally of Kenshin and he was not one to be taken lightly nor was his comrad Yukimura Sanada. Tension filled the air knowing the coming battle would not be an easy one. There had been several skrimishes between the two armies, all of which had dragged out for many days and nights. This time however, they had another reason to fight Kenshin aside from unifying Japan, vengeance. The soldiers wanted to return the favor that was placed upon Luciel tenfold to their army and Nobunaga would see it be done. In the home of Luciel and Masamune anxiety filled the air, she knew he would have to go to battle and there was no guarantee of his return. Pulling her close to him and hugging her tightly he whispered," It's like I promised, I refuse to die unless you are there with me," he placed his head on top of her's in order to comfort her. Luciel nodded though she still feared what could happen. She didn't want to wait for him to return while worrying but she was not sure she could kill someone. The sun was rising as Masamune left with the rest of the army, Luciel watching as they left for battle. As they passed her, each soldier bid her farewell though Mitsuhide had stopped for a moment," I doubt you will stay while we are away so here is a map to where we will be, it is up to you though. Maybe you will want to stay and wait all alone, that is your choice to make," with a grin across his face he handed Luciel a map and joined the rest of the army as they left for battle. Once the last soldier left, Luciel turned and went home to study the map. Masamune who had watched the entire interaction stopped Mitsuhide for a moment," What are you thinking? Inviting her to her own death?" he glared at the other man as he asked his questions. Mitsuhide smiled at him, " Instead of having her wander when she decides what she wants to do I showed her exactly where to go. Wouldn't want her finding Kenshin's camp now do we?" as he asked a twisted grin spread across his face and he nudged his horse to continue on. Nobunaga hearing the exchange of words smiled knowingly as if he knew what would happen. Inside the estate Luciel was still looking at the map trying to pinpoint where things were. The maps in her time were quite a bit different. She then saw a note scrawled at the bottom from Mitsuhide," Don't even think about joining if you aren't ready to pierce hearts with your arrows," she closed her eyes as she read his note. He was right to say such a thing, if she went unprepared to kill she would only be a burden to everyone around her. Though she only hoped to be the support of Masamune. She thought for a moment more and decided that she would do what was needed to help Masamune. She changed into clothes suitable for archery, pulling on her specialized gloves for archery and removing her bow and quiver with arrows from the case they always sat in. Once she was ready, she took the map and went to the stables. There, she mounted Shadow and took off to join up with the army. She would not get there before the fighting would start but she would get there in time to be the support she wanted to be, she thought to herself. From the start of the battle, it was fierce all the way around. As the rest of the army contended with Shingen, Yukimura and their men Masamune did exactly what Nobunaga predicted, he went his own way in search of Kenshin. He would cut down those that attacked him but other than that, he wanted to find Kenshin. If he could take him out, the war would end and he could live safely with Luciel back in Oshu. The battle raged on for several hours before Luciel arrived on the scene, at first she wasn't sure she could handle the sight of the dead bodies. Shaking her head and strengthening her resolve she rushed to find Masamune hoping he was ok. Seeing her on the battlefield Hideyoshi wanted to go to her and make sure she stayed safe. Nobunaga had put a stop to it," she came her for a reason just as the rest of us have. Let her do what she feels she must do, do not baby her. She wishes to help Masamune, so let her do just that otherwise you insult her honor," Nobunaga told him as they continued to fight the enemy. As he watched her go, he realized Nobunaga was right. She was only looking for Masamune. With her mind set on him, he would only be in her way he thought to himself. He could only hope for her safety. He offered a silent prayer as he returned to his fight. As Luciel looked for Masamune a few soldiers tried to strike her down, not wanting to kill she took an arrow and shot it behind each leg to immobilize them. With some it took more than one arrow as some soldiers were just as stubborn as Masamune. As the sun sank to the horizon, she spotted Masamune and Kenshin in a battle. The two were facing off pushing their weight against each other causing their swords to go between their bodies. Luciel bit her lip as she watched with worry and suspense. She didn't want him to get hurt but she knew in his mind he had to do this. The slashes of the two swords started once again once one of them broke the swords from each other. They did this in several circles, Luciel only watched the two not wanting to be a distraction to Masamune. Distractions caused injuries and in a fight like his that could become lethal. As the two faced off a soldier creeped towards Masamune thinking to get an easy shot while he was distracted by Masamune. Noticing this, Luciel took an arrow in her hand and aimed at the man's back legs and hit him right at the joints of the legs, causing the man to topple over. Both Masamune and then Kenshin stopped for a moment seeing the arrow hit it's mark. It surprised Kenshin but it only made Masamune smile at the owner of the arrow. Kenshin looked at her bewildered. "A woman, on the battlefield..." he muttered as he looked at Masamune. That she had only immobilized the man did not escape notice. "She came here only intending to immobilize, not kill. That is how someone gets killed," Kenshin informed Masamune. Knowing this all too well he shrugged," We are well aware of this, I am sure she is as well but I think she is here for support moreso than killing," he responded with a smirk as their swords clashed. Their fight was dragging on, as the sun started to set the two were reaching their limit in stamina. "Rumors seem to be true about you One-Eyed Dragon," Kenshin murmured. Masamune laughed in response," same can be said about you, god of war." Kenshin smirked at his remark and with a slash of the sword injured Masamune's arm. Blood splattered on the ground pouring from Masamune's arm. For a moment he winced and held his arm but switched to his other arm and wanted to continue the fight. Though it put him at a disadvantage. As he seemed to finish the fight in his mind, Luciel nocked her arrow ready to let it go. Though to her surprise, Masamune found the strength to run to her side and stop her. "Do not do this Luciel, you will never be the same afterwards," he pleaded of her. She looked at him," I wanted to make it so he could only use one arm too, I didn't want him killing you," she admitted. He pulled her off of her horse and held her close to him," You reckless girl, I could not finish the fight if you were to do something like that. I would rather get hurt then for you to risk your mentality by taking the life of another," he admitted in a hushed tone. Kenshin watched the two of them from the distance," I will let you go this time. I don't want to fight in front of a woman and I want you at full strength when next we fight," Kenshin informed Masamune as he sheathed his sword and turned and walked away. As he left the battlefield his soldiers followed him, the battle was over for the time being. The oda army seeing this as a victory cheered and they too returned home. Hideyoshi and Nobunaga watched as Masamune and Luciel rode off together. Jealousy was read like a book on Hideyoshi's face," You were too slow to win her, so you lost." Nobunaga told him with a smirk spreading across his face. Grumbling, Hideyoshi followed Nobunaga back to the castle grounds. Most of the soldiers had to go directly to the infirmary, whereas, Masamune and Luciel went home so she could take care of his wounds herself. Seeing the wound on his arm she winced thinking it looked pretty bad. "That bad huh?" he asked her as he looked over his shoulder a little. She inspected it a little to get a better idea of what she needed to do," I think it looks worse than it actually is, I will stitch it up for you though," she offered as she left him to sit there as she got the sewing kit. He smiled watching her as she returned to him with the kit. At first it was hard for her to do since she didn't like the sound of the needle going in and out of flesh but she got used to it as she continued.   Meanwhile, at the castle Nobunaga was looking at the adoption certificate he had taken out of Luciel's bag in the past, though he never put it back. He flipped it through his fingers and then looked at the date. A wide grin spread across his face," her birthday will be here soon," he said to himself causing Ieyasu and Hideyoshi to look at him. "I thought you put that back in her bag," Hideyoshi exclaimed in surprise. Nobunaga laughed and shook his head," I had to keep at least something about her. This just so happens to have her birthday on it," he told him with a grin. Hideyoshi's face lit up," Masamune doesn't know does he? In that case we should be the ones to throw her a party instead. It will be her first birthday in our time so it should be something big!" he exclaimed rather excited. Ieyasu let out a sigh, not liking big events he was not sure he wanted to be involved in this. Nobunaga nodded in agreement with Hideyoshi. "What should we get her though?" Hideyoshi wondered aloud as he crossed his arms and stroked his chin with his thumb and finger. Nobunaga chuckled at his excitement," I leave that to each person. Masamune will be told but we can't tell her, he will be the distraction while it is set up," he informed Hideyoshi while he was writing what looked like a letter which he handed to a man standing near him," Take that to Masamune but don't let Luciel read it and tell him she is not to read it," the man nodded at his orders and ran off to deliver the letter. Once Masamune had received the letter he nodded to the man and muttered,"understood," and hid the letter away in his kimono. Like everyone else, Masamune was thinking of how to make her birthday wonderful. As she was practicing her archery, he went to the market and scoured the market for a replacement for the hairpin that was shattered when she had been abducted. He found nothing that piqued his interest until he found a shop that hid in a corner. He walked up to the shopkeeper and asked about hairpins, he had pulled out several for him to look at. The one that caught his attention was a small lotus with butterflies surrounding it and drooping purple beads to match the color of the lotus. Masamune pointed at it and told him," I will take that one," the man smiled at him and nodded," I'm sure the princess will love it," he assured him as he placed the hairpin in a bag and handed it to him. Masamune paid the man, bowed and quickly made his way back to the estate so he could have time to hide her gift before she returned from practice. For the next several days, his job had been to keep Luciel busy while the rest of the people prepared the castle for her birthday. Nobunaga planned to make it a grand party, as it was her first in their time and she would officially be an adult so he saw it as her coming of age. News of the party had spread throughout the town, though no one ushered a word about it when they saw Luciel. The people loved her as if she were their princess, so they too wanted her to have a grand birthday. Several citizens had sent in gifts for her as a way to thank her for her kindness. Every chance she had, Luciel had spent time with the people in the market a little at a time so she wouldn't become overwhelmed. Finally the big day arrived, stretching in her bed as she woke a knock was on her door. Covering her chest a little she asked," Is that you Masamune?" she had a groggy sound to her voice showing that she had just woke up," It is time to get ready, Luciel. Lord Nobunaga has called for us," he informed her through the door. Confused she sat in her bed for a moment," alright, I will be out in a minute," she responded. Masamune thought for a moment and his same jealousy surfaced," don't wear the red kimono, wear the purple one," he told her with a hint of jealousy. Luciel chuckled at his jealousy and wore that one as he asked to appease him, then she left her room and Masamune was near the entrance waiting for her. He smiled seeing her in the kimono. From behind his back he took a bag and handed it to her," happy birthday Luciel," he muttered to her. She blinked and had nearly forgotten that it was her birthday," how did you know?" she asked as she took the bag from him. He smiled," now that would be telling," he teased. She opened the bag and took out the hairpin and let out a small gasp," it's so beautiful Masamune, thank you," she beamed happily as she looked at it. Masamune approached her, took the hairpin and put it in her hair. It matched her kimono perfectly and in Masamune's mind no one else could suit it like she did. Taking his arm that he offered her, he escorted her to the castle. On the way there, people they passed wished her a happy birthday. Once they reached the castle, Masamune stopped Luciel for a moment and blindfolded her. "hey! what's this about? And how is it that everyone knew my birthday?" she asked Masamune, he leaned down and whispered," word travels fast," and with a smile he lead her into the castle to the main hall. There were audible gasps as they passed, people loved how she looked in her kimono. "You can take the blindfold off now, birthday girl,"Nobunaga was heard saying. Without hesitation she removed the blindfold and was surprised at what she saw. They had gone to town and found lanterns meant for the summer festival and decorated the main hall for her. They filled the room with decorations, from flowers and lanterns to random ornaments from festivals, as she looked around in awe most of the generals wished her a happy birthday. Ieyeasu just nodded at her as did Mitsuhide. She was beaming happily," thank you," she said with tears of happiness. No one had done something like this for her before. For the rest of the day, there were celebrations all over town since Luciel brought her party to the people of the nearby town to enjoy as well. The festivities went on until nightfall, many of the people generals included had gotten drunk and were slowly making their way home by the end of the party. Masamune however, didn't drink alcohol since he had no tolerance so Luciel had made tea for him despite his protests of the birthday girl doing anything. As the two made it home, they spent more time together talking about plans for the future. He had not told Nobunaga that he planned to take Luciel with her when the war was over though she was pretty sure that he already knew. Before they went to bed, Masamune had made food from his home for her to enjoy, once they had finished they talked until dawn. After the sun shone through the window, when Masamune turned to her since she had gone quiet he saw that she had fallen asleep leaning against his shoulder. To his surprise, she fell into his lap and instead of getting up he removed her hairpin and let her sleep while he read a book until he too, fell asleep.

~Fin~

[inthenameofotome-blog]

Fighting Fire with Fire Part Four: Vengeance of the Heart

By morning they finished the room for Luciel, Masamune allowed those that had helped him to have half the day off so they could rest. He, however, had to tell Nobunaga what had happened to Luciel while she was at the Uesugi castle. He would personally punish him if given the chance to. He looked over at her on the way out," sleep well," he mumbled as he left for the castle. On the way to the castle, he noticed Hideyoshi talking with some of the maids that insisted he take their gifts. "Hideyoshi, tell your ladies you need to go. Need you to gather everyone, have news about last night," Masamune told him with a serious expression. Hideyoshi stopped and looked at him and then the women and bid them farewell and did as Masamune had asked him. Once he left, Masamune continued on to the main hall. As he entered Ieyasu and Nobunaga were discussing something. As he approached they looked his way. "So, she told you what happened to her last night?" Nobunaga asked as he sat down and motioned for Masamune and Ieyasu to do the same. As he sat down, Masamune nodded," She did. I asked Hideyoshi to gather everyone else and then I will tell everyone what went on," he told Nobunaga. Thinking for a moment, he nodded knowing if he wanted to wait it had to be important. A few minutes later the rest of the generals had arrived in the room and sat down in their respective spots. As soon as they were all seated, Masamune stood and looked at each of them," I have news about what happened to Luciel," he told them. All of their eyes moved to him, interested to know more. Mitsuhide had even lost his lazy sitting position and was more attentive. "A ninja under the payroll of Takeda and Uesugi had abducted her in hopes to take her to her time. It would seem, this ninja is like her and from another time. Alas, she stayed with us. While in their stay, they chained her to the floor of a small storage room on the orders of Kenshin," as he informed them about this they all voiced doing something in retaliation to Kenshin. Nobunaga tired of hearing them bicker snapped his fan to get their attention. He stood and motioned for Masamune to sit, once he did he looked at them all," I guarantee you this, we will get him back for his treatment of our princess, but we must bide our time and ready ourselves for the perfect strike," he told his men. He looked at Masamune, " I don't want you acting on emotion in this though, it is not negotiable. She seems to rely on you more so than the rest of us so you may not die," he told Masamune this with a smirk on his face and then he returned to his seat. Masamune looked away from him seeing the smirk he had. He had continued telling them about what she had told him, but not all things. Some things he wanted to keep between the two of them. After he had finished, others shared other kinds of information about the movement of their enemies. It was starting to bore Masamune causing his mind to wander to what she was doing at the moment. He hoped she wasn't getting into trouble again, she seemed to wear trouble like a kimono. Elsewhere, Luciel was in town to pick up the kimonos that Masamune had ordered for her, the man was all smiles when he saw her. She complimented him for his work, the kimonos were beautiful. Placing them in a bag she carried them as she looked around the market. Seeing that there was nothing left for her to do, she headed back to Masamune's estate so she could change into one of the kimonos. As she walked by the quieter parts of the market a man was watching her. She stopped only for a moment, feeling that someone was watching her, thinking nothing of it she continued on. It was dusk by the time Masamune had returned, little did he know she had also had the shopkeeper make her another outfit, it was like the shrine maiden attire but was instead meant for archery. Though, at the moment she wore the red kimono with black butterflies. Masamune froze as he walked through the door, she turned around and smiled at him. He had gone bright red in the face so he excused himself. Confused, Luciel shrugged not sure what he was up to. Outside, Masamune was taking in some much-needed breaths of air. He didn't want to end up scaring her again so he had been trying to control his desires around her. "So beautiful, especially with that smile," he muttered to himself. His time for treasuring the sight was soon crushed as Hideyoshi was walking towards his place. He straightened up and met Hideyoshi halfway," What do you need, Hideyoshi?" He asked him as he approached him in the street. Hideyoshi stopped a moment and greeted Masamune and then responded," Nobunaga wants to see the princess, or so she has come to be called by everyone around her," he laughed as he used her nickname. " I see, she is inside I will get her then," he muttered as he headed for his door Hideyoshi had passed him and walked inside. Growling he followed him inside. As he walked inside, his jaw just about dropped as he saw Luciel in her red kimono with her hair tied up with a beautiful cherry blossom pin pressed in her hair. He smiled as he watched her play with Shogetsu. “Luciel, you look lovely,” Hideyoshi told her with a smile, she flushed in the face. Shogetsu jumped down and growled at Hideyoshi and then ran off into the other room. Luciel stood to meet Hideyoshi, not wanting to be rude to a guest. “Thank you, Hideyoshi,” she murmured shyly. He nodded and then remembered why he had come in the first place,” Lord Nobunaga wanted to see you Luciel, he tasked me with escorting you to see him,” Hideyoshi explained. Luciel gave him a sideways glance and then looked over at Masamune,” No offense, I rather go with Masamune,” she explained to him calmly. His eyes widened and then he nodded with a smile, “Yes that is fine too,” he responded as he bowed and went on his way to report back to Nobunaga. Masamune and Luciel looked at each other for a moment, then she followed him out and together they went to meet with Nobunaga. Once they arrived at their destination, Nobunaga nodded at them," I have heard of what happened last night, I want you to know your suffering will not go unpunished. Now, what I want to know is if you saw anything that could help us win a battle against him possibly," He watched her with studious eyes to see if her body language would betray her. Thinking for a moment of all she saw while there, she shook her head," No, I was inside the small room mostly, then I was led out of the castle through the back halls and slid out of the back door where they kept their horses. I suppose the only information that could help you, is the knowledge of the back door to the main castle," she told him. He nodded for a moment thinking on the information she had told him. "That is helpful, not much but a little. We now know there are at least two ways into the castle. You are dismissed," he told them as he waved them off with his hand. Weeks had passed since she was called in by Nobunaga, they seemed to fly by almost uneventful. When Masamune wasn't busy he was always seeing to anything she needed. Shogatsu had now become her personal shadow that was growing with the day. Hideyoshi had found that she didn't like him around Luciel so he would only visit her when she wasn't with the tiger out of fear of being attacked. Though during this time, she was unaware she was still being watched by someone in the shadows. Seeing as she came and went with the generals, the man was seeing her as a possible key to Nobunaga. Something felt off when Luciel woke up, she couldn't pinpoint it but it felt as if something would happen, something bad. Putting this thought aside, she put on the archery outfit she had made, grabbed her bow and left to practice her archery. Looking up at the sky, it looked like there would be a storm moving in soon. Biting her lower lip she walked on trying not to think about her gut feeling. Practicing her archery always helped to clear her mind, so it should do some good she thought to herself. Despite thinking that, as she let her arrow go she missed the target completely, this never happened. She picked the arrow up and returned to the estate she shared with Masamune, putting her archery stuff back and changing into day clothes, she instead thought to visit the market. "Maybe something is just clouding my mind, some unnecessary anxiety," she said more to convince herself than anything else. She left for town with nothing but a bag to carry groceries and an umbrella just in case. The town was bustling, as usual, this always made her nervous, she took a deep breath and continued on her way. Masamune had errands to run today so she wouldn't see him until tonight. Once she reached a corner with a hidden alley someone pulled her into it. Surprised she fought to get loose of the person, turning her head she could see it was Sasuke again. Glaring she elbowed him," Again with antics like this? What do you want?" she demanded as she shot a glare at him. He sighed at her reaction," I didn't mean to startle you. There is one more wormhole, it will be your last chance to go back. Are you sure you don't want to return to our time?" he asked concerned for her. Her glare never ceased as she put some distance between them," Yes, I am sure. Now leave me alone, you only cause trouble for me," she told him as she tried to get away from him. Defeated he nodded and left the area. Just as she thought the day had gotten bad, it went from bad to worse, she sensed someone watching her from behind. By the time she could see him, they had knocked her unconscious and carried her off. The man carrying her off muttered," You will be the key to Nobunaga's head for all he has done," her bag had been left behind as he walked off. As he walked, he hadn't noticed her hair pin fall and hit the ground, making it shatter. Once he got to his hideout he laid her on the ground, tying her to a chair and then waited for her to come to. By the time she stirred the sun was setting. As she woke she looked around, noticing she was bound she looked for the one responsible. Finding he was leaning against the window, his short black hair moving in the wind from the window, a scar went from one side of his face to the next, almost completely across. Noticing the staff he had leaned against the wall, she deduced that he must be a survivor from Nobunaga's attack on the monks. He opened his eyes, noticing her staring at him," So you are awake are you?" he asked as he stood up from the wall. She only glared at him from where she sat, though she was working at the knot behind her blocking his view from that. "What do you want? I've done nothing to you, so release me," she demanded hardening her glare. He laughed at her demands," Why would I do a thing like that? I have the key to Nobunaga right here, his woman," he declared as he continued to laugh. She raised a brow," Nobunaga's woman? I don't know where you got such information but it's inaccurate. I'm no one's woman but my own," she retorted which caused him to stop laughing. He narrowed his eyes as he looked at her," You are constantly with his generals and it is a known fact you are well protected around here. He will come to your aid," he told her confidently. She shook her head chuckling," You are sadly mistaken, he won't come here personally. He'd send the generals to find me. He may have some curious interest in me, but he is not emotionally attached to me," she assured him. He growled at her as she kept telling him he was wrong, it was annoying him," What is your name mr.abductor?" she asked. His eye twitched at her comment," My name is Kennyo, now be silent." he snapped in response. The sun was sinking as it set. Meanwhile, Masamune was just finishing his work and was on his way back to the estate, he looked up and noticed clouds moving in. Not long after he noticed them, rain poured down on him making him run to the estate. As he crossed the threshold his eyes widened, Luciel was gone. He looked around the estate asking if anyone has seen her recently. No one had seen her since noon that day when she had left for the market. Grabbing a parasol, he ran out the door heading to the market and asked questions of the people there. It was then he saw the bag and umbrella in the alleyway, picking both up he followed the path in the alley not far down it he found the shattered hairpin. He wrapped it in his hand as he made a fist. As he left the alley, the person he wanted to see the least stood waiting, Hideyoshi. He put the umbrella and hairpin in the bag and cast a glance at Hideyoshi," What is it? Going to lecture me about her missing again?" He asked irritably.  Hideyoshi shook his head as he backed up so Masamune could leave the alley," Someone took her again?" Hideyoshi asked as he looked at Masamune's hand with her bag and her belongings inside of it. Masamune nodded at him," It would seem, we must conduct another search. I will look on my own this time," he told Hideyoshi with a somber tone to his voice. Hideyoshi nodded and left for the castle to inform Nobunaga. As soon as Hideyoshi left, Masamune made his way for his estate leaving her things in her room. Remembering how her hairpin had fallen a little farther than her umbrella and bag he went back to the alley and see where it would lead him. He had a feeling that was the path taken to where Luciel was being held. While he was heading for the alley, Hideyoshi had arrived at the main hall where Nobunaga had been. It had been ordered to have every able body out searching for Luciel. While they were searching Luciel had been working on that knot, attempting to get it loose so she could use her hands and be able to escape. Kennyo had been keeping an eye on her or outside the window, as if he were paranoid. She had a feeling it would be Masamune coming for to save her. However, that did not mean she should just wait either and be the damsel in distress. As she neared getting the knot undone, she could hear the sound of swords clashing not far below them. Kennyo must have heard it and he stood and walked towards Luciel," Time to move up more," he informed her as he grabbed her by the arms. He had a look of irritation when he noticed that she had almost got the knot undone. As he took her up to the top of the building the sound got closer by the second. It would not be much longer she thought to herself. He must have felt the same thing as he had her arm in his grasp as if waiting to use her against whoever came up those stairs. She looked down at the ground as she focused on the knot and as it came loose Masamune came up the stairs," Release her or taste my blade," he warned Kennyo. Luciel's eyes lit up as she saw she was right. A tight feeling crept inside her chest and her heart beat faster despite her not knowing why. Masamune looked her way," Are you alright Luciel? He didn't hurt you did he?" Concern was heard in his voice as he asked. She shook her head and smiled at him happy to see him. The two men had a stand off, Luciel was hoisted closer to Kennyo in his attempt to use her as leverage once again. To his surprise, Luciel had used her weight against his so she could off balance him and get her arm free from his grasp. Seeing this as an opportunity, Masamune lunged forward grabbing Luciel and the two went off the side of the building. As they fell, Luciel grabbed onto Masamune for dear life. He laughed and then held her close to his body so he could break her fall. The other generals arrived on the scene and arrested Kennyo as Masamune and Luciel landed in the water below them. Ieyasu had men run to the nearby river to look for the two of them, to make sure they survived the fall. Once they had landed in the water, Masamune helped her out of the water despite all the aches and pains in their bodies they made it to the shore and collapsed next to each other. "Why did you plunge us off of the building like that? We could have died!" Luciel asked in surprise at his recklessness. He laughed," It was a rush for certain, it was the best thing I could think of to get you away from his reach. I didn't want anything to happen to you," he admitted as he sat up and looked at her, placing his jacket around her body so she would not get cold. "I want you to know something, if ever you disappear like the last two times I will always come for you," he assured her, he then took his hands and cupped her face in them and leaned over and kissed her hoping for a better reaction than their first kiss. To his surprise, she leaned into his kiss and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. As the two separated from each other they held a matching flushed face. Helping her stand up, he led her back to their estate so she could warm up, thinking only of how those that had hurt her would pay. He had not forgotten that they had chained her to a floor and would not forget it anytime soon. He was not the only one that felt this way, every member of their army shared this same sentiment. Without intending to, Luciel had become the princess of the Oda army.

[inthenameofotome-blog]

Fighting Fire with Fire Part Three: Conflicted Hearts by Ravyn Abyss

The sun sunk ever closer as both Hideyoshi and Masamune searched every corner for Luciel. The two men were becoming at odds whenever they met up again, blame coming on Masamune from Hideyoshi for making her run off. These small spats would last five minutes before they were off looking once again. From a window, Mitsuhide noticed the two of them running around in a panic. Tilting his head, he sat up now interested in what was going on. He soon was waiting in the spot the two always stopped to argue before looking again. Once they met up again he let out a chuckle," So mama hen and the one-eyed dragon have lost their princess it would seem," he teased as he looked at the two men who nearly jumped out of their skin when he spoke. Both men shot a glare at him," If you will not help then why did you come here?" Hideyoshi demanded of him. A sly smile reached his face," because it’s entertaining to watch," he responded as if it was old news. He looked around then returned his gaze to the other two," Don’t you think if she was in this area you would have found her by now?" he asked them as he crossed his arms and leaned against the wall behind him. The two looked at each other and let out an exasperated sigh knowing he was right. The sun was nearly down, and they still had not found her. Mitsuhide looked at them and sighed as well," I suppose I can help look though I won’t be doing it alone. I will let Lord Nobunaga know she is missing, we will get more help that way," he informed the two as he walked off towards the Oda Castle once again. He checked the main hall first to see if he was there instead of his quarters, to his good fortune he was talking with Ieyasu. The two of them saw Mitsuhide as he approached them, they had confused looks on their faces as he never came to the main hall unless they called him. “There seems to be a problem at hand, the little princess has gone missing. I watched the two fools look around the same area for a good while, I can send out some of my agents but I am not sure what you would have be done, m’Lord,” Mitsuhide admitted to a now scowling Lord Nobunaga. He looked from Ieyasu to Mitsuhide before standing from where he was sitting. “ Use your agents as you intended Mitsuhide, I want them looking high and low, even as far as Uesugi Castle. I want her found. Ieyasu, gather men to do a ground search. Have some check outside the castle as well. I will deal with the two idiots,” he ordered both of them. Nodding the two men left the hall going their own ways. “Someone dares to take a princess under my protection do they?” he sneered as he walked out of the main hall to join Masamune and Hideyoshi. As he made his way through the grounds, he sent more men looking for her. He would have no one idle as long as she was missing. Once he found the two of them he crossed his arms with a scowl setting on his face,” Masamune, I put her under your charge and here she is missing. I wonder how  that happened, hm?" Once he spoke Hideyoshi and Masamune stood up straight. Masamune bowed to Nobunaga," I did not intend for this to happen m’lord. I got carried away and seemed to have scared her while she was in town with me and have searched for her since. We have searched the entire town, I do not think she is here unless hidden in a building," he informed Nobunaga. Nobunaga made an irritated sound as he walked from one man to the next. He then looked at Masamune," Have your scouts check the forests near their area and have your best go as far as they can towards Uesugi castle. Mitsuhide’s men are looking there as well. I want everyone busy until someone finds her," he ordered with an angry look. Masamune nodded and left for his men at once. “Hideyoshi you are to stay with me as we join the forces here, but we will go door to door,” he told him and left to begin the search. Meanwhile, at Uesugi castle Luciel was unconscious in a small room, she stirred and look around. Crates surrounded her, the room was on the small side. Sitting up, she heard a clang sound; they had chained her to the floor. She picked up the lock and examined it, noticing that it was too old for her to pick. Growling she threw it back to the floor. It was then she heard footsteps approaching the door; she made herself small behind one of the wooden crates. “You’d make a fine ninja if you were to get the training, “a man’s voice said. She looked around the crate, to see that it was the man that was sucked into the wormhole with her. She allowed him to see her once she recognized him,” Why did you bring me here? And you chained me to the floor as well, that is seriously messed up,” she told him as she shot a glare at him. He stepped back a little to give her a little space and let out a sigh seeing that this was not going well. “You were only chained on the order of Lord Kenshin. He did not want you to escape. He thought you would wander around and gather information and then bring the information to Nobunaga since you have been in their care. I brought you here to let you know another wormhole will open soon but you will have to leave with me tomorrow to get there,” he explained to her as gently as he could. She shook her head, growing angrier by the second,” You are why I was brought here in the first place and now you want me to just blindly trust you after you abduct me and chain me up? Are you nuts?! Why would I go with you after that?" she demanded of him as she crossed her arms and shook her head at him. “ they had imprisoned me because he didn’t believe me, then I got sick for two weeks and he only believed my story because they went through my bag while I was out with a fever. Where were you during all of that, huh? No, I don’t think I will go with you. Now, release me so I can get away from here,” she demanded as she glared at him. He sighed as he shook his head once again, running his fingers through his brown hair frustrated with what to do or say. He had hoped this would have been easier. His emerald eyes met her lavender eyes as he took a deep breath and exhaled it,” I do not intend to hurt you, I want to help you get back to our time. I am sure it is difficult for you being as there is no technology like in our time," he explained as she watched his face, her eyes traveling from head to toe taking in his hair and his other features including his glasses and green ninja garb. Since she said nothing he asked," You aren’t interested in one of them are you?" This caused her to glare at him once again," What business is that of yours? If I decide to be with a samurai from the past that is my choice. To answer your question no, but I do not want to go back to our time either. My adoptive parents loved and cared for me, yes, but I was not happy there either. I wanted to escape it all and I have," she told him as she adverted his eyes. The door opened, and this caused her to retreat behind a wooden crate, not wanting to see any of the enemies. As she peeked around the corner of the wooden crate, she saw a man with red hair. “Sasuke, what’s taking so long? I can’t help you two escape if you take too much longer. You know how Kenshin gets with things he wants to keep, he will try to hunt you and kill you both,” the man told him with a sound of concern in his voice. “Speaking of, where is the young lady?” He looked around as he asked this. As he did this, Luciel hid behind the crate once again. “Shingen, she doesn’t want to go back and rather be returned to the Oda army, If Kenshin were to hear about that he would kill her for sure. She doesn’t want to be seen by you or any of their enemies it would seem,” he explained to him. Shingen let out an audible sigh and gave him the key to the lock on the chains,” I will try to distract him, the only way she can get out of here alive is by the cover of darkness so if you will help her, do it now." He told him as he left the room. Sasuke used the key to get her out of the shackles chained to the ground and motioned for her to follow him. He held a finger to his lips to let her know they had to be quiet. As they left the room, he returned her bow case that had been taken when he brought her to the castle. Silently, he slipped around the castle as Shingen and another red-haired man wearing white and red distracted the one they called Kenshin. Sasuke explained to her that the man with Shingen was Yukimura. She got one last glimpse at Kenshin with his blonde hair and multi-colored eyes. One eye being blue and the other being green. He wore a white and blue kimono and had his sword bared at Shingen and Yukimura. Seeing that, she had seen a reason to move faster and slipped through a back door behind the castle. Sasuke looked at her concerned since she was on her own," Can you make it on your own?" He asked with concern. She looked at Sasuke," I will find a way, if I had a horse it would be easier," she muttered. He slipped out the door and went around a corner, not long after he came with a black horse trailing behind him. “This is Shadow, take good care of him and he will take care of you. Like you, he doesn’t trust easily so he may only let you take care of him once you befriend him,” he explained as he handed her the reins.  Luciel stroked the horse and held her forehead against the horse’s face and then looked up at Sasuke,” Thank you, and I will keep that in mind," she mounted the horse and used a slight nudge of her foot to get him to move. She didn’t know where she was going but she figured if she went away from the castle she would find someone who was looking for her. With how they all worried about her survival, she figured they would be out looking for her. Though she did not know how frantic they were as they looked for her. Back at Oda castle, the sun had sent a long time ago and everyone was looking like they were losing sign of hope. That was until a messenger came running towards Nobunaga and Masamune," M’Lords, she has been spotted on a horse traveling from Uesugi castle. Bandits are close to there though," the messenger informed them despite having been a little breathless because of running to their location. Both Nobunaga and Masamune nodded, though before Nobunaga moved to get on his horse, Masamune was already galloping off. So, he let him go on his own. Bandits were nothing for someone like him. As she entered the forested area, she heard a noise. Turning to look, bandits, tried to jump on the back of her horse. Pulling on the reins she directed Shadow to move away from the bandits. She could not direct her horse and get her bow at the same time, a tinge of fear hit her as she swallowed hard as she closed her eyes for a moment and remembered something she had seen in a movie. “I guess I will do what she did,” she muttered to herself as she pulled hard on the reigns and then used both hands to whip the reigns hard so the horse would run. Using her small stature and the horse’s momentum, she maneuvered around her pursuers. As Shadow jumped a raised root, she saw Masamune in the distance looking pleased to see her in one piece. “Keep going straight and you will reach the castle, don’t stop for anything until you get there!” he ordered as he took his horse and stopped in front of the charging bandits. He large grin crossed his face as he looked at them. The bandits hesitated for a moment and turned around and ran. On horseback, Masamune chased every one of the bandits down, cutting them down as he passed them. Once finished, he cleaned his blade and followed Luciel. Once he got back, he felt a sigh of relief when he saw Luciel getting off the horse just as he tied his up in case it was needed again. The moment she got down from the horse, people surrounded her. Be it the agents making sure she was ok or Hideyoshi. A look of terror showed on her face as she felt overwhelmed. She wanted to run though she knew they didn’t know  better since in this time social anxiety didn’t exist. She crouched low to the ground and put her hands over her ears. Noticing this, Masamune rushed near them,” You need to back up, all of you. She is overwhelmed!" he yelled so they all would hear him. After a moment, people backed away from her. Still crouched at the ground with her hands over her ears, she was rocking. A lot of the soldiers and Nobunaga’s generals looked confused by this behavior. Hideyoshi showed a look of concern as he watched her. Masamune kneeled down and lightly touched her head, after a moment she looked up with tear-streaked eyes," I-I’m sorry...I didn’t mean to..." she stammered as she put her hands down from her ears and slowly stood. No one spoke for a good while until Nobunaga became irritated and just blurted out what everyone else was thinking," Just what in the hell was that?" he asked as he crossed his arms looking at her. Luciel looked to the side for a moment taking a breath in and back out," It’s hard to explain but I can’t handle being crowded or in crowds, or even where people are loud and talking at once," she tried to explain. Each of the generals and Nobunaga took a moment to think about what she had just said. Nobunaga nodded for a moment," all right, you heard her no one is to do anything she said or else you have to deal with me. Besides, I rather not see her rocking in the fetal position if it’s all the same to you," he declared to everyone around her. Silence lingered between Luciel and Masamune as they looked at each other and then away several times. Nobunaga had led the rest of the generals and soldiers away from them to give them space though he was smirking as he did so. Hideyoshi was grumbling behind the rest. Nobunaga ordered him not to interrupt them, despite wanting to check every nook and cranny of her over for serious wounds, he followed his orders and went back to the castle. Once it was quiet, Masamune sighed and took her by the hand. “I’m taking you somewhere more private,” he declared as he grabbed her and put her on his horse, tying her horse to the reins so it could follow alongside them. He leads them deeper into the forest where there was a field of flowers and a pond. Once he stopped the horses, he jumped off the horse and pulled her down with him. “Look, I didn’t mean to frighten you if that happened- “she put her finger to his lips and shook her head at him. “I was not scared of you per se, I fear getting close to people. Everyone leaves at one time or another,” she told him as she looked down at the pond,” so, it’s not your fault. It’s mine for being a coward," she told him to reassure him. Without hesitating, he grabbed her lightly by both of her arms. Looking into her eyes with a serious expression," Luciel, I want you to understand something right now. No one and I mean no one here is going to just leave you. I don’t know what happened to you in the past, but know we will not leave you. Especially- “ he stopped himself from saying what he wanted to say. It was not the time to say such things he thought to himself. She looked at him convinced but still unsure, as she looked down Masamune pulled her close to him,” If you believe nothing, then believe this I won’t leave you alone in this world. I refuse to die or be killed unless I am there with you right next to me,” he told her as he pulled her closer to his body. It took a moment, but she wrapped her arms around his middle and broke down crying. He placed his hand around the back of her head to comfort her. Then he let her cry," Cry as much as you need, Luciel. I will still be here with you," he assured her as he held her close to him. She nodded into his chest after a moment she leaned back wiping her tears with the back of her hand. She thought for a moment and decided that she would tell him everything that happened while she was at the castle. They talked for a good while, when she had finished telling her story, the sun was coming up. When Masamune had looked over at her, she had fallen asleep on him and was leaning against his shoulder. Smiling, he picked her up in his arms and leaned her against his chest as he got on his horse and then went back to his estate where he laid her on his bed once again so she could sleep. He, however, planned to work on the details of a second room with his staff so she could have her own room. Despite the objections to his staff members, Masamune helped them throughout the night so that he knew she’d have somewhere to call her own the next day. It had been a night of progress; he thought to himself. She had told him all about her youth and a lot of it explained why she had been so scared to get close to people. Her parents had abandoned her, a nice family had adopted her, but they were always busy with the dojo so she felt alone. He understood why she had broken down in tears with his promise now. He looked over his shoulder in the other room at her. Shogatsu was curled up next to her and they both slept without worry.

[inthenameofotome-blog]

Fighting Fire with Fire Part Two: The Hidden One-Eyed Dragon by Ravyn Abyss

Masamune walked in through the door, as he looked over Luciel was sitting up looking around confused. She had been out of it for a few weeks now, her fever had finally gone down. A guard had found her with a fever and Masamune had been taking care of her since. A sly smile crossed his face as he walked towards the bed she was sitting in. “You’re finally awake,” he said as he sat down next to her, checking her temperature,” I will make you something to eat, and don’t even think about telling me no. You need to regain your strength now that you are awake,” he told her stubbornly as he tied his sleeves back with some rope and prepared porridge for her. All she could do was nod at him, being as he gave her no room to argue. As he was cooking she looked around taking in the sights, she did this where she was since even his staff wouldn’t allow her to get out of bed. She let out a sigh, she felt so restless though a smile crossed her face as she saw her bow and satchel set nearby. Masamune had been watching from the corner of his eye, he finished her food placing it on a tray and placed it on her lap,” You should smile more kitten, it’s a beautiful smile,” he told her as he smirked at her shy expression.  

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about, and why are you calling me that? My name is Luciel, not kitten,” she snapped defensively a little embarrassed. Masamune smirked at her,” But you remind me of one, I even have to take care of you like Shogetsu," he told her with a teasing smile. Luciel looked at him confused," Shogetsu? Who’s Shogetsu?" Just as the words left her mouth a tiger cub came running in and jumped on her. Her eyes widened in surprise," THIS is Shogetsu?!" she asked with shock and fear at the same time.  

“Yep, that’s Shogetsu. She’s the cutest little thing,” he told her affectionately. Luciel was trying to comprehend why he had a tiger cub as a pet. Once bigger, she could become very dangerous. Despite her thinking, she couldn’t deny that the tiger cub was cute. “You can’t just let her run around as she pleases, you never know if something will trigger her to become defensive which can get people hurt,” Luciel explained sternly. Masamune chuckled," You seem to be quite the worry wort," he picked up Shogetsu so that Luciel could eat her porridge.  

As she took a bite, her eyes widened she had not expected it to taste so good. They had always told her that porridge was bitter, but his had, in fact, tasted sweet. She looked up at him as he played with Shogetsu with a smile not thinking he had seen it. Unbeknownst to her, he had been pretending to not look and had seen her smile. He hid his sly smile behind Shogetsu’s body.  

Realizing that it was getting later, he put the tiger cub down. He looked over at Luciel," I have to go out for a while, you stay put. I don’t want you getting lost or hurt. This place is full of soldiers, it’s not a place for a school girl from the future to wander around," he told her sternly as he patted her on the head and walked out the door. Luciel sighed as she finished her porridge and looked at Shogetsu," You’re bored too huh? I have an idea that we can both have fun with," she told the tiger cub with a mischievous grin. Shogetsu tilted her head to the side seemingly curious about what she had in mind.  

Checking that none of the staff members that Masamune kept around were paying attention, she got dressed and grabbed her bow and motioned for Shogetsu to follow once she put her special gloves on for her archery practice. She had put her hair in a ponytail so it wouldn’t get in the way, then the two of them snuck out. Smiling to herself she looked around," This place is pretty big," she muttered to herself. She then saw the archery field, it was the largest she had ever seen. Her eyes had gone wide, like a child that had seen her favorite candy bar. Looking back at Shogetsu, she rushed onto the field to check it out not thinking anyone would be there.  

The tiger cub followed close behind her, it was excited as she was, “ Ok Shogetsu, stay behind me so you don’t get hurt ok?” she told the cub sternly. The tiger cub let out a small sound as if to say ok. Smiling, she took her bow out of the case and then her quiver of arrows soon after. Getting into the same stance they had taught her since she was a child, she took an arrow and pulled it back holding the string steady until she was ready and then she released it; the arrow hit the middle of the target.  

Around the corner, Ieyasu was watching with interest. Arrow after arrow, it hit the middle. He realized she had a lot of practice," she has to have been practicing for quite some time to have accuracy like that," he whispered to himself so that she would not hear him. Hearing footsteps approaching, he turned around to Masamune and Nobunaga walking towards him. He rushed over to meet them, holding his finger to his lips to motion for them to be quiet. Confused, the two of them looked at Ieyasu’s odd behavior and decided to just follow him. Crouching, the three of them snuck back to where he had been watching Luciel. Shogetsu was laying by her feet a few inches away sleeping like there was nothing in the world to bother her. Luciel, on the other hand, was practicing her archery. Every target across the field had an arrow in the middle. Each of their jaws dropped a little, they knew that she knew archery but they had not expected her to be this good at it.  

“She sure doesn‘t listen, I told her to stay in bed since she only just woke up today. Though it seems Shogetsu has taken a liking to her,” Masamune whispered. Nobunaga smirked at the remarks Masamune made under his breath. Tired of hiding himself, Nobunaga stood to his full height and walked towards Luciel on the field,” You must be restless, just woke up today and here you are taking up my entire archery field with a tiger cub,” not hearing him approach Luciel jumped in surprise. Turning to Nobunaga she bowed as he approached and stood back up,” I didn’t intend to take it over, I can leave if you don‘t want me to be here,” she told him quietly with a little defiance in her voice. Nobunaga tilted his head and despite having seen her put all of those arrows in the targets he wanted to tease her a bit,” I want you to prove that it was you that put those arrows in those targets, hit every one of those targets in the center. Don’t disappoint me now,” he ordered with a playful smirk forming.  

Luciel went wide-eyed at first but with a small sigh, she nodded and retrieved all the arrows she had shot previously and returned to the spot she had been standing. Getting into her stance she inhaled in order to focus, she held her bow upright and took one arrow between her finger and thumb pulling it against the string. She held it tightly as she tightened her focus on the target, then she released the arrow. Five times she did this and five times the arrow hit the center of the target. Masamune had been angry that she had not listened to him at first, though now he was entertained by the fact since he got to see one of her talents. Someone that was obedient was boring to him, he thought to himself.  

Having done as she was asked, Luciel turned to Nobunaga, " Impressive for a young girl,” he told her amused. The constant young girl statements from him annoyed her, she held her tongue as much as she could but she found that she no longer could. 

" Will all due respect Nobunaga, I may be a young girl as you keep calling me, but I have a name. I have told you my name more than once too. They raised me in an archery dojo, so it isn‘t any surprise that I can hit the bullseye each time I release my arrow. I show you the respect you are owed, so I want you to show me the same,” she snapped at him angrily,” I may not be a lord or some other high ranked person but I am still a person with a name.” She then bowed, collected her arrows and put them back in her case with her bow and walked off angrily with Shogetsu following behind her.  

They all stood there in surprise, she hadn't even waited for him to respond before she walked off. They looked at Nobunaga to gauge his mood to know if they should say something to her or not. He shook his head in disbelief, though he wasn't scowling about it in fact, he was grinning about it," What an interesting girl we have on our hands," he said so the other two could hear him.   

Masamune couldn't help but agree with him, though he felt he had better find her before she finds actual trouble. It wasn't as safe as it seemed around where they were. Especially, outside of the castle walls and that is where he feared she may go. Excusing himself he ran after Luciel and his tiger cub, causing Nobunaga to only grin more.  

"That girl will have him head over heels soon enough," he told Ieyasu as he turned around. Ieyasu stopped for a moment and asked,"Lord Nobunaga, perhaps it would be beneficial to ask her to aid our cause against Kenshin, with accuracy like her's-" Nobunaga stopped walking and turned to face Ieyasu," Do you think she could kill someone? Do you think she has a reason to kill? Asking someone her age to kill is no simple matter. Especially since she is not from our time," Nobunaga told Ieyasu with a stern expression.  

Ieyasu thought for a moment and realized that he was right, she was from a time of peace she could panic or worse if she had killed someone. He took in a breath and exhaled," You are right m'Lord. I had forgotten that she was not from our time. Her skills impressed and moved me," he admitted as he bowed his head.  

Nobunaga nodded to him," Yes her skills are impressive, she is not yet eighteen though, I would not wish someone of her age to take a life," he closed his eyes for a moment as he said this and turned around and continued walking back to the castle with Ieyasu not far behind.  

Meanwhile, under the cover of the forest trees, Masamune had caught up with Luciel," Hold for a moment, Luciel. Though I am disappointed that you did not listen I can understand why you did not at the same time. How about you come with me to see the town?" He offered with that same sly smile he always had.  

Luciel stopped walking and turned and looked at him," You mean you are not mad at me?" she asked quietly. Masamune shook his head, his smile not faltering. She thought for a moment," I wouldn't mind seeing the town. It is different compared to places where I live," she said with a smile. Masamune felt his heart quiver from that smile of her's. He shook his head remembering that she was not from this time. Taking a breath in and back out he lead Luciel around the town to see all the sights there. It was like watching an excited child, she seemed to know about their time at least a little bit since she made comments about certain items she saw.  

When they had reached the fabric shop he stopped, she looked at him confused. He brought her to the shopkeeper," I want her to pick fabric out for the best kimono you can make," the shopkeeper nodded swallowing hard. Without even asking her, he lead her around his shop. Giving because she wasn't being given a choice in the matter, she looked at the fabrics. Only stopping when she saw a purple one with golden butterflies on it and then again for a fancier red kimono with black butterflies going up from the bottom. "Ring both up for me," Masamune told the man with a smile. Have two kimonos made for her using each of the fabrics she chose," he told the man. The shopkeeper nodded and thanked him for his business and the two of them went on their way. 

"Why did you do that for me, Masamune?" Luciel asked once they were away from the stores. He smiled at her," Like I want you running around in such revealing clothes," he responded as he motioned at her skirt.  

She turned away from him her cheeks puffing," I can understand but just know it's a school uniform and I rather detest it," she informed him. Masamune looked at her confused," Not sure what this school is but they have bad taste if that is what they have you wear," he told her as he shrugged leading her somewhere else. She hadn't noticed until now but he had been carrying a bag in his hand this entire time.  

"Masamune, what is that bag for?" She asked as they walked deeper into the forest. He smirked, " You will see soon enough," he teased. Not much longer and they reached what looked to be a checkpoint. He heard excited calls out to him as he approached the camp.

"He brought the princess!" One man had been heard shouting excitedly. Confused by this Luciel turned and looked at Masamune. He shrugged, "it's what they call you since I have been taking care of you," he explained thinking nothing of it.  

"Well, I appreciate  you looking after me but I am no princess," she tells him as a look of mischief reaches her eyes. He smirked at her, handing the bag of food to one of his men, he chased her around the trees. Shogetsu enjoying the playtime as she saw it ran with the two of them. 

"Luciel watch out for that ledge!" Masamune had called out to her, though she had not heard it in time and fell into the water below. Her case holding her bow flew upward and the strap got caught on a branch.  

Seeing her fall Masamune rushed to the ledge to make sure she wasn't hurt. She looked up at him in amusement," I thought you said I was the worry wort," she teased. Shaking his head with a smile he slid into the water with her.  

The moment he reached the water a splash fight had begun. The two of them jumping this way and that as they splash each other with water. His men could only watch the two, enjoying seeing their Lord so at peace. With all the commotion, his eye patch had slid off of his face. It revealed a closed eye with a scar above and below it.  

She gasped in surprise, though instead of being revolted by it she walked closer to him and ran her finger over the scar. This caused Masamune to flush red in the face, without thinking he had pulled her close and kissed her. Eyes wide, she pushed away from him and was soon running back up to the land. She jumped to get her case and was running in the other direction.  

Having not expected that response Masamune sat in the water for a minute and then picked up his eye patch and replaced it. Tilting his head to each side to empty water from his ears, he made his way to the campfire his men were surrounding.  

"M'Lord, I think she was just surprised," one soldier said to comfort him. Masamune shook his head," No, I think there is more to it than just that," he told the man with the sound of defeat in his voice. With that, he made his way back to Oda Castle.  

At the gates, Hideyoshi was standing there as if waiting for him. 

"Where is Luciel?" Masamune asked as he approached him. Hideyoshi looked at him as if he had just been punched, "What do you mean? She was with you I thought," Masamune looked at Hideyoshi bewildered," We have to find her before it gets dark," he declared as he ran off towards his estate to see if she was there. Hideyoshi nodded and ran in the other direction towards the town. 

[inthenameofotome-blog]

Fighting Fire with Fire Part One: The Wormhole by Ravyn Abyss

Heat bore down on her as she pulled a strand of hair out of her face. Tied back because of the heat, it had fallen loose due to her movement. School had ended and it was time for her first love, archery. Eyes watched as she pulled her bow back, purple eyes narrowed as she looked at the target. It seemed as if her classmates held their breath as they watched and waited in anticipation. She let the string go and the arrow flew across the way, hitting the target in the bullseye circle. Her classmates applauded her, bowing at the other students, she smiled wryly and packed her gear up. She didn’t want to hear another lecture about time management from her parents. At the tender age of sixteen, she helped her parents run an archery dojo so it surprised none of her classmates with how she excelled in archery. A hand clamped on her shoulder, she looked over her shoulder then up to see her couch smiling at her. He had always creeped her out though she smiled as she removed his hand from her shoulder. “ I should get on my way, need to help my parents,” she explained as she excused herself with a bow. Though they hadn’t needed her help, she wanted to get away from them all. It was the same thing, she always felt alone when around all of those people basking her in unwanted attention. Shrugging her bag onto her shoulder, she ran from the gym into the girls locker room. She got changed and then headed on her way to what she called her special place. She had always been drawn to it since she was small, though she was unsure why. After a long bus ride and quite a walk, she was at her destination the temple of Honno-ji where Nobunaga was said to have commited senpuku, though some say he disappeared too. Reading the information about the event she did not hear someone come behind her. “You seem interested in the battle of Honno-ji” a voice stated with interest. This had made her jump a few feet, then she turned around to face the owner of the voice. There she saw a young man in what looked to be a white lab coat. Confused, she rose an eyebrow. “Who are you?”  she asked as she looked at him from head to toe, as if measuring him up. He smiled and bowed to her,” My name is Sasuke, and what is your name?” he responded as he watched her with curiosity noticing what she was doing, he found it entertaining. “Luciel Tihomira,” she responded quietly. This had been the first time she had seen someone else at the temple when she was. She smiled shyly and returned the bow to him as she greeted him. As she returned to her full height, she noticed something black and purple in the sky, at the sight of it her eyes widened. “What in the world is that?!” she almost yelled as she looked at it in horror. “Watch out!” was the last thing she had heard before it had sucked her into the hole, it had in fact been a wormhole and it had sucked both of them into it. Gripping her bow tightly she slowly opened her eyes and looked around, she could hear a lot of metal clanging sounds near her. She looked around almost fearful. Had she gone back in time she wondered. Close to where she sat, a man noticed her sitting there. He rose his brow wondering what she was doing there, in the middle of a battlefield. Worried for her safety he pulled his horse and rushed over to Luciel and picked her up. Surprised she almost dropped her bow. “What in the-who are you? Let me go!” she stammered all at once. Struggling, her platinum blond hair moved side to side as she moved. Struggling to keep his grip, he grunted and pulled her onto his horse in front of him. “Aren’t you just a little spitfire, such strange clothing you are wearing too-quite revealing,” he muttered halfway to himself and halfway to her. As he said it, he had moved the hilt of his sword under the skirt of her uniform, causing her to slap the skirt down in alarm. “What do you think you are doing?!” she demanded as she held her skirt down and looked at him with anger. He laughed at her amused by her reaction. Chuckling, he left her skirt alone, though he did not understand why it was so short. With her struggling, he had let out a sigh and to show her she would cause herself to get hurt, he let her go for a second, which was long enough for her to almost fall off the horse. This caused her to scream, he had been sure to catch her once again after she had been holding onto the side of the horse’s neck afraid to fall. “Now that you are calm, will you stop squirming so you don’t fall off my horse?” he asked her with an exasperated sigh. She swallowed hard, nodded and sat back up on the horse with his help, though she didn’t allow him to have her lean against him. He rose his brow at this but thought nothing of it and shrugged. Not long after, she looked at him after adjusting herself on the horse,” you never answered me, who are you?” she asked with more calm to her voice unlike when he had first picked her up. “Masamune Date, that is my name and what name shall I honor you with?” he responded with a sly smirk. She rolled her eyes at his flirting and looked away as she returned to how she was sitting beforehand,” Luciel Tihomira,” she murmured and then she went quiet. He smiled to himself as he heard her name, it was not a name he had heard before. Not long after he got her name, there was galloping coming closer to where they were. He looked in the direction to see some of his allies approaching him. One being a man dressed in black with sandy brown hair and green eyes, the one he often referred to as the “mother hen”, Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The other though, he had no nickname for. He wore a lot of black with hair that matched and eyes red as blood, their commander, Oda Nobunaga. He straightened up as he saw him though he didn’t lose his sly grin that he always held. “I heard a girl scream, why is there a girl on the battlefield?” Hideyoshi asked in almost a panic. This reaction made Masamune laugh,” You get so worked up, Hideyoshi. Yes, there is a girl and as you can she is safely on my horse. She had struggled too much so I let her go to show her what would happen if she didn’t stop. I made sure she wouldn’t fall,” he told him with a cocky smirk on his face. Hideyoshi scrunched his brow up in irritation and looked at Masamune,” That is nice Masamune, but what is she doing here?” he repeated his question this time with more force. Masamune shrugged,” who knows, I found her and picked her up so she didn’t get killed,” he responded as if it was no big deal. Nobunaga watched the two banter for a moment and then held his hand up to silence the two. They looked at him waiting to see what he would do or say. He was an unpredictable man so they didn’t wish to anger him, with the life of an innocent woman hanging in the balance. “Girl, what is your name?” Nobunaga asked as he reared his horse closer to Masamune’s horse. She looked at him for a minute unsure if she should answer or not, seeing his hand near the sheathe of his sword, she thought it may be wise to answer after all,”Luciel Tihomira,” she told him quietly. He nodded in affirmation after he heard her name,” Very well, stay with Masamune for the time being, I will question you the moment we return,” he told her as he motioned for Hideyoshi to follow him and the two rode off, back to where they had been. It had not taken as long as she had thought for them to finish up their fight against the opposing side. By dusk, she found herself surrounded in what looked to be the main hall of a castle., she looked around at each of the men looking at her. Each of these people were historical figures she thought to herself. Her nerves were rising by the second. On one side of the room, sat two men with platinum blond hair much like herself. One with yellow, snake-like eyes and the other with purple almost kind eyes. Then, there was the one that picked her up, Masamune Date. He had an eyepatch on one of his blue eyes and he had a dark coffee brown hair color. He wore a lot of blue too. He annoyed her but she was curious about him. Looking around more she saw a cold, stern looking man with blond hair and green eyes, he wore a yellow kimono and had his arms crossed, noticing her eyes wander Masamune chuckled. “If I may m’lord she knows my name but no one else’s I’d like to tell her who is all in the room with her. She seems to be like a lost little kitten that wants to run away,” Masamune proposed. Nobunaga thought for a moment and then nodded the go ahead. Masamune smiled as Nobunaga gave him permission, he looked to Luciel and motioned his hand at the first two she had looked at, “ The one in purple, with the matching eyes is our book worm Ishida Mitsunari. Next to him is the sly, trouble making Akechi Mitsuhide,” she blinked nodding to him as if to show she understood. He then motioned his hand at the blond man,” this is Tokugawa Ieyasu. He is on the cold side but he is always one step ahead,” he warned with a playful smile. Her eyes widened as he said his name. He was the one to win the war to unite Japan, she thought to herself. To hide her surprise of who she was looking at she nodded with a wry smile. Next, Masamune pointed at the one in green she had saw that looked worried for her after hearing her scream,” this mother hen, I mean the right hand man of our Lord is Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and you met our Lord himself earlier, Oda Nobunaga,” he told her with a smile as he finished speaking, he sat in his original position. Nobunaga looked to her and then sighed,” Now that that is over, introduce yourself to everyone, girl,” he ordered her in a cold and dark tone. Swallowing hard, she nodded and bowed,” My name is Luciel Tihimora,” she said as she bowed towards the generals sitting before her, then she returned to her full height. They all nodded at her. A few smiling at her, curious while others found her suspicious. After a pause, Nobunaga spoke once again,” So, girl how about you enlighten all of us on how you came to be on our battlefield. You even have a bow, though it is an odd looking one,” he said as he looked at her once again. “ I would but I doubt you would believe me, so I will stick with saying I don’t know,” she responded as she looked at him for a moment and then to the floor. Nobunaga rose his eyebrow, irritation showing on his face from her answer,” Try me, just tell me how you got there,” he demanded with an edge of irritation in the tone of his voice. Luciel sighed once again, taking a deep breath she decided to just tell him the truth, if he believed her then he did if not then she would have to hope she wouldn’t be killed she thought to herself. “Very well then, I am not from your time. I was visiting the temple of Honno-ji as I often do, then I found myself on the battlefield after seeing what looked like a giant hole in the sky had sucked me into it,” she told him, not thinking he would believe her. Silence fell across the room, they looked back and forth between each other not sure what to even say to something like that. Nobunaga let out a laugh,” That is pretty far out there. I will admit that, but I don’t think I believe you,” he admitted as he still laughed. He paused but a moment to catch his breath,” I can now see why you answered the way you did if that is your answer. Until you want to tell me the truth-” he motioned at the guards and the grabbed her and took her below to the dungeons. They shoved her into the cell, closed the door and off they went. She looked around for a moment and then slid to the ground hugging her knees. She was unsure how to get him to believe her, though she didn’t think it would matter anyway. None of the generals said a word once the guards returned to the room. Masamune looked at Nobunaga with obvious disagreement but said nothing to him. Hideyoshi looked between the two and with a deep breath spoke,” m”Lord, I know you don’t believe her story, but she wore so little. Won’t she get sick in the dungeon?” he voiced concerned. Nobunaga looked at him with cold eyes,” perhaps she should have thought about that before loitering on my battlefield,” he snapped as he got up and left the room,” I best not hear about any of you helping her,” he warned them as he left the main hall irritated. They all followed suit and emptied the main hall. Some of them letting out a sigh. Hideyoshi was the most concerned for the young girl. Masamune though, was already thinking up a plan. Back in the cell, Luciel shivered as she hugged her knees close to her chest in the corner of her cell. The only warmth in the cell she had wrapped around her, a thin blanket. Hideyoshi had confiscated her looked up at the sky through the small cell window in her room, her bow on Nobunaga’s orders the moment they got to the castle. She felt naked without it, she refused to let this make her break though, so she did not shed a single tear. As she thought of how to get out of this situation she heard a thud, which made her jump. Moving closer to the bars she saw a guard on the ground. Behind the body, stood none other than Masamune with a smirk on his face. On the other side of the room,stood Hideyoshi the two men looked at each other with a hint of annoyance that they had the same idea. With the two guards unconscious, they walked near the cell Luciel was in. Luciel inched closer to the bars, unable to hide her shivering. She had only been in her summer school uniform. It had been summer in the present before the wormhole had sent her into the past which it seemed to be reaching late fall. Her lavender eyes traveled between the two men. Hideyoshi had been the first to notice her shivering, let out a sigh and looked between Masamune and the two guards on the ground. "Keep watch, but don't get the idea of just breaking her out. You know Lord Nobunaga would be furious. I worry about him finding out about us helping her get warm even," he told him as he left the dungeon to look for something to keep her warm. Shaking his head, Masamune shook his head and leaned down and pressed the back of his hand to her forehead, he then stood with an expression of concern. Once Hideyoshi had returned Masamune had his arms crossed and looked at him with a narrowed eye. He had only found one blanket. "You think that will make a difference down here? You need to kiss Nobunaga's ass or something. She's getting a fever down here," he told him with a stern edge to his tone. Hideyoshi sighed, looked at her and only nodded handing him the blanket. Masamune gave her the blanket and then followed him out of the dungeon. Without hesitation, she wrapped herself in the blanket. Though, it had not stopped the shivering that would not cease. It had been three days since they had came to check on her. Luciel looked over at the guards on either side of the dungeon, they were looking fuzzy to her. As she tried to stand to ask for water, her grip on the blanket slipped from her hands and she fainted landing on the blanket, exposed to the cold weather. One of the guards, having seen her fall went to check on her. Alarm showed on his face once he looked in her cell, he looked to the other guard," Hurry, go get someone the prisoner has fainted!" the other guard across the room nodded and ran up the stairs of the dungeon and then ran to find someone. As he was running, Masamune noticed his panicked rush. "Hold there, soldier. What's your rush?" Masamune asked stopping the soldier. The soldier stopped and bowed to him, breathing hard he responded," The prisoner has fainted, her breathing seemed to be labored," as he told this to Masamune his eyes widened. "You tell Nobunaga I am breaking her out before she dies and if he has an issue with it he can come talk to me personally!" he said as he ran to the dungeons. The soldier nodded and went to the main hall to meet with Nobunaga as he was told. Arriving in the main hall, the soldier bowed to an annoyed Nobunaga," What's your business?" he asked with an irritated tone. The soldier swallowed hard," Forgive the interuption m'lord. I was coming from the dungeon to let you know the prisoner had fainted. On the way, I was stopped by Lord Masamune, he told me to let you know that he was breaking her out of the prison before she died and if you had an issue to seek him out," he had a nervous tone to his voice as he told Nobunaga this. Despite his worries, Nobunaga smirked as if he had expected this," I wondered who would get her first. Hideyoshi or Masamune, looks like Masamune beat you to her Hideyoshi," Nobunaga told him with a teasing tone. He then looked back to the guard," Very well, return to your post. Just make sure he doesn't destroy my dungeon. Let him take her. You better hurry before he cuts my cell, otherise it comes from your pay," he warned as the soldier bolted from the main hall. As he made it back to the dungeons, the other guard was trying to stop him from cutting the bars to get her out. "Wait!" he cried out to Masamune breathless," Lord Nobunaga gave you permission to get her, so don't break the cell," he had his hands on his knees still breathing hard as he told the message to Masamune. He smiled slyly and nodded as the other guard opened the door for him. Quickly, he wrapped her in the blanket Hideyoshi had found a few days ago and walked out of the dungeon with her. He did not stop until he got to his temporary home, there he laid her on his bed, ordering some of his staff to get certain items to help bring her fever down. Once they returned, he placed a wet cloth across her forehead and made sure it covered her up so she would not get cold. Once he stood from where he had been kneeling over her, Hideyoshi entered. "Didn't think you were the type to rush in and be impulsive like that with a stranger," Hideyoshi teased. Masamune's eyes narrowed," Well, she has done nothing to prove herself as an enemy. Didn't even try to escape. Perhaps, her story needs looking into. I would not let her die without knowing the truth," he responded to Hideyoshi crossing his arms across his chest. Hideyoshi held his hand to his chin in thought," So you believe her then?" He asked. Masamune shook his head," I didn't say that. I said we wouldn't understand her story if we let her die. There is a difference of the two," he retorted as he looked back at her. He thought for a moment," Though I wouldn't do something like this, perhaps that satchel she had with her will have a clue to her identity," he mused in thought. Hideyoshi looked at him in surprise at first then nodded in agreement," Since Lord Nobunaga won't believe her words, perhaps he will believe the things she has," he agreed. With a nod he then left to meet with Nobunaga. Hideyoshi had left for the castle, once he had arrived he went to the personal quarters of Nobunaga," Lord Nobunaga?" Hideyoshi called from the closed door," Enter" he heard muffled from inside. He opened the door and bowed," Lord Nobunaga, Masamune had an idea about learning about the girl," he told him. Nobunaga turned around and sat down and motioned him inside," Close the door behind you, I will hear what this idea is," he told him. Nodding, Hideyoshi closed the door and sat on the floor in front of the door, across from Nobunaga. "Being as we don't know if her words can be trusted, Masamune suggested we go through her bag that she had with her. He said that items of possession can't lie," he began. Nobunaga held his hand up to motion for him to stop, he looked to the side as he thought for a moment," Very well, bring me the confiscated items of her's then," he ordered and waved him off. Hideyoshi nodded and left to retrieve the items that had been taken from her, a sachel looking bag, and what looked to be fabric protecting a bow. It looked odd to him. Not long after he left, he returned to the room with the items. "Not here, bring the things to the main hall and then retrieve the others. We will all look at what she has brought with her," Nobunaga told him as he stood," Actually, just give me the items. It will be faster," he said as he changed his mind. Hideyoshi nodding handed him her things and then left to get the other generals. Once again, he found himself in front of Masamune," Lord Nobunaga has called for us all to gather, he has accepted your idea," he informed Masamune once he arrived. Masamune nodded, told one of his maids to watch over Luciel and the two men left for the main hall in the castle. Once everyone had arrived, Nobunaga looked around the room to make certain that everyone was accounted for," Masamune, I will overlook your actions of breaking her from my prison if your idea gives us fruit on who she is," he informed Masamune. He simply nodded as Nobunaga grabbed the satchel first, opening it and pouring the items on the ground in front of him. Everyone in the room looked rather confused. In her bag, she had a cell phone, pencils, paper other school items. There had also been an envelope with her name on it. "I have never seen such things before," Nobunaga muttered as he looked at the items. He picked up the phone and looked at it, the battery had died though so he couldn't see what it was. The next item he looked at was the envelope. He opened it to find a paper folded inside, he unfolded it and looked at it, then read it aloud. "Luciel Tihomira, is her name as she claimed. It says something about an adoption and it has names of what I am guessing are her parents and her birthday. So, her story is true, the date here is not anytime that I know," he informed the men. Though he didn't know how to take the information, he bent down and replaced all of her things in her bag. Once it was cleaned up and put to the side, he careflly took the fabric protecting her prized bow off and placed it on his seat. Ieyasu's eyes grew wide," A bow, a nice looking one at that. It seems to be meant for long distance shots," he muttered as he uncovered the bow. "It would seem she at least knows some means to protect herself," he continued on and muttered. Masamune looked at him for a moment and nodded," Yes, though I don't think we should expect her to help us with our battles unless she asks to help. I rather not have an innocent woman bloody her hands," Masamune voiced his concern for her sanity. Nobunaga thought for a moment as he wrapped the bow back up. "I agree with you Masamune, she seems to be a young woman that has never seen true violence. This bow is well taken care of, as if it's her greatest treasure. However, it shows no sign of being used as the bows here are. I will not ask her to fight unless she wishes to," he announced to the generals agreeing with Masamune. He then looked to Masamune," However, since you were the one to rush off with her, you will be charged with her care. You are to watch her at all times and make certain she doesn't get into any trouble," he told Masamune with a smirk. With a sideways glance and a sigh Masamune nodded in understanding with a muttered "yes, m'Lord." They had then been dismissed, and Masamune had grabbed Luciel's things and taken it with him as he went to check on her. To his surprise, Hideyoshi was following him. He let out an irritated sound," Hideyoshi, why are you following me?" he asked with an exasperated sigh. Hideyoshi caught up with him and stopped him for a moment," I wanted to tell you this. Don't you dare get close to her and break her heart or something along those lines. I doubt she understands how you play," he warned him with a serious tone. Masamune glared at him," What I do, is my business. She is under my charge to see to her care, so she is not your concern," he snapped at him and then turned and stormed off leaving Hideyoshi standing there watching him.