Inochi

By Linda

Chapter 13

Genichi was very quiet the next morning, as we sat in the kitchen eating miso soup and rice balls left over from supper. He sat very close to me, almost atop me, and his hand frequently stole over to touch my forearm or thigh, as if reassuring himself I hadn’t wandered off and left him. We had bathed earlier---I remembered how I’d felt so dirty after Soujuro had touched me---and I’d discovered the blood on his thighs had come from a little cut on his left inner leg, up near his small scrotum. I’d wrapped the cut in a dressing after putting some of Haruna’s ointment on it; it looked as if it would heal cleanly and quickly, given his nekogen nature.

From what I could get from him as he clung to me during the night, his grip as tenacious as a cocklebur, Soujuro hadn’t raped him, though I think it had been a very close thing. The scream I’d heard had resulted from the cut of the knife; it had scared him more than it had hurt him, I think, as it wasn’t large or deep. Genichi had said Soujuro had wrenched his long tail when he’d tried to escape his grasp, and it had hurt; it hung limply by his leg, and he was very protective of it. It seemed very odd not to see it switching all over the place, as it generally did. All Genichi would say was that Soujuro was a bad man; I had no arguments about that.

I found the kitchen girls surprisingly quiet also; their gossip stopped the moment we entered the kitchen. I found them looking at me more often than they generally did, and with curiosity, not condemnation. I knew that word of what had gone on in the slave quarters last night had spread; it was inevitable that it would. All they knew was that I had tried to protect Genichi, and that it was Kin’iro who had stopped it, but none of them really knew just how he had. I didn’t see fit to enlighten them, and I didn’t think they would believe me if I told them Kin’iro had traded himself for Genichi.

I didn’t really believe it, and yet I had seen it. Kin’iro had certainly never seemed the self-sacrificing sort. Yet he had done it, and it was the bravest thing I’d ever seen. He had gone into the demon’s den willingly, knowing what awaited him, his chin up and his shoulders squared, uncowed by that terrible knowledge. I had spent the night mostly in thought, as I’d not slept after taking Genichi back, afraid that Soujuro would renege on his half of the bargain. How I expected to stop the guards made it pointless; I surely couldn’t stop them if they decided to take him. After thinking about it, I realized why Kin’iro hadn’t initially wanted to get involved; it put his escape plan at risk. But still, in spite of that, he had done it, had not allowed Genichi to suffer any more than he already had.

I had crept by Soujuro’s quarters early, long before Genichi awoke, and thought I’d heard a soft, painful intake of breath, but I hadn’t been certain. I had smelled blood, though, sweet and coppery; the air was thick with it. I’d put one hand on the door facing, said a little prayer to Inari for Kin’iro, and had hurried on, my feet silent on the floors.

Once Genichi was finished with breakfast---I had made him eat, as for once, he wasn't hungry---we went to the room where we took lessons, though I knew Kin’iro would not be there. Xiu, however was, and in a fine temper, her pale eyes burning with an angry fire. The moment we entered and I slid the door closed, she was at my side, a blue blur of speed that always unnerved me.

“Where the hells is that gods-be-damned kitsune?” she snapped, her voice deep and rough.

I ignored her for the moment and ushered Genichi over to the table and set him down with a scrap of parchment and a charcoal stick; he liked to draw, and was remarkably good at it. He perked up a little, and offered me a half smile before picking up the charcoal. I ruffled his hair and smiled at him before stepping to the shoji that led to the veranda and opening it. I glanced down the veranda, but could see no one.

I knelt beside the door, and a warm breeze lifted my hair, fingered over my throat. I glanced over at Genichi, bent over his parchment, his little pink tongue stuck out from between his lips as he concentrated. I lowered my voice to a bare whisper, and Xiu had to come very close to hear me. Warmth radiated from her; she was warmer than a human, and I wondered again what she really was.

“He’s with Soujuro,” I said softly.

Xiu’s big, pale blue eyes blinked in surprise. “He’s ~what~?”

“Last night, Soujuro sent for Genichi. I tried to stop them, but couldn’t.” My failure still embarrassed me, although I knew I had tried my hardest. Though I had gained weight and strength, I was still no match for the guards. “He...he traded himself for Genichi. Took his place.”

Xiu’s small mouth thinned into an absolutely straight line, and her eyes hardened. “He didn’t,” she said flatly, and her face fairly accused me of telling her a lie.

I glanced over again to Genichi. If he heard us, he gave no indication. “I tried, but Soujuro didn’t want me. Not right now, anyway.” Heat flooded my face, and I looked down at my hands, folded tightly on my lap. “Kin’iro bargained with Soujuro, and went willingly with him.”

“Maybe he went, but it sure as hells wasn’t willingly.” Xiu folded herself beside me. “Of all the ~stupid~ things to do....”

“It wasn’t stupid,” I whispered fiercely. “It was the bravest thing I'd ever seen---he ~knew~ what Soujuro would do to him. Soujuro’s had two years to learn to really hate him---he’s jealous of Kin’iro and Hamanari---I could scent how much...” I flushed again, “how much Soujuro wants Hamanari, but it is Kin’iro who has him.”

Xiu put a hand to her forehead, her expression aggrieved. “More and yet more stupid. If I know him---and unfortunately, I do---he’s lorded it over this Soujuro, correct?”

I nodded. “He holds him in contempt, and never hesitates to show it.”

“Oi. So he delivers himself into the hands of a jealous sadist the day before our plans come into play. Right?”

I shifted uncomfortably, remembering far too much of what Soujuro had done to me as I hung in Kuroda’s chains. “Yes.”

“All over some ~child~.”

“Yes.”

Xiu rubbed her face wearily and ran her hand over her multi-hued hair. She sighed, and looked over at Genichi, who had started humming as he drew, one little white ear flicking as the breeze tickled it. “I suppose I understand why,” she said finally. “He is a pretty child, and reminds me of---“ she trailed off. Her voice became rough again. “This puts one hell of a damned kink in the plan. How badly will Soujuro hurt him?”

“Soujuro won’t kill him, or maim him, but he will hurt him as much as he can and still heal before Hamanari returns home,” I replied. “He is...a cruel man. He likes to give pain.” My voice faded to almost nothing, and Xiu leaned closer.

“You know this from first hand experience?”

I nodded, my gaze on my hands. My knuckles were very white against my pale golden skin, and I made my fists unclench. “I couldn’t let him take Genichi...and neither could Kin’iro. Kin’iro promised me that he would take Genichi with him when he goes.”

Xiu stretched out her legs before her, and wiggled her bare blue toes, her arms crossed on her almost flat chest. “What about you?”

One shoulder lifted in a shrug. “Doesn’t matter. I have too many wards to escape, anyway.” I held out my wrists, and then pulled back the hem of my long robe to show her my ankles, all bright with silvery bands. The black script on the bands writhed, as if alive, and again I felt a queasiness as I looked at them.

She let out a low whistle. “They really locked you up. What are you, a mage?”

I looked out over the garden. I could smell sakura blossoms, and see them dancing, pale pink, on the gnarled black branches of the old tree in the center of the courtyard. The blooms must have opened that very morning. A poet might have written wonderful things about how beautiful they were; I only knew I looked forward to seeing them each year, and their transient beauty. “They say I am. I had just thought myself cursed.”

“Hn.”

“What time will it be?” I ventured after a period of silence.

Xiu was silent a long moment, her gaze sharp and penetrating, as if pondering whether to confide in me or not. I tried not to fidget, but it was difficult; I needed to know for Genichi’s sake. Finally she made her decision, and spoke. “Midday bell. On the last ring, all hell breaks loose. Be far away from the walls and the main gate if you want to survive. Have the boy closeby, if Kin’iro promised to take him.”

“He promised. Xiu....” I trailed off, troubled.

“What?” She too had been watching the sakura blossoms, a faraway look in her pale eyes. I wondered what she thought about, and if it was a good memory. I knew nothing about her, other than she was well known to Kin’iro, and as ferocious as he was.

“What if...what if he is too badly hurt to escape?” I was almost afraid to even give voice to my worries.

Xiu laughed, not a pleasant sound. “He only looks soft, boy. Inside, where it really matters, he’s made of steel. He’ll make it. And if he doesn’t, I’ll carry him out. We’ve been planning something like this for a long time.”

“You’re very loyal to him,” I ventured. “He must be different now than he was before he became a slave.”

The corner of Xiu’s mouth twitched upward in amusement of sorts. “Not really, though boredom and frustration brings out his worst flaws. He’s short-tempered, petty, vindictive, and vain, to mention only a few of his faults. But he does have his good points. Some, anyway,” she amended. “If he gives you his word, it’s gold. He’ll give you a chance when no one else will, though he might bitch about it initially. And he is loyal to those who don’t betray him. Maybe he doesn’t live up to bushido, the warrior’s code, but he has a code of his own no less strict and binding.”

“Have you known him long?”

Her mouth stretched into a grin. “At least three times as long as you’ve been alive. I’m a lot older than I look.”

Xiu hopped to her feet. “Well, I’m off to check on some things. Keep out of the way and try to act as normally as possible. At the midday bell, be close at hand to the front of the house. Have the boy ready to hand off to the mage to rid him of the collar. After that, stay out of the way, all right? If Kin’iro can’t get him out, I will.”

“Yes,” I replied. I offered her a little smile. “Thank you for talking with me. I appreciate your trust. I have one thing only to ask of you---please take care of Genichi once he’s away from here until you can find him a good home. He’s a good boy and deserves more than this.”

Her head tilted a little to the side and she studied me for a moment. “ A pity we can’t take you with us.”

“I’ll survive,” I said softly. “Eventually, I’ll get away on my own, even if it takes years to do it.”

She reached forward and patted my forearm; her hand was hot. It was a gesture meant to comfort, and so I didn’t try to pull away. “And Xiu?”

“Yes?” She fixed her huge blue eyes on me, and it was disconcerting. I swallowed hard, wondering just how to say what I wanted to say, then finally gave up and let it tumble out as it would.

“Get away as fast as you can. Don’t let me hear where you’re going. If...if Soujuro hands me over to Kuroda for t-torture,” I stumbled over the word, a cold horror knotting in my stomach, “I’ll eventually tell what I know. I’m not very brave.”

“I suspect you’re a lot braver than you think you are,” Xiu said, then vanished with a ~bamf~ of displaced air.

I rose and padded over to Genichi, who surveyed his drawing with satisfaction, a smudge of charcoal on his cheek. When I asked to see it, he gladly handed it to me. In the drawing, a huge demon cat with claws as long and sharp as daggers had shredded a man to pieces, a man with a long black braid. It didn’t take much imagination to guess who the man was.

Genichi stood up, and pointed to the cat. “That’s a bakeneko, a nightmare demon,” he said. “Even the nekogen are afraid of it. And that’s Soujuro-san,” he said helpfully, pointing to the man who lay in several pieces.

“So I guessed,” I replied. I wanted to say that it was wrong to wish someone hurt, but it would’ve been hypocritical; I had wanted to bathe him in fire last night. The sheer strength of the hatred I’d felt still made me very uncomfortable, as well as the knowledge that I’d have used that uncontrolled power if I’d had the opportunity. I’d never felt like that before, not even when my brothers had tried to hurt me. I hoped never to feel it again.

I ran my hand over his soft hair, and he smiled up at me; it was a little crooked, but still a smile, and I felt very glad to see it. His face was meant for smiles, not sorrow. “Let’s go for a walk, yes? It’s so pretty outside. Seems a waste to stay inside when it’s so nice and warm.”

He slipped his hand in mine, and we left the drawing on the table. I kept us moving, and out of the sight of as many guards as I could. We didn’t tarry in one spot for more than a few moments, as I didn’t want anyone to keep track of us. I didn’t think Soujuro would send anyone to collect Genichi for his sale, as he was...occupied...but I wasn’t certain. I didn’t want to take the chance.

When the eleventh bell rang, I began to get nervous. I debated not telling Genichi what was to happen; I didn’t want to deal with endless questions that I probably couldn’t answer. Instead, I took us back to our room, sat him down on the folded futons, and put his neglected tabi and sandals on him; he ran barefooted most of the time. I thought he would need shoes out of the compound. I wrapped up his juggling balls and the little pot of Haruna’s ointment along with strips of clean torn cloth for his wound into a square of material and tied it up before tucking it into his loosely wrapped tunic.

“Why are you doing that, fox-chan?” he asked, watching me closely.

I knelt before him, looking up into his curious face, and decided to tell him. “I’m going to tell you a very important secret. You’re a big boy now, and you can keep secrets, can’t you?”

His eyes grew very large, and he leaned in closer. “Yes. I’m bigger now,” he whispered. “I can keep a secret. What is it?”

I whispered into his ear, and it flicked as my breath tickled it. “When the next bell rings, we’re going to run away with Kin’iro and Xiu. Run far away from this place where no one will ever hurt us again.” It wasn’t quite the truth, but I didn’t think he would go if he knew I was staying behind. “So this little package is for you---your things.”

Genichi tilted his head, confused. “I’m not going to go with Toshio-san?”

“No. He’s a bad man like Soujuro-san. We can’t let you go to a place where you’ll be hurt. So we’re going to start our own family, a long way from here.”

Those huge violet eyes blinked, and his tail twitched slightly. “Really?” That one word sounded so hopeful that my heart seemed to contract in my chest. I blinked; my eyes burned curiously, and I thought of Mai, so far away.

“Yes, really. So you have to be very quiet about this. When we run away, it will be very noisy, very confusing. Just stay with Kin’iro and Xiu, and you’ll be fine, I promise.”

He thought this over for a moment, then brought his hand up to skim just over the collar, not quite touching it. “But Kin’iro said that if I tried to run away, this would kill me.”

“We have a mage---someone who can do magic---to take care of that. He’ll take it off before we go.”

“Will it hurt?” His voice was a little apprehensive, and having been on the receiving end of the collar’s punishment, I couldn’t blame him.

“I don’t know,” I answered honestly. “But even if it does hurt, it will be worth the pain to get away from here.”

“I’ll be brave,” he said softly. “We’ll go away, and you can be my brother for real.”

“For real,” I repeated, and squeezed his thin shoulder. I stood. “Come now. We’ve got to keep moving so the guards won’t find us and take you to town.”

To his credit, Genichi remained quiet and asked few questions; he’d grasped the gravity of the situation and the need for stealth. And few, I came to realize, could do stealth as well as a nekogen. His movements were utterly soundless, and he seemed to blend into each bit of cover we found in spite of his very visible white skin. I couldn’t help but admire such a gift; I knew myself good at blending into the forest, but Genichi was better at it than me by far.

When I judged it almost time for the midday bell to ring, I led us closer to the front of the house, to the place where Xiu had told us to be. Pressing up against the wall, I peered around the corner. Out in the yard sat the cart I knew so well, and Kyo stood beside it, arms crossed over his chest, watching a hawk wheeling in the sky above. At his side stood a guard, armed with a naginata. My belly clenched. So much for Soujuro forgetting to send Genichi to Toshio-san.

“They simply can’t have disappeared,” Soujuro’s voice rose in annoyance. “You said you saw them earlier.”

“I did, Soujuro-san. But it was mid-morning, and I’ve not seen them since,” came a voice I didn’t recognize.

“Well, why are you standing here? It surely cannot be that difficult to find two boys in this place. They can’t escape, so they’re obviously on the grounds somewhere. Go.” I heard heavy footsteps walk away, and then the rustle of silken robes as Soujuro turned. “You there...stupid.”

“Soujuro-san?” Kyo’s voice was deep and slow.

“Yes, ~you~. Go look in the stables. They might be there.”

“Just came from stables,” Kyo said reasonably. “Was not there.”

Soujuro released an aggrieved sigh. “Go look ~again~.”

I pressed up against the cool wall of the house, and worried my lower lip. They were now looking for us; it would be difficult to find a place to hide. We had only a few more moments before the bell rang; I had to find someplace to put him. My eyes darted all around as I sought a place to hide him, desperation nibbling at me. I looked down. Genichi looked afraid; his fingers tightened in my robe.

Kneeling down, I pulled him close so I could whisper into his ear. “Under the veranda. There’s a little crawlspace under the veranda---hide there until I call for you, yes?”

“What about you, Inochi? You’re too big....”

“Go! Do it now, before they catch you. I’ll be all right.” I unwound his fingers from my robe and gave him a gentle push. “Now, Genichi....”

He nodded solemnly and as quick as the cat he was, scampered to the edge of the veranda and disappeared beneath it with a whisk of his long tail. I stood, and straightened my robe. Just in time, because a guard stepped out onto the veranda from a room a little farther down the way.

“Dorei! Stay right there!” he snapped.

I thought for a moment about leading them on a chase, away from Genichi, but dismissed that; I was afraid I would miss my opportunity, and that Genichi would be trapped here. So I stepped away from the wall, my hands loose at my thighs, making myself look as non-threatening as possible. The guard thumped up the length of the veranda, a big man; his steps seemed to shake the polished boards, and for a moment, I had a horrific vision of him crashing through a weak board and stepping on Genichi, flattening him.

The guard seized me by the upper arm. I still ached from the rough treatment of the night before, and couldn’t help but wince as he jerked me to my toes. “Where is the little one?”

I looked down and away from him, pressing my lips together. When I didn’t answer, he shook me hard. The back of my head was yet tender from hitting the wall so often last night and my vision swam a moment; I wondered if I would pass out.

“Answer me, boy!”

I closed my eyes, and when I opened them again, I looked down to see silk tabi beneath a red silk robe. It was the same dragon robe Soujuro had worn when he had taken me from Haruna, seemingly a lifetime ago. Soujuro’s foot tapped impatiently. “Well, answer, dorei,” he snapped, his voice thin with annoyance.

I kept my eyes fixed on the floor. I knew I would pay for my disobedience, and as surely as day follows night, Soujuro’s palm connected smartly with my cheek, with enough force to snap my head to the side, sending my long black hair flying. My cheek burned from the slap, but I didn’t raise my hand to rub away the pain.

“I know,” Soujuro said, his voice low and dangerous, “ you are not that stupid.”

“Perhaps I am,” I replied softly.

Soujuro’s hand knotted in my hair, and pulled up my head. I would not look at him; I could not, knowing what he had done to Genichi and to Kin’iro, and to Ayano, and without a doubt, countless others.

“You cannot hide him from me, “ Soujuro said. “He has been sold. He belongs to Toshio-san now. You will tell me where you’ve hidden the little wretch.”

“I will not.” I rolled my head slightly to look up at him. I felt a dull, hot anger coalesce in my belly; it rose up to warm my chest, and it made my voice hard. “I will tell you nothing.”

Soujuro’s eyes blazed dark with fury. “How ~dare~ you defy me?” He raised his hand again and I didn’t try to avoid it; held in place by a guard, it was pointless to even try. This blow was hard enough to make me gasp and sent me to one knee; I tasted my own blood and felt my lower lip split and swell. I half-knelt there, my hair hanging in my face, breathing hard, and hoped that Genichi had enough sense to stay hidden no matter how many times Soujuro hit me. I knew he could hear things very clearly, and willed him to be still and quiet. Soujuro could strike me all he wished now; in a few more moments, it wouldn’t matter.

He pulled me to my feet by my hair, and I bit my already swollen lip to keep from crying out. “Perhaps you need to see Kuroda again,” he hissed.

“It doesn’t matter,” I said softly. “It doesn’t matter whether you hurt me or he does. It doesn’t matter if you can make me curse my mother for even birthing me. You won’t get Genichi.”

Soujuro smiled, released me, and smoothed the full silken sleeves of his robe. “Brave words now, dorei. I shall see that you rue each one. If you think he hurt you before, you have no idea what he can do to you now. And I will watch and listen as you beg me to make it stop.” He stepped back and made a dismissive motion with his hand. “We’ll eventually find him---he can’t hide forever. Guard---take him to Kuroda.”

The guard jerked me forward by the arm, and I began to struggle. Terror rose up within me, sharp and razored. In spite of my brave words I feared Kuroda almost more than I feared anything else. I had to stay close by---I couldn’t let them drag me away yet. I’d stalled as much as I could, but it wasn’t enough. My feet skidded on the polished veranda, my footing made slick and unsure by the tabi on my feet. The guard managed to drag me a few feet before I grabbed onto a support beam for the roof and wrapped my free arm and both legs around it, locking them in place.

He swore violently, and pulled his bamboo cane from his belt. I tucked my cheek into the wooden pillar and tensed for the blow across back and shoulders. Instead, it fell across one thigh, and I yelped in both surprise and the blossom of hot pain.

Then the first tones of the midday bell fell on my ears, and I wanted to sob with relief. The next blows fell in rapid succession, faster than the bell rang, and I gritted my teeth to keep from crying out, afraid that to do so would bring Genichi out of hiding in an attempt to stop it. The guard pulled harshly on my arm, and I released the post as the last bell rang, falling to my knees, my back and thighs and buttocks burning.

Even though the collar blocked my ki-sense, I ~felt~ the buildup of power at the main gate, and the equally powerful reactive flex of the wards Tetsu Sensei had woven around the compound. The guard paused; evidently even the mind-blind could tell that something powerful had sprung into existence behind the thick walls of the compound. His grip on me loosened, and I stood, my attention focused at the gate. The air ~rippled~ like the sun glinting off water in the wintertime; it grew to encompass a huge area, and I felt the pulse of incredible power---it crawled like ants over my skin, up my spine. In spite of the collar, a tiny, suppressed part of me responded. The people in the courtyard milled around, uneasy and uncertain as to what happened outside the thick walls of the compound.

I heard a ripping noise, as if someone shredded a huge piece of cloth and then a sound like thunder magnified by the mountains. The gate, and a huge section of the wall, simply exploded inward. Large chunks of masonry and pieces of iron tore through the air and through the bodies of anyone unlucky enough to be too standing too closely, and dust billowed like fog on a cool morning. For a moment I heard nothing, as if my ears had gone suddenly deaf, then sound rushed in---the dull cracking and crashing of rocks falling and settling, the screams of the injured, and the shouts of confused men. The scent of rocks aflame---how could rocks burn?---and flesh was an acrid stench in my nose, and my eyes watered. After another pause, I heard Soujuro, his voice sharp and abrupt, call to rally the guards in defense of the compound. The guard abandoned me and tore around the corner; I followed, curious.

I stopped at the corner of the house, out of the way, half-hidden. If nothing else, Soujuro was efficient; he gathered the remaining guards and placed those with naginatas before them to meet the as-unseen threat; others he sent for more weapons and the other guards still within the house. His grey eyes shone clear and sharp, assessing the situation, and in an idle thought, I wondered if he had ever been in the military, as had Toshio.

When the breeze cleared some of the smoke and dust, I saw a man framed by the breached wall. He had long, silvery hair that whipped almost like a live thing in his ki-wind, but was not old; he stood tall and broad-shouldered, a younger man with pale eyes and dark skin. His smile was a fierce, white slash in his brown face, and he raised one fist. Around him a small light flashed and flickered, changing hues rapidly---a hikaru. This, then, was Kin'iro's mage.

An armed group appeared all around him, kitsunes, and some species bigger, heavier---ookami, the wolf people?---and some adult nekogen. Kin’iro’s men, I realized, come to rescue him. My eyes slid to Soujuro, who looked frankly astonished before his face smoothed and took on a fierce, determined look.

I felt a little tug on my robe, and my hand dropped to Genichi’s shoulder. He wrapped his arms tightly around my waist, and I could feel a fine tremor along his slim body, pressed tightly to mine. I looked down into his wide, scared eyes. “It’s happening,” I said softly. “It will be all right.”

When I looked back up at the group, the mage brought his fist down in a decisive gesture. An eerie, ululating war cry came from dozens of throats, and brandishing razored katanas, they poured into the courtyard, faces ferocious and joyous, ready to shed blood and rescue their lord.

Chapter Fourteen

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