Roses in Winter: a Fairytale Revisited - A Rurouni Kenshin Fanfiction
Chapter Four: Into the Lair
Kaoru licked her chapped lips, moistening the abused flesh as she stared at the veritable wonder that was the garden in front of her. Words failed her as she stared at the place her father had described as 'magical.' As her horse walked her past the gates and she found herself surrounded by blood red roses, their scent threatened to overwhelm her senses. The blizzard, which had blown the bitterly cold wind and snow against her skin seconds before, seemed like a distant memory as she entered this wonderland. While she could still feel the cold and she huddled against her cloak, the bite had gone from the chill. In this place, this magical place, serenity seemed to reign supreme.
She heard no sounds of bird or insects that usually accompanied such a garden, and the sheer quietness and stillness made her halt her horse's progress for one moment. A prickle of uneasiness ran down her spine. She felt...she felt stalked. Her hands tightened her grip on the pommel and she allowed herself to take in her surroundings for the first time. There was something quite off about the whole thing. Something she was sure her father would have noticed had he not been so preoccupied with his troubles or in the grip of both physical and mental exhaustion.
Is your resolve failing? her equine companion queried, making note of their lack of progress.
She shook her head. "I just," she whispered, "I feel like I'm being watched," she admitted.
He snorted. Well, of course you are, he confirmed. You did not expect to just walk past those gates without him noticing, did you?
She frowned at the horse's slightly derisive tone. "You know," she started, "you're a little more lippy now that we're here."
Again, he snorted and pawed the ground impatiently.
He has waited a long time for you, Kaoru-dono, that he has, he informed her.
She gave him a confused look. "I could not have come here faster than I've already done," she protested. "In fact, I got here a little sooner than I had wanted," she muttered under her breath.
But Kaoru-dono, he tried to explain, Battousai had waited for you long before Kamiya-san ever plucked the rose in bloom.
Confusion clouded her features. "What do you mean?" she questioned. "How could he have been waiting for me before he even met my father?"
The horse remained silent for a long time before answering that question. Finally, he replied, his words deliberate in her head, Sometimes people wait for things they never knew they waited for in the first place.
"Cryptic," she stated, not in the least bit impressed, "very cryptic. I would ask you to explain, but I have a feeling that this is as far as you're willing to go. In fact, I'm surprised you've even talked about the Battousai at all."
The horse neighed in response. I just...I would ask a favor of you.
Feeling surprise, Kaoru arched her brow as she looked down at her companion. "Oh?" she stated suspiciously, "And what favor would that be?"
Just, try not to judge him too harshly.
She started to laugh. "Let me get this straight," she let out in between bursts of desperate amusement, "He was about to kill my father, whose only crime was to unknowingly cut a single rose. And then, he arranged a trade, which my father would never have agreed upon. And now I'm here, away from my family and friends, about to encounter a killer of legendary proportions. And you have the audacity to ask me not to judge him too harshly?"
She would swear that the horse made a sheepish bow. There are always two sides, Kaoru-dono, that there is. In his defense, at least he did not kill your father.
"No," she said, forlorn, "he waits to kill me instead."
At her words, she felt a genuine surprise emanate from the horse's thoughts. Kill you? Whatever gave you that idea?
She gave a snort. "Oh, I don't know," she replied sarcastically. "Perhaps something along the 'a-life-for-a-life' bit?"
Kaoru-dono, he seemed genuinely taken aback, I would not have brought you here had I been certain that death awaited you, that I would not! I wish you had made this thought clearer to me sooner so that I could have alleviated this worry.
"It wasn't a worry," she muttered almost to herself. "More of a certainty. I mean, why else am I here if not to repay a debt of life?"
Had Battousai just wanted a death, he would not have traded your father for you, that he would not.
"Oh?" she exclaimed disbelievingly, "And what else would Battousai want if not death? His mere name carries death around him like a cloak. Legends say that he made Kyoto rain in blood with all the kills he's had."
Again, silence.
"Let's get this over with," she finally said, urging her horse to move forward.
The horse refused to budge at first when his words filled her head once more. Kaoru-dono, I repeat, I would not have brought you here had death been the only thing that awaited you, that I would not. And with that, he started to bring them forward, deeper into the garden.
She heard the gates close behind her, their metallic creaking grating on her already frayed nerves. For obvious reasons, the clang that signaled their closure reminded her of the sound of a blade against a blade. With that imagery in mind, she steeled herself to meet her destiny.
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He watched them from the parapet, his body still as the statues that kept him company. Even from afar, he could see both rider and horse as they approached his land. Here, above most of his domain, the wind was a bitterly cold witch that howled and cackled as she bit frostily into every exposed flesh. Yet, he felt neither the cold, nor the dancing wind that tangled his unkempt mane. Instead, his eyes followed the slow progress of the new arrivals through those gates which, as the fates would have it, were also gates to his own prison. He held his breath when he saw the horse's trot faltered just after the gates. He saw the obvious hesitation, the slight tug that signaled the rider's decision to halt their movement. He clenched his jaw as the maddening fire of rage licked through his being.
He was not a patient man, and yet for this woman he had waited. He had bided his time the moment he watched his horse take her thieving father away from his domain. For days, he had watched those cursed gates for a sign of her presence. Given her father's condition and the distance they had to travel, he knew it had been too soon to expect her presence. But every night this past week, he had stood in this place, his eyes fixed on those very gates as he stalked the high grounds back and forth. And now...now...at the edge of the precipice, she dared to hesitate? A low growl escaped his throat.
Did she think she could go back? Did she think she could change her mind now? His hand touched the hilt of his sword in an unconscious movement.
"I just...I feel like I'm being watched," the wind carried her voice to him.
His eyes narrowed at the sound of her voice. Could she...could she sense his presence? Unfamiliar feelings of uncertainty filled him and not for the first time, he wondered at the insane impulse that led him to spare the life of a common thief. He had fully intended to mete out the punishment for the man's crime of entering this domain and attempting to steal those blood-cursed roses; but, at the touch of his blade on the man's neck, a flash of an image, a vision, appeared before his eyes.
Her blue eyes looked down upon him with such warmth as her hand gently caressed his scarred cheek. He watched both love and tears fill her eyes. All for him.
"Please," she had said, "don't leave me."
A wrenching pain had gripped his chest as he tried to mouth words that were left unsaid.
And as quickly as his vision had appeared, it had left him bereft in that cold night, with his sword against his would-be thief's neck. His lightning-quick reflexes were the only things that spared that thief's life. Well, that and the fact that the thief's ramblings finally penetrated his brain.
"I just wanted to give my daughter a rose," he had said.
Knowledge filled him then. Knowledge that came with his inborn curse that streamed hotly in his veins. He knew then, at that moment, that the woman in his vision had been the thief's daughter. And, as he stood that night with his sword against the thief, an internal battle waged between the cursed monster that was his own and the very last vestige of his humanity ... a trait he never knew still remained.
He needed that woman. Needed. And while that spark in his conscience cried out against bringing another soul into his cursed existence, the utter ruthlessness of the monster clawed its way out and muttered the words of trade that will indelibly tie another's life to his own.
The woman was his. As was his right to demand, the woman would take the thief's place. She would be his by right, by law.
By magic.
And now she was here, at the edge of his domain, closer than she had ever been before. His nostrils flared as he waited for both woman and animal to proceed.
"He waits to kill me instead," her voice drifted to him once more.
Kill her? He gave a silent laugh. A possibility. She was his. To do with as he wished, to play with as he wished, to discard as he wished.
He let out a self-deprecating laugh. As if he would discard the only thing that will ever truly belong to him. Of course, had he really wanted to kill someone, he would have settled for her thief of a father. Still...his eyes glittered. This was interesting. She still came, even at the thought of her death.
He watched her urge her mount forward, quite a brave attempt considering, and he felt himself let out a silent breath he had be holding. She would come to his domain, his home. It was only a matter of time now.
In the back of his mind, he wondered if she liked his gift.
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Her horse led a slow pace deeper into the gardens, and again she noticed the very thickness of the air around her. And the roses...the roses seemed more alive! They seemed denser the further into the gardens she went. In fact, they almost seemed to crawl all over the place. She was surprised to see that there was a path for her and her horse.
A movement from the corner of her eye led her to stop again and observe her surroundings. Something was moving alongside her. She looked sideways, squinting her eyes. There was nothing but rose bushes and the woods as far as her eye could see. How vast was this estate?
On impulse, she lifted herself off her horse and landed gracefully on the snow-covered ground. Clutching her cloak tighter around her body, she began to slowly walk towards one of the bushes in front of her, leaving a trail of footprints at her wake.
Kaoru-dono? her companion called to her.
A foot from the shrubs, an unexplicable urge took hold of her. She wanted to touch, to feel these roses. Their scent tempted her, called to her. Ignoring her horse, she raised her hands to gently caress one of the blooms when she would swear she saw the roses themselves reach out to her ever so slightly. Surprised, she drew her hand back protectively as she took several steps back.
What was that just now? Her eyes widening, she watched the roses sway against the wind and stretch ever so slightly…towards her. With a silent gasp, she backed further away until her body bumped against the side her horse with enough force for her to lose her balance and land decidedly on her backside.
Kaoru-dono? his tone held a slight laughter to it.
"Not a word," she said grumpily, more embarrassed than not as she rubbed her abused posterior, while maintaining her gaze at the roses. She felt the cool brush of wind against her ears and realized that the hood of her cloak had fallen back from its position. Shivering slightly, she grabbed the edges of her hood to put it back in place when her movement caused her eyes to look back towards a strange sight.
Because of the way she had fallen, she now faced the path where they had come from. Except now, there was no path that led towards the gates. The trail she had followed to lead her this far into the gardens had disappeared. Now, only roses upon roses were present where the trail used to be. Rubbing her eyes in consternation, she looked forward to where she and her horse were heading. There, a path was visible. The lanes where the roses separated were delineated quite clearly.
"This could be a hint," she told herself as calmly as she could. "There;s no turning back now, I guess."
Her horse snorted behind her. Had you been really considering turning back, he told her, you would have done so before now, that you would.
"Maybe," she admitted. "But I'd still like to know what happened to the path we took." Carefully, she got up from her sitting position, wincing slightly at the cold wetness of her cloak. Her heart pounded loudly against her ribs as she cautiously walked towards the rose bushes that now obscured the path out of this place.
This garden was magical. How else would one explain the change in the layout of the land? Curiously, she peered through the shrubbery and noted how undisturbed everything seemed. All signs of her presence as she wove her way through the garden had disappeared. In fact, it didn't look as if she went through it at all, let alone her horse.
There was something about all these roses. They felt different to her. They seemed to respond to her presence. Belatedly, she thought of her own rose hidden in her bags. Was that rose a part of this garden?
She stepped closer to the blooms. Again, that sweet scent drew her.
Just one touch, the thought entered her mind. In an almost trance-like state, she leaned down far enough for her right hand reached out to touch the red petals. At the touch of her fingers against the dewy softness, the roses around her seemed to let out a sigh in response. She heard the quiet rustle of their leaves while she rubbed her fingers gently against one bloom. Without warning, the rose she held surged against her hand, its thorns pricking her wrist and drawing blood.
In an instinctive response to pain, she quickly, clumsily, drew her hand back and inadvertently dug the thorn deeper into her flesh. She muffled a small sound of pain as the thorn sliced her flesh from the inside of wrist to the center of her palm before freeing hand. She stood in muted enthrallment as her blood dripped onto the roses, its color melding against the red of the flowers.
As for the roses, she felt an almost tangible shudder bristle across the garden. The rustle of leaves seemed to grow louder than before, more urgent. The roses, all of them, seemed to want to reach for her. She watched in combined horror and fascination as the roses slowly, ever so slowly crawled towards her, the buds nipping at her feet.
Kaoru-dono!
Her horse broke through her stunned reverie as he nudged her forcefully with his nose. She looked back at him, the slight edge of panic entering her voice when she asked, "What's...what's going on?"
Please, Kaoru-dono, he replied to her, it would be best if you ride me from here, that it would.
Not waiting for another invitation, she quickly lifted herself up on the saddle, cringing slightly when she rubbed her palm against the leather. Looking down from her position, she noticed the trail of dripping blood she left against the whiteness of the snow-laden land. Her horse began a quick gallop, which she barely noticed. Instead, her attention was drawn to the line of blood in her still-bleeding hand. With her left hand, she traced the cut from her palm to her wrist, smearing the blood even more.
Are you hurt? her stallion queried, maintaining his brisk pace.
"I...no," she answered softly. "Just a scratch."
The roses did not, he paused, hurt you, did they?
She shook her head. "I was just careless," she stated, thinking about the incident. Had she not drawn her hand back so carelessly, she would not have been cut this deep. Her fingers closed over her palm. It was still bleeding. She would need to wrap it in bandages later.
She looked back at the wake of their departure and let out a startled sound at the sight of a sea of rose bushes that shifted and moved and followed at their heels.
"Why are they following us?" she whispered to her horse as she leaned down, her right hand clutched against her chest along with the reins.
Just then, she noticed his pace slow down to a gentle trot.
He gave her a sideways look. We are here, he told her, avoiding her question Eventually, his movements stopped.
Confused, she looked up ahead of her. She could have sworn she saw nothing but roses in the horizon prior to now. But lo, before her eyes was a great oak door with intricate carvings of monsters and gargoyles. A gasp of surprise escaped her lips.
It is safe for you to be in the ground now, Kaoru-dono, he urged her.
Her hands tightened instinctively against the reins and she bit her lip to prevent a sound of pain from escaping. She really did need to bandage this cut.
She looked around her, taking note that the roses seemed to stay still for now. "Can you tell me what just happened?" she asked again.
This is where I must leave you, Kaoru-dono, her companion informed her solemnly, evasively.
"I guess not," she answered her own question. Looking at him disappointedly, she carefully extricated herself from the saddle. His leaning down allowed her feet to touch the ground safely without putting strain on her hands to hold her.
She quickly turned to him and lifted her bags from his back. "Thank you," she acknowledged his helpfulness on that matter.
He stood up quickly and gazed at her with his purple eyes. I am sorry that I could not be more of a help to you, Kaoru-dono, that I am, he told her.
She nodded imperceptibly, her heart heavy as she watched him turn his back. Was that it? He was just going to leave her like this?
"Wait!" she called out and bit her lip. She watched him turn back to her. What was she doing? With a slight hesitation, she ploughed on, "You said that death did not await me here."
He gazed at her and nodded in response. I do not believe that certain death is to be your fate.
"Will I...will I see you again?" she then asked, dreading the response. "You're the only one I know here," she said quickly, hurriedly, "I...I would like a familiar face to talk to at least." She felt her face flush in embarrassment and she looked away. He must think her desperate!
He gave her what she interpreted to be a sad smile pasted in his equine features. It may be awhile before we meet again, he informed her regretfully.
Feeling strangely abandoned, she said nothing in response. She licked her lips and stared at the ground. For the first time since she started this journey, she accepted the reality that she was alone here. Truly alone.
Kaoru-dono, her horse approached her. It has been an honor to meet you, that it has.
She refused to look up. Instead, her eyes wandered to her hands, one of which was still throbbing.
Please take care of your hand, he sent his thought gravely, before trotting away.
She nodded her head in response, but she didn't think he noticed. By the time she looked up, he was already turned away, those enchanted roses (and yes, she was quite sure they were enchanted!) creating a path for him to go. She tried to call out again, but the words refused to come. Her throat felt parched, her tongue tied in knots. "I..." she started to say, "I..." she said again. "I didn't even know your name," she whispered to herself. "All this time," she reprimanded herself, "I never thought to ask you your name."
Slowly, she turned towards the door before her. There was no sense in prolonging the inevitable. With a deep breath, she lifted the brass knocker with her left hand and gently pounded the door.
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