Chapter 105 - 'After' Arc- 4

Kuroko found herself in a huge room that had recently been renovated to a European style. The room was largely unfurnished. There was a double-wide futon (no bed yet, apparently) rolled up in the corner, two large wooden candleholders, a huge mirror in the center of an ornate stand, and a chest of drawers.

“Thanks for keeping my room the same for me, Daddy…”

She was unable to keep the sadness out of her voice. This had been her room when she was little. Her bedroom. Her playroom. Her own safe haven, away from the harsh demands of her father and lukewarm indifference of her mother.

Kuroko moved to the mirror, looking back at herself. She saw not a strong, capable woman…instead, she saw a scared little girl, cowering from her father’s wrath. If she extended her hand, she could see the child inside the mirror also putting out her hand.

No! She shook her head. That isn’t true! My father was harsh but not unfair! And my mother…she only became distant after Shiroko was named the heir and not me. She was never unkind to me! Just…not loving.

Try as she might, Kuroko could not think of a single happy memory. It took her another twenty minutes before something occurred to her. She had been happy as a child, until age ten. Until then, she and Shiroko had played together. As sisters. Sure, Shiroko had a real sister, but she was younger. Kuroko was just the right age for Shiroko.

They had shared everything. Even their first crush had been on the same boy. The very same Kaname that Shiroko was now engaged to. Before that, he was just a servant boy of an slightly lesser family who was strong, funny, kind, and had this little shock of hair that fell over his face all the time, lending him some boyish charm that Kuroko and Shiroko both found cute.

Kuroko could remember one time, back when she was seven, when her father and mother had taken her and Shiroko on a picnic. They hadn’t ventured far into the mountains that was part of their backyard, but enough to where she was excited for the adventure.

I was always the more rambunctious of us, I guess. I would climb trees and wrestle with Kaname while Shiroko acted like a perfect little lady.

The picnic had been fun. But then, three years later, Shiroko had been chosen as the ultimate successor to be head of the family. The talks of the two families uniting had failed again. Kuroko’s family was once again on the bottom of the heap. Kaname was promised to Shiroko. And Kuroko…she couldn’t take it anymore.

When I was thirteen, I ran to the Leaf Village. I lived there by myself, eventually making friends with Satoko and Kasumi. I tried to have fun nonstop, just to feel something. anything.
Then, after five years, I met Yuji.
And he turned me down cold. Which is what I deserved, begging for a one night stand like that.

Then Shiroko took him. Now I have him. But what do I want? Why did I bring him here?

Kuroko absently began to change her clothes. She stripped naked, as she had been soaked through to her skin with that heavy snowfall. She both loved and hated the snow for that.

She looked in the mirror again, this time smiling. Her body was attractive enough. Her skin was snow white and very clear. Her breasts were full and perky; her bottom was toned and firm. Her stomach was flat, showing a hint of feminine muscle. Same with the rest of her body- toned, muscular, but very cute.

Kuroko padded across the room to her bag, extracting her clothes. Black bra and panties, black stockings, black dress that fell to just shy of her knees. She also took out a pair of black barrettes. They, too, gave her a flash of memory.

Daddy gave me these when I was ten. Right after I wasn’t chosen to be the successor. He told me he would always love me, and to…
To…
To please forgive him for how he was going to act. That it was no fault of mine.

That memory hadn’t surfaced in a long time. Kuroko had forgotten just how much her father loved her. Still loved her.

Knock Knock.
“Kuroko? You okay?”

Kuroko perked up at Yuji’s voice. The first man to make her feel special since she was ten. The last time she’d been ‘Daddy’s girl’.

“Come in, Yuji,” she called.

Yuji opened the door and stepped in, closing the door behind him. “I just thought I’d check in an- oh! I, uh…that is…sorry!” He slapped a hand over his eyes and turned away.

Kuroko cocked her head, moving toward him. Then it occurred to her that she hadn’t gotten dressed yet. Ah. That was what had made Yuji do that.

“Oh, come on, you’ve seen me naked,” Kuroko said, a hint of teasing in her voice. “Or does my body not please you, ‘Lord Yuji’?”

Yuji didn’t move his hand yet, but he did say “Oh, shut up! You know I didn’t ask for any of that!” He didn’t sound harsh as he said it. Rather amused, actually. Like he was trying not to smile.

“Come to think,” Kuroko continued,” We’ve only had sex once. And it was under duress then. Though passionate, I admit. Hard to top the whole ‘we might die tomorrow ‘cause I’m chasing a psycho’ thing.”

“I just came to check on you. You seemed really upset earlier, and I wanted to look at your cheek. That slap…”

Kuroko took Yuji’s hand away from his eyes. She pushed him backward against the door, leaned against him, and turned the key that she had left in the lock. With one hand on his chest, Kuroko kissed Yuji. The kiss was fairly innocent despite her nude body. It wasn’t a kiss that was meant to be provocative. It was a kiss that was meant to pass on a whole plethora of emotions. Love, gratitude, concern, care- all the things Kuroko would have a hard time forming into words she instead formed into a kiss.

It was like a movie. Her pigtails fell over her breasts as she moved away. The huge bedroom had a romantic feel to it suddenly.

“Yuji…thank you. Just…thank you. I love you.”

Kuroko had turned away out of embarrassment. She hadn’t meant to say it. Not now. Not like that. This was the interim step between ‘dating’ and ‘love’- or, it was supposed to me. Now she’d just blurted it out. She waited to feel regret, but it never came. Instead, she felt relieved. She’d spoken with her heart. She had told Yuji she ‘loved’ him before, but that was the love between friends. This was a different level altogether.

She felt Yuji’s strong arms wrap around her from behind. His hands folded around her stomach, his head leaning on her shoulder.

“I love you, too. I’ve been wondering how to say it. That’s why I was so quiet on the trip here. The timing just never felt right. And then with all this ‘lead us into battle, Lord Yuji’ stuff…” Yuji’s voice trailed off. Kuroko could feel the heat of Yuji’s reddening cheeks on her neck. It made her shiver to think she could have such an effect on him with just words and a single kiss.

Kuroko put her hand on his head, pulling it into her shoulder. She could feel his warm breath on her neck.

All too soon, that feeling was gone. Instead, she felt a warm weight placed around her neck and chest. She looked down and spied a beautiful black obsidian gem encased in silver around her neck. The gem was in the center with four arms of silver gripping the oval stone in two places at the top and bottom of it.

“For you,” Yuji said unnecessarily. “It sort of matched the whole ‘dark’ look you’ve got going, so…”

Kuroko turned around quickly, ensnaring Yuji in a hug. She was beyond ecstatic. Though she knew he wasn’t looking for any sort of ‘physical gratitude’, there was a time and place for it. Here. And now.

“Help me unroll the futon. Now.” she whispered urgently. This couldn’t wait.
--

Yuji and Kuroko lay together, curled up in her futon. The blanket covered their lower halves, leaving Kuroko’s shoulder and most of Yuji’s chest uncovered. After the exercise they’d just had it was taking a while to cool down.

Eventually Kuroko dozed off, feeling warm, happy, and safe. She hadn’t felt this sort of contentment in…years? How many years?

Not since I was ten. I’m twenty-one now. So eleven years. Mmm…worth the wait.
-

It seemed to Kuroko that she had just dozed off when she heard a voice. An urgent whisper.

“Ojousama?”

Sleepily, Kuroko opened her eyes. They moved slowly at first, then they shot open. Yuji suddenly grabbed Kuroko and rolled her away from the person who had invaded her happy place. A split-second later, a sword slashed down where her neck had been.

Yuji rolled up to his feet. He dodged a sword strike that missed him by inches. His hand flashed out and grabbed one of the two huge candleholders that this room contained. He swung it at his opponent, backing him up. Yuji placed himself between Kuroko and the attacker. He slid the candle off it’s place, tossing it backward to Kuroko. Thankfully, it wasn’t lit. Only the light from the moon lit the darkened room.

“Don’t light it yet. Just keep it with you.”

Kuroko would never forget what happened next. Yuji’s naked, muscular body, still slick with sweat, sprang into action. He jabbed at the attacker with the candleholder. When the sword came down to parry the strike, Yuji rolled the candlestick over and used the four small legs on the bottom to trap the sword against the floor.

“Watch out!” Kuroko shouted. The attacker was drawing a shorter sword that had been concealed in the darkness.

Yuji knocked the long sword away and thrust the candlestick at his opponent, right at the throat.

Blood shot across the room, covering Yuji, the walls, even the ceiling. The attacker fell backward to the wall, blood gushing from his throat. His arms had abandoned his sword and were now trying to keep the blood from flying out of the enormous puncture wound on the front of his throat. It was futile, however, and he was dead in seconds. Yuji withdrew the candle holder, revealing the long spike on the end meant to keep the candle securely in place. He had ’unsheathed’ it when he pulled the candle off. A most deadly weapon.

Calmly, Yuji let the candle holder drop to the floor. He moved across the room toward Kuroko even as he made a shadow clone (who appeared clothed). The clone nodded and left quickly.

Yuji knelt down next to Kuroko, though he didn’t touch her. He was covered in blood- none of which was his.

“Are you okay?”

Kuroko was shaken up but unharmed. She hugged Yuji, regardless of the blood spatter she was sure to get on her. The next thing she knew Yuji had picked her up and carried her across the room to the bathroom.
-

They showered together in silence for a good ten minutes. It felt to Kuroko like she’d never be clean again.

“Kuroko…I promise you that that is the closest you’ll come to death as long as I’m with you. I’ll protect you. No matter what. I’ll protect you.”

It was then that Kuroko realized Yuji was beyond upset. He’d never had to murder someone before, and certainly not so gruesomely. It was odd to think that such a thing could bother Yuji. But then Kuroko remembered that his tenderness was something she loved about him.

Yuji was leaning against the wall, an arm bracing his head. His face was set in a grimace that was showing an emotion somewhere between fury, disgust, anguish, and relief. Without a word, Kuroko washed the rest of his body. It was only when they were toweling off that she spoke again.

“You’re brave. I couldn’t have killed that man. But you had no choice. You know that.”

Yuji nodded. “I know. I’m not upset that I killed him. Well, I mean, I am. But I had no choice. I’m upset because he almost killed you. I can’t imagine what I would have done if he’d gotten you…”

They dressed, falling into silence again. Kuroko put on the clothes she’d never gotten around to putting on earlier. Yuji was dressed in a dark-colored hakama and top. As one, they nodded to each other. Kuroko tucked a dagger into a garter on her leg. Yuji put a short sword into his belt.

This was war.

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