New fic! I apologize in advance for the inadequacy of this. I have never tried writing something from this time period. Hope you enjoyed reading this
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MidnightChapter 1 - Encounter“Hang on.”
His bruised and battered body erupted with shards of pain with each unsteady step that he struggled to take while his grip threatened to slackened along with his rapidly failing strength. Urging the woman in his arms to not slip from life itself, he pushed the pain antagonizing him aside and tightened his hold around her limp form. Her face was ghastly pale and her ebony tresses were plastered against her skin over the thin film of cold sweat covering her body. Her head laid against his chest over his heart and he could feel her breathing become more shallow with each passing second.
Clenching his jaw and hence his resolve, he refused to give in to his body’s clamoring need to stop and rest. He was determined to continue until he reached the sanctuary he was so familiar with. It stood just beyond the forest and he knew he could make it there as long as he did not drop from sheer exhaustion.
The conclusion after weeks of travel to various lands under strict instructions by his king to obtain the respective rulers’ assurance to remain neutral in the ongoing war his country was engaged in with the enemy turned out to be a deadly trap at his final stop. Unarmed to the extent of shedding his amour to demonstrate his friendly intention, he was ambushed from the moment he stepped in to meet the king.
The 'king' turned out to be a soldier in disguise and he was despicably impaled with a short dagger. An army of men banishing broad swords burst into the room in the following seconds and attacked him from all sides. Fighting his way to the exit of the room with his bare hands, he managed to retrieve his weapon previously left with the soldier standing guard outside. Knocking him well across the hallway with a perfectly executed blow, he unsheathed his gleaming sword and went about cutting down any soldier who dared to halt his escape. Though he succeeded in wresting control of a horse which was being led back to the stables and riding away from the castle before its heavy iron gates crashed down, he did so by paying a high price.
Covered with multiple injuries and on the verge of falling from his horse as the stallion galloped swiftly through the jungle, fate had brought him straight into the path of a frail maiden who was being harassed by a trio of men. Though he had rescued her from the brutal attack she was receiving, he was too late to prevent her delicate neck from being griped in a viselike hold and her fragile body from being flung to the ground.
“We thought you were dead!”
A voice exclaimed through the mist and echoed against the grating of wood on stone as the gate rose up. Ignoring the teenage soldier named Mitsui who offered to take the human cargo from him, he persisted in wanting to carry her into the compound.
The blood oozing from a dozen wounds on his body had reached an almost crucial level and his vision blurred as darkness danced at the edge of his sight. His legs wobbled, forcing him to his knees and the impact jarred the deep gash in his thigh. A pair of hands reached for the woman he held protectively in his arms as he gasped at the searing pain shooting through him.
"No."
Pulling her closer, he blinked as he fought off a sudden surge of dizziness.
“You can't even hold yourself up. Let me take her.”
Shifting his gaze from her unconscious face to look into his best friend's eyes, he whispered.
“I can't, or she’ll die.”
The knight had arrived seconds before with a lady in toil. Raking his fingers through his hair in exasperation, he watched as the kneeling man refused to sever his physical connection with the raven haired woman.
"Do you trust me?"
Although he could not see her face as his eyes were in the process of shutting completely, he recognized from her soft voice and gentle tone that she was the fiancée of his exceedingly competent king. Tilting his face upwards at the woman he had secretly loved since the first time he set eyes on her, he murmured a reply.
“With my life."
"Then let me ease her pain."
Proceeding to pry his stiff fingers loose, she motioned to the king's right hand man standing beside her. Nodding back at her, he bent down and waited for his friend to pass her over. Releasing his hold on her with a grateful sigh, he finally succumbed to the intense pain, allowing it to engulf him wholly. The last thing he remembered was the object of his affection touching his sweat drenched brow with her slender fingertips.
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Less than a week later, he was up and about, taking an early morning stroll through the castle though his injuries had barely healed. Extremely bored with doing nothing except staring up at the ceiling of his room, he was halfway across a particular hallway when his steps were interrupted by a resounding crash. Pausing for a heartbeat to confirm the source of the commotion, a second sound sent him sprinting in the direction of the room from where the noise emerged.
Calming the young servant girl who was wearing a startled expression and shivering outside the doorway, he asked concerned.
"What happened?"
“She just started throwing things at me.”
Her surprise was replaced by indignation whilst she began answering him but her explanation was cut short when another object was hurled their way from inside the room. Stalking inside, he planned to talk some sense into the woman he had saved. Unexpectently, the sight awaiting him robbed him of his natural ability to breath.
The young woman was standing atop the bed, her midnight dark hair hanging in soft curls past her shoulders in wild disarray. Her similarly jet black eyes sparkled with temper and a light pink flushed her cheeks. God, she was beautiful. His breath whooshed out in that instant and his tongue tied terribly. Watching the play of emotions rioting across her face, he realized that no other woman had ever affected him quite this way except for the lady already betrothed to his king. Recollecting his wits, he approached her demanding.
“Why did you throw a vase at the poor girl sent to see to your needs. Lin Lin is a sweet child.”
Scowling at him defiantly, the woman plopped down on the bed, yanking the covers up to her waist and then glaring hard at him. Shaking his head with mild amusement, he crouched down next to her so that he saw her at eye level.
“Are you in pain?”
She raised her eyes to the ceiling and folded her arms across her chest with a huff, obviously showing no signs of it. Pacing from his position by the bed to the window, he took his time to think of how he should go about getting through to her. When he had finally decided, he twirled around to face her once more.
"I was the one who brought you here."
Here? She started to say something but no words came out although her lips formed the words. Frustrated by her inability to speak, she pulled on his arms when he walked near enough, trying to get his full attention. She was a rare beauty and it was impossible to not be distracted by her dazzling features at such a close distance.
"Is there something you need?"
With tears welling in her enormous eyes sheltered by long luscious lashes, she placed one hand at her throat.
"Were your vocal cords hurt?"
She nodded her reply, opening her mouth to speak but closing it again when she realized the futility of her attempt. Gazing at him helplessly, a fresh round of tears sprung to her red rimmed orbs. She needed him desperately and for the first time in his life, he felt that his existence was of some worth. Patting on her hands comfortingly, he encouraged.
"Let's start this slow. What is your name?"
Frowning at his question, she stuck out her chin out and shook her head. She was not a child, why was he treating her like one?
Seeing her willful actions, he could not help but tease her.
"Do you want to know my name then?"
Rolling her eyes and blowing out a mouthful of air to remove the strand of hair obstructing her vision, she mouthed some words. Reading her lips intently, he growled when he realized she was cursing him.
"Very well. I can see when my presence is not wanted."
Flinging his hand free from her grasp, he got ready to leave. Sensing his intention, she kicked the covers off and scrambled to stop him. The silk sheets tangled in her legs and her knees were useless as they buckled from her still fatigue state. Falling from the bed with her night gown flying up when the bottom of the material caught the breeze, she sailed through the air, expecting herself to hit the floor hard.
Reacting in a split second from his daily warrior-like training, he moved quickly to break her fall. Catching her in midair and cushioning her with his own body, they landed on the floor with her lying directly above him and his large hands somehow cradling the creamy smooth skin of her waist. Greatly aware of the proximity of their faces merely centimeters apart, they inevitably locked gazes.
Her high cheekbones were stained with a dusky rose and the dimple by her lips and the mole on her chin were begging him to plant kisses. He had always prided himself for his immense self-control but at this moment, he found it wavering. On her part, her breathing became shorter and faster. Clearly, she was as affected as he was. Sitting up slowly with her body still fully pressed against his, he slipped his hands under her arms and knees, easily lifting her back to the mattress.
“You shouldn‘t get out of bed.”
Mumbling under his breath such that she had to strain to hear him, he pulled the covers over her endless long legs and tried to hide the fact that his hands were shaking. She smiled and folded her hands in her lap, concealing her trembling hands from his view.
When he flicked his honey brown eyes up to stare at her, all rational thoughts fled her mind as she recalled how strong his arms felt when they were wrapped flawlessly around her naked skin.
Damn him for arousing her desire. She had no time to deal with such feelings. She had on a mission, not to mention that she wasn’t ready to be involved in a relationship. She was after all not even twenty.
“I‘ll best be leaving. You should rest.”
The sound of his voice snapped her out of her reverie and she looked down embarrassed, pretending to smooth out the creases in the bed linen.
Wait!Concentrating on the movement of her lips, he realized she was asking for his name as well as promising to tell him hers.
“Niigaki. But you can call me Gaki if you wish.”
Michishige Sayumi.She beamed at him, her face aglow. In return, he offered her a slow smile which made her entire body quiver. After he exited the room she was residing in, her line of sight remained fixated on the rough oak doors. Her behavior revealed her overwhelming attraction towards him and she pinched her eyes shut to block out the face of the man which kept reappearing in her mind.
No, she wasn't going to fall for him. She could not. He belonged to the enemy’s clan and her sole purpose for infiltrating this kingdom was to eliminate every one of its people.
Topic: More Than One Story...[111016 Loving You Forever] (Read 236728 times)