♦⊱ Chapter 9 - Submissive ⊰♦

Ruka pov:

I was dazed when I came to, when I awoke from what felt like the deepest and longest slumber. Most of my upper body was numb, the slightest movement causing intense pain through my entire body. My eyes stung and I blinked rapidly as hot tears fell from them to soak the pillow on which I laid.

A whimper escaped my lips at the burning I felt over my entire back. I shut my eyes feeling crushed and overwhelmed by the dizziness I felt even as I remained sleeping on my front. The blanket covered my unclothed form until my waist and the cool breeze that came in through the window felt good on my wounded back but didn't ease the overall pain I felt through my body. I was glad that there were no soldiers in the room while I was in such a humiliating state – I guess Kichiro sama knew that I wouldn't be able to even move in this state and didn't need men guarding me even inside the room.

My eyes went wide and my heart raced in fright when the room door was opened and someone stepped in. A wave of relief washed over me though when I saw Kyo chan come into my line of sight. Immediately after, more tears welled in my eyes and gushed out along with sobs. Kyo chan was at my side instantly, looking over me in concern and sadness.

"Shh, My Lady, please calm down," she cooed, caressing my head gently. "I know that you are in pain both mentally and physically but you must calm down. You need to heal and crying like this will only stress you more."

"I-It hurts, Kyo chan," I croaked through my sobs, "it hurts so much! How can he be so mean? How can he be so cold-hearted?"

She sighed but didn't answer my question. She reached for a tray on which were medical supplies and opened one of the ceramic boxes, "This will hurt, My Lady, but please bear with it for a while."

She dipped a clean cloth in the liquid salve and gently lowered it onto the wounds on my back. I shut my eyes and clenched my fists tightly to keep from letting out nothing more than whimpers of pain as she treated my wounds. I flinched at every contact as she disinfected the whole of my back. Done with disinfecting, she began to cover my wounds with bandages.

"You should not have tried to escape, My Lady," she said in a soft tone, not pausing the bandaging.

"But I couldn't bear to stay here. I was scared...no, I'm still terrified, even more now because of what he's done. I want to go home, Kyo chan, back to where everything makes sense and where I'll be safe and not hurt like this," I said, my voice weak and wavering. The silence that followed was uncomfortable but neither of us spoke until Kyo chan had finished bandaging my wounds.

"I never wanted to tell you this, My Lady, but I think it's better than you know so you can be more careful," she said while keeping aside the medicine tray. "You are not the first prisoner His Majesty, Lord Kurai has brought and locked up this way. You are the second person to have been brought here, with him claiming you as his possession."

"I'm the second?" I repeated, sniffling once in between.

She nodded and gazed at her hands in her lap, "His first prisoner was a young boy, perhaps thirteen or fourteen. He too was locked in this room and our instructions were to give him everything he wanted except being let out of this room – the same instructions we were given when assigned to you."

"Why would he do that though?" I pressed, curious but afraid to hear the answer.

"I don't know, My Lady. The boy was cheerful and always bubbling with energy – as I had seen once in the village – but turned into an empty shell when he came here. He lived every minute of his life in fear, trembling under His Majesty's gaze, and tried to run away several times. Each time he was caught, he was punished by being locked in the dungeons for two days without food or water. I'm quite surprised His Majesty did something so harsh to you when he hadn't done anything close to this to that boy. But perhaps it was to ensure that you don't attempt another escape and annoy him like the boy did...it would be best if you were compliant and didn't do anything to upset His Majesty in the future."

"I don't have a choice, do I?" I mumbled, my eyes stinging again. "But where is the boy now?"

The expression of distress Kyo chan gave was unsettling. She clenched her fists before she spoke, "After several failed attempts to escape, the boy began to become more and more stressed. When he couldn't handle it anymore, he attempted to kill His Majesty with a kitchen knife he had got his hands on. His Majesty was so angry when that happened...so much so that he pierced the boy's chest with his bare hand and ripped his heart out."

My eyes went so wide that they hurt around the edges. "W-what?" I stuttered, hearing my heart pounding in my ears. I had heard that he was cruel, that his punishments were brutal but to rip out a person's heart with his bare hand?!

"I saw it happen and it was not pleasant. I couldn't sleep without nightmares for weeks," Kyo chan added. I was sure that I wouldn't be able to sleep without nightmares now. Kyo chan gave me a sad smile in return for my expression of fright and patted my head gently, "I know you're afraid but if you just what he asks you to and don't try to escape, everything will be fine. For now, you should concentrate on healing. His Majesty is very angry so he probably won't come to see you for a while – you should use that time to get better."

"But, Kyo chan, how will I survive? How can I live here?" I wept.

"I told you, My Lady, as long as your obedient, you will be fine," she reassured, "I'll get you something to eat now."

She left the room, leaving me to my brooding. When I was being punished, I had begged the heavens to let me live and if I did, I promised that I would never make Kichiro sama angry again. If he wanted me to stay here as a slave, I would...and it seems that I did not have any other choice. After everything that Kyo chan had told me, I knew that I had to submit to Kichiro sama if I wanted to live. I did not want to experience this kind of pain every again or end up dead like the boy.

I sighed tiredly and closed my eyes. I was still so fatigued and I couldn't help but be glad as I was pulled to much needed sleep until Kyo chan returned with food.

A week went by with nothing more than me resting to help my wounds heal faster. Kyo chan was diligent in treating them with the best medicinal salves available in the palace and they worked wonders on healing the wounds. I was still quite sore though so too much movement was difficult. I needed help even walking to and from the bathroom – it was embarrassing but not something I could help. I was dressed by Kyo chan like usual, though in lighter kimono-gowns so I wouldn't feel uncomfortable with whatever movement I could do.

I spent most of my time in the room sleeping or sitting and looking out of the window. I occasionally read books that Kyo chan had brought to help me pass the time.

"Thank you for the food, it was delicious," I said, putting down the gold chopsticks on the tray that was placed in front of me.

"I'm glad the food is to your liking, My Lady. Would you like to eat some dessert or have something to drink?" Kyo chan asked.

"No, I think I'm good," I answered with a small smile.

Just as Kyo chan removed the tray, a soldier walked in and looked at me, "His Majesty wants to see you."

My heart skipped a beat and a nervous knot settled in my stomach. I looked at Kyo chan fearfully but she just nodded, silently coaxing me to just do what I was told. I could barely stop the trembling of my body at the thought of facing Kichiro sama but I stood with a wince and nodded shakily to the soldier.

Two more soldiers came to my side to escort me through the hallways. I couldn't understand why they were guarding me like I was going to try to escape if they looked away from me even for a moment. In a condition where I could barely walk without breaking into a sweat, how could I escape?

Fatigue soon took over me and I collapsed to the floor after walking for just a few minutes. I remained on my knees, heaving to catch my breath. My eyes stung as I shut them – what had I done to deserve such pain and such torture? What wrong had I done in my life to be treated like this?

I remembered my home and family and friends. My heart hurt so much. I missed them more than I had ever missed them before.

I returned to the present when one of the soldiers escorting me took a hold of my arm to pull me up. I shook him off violently when I was standing, also glaring at him, "Don't touch me!"

As expected, he didn't seem the least bothered by my hostility. Sparing the other two a glare too, we continued to Kichiro sama with me limping every now and then. When we reached his study, I hesitated a moment before I knocked on the door. I flinched when he spoke, giving me permission to enter, and inhaled deeply before letting myself in. I repeated Kyo chan's words in my head and told myself that everything would be fine as long as I was compliant. Then, I cautiously looked at Kichiro sama.

I came to stand on the other side of his desk and kept my eyes on the wood while I waited for him to speak.

"Sit," he said after a moment. I looked up only to find him watching me sternly. I tensed my body to prevent from flinching and sat down with a wince, once again keeping my gaze down.

We were enveloped by silence after that. I could hear the scratch-scratch of the quill on the parchment Kichiro sama worked on and occasional rustling of the paper when he turned it or kept it aside. As time passed, I felt less tense and even summoned courage to look at him. Yet again I felt like touching his long, silky hair – I had always had the habit and often played with my mother's and friends' hair. I swallowed thickly and looked away while mentally scolding myself.

I stifled a yawn and blinked rapidly to reduce the drowsiness I began to feel. It was difficult but I pinched my hand when I was about to actually fall asleep. Whatever drowsiness I had was swept away though when Kichiro sama finally spoke, "Give me your hand."

He had his left hand outstretched to me on the table, his palm open and indicative that I had to place my hand there. Swallowing thickly, I slowly reached out. I hesitated a moment but then placed my hand in his, cringing when he curled his fingers to hold my hand in a rather firm grip. Then he was back to looking through his papers, reading them and signing them.

I blinked dumbly while staring at our hands, unsure of what to make of this situation. His was large and callused, almost twice as big as mine but his fingers were sleek. I felt a little awkward holding hands with him, all the more because there were four soldiers in the room as audience. They didn't seem the least bit bothered by it though – they weren't even looking at us.

I was also confused, curious as to why he was holding my hand at all. He let go of my hand every now and then to shuffle the sheets he was reading through or to open a book or scroll but held my hand again soon after. But as I continued to glimpse at his hand every so often, I was reminded that he had beheaded his general who had lost in his part of the war and ripped out someone's heart. My mind seemed to be cruel to me and almost played out the scenes, making me momentarily hallucinate seeing Kichiro sama's hand covered entirely in blood.

I averted my eyes immediately to prevent myself from retracting my hand from his forcefully. I did not want to do something that would anger Kichiro sama and end up facing his wrath again. I didn't look at our hands again after that.

I think more than an hour passed with us holding hands before he let go and said, "Leave."

I stood up while holding down a wince, bowed and shuffled out of the room awkwardly. I walked a little away from the study and then leaned sideways against the wall, sighing. I gripped the fabric above my heart trying to calm down. When I felt like I had enough energy, I pushed away from the wall and continued walking to my room.

I stalled when we came across a beautiful garden. I glanced awkwardly at the soldiers who were escorting me, "Um, may I sit here for a while?"

One of them nodded stiffly and I smiled as I turned to face the garden. I took a seat on the floor of the hallway, leaning against the pillar on one side of the opening and letting my legs dangle. I looked at the pond in the distance, vaguely spotting koi fish and beautiful flowers that grew in the surrounding bushes.

To be honest, I hadn't expected Kichiro sama to live in a palace that was so beautiful. The vibes he gave off along with the idea I had got from all the rumors I had heard of him had me thinking that he would be living in a dark, dungeon-like palace. I guess 'don't-judge-a-book-by-its-cover' was applicable here too.

I inhaled deeply and closed my eyes, enjoying the breeze and the warm sun that kissed my skin. It had been a while since I had pushed away all other thoughts and relaxed in the moment...and it felt good.

Kichiro pov:

I scoffed in annoyance, looking away from the documents I was scrutinizing. I couldn't concentrate since the girl had left.

The punishment I had given her had made her obedient, it would seem. She had remained silent and had followed through what I had asked her to do without a fuss. She was still afraid but it didn't matter to me as long as she obeyed me.

I had held her hand while I worked. The only time I had had contact with any other person was when I was fighting, killing my enemies or anyone who had disobeyed me. BUT I had seen people hold hands while they walked or sat together, heard that it was considered special and made them feel warm. I hadn't felt anything when I held the girl's hand though. In fact, it had felt pointless. It felt annoying after a while and I had told her to leave.

After she had left though, I remembered that I still did not know her name. I always called her girl but I wanted to know her name so I could have more control over her. It would show the obvious authority I had over her very existence.

I stood up and walked out of my study and towards the room I had allocated to her while she lived here. However, I spotted her sitting in the hallway in front of a garden just about halfway to her room. I was momentarily irked because I had not given her permission to linger in the hallways. I was about to walk to her and reprimand her but stalled when she suddenly smiled – it was like the smile she had given me on the day she had treated my injured arm. I clenched my fists feeling both furious and calmed – furious because she had not once smiled at me like that since she had come here. All she showed was fear in my presence.

She lifted her hand and a small bird landed on her finger. It chirped and her smile widened. She lifted her free hand and caressed the bird's feathers with the back of her finger. After a few moments, the bird flew away.

She shook her head and stood while taking the wooden pillar for support. She walked back to her room with the three soldiers I had assigned to keep an eye on her at all times. When I came to the doors of her room, my men bowed. I remained near the door curious to know what she would do now that she was alone.

The maid I had assigned to her hurried to her and looked over her in worry, "My Lady, was everything alright?"

The girl smiled and nodded, "Yes, he just had me sit with him for a while."

"That's a relief!" the maid responded, sounding relieved. "I was afraid His Majesty, Lord Kurai would still be angry and hurt you."

I clenched my jaw hearing that despicable title again. The maid seemed to care more for this girl than me, the emperor. How predictable.

I stepped into the room and both of them tensed. They faced me and bowed – while the maid bowed ninety degrees, the girl bowed as far as the wounds on her back allowed her to.

"What is your name, girl?" I asked. She tensed, meeting my eyes but immediately averting them to the floor.

"M-my name is Ruka, Kichiro sama," she answered.

"Ruka," I repeated and she flinched. "Come to my study early in the morning tomorrow."

Post giving her instructions, I walked out of the room without another word.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

So! I have edited 9 chapters until now and I wanted to hear what you guys think of the smoothed out details of the plot! Have you been able to notice the differences? Are they better to read?

Do let me know in the comments section!

Vote!

Comment!

:D