Souls In Hiding

Pigtail Girls

Painful throbbing in his head blurred his vision as hay scratched at his skin. Confusion distracted him from the pain as he tried - and failed - to sit up. I fell asleep in the bed, and I don't remember placing a stone and hay floor... so where am I if not in the cabin? Shuichi's headache subsided only for him to hear cheering and metal clanging instead.

"He's awake!"
"Fight fight fight!"
"No one can beat her!"

"Silence!" Shuichi looked up and saw a small brunette girl standing on the other side of the cage the two were in. The cage was in a small, stone hut crammed full with an eager audience awaiting nothing less than death. Escape plans raced through his mind before one stuck. Only one plan came to mind but it soon fizzled into disappointment once Shuichi noticed the charms carved into the cage walls. The charms seemed familiar as they also resided in the town's castle prison to prevent supernatural powers.

The brunette played with one of her ridiculously long pigtails, seeming bored. "Prepare yourselves for the fight of the millennium! The girl who risked her life to swap positions with a lovely young boy." The man announced from his throne, fake gagging at the last few words before continuing. "And a cunning, murderous vampire with a taste for blood! There are no rules, start!" 

A hidden person clanged two mead jugs together, signifying the beginning of the match. Shuichi scrambled to his feet as he narrowly dodged the dagger thrust into the air beside him. She winked at Shuichi before pulling her dagger back. So she doesn't want to fight either... Shuichi and his 'attacker' kept pretending to fight each other and miraculously dodging everything thrown at them. It wasn't long before Shuichi saw an opening and pinned her to the only wall that the cage was seemingly welded to. There were no audience members nearby, so they could whisper to each other without being overheard. 

"So how are we getting out of this?" He hushed.

"Wait for backup." She deadpanned, not once showing emotion as she pretended to struggle.

"How long?" 

"Few minutes." 

She shoved the boy off of her and slashed at him. Unfortunately, Shuichi didn't dodge in time and felt the blade slice his cheek. The room erupted in a mix of cheering and boos at the sight of the first wound. Shuichi saw a small droplet of blood splat on the ground and took a deep breath to keep his fight or flight instinct from kicking in. He knew it was an accident and at least their fight looked more believable now.

Both the kids kept fighting, Shuichi only managed to add a minor tear in the brunette's red dress before people started yelling. The glare of a sword hitting the orange evening sunlight caused Shuichi to rush to press himself against the cage bars. The brunette took notice and positioned herself in front of the light as much as possible while still keeping up the fake fight.

Once the swords and daggers were out of the light Shuichi saw birds flying around the tiny building which the audience was now focused on. Shuichi and Pigtail Girl (as Shuichi decided to call her) stopped their fight to see more birds swoop through the window, soon a swarm of them attacked the audience. The vampire noticed the brunette in front of him remained unfazed. This must be her backup.

The two watched in amusement as people ran out of the hut trying to escape the birds. It was stupid considering what they were there for in the first place. Pigtail Girl glanced at the wall behind Shuichi and tugged him over. They headed for the cage exit behind which a guy with purple hair that was higher than the tallest mountains was trying to smash down.

"Who's this kid?" The guy questioned, his hands on his hips after opening the heavy wooden door.

"My opponent. He's coming with us. Do you want to die?" Pigtail Girl glared at the boy and pushed past him, pulling Shuichi along with a tight grip on his arm. The three ran down the stairs into the earth to reveal a large corridor lined with cells on either side. Some housed malnourished and depressed prisoners as others seemed eerily empty as if they housed deep, dark secrets.