Twelve Lies I Told Shingen Takeda

Chapter Twenty - To Eleven

Shingen dropped that affable mask, and the look he gave me nearly incinerated me on the spot.

I lifted my chin, determined not to be the one who spoke first. To be honest (for once), I wasn't sure what I could say. I wasn't sure if I could even speak – the events of the past hour left me in a tangle of confused emotions – fury at Iekane for what he had tried to do to us all, embarrassment for being revealed so publicly, shame for not finding Iekane before he had a chance to act, and ... the big one, guilt for lying to Shingen. All my feelings were reaching critical mass and had nowhere to go.

"Messenger, maid, daredevil, spy... so many roles you've played." Shingen prowled the room, circling me... once... twice. Underneath his rage, there was pain. I had done this. I had done this to him. "I'll choose one for now. Liar."

His tone cut like a lash. It hurt more because I deserved it. But while the voice inside me was telling me to shut up and take it, I couldn't help but point out, "You knew I was a liar. I told you I was." Also, technically not a spy, not that it would do me any good to argue that at this moment.

"I knew she was a liar," Shingen confirmed. "I didn't know you were, Katsu." He paused, then corrected, "Katsuko."

She is me. I am she. And yet in my head they were still separate people, with different wants.

He stopped in front of me and again stared until I felt forced to look up at him. "Are you here spying for Nobunaga? Do you work for Mitsuhide?"

"N-no. It's y-y-you. Since I've been here, I've only worked for you." Even if I had been able to contact Aki, I wouldn't have told him anything.

"I don't know what to believe anymore." He took hold of my arm – firmly but not painfully. "Would you be more honest after a night or two in Kenshin's dungeons?"

After an hour in a dark windowless room, I would be unlikely to make any sense at all. I planted my feet on the ground and scrambled for another option before he could herd me anywhere. After a hasty look around the room, I focused on the wooden practice swords. "Would you give me a fighting chance?"

He looked at the swords. "I'd have given Katsu a fighting chance. If he existed."

In spite of those words, though, he retrieved two swords. "If you want to fight, Angel," and there was a mocking quality to that name, "you still owe me a kiss." He tossed me a sword. "Double or nothing."

He wouldn't have accepted a refusal, and my pride wouldn't have offered one. Besides, right now, I was in the mood to savage something. This would do. "Deal."

"Until yield," he said, raising the sword, sounding utterly confident that I would be the one yielding to him. "If you think to hang back and then run away, think again, for I will find you, even if I must climb every tree in the province."

That was an empty threat. If I ran, I knew he would not find me – not even if he sent all his mitsumono as well. But he deserved this fight, and so I stayed.

We'd sparred before, but the previous time had been a training exercise – part fun, part education. This time, he didn't pause to allow me to get some concept into my head. He outweighed me, he could outreach me, and he was physically stronger. This could be over in minutes if I weren't faster and more agile.

When I backflipped out of the way of his sword, something I knew he hadn't seen me do before, he seemed surprised. Then I lashed out with a kick, nearly catching him in the stomach, but it was mistimed, and he easily spun out of the way.

Suddenly he smiled, but it was not his normal smile, or even his flirtatious smile. This smile was without joy. "I'm going to win. Do you know why?"

I had several theories why he was most likely to win, but since the question was clearly rhetorical, I ignored it, focused on not losing at that moment, and once again ducked out of the way of the sword.