My Silver Protector

Chapter 4

By the time all the floors are polished it is way past midnight and I'm so tired that the fear of my dark confinement does little to sway me at first.

I can see the waxing moon from the small window overhead. Storm clouds threaten to hide it away.

Gripping the pendant resting against my clavicle, I inhale. There's no reason to be frightened, I try to tell myself.

A blue light comes up from the stone. The warmth from it so soothing I can almost relax... almost.

Ginji... where is he now? The urge to see him is near unbearable but I can do nothing locked in this cell.

Somebody had seen to a few furnishings in my new living quarters. The futon was an especially nice gesture. Even so, I cannot sleep.

A strange scratching has me bolting to my feet in seconds. Paranoa is already getting the better of me; thoughts of dark creatures lurking in the shadows. All in a few minutes I've reverted back to that little girl huddled in a corner. Frantic as a rabbit caught by a wolf. Ayakashi are standing in the dark corners of the room waiting to eat me.

"Aoi-san?" the most beautiful voice calls out in the darkness. The trembling in my limbs subsides almost at once.

"Ginji-san!" I dart toward the bars in relief. It's too dark to see his profile and I pray he's not just a hallucination.

The kitsune appears like an angel. His pale hand reaches for me from the other side of the bars. Our fingers brush but nothing more.

Lightning flashes, illuminating Ginji's face. He's frowning as he grasps the metal barrier. Looking as if he wants to pull at the bars until they broke into.

"What are you doing here?" I can't help but ask. I'm not complaining or anything. The relief floods through me like cool water over a fire.

"I waited until the guards fell asleep. I couldn't leave you in here like that. It isn't right of Ranmaru-sama to keep you in here without even a lantern," his voice trembles in silent anger at my unfortunate circumstances. "The least I can do is keep you company." A ball of blue leaps into an empty lantern hanging against the opposite wall, lighting the room.

The storm outside the window is now less noticeable.

Ginji slides down the wall into a sitting position. Dark circles lie under his eyes. When was the last time he slept?

Guilt eats at me for being such a child. I shouldn't be so frightened of the dark at my age. The sound of thunder and lightning has a horrible power over me. I can't shake it.

"I was okay, you didn't have to come." my voice shakes ever so slightly and I hope he doesn't notice.

Ginji looks at me; a strange look coming over his ice-blue eyes. He knows I'm lying and of course he would. He knows me better than almost anyone in this realm. After all he was the ayakashi that saved me as a child... at least I think so. Every time I ask him he avoids the question.

I look down from the intensity of his gaze. We're silent for several moments. The only sounds between us are our breaths.

"Ranmaru-sama speaks of sending you to live with Raiju, the Thunder God, after tomorrow," the words come out strained.

I don't know who Raiju-sama is but the word thunder makes my heart skip. I guess I'm being given to another master like a borrowed book.

"Oh," comes the only word I can pull out of my mouth. I already knew this was bound to happen.

"Aoi-san?"

"Yes?"

"Please report to me if anything is amiss," he says softly.

"I promise," I give him a small smile.

After that we fall into silence and Ginji makes no move to leave my prison. I press my back into the bars, closer to the blue glow beside us. Unconsciously Ginji shifts closer as well until our backs meet. Sitting like this is strangely comforting. We sigh in unison and laugh.

Soon after I fall into a deep sleep.