Gensomaden Saiyuki Fan Fiction ❯ Crimson Shadows ❯ Courage ( Chapter 5 )

Rianna stood near the window and gazed down the mountain. She laid a hand on the dress that she wore and sighed. She was lonely. She wanted someone that could understand her but he was so far away she knew and wished that he was nearer. She took of the ring and glanced at it then turned away from the window. She walked over to the bed and sat down.

She ran a hand over the sheets and sighed. It was a beautiful bed and was beautifully designed in the makeup but she wasn't happy. She missed his touch and she wished that his mission would be over soon. She wanted him again. She wanted his touch again. Never before had she felt so content with someone before. She sighed once more and lay on the bed, her crimson hair strung out in all directions on the pink satin sheets.

There was a knock on the door and Rianna looked up. She sighed and smoothed down her ornate dress and walked towards the door and opened it. A servant stood there and looked at her. He bowed in respect and Rianna looked at him. He waved a hand to show that her presence was requested and she reluctantly stepped out of the room. She didn't want to see her father. She didn't trust him. She knew that he seemed sincere in what he said but there was something about him that she didn't trust.

"This way Miss Lenora," the servant said as he followed her down the hall.

"Where are we going? This isn't the way to the throne room," Rianna said as he led her down an unfamiliar corridor.

"Your presence is requested elsewhere. The king is concerned about your safety. Some youkai killers are about."

"Youkai? What do you mean?"

"I have not heard much but they come from a long way..."

A palace guard gave him a deadly glare and the servant stopped his statement. He realized his mistake and hoped that King Rynna would forgive him. Rianna took the words that the servant had said and calculated the underlying meaning of his statement. A long way away. A long way...could it possibly be Gojyo and company? She hoped it was but there was no way of knowing what group of youkai killers the servant was talking about.

The servant led her to a room in the west wing of the castle and showed her inside. He allowed her to enter the room and closed the door behind her. She heard the falling of the locks as he locked her in the room and she gazed around. It was a small room but there was a large window that she could look out of. She gazed down at the forest below and realized that there was absolutely no way for her to make an escape. She turned around and looked at the room. There was a small wardrobe with a few dresses inside and a tiny washroom with a shower and she sighed. No bathtub. She loved taking a bath, immersing her body into warm water filled with scented bath salts and soap bubbles. She thought for a moment of Gojyo beside her in the bath, running his hands over her skin in the way that he did and she sighed. She was getting depressed again. At least she didn't have to deal with the persecutions that came from her hair. She sat on the small bed and leaned back onto the bed and closed her eyes. She so wished that there was a way for her to get away, to run off and stay safe until Gojyo finished his mission. She so wanted to see him again but knew that it may be quite a few years before he would come back. She didn't know what he had been called to do, but it was of great importance.

Rianna sat up and stood and walked back to the window. She stared out at the vast forest and began to hum a long-since forgotten tune. She didn't know why she had remembered it at this certain point of time but it seemed to calm her. She climbed up onto the window sill and gazed out. She glanced to the side and realized that there was something there. Something stuck on the wall. A weapon of some sort, it appeared to be. What it was doing there she did not know but she wondered if she could reach it. She stood on the edge of the window sill, something that encircled around the entire tower, and inched her way towards the odd item that seemed to be stuck in the wall.

It was a weapon. It was the hilt of a sword and she pulled on it. It wasn't stuck, to her surprise, as she pulled it out of what appeared to be a holder of some sort. She looked at it in wonder. It was a broadsword and the hilt was beautifully crafted. She tested the weight of the weapon, and found that it was professionally made. She held the weapon in one hand and inched her way back to the window. She climbed in and slumped tiredly on the floor, amazed that she had the courage to do what she just did. She sighed as she let the sword fall from her grasp and laid a hand on her heart. It was still beating rapidly as she vainly tried to catch her breath. She had not been aware that she could be so brave. Perhaps Gojyo's words had given her the courage to continue on. Whatever it was, she knew that she had exhibited courage once and, therefore, she could exhibit it again. If only Gojyo could see the hope that he had given her...