InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Charade ❯ War Zone ( Chapter 1 )

A/N: posted this on ff.net wayyy back in February (actually my first story…just never got around to posting it on mm.org). It's not completed yet, and I'll post the rest of the chapters later. Tell me what you think!

.

.

.

Charade

.

.

Chapter One: WAR ZONE

.

.

.

Kagome bit her lip as she moved on to the next soldier lying on the floor in an undignified heap. Stupid ambulance drivers; can't they take the time to at least lay these poor men down comfortably? She kneeled beside the wounded soldier and moved his right arm, so it wasn't covering his chest. She lightly probed beneath his ribs, checking for any sign of injury. None seemed apparent.

Then she glanced down and caught her breath.

"Miss Higurashi!"

The soldier's leg had been penetrated by bullets several times, and, from the looks of it, had embedded shrapnel in various places-probably an effect from a distant grenade. It was a good thing she'd forced herself to not focus on the blood; her first day in the field hospital, she had been assigned to administer an anesthetic during an amputation, since the normal nurse had contracted typhus from one of the patients, and was quarantined. She'd taken one look at the mutilated limb and passed out cold. It was miracle she hadn't landed on one of the wounded.

Curse it all. Why had she ever volunteered to go nurse at the frontlines? She should have been back in the pediatrics ward back at the Tokyo General Hospital; but instead, here she was in Sapporo, where skirmishes between their armies and the Russians had been going on for a week or so, tending to wounded, dying boys that could have passed for any classmate of hers back at nursing school.

"Miss Higurashi, I need you!"

She ignored the impatient voice and knelt down beside the boy, searching her waist for the length of linen she always carried around with her for bandaging wounds-

Oh, that's right. She'd used the last bit of it two patients ago; Doctor Kitosumo hadn't seen fit to give her any more.

"Curse it all," she muttered, and hastily untied her long, starched apron. It would have to do.

"Miss…?" the boy whispered, his voice feverish. "M-my leg…"

"Hai?" she prompted gently, trying valiantly to rip her apron into smaller pieces.

"H-hurts…"
"I know-I'm sorry-I wish-" She stopped, knowing nothing she could say would ease the boy's pain at all.

"Miss Higurashi, for the last time-"

"I'm COMING!" Kagome shouted over her shoulder, giving up the attempt to rip her apron, and wrapping the whole yard-and-a-half of cloth around the soldier's leg. "There, that should slow the bleeding a little-or at least until the doctor can see you-"

"Miss!" the soldier grabbed her arm as she began to rise. "Tell the doctor not to take my leg," he gritted through clenched teeth. "Onegai…."

"I-I can't do that," said Kagome, her heart wrenching. Don't care, don't care-if you start to care about every soldier you tend to, you'll be a wreck by the time this war is over. "It's not my decision to make."

"But can you tell the doc that I need this leg? I run marathons-for cancer. Please…"

"Of course I'll tell him," she blurted, lying through her teeth. It was a righteous lie, she consoled herself.

The boy visibly relaxed. "Arigato, Miss."

"You're-"

"HIGURASHI!"

"-welcome," she finished dully. Kagome heaved a sigh and ran in the direction of the voice, weaving her way through the minefield of bodies-and corpses. She tried not to look at the ones who had died before they could receive help.

She searched for the source of the voice, hoping that it was anyone but- Her heart sank as she spotted the doctor scowling in her direction. Doctor Kitosumo, the General Director of the field hospital-whom some swore was the reincarnation of Machiavelli-had taken an aversion to Kagome since the day she walked into the field hospital on the outskirts of Sapporo as a newbie Registered Nurse (RN) exactly three days ago. Of course, the man had never said a kind word to anyone, the nurses who had worked with him for over two years called the man "the devil himself", and he seemed to live off making the fresh nurses cry-but Kagome still felt singled out. On her second day of work as a nurse on the front, she learned that she had broken a new record-she had been publicly humiliated a total of eight times by Dr. Kitosumo, twice more than the last newbie. Her most common mistake was not coming the first time the Doctor Devil, as some liked to call him, bellowed for her.

Which meant that as of now, she was officially dead.

"Yes, sir?" she said meekly, trying not to wither under Kitosumo's death glare.

"Miss Higurashi," Kitosumo slowly said, "you are a registered nurse, are you not?"

"Y-yes sir," Kagome responded, a little wary of where the conversation was going. Dr. Kitosumo had an unsettling habit of using his high intellect and abounding wit to degrade subordinates in the most clever ways.

"And what are you responsibilities, as a registered nurse?"

"To care for the wounded, administer morphine, assist doctors with operations-"

"What was that last one?"

"Assist doctors-"

"Exactly," he said. "Exactly. Assist doctors. In my opinion, nurses are the appendix of a battlefield hospital; get me a bunch of interns from the nearest hospital and I'd be happy. You young nurses waltz out of your four years of nursing school and act like you are equal to any doctor in this building with an M.D. When I call, Miss Higurashi, I am not bellowing for you so I can ask your expert opinion on a matter; I need your assistance. I assure you that I would not strain my vocal cords to get your attention for some trivial matter. When I call, I expect you to come that instant." His cold gaze sent shivers of fear up her spine. "Do I make my self clear?"

"Perfectly, sir. Gomen, Doctor Kitosumo," she apologized, her eyes lowered in respect; however, on the inside she was seething.

"You are dismissed, Nurse Higurashi," said Doctor Kitosumo coolly, emphasizing her title.

"Arigato, sir." Kagome bowed slightly and hurried away. The man reminded her of a feudal lord; to bow seemed fitting.

She muttered a derogatory term under her breath as she stormed away to find Sango.

.

.

.

A bullet whizzed by his ear, temporarily deafening him. InuYasha cursed and threw himself to the ground, pulling his half-dead companion down with him. He was thankful for the darkness as he laid in wait for the inevitable next shot. Stupid newbie probably hadn't been taught not to fire in darkness unless (1) the target was less than a yard away, (2) you were recognized as a champion sharpshooter, or (3) you were on God's good side.

InuYasha glanced down at his companion on the ground and whispered for him to stay put and not move for a few minutes; then he laughed a little at his own joke. The man couldn't move if he wanted to-both his legs were paralyzed.

The hanyou sent a quick prayer up to heaven (hey, it never hurt to have a higher force on your side) as he leapt up and sprinted through the high grass, making as much noise as he could before throwing himself to the ground again.

Just as he had predicted, the moron started to fire in his direction again, unwittingly giving away his location as the sparks from the muzzle of his gun illuminated his body for a split second.

InuYasha, his gun ready, trained his eyes on the spot where the sparks had originated and fired. He heard a soft moan, and then a thump. He smirked. Never mess with this demon. He crept back to his comrade, again slung him over his shoulders, and continued his journey into the blackness, thankful for the cover of the small forest. Was he behind enemy lines? Probably. If he was, no matter. He had most likely killed the only scout around for miles. If he wasn't under enemy lines…

Well, any soldier that careless shouldn't have been in the army in the first place.

.

.

.

"Chewed you out again, did he?" Sango grinned. "What did you do this time?" She was rummaging through one of the many boxes heaped inside the one of the small rooms off to the side of the main area of the warehouse. A few of the rooms were used for quarantining patients with typhus or some other battlefield infection, but most were used as temporary storage rooms.

"I didn't obey the first time called," Kagome shrugged, a sparkle in her eye. "So, naturally, Mommy had to punish me."

Sango snorted, but she had a smile on her face. "Here," she said, shoving a new apron into Kagome's arms. "That should satisfy Kaede, should she decide to perform a surprise spot check."

"Thanks," Kagome said gratefully, tying the new apron around her dress. It was odd to look down and see a fresh, white apron, instead of one stained with water, blood, and disinfectant. "I should be getting back to the wounded, though."

"Yeah, you should."

"When do you have to assist Dr. Riyoko?"

"Oh, I'm probably supposed to be helping him now." Sango laughed at the look on Kagome's face. "Newbie," she teased. "Field doctors move from one operating table to the next, regardless of their surgical nurse's presence. I'm sure someone else is assisting him until I show up."

"Oh…"

Sango shot Kagome a look. "I know what you're thinking. I'm not being lazy, or incompetent; if I didn't take a break now and then, and get a total of four or five hours of sleep each night, how would I be able to function the next day? It's only your first week, you wouldn't understand yet. But by next week, you'll learn to take a five minute breather every now and then."

"Hm, and risk another lecture from the Devil Doctor?"

"He's more frightening than a mother youkai, I'll grant you that-but he can't kill you."

"If I'm still alive by the time I get transferred to another hospital, you get 20 yen; if I'm right, you have to cover my funeral expenses."

Sango snickered.

The door to the small storage room opened, and another nurse poked her head in. "Taijiya Sango?"

"Hai?" Sango stopped laughing and turned towards the red-faced nurse.

"Um, the chaplain has requested to see you."

"Me? What for?" Sango looked confused, but moved to the door anyhow.

"I don't know, he said something about last rites for one of the patients you tended…"

"Oh no, don't tell me it's that fisherman boy from the coast," exclaimed Sango, rushing out the door, leaving a forgotten Kagome behind.

Kagome sighed. I guess I'd better get back to my job too. She wiped her brow and pushed her heavy hair off her neck. What she wouldn't give for a hair tie-she'd broken two already today, her thick hair never wanting to cooperate.

This dumb heat-absorbing warehouse isn't helping any. I suppose I should be grateful that I get to work in an old abandoned warehouse that the military medical unit has designated as a hospital, instead of one of those flimsy tents…

She pushed the sleeves of her dress up past her elbows and exited the storage room. She was glad she wasn't a surgical nurse like Sango-seeing wounded patients was quite enough for her; she didn't know how the older nurse could stand watching amputations, stitchings, or other such bloody operations.

She hurried down the set-aside hallway, heading for the door that led into the main room.

No sooner had she stepped through the doorway when an ear-splitting siren shattered the relative calm in the hospital.

"Oh no…"

"Blackout!"

.

.

.

"Imbeciles," Sango huffed, carefully maneuvering around the bodies strewn across the floor-this time in the dark. "It's all well and good to have a blackout so planes can't set us as a target, but can't they at least provide us with candles? How-gomen, gomen, sir-are we nurses supposed to tend to our patients-gomen, sir!-when we can't even see where it is-crap… gomen! Forgive me-that we're going?" Sango's soliloquy was peppered with frequent apologies as she accidentally stepped on wounded soldiers.

"Stupid Military Intelligence!" she continued. "If the enemy is so close that they have to issue a blackout, they're not doing their jo- Eeee!" Sango shrieked as she felt a pair of hands close around her bottom. "That is my rear, baka!"

"Oh…excuse me, ma'am… it's so dark…" a male voice said.

"Th-that's all right," she stammered. "Are you a soldier? Are you wounded? You shouldn't be standing without permission!"

The man chuckled. "I am not a soldier; and neither am I wounded-so I assume I have justification for standing upright."

"Oh…of course, sir," Sango assured the man, feeling a bit flustered. If the man wasn't a patient, that meant he was a doctor-her superior-and she had just called him an idiot! "I'm sorry for exploding, Doctor…?"

"Oh, I'm not a doctor!" the man laughed. "I'm the designated chaplain for these units of the army… I'm Kazaana Miroku."

"Forgive me, Houshi." Now Sango was grateful for the cover of the darkness; imagine the embarrassment the priest must have felt when he realized that he'd unintentionally groped a woman's behind!

"You have nothing to apologize for, Nurse…" He paused. "I am assuming you are a nurse?"

"Hai. I am Kaijiya Sango."

"Sango," the chaplain said softly. "What a lovely name."

"Thank you, sir."

There was a moment of silence. "Well," the priest finally said, "since there is no lighting, and it is going to be rather impossible for you to tend to these soldiers in the dark, why don't we pass the time with a bit of conversation?"

"Why not?" What on earth are we going to talk about, though? Sango wondered. It's not like I have a lot in common with some old army chaplain…

"May I ask you a question, Miss Sango?"

"Certainly, Houshi."

"Will you do me the honor of bearing my child?"

.

.

.

Kagome cursed as she found herself in complete blackness. Fabulous. Just what she needed. The last time this happened, it had taken the aides three hours to find candles; the blackout hadn't ended for another two hours. What amazed Kagome was that the ambulance drivers and medics managed to find their way through the dark and dump more soldiers outside the door of the hospital; and then they expected the doctors and nurses to do something about the wounded… in total darkness. She hated to think of all the suffering men that they-the doctors and nurses-were powerless to help in a blackout.

She took a tentative step forward, her arms extended in front of her, to prevent a potential collision. Perhaps this would be the perfect opportunity for a nap. Then again, if the blackout ended while she was asleep and someone found her asleep on her shift…

She shuddered to think of how Doctor Kitosumo would react to that.

Crash.

Bang.

Thump.

Kagome froze. She hadn't crashed into anything, and the noises had come from behind her-from the door that led outside. "Who's there?"

.

.

.

His companion seemed to grow heavier with every step. Where was the hospital? From what he recalled, it was supposed to be somewhere in this vicinity… an old abandoned warehouse, the sentry had said…

The boy over his shoulders moaned.

"Shut up," InuYasha said, not unkindly, "I'm taking care of things. No one's gonna hurt ya."

"Ha. I'll believe that when I see it."

"Boy, I'd close my mouth about now if I were you…"

His companion snorted.

InuYasha smirked. Then his mood turned sober again. What am I going to do with him? It's not like I can hide him from the docs in the hospital… maybe if I can sneak in a back door and wheedle some morphine and bandages out of a nurse-

The boy on his back wheezed, obviously trying to form words. "What was that, boy?"

"L…lights…"

InuYasha strained his eyes in the direction the boy had gestured. Sure enough, a faint light could be seen. He let out a breath of relief. It could only be the hospital. "Good work, boot."

The boy grunted.

A shrill siren split the silence of the night air and the word "blackout!" carried across the open fields.

Damn.

He sprinted towards the lights, praying that he would get a little closer before someone found the power switch…

There. The lights had gone out. But he had the spot trained in his vision. The faint scent of blood reached his nose. Yep, they'd found the place, all right. His companion bounced on his back, emitting an occasional groan. "Hush up back there!" InuYasha said cheerfully, his voice no louder than a whisper. There could still be enemies lurking in the shadows. "We're almost to the hospital-you'll be fixed up and committing more immoral deeds in no time."

The boy on his back mumbled something that sounded like "can't wait."

A dark form drew closer in the distance. Finally, InuYasha was standing to the side of what was unquestionably the hospital. The smell of blood and sweat was nearly overpowering. He carefully laid his companion down on the ground before running his hands over the wall of the warehouse, feeling for a door.

There. A back door. Perfect.

He ran back to the boy, making sure to stomp down the grass good and hard behind him, so he could find his way back to the door. He hefted the boy back on his shoulders and proceeded toward the spot that held the door.

He shifted his weight so he could push open the heavy metal door while still keeping his hold on the boy. Praying the door wasn't locked, he drew back a leg and kicked the door with all his strength.

The door flew open with a deafening BANG!

He winced. So much for sneaking into the hospital unnoticed…

.

.

.

"Who's there?" Kagome called again. Why don't they answer? What if-what if it's a group of Russians? Or worse, their Italian mercenaries? She drew in a sharp breath; she didn't have any form of weapon on her-she'd have to rely on either wit or strength for self-defense.

Great. I'm dead.

"Answer me!" she ordered with more bravado than she really had. "Unless you are authorized to be here, I demand that you leave now-or else I'll report you to-to the head general!"

"I seriously doubt that he'd care," a bored voice answered in reply.

"Who are you?"

The all-clear alarm signaled safety and Kagome started violently. A moment later the lights flickered and slowly brightened to their original state.

Kagome blinked at the scene before her. Two men stood before her-the one closet to her was tall and scowling, his long white hair tumbling well past his soldiers. Kagome gasped.

"General Taisho Sesshomaru?"

The most powerful man in all of Japan-for the time being, anyway-stared at her coldly. "And who might you be?"

"Higurashi Kagome… I'm a nurse here at the hospital… I mean in case you didn't know this was a field hospital…" She felt faint-the General of the Japanese Military Forces was standing right before her! And she was stammering like an idiot. "Er… aren't you supposed to have… um, security forces or-something?"

Taisho looked coolly amused. He gestured towards the short man (who oddly reminded Kagome of a toad) standing directly behind him-"This is my bodyguard, of whom I trust with my life and-" he jerked his head-"outside, most likely hiding behind every tree or rock in the vicinity, is my personal security force."

"Oh…" If this was meant to intimidate her, it was working. "Is there anything I can do for you, Mister General, sir?"

He regarded her with a closed expression. "Direct me to Doctor Kitosumo." No please was necessary, his message conveyed. The General of the Japanese forces did not say "please" to a lowly nurse.

"Hai, sir," murmured Kagome. "Follow me, please."

.

.

.

"HENTAI!"

Sango's arm shot out on reflex and hit blindly into the darkness. Judging by the wham and the crash aftereffects, it seemed as though she'd made contact with some part of the priest. The gall! Sixty-year-old chaplain or not, he had no right to ask her such questions!

Suddenly the lights flickered and brightness returned to the room. Sango looked down and gasped. Sprawled at her feet was not some old geezer in a chaplain's uniform, but an extremely good-looking young man in purple priests' robes.

He stared dazedly up at her before his face broke into a grin. "Ah, Miss Sango, you are more beautiful than your voice portrayed you to be. Are you sure you that 'no' is your final answer?"

She glared at him, and stormed off fuming.

"Miss Sango, wait! Your patient! He-"

Sango felt him grab her arm, and she spun around, her arm poised to slap him-

The young priest deftly caught her wrist in his other hand, and gazed at her with an amused glance.

God, those eyes… Sango caught her breath. She was drowning in his indigo gaze…

He smiled gently, his eyes still holding hers. "Your patient. He is near death, I regret to say, and needs a comforting presence near him as he passes to the afterlife. He mentioned a young nurse named Sango, so I called for you-"

Sango cut him off. "Of course I will stay with him."

The priest beamed; you would have thought Sango had agreed to accompany him on a date. "Thank you, Miss Sango. Buddha will bless your compassionate nature."

"Buddha, eh?" she murmured, as she pulled her arm out of his grasp. "I wouldn't have thought a lecher like you would care what Buddha thinks."

"Ah, but I am a monk…" His hand dropped lower.

Her eye twitched. "Forgive me, Houshi, but-" *SLAP* "-GET YOUR PERVERTED HANDS OFF ME!"

.

.

.

"Onegai, wait here, sir," Kagome said respectfully to the general. She flicked a glance towards his aide-the man couldn't be any taller than four feet nine inches, with swarthy, dry skin, squinted eyes, and a pointed face. He reminded her of a toad. She shot a glance at the General, but quickly averted her gaze, blushing a bit. He was handsome, she admitted to herself, but his demeanor was cold-strong and silent, as the saying goes.

She timidly knocked on the door of the storage room Dr. Kitosumo had proclaimed as his own the first day the hospital had been relocated into this storage warehouse. No one had dared protest his bold announcement-even though it was rather ridiculous that a field surgeon should receive his own office, it would be even more foolhardy to challenge The Doctor.

Please, don't let him be in the middle of searching through a medical text or reading the newspaper or-God forbid-

The door swung open. "WHAT DO YOU WANT?" roared a livid Dr. Kitosumo, his face contorted purple. "DO YOU REALIZE THAT YOU HAVE DISRUPTED AN INTENSE ROUND OF SOLITAIRE?"

Kagome flinched, and sent a pleading glance towards the General. "But sir," she began hesitantly, hoping to placate him, "you have a visitor-"

"Insolent woman! What have I told you about talking back to me?"

"Sir, the General Taisho would like to speak to you-"

"Go away! I have more important matters to deal with!" Dr. Kitosumo had pushed the door halfway shut before the General finally spoke up.

"Much as I approve of a man properly utilizing his leisure time," the General said coolly, "I request that I am allowed a moment of your time."

Dr. Kitosumo's head jerked over to where the General was standing, and his mouth formed a perfect 'O.' "General Taisho." He nodded curtly and fully opened the door, albeit grudgingly. "Come in, please."

The General glanced towards his aide and gave him a look, motioning for him to stand guard outside the door. The toad (as Kagome had begun to think of him) waddled over to the doorjamb and crossed his arms as the General swept into the storeroom with a swish of his white cape. (White cape! Kagome thought. He issomewhat pompous-he dresses like an old Imperial Emperor.)

Kagome watched the scene curiously, wondering what the General of the entire Japanese Army would want to talk to Dr. Kitosumo about. Perhaps the hospital was in a dangerous zone? Had the Russian army advanced farther than they had expected? Had they somehow gotten broken through the Japanese Army lines?

Suddenly nervous, Kagome felt a tremor of fear sweep through her. Despite all her teachers and trainers insisting that nurses on the front had dangerous, even deadly, jobs, and that their assignment was not to be taken lightly-but she couldn't dismiss her excitement over becoming a real, certified nurse. Now, however, when the enemy and guns and tanks loomed nearby- She swallowed hard.

Nonchalantly moving closer to the doorway, under the pretense of fixing her hair, she cocked her ears a bit, hoping to catch a few words through the paper-thin walls.

The toad-like aide shot her an appraising look, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Well?" he croaked. (He even sounded like a toad!)

"W-well what?"Kagome shot back.

The toad's eyes narrowed. "General Taisho?" he croaked, pounding on the door. "I am extremely sorry to interrupt you, but-"

Kagome spun on her heel and dashed in the opposite direction. That baka toad! When the General opened the door, she certainly wouldn't be in sight. The hallway wrapped around the perimeter of the warehouse, so she would have plenty of room to run, should the toad decide to squeal on her…

She rounded a corner and promptly crashed into a solid form, the force of impact sending her sprawling onto the ground.

"Watch it, wench!" a masculine voice snarled. Kagome's head snapped up-

And her jaw dropped.

So did the man's. "Kikyo? What the-how in the seven hells did you-"

"Huh? Listen, mister, you've got the wrong person; I'm Higurashi Kagome."

"Nice name; who'd you steal it from this time?" He dropped down beside her and frowned darkly at her. "Good make-up job…but not good enough. You still look enough like yourself that someone could identify you." He grinned at her. Gods, that smile was disconcerting! "You're slipping. Is it because Teacher is no longer there to tell you how to do everything?"

Kagome was becoming annoyed. He'd carried this charade long enough. "Look, buddy, I don't know who this Kikyo person is, but I'm not her."

"Very funny. I'd laugh, except this is no laughing matter." He grasped her shoulders tightly and stared straight into her eyes. "Tell me truthfully: how-" he broke off suddenly, his nose twitching. His eyes grew wide and he shoved away from her. "What the-! You're not Kikyo!"

"Ho, aren't we quick?" She stood and brushed herself off. "Now that we've established that fact… what are you doing here in the hospital?"

He didn't answer. He just stared at her, his face focused, as if he was trying to work out an extremely complicated calculus problem. "Amazing," he murmured.

"What?"

He shot her a quick look, and then shook his head. "Answer this question for me at least," he demanded, his gold-gold!-eyes meeting hers, "are you a nurse?"

"Yes-"

"Could you possibly get me some bandages and disinfectant-avoiding any questions?"

"Yes, but-"

"Good. I need enough to-well, to fix him." He gestured to a soldier that was draped across his shoulders.

"How badly is he wounded?" Kagome asked, her nursing instincts kicking in.

"Several hits in the abdomen, legs completely gave out-think that had something to do with that fall down the trench-minor concussion to the head, I think…"

"Why don't you admit him into the general ward? If he isn't in dire need of operation, I could get someone to take care of him-"

"Why can't you take care of him?"

"Well-I could-I mean, I will but… right here?"

"Of course not, baka," the man scoffed, his face twisting into a smirk. "An isolated room would be preferred-got any closets around here?"

"Closets?"

"Yeah, you know, those little rooms that store brooms and stuff…"

Kagome glared at the man. "In case you haven't noticed, this is an old warehouse, not a state-of-the-art hospital-all the tiny storage rooms are packed to the brim with supplies, old medical records, rags, uniforms-basically a lot of junk. And besides, the head doctor would have my head if I went against procedure-"

"You think I give a darn about procedure?" The man glared at her. "Fine. If you won't help me, I'll go find a room myself."

"No, wait!" If Kitosumo found out that she'd let an unknown civilian wonder about the hospital, he'd have her hide. It would be better to aid the man and think up some excuse to satisfy the Devil Doctor later. "I'll find a room you can use," she sighed.

He smiled triumphantly. "Smart woman." He picked up his friend and slung him over his shoulders. "Lead the way."

"What happened to the 'thank you'?" she muttered under his breath. "If it wasn't for that wounded man you have there, you would be back out in the cold right now… speaking of which, why do you have that sock mask over his head? He could suffocate like that, you know." She glared at the white-haired man and moved to take off his companion's mask.

"No, wait!" the man lunged for her hand, but she'd already pulled the mask off. She gasped, and the face mask slipped out of her hand, falling limply on the floor.

"Stupid wench," the white-haired man breathed.

She jerked her head up and stared into his golden eyes, her gaze accusing. "Why, sir," she asked in a level tone, "are you harboring an enemy soldier?"

.

.

.

.

Well? What do you think? Review please!