Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Ruin ❯ The Bath ( Chapter 2 )

When Michiru woke up, Haruka was still lying on the bed where she had left her. Michiru got up from the armchair that she had been dozing on and walked over to the blood-soaked bed. Haruka seemed to sleeping at first, but she didn't react when Michiru approached her. Haruka was a very light sleeper, and the slightest noise would have awakened her. Michiru carefully observed the battered woman. Her chest moved up and down in slow, erratic patterns, her face was colorless, and her skin was cooler than that of a corpse. She looked like the living dead.

Michiru shook Haruka's shoulders, but she still didn't react. She decided to do something that she had seen in the movies, and poured a cup of cold water from the bathroom sink and pored it over Haruka's face. Haruka coughed as the water ran up her nose and her red eyes snapped open.
“That's better, Haruka.” Michiru barely believed that it had worked. “I can't have you sleeping, now. We need to do something about those little scratches. I'll run you a nice warm bath.”

Haruka tried to sit up, but the pain was much worse than it had been before she had passed out. She tried again, but the moment she sat up, she felt her wounds start bleeding again. With all of the blood that she had already lost, she knew that she would die if any more came out of her. Haruka laid back down and tried to think of ways to get to the phone to call the police. Then she realized, if she did make the call, they would see her like this. It would be on the news and her life and her budding career in auto racing would be ruined.

Michiru plugged the tub of water and went back into the bedroom to collect Haruka.
“Get up,” she ordered.
Haruka shifted, groaned, and collapsed back onto the bed. She cringed as Michiru approached her. Michiru simply offered her hand to her hostage.
“Here, just hold onto me.”
Haruka reluctantly accepted her hand and let Michiru tug her into the bathroom

Haruka was surprised that Michiru would treat her to a bath, but them she saw the white grains that lingered on the side of the tub and a large bottle of iodized salt to the side of the room. The bottle had been full yesterday when she had used a bit to season their dinner, but now it was completely empty.
Michiru flashed Haruka an evil smile. “It will help your body heal. It will only sting a little.” Michiru pushed Haruka to the tub. “Get on in.”

Tendrils of burning agony screamed up Haruka's leg as she was forced into the salinized water. Haruka cried out and tried to resist being forced to sit, but tripped on the slippery surface and feel headfirst into the water. Haruka could hear Michiru cackling as she went underwater. Haruka's entire body felt as if it were and fire. She screamed as she tried to scramble out of the tub, but Michiru pushed her back down.

“Haruk-ko, I'm really not doing this to hurt you. The salt will help those wounds heal faster. I thought a nice, hot bath would be more relaxing than an alcohol rub,” Michiru sighed. “If you'd prefer that, it's fine by me, but it wouldn't be good to waste the time I spent drawing this bath to help you.”

Haruka continued to scramble in the tub, but Michiru held her down with an amazing force.
“Michiru!” Haruka cried through a mouthful of salty water. “I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! Please stop this!”
Michiru completely ignored the request and held Haruka's head under the water until she stopped thrashing as vigorously. Michiru brought Haruka's face out of the water for a moment to let a breath of air into her lungs. Haruka began to gasp for air, but Michiru dunked her under for another thirty seconds.

When Michiru brought Haruka up again, she sputtered for a while, but didn't cause any more trouble. She didn't doubt that Michiru would actually drown her.
“Now that's a good girl.” Michiru smiled at Haruka's terrified expression and grabbed a bar of anti-bacterial soap. “Try to hold still this time.”

It took all of Haruka's willpower to remain silent and still as Michiru lathered the soap all over her lacerated body. Michiru smiled every time she let the bar of soap slid over one of Haruka's wounds, chuckling when Haruka whimpered.
“You brought this all on yourself, you know.”
“Please-”
“I didn't tell you to speak!”
“Michiru, I didn't mean-”
Michiru dug her fingernails deep into one of Haruka's wounds. “Shut up!”
Haruka started to scream, but Michiru had shoved the bar of soap into her mouth before she could make another sound.

Haruka tried to spit the soap out, but Michiru held her hand tightly over Haruka's mouth.
“Haru-ko…what did I tell you?”
Michiru suddenly shook Haruka's body back in a quick, violent movement. Haruka's eyes bulged and she began to make choking sounds. Michiru dunked Haruka back down despite her current lack of air when she began to thrash again.

Michiru held Haruka underwater until the woman stop struggling completely. She supposed that Haruka was clean enough already so she removed the bar of soap from Haruka's mouth and pulled her out of the tub. Haruka's body was as limp as a noodle when Michiru placed her on the tiled floor. Michiru inspected the still body for a moment, and then pumped Haruka's chest once.

Haruka spit up a stream of water and then her body was suddenly reanimated. Haruka continued to cough for a while, but Michiru ignored it and draped a towel around her wet body.
“Did you really think that you would get away from me that easily?” she scoffed.
Haruka just coughed.

“Well, I'm going to take a shower now. I need to ready for Hajime. He'll be here in only a few hours.”
Haruka gasped. Hajime was one of the men that she raced against. He always came in second after her. Hajime had quite the grudge against Haruka, but she had always known that he had eyes for Michiru.
“Ha-haji-hajime?” Haruka stuttered.
Michiru smiled slyly. “He's very sweet, you know. At least when you're not always beating him on that stupid bike of yours.”

Haruka still couldn't believe that any of this was happening. Michiru had beaten her with a whip and then tried to drown her? The Michiru that she knew was always gentle, kind, and loving. Haruka was beginning to think that it wasn't even Michiru that she was looking at, but it was all too real to be a dream.

“Well, by the time I am finished, you better be presentable. I'll need you to be a good sport and hand me over to him,” Michiru sighed. “We were never together. Just friends. All a hoax. Do you understand, Haruka?” Michiru flashed another evil smile at Haruka.
“Yes.” Haruka answered almost immediately. Anything that would prevent Michiru's sadistic attacks was fine with her.
Michiru said no more and shut the bathroom door behind her. Haruka took her chance at a couple hours of rest. The taste of soap was still fresh in her mouth, but that did not prevent her from sliding into sleep, or perhaps unconsciousness.