Bloody Peppermints

Bloody Peppermints-Hello ch.2

Kagami's POV

After the almost dreamlike visit, I kept holding the red handkerchief close, trying to recall the soothing feeling that I had gotten when I had heard the words of reassurance. The smell of peppermints still lingered, along with something I couldn't identify. Something sweeter. I prayed this one memento would be allowed to stay with me before I died. As the streaks of scarlet crawled over my legs, my heart began to clutch up in anticipation despite my efforts. Would he really come?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A hand shook me awake, and I blearily opened my eyes to be greeted with a masked stranger. I instinctively shot back, mouth opening to scream, but it put a hand over my mouth.

"Shh, shh! Keep quiet. I'm trying to help you. Can you not scream?" He whispered. It was him! I nodded, and he removed his hand, wiping it on his shirt, then grabbed a pair of metal cutters.

"I'm just going to take the chains off." He murmured, showing them to me. I let him do so, only grimacing when he accidentally moved my broken leg. When the last manacle fell away, I rubbed my right ankle and sighed, the night air whispering deliciously against the exposed skin.

"You'll be cold...and you can't fly with a broken leg. Here. Put this on." He held out a black sweatshirt. I took it and slipped it over my head, the feeling of the warm cotton almost alien. I looked down at it, and bowed my head to him.

"Thank you..." I whispered, barely audible.

"Don't mention it. Now, I'm just going to float you out through the window. I'll use a numbing spell again on your leg so it won't hurt. Once we get to our house, my mother'll fix you up. You can stay with us, unless you have some other family. And don't worry about putting us in danger. We put you in here, and we'll get you back out. It's the least we can do." He whispered back, numbing the leg again. Immobilizing it with another spell, he picked me up. I couldn't help but feel a bit frightened—the landing wouldn't be pleasant if he dropped me.

He flapped up to the window and levitated me outside carefully, then followed me out. The night air was now refreshing, and I stared at the sky, dotted all over with the glimmering lights. There were so many stars...he picked me up from underneath again, and I clung to his sweatshirt, shivering despite my own. He was careful with me, true to his word, handling me like I was made of glass. Wasn't exactly the worst experience I'd had all day.

As he flapped towards an unknown destination, he kept talking to me, his Southern-Kingdom drawl smooth and melodic. It really was a beautiful dialect.

"I know you're cold. Just wait a bit. Mother'll fix you up...she's a great healer. Don't worry—she's about as decent as they get." He said. Would he really...do that? He flew down to a blue two-story house with white shutters and window frames, and kicked the door three times. A blond woman opened the door, looked around, and quickly led us in. He carried me over to the wall and set me down. I almost wanted to reach out for him again, but I stayed still.

"Hello, Kagami." She said softly, smiling at me. How did she know my name?...I supposed the media could've told her. But if she only knew the lies...why was she being so nice?

"We're just going to fix you up. Okay?" She asked. I slowly nodded. Best to go along.

"Good. We'll just take care of your bruises first." She said, passing a cup of potion to me. I gingerly took the brew and sniffed it, checking for any poisons. I found no trace, and then gulped down the potion. A cooling sensation spread all over my body, and the bruises shrank until no trace remained. I marveled at the pale color—I had almost forgotten what I really looked like.

"Here's some poultice. It's for your cuts. " She passed a packet of some kind of green mush to me. I sniffed it again, detecting unicorn's horn, griffin's wing, and lavender. She probably didn't want to kill me then. Imagine that. I then swallowed it quickly, grimacing at the bitter taste. My knife wounds, given to me by a particularly sadistic guard, faded away until only unmarred skin remained. Then she turned to the leg and sighed.

"I see...this...I'll have to set it." She muttered, brushing a hand over my leg and numbing it. My heart clutched up at the prospect of pain, and I clenched my fists. He closed his hand over mine, and I squeezed it for dear life.

Gritting her teeth, she set the leg with a loud snap. I gasped, expecting fiery pain, but merely felt a small twinge. I exhaled from relief, and she muttered a healing spell over it and watched as the skin closed.

"You'll have to keep off that leg...maybe a day at the most." She told me, putting the herbs away. I barely nodded, eyelids drooping. Now that the pain and the cold was gone, all I could feel was a warm tiredness, infusing my muscles with lead.

"C'mon." He muttered, picking me up again. I vaguely feIt him carrying me up, and gently putting me down on something soft. Soon sleep overtook me, too tempting to resist.