Red is the Color of Fate: Obi x Reader

Moving Forward

Ryu placed his glass down. "It'll lose half its efficacy if we do that. We have to mix in something that produces similar effects..."

I shrugged. "The only tea I made when I was running low on stamina was made using the Ilex paraguariensis. I haven't seen any of that here though."

I felt a hand taking the glass from me. "What about roka? It smells similar, and it's sweet, right?" That seemed to get the others thinking. So now they were making it with Roka. It was worth a shot at least. Once again four glasses were passed around. I passed this time, remembering what happened the last time I was told something was made of roka.

With approval and excitement they seemed to have found the perfect way to make it sweet. Obi held his glass out to me. "Just try it." I grumbled, and begrudgingly poured some into a seperate glass before trying it. When the chief came out she looked like she'd been through the ringer.

The chief was a little surprised they thought of Roka tea. "Obi thought of it. (Y/n) suggested tea made with Ilex paraguariensis, but said she hadn't seen any of that plant here." Obviously the woman was surprised, but to be fair, Obi was with us the day we picked those plants. She thought we were a good influence on eachother and was going to speak with the prince about getting some Ilex paraguariensis for their garden.

Some time passed and I had chosen to take a nap in the window while the others worked. Mostly because they were reading and writing. Not really something I could do. Not that anyone knew. Nor would I freely tell them such a fact.

When Shirayuki left she didn't really seem to want to. She was still worried about what to tell Zen, by my guess at least. "Shirayuki, if you're worried about something..." For a moment I thought Ryu was going to say something interesting, everyone was staring at him. "You should write it down." I was actually disappointed when I heard those words.

Even so, we headed out. I decided to walk with Obi for awhile longer. Mostly because I was tired of bed rest. Shirayuki was staring longingly at the forest, someplace that I would love to be right now. "Shirayuki, wanna go to the forest?"

She gave a light nod. "Yeah, if I can." I smirked. The forest really was a great place to think after all.

Obi seemed to think so as well. "If it's not being used for training, it should be okay to go in... Shall I take you?" I walked alongside Shirayuki as she looked ahead on the stone pathway. Obi trailed behind us. "Even though it's on the castle grounds, it's still far..."

I shrugged, but Shirayuki remained silent. That thing with Zen must really have gotten her gears turning. "Shirayuki!" I turned to see Zen, Kiki, and Mitsuhide riding their horses toward us. Obi had his hands up like he'd been caught doing something. Shirayuki... didn't turn around.

Obi turned round quickly. I sighed. "Oh, master and everyone! You're back early."

They really weren't but Obi was just being weird. "What about you guys? What're you doing all the way out here? Especially you, (Y/n). You were on bedrest for the next week. Shirayuki?"

I looked beside me to see Shirayuki was hiding behind Obi. "C'mon, Miss. Why are you hiding?" I knew why and chose to step up.

With a smile on my face I turned to look at Shirayuki. "Say, little red-haired girl, I think you need to... run." Obi looked confused for a second but seemed to catch on. Holding his arms out while I placed a hand behind Shirayuki's back giving her a light push. "I told you right, I would give you time to run away. So take it." Zen was confused as Shirayuki stumbled a bit. "It's fine, just go."

She nodded and took off running. Obi just laughed walking closer to Zen. "She ran away, huh?" Zen wasn't impressed.

Zen looked a little angry. "Because (Y/n) told her to!"

Obi bent forward slightly. "Her? On, no. You're the one who made her want to run, didn't you, Master?" My smile dropped seeing Obi's eyes sharpen. The look on his face... reminded me of something bad. I took a step back as Zen got off his horse.

Once his boots hit the stone Zen turned to me. "Mitsuhide, Kiki, Obi, (Y/n). I'll be back. Wait at the castle." Mistsuhide and Kiki bowed. I just took a second step away from Obi. Even as the reigns were passed to Obi I couldn't get the look of his face out of my mind.

After Zen left I started walking to the castle. "I'm... going to head back to my room. I'll see you guys later. Tell me what happend, alright?" Before they could answer I took off running. I could hear Obi calling my name but I didn't stop. The fastest route to my room was through the balcony and I usually left that door unlocked.

So once reaching that wing of the castle I sprinted a few steps up the wall before using the momentum to jump and grab the ledge. Hoisting myself up I fell over onto my back and started coughing. Liquid poured past my lips and dripped onto the stone as my vision swirled. My chest ached so I turned to my side and clutched my shirt.

(Obi POV)

(Y/n) ran off. She was fine a few moments ago, but now... she was acting weird. Kiki and Mitsuhide seemed to think so as well. "Kiki, Mitsuhide... I'm going after her. I need to know what happened." They nodded and I knew where she was headed. Whenever she was in a hurry to get to her room she would always use the balcony.

When I reached just under the balcony I only heard harsh breathing. Making my way up I reached the edge of the balcony. What I saw made me stop in my tracks. She was lying on her side, and just like that day at the castle she was lying in a pool of liquid that still dripped from her mouth. Her face was red as she tried to breathe. The main difference was the way her hand clutched her chest.

Carefully I set my feet down on the stone and knelt next to her. Her hair had fallen free from the confines of its tie and covered her face. I moved some of the hair away to see tears running down her face. Shaking... like when she was scared. I felt my frown deepen before I moved to pick her up.

She was still extremely light, to light for someone her size. Opening her balcony door I set her in the bed and used a cloth to clean her face up. Her hair was wet with that stuff too but there was little I could do about it.

Once she was cleaned up I pulled her covers up and set a damp cloth on her head. "There, that should help with the fever." Still, to think she got sick like this just to find that bell. I took a seat on the side of her bed, hesitating for a moment before I placed a hand on her shoulder. I know this wasn't what was wrong, otherwise she would have gone to the medical wing.

So what happened between the time Shirayuki ran and when (Y/n) ran? She couldn't even look at me- she couldn't look at me. So it was something I did? No, when I spoke to Zen. When I accused him of making Shirayuki want to run. I didn't think anything of it at the time but she stepped away from me.

The expression I had must have scared her... I must have scared her. There is no way she would have just told me either. She tries hard to look strong and immovable, but when she breaks it's always alone. She couldn't afford to break in front of anyone before, and is used to being on her own. I should have noticed, but I was too focused on Shirayuki.

I'm always too focused on Shirayuki, that sometimes I miss what's right under my nose. I have been since I first met her. "I'm sorry, (Y/n). I should have known better. You try so hard not to be seen as weak, you try so hard not to show that you're broken. That for a moment I forgot how broken you really are." Letting go of her shoulder I brushed some hair out of her face.

For now, I was going to remain here. Make sure she is alright. Once I'm certain of that I will go and find the medicine in the medical wing. Ryu showed me where the extra he made was earlier. Shirayuki also showed me how much to give her. That made things easier.