Treasure: Chapter 4
Treasure
Ch. 4 Treasure
The sky had a radiant orange glow as the sun began to set. The girl was setting up camp just off of a pond. She collected sticks together, and arranged them neatly in a pile, before using a flint to set a fire. Bankotsu walked up and handed her four small fish he just caught before returning to the pond. Taking out a small sharp knife the girl began to clean and skewer the fish once again, she then seasoned them and placed them over the fire. Out of the corner of her eye; Bankotsu caught her attention off in the distance. He was waist deep in the water without clothing. His hair was out of its usual braid and draped down his back. His perfectly toned body glistened in the remnants of the sun. She felt her face heat up as she stared in awe at him. The smell of burning fish pulled her attention away, and she quickly turned the fish over. She fought to erase the sight of him from her mind, but she had never seen one so handsome. He walked up just as she was pulling the fish from the fire. She turned to hand him one of the skewers, but froze as soon as she saw him. He was hanging up his wet clothes (he must have washed while he was at the pond) over the fire to dry, wearing nothing but a white pair of under garments. Her jaw dropped as her eyes involuntarily traveled all down his body then back up it again. "Are you OK?" He asked raising a brow at her and taking the skewer from her hand.
She nodded feeling her face turn red again, she felt foolish. He took a bite. "It's a little burnt." He stated chewing.
"How'd that happen?" He asked.
"Sorry, I got distracted..." She said coming up with an excuse.
After they ate, the girl headed down to the pond herself to bathe, while Bankotsu relaxed around the fire. She was about to start undressing, when someone covered her mouth from behind. She fought violently to free herself but to no avail. She was pulled behind some bushes, with three men jumping on top of her. They ripped her clothes off of her. One of the men pinned her arms down over her head. She kicked at the other two furiously with her legs, kicking one in the face. The man growled angrily and cursed her under his breathe before he was finally able to hold her legs still. The last man crawled in between her legs grinning perversely. "Well boys, this must be our lucky day. We don't often see such a cute little girl wondering about the woods by themselves..." He snickered pressing himself up against her.
They all smelt heavily of alcohol. A dull nauseating feeling over took the girl as she thought about what they were about to do to her. She was powerless to stop it. Tears started to fall from her eyes and down her cheeks. She was taken back when she felt a strong breeze rush past. The three men had stopped, it was like they were frozen still, then with a thud all of their heads fell from their shoulders; their bodies collapsing afterward. She looked up to see Bankotsu standing before her with his Banryu slung over his shoulder dripping with blood. Still crying the girl scrambled to cover herself up with her clothing. She sniffled trying to stop the tears from falling. She didn't want him to see her like this. When he noticed she was crying, his face immediately softened. To her surprise, she felt herself being lifted up and cradled in one of his arms. "Hey, you don't have to cry. I got you now." He said tenderly.
She stiffened up in his arms, she wasn't used to having anyone treat her this way. It was new and strange. Yet, she didn't know rather she liked it or not. He set her down next to the campfire and covered her up with the sheet. "I'm gonna go and wash this for you." He said picking up the (now) dirty kimono.
At the pond Bankotsu regretted to himself for killing those men so quickly. He should have ripped all their limbs off and left them there to die slowly. Luckily for them, his concern for the girl was greater than his thirst for vengeance at the moment. He was increasingly more agitated at the fact he couldn't figure out why this all made him this angry. Was it because they tried to steal what was his? No. Yes? He refused to have that as an answer.
He returned to the campfire hanging up her clothes next to his. There was a small pale of water and a rag in his hand. "Dirt got into the wounds on your back. I'm going to have to clean them out." He said sitting behind her.
She was quiet. A little too quiet for him, he could tell she was still trying not to cry. "Look, I told you how it was out here. Maybe now you'll listen." He said trying to sound harsh, as he pulled the sagging old bandages the rest of the way off of her.
Instantly, after he said that he regretted it seeing her head drop. Hearing him dip the rag in the water, and ring it back out; the girl tensed up recalling when Renkotsu did her bandages. However, to her surprise, Bankotsu was gentle as he cleaned the dirt from her injuries. "They didn't get a chance to actually do anything to you, did they?" He asked partially scared of what her answer was going to be.
She shook her head. 'That's good...' he thought to himself relieved.
He ran his hand down her back noticing scars upon scars underneath the lashes that had not yet healed. He pitied what her life was like as a slave at that castle. She must have been through so much in her lifetime. "The wounds are healing, pretty well. You'll probably only need to wear bandages a few more days." He stated trying to lighten up the mood as he rubbed ointment over her back.
He wrapped fresh bandages around her back then tied them to where they were tight but still comfortable. She rested up against a tree wrapped in the sheet. Since she was going to have to wait for her clothes to dry, Bankotsu let her have the sheet to herself that night. She was lost in her emotions. All her life being a slave, she always felt like she was held back. Like she could do more, and was bigger than the chains that bound her. Being out here was a reminder of just how weak she really was, and she hated it. All those nights dreaming about being out of that castle, she just thought she'd be better at it.
Bankotsu sat next to her. All this traveling and dealing with her being angry, defiant, and a smart ass; he'd rather her be mad and yelling than feeling like this. He didn't know what to do in this situation. He wasn't often that he needed to console anyone. "Hey,” He said pulling her into a tight embrace.
"I'm never gonna let anything like that happen again." He vowed to her.
She stiffened up, she was just as confused about this whole situation as Bankotsu was. Why was he being so nice to her? Did he actually care about her well-being? Reluctantly, she rested her head against his chest. He felt his heart stop immediately, as the soft skin off her face rested against him. He was paralyzed to do anything about it. For a moment she could hear his heart beat as she lay on his chest. 'What am I doing?' She panicked silently.
It was something about them being so close to one another, it was both strange and oddly familiar at the same time. None of them were equipped to handle this. Bankotsu hadn’t held someone this close since the night he lost his dear childhood friend. The similar situations forced the memories to flood his mind. Both times he had saved her, and then held her closely to comfort her. It was too surreal for him to handle. 'I can't do this; what will everyone think when they find out' He worried.
They awkwardly parted from one another, and sat in a very uncomfortable silence. "So, I've been thinking." He cleared his throat before ending the horrid quietness.
"I was thinking about giving you a name." He had a hint of nervousness in his voice, as he poked at the dirt next to him with a stick.
She was bewildered when he said that. He wanted to give her a name? No one before cared enough to want to do something like that. "How do you like the name, Takara?" He asked.
She smiled softly at him. "I like that very much."
Oh, it was that smile again, and he found himself frozen while he was in the presence of it. The only thing he could do was smile back until she looked away. 'Takara, cause she is my treasure.'
-The Phoenix
Ch. 4 Treasure
The sky had a radiant orange glow as the sun began to set. The girl was setting up camp just off of a pond. She collected sticks together, and arranged them neatly in a pile, before using a flint to set a fire. Bankotsu walked up and handed her four small fish he just caught before returning to the pond. Taking out a small sharp knife the girl began to clean and skewer the fish once again, she then seasoned them and placed them over the fire. Out of the corner of her eye; Bankotsu caught her attention off in the distance. He was waist deep in the water without clothing. His hair was out of its usual braid and draped down his back. His perfectly toned body glistened in the remnants of the sun. She felt her face heat up as she stared in awe at him. The smell of burning fish pulled her attention away, and she quickly turned the fish over. She fought to erase the sight of him from her mind, but she had never seen one so handsome. He walked up just as she was pulling the fish from the fire. She turned to hand him one of the skewers, but froze as soon as she saw him. He was hanging up his wet clothes (he must have washed while he was at the pond) over the fire to dry, wearing nothing but a white pair of under garments. Her jaw dropped as her eyes involuntarily traveled all down his body then back up it again. "Are you OK?" He asked raising a brow at her and taking the skewer from her hand.
She nodded feeling her face turn red again, she felt foolish. He took a bite. "It's a little burnt." He stated chewing.
"How'd that happen?" He asked.
"Sorry, I got distracted..." She said coming up with an excuse.
After they ate, the girl headed down to the pond herself to bathe, while Bankotsu relaxed around the fire. She was about to start undressing, when someone covered her mouth from behind. She fought violently to free herself but to no avail. She was pulled behind some bushes, with three men jumping on top of her. They ripped her clothes off of her. One of the men pinned her arms down over her head. She kicked at the other two furiously with her legs, kicking one in the face. The man growled angrily and cursed her under his breathe before he was finally able to hold her legs still. The last man crawled in between her legs grinning perversely. "Well boys, this must be our lucky day. We don't often see such a cute little girl wondering about the woods by themselves..." He snickered pressing himself up against her.
They all smelt heavily of alcohol. A dull nauseating feeling over took the girl as she thought about what they were about to do to her. She was powerless to stop it. Tears started to fall from her eyes and down her cheeks. She was taken back when she felt a strong breeze rush past. The three men had stopped, it was like they were frozen still, then with a thud all of their heads fell from their shoulders; their bodies collapsing afterward. She looked up to see Bankotsu standing before her with his Banryu slung over his shoulder dripping with blood. Still crying the girl scrambled to cover herself up with her clothing. She sniffled trying to stop the tears from falling. She didn't want him to see her like this. When he noticed she was crying, his face immediately softened. To her surprise, she felt herself being lifted up and cradled in one of his arms. "Hey, you don't have to cry. I got you now." He said tenderly.
She stiffened up in his arms, she wasn't used to having anyone treat her this way. It was new and strange. Yet, she didn't know rather she liked it or not. He set her down next to the campfire and covered her up with the sheet. "I'm gonna go and wash this for you." He said picking up the (now) dirty kimono.
At the pond Bankotsu regretted to himself for killing those men so quickly. He should have ripped all their limbs off and left them there to die slowly. Luckily for them, his concern for the girl was greater than his thirst for vengeance at the moment. He was increasingly more agitated at the fact he couldn't figure out why this all made him this angry. Was it because they tried to steal what was his? No. Yes? He refused to have that as an answer.
He returned to the campfire hanging up her clothes next to his. There was a small pale of water and a rag in his hand. "Dirt got into the wounds on your back. I'm going to have to clean them out." He said sitting behind her.
She was quiet. A little too quiet for him, he could tell she was still trying not to cry. "Look, I told you how it was out here. Maybe now you'll listen." He said trying to sound harsh, as he pulled the sagging old bandages the rest of the way off of her.
Instantly, after he said that he regretted it seeing her head drop. Hearing him dip the rag in the water, and ring it back out; the girl tensed up recalling when Renkotsu did her bandages. However, to her surprise, Bankotsu was gentle as he cleaned the dirt from her injuries. "They didn't get a chance to actually do anything to you, did they?" He asked partially scared of what her answer was going to be.
She shook her head. 'That's good...' he thought to himself relieved.
He ran his hand down her back noticing scars upon scars underneath the lashes that had not yet healed. He pitied what her life was like as a slave at that castle. She must have been through so much in her lifetime. "The wounds are healing, pretty well. You'll probably only need to wear bandages a few more days." He stated trying to lighten up the mood as he rubbed ointment over her back.
He wrapped fresh bandages around her back then tied them to where they were tight but still comfortable. She rested up against a tree wrapped in the sheet. Since she was going to have to wait for her clothes to dry, Bankotsu let her have the sheet to herself that night. She was lost in her emotions. All her life being a slave, she always felt like she was held back. Like she could do more, and was bigger than the chains that bound her. Being out here was a reminder of just how weak she really was, and she hated it. All those nights dreaming about being out of that castle, she just thought she'd be better at it.
Bankotsu sat next to her. All this traveling and dealing with her being angry, defiant, and a smart ass; he'd rather her be mad and yelling than feeling like this. He didn't know what to do in this situation. He wasn't often that he needed to console anyone. "Hey,” He said pulling her into a tight embrace.
"I'm never gonna let anything like that happen again." He vowed to her.
She stiffened up, she was just as confused about this whole situation as Bankotsu was. Why was he being so nice to her? Did he actually care about her well-being? Reluctantly, she rested her head against his chest. He felt his heart stop immediately, as the soft skin off her face rested against him. He was paralyzed to do anything about it. For a moment she could hear his heart beat as she lay on his chest. 'What am I doing?' She panicked silently.
It was something about them being so close to one another, it was both strange and oddly familiar at the same time. None of them were equipped to handle this. Bankotsu hadn’t held someone this close since the night he lost his dear childhood friend. The similar situations forced the memories to flood his mind. Both times he had saved her, and then held her closely to comfort her. It was too surreal for him to handle. 'I can't do this; what will everyone think when they find out' He worried.
They awkwardly parted from one another, and sat in a very uncomfortable silence. "So, I've been thinking." He cleared his throat before ending the horrid quietness.
"I was thinking about giving you a name." He had a hint of nervousness in his voice, as he poked at the dirt next to him with a stick.
She was bewildered when he said that. He wanted to give her a name? No one before cared enough to want to do something like that. "How do you like the name, Takara?" He asked.
She smiled softly at him. "I like that very much."
Oh, it was that smile again, and he found himself frozen while he was in the presence of it. The only thing he could do was smile back until she looked away. 'Takara, cause she is my treasure.'
-The Phoenix