The little boys had strange looks on their faces as if they were concentrating on something. Little did she know they were listening to Kyouâs silent command. She bit her lip when they nodded as if answering someone.
âWe have to go get dressed now." Grabbing some oversized cloths from a pile, they quickly wrapped the soft material around themselves.
"Itâs time to eat." Hiraru yelled over his shoulder as he grabbed Hirokiâs hand and the small twins skipped from the room.
Kyoko stood in the water in shock as she felt little needles of fear start to climb her back and she squeezed her eyes shut, a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. Somewhere she knew the gods were laughing at her.
She should have known better than to just follow the children here without asking questions. Kyoko started for the side of the spring hoping to make it back to her room before âMr. Double personalityâ noticed her gone. She needed to hurry, her fragile âsecurity blanketsâ were gone and she was unprotected.
As she stepped from the water and started for the huge towels, she heard a low growl directly behind her. The next thing she knew⦠hands from nowhere wrapped around her naked ribs and she was pulled back against a silk covered chest as her feet left the floor.
Kyoko instantly looked up to see Kyouâs face. Instead of the anger she had expected to see, his face was calm⦠almost too calm. She looked down at the floor watching it get further away from them. Yep, the gods were having an all-out laugh fest over this one.
Her lips parted as she glanced back up seeing he was taking her to a balcony. He didnât even land but glided in through the opened doors and back to the room she had started out in. He finally stopped once they were over the huge pillow she had woken up on.
Kyoko waited to be dropped but he did not release her, nor was he hurting her by holding her too tight. She noticed his hands were soft as they touched her bare skin. Kyokoâs eyes widened. Her bare skin! Oh⦠how could she have forgotten so quickly? She was still naked from bathing.
Her arms instantly crossed over her chest self protectively and she felt all her muscles tense up, waiting as he held her as if undecided on what to do with her. She could give him a big fat hint if he wanted and that would be to PUT HER THE HELL DOWN!
Kyouâs eyes almost slid shut as he felt her softly rounded curves pressed against him creating havoc on his senses. He noticed when she tensed up and it brought his mind back for a moment... But still he did not release her. He had always prided himself on control and here would be a good chance to test his control of her and teach her another lesson at the same time.
"Did I give you permission to leave this room?" His voice was cold and unyielding.
Kyokoâs eyes widened as her heartbeat thumped in her chest, kicking against her ribs so hard she knew he could feel it. Thinking quickly, âwhat would be the best answer?â she said in a small voice, "I donât know the rules." She cringed knowing that playing dumb would be the best option at the moment.
She knew for a fact that right now was not the time to fight for her rights because of her lack of clothing. It wasnât that she would win if she tried. She just wanted down and him gone so she added in a soft frightened voice, "Iâm sorry.â
When he heard her soft sweet voice, it engulfed him, making him inhale as sensations pooled in his nether regions. This would be dangerous if he pushed the test too far. He felt the rage of her disobedience leave him but the rage of his want remained tenfold.
"The first rule is you never go anywhere without my permission unless you want to be punished," His voice softened to take the sting from his words, but still he felt her flinch.
Kyoko's throat went dry. "Punished?" She didnât mean to whisper the word. It just slipped out and she felt her heart start to flutter in fear. She instantly deleted the picture of Kyou spanking her from her deranged mind not wanting to even know where the insane flash had come from.
"Yes, I will punish you." The palm of Kyouâs hand caressed her flat stomach and slowly made its way down as his knee came up on the inside of her thigh to spread her legs. In a movement to fast for her to try and deflect⦠the palm of his hand cupped her womanhood as his powerful blood tried to take over.
"Like this,â His fingers massaged her bundle of nerves right above her entrance and the shock of it had her instantly arching away from him, with a soft cry she bucked against him trying to evade his hand.
The sensual movement was almost his undoing and he hissed in her ear. "If you do not stay still⦠I will have to punish you more." He could feel himself growing hard and was relieved when she strained away from him but stayed still, her fear of what he would do keeping her from fighting him.
Kyokoâs eyes closed. She thought he had meant to hurt her when he said punished but this was almost as bad. Did he not realize he was more disturbed than Hyakuhei? This made her lose control of her body and took her will from her as all her heat pooled to where his fingers were working their magic. She didnât want this regardless of how her body reacted but couldnât help her reactions to it.
He was still holding her in midair with her back pressed against him and his fingers were working back and forth, stimulating her so much that she almost wished he would have spanked her instead because this was creating a different kind of pain⦠delicious pain that gnawed hungrily at her. She gasped and a moan slipped out as his fingers slid between her lips to push one up inside her.
She groaned when he slid it in only to take it back out again. She felt the liquid heat pool around his finger as he thrust it back inside her tightness making her cry out. Her eyes started burning with the familiar sting of tears but she held them back. In the back of her mind she was screaming at herself to stop acting like she was enjoying Kyouâs punishment even though she was.
The scream became louder and finally she couldnât ignore it anymore. "Please, please stop, I canât take it anymore."
Kyou listened to her cry and he knew she was in pain with need of release. Her virgin body, so new to this pleasure, it wouldnât take much more to bring her over the peak. He watched her head arch back against him as he pumped his finger into her hot tightness in rhythm.
He leaned his head forward and licked the arc of her neck⦠tasting her. He felt the rush of the instinct to bite her and make her his forever. He satisfied that feeling for a moment by sucking some of her soft skin into his mouth to leave a slight red mark on her. She tasted so good. He could smell her scent all around him as he pressed his swollen hardness against her soft thigh.
Kyou growled in defeat⦠He knew he was the one losing this battle.
Kyoko felt his hand leave her and she slid down his body to the pillow below. She was still whimpering and squeezed her thighs together trying not to rock. Her senses were so alive that it was almost painful. She grabbed one of the smaller pillows and hugged it close, trying to hide her body from him. She was afraid to look up at him. Afraid he would be able to see the need her body was crying for.
Burying her face in her arms, she rolled so she was lying half on her stomach as though to hide from him further.
He watched her try to hide from him and the loss of her in his arms was cooling his raging blood. He realized he had no control over this and remembered what had been written within his fatherâs scrolls.
Tadamichi had warned that guardians were different from humans when it came to choosing a mate⦠that the guardianâs highborn blood would do the choosing and there would be no stopping it. His father, Tadamichi, had been talking about his and Hyakuheiâs rivalry over the same mate at the time but Kyou had understood the underlying meaning. The warning pertained to every guardian⦠not just the twins.
That had been the last scroll written by his father but the humans trapped within this realm had continued the story.
His uncle had turned to the dark side because he had been separated from the one whom heaven had fated to be his soul mate. The young Priestess the maiden statue had been made in the likeness of⦠the same maiden statue that mimicked the priestess lying below him at this very moment. They could have very well been the same woman⦠but time proved they were not.
They were identical in looks proclaiming Kyoko as a direct descendant of the priestess his uncle had chosen for his life mate. Were he and his uncle so different? Had Hyakuheiâs powerful blood been his downfall in the end? Was Hyakuhei now mistakenly placing Kyoko in the place of his lost love? He wouldnât allow that.
Kyou floated closer to her, dipping his lips to her ear. He didnât want her to fear this. He wanted her to want it. What he used as punishment now was only kindling the fire that would keep her with him⦠forever.
He reached out stroking her hair lovingly. "In order to keep you safe from the demons⦠from Hyakuhei, you have to obey me Kyoko. I do not want to hurt you so I will punish you like this⦠and more if you do not behave."
âThen let me go,â She whispered. âYou say you donât want to hurt me but you treat me no better than he has. Iâd rather have him touch me knowing that he would kill me after, than you touch me not knowing.â
âMy dear Kyoko, I have no desire to kill you. As your guardian I could not⦠it would go against all I stand for. You are meant to be protected by the guardians and I am a guardian. To let you go would only send you away without a guardianâs protection. That I cannot allow. The punishment stands.â He gripped her head between his hands to keep her still and pressed his lips against the top of her head before turning to leave her to think about her punishment.
âHyakuhei is also a guardian,â Kyoko whispered defiantly knowing he could hear her even if he didnât acknowledge it.
Part of him knew she was right but he wasnât about to admit that to her. He wanted to fly into a rage at the mere thought of Hyakuhei touching her as he just had, but refrained. He needed to put space between them in order to keep his own passion under control. He turned his attention to the window.
He could feel demons closing in on his lands from all sides. Had Hyakuhei found out where he was keeping the priestess? No⦠he had only sent them in search of her. He gazed back at Kyoko not wanting anything to interfere. He would stop them before they came any closer to his possessions.
Kyou moved almost too fast for the human eye and when Kyoko peeked up at him⦠he was gone.
Chapter 5 âBlack Wingsâ
Toya looked to the north as he flew. His translucent silver wings danced in the light of the moon, the seemingly delicate feathers fluttering slightly. He needed to find Kyoko as quick as he could. He scanned the area wondering where to search first when the rising smoke in the distance caught his attention.
âA village?â Toya turned in that direction wondering why Kyou had allowed humanâs to even live on his lands.
âKyou hates all humansâ⦠Toyaâs thoughts skidded to a stop⦠âKyoko is human.â His lips thinned with the debatable point.
As he neared the village, he noticed there was too much smoke to just be coming from cooking stoves. The village was in trouble. He quickly scanned the area sensing demons in the midst of the flames he was now seeing.
âWhat were demons doing in Kyouâs territory?â Spreading his senses out beyond just the village, Toya realized demons where crossing the boarders of the northern lands in several places⦠not just here. The color of his eyes shattered into molten silver.
âHyakuhei⦠he knows Kyoko is here somewhere,â Toya spat the words angrily as he heard the humanâs scream below him. âDamn it! I donât have time for this,â He growled even as he drew his daggers intending to rid the small village of the beasts before they could do any more damage.
Toya flew over the village and abruptly pulled his wings in close⦠the feathered appendages vanishing as he landed on one knee in the center of what appeared to be the village square. Lifting his head, he snarled at the demons closing in around him.
âLooks like most of the human population hightailed it,â He growled and stood up, twirling the daggers between his fingers. âCome on you bitches. Letâs see how you stand up to me!â
Toya smirked when two demons came at him from opposite sides. He waited until the last moment before ducking out of the way forcing the two of them to run into one another, bashing their foreheads in their excitement to catch him. Placing his hands on the ground, Toya kicked his legs straight up, nailing each in the chin to send them sprawling.
âJust as stupid as always,â he murmured already bored. A hideous looking demon swooped in from above and Toya rolled away, barely missing its sharp talons in his back. Rising to his feet, he leaned back just in time to miss the claws of another demon⦠losing several strands of hair and getting his shirt ripped in the process.
He plunged his ice dagger into the demonâs chest and felt a surge of satisfaction when the monster turned to ice with the weaponâs power. A hot burning sensation inflamed his left side making him cry out in pain and anger. The flying demon had returned and dug its claws in just below his ribs. Pulling the dagger out of the frozen oneâs body, he tapped the fire dagger against his lips and turned to the demons that didnât realize it had just signed its death warrant.
His lips parted slightly reminiscent of a kiss and fire burst from his mouth torching the winged demon. Spinning gracefully on one foot, Toyaâs right foot came around striking the frozen demon⦠shattering it.
âThatâs gonna be messy when it thaws out,â Toya said with a touch of pride.
Turning toward the rest of the demons gathered, he brought the daggers up swiftly and dropped into a fighting stance. His senses were alive with the thrill of battle and he was getting some of his frustrations out. Each demon around him started to change and he was suddenly seeing Kyou standing in their place.
âOh you are just LOOKING to royally piss me off!â he exclaimed.
The remaining demons attacked simultaneously as Toya crouched, readying himself for the onslaught. Claws and steel met resulting in a bloodbath that left Toya soaked within a few moments. His clothing was ripped as the enemy dug their claws into his flesh but Toya didnât slow down.
Had anyone been watching, they would have witnessed Toya in his battling glory. Despite the wounds on his body and the blood spilled, he was beautiful to behold⦠when his silver wings shattered into existence, he became the essence of a lethal angel.
The attacks suddenly paused and Toya came to a stop. He was now kneeling on one knee with his arms extended out to the side⦠the daggers clutched tightly in his grip. His breathing was heavy and his ebony and silver hair fluttered in the breeze. Long bangs hung down over his intense silver eyes nearly hiding their intent.
After a few moments of silence, the remaining demons surged forward and Toya growled in frustration. It was time to end this⦠this was Kyouâs job to take care of his lands for crying out loud. Bringing the daggers forward, he crossed them in front of him. The combined power of the weapons swirled and writhed forming a glowing orb. The sphere began to grow and soon encompassed him completely.