A Tale of Two Strongholds

My hand draws the blade fully and pulls it back. 'No! this isn't what I want!' I fight against the pressure. I beat against it and force it to stop. The glint of the blade catches my attention as it is raised high for a downward strike. 'STOP!' The deep emotion of command and control begins to bubble in me as I demand to be the one to control the sword. The blade comes down before I have full control and I change the course as best I can. Luckily just as I get control, it misses Lily and imbeds the tip several inches into the bathroom floor.

Panting, I slide my hand down the blade and let it simply stand there imbedded in the tile.

The wood and tile rattles a moment, and Lily peeks out from behind her still damp hair to see the girl quivering beside the deeply embedded sword. The girl sits, a hand wrapped around the blade, oblivious to the thin seeping of blood oozing down her palm, her breath slowly becoming more controlled with each moment, though the worry and fear still show in her eyes. Sliding around so as to sit on her hip Lily pulls the loose hair from her eyes and forces a nervous smile, the strain finally showing on her face.

My breath slows and I release the sword. "I'm sorry home... It... Was not my intention to harm you..." I pull the blade free and set it aside; finally realizing my hand is bleeding. "I've cut myself..." My voice is sad and flat as I look to Lily for help.

Offering a hand, Lily stands. "Liv can fix that with a note..." she starts, then bites her tongue. "We ought to dress first though."

"And.... What of the other me? How... How do I stop her from coming out? I... What if I go so sleep and never wake up??" The thought of killing Lily... Of watching myself kill Lily... Is so overwhelmingly terrifying that I start to tremble once more.

Sitting heavily, Lily looks Kiou in the eye. "You beat her." Taking the girl's hand in her own, she pets it gently. "And if you want, I'll teach you to put her away so that she'll only come when you want her."

"Please..." I sniffled and fight back crying again despite myself. "I don't want to hurt you.... I... I never want to hurt you..."

"Don't worry," Lily says, pulling her into an embrace. "You won't" Feeling the girl stiffen, the relax, Lily releases her. "But first we need to take care of you... I'm not ready to go back in again just yet." she smiles nervously, the memory of the kappa still lingering just beneath her flesh.

"Alright...." I sigh out as my blood begins to drip freely onto the floor. "If you think she would be willing to help me... Then I am willing to go."

Raising the girl to her feet, Lily fetches the robes, draping one of Kiou's shoulders while she puts on her own. "Lets leave your sword in your room," Lily suggests, "You won't need it here, I swear."

"I believe you." I look back and the sword sadly. To think I had thought it was so important when the whole time, she had been using it as a means to control everyone.

The knock makes me raise my head, glancing over my shoulder. I drop a kiss on Djhuety's lips, and slither out of bed, pulling my jeans and tshirt back on.
"Hey." I murmur, cracking the door and stepping out. "What's-whoa, how many rounds did you two go? You look exhausted."

I can't help but blush as I bow deeply. "Please, allow me to apologize for my behavior. I... It was more than wrong of me to act and respond in such a manner. If it pleases you, simply name a punishment and I will do my best to uphold and perform the punishment. "

I wave a hand. "Forget it. You're not the first one to react like that, and you won't be the last, trust me. Er...you're okay now, right?" She seems well enough, though there's threads of pain webbing through the emotions.

"I.... Found something out that was... Most troubling..." I pull my bottom lip into my mouth despite myself and chew on it nervously. I can feel my blood slipping through my fingers and dripping to the floor but I don't know how to tell her about my problem.

Liv opens the door wider, reveling Djehuty behind her, bared to the waist and tucking the tails in to an improvised kilt, an irritated and bemused expression on his face. A faint blush colors Lily's cheeks before she recalls herself.

"She's taken care of it for the moment though," Lily looks at Liv, her eyes begging her not to press too much further, while placing a reassuring hand on Kiou's shoulder. "She cut herself though; We had hoped that you could spare a moment..."

I cock my head. "Ah? I thought I saw pain." I follow the lines of pain down to her hand, and blink at the blood dripped on the floor. I take her hand. "Well, that's not too deep...hold still." I sing of strength and dexterity, grace and ease as well as the healing. When you work with hands, as I know all too well, you have to be careful or the healing will make the hands stiff. I open my eyes, and nod in satisfaction. "There." I shake my head, and stretch. "Well, I'm awake now. Come on, come sit on the couch, and I'll make tea." I glance back over my shoulder, grin, and stand on tiptoe to kiss Djhuety. "You'll want pants. I'll have a cup of licorice tea waiting for you."

I'm nowhere near used to such open expressions of affection and can feel my cheek burning as I look away towards Lily. She, however, seems unphased by the affections that Liv has placed upon Djhuety. Striving to ignore the display, I look to my hand and inspect her work. My hand is fine, if not better than fine. Truly, I am a mere mortal among gods...

I step into the kitchen, humming a few notes in the direction of the kettle sitting on the stove. Dance faster, water. Dance faster and faster.
The kettle whistles abruptly. "Kunishi, I have kukicha tea or sencha tea, and a lot of other teas. What's your fancy? Lily, your usual?"

Slowly, my feet follow Liv's voice to the kitchen and I watch her prepare the tea. "Mugicha.... if it is alright..."

I glance at her. "Not sure I know that name. Come on over to the spice rack and pick something out."

I nod before walking over and looking into the spice rack. Teas of various kinda and in different containers stare back at me and I am surprised. How did they manage to gather such a large selection of teas? Swallowing, I reach in and pull out one of the many teas and hope that it will be good. "I would like to try this one."

I nod, pouring water over Kunishi's tea, over my spiced chai and Lily's orange pekoe. I glance over my shoulder. "Hey Kaija. You want tea?"

Nodding, I respond, *Do we have any oolong left?*

I nod, working for a few moments, and pass her a cup. "Two minutes, remember, or it'll be bitter."
Together, we join Kunishi and Lily on the couch. I study the porcelain girl as she sips her tea. Her emotions are settled now, and that strange undercurrent seems to be gone. I suppose it really was just the fear.
"You look a lot better now." I say quietly, "I'm glad of that. Now, I imagine you have a lot of questions...you ask, we'll explain. Sound good?"