Chapter Twelve
YAHIRO
“There’s only one sun, otou-chan,” Yahiro stated more in reassuring herself.
“Then what do you call that?” He pointed before them and she followed his finger. She blinked but only saw grey clouds. But behind those clouds was a golden orb that was barely there, although it was obvious it was the sun.
She knew it was a trick question. Her papa was a trickster, and yet she always liked his tricks. It was fun, he was fun. “The sun. Taiyou. Sol. Star. It’s a star.”
“Very good. And is it the same one you saw yesterday?”
Her eyes traced the shape of it behind the clouds suddenly realizing that a storm was about to hit. The trees no longer sparkled in the breeze and she wrapped her arms around her middle, fighting off a shiver. “No,” she said at last.
“Why is that?”
“Cause I’m not the same person I was yesterday,” she answered with a sigh. “And because today it’s obscured.”
Papa laughed and took another sip of his tea.
Her mother’s voice called from inside the house, “The party’s about to start! The guests are about to arrive and I can’t do this all on my own!”
Yahiro sighed further and looked at her otou-chan. “Can we skip it?”
“Your mother would never forgive you—forgiveme—if we ran off. Sophia is excited. You don’t want to break her heart now do you?”
“No.” She frowned anyway but got up when Papa set down his tea and a servant came rushing forward to take it. He placed his arm around her and gave her a much needed hug.
“Look at the sun for a moment longer, Yahiro, because tomorrow it’ll be different and it’ll never be as beautiful as it is today.” He let her go and walked into the house.
She couldn’t stop the tremble this time when it went through her hearing the glass door shut, suddenly dousing her world in silence. Even the rustle of leaves and the wheeze of the wind had vanished. Her eyes found the sun regardless and she tried to lock it in her memory.
But it was gone before she had a chance to say goodbye.
Someone grabbed her from behind and thrust her to the ground. Her face slammed into the lacquered wood of her family’s porch, sending sling-shot spikes of pain through her head. She grappled in shock but it didn’t stop her vision from going black, or the blood pouring out of her nose.
The sound of her voice filled the air, calling out for her papa, but it sputtered shut when her mouth was pushed to the ground. Her legs were spread wide and her arms were yanked back. Suddenly, without knowing how or why, she was naked and burning, a searing pain filling her chest.
She flailed about, fighting, kicking and screaming, not feeling anything but the adrenaline-amped pain in her lungs flooding every vein. The hands released her, and she was immediately able to move, but she didn’t get up, didn’t run, couldn’t even stand on her knees, instead clawing her fingers over her chest, and feeling hot blood catching under her nails. It was too much. Too much. And it only grew worse.
Her body fell into a state of shock, twitching with the last bits of effort she had, and when even that faltered, oblivion finally came to take her away.
Yahiro lost consciousness with a cry.
She woke up, screaming, sprawled across the floor and Sundamar poised over her. He held her down, his weight on top and pressing her into the cold floor.Cold floor.She continued to scream and thrash but the chill at her back anchored her and the sweat on her brow cooled her skin enough to pull her back into the realm of the living.
“I’m not burning,” she gasped.
“You’re not...”
Yahiro sagged and loosened her muscles slowly, Sundamar let up on her limbs. He pulled her into his arms and she burrowed her face into his chest.
“What happened?”
He tilted her head to the side and Quist came into view, the heartstone in his hand. It was fractured and she could see the seams clearly. The light seemed to be dripping out of it like blood, through the cracks of his fingers, and onto the floor.
Yahiro pushed away from Sundamar and looked down at her chest. The same liquid was splattered all over her chest. She clawed at it, tried to rub it off, but it only smeared and sizzled, sinking below the surface of her skin.
