Clear Crimson Mirror [bxg, female needed, pafp]

Byakuren had stood up then when he heard a response from her, though he glanced over towards her once again in silence only to turn his head and simply start walking as if he'd not paused at all. He remained at a steady pace so that Ayumi could keep up to him, only once again holding out his hand for her to grab unto when they reached the lively activities of the marketplace again. The festival would continue on into the late hours of night, though he would much rather prefer she didn't get exposed to that part of the festival. There would be far more drunks out during the night than that of the day, and in his younger years he had only once had been intoxicated by what would be merely be smells of delightful, sweet scents coming from vents that they would release into the air during the night. And to be simply put, it was something that he nor any other yokai could resist, and truth be told Byakuren didn't enjoy whenever he became drunk, sure it was pleasant and went by in a blur, but the next day he would be full with dread on possibly thinking what he had done with a clear memory of every single action he had executed.

Of course, he made sure Ayumi was close by to him even more so this time considering they were receiving occasional glances from yokai nearby and that made him on edge. With what had happened all too recently, he wouldn't be too happy in letting her simply go away from his line of sight. Though, as the music and the vibrant colors all faded away and soon reaching the palace in full, his gaze had landed upon Izumi then turned towards Yumi, whom was standing so close to his older brother's side, it made his heart clench tightly. He slowed to a stop as Izumi smiled slightly down at them, his expression as gentle as ever but Byakuren had tensed up.

"Oh, so that's where you two have been? Enjoying the festivities with your mate? That honestly is a good idea, surely you enjoyed it thoroughly right?" Izumi tilted his head, his gaze settling upon Ayumi before drifting back to Byakuren whom raised a brow, "Yes.. it was fine." Izumi frowned slightly, as if genuinely hurt by Byakuren's icy response, but the older oni had turned towards his mate whom was standing quietly by his side, though seeing Izumi gently grab hold of one of Yumi's hands made a sickening feeling begin to start within Byakuren as he lowered his gaze from the sight, "Yumi, can you lead Ayumi back to her room, Byakuren and I need to have a little talk. Isn't that right, Byakuren?" For the first time, a bit of ice had gleamed in the older oni's normally warm dark crimson gaze as Byakuren looked briefly up to him, his jaw clenching slightly, "...Of course Izumi." He looked over towards Ayumi, releasing his grip from her hand but he didn't say a word to her, Yumi herself seemed quite bewildered but nonetheless she had moved forward and smiled gently at Ayumi, though glancing briefly over to Byakuren whom instead of acknowledging her presence had merely ignored her entirely, moving forward towards Izumi and the two brothers had walked off inside of the palace, the tension that seemed to register between them seemed high.

Yumi looked away as Byakuren's form retreated, she had hoped she would get at least some acknowledgement from him, but his icy silence and glares were all she received now. She... should have expected that. Forcing her expression to settle in a gentle smile, she looked to Ayumi, but it wasn't enough to hide the flash of pain that seemed to show in her eyes, "Well, shall we go?"

Yumi allowed her smile to brighten slightly, then she started walking towards the palace itself. She had to admit, she was curious about Ayumi, she wouldn't ask any unnecessary questions. But, she was worried on what Izumi was possibly doing, the mood had not been good between him and Byakuren, and now that she thought about it there never really had been a good air between the two brothers. However, instead of lingering too much on the worries she held, she looked over towards Ayumi and decided to at least start up a small conversation, she unlike majority of the yokai within the realm had a certain genuine curiosity about humans, nor did she find them to be insignificant at all-- a direct contrast from the adopted view of many within the realm itself and to be able to communicate with a human now was something somewhat exciting for her, so this would be a good opportunity as any to talk to her while she had the chance, "Did you enjoy yourself at the festival?"

Byakuren trailed behind his brother, eyeing the older oni in icy silence as they made their way down one of the halls. "..You know, you could have relaxed inside the palace a little bit longer until I was ready to announce your... interesting choice in a mate little brother, you do realize you've probably caused a mess that I have clean up later right?" Byakuren's jaw clenched ever so slightly, though he looked aside as he glanced at each passing door, "The truth would have came out sooner or later Izumi, you know that." The older oni stopped though he looked over his shoulder towards his brother, "...That careless attitude of yours really is irritating Byakuren. Mother shouldn't have allow you to be so carefree, you should have some sort of responsibility." Byakuren eyes narrowed as he said coldly, "I do, I'm willing enough to accept any of the consequences of my choices. Besides, she wanted to see the festival, is it so wrong for her to do so? Or are we actually prisoners here?"

Izumi looked at his brother in silence, though he shook his head as a cold smile crossed his face, chuckling, "I never thought I would ever see the day that you of everyone I know would defend a human." His gaze turned colder, frigid as he mused, "Well, if you're so responsible then surely you know the consequences do you of commiting such a taboo? I normally would have let it slide if your little romantic affair hadn't reached the public.. but it would be unfair of me now to turn a blind eye, right brother?" Byakuren tensed up, his expression becoming guarded though he refused to weaken underneath Izumi's icy glare, "If I have to do so... then so be it." Izumi's eyes narrowed though he glanced aside as he shook his head, "...You really are a fool. Very well, I'm sure you know where to go then, correct?" Byakuren glanced aside, his hands clenching into tight fists as he said calmly despite the anger attempting to flare up, "..Yes. Of course."

Yumi blinked in surprise, though genuine curiosity had sparked in her eyes as Ayumi had explained that she hadn't seen any such luxuries before in her own realm. It made her curious just what the human realm held, how they lived. She could never go there herself, but she found it a bit fascinating. She looked ahead as she continued down one of the halls, a thoughtful expression crossing her face, "I'm glad you've enjoyed everything so far. I was actually worried that you wouldn't be able to enjoy yourself here, some of us aren't so... open towards humans." She grimaced slightly at saying those words, finding it a bit distasteful how some of the yokai seemed a bit terrified of even approaching Ayumi's room, those being servants of course. It was why she had taken it upon herself to deliver some clothing to Ayumi, though she understood the reason for the hesitation of some of the yokai. Despite the curiosity or the greed that may show, there were others whom had grim experiences with humanity, Yumi had been greatly surprised that Byakuren had taken a human as his mate especially after what happened so long ago. He must have accepted it and move past that bit of grief, that was a relief upon the oni woman, but she still felt like he was carrying too much still and it didn't help with his coldness towards her.

She glanced over to Ayumi only to say hesitantly, "If.. you don't mind me asking, what is it like where you're from, the human realm?" She paused then added on in a slightly embarrassed tone, "I've never gotten the opportunity to cross through the realms and see it for myself, I've always been curious about it and humans themselves. Um, if you don't want to talk about it that's fine too." The woman seemed a bit uncertain how to go about talking with a human, as she wanted to be as careful as possible as to not offend Ayumi on accident. She seemed genuinely curious, a lot different from the other yokai that lived within the realm and far more gentle too. But, it still raised the question of Byakuren's frigid attitude towards a seemingly kind and soft spoken woman, or even how she found interest in Byakuren's older brother Izumi, a polar opposite of her gentle personality. However, such things would probably be revealed in time, and she seemed a bit tense as her mind too had strayed to what possibly her mate could be talking to Byakuren about. She simply had a feeling it wouldn't be too good.

Yumi seemed to brighten up again as she had begun to talk, listening with care to her words. She found it somewhat surprising that their worlds were similar, granted there were some big differences. "I see," A soft smile had crossed her face as she looked ahead, "Sometimes I really wish I could go to the human realm and experience it for myself.." A wistful expression crossed her face as she mused, "Izumi would never let me go though. He says I'm too adventurous for my own good." Her expression still seemed to warm at mentioning her mate, as she truly had devoted herself to him. Such things were expected of her, and she saw something in him that made her want to stay by his side. Of course, it brought troubles with her choice... troubles that she never wanted.

"Here in this realm, lords are simply the descendants of beasts that once conquered different parts of the land and inherited some traits from them. If you travel from one part of this realm to the next, you can tell the difference with each separately owned land." Her expression grew somber for a few seconds, just because a such a thing there was so much tension between the lands themselves, though she shifted her attention in full back towards her previous curiosity about the human world. Just he mention of some odd traditions and such made her quite interested. What sort of odd traditions did the humans do? Were they overly strange, vicious? Or were they merely harmless and interesting? All these questions flooded through her, but she held herself back from assaulting Ayumi with too many questions.

"Well, what sort of odd traditions do you humans have?" She seemed very much interested in what Ayumi would have to say, genuinely intrigued by her words. Of course, she could ask Byakuren the things that humans did for he remained in the human realm for centuries before he returned... but once again she found that she really didn't want to look at his icy gaze and the cold silence that would no doubt greet her.

Yumi seemed a bit intrigued about such things as arranged marriages. She had never heard of such a thing, which this had shown in the bright crimson eyes of the woman as she seemed surprised at Ayumi had been apart of an arrange marriage herself, "That's very strange," She tilted her head as she spoke, "We here believe in finding our second half, our fates are decided when we were born and when we find our mate, our destined one, it will feel as if we would find our second half. We'll feel.. whole." She tried to find the word for it, though she smiled at Ayumi, quite warmly, "I'm glad that Byakuren had found his destined one. You really have a good heart Ayumi, I hope you can heal his." Her expression softened as she looked ahead once again, "I always had a feeling he belonged somewhere else... I know this might be odd of me to say, but to me when he was here years ago he seemed so far away, like something was calling him elsewhere. Now, I think I see why." It seemed as if when finding mates, the oni's seemed to have a more... romantic view of such things. It was quite in contrast to how tales were built around them on how terrifying they were supposed to be. The concern Yumi also spared for Byakuren as well was clear that the oni was very dear to her, it almost as if she were worried about him like a concerned mother or older sister.

However, she had quickly turned her full attention towards Ayumi and brightened immediately, snapping out of her brief moment of seriousness, "I'm looking forward to going then, if I can." Her eyes warmed further as she smiled brightly, as if suddenly very cheerful, "I almost wish I can go and run off now to see." She paused as she suddenly realized that she had stopped before Ayumi's room, then her expression grew calm as she only to giggle lightly, "Well, it seems like we have arrive. Hm, time seemed to go by so fast."

Turning towards Ayumi, she had inclined her head slightly to her, "I'm sorry if I talked a bit much, I haven't really had gotten the opportunity to talk to someone so freely like this.. I guess I got a bit too ahead of myself." An embarrassed expression crossed the oni's face, though her expression returned to a calm and composed air, "Well, I suppose I'll leave, goodbye Ayumi." With another small bow, the oni woman had turned away from her and began to walk down the hall and slowly moved out of sight.

"Fifty." Byakuren's ears barely registered the final count as his head hanging as pain had dulled all of his other senses. All he could fixate on was the pain that he could feel upon his back. Byakuren had been led to that of where they would normally store war prisoners and torture them, though it also served as the place for those whom had committed crimes against traditions and rules also would be dragged to. He, considering he was of royal blood had been saved from receiving the typical one hundred fifty lashes of a whip as he would of been subjected to and only suffered fifty. But fifty was enough for him to feel as if his back was burning, the nerves only sending him burning agony as the final lash hit his bloodied back, the cruel torture tool ripping into his flesh and ripping away skin in its wake, making his body contort a bit in agony despite him not crying out. His cries of pain had been suppressed to this point making his throat feel raw, and all the while Izumi was observing his suffering with unflinching eyes and a smile on his wicked face. Byakuren hated him... he really did.

His arms trembled as the chains that had been holding him upright were removed and caused him to immediately fall forward, his breath coming in ragged painful pants as he felt his warm blood oozing forth from his injuries, and then he heard footsteps, eerie footsteps that echoed throughout the darkness of the damp, unwelcoming place until he felt a hand come up underneath his chin as his gaze was forced to meet Izumi's, his brother having a cold smile on his face, "Now, I'm sure you learned your lesson now Byakuren. Do not do something so utterly foolish again until I'm able to deal with it accordingly, do you understand?" Byakuren blankly stared back at him, his mouth not feeling as if it were able to cooperate properly until he managed, "...Yes.. of course.." Izumi hummed with satisfaction as he turned his head away as he turned towards the yokai executing the punishment to carry Byakuren to the infirmary, there his injuries would be taken care of, but not of the magnitune Byakren had. It would be unexpeced!

However, soon the younger oni had been scooped up and carefully handled as they made their way out of the room, his head being too weak to hold up and each jolt his body immediatle spasmed with pain. However, he was once again within the infirmary, splayed out upon his stomach as his damaged back remained under the careful eye of those whom were now tending to him.

Hours had passed as the pain was attempted to be soothed through more normal means. By tradition of punishment, he wasn't to be allowed for his injuries to be solved magically, each scar will be his own burden to bare and to show from now forward. It was a permanent mark of shame, but it wasn't one that he was unwilling to take. To keep Ayumi from being dragged into the nonsence of his brother and knowing fully well the punishments and consequences that he may face, he had already accepted it before hand. He said he would handle all the problems that came with him announcing her as his mate, and he had kept to that promise. But now, his troublesome pet seemed to not leave the forefront of his mind no matter how much he tried to dispell her away through his pain induced state. It seemed like she had became someone very frequent upon his mind of late, someone he had to fret over constantly.

A growl rumbled past his lips as his cheek pressed tightly against the cot they had put him on, though his teeth bared at the pain as his wounds were cleaned. It truly felt like fire was erupting forth upon his back bringing with it the stinging sensation of where he knew possibly skin had been torn from his back from each stroke of the whip itself. He knew his brother would have wanted him to suffer with each hit, he was surprised he didn't order for the usual sentence for himself. But, Byakuren endured through the agony, as much as his body nearly fell to unconsciousness multiple times throughout the pain, he forced his eyes open each time. When this was done, he had to see if Ayumi was alright. He couldn't allow anything to happen to her, if he did then all of this would be for nothing, and Byakuren didn't like the thought of his efforts being wasted. That didn't mean that he was simply allowed to get back up on his feet and start walking around normally, by no means was that the case. However, Byakuren was stubborn as he forced his weak limbs to cooperate, startling those whom were tending to him as his voice, raspy with his cries of pain from earlier had spoken, "I don't have time for this," He moved suddenly to stand, though almost immediately he had stumbled a bit, much to many of the servant's alarm whom tried to coax him back into the bed, however he brushed them aside, looking about until he spotted a robe nearby and snatched it up in his grasp, ignoring the many sounds of protest at his rashness and a visible flash of pain crossed his face as he forced himself to put it on, stubbornly continuing forward despite his rather sluggish progress, but it seemed like not many of the servants would dare step against him, he still had the title of a lord after all.

It seemed agonizingly long to reach Ayumi's room, not that he knew where she had settled into for he hadn't followed her before to her room and instead relied upon tracking her scent through the palace itself. It wasn't too hard to pick up her sweet scent from all the others, and it temporarily distracted his mind from the pain as he braced himself against the wall, shakily moving forward as his stubborness to see her was overweighing any possible reasoning in his mind that maybe he shouldn't be walking about especially with how recent it had been since he had endured the torture that had been applied to his body just a few hours ago. But no matter, Byakuren was stubborn, he wouldn't allow an injury like this to halt him from seeing what was his. What was his... when did he start thinking of Ayumi so possessively? He really did wonder, what exactly did she mean to him? That was an answer he did not have. Not right now, he didn't want to consider it. Nonetheless, eventually he had stopped before her door and was now leaning heavily against the wall, the pain in his back making his legs tremble, almost giving out on him.. but he had made it. So, he knocked, surely she was inside wasn't she? Unless the pain had dulled his sense of smell. He just wanted to see if she was alright, that would be enough to set his worries to ease.

Byakuren's gaze shifted to Ayumi as she had opened the door which his gaze fixated upon her smiling face. Then the smile evaporated which made him look aside as she immediately questioned what had happened to him. What had happened.. hm.. He didn't want to think of what had happened. Yet, before he could open his mouth to even respond to her, she had took hold of his hand and pulled him inside the room much to his surprise. Wasn't it not so long ago that she was afraid to look at him, much less touch him? For some reason that almost really made him want to laugh, as if the very thought was a joke to him but no such thing had managed to cross his face as he was then faced with the fact he had went to Ayumi when he was weak. That hurt his pride a bit, even if she had seen him hurt before, he didn't want her to see him in such a state again. It was a thing of pride that would make him feel this way.

Slowly, Byakuren had moved towards the bed and reluctantly had sat down, though he felt relief that he would not have to put much strain when standing up. His gaze shifted towards her hand which still held on so tightly to his own, and he could feel the worry being in her grip. She's worried about me... how foolish. He sighed as he closed his eyes, her questions that seemed to flow one after another going unanswered by his silence. After a few moments, he finally looked up at her, meeting her gaze and finally responded, "Don't bother." As usual, he was going to refuse her help. He didn't want her to be worried about him, over something that was his burden to bear. She just... needed to worry about herself. He lowered his gaze to her hand which was still holding unto his own which he shook his head and merely pulled her close to himself, though a flash of pain crossed his face as he muttered, "You're alright... that's good." Byakuren seemed to have come just to see if she was fine, which to him was a good enough reason for him to get up and leave, there was no need for him to stay within her room for much longer.

However, as he made his way to get up, releasing her hand from his grip, the oni had began to make his way towards the door to leave when his legs gave out from underneath him causing him to immediately fall, falling on his hands and knees although a grunt of pain left him at the sensation causing the lashes upon his back to become a bit agitated. However, he was more mortified that he couldn't walk correctly now, hissing as he struggled to get up again but it was clear that was a struggle for him. It was obvious, he had been hurt severely but that fact that he seemed to be avoiding telling her what had hurt him was suspicious.

Byakuren had struggled a bit more to get to his feet, but the agony that had ripped through his back made him falter and halt his attempting to get to his feet was halted by her hand upon one of his arms, gaze lifting upwards towards Ayumi as an expression of annoyance had flickered across his face. But, he just needed to accept that he couldn't walk properly at the moment, much lese move. His jaw clenched as he lowered his gaze, glaring at the floor beneath him as if that would do him much good.

However, her next two suggestions for what he should do he had immediately made him narrow his eyes at her as he contemplated over whether she were serious or not. Then, he found that her gaze was in fact serious, making his frown deepen as he lowered his gaze. If he were insistent upon walking out of the room, she would have to support him while walking and he'd much rather spare himself the embarrassment of having to be carried by the woman who was supposedly his "mate", and yet staying within the same room as her... It felt a bit different from before. He didn't like the uncomfortable feeling that was flooding through him, but there was nothing more he could do.

"...Fine. I.. I'll stay here." His voice had eased away from the annoyance that had been there and instead had returned to being quiet. He huffed as he strained once again to get himself to his feet, at least he could be able to get back to the bed and sit down by himself. He didn't want to rely too heavily upon her, but.. Why did his heart clench so tightly at realizing that she was worried over him? Why did he feel so strange? It didn't matter, as he moved his way over towards the bed and had sat down once again, settling upon the edge as a sharp breath left his lips. He was relieved that most of the stress he had been putting on himself had been temporarily relieved, but now he found himself aware of Ayumi's scent that clung so heavily to the bed, her presence too made him more aware of the sweet scent that he secretly enjoyed. Then the memory of the kiss that they had shared made his body flood with heat as he instantly regretted remembering such a shameful moment. Really, what had he been thinking? Even if she had forgiven him for such a thing... He glanced over towards her warily, almost as if suddenly cautious of her. Yes, she was a dangerous one indeed. For him to be feeling so confused with his emotions towards her and wondering just what she meant to him, why he reacted in manners that he normally wouldn't allow himself to do... At least the way he was now, or rather the way he thought he was now.

It troubled him, the thought of becoming soft. Surely, the vulnerable and foolish person he had been in the past he had discarded long ago. He should have known better, he couldn't allow his guard to lower. Byakuren sighed as he raised a hand to his head as if he had a headache, there was no time to think of such meaningless things. After a few moments he finally spoke with a heavy sigh, "Don't spare your concerns on me, Ayumi. Focus on helping yourself. You have no reason to help me-- no incentive. You're far too kind for your own good. Besides, it's not as if you're-" He cut the sentence off, pausing then he looked away, "...Nevermind." She already knows she's not actually my mate. It's pointless to bring it up.

Byakuren's gaze shifted over towards her as she had begun to speak once more, though his silence only greeted her words. No reason to worry over him... that was something that was new. He never truly had such a strange thing happen to him before, mostly because no one in the yokai realm seemed to really care for his well being before, with the exception of a few whom were either long gone or.. he never spoke to now. There was always a reason behind worrying over him, and yet she said there was none for her to be worrying for him. Now that put him in a situation where he found himself staring at her as if she were strange. He had done everything to protect her? Now looking back on it, her words were true. He had, but he had done it for a reason, for her to still live to give himself some sort of amusement that his life had been lacking during his stay in the human realm. He was selfishly doing this, he wasn't doing this out of the "kindness of his heart", he never once would have allowed himself to. That was why this whole situation made him pause, and it made him feel... guilty.

His gaze shifted upwards towards the flower he had given her, that too wasn't purely out of the kindness of his heart. It simply was to assist in protecting her when he would have to look away from her if only for a moment. It wasn't out of consideration, it wasn't out of fondness. It was simply cold and trategic. Once again, everything he had done for her was out of selfish gain, he never once had done an action towards her that he did out of kindness. Nothing. It just made him all the more aware of the horrid guilt that was forming. A smile had crossed his expression, though it wasn't out of amusement or even coldness... it seemed almost sad, "..I wish you wouldn't." Those words weren't spoken harshly as if he were scolding her, it seemed as if it were said out of genuine sadness. Byakuren was far from deserving of her kindness, he didn't know why he was simply feeling so horrid now but he did. She was making him feel that way, she was actually forcibly dragging out emotions he had buried in the past and as annoying as it was there was nothing he could do about it.

Then, there was the strange feeling that had been assaulting him as of late around her. Now, he had found he was close to indentifying it and it made him feel truly more horrid in light of Ayumi's pureness. Ah, how horrible a being he was indeed. The cruelty of the realms changed him, forced him into someone who at any point would selfishly react on a whim. It made him sick to think of it, he had never wanted to think this... but he felt as if he were similar to that of his brother in that aspect. To use people and toss them aside before they could get the chance. He found though that there wasn't such a thing in Ayumi, she seemed to good to be true, similar to.. Yumi, and that was what made him realize that possibly.. was he using her to simply ease the pain and suffering that Yumi had unintentionally left him with? That really made him feel more guilty. But, regardless of coming across the thought he should probably release her back into the human realm and let her go to where she was meant to, the thought of just handing her over so freely back to humanity-- back to whoever she had been supposedly entrusted to marry.. that thought made him feel sicker than any other thought that had crossed his mind. Maybe he was overthinking? He tend to do that often. But, he was holding unto her so tightly, he realized he was afraid of letting her escape his grasp, afraid to let go.

Because everything he had grown attached to, everything he wanted had been ripped away so easily from him before.

That was the one truth that he only seemed to be reacting on, and only for Ayumi to say something so utterly endearing and yet it ripped through him as if she very well must have struck him. Byakuren had become aware that he was wanting the human in a way he shouldn't be. It was far from love, for he didn't quite know if he felt affection for her, but he knew he was looking upon her now in a light he shouldn't ever be looking upon a human. He wanted her, a need that had been kindled the more he grew possessive over her, forced to become more possessive through Izumi's presence and now maybe that was why he was feeling the way he was. He wanted complete and utter domination over his pet... no, his human. She was not a pet anymore, it wasn't that innocent or that simple. His want he knew was sick, at least in the eyes of the oni and yokai whom ruled this realm, that he possibly had found himself physically attracted to something that was supposed to be nothing more but an insect beneath his feet. Something must be wrong with him, if he wanted something he should just act on it. But these thoughts that were coming in his mind made the situation wrong. All too tempting and wrong for him. He had just been punished for using the excuse of her being his mate, now these unnatural feelings were being to assault him. He knew, he shouldn't allow her to get too close to him. He should get up and walk away now, ignore the pain and hide in his own room. He closed his eyes as he took in a breath only to sharply release it, smile fading from his features as he muttered, "You're very annoying... so irritating I can't stand it. Why..." He trailed off as his expression turned cold. Why... why did she have to act so kind to him? It was the most cruel thing she could possibly do.