Allies

Miyori didn't notice when the fight ended, nor did she remember choosing to go back down afterwards. She simply found herself back at the bottom of the pit, reaching for Sayaka's body.

Sayaka was lying on her face below the magic circle, and part of her shoulder and back were simply gone. The hair was eaten away at the back of her head, which was bleeding steadily. 

Miyori grew back to full size and reached for her neck, checking her vitals. Only the skin was damaged, raw and torn, and a pulse beat steadily in her throat. However, her blood was also soaking into Miyori's pants, making them stick to her legs. 

Miyori pulled Sayaka's torso onto her knees. Her breathing was labored, and she let out a whine of pain but didn't otherwise respond. 

The back of her shirt was gone, as though eaten away. So was the skin beneath, and beneath the mess, possibly also part of the bone—

"Sayaka!" 

Koji skidded to Sayaka's side, reaching for her. When he saw the extent of the damage, he froze. 

Miyori met his eye. She was vaguely aware of nausea churning in her stomach, but the panic drowned out the worst of that. "What do we do?" she asked. 

Koji swallowed. "Hold her still." He put a hand up to his mouth and then pulled it away, teeth suddenly stained dark. Then he pressed his hand into the worst of Sayaka's wound. 

Miyori felt Sayaka twitch and then begin to writhe away, and gingerly pressed down on her good shoulder. "Shh," she said, as Sayaka let out a moan of pain. "It's okay, it's okay, just hold on…"

She could feel…something. Like the magic from the circle, but closer and hot and beginning to swirl between Koji and Sayaka's bodies. It felt like being too close to a stove—part of her wanted to shrink away. But she was stuck there, holding Sayaka's body above the dirt, unable to make herself look away. 

And as she watched, the reddening of her skin began to fade. The blood that had been welling out of her back dulled and began to solidify. The hair around the wound on the back of her head rustled and fell, stained dark, leaving behind what appeared to be large, dark scabs. 

Sayaka's struggling slowed, then stopped. In the silence that followed, Miyori heard quiet footfalls. 

She looked up to see a human walking down into the pit. "Stay back," she warned, but her voice was wobbly and not the least bit intimidating. 

"We won't interrupt," the woman said. She put her hands on her knees, crouching part of the way down to Miyori's level. "He's really focused. It would be dangerous for both of them to stop him, and my companion is cleaning up here—we can afford the time it'll take to get your friend stabilized." 

From the top of the pit, she heard the man from before. "What's the situation down there?" 

"Tricky," the woman called back. "Kusumoto-kun's busy with first aid." 

"Does he know what he's doing?" 

"Looks like it." 

"Good." The man came down into the pit as well. Unlike the woman, he kept a bit of distance. "I've got the guards up there handled, so we have a little time. But we're going to need to get out of here as soon as our friend there's stabilized. Who's the third?" 

"Good question." The woman met Miyori's eye. "Are you one of the Kusumotos?"

"She's not," said the man, even as Miyori shook her head. "She must be working with them, though. As is her hurt friend, I'm guessing, or the healing wouldn't be working this well." 

Miyori glanced down to see the scabs starting to fall away at the edges, revealing slightly twisted scar tissue underneath. Wanting to give Sayaka some privacy, she looked back up at the newcomers. 

"I am working with the Kusumotos, yes," she said. "Are you Kuraishis?" 

"Got it in one. Well, I am, anyway." The man circled around slowly. He had a smile that was too friendly for the situation and blood on his knuckles as he lokoed at his companion. "Are you going to introduce yourself, or do you want to stay anonymous?" 

"You can call me Sumiko," the woman said. "I'm just along for the ride here. I've got…a bit of a personal interest in what the Shijos are doing, so I convinced Ryosuke to help out Kusumoto-kun. Our distraction went well at first, but some of the guards broke off to come back here." She smiled sadly. "I'm sorry we didn't make it sooner." 

"It's fine," Koji said suddenly, but the words were rough and hollow. He stood up, brushing scabs from his palms. On one hand a pink scar glinted where he'd bitten it, already looking weeks old. "Miyori-chan, here. I'll carry her." 

Miyori leaned back, and Koji took Sayaka, holding her so nothing touched the raw, knotted scar tissue on her back. 

Kuraishi whistled. "Good job," he said, and pulled off his jacket, passing it to Miyori. "Here. Drape this over her back." 

Miyori took the jacket and gingerly placed it over the fresh scars, Koji tucking it in. 

"Something tells me we should talk," Kuraishi said. "Do you have a safehouse nearby, or do you want to borrow one of mine?" 

"...I'm trusting you, so you better not be about to double-cross us." Koji bowed his head as far as he could without disturbing Sayaka. "We're in your care." 

"Good," Kuraishi said. "Follow us. We'll take the back roads, but it's not far to walk."

They climbed out of the pit and Kuraishi unlocked a side door.

Miyori looked down at herself and winced; her lower half was soaked with blood, and though the dark fabric and the shadows hid the worst of the stains, she could feel the stickiness cooling against her skin. 

"Do you have a few hours to spare?" Sumiko asked. "Getting to the safe house is one thing, but getting back is harder. You might end up spending the night." 

"It's fine," Miyori said. She'd made Kenshin promise to pass along word that she was spending the night at Shizuka's if she didn't make it back. She'd planned it as a last resort, but under the circumstances, it seemed like she'd been wise to take precautions. 

Kuraishi led them to a door near the end of a dead-end alley. Fishing out a key, he unlocked it and ushered them in, only to open a second door a short distance inside. The second door seemed to open onto dead end, but he warned, "Stand back," and then a moment later a hole opened in the wall, flickering red around the edges, and expanded to fill the doorway. 

"Step right through and keep going," he said, voice suddenly strained. "This will only last a few seconds." 

Koji didn't hesitate, so Miyori tried not to either. It was difficult to walk into perfect darkness, and the odd sense of the ground shifting beneath her feet as she did didn't make it any easier.

But then she found herself in a perfectly ordinary hallway. Turning to avoid hitting the wall, she looked over her shoulder to see the woman and Kuraishi appear out a hole in the air, which then disappeared to reveal a linen closet.

"There we go," Kuraishi said. "Bedroom's the last door on your left. Get your friend situated, and then we can talk."