Flight to Paradise
A/N: I'm dead serious this time. LAST CHAPTER. Little angst and lots of fluffiness ahead.
Kiyoi woke up only to be met with a sharp blow to her already broken ribs. Laying on her side, she began to cough up blood.
"Get up, Kiyoi. It's not going to be any fun killing ya if you're on the ground like that." Gentaru had a pipe resting on his shoulder. Most likely, he was the one who hit her when she woke up. "Or you could beg live, like a good dog." She glared, growling weakly. She didn't want to give him the pleasure of seeing her beg. She never begged. It was beneath her, and he knew it. Slowly, she stood. It would probably cost her her life if she fought him, but it didn't matter to her.
"Go ahead. Kill me. I'll die happy knowing someone cared." She spat at him. The sudden attack knocked her off her feet. She felt her cheekbone shatter as the pipe was whacked across her face. Around her, the wolves chuckled, their eyes glowing in the darkness. Blood trickled out of her mouth. The fur raised along her spine, and her eyes practically glowed with hate. Lunging at him, her teeth clamped down his neck. He tried to shake her off, but her grip was too tight. Only when another whacked her with a board did she let go. The two wolves fought, snarling and snapping at each other.
"You should've begged for you life, Kiyoi." Gentaru knocked her on her back and placed his foot on her throat. "You'd have been a lot better off." At 'off', he began to weigh his foot down her throat, crushing her windpipe. As weak as she was, she couldn't lift it off. She felt light-headed. The world around began to be framed with a black border and blurs and shapes were as she could see. Only one thing ran through her mind: Tsume. Out of all people, he was the first to ever show her any real kindness. He'd given her food, spent the day with her, saved her from bleeding to death. He even kissed her. He'd wanted to her to go to Paradise with him. 'I'm sorry, Tsume, but it looks like a won't be able to...' Before she passed out, the sound of shattering glass and someone shouting her name was the last thing she heard.
Where am I? Am I dead?
"Kiyoi, wake up."
Tsume?
"Come on, Kiyoi. Don't die on us."
Is it you? Where am I?
Wake up...
Kiyoi moaned and opened her eyes. At first, her vision was blurry, but it didn't take long to figure out who was who.
"Hey! She's waking up!" Hige shouted, almost excitedly.
"Toboe, go get Tsume."
"Right." She heard Toboe run off as she sat up. Kiba and Hige were on either side of her. The room was dark, light coming from an open door and busted window. She could feel bandages wrapped around her body tight. Her jaw still hurt from being broken. She looked to Kiba.
"Where are we?"
"Don't know."
"But wherever we are, we a good forty-miles away from your old hell-hole." Hige finished for him. Kiyoi's eyes widened.
"What?"
"When we came in, you were passed out. We were all convinced you were dead." Kiba told her. Kiyoi thought back to the sound of breaking glass.
"We then proceded to kick some ass." Hige leaned back against a rock. "Toboe was the first to notice you weren't dead. As soon as the last wolf went down, we got you outta there. We've been stopping to treat your wounds. When we got here, we found the first abandoned building to hide out in." Kiyoi stared at the ground, speechless. Pale crimson eyes were as wide as they could be.
"I'm...free?"
"Yeah. You're free." Tsume stood in the dooway. Toboe was beside him, smiling his usual ear-to-ear smile.
"I'm so glad you're awake. We thought you were going to die." Tsume elbowed Toboe in the ribs. "Sorry..." Toboe was red with embarassment. Tsume walked over and sat beside her.
"How long have I been out?" She asked.
"About four days." Kiba told her.
"So you coming with us?" Tsume asked.
"Huh?"
"To Paradise." She thought about it. She was finally free. No more beatings, no more blood loss, no more of the life she once knew. They'd saved her life, twice. They freed her from an early grave. They were the first to ever show any kindness to her. On top of it all, she's always wanted to go to Paradise. Smiling, she looked at them all.
"What the hell. Sure." Toboe and Hige cheered. From her spot in the corner, Cheza smiled softly. Kiba smiled, and Tsume chuckled.
"Let's celebrate! Come on, Toboe. We need to go get some food." Hige dragged Toboe off.
"Don't eat it all again!" Tsume called after them. Kiyoi sighed, smiling. "By the way," Tsume gave her a bag he'd hidden away, "These are for you." She stared at him then opened it. Inside was a brand new pair of jeans, a black shirt, a deniem jacket, and a new pair of shoes. She smiled. These wolves were her friends. They cared about her. Immediately, she knew things would be better for her.
Two weeks later
Kiyoi sat on a ledge looking up at the moon. Most of her injuries were healed. Her bruises had disappeared along with some of her scars. Her jaw had healed but now and then, an occasional twinge bothers her. Her new clothes fit her perfectly. She'd frayed the edges of her jeans, saying she liked them that way. No one objected. What did it matter? Especially since they were traveling and would get into fights. At the moment, however; she only wanted to stare at the night sky, filled with stars.
"Enjoying yourself?" She turned to see Tsume standing behind her. She smiled.
"Yes, actually. This is refreshing." He walked over as she stood up. "Traveling with you guys is the most fun I've ever had. The land may not be much, but, to me, it's beautiful." She stared off at the vast land, filled with mountains, hills, and dead forests. To someone else, it was just a wasteland. It had always looked like a barren wasteland. However, she'd never been allowed to leave the city. It was understandable. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close. She blushed for a moment, but it quickly disappeared. At that moment, it occured to her that his face was close to hers. She mentally smiled as his lips met hers.
(Wow! Done! Boy, wasn't this any interesting way to end this? Anyway, I'll have a sequel to this coming soon. -smiles evilly- Oh, my. Did I just smile like that? -normal smile- Hope you liked. No flames.)
Special thanks to my reviewers: Toorikosu, raingreywolf, Stantonluver, Fox of dark fire, The Cougar, and Night Imp.