room, there she let herself fall on the bed by the window and soon fell asleep. Emily watched the restless boy, his pain seemed to get worse every day and he still refused to swallow the medicine.They could fill him with liters of water without him resisting, but as soon as they tried to turn the bitter medicine on him, he fought back with astonishing strength.



Part 6



He heard the thunder behind him that was getting louder and louder and the kinking of trees, but he didn't really notice any more. She had outsmarted him and did it with one damn easy maneuver. He should have prevented it, should never have allowed such a mistake. The usually attentive Blader did not notice that a long shadow was cast in front of him on the way, he only had the fleeing in view. His horse's hooves struck wildly in the snow as he got closer and closer to the fugitives. Then he saw a flash of orange and shortly afterwards he saw a huge bull running next to the group. > What are they up to?
Distant voices penetrated his ear, echoing like an unreal echo, he could not understand words, walking in silence in whole sentences. It was as if someone was listening to a tape backwards then felt a sharp pain in his leg and let out a sharp breath, he wanted to protest but he couldn't even open his eyes. Then a warm towel slid over him that slowly let him forget the pain, he surrendered to the hidden warmth with a confidence that would have shocked him if he had been aware of it. But it wasn't. He was about to fall into a real sleep when he felt the throbbing in his back again and he shuddered painfully. Then it was over, the pain was gone for a moment and he heard the indistinct voices again and someone gently stroking his forehead. Then he heard the voice moving away, that made him wake up from the twilight state, he was finally able to move again, all his senses slowly returned to him as he turned on his back and then tried to sit up.But a sharp stab made him pause in his movement and almost at the same time he felt two hands gently pressing against his shoulders. Frightened, he pushed the person away, but next to him he felt a hand on his cheek and heard a very familiar voice calling his name. Slowly he opened his eyes but he only saw the surroundings blurred then he concentrated on the person next to him. "Riku" crossed his mind as he looked into her eyes, the colors of which were a mixture of fog and silver. A mixture of colors that he would never forget and that he would recognize from thousands. He heard her relieved words but couldn't understand her when he suddenly realized that Drancer's warmth wasn't at his side. At the rear of the table he grabbed his hips but he couldn't feel his belt or his beloved Blade there. "Drancer," he breathed weakly. Again he heard her reassuring words and again he didn't understand her, it was like an indistinct murmur that penetrated his ears.He pushed Riku slightly aside, he had to get up to look for his blade, but the sharp pain twitched through his entire body cut off the tough Blader and let him sink back into the pillow. "Please Kai. If you get up now and walk around, your wounds will start to bleed again and then you will never again have the opportunity to see him silently!". The urgency of her tone finally penetrated his daze and he processed what had been said. He noticed the incredible tiredness that enveloped him when he stopped defending himself against Riku. "You've gotten pretty stubborn, do you know that?" She asked lovingly. He loved the sound of her voice that always made him forget everything around him, that sounded like she was talking to him was all for himself Reserved only with him she talked as if she had a shy wild animal in front of her, and yet he calmed down Always there. The gray-haired blader trusted her more than she could imagine and he also knew that his "bad self" will never be able to break this.He wanted to answer her, wanted to force her to speak again and hear her voice again, but it took too much strength and he felt how he slowly but surely fell asleep.

The severe pain in his back made him wake up again when someone lifted him carefully. His throat was dry and he was shivering from the cold even though he was hot. Gasping, he let out the air, irregular and shallow, he felt the soft rag that ran around his face again and the calm whispering voice penetrated his ear. He winced when he noticed that something was poured into him, his heartbeat accelerated rapidly and he was now wide awake. "Quiet, it's just water," she said to him again, now he tastes it too, it wasn't bitter and it didn't taste like lead either. Greedily he emptied the glass she had put to his lips. "You see, it wasn't that bad," she whispered again and carefully put it back.He was woken up several times that night to pour water into him and each time he felt the heat in his body which apparently increased. He also noticed the concerned tone in her voice that made him uneasy. Then he heard another voice in the room, but he couldn’t assign it to anyone, he only noticed how a strong hand lifted up and pressed something to his lips. But when he tasted the liquid in his mouth panic crept up in him, he jerked away from the person, spat the stuff out again and couldn't move his mouth again. He felt his heart pounding wildly against his chest and how his breathing was fast and shallow then he waited for the beat that should come. The adrenaline pumped his muscles up and the exhausted Blader managed to push the figure away. He didn't know who the figure was or who wasn't, he didn't care either, but he wouldn't swallow the bitter stuff.The last time he was in pain, every single one of his muscles was cramped and he almost choked on it. When the glass was held out to him again, he tensed up even more and began to shiver. He didn't want to swallow it for anything in the world. But her soothing voice whispered to him again, and he knew with instinctive certainty that she would not cause him any more pain. Carefully he let a small sip flow into his mouth but it didn't taste bitter, breathing heavily he looked at her but his actions from earlier had cost him all his strength, slowly his cramp eased and he fell asleep in her arms.



Riku was tickled awake by the ray of sunlight falling through the window. Slowly the black-haired angel lolled on the bed and brushed her red streak from her face. Then she got up and only went into the shower when she was finished she made her way to Kai, she wanted to make sure that the others had everything under control.But when she came into the room she saw that Kai was rolling restlessly on the bed. She rushed to him and fasted his forehead, but pulled it away again when she noticed that his fever had risen even higher. His face was tense and he was trembling all over. "We tried to give him the medicine for the fever, but he kept spitting it out," said Emily, who was on the verge of desperation. Riku looked down at the young Blader thoughtfully, then it shot through her like a blow. She took the bottle and dropped a drop on her finger and tried the medicine. "That's why he's doing this," she muttered to herself. "Why did he act like that?" Asked Ray who didn't quite understand her. "Do you remember the doctors we met in the abbey and who talked about the new remedy? They have already invented several remedies, mostly they were performance boosters and the Demolition Boys were always the guinea pigs, because they could endure more physically than everyone else other students in the abbey.Kai had used it a couple of times, but with one drug he almost died. The remedy, I was told, was only intended to intensify his strength, but she hadn't expected the side effects. I still know exactly that Kai was so cramped back then that he couldn't breathe and was about to suffocate. After the result, the researchers knew that the remedy was not yet sophisticated enough. Only when it was finished did the lower classes get it. It tasted exactly like this medicine, he remembers it that's why he doesn't swallow it, "Riku explained, looking at Kai." But he has to take it, otherwise we won't get his fever down, "said Ray." Can you hold him ? ", Riku asked suddenly." I think so, but I'm not sure, "replies Ray. Just sit it up and hold his hands behind his back, maybe I can force him to swallow them," she said and sat down next to Kai on the bed.Ray did what Riku wanted from him, straightened Kai and held his hands behind his back. Kai opened his eyes tired, he noticed that he was being held and began to struggle against Ray's grip. "Quiet, we won't hurt you, you just have to swallow something, do you hear?", Riku spoke gently to him and held the bottle in her hand. With the other one she carefully stroked his cheek until his attention was no longer on Ray but on her. "Why do you always have to be so extremely suspicious of him?", She asked and slid