Melt My Cold Heart

Welcome back for round five! I imagine this story to be going on for a while now since I’ve been getting more inspiration, though it won’t be ridiculously long unless most of you request something specific to happen to the characters or story. I’m quite flexible!

**IMPORTANT!!!! PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE READING THIS CHAPTER!**
For those of you not familiar with the game Samurai Shodown, each character has a “split personality” called Slash/Bust. In the game, Slash, or Shura, refers to an ancient Japanese god of war and Bust, or Rasetsu, refers to a Japanese demon. The Japanese words don’t translate into good and evil, or chivalry and treachery but it’s suppose to play with the “good and evil” concept. Also, the Slash and Bust form have different attacks, so keep this in mind through out the rest of the story.

Disclaimer: The characters’ names, physical description, and powers do not belong to me: Sogetsu Kazama from Samurai Shodown and Qilué, one of the Seven Sisters in the Forgotten Realms. Their personalities and this story are original.

Note from author: None of this is going to be based on the video game or the forgotten realms series. Please keep in mind that Qilué is pronounced KEE-lay.

Chapter 5: Unaware

“Now just gently cradle it.”

Qilué was opposite from Sogetsu, both of them standing over a water filled copper bowl that was on a pillar. They had been in this small room for nearly three days, the wax from the candles nearly depleting. It seemed like a storage room from what she could tell when she first saw it. There were chairs, some broken pillars, and old, wore old cloths lying in piles at the corners of the room.

Qilué felt exhausted but was trying hard to contain her concentration. In her hands was water shaped into a perfectly round sphere. Her concentration was beginning to slip slowly as she felt the water sphere drip in her palms and through her fingers, the drops returning into the bowl. Forcing herself to focus, the water sphere stops dripping and stays in its abnormal shape.

Sogetsu was holding his palms out, ready to take the sphere. He was exhausted as well, with dark rings forming under his eyes, Qilué didn’t know if he could mentally go on. Slowly guiding the sphere into his hands, he gently cups the sphere. For the past three days, he had accomplished forming a water sphere but the problem now was being able to control it the way he wanted to. Forming the sphere took most of his energy, so Qilué had to end up making it for him since the next accomplishment was going to take much more out of him.

Water starts to drip through his fingers as the sphere starts to wobble, losing its composer and a frustrating look comes across his face. Qilué quickly cups his hands with hers and the water immediately stops dripping, the wobbling subsiding as it returns to its sphere shape.

“Gently. Just imagine what you want this water bubble to do. This is something I cannot achieve so you’ll have to try on your own.” She could see a strain come across his face, his hands tensing up as if he was about to crush the sphere. Suddenly lashing out his right hand, the water bubble flies into a pillar, ripping it apart as the water collides with the stone pillar.

Standing there stunned, Qilué couldn’t help but feel scared for a moment. Suddenly, Sogetsu grabs her arms, startling her. “More. Teach me more.” Forcing herself to smile, she put her hand on his chest.

“Please Lord Kazama, if you thought learning something small like this is a big strain, you certainly wouldn’t last very long to learn anything else if you continue in your condition. Sleep for a day and we’ll come back to this.” Sogetsu slides his hands down her arm and trudges past her towards the door, slightly dragging his feet as he opens the door and walks out. She was glad that he didn’t have the strength to argue with her.

Walking over to the water covered debris, Qilué moves her hand in one smooth motion, the water rising off of the debris and twirling back into a sphere, floating itself down into the palm of her hands. Her magical abilities let her contain elements in a sphere form easily, but she couldn’t control them to do anything else. Sighing while walking towards the bowl to put the water bubble back, she shakes her head, hoping that this wasn’t something she had feared all along.

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With his arm draping over the edge of his bed, Sogetsu mumbles something in his sleep, turns to his side and slowly opens his eyes. Sitting up, he was trying to recall what had happened in the past two days.

He remembered feeling a surge of power, like a bolt of lightening shooting from his chest through his arm as he commanded the water bubble to strike the pillar in half. Looking at his hand, he wanted to feel that power move through his body again. Throwing the sheets back and climbing out of bed, he stands up, stretching his arms above his head. His mind and body felt totally refreshed and he couldn’t help but feel somewhat grateful to Qilué. Walking over to the closet to dress himself in fresh clothes, he sees a glance of his reflection as he passes a tall mirror and decides to admire himself for a few moments.

It had been a long time since he looked at himself. While running his hand through a strand of his blue hair that had fallen in front of his face, he notices that his hair had now grown down to his ankles. He didn’t realize how fast his hair had grown, probably because he had it always tied up. His body mass was a bit bigger, his muscles more define as he smirks at his reflection. Turning away from the mirror, he reaches the closet and starts to get dressed.

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“My Lady Qilué! It’s so wonderful to see you before I take off for home.” A large smile comes across Cain’s face as he sees Qilué walking towards him. She watches his soldiers load up the carts, wondering what Cain was taking back with him. It must be gifts from Lord Kazama, she thought.

“Would you like to accompany me to my home Lady? You could stay for a few days and enjoy the beautiful my land has to offer.” Qilué’s felt her heart pound as she was trying hard to restrain herself from shouting out yes. In the past two days, nightmares of Sogetsu kept waking her. Every time she woke up, she felt like the weight of the world was on her shoulders. She didn’t know if teaching Sogetsu to control his powers was a good idea anymore. She had to admit that he was making fast progress but something about the approach to the control was giving her a hard time in wanting to teach him more.

“Lady, are you feeling well? You don’t look quite like yourself.” Qilué blinks out from her trance, smiling softly behind her veil.

“I’m fine, Lord Orin. I appreciate your concern.” Slowly turning her head, she reaches up to adjust the hood over her head, slightly pulling it a bit further down, nearly covering her eyes, not wanting Cain to see her sleepy eyes.

“So will you come with me then Lady? There is much beauty in my land I could show you, though you would be the one to make my kingdom radiant.” Cain reaches out and takes her hand that was near her face, his thumb gently brushing the back of her hand as he smiles at her, Qilué feeling him gently squeeze her fingers.

“I’m sorry Lord Orin. I would love to join you but-“

“But you must stay for your Lord.” Cain finishes for her. His smile was now replaced by a look of disappointment and sadness. Qilué wished that she could have it done it without hurting him in anyway but it didn’t seem possible.

“It’s quite alright. If you cannot join me, then perhaps I could have something from you to remember you by.”

Before Qilué could ask him what she could offer him, Cain pulls her hand towards him, making her lose her balance as he catches her in his arms, this sequence already played over once between them. Instead of holding her against him, he places his free arm around her waist and gently dips her back. Without another moment to waste, Cain presses his lips against hers, her veil the only thing that kept their lips from actually touching. Letting out a muffled protest, she could feel the warmth of his lips through her veil.

Qilué’s heart was pounding against her chest as Cain slowly deepened the kiss. As she felt Cain’s hand press into the small of her back, pressing her closer to him, the euphoric effect of the kiss disappearing. It didn’t feel right and her mind told her to stop. Turning her head away from him and pushing him away from her, Cain had a confused look on his face.

“I belong to Lord Kazama. Please don’t make this anymore difficult.” Qilué slowly takes a few steps back then suddenly sees a smile on Cain’s face. She notices that he wasn’t smiling at her and she turns around to see Sogetsu behind her looking at Cain.

“Lord Orin, I hope your journey back will be safe. I wanted to thank you for your gifts.” Qilué was looking at Sogetsu, feeling something different about him. There was a strange glow that came from him but she couldn’t tell what it really was.

“I should be the one grateful for your kind hospitality Lord Kazama. If you ever have business within my kingdom, you’re most welcome.” Cain gives Sogetsu a low bow then turns his eyes to Qilué. “Lady.” Taking a few steps towards her, Qilué immediately responds by taking a few steps back, bumping into Sogetsu as she could feel his hand oh her arm, keeping her steady on her feet. Stopping, Cain closes his eyes and chuckles. He nods his head at her and turns, walking to his soldiers and yelling at them to depart.

Qilué wondered if he saw the kiss that Cain stole from her as Sogetsu takes his hand off of her arm. Once Cain and his men were out of their sites, Sogetsu turns and walks back to the castle and she follows him shortly, staying a few inches away. She begins to worry if he did see them and wondered if she was going to get more than a red mark on her chest this time. Suddenly she bumps into something hard and brings her hand to rub her sore nose. Her face turns red as she sees Sogetsu in front of her. They were now standing in front of the castle gates.

“I’ll see you in the gardens in a while Q. I have things to take care of right now.” Qilué wrinkles her nose at him, making sure her nose was still working.

“Lord Kazama, I c-“ Before she could finish, Sogetsu moves his hand in front of her face, Qilué only seeing a blur and then her veil now in his hand. Without an explanation, Sogetsu walks past her. She didn’t turn around because she knew where he was going to go. He saw, she thought, as she covers her face with her hands.

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“Orin.” Cain slowly turns around to see Sogetsu.

“Continue back home men.” Cain calls out to his soldiers as he walks back towards Sogetsu. As the soldiers continue walking, Sogetsu was slightly glaring at Cain who had a small smile on his face. Sogetsu waited until the soldiers left and they were the only two on the road.

“Is there something I can do for you Lord Kazama?” Sogetsu reaches into his robe and takes out Qilué’s veil, offering it to Cain.

“It seems like you were quite fond of her veil. A gift to you Orin.” A sly smile comes across Cain’s face as he reaches out and takes the veil from Sogetsu’s hand. Cain lifts the veil up to his face and takes in the scent.

“This won’t be the last time you see me Lord Kazama.” Sogetsu gives Cain a smirk as he puts his hand on his sword.

“I didn’t expect you to stay away either.” With one quick motion, Sogetsu unsheathes his sword and slashes at Cain but only cutting the veil in half. “Q is mine. If you wish to take things further with her, I might have to do something that I probably won’t regret.”

Cain gives a soft chuckle. “Lord Kazama, could it be that you care for this creature? Honestly, you never seemed like the type to…well, care at all. Could she be more useful to your kingdom than to yourself perhaps?”

“Don’t tempt me to hurt you Orin.” Sogetsu gives Cain another smirk.

Qilué spots the two men down the path as she quickly runs towards them. She was nearly out of breath as she wondered how Sogetsu was able to catch up with Cain so fast. She could see Cain’s mouth move, telling Sogetsu something that made him turn to see her running up to him.

“My Lord.” She was panting as she reaches him and puts her hands on his chest. His expressionless face was so familiar to her now which made his emotions extremely hard to read but she could feel some slight hatred from him. Her legs nearly caved out in front of her but Sogetsu wraps his arm around her, pressing him against her.

“I suppose I’ll be off now, unless there’s anything else you’d like to give me Lord Kazama.” Sogetsu kept his sword pointing at Cain as he gently presses Qilué’s head into his neck.

“Lady Qilué, as I offered you before, you are welcome in my kingdom if you find your present stay a bit…unpleasant.” Sogetsu gives Cain a glare and Cain returns to him a smile then turns and leaves. Shifting her head slowly, she watches Cain leave as Sogetsu lowers his sword then sheathing it. Qilué looks up at him, his face now softer as he looks back at her.

“I told you to wait for me in the gardens.” His face remains still but his voice sounded irritated. He slowly drops his arm from around her and crosses them, waiting for an answer.

“I’m sorry Lord Kazama. I was worried about you.” Satisfied with her answer, Sogetsu turns and walks back towards his castle. Taking a few steps, Qilué suddenly collapses, her legs feeling sore and weak. She never ran so far and hard before in her life. Turning to call out to Sogetsu for help, she sees him crouching in front of her only an arm length away.

“What’s wrong with you?” He tone seemed somewhat bored.

“My…my legs.” Qilué turns back and puts her hand on her thigh. “I never ran so fa-“ She suddenly feels strong arms lift her up and she instinctively wraps her arms around Sogetsu’s neck. She looks at him with a surprised face as he walks back to the castle. As Sogetsu continues to walk while carrying her, Qilué felt like she should apologize, or say how grateful she was, but what she blurts out wasn’t exactly what she had in mind.

“How did you manage to catch up to Lord Orin so fast? I nearly passed out once I reached the two of you.” Sogetsu looks at her and she could have sworn that she saw a small smile on his face.

“Years of training.” Qilué blinks at him, thinking about how obvious the answer was.

“The next time he treats you like that, you have my permission to hurt him.” Blushing furiously, she knew that now he did see Cain kiss her but what was relieving was that he didn’t think she wanted the kiss.

“I don’t know any physical defense or offense.” Qilué softly admits. She hears a soft “hmph” from him.

“Just aim in between the legs. It’s quite effective.” She nods at him, remembering to keep that in mind the next time.

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“No, please, I’ll be fine.” Qilué was trying to convince Sogetsu that she would feel much better after a good night’s sleep but he insisted to stay with her as he set her down on her bed. Walking over to close the door, he hears her grumble a little and sees her trying to get comfortable. Walking back to her and sitting down on the edge of her bed, he removes his sword and leans it against the end of the bed, making it stand upright. As he reaches out and touches her ankle, she tries to move back away from him but his hand was now gripping her ankle.

“I need you to be feeling better by tomorrow. We didn’t get the chance to train today.” Sogetsu’s hands were now on her calf, gently massaging her sore and tightened muscle. Wincing a little at first from the pressure of his fingers, she starts to relax as he lightens the pressure, not knowing that his hands were capable of such gentleness. Sogetsu liked the feeling of how soft her leg was and couldn’t help but smirk as he hears her softly moaning. Qilué was now lying back with her eyes closed and a small smile on her lips. He could tell that she was slowly drifting off to sleep and begins to move his hands above her knee, slipping her robe to her upper thigh. He gently grazes her inner thigh with his fingers, brushing them up to where her robe was on her thigh and stops there. She looked so beautiful with her white hair spread around her, making it seem like she had small wings. He felt strange as he let his fingers linger along her thigh. He never felt these emotions before and they were quite different from the one when he saw her naked in the bathhouse. He knew what he felt then was lust, but could it have been something more than that?

He liked it when she was close to him and when she needed him in some way. She was the only one that ever really tolerated his behavior and he knew that he was a pretty intolerable person. Despite these qualities about her, he couldn’t open his heart to her. It would be a sign of weakness, he told himself, a policy his father taught him many times with a whip. Still, he couldn’t resist the urge to move his fingers higher up her thigh. Smirking to himself, he pulls his hand back, thinking that only a coward would take advantage of a woman. Instead, he slowly lifts her leg up and places a small kiss on her knee.

In an instant, she swings her other leg at him, it making contact with his face. Growling as he rubs the reddened side of his cheek with the back of his hand, he notices that she was still sleeping. Mumbling something under his breath, he now sees her lavender eyes flutter open and were now upon his face. Quickly sitting up, she brings her hands up to his face but he brushes them away.

“I’m so sorry! I fidget a bit when I sleep but I never knew how violent it was.” Sogetsu was feeling embarrassed at the moment. A highly trained samurai getting caught by someone who never had training and who was also asleep. Clearing his throat in trying to stop himself from blushing, Qilué thought that he was angry because he wouldn’t say anything to her. Reaching her hands out to him again, she gently cups his face and turns the reddened side towards her.

“It’s not that bad. It won’t even leave a bruise.” Before knowing what she was doing, she leans into him and plants a soft kiss on his cheek. Her lips linger there for a moment, Sogetsu feeling her warm lips as he smells the scent of cherry blossoms from her. Bringing his hands up to her shoulders, he gently pushes her away from him.

“Get some sleep.” Standing up and taking his sword with him, Sogetsu walks to the door and opens it. Without looking back, he walks out and quietly shuts the door behind him. Qilué fell back into the bed as she drapes her arm over her forehead. What was that about, she thought to herself, wondering what he could have done to make her react like that in her sleep. She also thought about what was said between him and Cain and also how he carried her back to the castle. Could it be that he was more comfortable around her to lower his walls? She was aware about the situation when she was training him to use his powers. No matter what sort of magic is being used, it’s always called from the heart. The way when Sogetsu violently tore the pillar apart with the water sphere was still fresh in Qilué’s mind. One minute he was cold and even ruthless then suddenly he seemed gentle, almost caring. She recalled seeing him nearly smile as well. Qilué wanted to know what he was about and why he had built so many high walls around himself. She couldn’t help but feel attracted to him in some way because whenever he showed her kindness, it was very sincere as if he really meant it, something Cain wouldn’t be able to achieve. She felt that Cain only wanted to conquer her because she was something he couldn’t have. Her heart begins to beat faster as she remembered Sogetsu holding her close when they had their encounters with Cain. It felt so right in his arms and she wished that those moments could have lasted forever.

Then a small voice in the back of her squeaks out “You’re falling for him.” Opening her eyes wide in panic, she wondered why this would cross her mind. The voice continued on, “When he left his mark on your chest, you were looking at it ever chance you could. You liked the feeling of him owning you. In the bathhouse when he nearly sliced your throat, you should have been pleading for your life but you couldn’t help feel excited that he was seeing you na-“

Qilué shakes her head furiously, her hands covering her ears as if to block out the voice. There’s no possible way that I could be falling in love with him! He’s arrogant, selfish, and a pervert! Even if I did love him, he wouldn’t care. He’s an emotionless shell and there’s no point in trying to figure him out, she told herself as she rolls to her side. He probably hates me for all I know.

Does Sogetsu really care about Q or is it just lust? What’s Qilué going to do about Sogetsu’s power? Even better, what’s Qilué going to do about her feelings for Sogetsu?
The next chapter will be up shortly!