A Witch, A Knight and The Black Cat

Chapter 9

When Kumiko woke the last thing she remembered was the fourth ale stall the fencing group hit after the contest. Her head was pounding and she didn't recognize the room she was in, but she did know the guy curled up in the chair across from the bedroom. Obi was sound asleep with his arms crossed and head propped up against his shoulder.

Rubbing her temples Kumiko crawled out of the bed, gathered her things and made for the door. Nausea twisting her insides with every motion.

"Where are you going?" Obi asked.

Freezing with her hand on the doorknob she glanced back at him. He wasn't as knocked out as she thought.

"To my room. I reek of booze," Kumiko replied.

"You drank an awful lot," he commented.

"I can tell," she gestured to her head.

With that Kumiko left the room, lost in the castle as she made her way down the hall. After some exploring she figured out where she was and made her way to her own room. Once she washed her face and changed into the set of clothes she had picked up in the middle of the week when she joined Shirayuki on an errand she packed up her things. Kumiko was about to leave but the sight of a stack of parchment caught her eye. Setting her satchel aside she dropped into the chair at the desk and grabbed a pen and paper.

Dear whomever finds this,

I left. I guess I've been planning this since I was forced to stay. I can't lie; I had fun, but it was also unpleasant. Shirayuki is probably the first friend I've ever made, and she cooks which is great. Prince Zen isn't as bad as I thought when he "stole" my sword. Kiki is the older sister I never wanted, and is even more stubborn that I am which I didn't think was possible.

As for Mitsuhide, I'll take his words seriously, but I am not ready to mend what is wrong between us. Not when I still rely on him to solve my problems, so I've decided to leave his sword behind. I need to survive on my own, I need to get away from the past. I need to find my place.

I don't know why I wrote this letter, probably for some sense of closure, or because I feel like I owe the people I met here an explanation. Whatever it might be, here it is. This is what I had to say. I'll come back some day, but when isn't clear, so I am sorry. I know I've caused a ruckus with my sudden arrival, but I'm hoping my sudden departure will return it to normal.

Goodbye,

Kumiko Lowen.

P.S. Can someone tell Obi I'm not holding him to his promise. Alley cats are meant to be free.

The End...