Shirayukihime and The Lost Fox

Chapter 14: Ponytail

Akira POV

Quietly, I turn around so my back was against the railing. I lean against it and casually look over the other passengers. They were all minding their own business, non looking conspicuous in anyway.

A flash of faded scarlet caught my eye and I turn to the source. The color was from a red scarf wrapped around the neck of a young man with pulled back brown hair. He was leaned against one of the farther off railings, his feet crossed at the ankles and his arms crossed loosely against his torso. His face was pulled into a small smile as he studies something in our direction. I follow his sight to Shirayuki.

So this was the infamous kidnapper.

His line of sight shifted to me when he notices me studying him. Our eyes meet and his features shifted into a more stunned look, maybe shocked. He quickly regains himself and a smirk grows wide on his face. I don't break away from his gaze, not showing my growing discomfort.

I take a side step closer to Shirayuki. "Shirayuki," I mumble, barely moving my lips. She cocks her head in my direction. "Don't look at me, don't look behind you, look as if you're not talking to me," I instruct her, all the while not breaking eye contact with Ponytail. She turns back to look out to the passing waves, following my orders.

"Good," I say. "There's a man on this boat that has been studying both you and myself. He has brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, and is wearing a red scarf. I want you to keep an eye on him while not letting him know that you are aware of him. He will most likely try something." Ponytail continues the unsaid staring contest, neither one of us willing to break it.

"How do you know he'll try something?" Shirayuki quietly asks. My gaze at Ponytail grew darker to the point of a glare. "Just trust me," I snap slightly. She flinches slightly at my tone. I quietly sigh as I calm my temper. "Please, just know that I vowed to protect you as much as I can."

Mihaya (Ponytail) POV

I walk onto the gangplank of the ship, following the red headed girl. Hmm... I think I'll call her Rosylocks. It has a nice ring to it. A young silverish haired boy walked closely to her side. They seemed to make quite the conspicuous pair, a girl with red hair and a boy with a black trench coat.

As the boat pulls away from the docks, I find a place against the opposite railing of the two. They wave at the young man with a sword that escorted them here. I study Rosylocks. She seems to be about maybe 18 years old. The perfect target.

When the docks were out of sight, I notice the boy tense up slightly. He turns himself around and leans his back against the railing, looking across the other passengers almost as if he was looking for someone. I return my gaze to Rosylocks.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see the young boy staring at me. I turn my gaze to him and gape in shock. His eyes were two different colors, the left was bright blue and the right was a startling gold. It was absolutely incredible, a miracle this boy was born like this.

And this will make me lots of cash, maybe even restore my title. A smirk crosses my face as I hold his gaze and he holds mine. It's almost like he knows what I'm up to. How interesting.

Akira POV

The ship rocked slightly as the crew began to secure it to the unfamiliar docks. We had arrived at Mount Koto, and I was just itching to leave already. I should have tried harder to talk Shirayuki out of this, but no matter how many times I told her to go another day she always told me that I didn't have to come with her.

As soon as the boat came into the docks, the few amounts of people began to crowd around the plank, waiting to get off. Shirayuki and I wait until most of the crowd had gone by before we got off ourselves. In all of the confusion Ponytail had slipped into the crowd, probably one of the first to leave. I follow behind Shirayuki down the gangplank, eyes on the lookout for faded scarlet.

There wasn't much to this port, probably because there were not many people living here and the only thing ships brought were herb collectors. The market was incredibly small, limited only to herbal shops and maybe hunting trade shops. I pretty much blindly follow Shirayuki through the market and into the woods, shooting glances over my shoulder every once in a while. The hairs on my neck stand up from the suspense.

Shirayuki scanned the forest floor for herbs, occasionally kneeling down to collect some herbs and grasses. Shirayuki kneels down and looks at a particular herb in wonder, a smile on her face. I look around the surrounding area, still looking for scarlet.

I only turned around for a second. I wasn't even three feet away.

Yet the moment when I turned back to Shirayuki, she was lying on the ground unconscious. My eyes widen as I stand there in shock. Quickly, I snap out of my stupor at the sound of quiet padding of feet, so quiet a normal person wouldn't have noticed. But I'm not normal, am I?

I swiftly turn around to see my opponent, and come face to smirking face with Ponytail. Only he was closer than I anticipated, standing maybe less than a foot away from me. I tense and jump back. He just chuckles, his smirk never leaving his face. He clucks his tongue as he steps forward, attempting to corner me against a tree. "You're gonna be harder to catch, aren't you, Snow?"

"What did you do to her?" I growl out as I slowly back up. My lips curl into a snarl not unlike a threatened canine. He sighs dramatically as he reaches into his back pocket. "I was hoping I wasn't going to have to use this, but it seems I have no choice." He pulls out a small fragile vial filled with some unidentifiable powder. I watch as he uncorks the bottle and empties the contents into his open palm.

His easy smirk grew sinister as he steps forward so suddenly that I couldn't do anything. He throws the powder into my face and I close my eyes against it, hacking and coughing through the haze. When I open my eyes my vision was fuzzy, but I managed to see Ponytail standing away from me, observing with his infuriating smirk. I grit my teeth but fall into another fit of coughs.

My legs grow weak and I collapse onto the ground. What the hell was that stuff? His scuffled brown boots walk into my vision. "That was a sedative used by hunters. It usually knocks the prey unconscious," he says, picking up my head so I was looking into his face, "but for you, it seems to have just left you immobile."

As much as I hated to admit, he was right. My limbs felt heavy like lead, and I took shallow breathes so I don't have another coughing fit. His smirk grew malicious as he said, "Sleep tight, Snow." Then he snapped his hand down on the back of my neck, knocking me out.