14 14: Getting burned

"You are finally here. I had a hard time convincing Lady Suzuki to go back and...OH MY GOD. YOKO, ARE YOU BLEEDING? LET ME SEE!"

Amane let Sakura take her hand and observe it. She held the small phoenix in her other hand while Sakura fretted over her bleeding hand.

The wound was not as deep as Amane had first expected it to be and the bleeding was superficial. Had it been her previous battle-hardened body, Amane would not even have bled.

"How did this even happen? I thought you knew how to handle beasts."

Sakura's worry was genuine. Most people tended to freak out if a beast attacked them. Even a small bird like the phoenix chick could cause people to freak out.

A wet tongue licked across Amane's injured finger before she felt Sakura's mouth close around the wound.

"What are you doing Sakura? I am not in the mood to indulge your desires right now. And now is also not a good time for us to do this."

The sucking motion and Sakura's wet tongue around Amane's fingers felt erotic. It reminded Sakura of having her fingers inside another wet and tight hole in Sakura's body.

But then the small chick decided it did not like getting ignored by its new owner and its small body jumped toward Sakura's arm.

Amane's free hand caught the chick before it could attack Sakura and take a nip out of her arm.

The sudden action caused Sakura to fall in fright and her face expressed surprise visibly.

"W-What was that?" Sakura seemed to be in a daze. Anyone would be if they were suddenly being attacked by a wild beast.

"I told you now was not a good time. This chick managed to imprint on me so I'll need to keep it close for the next few days. Phoenixes mark their owners by nipping their fingers and digesting their blood. It will attack you anytime it sees you coming near me."

Amane watched Sakura pale. She could guess what the younger had planned for the night but the new addition in Amane's room made it impossible for Sakura to seduce her.

'I wonder what Sakura will plan to get around this problem. But I can worry about that later.'

Amane stroked the chick's head while also easing her hold around its small body. The small bird gave a chirp before settling against Amane's larger hands.

"Sakura, I got your message a few hours ago. I convinced Lady Suzuki to not come here tomorrow so we will have a free day. Do you think you can get us a reservation for tomorrow at that place?"

Amane did feel sorry for Sakura and her pitiful face but work had to come first before everything.

'Look at her face. Sakura looks like she got rejected by her first love. She needs to keep a better check on her face or she'll get taken advantage of very easily.'

Amane watched Sakura's face go through a series of emotions. The teen realized soon enough why Amane had an amused look on her face and the pitiful look vanished in an instant.

Sakura was a fast learner and it showed in her actions.

"Getting a reservation should be no problem. My contact has been expecting my call for a few days and he's also reliable. We can leave everything in his capable hands for now."

"Alright, I will leave it to you. Oh, and I have another question for you - Where is your father? I tried to meet him for a few days now but I was turned away every time. I don't have enough patience to play nice."

Amane was letting Sakura know that she had noticed what the old man was up to. And her words were also an ultimatum for Sakura to act.

'You do not have the luxury to sit around anymore.'

Amane was more than aware of how Sakura thought and what she felt. She did not feel bad about using this knowledge to her advantage.

In many ways, Sakura was easier to handle than any of the troubled kids Amane had raised in her previous life. Their twisted lives had made their worldly perspective a little skewed.

"Ah, my father has been ill for the past couple of days and that was why he could not meet you. But I will talk with him soon and make him agree to hand over the 'Tsurugi head's' title to you."

Amane felt amused at how Sakura was still trying to assert over this issue. Maybe she did not even realize she was trying to interfere in an issue which has escaped her hands long ago.

It had to be a direct result of being conditioned by her family for a long time.

But no matter how much Sakura and her father tried to hold on to the power, they simply did not have the drive or the talent needed for beast taming.

"There is no need for you to do anything anymore. And I am not asking you to interfere, I am warning you not to interfere. I will talk with your father today and we will settle this business as well."

Amane gave out her warning and Sakura made a hasty retreat.

'There she goes, trying to advise her father on how to handle this situation. But Sakura, you do not realize that this is all wasted effort. Obsession is not easy to control and your father has no desire to control his either. You will just burn yourself if you try.'

Oh well, it was no longer Amane's concern what Sakura does. As long as she completed Amane's requests, it did not matter what else she wanted to do.

As long as Sakura does not cross Amane's limits, Amane would even let her plot against herself.

___________________________

'I need to hurry up and tell father to back down. Yoko is serious about this meeting and knowing father, it will not end well for him.'

Sakura ran through the corridors, her mind a mess. She knew that Yoko had let her leave on purpose.

Heck, she might even have brought that small beast inside on purpose to intimidate Sakura into making a decision.

Sakura kept on saying that she had made a decision but it was not until the problem escalated that she realized that she had not decided at all.

She had still to abandon her father's sinking ship entirely.

"How many times have I told you not to open my door like that? Do you want me to take your head....Sakura? What are you doing here in such a hurry? I thought you were going out to spy on Yoko?"

Sakura felt her heart calm down as soon as she stepped inside her father's room.

This place held a lot of fond memories for Sakura and usually, it made her feel comfortable to step in here.

But not today. All Sakura felt right now was a sinking feeling of doom filling her heart.

"Father, are you refusing to meet Yoko outright? You should at least make an excuse to not meet her. I lied to her and told her you were sick but I don't think she believed me…."

Sakura trailed off as soon as she laid her eyes on her father's thunderous expression. Her words had ticked his temper off.

'This is bad. I could not have chosen a worse day to come here.'

Sometimes, her father got in these violent moods and the result was a disaster for anyone who crossed him. These instances were hard to predict and usually did not happen with Sakura.

But it seemed like her luck had finally run dry today.

"Why should I care what the insolent brat thinks? Does she think she is too good for us now that she can tame a small animal? Does she think she can take over the Tsurugi family from me? She can dream all she wants but I will not give my position of Tsurugi head over to her."

Her father had started again. His obsession was taking over his mind and his rational thinking was non-existing at this point.

Sakura doubted that even she would be able to convince her father to back down.

'But I need to do something. Father would end up attacking Yoko at this rate and then get himself thrown in the prison for attempted murder.'

Sakura was fearful of what could happen but would it be that bad? If Yoko ended up dying and her father ended up in jail, then the next head of this family would be Sakura.

She would finally have the power and authority she had carved all her life. Just the thought of such an outcome brought a smile to Sakura's face.

'It could all work out in my favor. And if I become the family head, my mother would no longer be able to call me a failure. She would finally call me back to her side and-'

"What a disaster this is. An old man who refuses to relent the position he doesn't deserve and a traitor who thinks she is smart enough to trick me. Now then, what should I do with you both?"

Sakura felt her smile fall from her lips as soon as she heard Yoko's voice. She had not even realized when the elder had taken a seat near the window.

"N-No way. Yoko, I am not a traitor. I was just trying to help you out and smoothen your relationship with my father so that…"

"Sakura, I am not dumb. I could tell what you were thinking but I will let you go for now. Your father on the other hand is a different story. He refuses to learn when he should back down."

Sakura felt her heart beat faster and faster as she watched Yoko approach the pair. At first, she took it as a sign of anticipation.

But she soon realized that it was not what she was feeling. The feeling of her heart beating furiously inside her chest was not anticipation, it was fear.

"Lord Tsurugi, are you not going to give up your position as the family head? You are forcing my hand here."

Yoko looked so delicate in front of her father that Sakura had a hard time balancing her feelings.

How could this delicate and fragile female invoke this feeling of fear inside Sakura? Since when did Yoko have a such terrifying aura around her?

"Oh, what can a kid like you do? As long as I do not act, you cannot do anything either."

Sakura knew her father was taunting Yoko. he sounded far too pleased with himself. But Yoko did not look disappointed either.

She certainly had a plan.

"You can harp all you want old man but I already send the invited out for a formal change. Since you refused to show any ability to tame the beasts and I already did so in front of witnesses, it is only a matter of time before everyone acknowledges me as the new family head."

Sakura flinched at Yoko's bold move. This was such an effective tactic on Yoko's part that it could not even be countered right now.

Being a family head was not only about being able to control the beasts, it was also about reputation and connections.

If the talks of Yoko's ability managed to spread out into the open then it would only be a matter of time before her father's connections would dissolve.

No one wanted to be allied with a 'powerless Tsurugi' who could not tame the beasts. Their whole reputation depended on this fact.

"YOU BITCH! YOU DARE DO THAT TO ME?"

Before Sakura could react, her father rushed toward Yoko. Sakura expected her to dodge the incoming attack but Yoko stood her ground.

Sakura only understood why the elder did not move when she saw her father charging toward her.

One second her father was attacking Yoko, the next he was clutching his hand in pain, trying to nurse his burn wound.

The small bird Sakura had not noticed before chirped on top of Yoko's shoulder. It had been hiding behind her hair but finally decided to show itself gloriously.

"Well then, I did warn you not to cross me a few times. Looks like you finally got burned because of your foolishness."