A.N.: Hey my lovelies! I know that its been forever since I updated and I am so so sorry! With everything going on personally and academically, it as been a rollercoaster for me mentally and emotionally. I lost a lot of motivation, but the fact that you all exist got me back into it! I'm glad to be back from the bottom of my heart! 3

*Warning: There are theme's of victims of sexual harassment in the beginning (the flashback is italicized and section so please skip that if you need to and always remember that you'll always have someone out there who sympathizes, empathizes, and is willing to be your shoulder to lean on.)

Chapter Twenty-Three: Hime

Shiro awoke to the sound of muffled sobbing and mumbling. Groggily hoisting herself out of bed and making her way to the door, the ookami youkai realized that the soft noise was coming from Sen's room. A sigh escaped her as she noticed that dawn was still not to come for another hour or so. Using her skills as a hunter, the young woman made her way to the princess's room without a noise and crouched down by her futon.

Sen was having a nightmare. Her small hands clenched into tight fists, tears trailed down the sides of her face, and a frown was etched onto her eyebrows. Shiro frowned at the muted words that the slumbering oni choked out.

"No… don't touch… -n't want this… help me…"

She had a hunch about what her nightmare could possibly be about. As gently as she possibly could, Shiro reached her hand and lightly shook her friend to try to wake her. "Ne, Sen, wake up already. It's only a bad dream."

With a start the oni shot up into a sitting position. Sweat lightly coated her forehead as her shaky arms wrapped around her body and shallow breaths resonated in the room. After a few moments of silence, Sen finally noticed that there was someone by her side waiting for her to calm down. A small and sheepish smile graced her lips as she looked over at her friend.

Shiro frowned as she grabbed one of Sen's trembling hands and yanked her out of the futon. As they made their way outside the oni tried to protest but the ookami only gritted out some words. "You need to get some air."

Shiro continued to pull Sen into the courtyard until they got to the little pond where she had opened up about herself and her inner beast. Without a single word Shiro pulled the confused oni to a small boulder and sat her down unceremoniously.

"Spill it." The two words that came out of the ookami's mouth were harsh, but Sen knew it was not directed toward her.

"I had a nightmare…" Her words fell short as she tried to not recall the memory too vividly. "Actually it was a memory, from when Kazema tried to take advantage of me. I just barely got away before he…"

Shiro watched as her friend's words trailed off and tears spilled from her eyes. A blank expression on her face began to worry the white-haired woman. Sen squeezed her eyes shut as the haunting scene resurfaced.

"No, Kazema-sama stop trying to touch me!" Sen gritted out as she continued to briskly walked down the halls of the the Seibu no Tochi manor.

"You will be my official wife within the next year. I have every right to your body, my fiancée." Kazema retorted with a haughty snort as he grabbed hold of her forearm and slammed her against the wall. Sen cursed her situation since that particular area of the manor rarely had people walking the hallways. She did not want to be his 'official wife' to bear an 'official heir' while he used her nobility to scheme for power.

"Get your hands off of me Kazema. Don't touch me." There was a deadly, unspoken threat laced in the oni princess's voice as she dropped the honorific that made the young lord grimace. He knew that the next heir of the Tobu no Toshi clan was much stronger than himself - being from the original oni bloodline - even if it was tainted, but he also knew that politically he had the upper hand. He had that ookami clan backing him. He also knew Sen's nature, a kind and caring which he could easily use to his advantage. She wouldn't cause war for her people to protect herself.

Ignoring his brooding thoughts, Kazema let his hands roam up and down her body with a malicious smile. "Nice try princess, but you could cause a war nobody wants."

"I don't want this either." A lump in her throat formed as her eyes began to stung. She could feel his hands inspecting her figure… there was no passion where he touched her. Sen only felt goosebumps and fear. Bitting her lip to stop herself from screaming, she took a deep breath and readied herself for the moment that she was given the opportunity to flee. The young lord backed away a bit to look at her. Her eyes became wide as she saw the malice and lust in his owns eyes.

Help me… Someone… Anyone.

He sneered her and began leaning forward.

That's all she needed to escape. Without a second to spare, Sen ducked out of her confined spot quickly jabbing two fingers into a pressure point by the young lord's side to prevent him from immediately following her. She bolted to her room and stuffed as much of her clothing and other belongings in a bag as she could. Kimigiku bursted into her room to find a distressed oni princess with frustrated tears streaming down her cheeks.

"We need to leave. Pack your stuff. Now." Not a single word left the ninja as she quickly went to her room to get her things. The two slipped out of the manor and fled.

"I won't let him have his way with you… and neither will Kimigiku or the guys." Shiro spoke up, causing Sen to jolt out of her memory. "Have more faith in us… and yourself."

Sen wiped her tears away. She needed to be stronger emotionally… and the only way that was goi ng to happen was if she realized that she wasn't alone. She had strength in numbers. The princess looked up at Shiro with still tears in her eyes and smiled as best as she could. "Thank you Shiro. I really needed to hear you say that."

Sen continued rubbing tears from her cheeks, not realizing that the ookami's attention was on someone behind her. The white-haired beauty sniffed loudly, getting the one's attention, and waited for the still the teary eyed woman to look back. Her reddish-brown eyes met with very wide turquoise ones.

Sen froze.

Heisuke - who had only intended on walking off energy that was preventing him from sleeping - was also frozen in place by the site in front of him. The princess in front of him, whom he always believed to be so proper, happy, and above him, seemed so vulnerable right now. Her hair lightly swayed freely in the morning breeze. She wore only a simple red yukata and no sort of footwear. He was mesmerized by the sight; Heisuke had only anticipated to go on a very early walk to clear his mind of the haunting sight of Shiro ripping into flesh. He told himself to walk away since it obviously looked like Sen was very upset, but he only walked towards the princess.

Sen panicked at the sight of the young man approaching her and turned to Shiro only to be greeted by empty space.

That bitch! She left me all by myself and I have no idea how to explain my current face to Heisuke-kun. I want to find a hole to hide in.

Before the princess could escape, the samurai was already standing right in front of her. He slowly knelt down next to her as if feared that she would run away.

"S-Sen-san? What's wrong? Why are you crying?" Heisuke timidly asked, fighting the urge to hold her hand or cup her cheek or hug her tightly to his chest. His eyebrows furrowed painfully as concern churned his stomach.

"I… I had a nightmare… about when I still lived in the main household with my great aunt." The brown-haired young woman squeaked out as she looked down at their feet. Tears threatened to spill out of her eyes again as the stinging sensation returned. She didn't know what to say to the young man before her with so many emotions whirling around in her mind and heart. Heisuke's heart wrenched in his chest at how miserable she seemed at the moment. Unable to be in her own home, but he complete understood how she felt with that respect. Mirky memories of his mother's weeping expression, his father's angry yelling, and the lady of the house's disgusted stares. He hadn't been wanted in his own home.

He could no longer contain himself as Sen's shoulders trembled slightly. The young samurai's hand reached for the princess's. The touch startled both of them and made Sen look up into turquoise eyes.

"H-Heisuke?"

All he's doing is holding my hand and I can feel so much care from it. Heisuke-kun, this really isn't fair of you.

"You're not alone. I'm… we're all here for you." Heisuke caught himself from saying an embarrassing declaration to the princess,but made sure not to look away from her wide reddish-brown eyes. Her eyes stared into his own resolute ones before traveling down to see the pinkish hue that painted itself on his cheeks; her eyes continued its downward descent to his lips that she wished to touch with her own. Sen heaved a large sigh and let her shoulders sag before leaning forward to rest her forehead on Heisuke's shoulder. She could hear his racing heart pounding in his ribcage at the proximity.

I give up. How can I push him away if he says something like that with this expression on his face. He's too sincere.

"You win Heisuke-kun. I guess I really should start learning to lean on others more." The princess thought nothing of her actions at the moment, but the samurai seemed to be quite shocked. He didn't expect for her to literally lean on him. Looking down at the top of her head, the young man debated whether or not it was appropriate to wrap his arms around her or not. He really wanted to do that, but was that something he was allowed to do to a princess who was currently on the run from a man and with so many burdens as well? The thought of another man trying to force himself on this beautiful woman made his blood boil. He wanted her to feel safe.

"C-can I hug you?" Both eyes widened at the sudden request.

Shit, shit, shit! I didn't mean to say that out loud. Damn it, she's going to run away and think I'm some weird pervert!

Sen could not bring herself to look up out of sheer embarrassment though she also could not bring herself to move away from the man. Heisuke silently waited for her to jump back from him, but the feeling of her head resting on his shoulder never left. To his surprise he felt her nod.

"I really do need one." Sen's barely audible voice came out and the long-haired samurai would have missed it if not because she was so close to him. Her voice being so small made him throw caution to the wind and wrap his arms around her smaller frame. He pulled the princess close to his chest and did his best not to squeeze too hard and hurt her. Sen's shoulders shook as more tears overflowed from her eyes. She screwed them shut tightly as she buried her face into his chest and her small arms wrapped around his middle underneath his coat.

Heisuke felt at a lost of what to say, but he knew one thing was for sure… these new tears were because she needed comfort more than anything. He squeezed ever so slightly which she in turn returned the gesture. Her delicate fingers clenched the fabric of Heisuke's back making a strange feeling spread throughout the young warrior's chest. She seemed so fragile at the moment even though she had shown them such strength. He felt this arms tightened around the princess just a bit more than he thought was acceptable and tensed, but relaxed when Sen returned the gesture.

"Ahem."

Two eyes opened wide with realization before they jumped from each other. Two bright red faces looked over at the unexpected visitor. A now dressed Shiro stood in the middle of the courtyard with a very amused glint in her eyes and a smirk on her lips. Sen felt like dying at that moment because she knew that she would never live this down.

"Sorry to interrupt your moment, but the others are waking up… unless you want the guys to make fun of you for the rest of your lives. Well… I won't stop you if that's what you two want though."

Sen glared at the other youkai while panic raced through Heisuke's brain. He looked down at Sen to realize once again that she was only wearing a thin, red sleeping yukata with no footwear. Her honor would be questioned by the scandalous-looking scene regardless if they had done nothing of the sort. He quickly took off his hakama and draped it over the princess's shoulders in one fluid motion and looked at her dead in the eyes as his hands rested on her shoulders. A hue of red settled on Sen's face as she felt the warm hakama shield her from the chilly morning wind.

"You should return back to your room! It'd be bad someone tried to talk badly about you being out here with me in nothing but your night clothes. For the both of us, but mainly you!" Sen understood what he was saying, but her body was not moving. Shiro took the liberty to walk to the miraculously innocent scene and drag her friend away from the samurai, lest the two fools sit there all day, so that they could finally walk towards their rooms.

Once back in the princess's room, an uncharacteristically large grin covered Shiro's face. Sen cringed as she knew that the ookami was about to go into a frenzy of teasing remarks. The princess tensed as her friend stood before her and continued to grin. Not a word left the youkai's mouth though as she turned on her heels and walked out of the room. Sen felt slightly relieved before a gripping chill ran down her spine.

She's definitely up to something. Oh gods I've never felt so apprehensive in my life.

The oni let out a defeated sigh before she decided to get an hour or so of sleep before breakfast would be served.

Sen treaded slowly to the dinning room, but when she entered nothing seemed to be amiss… and that worried her. Timid brownish-red eyes scanned the room until they landed on the other youkai in the room suspiciously.

"May I help you?" Shiro questioned when she felt the princess staring at her with a blank stare. At that moment, it was taking all of the might within her to find the cool to keep from laughing at the pure discomfort on Sen's face. The princess could see the pure delight on the ookami's eyes even though nothing showed on her face and in only made her frown and purse her lips.

"Your face is really annoying me right now." Sen gritted out before taking her seat. She made sure to not look at Heisuke for too long in fear that her face would turn bright red or Shiro would have more to tease her about. She continued to watch her friend suspiciously from beneath her eyelashes though. It seemed that the men were speaking to her normally even after witnessing her morbid display the day before.

What a relief. They're all acting normal for the most part. And to think that Shiro was worried that they would come to hate her.

Heisuke sighed heavily into his cup of tea. He had been slightly more polite to Shiro since he had this feeling of impending doom when she walked in and smirked in his direction. He was also glad that Sen had acted unfazed for the most part, but a part of him also felt vaguely disappointed. She had only given him a small smile before quickly looking away from him. This feeling of being ignored was not welcomed and he wasn't sure how he felt about that. He had become so caught up in the strange feeling that he had not realized the small glance directed his way by the object of his dilemma.

"How about you keep your dumbass comments to yourself idiot?" The ookami youkai's loud remark made the young samurai jump back into reality. Shiro had her chopsticks pointed at Souji while the emerald-eyed samurai crossed his arms and glared indignantly at the crimson-eyed woman. Shinpachi and Sano were chuckling hysterically like brothel ladies, Saito ignored the whole commotion like usual, and Sen seemed to sigh heavily with a shake of her head.

They honestly fight like a dog and cat would. It's a mystery that they haven't started throwing punches.

Souji grimaced. He had to admit that he had brought that insult onto himself, but he had been in a weirdly upset, guilty, and unsettled mood since the night before. The only way he knew how to distract himself was by instigating Shiro, but it didn't seem to be helping at all. He was given his mission to go out and gather intel on the movement of the rebels since it had been much too quiet. Usually, he would have gladly accepted the task and waste no time… usually. Every time he thought about it though, this tightening guilty feeling would grip his chest and he did not like it - especially since crimson eyes would surface. All he could imagine was them looking at him with disgust, anger, or betrayal.

We are not lovers so there is no reason to feel like an unfaithful man. It's for work. I'm not doing this because I want to. And I don't need to feel guilty for anything.

Souji felt stupid trying to justify to himself why he should not feel bad. He had nothing to explain or prove. A voice in the back of his mind kept telling him that he should not touch another woman, even if it was for the mission. It kept telling him that there was someone much better to have trembling with pleasure beneath him than some brothel woman that wanted only to brag about having him in their bed, but he kept telling that voice to shut up since a tool for the Shinsengumi did not need that one woman that he had heard other men talking about.

Shiro watched as an argument ensued inside Souji's head which seemed strange within itself. He almost looked guilty as he glared into his tea cup. An uncomfortable feeling began to bubble within the ookami as to what the handsome man could be thinking of. Shaking her head of the strange churning feeling before it ate at her, Shiro looked over at the princess who seemed shier than usual as she stole subtle glances at the youngest samurai. She then looked over at the said samurai who almost seemed butt hurt. Shiro chuckled. She was definitely going to be entertained watching the two idiots. Out of a pure whim she decided to look up at the man across from her, but as soon as her crimson orbs locked with emerald ones, he looked away from her. He avoided looking her in the eyes the rest of the meal and it irked her.

I'm getting a taste of my own medicine. Now I'm the one being avoided and I don't like it.

Souji hadn't meant to avoid the white-haired beauty but that is exactly what happened. After their little argument, he couldn't keep eye contact with her at all and Okita Souji had never shied away from conflict once he joined the Shinsengumi. He gritted his teeth as he walked past a group of drunken men singing completely off tune. Women drenched in the smell of strong perfume and sex cat-called him from their windows asking for the time of his life. The handsome young man grimaced mentally as he kept a placid look on his face.

If I think they smell strong from here, then I couldn't imagine what Shiro must have smelt at Ikedaya. No wonder she looked sick.

The samurai had been walking slowly, but still felt like he had made it to the brothel much sooner than he intended when the building came into view. He took a deep breath to try to ease his racing mind and strange feelings. As soon as he walked into the establishment, he was greeted cordially since he was well-known by all of the ladies there. While most of the younger women eagerly vied for the samurai's attention, the more well-seasoned courtesans maturely watched the man from behind their fans with reserved but coy atmospheres around them. Souji sighed silently as the owner monologued about the different ladies in his brothel. The emerald-eyed man had to do everything in his power to not cut off the old coot.

"I would like to pay to spend my night with Aiya-san if she's free… for the whole night of course." Souji said with a plastered smile at the owner while he sent a sideways wink at some of the disappointed young women.

"Of course! Of course, Okita-sama! She will be delighted as she is your favorite." The balding old man praised with a bow and clasped hands. He then sped away to find the courtesan.

Not so much a favorite as she's not frivolous, keeps an ear out for gossip, and I've known her the longest.

Souji had been in that brothel many times, but this had been the first time that he felt uncomfortable like a boy doing something he shouldn't. Every woman he saw, he felt that they were lacking a certain quality that she had. There was an issue with each and everyone of them that he begun to pick out. Boasts too much, caked on way too much powder, nothing but a stick, pushover, needs my approval, no spark, too much perfume, acts extremely loose… the list went on each woman he looked at. Even the mature geisha's were missing a flare no matter how much beauty, how much reserve, or how much spark they had in their eyes. He couldn't formulate it into words in his head - much less verbally - but he knew it was because they weren't her.

"Okita-sama? You called for me for the night?" A feminine voice that would make any man thirst for it called out. Souji looked down to be met with deep chocolate eyes coyly looking up at him beneath thick eyelashes. He had to admit that she was an alluring woman. Light, silky brown hair was pinned up in an elaborate hair style while a few unruly hairs wisp around the base of her neck adding to her sexiness. Her kimono hung at just the right places to show just enough skin to entice without being vulgar. Her breasts filled the front of her kimono without overspilling. She wore just the right amount of masterfully applied make-up for her particular style. It complimented her face even though she did not have a perfectly buttoned nose or small pursed lips. Though it was obvious that she was nearing the age of thirty soon, the jovial twinkle in her eyes betrayed that. Souji, once again, plastered a smile on his lips that did not reach his eyes.

"Of course, Aiya-san. Lead the way my lovely lady." Aiya smiled politely though her eyes masterfully scanned the man before her. She turned on her getas with with grace and led her best customer upstairs. Once in her room, which faced the canal where the half moon reflected in magically, Souji placed himself on the cushion at the table near the window while removing his katanas and placing them on the floor. The courtesan smiled youthfully as she filled a small cup for Souji and placed the pitcher on the table before sitting beside him.

"Let me guess. Shall we start with what juicy gossip I've heard lately, or shall you give my payment in advance Souji-sama?" Aiya was already familiar with the Shinsengumi samurai. He gave her an entertaining time in such a dull profession and furthered her status for exchange for her loyal snooping and information. Their relationship was strictly business and pleasure, but she could tell that this was somewhat different from how he was not as playful as usual. She watched as he stared at the moon as he swirled the sake in his cup languidly.

I have a woman's intuition young man. But I will play along for my own satisfaction.

A couple moments of silence hung in the air before Souji snapped out of his deep thoughts and gulped down his sake. He then turned to the courtesan with his trademark smirk that would make almost any woman swoon and all of them ache for him. "I'll pay in advanced my beautiful silk masterpiece."

Aiya smirked devilishly as she pulled at the samurai's haori. Usually she would have invited him to the futon, but Souji was a wild lover and did not care for the delicacies of leading a woman to a futon for union. They locked lips into a heated kiss that meant nothing but to sate physical need. He began tugging at her clothes relentlessly while she reciprocated with his own clothes. Once their chests were bare to each other, Souji yanked at the hair ornaments and let them lightly clink on the floor and once Aiya's hair sprung loose he pushed her carefully down to her back on the cold floor boards. He hovered over her to admire her visage, but all he felt was guilt and disappointment in his gut though he did not show it on his face. Her breast were even more full than they let on shackled by clothing; nipples hardened in arousal from the feral kiss. Her skin was smooth and quivering from the assessment. Aiya's chocolate brown eyes darkened with pure lust and her straight brown hair fell around her body in an enchanting way.

All Souji could see though is a flustered Shiro staring up at him with defiance and curiosity in her crimson eyes with pupils that were usually cat-like dilating to take in as much light as possible. Instead of Aiya's full parted lips, he saw the youkai's slightly parted small but plump lips showing dangerous canines. He growled in frustration and desperately pounced at the women below him to forget the enchanting woman that plagued his mind. He wanted to forget how she looked, how strong she was, how vulnerable she could be, how determined she was. Yes, he wanted to forget about it because he shouldn't be thinking of her in that manner anyways.

In his distress to forget, he dropped all gentleness and ravished the woman under him. He wildly left hot kisses and marks all over Aiya's chest while removing his bottoms and pushing up her kimono to her hips. She moaned with unrestraint as her lover acted more like a wild beast than a man. When he pushed back to take a break she froze ever so slightly at the beastly emerald eyes that looked down at her. He had never looked at her like that before and it made a warmth pool in the pit of her stomach like never before and drip with pure exhilaration.

He isn't looking at me. I am not the one those eyes are looking at, but…

The courtesan did not get a chance to finish that thought as he plowed himself into her making her eyes roll back at the intensity. She struggled to keep up with him even with all of her experience because at this moment the man thrusting himself in and out of her did so with wild abandon. Her moans soon became screams of ecstasy until Souji placed his hand over her mouth and buried his face into the crook of her neck. Her nails tugged at the skin of his back leaving red lines on his lightly tanned skin. At the last moment, Souji pulled back and unloaded himself on her stomach and heaving breasts with a loud groan. The sides of his vision went slightly dark and he twitched agitatedly from the wild outburst.

Then, without warning, the older woman rolled the samurai to his back and sat onto of him knowing that he was still in a drunk stupor of pleasure, unrestraint, and guilt. He looked up at her, but a devilish grin washed over her lips. She was not letting him go for another hour or so. They switched positions many times with little to no break letting sounds of pure lust engulf the room when eventually Souji once again ended up on top of Aiya for a final time. They had move around the room quite a bit but still remained on the hard floor boards - not touching the futon once.

Once their breathing slowly came to a normal tempo, Souji retreated from the courtesan laying on the floor and helped her to sit up. Usually he would have some playful words to say, but this time not a noise came from his lips. He continued on his way to put on his pants that had been thrown somewhere in the room his top and haori. While he began to redress himself, Aiya wiped her body of his essence of multiple rounds and put the top part of her kimono back on though the front was completely open down to her waist. When Souji turned around, the beautiful geisha was sitting by the window with a long, thin smoking pipe in her delicate fingers and a cup of sake in the other.

"You'll ruin your pretty lungs if you keep smoking Aiya-san." The samurai stated playfully as he sat down on the other side of the table in front of his original cup that was now full again with sake.

"I'm old enough of a geisha to not care, so don't fret my green-eyed beast." Aiya countered smoothly as she puffed some smoke outside and watched it turn to nothing. "But enough about me, let us get down to business."

Souji nodded and took a sip of his sake while watching the beautiful woman with still rosy cheeks take a sip of her own cup. "Yes, yes. Let's."

"There's a man who has been seen around causing mischief among the officials in the area. Enticing political conflict just for the fun of it, it seems. But he does it so systematically that it cannot just be at random or for fun. But from what I've been told by other ladies, he doesn't seem to be the serious type, so my guess is that he is working for someone and deliberately causing unrest everywhere on both sides."

Souji's eyes narrowed as Aiya poured him some more alcohol before taking another pull from her pipe. "And who exactly is this man? What makes you think he's working under someone else?"

"He never gave his real name because each brothel seems to have a different alias he picks. But blonde hair and sharp crimson eyes are his defining features that they all described."

Souji clenched the almost finished cup of sake so tightly that Aiya thought he would break it. Anger flashed through his eyes as a nasty snarl snagged his lips which made her gulp. Though Okita Souji could act like a frivolous playboy, he was very capable of being a monster that rampages through nightmares. But the courtesan knew better than to ask questions that could get her killed. Instead she opted for a more amusing route for the conversation; well… more amusing for her anyways.

"You seemed distracted tonight Souji-sama. And while I did enjoy how… wild you seemed tonight, it was obvious you were not making love to me." Aiya stated her claim while bringing her cup to her lips with a smirk. Souji visibly winced at the statement, rather than accusation.

"Forg-"

The samurai attempted to apologize, but the older woman waved it off with her hand and inhaled more smoke before exhaling it. It was apology enough for her that he acknowledged her words with a wince. She did not give him the time to say anything else as she continued on stating what she saw.

"She must be quite the gem for you to look so disinterested and guilty walking in. You could barely look at me and then once you decided to let go… you were looking at her." Aiya stated while she faced the night sky that was slowly lightening up while watching the man from the corner of her eyes. She smirked into her pipe as she saw his ears redden. Souji felt embarrassed and disappointed in himself because she was right. He wasn't holding Aiya with pure abandon, but…

No. This has to stop. I've become transparent and it will cost me sooner or later.

"And how did you come to that conclusion, Aiya-san?" Souji stated, though it looked more like he was talking to his cup. The older woman giggled. She was once in that kind of confused love when she was younger. It warmed her heart to know that her business partner was starting to act like a normal young man.

"Call it a woman's intuition Souji-sama. Now actually use the futon to get some sleep before you go back, because day break will be upon us soon."

Souji cursed under his breath. He did not know what was worse: that Aiya was the second woman to call him out on his attraction for Shiro or that when he went back he would have to face the ookami youkai herself. He heaved a huge sigh before standing up and trudging to the futon where he fell asleep immediately into a listless state of unconsciousness.