Title: Reason

Author: Miru

Rating: PG, I guess, except for a few bad words.

Warning: No real spoilers, I think

Notes: I've always thought that Ren has a sort of slight, protective, platonic feeling for Ai. Also, some slight speculation involved, since we haven't been granted with his backstory just yet.

"Man, I'm bored."

"It's been a while since we've had any requests."

"Maybe I should go out and cause a scandal, heh."

The sound of a light slap to the top of a head, followed by a small sigh. "You know this isn't such a light matter!"

"She's right."

"Fine, fine. Man, I was just joking, you know…. I'm going out for a breath of air."

Ren stalked out of the hut, rubbing the side of his head where Hone Onna had smacked him with her sleeve. Who knew the sleeves of a kimono were so hefty? It still stung, a little bit.

Not that he wasn't used to pain. It had been a long time since he'd been pulled out of Hell, but a couple decades of suffering in the eternal flames wasn't something that was so easily forgotten. Sure, he knew he was safe from them, for the moment, but every time he was delegated the task of watching over the hapless victims in the boat to hell to make sure they didn't try anything fishy, he flinched. Those demons and flames and torture methods hurt.

Giving a small shiver, he slouched over to the field of spider lilies just outside the hut, gazing out at the sunset. The blazing orb always hovered at the horizon, as if it weren't sure whether it wanted to go up or down, and ended up stuck in the middle. An eternal sunset, just like he was stuck in a sort of eternal non-death. Life after death? No, he figured. He wasn't quite alive. So, it would be more like non-life after death. Suspension.

"Why did she save me, anyway?"

The question escaped his lips unconsciously in a jumbled whisper as he watched the sun waver in the distance. He often pondered the question when he was bored enough (which really wasn't that often), but he never managed to reach an answer. Why him? Sure, he hadn't been any worse than some of the other poor bastards stuck in hell, but he sure hadn't been any better. Why had Ai chosen him?

'Maybe she knew my looks would be convenient.' The thought crossed his mind idly as he ambled away from the flower field towards the river. 'I mean, look at how often I work as the spy. People are too easily fooled by a good-looking person. That would explain why Hone Onna was saved, too…then what about Wanyuudo? He's not necessarily bad looking, but he's a little old—hm?'

Ai was standing by the tiny dock, her hair and skirt fluttering in the slight breeze, and the sight made him pause in mid-step. It was a haunting sight, he had to admit. The lady Death, the delivery girl of Hell, come to take your soul and feed it to the bad little monsters down there in the eternal flames. He shuddered again, but not necessarily from personal memories.

For the love of hell, she was a little girl.

A little girl condemned to an eternity (or maybe less, but what difference did a couple hundred years make?) to row the boat down the river to Hell and deposit the poor bastards and bitches down there as redemption for their sins. He wasn't sure if he'd even known what the words "sin" and "redemption" meant back then.

Not only did he owe her his life, but he also owed her…something more. Maybe that was why he'd save her. He was responsible to help her find something again. Her innocence, maybe. Or her mind, her goodness, her potential to live a better life? What was he supposed to feel for her? 'Pity' was probably the word he was looking for, but it had been so long since he'd been human, that the four letters escaped his thoughts and danced just out of reach. Ai was just like that, in a way, always in sight, but just out of reach, even now, just there at the dock, so close but so far, taking another step towards the water—

"O-Oujo!"

He wasn't even sure of what the hell he was doing when he found himself grabbing at her hand, calling her in a half-worried, half-panicked voice. She remained ever calm, looking over at him with her unblinking red stare.

"Yes?"

"Uh…I…" It was only then he realized that he was grabbing her wrist, and quickly let go, looking at her uncertainly. She was so small. "…I just thought, you, uh—" Like someone to stay with, be with, protect, watch over. "—lonely."

"Oh."

She looked up at him, and he almost flinched, before he realized that this wasn't quite the stare that she gave the people she was boating to Hell. It was different, a little, barely noticeably, but it counted, and he grinned, slightly.

"I mean, Hone Onna and Wanyuudo are chatting inside together, but you don't have anything to do anything with, so I figured I'd surprise you?"

The look she gave him for the next moment was strangely concentrated, but he could almost – almost – detect the faint traces of a smile on her features as she spoke.

"I see."

"Oujo." Wanyuudo's voice called from the hut before the rasping sound of the door whispered through the air, Hone Onna leaning out to call to the two. "Your computer, Oujo. We have a request."

"Mmm."

She nodded before turning away from the river and sunset and back towards the hut, her hair rustling slightly as she did so, ever graceful and ever dark. He watched her back, and he couldn't help feel that maybe, maybe—

"Ren."

"Yes?"

"Come."

The faintest of smiles that danced on her lips as she looked at him before heading off towards the hut, the orange glow of the eternal sunset lighting the air and the light breeze that ruffled the spider lilies and cooled the air. Dirt on the ground swirled up in a small cloud of dust as he jogged the first three steps before falling into pace just behind her, sliding the door closed behind the hut after the two of them.

Maybe he didn't need to look for a reason.