Kickin' Butt

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Summary: The day before Rue goes off to fight Valen, he has an important conversation with Mint. Set in Rue's storyline.
Censor: PG
Spoiler Warning: This fic doesn't spoil Rue's ending, but it does have spoilers that occur for events that take place before it in Rue's game.

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It had been a long and tricky path.

Rue had never realized how long and involved his journey would be for the [Relic] that allowed him to save Claire. The things he had discovered about himself and the doll master were completely unexpected finds. Some of what he had learned he wished he did not know. But to get his big sister back, he would have gone through a journey a thousand times more difficult.

Now that he had the gift of Wylaf's wings, there was no turning back. Tomorrow, he would set off to get Valen's [Relic]- to grant him his only wish. His goals for the remainder of the afternoon and evening were to relax and get a good night's sleep, all in preparation for the fight tomorrow. Although he had defeated Trap Master and Mode Master on his way to Wylaf's lair, he figured he would have many more enemies to defeat in his final confrontation.

With this in mind, he headed off to the tavern to order his favorite drink, the Tropical Delight. Not only did the drink give him for energy, but it seemed to make his magic capabilities temporarily stronger. But as he walked in, he saw an unusually rowdy scene taking place in the normally peaceful bar.

"I want my drink, you bitch!" Mint cried noisily as she attempted to hit Annette with her rings, only to miss her surprising agile target.

"Look dearie, I told ya, if you can't pay, I can't get ya a drink," Annette replied as if people came into the bar trying to steal drinks every day.

"I'm a PRINCESS!" Mint screamed, emphasizing the word Princess. "I deserve special treatment from commoners like you!"

Meanwhile, Belle and Duke, who had been drinking together as usual, slowly inched their way to the front door, where Rue stood. "Crazy girl," Belle muttered to Rue as she opened the door.

"That's for sure," Duke agreed. "I'd just pay for her drink myself, but we still haven't figured out how to pay our expensive hotel bill as it is."

Rue just shrugged in reply as Belle and Duke walked out. He then took his wallet out of his pocket and carefully counted his money. From selling his monster carcasses at the weapon shop, he had more than enough money now to buy the finest weapons and armor in Carona, as well as drinks for both himself and Mint. With a sigh, he headed into the main area of the bar, where Mint was currently trying to pull off Annette's skimpy top.

"Mint, stop!" he called loudly in an exasperated voice, making her pause as she looked to see who was talking. "For God's sake, I'll buy you a drink. Just stop fighting with Annette."

"Really?" Mint exclaimed, brightening immediately as she lowered her rings. "Thank you thank you thank you Rue!" Annette smiled gratefully at Rue, relieved that the fight was over.

"No problem," Rue replied. "Which drink do you want?"

"The root beer, of course," Mint said with a grin. "It's my favorite!"

"All right then, we'll take a Tropical Delight and a Root Beer," he said diplomatically, handing Annette the cash.

Annette headed to the back room for a minute and then returned with their drinks. "Here you go," she said, sounding relieved to be rid of Mint as she headed to the next customer.

"Want to sit together?" Rue asked, more out of politeness than anything else.

"All right," Mint answered in a cheerful voice. "Why not?" So the two rivals sat down together at the table where Belle and Duke had been drinking their sorrows away just a short while beforehand.

Rue and Mint sat silently together for a minute, until Rue finally spoke up. "I see you finally stopped fighting in the hotel room with your sister," he noted, not knowing what else to say to the girl who had little in common with him.

Mint grimaced. "Yeah," she answered. "I finally beat the damn bitch up. It was harder than I thought it would be, but I did it. She's off sulking in the hotel room right now. Even the lady at the bar proved to be a more interesting challenge!"

"I see," Rue said in a neutral tone. Since she saved him in the Book of Cosmos, he actually thought more highly of the smart, controlled Maya than Mint. However, he didn't think particularly highly of either of them, and he feared getting hit by Mint's powerful magic if he told her his true feelings.

Mint quickly changed the subject. "Klaus told me that you're going to face Valen tomorrow. Can I come and help toooooooo?" She begged with a pouty face.

"Sorry Mint," Rue replied, "but this is my own battle. I've gotta get Claire back on my own. Maybe you can fight with me some other time."

"Awww man," she sulked. "You'll at least let me use the [Relic], right?"

Rue shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

A grin came to Mint's face. "All right!" she cried, jumping over the table and hugging Rue instinctively. "It's gonna be world domination for me, baby!"

Struggling to get Mint off of him he muttered, "I guess so, If that's what you really want."

"Yes, it is!" she said, rubbing her hands with glee. "I'm gonna be the ruler of everyone! You, Maya, Klaus, Mira, Elena, Rod, Duke, Belle-"

"I get the point," Rue said, covering her mouth with his hand. "I suppose there could be worse things than have you rule the world," he sighed.

"Hey!" she shouted, kicking him playfully. "You know I'd make a better leader than Maya and her annoying thugs!"

"I have no idea if you would be better," Rue answered honestly. "It's not my problem. The only thing of importance to me is saving Claire."

With that remark, Rue took a final sip of his drink, and stood up to leave the bar. Seeing no reason to drink by herself, Mint did the same. As the two walked out of the bar in silence, Rue did some thinking of his own.

I don't understand her at all, he thought. What makes her tick? Nothing she does makes sense to me. The conversation we just had in the bar is the longest one we've ever had, but it only makes me more confused about her. As they walked outside, he decided to ask her a revealing question.

Mint started to talk as soon as they left the tavern. "So I guess I'll se you la-"

"Wait, Mint," Rue said, cutting her off. "Can I ask you something?"

"All right!" she responded enthusiastically.

Rue looked at her directly. "Why is it you want world domination, anyway?" he asked slowly. "What is your motivation."

For once, Mint looked at him, dropping her typical demeanor. In place was a look of steely determination. "World domination is something I've wanted for my entire life," she responded strongly. "Maybe a smaller minded individual like you cannot understand my longing, but it will never go away until I achieve my goal."

Rue nodded in acknowledgment as she spoke, not knowing what to say.

"Now that my family had betrayed me from my rightful place at the throne, I will make them pay," Mint continued, her voice only growing in desire. "Their taking away from right has only made me more determined to rule the world and take revenge on them all."

Rue then felt a sense of connection with the girl. "You know what? I feel the same way about saving Claire," he admitted.

"You're gonna kick some butt against Valen tomorrow!" Mint said in happiness, becoming her usual self again. "I know you are! And we're finally gonna get our wishes!"

"Yeah, I guess I am," Rue replied. "I guess I've got to think that way."

"Of course!" Mint said. "You'd better! And I'm still going to try to come with you tomorrow."

"Try all you want, but I'm not going to let you," Rue said with a note of finality.

"Well, we'll see about that," Mint said with a hint of evil in her voice. Just as she spoke, the church tower bell rang six times.

"Oh my God!" Mint exclaimed as she head the bell. "It's dinner time at the hotel. I'm gonna go eat and then beat my bitchy sister up some more!"

"See you later!" Rue called, but the girl had already dashed off. Rue found it ironic how Mint had literally dashed in and out of his life at the oddest times, ever since he had taken up residence in Carona. Yes, the fiery red head with the violet eyes certainly was a strange girl.

But by asking her that question, he had realized something. Although what each of them wanted from the [Relic] was very different, each of them had the same motivation. He would never understand why she wanted to rule the world, but Mint obviously felt his wish to revive Claire was silly and small. But her determination he could understand.

Since they were such different people, Rue doubted he would ever be good friends with his rival. But on the other hand, in some ways, he realized he wished he were more like the girl. She seemed so confident, so determined, yet she never lost her enthusiasm. Until now, he had underestimated her strength and desire. But perhaps she actually had the leg up on him.

Like Mint had told him, he needed to 'kick butt' against Valen. Not for Mint and her wish, but for himself. There would still be some things he would never understand about Mint, but that part of her mentality, he did. As Rod always said, it was all about heart.

What started out as breaking up a fight turned into a very important conversation. After this talk, he finally felt ready to face Valen. He was no meaningless doll controlled by Valen, he was a human being acting on his own will to save Claire. It was time to kick Doll Master's butt in the most painful way possible. And the least he could do for Mint as a thank you for the confirmation was get the [Relic] for her- to let her grant her wish.

Maybe Mint wasn't so bad, after all.

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Author's Notes: One thing that I thought was missing from 'Thread's of Fate' was an explanation of what Rue and Mint thought of each other. Sure, they refer to each other as rivals, but they don't really say much else. (Although I've barely started Mint's game, I assume their interaction is very similar as in Rue's game) So this story is my interpretation of what Rue thinks of Mint.