A/N: The lyrics to this songfic one-shot are Evanescence's "Where Will You Go?" and belong to them…not me! LoL And I, of course, do not own SC, but if I did…:rubs hands together: Hehe :)

"Where Will You Go?"

She watched him sit there, immobilized by his own thoughts as he gazed out toward the heavens with weary eyes, the look in them both ancient and everlasting.

She recognized this look as one of her very own – she often appeared this way when she was a little girl, lost, unaided and completely companionless.

"Oh, Mugen" she whispered, her pale and slender fingers grasping the hem of her kimono as she continued to crouch down alongside a tree, her inquisitive gaze all the while shamelessly observing his every move as if they were more sacred then Kami, himself.

Although she would never willingly admit it, she thought that everything about the troublesome Ryukyuan was absolutely beautiful. He was like the smell before rain; fresh, yet electrically charged, never failing in his subconscious attempt to reel her in with his abominably alluring aura.

Oh, how she hated him – despised him – only to then realize that deep down that must be why she loved him so.

"I know you're there, Fuu" Mugen finally spoke up, thus shattering the serene illusion that currently held both of their personal universes in balance. "What the hell are you doing back there, anyway? Can'tcha see I'm busy?"

Hurt, Fuu finally abandoned her place of hiding like a moth drawn to the flame, her soft features never appearing more womanly to Mugen until that very moment.

The kid in her had finally grown up…

"I know you're planning on leaving us before we find the Sunflower Samurai" Fuu revealed in a voice barely above a whisper, her deep brown eyes shining with a glossy film of unshed tears as she cogently stared him down. "Care to explain to me why that is?"

Mugen dismissively elevated his shoulders. "Nope."

You're too important for anyone
You play the role of all you long to be
But I, I know who you really are
You're the one who cries when you're alone

"You're a bastard" Fuu whispered, trying her best to keep the tremors from rising within her voice. "After all Jin and I have done for you, you're just going to get up and leave?"

Mugen snorted. "I was just fine livin' on my own before you and Four Eyes came along, Fuu. I didn't needja then, and I sure as hell don't needja, now."

But where will you go
With no one left to save you from yourself
You can't escape
You can't escape

"Then go" Fuu finally relented, stubbornly folding her arms across her petite bosom before turning her nose up into the air. "I don't know where you'll go by this point in our journey, but I bet that it'll only be a matter of days before you come crawling right back to us."

Mugen sniggered. "Psh, yeah, right. The day I come back to you is the day that all Hell'll freeze over!"

You think that I can't see right through your eyes
Scared to death to face reality
No one seems to hear your hidden cries
You're left to face yourself alone

"It's ok to need someone, Mugen…I'm not afraid to admit that I need you" Fuu revealed, her long kohl lashes glistening with tears as she reached out a hand and gently touched the Ryukyuan's arm.

Disgusted, Mugen shook her off as if her appendage were a poisonous tentacle, his tone strident and defensive as he snarled, "Cut that out, will ya? I don't know what the hell you're tryin' to prove, but just stop it – I don't need anyone!"

I realize you're afraid (I realize)
But you can't abandon everyone
You can't escape
You don't want to escape

"Then what on earth's kept you here all this time?" Fuu demanded, her cheeks by now an ireful shade of pink. "If you hate us 'oh-so-much', why don't you just fucking leave?"

Shocked by her blunt tone of voice, Mugen glared down at the shaking girl and spat on the ground to appear as if he couldn't give two shits about how much she seemed to despise him. On the inside, however, something was caving in…suffocating him…swallowing him whole and sucking his entire essence into a never-ending abyss.

Mugen tried to respond to her remark but found that he couldn't, a low growl escaping his lips as the poor substitute due to the tremendous frustration over not understanding what was going on inside of him. It frightened the Ryukyuan to no end to not be able to comprehend what he was feeling and it angered him – he never felt frightened. Ever.

I'm so sick of speaking words that no one understands
Is it clear enough that you can't live your whole life all alone?
I can hear you when you whisper
But you can't even hear me screaming

To Mugen's shock and aggravation, Fuu leaned into his shoulder and gently embraced him in response to his silence, her touch so soft that it was almost as if she feared he might break.

"Let go" he whispered, yet his voice lacked all conviction. His tone sounded tired, weak…resigned.

Fuu glanced up at him, then, her large eyes glistening with unshed tears as she fisted the cloth of his gi in between her hands and proudly raised her chin. "I know you're afraid, Mugen" she revealed, "but you must realize that you don't need to go through life alone any longer. You have friends, now…friends who truly, genuinely care about you."

Mugen gave a scornful snort. "God, you don't give up, do you? I already toldja how I feel, so let go, dammit!"

Where will you go (where will you go)
With no one left to save you from yourself
You can't escape the truth
I realize you're afraid (I realize)
But you can't reject the whole world

"You shouldn't try to alienate me just because you feel that you don't deserve to have any friends!" Fuu shot back, the tears now spilling freely down her cheeks as she struck him repeatedly against the chest. "Why do you have to be such an asshole all the time, Mugen? Jin and I are just trying to help!"

"Shut up, Fuu."

"No, you shut up, Mugen! You'd better let me finish what I'm trying to say, because I – umph!"

Yearning lips collided with a force so brutal that it both pleasured and silenced the other party, Mugen fisting soft brown locks in between his fingers as he inwardly praised himself for coming up with a decent and surprisingly foolproof plan. Once Fuu began to respond to his administrations, however, it almost felt as if the earth had suddenly opened up and swallowed him whole.

He wasn't supposed to feel anything for wenches that liked flying rats and smelly samurai, nor was his heart supposed to skip a beat the moment his face was touched in that soft and meditative manner that only a true woman could provide.

Shit, shit, shit.

Mugen wanted to curse and scream and denounce Fuu for all she was worth, but, to his utmost mortification, he discovered that he could do none of these.

You can't escape

The soft body melded gently against his own felt warm and inviting within their semi-awkward embrace, and it made him absolutely sick to even be thinking such thoughts. His turn-ons were supposed to be blood and big tits, not whiny, flat-chested little sunflower girls that constantly complained about bad weather and lack of rations.

You can't escape

The moment Fuu's tiny hand interlocked fondly within his own, something deep within Mugen's subconscious told him that he was now forever bound to her. There was no more sense of doubt, no reason to keep kidding himself, and especially no reason to keep arguing. This was just one battle that he could never win, he realized, but, if he met Fuu halfway, perhaps they could at least share the victory of a stalemate.

You can't escape

Placing a calloused hand against the svelte curve of Fuu's pale cheek, Mugen tore away all barriers and rendered himself completely defenseless to the girl within his arms, his forehead touching her own as he returned resignedly, "I can't leave anymore, Fuu…I guess you're right. I do belong here."

The girl's eyes seemed to be laughing as she registered this admission, her lips meeting feverishly with the Ryukyuan's in a surprisingly warm and semi-gentle kiss that numbed her soul to the very core.

Although this wasn't Fuu's idea of a typical fairytale ending, she honestly felt that she had at long last finally found her Prince Not-So-Charming.

You don't want to escape…

A/N: Yikes that sucked, but oh, well, haha. It was my first attempt at a songfic, so hopefully it wasn't TOO bad. :-/ I also know that it seemed kind of OOC, probably because I'm not used to making Mugen semi-gushy, especially since I'm writing CH 9 for "An Unexpected Coupling", and he STILL hasn't accepted Fuu as the love of his life! LoL If you want something more 'depressing and hard-edged', that's the one to read. :)

This was also amazingly my first fic where I didn't have those two kiss and it go into something deeper – wow! lol Enjoy the fluff opposed to the smut! Hopefully you liked it, though – tell me what I did poorly, what I did well, and what you liked best, please! It helps me to improve!