A/N: Another one for the 30 Kisses community on LJ. In case you're wondering, the theme had to be calcium pills (don't ask), so that's what Tasuki and Kouji end up ... sampling. Enjoy!
"Why are we the ones doing this again?" Kouji asked as they entered the empty bedroom.
"Because it should be done by a Seishi," Tasuki replied irritably.
"Which I'm not."
"And I don't want to do it alone."
Kouji searched for an appropriate response but found none. He looked aimlessly over the scattered belongings of Suzaku no Miko. Chichiri was busy helping out in Court, which was still mourning the loss of the Emperor.
Someone had to collect Suzaku no Miko's belongings and store them properly.
"Wonder what these are," Kouji said aloud, picking up an open bottle from the bedside table. He poured out the contents into his hands.
Tasuki joined him and picked up one of the small white objects. "Is it food?"
Kouji shrugged and nibbled on one.
"Kuso!" he cried, gagging and spitting out tiny white chunks of chalk. "What the fuck is that? It tastes terrible."
Amused by his friend's reaction, Tasuki naturally tried it next.
The redhead grimaced, managing to swallow the disgusting foreign "food." Then he suddenly started to laugh.
"If you think that's bad, you never tried Miaka's cooking!"
Kouji joined in the laughter. "You're shittin' me, right? It couldn't be worse than that!"
Tasuki nodded, still chuckling. "It was the most disgusting thing I'd ever tasted. And then I tried to make her feel better by saying that the soup was good. Except Miaka didn't make the soup!"
Kouji doubled over with laughter, wiping tears from his eyes.
Tasuki's laughter slowly faded as he picked up random items from the floor. "Man, Miaka's a slob."
Kouji snickered. "Like you're any better."
"Yeah, but she's a girl," Tasuki replied. "Girls are supposed to be neat."
Kouji picked up a backpack from the floor. "Here, let's put it all in this."
"Good idea," Tasuki said, putting the forgotten items into the pack.
The two bandits finished gathering the Miko's belongings and straightened up the room.
Kouji stood respectfully in the doorway, waiting for Tasuki to finish.
"She's really gone," Tasuki murmured. "Damn that Seiryuu bitch for sendin' her and Tama away. They're gone, the Emperor's dead, Mitsukake's dead … it's just me and the damn monk! What the hell are we supposed to do against Nakago! We can't stop him alone!"
Slowly, Kouji walked towards him and embraced him from behind. "You're not alone, Genrou. I'm still here. The bandits are still here. We'll all do what we can. We're not gonna give up."
Tasuki closed his eyes, glad that Kouji couldn't see the tears on his face. The two bandits stood still until Tasuki was ready to leave.
As they left the Miko's room, Tasuki kissed his fingertips and let them brush against the doorframe.
Kouji tried not to visibly flinch at the gesture. "C'mon, let's see if the monk has anything else for us to do."
Tasuki nodded, holding the backpack tightly in his arms.