Chapter Two

They continued to blink at each other after that declaration, and Houjun suddenly found himself smiling kindly at her.

"Kouran? That's a very pretty name." He complimented.

But the girl, Kouran, only nodded, obviously not going to elaborate further. It's clear that she's not a very talkative person. Well, Houjun's going to try and change that.

"Do you want to eat? It's near dinnertime, and I figure my parents would like to see you awake now." He suggested, but Kouran only remained silent. It seems the only things she will respond to are the blankets and her name.

Houjun, undettered by her lack of interest, continued. "Oh you're not hungry? Then how about…?"

But he never got the chance to say anything, because just then, thunder suddenly rumbled and echoed loud around the room, almost making him jump a foot in the air in surprise.

But it's worse for Kouran.

The moment the thunder rumbled, Kouran screamed and flung herself out of the bed and into Houjun's waiting arms. In extreme surprise, Houjun's first instinct is to catch her, and nearly stumbled and almost crashed to the floor in his haste. He tried his best to steady them both, and held her as she sobbed and cried.

I forgot that okaa-san said there's going to be a storm! He thought in a panic as Kouran sobbed against his clothes and trembled. He hugged her tight and proceeded to whisper comforting words, trying his best to calm her down. He realized that hates seeing her like this… it makes her vulnerable and weak and he doesn't want to see her like that…!

"It's okay, it's okay. I'm here Kouran. It's just a storm. It won't hurt you. But if it really bothers you that much, I'll protect you from that bad thunder… don't worry." He smiled encouragingly. Houjun knew he couldn't really do that at all, but it made him feel better when he saw Kouran lift her head up to look at him, bright emerald eyes seemingly getting bigger because of the tears. "Can you really do that?"

"Of course! From now on, I'll protect you!" Houjun grinned and hugged her again, Kouran gratefully returning it.

I don't know what happened to make you this frightened, but I'm going to help you through it. I swear on the god Suzaku that I will.

…

His parents later found Houjun with Kouran still in his arms on the bed, both fast asleep. Kouran now slept soundly, no longer looking like the pale, unconscious young girl they found floating in the river. They didn't try to wake them up, and instead just tucked them in with a blanket and left just as quietly as they came.

~oOo~

"Hey Houjun!" Hikou bounded over to Houjun, who is currently sitting by the very same river Kouran almost drowned in. He's just staring at it, recounting the events that happened yesterday while waiting for his best friend to arrive. And boy did Hikou have a loud entrance.

"Hooouuujuuuun! I just heard that you got a very pretty girl sleeping in your house! You didn't tell me you're married!"

Houjun simply rolled his eyes at his best friend's antics and enthusiasm, wondering how that news came around. "Oh come on Hikou, if you heard the rumors right, then you know she's there because she nearly drowned in the river. Besides, I'm seven!"

"So I heard, so I heard..." Hikou quickly dismissed it with a wave of his hand, intent on getting his gossip straightened out. "So what's up with that? Did you ask her what she's doing there already?"

"Well no…" Houjun scratched his head, looking sheepish. "But I think my parents already did. But I don't think she even remembers at all..."

Hikou suddenly froze and turned to stare at him. "What do you mean, 'she doesn't remember?'"

Houjun shrugged. "Okaa-san said people with hypothermia, in the case of severe ones like this, experience slight memory loss. I don't think it's for a life-time though. My parents couldn't get anything out of her at all. Though they suspect that she came from another village by the Shoryuu River."

"Umm yeah.. about that…" Hikou trailed off, and Houjun watched with raised eyebrows as his best friend went deep in thought. "Well… I overheard one of the villagers talking that one of the villages nearby had been raided by bandits from Kutou and burned to the ground. Only a few survived. Maybe the girl is from there?"

Bandits? From Kutou?! Burned to the ground?!

Witthout thinking, Houjun quickly turned on his heel and ran home, intent on relaying this piece of information to his parents. He completely ignored Hikou's calls for him to come back, and his friend has no choice but to run after him like crazy.

…

"Okaa-san! Okaa-san!" Houjun cried as he burst through the front door. His mother jumped in surprise, as well as Kouran who is currently sitting at the table. Houjun immediately blushed a deep red when he realized that he shocked both of the girls speechless.

"What's the matter with you Houjun? Can't you enter the door like a normal person would?" His mother frowned in disappointment at him while Kouran just stared. Houjun blushed an even deeper shade of red in embarrassment.

"Ri-san!" It is then Hikou's turn to burst through the door like a mad man and almost collide with Houjun, who quickly jumped out of the way. "Gah! Gomen, but Houjun just ran off like crazy the moment I told him about the nearby village getting- MMPPHHH?!"

"Quiet, you!" Houjun practically hissed as Hikou struggled to get out of his grip. Seriously, Hikou could be reckless sometimes. Can't he see that Kouran is sitting directly in front of them?

"Ahh don't mind him! He's just had a lot of umm…" His brain scrambled to give the perfect excuse to the still staring Kouran. "Sweet cakes! Yeah. That's just a whole lot of sugar there, right Hikou?"

"Y-Yeah! Rice wine! Uh, I mean sweet cakes, yeah!" Houjun almost face-palmed at the scene they're making.

"Houjun, can you help me take these to the river?" His mother's eyes flashed and Houjun immediately understood. Besides, he needs to get out of here to avoid that amused look Kouran was giving them. It made him feel so embarrassed.

"Can Hikou come too? He can help!" Houjun wouldn't be stupid as to leave those two alone. Who knows what Hikou will say to her? Besides, Hikou's already staring at her open-mouthed like it's the first time he's ever seen a girl. "Hikou, come on already!"

"Uhh yeah… yeah I'll come." Hikou was still gaping when Houjun finally dragged him away from Kouran, who just watched all of this blankly.

…

The moment they're out of the house and out of hearing range did his mother finally scold him. "First of all, it's not proper manners to burst through the door like the evil spirits are right at your heels. It almost caused poor Kouran and me to have a heart attack! Second, you're both terrible liars, so tell me now what has been bothering you."

Houjun wasted no time explaining. "Okaa-san, Hikou told me that Kouran is from a nearby village that caught fire and raided by bandits from Kutou! Maybe that's why she had those ugly bruises and the ash on her face that day!"

His mother blinked in surprise at his immediate answer, obviously considering the possibilities. "It's very possible. Oh that poor child… maybe that's the reason why she lost her memories. She's traumatized!"

"Maybe those evil bandits are the ones who threw her down the river that day too!" Houjun almost growled when he thought about it. To even think about killing sweet and innocent Kouran… that's a crime by itself!

"Whoa Houjun, are you that close to her already? It's been like… what, a day and a half since you met her?" Hikou looked completely puzzled.

"I don't know… I just felt protective of her. She seems so easy to care about…" Houjun muttered. The very thought of Kouran left tingles in his body, and it's so confusing!

Hikou suddenly raised his hand, and both Houjun and his mother turned to stare impatiently at him. "I got your attention? Great! Then let me tell you something that I was going to tell Houjun before he ran off like crazy. I heard another rumor that as soon as they are done raiding other villages and towns, the Kutou bandits will attack our village too. And they will probably leave it destroyed like Kouran's village."

Both Ris turned silent at this announcement while Hikou only stared at them grimly. Finally, Houjun managed to work his gaping mouth. "What?!"

"It's true! Heard it from the village elders themselves. If we're not careful, they'll kill us all."

"If that is true, they'll probably start training the men to protect the village soon." Houjun's mother frowned in thought. "Maybe it will be safe to request to the both of you now not to venture away from the village anymore. No going to the forests after dark, and no loitering around!"

Both boys opened their mouths to protest, but Ri Sange quickly silenced them with a glare. "I won't accept any excuses from the two of you. Your safety comes first." Her gaze then softened. "I suggest we return to the house, Kouran will probably wonder where we are now."

"Umm… about that Kouran girl?" Hikou suddenly asked. "Is she available?"

"Idiot." Houjun elbowed him in the ribs and Hikou instantly cried out in pain.

"Now that you mentioned it, since she has a lot of injuries and burns and is probably traumatized into an unresponsive state, I suggest that we let her stay in the house for a while." Sange told them.

"Aaaand how long is 'a while' exactly?" Hikou asked suspiciously, used by Houjun's mother's antics.

Ri Sange only smiled awkwardly in reply.