CHAPTER TWO

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Long story short: he couldn't back it up. For all his confidence, Kageyama lost to Oikawa almost immediately. That hurt his pride even more than the bruises and scrapes he earned during the fight, which were innumerable considering the senior officer had flipped him over his shoulder like a sack of flour.

The sound of his fellow soldiers' laughter at the spectacle still rang in Kageyama's ears, making him feel like his blood was going to boil over as he reluctantly followed the aforementioned loud rowdy bunch to the local tavern, The Spotted Crow. His shoulders were taut with irritation and he was sure he was scowling since people kept jumping out of his way like he was a rabid wolf prepped to bite, but he could honestly care less.

He wasn't going along for fun or to pick up a woman; he wasgoing because he couldn't control his stupid pride, so he had no need to look happy about it. He should've known he would lose, of course: After all, Oikawa was two years his senior and, on top of that, the leader of his Unit. The man was undoubtedly the better soldier from a militaristic standpoint, yet Kageyama had still accepted a challenge from him—and at sparring, no less. No doubt he looked like an idiot.

"Stop frowning or you'll drive away all the ladies!" one of his comrades complained, laughing gaily and elbowing him lightly in the side, obviously in a light-hearted, jolly mood—which Kageyama unfortunately didn't share. "Loosen up and have some fun! Lord knows we'll all need it before the shit-fest tomorrow!"

The whole group burst out laughing at that and Kageyama sighed, slowing his pace to sink to the back of the group and avoid dampening their cheerful miasma with his obvious annoyance. He had never been one for social interactions, or drinking, for that matter. It seemed foolish to him; a real waste of time that could otherwise be spent honing and refining his skills as a warrior—something actually important.

And this… this was definitely not important. But he couldn't get out of it now: They were already approaching the tavern, the rest of the Unit laughing and elbowing one another, working up an excited undercurrent of murmurs and lewd jokes. Soldiers? Children, more like.

Kageyama tried to hang back so much they would (hopefully) forget him entirely, but with sharp eyes, Oikawa caught him by the arm and ushered him in through the doors, preventing any hopes of an early escape.

Immediately, the heavy scent of beer and greasy food assaulted him head-on and Kageyama stumbled, astounded by the strong odor as his 'friends'—friends? They were lucky if he didn't kill them all in their sleep after this—pulled him towards a table in the corner of the dimly-lit space.

Serving girls swept past in long cotton frocks and frilly aprons, dishing out food and drink, giggling when the more handsome of the establishment's drunken patrons flirted with them. Kageyama resisted the urge to wrinkle his nose and roll his eyes at the stereotypicality of it all, collapsing in a chair and trying to make himself look small so they would forget about him and hopefully give him a chance to escape.

Luckily, they seemed to be rather caught up in discussing what drinks they wanted and which women they sought for their beds that night—idiots. Kageyama sighed and settled down in his seat, knowing he would have to wait for them all to have at least one drink before their minds had sufficiently dulled and he could slip away.

Oh well. At least he could entertain himself with the drunken activity of the other customers while he waited. It was rather funny to observe.

One man tried to get up, swaying and red-faced, only to catch his ankle on his askew chair, losing his already-precarious balance and toppling backwards into another man who lost hold of his full drink, sending it spraying all over the front of a poor barmaid who squealed and darted away, drenched from head to foot in smelly wheat ale.

Kageyama snickered silently to himself, hiding his face in his shoulder to conceal his amusement. Drunks truly offered a good laugh. And once his friends joined that rambling bunch, he would be free to take his leave.

It proved to be a long wait. Though most of the others were drunk after just half a tankard, Oikawa showed an unnaturally strong tolerance for alcohol, and it was almost an hour before he finally took his attention off Kageyama and adopted a jolly, bleary-eyed gaze, joining in on the helter-skelter conversation taking place amongst the other soldiers.

Breathing a quiet sigh of relief, the raven-haired boy quickly pushed his chair away from the table—just enough to squeeze out of it. He slid his back along the wall until he reached a corner and was safely out of sight of his group.

Previously-tensed shoulders slumped as Kageyama exhaled, relaxing now that escape was assured. As he scooted ever closer to the large oaken door, he reminded himself never to get dragged along to a tavern—or make a bet with Oikawa—ever again.

Taverns were loud and smelly; definitely not an environment Kageyama wished to visit ever again, and this he muttered to himself as he darted across the floor towards the now-open door. "Stupid tavern. Stupid Oikawa. Stupid drunks. Stupid—" Men were bustling in and out of the tavern constantly now, creating an easy flow of people to slip in and disappear amongst, so at least there was that.

Kageyama suddenly paused for a moment, eyes tracking something that had caught his eye across the bar. A cloaked figure, carrying a medium leather satchel across their back, hunched low and heading quickly for the bar's back exit. Their face was cast in shadow by the cloak's peaked hood, but judging by the slight frame and precise movements, Kageyama would guess it was a woman.

Navy eyes narrowing in suspicion, he moved without realizing it, deftly cutting around the edges of the bar to reach the back door the figure was aiming for. Something about this stranger seemed… tingly. A strange feeling lingered in the air that tickled Kageyama's spine whenever he looked over.

Normally he would just let it go and be on his merry way—after all, it was his time off and he had no reason to be policing about looking for trouble—but something in his gut told him to chase after the mystery woman: some odd, unspoken instinct. And Witchhunters trusted their instincts, so, even though it was probably a bad idea… he danced around a full table and slipped through the door, following the figure out into the night.

It was cooler outside than it had been earlier during training, the cloudy sky having cleared up to display the stars in full vivid, brilliant detail. The small crescent moon hung low and faint in the dark indigo sky, painting the town in a pallid glow, dusting empty alleyways and doorsteps in deep, shifting shadow.

These shadows are what the figure aimed for now, darting between two brick townhouses to slip soundlessly into a narrow alley, heading towards the forested border of the town—not too far from the tavern, Kageyama noted. He followed after, stepping lightly so as not to make a sound and alert the woman to his presence.

Unfortunately, the slight figure was much defter than he, effortlessly skirting around any obstacle in their way, keeping up a quick, efficient speed. Kageyama tried to keep up, but he was taller and broader than the tiny individual and was finding it difficult to match the pace they so easily retained. He lengthened his strides to try and catch up, not about to be bested by a civilian.

Reaching the mouth of the alley, the figure slipped out into the light of the moon, their dark cloak scraping across the long gravel path leading to the dense forest beyond, the shadows making the trees blend together like strokes of ink. Kageyama came to a halt, biting his lip as his eyes flickered nervously from the path to the figure up ahead. He couldn't discreetly follow the woman anymore: the gravel would make it impossible to stay silent.

He supposed he could always call out. If she had nothing to hide, she would stop and talk to him civilly... But if she was guilty, it would give her plenty of time to run, and based on the mannerisms he'd observed so far, Kageyama knew he wouldn't be able to catch up. Neither was ideal. It was the flip of a coin now, really.

But which side should he choose?

"Hey!" The words were out of Kageyama's mouth before he could fully think it through, his aching legs making the decision for him, sticking to the less extraneous course of action—no doubt he would slap himself for making such an impulsive decision later. "You there!"

This was the deciding moment.

The poor figure jumped like they'd had the scare of their life, whipping around so fast their peaked hood flew right off. Kageyama's eyes widened as a strand of thought seized him: Not a girl. Indeed, no, not a girl, but a bedraggled redheaded boy with tensed shoulders and startled chocolate eyes, staring at him across the path.

But he didn't run, so Kageyama took a step forward, standing in the moonlight so he could easily be seen. He paused then and stared, letting himself stand transfixed for a moment. He'd never seen a boy sosmall before. He was as dainty as a girl and unusually pretty—though that, of course, was a thought that didn't matter, so he cast it off quickly.

Maybe this boy was a child? But he was only about a head or so shorter than Kageyama, who was 18. And not to mention he had been in a tavern by himself late in the night, so perhaps not…

They continued to stare at one another, Kageyama still trying to gather his wits about him. The boy shifted nervously; right foot, left foot, and back again. "Wh-what do you want?" he eventually squeaked, squaring his shoulders in an attempt to look unafraid, even though his trembling voice and wide eyes gave him up instantly.

Kageyama realized then that he must've looked like a robber and took a startled half-step back. He was wearing casual clothes, not his soldier's uniform, and his hair was messy—he hadn't bothered to fix it after training. The poor boy probably thought he was about to get mugged. What kind of soldier am I?

"Sorry," he said quickly, holding up his hands in a placating and non-threatening manner. "I didn't mean to scare you. I, um…" He paused, searching for the right words. 'You looked suspicious' didn't seem acceptable considering he hadn't really done anything to warrant suspicion in the first place…

Eyes settling on the leather satchel, Kageyama was blissfully struck with a note of inspiration and continued on in a more cordial, friendly tone. "I saw you carrying that satchel and I thought you might need some help. It looks heavy." Realizing that might sound offensive, he hurried on, "I mean, I, um— I originally thought you were a woman, so…"

Shit. Not less offensive. He felt like slapping himself, a flush creeping up his neck and warming the tips of his ears.

But—to his great surprise and amazement—the boy giggled:Giggled, his almond eyes sparkling in amusement as he covered his mouth with a small, pale hand. Kageyama was quite shocked by the simple gesture—the opposite of the reaction he'd been expecting.

"I get that a lot," the redhead intoned once his laughter had finally died off. His voice was soft and surprisingly melodic when it wasn't full of terror—a hint of humor still remained, making it seem lighter and airier. "Thank you for your concern, but I can manage just fine on my own, sir."

"Oh." Kageyama wasn't sure what else to say, feeling ridiculous. Obviously his instincts had no clue what they were doing. This boy was about as threatening as a butterfly resting on a flower. He felt his blush deepen, embarrassed by his mistake. "Well, I am incredibly sorry for troubling you." He inclined his head slightly. "Have a nice night."

The boy didn't respond, but his mouth tipped upwards in a half smile, eyes shining in amusement as he turned wordlessly and headed towards the forest, cloak sweeping against the pebbles. Moonlight caught in his red hair, his face lit by a halo of golden fire.

Kageyama watched silently as that fire retreated farther and farther down the path, eventually ducking in amongst the trees and disappearing altogether, almost like the dying embers of a bonfire or an elusive Will o' the Wisp. That odd feeling lingered in his chest, and a single, disjointed thought ran through his mind: I didn't ask his name.

A slight stirring of wind brushed against his arm then and Kageyama came back to himself with a rough jolt, the sensations that had vacated him rushing in once again. The gravel crunched under his feet as he forced himself to turn away, the moonlight sifting the shadows into swirls of black across his arms as he moved.

He hoped Oikawa wouldn't be mad about him skipping out on the tavern activities—he hoped he would be too drunk to remember any of the night's events, let alone his feeble escape—but he could honestly care less at that moment.

His mind was oddly focused, the subject—the flame-red of the fire boy's hair—still consuming his thoughts, leaving little room for anything else. I've never seen hair so red before, like the early-morning sunrise. Who was he? Where did he come from? Another village, surely.

Kageyama had to shake his head a good few times to clear it of these useless thoughts. They didn't matter. He really needed to be focusing on the mission occurring the next day—that mattered. But his mind just couldn't seem to stop wandering.

Odd. A frown displaced his lips as he ducked out of the alleyway and headed towards the soldier's barracks, another thought crossing his mind. Though the boy had obviously not posed any threat, the strange expectant feeling still lingered in his chest, like the charged air before a storm—the opposite of the warm, loud atmosphere that seeped from the tavern where he'd left his friends behind.

But what kind of storm could a tiny redheaded boy bring?

A/N: Luckily I had two chapters pre-written for this (;´▽｀) I should be updating my other stories soon so rest assured your favs will soon continue~ ᕙ(•̀ ᗜ •́)ᕗ I've been planning on some more chapters so get ready (•̀ᴗ•́)و ̑̑ As always, feelf ree to leave comments, suggestions, et cetera down in the review section and follow + fav to show your support~ ヽ(•‿•)ノ