The Hika Blabs ::
The following chapter was supposed to be chapter 7. But then Hika thought it'd be nicer to go through this phase first, so she betrayed the initial story plan, and shifted this (and the next) chapter forward. -smiles-
Beware of the choppy, choppy, choppy-ness. (I FAIL)
Disclaimer: I don't own Ragnarok Online (duh), and Kigami Kaze's original character design belongs to my amazingly talented friend, Minou.
Chapter 4
他人を大切に思う弱さはゲームオーバってことだぜ
(The weakness of treasuring others means game over)
"Eh, is this for me?" Kaze caught the small parcel tossed at him.
"In a way, yes." Kale eyed the mountain of similar small parcels behind the Assassin. "Happy Birthday. But then again, considering that pile of chocolates those girls crammed into our mailbox, perhaps I should've given you a toothbrush and some toothpaste instead. If you get tooth decay, it is not my fault."
Kaze laughed, "Tooth decay? Now that's something new." He placed the parcel separate from the mountain, and smiled,
"Thanks."
"I want bacon for breakfast tomorrow."
"What? Isn't this a birthday present?"
"Yea, but I expect something in return you know? That cost me quite a lot."
"Gaki!"
"Beeeh-da."
It was one of their usual squabbles, but it didn't require too much intelligence on Kale's part to realise how he had smiled back, suddenly happy.
The streets of Prontera were still as usual. Bustling with merchants trying to beat the price of other merchants; full of people who were either shopping or having some leisure chat with a person who was only a stranger to them five minutes ago. The darker alleyways and corners everyone stayed away from, since it was known for bandits and robbers to lurk there, awaiting their next prey.
Kale didn't choose to lurk in those places. Whilst it was apparently easier to force someone to give you their wallet when there was no one else around, there was less trouble when you took their money without them knowing. And the best place to do that was where people were aplenty.
There was a male swordsman in front of him who didn't seem to realise that having your purse peek out of your pocket was a free invitation, and for a moment Kale felt his fingers twitching. He stuffed them in his pocket; he didn't need to do that now, not when he could earn about the same amount of money from quests.
Occasionally when he was terribly bored though, he would take the purse off someone he didn't really like the looks of.
Occasionally.
He walked past line after line of temporary stalls set up by the merchants of Prontera, each calling out to any promising customer, offering their products warmly.
"You can have a bite of my fruits for free! I guarantee you'd take some home!"
"Hey, hey! That miss over there! Won't this cloak look great on you?"
"Sir, sir! This sword would look great on you…"
"I have just the thing for you-"
Kale walked past line after line. It was amazing how people paid you attention when you looked good and your purse was promisingly full. It was amazing how when you were in rags, you could latch on to someone's legs and be dragged along, unnoticed; or worse, kicked away without being looked at.
"Here." The roasted chicken leg smelt like heaven, though it was shoved at him rather unwillingly. Behind the boy who had offered it to him, a young woman stood with her hands over his shoulders, smiling.
He closed his eyes and breathed in.
He could still smell it, mingled with the dense musty air of rain that did not want to fall.
It was the best chicken leg he had ever tasted too.
Untrue to popular belief, Kale was a thinker.
Many people pointed out that people with red-hair were fiery and passionate – people who dashed into things on instinct without considering the consequences. It was that stereotype, along with his more outgoing personality, that led people to believe that he didn't think.
Sadly, it was often the opposite.
He had been thinking for a very long time ever since the moment they had entered a forest somewhere North of Prontera. Their job was to escort a young Super Novice through it. The more they walked, the clearer it became to Kale,
"Kaze," He started, "I think we're lost."
"…" Kaze stopped walking and looked around him. "This place looks familiar."
This was why he had wanted to reject this quest earlier; he had long predicted such an outcome. The young girl – Pymela – had already made it clear she did not know the way, he was known for not being able to differenciate right from left unless he stopped for a minute and held up his left hand. Kaze wasn't exactly the best tourguide either.
But the Thief Guild had no other quests that were suitable for them, and Kale knew that if they didn't take up another job, he would have to go pick-pocketting again.
"E-ehh…" Pymela looked around her, "What should we do? Turn back?"
"To tell the truth I don't think we even know where that 'back' is," Kale grinned sheepishly. In the worst situations there was the choice of using the butterfly wings that would automatically start up a teleport spell that would send them back to Prontera, but that was a mission failed, and as far as Kale remembered, they had never failed before. There was their ego to consider, apparently.
"This forest never used to be this way," Pymela sighed, "Last time we could pass through it without much difficulty, but lately all the routes have been twisted even merchants who have used this shortcut last time… it's almost as if something went wrong…"
Why did we take this route then? Kale kept that question to himself, and instead asked, "If it's dangerous you should've tried another route…"
Pymela shook her head, "I promised my guild members I'd check out what went wrong."
Kale frowned at that. This girl was a Super Novice. It wasn't exactly an extremely strong job, and he highly doubted she would survive if anything went wrong. Surely that guild should have considered more.
"Hey," Kaze's voice stirred him from his thoughts pointing to a gap in the trees. "I think we haven't been through here yet."
"Well, worth a try then!" Kale motioned for Pymela to walk through first, before taking up the rear.
And in the end Life was just a game, with really simple rules.
You think for yourself, and only yourself; because when you can't save yourself, no one else will save you.
The person who decided that someone else was important would have an additional weakness to bother about.
And for the person who would throw away all calculations and precautions for someone else…
It meant game over.
Kale whistled, Kaze cursed, and Pymela squeaked so loud all the monsters within the clearing they had wandered into immediately turned to look at them.
"Ha…haha." Kale's mouth twitched upwards in an awkward smile, "What's this? A party?"
"They don't look like they're welcoming us though." Kaze snorted, and took a step so that Pymela was behind him. "What do we do?"
"We run." Kale's answer was definite. Sure, Kaze was a great fighter, but with so many things surrounding him, and only Kale and Pymela as battle companions, it was obvious which side has the upper hand. Sadly though, Kaze ignored those two simple words, and stepped forward, katars bared when the first monster came charging at him.
"OI!"
There were more than enough monsters to completely surround the Assassin. The remainder went charging towards Kale and Pymela. Never in his life had he ever seen such a mob, and judging by how Pymela was shaking, neither had she. His mind raced; Kaze was still in there, he could fight (and last about fifteen minutes approximately before his asthma kicked in); him and Pymela couldn't. Running around and dodging attacks was not going to work with such a big mob, and there was a shaking girl beside him.
The answer on what to do was obvious.
"Let's go back…" Pymela tugged on his arm, her face a mask of distress. He already had the butterfly wing in his hand, ready to brush a finger across it and let the powder fall onto the ground to trigger the teleport spell. He stabbed a monster that had come too close with a dagger, watching it fall to the ground, brought the wing up, and hesitated.
Kaze was still in there.
How long till he'd have difficulty breathing? Ten minutes? Would the idiot have the energy to teleport away when that happened?
Kale considered. Naaaah.
Pymela watched as his fingers paused, hovering over the wing. His escape route.
It wasn't like he didn't notice how it began. Perhaps if the Thief Guild hadn't found him, perhaps if he didn't steal Kaze's wallet, perhaps if fate didn't choose to dump them in a partnership, things would have been different.
He had lived off the streets for nearly ten years of his life; other kids were not friends or companions, but rather a threat. Sure, it seemed easier to survive when you worked in a group, but when you were in a group, what you earnt had to be split up. He was quick with his fingers and quick to run, but he knew better than anyone else that if anyone decided to pick a fight with him, he would lose. If he lost, the group could have their way with him. That was enough to make him stray away from the groups, and work alone.
Alone. Just like his mother had left him. The woman he had loved and trusted with all his heart; trusted so much that he had actually sat in the corner for three days, waiting and waiting and waiting.
When she didn't come back, he was naïve, and begged for help from the passersby on the streets. Grabbing them by the corners of their shirts, tugging at their hands. They kicked, shoved, did everything in their power to dislodge the load that had attached itself to them; or pretended not to notice. In less than one day he had learnt his lesson – these people wanted nothing to do with him. Nothing at all.
He had more or less given up by then. Every encounter with a person was a threat, no matter how nice they seemed. Nice people were only nice people given the right circumstances; you could have a moment of fun with them, but there was a limit to how much you should do for them, or how much you should trust them. His mother had left him behind, why would anyone else do different?
Why would Kaze do any different?
Sure, he was the first person to offer him help and assistance. The unwilling hand that held out a chicken leg to him with the encouragement of that pretty young lady – must've been his mother – behind him. But did that mean anything?
No.
The guy did have a tendency to just suddenly go missing, sometimes for hours, occasionally days. It never really mattered to him in the beginning – Kale simply ignored the missing person in the house – not until a few months had past. By then everytime he returned home to an empty house he would worry.
Had he gone away? Was it finally time?
Kale had his rules and ideas and his survival skills. He knew how he should avoid getting too close to anyone, just in case it would make him forget to keep himself safe. But he couldn't help it. He had tried, but when the situations came his usual logic and common sense would shut themselves down, and he would forget.
Almost like how he could laugh, unguarded. Truly happy.
She watched, half in amazement and half in horror as Kale shoved the butterfly wing back into his pocket,
"Don't fly off yet. We might just find the exit sometime soon. Move back further, those bushes behind should be safe." The dagger that he had slid back into his belt was pulled out again, and the Stalker sighed in defeat, "I always lose to that idiot."
"It's the exit!"
"Bless the Gods I think it is."
"Finally." Kale muttered under his breath as Pymela ran out first, out of the shade of the trees and into the bright sunshine.
She did a dance that involved spinning around so many times until she fell back, dizzy. "Even though I didn't find out what went wrong… just coming out alive is such a blessing."
"It always is." Kale grinned in agreement. "To be alive, that is."
Pymela had bowed to them many times, even after handing them their payment, and was still bowing as she left.
They found a grassy spot beneath a tree to rest; Kaze flopping down onto his back almost immediately, his arms acting as his pillow. Kale sighed and squatted down beside him, fumbling with the catch on his waistpouch and pulling out a roll of bandages.
Kaze opened an eye to stare up at Kale. "What in the world are you doing."
Kale looked up from the mass of bandages he had managed to get his arms tangled in, trying to look dignified, "I'm bandaging up my arm."
A snort, "You call that bandaging?"
"Hey! You try bandaging an arm with one hand and see if you do any better!" He didn't really know what had bit him, or slashed at him, or cut him just now, but his arm was bleeding. Adrenaline had taken most of the sting out from the wound, and it had only started hurting a few minutes earlier, which made him realise he was actually dripping blood onto the ground.
"Whoa, how did you get that?" Kaze sat up, "Looks serious."
"Let's hope it isn't." Kale muttered grimly. He regretted it. Of course he regretted it. If he had flown off with the butterfly wing he wouldn't even have received a scratch. Still, he considered it a blessing that he had escaped only with this wide gash, and a few minor cuts in some other places. Things could have been worse.
They always could.
Kaze sat and watched him make the mess worse for a few minutes. "Oh nevermind, I'll help you with that. Never seen anyone bandage as badly as you do." He snatched the roll from Kale's hands, undid the rounds that were loose and untidy, then within a minute tucked the end of the roll into very neat bandaging. "Is it too tight?"
"Nah." Kale made his fingers curl into a fist slowly, and spread them again. It only hurt slightly, but he knew the pain would only be replaced by a dull ache tomorrow.
There was a slight pause, then Kaze reached into his cloak for a cigarette and lit it, taking a long inhale before blowing out a wreath of smoke, cloudy white. Kale watched the wisps unfurl, extending their whispery fingers to the air and grasping at something weakly – something that wasn't there – before vanishing. He continued watching. Every puff of smoke, the slight spark of red at the end of the cigarette butt…
One day, he found himself thinking, one day I'll never get to see this again.
It was a strange thought, and so he turned away from Kaze and his wispy clouds,
"Thanks."
He knew he was losing the game.
After-words:
This was more choppy than any of the other chapters. Though I kept up with the shortness of a chapter. Initially when I planned on rewriting this fic, I had wanted to lengthen the chapters... but upon trying I realised I wasn't able to do so all of a sudden. It's absurdly strange, but I guess all my edits are going to do now are to clear off typo errors and make the flow smoother. There will be a slightly long arc later, spanning three chapters... It was supposed to be Chapter 4, but I thought putting this (and the next) chapter up first would make it less "Huh?", since Kale undergoes his first huge change... -nods- (Okay, nuff spoilers.)
It's always easy to lay down rules for yourself, things that you tell yourself everyday just so you don't get hurt. Don't fall in love, don't believe that people actually will like you, don't get so happy at the smallest things…
It's not exactly easy to follow them.
Or so Kale realises. XD