Chapter Six
The Man of Her Dreams
Children's laughter filled the air as the scene fell upon the busy capital city of Rune-Midgar, Prontera. The children seemed to be playing with a ball, but on closer inspection it could be seen that it was a Poring, the odd monster seeming to actually be enjoying being thrown around. They continued to laugh as they played, but soon they shouted out as a bright light burst between them. Quickly they ran, Poring hopping after them as they laughed. It seemed just being frightened like that was still a fun way to play.
Kaze stepped from the light of the portal after being transported, he moving his Peco Peco out of the way as not long after Keoki and Yamai appeared in the same place. Once the light cleared away it could be seen that Keoki was hugged close to Yamai, he holding her in a protective embrace. Whether it was because of the Lord of Death fast approaching before they left, or something another, no one would know.
For a moment neither of them moved, but slowly Keoki pulled her head away from his chest, staring at him a moment. Yamai looked down at her, their eyes meeting, but once he realized what he was doing he quickly pulled away, his hands going in front of him as his head nodded low to hide his blushing face behind his hair. Keoki almost seemed to do the same, but she turned her back, her hand going behind her head as she blushed and stared off into the sky. Kaze just seemed to look at the two with a confused look.
"H-Hey... where's Tobias and Sabaku?" Keoki said, slowly looking back to where the portal vanished. Kaze's eyes narrowed, he slowly dismounting the Peco Peco before taking Angel into his arms.
"Wait here for her please, I'll take Angel to the local inn where she can rest up." He said. Keoki nodded, and he began to walk off, his bird obediantly following after him. She watched as he headed off, and soon sighed lightly as she walked to a bench near the point they had come from. Yamai wasn't sure what to do, he simple stood there, still staring at the ground, still blushing. She blinked, looking at him a moment before smiling lightly.
"Yamai ... you can sit over here." She said with a small smile. His eyes widened, he lifting his head a little as he looked in her direction. His blush just seemed to get worse, but he still followed her word, he walking over to the bench and sitting next to her. Keoki smiled, closing her eyes lightly before she leaned against him, letting her head rest against his shoulder. The Bongun just seemed to blush more, if it were possible, and stared hopelessly at the ground.
---
Off in the western fields of Prontera the sound of a gunshot was heard. Bark flew from a tree as the bullet hit it, then the click of the barrel from the gun echoed a little, the gunslinger expelling the used shells. The black haired gun man stared at the tree before giving a light sigh and placing the revolvers in their slings, he trusting his coat back a little to do so.
"That's enough for today." He said with a light smirk, then began to turn to head back into Prontera. However he was cut short as a sparkle of light formed in front of him. He stopped, stepping back a little as the light turned into a full fledged portal, the light swirling in place before a figure in the light began to form. Suddenly an ear piercing scream got louder in the air as the figure in to portal fully formed, the light falling to show the silver haired girl screaming as she clung to a Baby Desert Wolf.
The Gunslinger winced, grabbing his ears as one eye closed and he watched as the girl came to a slow and steady stop, her eyes opening as she looked blankly at the ground. She blinked a few times before she looked up, dropping the puppy on the ground as she looked at herself. Nothing was damaged, nothing bruised, looks like she had made it just in time.
"S-Sabaku! We did it! We're alive!!" She exclaimed, picking him up from the ground as the puppy blinked in confusion. She began to dance with him, her eyes closed in a happy look. She twirled gracefully in circles before suddenly slamming into something, causing her to throw Sabaku once again. She toppled over, landing on something cushioned as she hit the ground. This caused her to open her eyes, looking to see the gunslinger uniform under her.
She blinked a little, picking up a bit of the cloth as she looked under it. Seeing a bare chest of a man her eyes seemed to turn beady like before slowly placing the cloth of the jacket back down. Her eyes traveled up, looking to meet the eyes of the black haired man under her and suddenly her face turned flushed. He looked up at her, blinking a bit before suddenly the two stood, pointing at each other with shocked expressions.
"IT'S THE GUY FROM THE BAR!!" Tobias yelled as she pointed.
"It's the girl from the bar!" He did the same. The two stared at each other for a long time before Tobias could feel Sabaku pull at her pants, trying to grab her attention. She looked down, blinking as he pulled away, then looked around with a sinking feeling in her stomach.
"Oh no ... where am I!? I was supposed to be in Prontera!" She cried out, looking around. The gunslinger cleared his throat as her crossed his arms, catching her attention again.
"You are in Prontera, you're just in the western fields." He said. Tobias glanced at him before looking away to the trees.
"Oh ... um ... do you know the way to the city? I have to meet my friends there... And I don--" Tobias began to talk but was cut off when the man uncrossed his arms.
"I'll take you into the city okay? No need to worry." He said with a smile, causing Tobias to blush again.
The two began to walk off through the forest area, Tobias walking slightly behind him as she looked away to hide the fact that she was still blushing. She was silent for most of the walk, but once they began to get closer to the city she finally spoke up. Sabaku yawned a little as he walked, looking up a little at her as she began to talk.
"Oh ... um... I ... I never got to thank you back in Morroc ... for helping to save me in the bar." She said, almost sheepishly. He looked back at her a moment before looking ahead again.
"Don't worry about it." He said, then blinked once he heard a light girlish squeal behind him. A sweatdrop formed as he lowered his head.
"I-I'm sorry ... I saw a bug!" Tobias lied to cover up that noise. Sabaku groaned a little, boy was she horrible at covering things up. They began to head into the city, she following after him like a lost little puppy. Once they had made it to the city square she blinked once she saw Keoki and Yamai, Yamai still sitting in the same postion as he blushed while Keoki still leaned against him.
"Oh! There they are!" Tobias said and quickly ran up to them. Keoki's eyes opened a bit before she sat upright, yawning a little. Was she sleeping the entire time? So much for being a look out. She ran up to them, panting a little before her eye lit up.
"Guess what!?" She shouted enthusiastically. Keoki rubbed her eyes a little before looking to the gunslinger as he slowly began to walk up to them.
"Eh? What?" She asked.
"This guy here, he's that guy I was telling you about! The one that saved me back at the bar in Morroc!" Tobias said with a giddy giggle. Keoki looked at her with a blank stare before she slowly nodded, standing up with the same expression.
"You mean THAT'S him!?" She said excitedly, Tobias nodded, but suddenly her face faultered once she heard the next sentence.
"So this is the guy you've been drooling over while you sleep!"
It was like the world behind her shattered as Tobias stood there, a light breeze blowing past. What ... what had she done!? Sparkles seemed to surround Keoki as she laughed, Tobias hitting the ground on her knees as she just looked like a lifeless doll now. Oh the humiliation she was feeling, and the ninja's laughter was not helping the situation.
The gunslinger just stood there, confused as to what had happened before he turned to see Kaze walking up to the scene. The knight stopped beside him, looking down at Tobias on the ground and Keoki still laughing it up, then to their two pets as they just sat on the bench, just as confused at the gunslinger. He wasn't going to ask.
"Oh, Hey Kaze, didn't know you were here." The gunslinger said with a smile and a raise of his hand. Kaze nodded and returned a smile, but suddenly he stepped back as Tobias suddenly came up between them.
"Kaze ... you know him?!" She asked, her eyes puppy like. A sweatdrop formed as he looked at her before stepping to the side.
"Yes I do. Fire's been a long time friend of mine." He said. "Speaking of which, what are you doing around here Fire?"
As the two began to chat Tobias stood there. His name was Fire? It must have stood for something, maybe it was a nick name of some sort? Whatever the reason, it seemed to suit him. Was it destiny that they were to meet again? Even her dreams seemed to be telling her it was, as many times as he showed up in them. Tobias slowly stepped to the side, looking at the ground before backing up and sitting on an available spot on the bench.
"Oi, Tobias ... TOBIAS!" Keoki's voice suddenly rung in her ear, causing her to shake her head. She looked up to see that everyone else was gone except for Keoki who stood there tapping her foot a bit.
"Um ... Where'd everyone go?" Tobias asked.
"We're heading to the bar, you were just kinda sitting here. Let's go before you get kidnapped again and Fire has to rescue you ... again."
"Alri-- HEY!!"
---
The dim lights inside the bar gave it an atmosphere of a dreary place, but that was quite the opposite at the moment. At one of the tables in the back the group sat, Keoki and Yamai had sat next to each other, beside them was Tobias, and to her side was Fire, where Kaze filled the last seat. Under the chair that Tobias sat on was where Sabaku laid, not wanting to get in the way. The mood was not dull, but rather tense as the five sat at the table, staring at one another a times.
Why it was so silent, perhaps the fact that they had mostly all just introduced themselves, or maybe because of how Keoki, being underage, had managed to get into the bar flawlessly. Tobias stared at her a moment before finally she managed to get her question out. She seemed to strain at saying it, trying to keep her best to keep it out of earshot of the bar tender.
"You're SIXTEEN!?" She hissed out. Keoki, eyes closed, crossed her arms over her chest with a smirk.
"What can I say? I look older then I am." She said with a smirk. Tobias narrowed her eyes as she smirked, then lowered her head a little as she glared. She was being pushed around by a girl half her age. She didn't know what to think at this point. Kaze stared at Keoki with that same stare of confusion, he had no idea the ninja was that young, and if he had known better he would have stopped her from entering in the first place. But then again another side of him was curious to see how far she could pull this off. Soon the waitress made her way to their table, she holding a pen and a pad of paper.
"Welcome to the Prontera Bar! What can I get you to drink today?" She said with a smile.
"Yes, I'll be getting a Sexoholic." Kaze stated first. Tobias stared at him with wide eyes while Keoki was trying hard to stifle her laughter from behind her hands.
"I'll have a Gunfire..." Fire said calmly. Well that wasn't ironic at all.
"AND I'LL BE HAVING A ZOMBIE!" Keoki made her choice clear as she cheered a little, Yamai watched her with a concerned look before looking down at the table top again.
"And you miss?" The waitress looked to Tobias. She looked at her before glancing down, trying to think before looking off to the side.
"I'll just have rum."
"Alright, I'll return with your drinks shortly." The waitress said with a smile. Keoki then elbowed Tobias lightly in the side.
"You're a wuss."
"What?" Tobias blinked as she looked at her. Tobias wasn't much of a drinker in the first place, but when she did, she normally just ordered strait rum. Keoki sighed, shaking her head before looking to Yamai who was trying to hide his concern.
"So, you're a novice, right Tobias?" Kaze asked, catching her attention.
"Oh, yeah." She replied, Kaze nodded a little as he crossed his arms.
"Well, what job are you aiming for, if I may ask?"
"Um ... uh..." She looked between him and Fire, her eyes then looking down at the table. She didn't want to just come out and say it, she felt she would make herself look weird if she said she wanted to be a gunslinger too. But suddenly the vision of her brother came into her head, his silhouetted figure against the sunrise as he coat was blown a little in the light breeze.
"I'm going to become a Gunslinger... so I can find my brother."
"A gunslinger, just like Fire." He said with a smirk, then looked to Fire. "Hey, you know the way to Einbroch, don't you? Maybe we could party with them and guide them there."
"I don't think that'd be a problem." Fire said with a nod. Tobias' eyes suddenly seemed to light up as he said that before she turned away a little, hiding the look of excitement on her face. Oh this was going to be wonderful! Not only was he going to help them, but he was joining their party! Kaze was too but she didn't seem to think of that too much.
Not long after the waitress returned with their drinks, setting them in front of each of them. Tobias stared down at the glass of rum before she signaled the waitress, whispering something to her. A confused look formed on the girl's face before she took the glass away, leaving everyone to stare at Tobias. After a few moments she returned, setting a bottle in front of her. It was a full bottle of rum.
---
It was becoming late now as night covered the capital city, everyone was starting to retreat indoors, but elsewhere in the bar, things were far from closing up. Music came from inside the building as now that it was night there were more occupants to the bar. Inside people were laughing, dancing to the music while others were almost too drunk to stand. However off in that corner of the bar, the group could be seen.
Keoki laughed as her arm was around Yamai, a drunken blush on her cheeks as she swayed to the music. Yamai sighed lightly as he looked to the numerous glasses in front of them. This was the 7th drink she had, and was now drunk off her ass, but Yamai never had the courage to tell her to stop, so he simply sat there next to her, giving her something to lean on.
Kaze was no longer sitting at the table, but rather at the bar, sitting next to girls as he laughed and ordered them drinks, it was apparent that he was drunk too, but Fire was close at hand to make sure he didn't get himself into trouble. Fire seemed to know when too many drinks were enough, but was amused with the fact that he let Kaze get drunk. He could have stopped him at any time.
Finally Tobias was the last remaining, she LOOKED sober, but it didn't mean she was. She stared haphazardly at the bottle before taking another swig. Her own drunken blush was more pronounced since she had been drinking pure rum for the entire night. How she was keeping her cool in such a drunk state, no one knew for sure. She seemed to grumble at her bottle before whimpering, her eyes narrowed as she glare at the liquid inside.
"Stupid ... jerk ... I can't understand ... why he'd just get up and leave..." She growled before her eyes widened once Keoki hopped up on the table in front of her. Her eyes wide, Keoki knelt in front of her, getting into her face as she caused Tobias to lean back in her chair.
"H-Hey ... I got a question." She said, leaning forward more. Yamai looked up before his eyes widened and he leaned over the table, grabbing her by the leg so she didn't fall off.
"W-Whut?" Tobais blinked as she looked up at her.
"That ... flame guy..."
"Fire..."
"Yeah, him. You got the hots for him, don't you?"
"Whut?"
"Yeah ... I saw the way you were looking at him earlier... you were all blushing and sht..." Keoki now just sat on the table, leaning back as she stared at the ceiling. Tobias blinked a little before shaking her head, she knew the answer to this, she just had to clear her head and say it right.
"Maybeh..." She smiled with a grin before starting to laugh, Keoki joining in before drinking down another glass of her "Zombie" drink. After a good laugh the two fell silent, Tobias taking another swig of her drink.
"I dare you to get a kiss." Keoki suddenly blurted out, causing her to spew out the rum that was already in her mouth.
"W-What?!" She coughed, still choking lightly on the leftover rum. The ninja smirked as she leaned back, gently tilting her glass to let the liquid inside swirl around.
"You know you like him, so go get a kiss! Or ... are you ... chicken?"
"I'm not chicken..." Tobias whimpered lightly, then stared down at her bottle of rum. Keoki raised an eyebrow as she looked at her, causing the novice to narrow her eyes and take a huge swig of the rum. She would show her who was a chicken and who was not.
"Say, how about later you and me go off to the inn..." Kaze smirked as he flirted with a Dancer at the bar, the girl giggling as she looked away to hide a blush.
"Oh ... I don't know..." She giggled, but blinked once Fire stepped up between them.
"You must excuse my friend, he's had a little too many. He's actually married already." He said, but a faint smirk could be seen on his face. The Dancer girl blinked a little before she frowned, taking her drink and coming to a stand.
"I'm sorry, I don't flirt with married men..." She stated before walking off, leaving Kaze reaching out to her a bit.
"Uh! Hey! Wait a minute! Grrr, Damnit Fire!" Kaze blurted out, causing the gunslinger to snicker a little. He hated to ruin the fun, but there were times where you just had to intervene.
"Sorry Kaze, you'll thank me later." Fire said, patting his friend on the back lightly.
"Oh you're one to talk ... you could have had that girl easily ... you're probobly just gonna get her for yourself." The knight glared at him. Fire shrugged lightly, looking to the side as he noticed Tobias starting to walk towards him.
Tobias slowly started to walk towards him, watching from the corner of her eye to see if Keoki was watching. Indeed the Ninja was, rather intently, so much that she was leaning off the table, causing Yamai to help keep her up by holding her in his arms. The poor Bongun was blushing more and more as he tried his best to keep Keoki out of harms way. Finally she had reached Fire as Kaze grumbled and moved father down the bar, trying to avoid anymore interference from his comrade.
"Oh, hey. What's up?" Fire said as Tobias looked down at the floor once she stepped in front him. Her head was low as she looked down, causing the gunslinger to get a confused look at his face.
"Fire-kuuuun..." Tobias suddenly spoke as she leaned forward, resting her head on his chest. Fire's eyes widened a little as he looked down at her. He watched as her head slowly lifted, showing the large blush that seemed to be combined with her own embarrassment and her drunken state.
"Um..." Fire began to talk before blinking a little once the girl placed a finger to his lips. Keoki in the back was in a fit of laughter, but it couldn't be heard over the loud music of the bar. Kaze, who dared to glance back at him a moment, caught sight of the scene and suddenly his full attention was drawn to them. No Dancer girl in the world could tare him away from this.
"Don't talk ... words cannot express what has to be done." She said lightly as she began to lean in, her eyes closing. Fire began to lean back, stepping back a bit to avoid the situation, but it couldn't be helped for long as he began to loose balance. He tripped backwards, landing on a chair with Tobias, causing their lips to lock together before the chair leaned back and they both hit the ground.
Keoki's laughter came to a stop as she leaned forward more to see what had happened, Yamai leaning back to give her more room as he blushed more. Kaze began to move farther down the bar to get a better look, his hand covering his mouth as he looked on in awe. The two had ended up on the floor, Tobias' lips pressed against Fire's as he laid there with a shocked expression.
"I CAN'T FCKING BELIEVE SHE DID IT!!" Keoki blurted out, leaning out more and causing Yamai to loose balance and they too to fall to the floor. Kaze began to crack up, pointing a finger in the air as he did.
"I guess I was right! You can get any girl!!" He laughed. After a few moments Tobias pulled away, sitting up before smirking as she looked back and pointed in Keoki's direction.
"HAH! I GOT CHA THERR..." She laughed out before she suddenly got a sick look on her face. Fire's eyes widened more as he desperately tried to get out of the way, but blinked once she simply passed out on top of him. He gave a sigh of relief before gathering the fallen girl into his arms and standing up, looking to Kaze as he laughed uncontrollably.
"Come on everyone, we need to get them out of here before they cause anymore damage to themselves." He said. Yamai struggled to a stand as he held Keoki in his arms, she still laughing as well before she nuzzled into his chest. The Bongun froze, shaking a little as his face blushed even more. Sabaku, who finally got out from under the chair, yawned a little before heading out after them. It seemed like the whole time the pup had been sleeping, perhaps it was better that he had.
---
Morning soon came over the city as the sunlight gleamed through the windows of the inn. Everyone had their own room that Kaze had graciously reserved in advance for them when he had checked Angel in earlier. In one room Tobias and Sabaku shared a room with Angel, in another was Keoki and Yamai. The two had ended up sleeping in the same bed, for Yamai was far too worried about his owner to leave her alone. The last room was occupied by Kaze and Fire.
As the sunlight came in Angel opened her eyes a little looking to see Tobias cuddled close to her. She blinked before smiling as she sat up, her eyes closing in a happy look as she shook her a little. Tobias groaned a little before turning away, kicking the covers away a bit. In the process she had accidentally kicked Sabaku, causing him to fly off the bed with a yelp.
"Nee-san!" Angel said with a smile, jumping up and down on the bed a bit. Finally Tobias opened her eyes, wincing at the light as it sent a splitting headache into her brain.
"Ugh... what ... what happened?" She sat up a little, rubbing her head as she looked to Sabaku on the floor.
"Well, you drank yourself into a coma..." Sabaku said as he yawned a little as he jumped back up onto the bed.
"I ... didn't have THAT much did I?" She asked before holding her head. Her hair was a mess and she looked even worse.
"Well, judging from the bottles I counted on the table before we left you drank quite a lot." The puppy stated. Tobias groaned, laying back down as she held her head.
"Nee-san, do you not feel good?" Angel asked, causing her to nod a little. The little girl then nodded a little before smiling, slowly getting off the bed as she walked to the door.
"Stay here, okay?" She said with a smile. Tobias nodded and with that Angel ran from the room, running past Fire as he headed down the hall.
"Woah, where are you going in such a hurry?" He asked her, causing her to stop and look back at him.
"Nee-san isn't feeling well, so I'm going to get her something to make her feel better." Angel said. He blinked before laughing a little, heading after her a moment.
"Why don't I help you? I think I have a couple friends that are not gonna feel good when they wake up too."
"Okay!"
As Angel and Fire headed off into the city, everyone soon began to wake up. Keoki slowly sat up, whimpering as she held her head and kept her eyes closed, while in the other room, Kaze wasn't suffering as much, but still had a mild headache. Tobias slowly stepped out of her room, knocking on Keoki's door before she was granted permission to open it.
"Ugh... don't knock so hard..." Keoki groaned before looking down at Yamai who was still sleeping next to her. She couldn't help but blush a bit, but her attention was turned back to Tobias as she came in with Sabaku.
"S-Sorry. Guess you got a hangover to huh?" She said with a small smirk. Keoki nodded before she finally got herself together, then started to laugh a little as she covered her mouth. Tobias blinked a little as she watched her, a confused look on her face.
"Oh ... I just remembered ... MAN you are one brave woman." She said with a snicker, causing her friend to go red in the face.
"W-What did I do!? I don't remember anything!" Tobias cried out as the ninja burst out laughing, causing Yamai to wake up once he heard her. She whimpered, closing her eyes as she tried to remember what happened. She shifted through memories, there was the bar, she could remember Keoki ordering more and more drinks, Kaze moving to the bar to flirt with girls, but that was the last of it after everything started to get hazy.
"Oh man ... I STILL can't believe you did it!!" Keoki snickered, causing her to whine as she reached out, grabbing her by her scarf.
"WHAT DID I DO!?" Tobias shouted, whining as she did.
"Ugh, would you two quit yelling?" Kaze groaned as he stood in the doorway, holding his head with one hand. Quickly Tobias pulled away from the ninja as she laughed hysterically before slamming her fists on the armor of Kaze's suit, she looking up at him with tear filled eyes.
"KAZE!! WHAT HAPPENED LAST NIGHT!? KEOKI WON'T TELL ME!!" She whined. Kaze looked down at her before smirking a little, snickering a bit before he patted her on the head slightly.
"Oh, it was nothing too serious, you just planted a big kiss on Fire, that's all."
"WHAT?!" Tobias shot back, her world behind her seeming to crumble once again before she blushed, her entire face red. She shook her head as she fell to the ground, her surroundings seeming to get dark as she cowered in the corner of room while Keoki's laughter rung in the air.
A knock was heard on the door as Angel pushed her way through, carrying a tray with various things on it. Her eyes fell to Tobias in the corner before she looked back at Fire who stood in the doorway with a blank stare. After a moment however he took the bag he carried, whacking Kaze in the back of the head with it and causing him to wince as he said "Ow" and rubbed the back of his head.
"What's going on?" He stated, handing the bag to the knight once he stepped in.
"Nothing much, just remanicing about last night." Keoki said with a smirk. Fire looked at her before a blush formed on his face, but then looked to Angel as she handed Keoki a bottle of something."What's this?"
"It's a potion, Fire-nii-san said that it would help cure ... hang ... overs." Angel said, not sure what the word meant, but that he called it. She then took one of the bottles before heading to Tobias in the corner, trying to coax her to drink some of it. At this point, Tobias wasn't sure she could look at Fire the same again.