The Storm
It was chaos when Mugi emerged from the tent, in the absence of a commanding officer giving orders the soldiers rushed around in panic in an attempt to try to defend their camp from an unknown enemy. It was lucky for Mugi, since nobody gave her a second look, instead focusing on the immediate threat.
"I really have to get out of here," Mugi said as she took in the events around her. She didn't know what was happening but she knew it meant danger.
Mugi started to run away from the command tent and through the camp opposite to the fleeing soldiers. Behind her she could hear gunshots and somebody shouting. But she didn't want to turn round for fear of detection. This was a struggle, although she was strong, stamina had never been one of Mugi's strongest points and she was already gasping for breath.
A Japanese army tank roared up in front of her. Mugi had to quickly sidestep out of the way to avoid getting crushed, by the sounds of squealing she heard seconds later she guessed some animal hadn't been so lucky. Mugi watched dumbstruck as the tank trundled down the road. She'd been in one earlier but that was nothing to witnessing the sheer might of one on the move. She knew she should move but she was transfixed by it. A sound of a roaring engine drew her stare away as an eighteen thousand pound tractor smashed head first into the aforementioned tank.
"Oh my!" Mugi shouted as the tractor was easily tossed aside by the might of the tank, throwing it upside to the side. The tank rumbled on past as if nothing had happened.
"I hope the driver isn't hurt," Mugi wished as she ran to inspect the wreckage. Her curiosity of an agricultural vehicle driving into a military base overwhelmed her instinct to run.
The tractor was upside down in a pile of broken glass from its windshield. Mugi peered inside to see an unconscious girl laying on the floor.
"Azusa?"
"Hey you get away from that!"
Mugi spotted a small group of soldiers approaching her. She didn't know the standard military punishment for stealing a tractor, breaking into an army camp and crashing into a tank but she didn't want Azusa to find out.
"Azusa wake up!" she said hurriedly as she reached inside the window to nudge her. She didn't respond. "Come on Azusa."
"It's one of the girls from yesterday, you shouldn't still be here!" one of the soldiers shouted at her.
She had no other choice, she had to take Azusa. Mugi leaned in through the window and grabbed her unconscious Kohai, pulling her gently but quickly towards her.
"She's helping the tractor girl! They must be working together!"
Mugi wrenched out Azusa and placed her onto her back with Azusa's arms draped limply around her shoulders. The squad was fast approaching.
She began to run once more with Azusa around her.
"Come back at once!" they shouted giving chase.
Mugi sprinted as fast as she possibly could carrying another person. Luckily Azusa was so small and light it she didn't hamper her too much but her weight still took a toll on Mugi's speed. After a few hundred meters of dashing through the woods they were beginning to break a lead. The soldiers running was hampered by rifles and they didn't want to break a sweat trying to catch two teenage girls.
Quickly she ducked behind a tree to catch her breath. It was a large oak and it was more than wide enough to cover her from view.
"Where did they go?" One of the soldiers asked.
"I don't know they can't have gone far though," another answered.
From the other side of the tree Mugi held her breath.
"We'll never find them out here. They could have gone in any direction, someone else can deal with them," the first soldier said.
"Yeah we're not under orders to do this so there's no point us staying out here to find two stray girls," agreed his partner.
Mugi heard the sound of the two soldiers walking away and breathed a sigh of relief. "It looks like we're safe, for now."
It was raining when Azusa awoke, a light but persistent rain that fell in a rhythmic pattern onto the ground next to her. She was lying face down in a ditch, her head entrenched in the dirt. A small stream of rainwater flowed past her, dampening her even more.
Azusa tiredly pushed her face out of the mud. She couldn't hear anything but the rain; no voices, no gunfire, nothing. Nobody was about.
Azusa let herself go and fell back face first in the sodden ground. "Urgh," she groaned. After a few more tries she levered herself back up again and leaned against the side of the ditch.
She hurt, her face hurt, her legs hurt and her stomach hurt. None of the injuries were that bad on their own but together it made an annoying cocktail of looked up at the sky, it was too overcast to tell what time of day it was but she would have guessed late that it mattered now, her friends were gone so she didn't have to be anywhere to go anytime soon.
Azusa had no idea what had happened to her. The tractor was nowhere near and she didn't seem to be in camp any more. It was as if she had been moved.
"Hello?" she called. "Did someone move me?"
When nobody answered she crawled out of the ditch and sat down on the forest floor. She pulled her jacket up over her head to try to keep out the rain, savoring what little heat it gave her.
"I sure went a bit crazy back there," she reflected. "Is that what I am now? Crazy?"
Nobody gave her an answer.
"I'm talking to myself so…" She gave a small weak smile. "I don't even have that cat to talk to any more, I'm so lonely."
In a nearby puddle she caught a glimpse of her reflection, covered in mud and with a scar from the broken glass on her cheek, she looked little like the girl she used to be, one of her pigtails had come loose leaving half her hair to dangling free.
"I look rough, I hardy recognize myself. I've been trying to find them but maybe I've lost who I am." Sadness rose up in Azusa once more and tears joined the raindrops running down her face. She buried her face in her arm. "I'm never going to find them; I don't know what I'm doing."
"Oh you're awake now, good I've brought berries."
Azusa took her face out of her arm. "Huh?"
Mugi appeared from behind a nearby bush with a gentle smile clutching a handful of berries.
Azusa looked in amazement at her before sighing. "I guess really am going crazy, I'm seeing imaginary Mugis."
"I'm not a dream Azusa," Mugi said taking a seat next to her.
"The real Mugi is on a jeep with Yui and the others and is probably already home now, you can't be the real one" Azusa said jadedly. "I must have hit my head really hard in that tractor; or maybe I haven't even woke up yet."
Mugi hit Azusa on the the top of the head.
"Ow what did you do that for?"
"Just to prove you weren't dreaming" Mugi chuckled.
"You could have pinched me," Azusa grumbled before realizing. "But wait, that means..."
"I'm not imaginary?" Mugi suggested.
"It really is you!" Azusa threw herself at Mugi, full glomp.
"Yes it is me."
"Mugi, Mugi, Mugi, Mugi" Azusa recited happily as she embraced Mugi with all her might.
Mugi hugged back warmly as Azusa nuzzled into her chest. "I'm so glad you're here Mugi, it's been horrible, but now you're here you can make it better" Azusa squeezed her hard and didn't let go.
"I'm pleased to see you as well Azusa, but what on earth are you doing here?" Mugi asked.
"I was trying to reach you, all of you," she sobbed.
"Why? You were safe in the shelter, weren't you?" Mugi questioned.
"I wanted to get you all back safe to the shelter" Azusa explained. "And… and I didn't want to be alone."
"It's okay, Azusa I'm here now."
"But Mugi where are the others?" Azusa looked up at her urgently.
"The others, they all got on a ride back home," Mugi said, she could see Azusa's face fall.
"So I haven't found them then." Azusa realized.
"They're safe, Azusa don't worry," Mugi promised.
"I'm just glad I'm not alone now."
Mugi opened her hands to reveal her berry stash. "Are you hungry? I've been experimenting with different berry recipes lately and I can't wait to show you."
"Is that where you were when I woke? Collecting berries?"
"Yes, we need food, urgently."
"I get that you had to leave me but did you have to leave me in a ditch?"
"It was the best hiding place I could find, if soldiers came they could never see you there," Mugi explained.
"Except if they looked straight into it."
"I think the main thing is we've got food."
"I have some food in my rucksack as well," she looked around. "Where is it?"
"I left it," Mugi admitted. "I didn't have time to pick up you and it both."
"Oh well," Azusa said, she was too happy from meeting Mugi to be overly fussed about it. However, the escalating rain and the oncoming black clouds dampened her mood. The sky was still raining and it looked to be getting worse.
"Well, do you want some berries?" Mugi offered.
"I think we should find some shelter first then consider our options," Azusa proposed.
"Yes, there looks to be a storm brewing," Mugi observed. "We need to find cover."
Ritsu sprinted through the woods, against the wind and rain, and away from the jeep. It was pouring down, soaking her the minute she stepped out of the jeep.
"Ritsu, wait!" Mio called desperately as she followed, Yui stumbling behind her.
Ritsu stopped suddenly and whipped around. "What! Don't think you're going to try and stop me Mio, I'm going after her!"
"You're being stupid! Get back to the jeep!" Mio shouted back at her.
"No! I'm not going to let Mugi rot in prison cell while we're safe at home!"
"You don't know she's going to prison! They said they just wanted to talk!"
"You're wrong Mio, Mugi's parents are traitors. She holds traitorous view herself, if the army know they're not going to just let her go. We have to do something Mio, we have to act."
Mio considered this as her hair grew even the damper. "Even if what you're saying's true that's no excuse for rash action, maybe we could try and help her from home, if she's innocent we can get her off."
"Are you an idiot Mio? We're not going to have a chance, people the government catch never come out, and this is the only way!" Ritsu hollered. "I'm the leader Mio and I'm not about to let one of my friends be put in danger."
The two stared at each other as the rain poured down and Yui observed them with concern. "Please, stop fighting guys I'm sure we could help Mugi-chan together."
"Ritsu, if you do this you'll be throwing away our one chance to get home, if you go back and apologizes maybe they'd let you off because of your father," Mio begged.
"That's your best argument Mio? You want us to go home and go to sleep in our beds at night knowing that Mugi won't get the chance to do the same?" Ritsu looked at her in disgust and clutched her gun tightly. "Well I'm not going to let that happen. I'm getting her back."
"But Ritsu…" Mio started.
"You can't stop me Mio, don't even try," Ritsu said, shedding her backpack to save weight and charged out into the rain once more.
"Ritsu…" Mio muttered with desperation as she watched her storm off into the darkness. Mio and Yui stood in the rain, cold and wet.
"What do we do now Mio?" Yui asked.
Mio struggled to find an answer. "I don't think we can go back," she sighed. "Ritsu was the reason we got the lift, without her they don't have any motive to drive us anywhere."
"Achoo!" Yui sneezed. "I don't want to be in out in the rain Mio."
She nodded. "Let's try and make camp, who knows maybe Ritsu will see sense and come back for us."
Mio picked up their rucksack from the floor and dragged it over to a large tree, the canopy provided adequate shelter from the rain. Occasionally the odd raindrop would make its way down through the leaves onto their heads but they were largely protected from the downpour.
The two girls took seats at the base of the tree with Yui resting her head on her friend's shoulders. Mio shivered and clutched her knees.
"We should probably get Ricchan's blanket out," Yui suggested as she started to pull it from the backpack.
"It feels a bit weird using her things when she's away."
"Ricchan wouldn't mind, I'm sure she wouldn't," Yui murmured as she tucked the blanket over her and Mio so it was nice and snug. Rain continue to flow down from the skies, getting louder and heaver.
"That sure is a lot of rain," Yui observed looking out at the downpour outside.
"Yeah, I think there are multiple air fronts moving in from low pressure systems in the North Pacific," Mio guessed.
Yui looked at her in confusion.
"I think there's going to be a storm" Mio said looking out at the rain.
"Ah, I used to like rain but this is way too much," Yui said. "It's nice when I have an umbrella and can splash around in puddles."
"I'm worried what will happen if it gets heavier," Mio agreed "Ritsu's out there..."
Mio contemplated for a moment, grateful for the heat the blanket and Yui's head gave.
"How can she be so stupid Yui? We could have been going home but now we're stuck here in the woods yet again."
"Ricchan was trying to do the right thing."
"I know, I'm concerned about Mugi as well but..."
BOOM!
A sudden clasp of thunder made Mio bolt upright and look around nervously.
"Are you okay Mio-chan?"
"I hate storms" she whimpered as Yui looked at her.
"I don't like them either" Yui agreed. "You sure are scared of a lot of things though Mio."
"Yeah I know, it just puts me on edge, storms are scary." Mio said softly.
"Ha well I guess you've always been a scaredy cat Mio it's just who you are" Yui smiled.
"You're wrong" Mio said. "I wasn't always like this."
"Huh?"
"A long time ago, I didn't used to be scared or shy I was confident," Mio reminisced. "That was before it happened."
"Huh, Mio what happened?" Yui asked curiously.
"Something awful," Mio shuddered. "I've never told anyone this, well apart from Ritsu but she promised to keep it a secret."
"You can tell me, Mio go on."
"Well I wasn't always an only child..."
"You weren't'? Was it a sister or a brother?" Yui interrupted.
"A sister, a little sister in fact, we used to go everywhere together, we were even closer than you and Ui. Of course back then I was the confident one, she'd always be clinging on behind me. I think she used view me as her mature and dependable older sister, how wrong that was," Mio gave a joyless smile.
"Did something happen to her?"
"It was when we were young but I still remember, I was about six or seven and she was about four or five. We were going on a shopping trip with our mother to town. She wanted to buy some things for herself so she gave us some money to go off on our own. I remember she said specifically, 'Mio make sure you look after your sister and don't get separated.' I couldn't do that though. While we were there, there was an explosion in the mall, a bomb attack. People were running, screaming and bleeding everywhere. I was lucky enough to escape uninjured but my sister wasn't. She got trapped injured underneath a collapsed piece of rubble, calling out for help, but I didn't, if I had maybe she would have lived. I was just so scared, more terrified and confused than I ever had been in my life. Overwhelmed by confused and horror at the blood. So I ran, out of the mall and into the street. It was raining that day as well. I found an alleyway and hid inside a trashcan, shivering and scared. It was hours before the police found me, and by then she'd already died. That day still haunts me sometimes, the noise the blood the screams, all of it. I later found out it was an attack by the Chinese liberation front. They caught those responsible and executed them on live T.V, didn't make me feel any better though."
"I'm sorry Mio-chan I didn't know," Yui said miserably.
"You don't have to feel sorry for me, it's all in the past now," Mio said, but she couldn't disguise the fact she was crying.
Yui comforted her with a hug.
"Thanks Yui but I'm fine really, after that though I didn't cope very well at all. My confidence vanished, I didn't even go out of my room much after that. I stayed in there with the door locked and the curtains shut. I didn't feel safe anywhere. I'd seen counselors but they weren't helping, my parents were considering more drastic measures. But that's when I met Ritsu. Her confidence and attitude was what helped me get over it. In fact without her I don't think I ever would have recovered but she taught me not to be so scared. After that I was a lot healthier, I started going outside more and making new friends. I never fully regained my confidence though, I'm still scared and I still can't stand blood or loud noises. I'm sorry for telling you that Yui, you really don't need to be hearing this."
"Its fine, it sucks that you had to go through that though," Yui sneezed. "I've never had to go through anything like that."
"Yeah, it certainly wasn't easy for me."
Yui pondered this. "But if that's the reason you're scared all the time what about barnacles? Did you have a traumatic experience with them as well?"
"No, they're just creepy," Mio laughed. Her laugh imminently faded as another loud burst of thunder echoed through the sky. Mio squeaked and retreated from it. The rain was pounding down more than ever.
"Do you think Ritsu's going to be okay out there?" Yui asked. "It's pretty heavy."
"I don't know, Ritsu's strong though she could handle it," Mio said. "But what if she is in trouble out there in a storm without any supplies, she could be hurt."
"Plus she doesn't have any food or a blanket," Yui added. "She's probably really cold and wet."
"I don't think we can let her stay out there on her own Yui," Mio realized suddenly.
"I thought you wanted to stay here?" Yui asked.
Mio stood up dramatically. "I know but if she's in danger then I have to do something for her, I didn't do anything for Mugi and I didn't do anything for my sister but I can do something for her."
"Mio?"
"Yui, Ritsu was always there when I needed her, I can't just abandon her when she needs me." Mio stated solemnly. "Are you with me?"
Yui nodded. "I want to help too, now that Azu-nyan and Mugi are gone but I don't want the group split up any more."
"Excellent," Mio smiled. "I'm glad you're coming, it's going to be scary in the storm but I'm not going to leave her out there now, not when she's helped me in the past."
"Yeah let's do this!" Yui agreed.
Mio looking at the torrential downpour. "My hair to going to get so messed up."
Ritsu pressed on against the plummeting rain, she was soaked through completely now. Shivering and numb from the cold, she walked onward. "Stupid Mio not coming for Mugi with me." She muttered but she couldn't feel anger, she just felt tired and drained.
"I can make it on my own I just need to…"
Ritsu tripped and fell in a patch of mud. Weakly, she pushed herself up, numb from the cold.
"I've got to keep going," she spluttered as the wind and rain tore against her face. A few more paces and she collapsed back onto her hands and knees. Ritsu was tired now from days of walking and minimal food.
"Come on just a little more," she muttered, she started to lose consciousness.
"Ritsu!" she heard someone shout as a pair of hands picked her up.
"Yui, help me carry her," Mio pleaded with one arm over each of their necks the two girls staggered back with her.
"I'm not going to let fear stop me save someone I care about," Mio whispered. "I'm going to save you Ritsu."
Eventually they carried Ritsu back to the tree they'd made camp under, they lay her down gently onto the ground.
"I think she's suffering from hypothermia," Mio diagnosed. "We need to warm her up."
"I could try to start a fire," Yui suggested.
"You can try but it will be hard without any dry branches," Mio advised. As Mio removed Ritsu's sodden jacket she gurgled something, Mio took Ritsu's blanket and wrapped it around her to keep her as warm as she could.
"It's good that Ricchan's back with us even if she is all sleepy," Yui yawned.
"She was lucky we were there for her, if not I don't know what would happen," Mio worried.
Yui snuggled up to Ritsu. "Body warmth is the best cure for hypothermia I'll make her nice and warm."
"I'm not sure you should be disturbing her like that Yui," Mio warned.
Yui got off of her and looked up at the sky. "Hey look, Mio the rain stopped."
"Yeah, I suppose it has" Mio happily said. Ritsu was back with her, and when Ritsu was with her she couldn't be afraid any more.
A/N: It's only a half reunion in this chapter, sorry if you're disappointed. But at least Azu-nyan is with someone who's not a cat now right? :) Also Mio has a pretty nasty back-story as well, I really have to be nicer to the characters in this, I'll give Mio a puppy or something next chapter to make up for giving her a tragic back-story. Then I'll have it get run over by a tank! Heh heh heh... (sorry to everybody traumatized by that BTW)
Anyway I must warn you that it may take a little longer to update over the next chapters because my exams start next week and I have tons of work to do :(
Replies to reviews
Yo: Yo, Yo ;) XD Sorry about sort of implying they would meet this chapter ( they kinda did.) Also sorry that this isn't really the most awaited climax you wanted, There's still ages to go till that but quite a lot happens in the meanwhile. Epic and awesomeness levels go down for a bit, then they go way back up again! Anyway thank you for keeping reviewing and being awesome!
Sam Hayne: I used to lurk a lot too, I still do actually. There's nothing really wrong with it but I think it's better to get involved. Most people in this fandom are friendly and nice people :D , so you shouldn't be afraid of participating and making your self known. Fandoms can be very fun things, especially when your like me and none of your real life friends like anime :( Anyway if you're starting reading stories in this fandom then there are way better ones than mine out there. Special mentions go to No, thank you and The Captain and the Lieutenant (by my beta reader who's a much better writer than me.) -End of review response-
InuYashaOuranKyoFan: (super long name) Why do you have to bring up the weird bits? ಠ_ಠAnyway( I use the word anyway way to much) it's good to have a new reader most of the people here have been reading it from the start. It's like a cult following on this fic, a small but loyal number of people reading this. Anyway you have the advantage of being able to read nine chapters in a row without waiting, then you catch up and have to wait a week like everyone else. Anyway thanks for reviewing, Favoriting and following :)
Anyway ( I'm even starting to annoy myself with how much I use that word now) I'll try to find time in my schedule to get the next chapter posted quickly but I have others things which are more important now.
Next time on Grave of the Turtles: They meet up, possibly, maybe, probably, in another ten chapters or so, maybe, if I feel like it. I'm kidding BTW they do meet up next time, probably.