He could tell they were close by the smell of cooking meat before they saw the flickering of the bonfire between the trees. Then they reached the clearing. It was true to the story from a Robin Hood feast. The fire lit up the space where man and woman danced in the green. Around the clearing fallen tree trunks were dragged to make benches. Several figures sat holding big mugs of a questionable brown liquid and singing loudly and out of tune.
As Yasu led him to where the ready cooked slices of venison rested on a platter, Monk recognized some of the crowd. In the clearing, the tall, beautiful woman in Lincoln green with wild flowers plaited in her long hair could only be maid Marian, and the man playing the lute was most certainly Alan-o-dale. The huge bear of a figure turning the deer on the stake was little John. At first glance the fabled feast looked splendid, however the more he looked the more he saw a repetitive pattern:
The musicians only played a few songs and kept repeating them like a broken record. The men turning the deer over the fire would go and cool of at a barrel of water after a few minutes, then return without looking or speaking to anyone else. The dancers twirled around the clearing in the same steps, and the crowd that sat eating or drinking by the benches would burst into loud laughter every couple of minutes.
He was served a plateful of food and a mug of ale, then Robin left him to converse with a couple of late comers. No one looked his way or bothered to introduce him, so he took a secluded seat in the shadows, a few meters away from a group of drunkards that were making the same jokes over and over again, laughing as if they were new. It looked as if every character only had a limited number of movements and jobs they could do. Like a robot. Perhaps the reason the demon wanted real humans was to bring consciousness into these characters so they could act and think for themselves.
Meanwhile their lack of … ingenuity didn't seem to bother Yasu, who had joined him in sitting. Perhaps he was incapable of realizing that the boy who had brought him a drink several times now was only capable of saying "Yes sir, Yes sir" over and over again like a broken record, even if the question Yasu asked him required more of an answer.
"Has thou perceived a word I've uttered?" an amused tone brought him back to the present. Yasu had turned towards him, cocking his head in question. His cheeks were stained red, showing he had had too much alcohol. "No, I'm sorry. I was thinking…" Yasu took another swig. "I hath inquired thy name, my dear friend," he said once he'd swallowed. "So far I've only called thy 'Monk'."
"Er… Takigawa Houshou," Monk answered. Yasu frowned. "An odd name. What strange country is that from?" "Japan." "I hath never been informed of that eard before," he stated, puzzled.
Dammit! He should have used a fake name. Then Yasu's face cleared with a fake-ish laugh. "So thou hast come from far away. Now, how should we call thou?" Yasu scrunched his face up, muttering to himself. Belatedly Monk realized he was making a nickname. And in the band of merry men, nicknames stuck! He quickly tried to add, "You can call me – "Taki!" Yasu exclaimed triumphantly. Houshou cursed inwardly. Clearly Yasu had not inherited the real Robin hood's ability for passable nicknames. Even he realized that, and he began mumbling again. "Nay, that doth not ring properly…" "Monk is fine!" Houshou said hurriedly. Better that than anything else. Luckily Yasu/Robin happily agreed.
As the night progressed, and he continued to keep Monk company, he became more and more drunk. Monk himself drank next to nothing and in another circumstance might have been amused at his friends deterioration. Yasu was swaying slightly, very red with all the ale he'd had, when talk turned to Monk's goal. "S-so Monk, where art thou headed? Not many dare p-pass though hither. Most robbers w-who come through my forest get travelled." He frowned. "Hang on, that's not right. Anyway, what be thy destination?" Monk sighed. "Look. I'm searching for someone and – "Ah! Is it that Yasu fellow if which thy spoke?" Monk hesitated. It sounded strange coming from Yasu and didn't make him feel any better about leaving him behind, but if Naru was right, exorcising the ghost would wake everyone up. And dragging an amnesic Yasu along would be more hindrance than help. "Well, unfortunately no. It's a princess." He thought of the name Naru had used. "Princess… Mia?" To his alarm Yasu leapt to his feet in front of him. Miraculously he remained upright, although he did stagger a few paces. His face was if possible redder than before and there was an ardent light in his expression. When he had regained his balance, he pointed a finger accusingly at Houshou. "Aha! Never did I imagine to find a rival in thou. So, Thou art also an admirer of the glorious princess Mia?"
Say what?! "Well…"
Yasu was now oblivious to him as he lifted his misty eyes to the stars, placing one hand on his heart. "May the moonshine brilliance of her gaze be cast upon me just once! If she only once smiled in my direction, I would die with joy. Oh friar!" He slapped Monk hard on the back as he sat again, still looking dreamily into the distance. "We are kindred spirits. Both striving for an unattainable jewel as delicate and graceful as a turtle dove."
Hmmm. Somehow that didn't sound like Mai. And was Yasu programmed to love the princess or did he actually, in the real world, harbour feelings for Mai!? Monk almost rubbed his hands in glee at the hours of teasing he could pay back about being Mai's daddy. Poor Yasu, unbeknownst to his fate, had quite accepted Monk as a fellow hopeless rival. "Aye, we are dreamers. Yet the thought of her being forced to marry either of those conceited princes filles me with sorrow. Bedward now, my friend. Thou hast shown me thy true self, hence in the morrow I shall show thy the princess. I know the place she rides by every day." Stalking too, Yasu? Naughty, naughty, Monk chided in his mind, chuckling to himself. It seemed this adventure was almost over he thought in relief as Yasu showed him a spare treehouse.