A continuation of her thread, by AkisMusicBox! ASDLFJFA this is one of my favorites and it definitely inspired one of my threads. Won't tell you which one. AkisMusicBox wrote Point For Me on Ao3, a fantastic fanfic where REN HAS FRIENDS so if you like the bromance here, check it out!

With a snarl, Ren grabbed Kijima's wrist and twisted. Kijima shrieked as pain shot up his arm. Ren wrenched the knife from his hand. He flipped around and before Kijima knew it, he was being slammed against the ground, knife pressed to his throat.

"My reasons have nothing to do with you," he said in a low voice as he straddled Kijima. "And if you want to get your bard back, you'll do what I say without question."

Kijima swallowed hard against the cold steel. "Why?" was all he could manage before the razor edge sent sharp fear down his spine.

"He's not part of the contract," was all Ren said, eyes as dark as coal. "Dead bards aren't good for my reputation. Now that the blizzard has stopped, I can track the bandits with ease and reunite you with your friend." The last word came twisted out of his mouth.

"I'll behave," Kijima rasped. And for some reason, that was enough to convince him to remove the knife. Kijima sat up and coughed. "What is that thing?" He pointed to the medallion.

"Magic conduit," was all Ren said as he slipped out of the cave.

Kijima scrambled after him, snow surrounding them crunching under his feet. Despite the cold, the sun felt invigorating. "Magic? That would have been bloody useful before!"

Ignoring him, Ren scanned the snow until he found a divot in the virgin snow. He yanked a dead fox from it. "Life pays for life. This thing paid the price for us," he said. "Keeping two humans from freezing isn't cheap." He walked back to the cave, blowing past Kijima. The somewhat friendly Ren that Kijima had gotten used to was gone, replaced with whatever muscle-man this Ren was. Kijima supposed that was fair enough, considering his rude awakening.

"I-I had built a fire!"

Ren went back to the long-extinguished pile of half-burnt firewood. "Yes, you delayed our deaths by an hour before the wind picked up." He re-lit the fire and started skinning the fox.

Kijima frowned. Ren scowled at him. "Shut up. You'll pass out before we even get near the bandit's camp."

Kijima held his hands up. "I didn't say a word." He didn't consider himself squeamish, but the precision in which he separated connective tissue and pried apart joints equally fascinated and repulsed him. "You're being… rather inefficient though."

Not even bothering to move his head, Ren's eyes locked on Kijima. "Not with the fox!" Kijima backpedaled. "Excellent… dismemberment skills. I mean about the mission. Your employer wants Kyoko, right? Hikaru and I are just in the way."

Ren stabbed a smaller stick and shoved it through a bit of fox. He held it over the fire. "My contract does not state that anyone must die. Him being a romantic fool is not an offence punishable by death. Neither is just being a fool." He raised an eyebrow at Kijima. "My employer's son is also a prick, so I'm deciding if finally paying off my debts] is worth it if it's with this coin."

Kijima leaned in. "If it's really coin you need, we can find another way. I'm a scribe! Take me to the most war-torn areas in need of peace treaties, and you can have ten percent of the proceeds."

Ren snorted. "Ten? Sixty."

"Twenty-five. I'll consider thirty-five if that fox doesn't give me a gut ache."

Ren smirked. His amusement was a sharp thing, but it felt well-earned, so Kijima smiled as well.

"You want to saddle yourself with me for the sake of him?" The words were a bit strangled as he said them.

"Blame the night of spooning for endearing me to you somewhat as well," Kijima said. "Sure you're a bit gruffer on the outside now but I've never been one to shy away from things getting rough."

Ren's expression turned wolfish. Kijima stifled a nervous laugh.

"I haven't decided what I'm going to do," he said. And he left it at that until one of the legs was properly roasted. Despite the hot grease, Ren ripped it off with a bare hand and handed it to Kijima.

Kijima was nearly drooling when he bit into it, the grease running down his chin. He started feeling alive again, a bird was chirping in the distance, and he opened his mouth to thank Ren.

Ren lifted a hand. His medallion glowed.

"Aw, no, come on-"

With a tap on his forehead, Kijima's world went black.

When he woke up, Kijima's hands and feet were bound and his face was kissing the cold snow. He craned his neck upward to see blood-spattered snow and more divots in the snow, bodies peeking out of them. Then, past that, a fire, and Ren was hunched over Hikaru, dabbing at a cut on his forehead. Hikaru was drinking from a flask. Kijima groaned.

"Let him go!" Hikaru demanded.

Ren gave the rag to Hikaru and went to Kijima's side. As he undid the ties, he leaned down to Kijima's ear and said, "Kept my word, didn't I?"

Kijima only grunted as he righted himself. He rubbed his wrist and grumbled, "Thought you hadn't decided yet."

Hikaru scrambled over and looked at Kijima over. "Are you all right?"

Besides still tasting the fat from the fox in his mouth, he was fine. "You were the one who was snatched. You alright?"

Hikaru nodded, then tried to say something, but Ren cut him off. "We need to get some things straight." He was crouched next to the two, knife out, gesturing as if one would wave around a tankard. He snagged the flask from Hikaru. "My contract dictated that I ensure Kyoko Mogami does not wed before, my employer, Yayoi Fuwa, was able to speak with her. Fuwa wanted to convince her that she should wed her son."

Ren took a quick drink. "Now, when I first met Fuwa's son, Shotaro, I despised him. Not keen on seeing him happily settled. Would have to be a really wretched girl for me to want to see her wed to him." Ren pointed the knife to Hikaru. "He's stupid, but not stupid enough to want a horrible woman, so I'm assuming she doesn't deserve him."

He took another drink. "My original idea was to seduce the girl myself. Kyoko would stay single and Fuwa would figure something else to do with her son, feeling so gracious that their family dodged a wanton daughter in law I'd still get paid. Doubt it would be too hard, based on this lout's story." Again, pointed at Hikaru. "Head full of fairies and curses and tales. Still wouldn't be too hard if I told her her fiance died trying to reach her."

Hikaru stiffened. Kijima shook his head. "You're not going to do that."

Ren pointed the knife back to Kijima. "But I could, with very little effort, and that's all that really matters in the end. What I'm saying is that between me sending a message to Fuwa about Kyoko's location and Fuwa receiving it, there's a lot of time. For example, I could go seduce Kyoko, or I could deliver Kyoko a message about Fuwa's intentions, and Hikaru's location, which would be far, far, away from the Takarada estate. She could be gone before Fuwa's party ever arrives."

"Where?" Hikaru asked and Kijima wanted to smack him. Of all the questions, that couldn't be the most important one at this moment.

Ren rolled his eyes. "Go to the bloody coast for all I care. Slow down this nonsense about wedding after barely knowing each other a week. At the very least, get to know the girl and understand those who conspire against you and her happiness."

Ren looked back to Kijima. "Teach him some common sense while you're away. I'm not made for these things."

"Why should I trust you?" Hikaru asked, voice tight.

Ren was positively annoyed to look back to Hikaru. "You're an imbecile so I know your life means nothing to you. Do you value his so little?"

Hikaru bit his lip and for a moment that lasted an eternity, he stayed like that. Then, he said, "Do you have anything to write with?"

Hikaru may have been stowing himself away in the cottage for all of the best hours of the day, picking at his lute from time to time, but Kijima couldn't force himself to join him. The sand was too warm and the sun was too bright for him to wallow indoors. The crush of the waves and the call of the gulls kept his nerves at bay.

Two weeks later, when their coin was running thin and Hikaru was drunk more often than not, Kijima saw two figures appear. One, chestnut-haired, golden-eyed, haloed by the sunset. The other was a harbinger of the night to come.

Kijima stood and shook the sand off of him, speechless. He pointed to the house. Kyoko ran to the cottage. Ren kept walking toward him.

"You owe me money," he said. "I'm still wildly in debt so you're stuck with me."

Kijima grinned. "I'm nigh broke myself. We'll make a good pair."

END