Disclaimer: The characters of Fushigi Yuugi do not belong to me. They
belong to Yuu Watase-san. So please don't sue me. Unless you desire
textbooks for your settlement.
Author's note: This chapter was fun to write. ^.^ Hopefully the story is getting somewhere. Enjoy!
Chapter 4
For the next couple of days, Ruri avoided Tasuki as much as she could. She hung around with Takeshi and Kouji, when Tasuki wasn't around. She just couldn't confront Tasuki at the moment. Her cheeks would start burning just thinking about it. While avoiding Tasuki, however, she was able to get to know the men better and had fun.
Tasuki watched in the shadows as Ruri laughed and teased with the men. 'What the hell is wrong with her?' Tasuki thought. A hand waved in front of his face, breaking his concentration and train of thought.
"Hello Genrou. Hi Kouji. Why are you standing here? I'm spying on Ruri. Oh really? Did -"
"Oi, quit it already," Tasuki said. "And I'm not spyin' on her."
Kouji smirked. "Really? Last time I checked when someone observes a person without them knowing it's called spyin'."
"Uresai!" Tasuki growled.
"So what happened with you two?" Kouji asked.
Tasuki shrugged. "I don't have one fuckin' clue. All I did was listen to her sing one night."
"Ah~."
"Nani? What does that mean?"
"Ya know, you can be really dense when you wanna be." Kouji shook his head. "You heard her singin', ne? She probably didn't expect to see you so she felt like a fool. And it could also been what she was singing about."
Tasuki blinked and then glared at Ruri, "You would think I saw her naked with the way she acts. Women are too damn confusing."
"That's just how they are, no da." A familiar voice answered.
They both turned to see Chichiri walking towards them. "Chichiri!"
Before Chichiri could answer back, a blur passed by Kouji and Tasuki and launched into Chichiri's arms. "Chichiri!"
Chichiri looked and braced himself from the impact. "Da~! Ruri- chan?" Ruri looked up and smiled. "How've you been, no da?"
Ruri smiled again. "Pretty good. It's been great staying here." She took his arm and started directing him to the stronghold. "Come, you're just in time for lunch!"
"Hai, hai. I'm coming, no da!" Chichiri said, smiling. But became a tad confused when she walked past Tasuki without noticing him. He looked back and saw Tasuki glowering and Kouji sweatdropping. 'I wonder what happened, no da.'
~~~
A few hours after lunch, Chichiri was sitting in Tasuki's room, waiting for him to stop ranting.
"I fuckin' don't understand! One day she's all hyper and happy and the next she's freakin' shy and avoiding me. Dammit! I hate women who mess with my head!"
"It doesn't seem like you hate Ruri-chan, no da."
Tasuki glared at Chichiri, "What the hell are ya talkin' about?"
Chichiri got up, "Betsuni, I'll see you later Tasuki-kun." Giving a small wave, he left.
Leaving Tasuki's room, Chichiri headed to the dining room. There he saw a surprise. All the men were drinking, no surprise. The surprise was that Ruri was with them.
Chichiri went to her. "Ruri-chan?"
She turned to him and her eyes lightened up. "Chichiri! Guess what? I'm trying sake for the first time!"
"Are you sure that's wise, no da."
"Daijoubu, Chichiri. Kouji's looking out for me. Besides, I don't have much of a tolerance level so I won't drink a lot."
Chichiri looked at Kouji, who was downing a cup, and decided to stay.
"Alright girlie," one of the men said, "stop stalling and down it already."
She stuck out her tongue at him. "Ok. Ok. I'm drinking." She took a deep breath and most of the men watched her. She closed her eyes and drank the sake. Eyes closed tightly, she swallowed and shook her head. "Whew!" She exclaimed, opening her eyes. "Not too bad." The men cheered and laughed. Kouji poured her another drink. She looked at it and paused.
"What's wrong?" Kouji asked.
"Nothing. Just waiting a bit. I'll drink more later." Ruri said.
Kouji winked. Ok, but ya better hurry or else we're drinkin' it all."
"Ha ha." Ruri said. She downed her second cup and smirked at Kouji. All he did was laugh. Ruri turned to Chichiri. "Ne, do you want some?"
Chichiri shook his head. "That's ok, no da."
"Ok." And she drank her third cup. A couple minutes and many drink later, she started blinking. "Oi, I think I'm a little tipsy." She got up. "I can stand." She took several steps, but started teetering and fell. Before she hit the floor someone caught her. She looked up. "Tasuki!" She giggled. "Guess what?" Ruri reached over and downed her drink. "After this, I'll be drunk. And after that if I drink more, I'll be roarin' drunk!"
All the men who heard her laughed. Tasuki sat her down next to Kouji and then sat on her other side. "Oi, why'd ya let her drink so much?" Tasuki asked. Kouji and Chichiri shrugged. Kouji was starting to get a bit drunk himself, but Chichiri.
Chichiri shrugged again when Tasuki gave him a look. "I'm not her father, no da. She can do what she wants."
"Don't you think she may be a little too young to drink that much?" A stress mark appeared on Tasuki's head.
Ruri just finished her umpteenth cup and turned to Tasuki. "I'm not as young as you think I am Tasuki. I'm just as old as you are."
Kouji, Tasuki and Chichiri paused. "Are ya serious?" Tasuki asked.
Ruri nodded drinking another cup. Chichiri took it away from her before she could finish. "Quite serious."
"Well then," Kouji said, "I shoulda gotten you drunk sooner!" Ruri and Kouji laughed as Chichiri and Tasuki sweatdropped.
"She's drunk, no da."
"You said it. I'd better get her outta here before things get worse." Tasuki took Ruri by the arm. "C'mon Ruri. Let's go."
"Where are we going?" She asked following Tasuki. "Are you going to seduce me?" Kouji laughed and Tasuki glared at him.
"No, you need some fresh air. We're going outside."
~~~
Outside, Ruri staggered around, looking up at the sky. "Normally," she slurred, "I love lookin' at the sky, but tonight, it's makin' me dizzy. I wonder why? Maybe it somethin' ta do with what I ate."
"How about drank?" Tasuki said, sitting on the steps. "You'll feel better if ya sat down."
"Ok," she said. She stumbled next to Tasuki and plopped down.
Tasuki looked at her then looked up. Even thought she was drunk, her eyes were still sparkling. Her cheeks were also red and flushed from the heat and alcohol. He jumped a little when he felt something lean on him. He looked down.
Ruri was leaning on Tasuki and had her eyes closed. "You're comfy Gen-chan."
He looked at her strangely, "Gen-chan?"
"And you're so sweet to get me out of there to be safe. I trust you." Ruri continued to mumble. "I knew your soft and compassionate side had to show. That's what I love about you. I love everything about you. I love you, Gen-chan."
Her words echoed through his head. 'I love you, Gen-chan.' She loved him. He looked down at the now sleeping Ruri. He was all confused now. He was going to talk to her about why she was avoiding him. That is until he saw she was drunk. And now she tells him that she loved! 'Stupid women, always making things confusing.' He sighed and carefully picked her up. "You're one confusing woman, you know that?" He thought back to the Suzaku no Miko again. That in turn, made him think of the others. He didn't want the others to see him when he was reminiscing about everything. Things he could've prevented or done differently. He always had an empty space in his heart after most of them died and he would do anything to bring them back. Thank Suzaku for Chichiri and Kouji. A single tear formed in the corner of his eye. He tried to keep it back, but he couldn't. Sometimes his emotions would get the better of him. No matter how hard he tried to keep his emotions at bay, sometimes they would emerge. He closed his eyes.
Tasuki felt something brush away his tear. He looked down to see Ruri smiling sadly up at him. "You're thinking of them, aren't you?" He blinked. "Don't worry. I promise you won't lose anyone every again." With that she went back to sleep.
He carefully walked back inside with Ruri in his arms and went to her room.
Kouji and Chichiri saw him carrying Ruri. Kouji turned to Chichiri, "Ya think Genrou finally figured it out?"
"Maybe, no da." Chichiri said. "He can be a little dense sometimes, no da."
Kouji looked after the bandit leader, "How true."
~~~
The next morning, Ruri awoke with the hugest headache. She silently groaned and buried her head in her pillow. She wondered how she ended up in bed. All of a sudden, she bolted up, then grimaced and held her head. 'Oh gods! I told Tasuki that I loved him! Geez! Baka! I didn't want to tell him like that! ' She looked over and saw Tasuki asleep on a chair. Gah! Okay Ruri, back to sleep. 'Besides, it should help with this hangover.' She grimaced again. She slowly lied down and went back to sleep.
~~~
Tasuki woke up with the sun shining. He looked around and was a little disoriented until he remembered what happened last night. He was in Ruri's room. 'Must've fallen asleep.' He got up and stretched out the kinks and looked over at the bed. Ruri was still sleeping deeply. He shook his head. 'She should still be knocked out. After all the booze she had.' With that he left her room quietly.
~~~
Many hours later, Ruri slowly opened her eyes to come face to face with Takeshi.
"Gah!" Ruri bolted and moved back. "Ta- Takeshi!"
He smiled at her, "At least I know you're definitely alive this time."
Ruri blinked, "Eh?"
"I had to check to see if you were still alive a couple times ever since this morning"
"What time is it?"
"It's mid-afternoon."
Ruri's eyes widened, "Are you serious?" Takeshi nodded. "Gee, I must have knocked out since I woke up earlier."
"You were awake this morning?"
"Yeah, but I had the hugest hangover, so I slept it off."
Takeshi sat next to her. "That's smart." He looked down, "Did anythin' happen between you and the Boss?"
Ruri sweatdropped. "No, nothing happened. I was so drunk, I wouldn't have been any fun."
Takeshi paused and then laughed. "Good comeback."
"I thought so." And Ruri laughed. A knock came at her door. "Hai," she called out.
The door opened and Chichiri entered. "I see you're awake, no da."
Ruri smiled, "Chichiri!" She turned to Takeshi, "Could you leave us please?"
Takeshi nodded, "No problem." He headed for the door. "See you later." He turned, winked at her, and left.
Chichiri went over to Ruri and sat down. "So you feel better, no da?" Ruri nodded. "Do you know what happened, no da?"
Ruri slowly nodded, "Hai, some of it."
Chichiri looked at her questioningly. "What happened, no da?" Was it Tasuki? Did he -?"
Ruri interrupted him. "Iie. It wasn't Tasuki, it was me." She gripped her blankets. "I told him that I loved him last night."
"I take it that's not how you wanted to say it, no da?" Chichiri asked. Ruri nodded. "Well, you were drunk so perhaps Tasuki-kun may think that you were just drunk and didn't mean it seriously, no da."
"I know what you're saying." She started. "But that fact that I said it while I was drunk just pisses me off! I feel so embarrassed! I made a fool of myself again!"
Chichiri took off his mask and looked at her sternly. "Ruri-chan, you have to stop doing this to yourself." Ruri stared at him. "You are a beautiful and kind woman. Stop bringing yourself down like you are. You are not a fool. You make things more complicated because you are unsure of yourself. Things like are bound to happen. Stop blaming yourself." He got up and put his mask back on. "Just something to think about." With that he started to leave. "See you later, no da." Outside he thought to himself. 'She's sweet but sometimes unsure of herself.'
~~~
Ruri sat in her bed for several minutes thinking about what Chichiri said. 'He's right. I do doubt myself. I gotta be more sure of myself. I guess to do that I have to find out exactly who I am. I better apologize to Tasuki as well.' With that she got up and threw on a shirt and a pair of shorts. She slipped on her shoes as she brushed her hair. After tying her hair back, she grabbed a pen and notebook and went outside. While going outside, she grabbed a snack and absentmindedly greeted the men.
"What's up with her?" one asked.
"I dunno. Maybe it's from all the drinkin' she did," said another.
"No way," the first shook his head. "She fuckin' looks stone cold sober!"
~~~
Oblivious to the argument the men were having, Ruri walked under a tree and sat down, leaning against it. She opened her notebook and started writing. 'Who am I?' She thought for a couple of minutes and then wrote some more. After writing for a long period of time, her list of who she was and the roles she played kept getting longer and longer. She then stopped and looked at what she wrote. Although many of her roles were minor, putting it all together, she was very important. Her problem was that she was looking at her minor roles separately and not together. Seeing that she was this important, little things, like what happened the night before, really don't seem that significant. Ruri closed her eyes and smiled. 'I don't feel as foolish anymore. But I'm still a little embarrassed.' She looked up and saw Takeshi smiling mischievously at her.
"So what is our favorite little onna doin'?" He asked.
Ruri mockingly glared at him. "'Our onna'? 'Little'?"
Takeshi sat next to her. "Yeah, well, you're the shortest one out of all of us. And 'our onna' because you're literally the only woman here."
"I feel so special," she said sarcastically, smiling.
"You are," Takeshi said. "At first we were kinda suspicious, but now we care for ya."
Ruri nodded and hugged him. "Thanks. That means a lot," she grabbed her notebook and got up.
"What's that?" He asked when his gaze fell on the notebook.
"It's my notebook. I wrote descriptions and such in it."
"Your diary?"
"No, I left that in my world." Ruri said, sweatdropping.
"Damn," he said.
"Hey!" With that she playfully hit him on the arm. She stuck out her tongue and ran away.
Takeshi got up and chased after her. Before Ruri reached the stronghold, the young man caught up with her and grabbed her. Ruri squealed as he picked her up. "It's payback!" Then he stopped. "Boss!"
Ruri looked up and sweatdropped. Tasuki didn't look very happy. In fact, he was glaring at them. "Ano~. I think you should put me down." Takeshi silently nodded and set her down carefully. Tasuki gestured Takeshi to leave and when he left Tasuki turned to Ruri. There was a moment's pause.
Then Tasuki spoke, "I just wanted to tell ya that we're goin' raidin' tomorrow. And that you can come along if you wanna."
Ruri's eyes lit up. "Honto? I can come?" She gave Tasuki a hug. "Wai! I always wanted to go on one!"
"Oi! Get off! I can't breath!" Tasuki yelped.
Ruri laughed, "Gomen. But it's so exciting!"
Tasuki rolled his eyes. "Women. So damn over-emotional about everything." All of a sudden he fell. "Ita!" A shoeprint appeared on his face. He got up and glared at Ruri, "What the hell?!"
"You make it sound like being over-emotional is a bad thing! It's an endearing quality of women." Ruri retrieved her shoe.
"Look, whatever." Tasuki headed inside. "C'mon, it's time for some dinner."
Ruri's ears seemed to perk up. "Food?" With that she followed him inside. Then she stopped. "By the way." Tasuki stopped and turned to her. "I'm sorry about last night. It must've been a bit awkward."
Tasuki shrugged, "It's ok. You were drunk. And besides, it got me thinkin' about somethin' other than those who are gone and the past." Ruri smiled.
~~~
"The empress told me to tell you to be careful, no da. There seems to be many strangers entering the country, no da." Chichiri took off his mask. "Something's happening and Her Majesty wants it to be put out right away."
"What's happenin' in the other countries that are getting' strangers in here?" Tasuki asked.
"Nothing's happening in Sairo or Hokkan, but it seems Kutou is infiltrating Konan. Not at an alarming rate but in small groups or individually. There's a conspiracy going on, but we don't know who's at the head."
Tasuki and Kouji looked at each other, "It could be that new gang," Kouji commented.
"What new gang, no da?"
"There were a couple of bastards who were stealing from our stash in order to prove themselves worthy of another gang. I never heard of it before until Ruri told me." Tasuki answered.
Chichiri blinked. "Ruri-chan?"
Tasuki nodded and told the story of her and the renegade traitors. At the end, Chichiri thought for a moment. "It could be, no da." But where would their hideout be?"
The two bandits shrugged. "I guess I'll get a few men to scout the mountain." Tasuki said.
Chichiri nodded and put his mask back on. "Good idea, no da. So then I guess all we can do is wait, no da. I'll get back to Konan tomorrow and tell Her Majesty, no da."
"Why don't you use your kasa?" Kouji asked.
"I like to travel, no da." The two bandits sweatdropped.
Author's note: This chapter was fun to write. ^.^ Hopefully the story is getting somewhere. Enjoy!
Chapter 4
For the next couple of days, Ruri avoided Tasuki as much as she could. She hung around with Takeshi and Kouji, when Tasuki wasn't around. She just couldn't confront Tasuki at the moment. Her cheeks would start burning just thinking about it. While avoiding Tasuki, however, she was able to get to know the men better and had fun.
Tasuki watched in the shadows as Ruri laughed and teased with the men. 'What the hell is wrong with her?' Tasuki thought. A hand waved in front of his face, breaking his concentration and train of thought.
"Hello Genrou. Hi Kouji. Why are you standing here? I'm spying on Ruri. Oh really? Did -"
"Oi, quit it already," Tasuki said. "And I'm not spyin' on her."
Kouji smirked. "Really? Last time I checked when someone observes a person without them knowing it's called spyin'."
"Uresai!" Tasuki growled.
"So what happened with you two?" Kouji asked.
Tasuki shrugged. "I don't have one fuckin' clue. All I did was listen to her sing one night."
"Ah~."
"Nani? What does that mean?"
"Ya know, you can be really dense when you wanna be." Kouji shook his head. "You heard her singin', ne? She probably didn't expect to see you so she felt like a fool. And it could also been what she was singing about."
Tasuki blinked and then glared at Ruri, "You would think I saw her naked with the way she acts. Women are too damn confusing."
"That's just how they are, no da." A familiar voice answered.
They both turned to see Chichiri walking towards them. "Chichiri!"
Before Chichiri could answer back, a blur passed by Kouji and Tasuki and launched into Chichiri's arms. "Chichiri!"
Chichiri looked and braced himself from the impact. "Da~! Ruri- chan?" Ruri looked up and smiled. "How've you been, no da?"
Ruri smiled again. "Pretty good. It's been great staying here." She took his arm and started directing him to the stronghold. "Come, you're just in time for lunch!"
"Hai, hai. I'm coming, no da!" Chichiri said, smiling. But became a tad confused when she walked past Tasuki without noticing him. He looked back and saw Tasuki glowering and Kouji sweatdropping. 'I wonder what happened, no da.'
~~~
A few hours after lunch, Chichiri was sitting in Tasuki's room, waiting for him to stop ranting.
"I fuckin' don't understand! One day she's all hyper and happy and the next she's freakin' shy and avoiding me. Dammit! I hate women who mess with my head!"
"It doesn't seem like you hate Ruri-chan, no da."
Tasuki glared at Chichiri, "What the hell are ya talkin' about?"
Chichiri got up, "Betsuni, I'll see you later Tasuki-kun." Giving a small wave, he left.
Leaving Tasuki's room, Chichiri headed to the dining room. There he saw a surprise. All the men were drinking, no surprise. The surprise was that Ruri was with them.
Chichiri went to her. "Ruri-chan?"
She turned to him and her eyes lightened up. "Chichiri! Guess what? I'm trying sake for the first time!"
"Are you sure that's wise, no da."
"Daijoubu, Chichiri. Kouji's looking out for me. Besides, I don't have much of a tolerance level so I won't drink a lot."
Chichiri looked at Kouji, who was downing a cup, and decided to stay.
"Alright girlie," one of the men said, "stop stalling and down it already."
She stuck out her tongue at him. "Ok. Ok. I'm drinking." She took a deep breath and most of the men watched her. She closed her eyes and drank the sake. Eyes closed tightly, she swallowed and shook her head. "Whew!" She exclaimed, opening her eyes. "Not too bad." The men cheered and laughed. Kouji poured her another drink. She looked at it and paused.
"What's wrong?" Kouji asked.
"Nothing. Just waiting a bit. I'll drink more later." Ruri said.
Kouji winked. Ok, but ya better hurry or else we're drinkin' it all."
"Ha ha." Ruri said. She downed her second cup and smirked at Kouji. All he did was laugh. Ruri turned to Chichiri. "Ne, do you want some?"
Chichiri shook his head. "That's ok, no da."
"Ok." And she drank her third cup. A couple minutes and many drink later, she started blinking. "Oi, I think I'm a little tipsy." She got up. "I can stand." She took several steps, but started teetering and fell. Before she hit the floor someone caught her. She looked up. "Tasuki!" She giggled. "Guess what?" Ruri reached over and downed her drink. "After this, I'll be drunk. And after that if I drink more, I'll be roarin' drunk!"
All the men who heard her laughed. Tasuki sat her down next to Kouji and then sat on her other side. "Oi, why'd ya let her drink so much?" Tasuki asked. Kouji and Chichiri shrugged. Kouji was starting to get a bit drunk himself, but Chichiri.
Chichiri shrugged again when Tasuki gave him a look. "I'm not her father, no da. She can do what she wants."
"Don't you think she may be a little too young to drink that much?" A stress mark appeared on Tasuki's head.
Ruri just finished her umpteenth cup and turned to Tasuki. "I'm not as young as you think I am Tasuki. I'm just as old as you are."
Kouji, Tasuki and Chichiri paused. "Are ya serious?" Tasuki asked.
Ruri nodded drinking another cup. Chichiri took it away from her before she could finish. "Quite serious."
"Well then," Kouji said, "I shoulda gotten you drunk sooner!" Ruri and Kouji laughed as Chichiri and Tasuki sweatdropped.
"She's drunk, no da."
"You said it. I'd better get her outta here before things get worse." Tasuki took Ruri by the arm. "C'mon Ruri. Let's go."
"Where are we going?" She asked following Tasuki. "Are you going to seduce me?" Kouji laughed and Tasuki glared at him.
"No, you need some fresh air. We're going outside."
~~~
Outside, Ruri staggered around, looking up at the sky. "Normally," she slurred, "I love lookin' at the sky, but tonight, it's makin' me dizzy. I wonder why? Maybe it somethin' ta do with what I ate."
"How about drank?" Tasuki said, sitting on the steps. "You'll feel better if ya sat down."
"Ok," she said. She stumbled next to Tasuki and plopped down.
Tasuki looked at her then looked up. Even thought she was drunk, her eyes were still sparkling. Her cheeks were also red and flushed from the heat and alcohol. He jumped a little when he felt something lean on him. He looked down.
Ruri was leaning on Tasuki and had her eyes closed. "You're comfy Gen-chan."
He looked at her strangely, "Gen-chan?"
"And you're so sweet to get me out of there to be safe. I trust you." Ruri continued to mumble. "I knew your soft and compassionate side had to show. That's what I love about you. I love everything about you. I love you, Gen-chan."
Her words echoed through his head. 'I love you, Gen-chan.' She loved him. He looked down at the now sleeping Ruri. He was all confused now. He was going to talk to her about why she was avoiding him. That is until he saw she was drunk. And now she tells him that she loved! 'Stupid women, always making things confusing.' He sighed and carefully picked her up. "You're one confusing woman, you know that?" He thought back to the Suzaku no Miko again. That in turn, made him think of the others. He didn't want the others to see him when he was reminiscing about everything. Things he could've prevented or done differently. He always had an empty space in his heart after most of them died and he would do anything to bring them back. Thank Suzaku for Chichiri and Kouji. A single tear formed in the corner of his eye. He tried to keep it back, but he couldn't. Sometimes his emotions would get the better of him. No matter how hard he tried to keep his emotions at bay, sometimes they would emerge. He closed his eyes.
Tasuki felt something brush away his tear. He looked down to see Ruri smiling sadly up at him. "You're thinking of them, aren't you?" He blinked. "Don't worry. I promise you won't lose anyone every again." With that she went back to sleep.
He carefully walked back inside with Ruri in his arms and went to her room.
Kouji and Chichiri saw him carrying Ruri. Kouji turned to Chichiri, "Ya think Genrou finally figured it out?"
"Maybe, no da." Chichiri said. "He can be a little dense sometimes, no da."
Kouji looked after the bandit leader, "How true."
~~~
The next morning, Ruri awoke with the hugest headache. She silently groaned and buried her head in her pillow. She wondered how she ended up in bed. All of a sudden, she bolted up, then grimaced and held her head. 'Oh gods! I told Tasuki that I loved him! Geez! Baka! I didn't want to tell him like that! ' She looked over and saw Tasuki asleep on a chair. Gah! Okay Ruri, back to sleep. 'Besides, it should help with this hangover.' She grimaced again. She slowly lied down and went back to sleep.
~~~
Tasuki woke up with the sun shining. He looked around and was a little disoriented until he remembered what happened last night. He was in Ruri's room. 'Must've fallen asleep.' He got up and stretched out the kinks and looked over at the bed. Ruri was still sleeping deeply. He shook his head. 'She should still be knocked out. After all the booze she had.' With that he left her room quietly.
~~~
Many hours later, Ruri slowly opened her eyes to come face to face with Takeshi.
"Gah!" Ruri bolted and moved back. "Ta- Takeshi!"
He smiled at her, "At least I know you're definitely alive this time."
Ruri blinked, "Eh?"
"I had to check to see if you were still alive a couple times ever since this morning"
"What time is it?"
"It's mid-afternoon."
Ruri's eyes widened, "Are you serious?" Takeshi nodded. "Gee, I must have knocked out since I woke up earlier."
"You were awake this morning?"
"Yeah, but I had the hugest hangover, so I slept it off."
Takeshi sat next to her. "That's smart." He looked down, "Did anythin' happen between you and the Boss?"
Ruri sweatdropped. "No, nothing happened. I was so drunk, I wouldn't have been any fun."
Takeshi paused and then laughed. "Good comeback."
"I thought so." And Ruri laughed. A knock came at her door. "Hai," she called out.
The door opened and Chichiri entered. "I see you're awake, no da."
Ruri smiled, "Chichiri!" She turned to Takeshi, "Could you leave us please?"
Takeshi nodded, "No problem." He headed for the door. "See you later." He turned, winked at her, and left.
Chichiri went over to Ruri and sat down. "So you feel better, no da?" Ruri nodded. "Do you know what happened, no da?"
Ruri slowly nodded, "Hai, some of it."
Chichiri looked at her questioningly. "What happened, no da?" Was it Tasuki? Did he -?"
Ruri interrupted him. "Iie. It wasn't Tasuki, it was me." She gripped her blankets. "I told him that I loved him last night."
"I take it that's not how you wanted to say it, no da?" Chichiri asked. Ruri nodded. "Well, you were drunk so perhaps Tasuki-kun may think that you were just drunk and didn't mean it seriously, no da."
"I know what you're saying." She started. "But that fact that I said it while I was drunk just pisses me off! I feel so embarrassed! I made a fool of myself again!"
Chichiri took off his mask and looked at her sternly. "Ruri-chan, you have to stop doing this to yourself." Ruri stared at him. "You are a beautiful and kind woman. Stop bringing yourself down like you are. You are not a fool. You make things more complicated because you are unsure of yourself. Things like are bound to happen. Stop blaming yourself." He got up and put his mask back on. "Just something to think about." With that he started to leave. "See you later, no da." Outside he thought to himself. 'She's sweet but sometimes unsure of herself.'
~~~
Ruri sat in her bed for several minutes thinking about what Chichiri said. 'He's right. I do doubt myself. I gotta be more sure of myself. I guess to do that I have to find out exactly who I am. I better apologize to Tasuki as well.' With that she got up and threw on a shirt and a pair of shorts. She slipped on her shoes as she brushed her hair. After tying her hair back, she grabbed a pen and notebook and went outside. While going outside, she grabbed a snack and absentmindedly greeted the men.
"What's up with her?" one asked.
"I dunno. Maybe it's from all the drinkin' she did," said another.
"No way," the first shook his head. "She fuckin' looks stone cold sober!"
~~~
Oblivious to the argument the men were having, Ruri walked under a tree and sat down, leaning against it. She opened her notebook and started writing. 'Who am I?' She thought for a couple of minutes and then wrote some more. After writing for a long period of time, her list of who she was and the roles she played kept getting longer and longer. She then stopped and looked at what she wrote. Although many of her roles were minor, putting it all together, she was very important. Her problem was that she was looking at her minor roles separately and not together. Seeing that she was this important, little things, like what happened the night before, really don't seem that significant. Ruri closed her eyes and smiled. 'I don't feel as foolish anymore. But I'm still a little embarrassed.' She looked up and saw Takeshi smiling mischievously at her.
"So what is our favorite little onna doin'?" He asked.
Ruri mockingly glared at him. "'Our onna'? 'Little'?"
Takeshi sat next to her. "Yeah, well, you're the shortest one out of all of us. And 'our onna' because you're literally the only woman here."
"I feel so special," she said sarcastically, smiling.
"You are," Takeshi said. "At first we were kinda suspicious, but now we care for ya."
Ruri nodded and hugged him. "Thanks. That means a lot," she grabbed her notebook and got up.
"What's that?" He asked when his gaze fell on the notebook.
"It's my notebook. I wrote descriptions and such in it."
"Your diary?"
"No, I left that in my world." Ruri said, sweatdropping.
"Damn," he said.
"Hey!" With that she playfully hit him on the arm. She stuck out her tongue and ran away.
Takeshi got up and chased after her. Before Ruri reached the stronghold, the young man caught up with her and grabbed her. Ruri squealed as he picked her up. "It's payback!" Then he stopped. "Boss!"
Ruri looked up and sweatdropped. Tasuki didn't look very happy. In fact, he was glaring at them. "Ano~. I think you should put me down." Takeshi silently nodded and set her down carefully. Tasuki gestured Takeshi to leave and when he left Tasuki turned to Ruri. There was a moment's pause.
Then Tasuki spoke, "I just wanted to tell ya that we're goin' raidin' tomorrow. And that you can come along if you wanna."
Ruri's eyes lit up. "Honto? I can come?" She gave Tasuki a hug. "Wai! I always wanted to go on one!"
"Oi! Get off! I can't breath!" Tasuki yelped.
Ruri laughed, "Gomen. But it's so exciting!"
Tasuki rolled his eyes. "Women. So damn over-emotional about everything." All of a sudden he fell. "Ita!" A shoeprint appeared on his face. He got up and glared at Ruri, "What the hell?!"
"You make it sound like being over-emotional is a bad thing! It's an endearing quality of women." Ruri retrieved her shoe.
"Look, whatever." Tasuki headed inside. "C'mon, it's time for some dinner."
Ruri's ears seemed to perk up. "Food?" With that she followed him inside. Then she stopped. "By the way." Tasuki stopped and turned to her. "I'm sorry about last night. It must've been a bit awkward."
Tasuki shrugged, "It's ok. You were drunk. And besides, it got me thinkin' about somethin' other than those who are gone and the past." Ruri smiled.
~~~
"The empress told me to tell you to be careful, no da. There seems to be many strangers entering the country, no da." Chichiri took off his mask. "Something's happening and Her Majesty wants it to be put out right away."
"What's happenin' in the other countries that are getting' strangers in here?" Tasuki asked.
"Nothing's happening in Sairo or Hokkan, but it seems Kutou is infiltrating Konan. Not at an alarming rate but in small groups or individually. There's a conspiracy going on, but we don't know who's at the head."
Tasuki and Kouji looked at each other, "It could be that new gang," Kouji commented.
"What new gang, no da?"
"There were a couple of bastards who were stealing from our stash in order to prove themselves worthy of another gang. I never heard of it before until Ruri told me." Tasuki answered.
Chichiri blinked. "Ruri-chan?"
Tasuki nodded and told the story of her and the renegade traitors. At the end, Chichiri thought for a moment. "It could be, no da." But where would their hideout be?"
The two bandits shrugged. "I guess I'll get a few men to scout the mountain." Tasuki said.
Chichiri nodded and put his mask back on. "Good idea, no da. So then I guess all we can do is wait, no da. I'll get back to Konan tomorrow and tell Her Majesty, no da."
"Why don't you use your kasa?" Kouji asked.
"I like to travel, no da." The two bandits sweatdropped.