Ryo woke up, groggily aware and grateful that today was a day off. No Shu throwing him to the ground. He slowly sat up, and winced. He had a nasty headache.

'It's as if someone's been digging around in my brain', he thought darkly. He didn't like that, didn't like the possibilities it posed. He shook his head, regretted it, and reluctantly lurched to his feet. At least he had a day to settle back into the pace of things, try to catch up on what he had missed. It was going to be a very, very long day. He hated asking Toma's help, but since he was admittedly the smartest of them, he had little other choice. He shrugged into jeans and a loose, button-down shirt and looked at himself in the mirror. He recoiled, though he couldn't say from what. He went closer and gave a small, choked laugh. Nothing. It was still him. The reflection was his, his own. No one else's. He turned towards the kitchen and Shin's off-key singing and Kage watched from the mirror, laughing silently.

"G'mornin," Ryo yawned and Shin smiled. Ryo had never been able to figure out what kept Torrent running.

He assumed it was large quantities of caffeine taken where they didn't see.

"You're the first one down this morning."

"Not Shu?"

"Nope. You had retired to your room before Yuu came, and it appears that he kept Shu at it for quite a while. I went to bed at 11 and they were still working."

Ryo covered a huge yawn. "Mhmm..."

Shin chuckled and gave him a full plate: eggs, toast, and bacon with a glass of orange juice beside. Ryo fell on it with ferocity. He was surprised at his own hunger. It was as if he was feeding two people! He was getting as bad as Shu. He smiled at Shin after his second serving, who regarded him thoughtfully before smiling back.

"Seiji's coming down."

Ryo sniffed the air and winced. "Yup."

Seiji walked in and Ryo swallowed hard. The hair spray seemed particularly pungent today. Then again, everything else seemed sharper too. The food was more flavorful, and he could feel every movement of the wind. Was this supposed to happen?

'I guess it's an aftereffect of...him.'

Ryo was content to listen to Seiji and Shin's conversation and grinned as he heard Shu coming down the stairs with loud thunking footsteps. He stood, putting his dishes in the sink before going into the parlor and sighing. He was going to have a mountain of work in order to catch up. But since today was his last day of a kind of freedom, he might as well relax and get used to the human world again. He plunked down on the couch and smiled. It felt good to be back home.

'They say it's been almost two weeks since I left...but why don't I remember most of it. I remember waking up in his room...I've seen that room before...and...and...' Ryo sighed inwardly. 'How does he do it? How does he manage to...seduce me?'

It's one of his charms.

Ryo sat up straighter, wary. 'Who said that?'

Only silence met his question.

Ryo shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts and maybe bring back some memories. He didn't like having someone else beside himself in his body. He wasn't sure about the Other yet, wasn't sure what he meant to do or be. So, for now, he'll try to become 'normal' again and quiet the Other down.

Ryo laid his head down on the counter with a thunk. His head throbbed, his vision blurred, and every morning he woke up more tired than when he went to bed. He smelled the food Shin placed before him, lifted his head, and was about to take a bite when a very, very loud yell echoed through the house. Ryo looked up, Shin jumped, and Shu continued eating. Seiji came storming down the stairs and Shin, Ryo, and Shu stared. After a few moments of silence, the three began laughing hysterically. Seiji fumed.

"It's not funny! Which of you did this?"

Toma yawned, blinked, the had to lean against the stairway wall to keep from falling over as he cracked up. Seiji snarled.

"You...you all..."

Seiji's mouth worked for a moment, but he couldn't find the right words to express his anger, so instead he glowered at them. The other Ronins began laughing even harder, because it's hard to take a guy seriously when his hair is dyed bright, neon pink with residue color on his shoulders and towel. Seiji made a small, annoyed noise and stalked up the stairs, pushing a laughing Toma to the ground.

"Oh...wow..." Shu wiped his eyes. "That's...jeez..." He was breathless with laughter.

Shin was breathing deeply, trying to calm down.

Ryo was still chuckling slightly, and his eyes were a blue so bright that it hurt to look him in the eyes.

Toma staggered over to the table and slouched into a chair, breathing hard.

Ryo's eyes faded to ice-blue again as he calmed down, and he smiled slightly.

Shu grinned. "I wonder how he's going to cover it up in school. He disdains hats."

Shin shrugged as he cleaned up. "He'll figure out something."

Shu finished scarfing his food and put his dishes in the sink as he choked down the last morsels. Ryo gathered his books and shook his head in amusement. Even after only a few days back home, things were becoming interesting again. He hesitated for a moment, as a small snippet of dream flitted through his mind, only recalling small bits of color. He usually dreamed in black and white, so any color was remarkable. He couldn't remember most of it, so he shrugged it off and flung his bookbag over his shoulder and walked outside, waiting for Shu and Toma with Shin.

Kage snickered as Seiji arrived late after a hasty trip to the supermarket for hair dye and a quick stop home. He watched as Seiji glared at Shu and kept his eyes carefully on his paper when Seiji's venemous gaze rested on him. He listened to the hasty, made-up explination and sighed happily. His work was off to a good start. The mistrust he was starting to cultivate would make it easy to pick off the Warriors in time. Now, how to turn Toma against them? Kage sank back down into Ryo's mind, listening to his thoughts and dozing.