"Ronin Warriors: The Final Victor"
By Onikage
Scroll Two: Patience Is A Virtue
" 'Ri-san is hooome!!" sang the miniature girl sweetly once more. Domo snapped her head from the bedroom window over at the small child. "Kiku! Is she okay?!" she exclaimed. Sakura threw down her history homework she had assigned and leapt off the bed towards Kiku, "She's not hurt is she?!" Kiku shook her head and smiled, "Nuh uh. She's okay!" Her eyes twinkled brightly, "Oh, oh! An' there's a man downstairs with her! He has blue, blue eyes and red hair like 'Ri-san's!" Nasake looked down at the small child strangely,
"He has blue eyes and red hair?" she asked again to make sure. Kiku nodded,
"Uh huh! He look's like a prince! Come! Come see!!" she exclaimed. Nasake smiled,
"Wait Kiku. Is his hair really long? Like your grandfather's?" Kiku nodded. Domo gave Nasake a look, "Hey 'Sake... Why all the questions? Who cares what he looks like?" Sakura frowned,
"Hey, maybe 'Sake's on to something. Nasake you sound like you know this guy." Nasake began to walk towards the door; she stopped and turned around, "... If I'm right, then that man downstairs is one of the ronins Masaki-san told us about," she replied. She reached deep inside her jean pocket and pulled out a shiny midnight blue, sapphire shard. Its many rough lines and miniature ancient carvings caught the room's light, making the symbols shine a sparkling blue onto her face, gleaming with power. Sakura pulled out a similar one; hers was a lighter shade of blue. "I wonder if Masaki-san's told Tori about the Ancient's Legend and us yet," she thought aloud. Domo shrugged and began toward the door, "Well, let's find out." Kiku looked up at her sister's best friends and pouted a bit, "Can Kiku see the man, now?" she asked softly. Megami touched Kiku's hair gently and kneeled down to the toddler's level. "Kiku, you must learn to be patient. Virtue is it's own reward, you know."
"Meg', don't tell her that! She has no idea what that is!" Domo laughed.
"Huh? What? What's virtue? Can I eat it?" Kiku asked.
"... No, let's go." Kiku stood in the doorway watching the girls head downstairs,
"But what's virtue?!"
*****
"What the hell were you thinking?! Are you some kind of deranged nut or something?!" Tori wrung out her school skirt and blouse. "You could have killed me!"
"I'm sorry! What do I have to do in order for you to make you understand?" Anubis asked in a way just shy of a lost temper. He shook his hair out and ran a hand through it. Tori made a face, "Eww! Don't do that! What are you some kind of dog?! You got it all over the new rug!" she squeaked and wiped off the excess water she had newly acquired. Anubis frowned,
"I don't understand why you are so upset. You were lying on the wet pavement, unconscious-"
"No thanks to you..." Tori muttered under her breath. Anubis continued, ignoring her comment, "Well, what was I supposed to do? Just leaving you out in that?!" He pointed to one of the windows; the rain began to pelt the house harder. Tori glared at him, "I wouldn't have been unconscious if some idiot hadn't tried to run me down!"
"I did nothing of the sort, and you were the one walking in the middle of the street, in a thunderstorm, might I add. It wasn't my fault that a tree nearly crushed me!" Anubis defended. Tori fumed, "... I was fine until you showed up! By the way, what the hell were you doing speeding through a school zone?! I should sue!" Anubis rolled his blue eyes and bent down close into her face, "What the hell were you doing in the middle of a thunderstorm, Little One? I hope not admiring the scenery," he smirked. Tori flushed and clenched her fists at her sides,
"I... I... That's none of your business, you jerk! And the name's Tori!"
"Ooh, very smooth... I felt that burn in the pit of my being," he sighed folding his arms. "I think I'll go crawl into a corner and cry now..."
Tori opened her mouth to utter some very unlady-like phrases at Anubis, when her friends came down the stairs; her little sister trailing behind. "Tori! You are soo late!" Megami scolded playfully. Sakura chimed in, "Yeah, if we had known you'd have your hands tied with this stud here, we wouldn't have waited!"
"Heey Tori! Aren'tcha gonna introduce your honey to us?" Megami giggled, "He's cute!!" she gestured at the blushing ronin; Anubis had suddenly found the painting hanging on the wall beside him to be extremely interesting. "Hey! He's not my 'honey' for one thing! He's a maniac who almost cut my visionary life just short of his time!" Anubis snorted and gave her a cool glance, "If you have talent and vision, then I'm the Easter Bunny," he mumbled. Tori whirled around, a look of anger flaring in her bronze eyes. "I have talent and vision!... I just don't give a damn..."
"Why does that not surprise me?" he sighed. Tori's face turned quite a charming color of pink. Anubis turned to Domo and asked in a whisper, "Is she always like this?"
"NO!!" Tori roared.
"Yes..." everyone else answered with a smirk. Tori snarled,
"Some friends you all turned out to be! I've had enough of this bullshi-"
"Tori? Did you have a bad day?" asked a voice from the adjacent room. Through the opened entryway, a tall, long, snow-white haired man, looking in his early twenties, stood with a smile on his face. Tori froze and shrunk back, "Y-yes, 'Jiisan," she mumbled, looking down at her soggy shoes. "Granpaa!" Kiku jumped out from behind the banister railing and into her grandfather's arms. "Oh! Hello my Little Flower! And how are you today?" he asked cheerfully.
"Kiku is fine... Granpa?... Who is that man?" she asked in a whisper. He looked over at Anubis and smiled, "Why don't you ask him?" he whispered back. Setting Kiku down at his feet, she shied behind his leg. Anubis, seeing how adorable this child was, kneeled down in front of her and smiled, "And who might you be, little one?" He lowered his voice into a sweet whisper that made Kiku smile. Tori rolled her eyes, "Oh, give me a flipping break..." she muttered under her breath and flounced off toward the stairs.
"Tori?" Her grandfather's voice was tinged with warning and she stopped half way up, not turning to look back at him, "Yes, 'Jiisan?"
"I would like to have a word with you later."
"... Yes sir." And she disappeared up the stairs.
Anubis stared up after her and frowned slightly. What a witch... 'Glad she's not my grandchild, he thought with a laugh. He felt a slight tug at his blazer and looked down. The child, Kiku peered intently up at him. "I Kiku." Anubis smiled in response. She continued to stare at him, "... What is it, Kiku?"
"... You... You look like the prince from the book 'Ri-san reads to me," she replied. Anubis looked up at her grandfather and laughed, "Quite a darling you have Kaos!"
"Yes. I'm surprised. She usually is not good with people..." Kaos touched Kiku's long hair and noticed the four girls standing by silently. "Anubis... I would like you to meet-"
"Ah! So you four hold the Runes!" he smiled, seeming to be relieved. "We have them and not a moment too soon!" Kaos looked at Anubis in puzzlement,
"How did you figure that? I had not said a word of it to you before."
"... I realized it on the way after I... rescued your granddaughter. I recalled you murmuring something before you left suddenly three years ago. Sensing dark power over the city triggered my memory." Kaos nodded his head and turned back to the girls,
"Well, I won't have to remind you then, Anubis... Ladies, this is Anubis, the Ronin Warrior of Loyalty." Megami flushed when he bowed,
"Wow... he's so formal!" she whispered into Sakura's ear. Domo overheard her and folded her arms, cocking a superior smile, "You don't see that anymore. It's good to know that there are some decent males left on the planet." Anubis flushed heavily. It had been a while since he had time for women, "I try." Megami giggled,
"Well, it was nice meeting you, Anubis, but we'd better get back to Tori and keep her company. She might get mad that we're down here making friends with you." Sakura sighed,
"Yeah, we're sorry about her behavior; she's usually not like that-"
"Must've failed a test or gotten yelled at for her grades," Domo snorted. Nasake elbowed her gently, "Ow!"
"Be nice!" she snapped in a harsh whisper. Sakura glared at them,
"Anyway, well see you later," she finished, picking Kiku up. Anubis looked up the stairs, "Please tell your friend... Tori, was it?... That I apologize for earlier. I was only doing what I thought would be best," Anubis said. Sakura smiled,
"Oh, don't mind her. Most of the time she's nice to be around, but I'll tell her. We all gotta be friends if we're gonna win."
*****
Kento of Hardrock smacked his head against the window trying to keep his balance from tripping over the vacuum cord while cleaning. "Ow, dammit!!"
"Hardrock! Don't do that; I just washed it!!" Sekhmet yelled from the other side of the room. Kento rubbed his forehead and glared at the green haired ronin, "Gee Sekh, I feel so relieved that you care more about the damn window than my head!" Sekhmet set the bottle of window cleaner onto the table beside him and looked at Kento calmly before asking, "Have you recently acquired an hourglass figure, a melodious voice, and a burning desire to bear a snake demon's child?"
Dais, who was also in the room, bit his lip to hide his amusement, "How he'd manage that I do not want to know!" Kento frowned,
"No, Sekh, I haven't... " Sekhmet laughed,
"Then why would I care about your head more than the window I worked so diligently to wash?" he asked lightly and went back to washing the other windows. Kento rolled his eyes,
"... You are one seriously fucked up guy." He flipped on the vacuum and went back to cleaning.
Mia walked into the laundry room with an arms load of dirty clothes from Yuli, Kento, and Ryo's rooms. Laying them into a heap in front of the washing machine, she sighed heavily, "... You'd think that they'd notice the smell after a few weeks!" Better do a double wash... she thought.
"Lady Mia?" Dais poked his head into the laundry room, scaring Mia half to death.
"God! Dais, don't do that!" she gasped placing her hand on her chest. Dais smiled slyly,
"Sorry. Force of habit. Have you seen Cale?" Mia dumped the measured amount of detergent into the washer, "No, Dais, I haven't... Where was the last place you saw him?"
"He was in the upstairs bathroom. Said something about cleaning the evil army of germs that Ryo told him about..." Mia raised her eyebrow,
Ryo... You and your stories. She then froze and shut the lid to the washer slowly, "Dais? You did remember to tell him to keep the doors and windows open, didn't you?" Dais shook his head, "No. Why, was I supposed to?" Mia brushed past him in a hurry, "Lady Mia? Where are you going?" He followed her through the house to the upstairs bathroom. The door was shut and Mia opened it, "Dammit... First the 'Evil Dust Bunnies From Central Venus' now this..." she muttered. Dais peeked out from behind her and tried not to laugh. He covered his nose with his hand as a powerful wave of fumes swept over him.
The Ronin Warrior of Obedience sat in the tub up to his elbows in soapsuds while in his "I Love NY" boxers. The floor, as well as the bucket on his head, was covered with suds too. The bucket left him blind and the toilet seat he had taken apart looked to be used as a steering wheel of a car. Cale made a noise resembling a car horn, "BEEEEEEP! Vroom! Vroom!" Cale shouted, "Hey! Move outta the way! Lady with a baby! Lady with a baby!! Hey jack ass move your geezer car-"
"Cale... honey. What are you doing?" Mia asked carefully and gently and in a very motherly tone. Cale pushed the bucket upward so that he saw Mia. His face lit up, "Lady Mia! HI!" he grinned.
"Cale, what are you-"
"Oh, Lady Mia! You shouldn't be standing in the car! Put you seat belt on!" Cale said in a quiet voice. He had leaned down close; Mia looked at him, "Why are we whispering?" she said equally soft. "... I don't know... Now, if you'll s'cuse me-" he pulled the bucket back over his face, "I've got a bathroom to save! Look out dirt and mold! Cale the Bathroom Overlord's gonna get you!" He picked up a plunger and began singing, "Grandma got run over by a warlooord-"
Dais bit his lip to hide his mirth and picked up one of the now empty bottles of household cleanser, " 'Use only in well ventilated areas. Avoid prolonged breathing of vapors... This product contains bleach. Do not mix or use this product with other household chemicals. To do so will release hazardous... gases...'" Dais raised an eyebrow and looked around the room and at Cale.
"I've got a lovely bunch of coconuts, deedily do there they are all standing in row! Bum, bum, bum-"
"Gods! There have to be at least ten empty bottles worth of toxins floating around in here!!" he exclaimed. Mia coaxed Cale out of the bathtub,
"Cale-"
"Bathroom Overlord."
"What?"
"Call me Cale, the Bathroom Overlord!" he corrected again.
"Okay... Bathroom Overlord-"
"Yes, my child?"
"... Umm... I think you won the battle. The dirt's- all gone!"
"It is? Really?! Haha! I killed 'em!" Cale leapt out of the tub completely, and out of the bathroom. Dais sighed, "He got them all right... and every last brain cell in that thick head of his." Mia opened a window, "... Let's go find Sage and heal Cale before he decides to-"
"Hey Yuli! 'Wanna put hair on your chest?!"
"Ummm... Mia says that I'm not allowed to drink sake-"
"Nonsense!! I've been drinking since I was eight! You're what: seventeen, eighteen?"
"... I'm nine, Cale."
"Really?... Ah. close enough!!"
*****
"Tori come on! Don't be difficult!" Sakura begged.
"Absolutely not!!" Tori barked from behind her changing screen. She removed her shirt and launched it over the side almost hitting Sakura in the face with it. "I don't understand what your problem is! The guy saved your life and this is how you treat him! You have no reason to be rude or angry!!" Tori slipped her tank top over her bare skin and frowned at Sakura.
"Why am I angry? WHY?! He didn't save anything! The only thing he did was hit me with his stupid car and have the nerve to poke his nose where it didn't belong! Then, he insults and embarrasses me in my own house! That's why I'm angry!!"
"HEY! Quit your bitching, Tori! Anubis doesn't deserve to be treated like dirt after what he did for you! He could have just left you out there and you'd probably be in some kind of serious trouble if it weren't for him! If it were me and I knew that you'd flip out over nothing, I'd have left your ass out there for you to fend for yourself! Now, go downstairs and at least thank the guy for giving you a ride home!"
"... And if I don't?" Tori frowned and crossed her arms. Domo opened the bedroom door and waited for her to walk through, "I'll pull you down by your hair and in your underwear... MOVE."
"All right, all right! Don't get your panties in a knot!"
*****
"Kaos, when do you plan on leaving for Lady Mia's? The ronins have been cleaning like crazy after hearing that pretty women would be staying for a while!" Anubis laughed. The Ancient rolled his eyes and laughed, "... Tomorrow morning is when we all were planning to go. I had a hard time convincing the other girls' parents and guardians to let them go. They are supposed to be attending a meditating retreat with me, and that it was going to be an excellent spiritual experience that will rid them of their rebellious nature."
"I never knew you were the kind of person to lie, Kaos!" Anubis laughed.
"'Jiisan?"
Tori stood in the doorway shyly. Kaos smiled and beckoned her inside the living room. "There you are. I was wondering what had happened to you. You seemed upset after earlier." Kaos said as she sat down next to him. Tori nodded slowly and looked over at Anubis. He stared at her with an intense look in his eyes that almost frightened her. "I-I'm fine. I was a little tired today," she replied softy.
"Tori... I want to give you something." Kaos reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a chinese red, ruby shard. He handed it to Tori, "It's an old family heirloom that I want you to have."
"... Really? How old?"
"... A... few hundred years old, "Kaos replied after a hesitant pause. Tori's eyes went wide as she saw the shard glow. "WHOA! D-did you see that?!" she yelped almost dropping it.
"See what?"
"I-it glowed just now!" Tori exclaimed looking at the shard intently. Kaos gave Anubis a cool smirk, "Did it?"
"YES!"
"Tori... Why don't you head off to bed now? We're leaving for Toyama tomorrow," Kaos said. Tori smiled, "We are!? Oh! I have been waiting for this forever! Good night!" Tori then kissed her grandfather on the cheek and headed for the door. "Tori?" Kaos began.
"Yes sir?" Kaos looked over at Anubis who had stood politely as she went to leave the room. Tori flushed, "Oh... umm... Good night, Anubis.... Thanks," she whispered and bolted from the room as quickly as possible.
Anubis stood for a moment and then sat down, "... I think I make her uneasy."
"She'll get used to it. She hasn't been around a man of your stature before and she's not very talkative when she's around people she doesn't know very well."
"Why is that?"
"... Not having her mother and father around to watch her has something to do with it, but I cannot say anything further. It will make training more difficult."