'Idiots are abundant in this world.' This was something Kanae had come to learn quickly at a young age. Despite that, every now and then she could still be surprised at the idiocy humans had to offer.

"Please just let me follow along."

"No, I'm not going to be responsible when you die from thirst. Either pay the fee or stay out of our way."

Kanae shook her head, wondering how anyone could be so determined to die, but the girl was adamant. Her jaw was set, arguing with the leader of the escort party, demanding the right to join their group without paying the fee. Didn't she know how things worked in this world? If you wanted service you had to pay for it.

"I'm not going to ask for food." said the girl "I don't need protection, and I won't get in the way. Besides, you can't stop me if I choose to follow you anyway."

'Yup, definitely an idiot.' thought Kanae, tightening the straps on her backpack. For a journey across the desert, you needed a large amount of food and water to supply you along the way. That, or magical items that could either make or draw out water for you. This particular groups of travelers weren't that affluent, so everyone had to carry the water they would need by themselves or on their beasts. Yet the girl apparently believed she could make it across the desert with one small backpack and single flask of water.

Even if you could make it with supplies, there were other dangers the desert had to offer. Sand worms, night demons, bandits, and a whole host of other things. Hence the reason Kanae and other mercenaries had been hired to protect the group on their way.

"Fine." growled the man, throwing up his hands. "If you want the desert to be your grave, then be my guest. But I'm going to instruct everyone not to give you a lick of food or protection. You're on your own."

The girl's face brightened.

"Thank you so much!" said the girl, giving a polite curtsy. "I won't cause trouble."

The same bright expression greeted Kanae when she said Kyoko's name. The girl gave a loud squeal (Kanae wouldn't have been surprised if her ears had started bleeding at that moment) and grappled Kanae into a hug.

"Mo, get off me!" said Kanae, trying to pry Kyoko's fingers off from around her waist. It was useless, the girl had latched herself on to Kanae.

"I can't believe I got to see you again!" said Kyoko, somehow managing to tighten her grip. "This must be fate! I've missed you so much."

"Kyoko." wheezed Kanae, "I can't breathe."

"Oh, sorry."

Kyoko finally let go, and Kanae was able to fill her lungs with air again.

"Seriously, you're still such a spaz." said Kanae, rubbing her ribs. She was already sore from her fight. She didn't need this kind of mistreatment as well. "And why are you still calling me that strange nickname? How did you even come up with it anyway?"

"I'm not sure." said Kyoko with a shrug. "You just say 'Mo!' a lot, and the rest just kind of came to me."

Kanae mutter darkly, seriously thinking about telling her to lay off the nick name. Her irritation didn't last though. Curiosity won over as she examined Kyoko, still not sure what to make of the girl's appearance. She was wearing what was obviously a very expensive festival outfit, the medallions on the head piece alone probably enough to feed Kanae for a few months. Her skin was smooth and shiny, her body more filled out than the last time they had parted. The girl had obviously been enjoying some nice baths and food for a while. Then there was that necklace! Everything about her screamed money. Did being a physician really pay that well?

"You seem to be doing well." said Kanae, gesturing at Kyoko's clothes. "Did you get that license like you wanted to. Got a nice fancy job now?"

Kyoko's eyes widened.

"Moko-san." she said, her voice quiet in awe. "You did listen to what I was saying. I can't believe it. I thought you were asleep."

Kanae looked away, cursing the heat rising to her face. How did Kyoko manage to make her loose face like this all the time? "How could I not listen? You wouldn't stop blabbering away, making so much noise I couldn't sleep."

Kyoko made as if to launch herself on Kanae again, but the spear wielder held up a hand, glaring at the girl. "If you jump on me, I won't talk to you ever again."

Kyoko bit her lip, but thankfully held back.

"What are you doing here anyway?" said Kyoko. "I thought you were going to continue traveling with another group to the next city. Did you decide to stay instead?"

"No, I went with them." said Kanae, relaxing now that she was sure Kyoko wouldn't trying jumping on her again. "Another group wanted to come to the capital for the festival. I needed the money so I accompanied them. Once I was here I decided to stay and try out in the battle royal. Looked like my gamble worked since just getting to the finals will earn me a reward."

"So does that mean you'll stay for a while?" said Kyoko, a glint entering her eyes. Kanae recognized that glint. It was the glint of crazy ideas running through Kyoko's head that included torturing Kanae with girly things.

"Well... at least until the finals tomorrow." said Kanae cautiously.

Kyoko squealed – again making Kanae's ears bleed – jumping up and down in excitement.

"This is great." said Kyoko, speaking at a million miles per hour. "We can go to all the stands together, buy a desert flower for you, get our fortunes told. Oh! And watch those amazing acrobats I saw earlier. This is going to be so much fun."

"Kyoko..." said Kanae, shaking her head, yet she couldn't quite suppress a small smile as she watched the girl talk animatedly about their future adventures together. The girl's glee was contagious.

Kanae was about the talk some sense into Kyoko when she heard another voice call to the hyper girl, and this one didn't sound too happy.

"Lady Kyoko."

The two women glanced up at the newcomer. Kanae's eye's narrowed, wondering if she was seeing things. The person that had called at them was dressed in the gray and red armor of a palace guard, his strides long and purposeful as he walked towards them. Why would a palace guard address Kyoko as "Lady" Kyoko?

"Please don't run off like that again." said the man, voice stern as he stopped in front of them. "It is important for your safety to stay close to me at all times."

Kyoko has a palace guard looking after her? thought Kanae, confused. What kind of job did this girl have in order to gain such an honor?

"My bad." said Kyoko, giving a weak smile. "I couldn't help myself after I saw Moko-san."

"Just make sure it doesn't happen again." said the guard. "You are in the midst of skilled fighters and you never know if any of them could mean you any harm."

Kanae did not miss the meaningful look he shot in her direction. She narrowed her eyes at the man.

"I assure you, Kyoko is safe with me." said Kanae, voice hard as she glared at him. How dare he even imply that she would wish harm to Kyoko!?

"Yeah, you don't have to worry." said Kyoko, smiling "Kanae would have protected me. No one can beat her!"

"This is Yuusei." Kyoko pressed on with introductions, oblivious to the silent fight between the two. "He's one of the guards assigned to watch over me."

"Why do you need a guard?" said Kanae, breaking eye contact with Yuusei, who continued to watch her suspiciously. She ignored his gaze. It wasn't like Kanae couldn't take him anyway, the man had so many openings. She could easily exploit those in a fight.

Kyoko didn't get to answer. At that moment, four other people rounded the corner. One of them, a small girl with long curly hair ran up to Kyoko and gave her a big hug.

"Where did you go big sister?" said the girl. "You just ran off before we could figure out what was going on."

Sister? thought Kanae, I thought Kyoko was an only child.

"Sorry Maria." said Kyoko, patting the girl's head. "But I saw a friend I hadn't seen in a long time and got excited. Would you like to meet her?'

"Of course!" said the small girl.

"Maria, meet Kanae Kotonami." said Kyoko, gesturing at Kanae. "She is an excellent fighter and my very best friend!"

"You decided that last part by yourself." said Kanae before she could help herself. Kyoko's spiels on friendship were a little embarrassing, especially since it was a one-sided decision.

"And this is Duchess Maria Takarada." said Kyoko, ignoring Kanae's remark. "She's like a little sister to me."

"I am your little sister." huffed Maria.

"Wait a moment." said Kanae, frowning. Had she heard Kyoko correctly? "You're a Duchess? And a Takarada to boot?"

"Yup." said Maria, giving a little curtsy. "It's a pleasure to meet you!"

Kanae shot Kyoko a glare. The girl had the decency to flinch, her happy expression faltering before bouncing back. Since when had Kyoko been all cozy with the Takarada family? Kyoko had insisted that she hadn't known anyone that lived in the capital when traveling here. Had she been lying to her? The girl looked innocent, but there was no way she was a simple peasant if she was wearing such fancy clothes, being guarded by a palace guard and was "sisters" with a Takarada. The Takarada's were the most influential family in the kingdom, save the Hizuri's. No one but the best and most wealthy were close to them.

"Believe me, the pleasure is all mine Duchess Maria." said Kanae, her voice carefully level as she gave a short bow. Kyoko had some major explaining to do before this day was over, and depending on her explanation, Kanae might not forgive her.

Maria cocked her head at Kanae before turning to Kyoko. "Why does she look so angry?"

"Don't worry about it." said Kyoko with a laugh. "It's just how she looks normally."

"Oi." said Kanae, now seriously annoyed. "I can hear you in case you haven't figured that out."

Kyoko introduced Kanae to the other three, again ignoring Kanae's grumbling. They were apparently Maria's maid and guards, all there to escort the two girls.

"So how did you two meet?" said Maria. "I've never heard you talk about Kanae before."

"Kanae was hired as an escort for a group traveling across the desert." said Kyoko. Kanae had to ignore the stab of pain in her heart as Kyoko talked. Kyoko didn't talk about her to others? "I was in that group. Kanae ended up taking care of me a lot since I kept getting into trouble."

"So you're a mercenary?" said Maria, addressing Kanae. The Duchess's air instantly changed, A sinister aura rose from the girl as her grin become twisted. How in the world did a young girl even make such an expression? "Does that mean you've been in a lot of battles before? Have you ever fought dark creatures from the sands?"

"Yeah." said Kanae, not sure how to react. Kyoko was just smiling like normal, enjoying the conversation. Wasn't she in the least bit disturbed by the Duchess's behavior?

"Awesome!" said Maria, the expression vanishing to be replaced with normal excitement. "That must be so exciting. You have to tell me all about it. My grandfather won't tell me about when he fights dark creatures, and no one else will tell me cause I'm too young and fragile." Maria held up two finger, making a 'quoting' gesture as she spoke.

Kanae made a non committal sound in her throat, as the girl's maid tried to scold the girl with a harsh "Maria!". What kind of people did Kyoko associate herself with? Well, it wasn't like she could say much, being a female fighter and everything.

As strange as the group was, there was no way Kanae could have ever expected the next person to round the corner and call for Kyoko. Another jolt of shock went through Kanae. A tall, black haired man was waving at Kyoko, and Kanae immediately recognized him as the person who had won the first round. He also happened to be a member of the royal family, Shin Hizuri.

"Kyoko, there you are." said Shin, stopping in front of Kyoko and flashing her a grin. "I was looking everywhere for you. Did you even see my fight?"

"Of course." said Kyoko, smiling at the man. "You were amazing."

"Naturally." said Shin, " I had you cheering for me after all. I could do no less with so much at stake."

Kanae gaped at him, wondering if she had heard correctly. Was Shin Hizuri flirting with Kyoko?

"By the way, who is your absolutely lovely friend here?" he said, gesturing at Kanae. "I would love to be introduced if you don't mind."

Kanae's head snapped towards Shin, wondering if there was something wrong with his head. Kyoko was busy introducing them, but Kanae wasn't listening.

"How in the world did you end up meeting him?" said Kanae to Kyoko, cutting off what Shin was going to say next. She probably shouldn't have interrupted so rudely, considering the difference in their rank and everything. But the shock was making her lose all sense.

It was Shin that actually answered the question.

"Kyoko is one of my dear cousin's concubines." he said with a smirk. "And one of his favorites I might add."

Kanae's mouth fell open in shock. Innocent, naive Kyoko was a concubine? A Concubine!?

Dimly, she was aware of Kyoko vehemently denying that she was one of prince Kuon 'favorites', they were just good friends that enjoyed each others company. The implication of that one sentence was making Kanae's head spin.

"You're a concubine to the crown prince of Ashuron?" Said Kanae, still trying to gather he thoughts. "As in, Prince Kuon's concubine? The next king of our country?"

Kyoko scratched the back of her head, not making eye contact with Kanae. "It kinda just turned out that way." she mumbled.

Kanae's mind went blank, common sense and decency leaving along with proper coherent thoughts. She grabbed Kyoko's arm, turning to glare at the group around them.

"If you would all excuse us." said Kanae, her voice so sharp she saw Maria shiver. "I would like to talk to Kyoko for a minute. Alone."

Without waiting for a reply, Kanae dragged Kyoko down the hall, far enough away that they wouldn't be overheard but still seen.

"Moko-san!" said Kyoko. "I shouldn't stray too far from Yuusei again. He said that..." Kyoko's voice drifted, her mouth snapping shut at the look on Kanae's face.

"You are going to explain to me right now what is going on." said Kanae, anger boiling inside her. "And don't you dare even think about lying to me. I'm already mad enough about you lying about who you are."

"Moko-san" said Kyoko, voice weak. "I never lied to you."

"Of course you didn't." said Kanae her voice laced with sarcasm. She folded her arms across her chest, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. "You are just a normal peasant girl who happens to be a physician. Oh, and who also happen to be on a first name basis with a member of the royal family while sleeping with the crown prince. No, I'm sure you're just a normal girl."

"I'm not sleeping with the prince." said Kyoko, her face turning red. "And I really am just a normal girl."

"The thing I can't stand the most are liars and backstabbers." said Kanae, ignoring the twist in her stomach. She had thought that maybe she could trust Kyoko. That maybe Kyoko was different from the other conniving weak hypocrites that mocked her behind her back. But it looked like she had been wrong. "If you don't have the decency to come clean and admit to your lies, then this 'friendship' is over."

"NOOOOOOOO don't say that!" howled Kyoko, her face draining of color. She launched herself at Kanae, hugging the spear wielder around the waist. Kanae cursed, trying to shove the girl off of her. It was useless. Kyoko had a death grip.

"Mo! get off of me." yelled Kanae.

"Please don't say you won't be my friend anymore!"

"I'm not friends with liars and backstabbers."

"But Moko-san!"

"And stop calling me that weird nickname!"

"Kanae?"

"What!?" said Kanae, snarling at the person that interrupted them. She flinched when she realized she had just yelled at Shin Hizuri. The man didn't seem put off by it in the least, smiling at her briefly before bending down to help Kyoko stand back up.

"I have a suggestion for you, if you don't mind listening." he said, patting Kyoko on the head before jerking his head towards the group behind him. "How about the two of you spend some time together while I take Maria around town. I'm sure the two of you would enjoy catching up."

Kyoko's guard, who had come up behind Shin grunted. "I don't think that's a good idea Lord Hizuri." he said, eyes still on Kanae. "How can we be sure we can trust this woman with Kyoko?"

"Don't be such a stiff." said Shin, rolling his eyes and shoving Yuusei in the shoulder. If Kanae wasn't so angry at that moment she might have thought the look of shock on the guards face was comical. "You'll be there to protect Kyoko of course. Just make sure to let the ladies have their privacy as they talk."

"Do you think Maria would mind?" said Kyoko, looking apologetically at Shin. "I did promise to spend the day with her."

"I'm sure she'll understand." said Shin. "Just make sure to bring her back a souvenir."

"And is anyone going to ask me if I want to go along with this?" grumbled Kanae, annoyed when they didn't listen to her. Seriously, what was with these people?

Kanae removed her hood, glad to have the thing off of her head. Her sticky skin was now able to breath, enjoying the air that played on her skin. It was hot air, sure, but it was air. Kanae sat down, leaned against a rock. One of the unfortunate side effects of always being covered up was constantly being sweaty and hot. It felt good to relax for a moment. She closed her eyes, enjoying the breeze.

The sound of sand shifting alerted Kanae that someone was walking towards her. They were too close for Kanae to put her hood back up before they appeared behind the rock, having been too relaxed to pay attention. Sure enough, a second later, someone appeared.

"Oh." said a girl,"I didn't know anyone was over here."

Kanae instantly recognized her as the girl who had been kicking up such a fuss the day before. Her name was something like Koko? No, it was Kyoko.

Kanae glanced at her, trying to decide how much she cared. The girl was carrying a plate with some food on it, her water jug tied to her waist. She was thin, long black hair spilling over her shoulder from under her own hood. Her clothes were dusty and travel worn, as was bound to happen when you traversed miles of expansive desert lands. She was also staring.

Kanae ignored her, puling out her own rations for the evening with the intent of eating. Hopefully the girl would get the hint and leave Kanae alone, but a few minutes of staring told Kanae she wasn't going to stop anytime soon. Why did people always freak out so much about a female warrior?

"What?" said Kanae, her voice shaking the girl from her thoughts. "Is there something on my face?"

"Oh, no that's not it." said Kyoko. "It's just that... well."

Kanae gave a snort of contempt. 'Here is comes .' thought Kanae.

"..You're so beautiful."

Kanae chocked on the piece of food she had just put in her mouth. She glared, incredulous at the strange girl.

"You look like one of the goddesses from the old legends." continued Kyoko "The ones that come down to visit the earth, disguising themselves as humans."

Was she being serious? Apparently she was, her eyes were sparkling, literally. How did someone even do that?

"If there were gods and goddesses walking among us. I very much doubt they disguise themselves as female warriors."said Kanae bitterly.

"And why wouldn't they?" said Kyoko, and to Kanae's horror, the girl took Kanae's answer as an invitation to join her. She sat down, that sickeningly bright expression on her face. "The reason they came down was to protect and teach us. Even Rosa protects us with her fire from invading monsters, and she's just a demi-god."

"If you say so." said Kanae with a shrug. She continued to eat her food hoping that the girl would go away, but she didn't. Instead, she ate beside Kanae, continuing to prattle away. Kanae let her, blocking out whatever the girl was saying. It wasn't like they were going to even be friends or anything.

Thanks for reading!

Many of you have speculated on the future relationship between a certain raven haired woman and OC. Let me address these speculations with these words: Keep reading to find out what's going to happen. *Quickly runs away*

School starts next week, and it's going to be much busier than last semester. I will try to continue my updates of once every two weeks, but can't promise it will always happen. Thank you everyone for following and encouraging me to keep going with the story. You readers make this more than worth it. :)

-Blushweaver