Finally a understanding
I don't own any copyrighted material, except my own OC's: anyone else's OC's will be acknowledged in their introduction chapter
Costal road 20 miles from Yasuki lands southern border
The group of 4 continued to snake along the coastal highway as fast as they could maintain. Each mile of road slowly got better and better. With better maintenance, trimmed and cleared trees, and better sightlines, the travel was safer and easier. Everyone slowly got into a better state of mind, even Testuo began to relax and calm his security paranoia. The most dramatic effect was on Cao's mood and demeanor. Every single mile closer he seemed to be more at ease and happier, and even began to smile on a regular basis. For Ruby it was kind of odd to see him like this, but she was happy he finally changed.
"Isn't it a great day today? The sun is shining, the coastal breeze blowing, and we are making good time today." Cao said happily with a smile
"Can we get grumpy and annoyed Cao back? This is actually starting to scare me." Ruby said, scooting away from Cao slightly
"All of you for the past few weeks have complained about my attitude being sour, and now when I actually have a reason to be in a good mood, you guys want me to go back to being sour? There simply are no pleasing you people." Cao said as he whipped the reins to keep the horses moving
"Maybe if you were consistent in your behavior this wouldn't happen." Testuo said bluntly
"Coming from the Ronin who's two emotions are angry and impersonating a block of wood." Cao shot back, and very quickly he could tell he hit a nerve
"That's it! Stop this wagon and we are settling this once and for all!" Testuo roared, 3 veins popping out of his forehead, which is how long Cao reckoned he'd have to live at this rate
"Testuo can you please calm down! We've been delayed enough!" Velvet yelled from the back of the wagon
"This is serious woman!" Testuo yelled back
"No, it is not Testuo! No more fighting! It is not productive, not helpful, and only slows us down. And you know it. Cao is finally in a good mood, please don't ruin that and make it miserable for the rest of us." Velvet explained, causing Testuo to groan and finally back down, though only reluctantly
"Its all in jest Testuo. I know you don't want to go deeper into your past. I understand and I'm in that same boat. Just try to control your anger from now on." Cao said with a smile
"I really want angry Cao back now. Or to somehow meet Yang and Azura around here. Anything but what I'm siting next to right now." Ruby said as she scooted to the other side of the bench
"Why don't you go help Velvet organize the supplies and goods back there?" Cao asked politely
"Good idea." Ruby said and rushed back there, Testuo taking her place on the bench
"Is it really that hard to accept seeing me in a good mood?" Cao asked
"Its mostly Ruby. I could care less." Testuo said as he pulled out a tanto and began to peel a peach
"Just when I think I understand that woman, she throws me for another loop and I'm back to square one." Cao shook his head and sighed
"You really do like her then." The other Ronin said with a slight smile
"Keep it down. I don't want her to hear that." Cao whispered hoarsely
"When did you get attracted to her." Testuo said is a somewhat quieter voice to appease his peer
"When I first met her. It was in a tavern in Beacon. When I saw her… I was floor. I didn't know what to think, but I was speechless. It was something I've never felt for any woman before, and a peasant woman no less. That feeling has never gone away. All it has done is grown, and I don't know what to do." Cao said, his voice becoming sadder and more dejected with each word
"Tell her how you feel." Testuo said bluntly before eating a peach slice
"Coming from the man who can't tell Velvet how he feels, despite 100 chances passing him by." Cao said in his usual sarcastic tone
"Then use my failings as an example of what not to do." Testuo said, biting back vitriol towards his peer for the comment
Cao had nothing to reply to that, because he knew he was right. However, he didn't feel he had the ability to commit to such an action. At best they had a unstable relationship, and the two still frequently argued about things. Plus, he still didn't fully trust her with the truth about what he was carrying. If he wanted to have a serious relationship with her, he'd have to tell her, and right now he couldn't afford that. Though he didn't show it, all this was sapping away all the good cheer he had. Little did he know in the back, Ruby was having a similar conundrum about him.
"I just don't get him Velvet. He swings his emotions so wildly that I can't tell what he really is or what he thinks. He puts on a veneer of a collected samurai so much I really don't know much about him. It makes me wonder if it was wise to come with him on this journey." Ruby said with a sigh to Velvet as they organized various goods
"Samurai aren't supposed to show much emotion. Only Ronin can get away with it because they have no master and as a result no obligations." Velvet explained
"That still doesn't explain why he's so cryptic, vague and his wild mood swings. You'd swear we were endangering his life in some way." Ruby said with a sigh
"Maybe we are." Velvet thought out loud
"How so?" Ruby asked in confusion
"When someone is cryptic about details, they typically have a good reason for it." Velvet said
"I guess your right. I just wish he was consistent and more honest with us." Ruby sighed and went back to work
The group continued on their way, both Cao and Ruby lost in their thoughts about the other. This left the wagon eerily quiet, as both Testuo and Velvet dared not disturb them in this intense train of thought their peers were having. However, all of this would end in a spectacular way. They rounded a corner in the coastal road near a thick patch of forest. With the force of a rolling thunderhead two large red Oni knocked the wagon over and broke the horse's free of their yokes. This sudden change of events caused the horses to panic and run away and sending the group of four flying off into the dirt.
"It was going so well on the monster front." Cao said as he got up slowly
"Less talking, more killing." Testuo said as he stood up and pulled his Nodachi sword from his back
"About time you use that thing." Cao said as he drew his katana
"Didn't need to use it until now. Nothing big came up." Testuo said before charging
As the two began to engage the 10-foot-tall tetsubo wielding demons, they didn't notice a third one creeping around the back. This third one was only about 8 feet tall, blue in color and far skinnier than the hulking brutes that fought the Ronin. He didn't even carry a weapon, as even though he was smaller, he was still more powerful than the prey he was after. It had its sights on the girls who were getting themselves up from the fall. Using surprising amounts of guile and control, it snuck up to them quietly and wasn't noticed till it grabbed Ruby in its millstone size hand.
"Ruby!" Velvet yelled
"Run Velvet!" Ruby yelled as she tried to resist in vain
The blue demon tried to grab Velvet but recoiled from the presence of her holy symbols on her robes and around her neck. It stumbled back, but still held Ruby firmly in its grasp. Then she was slung over his shoulder and rushed off. The two Ronin noticed this but couldn't do anything at the time due to the attention of the other Oni. Testuo was using his semblance to keep his opponent from hitting him, but he couldn't hurt it back. The demons thick muscles and stone like hide made it hard for the Nodachi and katana of the Ronin from getting through.
"Can you take care of this? I need to get Ruby!" Cao yelled
"Let's focus one down! I can't take two on and win!" Testuo yelled back and Cao activated his semblance
His semblance didn't give him much, but he did find something. A small poorly healed wound on the back of his neck was all he got. Testuo then began distracting his oni, causing his back to be turned to Cao. Suddenly he surged forward, running up the back of the beast before stabbing the katana deep into its wound. The demon roared and tried to shake him off. Holding on for dear life Cao then jumped down, using his weight to force the katana down and split open a portion of its spine. This caused untold pain on the oni and it roared in utter pain.
"Come on you can do better than that!" Testuo said as he parried one of the oni's strikes
"I can't make it go down more! Do something!" Cao yelled from behind the oni
Thinking quickly Testuo stood in front of the injured oni and taunted its partner. The other oni swung its tetsubo hard at him, but the Ronin rolled out of the way and the club smashed the injured oni's foot. This caused the demon to recoil in even more pain and begin bouncing on one foot. This bouncing only allowed Cao to slide down more, further splitting his spine open. Only the unnatural forces that made up the creature allowed it to keep going and stand up. Finally, with one final heave, Cao forced his blade through the last bit of its spine and with that the oni fell over in a lifeless heap.
"Now go get Ruby! I can handle this one!" Testuo yelled as he parried an overhead blow from his demonic foe
"Got it! Don't die!" Cao yelled as he ran off
Meanwhile in a nearby cave
The oni entered the cave and dropped Ruby onto a bedroll made of rough sheep wool. She groaned in pain as she slowly looked around. Aside from the bedrolls, she only saw large barrels of sake and other alcoholic beverages. The oni then immediately began to chug large quantities of the stuff and was quickly becoming horribly drunk. It eyed her with a very evil smile and began to stumble over to her.
"You stay back! I'm warning you." Ruby yelled in fear, slowly scooting away on her back
The monster only chuckled before grabbing her clothes, trying to pull her close. Ruby then used this moment to bite the demons closest finger. Unlike its larger brethren, this one did not have the thick stone like hide, instead having skin more like a humans. It roared in pain and violently pulled back, tearing her kimono to shreds. Ruby laid there in her underwear, shivering in fear and from the cold of the cave. It then looked back at her in drunken anger.
"No… NO!" Ruby yelled as she tried to run away, but was trapped by the wall
She turned to the wall and began to cry in fear. Why was this happening to her? What horrors would this monster do to her? The monster was about to grab her when Cao rushed into the room. He didn't need his semblance to tell this demon wasn't quite on the level of the others. He rushed to the oni and slashed at the monsters leg. The blade easily bit into the leg and sliced to the bone but glanced off the demons thick bone.
"You stay the hell away from her!" Cao yelled as he got between the monster and Ruby, who still didn't look and cowered in fear in the corner of the cave
The monster roared in pain and anger and charged. Cao stood his ground and stopped its charge with a slash to a finger joint. While the bone was too thick for the katana to cut through, the joint was a different story. The finger flew off and thick black blood strayed from the wound. Cao was covered in it as it sprayed out, but he stood his ground firmly. He may had failed to protect her from capture, but this monster wasn't going to cause the same failure twice.
The oni roared and tried to punch him, but Cao sliced the monsters fist in half with a overhand chop. This cause thicker black blood to cover Cao in its spraying gore. This caused the oni to roar even louder, enough to rattle the cave, and stumble back. This time Cao went on the attack and rushed forward. He then cut the leg he already attacked again, forcing the Oni down onto one knee. Then Cao plunged his sword to the hilt into the monsters cut. Finally, with one mighty heave he made a rightward slash, nearly cutting the monster in two. The oni then slumped and fell to the side Cao cut out of.
"Ruby." Cao muttered and turned around
What he saw before him broke his heart. Ruby curled herself into the corner of the cave sobbing uncontrollably. Her kimono ripped to shreds by the Oni, bruises forming from her rough treatment and the attack. Her body shook in uncontrollable fear. He felt as if his heart had committed seppuku right on the stop. However, he fought through it as best as he could, and he knew he needed to act.
"Ruby?" Cao asked, his voice uncertain, but no reply
"Ruby its okay." Cao said more firmly, this time she looked up
"Cao?" she said weakly, her lips trembling pathetically in fear
"Yes, it's me Ruby. Its alright now. Nothings here to harm you." Cao said as he took off his kimono, leaving his basic training clothes underneath
Before he could cover her, Ruby suddenly turned around and hugged him, sobbing into his shoulder fitfully. Cao stood their shocked, unsure of what to consciously do, but his body knew. By pure instinct alone he then gently hugged her back and held her close. He then slowly began to rub her back to try and help her calm down. However, it didn't do much to help.
"Its okay Ruby everything's okay." Cao said
"Why?" Ruby asked through her sobs
"Why what?" Cao asked confused
"Why do you keep saving me? Why do you constantly argue and make our lives difficult? Why don't you tell me anything about you or what you do? Why are you so damn difficult, stubborn and…" Ruby said angerly through her continued sobs, pouring everything out in this moment of vulnerability, but Cao cut her off
"I'm sorry Ruby." Cao said in a soft tone
"What? No, you're not. Answer my question!" Ruby yelled angerly and pushed Cao violently off her
"I'm sorry for my poor behavior. I'm sorry for my vagueness, my temper, and my stubbornness. I didn't think. It was dishonorable and shameful of me to put you, Testuo, and Velvet through all of that for all this time." Cao said, finally starting to cry himself a bit
"But why? Why did you do this to me for all this time?" Ruby asked, finally stopping herself crying
"Because… Because I love you Ruby… and I didn't know how to express it. I never fell in love before and I didn't know what to do." Cao said regretfully, fearing the worst
Ruby didn't say anything. Standing their stunned, she didn't know what to think. Everything he said to her rattled through her head, and in the end it proved to much for her after all that had happened to her. Cao saw her stumbled and begin to fall backwards and rushed to catch her. Thankfully he caught her in time but noticed that her face was beet red and that she had fainted on the spot.
"Thanks a lot for the advice Testuo." Cao sighed, closing his eyes and shaking his head, wondering just what was in store for him next
Well this is going to make things awkward for those two going forward. Though now would not be the time for Yang and Azura to catch up with them. That's if they can catch up with them. As always I have to thank everyone who is reading this story. It means a lot that people like and read my insane ideas, and it gives me motivation to continue. Hope you all have a great day and I'll see you all next time.