Uh oh. I did a baaad thing... This chapter and the one before it were supposed to be all together...Oops. Heheh. Um, well, this is due to the fact that I've been typing up the other chapters from memory and just recently got ahold of my folder with the hand-written thing inside. I feel really bad. Oh well. Due to technical diffuculties, you will now be introduced to the prologue-of-the-story-that-I-didn't-know-existed-until-now instead of an actual chapter. PLEASE DON'T HURT ME! I BEG YOU!!! XD! I'm kidding, of course. Anyway, it'll be short, but sweet. Please enjoy. leave a review, and before I forget, thanks for all the previous compliments!

Disclaimer: I don't own Samurai Champloo or the characters. Dude, that would be cool though...

Prologue

(Mugen's POV)

I walked through the rain with her body in my arms, feeling a really weird tingle in my chest. She fit in the crooks of my body and I felt comfortable with it. I felt kinda uncomfortable, but I was too distracted to complain about it.

The temple came into view and I felt relief warm me up. The rain was freakin' cold and I knew it wasn't good for Fuu with the fever she had. I'd seen stuff like this before on my home island; if she wasn't treated she could die. I entered the temple without taking off my getas, not really caring if it was disrespectful or not. There was nobody around, and without thinking I yelled," 'Ey! Somebody get their ass over here and help me!"

The first one to come was the girl I'd seen hangin' around Fuu a couple of times. I think her name was Mai or somethin'... Then came the old fart. He ignored me when he saw Fuu, comin' over and placing a hand on her forehead. He grimmaced and sighed,"She has a fever. We must do something before it's too late."

Tell me somethin' I don't know already!

She was taken out of my arms by more monks that came out of wherever they had been before and the girl stayed behind with me when the hallway cleared out. She looked up at me and pointed to my sword and getas, waiting for me to take 'em off before she spoke.

"Thank you for finding her, Mugen-san. We are all thankful for your help," she bowed and I shifted uncomfortably, wanting to go and see her. Mai stood back up and saw me lookin' over to the room Fuu had been taken to, sighing. "I hope she'll be okay. It's probably better not to- hey!"

I started for the room halfway through her sentence, not caring if I'd get thrown out or not. I needed to hear and see that she was okay. I guess for once, I had actually been afraid that somethin' had happened to her. I've never felt that way before, but I kinda liked it. I felt like I was still supposed to protect her, and during those days, I felt like I had a purpose.

I opened the door once I got there, seeing a bunch of medicine on the floor and the monk at the foot of her futon. She had been changed into a light purple kimono and a rag was over her forehead. The monk was grinding somethin' in a bowl and on the fire place was a boiling pot of water. The father looked up and I expected to be thrown out, but he smiled and waved for me to enter. I sat crosslegged on the floor near her, lookin' over her a couple of times. Her cheeks were still kinda red, but they looked a lot better than they had before. She was breathin' steadily and I knew she was okay.

The monk stirred his stuff in the pot and cleared his throat,"She will be fine, Mugen-san. You may stay if you like, but I suggest changing yourself before the same happens to you."

At that point Mai came in with a set of clothes and left so I could change. When I sat down again, the monk offered me a cup of the stuff he had been brewin' in his pot. I took it so I could warm up and watched as he gently opened her mouth with wrinkled fingers. She mumbled somethin' in her sleep and he smiled, getting her to swallow three cupfulls before standin' up. "I trust she will be well-looked after for the night. You are welcome to have more of the medicine. Until then, Oyasumi nasai."

He left and I looked back to Fuu. The candle in the room cast dancing shadows over her, and she looked older and really pale. It was kinda cool, though. I never looked at her like this before, and she looked innocent.

I stopped when I felt the tingly feeling again, going deep in thought about a lot of stuff I'd really not like to talk about. I guess I nodded off to sleep, because I woke up when somebody gently patted my shoulder. I jumped and looked around, seeing the monk smile and point to Fuu. I was wide awake when I saw her looking over at me, and our eyes met.

"Hey, Mugen..."

"Hey. You okay?"

She seemed taken aback that I asked her, though she smiled and nodded. The monk brought her some food and she inhaled it, reminding me of my old friend from four years ago. The monk offered me some, but for once I wasn't hungry. She looked at me again and talked to the monk for a while, finally turnin' to me.

"So, did you get a good night's sleep?"

I shrugged, several of my bones popping in protest. I cracked my neck, feeling a kink in it. The monk spoke while I did, "Mugen-san stayed here the entire night. He never left your side, Fuu-chan."

Her face turned bright pink and the monk stood all of a sudden. "I will leave you to talk."

The small thud of the door slidin' shut exploded in my ears. I rubbed the back of my head nervously, feeling stupid in the process. I wasn't good at talkin' to people, and I hated feelin' awkward. I opened my mouth finally, but she beat me to it.

"Well, I feel like a fool."

"Hmm?"

She laughed,"I fainted at a really bad time!"

I smirked, realizing what she was talkin about,"Yeah, I guess you did."

Her face became serious and she twidled her thumbs, "I'm...sorry for running off. I don't know why I did it, but I kinda do, too." Her eyes met mine,"I was trying to leave like you and Jin did, but now I realize that was really stupid."

I shook my head,"I ran into fish-face and he said he told me to tell you 'Sup. What happened?"

She shook her head. "I screwed up. "

I scoffed,"No you didn't."

She blushed,"So, um, do you remember anything I said last night? Everything's kinda a blur."

I was silent, suddenly finding interest in the window. She nodded, her eyes falling to her blanket. "Right..."

I heard rustling and a small grunt, feeling her come close to me. Just as I turned, her lips met mine and I stared wide-eyed. She pulled away quickly, her face bright pink. "I meant every word. It took me a while to sort out all my mixed feelings, but for some reason you were the first and only thing I could understand my feelings about."

I was stuck on the kiss, my eyes still wide. I shook my head suddenly and grinned lopsidedly, "Yeah? Well, what was that? You gotta work on your stuff."

Before she could move I grabbed her up in my arms and planted one on her myself, feeling more satisfied than I had my entire life. We broke apart as the door opened and the monk stepped through, looking up at the scene in front of him. "Oh, should I come back?" he smiled, and I heard Fuu laugh.

"No, father, but thank you," she said, stading up to shakily go to him and give him a light hug.

I watched her, thought I was busy thinking how weird it was that I knew what I wanted. I really knew where she had been going with what she had been sayin' about sortin' out her thoughts and everything, since I had done the same all these years. I felt complete when I was here, and I liked it.

End

A/N: Well, that's it. No poem this time, sorry. I couldn't think of anything sadly, though I noticed that a couple of The Fray's stuff worked, like the song "Some Trust" and even in some cases "How to Save a Life". Though I stick to my original theory that The Killers really works for it. One of you guys even said that "Believe Me Natalie" fit chapter 4; I checked and that is so true! D ! Thanks for getting into this fic, and especially for the reviews! Oh, by the way: the monk said "Good night" in Japanese. I looked it up, so expand your vocabulary! LOL! Review please!