CrssDimnsChp7: Changing Attire
Disclaimer: I do not own Samurai 7 or any characters affiliated therewith. Neither do I own Ran who I am using with the permission of Motokonobaka.
"Sleep now, good child…"
Mother…?
"Be calm… don't fear…"
Where am I?
"For I will keep you from harm…"
It's so dark…"Sleep, and dream now…"
What happened?"My little samurai…"
Mother's voice…?"Fly through the sky in your dream…"
"Mother…" Komachi looked at Aya's sleeping form on the straw mat and blinked. She had been singing a song her mother had sung to her and Kirara a long time ago when they had trouble sleeping. Just now Komachi heard the girl named Aya whisper.
"She misses her mother?" Komachi wondered. She watched as a pair of silent tears made their way down Aya's cheeks.
"I'd leave the girl alone, kid," Ran said from behind Komachi. She was leaning against the doorframe that led to the back of Masamune's shop.
"You heard what that so-called 'Divine Spirit' said about those three. Aya can kill you just by wishing you dead."
"That's not fair! I don't even know her. But she seems nice," Komachi said, crawling closer to the sleeping Aya. Ran rolled her eyes and walked outside. Gorobei nodded to her as he passed her to go inside and watch the child and three sleeping individuals. Now, it was mid-morning. Kambei, Kikuchiyo, Katsushiro, and Heihachi had gone to look for more samurai to recruit, leaving Gorobei, Rikichi, Komachi, Ran, and Masamune behind to look after the three children. Komachi yawned as Gorobei entered and sat next to her, watching Aya.
"Are they going to come with us?" Komachi asked the entertainer. He smiled and said,
"That's what Kambei said, although personally I don't like the idea of bringing three children into a war zone. Lady Aya doesn't look much older than Katsushiro and neither does Akio. Kai looks like he's your age, little one." Gorobei ruffled Komachi's hair and she glared at him.
"I'm only eight, and I'm going back into a 'war zone'. And I know that these three will help save our village. Sister said that even though they don't exactly have the smell of the battlefield, and she doesn't want to put them in danger, they do have extremely valuable powers that could help us!" she whispered, fixing her messed hair. Gorobei laughed quietly at the little girl's spirit. Then, his eyes snapped back onto the girl sleeping at Komachi's feet.
"Where am I?" Aya was awake now and looking around the room with a confused look on her face.
"You're in Masamune's dirty shop in Kougakyo!" Komachi cried, kneeling next to Aya.
"So it wasn't a dream…" Aya whispered, closing her eyes.
"Nope! So you better stop sleeping and get up! You're coming home with us!"
"What?" Aya's eyes flew open and she sat up, staring in disbelief at the little girl.
"Kambei-sama said that you and your brothers would be a good addition to our team," Gorobei said, "Lady Kirara was highly objective to the idea of involving children, but she also realized his decision could help raise the chances of saving her village. Not only that, but there are other children at the village who will be involved regardless whether they fight on the battlefield or not."
"I am willing to help. But as you can see," she said, eyeing the outfits of the little girl and tall man, "our clothing will draw much attention, and I'm sure you'd want us to blend in with the crowds right?"
"We already thought of that," Komachi said as she got up and bounded off towards a back room. When she came back, Masamune was with her, carrying a nondescript cloth bag. Aya's lifted an eyebrow as Komachi upturned the bag, and a heap of clothes fell out.
"Sister and I managed to find this stuff early this morning. She recovered much faster than you did," Komachi said, picking up a dark purple kimono and carrying it to Aya.
"Try it on! I think it would look great on you!" she said, nearly jumping with excitement. Aya stood up, looked at Komachi, then at Gorobei and Masamune. Getting the hint, they left the room. She sighed and said,
"All right, but don't look, okay?"
"Okay!" Komachi said. Aya turned around and quickly dressed in the kimono while Komachi turned around and covered her eyes. As Aya dressed, she realized the top was styled like Kirara's, showing her midriff, but the billowing sleeves were separated from the rest of the kimono, so that the top part was more like a tank top. The bottom half of the outfit consisted of a long, dark purple skirt sewn over a pair of clinging black pants. A pair of black boots completed the outfit.
"I'm done. You can look now Komachi," Aya said, putting her hands on her hips and smiling at the little girl.
"Wow! You look so pretty in that!" Komachi cried, running to Aya and hugging her legs. Aya's crystal flashed brightly for a moment, and then subsided as she knelt down and held the little girl.
"Don't worry. My brothers and I will help the samurai save your village. I promise to do everything I can for your cause," Aya whispered to her.
"Thank you," Komachi replied.
"Sister…?" Aya turned at the sound of Kai's disoriented voice. Akio was awake beside him, looking around in bewilderment.
"What is it?" she asked, kneeling beside them as Komachi stood beside her. Akio's eyes widened as he saw Komachi, and when he spoke, his voice came out as a whisper.
"It wasn't a dream…?" Smiling, Aya shook her head. She helped them both sit up and Komachi fished out some new clothes for them. Once again, Komachi turned around as Akio and Kai dressed. Akio wore a long, black hapi coat that was slashed at the hip, and leggings hemmed with wide red strips of satin-like fabric, and Kai was dressed in a similar forest green outfit with soft silver hems.
"You guys look like you're ready for battle," Komachi said, staring up at them in wonder. Aya laughed and leaned down to her.
"Honestly, we're not. We've never been in a real battle. We only practice certain things that will protect us if we ever get attacked," she said softly, pushing her hair behind her ears.
"Oh. So you're just like Katsu! Sister says he doesn't smell like battle, but I don't know what that means, so I just trust her," Komachi replied, "But I think you guys will do great!" At that moment, Gorobei came in with Masamune and Ran in tow.