Chapter 2:
Gakupo watched from a few feet away, wondering briefly when Rin was going to lose that spring in her step that Gakupo had lost only a few hours after the sun had gone down. True to her word, they had set off immediately. They hadn't much spoken to each other, and as time went by, Gakupo came up with more questions than answers.
Why did she need him to play bodyguard? She'd easily taken him down, and he was pretty sure she could just as easily do it to someone else. It was dangerous for young girls to wander across the country by themselves, but Gakupo had a good feeling she could take care of herself. He took her in once more, as if she'd morphed into something other than a young lady within the hours they've been walking together, but she was still the same as how he met her, save for the fact she had put geta on her bare feet. She wore the same orange kimono, spear thrown over her shoulder and attached bundle bouncing with her steps. She looked—content. In fact, he wouldn't be surprised if she started whistling soon.
"What do you want with the samurai from the East, anyway?" he finally asked, sick of traveling in silence. She looked over her shoulder at him, large eyes shining under the light of the moon, slowing her gait momentarily.
Instead of answering, she said, "Do you want to rest up for the night?"
So when they made it to the next town, Rin headed straight for an inn. She told the elderly lady at the desk that they would like one room, and Gakupo tried to ignore the suspicious glare the grandmotherly-type sent his way. Then he realized people had every right to be weary with him, traveling around with a pretty, young girl, it must have looked like he kidnapped her. Or had purchased her off of her parents. In reality, however, wasn't it her forcing him to accompany her? But he couldn't tell anyone that—then he'd have to admit that this pretty, young girl had virtually kicked his ass.
They followed the woman down a long hallway, and he watched as she handed Rin a key, whispered something in her ear, and then with one more unsure glance at Gakupo, had set off once more. Of course, Gakupo's curiosity got the best of him and he asked, "What did she say?"
Rin shrugged, sliding open the door to their modest room. The only furniture was a low table, and, thankfully, two futons. "She said if you weren't my father or my older brother, then I should try to run away because you most likely want to 'ruin me for other men.'"
He sputtered, indignant, but his cheeks flushed with color and Rin noticed, laughing at him outright before unceremoniously dumping her belonging onto the ground and unwrapping her obi. Seeing what she was doing, Gakupo made it a point to tear his eyes away, focusing on his on futon and crawling in, twisting his lids together. He hadn't been able to afford proper bedding for a few days now, so he should make the most of it.
He heard Rin's kimono hit the wooden floor, could feel it creak under her wait as she crawled under the blankets, settling in. He listened as her breathing evened out almost immediately as she fell into sleep. He rolled his eyes to the darkness.
"Gakupo?"
Not asleep yet, then. He sighed. "What?"
"Thanks for holding up your end of the deal."
He wondered briefly how many times she had set out on this vague journey eastwards. Had she had other traveling companions? Had they abandoned her? Where was her family? Is that who she was looking for? How long would it take them to find what she was searching for?
More questions. No answers. Gakupo fell into a fitful slumber.
–
Rin spent most of her life traveling. She was well-accustomed to it, could spend weeks sleeping in fields and, as long as it didn't rain, would love every moment of it. She was adept at catching her own food, and finding odd-jobs in random towns so that she would always have some money, just in case.
The first few years she began wandering, she wasn't alone. She'd enjoyed it less back then, she remembers, but her company had more than made up for it. When he left, she'd been at a loss of what to do. He'd only given her small details about what he was planning, but Rin knew it had to do with the samurai and the lords, and she knew he was heading East.
The East was, in a word, dangerous. Especially for young girls such as herself, which was why he probably thought she wouldn't go after him. She snorted to herself. What an idiot.
Rin had already re-dressed and bought some breakfast from the market across the street. She frowned at her coin purse on the way back, however, as she thinks the vendor probably ripped her off, but her growling stomach said to take what she could get. When she returned to her room, her new companion was beginning to rise.
She had chosen him because he looked like what she imagined a samurai to be. And, of course, he had told her he was one, even if he had been lying, she figured he must know something about them. Of course, it greatly helped that he was an adult male, and thugs and thieves were a lot less likely to target her when she had him around, but she was confident in her own ability and his main purpose for being here was so that, when she finally did find the samurai, hopefully he'd know what to do next.
He peered at her groggily as she grinned at him, announcing that she had breakfast. He rolled out of his futon, running his large hands through his long, purple hair that was more a mass of tangles than anything else right now. He sighed when his fingers got caught in knots, giving up altogether and reaching for the fish and rice she'd put on the table. She figured, if she didn't have such purpose and drive, if she wasn't so self-reliant, she would've thought him to be handsome with his tall form, broad shoulders, and sharp eyes.
But Rin wasn't that kind of girl, she told herself. She had a reason for him being here, and it wasn't to be her eye candy.
After a few moments of silent eating, he glanced up at her through his lashes. "What are you searching for, anyway?" he'd asked her something similar last night, except bringing up the samurai. She decided to grace his question with a vague answer.
"A boy," she said.
She heard Gakupo scoff. "What, did your betrothed run out on you? Are you seeking revenge for your broken heart?"
It very much sounded like he was mocking her, so she launched a chopstick at him, smiling contently when she heard him curse under his breath as her improvised weapon lodged itself impressively into the wall, not three inches away from his face. "My brother," she said finally, and that seemed to be the end of that.
–
An hour later and they had set out once more, Rin about ten paces ahead of her purple-haired companion. She could feel his eyes burning holes into the back of her head, and she shifter her spear from her right shoulder to her left, uncomfortable. Perhaps, she thought not for the first time, acquiring help had not been a good idea. She tried to reassure herself with the fact that this was, ultimately, beneficial to her survival, and so that was all that mattered, but she could not help the rising anxiety creeping in her gut.
She really hated people.
"I have a question," Gakupo said randomly after traveling mostly in silence. She slowed her strides so that they were closer, within speaking distance, and scoffed.
"You seem to have a lot of questions," she said, then added, "no lord's going to want such a curious samurai," for good measure.
He made a face at her, showing his obvious displeasure. She wondered if, perhaps, he was benefiting out of this relationship as well? He didn't seem to enjoy her company. What would his motive be? "This has been bothering me since we met," he mentioned, looking ahead of them. They'd been walking for some time now, and they next town could be seen in the horizon. "How are you so skilled? To be frank with you, I firmly believed I would be victorious in our duel, and you destroyed me."
That made her laugh. "I'm pretty good, but honestly, you're awful." And he was. Initially, she'd expected him to put up quite a bit more of a fight. She wasn't lying when she said that she was good. She had to be over the years. She'd never been formally educated in the way of fighting, had found her weapon abandoned in the woods in the child and had been training herself ever since. Since her brother left, she'd needed defense, and so she needed to be, in a word, good. Gakupo, however... was probably hopeless. He might've looked like he had a lot of brawn, but it seemed to be going to waste. "Have you ever actually, you know... fought anyone other than me?"
She watched closely as color flooded his cheeks and fought internally to keep her giggles to a minimum. Evidently, Rin was a terrible judge of character. The corners of her lips twitched upwards as she gave an unladylike snort. "Do you want me to help you?" she finally asked.
"What?
"Like, train you," she motioned between them with her free hand. "You escort me to the East, as promised. I'll make sure, by the end of our journey, you can actually hold your own in a fight." He seemed a little reluctant, so she added, "Even if you suck, I am pretty resilient. I've been on my own since I was a kid and I'm still alive, so that has to mean something for my track record."
Gakupo frowned at her, but she could tell he'd accept her offer. After all, what did he have to lose? He was already stuck with her, might as well get something out of it, right? Maybe Rin didn't always play fair, but she was a decent person, and liked to help those who helped her.
So when he nodded, she grinned at him before shoving her make-shift rucksack off her spear and swinging her weapon towards him.
–
A/N: Rin wastes no time.
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