Chapter 6: There's a Calm After a Storm, Too
Tasuki's enraged shouting roused her from whatever thoughts she could have been nursing. By the sounds of it, Ami could tell that the bandit was yelling at Chichiri, whose name fell into the accusations every now and then. Wondering what could have caused the whole scene, she poked her head into the hall.
Both men seemed to be squaring off, though only the younger one looked ready to fight. Chichiri was similarly aggravated for an instant, but he shook his head, murmured an apology, and turned to leave. As he did, though, their eyes met, and Ami saw the quick temper of youth roiling with exhausted repentance in its depths. She stepped forward, meaning to console him, but he brushed past her with barely a nod. Anxiety made her turn to Tasuki, but he only stared her down. When Ami refused to be intimidated, he growled, "This is all your fault," before turning on his heels and striding away.
Ami stood lost, not knowing whether she should retreat back into her room and leave the situation to resolve itself, or stand half in the hall, half at the doorsill and wonder what had happened. As it was, she did not have to make a decision. Moments after Tasuki left, Lolita's door creaked open. The girl scanned the empty corridors, saw her, and shrugged apologetically.
"Whatever he told you," she began, seeing Ami's puzzled expression, "he did not mean. Tasuki has this big mouth that tends to spout out anything he can come up with on the spot. He's not much for looking before leaping, and that's really immature. I've told him so dozens of times, but all he does is snort and ignore me like –"
"He...he, um, I think he...hit...Chichiri," the other interrupted uncertainly, remembering the mark she saw on the monk's face.
"He what!?"
"Just...just maybe," Ami hurriedly added. "I heard him say stuff about Chichiri not acting in his right mind and that he should just..."
Lolita sighed. "That was probably my fault." Stepping outside, she held her door open. "I know I wasn't very civil this morning and I apologize. You're new here, and shouldn't be going through all this unnecessary stress before a journey. So, if you want anybody to talk to..."
"What about...?" Ami made a vague hand gesture.
"The guys? It'll blow over," Lolita replied, trying to sound nonchalant. "There's nothing either of us could do about it now. Chichiri will either ignore you until you evaporate or will disappear himself. Tasuki, no doubt, will beat you up and fry you into cinders. So we wait until they've collected their thoughts, and...they'll come around."
Despite her anxiety over the last few minutes, Ami managed to let out a soft giggle and followed Lolita back into the latter's room. "You seem to know Tasuki very well," she observed, catching sight of a couple of spell-ridden papers Tasuki used to summon his wolves.
Following her gaze, Lolita laughed. "A privilege after months of getting onto each other's nerves." Nodding towards the desk, "He gave me some of those magic slips and said that if ever I missed anything from my world, I should just write it down and it'll pop out. He likes to be a toughie, but he can be a really decent guy." She paused, rolling her eyes. "Mouth aside, I mean."
Ami smiled. She didn't think Tasuki was using too much foul language when he was around Lolita, though that thought could be saved for another day's discussion. Softly, she asked, "Did you ever get to use them? His magic paper?"
"Yeah! The first time –" She suddenly broke off, face warming into a faint pink. At Ami's raised eyebrows, however, Lolita shook her head, as if to say it was all silly, and continued, "The first time I just wrote Chichiri's name all over the papers. When Tasuki came to teach me how to use them and Chichiri illusions kept popping out, he thought they were broken!" Flopping onto the bed, she gestured for Ami to do the same. "He really thought I was a psycho-weirdo-stalker, but I was stuck in the middle of the bandit hideout! Sure the place was crawling with men – he even told me I could have my pick if it keeps me from obsessing over his friend – but bandits are so not Chichiri!"
Turning, Lolita could see that Ami was laughing right along, and their shared laughter somewhat wore the cold walls between them down. She wasn't going to open her heart to a stranger who happened to come from a similar world, but she had to admit that it felt pretty good to have a girl to talk to after hanging out with just guys for so long. Rolling over onto her stomach, she propped her chin on her palm to look up at Ami, who remained sitting upright.
"So back home...who were you?"
The other girl started. Shrugging, "Oh, nobody. I waitress-ed at a local restaurant, went to school..."
"How'd you juggle school and work?" Lolita asked, wide-eyed, as she scrabbled up.
"You have to, when you live alone." The moment those words left her mouth, Ami winced, biting her lips closed. But the reaction she was expecting never came. Instead, Lolita only looked more awed.
"That is so cool!"
She smiled weakly. "Yeah...I guess. So, um –"
"You can do anything you want! No curfews, no nagging parents, no getting dragged to corporate dinners, no son-of-business-partner dates... That's absolute freedom!"
"There's no such thing as absolute freedom," Ami rejoined quickly, hoping to end the discussion. "Anyway, when we leave..."
"When you guys leave."
She frowned. "Y-you're not coming?"
"Nah." Lolita waved a hand. "You heard what I said, right? I'm going to go back home. All the same, you guys have a safe trip."
"How're you going to go back home?"
"Drop a coin into every well I see and make the same wish?" she joked, but Ami's serious expression didn't change. Lolita's shoulders slumped in an admission of defeat. "I don't know. But if there's a way in, there has to be a way out, right? I mean, how hard can it be?"
Both girls fell into silence at the last question. Finally, Ami spoke up. "We can all help you search."
"You're going to Taikyouku."
"I'm sure Chichiri won't let you go off alone. Even more so for Tasuki."
She struck home. Lolita stopped twiddling her fingers long enough to look up hopefully. "You think so?"
Ami smirked. "You're the one who's been here longer. You should know."
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Chichiri prided himself on his self-control. No matter what the situation was, he was the one who thought for the group, the one who had to keep his cool because not doing so would throw everyone into havoc. But what happened with Lolita was a mistake. A big, embarrassing mistake. He had allowed himself to be carried away by self-serving tendencies. If Tasuki had not barged in then...even he shuddered at the thought of what he might have done for the sake of information.
Now that he thought about it, it really was ridiculous. He could find no reason to mistrust Lolita – not after all that time spent together. She was nothing but kindness and caring, not only for him, but also for others. And he could never suspect her capable of anything severe enough to thwart their journey to Taikyouku. Nor would she have the motive to do it.
Stopping in his tracks, Chichiri looked up from the cobblestone lane. He did not have any particular destination in mind when he began walking. Escaping from the tenseness of the west wing and into the bright sunshine to think seemed just the thing, and for hours, he supposed, he had been going and going and going. And just now, he found himself by the immense structure that housed the royal horses. A groom's boy was busy sweeping out the stables, barely noticing as Chichiri walked past the first rows of towering warhorses towards a strip of adjacent stalls that contained the sleeker, leaner travelling breeds. Crossing the enclosed run, the monk slipped into the long building. It was dimmer inside, the only light coming from the double barn-like gates and the skylights built into the roof. Rustling noises compounded with the snorts of the animals echoed from one side of the stable into the other, where grooms polished the riding equipment.
Chichiri walked in the silence, relishing the soft crunch of the hay scattered all over the dirt floor. The stables held such quiet he never before thought existed there. Of course, there was the occasional whinny, but in a place where horses outnumbered people, he wouldn't think twice about bleeping it out of his thoughts.
A glance upwards revealed darkening skies. Lamps were lit from random spots around the stable, their heavy light not penetrating much beyond a few feet. He heard soft talking, and another circle of orange flooded a hitching post up ahead, outlining a grey-spotted horse. Shadows moved together, flickering on the grass-strewn floor. Moments later, a masculine silhouette melted into the surrounding dimness, leaving a girl waiting beside the horse.
Unintentionally, Chichiri started at the sight. The lamp hung just above the girl's head, clearly illuminating her face. The monk swallowed nervously. Every mistake had to be corrected, and just now, the victim of his mistake was right before him. He inched towards her, making no sound.
Lolita was murmuring to herself, trying to pass the time until the stable master returned with the promised groom who would teach her to ride. Horses weren't her top pet choice, but in an era like where she was stranded, they were the major, if not the only, way of locomotion, so she had to learn to cohabitate. A stable boy's shadow cut into hers, and she turned with what she hoped was an excited expression.
Her ready smile turned into a flinching paleness at the sight of him. Chichiri took a step forward, but Lolita automatically edged backward, stopped only by the hitching post. The uncertainty in her face fed his guilt.
"I'll, um, just be...leaving now," she mumbled, trying to slip past him.
"Are you learning to ride, no da?" Chichiri tried to keep his voice light.
"Yeah...Yes."
"I can help, no da. If you'll let me," he added as a hurried afterthought. Lolita looked like a cornered rabbit, blocked on one side by the horse and by him in front and on the other side. The last thing he wanted to do was frighten her. She hesitated, but seeing his open smile, albeit masked, relented.
"Na, no na." Unhitching the horse, he gestured for her to get up, but she only stared at him blankly. "Do you need a lift up, no da?"
Flushing slightly, she turned away. "I haven't gotten to that part yet."
Somehow, he wasn't surprised. Flipping the reins over the saddle, Chichiri easily swung up. Then he scooted back and held his hand out for her. Although dubious of the little space left on the saddle, she let herself be hoisted in front of him. The horse plodded forward, inducing a surprised yelp. Her companion laughed gently, shifting closer to fold her hands over the reins.
"It's okay, no da. We're not going beyond a slow walk," he assured as he taught her how to guide the horse towards the gate and out into the grassy corral.
"Weird," Lolita muttered. Beneath her, she could almost feel the movement of the animal's muscles as they rocked back and forth on its back.
"You've never ridden a horse before?...keep your eyes forward, no da." Being so near her, Chichiri was surprised by the chi he could sense. It was like seeing a blot of brown bird and then coming closer and seeing the thin white streaks on the outer feathers, as well as the downy tufts underneath it. He could sort through the web of emotions and pick out exactly which one she was trying to hide. At times it felt invasive, while at others it was...comforting, as if she was a book opened especially for him to read.
"There was never the need to ride horses in my world. And where I live, you don't see them outside the polo field." Lolita appreciated Chichiri's easiness, through she still could not relax enough, what with his body practically touching her. Not too long ago, she would have died for him to voluntarily come that close. The sentiments were a little watered down now, but they were nevertheless still there, keeping her uncomfortably keen on their proximity.
Chichiri tried to swallow the involuntary smile pulling his mouth at Lolita's attempt to push down wave upon wave of giddiness. Wrapped within his, her hands were cold – nervously cold – and she was barely breathing. When she did remember, though, they were long drags of air that was anything but natural.
Their horse had found its way outside and was happily trotting around the enclosure. Overhead, the grey skies threatened rain.
"How do you go about in your world, no da?"
"Cars," was the instantaneous reply. "They're these mechanical things that can be pretty small or really huge," she explained when he echoed her answer. "Some of them can fit only two people, while others are used to lug around just about anything, from soldiers to furniture to petroleum. The smaller ones – we call them sports cars – can go hundreds of miles an hour. Except of course, you don't drive that fast unless you want a speeding ticket. We also have... Sorry. I'm babbling."
"No problem, no da." He was rather enjoying hearing about a world unimaginable to him. Plus, talking about it seemed to be loosening her up. The first guarded aura he sensed had dissolved into practically nothing now. "What do people in your world do, no da?"
"Lots! Of course, we still have farmers and everything, but their jobs are a lot easier now, thanks to scientists. They're the people who invent really cool stuff and discover miniscule particles seen only under electronic microscopes and magnified thousands of times –" She was interrupted by a laugh.
"I meant to ask, no da, what do you do in your world?"
"Oh." Lolita fell silent, going back to counting to the rhythm of the horse's pace. Chichiri was thinking of dropping the question when she replied, "Nothing. I mean, I go to school, hang out...but that's about it." Hearing herself made her suddenly realize how wantonly people in her world were living. Here, in ancient conditions, everyone had a job. Even the imperial concubines who were generally thought to live purely idle lives took to playing politics. Everybody contributed to something. Everyday, people were discovering new things.
When she continued, it was with a downcast note. "In our world, people compete on becoming the biggest consumer. In school they have all these petty popularity wars, and get a kick out of humiliating their fellow man. I just realized now..." Twisting in her seat, Lolita looked up at Chichiri. "If I remained in my world, I probably would have been one of those selfish clones who thought the universe existed for them."
"I'm sure that won't happen, no da," he said kindly, surprised by the sudden serious turn their conversation had taken.
"I was already on my way there," she replied dryly. "Chichiri, I really am sorry."
"For what, no da?" he blinked in surprise. If there was anyone who should be apologizing, it should be him.
Lolita shifted again to look at him more fully. "For what I said...earlier. Maybe my coming was a joke played by the gods' assistants when they weren't looking or something –" He had to grin at that theory, "– but being in Konan really isn't bad. It's different, like Ami said, but that doesn't make it any worse than my world."
"Does that mean you're coming with us, no da?"
"If...if you still want me to."
His grin widened. "Of course, no da!" A blast of chilly wind combed through the enclosure, overturning a few buckets and bringing with it the first spattering of rain. "I guess we can call it a day, no da." Grasping the reins, Chichiri turned their horse around and back into its stable, where a groom was already waiting at the gate. Lolita apologized to the stable master for running off, but he waved it away and helped her down instead. Chichiri waited for her to join him before finding the walk that would lead them back to the palace fastest. The shower was already turning into a heavy downpour, which would undoubtedly last the night before bowing away in the morning like all late summer storms.
"Thank you for today!" Lolita had to bellow through the din of the thundering rain as she jogged beside Chichiri. They were already soaked through; there wasn't much point in running for shelter. All the same, the chill of the wind slapping their wet clothes as they ran was refreshing.
"I hope you learned something, no da!" Chichiri hollered back, grabbing her hand and making towards the west wing, the outline of which was faintly visible through the curtain of water and fog.
Lolita's only reply was a grin as he glanced at her. There was no way she could have retained anything with teaching methods like that.
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A/N: Sorry for the short chapter. This took a while because I did not know what to do with the people after last chapter's scene...*Gasp* I must have gone through hundreds of mental scenarios, each deleted until I finally sat down and determined to type. Much of the credit goes to KittyLynne for describing Tasuki in love. It's not shown here, but it will be soon. (I hope.)
Thank you also to the readers; even more so to the reviewers. *Hint hint* I really need feedback to know how my writing's doing. :)
Till next time!