It has been too long guys. Far, far too long. xD We've all been rather busy with various things, school or otherwise, so we're just now getting this chapter up, even though it's been finished for nearly a week. ^^; The chapter after this one is nearly ready to be posted, so you can (probably) expect that one fairly soon. :3

Also, I have a request to make on behalf of all of the authors who are writing this fic: Participate, guys! D: It's awesome that you like this story enough to read it and add it to your story alerts and your favourites, and we all appreciate that, don't get me wrong. :3 But since we're all working so hard to write this (admittedly rather complicated) story for you guys, we would definitely appreciate it if you'd all take the time to participate in the contest (which is actually mostly the point of this fic xD) and guess who the author for each chapter is. Even just a random guess would make us happy. x3 And there might be a shiny request one-shot in it for you if you get the most guesses right! :D

Or, if you don't feel like guessing, even just telling us what you did/didn't like, what was good and what wasn't, would help us a lot. If you're an author on this site, you've got to know how frustrating it is to post a chapter or a one-shot and not get any feedback, or to have no one participate in your contests. So if you tell us what we're doing right, we can keep doing it and hopefully write even better stories for you guys.

Thank you to everyone who's been reviewing and guessing for every chapter. :) You guys are what's keeping this fic going (I'll stop rambling now xD).

~Gypsy

"I believe in instinct, not in reason. When reason is right, nine times out of ten it is impotent. And when it prevails, nine times out of ten it is wrong." ~A.C. Benson

Chapter Five: Invitation

Zakuro sprinted through the forest skilfully, the wind sending her hair in tow behind her. As the forest was not part of her clan's territory - and therefore deemed unfamiliar surroundings - it was almost surprising that she had dodged outward branches and leaped over logs without impacting her speed. She remained as fast as ever, but when the wind changed direction - followed by an eerie whistling sound - her instincts insisted she slow down, which she did, taking the weather in her stride valiantly.

And her instincts were correct to insist this upon her, for her ears could now detect a conversation in progress at a frequency previously drowned out by the wind.
The scent of others, presumably members of either Sea or Bird clans, was growing increasingly stronger - It came with the faint aroma of wild raspberries, which at least gave her an idea of the location these people were currently situated at.

Zakuro came to an immediate halt on the outskirts of the forest. She gazed at the cliff beyond it sternly and caught a whiff of raspberries again. It confirmed her suspicion that whatever was up there had to be them - the Sea people; foragers, perhaps. She thought it slightly odd that picking ripe fruit from random bushes was their sole responsibility in a clan.

But their rank is not important, she reminded herself. They will pass my message on all the same. And with that thought secured in mind Zakuro set out to climb the cliff, its shadow decreasing in size as the sun proceeded to abandon the sky slowly.

Along with the setting of the sun, the frolicking on the cliff top came to an ignominious end. Lettuce was the first to realize it when she noticed an orange glow cast itself over Mint's usually pale face - now her skin was the colour of fresh carrots. "We should leave before its dark. Your village is further away than ours, Minto." She glanced over to the bushes, where Kish was absent-mindedly devouring all the raspberries on the cliff top. She could see Masaya in an attempt to retrieve a handful of fruit for himself, but Kish seemed to be playfully blocking his way on purpose.

Mint blinked repeatedly, somewhat confused at her friend's remark until she realised dusk was approaching and nodded. "But shouldn't Kisshu and I collect some raspberries, for the journey back?"

"I think Kisshu's had enough!" Masaya laughed. "Give me the fruit, Kisshu-san!" He tackled his friend to the ground, almost succeeding in sustaining a headlock. But Kish was sly, and he dodged the move easily. He could always rely on Masaya to let him slide intentionally.

Kish clasped his hand around a raspberry, plucking it from the precious bush. He tossed it up into the air and caught it with precision. He kept repeating the process, knowing Masaya's watchful eyes were tracing the movement in intrigue. "I'll give you the fruit, Masaya." Kish tossed the raspberry again, but this time he decided to try a different direction and soon it fell upon Masaya's unsuspecting head.

"Ow." Masaya was rubbing his head lightly when an innocent smile crept onto his face. "So you want war, huh?" He retrieved a raspberry from the ground.

Mint rolled her eyes in the background. "Children."

Lettuce suppressed a giggle.

"Oh, c'mon, Minto-chan!" Kish whined, having overheard the comment. "We took the newcomers to our leaders all by ourselves, didn't we?"

Mint averted her gaze to the ground, where a daisy had sprouted from the grass. "Well..." She let the word slur on her tongue.

"I hadn't realised we'd forgotten about them." Masaya approached the girls and sat down, inching close beside Mint subconsciously. He glanced at his raspberry for a mere second, deciding against throwing it at Kish and sinking his teeth into the ripe fruit. If Mint thought he was a child he, wanted to prove to her otherwise. "What did you think of their clan leader, Retasu?"

Lettuce raised an eyebrow questioningly. "What do you mean?"

Masaya shrugged, swallowing the last of his raspberry. It formed a lump in his throat before sliding down his gullet slowly. "Well... how did he come across to you? Was he... disciplined? Hell-bent on declaring war against us?"

"Bloodthirsty? Lustful?" Kish piped in, cocky grin on show at the latter of his words. It seemed to have an effect on Lettuce as well; her face flushed in a mild blush.

Mint scowled, stepping in. "Lustful? Oh, puh-lease, Kisshu. We're trying to have a serious discussion here!"

"I know." Kish winked. "Just messin' with you." He moved a hand to ruffle Mint's hair, but it was slapped away quickly.

Lettuce contemplated the contributions quietly, slightly uncomfortable with the predicament. His name was... Pai? Yes, Pai-san. Disciplined, perhaps... it's a quality for leadership. What's the word I'm looking for…? Her mind started to wander, stumbling onto the memory of yesterday, when he caught her – yes, caught her – after she'd fallen from the tree. She smiled to herself as she recalled that moment in time. That's it, a gentleman! Scary, perhaps, but a gentleman. He must be... Either that or he's quite deceiving.

"Why are you smiling?"

Lettuce was jolted from her daydreaming. "Um, w-well... what?" She burst into laughter awkwardly.

"Hmm." Mint sounded, brushing her fingers over her chin delicately. Suddenly a peculiar rustle came from the bushes.

"Kisshu?" Mint asked politely, though her voice had a bitter edge to it. Kish shrugged; his ribbons fluttered about him, tasting the wind. Lettuce's ribbons stiffened at the noise, as did Masaya's. Her eyes darted around the area briefly, identifying movement in one of the bushes.

"O-Oh..." Lettuce held her breath hesitantly as an opening was made in the bush, splitting it in half. Mint, Kish and Masaya were looking at her now with the odd exchange of worried glances, though their attention was lured away as soon as they traced Lettuce's focus to that same bush. A vaguely familiar presence entered their sanctuary, as the woman removed twigs from her hair in one sharp swipe of her long fingers. Her eyes, a deep violet hue, locked themselves onto Lettuce's.

Lettuce gasped before clamping her mouth tightly shut. These eyes were cold and stern, yet they were definitely searching for something. Luckily they relieved Lettuce of their gaze in a matter of seconds, continuing by studying the others silently. Masaya tried to return the eye contact directed at him and his friends, but almost looked ready to retreat into a nutshell instead. Kish blinked as though to register what was happening, and couldn't resist breaking the silence first. "You're...?"

"Zakuro." She stated boldly, finishing the sentence. "You escorted us to the village," she added, and mustered a small smile of gratitude at him.

Kish nodded, smiling weakly. But Mint, for one, did not warm to the supposed idea of acting like allies. In fact, she assumed the expression was insincere. She huffed quietly and crossed her arms.

Mint stood up tall, though she barely cleared half of Zakuro's height. Zakuro easily towered over her as the dominant of the two.

"Why are you here?" She demanded, eyes hard.

The smile was gone as soon as Mint spoke. Zakuro's eyes flickered briefly as she addressed Lettuce. "I have a proposition for your clans. An invitiation."

Lettuce paused, stumbling slightly over her words. What was this? "An i-invitation?"

"To what?" Mint interjected, quick to jump in. Kish nudged her in the stomach lightly, only to receive a rather more painful nudge back. Zakuro maintained her composure throughout the rude interruption, allowing the smile to return, but more noticeably. An invitation was held in the highest regard in her clan, and hopefully these other clans held it in the same regard. "Yes. A midsummer festival." She bowed her head. "It's a tradition of our tribes. I am here to personally invite you all."

Lettuce was surprised, taken aback even. A midsummer festival? We share that tradition with the Bird clan… she pondered, surprised. Her eyes were transfixed on a spot of bark for a moment. She watched black dots scurry upwards into the treetops. Ants, she figured.

She met Zakuro's gaze with the same intensity. "But why, Zakuro-san?"

"We're neighbours now, aren't we?" Zakuro replied smoothly, turning her head to examine the bushes. She spotted a raspberry and tore it from the hull. Instead of devouring the fruit like everyone else – especially Mint – had expected her to, Zakuro ripped it in half and extended a piece to Lettuce. "Eat."

Lettuce froze. She didn't know how to react. Should she ignore the peace offering? Should she refuse? Should she accept? Her eyes locked gazes with each of her friends' - Mint, Kish and Masaya in turn - but none held the answer. It was entirely up to her.

"Thank you." Lettuce smiled and nodded curtly, reaching out to wrap her fingers around the piece. She heard Mint gasp when her hand touched Zakuro's as she retrieved it from the older girl's palm carefully. "Um... when is this f-festival?"

Zakuro was smiling genuinely now. It was a bold decision for a seemingly feeble girl. "Tomorrow night. This is a very important event for my clan – missing it after being formally invited would be unwise."

"I understand, but I hold no authority over my clan, or the Birds. I'll have to consult my uncle, Keiichiro, who will consult the Bird clan."

Zakuro nodded. "And I'll inform my brother and the Ikisatashis."

Mint was in awe. Maybe she's not our enemy. Maybe this invitation is a peace offering, not a trap?

"Farewell." Zakuro addressed everyone this time - with a real smile - before turning and running back whence she came. The four people left standing on the cliff top had no doubt that she would indeed tell the rest of her tribe and the Ikisatshis of this invitation. There was no backing out now.

Masaya exhaled, relaxing slightly. He saw the exhaustion on Lettuce's face and concluded that asking questions of her now would be cruel. "Let's go," he declared drowsily, suppressing a yawn.

"But-" Mint protested.

"But nothing," Masaya smiled lightly, masking his own worry. "Unless you want to worry your village, we just have to go with it."

Mint pouted, giving in quickly. "Alright." She began to walk away grudgingly, looking over to Lettuce. She hadn't budged at all since accepting the 'peace offering'. "Coming, Retasu?"

Lettuce shook her head without attempting to initiate eye contact. "No, thanks. I think I'll stay to welcome the moon."

"Oh." Mint's shoulders drooped slightly in disappointment, but it was pushed to the back of her mind when Kish joined her by her side.

"Not too long, Retasu." Masaya warned. "Keiichiro will kill me otherwise!"

Lettuce giggled. "Don't worry, Masaya. Goodnight."

"'Night." Masaya jogged off to catch up with the others. He was looking forward to walking beside Mint. However the hopeful spark in his eyes faded slightly as he saw her already indulged in polite conversation with Kish; he decided against joining them and lingered at the back. Neither of his friends had even noticed his arrival.

"I think the moon, you know, matches your complexion," Kish was saying off-handedly.

Mint fought the blush on her cheeks hesitantly. "Thank you, Kisshu."

Masaya sighed. He mentally braced himself for a long walk back.

The moon was positioned in the sky perfectly, casting an eerie white glow on the cliff top. Lettuce was gazing up at it quietly, listening to Pudding as she frolicked around the bushes. They shook when she brushed past each one, reminding Lettuce of the surreal events from earlier which played out before her. Although her strange friend hadn't visited throughout the ordeal of the arrival of two more clans, Pudding still managed to find her perched upon a rock as she gazed at the moon, and seized her loneliness as an opportunity to drop in.

Lettuce had been meaning to ask something. "Purin-san."

"Yes?"

Lettuce inhaled the cool night air briefly. "Why did you leave before? Does fire scare you? Or smoke?" She saw Pudding's face fall, as though experiencing a flashback, and distinguished the hurt in her eyes from the usual hollow emptiness. "You can tell me, Purin-san," she persisted.

Pudding focused on the grass which surrounded them. It seemed a darker shade of green in the night. "I know, Retasu." She tilted her head up and looked directly at Lettuce. She etched a smile onto her lips and hoped it was convincing enough. "Nothing scares Purin, no da!"

Lettuce bowed her head and placed a hand over the other on her lap. "I wish nothing scared me."

"Even the brave have fear, 'nee-chan!" Pudding giggled. "Promise Purin you'll be brave, na no da?"

Lettuce blinked in surprise. Could she really keep that promise for her?

She smiled. "I promise, Purin-san."

"Then let's go skinny dipping!" Pudding grabbed Lettuce's hand and pulled, bringing the Sea clan member to her feet.

She panicked. "N-no, Purin-san! It's late a-a-and-"

Pudding rubbed the back of her head shyly. "I was only kidding, onee-chan!"

Lettuce burst into laughter. She was not just relieved but happy to know such tense circumstances hadn't stunted her ability to laugh again.