~`Peach Child`~

[Anonymous]

Just hearing him speak. That was soothing enough. And the hope that her family back at the temple would not hate her or wish her ill...
Of course they wouldn't. Why would she ever think that? How could she? She knew them...she knew they would have wanted her to run...

There hadn't been time for them to say it. She had made the decision on her own, but not for her own life. She had wanted to save her people, all of them, by taking that item and running.
So she would have to keep running. As far as it took. Forever even. Just to keep that item from the enemy...
Just to keep her home a little bit safer. That was all she could do...she couldn't bring an army in to help. But she could keep a great weapon out of their hands.
That was all she could do...

She looked at his smile. Looked at it hard. How could he be so caring? He didn't care if she never trusted him. He didn't care if she never reciprocated his trust in her by telling him about herself.
You just have to let me help you
...She could do that. And she would find a way to repay him for his kindness. Somehow...for he did not seem caring of money. But she would find a way.

Slowly Clover began to sit up, but was racked by coughs as soon as she rose onto her elbows. She had worked herself too hard...
Wiping the blood from her mouth and chin, she slowly and painfully rose into a sitting position on the soft, hot sands.
All she could taste was thick, liquid copper.

"Momoko. Momoko Terpsichore. That's my real name..." She said it softly, knowing he could hear.
Peach child. Soft and sweet.
She would trust him...she would...

[Anonymous]

He did not know how intensely Clover was looking at him, his face just continued that kind smile of his. Duweit came a little closer when he heard her moving. His body tensed as Clover began to cough again, would she pass out? “Clover?!�

Chu would have told Duweit that she was relatively fine…if he were awake. It seemed the strain on his little body coupled with his worry knocked him out.

He was about to come closer when she spoke. Duweit blinked and tilted his head a little…her real name…she had told him her real name. He gave a small smile, knowing what this meant. Even if it was just a little, Duweit was grateful for this small bit of trust. “…Momoko…a beautiful name…for beautiful girl…� He spoke his thoughts as he had no concept of flattery. Duweit continued to smile though his face held concern, “So then…are you alright Momoko? Shall we return to the camp?�

[Anonymous]

Momoko blushed furiously at his words, and was quite thankful he couldn't see it.
"I..uh...um..." She cleared her throat. "Thank you..."
Eeep! Why did that embarrass her so bad?? Her name had been complimented before, and so had she, and she had never blushed this hard!
...Because it was from a man.
An attractive man.

Gah, stop it!

"Um, yes, alright...I should be fine..." Liar. Her body hurt all over once again, and just the thought of getting back on the saddle made her wince.
But the sun was unbearable, beating down on them and the sands on which they rested. She had to get up and go back to camp.

Breathing alittle heavy, Momoko slowly started to force herself up onto her knees, spatting blood out of her mouth whenever it got too great. She gagged at the thought of swallowing any more of her own blood...
But as soon as she stood, she swayed, light headed. After all the blood she had lost, and having not eaten anything in awhile, her body just couldn't keep itself upright.
She toppled forward with a small squeak, unable to help it.

Oh no, she was going to land on Duweit....

[Anonymous]

Duweit gave a grateful smile at her answer. Now how get her back. He stood up before she did, letting out a depressed sigh as he listened to Momoko get up. Riding too hard aggravated her injury…perhaps they could just travel slowly. He blinked and looked over to Chu, surprised he hadn’t said anything by now. Of course without sight Duweit couldn’t tell Chu had fainted, all he knew was the mouse was still on his shoulder and defiantly breathing. He was about to say something to check on his little friend when he heard a squeak that didn’t belong to a mouse.

He looked in Momoko’s direction just seconds before he felt her fall onto him. Duweit caught her around the waist again and stood her back up. He left his hands there should she sway again. His face was concerned again. “Are you sure you can ride back? Perhaps I should carry you.�

Duweit looked towards Onyx and Momoko’s steed. Onyx knew the way back, but what about the lizard? He would have to lead it back, but he couldn’t do that while carrying her. It seemed they would have to ride back, but he would ride with her, to make sure she didn’t go too fast or fall out of the saddle.

[Anonymous]

"Eep!" She landed right in his arms, completely unable to help it.
Ah, she was in a man's arms! She blushed so hard her already clay-red skin darkened considerably. She had to get off of him! He wasn't holding her so firmly...she could push away!

...

Unfortunately, her arms appeared to have picked that exact moment to turn to rubber, and she remained against him, much to her discomfort.
"C-carry me...?" She repeated, glancing up at him. She blinked.
"Chu seems to be sleeping..."
Gah, not important right now! She wanted to say no, but for some reason, she couldn't make it leave her mouth.
Why was this happening to her???
What gods were plotting against her like this?? And why??

As if on cue, her beast got tired of standing in the sun, and turned, ambling back toward camp, where it knew there was water.
Somebody had to be plotting against her...

[Anonymous]

Duweit looked to his shoulder when Momoko said he was sleeping. He made a small smile and moved a hand from her waist to put Chu in his vest pocket. Duweit was about to speak again when the beast started moving back. It must be heading toward the camp. He turned back to Momoko with a soft smile, “I guess that means it’s time to leave.�

Then he looked to his own steed, “Onyx.� The horse ears turned in his direction before his head followed through. “Come,� Duweit commanded and the horse came to his side. He nodded and took Momoko in his arms as he usually carried her. “Let’s go then,� Duweit smiled brightly and followed the sound of the beast in front, Onyx walking beside him.

[Anonymous]

Time to leave...?
Momoko froze alittle, wondering if he really was going to carry her all the way back to camp...

Yep, he was.

She yelped alittle as he held her bridal-style in his arms, part from pain, and part from embarrassed surprise. Arms on top of her body, she stared at him as he started to walk across the desert sands.

Snap out of it Momoko!!

"I-uh....Duweit...you really don't...I mean, I'm sure I can ride...it's a long way back, and it's hot..." She didn't want him getting ill from the sun just for her! And his skin was so dark...wouldn't that make it worse for him?
Of course, she didn't know it wouldn't, that dark skin was better for the sun. Her own clay-red skin kept her from getting burnt, though her cloak was trapping heat with the way she was laying.
But she ignored her own discomfort, for she was worried about him, not herself.

[Anonymous]

He smirked at her surprise, finding it rather cute. Duweit shook his head, grinning. “You really should learn to worry about yourself every once and a while.� She did have a point though, it would be quite a walk, but Duweit had traveled further than that before. He didn’t mind pushing himself a little for her.

He then blinked and looked to Momoko though he couldn’t actually see her. “Oh, and Momoko? As much as I like your name, I believe it would be better if I continued to call you Clover. You gave me a different name for a reason after all,� He smiled softly. “Don’t tell the others at the camp, they don’t get much company, but a few are very talkative when they do. We don’t want anything slipping. …And defiantly don’t tell Chu, if anyone talks too much it’s him.�

The one he spoke of stirred for a moment but went back to sleep…or he was awake and decided to give Duweit and Momoko some ‘alone’ time.

[Anonymous]

She blushed alittle under her dark skin at his words, averting her eyes toward the sands as she bit her lip. He was right...
But...
She couldn't help it!
The taste of blood in her mouth, however, reminded her just how careful she had to be. She was going to need yet another bath after all this...
She was sweaty and bloody yet again. And her clothes...she needed to wash those too...

Occupying herself with these thoughts helped the time to go by alittle, though when he spoke she immediately looked back up at him. She blushed again at his announcement that he liked her name, but tried not to let it leak into her voice.
"Oh, of course. That makes sense. It'll be our secret." She nodded her head in affirmation, grinning alittle.
Sometimes she couldn't help but be alittle childish at times.
Even in times like these...

[Anonymous]

Duweit smiled brightly, hearing that she was in better spirits now. He nodded, “right.� Of course he really wanted to know what made her take off like that, but felt it would be stupid of him to ask at the moment. He would wait, though it was likely no matter when he asked she would feel sorry for it and apologize several times before actually explaining. Maybe he shouldn’t ask.

By now it was afternoon and Duweit had to admit he was feeling a little strain from carrying her for so long. Chu was now awake on his shoulder telling Momoko some embarrassing stories about him.

“Oh! And then there was that time in that bar when-�

“I really don’t think we should tell her about ‘that time’,� Duweit whined.

“Awwwwwwww. Why not?�

“You know why.�

“Meanie.�

By this time they were at the edge of the camp. Duweit smiled and set Momoko down gently, “well, we’re back. I guess you’ll need to clean up again, let’s go fetch Lunar.�

He was just five paces ahead of her when three men jumped from behind the tent next to them, attempting to dog pile Duweit. He sighed and stepped back, causing them to fall in a heap just before him. Duweit bent over a little, grinning. “You really should stop doing that you know. People might get the idea you’re trying to hurt me.�

[Anonymous]

Momoko's mind was kept off of worrying over Duweit by Chu's amusing stories. She had actually spent a good deal of the trip giggling, even to the point where it agravated her chest.
But she couldn't help it, they were just too...funny!

"Awww..." She play whined at not being told the last story. But she couldn't help the grin that was on her face, which only Chu could see.
Besides, she bet that was a good story, too...
Oh well, maybe another time?

Finally, she was once again set on her feet, but swayed alittle, catching herself on Duweit for a moment before standing straight.
"Um, yes, I do..."
Yet another bath for her...and her clothes. Or, her cloak at least.

Momoko jumped with a slight squeak as three men jumped out from behind a tent...and ended up flat on their faces. It was only after Duweit spoke that Momoko realized they must be more friends of his.
Shifting alittle, she hoped the blood on her cloak would not be so obvious. Not only that but....
...They were all men again!
She wanted Lunar....

[Anonymous]

“It’s not fair, you’re blind!� The one in the middle spoke, he was of average build and was blond and blue eyed. He wore a vest and long pants, both were orange.

“…wouldn’t that make it easier to sneak up on me?�

“It should! How the hell do you know we’re coming!?!� Unfortunately for the others the one on top seemed the largest. He was very muscular, had black hair and dark brown eyes. He only wore pants, which were a dark gray.

“My other senses of course.�

“As much as I love sitting at the bottom of this dog pile…Get Off!� The smallest spoke, highly annoyed. This one’s hair was brown and his eyes were a blue gray. He wore a white shirt and light gray pants.

The other two men got off quickly giving sheepish grins and as the smallest glared at them. Then they all turned, first looking at Duweit, then the girl behind him. Chu tugged at his ear.

“Oh right. This is Clover, a client of mine. Clover they are Mace, Morning star and Flail,� he pointed to them in height order. Though they were easily recognized by the fact that they carried the weapons they were named after. They looked to Duweit for a moment again before looking to Clover confusedly. Then Mace smiled and waved at her. “Hello.�

Lunar then appeared and shooed them off, “right right hello, good bye, shove off!� She then came to Momoko, worried look on her face as she looked at the blood. “You okay?�

Duweit gave a soft smile, “Clover would like to take another bath. Riding in the desert was a little taxing on her.�

The silver haired girl looked to him as he spoke and nodded when he finished. She turned back to Clover, smiling gently and held out her hand for Clover to take. “Shall we then?�

[Anonymous]

By the end of their little conversation, Momoko couldn't help but smile softly. Was everyone in this camp so strange? But maybe that's what made them so endearing...despite them all being male, she was put at ease by their goofy antics.
She bowed very shallow (due to her pained chest) at the three as they were introduced.
"Pleasure to meet you all..." She said softly, straightening in time to see Mace wave. She giggled and waved back. "Hi."

Then Lunar appeared, and the men were shooed off. Momoko smiled at first, but that faded at Lunar's question.
"I'll be alright..." She said softly, and only nodded at Duweit's words. Her own small hand was placed trustingly in Lunar's, and she smiled alittle.
"Alright."
Maybe this time she'd just take a moment to relax in the bath...
Her nerves were alittle shot, and she felt emotionally exhausted.

[Anonymous]

Lunars smile grew and she proceeded to lead her again to the bath, patting Duweit in the chest a couple times as she passed him. “We’ll be back, just wait by my tent. And don’t even start with the ‘I can’t see’ thing. It’s still weird to have a guy next to ya when you’re taking a bath.�

Duweit just grinned, “Alright.�

Chu waved them off, “hurry up, it’s boring without you!�

Duweit made a cute pouty face, “what’s that supposed to mean?�

Their ‘arguing’ faded off as Lunar led Momoko to the bath area and repeated the process of filling the tub. She backed away, “All ready for ya.� Then she also repeated what she had done before, making sure nobody spied on her. Lunar was rather curious as to why the other female had taken off earlier, but she guessed that was a question better answered by Duweit.

[Anonymous]

Momoko followed along after Lunar, grinning alittle at her words. Well, that was very true. Even without his sight, it was still awkward for her to be around him simply for the fact he was a male.
An attractive male...
Anyway!

She giggled softly at their fading argument, then waited patiently as Lunar filled the tub for her again. Once all was said and done, there was a period of silence broken only by the ruffling of Momoko's clothes as they were removed again.
Momoko knew that Lunar probably wanted to ask her things, but she remained in silence. So Momoko continued undressing, and then lowered herself carefully into the tub. She just wanted to relax for alittle while, let the aches and pains lessen.

Finally, she broke the silence with her quiet voice.
"Lunar? Where should I wash my cloak...?"
It was bloodstained, after all...

[Anonymous]

“Hmm,� Lunar looked to Momoko, a little confused for a moment. “Oh! Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it,� she smiled.

But the one second she turned around happened to be the exact moment two men came running by. The first was lean and had short, dark blue hair. He wore a light blue short sleeved shirt, purple vest and dark blue pants. He was grinning, though it seemed the man behind him was ready to tear his head off. The pursuer was  a bit taller and had somewhat long brown hair tied in a ponytail. His clothes consisted of a sandy brown vest and dark brown pants. He growled, “Come back here Roadrunner! I demand a rematch, you cheated!â€?

The blue haired man just grinned wider, “You have to catch me first Coyote!�

Lunar froze as she heard the male voices. Idiots. Out of nowhere she threw a rock right at Coyotes head and knocked him out. “Hey! This is the bath area losers! Play tag somewhere else!� She quickly stood in front of Momoko, attempting to hide her from view.

Roadrunner stared blankly at Coyote’s limp form for a few seconds before looking to the angry silvered haired girl. He smiled brightly and slung the other man over his shoulder, “sorry about that.�

She let out a frustrated sigh as they left. “Men.�