Love isn't easy.

The Trade Caravan had been returned for a day after which, taken time to set up their cartsand imported wares for display and delivered the goods they'd been paid to transport for various merchants and craftssmen. Having left his family in charge of his own for a while, Jungi decided to track down Ariadne to say hello. So, pocketing the gift he'd for her, the Trader made his way to the infirmary where he expected to find her at this time of day.

The whole way there, Jungi was a little nervous of what might have transpired in the last couple of months between Ari and Shiro, but he tried to reassure himself, and his step fell into that same up-beat gait as always. And of course, as he came to the infirmary, strolling right in, it didn't take long to find the young lady he was looking for. Smiling, he waved, trying to flag her down, as she appeared busy, so he didn't want to intrude if she was unable to talk for long right now.

The infirmary was quite busy that morning but not even the stress and pressure of work could make Ariadne less happy. She was finishing up with a patient when she saw someone wave in the doorway. Recognizing Jungi, she smiled and waved back. She finished what she was doing quickly and went over to see him. “You’re back.” She said with a smile and gave Jungi a friendly hug. The hug was quick as she pulled back and took a step away from the Trader.

If it was not apparent from the distance of the door to where she was in the infirmary it probably was now, Ariadne was radiating happiness. It was almost contagious. He wouldn’t be able to tell if it had to do with his return or not but Ari was happy for reasons she wanted to keep to herself for the time being and they had absolutely nothing to do with Jungi’s arrival.

She looked back at the other drudges who nodded. “I told them I was going to take a break.” She said to Jungi. Walking away from the infirmary, she asked him casually, “How were your travels?” She didn’t want to push Jungi away just because she didn’t love him in the way he wanted her to. They could still be friends and to her mind, they were friends.

Jungi was so happy to see Ariadne smiling. The man hugged her in return, holding onto her as long as she would let him, but respecting the distance she put between them after -but didn't read much into it.

Glancing only briefly back toward where the other drudges gathered as Ariadne motioned to them she'd be stepping out, Jungi went from the infirmary with her, eyes glued on her then with obvious attraction. "Oh, travel was relatively uneventful -which is good." Smiling at that, the Trader had to make mention then, "But we'll be heading back out on the road again within a couple of days or so. So, not much chance to rest until closer to winter again. I guess you've been well?"


After a moment, Jungi stopped them where they were at, turning to face her; for whatever reason, he was looking rather pleased with himself. "Say, Ari, I brought a gift back for you...just a little something I thought you'd like. When you're done here for the day, would you like to get together and I can give it to you then?"

Ariadne pretended not to notice the way Jungi was looking at her. He was only going to be there for a couple of days, it would give him enough time to see what had been going on since he left. Two months was a long time though it seemed to her to have gone by quickly. “I guess our wishes for safe travels worked out for you.” Even if things had grown awkward when he had left, no one wished him ill that knew him. He was too kind and jovial to everyone.

“Oh, yes. I’ve been better than well.” The smile on her face grew. She had been so happy lately. It was hard to tell if Jungi understood why that might be. She didn’t want to sully his homecoming with talk about what was going on before he left. She wanted him to know about her and Toshiro but the moment was not quite appropriate.

She shook her head, “You shouldn’t have gotten me anything. That’s very kind of you. Thank you.” Ariadne could be gracious in this situation, thinking he had perhaps gotten her something simple, something that he would get a friend. Not that she had any idea what Jungi might get her. He was a bit unpredictable at times and did things a little more spontaneously than she had realized at first.

“Yeah, I’ll be done in a couple candlemarks.” She turned back towards the infirmary. “See you later.”

Jungi was glad to know she'd been doing well, and for an instant, when she started beaming, he did wonder just what it was about. Nevertheless, he nodded and smiled, not questioning any further.

"Alright. I'll be back then to get you." Watching after her as she went back to work, he turned and began walking away, not really sure what he'd do until that time.

Having gone only a number of steps though, Jungi was stopped by another familiar voice. He found Toshiro leaning against the wall around the next corner, having apparently arrived at some point during his conversation with Ariadne, having heard at least some of it.

The Captain's eyes shot him a sidelong glance from where he stood in repose, one foot planted on the wall behind him, his arms crossed over his chest. "Do I get an invitation? It would only be polite since she's my woman."

Completely unbelieving, Jungi didn't bother turning to face him all the way, but slid hands into his pockets while looking off into the distance. "Don't pretend like you're her boyfriend, Toshiro. All you've ever done is hurt her."

A stern and determined gaze then, turned on the Captain. "I told you that when I came back I was going to make my move. I love Ari. Unlike you, I haven't done anything to hurt her. I won't hurt her. So, I'm not going to hold back. I can't let you get off that easy." When he was done speaking, Jungi looked away from Toshiro again, continuing his walk, not really knowing where he was going, but at least he wasn't staying here. He wasn't giving Toshiro the chance to talk.




Two candlemarks had gone by and Jungi was back at the infirmary, waiting for Ariadne to be done with her work. He waited outside the door, leaning against the wall, eyes turned down to the ground at his feet though, any time someone passed through the door, he would glance up to see if it was her.

The next two candlemarks, she spent thinking about what Jungi could possibly need to give her that required more time. She didn’t allow herself much time to consider he might be doing something he would regret. Ariadne needed to tell him what had been going on the last couple of months. Having never been in the position where more than one person was actively interested in her at the same time she found the predicament she was in with Jungi difficult.

When she left the infirmary, she saw Jungi waiting. “Ready.” She asked, “Where should we go?” Ariadne wondered if he had a specific plan. Yeah she was going to need to talk to him. He probably wouldn’t like what she had to say but she could no more stop her heart from beating than to stop herself from being in love with Toshiro. He didn’t think like Jungi did and perhaps was a little less sure of what to do in a relationship but it only made him more endearing to her.

(short, sorry!)

Seeing Ariadne come through the door, Jungi immediately smiled. "Well, let's see. Where shall we go?" He did already have a plan in mind, but was thinking out loud today it would seem. "How about to the gardens?"

Telgar River Hold had a number of gardens built for the Holder and his wife, but a couple of them were available for regular public enjoyment though at this time of day, most people were still working their trades so crowds shouldn't be a problem. The gardens had been built away from the more populated areas, so it was a nice walk together, and quite some distance to make it there; the one they went to was actually rather secluded... so when they went in amoungst the beautiful green trees and flowering plants, the calm and quiet, relaxing nature of the place could be fully appreciated. The wind blowing gently through the foliage left a soft whisper of leaves rustling in their ears, the pleasant scent of flowers lingering through the air.

"So beautiful here, isn't it? I'd thought to make a picnic for us but..I guess it's kind of an odd time of day for eating. It'll be nice for a walk though." Smiling softly, Jungi glanced up through the trees and out over all the beautifully planned landscaping, their gravel path winding often through new turns that would give them a whole new perspective on their surroundings.

After a while though, he looked back to Ariadne, apparently not willing to wait any longer to give her his gift. Because when he turned to her, he suddenly took her hand in his, cupping it between both palms. "Ariadne. I have to tell you...just how much I care for you. It's not normal for me to have feelings like this. But the harder I tried to ignore you in my thoughts, the more you permeated them.

"I know you have had feelings for Shiro and he must have feelings for you too, but I love you, Ari. If you could see me in that kind of way and accept my feelings for you, you won't ever have to worry about being hurt, or being without. I will care for you always."

For a moment he was quiet, eyes averting because there were obviously emotions there that moved him deeply enough to make reason for a few tears. Reaching into his pocket for the gift, he removed it, looking down at it in his hand. "I guess what I'm saying is.. I don't want to be without you in the future."

Opening the box, he held out to her the slim golden band of a ring, feminine enough but not ostentatious, something he thought might be more to her liking, crafted in multiple colours of gold, yellow, white and rose. Bending to one knee, he asked, "Ariadne, will you please marry me."

Ariadne thought the gardens were a good place to walk. Although she didn’t really have that much to say to him at first because she really didn’t know what he was thinking. At the picnic idea she nodded, it would be an odd time to eat. When they had walked a little ways into the gardens where it was quite secluded, she watched him reach for her hand. Ari didn’t know what to do at first but she didn’t pull her hand away.

She was kind of in shock as he poured his heart out to her. He was sincere and sweet and she felt like such an awful person right now. What could she say? She didn’t want to hurt Jungi. No one deserved to feel heartbreak as she had felt before. The situation was completely inconceivable and yet here she was being proposed to by a man who loved her but she felt nothing for. The words were on the tip of her tongue but she was having a hard time talking.

It was hard to hurt people. The ring was beautiful sitting in the box in his hand. With every passing second she felt more and more selfish. “Jungi, I’m I’m so flattered and you have been so wonderful and kind to me. However, I cannot accept.” She bit at her lip feeling uncomfortable in the situation. Her hand drew back. “You’ve been such a good friend to me; I don’t want to hurt you. I simply cannot will myself to love someone in way that I don’t love them. I’m so sorry, Jungi.”

Ari figured she owed him more of an explanation but she also knew that if she mentioned Toshiro things were not going to go well. “You know I’m in love with someone else.” She said, looking away from Jungi then, feeling horrible. And Toshiro did love her back. The thought of Toshiro made her heart flutter.

She couldn’t imagine what she would do though if Toshiro did not love her in return. If Jungi was feeling this way for her, she didn’t know how he would deal with the rejection. Would he get angry or sad or both? She wanted to be far away and not herself in this moment in time. It was not in her nature to be mean or cruel and she wanted only to be fair to Jungi. He shouldn’t waste his life loving someone who could never give him what he wanted.

Honestly, Jungi wasn't certain if he had ever expected her to say yes or no to his proposal. But just because she was admitting to him that she loved Toshiro didn't mean she would end up happy with him. Toshiro had a great role in that to play as well.

Standing then, Jungi continued holding the open box out for her to consider. Wanting to press her to think about things different he dug a little deeper, because he knew there were people in the world you could love and never be meant to be together forever. "How do you know he feels the same for you? Has he ever told you how he feels? Has he ever said it once, that he loves you?"

Searching her eyes while he spoke, Jungi didn't seem to be mad, only persistent because of the depth of his feelings. He was only ever gentle and good to her. "You may not see me in that way right now, but give me another chance to make you fall head over heels for me.

"It's OK,...to come to me. I will always love you and stay by your side. I will always protect everything of yours." Jungi reached to take her hand again, placing it over his heart, "I would be truly honoured if you would let me."

Ariadne gave him no quarter on that front. She knew Toshiro loved her, he had said it once. Although there was no need for him to say he did because Ariadne could feel he loved her even before he would admit it. She was the one who had forced him to admit his feelings. Since then he had done what he could to become part of her life. The more time he spent with her the more in love with him she became to the point where she could not imagine her life without him in it. He was almost always on her mind, she constantly wanted him around her but she was patient with him. She knew he wasn’t used to a relationship like theirs and she didn’t want to push him too quickly into a life he wasn’t prepared for.

“He doesn’t have to say it for it to be true.” She said standing on the sides of her feet for a moment, “It is hard to explain this to people.” Ariadne said, knowing he would think her foolish. “I feel like there is a connection between Toshiro and me. I understand him in a way that sometimes even surprises me.” She paused, he had brought Toshiro up and now he would get to listen to her talk about him.

“You are his friend, you should know better than anyone that he prefers to hide his emotions from people. He is afraid to love people for fear that they will abandon him or worse that he will hurt them. Everyone wants to protect me from Toshiro but I think you’ll find that I knew he who he was before I fell in love with him. No one ever seems to believe that I love him as he is and I don’t care if he is capable of hurting me.” Maybe that was the part that bothered them all, that she would love him no matter what they said he could do to her. The only way he could hurt her was not to love her and he had made it clear that he did love her.

“Jungi, you are a great friend but that is all I feel for you and I know you think that will change. So long as Toshiro lives I cannot see my feelings changing. Even then I’m not sure I’d ever move past his death. He is a part of me now.” And really after losing two loves she was pretty sure she’d swear love off.

"Ari..." The more she spoke of her love for Toshiro, the more distant she felt to him. He couldn't do anything more for her if that was the true depth of her feelings. Had she felt that way since prior to his leaving? Or was this new to her, too? Either way, he would respect her feelings, no matter who they were for, even if he had a hard time accepting it as truth.

For once, not seeming to know what to say, Jungi found himself staring down at the box with the ring in it. He couldn't bring himself to close the box though, and pocket it again. If he did, he was admitting defeat. He'd promised Shiro that he would fight for Ari, and he'd made the best move he knew how. After all was said and done though...what could he do if her heart was so unwilling? Jungi felt completely stumped; didn't know what to do next. As far as anyone else knew, he'd never been turn down by any woman, so this was going to have to be a first. Maybe that's what threw him so off guard. Yet, even in the past, if they played hard to get, he'd always found a way to lure them into his arms.

Ariadne was different though. She was different in his eyes because he truly had feelings for her. Could he just let her go? If he loved her, would he have to?

Through the long silence, Jungi had sobered, his good mood deteriorating into feelings of utter rejection and anger. He would not show it to Ariadne though.

Nodding his head, Jungi was letting her know he understood. The little box in his hand was closed and returned to his pocket. He would have to fold for now, but that didn't mean he'd given up completely. "Alright. I'll wait. I can wait as long as necessary." Surely she would start so see...there was only more hurt for her if she stayed with Toshiro. He wanted to believe so badly that she could want to be with him even more; she just couldn't see it now. But in the future, when things had played their course, things could change, and he could be waiting for her.

Ari watched as he put the ring away. Well she couldn’t tell him not to wait because he wouldn’t listen. Why was it so hard for him to believe that Toshiro would be good to her? Why was it hard for him to believe that it would last? He was Toshiro’s friend, he should know that the man had a good heart but he hadn’t really shown it much, she supposed. Still she did not see why so many people thought Toshiro would hurt her, including Toshiro himself. They were going to prove all the doubters wrong. Ariadne knew what she was feeling and it wasn’t just a passing inclination. She loved the man more deeply than she could express. Obviously because she seemed deaf to any and all warnings for her not to love him.

“ Okay.” She said, turning away from Jungi, “Be safe Jungi.” She meant it, because she might not love him in the way he wanted her to but she did care about him. If he could be content to be her friend, they would be such good friends but he couldn’t. And who was she to deny him his own feelings. Ariadne began to walk back to her parent’s house. She needed to take care of Thessaly.

Regardless of what Ariadne thought, no matter how things turned out, Jungi would always be her friend, and always be there to protect her. He would continue loving her. But for now, he desperately clung to any lingering hope that things might turn out the way he wanted them to be.


Saying no more, they went their separate ways, Jungi digging his hands into his pockets as he strolled rather aimlessly back in the direction they'd come. Of course, he knew where he was headed. He was going back toward the Guard Hall where he should be able to find Toshiro. Since there were no more training classes, for the next few weeks considering a class had just graduated and even those who didn't wouldn't have scheduled classes for the time being, Toshiro should have plenty of time to hang around his usual spot.


Probably a candlemark later, Jungi walked onto the open training field infront of the Guard Hall where he'd hoped to find the Captain. Not seeing him right away, Jungi raised his voice for it to carry, "Toshiro!" Taking another step forward, Jungi sat on the bottom couple of steps leading up to the hall, hanging his head as if in defeat. Right leg extended, his left knee came up to rest of the one stair below him so that his knee was close enough to lean his forearm over.

It only took a moment for him to hear a reply. "You're noisy." The Captain had been resting in the cooler shade provided by the porch overhang, leaning against the column there instead of sitting out in the sun. Glancing sidelong around the column though, he looked down the steps to find the Trader sitting there. Jungi could hear the bemusement in his tone when he spoke again, "Did you really meet with her? You look defeated. Did she end up telling you to go away?"

Jungi's jaw clenched and then he thought of something. He started to laugh, smiling though he still hung his head. "Do I really look like a defeated man? I'm just tired is all."

Letting Toshiro wonder why he would claim to be tired, Jungi continued to let that rogueish smile play across his features, seeming very pleased with himself. "She had to go home to take care of Thessaly, but after I walked her home and her parents ended up leaving, so I told her goodbye with a kiss. Only...she wanted more. How could she be satisfied with just a kiss anyway?" Jungi seemed to sigh then, thinking back to that time which never existed, "When it comes to 'those' kinds of moments, she really is so girly."

Now, Toshiro could feel as jealous and deprived as he did.

Since he started speaking those words, Toshiro had turned to face him, standing from where he sat. The Captain was obviously growing very angry, leaving his weapon out of reach on purpose. As Toshiro made his way down the few steps between them, Jungi also got up, knowing just what anger he must have awoken the wrath of. Advancing until they were both all the way down the stairs, Jungi back pedaling so that neither of them would have to combat an uneven surface at their feet, Toshiro threw the first punch.

Jungi wasn't about to let Toshiro's swing land. He was too quick for that, and had expected it anyway, so his body easily angle aside of it, blocking the immediate next strike from Toshiro's left hand. The two exchanged multiple strikes and blocks, each having a hard time punching through the other man's defenses, until finally Toshiro caught an opening, using some fast foot work to sweep Jungi's legs from under him.

For most people, once they hit the ground was when the fight began rolling against their favour, but for Jungi, it was when the fight began. Jungi rolled out of the way of another strike, swinging his legs to try and catch Toshiro's own in a tangle to bring the Captain down with him. Even as they fought, the two found a way to keep talking things out, "Stop acting like you own her! Any way you look at it she's mine! You broke her heart already. I won't let you do it again!"

Toshiro evaded, but Jungi had the foresight to expect him to, making fall back plans -which worked. Toshiro found himself in the dirt, though he was used to falling and was able to take much of the force out of a landing that might typically have broken something. The two went back to it. Toshiro growled back at him, "Why don't you go make some tea or something! That way you can stop pretending you know anything more about love than I do!"

Jungi found himself at an advantage finally, straddling Toshiro on the ground, throwing a couple of punches at his face. "After she told me she loved you so much...I thought about just stepping away! But, I would have felt too deprived if I did. So I came back to get a couple good hits in."

Toshiro's lip bled immediately, and he winced, thinking that maybe Jungi had broken his nose. He realized what Jungi was saying, then; that Ariadne had turned him down completely, and he felt so deprived because of it, that he came back to pick a fight. Which is where the story about he and Ariadne being together came in. At least that made him feel better. Yet, at the same time it didn't. The Captain was still pissed that Jungi would lie about Ariadne like that.

In a flurry of motion, Toshiro and re-gained the upper hand, freeing himself of Jungi, and for now, getting back to his feet instead of continuing to roll in the dirt. His nose started pouring with blood, and he brought his hand up to feel at the cartilage there, making sure nothing was too terribly misplaced. Didn't seem to be, but then again, they had both been holding back a bit, too. If Toshiro'd wanted to, in a single strike of his fist, he could have broken just about any bone in Jungi's body had he wanted to. But that hadn't happened yet either.

Jungi stood up from the ground too, taking a breather, watching Toshiro across from him, gauging his mood, "If you're so sincere about her Toshiro, then convince me of it." Jungi smirked, "After all, the sincere thing to do would be to propose to her. I did."

That elicited another swing through the air from Toshiro, aimed at him. Toshiro knew it wouldn't hit, but he was just aiming to get the fight moving again. The two of them went into a renewed round of hand strikes and kicks that never seemed to determine a victor. Rather, it was for the pure enjoyment of beating eachother. If it could be called enjoyment? Either way, it was apparently helping to work a few things out and come to some sort of resolution between the two. Maybe. Hopefully.



"You asked her to marry you?"

"I told you I was sincere!"

Toshiro threw a knife-handed strike Jungi's way, which was expertly blocked and countered; which in turn was also blocked. "What makes you think I'm not?! What makes you think I don't love her!? What makes y-" The words were interrupted by another jab from Jungi. And now Toshiro was angry for a whole new reason. Growling, Toshiro tackled him in a grapple, throwing both of them back to the ground.

The two of them became locked in a knot-work of arms and legs that looked like they might strangle eachother. Jungi managed to speak, only barely, as they struggled together, "Then don't give up on her ever. Work hard to protect her and never let her go! Because if you do, then that makes my love, that has never had a chance, look pathetic!"

Jungi's muscles started to relax a little from where they were both entwined in grapples of eachother, and then he finally sat back, resting on his elbows on the dirt, "At least if I can say I lost to a great love, then I won't look so bad."

By that point, Jungi's tears had returned to the edges of his eyes, where Shiro saw him, and saw the truth behind his conviction. Both men laid on the ground in the dirt then, Toshiro staring up into the sky, "I promise. I will love her better than you do. So that your love won't be diminished. I will protect her and never let her go."

Then he whispered, "I promise you a great love."

Ariadne had not lied to Jungi when she said she was going to go home and take care of her daughter however when she arrived to find her parents out with the little girl, she decided to change her plan. She cleaned up, taking a shower and putting on one of her nicer work dresses. Her hair was left down. Since she didn’t get to surprise Toshiro much at the Barracks she thought she might stop in, just to say hello and let him know what had happened with Jungi. She was about to head up when she heard Jungi shout, Toshiro’s name. She decided not to advance towards the barracks but stayed where she was out of sight but not out of ear shot.

She could almost feel the bitterness in Jungi’s voice despite him trying to make it sound like he had gotten what he wanted from her. She didn’t know what was happening at first but began to hear them fighting. The fighting came closer to where she was standing so she found a group of shrubs and hid behind them. This was too amusing not to watch, besides she wanted to see what they did and hear what they said.

It wasn’t as bad as it could have been really. Well other than Jungi being completely heartbroken. She never thought he would care so deeply about her. He seemed to be so happy being a play boy, seeing different women whenever he felt like. She thought it would be safe to allow him to be her friend because of that. Ari had never thought he would be interested in her as more than a friend. Toshiro may have broken her heart a little but it was partially her own fault for allowing him to push her away. She wasn’t going to let him get away with it again.

When they spoke, she thought about what was being said, ignoring the fighting for the most part. Then of course Jungi brought up the proposal and that sent Toshiro into thinking. She’d never want him to propose because he thought he should, because it was the “right” thing to do. Maybe Ariadne was strange but she didn’t care what everyone thought of her relationship. If Toshiro wanted to marry her at some point, then she would gladly marry him but she didn’t need a ring or a promise to know her feelings were not going to change or that he would stick around. She already knew that.

The whole thing seemed to catch Toshiro off guard for a moment. Jungi’s heart was in the right place really, because he wanted to make sure Toshiro was serious about her but she already knew he was. The confirmation that he would love her and protect her forever brought a smile to her face. She wanted to come out of the bushes then but it seemed like bad timing. Instead she waited for them to quiet down.

They were both laying on the dirt, so she approached quietly, they wouldn’t have seen her, all they would see was her shadow on the dirt then. “I thought you trained up a little higher.” Whether she meant standing or at the actual training grounds was for them to determine. She didn’t say anything about their wounds, physical or emotional.

“I hope I’m not interrupting anything. I can come back later.”

Nearly jumping out of their own skins, it could be seen the line both sets of eyes traced to get to her. Their own eyes reflected surprise and then the process could be seen as their minds tried to decide if Ariadne had been there watching the whole time.

As if they might find some answer in eachother's gaze, both looked back at eachother and then quickly returned to their feet, brushing the dirt that that they could from their clothes. Of course, there were some stains there that would have to be worked out in the wash.

As soon as he got up again, Toshiro's nose started dripping blood again, so he tried holding it, tilting his head back. He also took the time to elbow Jungi in the ribs as hard as he could, for punching him in the face to begin with.

The way they both stood there then, was almost as if they were both children caught red-handed by their mother in the middle of something they weren't supposed to be doing. Both kind of shuffled, finishing straightening themselves up.

"Not interrupting anything." Jungi answered her first since Shiro was still tipping his head back awkwardly trying to stem the blood flow. "We were just finishing. I think I won, just so you know."

Putting aside the fact of his nose bleed at that moment, Toshiro was shooting Jungi looks of astonishment, and would have jumped him again but for the fact Ari was there. Instead of trying to defend himself in the matter, he went back to holding his nose. "Whatever. I'm gonna go clean up before dinner." Toshiro acknowledged Jungi as if nothing ever happened, "Later, Jungi."

The Captain went to take up his weapons and then came back down the stairs, motioning for Ariadne to follow him, Jungi having already waved his goodbyes and went his own way. "Why are you here?" He didn't really care asking at what point she'd gotten there. After all, why not just go ahead and assume worst case scenario -that she'd been there to see /hear the entire show down between the two?

Guiding them back to the officer's barracks which gave him his own room though it was small, Toshiro placed both weapons on a display stand, or rack of sorts, that was meant to house them, one atop the other. Since he wasn't in uniform, having been enjoying a day off from the regular training routine, Toshiro didn't have to worry about undressing from layers.

Shucking his bloodied shirt off, he threw it across the bed and then went to a wash basin where a wash cloth and hand towel hung beside a mirror. Splashing the cold water into his face,he went about ridding himself of the dirt and blood.

She was smiling, amusement dancing in her blue eyes. Neither of them asked how long she had been there so she played along with them as if she had heard and seen nothing. As Jungi and Toshiro stood up and wiped the dirt off of themselves, she couldn't help but see them as children for a moment. There was no doubt in her mind they were both trouble when they were young.

As Jungi boasted his victory, Ari looked at Toshiro who seemed to think that was an unfair statement. It didn’t matter to her who had won, although perhaps to the two men it did. She shrugged and watched Jungi make his leave. Waving goodbye, she followed Toshiro. She hadn’t expected him to ask her why she was there. Wasn’t it obvious?

“I left work early, had a talk with Jungi and went home to find Thessaly out with my parents so I thought I would come and see you. I was going to tell you what had happened because I know you and Jungi are friends. Seems he beat me to it though.” She almost said beat me to the punch but thought that would be a horrible joke, although it made her laugh a little on the inside.

Ariadne tried not to read much into his brusqueness as he took his shirt off and began to wash the blood and dirt away. She didn’t know how much of what Jungi said was upsetting him or what part of what Jungi had said was bothering him but she felt like something was other than the obvious physical pain from being in a fight. She didn’t press him though, as she figured he would tell her if he wanted her to know.

“May I look at your nose?” Ariadne wanted to be sure it wasn’t broken.

After the bleeding seemed to have stopped and he'd washed himself clean, Toshiro sat himself on the edge of his bed so that Ariadne could take a look at his nose.

Of course, until she made him look up so that she could inspect him, his eyes roamed up and down her figure, and when she got close enough, his hands went to her sides, holding onto her. And even if she wasn't through taking a look at him, he was already lifting the hems of her dress to get to what interested him underneath. She was right about him. Trouble indeed.

His hands on her sides she could feel his desire. Ignoring his touch just long enough to look at his nose, she leaned in Smiling down at him she said, “I don’t think it is broken.” Even as she said the words she was moving in to kiss him. “Remind me, what was I doing here?” She said with a mischievous glint in her eyes. Her arms had lifted over her head so he could easily remove her dress.


(close?)