Form Six

“Huh. Interesting. A Rangetsu tradition, I take it?” He is already taking copious mental notes.

“I can’t say that sounds familiar, no. What is it?”

“Best eaten with tea on a summer’s day.”

formsix:

“Oh, I get it. So I have to think of how to beat them before I fight them.” It seemed simple enough when he put it that way. But the more Laphicet thought, the less he came up with. This was hard… If Rokurou could think of things like this so easily then it was no wonder he was so strong.

“But then.. what do you do when the monsters surprise you and you don’t have time to think about it?”

“You’re right: I’d be a pretty poor swordsman if I couldn’t think on my feet. But because I practiced so many parts of the Rangetsu style, I don’t even have to think about ‘em most of the time.” He ruffles Laphicet’s hair. “If you wanna be a great warrior, you need to practice every day.”

“In the… mind?” Laphicet ponders this a moment. “So… if I think really hard about beating a bunch of monsters, I can do what you just did now?” 

“Unlucky would be four, I recall you telling me. It’s a homonym for the word for ‘death’ in your family’s tongue, correct? However, unlucky would also be ‘and left none for other people’,” he added pointedly, as Rokurou had not clarified if there was any left.

“You remembered,” Rokurou says with an unbridled delight. He catches himself once the words are out and clears his throat. “Isn’t six supposed to be a bad thing in the Abbey?”

The whiskey? That left wide margins for interpretation.

“Exactly how many bottles did you ‘try’?” Not that Eizen would object, save that it sounded like the party had started without him.

“Precisely why your failure to imitate an elephant this time was noticeable.”

“If it was nothing, you wouldn’t be holding your breath while you tiptoed on-deck.”

Thank you Kaaaat! <3 <3 <3 <3 I happened to bop on tonight and see this. 

There was no denying the sense of unease that prickled at his neck, that made his every fibre tense in alert. There was a chill the air ought not carry, a glint amongst the shadows that seemed impossible but that his mind would not dismiss. The rustle of the bushes turns his head, briefly widens his eyes until the shadows take form, moonlight cutting the figure of a man with dark hair, yet one whose eye seemed to glow an almost eerie red. It reminded him of the nova monsters, and of a time in his own past he tried hard not to think about.

“So it would seem, unless you share your company with another,” Richard answered, though his guard still not fully dropped, he nodded in acknowledgment of the stranger. There was still an odd chill in the air, an aura about this man that felt unnatural. “Do you often walk the roads like this at night? I imagine you’ve inspired quite a few tales if so.” The nearby taverns would likely be abuzz by now if his presence a regular occurrence.

“Nope. Just ol’ me! Rokurou Rangetsu, nice to meet’cha.” He clapped his palms together and offered a bow. Rokurou grinned widely. It had been awhile since he’d really encountered someone new. There was a thrill in that. It was a toss up, at this point, whether he saw Rokurou as a simple traveler, or if the red in his eyes and the scrawling tattoo-like marks were visible too. Well, there were a few ways to find that out. He threaded his fingers through his hair, shuffling it back into more comfortable disarray over his daemon eye. 

“Nah, I’m just a simple swordsman. There’s not much to talk about.” He reached behind him to pat Stormquell’s grip, as if a sword nearly the length of his body were commonplace. He continued, voice playful in the same way that juggling knives was playful: “Oh, so you haven’t been to town yet? They have all sorts of stories. Daemons with glowing eyes and big teeth. Huge red and black claws in tattered clothes. Some say they take the form of a man. Or a woman. Or even maaaybe a child.” He lifted his hands in an approximation of claws and wiggled his fingers. 

    “Rokuro! Daemon or no, I expected you to have some shame! Think of the children, of darling little Laphicet! If he heard the things I saw you do, why I think even he would– no, I daren’t say it! I mustn’t! For the good of the known free world, you and I both must take this to your grave…. capisce?”