#hatocha

For the first time in a while, Hatoto had hit the snooze button on his alarm. And then fell right back asleep and forgot about it, as most who hit the snooze button do.

He didn't fully wake up for quite some time, and didn't even look at the clock when he did. Instead his eyes opened and he shifted, looked down a bit to see Ochacha, or the top of her head at least. So she was still sleeping, too, hands curled into loose fists as they rested against his bare chest. That was pretty out of ordinary too...

...then again, last night was out of ordinary.

"Hmmm..." Ochacha shifted herself, unconsciously nuzzled Hatoto, and looked up, blinking sleepily. "Hm...Hatoto?"

"Mornin'..." Hatoto smiled, unable to help it, and hugged her closer, resting his chin on the top of her head. 

"Morning..."

"You're usually up before me. ...uh...are you, ah, 'okay?'" He felt a little bit embarrassed for asking. He should have asked last night.

Ochacha's face warmed up a little, but she nodded - Hatoto could feel her smiling, too. "Yes."

"Well, good, because I--"

"I know..." Ochacha wiggled a bit, stretched up to rest her head against his shoulder instead. "It's okay..." There was a brief silence, and then Ochacha bit back a small laugh. "I won't be mentioning this in my next letter to my parents."

Hatoto nearly had a heart attack, even if she did say she wouldn't do it. "Don't joke about that; I'm still nervous from last time they showed up here!" If they knew about this--

"I'm sorry," Ochacha mumbled, nuzzling again.

For a while they were content to just lie there in silence; it seemed appropriate, and there wasn't even much to say. They were perfectly happy to just stay there, a little drowsy still, maybe fall back asleep together-- Wait.

"What time is it anyway?" Hatoto reluctantly pulled back and sat up, noticing how Ochacha just went deeper into the blankets. That was kinda cute (even if there was, to put it casually, 'nothing new to see'). He looked to the clock and-- "It's ten?!" he cried, snatching it off the night-table and shaking it, as if that would change the time to an earlier hour. "Oh no," he moaned, moving to get out of bed in a hurry, Ochacha following example. "Yukoko's going to--"

He was interrupted by a pounding on the door. "Hey!" Oh, speak of the devil... "Hatoto, I let you sleep in just this once; we're all taking an off day, okay? Don't forget your alarm this time!" And then he could just hear the smirk in her voice. "And hi, Ochacha."

Ochacha let out a small squeak and hid her face in the pillow, bright red.

As they heard Yukoko walking away, Hatoto groaned, red-faced himself as he dragged a hand across his eyes. "...I don't want to face her for a bit," he mumbled, trying not to think about how Yukoko had known. After all, they'd been quiet!

"M-Me neither..." came Ochacha's muffled reply.

Hatoto slowly uncovered his eyes, the metaphorical light bulb slowly turning on. "...seems we're stuck here for a while." His gaze shifted down to Ochacha again, lying on her stomach with the blankets slipping off her shoulders.

“Mister Hatoto?”

“I told you, you don't have to call me that.” He didn't say it unkindly, or angrily; just a little impatient with a side of amusement. “I'm not a 'mister.'”

“What?” Ochacha blinked, stared at him with wide eyes. “But wouldn't it be too forward to call you just your name? You seem important,” she wasn't sure why, she just felt that sort of air about him, “you took me out of the tower,” temporarily, and not too far, but it was enough, “so it seems I should call you 'mister,' right?”

“Ochacha...” Hatoto sighed, running a hand through messy hair. For an instant he wondered how on earth the lady managed her own hair: impossibly-long and not a tangle to be seen. “Trust me on this, I'm not someone to 'respect.' And I only did what anyone would do.” Showed her a little bit of the world, the woods around her, and took her home before her step-mother returned. Anyone would want to help a girl in a tower experience the world, right? Out of the kindness of their hearts.

Anyone would end up coming back a second time, because they wanted to and not because they were being chased by guards again.

Anyone would invite her out for days, weeks afterwards, because that was what good people did.

...right?

None of it had anything to do with the weird warmth in his chest when she actually smiled for the first time, when she yelped at the feeling of stepping in the water by mistake, whenever she'd clasp his hands and thank him before pulling herself back into the tower.

Right?

“Hatoto?”

“Hm?” He snapped himself out of his thoughts, taking it as a small, personal victory that she'd dropped the 'mister' this time. “What is it?”

“I was wanting to ask...” Ochacha bit her lip. “I wanted to ask...”

She paused for so long (and Hatoto just waited, rather than tell her to hurry and speak – he always waited for her to talk), that the fireflies came out before she finished her sentence. Usually she was entranced by them; sitting on the same boulder they always did, near the river, she'd hold her hands out to catch one and he'd be briefly mesmerized by the way it illuminated her face and hair. But tonight she ignored them. This must be serious.

“Step-mother would be furious for this,” he heard her whisper before she cleared her throat and spoke louder. “I was wondering...I want to see more with you, Hatoto. I want to see the world, more than the woods, and more than my tower. And...I think I—I know I want to see it with you.” She looked away, face pink.

His own face felt a bit warm.

“What about the tower? Your stepmother?”

Ochacha shrugged; something highly unladylike and unlike her. “I...I don't know. She said the world was bad and scary, and there were monsters. But I've never seen any since you started taking me out here. I like the world; it's pretty and warm and nice, and...I wonder if she might be wrong. So I want to see more of it for myself, and I'd feel a lot happier if I could do it with you.”

So...basically she was wanting to 'leave the nest.' With him. Specifically him.

His face felt warm again.

But where could he take her? Where could they go? The wanted posters were still...

...no. He looked different enough, scruffy enough now. He could hide his face. He could do it, he could go back to town. At least for her sake.

“Ochacha.”

She turned towards him, starting a bit when she saw how he was sitting closer.

“Tomorrow evening, in town, there's a festival. They light up the whole kingdom, every street, and there's music and dancing and food and everything your books described.”

Ochacha nodded, eyes wide. She'd heard faint strains of the music, seen the orange and yellow glow from her tower. Step-mother had never told her what it was, but she'd always been so fascinated...

“Tomorrow night, I can take you there.” One of his hands found hers. “Would you like that?”

A slow, lovely smile appeared on her face. “Yes.”

--------

It didn't happen.

Ochacha waved lightly as he vanished into the forest again, one of her hands over her chest. That hand still tingled a little where he'd grasped it. She was going to a festival! She'd see the rest of the world, with someone she...really cared about!

This was the best night ever! And tomorrow would be better!

She began to make her way back into the tower; years of pulling her step-mother up had given her a surprising, hidden strength in her arms, so she could effortlessly throw her own braid over the railing and down, and pull herself up. She'd done it for the past few weeks; Step-mother was never the wiser.

But this time, as she reached the balcony and slid across the railing, feet finding firm ground, she froze up, and her heart jumped into her throat.

There was a lot Ochacha didn't know.

She didn't know why she had to spend most of her days alone. Surely if her step-mother couldn't stay in the tower all day, she could at least take Ochacha with her. The world couldn't “corrupt” her as long as Step-Mother was there, right? And the monsters she always talked about; she could surely keep them away.

That was another thing. She didn't know why there were so many monsters around, and only herself and Step-Mother in this kingdom. Step-Mother told her that in this kingdom, there was nothing but horrible monsters, large shadowy things with glowing eyes and sharp teeth that would eat a girl like her, and that the two of them were the only normal people in the kingdom. That was why Ochacha had to live in a high tower, away from them. She never told her why she was allowed to leave, though.

Another thing she didn't know.

And she also didn't know why there was a noise outside her tower, a noise growing steadily louder and louder.

Her first thought was that it was one of the monsters. One of them had found her tower, had smelled human girl inside, and was climbing up right now! Ochacha quickly rose from her spot on the floor, accidentally tipping over the (mercifully-empty) teacup in her haste to get to the wardrobe and shut herself inside. It took a little while for her to drag her long hair in after herself (this was something she did know: why she had long hair. Step-Mother needed a way to get inside, after all!) but she managed, and hastily but quietly shut the wardrobe door just as something peered over the window.

“Phew!”

Wait. That didn't sound anything like what she imagined the monsters sounded like...She always thought they had gravelly, scary voices. Low voices that sounded like thunder and rocks rubbing together at once. Inhuman.

This voice sounded...well, not like her or Step-Mother, it was too deep for that, but it talked like them! Ochacha swallowed, steeled herself, and slowly opened the door just a crack, peered through the tiny opening.

...it even looked like them. Well, not exactly, of course not, they weren't curved so much as they were 'straight lines' and skinny, but it looked like them!

But...but Step-Mother said there weren't any others like them in this kingdom. That they were all in another one...

Whoever it was turned away from the window, froze up and stared at the teaset. Then, as if he could feel her presence, he looked right at the wardrobe. “Someone here?”

He wasn't a monster. It would be fine...

The doors slowly opened.

-----------

His name was Hatoto, he'd told her, after finally convincing her to actually step out of the wardrobe. And that had been really all he'd wanted to tell her about himself. He was, however, willing to tell her about the kingdom just outside the forest her tower was in.

“Monsters? There're no monsters out there,” he'd said, frowning and scratching his head a little, messing up his already kind of messy hair. “There's a bunch of guards and soldiers that have the endurance of monsters, and a few bears and wolves, but no monsters.”

“Really?” Ochacha's shoulders slumped in relief. Yes, of course she believed this total stranger. He'd come from the outside, and why would he need to lie about this? “Thank goodness...” But wait. She frowned a little as the thought came to her. If that was true, then why was here to begin with? Why did Step-Mother lie?

Hatoto completely misunderstood her reaction, however. “If you want, I can show you. I can show you there's nothing to be afraid of.”

“Eh?” Ochacha straightened, mentally kicked herself, Pure, proper and elegant ladies didn't say that!

But he just smiled, pointed towards the window. “I can show you. Come on, we'll go for just a small walk--” and here he decided to avoid the main path, where the wanted posters were, “--and you can see for yourself. I'm sure you'd love it out there; it's really pretty outside.” And she could probably use some color to her face too, he thought.

“Well...” Ochacha bit her lip and looked towards the window. Well...

“Just twenty feet away from the tower and back.” Hatoto stood over her, hand outstretched, a little smile on his face. “I know a way you can get back inside once we're out, you said yourself your step-mother won't be back for a few hours.

“Just trust me.”

There was a long silence as Ochacha's eyes kept moving between the window and Hatoto. She didn't want to upset her step-mother...but at the same time, the way he'd described the kingdoms outside, the forest, the reassurance there weren't any monsters out there...She did want to see it.

Who would ever think that giving your spare ten gold to one who needed it would end up with you getting your face painted on a wanted poster?

That's what the now former Corporal of the Royal Guard thought as he ran away from impeding horses. The entire day was just a mess. Another soldier had seen him giving gold to a hungry woman and her child, mistaking it for stealing from the king's vault and giving it to the poor. Without any explanation, Hato was arrested and brought to the king, himself, for his punishment. But they never gave him a chance to explain that it was really his money, not the king's he gave away!

"I trusted you, Corporal," The king said, shaking his head in shame. "To think of one of my higher ranking men stealing from me! You're a thief! You've gone rogue!"

"But I didn't --!" Hato began, but the king put up his hand.

"Silence," He demanded, and the soldier fell silent. "You are hereby relieved of your duty in the Royal Guard. Arrest him!"

Instead of letting himself get put into prison for the wrong reason, he fought his way out of the castle and away, into the forest outside the kingdom's walls, where many posters with his face had been hung. He ripped one off as he ran by to look at the reward, but something else distracted him. Of course, they couldn't get half of the thieves' noses right, but they got his? Just my luck.

It took endless effort to get them off of his trail, but Hato ducked behind a tree and into a small clearing, trying to desperately catch his breath as he leaned against the tree trunk. His brows furrowed the more he thought about his situation. If they think I'm a thief, taking from the king and giving his riches away, let them! I might as well just actually do it!

Hato then ran a hand over his face, stopping at his chin to rub the stubble. What am I thinking? That's insane! Why would I ever actually steal? I'm an honest man, and it's my duty as Royal Guard to be honest and just! But...it did feel right, giving the money to her. Running a hand through his hair, the former soldier put his hands up as he began to argue with himself out loud.

"No, no, stealing is off limits to the Guard! What am I thinking?" He said, beginning to pace. Luckily, the sound of horse hooves were already gone, otherwise he'd give himself away. "But...I'm not part of the Guard anymore. The king himself fired me!"

Hato walked through the clearing to find a small pond, looking at his reflection in the water. The poster was spot-on... He took another glance and felt the stubble on his face. Maybe he should let that grow out. Maybe mess up his hair a bit, even let a few tree branches scratch up his face.