14.ii The Peach Festival

~ Sun Ritsu ~

Ritsu could care less that his nose was swollen and throbbing.

Anari came back!

They had temporarily abandoned the test of strength booth for a spot under an isolated wishing tree. She knelt with his head in her lap so she could better tend to his wound. She dabbed him with the hem of her sleeve while pressing ice cubes wrapped in cloth to the most sensitive area.

“I’m so sorry. I had no idea that was you.”

Ritsu smiled through the pain. “Really, it’s okay. I’m . . . glad to see you again, Anari.”

Looking up at her regal features set against a sky of paper wishes and lazy leaves eased all the nerves he had around finding his staff. He just wanted to stay like this forever.

Anari looked as if she might have let a smile slip through without really meaning to. Suddenly business-like, she said, “I want to apologize for my behavior the last time we met. I was hungry and tired. I should have offered you a proper payment for helping me shake off those trolls.”

She helped Ritsu sit upright and encouraged him to hold the ice to his nose. “I can assist you in locating your weapon. Then we can finally call it even.”

Ritsu considered her words. “So what you’re saying is, you’ll stay with me until we find my staff?”

Anari hesitated. “We could renegotiate a different arrangement if you don’t want to be bothered by my company –”

“No!” He held up his hand. “That’s not what I – Ow. Ow. Ow.”

Anari gently tskd at him. “Stop talking through your nose.”

Ritsu adjusted his speech. “Thanks. I’m not bothered by your company at all. To be honest, I . . .” his face grew hot. “I want more of it.”

He dared a look at Anari. To his frustration, her gaze was unreadable. All that gave her away was the parting of her lips, which could have meant she was flattered or flabbergasted. Who knew?

“Who is this?”

Both Ritsu and Anari turned their eyes to the newcomer.

“Bodhi?” Ritsu lowered the ice from his numb face. “What’s wrong? What are you doing here?”

Bodhi looked a bit sheepish as they replied, “Heh. We have a problem. I lost the pig.”

Anari’s predatory eyes slowly scanned the monk. “Sun, I thought you were traveling alone.”

Bodhi crossed their arms. “Hey, little miss daddy long legs. I think you’ve got the wrong Sun.”

Anari stood up. “And I think you smell like a wet frog, you bald little –”

Ritsu stood up too and gently touched Anari’s shoulder. She read the plea in his eyes and almost immediately, the fire died down in hers. Then she leaned cooly up against the tree and folded her arms.

Ritsu turned to Bodhi and scrunched his nose. “Ugh, you do actually smell pretty bad. Have you been drinking again?”

That nervous grin came back. “Right. Remember when I said I lost the pig?”

Ritsu nodded.

“Yeah, I meant to say that I sold him to a butcher for a barrel of rice wine.”