Chapter 285 - Interlude 4 - Kaori, The Actress, Part 2

Just a short while later, everyone was getting into the carriage, one person at a time. The Saviors, with their augmented Strength, thanks to all of those levels, helped everyone in, a process that left Kaori feeling strange. 

By the time that it had been her turn, she was the last one, and that half-demon girl had been the one to help her. She casually extended a hand toward Kaori, and the blonde took it with a polite smile before the half-demon pulled her up and into the carriage. 

But, because destiny just couldn't help itself, apparently, Kaori tripped on her own feet and fell on top of the armored girl. 

"Ueh!?" An embarrassing sound came out of her as she flailed, only to be held up by two strong, golden hands. 

Blushing intensely, she looked up and found a smirk aimed down at her, as Ash looked amused. 

Yeah, great first impression, Kaori,  she told herself as she regained her balance and then went to the back of the carriage, where the rest of her troupe was. The regular guards sat at the front, leaving some space in the middle. She ended up sitting next to Yumi, by the edge of the vehicle, as the coachman spurred the horses forward. 

"Are you alright?" Yumi asked though she seemed a bit amused. 

"Y-Yeah," Kaori replied quickly. "I just... Slipped, is all. So," she said, in an effort to change the topic, "how long will it be, again?" 

"Two days, though," Yumi crossed her legs, "if the Saviors want to move in a hurry, and we don't take many breaks, I suppose that time could be cut a little." 

"We'll see," Kasumi, who had heard that and was walking over to them, said. "If the roads are looking safe enough, we'll pace ourselves. If things really get dangerous though, then, yeah, we'll want to be getting there in as little as possible." 

She and the other Savior sat down right in front of Kaori, with their backs hugging the right-hand wall edge of the cart. Naturally, Kaori's eyes fell on the woman who'd caught her earlier, just to see if she was sneaking a chuckle at her or something. 

Instead, as soon as the half-demon sat down, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes, as though intending to go to sleep. 

"What are you all going to do once you get to Pearl? Are you one of those improvising acts?" Kasumi then asked, putting a hand under her chin. 

"Oh, we were going to adapt this one story into a play, it's called  The Taste of Snow,  have you heard of it?" Yumi asked.

"Mm, no," Kasumi shook her head. 

"It was written by a great novelist named Kairo. It's a short little piece of work, but one that captivated all of our hearts as soon as we discovered it." 

"What's it about?"

When Kaori heard that question, she was the one who answered it. It excited her to no end, after all. 

"It's a story about love and duty!" She declared, somewhat loudly. 

"Uh... Okay, but what happens in it?"

"I... Don't remember, actually," Kaori replied, giving an awkward smile. 

"Kaori's a sucker for themes more than anything else," Yumi half-whispered to the woman, even though they were all literally within an arms reach of one another. 

"Ohhh, a romantic? Hehe, I can appreciate that." 

"Well, anyway, essentially, there's this soldier who's coming home from a long time away from her family, and..." 

As Yumi began explaining the finer details of the play's beginning, middle, and end, Kaori's eyes rose up. Just behind Kasumi, she saw the half-demon with her arms crossed, and her eyes still closed. 

Kaori raised a brow at that. 

Is she that tired?  She wondered.  We only just got in this thing. Though, I imagine the life of a warrior would be exhausting. 

As that thought slipped through her mind, her eyes lowered a little, to the woman's arms. She couldn't see her physique well enough to gauge anything about her, due to her armor, but she wondered what would be there if the half-demon was to take some of those pieces off. Kaori had always had a soft spot for toned arms, in particular. It made those kiss scenes with Sinneah all the more enjoyable, though she didn't tell the other actresses that for fear of being teased to death. 

"So, what do you do if you forget your lines?" 

A question was suddenly directed at her. 

"Hm?" 

"Forgive me if I'm assuming too much, but it doesn't seem to me like you have the story memorized too well. What happens if you get on stage and forget?" 

"Oh," Kaori replied. "I wing it." 

Her answer came quickly and easily, mainly because it had happened before. 

"What?" Kasumi tilted her head. 

"Yeah. Personally," she smiled a little, "even if I don't remember my lines specifically, I just... I try to think of what the character would do," she shrugged. "It helps that I'm usually a couple of drinks deep before every performance." 

"She's an alcoholic," Vermia muttered. 

"N-No I'm not! I just... I enjoy a little bit of alcohol, every now and then..." Kaori pouted, looking away. 

At that, Kasumi turned toward the other Savior. 

"Hey, Ash, did you hear that?" Kasumi asked, with a cheeky little smile. "Looks like you found a kindred spirit here." 

"Hm?" Ash's eyes slowly blinked open. "Wha...?" 

Was she almost asleep already?  Kaori asked herself, shocked. 

"She's a heavy drinker too," Kasumi pointed at her. "Guess you've got a little in common." 

"..." Ash's eyes then met hers, and they narrowed just slightly. "...ess so." 

She mumbled that so lowly that Kaori barely heard her. Then, just like that, she closed her eyes again and leaned her head back against the wall. 

"Not very sociable, is she?" Yumi said, with a light-hearted tone. 

"Eh, she's definitely no people person, but she's dependable. Hopefully, you won't have to find..." 

The carriage stopped. The horses ahead, neighing wildly, appeared to be disturbed by something. Vermia, nervous, leaned forward. 

"What is happening?" She asked. 

"Let me check," Kasumi told everyone, standing up and quickly exiting the vehicle, as the guards ahead kept their hands on their weapons. Just then, Kaori heard a screech in the air, and Ash's eyes popped open. 

Just as quickly as Kasumi, she exited the cart. Due to the roof of the carriage, Kaori couldn't see what had arrived in front of them. So, with curiosity bubbling up inside of her, she moved up. One of the guards tried to hold her back, but Kaori got far enough to where she could see it. 

And, when she did, her jaw hit the ground. 

Another ear-rending screech came out of a creature that looked like a cross between a giant hawk and a lizard. The creature had a pair of thick brown wings, a scaly-looking body, and a pair of thin eyes aimed straight at the Savior currently walking toward it. 

"It's all yours," Kasumi told the half-demon, taking a step back. 

"Gotcha," Ash replied, rolling her shoulders. "Spear." 

The cube the woman had on her belt then transformed into a brilliant golden polearm, with a thin blade at the front. 

From the creature's beak, lightning shot out at the woman. She dashed to the right and held her spear out in front of her. 

"Mists of the north, wrap yourselves around my target!" She said, and the woman stretched a hand out toward the bird-like creature. 

A stream of icy winds surged out from her palm, unleashing themselves upon the monster ahead, and as they reached it, the creature shrieked in pain. That pain was negligible, though, compared to what it would soon go through. 

Ash all but disappeared as she charged forward. Running in front of the monster, she pulled her spear back, jumped up, and planted it in the monster's body. All while Kaori watched, in absolute awe. 

She felt like she was watching a scene from a book play out in front of her. She hadn't ever witnessed people moving like this or any fighting between high-leveled creatures. 

More than anything, however, that half-demon looked like she was completely in her element. And, that was something that Kaori had always loved seeing in people. 

And, well, it was also really, really hot. 

Kaori had been in many relationships over the course of her life, not all of them good, not all of them bad,  some of them with men, some of them with women, but the one thing her partners had in common was simple. Each one was a determined, passionate individual. It was a trait that Kaori appreciated greatly, knowing that the person she was with had something driving them. Something pushing them to work harder every day. 

Seeing how methodically, and how surgically, Ash was approaching this battle, she felt like she was seeing it now. 

Gosh,  she chuckled, smiling a little, as the half-demon stepped back, twirling her spear.  I didn't know fighting could be so beautiful! 

What happened next, though, wasn't quite as visually appealing. 

Ash ran forward. She dodged out of the way of another lightning attack. Then, she stepped under the bird and thrust her spear into the monster's neck. 

And, blood spilled out from the monster's body, completely covering the half-demon from head to toe. 

Kaori's smile faded, and a grimace replaced it. 

Oh... Gross. 

"Ugh!" Ahead, Ash spat out, gagging as the monster fell to the side, dead. "It's in my mouth, it's in my mouth. Motherfucker!" 

Hearing that, Kaori chuckled. 

The Savior, drenched in the monster's blood, walked right past Kasumi, on her way to the carriage, and Kaori quickly ran back to her seat. 

Trying her hardest to pretend that she hadn't been watching, she looked away and whistled a little song to herself as Ash went back to her seat. 

As Kasumi hadn't yet returned, the half-demon was in clear view, as she gave out the deepest sigh Kaori had ever heard, and let her head rest against the edge of the cart. 

"Pft..." Kaori tried to hold back a laugh but momentarily failed.

"..." Ash opened her eyes and turned toward Kaori, glaring. "Hey, blue-eyes, come closer." 

"W-What?" Kaori pulled back. "Me?"

Ash shifted closer to her. 

"Yes, you. Come 'ere," she said, leaning toward Kaori. "I wanna tell you something." 

Um... Please, don't punch me. I'll cry. 

Kaori gulped and leaned forward.

And then, covered in bird blood, she gave Kaori a tight hug. 

"U-Ugh, get off," Kaori replied, trying to push her away. 

"Aw, come on. I just took that thing down, don't I get a reward? I just want a hug!" 

"Leave the girl alone, Ash," Kasumi told her, and the half-demon quickly let go of her. 

"Fine, fine," Ash replied, a smirk stuck to her face as she shifted away from the actress. 

Ugh. I take it back, Kaori thought, trying her hardest to get the blood off of herself.. You are definitely not hot at all.