To Destroy A Country

Chapter 6: Escape

"Woah, I have no idea why you hate me so much, but-"
"It's because you are annoying! Cant you take a hint?! I obviously don't want to talk to you!" Scaramouche seethed. Why did people keep trying to have conversations with him?! He thought he had made it very clear that he didn't want to talk to anyone!
Tartaglia pursed his lips, "I was only asking-"
"It doesn't matter." Scaramouche turned to walk away, "I don't care about what you have to say to me."
Tartaglia hesitated, "you know... there has always been something about you that I didn't like..."
"Well, gee, thanks. I hate you, too." Scaramouche folded his arms as he started to leave.
"You remind me of myself."
Scaramouche halted in his steps. "What did you just say to me?" He slowly turned on his heels.
"That was a while ago..." Trataglia was staring at the floor, "I used to be just like you. So full of hate and anger. Heh, even now I'm sure I still am."
Scaramouche resisted the urge to walk back over and slap him across the face.
"I don't know what made you this way," Tartaglia finally looked up with fire in his eyes, "but I have a reason to change and I'm getting better. And that's why I'm better than you."
Scaramouche knew right then that if he didn't leave, he would kill Tartaglia.
He couldn't take it anymore.
Why him?! Why not anyone else?! Of everything in this universe,
why
was
it
him
He stared at his reflection. He didn't even remember returning to his temporary room. He felt like punching the mirror. He had always hated his reflection.
... no. That wasn't true... He'd only started to hate it after it began to remind him of the Shogun's forlorn expression.
He tore his shirt open, glaring vehemently at the symbol the seal had left over his chest. If it was no longer sealed away why was it still there? Or maybe it wasn't completely unlocked.
Scaramouche felt a smirk creep onto his face. Dottore would be so upset if he knew he had failed.
He turned away from the mirror, gazing at various things around the room.
It were times like these when he wished he could sleep... He remembered someone who had come to Tsurumi Island say something about sleeping and how it was like an escape... Scaramouche longed for something like that...
He hummed, "because you're a doll, you don't need to sleep, either, do you?"
Kunikuzushi shook his head with a smile, "nope."
He raised a brow at him, "so you are always awake?"
He nodded again, "yup."
A smile spread across his face, "so you have been watching me sleep every night?"
"Ah- no! No, I swear I haven't! I-"
He laughed, "I'm only teasing... But what do you do all night? It must be boring."
Kunikuzushi sighed quietly, "well... I mostly do chores, or things I couldn't get done during the day. Uhm... it does get rather boring... but mostly I use the time to think of more stories."
"Oh? Your stories are all lies?" He asked in an amused tone.
"No, I just... try to find better ways to tell them..." Kunikuzushi paused, "my audience's attention spans aren't the longest..."
He chuckled, "so... you haven't been watching me sleep?"
Kunikuzushi's eyes wandered away, "Kazuha..."
He giggled, "I know you have to have looked at me at least once or twice. So, tell me, what do I look like while I'm asleep?"
Kunikuzushi felt his face getting warm, "that's... such a weird thing to ask..."
"Is it really?"
Kunikuzushi nodded. He felt like it was wrong to think about how Kazuha looked while he was asleep... Not that he had ever purposefully done that! He had only glanced over at him occasionally to make sure he was alright or because he heard something.
Kazuha was waiting for an answer patiently, his chin in his hand with his elbow propped against his knee.
Kunikuzushi paused, "Uhm... I guess you look... peaceful?... ah... and relieved... I don't know if that's the right word..."
Kazuha smiled, "it sounds right. Sleep has always been a nice escape."
"Escape?"
He nodded, "when you're sleeping you don't think about anything. No worrying. No doubting. Just... rest." He closed his eyes.
Kunikuzushi felt a little jealous, "that sounds nice..."
"Have you ever tried?"
Kunikuzushi blinked, "what?..."
"Resting, at least?"
"Well, I do spend time just sitting or laying down... but I don't think I've ever felt tired..."
Kazuha tilted his head, "now that is interesting..."
Kunikuzushi always felt like there was a hidden meaning behind it whenever Kazuha called him 'interesting'.
The wanderer's smile widened, "so you have watched me sleep?"
Kunikuzushi was snapped from his thoughts. He looked over abruptly, his face getting pink, "not- not on purpose..."
Kazuha laughed, "I don't mind. I'm actually glad to have someone watching over me."
"You are?" Kunikuzushi asked quietly.
Kazuha nodded, "especially because it's you."
He blinked, "because it's me...?"
Kazuha's smile grew even farther — somehow. "Yes. You are the Archon of wandering."
Kunikuzushi almost sighed again, wishing Kazuha would stop teasing him this way, "I-"
"And because I'm, by nature, a wanderer," Kazuha continued, "then you must care for me more than other people who stumble onto this island."
Kunikuzushi blinked. Kazuha was half right... Kunikuzushi did care for him more than all the other people he had met... but it wasn't because he was an Archon or anything. He guessed it was probably becuase Kazuha had been here longer and because Kazuha seemed to be in no hurry to leave. And maybe becuase Kazuha seemed to care for Kunikuzushi as well.
"So? Do you care for me more?"
Kunikuzushi felt like this was a trick question. He didn't want to lie, but he also didn't want to feed into his teasing. All he could do was groan, "Kazuha... you can't ask me that..."
He chuckled to himself, "but I am. Do you, Kunikuzushi?"
He sighed, "I... do care for you more... but it isn't becuase I-"
Kazuha pressed his finger to Kunikuzushi's lips with a smile, "you really do take my teasing too seriously."
Kunikuzushi sighed, pushing his hand away, "but you sound so serious all the time..." When had Kazuha gotten so close, anyways?...
Was he remembering it wrong? Scaramouche rarely forgot anything. His mind seemed to have infinite space. Unfortunately. There were a lot of things he wished his could forget.
Namely, all the pain he had gone through.
Though... despite how painful it was, Kazuha was one of the things he didn't want to forget...
But had Kazuha really been that close to him? Now that he thought about it, had Kazuha always been that close?
He shook his head, that wasn't important. He needed to stay on track. The next part of his plan was in Inazuma.
Finally, he was going to enact his revenge.