She turns to them, and the ears disappear. "Oh, there's my brother Hoku and my little niece, Ryoko! Isn't she cute?"
The man has his arm around Ochako, pulling her with him when she refuses to walk. "Heya, Miru. Gents. Y'all seem to take a fancy to my sister's magic, I see."
The guards blush. "Y-yeah, we've never seen magic from Shizuoka up close! Ah, don't worry, we won't arrest you for that display ma'am, I mean we were the one who asked to see it, after all..."
"Thank you kindly! I'd be in trouble with milord if I get arrested for illegal magic use, ya see!" The woman named Miru glances at the man named Hoku, and gives him a meaningful, twitchy grin. "Wanna show 'em your passports, brother dear? Anytime this century'd be nice."
"Hm? Ah yes, beg yer pardon," says Hoku. Ochako raises her eyebrows at the easy way he shifts into a less refined accent. He makes a show of shuffling around his pockets until he pulls out two well-worn documents and nonchalantly hands them over to the guards.
The guards look at the counterfeit passports with some scrutiny. From her spot, she sees all the stamps and signatures, not a single one appearing inauthentic. "And your business in Mie was?"
"We got a sick fella back home," the blonde man says with a rehearsed sadness. "Our bosses' kid--lil Souta, that's his name--suddenly got a terrible illness. Real high fever, like his skin's on fire. And real ugly welts all over the body--"
"I heard of that," one of the guards says with pity in his eyes. "A lot of those cases outside o' Mie, I heard. So I guess you went here for milkflowers, right?"
"Yep, exactly. Bought these from a generous lady in the market district. Can't believe the flowers that grow here!. Ain't none o' these back at home." He pulls a bag of flowers from his side and shows them to the guard. "I got my receipt here somewhere if you need it, just gimme a sec--"
"No, that's fine." They then turn in unison to Ochako, eyes narrowing suspiciously. "Now, you say this li'l lady here is your daughter?"
"Yup!" the man chirps, patting Ochako on the shoulder. "Can ya greet these gentlemen nice and proper, Ryoko dear?"
Ochako glares at him pointedly before curtseying in front of the guards. "Afternoon, sirs."
"Afternoon, miss Ryoko," they say, tipping their hats simultaneously. "What a beauty you are! How old are you?"
Before she can answer, Hoku cuts her off. "My little princess is turning sixteen this winter, matter of fact! It's bittersweet, how they grow up so fast..."
In truth, she's turning eighteen, and she wonders at the necessity of that lie. She is in awe of how easily this person weaves truths and untruths and makes it all convincing for those who hear him.
"Oh, I get you," the guard says, nodding in understanding. "Next thing you know, some young upstart is gonna come to you, asking for her hand in marriage--"
"Aye... I fear that day is coming soon. Are fathers ever ready giving their daughters away? I don't think I will be; I have nightmares over it," Hoku says with a dramatic sigh. He glances at Ochako very quickly, red eyes glinting in a way that makes her sick.
"That's true! But ya gotta yield, for true love, you know?" The guard says sympathetically and waves them off. "I guess you folk better hurry and get those to your sick friend. Thank you for your cooperation."
"No, thank you kindly, gents," Miru says with a grin, obviously relieved that the chat is over. She turns and pinches the man at the side and mumbles so Ochako barely hears it: "No need to be so chatty with 'em, Hawks."
He shrugs. "No need to be so showy with them either, Miruko."
The woman--Miru or Miruko, Ochako isn't so sure about their names anymore--rolls her eyes before turning her attention to Ochako. "This guy's awful, right hun? Don't worry, I totally understand why you tried to kill him back there. You can sit up at front with me if you want to. No bindings or magic or anything. It'll be about a day before we reach the city, and it'll be awful if you spend the entire time trying not to vomit."
She blinks. "Is... that okay?" Sitting up at front, without any bindings whatsoever? Is this a new thing that kidnappers do?
Hawks laughs. "How merciful of you, Miruko. Fits your reputation as the Rabbit of Death. Very fitting."
Miruko scowls and gives Hawks a rude gesture. She glances at the guards, who are preoccupied with the next carriage. "Shut up. Unlike you, I don't enjoy kidnapping princesses or cooperating with what that man wants without question. I happen to have a conscience."
Her voice is low and burning with very real anger. Ochako feels the heat of it and strangely begins to trust the woman for it.
"Big words, but in the end, you're still doing what he says, aren't you? Orders are orders, after all."
Miruko has the good sense to glower at him, but says nothing more.
He gives her a cheesy smile, and then pinches Ochako's cheek. She immediately swats his hand away. "I don't mind if you sit with her up front, Ryoko dear. It's not like my sister would allow you to run away before I could marry you off to the love of your life, you know?"
Is he still talking about Prince Neito? Either way, Ochako doesn't like how patronizing his voice is. "I'm sitting with her," she says evenly.
"Suit yourself." And with an ominous wiggle of the eyebrows, "Enjoy the fresh air while you can, little princess."
Hawks disappears into the carriage, unfazed by Ochako's dagger look. Miruko huffs and claps her on the shoulder with one strong hand. "So... anytime you're ready, your highness."
"... all right," she says, climbing on board next to her.
The open road stretches in front of them, wide and winding. Ochako tries to ignore the sense of foreboding as the highway blurs past her.
