Explain

"Okay, okay, okay…" Mugen spread his hands out in front of his face. "I went with a prostitute…" he folded his fingers into a fist and held up a thumb to keep track. "Meanwhile Fuu was captured by Crazy Guy – Crazy Guy is that man whose… hand I cut off?" He eyed the attending duo for confirmation and received a short nod from Fuu before raising his fore and middle fingers. "Like that narrows it down for me," he muttered, mounting a stone wall on the side of the road.

Mugen thoroughly enjoyed being taller than Jin when he could.

"And Crazy Guy had an ogre-monster-guy?" Finger four joined the first three. "I was drugged…" he squinted upwards in contemplation. "Oh, wait, I remember that wench! Gods, nice body, what a shame." Fuu rolled her eyes at the expression of stoic regret, so much more appropriate for remembering a fallen comrade, or local hero, or pretty much anything but a whore. "So, me – drugged," finger five completed a full hand." And then I was fighting ogre-monster-guy…'cause Fuu was captured by Crazy Guy…but Jin wasn't there. Jin," the name jolted as Mugen landed in the dusty road at the end of the crumbling stone wall, "Jin was off fighting an assassin? And this guy – this assassin guy – was hired by the Crazy Guy so he could kidnap Fuu?" He held up one, then three fingers, then let his hands drop in abandon. "And the letter's from this assassin who Jin fought with on that night I went with the prostitute," Mugen concluded with a quizzical cock of the head.

"Yes," Jin quickly and vigorously affirmed the simple yet thoroughly complicated summary statement.

"Aaaaw!" Fuu lightly bapped the diamond-patterned arm, effecting a piteous face. "I know exactly how it feels! There's a dirty lecher in every town, and they know exactly how to find you!" She gazed skyward in perturbed musing.

Mugen crowded into stride, flanking Jin on the opposite shoulder and adding, "But did he think you were a girl or what? I mean, easy enough mistake, but seriously-"

Jin increased his pace to outstride his peevish companions and Fuu hissed, "Mugen! Be sensitive!"

"What? It's true! Why's a guy sending him frickin' love letters? Either he looks like a girl or the guy's a f-"

"Let it suffice to say that he is not confused as to my gender and, most importantly, that the letter is solely my concern." Jin's habitual severity silenced the party effectively as they descended a slight hill.

But Mugen could not keep quiet long, especially at this moment of critical delicacy. He sidled in front of Jin, walking backwards as he challenged, "And how do you figure that? I need to know if there's a gay, over-aged creeper stalking us 'cause you know how creepers are…"

"Yes, I imagine you would," Jin retorted. "And I see your point," he continued, curtailing a forming rebuttal, "you're probably outmatched; I'd be scared too."

Predictably, their blades were drawn and crossed before Fuu had the chance to insert herself as a human buffer.

The sun was going down.

Two days ago, yes, she recounted, only two days ago they had spent a lucky gambling profit on the inn where the infamous letter had been received. Already, fifty-three skirmishes over the god-forsaken thing had been averted by her physical intervention. They hadn't traveled a morning's walk over the course of a full day, and she was already on the verge of collapse. The thought was put to practice and Fuu plopped down in the middle of the country road, attracting a backwards glance from Jin and then Mugen. She sighed dramatically.

"The hell?" The more volatile of the two escorts gestured purposefully down the road several times.

Fuu shook her head daintily and stated, "I'm done for the day."

"'Cause there's totally a place to stop!" Mugen scanned the empty fields surrounding them sarcastically while Jin approached their fallen third wheel to attempt bodily displacement.

Both men were frozen by the abruptly sinister expression that came over Fuu's countenance as she firmly intoned, "I am not… moving…from this spot… until… tomorrow… MORNING!!!"

The last word rang clearly across the weeds before dissipating into remnants of adolescent female fury. Jin turned marginally and exchanged a meaningful look.

Mugen nodded slightly.

They simultaneously moved into action, Jin leaning to assist Fuu and Mugen taking off down the road, contrary to what Jin had understood they'd agreed upon. Subtlety was entirely lost on the menace.

"BAKA!" Fuu bellowed to his retreating back with such alarming volume that Mugen leapt as if set aflame and Jin's right shoulder twitched visibly.

"WHAAAT?" replied the deserter, half turning around and jogging in place uncomfortably.

"Come back!" she pined, vigor finally spent.

"Aie, aie…" Mugen teetered between his left and right feet then let his head fall back and groaned into the musty heavens. As he returned, watching Jin guiding Fuu to her feet, it occurred to him that there was something to be gained from the circumstances. "Alright, alright," he conceded as he reached the wearily sulking Fuu. She pouted excessively and Mugen's deceptively lax gaze stole towards Jin, examining a divot off the path and thrashing grass flat with sheathed katanas.

The opportunities were prime.

It was a relief that spring was in full swing, otherwise the sleeping conditions would be one hundred percent worse. As things were, everyone could rest comfortably without extra blankets, and honestly the weed tufts were just as cozy as several of their low budget inn beddings. The one thing Jin regretted was the lack of a safe place to put his glasses, though, in all fairness, there were worse inconveniences than sleeping with them on. In fact, one of them was sitting on the other side of Fuu doing a half-ass job of bandit lookout. For some reason, the beast kept looking at him, as if desiring to start conversation and then losing heart.

It came to the point where he was ready to demand an explanation himself, but the vagrant whispered, "Fuu?" He leaned closer to the motionless shadowy form. "Fuu? Hey, Fuu?"

"She's asleep," Jin informed in carefully quiet tones.

"That's what I was figuring out, dumb ass-"

"I suggest observation; talking to sleeping people usually wakes them up," he cut the menace off coolly. He was such a rotten whisperer, Fuu would surely be awake if she wasn't such a sound sleeper. Mugen lapsed into a pissy silence, allowing Jin to add, "And I don't want to talk about the letter." He rolled to his side, back to his companions and heard the slight creak of joints in his specs. The only option was laying face up it appeared. It would be impossible to replace his glasses. Jin exhaled audibly, too controlled, but very nearly sighing.

Mugen eyed his predicament surreptitiously then offered smugly, "Hold those for you if you talk about the letter."

Was it worth it? Jin weighed the possibilities mentally. Mugen held out a presumptuous hand. Unfortunately, a restful sleep was worth discussion, so he bypassed the hand and tucked an earpiece into the front of the beast's shirt.

"What can you possibly have left unanswered?" Jin inquired preemptively. "You've asked me about it nearly nonstop since it arrived."

"Tell me about the assassin guy…" Mugen provided, half-listening to the snide invitation for questions. "You've never said how you met up with him."

Jin frowned, scouring his memory. "There was a spring. I was bathing and he was there too. He made," Mugen faced him as his voice became slightly distressed, "he made some kind of comment about the fireflies…they were calling out to each other, the males to the females and then," Mugen could make out a troubled scowl on the dimly visible pale face, "then some males calling out to other males. It was strange…"

"Wow, yeah, hell of a fag," Mugen agreed, now looking off into the night.

Jin glanced at him, found his vision nearly nonexistent, and rolled to his side once again. "Is that all?"

"Uhhh, yeah, one more thing actually… How do you know he's the one who sent it?"

Jin sighed, awed at his poor retention. "Fuu read the letter to you, yes?"

"Well, yeah-"

"How did it end?"

" 'I love y'-"

"What was the signature? At the very end?"

"What is this, a listening quiz? Can't you just tell me?"

"Yes, I can, but you have already been told once and I am disinclined to repeat myself."

Fuu mumbled in deep sleep and Mugen muttered, "Jackass," behind her aural cover. Jin heard anyway and shook his head in the barest indication of disgust.

"Firefly," he stated dryly.

"What?"

"The assassin signed off 'firefly', so obviously its him."

"Gods, what a frickin creeper…" Mugen rested his nose in the nest of his arms propped on bent knees. He hoisted his bandolier after some thought, adjusting it for optimal sword reach.

Jin reminded softly, "Wake me up when you want your shift to end."

He was answered by a harsh clap and lifted his head. He could scarcely identify a pair of outstretched arms.

Mugen wiped his hands on the grass and explained grimly, "Early firefly."