Chapter Text
Coaxing Ryo to climb into the car was an exercise in patience and frustration both, but Nasutei wouldn’t let herself be deterred. She had stolen a police officer bike. She had ridden a white tiger while pursued by demons wearing samurai armors on chariot. She had played lure for a Masho to let a teen meditate and find his inner strength. She had dodged attempts at killing or capturing her more times than she cared to count. She had followed five teenagers in mystical armor to another realm while taking care of a child who had no true appreciation of the danger, even if Jun had tried to be as sensible as his age allowed him to be.
Nasutei was NOT going to lose this time either, not for something as mundane as coaxing a teenager girl as going on a shopping trip!
“Ryo,” she insisted for what felt like the hundredth time, putting on her best ‘no-nonsense’ expression and keeping her voice as patient as possible. “Stop being stubborn. You need clothes. Whatever you have with you isn’t going to last and you cannot remain half-naked while Shin is doing the laundry.”
It would have been awkward enough if it had been, oh, just Nasutei in the house, another girl – and awkward it would have been, because Nasutei had a few more hang-ups about nudity than the average Japanese woman, having grown in a country where public baths were NOT a common feature.
She could have handled it, of course, but Ryo wasn’t just living with HER; she was also sharing the house with Jun, a child – and with four male teenagers her age.
Some things just weren’t done.
Ryo blushed, but she still held her ground, her body tensed in a defensive attitude. It wasn’t as bad as when she was facing a Youja, but it was a near thing. It was clear shopping was not one of her favored activities.
Nasutei could understand, honestly. The press of people in the stores could get tiring, and so were the noises, the over-stimulation from having to look at everything and pick and try everything that looked remotely like it would fit or be nice to wear, not to mention the wistfulness as you realized that outfit wasn’t for you after all, or that they didn’t have your size…
Still. Ryo couldn’t eternally stay in her subarmor, especially now that the danger was over. At least they hoped. While they were reasonably certain Arago was gone, it didn’t mean there weren’t other Youja roaming around. And then, there were the Masho, whose whereabouts were unknown and who might come after them for revenge. Suffice to say, the Troopers weren’t going to just leave Nasutei’s house any time soon, especially not while the country was still reeling from the past events and bans on travel from region to region were still effective but for the direst circumstances.
To their credits, the Troopers were taking it with a certain grace. They weren’t necessarily happy they couldn’t go back and return to the fold of their families just yet, but they weren’t unhappy either to spend more time with each other, bonding and strengthening their friendship, a friendship that had started with a bang and desperate attempts at saving each other.
Nasutei’s phone bill was probably going to shoot off the roof, given how often the boys called home, but that was fine. She didn’t lack for money, and it was normal that teenagers reassured their parents and siblings and helped coordinate what they needed for a long-term stay at a friend’s place which, in some case, was at the other end of the country for them. Every Trooper had received packages from home already, filled with clothes, hygiene products, books, video games in Shuu’s case …
Everyone but Ryo, that is.
Nobody had ever answered the phone when she had called her family.
Ryo hadn’t looked surprised.
Nasutei and the rest of the Troopers had exchanged looks behind her back, flabbergasted and worried… and that worry hadn’t lessened once Ryo had awkwardly explained that her Mother had died when she was a little kid and so it was only her and her Father at home. And her Father was frequently out of the country.
Apparently, he had yet to come back from wherever he was.
(“He… he works a lot,” Ryo had muttered, avoiding everyone’s gaze. “And it was supposed to be a long-term assignment in South America this time, so… And the international flights are still filtered, he may not be able to get back as easily as he normally does…”
“… does he often leave you… alone like that?” Touma had asked, a curious expression on his face. It had looked like empathy mixed with rage. He had told Nasutei that his parents were divorced, but they had never fully left him alone, from the little he had shared. Even when away, they made sure to call regularly. The fact Ryo’s father didn’t… it must have him hit hard. “Surely, you have someone who checks on you, right? Someone else you can call to let them know you’re alright and you may need something?”
Ryo had winced, passing a hand in her hair. She had still been wearing her subarmor. “… I left a message to my Aunt, letting her know where I was, in case Dad reach out to her first,” she mumbled. “But she’s unlikely to go to our house and send me a care package. She has never liked making the trip, even for check-ups…” and there were so many things that felt wrong in that statement, Nasutei didn’t know where to start taking them apart. “Kurokawa-sensei might, though,” Ryo added after a beat, her expression clearing. “He’s our family’s doctor. He knew my Mom since she was a little girl, and he cared for me ever since I was a baby,” she had added for their benefit, as Shin and Touma in particular turned inquisitive looks at her. “I often slept at his house with his Granddaughters when I was younger and Dad was away for too long – our house is out of the village proper, and he didn’t like the fact I was so isolated. He doesn’t have a spare key to our home, but I always left a spare school uniform and a few changes at his house in case I couldn’t make it home due to the weather, so he probably won’t mind sending those over!”
“That sounds like a good idea, Ryo,” Seiji had smiled.
But his smile had felt forced and tense, and it didn’t get better as time went…)
The spare clothes for Ryo had come in three days ago, sent by a much-relieved older gentleman who had called to make sure everything had come in order and had insisted to speak to ‘the lady of the house to convey his thanks to her’. He had sounded slightly wary but had eased up after asking a couple of questions about the Yagyu family, who were the boarders in the house, and a handful of veiled questions about Ryo’s health and continued well-being.
Nasutei had to thread carefully there, given Ryo’s status as a Samurai Trooper was a secret, but the old doctor had hung the phone with a satisfied tone and a warning to call him again if Ryo needed anything more, and that if she wanted mail delivered or kept, he’d be more than happy to do it for the teenager.
Nasutei had felt relieved that someone obviously cared, since Ryo’s biological family apparently… didn’t.
Or not enough for them to get more involved in checking on Ryo’s whereabouts.
Yesterday had been the first time in over ten days since Ryo summoned that white armor and vanquished Arago where the black-haired girl had finally received news from her Father.
It hadn’t even been a phone call.
Only a letter.
Ryo hadn’t showed the content to anyone, only summarized it for them at their insistence, because they had been worried.
Turned out, her Father knew next to nothing about what had happened in Japan. He had been taking pictures on the Amazon, cut off from all ‘superfluous contacts’, and was bound to go back because his film rolls had gotten damaged in an undisclosed incident. As the contract he was working on was an important one, he had no choice but to start it back from scratch and return to prowl the Amazonian region right away.
He was, of course, sorry to leave Ryo stranded, but he was sure his mature, selfless daughter would be able to handle his absence. If she needed anything signed for school, she should see it with her Aunt. As for money, he was sending her some cash and reminded her that there was a credit card she was authorized to use, provided she didn’t spend more than a certain amount.
Ryo hadn’t cried nor had she looked angry. Only… resigned in a way none of the Troopers, Nasutei or Jun had ever seen her to be.
Given how bold and daring she had been, fighting the Youja or facing Arago, they had all felt like they had been hit by lightning.
Shin and Shuu had turned diner into a feast last night, to try and take Ryo’s mind off unpleasant tangents.
As for Nasutei, Seiji and Touma, well… they had made their own ‘battle plans’.
Cue why Nasutei was now on a mission – taking Ryo shopping, wherever the black-haired girl wanted to do it or not. As nice as Kurokawa-sensei had been, sending over what he could of Ryo’s stuff, the truth remained that it wasn’t much. A spare school uniform. Two pairs of well-worn jeans. Two pullovers, equally showing signs of wear. A few pairs of socks. A few panties. One sport bra. A pair of slippers. A baggy pajama. A hygiene kit with soap, shampoo, a comb with Ryo’s name scribbled on it, a packet of pads that Ryo had looked at with utter relief.
Considering each of the boy had at least a dozen different shirts and as many pants for themselves sent by anxious parents wanting to spoil them, Ryo’s ‘hoard’ made them all grimace.
The boys had known better than to say anything, but…
Each of them had separately come to Nasutei to ask if, maybe, she could help Ryo out?
As if they had needed to ask at all!
Ryo needed more. Ryo DESERVED more, and Nasutei was going to make sure she got everything she needed and more, damnit!
“Nasutei, I told you I was fine, I don’t need you to…” Ryo tried again, and Nasutei glared. That was it.
“Ryo,” she said, finally starting to lose her cool. “Get into that car NOW, or I’m calling the boys to carry you and strap you inside. AND I’ll get Byakuen on your case too!” she added, knowing the white tiger might be the first to try and push Ryo into the jeep the moment the animal realized where Nasutei wanted to take his mistress to.
Byakuen was surprisingly intelligent, and his attitude toward Ryo hinted at more than mere protectiveness. There was also love there, and care… and perhaps just a dash of paternal attitude, given how he had eyed the male Troopers’ interaction with Ryo at the beginning before deciding it was okay to let the black-haired girl mingle with them.
“You wouldn’t!” Ryo accused her, looking scandalized. Getting pinned down by a ton worth of white tiger and thoroughly ‘licked clean’ wasn’t high in her list of things to do, it seemed.
Nasutei bared her teeth in a smirk. “Try me,” she taunted before her face softened. “Ryo, please. You know you at least need underclothes, socks, a bra or two,” she coaxed. “You can’t hope to borrow the boys’ clothes, can you?” If Ryo had been a boy, maybe it would have been possible and would have neatly solved the problem. But she was a girl, and the only one among the Troopers.
It was hard to say who would spontaneously combust first here if Nasutei brought the idea up at the dinner table: Ryo, or one of the boys.
Ryo was already proving it, given how red her cheeks had just become with embarrassment. “Nasutei! You can’t suggest things like that!” she sputtered indignantly.
“I won’t have to if you have clothes that fit you,” the redhead replied evenly, watching Ryo’s shoulders sag. It brought her no joy, but damn if she didn’t feel a moment of victory here. “Really, Ryo, I wish I would loan you a few of mine, but you and I are too different physically for it to work,” she added with sympathy.
Nasutei would know; she had checked all her closets in search of something that might fit Ryo. But she has thinner and taller than Ryo was, and so none of her current things hung right on the black-haired girl, though a few of her baggier clothes had been handed to the younger girl as a stop-gap measure until her spare clothes arrived. Nasutei had also searched for clothes she may have worn when she was the Trooper’s age, thinking maybe there’d be something more fitting among them. Sadly, everything had been donated a long time ago. The most she had been able to do so far was to loan Ryo a nightshirt or two to sleep in. Over-sized night clothes were less a problem than an outfit she had to wear in the daylight, with everyone watching her…
“… I hate shopping,” Ryo murmured dejectedly, walking toward the jeep as if it was a scaffold where a guillotine awaited her.
“I promise we’ll make it as quick as possible,” Nasutei smiled as she let Ryo install herself before taking her seat behind the wheel. “I’m not always fond of shopping myself, but I always found it nicer with a friend,” she confided as she turned her key, letting the engines start. “Have you ever gone shopping for clothes with one, Ryo?”
“… no?” the black-haired girl answered cautiously, eyes wide and uncertain. “I, uh, I usually go alone? Girls from my school… don’t particularly like to hang out with me,” she admitted as she leaned against the window. “Mom used to buy my clothes, when she was…” she trailed off, her expression turning wistful. “There has never been anyone else. Dad dislikes general stores and towns even more than me so he just gives me money and let me buy what I need while he does something else, and Auntie never has the time. Grandma tried to, but she had mobility problems, so I didn’t want to bother her either. It’s fine, though,” she hastily added. “The store clerks were always nice and helpful! But they always tried to push me toward… girly stuff,” Ryo made a face. “And I don’t usually wear that.”
“I see,” Nasutei forced herself to keep smiling, but her hands tightened around the wheel for a few seconds.
Ryo, she knew from all past interactions, was socially awkward and tomboyish. There was nothing wrong with one or the other, of course, but the more Ryo revealed bits and pieces about herself, the more concerned Nasutei was growing.
“What do you like to wear, Ryo? Do you have a favorite store brand? Maybe we can start there?” she asked, eyes on the road as they picked speed.
“I… don’t have a favorite. I just always try to find a store who proposes sturdy jeans and good trainers,” she informed her quietly. “I shopped a lot in the boys’ clothes section since I was a kid, because they were just as good and more practical and Dad…” she paused.
“Your Father?” Nasutei inquired, feeling unnerved. Whatever the deal was with Ryo’s Father, she was sure she was NOT going to like it.
But Ryo said nothing for the longest time. Her face had closed off, and Nasutei decided not to insist.
Something heavy was on Ryo’s mind. Something that the teenage girl could not, would not talk about, especially if she was pressured. It would need to come out when Ryo felt better.
But Nasutei was starting to have so many suspicions… and so were the rest of the Troopers.
“I don’t buy from the boys… men’s department anymore,” Ryo finally said, making Nasutei glance at her wearily. “It has become… harder since I started, you know,” she waved at herself, blushing, “shaping up.”
“Yes, I imagine,” Nasutei’s lips twitched in faint amusement. Out of her armor, it was clear Ryo had curves. They didn’t stand out that much, given Ryo favored baggy tops that hide away most of it, but it was undeniable she had a round, feminine chest and wider hips than a teenage boy. “Well, there are stores out there who have nicely cuts pants that do not look too… girly,” she allowed. “And I’m sure we can find something you’ll like regardless, even if we have to spend the whole afternoon on it.”
Ryo looked vaguely panicked. “That… that way too long!” she sputtered. “And I don’t have the money for…!”
“Do not worry about the money,” Nasutei says flatly, making Ryo flinch before the redhead gathered herself. “If what your Father sent you isn’t enough, I will pay for whatever you need, Ryo, or whatever you LIKE,” she stressed out. She carefully didn’t tell her Shuu, Seiji, Touma and Shin had all added money in her purse as well, resolute to help out once they had realized just how little Ryo had for herself compared to everything they had. There was no way they would come shopping for girls clothes without self-combusting (though Shuu, at the very least, didn’t seem bothered by the idea, apparently used to it for his sisters), but the hell they wouldn’t help in any way they could.
Ryo still looked uncertain, and Nasutei’s face softened. “Honestly, Ryo. You just lived through very traumatic events. We all did. It’s only normal that you treat herself – just like it is normal that I treat my ‘little sister’ some after all the risks she took to keep me alive.”
“… ‘sister’?” Ryo repeated, her eyes wide again. There was faint wonder in her voice, something fragile that made the older girl want to reach out and pat her head in reassurance. Instead, Nasutei just kept smiling encouragingly, hands never leaving the wheel. “I… I suppose… I suppose shopping with you… might be nice… Nasutei-neechan,” she coughed awkwardly.
“I’m sure it will be, Ryo,” Nasutei replied as she followed the road.
She wouldn’t allow it to be anything but, after all.