Fair.

The daylight shone through the trees that covered the path, making gentle dancing shadows as the leaves rustled in the breeze, above them the sky was very blue, below them Doll and the Samurai walked the path.

“There is a clearing further along this path,” Doll pointed, “I think it is a suitable place, though it will be a shame for us to stain it with blood.”

“…do you know this area?”

“I grew up a few villages away, but I travelled a lot as a teen, I saw people living different lives and tried a few on for myself.”

“lives?”

“yes, not just because I was shapeshifter, I wanted to find my place, find me… well maybe it was because I was a shapeshifter. I was looking for something to ground me.”

“and did you find anything?”

“in a way… after you have seen life from so many perspectives, there isn’t really any way to settle back into a single one, I think as I am now, I am sort of living as a ‘best of’ collection, I took the parts I thought would make me the best person I could be… so… what about you?”

“I have only ever been myself.”

“well that’s debatable, but still, have you never empathised with people? Tried to see life from another angle?”

“you are curious if I will defect from my master.”

“I don’t think you will, I’m more curious if you would be capable of it.”

“Well if it answers your question, I do think about what other people are going through, and why they act as they do, but it is always in the context of my own ideas and values. But wherever my mind travels, my actions remain firmly tied to my honour.”

The two walked on for a bit in silence.

Doll broke the silence, “And in the context of your own ideas and values, how do the actions of your master weigh up?”

“…you have a talent for knowing people and what questions to ask them.”

“well knowing people is kinda one of my talents after all” Doll smiled at the samurai.

“It is something I have thought of, and I imagine you know enough of my master simply from the interactions you have had with his subordinates.”

“I see… I have to say I’m impressed, you tell me he’s a dangerous, possibly evil man, capable of anything, but without saying a bad word about him. Whilst I don’t agree with your loyalty, I can’t fault it.”

“it is a part of my honour after all.”

“I have to say samurai, I never enjoy battle, but I am genuinely sad that we must fight each other.”

“as am I, but we both must follow our roles.”

Doll looked up at the light passing through the leaves, “I wonder…”

–

As the two warriors passed a bench alongside the path the Samurai stopped.

“Would you like to take a rest?”

“Oh? It will delay our fight…”

“I… I’m not in a hurry to fight today.”

The samurai looked away down the path and Doll sat down on the bench.

“I’m happy to sit with you.” The samurai turned to her and Doll allowed herself to smile at him.

The samurai sat down next to Doll and the two looked ahead into the wood, watching the bracken sway in the breeze beneath the trees.

Somehow, both were hesitant to walk further down the path, they were both fighters, but why did they hesitate? These thoughts drifted privately through both their minds.

Doll looked to the Samurai through the corner of her eye, could it be she felt something for him?

The samurai held his resolve to look ahead, at the path, anywhere but at Doll. He felt if he won it would be a shame to kill someone so beautiful, in both mind and body.

The samurai stood up first. “I’m sorry. I should not have asked to stop.”

Doll stood up “It’s ok… it was nice to sit.”

There was an awkward half-moment as the two stood silently and then both set off down the path once more.