?Hime-chan get down from there you are gonna get hurt.? The concerned voice of one of her older brothers reached her ears from below but the headstrong child wasn?t actually digesting anything that was said. She was too busy, trying to get to the bag of cookies that were on top of the cabinet just out of her reach. At present she was straddling her legs open in a split balanced between two sets of shelving her short right arm, almost reaching the bag, her fingertips just barely touching it as his voice once again broke her concentration.
?Hime-chan, they won?t forgive me if you get hurt.? She finally turned facing the boy on the ground, his red hair short and choppy falling messily around his head, green eyes glaring at her as if impatient. She muttered several curses, and then stuck her tongue out at the boy. The tone of her voice not matching her girlish face or diminutive stature, for a child she was absolutely dominating.
?Urusai, Aritei, I am almost done, you aren?t getting any when I finally get them either, nagging me all the time.? The little girl spoke as if she was an adult, to the point that it was rude. You wouldn?t have known the boy on the floor was the older of the two siblings the way he shut up almost immediately after she told him to. But this was quite normal considering that Benihime was about as spoiled as a child could get, as she returned to her initial goal her fingers finally managed to drag the bag over to where she could reach it. Success at last she grabbed the bag and straightened her legs, falling the 8 feet to the floor she landed on her feet and stood up straight opening the bag. In doing so the tininess of her frame was revealed, she appeared to be a child of no more than eight or nine years old, a boyish frame accompanied a rather pretty face. Her crowning glory literally, a mess of bright crimson hair, which fell messily down past her shoulders. She was wearing what would be normal clothing for her, a stolen pair of her brother?s hakama and bandages across her chest. The child wore no shoes but not because she didn?t have them but simply because she found them to be too confining, but her feet were also wrapped in bandages, as if to make up for the fact that she wasn?t wearing socks.
?Damn that took too long, I blame you?? she said to Aritei. As she walked past him she tossed a cookie over her shoulder and didn?t bother to see if he caught it or not. As she ate her first cookie and made her way to the door she walked directly into the stomach of a person and felt a true sense of foreboding. She kept chewing and slowly looked up, meeting the grey eyes of her father with a smile. The man kept a stern look on his face; he had observed the entire situation and was steaming at his only daughter?s behavior.
?Benihime what do you think you are doing?!? the man asked his arms crossed over his chest as if he was considering the possibility that he hadn?t just witnessed her bullying her older brother, cursing like a sailor and retrieving the cookies she had been specifically told to leave alone. A heart breaking smile appeared on the girl?s face as she played along with the man?s mood. Something she had always been good at was the random change in her own demeanor, which would cause people to question even what they knew to be true about her.
?Well Tou-san, I was hungry, so I got a snack, I even shared with Aritei-nii.? She said using the honorifics she hadn?t been using at all before that moment and managing to look innocent. Her red eyes gleaming with unshed tears as she looked at her father, her explanation would only get more drawn out and dramatic.
?I know I wasn?t suppose to but... but... but... I was so hungry I couldn?t help myself.? She said tears streaming down her face as she held out the bag for her father to take from her. The whole time Aritei watched the exchange with a blank expression on his face, while he finished the cookie she had tossed his way. His sister was dreadfully good at manipulating the entire family, so good in fact he doubted she would actually get in trouble for anything. And as if on cue his father leaned down and hugged the girl, speaking to her as if he didn?t know about everything that had transpired in the past few moments.
?Aww it?s ok, take them with you, go out and have fun, but be back by dinner. I?ll just tell your mother I took them.? The man said with a smile releasing the girl from the hug she headed towards the door but behind his back just so that her brother could see she stuck her tongue out at him and narrowed her eyes. A classic, ?I told you so?, look that would make her cute display moments before moot had she been caught. But luckily for her she wasn?t and she headed out the door, her snack in hand to wander the Rukongai until it was time for dinner.
?That is just too easy?? the girl mumbled as she walked outside and into the street. The people around waving at her quite used to her appearance and her mannerisms. She grinned as she began devouring the bag of cookies one at a time as she walked. She didn?t seem capable of helping herself she really was starving in a way that should be considered illegal. She was busying herself in this manner for what seemed like miles until she was stopped by a bigger boy tapping her on the shoulder, then moving to stand in front of her. She halted her stride looking up at him with big red eyes and recognition crossed her face. The boy with black hair and eyes the color of corn looked her up and down seeming to size her up.
?Enshou?get out of my way, I am not bothering you?today.? She said the last word after a pause, implying that there were times where messing with the boy in front of her was all she did. But instead of moving he yanked the bag of cookies out of her hands and held it above her head. He seemed to want to taunt her today, picking on her size as compared to his. Even though they were the same age, she was significantly shorter, but all of her family was short to her approximation so, this wasn?t a big deal. She couldn?t help but let a smirk appear on her face as she tilted her head up.
?You have exactly 3 seconds to return my food before I make you regret stopping me today.? She said and then she began counting in her head. Each count corresponding with a word Enshou spoke aloud.
?I?m not giving?.? She didn?t even wait and let him finish his statement; she punched him dead in his gut, sending the bag flying above his head. And as he fell forward she shoved her knee into his chin. Normal people would be satisfied with this, but even as she caught the bag of cookies she walked past him and kicked him in the groin, then continued to walk away as if she hadn?t done a thing. Every adult in the area walked up to the boy on the ground and sighed, as this was how interactions between Enshou and Benihime always ended, with him on the ground in pain. No one ever bothered saying anything to her either, since it was more than apparent that he always started it. But this time unbeknownst to Benihime a woman had watched the entire thing and had her curiosity quipped by the girl and her actions.
?Damn, kiddo did a number on that little boy?I wonder?? the woman said as a whisper pushing glasses up onto her face so that her eyes disappeared behind the glint. No one would know what the woman was thinking. But the girl would eventually get to the limit of her wanderings and turn back to her house. The bag of cookies empty and thoughts of dinner already on her mind, she would return home to adventure another day.