For Whom the Bell Tolls [CLOSED]

Shinpachi was hearing the authorities around here go a little nuts over something, but what the hell was it? They were being loud and waking up a lot of the town. It was probably a burglar or something. He wasn't in trouble, so they weren't after him. He only hoped the criminal would be found and soon. Shinpachi stuck his hands in his pockets as he walked down the street. It sounded like the commotion was getting closer and that worried him. He looked up, trying to hear what was going on a little clearer when he was suddenly pulled into an alley. "Hey, wh-..." His mouth was covered by the lips of another. He felt his back-end being grabbed and his hair was being pulled on. When he was pulled, he did his best to not fall over, so he ended up catching himself on a wall with this woman between him and it. It was a perfect situation for her, though he was unaware of that. His eyes went wide and he froze.

When this finally stopped, Shinpachi blinked a few times and just stared down at this woman. She apologized before hand and then did again, but he almost didn't hear it. Shinpachi looked up and down the alley. He looked like he hoped no one had actually seen what just happened, but that obviously wasn't for her benefit. "You needed cover?" he asked and watched her examine him from the top down or bottom up, whatever she had just done. "Good at what?" he asked. For once, Shinpachi Nagakura was completely caught off guard and not sure how to handle a situation. Usually he'd be nice and offer his help, but this one through him for a loop. "You kissed me..." he said, still stunned.

"You're in trouble?" he asked almost innocently. Shinpachi felt bad for her. She needed help, but he also felt really, really awkward around her. "I won't tell on you or anything, so you don't have to worry about me gettin' you sent off." he said. He rubbed the back of his head and glanced around. What was he going to do in this situation? "It's okay, I mean... You needed help and were scared and I was there... I guess, I'm just glad I could help ya." Shinpachi pushed up a smile, but soon she leaned in for another kiss. He never really returned them. He sort of just let her do what she wanted. He was like a boy getting attention from the older popular girl at school. You kinda just run with what she wants...

Shinpachi looked back when he heard the authorities coming again. His hand was grabbed and she was dragging him along. He went with after a moment of resistance, but the poor guy was just stuck. This chick was someone completely out of his league and experience. He did follow her to where she wanted to go and they ended up at an inn. "You sure you won't get caught here?" Shinpachi asked. He didn't want to go to jail either and now he was stuck in this situation. If they were seen together, which they now would have been, he was automatically an accomplice, right? He was in lots of trouble...

This woman was more touchy than Shinpachi was used to. He would usually be the one giving people hugs, but never kisses. The kisses thing still had him on edge. "Ex?" he questioned. He seemed to be questioning a lot today. How many did she have? Were they after her? Is that the trouble she got into? When she sat down, Shinpachi sat down on the floor near the door. Part of him wanted to bolt, but part of him had questions to ask, while another part of him was curious whether he'd get another kiss from such a pretty woman. There was so much confusion for him right now that he just wasn't sure what to do. He kept silent until she spoke up, and when she did, all she did was make the permanent light blush he had deepen more. Really? Did she have to call him out on that? It was embarrassing.

Lillian apologized, but he wasn't sure how to take it. She was wrong, way wrong. He didn't have a thousand girls wanting him. In fact, a lot of them found him annoying or obnoxious so, before today, he had never been kissed. It wasn't just a kiss though. He was practically seduced by the way she kissed and grabbed onto him. It was both nerve-wrecking and exhilarating for him. The unfortunate thing was now he was stuck in a very confused state. "I try to be." he said shyly toward the one compliment he felt he could agree with a little bit. "So... Lillian, what kind of trouble did you get into? Do you need any help?" Shinpachi was a big guy, but there was a sweet innocence about him. He was trusting, but that was because he was trustworthy. If you want people to trust you, it's best to give them trust first.

This woman was a doll. She was beautiful, perfectly shaped, and had a face that almost seemed like it was carved from porcelain. Not to mention her hair was like the finest silk. Shinpachi was surprised she did something so daring, but was seducing her thing? That kind of behavior made him a little suspicious of who she was, or what she was. He could almost bet she was a succubus! No one can be that pretty, right? Right! It's okay. It wasn't her fault and she was being nice to him, so he'd help her! "You're a nice lady, ya know? You could have gotten yourself real hurt doin' somethin' so dangerous. And if they had caught you, you wouldn't of been able to help the people you're tryin' to help." Shinpachi explained concerned about her battle plan, "You need to always have someone to back you up in cases like that. Imagine if someone with less kind ways of acting was the one you grabbed. They could have hurt you too." Shinpachi sighed, shook his head, thought for a moment and then nodded.

"I'll help you, no problem, but on one condition." he held up a finger in front of his face, "From now on you have to think about what you're doing first. No more of this reckless behavior, especially if you don't have a Plan B or someone else there to help you. Getting yourself killed or arrested will solve nothing and help no one. I'll do my best to get you to Hillfort, alright? After that, I think I'll head down to Varedia. I have an old friend I kinda want to check on." Shinpachi smiled a wide toothy smile and gave a thumbs up. "You think you can do that, or are you a thrill seeker of some sort?"

When she looked at his feet, so did he. Why were they so interesting? "Maybe..." Shinpachi blushed. Was it fate that he met this woman? He didn't know. Right now, he felt like he didn't know anything. "My hair?" he put his hands over his head, "Why do people not like my hair? I have had lots of people, especially girls, talk about how it sticks up. I can't tell whether they like it or not and so many guys have that 'hanging down' style, I feel like it's boring and I don't want my hair that long!" Shinpachi was beginning to feel extremely insecure. He was confused by her compliments. That smile of hers made his stomach feel funny too. And cupcake? Was he really so sweet he deserved that name? Part of him wanted to puff out his chest and say "No, I'm a man", but that just wasn't him. He preferred being nice, but... maybe it wasn't the best? It's not like any girl he had come across wanted to stick around him for long. Well... until now, but that was because she needed help. It didn't really count!

He nodded. "Just don't wanna see you get hurt for no reason, so... Yeah." Shinpachi just smiled more. His face was red now and that probably wasn't going away any time soon, not with the way this woman talked. "W-W-Well, I don't really have a place to go. I-I-I just travel around until someone needs my help and then I h-help." Shinpachi explained with the deepest blush his body could force up on him, "I-I-I have a friend over in that city, so I figured I could stop by. Since you're going that way, it just makes things easier..." Those eyes. The way she looked at him. He looked to the left and right and then back to her. "Y-Y-You're... not gonna eat me, right?" Shinpachi asked, completely serious. She was scaring him, but that question was funny as hell coming from a grown man that looked like him.

MANLY! Yes, she said manly! So, a woman like her called him manly, so it has to be true, right? Yeah. He was manly alright. That made him smile real wide. "Yeah, I could probably get it cut some day, but never really had the mind to do it." he said when suddenly she began getting closer to him. He kept glancing down to her bust and then back to her eyes. He was trying to keep eye contact, but they were so big and round and right there. He could reach out and touch one if he wanted, but he wouldn't do that because she was a lady and he was a gentleman. He asked her a strange question, but that look in her eyes made him wonder. Wait, she preferred what? She wanted him to eat her? Wait, he knew what that meant. His face was tomato'd now. And that's when the question came. He was embarrassed.

"Women don't like me." he said more bluntly than he meant to. It was true and he could prove it. "The last two women I was near thought I was annoying. The first I honestly thought was going to kill me and the other one thought I was going to hurt her for some reason. It was not a good time... I've never done anything with a woman. It's not like I haven't wanted to, but your kind always treats me like I'm stupid, or a child, or weak... It's like men aren't allowed to just be nice guys anymore."