Cactus–warmth, endurance

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Rin woke up radiating heat like a furnace. He breathed out humid steam and looked down at himself. He hadn't burned his clothes away, so the heat must be internal.

He did his best not to panic at the strange goings-on of his body. It wasn't that hot outside and Rin himself didn't feel like he was burning up, but he felt himself burning, if that made any sense.

The heat turned the leaves around him crisp and agitated the Bee Hive a few branches away him as the worker bees woke up. He cursed quietly and took several deep breaths, closing his eyes, trying to calm his racing pulse, which seemed to make the heat double.

It died down some and he opened his eyes. He looked down at the veins in his arms. They were glowing, though it was difficult to tell in the daylight.

He shook his head. Slowly, Rin climbed down from the tree he'd slept in. He dropped down and started running before the bees could fully wake up and attack him. He'd be damned if he let himself end up like that one girl in the first Hunger Games with the freaky poisonous wasps. Hell no. No thanks. Not happening.

Rin stopped running and caught his breath. His ankle still ached and so did the rest of his body, but it was better than it was when he'd first escaped the van he'd crashed.

The heat had died down more. He calmed himself, listening for any suspicious noises, but hearing none, thankfully. It took a few minutes that felt more like half an hour, but the heat fully went back to just being regular body heat. Rin breathed a sigh of relief.

He straightened up and blinked in surprise.

Is that who I think it is.....?

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"Woah, Rin?!" Shura yelled.

The buck she had been aiming for with a spear jumped and made to run, but without even looking, Rin raised his gun and shot it through the eyes. The Buck's heavy body fell and silence followed before Rin walked towards her and she all out ran.

She grabbed his face and planted kisses all over it. He had dirt and blood and grime all over him, so it must have been gross, but she didn't seem to care. With a final kiss planted on his forehead, she hugged him tight.

The woman was dressed like a Warrior Queen with a short animal skin dress and beaded jewelry on her wrists, ankles, and around her neck, a crown of beads and feathers in her hair.

"Oh my God, we missed you so much! Come on, we gotta go get Shiemi! But, just a warning, let me do the talking." She told him, grabbing his hand and pulling him behind her. He finally registered what just happened and tugged his hand out of hers.

The teen ran back to the buck, grabbed it's legs, and lifted it on his shoulders with only mild difficulty. Then he followed Shura to the treehouses. They were truly impressive.

She talked to the women for a while, then silence ensued. Finally, a woman who seemed to be in charge of the whole tree society dropped down to the forest floor.

"You know her and Shiemi?" She asked. Rin nodded.

"What?!" Rin heard a gasp before Shiemi peered over the edge of one of the treehouses and grinned wide.

"Rin! You're here!" She cried excitedly.  A bunch of little kids surrounded her and little heads peered over to see him. Rin blinked and smiled hesitantly.

"Hey kids." He greeted. Several of them giggled and some waved.

"Can I please have my people back?" He looked back to the woman standing in front of him surveying his appearance. "I can't give you this buck, but I could possibly find another one. Or several smaller animals." He offered as a show of goodwill. "What do you need that one for?" The woman quirked a critical eyebrow.

"I have to feed my family. It shouldn't take me long to find everyone after I get these two back." He answered seriously. She raised her eyebrows. "Are you really asking for them back?" She wondered suspiciously. Rin grinned in that unnerving way of his.

"I'm asking, but I don't think they'll stay with you even if you refuse. And if you force them to stay, I can assure you I know how to use every weapon I carry very well. I don't want to make any of those cute little ankle-biters orphans, so this is me being diplomatic." He told her truthfully.

"He's not kidding." Shura warmed her helpfully. The woman snorted. "Honesty. That's a good quality. How big is your group?" She continued asking questions. Rin sighed and sat the buck down on the ground with a grunt.

"Let's see. Shura, did you see anyone go down?" He consulted the woman. She shook her head. "Alright. I told Izumo where to go, I saw Ryuji follow her, so they should be fine. What about Konekomeru and Shima? Or Yukio and Kinzou?"

"I didn't see where they went. Ah, we were with Shima and Konekomeru and they told us to stay here to keep us safe. I was told there was a cabin not too far from here that they could've found, so that's our best shot." She recalled.

"Okay, so we only lost Paku as far as we know. She got bitten and I put her to sleep." He explained to them. Shura winced. Izumo would be incredibly upset. She and Paku had been best friends since they were little kids. They'd grown up together. The purple-haired girl would be devastated.

Rin winced too and sighed. "We've got eleven people total. So, what will it be? We have to round everybody up by dinner." He looked expectantly at the Leader Lady.

She contemplated for a minute before seemingly coming to a conclusion. "Do you have kids in your group? Actually, just name who your group is to you." She told him.

"Well, that's a little personal, but okay." He grumbled. "Okay. I have my younger twin brother, my boyfriend, our adopted daughter, my boyfriend's mom, Shiemi and Shura are like sisters to me. Uh, Izumo means something to me that's more complicated than a best friend, she has a little sister that we kind of just think of as our second daughter. Then, we have Shima, his big brother Kinzou, and Konekomeru. They're like the brothers I wanted, but never had." He listed off.

"How do you have an adopted daughter?" The woman looked confused, and rightfully so. It was a strange concept.

"Her parents died, but not before her mom made me promise to raise her daughter to be strong and able to make it in this world. So, I'm doing what I promised. She's about two now." He answered with a shrug.

"Honorable. And your boyfriend, does he look after your group too?" The Leader questioned. "Yes. All of us do our part, but it's mostly Me, Ryuji, Kinzou, and Shura. Torako is older and wiser, but her reflexes arent as good as ours, so her and Izumo teach the kids what they'd learn in school. We've been training Shiemi to trust her instincts and better her reflexes since we picked her up. Konekomeru is good at making plans and keeping inventory and Shima teaches the kids how to get away from Zombies and strangers. I try to make it so that the others don't have to freak out over everything every second of every day and just let me or one of the other three handle it. Is this a background check?"

She quirked a smirk. "Best one I can give. You're free to go, Ladies. It was an honor knowing you and having the pleasure of being in your company. And you can keep your deer. You'd better make those girls strong, kid." She told him seriously. He nodded and he, Shiemi, and Shura were on their way.

Rin pretended not to notice the lingering kiss the Leader shared with Shura before they left.

"Off to find Shima and Koneko, yes?" Shura pointed out. Rin nodded and they started walking.

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Azalea–Take care of yourself for me