Disclaimer: I don't own Fushigi Yûgi (though owning Tasuki might be nice
=P)
This is the first chapter but it pretty much sets the stage. This is my
friend Himitsu's idea and she gets the credit too. R&R please!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Carrie! You'll be late for school!"
A girl rushed past, grabbing a slice of toast from the toaster and running out the door, barely catching the bus. Sighing, she ate her quick breakfast and took a quick rest before the bus finally stopped at the school. Filing into the aisle and finally arriving at her first class, she collapsed into her seat.
"Hey, Carrie, we're doing a ritual tonight. Coming?" Kyra asked, a girl who sat beside her.
Carrie looked at them in confusion. "A ritual?" She blinked in confusion, and then remembered. "All Hallows Eve! I nearly forgot about it!"
"How can you forget about Halloween?" Suki asked in dismay, shaking her head. "Well, since it's when the barrier is thinnest, we decided to do some scrying on past lives along with the ritual. And what's even cooler is, it's a Friday with a full moon. How can you miss it?"
"Not easily, I'm there!" Carrie responded.
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot," Kyra said and began rummaging in her book bag. "Here it is!" She pulled out a book with bright red binding. "You read Korean, right?"
"Yeah, a little," Carrie replied and took the book, looking over a few pages. "It isn't Korean. It must be Chinese or some other language. I can't read it."
"Oh, come on," Suki urged. "You've seen a little Chinese too, I know it. Try and read it."
"A little, meaning only a few words. I'll try at the ritual." She put it in her own bag.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Carrie, we're almost ready," Kyra called. Carrie was looking at the cover.
"Now look what you did, Kyra," Suki scolded playfully. "She's obsessed with it."
"Maybe...maybe I can ask the deities to allow me to read it..." Carrie mumbled.
"Well, if anyone could, you could," Kyra said gently. "Don't worry, we'll perform the ceremony, I don't think She'll mind if you do it at a later time."
"We gotta do it now then," Suki said, looking up at the moon overhead. But Carrie paid them no more heed. She held two fingers up, index and middle, in a concentration point. She forced all of her energy in this one spot. She felt her will get stronger, then go beyond the point on her fingers to the book.
Nothing happened, and she tried harder. The book suddenly spilled forth with bright red light that surrounded. The other girls fled about ten feet away.
"No way," Kyra remarked.
"Carrie!" Suki yelled. Carrie's eyes opened quickly. The bright red light took form, the form of the legendary phoenix and hovered over her. The book floated at eye level. Shakily, Carrie reached out to it.
"No! Don't touch it!" Kyra yelled, but the light intensified until it was blinding. The two girls shielded their eyes. It abruptly went dark.
Carrie was nowhere to be found.
"Carrie!" Suki called out, and ran to the spot where her friend once was. She picked up the book and found it changed. Instead of foreign writing, there was English.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Hello?"
Carrie's voice fell flat in what seemed an airless place of darkness. She was able to breath, at least. Not being able to do much else in the void of darkness, she sat down and looked around.
Not much to look at, she thought to herself, when a dull red light formed. It spread and created a portal where many people were praying in front of an altar that would be in front of her. Now what? Seeing not much was going to happen in the dark part, she stepped through the portal.
There were many gasps of surprise. One man stood. "Are you the priestess?"
"The priestess? What priestess?"
A young man walked up. "The records say that she will not know her destiny when she first appears."
"What? Hey, my destiny? What do you know about it?"
The younger man looked startled, but quickly recovered. "May we discuss it over a drink and bite to eat?"
Carrie agreed. He guided her to a table with breads and fruits. A pitcher of water was brought.
"Would the lady like some wine?" he asked kindly.
"No thanks," Carrie said. "I don't drink."
The men looked at each other. Carrie saw her mistake quickly. "I mean, I don't drink anything that gives you a headache later on."
The servant nodded in understanding. "I will get you some of the juice of the grapes, then. That should not bother you." He left and later returned with a glass of grape juice.
"Sooo, what am I doing here, and where is here?"
"The land is in disorder. The god Suzaku is in need of a priestess. We prayed that you would come to our aid, and here you are, in China."
Carrie nearly breathed in the liquid, leaving her sputtering. "How did I go from the U.S. to here like that?"
"I beg your pardon?"
Carrie looked at him. "You know, the US. The United States of America?"
His face was blank.
"The western country that is across the big ocean that has lots of money? New York? Cincinnati? LA?"
"That place is not familiar with me," he said, and she put her head on the table in exasperation. ~How could he not know who they were? The guy looked fairly bright and up on current events.~
"The place where two planes crashed into two extremely large buildings, killing lots of people?"
"How can two planes crash? The Spirit Plane and Physical Plane don't seem like they could crash into anything. Unless you mean rocks fell on the buildings. But how can both?"
She wasn't getting through to him. Then she looked outside.
She had seen pictures of the scenery. In books of ancient China.
~Ancient?! ~
"Is something the matter?"
Carrie realized that she must have gone very pale. "Um, that man said something about my destiny..." she mentioned, changing the subject.
"Ah, yes, I was getting to that. As the priestess of Suzaku, you must find the seven who will be your guardians."
"You act like I already agreed to this. What if I don't? How do you know it's me you're looking for?"
He just smiled. "When you came, what happened?"
"You mean before I came?" she asked. "I was doing a ritual. I tried to read this book and a lot of red light came from it. It became a bird, then I found myself in a dark place. A portal opened and I walked through it, to appear before you and the others."
"The bird," the stranger said, "was Suzaku. It just proves that you are the true Priestess of Suzaku, and must gather the Suzaku Seven."
"Okay, so let's say I am this person you're looking for. What's the catch?" Carrie pried.
"Well, you should know then that they...well, they're dead."
Carrie nearly fell out of her chair. "Oh that's lovely. Perfect. How am I supposed to gather ghosts? Huh?"
"You are the Priestess. I assume you will be able to call upon Suzaku's power and revive them."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"And so the young girl set off reluctantly. She hoped that she would be able to find a way home, and if the god was real, that he would help her there," Suki read aloud. Kyra hugged her.
"I'm losing a second friend. Just don't go for good. And don't read anymore without me on the phone, 'kay?"
"Got it," Suki replied. "Don't worry, I'll call as often as I can."
They said their last goodbyes, and Suki boarded the plane, waiting for it to take off.
"Excuse me, may I sit here?"
A young lady with bright red hair stood at the aisle. Suki nodded and the woman sat. The man behind her sat in the seat across the aisle from her.
"I might as well introduce myself and my companion," the lady said, taking off her gloves. "I am Miaka, and my friend is Taka."
"Suki." The two women shook hands. Miaka's eyes fell upon the back of the book. "I see you've come well prepared for the long trip overseas. What book is that?"
"Just picked it up on the way out of the house." She laughed. "I promised I'd only read it with my friend, she is so interested in it. I think it's just a way to keep in touch."
"So you will call each other and read it? I think it's a great idea! May I see it?" Miaka asked innocently enough. Suki reluctantly handed it over.
Miaka was silent for a moment, just holding the book. "My god," she whispered.
"What is it?" Suki asked, but right then the intercom came on.
"Welcome aboard, ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. I hope you came prepared for the trip with games and such, but if not, there will be a movie on at eight, ten, and twelve tonight. Please buckle your seatbelts at this moment while we prepare to take off. Thank you and enjoy the flight."
There was a short bit of people rummaging behind them to find their seatbelts. All but Miaka.
"You okay?" Taka asked.
"Taka. It's the book. The Universe of the Four Gods."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------
A/N: Well, what do you think? Next chapter should be up today or tomorrow. R&R please!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Carrie! You'll be late for school!"
A girl rushed past, grabbing a slice of toast from the toaster and running out the door, barely catching the bus. Sighing, she ate her quick breakfast and took a quick rest before the bus finally stopped at the school. Filing into the aisle and finally arriving at her first class, she collapsed into her seat.
"Hey, Carrie, we're doing a ritual tonight. Coming?" Kyra asked, a girl who sat beside her.
Carrie looked at them in confusion. "A ritual?" She blinked in confusion, and then remembered. "All Hallows Eve! I nearly forgot about it!"
"How can you forget about Halloween?" Suki asked in dismay, shaking her head. "Well, since it's when the barrier is thinnest, we decided to do some scrying on past lives along with the ritual. And what's even cooler is, it's a Friday with a full moon. How can you miss it?"
"Not easily, I'm there!" Carrie responded.
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot," Kyra said and began rummaging in her book bag. "Here it is!" She pulled out a book with bright red binding. "You read Korean, right?"
"Yeah, a little," Carrie replied and took the book, looking over a few pages. "It isn't Korean. It must be Chinese or some other language. I can't read it."
"Oh, come on," Suki urged. "You've seen a little Chinese too, I know it. Try and read it."
"A little, meaning only a few words. I'll try at the ritual." She put it in her own bag.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Carrie, we're almost ready," Kyra called. Carrie was looking at the cover.
"Now look what you did, Kyra," Suki scolded playfully. "She's obsessed with it."
"Maybe...maybe I can ask the deities to allow me to read it..." Carrie mumbled.
"Well, if anyone could, you could," Kyra said gently. "Don't worry, we'll perform the ceremony, I don't think She'll mind if you do it at a later time."
"We gotta do it now then," Suki said, looking up at the moon overhead. But Carrie paid them no more heed. She held two fingers up, index and middle, in a concentration point. She forced all of her energy in this one spot. She felt her will get stronger, then go beyond the point on her fingers to the book.
Nothing happened, and she tried harder. The book suddenly spilled forth with bright red light that surrounded. The other girls fled about ten feet away.
"No way," Kyra remarked.
"Carrie!" Suki yelled. Carrie's eyes opened quickly. The bright red light took form, the form of the legendary phoenix and hovered over her. The book floated at eye level. Shakily, Carrie reached out to it.
"No! Don't touch it!" Kyra yelled, but the light intensified until it was blinding. The two girls shielded their eyes. It abruptly went dark.
Carrie was nowhere to be found.
"Carrie!" Suki called out, and ran to the spot where her friend once was. She picked up the book and found it changed. Instead of foreign writing, there was English.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"Hello?"
Carrie's voice fell flat in what seemed an airless place of darkness. She was able to breath, at least. Not being able to do much else in the void of darkness, she sat down and looked around.
Not much to look at, she thought to herself, when a dull red light formed. It spread and created a portal where many people were praying in front of an altar that would be in front of her. Now what? Seeing not much was going to happen in the dark part, she stepped through the portal.
There were many gasps of surprise. One man stood. "Are you the priestess?"
"The priestess? What priestess?"
A young man walked up. "The records say that she will not know her destiny when she first appears."
"What? Hey, my destiny? What do you know about it?"
The younger man looked startled, but quickly recovered. "May we discuss it over a drink and bite to eat?"
Carrie agreed. He guided her to a table with breads and fruits. A pitcher of water was brought.
"Would the lady like some wine?" he asked kindly.
"No thanks," Carrie said. "I don't drink."
The men looked at each other. Carrie saw her mistake quickly. "I mean, I don't drink anything that gives you a headache later on."
The servant nodded in understanding. "I will get you some of the juice of the grapes, then. That should not bother you." He left and later returned with a glass of grape juice.
"Sooo, what am I doing here, and where is here?"
"The land is in disorder. The god Suzaku is in need of a priestess. We prayed that you would come to our aid, and here you are, in China."
Carrie nearly breathed in the liquid, leaving her sputtering. "How did I go from the U.S. to here like that?"
"I beg your pardon?"
Carrie looked at him. "You know, the US. The United States of America?"
His face was blank.
"The western country that is across the big ocean that has lots of money? New York? Cincinnati? LA?"
"That place is not familiar with me," he said, and she put her head on the table in exasperation. ~How could he not know who they were? The guy looked fairly bright and up on current events.~
"The place where two planes crashed into two extremely large buildings, killing lots of people?"
"How can two planes crash? The Spirit Plane and Physical Plane don't seem like they could crash into anything. Unless you mean rocks fell on the buildings. But how can both?"
She wasn't getting through to him. Then she looked outside.
She had seen pictures of the scenery. In books of ancient China.
~Ancient?! ~
"Is something the matter?"
Carrie realized that she must have gone very pale. "Um, that man said something about my destiny..." she mentioned, changing the subject.
"Ah, yes, I was getting to that. As the priestess of Suzaku, you must find the seven who will be your guardians."
"You act like I already agreed to this. What if I don't? How do you know it's me you're looking for?"
He just smiled. "When you came, what happened?"
"You mean before I came?" she asked. "I was doing a ritual. I tried to read this book and a lot of red light came from it. It became a bird, then I found myself in a dark place. A portal opened and I walked through it, to appear before you and the others."
"The bird," the stranger said, "was Suzaku. It just proves that you are the true Priestess of Suzaku, and must gather the Suzaku Seven."
"Okay, so let's say I am this person you're looking for. What's the catch?" Carrie pried.
"Well, you should know then that they...well, they're dead."
Carrie nearly fell out of her chair. "Oh that's lovely. Perfect. How am I supposed to gather ghosts? Huh?"
"You are the Priestess. I assume you will be able to call upon Suzaku's power and revive them."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"And so the young girl set off reluctantly. She hoped that she would be able to find a way home, and if the god was real, that he would help her there," Suki read aloud. Kyra hugged her.
"I'm losing a second friend. Just don't go for good. And don't read anymore without me on the phone, 'kay?"
"Got it," Suki replied. "Don't worry, I'll call as often as I can."
They said their last goodbyes, and Suki boarded the plane, waiting for it to take off.
"Excuse me, may I sit here?"
A young lady with bright red hair stood at the aisle. Suki nodded and the woman sat. The man behind her sat in the seat across the aisle from her.
"I might as well introduce myself and my companion," the lady said, taking off her gloves. "I am Miaka, and my friend is Taka."
"Suki." The two women shook hands. Miaka's eyes fell upon the back of the book. "I see you've come well prepared for the long trip overseas. What book is that?"
"Just picked it up on the way out of the house." She laughed. "I promised I'd only read it with my friend, she is so interested in it. I think it's just a way to keep in touch."
"So you will call each other and read it? I think it's a great idea! May I see it?" Miaka asked innocently enough. Suki reluctantly handed it over.
Miaka was silent for a moment, just holding the book. "My god," she whispered.
"What is it?" Suki asked, but right then the intercom came on.
"Welcome aboard, ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. I hope you came prepared for the trip with games and such, but if not, there will be a movie on at eight, ten, and twelve tonight. Please buckle your seatbelts at this moment while we prepare to take off. Thank you and enjoy the flight."
There was a short bit of people rummaging behind them to find their seatbelts. All but Miaka.
"You okay?" Taka asked.
"Taka. It's the book. The Universe of the Four Gods."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------
A/N: Well, what do you think? Next chapter should be up today or tomorrow. R&R please!