Disclaimer- I don't any of the Suzaku seishi, or Kouji. They belong to the one and only Yuu Watase. I do own Kyoko and Yousuke. That's all for any characters with depth. If you'd like to use either in a fanfiction of your own, just ask. I'll probably be fine with it. Anyways, this takes place maybe between the 2nd and 3rd OVA to avoid any confusion about the age... But I guess it doesn't really matter, does it? Well, I hope you like it.!

Chapter 1

Rain fell silently all around Tasuki as he moved quietly and cautiously through the woods. A dark presence had been lingering there for hours now, and he couldn't help but to go investigate. He took careful steps and scanned the entirety of his surroundings as he walked, taking in everything, making sure not to miss anything that might remotely be out of the ordinary. His eyes shot open as he felt something like wind rushing towards him. In one sweeping motion, he drew his Tessen from his back and blocked a blow to the stomach. Tasuki studied the stranger. Silvery white eyes, raven hair, and clad all in black. Excluding his eyes, the man seemed altogether normal, but he still made him feel uneasy. "Who are you?" Tasuki demanded.

"That is no concern of yours." The man responded coldly, giving him a stare that could pierce even the bravest man through the heart. He pushed himself away from the Tessen, and they began moving in a circular motion, throwing the occasional attack at each other.

"REKKA SHIN'EN!" Tasuki waved his tessen at the man, shooting flames at him. The stranger held up a hand, simply dissipating the flames. Tasuki smirked. That's exactly what he had hoped for, a distraction to buy him enough time to run behind the man, throwing a hard punch into his spine.

The man let out a scream as he arched his back in pain. A large glowing object protruded from his chest, but Tasuki wasn't so interested in that just now. He had to maintain focus on the current battle. But it turned out to be a lost cause, as the man turned away, fleeing the battle. "One fight lost. No matter. I'll take you another day." Tasuki fell to his knees, watching the man fade away into nothing. What did he mean by take? He shifted his gaze over to the 'thing' that the outsider had left behind. The light was dying down a bit, and he was able to make out the figure of a girl. He drew closer, and held his breath, quickly turning his head away. "No clothes? Why me?" He asked aloud. He slowly turned his eyes back to her, quickly removing his jacket and covering her with it. He hovered his hands over her, with the feeling that if he touched her at all, he might be defiling her. He finally figured he should suck it up and go through with it. He worked his hands under the girl and lifted her in his arms. She was surprisingly light. He cocked a brow, and began his short journey back to the safety of the stronghold.

As he walked, he looked her over a bit. She appeared to be fairly young, golden brown hair, clear skin. She was alive, he knew that much. She was breathing slow deep breaths, and her heart was beating at a standard pace. It was only then that he noticed how fast his own heart was pumping. He let out a sigh and looked away, embarrassed. What for? There was no one around. He continued to trudge up the hill, finally catching his home in sight.

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Tasuki entered the stronghold to be met with many loud comments.

"Well! Genrou! So you finally got over yer hatred towards women, eh?"

"So, how far didja go? Heheheh!"

"SHADDUP! It was nothin' like that!" He boomed. "If I hear any more outta any of you, you're gonna get a poundin'!"

The room went silent.

Tasuki continued on his way to his room when Kouji caught up to him.

"Uh... Genrou?" Kouji asked quietly as they trotted down the hallway. "What's up with the girl, anyways?" He walked ahead a bit and opened the door.

"Gimme a sec." Tasuki mumbled in response. He staggered through and laid her on his bed, kneeling down and simply looking at her for a moment. He finally turned his gaze to his friend and tried to explain what had happened. Though the story didn't seem to make much sense, Kouji listened to the whole thing silently. When the story was finished, they plopped down next to each other against a wall, staring at the unconscious woman before them. Kouji cast the occasion look to his friend, who never removed his eyes from the bed.

"Do you love her?" He finally asked in a sarcastic tone.

A slight blush tinted Tasuki's cheeks. "How th' hell should I know? For all I know she's in a coma."

"Didja get a weird feelin' in the pit of yer stomach when you first laid eyes on her?" He asked with a smirk.

"Uh... I guess..."

"Then you love her."

"I wanna see you look at a naked chick an not get a weird feelin' in yer stomach." He replied with a growl.

Kouji stared at him for a long moment, simply grinning. "Tasuki's got a lil' girlfriend..."

"SHADDUP!"

In all the ruckus, the girl stirred. The two men immediately stopped their conversation, and turned to watch. She opened her eyes a bit and shot up into a sitting position. The sheet covering her fell from her chest. Tasuki and Kouji leaned forward a little to get a better look. She gasped and pulled the sheet back up to cover her chest. "W... Where am I!" She demanded fiercely.

Tasuki held his hand up in a defensive manor. "Take it easy. I found ya passed out in th' forest."

The girl took quivering breaths and looked around, now a little scared. "Why don't I remember anything?" The bandits looked at each other, curious themselves. "What's wrong with me!" Her eyes began to pick up a shine as she shouted these words to them. Tasuki rushed over and took her hand, comfortingly.

He looked into her eyes reassuringly. "Let's jes concentrate on th' things you DO remember." The room was quite for a moment as she calmed herself, taking deep breaths.

"I'm 18 years old." She said this with definite sureness in her voice. "My name's Kyoko, but..." She thought for a moment longer, and began again with a hint of pride lingering around her. "But I'm also Karasuki. Celestial warrior of Byakko in the country of Sairro."

Without removing his eyes from her, Tasuki waved his hand at Kouji a little. "Oi, Kouji, get her some clothes will ya? The ones here in th' stronghold are fine, jes find some real small ones so they fit 'er."

"Yeah, sure." He hopped up and left the room, taking one last look at her as he closed the door.

Tasuki watched him leave, and immediately placed his eyes back on the girl. He couldn't restrain the slight red tint on his cheeks. He hadn't quite gotten a good look at her yet, and she was almost too appealing. He forced himself to ignore the fact before, but she had an amazing figure. Slender, but not lacking in the chest or hips. And her eyes. He almost forgot what he was about to say just looking into her pure, golden hues. "Would ya prefer it if I called ya Kyoko, or Karasuki?" He almost spat the question out, not quite knowing how to ask otherwise.

"Karasuki is fine." She smiled vaguely at him, a bit worn out from her recent experience. She took another deep breath and pulled the sheet farther up her chest with her free hand. "What should I call you?"

He smiled gently in an attempt to keep her calm. "Th' guys call me Genrou, but you can call me Tasuki." He raised his arm to show the bright red symbol radiating from it. He lowered it again and stared her in the eyes. "Yer among friends. We're the good guys and we'll take care of ya, alright?" Karasuki grinned lightly. Their eyes locked on to each others for a moment.

"Hey, will these work?" The two snapped their gaze away, to see Kouji, pushing the door open with his free hand. Tasuki dropped her hand. The dark-haired bandit paused, mid-way through the doorframe and studied the two. "Am I interrupting somethin'?" They both shook their heads quickly. He shrugged and walked over to the bed, setting the clothes down in front of her. Karasuki smiled in thanks. Kouji blushed a little and walked briskly out of the room, leaving the two alone again. There was an uncomfortable silence.

Finally, Tasuki stood, his back to her. His cheeks reddened a bit. "You can go ahead and change, I won't look." Karasuki stared at him for a moment and smiled as he made his way to the other side of the room. She looked over the clothes for a moment and began to dress herself. "So... I'll go get us some food and we'll eat in here away from th' rest of th' guys, alright?"

"That's fine with me." She answered, considerably relaxed since she awoke.

Tasuki nodded, his back still facing her. He shoved his hands in his pockets and rushed out the door, slamming it behind him. He fell back against it and clutched his chest. "What's my problem?" He asked himself between gasps.

He took a moment to gather his senses, before heading out to the dining hall. The moment he took a step in the room, he was once again bombarded with questions.

"So what's she like!"

"What's her name!"

"SHADDUP!" Tasuki screamed at them. "Act like this around her and I'll tear yer fuckin' heads off!"

The room went silent.

He made his way past the quiet, suddenly well-behaved bandits, and grabbed two plates of food. He balanced them on his arms and carefully took up some drinks as well. Heading down the hallway, he ran into Kouji again. "So how is she?"

"I think she'll be jes' fine..." Kouji opened the door for him. "Could ya watch the guys?" He nodded and ran in the opposite direction as Tasuki pushed his way through the door. As he kicked it shut, a plate began to slip. Out of nowhere, Karasuki appeared beside him, catching it at the last moment. They locked eyes for an instant, and she turned away, taking her plate with her. She took a seat at the foot of the bed and smiled quietly to him. He stared back, awkwardly for a moment, before following her example and sitting as well. "So..." He said as he began viciously devouring down his food. "You think you'll be okay?"

Karasuki nodded. "I think I'll be fine..." She slowly looked up to him, and giggled a bit, but not from the question. "You've got some rice on your chin." She noted. Tasuki sensed an immediate tension build up in himself, as she drew a hand up to brush it away. He felt his cheeks go hot, the moment her soft hand touched him. He quickly snapped away from her and walked out of the room. She stared after him, confused.

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Tasuki paid no attention as countless bandits asked him where he was going. Not because he didn't want to respond, because in truth he had no idea where he was going. His eyes felt hot, and he was in a daze, but he trudged onwards through the woods nonetheless. Everywhere he turned, he seemed to see her, smell her, brush by her. And he couldn't bare it. He finally came to a stop in a clearing, overlooking the town at the foot of the mountain. "Get a hold of yerself, ya bastard..." He mumbled to himself. His legs gave way and he collapsed on the ground, panting. It was then that he recalled Kouji's words to him. Do you love her? His friends voice rang loudly in his head, echoing the same phrase, over and over again. "No..." Tasuki finally mumbled to himself, putting a hand to his head. "No, I couldn't." He stayed silent for a time, just calming down and listening to the birds and crickets around him. "So what th' hell's wrong with me?"