Yes, yes....it IS true....I have made some minor changes to the
current story (fixed typos, added the song thing etc) and I am
actually working on a chapter 6! After 9 TERRIBLE MONTHS of writers
block, I am finally back on track minna-san! ^_^v Be proud of me!
I know I am. So anyway, be patient and be content with what's here
for now please! I love you all!
Ja~!
Kasa no Miko
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
There's something about the look in your eyes.....
Something I noticed when the light was just right.....
It reminded me twice that I was alive.....
And it reminded me you are so worth the fight.....
Your biggest fear will be the rescue of you.....
Strange how it turns out that way, yeah.....
Could you show me, dear.....
Something I'm not seeing....
Something infinately interesting.....
Lyrics: Echo by Incubus
Chichiri slowly walked behind the group of Miaka, Tamahome, Nuriko, Mitsukake, and Tasuki. They were on the search for the remaining Suzaku Seishi. The Emperor, Hotohori was unable to escape his duties in the palace, so he had sent out Chichiri, Tamahome, and Nuriko, along with Suzaku no Miko to find the remaining seishi. Their journey had been rough. Genrou, the bandit had turned out to be the Suzaku Seishi, Tasuki. That was after he had told them that the former bandit leader was Tasuki, and that he was dead. Then they had found Mitsukake, the healer, who had been less than willing to help at first when Miaka had fallen ill. And that left one Suzaku Seishi to be found; The one known as Chiriko.
Miaka happily hung off of Tamahome's arm. She looked back at Chichiri and smiled. "Chichiri~! If you don't hurry, we'll never find the 7th seishi!"
Chichiri smiled. "Hai, Miaka-san, no da!" Chichiri said, quickening his pace. His mask may have been smiling, but inside, he was concerned. He could sense something about to happen, but he wasn't sure what is was. And somehow he knew finding Chiriko wouldn't be as easy as the optimistic Suzaku no Miko anticipated.
They all arrived in a small town later that afternoon. Worn out from an entire day's walking, they all agreed it would be best to stay the night.
They checked into a nice little inn at the edge of town and had supper soon after. At least, Miaka had supper....the rest had what they could get....
[sweatdrop] But anyway, the author is getting off track....
As they sat around the table, the owners panicked while the Seishi and Suzaku no Miko ate and talked.
Tamahome happily ate his dinner beside Miaka. "Neeeeeeeee, I wonder if this place has some bad guys for me to get rid of! Maybe I can make a few bucks!"
Tasuki looked up from his own plate. "Yer a damn greedy bastard, ya know that?"
Tamhome glared at him. --;; "I vote Tasuki for staying on guard tonight. Any objections?"
..............silence..............
"Shimatta! Not a single one of ya wanna stand up fer me???"
Miaka looked at him with those big eyes of hers that somehow charmed almost any man into doing her bidding. "Pleeeeeeeeeease Tasuki-chan?" she asked him.
Tasuki grumbled something unintelligible, and then raised his voice back to normal level. "Fine, fine.....but only because yer the Miko...."
Miaka nearly leapt over the table to hug him. "Arigatoooooooooo!"
"Yeah, yeah....who's on watch with me?"
Before Chichiri even thought about it, he answered. "I will, no da," he said, wondering why he had volunteered in the first place. But he couldn't take it back now, so he said nothing else.
After dinner, the others went up to their rooms, while Chichiri and Tasuki went outside to stand guard. The two sat under the roof in front of the inn as the sun slowly sank behind the mountains in the distance.
Tasuki slumped against the wall and stared longingly at the mountains. "Hn. Wish I were home right now." he sighed whistfully. "But, we gotta protect the miko, ne?" he said a bit more cheerfully.
"Hai, no da!" Chichiri said. "It's our duty as Suzaku Shichi Seishi." Chichiri looked up at the sky. "Hm...looks like there's going to be a storm tonight, no da." He commented looking at the black clouds approaching in the sky.
* * *
A single traveler quietly trekked through the dark woods. "Why do they have to make these places so creepy," she muttered to herself. Being alone in the woods this close to dark didn't exactly thrill her. Thunder rumbled somewhere off in the distance. "Shimatta!" She cursed. "Grrr! Michiko, Yoshiomo, where are you when I need you?!" she asked kicking the root of a tree, then recoiling in pain. "They're at home, where you're supposed to be." she answered herself. She sighed. "Hn. I haven't seen Yoshiomo's bad hair or heard Michiko's voice lecturing me in months. I really should hurry home." she commented. Seconds later, another low, threatening rumble filled the air. "Maybe if I make good time I can beat the rain..."
Unfortunately, she was wrong. An hour later, it was dark and the storm had caught up with her. The thunder boomed and the lightning lit up the sky in fantastic displays. In fact, she might have enjoyed it, had she not been caught in the middle of that creepy forest when it had started pouring.
She was nearly out of the woods when, without warning, she lost her footing in some newly formed mud. She groped blindly for something to grab onto, but her hand only grasped air. She screamed as she slid down the bank and plummeted into the darkness of the forest. An echoing cry for help pierced through the air....and then there was silence.
* * *
Soon the rain began falling down. The two Seishi on watch were under the shelter of the inn's porch. All of a sudden, Chichiri heard something. The sound was shrill and high pitched, yet nearly drowned out by the pounding rain.
"TASUKETEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" came a frantic female voice, echoing from somewhere in the distance.
"Ne, Tasuki, did you hear that, no da?" Chichiri asked.
"Hear what?" Tasuki replied raising an eyebrow.
"That scream. It came from somewhere in that direction, I think, na no da...." he said pointing to the forest they had just come through earlier that day.
Tasuki shrugged. "All I heard was thunder."
"I'm going to go check it out, no da. Wait here, I'll be back soon, na no da."
"OI! WHAT'RE YA DOIN'!? We're supposed to be on guard! You know, protect the Miko? COME BACK HERE! BAKAAAAAAA!!!!!" Came Tasuki's frusterated voice.
"I'll be right back, na no da!" Chichiri called over his shoulder as he ran. The inn they were at was close to the edge of town, so it wasn't long before Chichiri was in the woods.
He followed the path for 15 minutes without seeing a trace of human life, but he could sense that there was someone out there. After walking for a few more minutes, Chichiri found fresh footprints in the mud. He saw where the person had lost their footing and fallen down the steep, muddy bank.
Chichiri carefully made his way down the bank to find a young girl, perhaps the same age as Miaka. She was lying on the ground, barely conscious, and seemed unable to move her left leg.
Chichiri bent down. "Daijobu, no da?" he asked her.
The girl nodded. "I'm fine, I think.....my leg, however, is not," she told him. "I've tried to get up, but I can't....and I feel kinda dizzy......"
"Don't worry, no da. I'll make sure you get to town safely," he reassured her.
She nodded and smiled weakly. "A...arigato...that's very kind of you...."
Chichiri took her in his arms and stood up. "My name is Chichiri, no da." he said told her. "And who are you, na no da?"
She lifted her head a bit so she could see his face. She squinted, his face was blurred... "My....my name is...." her head fell to rest on his shoulder, she was unconscious.
As Chichiri walked, her head rested limply on his shoulder, bobbing with every step he took. The shoulder her head was on felt unusually warm....Chichiri looked down and noticed there was blood on his shirt. In addition to her leg, she also had a head injury, and she was loosing blood.
Chichiri stopped for a moment and ripped a strip of his shirt to bandage the girl's head. At this point, Chichiri was thoroughly soaked, and so was the girl. His pace became a little faster, though he still took careful notice of where he was walking, to prevent any injuries to himself or further injuries to the girl.
Finally, Chichiri arrived back at the inn. "Tasuki, no da, I hope you can handle watch on your own for a while. This girl is badly injured, na no da. I'll come back down as soon as I can." He said walking right past him and in to the inn.
Tasuki didn't argue, but shook his head muttering to himself about how useless women were and how they're more trouble than they're worth....
* * *
Nuriko walked into the girl's room with a bowl full of water and a cloth. He placed the bowl on the table, wrung the cloth out and placed it on the girl's head. Nuriko shook his head. She was only a child and shouldnt've been traveling alone. The girl wrinkled her nose and began to move restlessly under the covers. Nuriko's eyes went wide and grinned. "Chichiri! Chichiriiiiiiiii! The girl you found is waking up!!!!!!" He yelled as he ran out of the room. Nuriko kept running and nearly ran over Chichiri when he did find him. "She's waking up! She's finally awaaaaaake!"
Chichiri walked to the girl's room and entered with Nuriko behind him. He walked to the edge of her bed and sat down. "Are you alright, no da....?" he asked her.
The girl distantly heard a voice talking to her. She slowly opened her eyes, but nothing
was in focus. There was someone sitting beside her....a guy......a guy with spiky hair. Her eyes widened. "Yo-Yoshiomo?" she asked. Chichiri was about to answer her, but sat up and hugged him. "Yoshiomo, I'm so glad to see you!" she cried. "I had a horrible dream! I was so scared.....but I'll be fine now. I'm happy to be back home," she said hugging him tighter.
Nuriko giggled. "Ne, Chichiri, looks like you have a fan."
"Chi-Chichiri?" the girl asked. She looked up at the person she was clinging to.
SD Chichiri sweatdropped and looked back at her. "Da! Ohayo, my name is Chichiri, no da! Er....what's your name, no da?"
The girl blushed brightly. "Gomen nasai. I thought you were a friend of mine..." She mumbled. "My name is Taasu Seika."
"The nameless girl finally has a name." Nuriko commented. "You've been asleep for three days now, and very sick too, you had a bad fever because of how soaked you were." He said as he leaned against the wall. "You're lucky Chichiri found you, and Mitsukake was able to stop the bleeding."
Just then, Tasuki, Tamahome and Miaka walked in. Tasuki smirked. "So the troublesome girl finally woke up?"
The girl frowned at the the man in the trench coat. "No, I'm talking in my sleep," she said sarcastically. "And I'm not troublesome, and my name isn't 'girl', it's Seika." She shifted her weight and a sharp pain went through her left leg, making her wince. "Now I remember what happened....It was raining and I slipped in the mud.....I fell down a bank and......I hurt my leg and hit my head.....and you....you saved me," she said, looking at Chichiri, "But....but where am I now.....?"
Miaka stepped forward. "In a small inn, just outside of the woods. We postponed out travels because we were worried about you." she said with a smile. "Are you alright?"
"You....you....oh, I'm so sorry to have delayed you!" she pushed the covers off her legs and sat on the edge of her bed. "I'm very sorry, I'll leave now. I'll be fine." she said. She tried to stand up, but winced at the pain when she put pressure on her injured leg. "Let me rephrase that. After a bottle of alcohol or seven, I'll be just fine....."
Nuriko shook his head. "Don't be foolish. You're still too weak to go anywhere."
Tasuki chuckled. "The world needs more women like you. Maybe it won't be so hard to get along with ya until we all leave after all."
She smiled. "Why, thank you."
"Yeah, yer not the whiny type. I mean, yer pretty though to try to stand up with an injury like that. So it'll be easy to get along with ya 'cause I can treat ya like a boy!" Tasuki laughed.
Seika's eyebrow twitched a few times. She rolled up her sleeve and punched Tasuki into the nearest wall in a very lady-like manner. "JERK!!!!!!!"
Tamahome laughed. "It's not smart to be rude to total strangers, Tasuki."
"I-itaiiiiiii~! She is a boy!" Tasuki said. Eyebrow still twitching, Seika proceeded to pick up the nearest object (Chichiri) and throw it at Tasuki.
"Daaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" flying SD Chichiri yelled. He then landed on SD Tasuki, who nicely cushioned his fall. Chichiri flashed the victory sign. "Arigato Tasuki, no da!"
Tasuki was now reduced to a swirly-eyed SD mass of Seishi. "No problem Chichiri......."
"Eh.....gomen nasai Chichiri-san.....I got a little carried away...." Seika said when she had calmed down a bit.
Chichiri smiled. "Daijobu, no da!"
"And I suppose I'm sorry for punching you too.........." Seika said staring at a twitching SD seishi. She turned to everyone else. "Minna, I-I really don't know how to thank you. To most people, a stranger's life is insignificant, they wouldn't care if I died...." tears began to roll down her face, "but you saved me and took care of me for three days already, and now you're offering to stay here with me until I'm healthy again. I-I don't have much money," she said, reaching for a bag of coins, "but take it. Take it all."
Tamahome began to reach for it, but Miaka smacked his hand out of the way.
Miaka shook her head. "We don't need your money, keep it." she told Seika.
Nuriko grabbed a tissue and wiped her eyes. "Hush. Your face looks much prettier
without tears on it. And keep your money. When we send you off again, you'll need it, your clothes were completely ruined, so you'll need new ones, until then, Miaka-san is willing to let you borrow some of hers."
"Arigato," she said. "You people don't even know me, but you're still so kind. That's very admirable."
"Now lay back down," Nuriko told her. "You're still weak and need rest. C'mon minna, out," Nuriko said as he herded the group of people out of the room. "We'll bring you dinner when it's ready."
* * *
"She's right ya know." Tasuki said once they were outside.
Nuriko looked at him. "Right about what?"
"We don't know her. She could be a spy for Seiryuu no Miko!"
Nuriko rolled his eyes. "Does she really look like the type? She was so sweet, and on top of that she's injured, if she tries anything, she's at a disadvantage."
"Ya can't trust women, not a single one of 'em!"
"She's harmless, no da." Chichiri said.
"Hn. To you, maybe." He replied. "To me she's a major health hazard."
* * *
Later that night Nuriko and Miaka brought the Seika her dinner. She was very grateful, as she hadn't eaten in three days.
[Starry-eyed] "F-foooooooooooooodddddd!!!!!! ARIGATOOOOOOO! CHOW TIME!" Seika dug in, showing off her *ahem* Miaka-like manners. Five minutes later, she had cleaned off the entire platter of food they had brought her.
^-^ "Arigato Nuriko-san, Miaka-san! I was really hungry!"
O.o "No kidding...." Nuriko said.
"Since you'll probably want to leave the room, we're going to make you a pair of crutches. That way, you'll be free to walk around without help."
Almost immediately, Seika protested. "No! I can't favor my leg just because I injured it! If I do that, it'll become weak! I'll walk on it normally, just as I would if I hadn't injured it!" she said determinedly.
Nuriko and Miaka were taken aback by this. "That's very courageous of you," Nuriko told her, "But it may only make it worse."
"No, I'll be okay. I've held you up long enough, and I need to get going myself. I have a mission to finish."
Miaka tilted her head to the side. "Mission? What kind of mission?" she asked curiously.
"I'm not really sure myself." Seika replied. "I was told in a dream a few months ago to seek out Suzaku no Miko." Miaka's eyes widened, but Seika didn't notice. "I was told that Suzaku no Miko would need my help, with what, I'm not quite sure though." she continued. "I am to serve Miko until the summoning of Suzaku, and do whatever she says, to be her tsukebito. And when I find her, I will do that. I can't go home until my Suzaku is summoned. And so, here I am." She finished. She looked at the expressions on Miaka and Nuriko's faces. She frowned. "A-ano....did I say something wrong?" she asked.
Miaka shook her head. "No, it's nothing....it's just that....Suzaku no Miko....she's me."
"Na-nani....? Suzaku no Miko....you....you mean I finally found you!? Miko-sama! I'm so happy!!!!!!! After you call Suzaku, I can go back home! Please! I'm here to serve you with anything you need!!!!" she cried, throwing her arms around Miaka, who was standing at the side of the bed.
^^;; "Uh, arigato....I think...." Miaka replied.
Nuriko sweatdropped. "Ano...what just happened here???"
Miaka smiled. "We just ended up with a new travelling companion, I think." she replied.
Seika's eyes widened. "Really? So you will take me with you? Thank you Miko-sama!!!!!!"
Nuriko smiled. "I think we'll leave now, you're a little too excited. Calm down and get some sleep. I'll take you to the market for new clothes in the morning."
Seika nodded. ^^ "Hai! See you tomorrow!" she yelled as Nuriko and Miaka left. She smiled and fell back onto the pillows. "Tomorrow....tomorrow is one day closer until I can go home...." Seika closed her eyes and, after a while, drifted off into a happy dream.
* * *
Downstairs.......
Tasuki spit out his drink when Miaka made her announcement. "YOU TOLD HER WHAT!??? THAT GIRL IS DANGEROUS!!!!!!!! NO WAY CAN WE TAKE HER WITH US!!!!!!!"
Tamahome smirked. "Heh. Dangerous to you maybe. But we don't really need her do we? I mean, we're almost ready to call Suzaku. "
"I know, but I couldn't say no to her. I understand how she feels." Miaka explained. "She was told she couldn't return home until Suzaku is summoned. And maybe we will need her help. You never know, right?"
"I suppose you're right." Tama replied. "But how do you know she was telling the truth?"
"The look in her eyes. She was telling the truth, I just know it."
Nuriko nodded. "She was ecstatic to find Miko," he smiled, "You know the look in a child's eyes when he receives a gift? It was like that."
"But....why is she needed?" Mitsukake asked. "Miko has seven seishi to protect her....."
Chichiri was silent. Secretly he was happy that she would be coming along, though he wasnt sure why...probably because he was still a bit worried about her. "Prehaps.....prehaps she's not supposed to protect Miko, no da." Chichiri suggested. "Prehaps she supposed to be more like a companion....a friend, na no da."
"A friend? But we're Miko's friends, as well as her protecters." Nuriko said.
"Hai, but we're all guys, no da. Even you Nuriko... it's not the same for her as having another female around...am I right, Miaka, no da?"
"Well, yeah...I guess...."
Nuriko's went SD and his eyes got big and watery. "I-I thought there wasn't anythiiiiinnng you couldn't tell me! Miaaaaaakaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!"
Miaka sweatdropped. "Eh, gomen Nuriko! Gomen!"
* * *
The next morning, Seika woke up to knocking on her door. "Come in!" she called. Nuriko entered the room. ^^ "Time to go shopping for your new clothes!" He said cheerfully. "Are you sure your leg will be alright?" he asked concernedly.
"Hai, I should be fine!" She said as she sat on her bed and put her hair up into pigtails. "Besides, I haven't tried since yesterday. You never know unless you try, right?" she said cheerfully.
Nuriko smiled. "I guess you're right. You seem to be a very wise girl for your age."
"Arigato, Nuriko-san." She said as she swung her legs over the edge of the bed. "Here goes nothing." she remarked. She gingerly put one foot on the ground, then, slowly and carefully placed the other one on the ground, making sure to put most of her weight on her right leg. She winced a bit, but she smiled at Nuriko as she took each tiny step. Finally she made it to where Nuriko was standing. "See, I'm fine."
Seika was ecstatic when they left the room. Nuriko helped her down the stairs to where the others were.
Seika giggled. "So this is what the rest of the inn looks like!" She said. "Hi minna-san!" she said adressing Miko and the rest of her seishi. "Nuriko-san and I are going shopping."
Tasuki's eye twitched. "The gay-boy is takin her shopping now???"
Everyone turned to Seika waiting for her reaction to this. Seika blinked. "What? Why are you all staring at me like that way?" she asked innocently.
"Er...you aren't surprised at what Tasuki just said?" Nuriko asked.
Seika looked at Nuriko. She shrugged. "Surpised? No way, I knew yesterday."
Everyone sweatdropped. "Er....how...did....you......?" Miaka trailed off.
Seika shrugged. "I dunno...I just knew. No offence Nuriko." she replied. ^^ "But anyway, aren't we supposed to go supposed to go shopping Nuriko-san?"
"H-hai..." Nuriko replied. "See you later minna." He said as he helped Seika out the door.
Tama shook his head. "That girl is incredibly strange."
Everyone nodded. "Hai."
* * *
Not one, not two, but THREE hours later, Nuriko and Seika returned to the inn. "Now, you wait out here, and I'll get everyone to come outside!" Nuriko said. "I can't wait to see the looks on their faces!"
Tasuki looked up as Nuriko calmly walked in. "So, where's the brat?"
"She's waiting for us outside. C'mon minna, let's check out and get going. If we leave now, we can make it to the next town before dark."
Everyone checked out and went outside. Seika was there leaning against a tree trunk.
"Holy shit! Th-that's not the same little girl that left here this mornin....no way!" Tasuki stammered.
Seika smirked. "So, does that mean you like it?" she asked. She slowly opened her eyes and looked at everyone. "Ohayo."
Instead of the pajamas and pigtails, she was now wearing a strapless black shirt, matching black pants and boots, a blue daimond-cut waist garment held in place with a red belt, a white skirt with slits all the way up the sides overtop of the pants, and a black beaded necklace. Instead of the pigtails that had been in her hair that morining, it was down and blowing freely in the soft breeze. A single flower hairpin decorated her hair.
Chichiri stood there breathless. It looked as if she had become three years older in the past three hours. He hadn't really seen her as anything other than a little girl until now, though the fact was that she was at least the same age, if not older than Miaka. He noticed the hair pin. Hn. Just like that time.... he thought. ::Don't even think about it.:: he told himself. ::You don't know her, and the chance that it could happen again....but I'd know better this time....::
Seika looked from one expression to the next and sweatdropped. "Don't look at me like that. I'm not a little kid, ya know." She crossed her arms. "And Nuriko said I looked very nice."
......Silence.......
^^ "Well," Miaka said, breaking the silence, "Let's get moving, we've got a long way to go, ne?"
"Anywhere you wanna go, I'll go Miko-sama!" Seika said cheerfully.
"Then it's settled!" Miaka said. "C'mon! Hurry up!" Miaka said running down the street through town. Seika and the Suzaku Seishi followed close behind her.
* * *
Keiske sat in the room in the Libraray. "Suzaku no Miko, her tsukebito, and her Seishi left the town they had been in for the past week, to continue their jounery, and find the Suzaku Seishi Chiriko."
Finding my way back to sanity again....
Dont wanna really know what I'm gonna do when I get there...
Take a breath and hold on tight.....
Spin 'round one more time.....
And gracefully fall back to the arms of grace....
'Cause I am hanging on every word you say....
And even if you dont wanna speak tonight, that's all right, all right with me....
'Cause I want nothing more than to sit outside heavens door....
And listen to you breathing, that's where I wanna be...yeah.....
Where I wanna be......
Lyrics: Breathing by Lifehouse
current story (fixed typos, added the song thing etc) and I am
actually working on a chapter 6! After 9 TERRIBLE MONTHS of writers
block, I am finally back on track minna-san! ^_^v Be proud of me!
I know I am. So anyway, be patient and be content with what's here
for now please! I love you all!
Ja~!
Kasa no Miko
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
There's something about the look in your eyes.....
Something I noticed when the light was just right.....
It reminded me twice that I was alive.....
And it reminded me you are so worth the fight.....
Your biggest fear will be the rescue of you.....
Strange how it turns out that way, yeah.....
Could you show me, dear.....
Something I'm not seeing....
Something infinately interesting.....
Lyrics: Echo by Incubus
Chichiri slowly walked behind the group of Miaka, Tamahome, Nuriko, Mitsukake, and Tasuki. They were on the search for the remaining Suzaku Seishi. The Emperor, Hotohori was unable to escape his duties in the palace, so he had sent out Chichiri, Tamahome, and Nuriko, along with Suzaku no Miko to find the remaining seishi. Their journey had been rough. Genrou, the bandit had turned out to be the Suzaku Seishi, Tasuki. That was after he had told them that the former bandit leader was Tasuki, and that he was dead. Then they had found Mitsukake, the healer, who had been less than willing to help at first when Miaka had fallen ill. And that left one Suzaku Seishi to be found; The one known as Chiriko.
Miaka happily hung off of Tamahome's arm. She looked back at Chichiri and smiled. "Chichiri~! If you don't hurry, we'll never find the 7th seishi!"
Chichiri smiled. "Hai, Miaka-san, no da!" Chichiri said, quickening his pace. His mask may have been smiling, but inside, he was concerned. He could sense something about to happen, but he wasn't sure what is was. And somehow he knew finding Chiriko wouldn't be as easy as the optimistic Suzaku no Miko anticipated.
They all arrived in a small town later that afternoon. Worn out from an entire day's walking, they all agreed it would be best to stay the night.
They checked into a nice little inn at the edge of town and had supper soon after. At least, Miaka had supper....the rest had what they could get....
[sweatdrop] But anyway, the author is getting off track....
As they sat around the table, the owners panicked while the Seishi and Suzaku no Miko ate and talked.
Tamahome happily ate his dinner beside Miaka. "Neeeeeeeee, I wonder if this place has some bad guys for me to get rid of! Maybe I can make a few bucks!"
Tasuki looked up from his own plate. "Yer a damn greedy bastard, ya know that?"
Tamhome glared at him. --;; "I vote Tasuki for staying on guard tonight. Any objections?"
..............silence..............
"Shimatta! Not a single one of ya wanna stand up fer me???"
Miaka looked at him with those big eyes of hers that somehow charmed almost any man into doing her bidding. "Pleeeeeeeeeease Tasuki-chan?" she asked him.
Tasuki grumbled something unintelligible, and then raised his voice back to normal level. "Fine, fine.....but only because yer the Miko...."
Miaka nearly leapt over the table to hug him. "Arigatoooooooooo!"
"Yeah, yeah....who's on watch with me?"
Before Chichiri even thought about it, he answered. "I will, no da," he said, wondering why he had volunteered in the first place. But he couldn't take it back now, so he said nothing else.
After dinner, the others went up to their rooms, while Chichiri and Tasuki went outside to stand guard. The two sat under the roof in front of the inn as the sun slowly sank behind the mountains in the distance.
Tasuki slumped against the wall and stared longingly at the mountains. "Hn. Wish I were home right now." he sighed whistfully. "But, we gotta protect the miko, ne?" he said a bit more cheerfully.
"Hai, no da!" Chichiri said. "It's our duty as Suzaku Shichi Seishi." Chichiri looked up at the sky. "Hm...looks like there's going to be a storm tonight, no da." He commented looking at the black clouds approaching in the sky.
* * *
A single traveler quietly trekked through the dark woods. "Why do they have to make these places so creepy," she muttered to herself. Being alone in the woods this close to dark didn't exactly thrill her. Thunder rumbled somewhere off in the distance. "Shimatta!" She cursed. "Grrr! Michiko, Yoshiomo, where are you when I need you?!" she asked kicking the root of a tree, then recoiling in pain. "They're at home, where you're supposed to be." she answered herself. She sighed. "Hn. I haven't seen Yoshiomo's bad hair or heard Michiko's voice lecturing me in months. I really should hurry home." she commented. Seconds later, another low, threatening rumble filled the air. "Maybe if I make good time I can beat the rain..."
Unfortunately, she was wrong. An hour later, it was dark and the storm had caught up with her. The thunder boomed and the lightning lit up the sky in fantastic displays. In fact, she might have enjoyed it, had she not been caught in the middle of that creepy forest when it had started pouring.
She was nearly out of the woods when, without warning, she lost her footing in some newly formed mud. She groped blindly for something to grab onto, but her hand only grasped air. She screamed as she slid down the bank and plummeted into the darkness of the forest. An echoing cry for help pierced through the air....and then there was silence.
* * *
Soon the rain began falling down. The two Seishi on watch were under the shelter of the inn's porch. All of a sudden, Chichiri heard something. The sound was shrill and high pitched, yet nearly drowned out by the pounding rain.
"TASUKETEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" came a frantic female voice, echoing from somewhere in the distance.
"Ne, Tasuki, did you hear that, no da?" Chichiri asked.
"Hear what?" Tasuki replied raising an eyebrow.
"That scream. It came from somewhere in that direction, I think, na no da...." he said pointing to the forest they had just come through earlier that day.
Tasuki shrugged. "All I heard was thunder."
"I'm going to go check it out, no da. Wait here, I'll be back soon, na no da."
"OI! WHAT'RE YA DOIN'!? We're supposed to be on guard! You know, protect the Miko? COME BACK HERE! BAKAAAAAAA!!!!!" Came Tasuki's frusterated voice.
"I'll be right back, na no da!" Chichiri called over his shoulder as he ran. The inn they were at was close to the edge of town, so it wasn't long before Chichiri was in the woods.
He followed the path for 15 minutes without seeing a trace of human life, but he could sense that there was someone out there. After walking for a few more minutes, Chichiri found fresh footprints in the mud. He saw where the person had lost their footing and fallen down the steep, muddy bank.
Chichiri carefully made his way down the bank to find a young girl, perhaps the same age as Miaka. She was lying on the ground, barely conscious, and seemed unable to move her left leg.
Chichiri bent down. "Daijobu, no da?" he asked her.
The girl nodded. "I'm fine, I think.....my leg, however, is not," she told him. "I've tried to get up, but I can't....and I feel kinda dizzy......"
"Don't worry, no da. I'll make sure you get to town safely," he reassured her.
She nodded and smiled weakly. "A...arigato...that's very kind of you...."
Chichiri took her in his arms and stood up. "My name is Chichiri, no da." he said told her. "And who are you, na no da?"
She lifted her head a bit so she could see his face. She squinted, his face was blurred... "My....my name is...." her head fell to rest on his shoulder, she was unconscious.
As Chichiri walked, her head rested limply on his shoulder, bobbing with every step he took. The shoulder her head was on felt unusually warm....Chichiri looked down and noticed there was blood on his shirt. In addition to her leg, she also had a head injury, and she was loosing blood.
Chichiri stopped for a moment and ripped a strip of his shirt to bandage the girl's head. At this point, Chichiri was thoroughly soaked, and so was the girl. His pace became a little faster, though he still took careful notice of where he was walking, to prevent any injuries to himself or further injuries to the girl.
Finally, Chichiri arrived back at the inn. "Tasuki, no da, I hope you can handle watch on your own for a while. This girl is badly injured, na no da. I'll come back down as soon as I can." He said walking right past him and in to the inn.
Tasuki didn't argue, but shook his head muttering to himself about how useless women were and how they're more trouble than they're worth....
* * *
Nuriko walked into the girl's room with a bowl full of water and a cloth. He placed the bowl on the table, wrung the cloth out and placed it on the girl's head. Nuriko shook his head. She was only a child and shouldnt've been traveling alone. The girl wrinkled her nose and began to move restlessly under the covers. Nuriko's eyes went wide and grinned. "Chichiri! Chichiriiiiiiiii! The girl you found is waking up!!!!!!" He yelled as he ran out of the room. Nuriko kept running and nearly ran over Chichiri when he did find him. "She's waking up! She's finally awaaaaaake!"
Chichiri walked to the girl's room and entered with Nuriko behind him. He walked to the edge of her bed and sat down. "Are you alright, no da....?" he asked her.
The girl distantly heard a voice talking to her. She slowly opened her eyes, but nothing
was in focus. There was someone sitting beside her....a guy......a guy with spiky hair. Her eyes widened. "Yo-Yoshiomo?" she asked. Chichiri was about to answer her, but sat up and hugged him. "Yoshiomo, I'm so glad to see you!" she cried. "I had a horrible dream! I was so scared.....but I'll be fine now. I'm happy to be back home," she said hugging him tighter.
Nuriko giggled. "Ne, Chichiri, looks like you have a fan."
"Chi-Chichiri?" the girl asked. She looked up at the person she was clinging to.
SD Chichiri sweatdropped and looked back at her. "Da! Ohayo, my name is Chichiri, no da! Er....what's your name, no da?"
The girl blushed brightly. "Gomen nasai. I thought you were a friend of mine..." She mumbled. "My name is Taasu Seika."
"The nameless girl finally has a name." Nuriko commented. "You've been asleep for three days now, and very sick too, you had a bad fever because of how soaked you were." He said as he leaned against the wall. "You're lucky Chichiri found you, and Mitsukake was able to stop the bleeding."
Just then, Tasuki, Tamahome and Miaka walked in. Tasuki smirked. "So the troublesome girl finally woke up?"
The girl frowned at the the man in the trench coat. "No, I'm talking in my sleep," she said sarcastically. "And I'm not troublesome, and my name isn't 'girl', it's Seika." She shifted her weight and a sharp pain went through her left leg, making her wince. "Now I remember what happened....It was raining and I slipped in the mud.....I fell down a bank and......I hurt my leg and hit my head.....and you....you saved me," she said, looking at Chichiri, "But....but where am I now.....?"
Miaka stepped forward. "In a small inn, just outside of the woods. We postponed out travels because we were worried about you." she said with a smile. "Are you alright?"
"You....you....oh, I'm so sorry to have delayed you!" she pushed the covers off her legs and sat on the edge of her bed. "I'm very sorry, I'll leave now. I'll be fine." she said. She tried to stand up, but winced at the pain when she put pressure on her injured leg. "Let me rephrase that. After a bottle of alcohol or seven, I'll be just fine....."
Nuriko shook his head. "Don't be foolish. You're still too weak to go anywhere."
Tasuki chuckled. "The world needs more women like you. Maybe it won't be so hard to get along with ya until we all leave after all."
She smiled. "Why, thank you."
"Yeah, yer not the whiny type. I mean, yer pretty though to try to stand up with an injury like that. So it'll be easy to get along with ya 'cause I can treat ya like a boy!" Tasuki laughed.
Seika's eyebrow twitched a few times. She rolled up her sleeve and punched Tasuki into the nearest wall in a very lady-like manner. "JERK!!!!!!!"
Tamahome laughed. "It's not smart to be rude to total strangers, Tasuki."
"I-itaiiiiiii~! She is a boy!" Tasuki said. Eyebrow still twitching, Seika proceeded to pick up the nearest object (Chichiri) and throw it at Tasuki.
"Daaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" flying SD Chichiri yelled. He then landed on SD Tasuki, who nicely cushioned his fall. Chichiri flashed the victory sign. "Arigato Tasuki, no da!"
Tasuki was now reduced to a swirly-eyed SD mass of Seishi. "No problem Chichiri......."
"Eh.....gomen nasai Chichiri-san.....I got a little carried away...." Seika said when she had calmed down a bit.
Chichiri smiled. "Daijobu, no da!"
"And I suppose I'm sorry for punching you too.........." Seika said staring at a twitching SD seishi. She turned to everyone else. "Minna, I-I really don't know how to thank you. To most people, a stranger's life is insignificant, they wouldn't care if I died...." tears began to roll down her face, "but you saved me and took care of me for three days already, and now you're offering to stay here with me until I'm healthy again. I-I don't have much money," she said, reaching for a bag of coins, "but take it. Take it all."
Tamahome began to reach for it, but Miaka smacked his hand out of the way.
Miaka shook her head. "We don't need your money, keep it." she told Seika.
Nuriko grabbed a tissue and wiped her eyes. "Hush. Your face looks much prettier
without tears on it. And keep your money. When we send you off again, you'll need it, your clothes were completely ruined, so you'll need new ones, until then, Miaka-san is willing to let you borrow some of hers."
"Arigato," she said. "You people don't even know me, but you're still so kind. That's very admirable."
"Now lay back down," Nuriko told her. "You're still weak and need rest. C'mon minna, out," Nuriko said as he herded the group of people out of the room. "We'll bring you dinner when it's ready."
* * *
"She's right ya know." Tasuki said once they were outside.
Nuriko looked at him. "Right about what?"
"We don't know her. She could be a spy for Seiryuu no Miko!"
Nuriko rolled his eyes. "Does she really look like the type? She was so sweet, and on top of that she's injured, if she tries anything, she's at a disadvantage."
"Ya can't trust women, not a single one of 'em!"
"She's harmless, no da." Chichiri said.
"Hn. To you, maybe." He replied. "To me she's a major health hazard."
* * *
Later that night Nuriko and Miaka brought the Seika her dinner. She was very grateful, as she hadn't eaten in three days.
[Starry-eyed] "F-foooooooooooooodddddd!!!!!! ARIGATOOOOOOO! CHOW TIME!" Seika dug in, showing off her *ahem* Miaka-like manners. Five minutes later, she had cleaned off the entire platter of food they had brought her.
^-^ "Arigato Nuriko-san, Miaka-san! I was really hungry!"
O.o "No kidding...." Nuriko said.
"Since you'll probably want to leave the room, we're going to make you a pair of crutches. That way, you'll be free to walk around without help."
Almost immediately, Seika protested. "No! I can't favor my leg just because I injured it! If I do that, it'll become weak! I'll walk on it normally, just as I would if I hadn't injured it!" she said determinedly.
Nuriko and Miaka were taken aback by this. "That's very courageous of you," Nuriko told her, "But it may only make it worse."
"No, I'll be okay. I've held you up long enough, and I need to get going myself. I have a mission to finish."
Miaka tilted her head to the side. "Mission? What kind of mission?" she asked curiously.
"I'm not really sure myself." Seika replied. "I was told in a dream a few months ago to seek out Suzaku no Miko." Miaka's eyes widened, but Seika didn't notice. "I was told that Suzaku no Miko would need my help, with what, I'm not quite sure though." she continued. "I am to serve Miko until the summoning of Suzaku, and do whatever she says, to be her tsukebito. And when I find her, I will do that. I can't go home until my Suzaku is summoned. And so, here I am." She finished. She looked at the expressions on Miaka and Nuriko's faces. She frowned. "A-ano....did I say something wrong?" she asked.
Miaka shook her head. "No, it's nothing....it's just that....Suzaku no Miko....she's me."
"Na-nani....? Suzaku no Miko....you....you mean I finally found you!? Miko-sama! I'm so happy!!!!!!! After you call Suzaku, I can go back home! Please! I'm here to serve you with anything you need!!!!" she cried, throwing her arms around Miaka, who was standing at the side of the bed.
^^;; "Uh, arigato....I think...." Miaka replied.
Nuriko sweatdropped. "Ano...what just happened here???"
Miaka smiled. "We just ended up with a new travelling companion, I think." she replied.
Seika's eyes widened. "Really? So you will take me with you? Thank you Miko-sama!!!!!!"
Nuriko smiled. "I think we'll leave now, you're a little too excited. Calm down and get some sleep. I'll take you to the market for new clothes in the morning."
Seika nodded. ^^ "Hai! See you tomorrow!" she yelled as Nuriko and Miaka left. She smiled and fell back onto the pillows. "Tomorrow....tomorrow is one day closer until I can go home...." Seika closed her eyes and, after a while, drifted off into a happy dream.
* * *
Downstairs.......
Tasuki spit out his drink when Miaka made her announcement. "YOU TOLD HER WHAT!??? THAT GIRL IS DANGEROUS!!!!!!!! NO WAY CAN WE TAKE HER WITH US!!!!!!!"
Tamahome smirked. "Heh. Dangerous to you maybe. But we don't really need her do we? I mean, we're almost ready to call Suzaku. "
"I know, but I couldn't say no to her. I understand how she feels." Miaka explained. "She was told she couldn't return home until Suzaku is summoned. And maybe we will need her help. You never know, right?"
"I suppose you're right." Tama replied. "But how do you know she was telling the truth?"
"The look in her eyes. She was telling the truth, I just know it."
Nuriko nodded. "She was ecstatic to find Miko," he smiled, "You know the look in a child's eyes when he receives a gift? It was like that."
"But....why is she needed?" Mitsukake asked. "Miko has seven seishi to protect her....."
Chichiri was silent. Secretly he was happy that she would be coming along, though he wasnt sure why...probably because he was still a bit worried about her. "Prehaps.....prehaps she's not supposed to protect Miko, no da." Chichiri suggested. "Prehaps she supposed to be more like a companion....a friend, na no da."
"A friend? But we're Miko's friends, as well as her protecters." Nuriko said.
"Hai, but we're all guys, no da. Even you Nuriko... it's not the same for her as having another female around...am I right, Miaka, no da?"
"Well, yeah...I guess...."
Nuriko's went SD and his eyes got big and watery. "I-I thought there wasn't anythiiiiinnng you couldn't tell me! Miaaaaaakaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!"
Miaka sweatdropped. "Eh, gomen Nuriko! Gomen!"
* * *
The next morning, Seika woke up to knocking on her door. "Come in!" she called. Nuriko entered the room. ^^ "Time to go shopping for your new clothes!" He said cheerfully. "Are you sure your leg will be alright?" he asked concernedly.
"Hai, I should be fine!" She said as she sat on her bed and put her hair up into pigtails. "Besides, I haven't tried since yesterday. You never know unless you try, right?" she said cheerfully.
Nuriko smiled. "I guess you're right. You seem to be a very wise girl for your age."
"Arigato, Nuriko-san." She said as she swung her legs over the edge of the bed. "Here goes nothing." she remarked. She gingerly put one foot on the ground, then, slowly and carefully placed the other one on the ground, making sure to put most of her weight on her right leg. She winced a bit, but she smiled at Nuriko as she took each tiny step. Finally she made it to where Nuriko was standing. "See, I'm fine."
Seika was ecstatic when they left the room. Nuriko helped her down the stairs to where the others were.
Seika giggled. "So this is what the rest of the inn looks like!" She said. "Hi minna-san!" she said adressing Miko and the rest of her seishi. "Nuriko-san and I are going shopping."
Tasuki's eye twitched. "The gay-boy is takin her shopping now???"
Everyone turned to Seika waiting for her reaction to this. Seika blinked. "What? Why are you all staring at me like that way?" she asked innocently.
"Er...you aren't surprised at what Tasuki just said?" Nuriko asked.
Seika looked at Nuriko. She shrugged. "Surpised? No way, I knew yesterday."
Everyone sweatdropped. "Er....how...did....you......?" Miaka trailed off.
Seika shrugged. "I dunno...I just knew. No offence Nuriko." she replied. ^^ "But anyway, aren't we supposed to go supposed to go shopping Nuriko-san?"
"H-hai..." Nuriko replied. "See you later minna." He said as he helped Seika out the door.
Tama shook his head. "That girl is incredibly strange."
Everyone nodded. "Hai."
* * *
Not one, not two, but THREE hours later, Nuriko and Seika returned to the inn. "Now, you wait out here, and I'll get everyone to come outside!" Nuriko said. "I can't wait to see the looks on their faces!"
Tasuki looked up as Nuriko calmly walked in. "So, where's the brat?"
"She's waiting for us outside. C'mon minna, let's check out and get going. If we leave now, we can make it to the next town before dark."
Everyone checked out and went outside. Seika was there leaning against a tree trunk.
"Holy shit! Th-that's not the same little girl that left here this mornin....no way!" Tasuki stammered.
Seika smirked. "So, does that mean you like it?" she asked. She slowly opened her eyes and looked at everyone. "Ohayo."
Instead of the pajamas and pigtails, she was now wearing a strapless black shirt, matching black pants and boots, a blue daimond-cut waist garment held in place with a red belt, a white skirt with slits all the way up the sides overtop of the pants, and a black beaded necklace. Instead of the pigtails that had been in her hair that morining, it was down and blowing freely in the soft breeze. A single flower hairpin decorated her hair.
Chichiri stood there breathless. It looked as if she had become three years older in the past three hours. He hadn't really seen her as anything other than a little girl until now, though the fact was that she was at least the same age, if not older than Miaka. He noticed the hair pin. Hn. Just like that time.... he thought. ::Don't even think about it.:: he told himself. ::You don't know her, and the chance that it could happen again....but I'd know better this time....::
Seika looked from one expression to the next and sweatdropped. "Don't look at me like that. I'm not a little kid, ya know." She crossed her arms. "And Nuriko said I looked very nice."
......Silence.......
^^ "Well," Miaka said, breaking the silence, "Let's get moving, we've got a long way to go, ne?"
"Anywhere you wanna go, I'll go Miko-sama!" Seika said cheerfully.
"Then it's settled!" Miaka said. "C'mon! Hurry up!" Miaka said running down the street through town. Seika and the Suzaku Seishi followed close behind her.
* * *
Keiske sat in the room in the Libraray. "Suzaku no Miko, her tsukebito, and her Seishi left the town they had been in for the past week, to continue their jounery, and find the Suzaku Seishi Chiriko."
Finding my way back to sanity again....
Dont wanna really know what I'm gonna do when I get there...
Take a breath and hold on tight.....
Spin 'round one more time.....
And gracefully fall back to the arms of grace....
'Cause I am hanging on every word you say....
And even if you dont wanna speak tonight, that's all right, all right with me....
'Cause I want nothing more than to sit outside heavens door....
And listen to you breathing, that's where I wanna be...yeah.....
Where I wanna be......
Lyrics: Breathing by Lifehouse