Hakuinden, a Byakko Legend: Volume I : Rekishi

by VraieEsprit

100 years ago Byakko's Seishi saved Sairou, at a heavy cost. Now, a century on, Toroki's last prophesy is about to come true, as the past and the future collide in Byakko's desperate attempt to put his land to rights. Byakko's legend, past and future.

10. Chapter 10

Chapter Nine

"Return to Morioka please."

Arina cast the ticket office attendant a warm smile, tucking a lock of stray dark hair behind her ear as she glanced idly up at the clock hanging on the wall behind him. It was early, she mused ruefully, to be up and about on a Saturday, and yet she had barely slept the night before for anticipation of the day to come. In the end she had spoken to Keisuke by telephone the night before, and although she had omitted the strange events that had occurred since she had opened Suzuno's diary, she had told him of her plans to take a trip to the place where Byakko no Miko had been laid to rest several years earlier. He had been surprised, she mused to herself. Still, he had not hesitated in giving her details on how to find the cemetery, although he had advised her that he did not know whether anyone who had known Suzuno well would still be in the Morioka area. He had not asked her why she had suddenly decided to take the trip, and Arina had found it difficult to know how to bring up the subject. After all, she had acknowledged, even when thinking it over to herself she knew it sounded like as the delusion of a tired mind working overtime between school, the library and her own personal investigation.

In the end she had decided not to try and broach the matter over the phone, but instead she had resolved to note down everything she had gleaned from Suzuno's diary so far, with the intention of showing it to him and asking his honest opinion on her findings. Whether or not he knew anything about Byakko's legend beyond the diary's contents, she did not know. But if he had had similar experiences with the book, she knew that as soon as he saw her own notes, he would understand.

"But then, Keisuke-san said it wasn't a magic book, so he can't have seen what I saw." She reflected inwardly as she pushed the ten thousand yen note through the divide, taking her change and her ticket with another smile. "He told me it was just an old diary but I think he was wrong. If I go to Morioka, I might be able to understand more about why. Maybe once I've got it out of my system, everything will make a lot more sense."

"Platform twenty two, miss." The attendant added helpfully. "It's due in about five minutes time, the first direct service to Morioka."

"Thanks." Arina nodded, sliding the tickets into her purse and turning on her heel. Tokyo's central station was as busy as it ever was, with people going to work and to visit relatives and friends in other parts of the country. When she had been tiny, she vaguely remembered trips via Shinkansen from Tokyo to Kyouto to visit her now departed grandmother, and despite herself a faintly wistful pang settled in her heart. It had been one of the few times she could ever recall the Kobayashis doing anything as a family, and as she made her way onto the already crowded platform, she found herself regretting the fact that she did not have more like memories.

"Maybe Mum and Dad and I were a family, then." She wondered absently. "But if we were, the novelty wore off a long time ago."

The train was already waiting when she arrived and she was quick to get a seat, settling herself in a corner by the window as she rummaged through her bag for the magazine she had brought for the trip. It was more than two and a half hours, she knew, to her destination in the heart of Iwate-ken, even at the speed of the Bullet Train, and she had been careful to bring with her both food and reading materials to pass the time on the long trip.

As she did so, her fingers brushed against the worn old notebook, and she frowned, hesitating then pulling it out as she set it on the table before her.

She had not opened it again since that evening, for part of her was afraid of it and what it might do next. Instead she had curled up in the relative sanctuary of her bedroom with pen and paper as she had struggled to make sense of what she had seen. Although she could not remember every detail, she had found that as soon as she began to write, the recollections of faces and names had become more vivid, and at length she had ceased her note-taking altogether, instead letting the pencil guide across the page in a rough sketch of the things and people she had seen.

From an early age, Arina had liked to draw, though her business-focused father and ambitious mother had always overlooked the skill, and so it, like so many other things in her life, had fallen by the wayside. However, with the colours and sensations still burning through her senses, she had found it easy to depict the likenesses of both the gypsyish Tokaki and the elegant Tatara, working late into the night as she perfected every slight detail she could. By the time she had finished, it had been almost two o' clock in the morning, and she had reluctantly set pencil and paper aside. By the time dawn had broken, she had been less convinced as to whether what she had seen had really been a memory or a delusion, and she had taken her notes and her pictures, folding them and bundling them into an envelope. After a moment of hesitation, she had scrawled Keisuke's name across the front, adding a brief note to the contents and then, on her way to the station, she had taken a detour along the street where her recent mentor lived, slipping the thick package through his letterbox before hurrying off to the station to catch her train. He would be at work today, she knew that – but she had already resolved to call by the Yuuki residence on her way home that evening, with the hope that they could go over the details together.

Although the more cautious, self-preserving aspect of her nature was telling her that the book was dangerous, even hallucinogenic, she could not resist its call. Despite her common sense warning her that the further in she got, the more difficult she would find it to pull out, the temptation to try and tap into Suzuno's world a third time teased at her senses.

"But on the train it's not a good idea." She said aloud, setting it aside as at length she found the fashion magazine she wanted. Dropping it down onto the table, she flipped it open, scanning through the pages half-heartedly as the sleek white train began to pull out of Tokyo's station. It was funny, she mused, how she had come to do more and more things on her own since Hikari had gone to the other world. Once, she knew, a trip like this would have been an excuse to invite as many people as possible and now there would be a gaggle of giggly, teasing teenage girls gathered around the magazine, making jokes about the models and expressing aloud their desire for an increase in their allowance. In those days, Arina knew she had been the envy of many of her classmates, for when she had wanted to buy something, there had not been an obstacle to her getting it. Girls and boys alike had gravitated to her wit and spirit, but also her affluent background and casual way of treating the people with her on a whim, and as she reflected back on it, she realised how false a lot of it had been. Real friends had existed, she reminded herself – girls like Kyouko, and of course, like Hikari. But for the most part, since she had tamed down her social life and turned her attention to her studies, she had been far less the centre of the crowd.

Yet somehow she had come to prefer it that way. Though she still took care of her appearance, she was no longer obsessive about her hair or her make-up the way she had been during her middle teens, and though she had been asked out several times since starting high school, she ruefully acknowledged to herself that Chieki's observations had been fairly accurate.

"I've become Ms Look-But-Don't-Touch." She muttered. "Hard to get. But I'm not interested in guys right now. Or fashion. Or any of this superficial rubbish. Keisuke-san was right when he said this whole thing can easily become an obsession. I know I spend far too much time looking into it. But somehow, I can't not look into it. Whether it's wrong or not – the ShijinTenchishou has little by little taken over my whole life."

She frowned, gazing distractedly out at the passing scenery. Of everything, she knew, one thing had bothered her the most. The slow, carefully scripted kanji that, in old-fashioned lettering had comprised the four characters of her own name still seemed to be burnt into her thoughts, and the more she considered it, the more it set her on edge.

"Why would I see my name there?" She wondered aloud, drumming her fingers absently on the table in frustration. Across the aisle, a couple of businessmen in black suits sent her an annoyed look at the disturbance, but she was oblivious to them, wrapped up entirely in her own thoughts. "It was gone again a second later, so maybe that bit I did imagine. But if I imagined that, I could have imagined everything. Oh, this is no good. Maybe I should have taken it to Keisuke-san and discussed it with him before I left after all – but I didn't want to wait longer than I had to."

She touched her fingers to the window, staring across the speeding Japanese landscape. Somehow, she realised, it was like Morioka had called to her.

"Because Suzuno-san is buried there?" She mused. "Or for some other reason? Maybe I really am losing my wits. Considering everything that's happened recently, I suppose it can't be ruled out."

At that moment the guard came down the train to check tickets, and Arina rummaged in her purse, producing the slip of white card. Inwardly she was grateful for the moment of distraction from the direction in which her thoughts had been heading, for a prickle had travelled up her spine at the thought of some invisible force somehow drawing her to take the train north.

Morioka was simply Suzuno-san's home, she reminded herself firmly, as she returned her purse to her bag. It was the place she had lived and the place she had died - but that was all.

As the train drew into Ueno station, she cast the book another hesitant glance, reaching across to finger the worn fabric of the covers. Absently she found herself wondering if Hikari's own entrance to the ShijinTenchishou had been as disorientating as Suzuno's, and for the first time she began to realise how much her friend had chosen to take on by becoming Seiryuu no Miko. Images of Tatara's floral paradise flashed unbidden across her thoughts and she frowned, scooping up the book and holding it tightly in her hands.

"Hi-chan said the people with her had magic. That even she did." She reflected. "But even so...surely it's too fantastic to believe that what I saw was ever real. Besides, Suzuno-san is still a stranger to me. Why would I see anything connected with someone I've never met? It makes no sense. I started researching all of this for Hikari's sake. Not because I cared about Sairou or any of the other Priestesses that went before. They're just names, surely...why do I suddenly feel so connected to Suzuno-san and more importantly, to this Byakko legend?"

Slowly she set the book down on the table, then, not without misgivings in her heart, she carefully opened the covers, smoothing the pages down as she gazed at the blank white pages. As before, nothing was written there - not even the three lines of text which had followed her last flash of pictures, and as she turned over the next page, Arina felt a slight pang of disappointment that nothing had reached out to touch her this time. The diary was empty, sure enough, the edges of the pages curled and coloured with age, and for the first time it had the appearance of an ordinary, worn notebook.

"Nothing?" She mused, turning over another page, but it too was blank. "Does it only work when I'm in Tokyo, then? But that makes no sense. What has Tokyo got to do with Suzuno-san and Morioka? Why would I feel so compelled to go North like this if it wasn't important?"

She gripped the notebook more tightly, glaring at it accusingly.

"Stop playing games with me." She ordered, ignoring the dark looks that the two businessmen once more sent her way. "Either be a normal notebook or don't, but don't chop and change. If you're going to tell me about Suzuno-san, do it. And if not, at least give me what you gave Keisuke-san so there's something that I can read!"

Almost as soon as the words had left her mouth, Arina felt a prickle of something surge up around the tips of her fingers and her eyes widened as she registered the tiny, faint flares of pearl white light that, little by little had begun to curl around her hands. Unable to release her grip, Arina could only stare in confused disbelief as, on the page before her, the faded lines seemed to swirl and blur, becoming less and less distinct with every passing second. The train, and even the scenery flying by the window suddenly seemed a mile away as Arina felt the sharp spark of magic flood through her system, lodging itself deep within her chest as little by little darkness poured into her vision from every angle. As she sunk into the oblivious lure of the book, she realised that somehow she had managed once more to trigger the strange spell that hexed through Suzuno's century old memories. Then, in the next instant Arina was gone completely, and she was once more swept up in the perspective of another.

"How far does this desert stretch for, anyhow?"

Suzuno paused to take a breath, wiping the sweat from her brow as she cast her companions an exhausted glance. "I know you said that Sairou was dry, but even so, surely this must end somewhere? Unless we've been going round in circles - Tokaki, are you sure this is the way to those mountains you mentioned?"

"Are you suggesting I don't know my way around this place?" Tokaki stopped, turning to send her a quizzical look. "Have a little faith, will you? My people are desert people. We've always worked through this land and I know it as well as I know my own village. We're not lost. We're navigating by the sun, that's all."

"It's a long way, however." Tatara reflected, casting Suzuno a concerned look. "Especially if you aren't acclimatised to Sairou's dry atmosphere. Suzuno-sama is a stranger here, Tokaki. She isn't used to the heat like we are. Maybe it would be better to travel by cover of darkness, when it's cooler. We could stop and rest for a while, and then..."

"We could, but thieves operate in this area at night." Tokaki responded. "And the closer we get to the mountains, the more likely it is we'll meet smugglers and whatever else lurks in a place crusted with gems and precious minerals. It's a risk either way. I know it's hot now, but at least we can clearly see for miles around us."

"Is that any use when all we can see is sand?" Suzuno asked plaintively. "Please can we stop - at least for a little while? I've never walked so far in my life."

"You really have had a sheltered life, haven't you?" Tokaki eyed her keenly. "No can do, Suzuno-chan. There's no cover here. You stop and all that will happen is the sun will slowly sap your strength out of you. You'll never continue - trust me on that. The desert is not your friend and it won't have any mercy for a rookie traveller. The path we're following will bring us to a village in the next couple of hours, in any case. If you can hang on till then, we'll take a break and barter for food."

"Two more hours?" Suzuno's eyes opened in dismay. "But...I don't know if I can even walk another two minutes! And I'm already out of water - I'll dehydrate whether I'm walking or sitting at this rate."

"Here." Tatara fumbled at his belt, producing his water gourd as he held it out to her. "If you're thirsty, you can take this."

"But that's your ration." Suzuno stared at him, and Tatara shrugged, spreading his hands.

"I'm all right." He said lightly. "I'm more acclimatised to this weather than you are, and I'm not at all affected by the heat at present. Drink it, Suzuno-sama. Your need is greater than mine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." Tatara assured her. "Don't look worried - I promise you, I'll take no harm from it."

He flexed his fingers.

"If the worst comes to the worst, I'll try and split the ground with my plants and locate water that way." He added. "We still have that option, so don't fret."

"You can do that?" Suzuno took a sip of the water, sending him a surprised look, and Tatara laughed.

"My power is to make anything grow, true enough." He said amiably. "But it's far more wide ranging than you think. I don't just create pretty floral scenes, Suzuno-sama. I'm able to manipulate all plant life - make them grow, make them part, even make them stand up and fight on my behalf. Over the past few years I've had little to do but perfect my skills, since so many villages needed me to help save their harvests. Consequently I've become quite strong...and it is certainly not beyond my remit to use them to search for water. After all, the plants need that as much as we do to live."

"I told you that the pretty boy here packed a punch if he wanted to." Tokaki looked amused. "But we shouldn't hang around here, Suzuno-chan. We're prey for carrion crows and desert bandits if we stop. I promise, when we reach Shouki-mura we'll take a break. The people there are usually friendly enough."

"And the town of Eiroku is not far beyond." Tatara reflected. "Where we might lodge in an inn for the night. I have brought coin, so it would not be difficult."

"Eiroku is the heartland of the smuggling trade." Tokaki looked doubtful. "We might not want to slip that deeply into dangerous territory. If Suzuno can't manage a desert yet, she'll have no chance against armed thugs. I think we'd be safer in the village."

"You know this area better than me." Tatara acknowledged. "If that's how you think we should play it, then I won't argue."

"Then we should move on." Tokaki decided. "Suzuno, do your best, okay? If the worst comes to the worst I can always carry you - but I have a feeling that's something you wouldn't want me to do."

"Carry...me?" Suzuno's eyes widened with alarm, and despite himself Tokaki chuckled.

"That's what I thought." He teased. "All right. Then walk, okay?"

"Hang on a minute." Suzuno cast him a suspicious look. "Tokaki, don't you have some power too? Doesn't your power let you shift people from one place to another...like when you first took me out of the storm? Why are we walking all the way across the desert if you could take us there in a split second?"

"Because I'm not as powerful as all that, idiot girl." Tokaki told her disparagingly. "I can transfer myself, and maybe one other person, a short way. But I've never tried to take it beyond a certain distance, and certainly I've not tried to move three people in one go. We're travelling quite a way, after all. And though I've been to the Kanin mountains and I know the desert well enough to navigate it, I wouldn't like to think what would happen if I tried to push my magic too far."

"Then what use is it?" Suzuno demanded, and Tatara put a gentle hand on her shoulders.

"Until the Miko comes, the power of each Seishi waxes and wanes." He said gently. "I've read about Genbu's people and the way in which they honed their strength to answer the Miko's call. Tokaki and I have only just met you, and though I have used my power fairly often to support local villages, it has taken time to manifest even at the level it currently is. Tokaki has had even less reason to use his abilities. Therefore, as yet, they're just beginning to develop. You should not be too harsh on him - without a Miko, after all, a Seishi has no purpose."

"That's a bit fatalistic, but I guess it's right." Tokaki agreed. "I don't know about no purpose, Kasaru - but it's for sure that I've barely used my skills till now. And in the last couple of days I've used them two or three times. To tell you the truth, it's tiring. Especially trying to keep up with a girl from another world who has no idea what to expect in this place. That's a full time job in itself - babysitting the Miko."

Suzuno sighed.

"I'm sorry." She said contritely. "I guess I didn't think about it like that. And at least you have some power...I don't have anything at all."

"You'd better had have, else this whole thing is pointless." Tokaki told her bluntly, and Tatara smiled.

"She had the power to cross into this world." He pointed out wisely. "Therefore she is the Miko. And the Miko's power is a mysterious thing - but it exists, Suzuno-sama. You have it, deep inside of you. I guarantee it. Like Tokaki's, it may take time to show itself. But I have no doubt that it's there."

"Do you really think so?" Suzuno looked doubtful, and Tatara nodded.

"I know so." He agreed lightly. "So don't look so worried. We are only beginning on this path, after all. There is much still to come."

"And five more Seishi to track down." Tokaki added. "Sairou's a big country full of different tribes and peoples and the terrain isn't visitor-friendly as a rule. It's not going to be easy."

"But if we can find this Taikyoku-zan place, surely then we'll be able to ask this Taiitsukun person for help?" Suzuno asked, and Tatara nodded.

"I believe so." He agreed. "So keep your chin up, Suzuno-sama. I'm sure we'll be able to find it. After all, it said very specifically in the old documents that one day Taiitsukun would open the door to Byakko no Miko. And that means you must be able to get to this mountain somehow."

"I hope so." Suzuno sighed heavily. "It all seems so confusing."

"At least you're not crying and wailing about going home, though." Tokaki reflected, shooting her an amused grin. "I was worried to begin with that you might be that kind of girl. But you seem tougher than you look, somehow. I'm glad about that. I don't do well with tears."

"I haven't the water to waste on crying." Suzuno said flatly. "In this hot, dry place I need all the water I have inside of me just to stay alive."

She sighed.

"I don't pretend I like it, any of this." She admitted. "Especially because I know what happened to Takiko-neechan. But the truth is I haven't a clue how to get back to my own world on my own. And I don't want to be by myself in this strange place. So if this is a way I can find out how to get back, and if you both really are willing to protect me, then I suppose I haven't a choice but to stick with you. Have I?"

"So we still have to work on your spirit to be the Miko." Tokaki reflected. "But I suppose for now that's good enough."

He grinned.

"That way." He added. "The dip in the land to the West indicates we're drawing closer to mountain territory. Over the next sand rise, you should be able to see the mountains faintly in the distance. They're still a distance away, of course - but at least you'll know where we're heading."

"That will help." Suzuno admitted. "All right. I'll try and keep going."

Tatara held out his hand to her, warmth glittering in his gentle violet eyes.

"I'll help you, if you want." He offered. "Once we reach the top of this rise it should be more or less downhill into Shouki-mura…and there will be shade there, at the very least."

Suzuno eyed him in surprise for a moment, then she nodded, accepting his hand with a grateful smile.

"Thank you." She responded. "When you say it like that, it doesn't seem so very hard."

"Hey! You'll hold his hand but you're revolted at the idea of me carrying you?" Tokaki put his hands on his hips. "What kind of favouritism is that, Suzuno-chan? Which one of us saved you from the desert storm, huh?"

"Tatara-san isn't the kind of man to take advantage." Suzuno shot back. "You saved my life and I'm glad you did – but Tatara-san doesn't say all the things you do about women. Girls don't like men who are like that, you know – you should think about what you say before you say it."

Tokaki stared at her, and Tatara laughed, a faintly embarrassed look crossing his features.

"I didn't mean to cause an argument." He observed. "I just thought that maybe it would help if I offered my assistance."

"Fine." Tokaki held up his hands. "Do whatever you like. It's only because you have such pretty looks, Tatara-kun. It makes you seem innocent and gentle."

"Perhaps he just isn't the kind of man who likes groping unsuspecting women." Suzuno said smartly, and Tatara shook his head.

"I've had little to do with them since I left court, and I was a young boy then." He reflected. "My sister aside, I suppose I don't really have any policy of how to deal with women at all."

"You and I really need to spend more time talking about that." Tokaki reflected. "You should've said something sooner, Kasaru. I'd have given you advice long before this."

"I don't think he needs your kind of advice, Tokaki." Suzuno shook her head. "And didn't you say you knew where you were leading us? Maybe you should concentrate on that instead of trying to make Tatara-san and I uncomfortable."

"But it's fun." Tokaki winked at her. "And I can do both at once. Besides, you shouldn't take it all so seriously. Like I said before, you're Byakko no Miko. Noone's going to do anything to you, so lighten up a little and learn to take a joke, huh? Your Father isn't here now to worry about his daughter's delicate sensibilities. Whether you're in this world or your own, you're going to have to learn how to speak to men sooner or later. Consider this your crash course – no extra charge."

Suzuno shot him a dark look, and Tatara laughed.

"Travelling with you two is already more interesting than secluding myself at the monastery." He admitted. "I think it might begin to be fun, having Byakko no Miko in Sairou."

"That's the village we're heading for, over there." Tokaki gestured to the west, where, in the shadow of the looming Kanin mountains, a cluster of green surrounded by the faint outlines of houses was just about visible. "Shouki-mura. It's called that because of the small area of woodland it's grown up around – I'm not sure what nomadic people originally settled there, but it's become a thriving, settled village now. Many traders pass through this path and stop there on their way to Eiroku or the capital, so they're also not as suspicious of outsiders as some small communities. If you can make it there, Suzuno-chan, I'm sure we'll be able to find shelter."

"It looks so far." Suzuno bit her lip. "But at least I can see it. So I'll try."

"Tokaki, wait a minute." Tatara grasped his friend by the arm, an anxious look entering his violet eyes as he gazed out across the horizon. "I might be imagining things in this heat haze, especially with the dust that's prone to rise from the desert during the day. But doesn't that look like…smoke…to you?"

"Smoke?" Tokaki's expression immediately became serious, the humour dying from his golden eyes as he turned to glance at the distant village one more time. His brows knitted together, and he muttered a curse, clenching his fists as he slowly nodded his head.

"Shit, you're right." He murmured. "Do you think…fire?"

"Maybe." Tatara's voice suddenly seemed both tense and apprehensive. "In the village, or somewhere nearby. In this heat and with the dryness of the day the whole place will go…there's not a cloud on the horizon and no chance of rain."

"A fire in the village?" Suzuno paled. "But…people live there, right? You just said…"

"Yes. A lot of people, considering that it's only a village settlement." Tokaki said grimly. "And its dry enough to do exactly as Tatara said."

"Can't we do something?" Suzuno looked frightened. "There must be a way we can help! Tatara-san, didn't you say you can use your plant power to split through to find water underground? Maybe if you…"

"No good." Tokaki cut across her, shaking his head impatiently. "The whole place will be in ashes by the time we get there. I told you – it's at least another couple of hours to walk."

"It doesn't look that far!"

"It's an illusion caused by the haze." Tatara bit his lip. "Tokaki's right, Suzuno-sama. By the time we've walked there, the fire will have spread beyond our stopping it."

"But you said I was here to protect people!" Suzuno was close to tears now. "You said it – both of you! How can we protect the whole of Sairou if we can't even stop a fire in one village?!"

"Suzuno-chan, calm down." Tokaki ordered. "Hysterics isn't going to help anything."

"But surely…"

"There's no way we can get there quicker?" Tatara asked softly, and Tokaki frowned, a clouded look entering his gypsyish gold eyes as he considered his companion's question. At length he nodded, his gaze hardening as he sent another glance out towards the village.

"I'll use my power." He murmured. "And get us there more quickly."

"But you said that you couldn't…not so far as that!" Suzuno protested, and Tokaki shook his head.

"I don't know if I can." He admitted. "I don't know what might happen. But if I don't try, the village will burn. And you're right, Suzuno. We are here to help the people in Sairou. We have to try something…and that's the only way we're going to manage it."

He cast Tatara a glance.

"If I get us there, it will probably wipe me out." He added. "But I can't go there alone, since I can't split the ground or find any water. And if I take just you with me, we'd be leaving Suzuno alone…which isn't an option. So if I use all my magic and take the three of us, when we get there, it'll be over to you. You and your plants will have to find a way of drawing water from the ground without setting yourself on fire – do you think you can handle that?"

"If you can, I will." Tatara agreed gravely. "If you're sure."

"Can you think of any other ideas?" Tokaki demanded, and slowly Tatara shook his head.

"Then grab onto me. Both of you." Tokaki held out his hands, and hesitantly Suzuno reached out for the nearest, feeling the hot dryness of his calloused skin against her own as Tatara followed suit. For once, Tokaki's usual humour was nowhere in evidence and he didn't even react, instead closing his eyes as he focused all his wits on carrying out the transfer. Suzuno felt a prickle of apprehension run up her spine, and she grasped his hand more tightly, inwardly willing her companion to find the strength somehow to make it work. As she did so, she felt a rush of something warm swell up inside of her, rushing through her heart and out across her body as a tingling sensation seemed to dart across her skin and into her companion's. Tokaki's eyes snapped open, as he cast her an incredulous look. However, before they could speak, there was a whoosh of air and light and Suzuno screwed her eyes up tightly, sure that any moment the wild sense of inertia would make her physically sick.

In a moment it had stopped, and as they fell heavily to the ground, Suzuno was aware of the acrid smell of smoke and the screams and yells of panicked villagers amid the crackling sound of burning timber. As Tatara had surmised, the fire had hit the village, and as she opened her eyes, she was aware of her tall, slender companion loosening the twisted threads that hung at his throat, pulling three or four objects loose which he then cast out across the ground. With a jolt Suzuno realised that her initial impression that these had been beads had been misguided - and that they were, in fact, seeds through which Tatara focused his strange power. At her side, Tokaki huddled in a ball, his breath shuddering through his body in heavy, exhausted gasps and instinctively Suzuno reached out her hand to him to support his trembling form.

"Are you all right?" She asked softly, and Tokaki turned to face her, a faint flicker of warmth in his tired golden eyes. Slowly he nodded.

"Thanks to you, I did it." He murmured, and Suzuno frowned, eying him in confusion.

"Thanks to…me?"

"Before we moved, I felt something surge up inside of me." Tokaki drew a deep breath into his lungs. "It was…Byakko. And it came from you."

Suzuno flushed, remembering the feeling that had encircled her own heart, and she nodded.

"I felt something too." She admitted. "But I don't know how it happened. It just…did."

The ground juddered slightly beneath their feet at that moment, and as one they glanced up to see Tatara raise his hands, the thick lengths of green vine swirling out in all directions as relentlessly they drove their tendrils deep into the dusty earth. As each slender whip of green re-surfaced, water began to bubble and pool against the sand, and Tatara's brows drew together in concentration, his eyes narrowing as he spread his fingers in the direction of the village. As Suzuno watched, eyes wide with awe and disbelief, the long, stringy vines began to sprout large sprawling leaves in which they collected the water, surging towards the burning wood properties at the nearest end of the stricken village as they deposited the cool liquid into the heart of the flames. At first it was only one or two loads but, as Tatara's spell grew stronger, more and more lengths of vine sprouted from the scattered seeds as round after round of water began to drench the smouldering timbers.

Little by little the local villagers seemed to register what was going on and, as their panic became relief and joy they surged around their saviour, several of them calling him by name as they dropped to their knees before him.

"Tatara-san really is a local hero, isn't he?" Suzuno murmured softly, and Tokaki nodded.

"I told you." He responded. "His is a useful power to have when you live in a desert land."

"But that plants could put out a fire…like an army of villagers they could completely quash a blaze like that…I had no idea."

"Especially considering plant matter is prone to burning itself." Tokaki agreed. "But he isn't afraid of anything, somehow. Not when he wants to help someone in need. That's probably why his sister dumped him on the monastery like she did, to tell you the truth. He's always been quiet and he keeps to himself. But if he can make a difference, well, he always does."

He shrugged.

"I admire that about him." He added. "I guess that's why we became friends. I wanted to know the person who had come to help my village, but who had asked for no reward. And I've never regretted that I did. He's a pretty good ally to have."

Suzuno cast Tokaki a smile.

"You took a risk too, didn't you?" she murmured. "Pushing your power to its limits to get us here. You really didn't know if it would work or not, did you?"

"Hadn't a clue." Tokaki agreed casually. "But you were right. We're Byakko's. We have to take risks if we're going to save Sairou. Don't we?"

"I suppose so." Suzuno nodded, glancing at her hands. "Whatever power it was that came from within me…whatever it was that helped you, I guess that's the thing Tatara-san meant. The power I hadn't known about, but what a Miko has inside of her. Which means I really must be Byakko no Miko. Mustn't I?"

"Sometimes I wonder about your intelligence levels, kid." Tokaki cast her a grin, sitting back on the ground as she sent him a reproachful look. "But you get there in the end. That's what we've been telling you. Trust in us a little, huh?"

"I do." Suzuno relented, sitting back as she gazed up at the clear brassy blue sky. "It's strange, but I really do. It's more than just not wanting to be alone in a strange land. I am homesick, but I feel like I've known you and Tatara-san all my life, somehow, and if I'm with you then I'll be all right. I guess it's another part of being the Miko – and today it meant we could work together."

She reached down to rub her feet.

"And I don't have to do any more walking today." She added. "Since we're in Shouki-mura now, aren't we?"

"I suppose that's true." Tokaki acknowledged, scrambling to his feet and pulling her up with him. "Come on. Let's rescue Tatara from his adoring fans – now seems as good a time as any to negotiate someplace to stay."

"You're friends of Tsuonie-sama's?" A nearby young woman asked eagerly, and Tokaki turned, shooting her a winning smile as he nodded his head.

"Broken from the same branch, as it were." He responded amiably, gesturing to his left cheek as Suzuno saw the glittering light of his character flicker briefly in and out of view. "Byakko's servants at your service – I trust the village is safe?"

"Byakko's chosen!" The woman's eyes widened, and Suzuno sighed, shaking her head.

"Would you know of anywhere we might be able to spend a night?" She asked evenly, shooting Tokaki a warning look as she did so. "We're travelling through this way and we had hoped to rest in your village, if the chaos hasn't made it too much trouble."

"Thanks to Tsuonie-sama, only a couple of old buildings have fallen." The woman shook her head, grasping Suzuno by the hands as she did so. "And we would be glad to offer you a place to stay. In fact, it isn't much, but would you come to my family's home on the far side of the village? My father and I would be honoured to shelter and feed Byakko's people, especially after you saved our village."

"Then I guess it's settled." Tokaki nodded, bowing his head towards her. "Thank you."

"My name is Rou Haneki." The woman told him, returning the bow. "And you would be more than welcome, believe me."

"Hamu Ranva – although you can call me Tokaki, since Byakko chose to do so." Tokaki winked at her, causing a faint blush to surface in her cheeks. "Haneki is a pretty name – it suits you very well."

"Tokaki." Suzuno glared at him, then offered the confused Haneki an embarrassed smile.

"I'm sorry about him. He's tired." She said apologetically. "My name is Oosugi Suzuno. Pleased to meet you, Haneki-san."

"Tatara, this kind young lady has offered us shelter for the night, on account of your heroics." Tokaki raised his voice, and Tatara disentangled himself from the crowd of grateful villagers, stretching a hand in the direction of his discarded seeds as one by one they flew up into his waiting grip. Suzuno stared at him for a moment, and he offered her a smile, his violet eyes lighting up as he did so.

"I was happy to help." He responded. "And it brought us to our destination, so all's well in the end."

"Your magic is amazing, Tatara-san." Suzuno observed softly, and Tatara shook his head.

"Without Tokaki's shifting through space it would have been useless." He said evenly. "That was a team effort, Suzuno-sama. Not just me."

"Suzuno did her bit too." Tokaki added. "I don't know how and nor does she – but she gave me power and helped me make the transfer. I don't know if I could've done it on my own – so it really was a team effort."

"I suppose so." Tatara acknowledged. "Well, that's how it should be. We are, after all, a team."

"It really has started to feel that way." Suzuno agreed, glancing across the village towards the small cluster of trees that had given the settlement its name several decades earlier. As she did so, she caught sight of a bird of prey as it swooped down into the branches, perching on the end of one as it spread its glinting, glorious wings in the desert sun.

Captivated, Suzuno took a step or two forward, pausing as the bird seemed to register her presence. Instead of flying away, however, it met her gaze straight on, and Suzuno's eyes widened as for a brief moment she was sure she saw something glitter deep within the bird's beautiful gem-like eyes.

Then, with a call to the heavens, the bird spread its wings once more, launching itself into the sky.

"Suzuno-chan?" Tokaki's voice brought her back to the present and she turned, casting him a sheepish look.

"Are you all right?" Tokaki eyed her quizzically. "You were spacing out – do you need feeding that urgently?"

"No, it isn't that." Suzuno shook her head. "I just…did you see the beautiful bird just now? I swear it looked right at me – and I never saw a creature with eyes quite like that."

"A bird?" Tatara frowned. "I'm afraid I wasn't watching. What kind of bird?"

"Probably a desert vulture." Tokaki dismissed it with a flick of his hand, and Suzuno shook her head.

"It wasn't a vulture." She protested. "It was beautiful! And it looked right at me."

"Well, let's leave the bird-watching for another occasion, shall we?" Tokaki suggested. "You mightn't be hungry, Suzuno-chan, but I'm famished and I can't wait to try some of Haneki-san's cooking. After all, considering the effort that brought us here, don't you think we deserve to take a break?"

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we will shortly be arriving in Morioka. Morioka is the next stop. Thank you."

The sound of the train announcer's voice pierced through Arina's senses like a wake-up alarm. She opened her eyes, staring around her blankly as she struggled to get her bearings. From somewhere deep in the back of her consciousness she still half-felt the bird's eyes on her and she swallowed hard, rubbing her temples as she sought to make sense of what had happened and where she was. As she did so, she caught sight of the scenery racing past the window, and she took a deep breath as slowly the memories returned.

She was not Oosugi Suzuno, and she was not in the village in the midst of the desert after all. She was simply Kobayashi Arina, on a train to Morioka in search of information.

She sighed heavily, shutting Suzuno's notebook with a snap and sliding it into her bag along with her discarded fashion magazine. They were almost there, she realised dully. Within a short space of time she would be heading for the burial place of the woman to whom, by some strange twist, she had suddenly become so connected.

"It's crazy." She ruminated, as she gathered up her belonging neatly in her lap. "Whether it's a dream or something more, it seems so real when I'm there. Like when the magic surged through Suzuno-san's body, it was like it was my body it was flooding through. And those feelings of cameraderie for her companions - I felt them too. As if they were my allies, not just her allies. As if they belonged...with me."

She shook her head to clear it.

"I'll talk to Keisuke-san about all of this when I get home." She resolved, getting to her feet as the train began to slow. "And maybe, between us, we'll work out exactly what it all means!"