Eighth Star

Chapter 25: The Other Tokaki Part 2

Paws struck sand as Tokaki dashed across the endless desert. Desperation consumed her as thoughts of Miaka, Tasuki, and Amiboshi filled her already troubled mind. Although part of her wished to chastise herself for leaving Tamahome with complete strangers, she felt a strange…connection to the elderly couple. Particularly the old man…however is was a connection that she had yet to understand. Perhaps it would be cleared in time-

"You!"

A familiar weapon sailed through the air; a ryuuseisui. Tokaki did an almost cat-like flip in the air as the spherical weapon whistled past her ear. She crouched, her muzzle curled back in a snarl.

"What are you doing here, Suboshi?" She hissed at Suboshi, now blocking her path.

"I sensed my brother's chi, so I'm heading there. But I guess going to him with your head will be a nice little trophy to give to him."

"Yeah, I'm sure he'll love it. Screw off, will ya? I've got my own priority list right now, and you're not making it any shorter!"

Suboshi sneered, racing forward, his weapons raised above his head. Tokaki's heart began to palpitate. She leapt backward, side-to-side, and over in desperate attempts to avoid his ceaseless attacks. Suddenly a thought came to her.

"Wait. Before you do this, think about it. The place where Amiboshi is also is where Tasuki is. All the other warriors will head there as well. When they see you've killed me, what will they do to you?"

"Tomo's there! He probably has already taken care of Tasuki and that stupid miko of yours!"

"You're still forgetting about the rest of them, though. If you kill me, they will find out, one way or another. Amiboshi and I also happen to be on pretty good terms with each other."

"Liar! He would never be friends with a Suzaku scum!"

"If you don't believe me, kill me yourself and find out."

The boy raised his weapons. Tokaki's heart began to race. After what seemed like hours…Suboshi lowered his guard, and irritated look on his face.

"I won't waste my energy on you," He snorted. Tokaki nodded, shape-shifting to her human form. She walked side-by-side with the enemy warrior, an awkward silence hanging between them.

"Why do you want to summon Suzaku?" Suboshi suddenly asked curiously. "Don't you know what will happen if you do?"

"Well, yeah. Peace will be brought to Konan. That's why I let myself get dragged into this whole thing."

"Peace…? Don't make me laugh. Nakago told me you all want to take over Kuto once you summon Suzaku!" Tokaki glanced at him, her face questioning.

"Don't tell me you actually believe that guy! Even you must know what a liar he is!" Suboshi's determined pace faltered. "All I want is for peace to be brought to Konan and to be with…" Tasuki's grinning face appeared in her mind's eye. "For everyone in Konan to be happy."

"We…aniki and I…we want to summon Seiryu for peace in Kuto." He continued, noticing that Tokaki seemed to want to know more. "Kuto is a place where fights and wars are far from unusual. We both lost our parents in a war, so when we joined the Seiryu warriors, we hoped that with Seiryu's power peace could be brought to Kuto and people wouldn't have to suffer anymore…"

Tokaki's eyes glazed over with sympathy as Suboshi took on a wistful look. Still walking, Tokaki hesitantly raised her hand, giving the Seiryu warrior a gentle pat on the back. The boy flinched at first but quickly relaxed. He spoke, this time with a voice not nearly as rebellious as before.

"I still think your reasons for summoning Suzaku are false, you know…"

"Well, I was telling the truth, whether you like it or not. But I can't force you to change your mind, so it's up to you." With that, the conversation ended, and the two different warriors unconsciously quickened their pace.

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Tasuki spat at the ground at Tomo's feet. He quickly turned back to Miaka, her face full of doubt.

"Listen, Miaka! Tokaki took off with Tamahome, so he's gotta be alive! Sure, they're out in the desert but-"

"Which is exactly why they don't have a chance of survival. Priestess of Suzaku, you must give up such foolish hopes, they will only be crushed," Tomo purred hypnotically, "If you simply trust me, you-"

"Don't listen to him, Miaka!" Tasuki yelled again, much to Tomo's annoyance. Miaka glanced at Amiboshi who hadn't spoken. Although he still didn't speak, his hopeful look was just as strong as any words that were spoken. Perhaps stronger.

"Heh, see? Tama's still alive, don- AAAAAGH!"

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Nuriko's feet pounded the sand, his heart racing.

"Do we know…where everyone else…is?" Chiriko panted, barely keeping up. Nuriko scooped up the thirteen year old, his pace never faltering.

"I…have a feeling about where they could be…" He turned to Chichiri. "You sensed them, didn't you Chichiri?" The monk nodded.

"Yes, I sense Tokaki and-" He stopped short, nearly causing Mitsukake to run over him. He tore off his mask, his distressed look giving everyone a chill up their spine.

"And…?" Nuriko asked hesitantly.

Chichiri rushed past them at a surprising speed, his one work heard loud and clear: Suboshi.

The group ran on with greater gusto, following Chichiri. Two figures appeared in the distance; Tokaki and Suboshi…walking…side by side?

"Tokaki!" Nuriko yelled, running towards Suboshi with gauntlet clad arms.

"Nuriko, wait, it's fine!" Nuriko stopped, his mouth nearly touching the sand at his feet.

"What do you…? He's-"

"All he wants to do is find Amiboshi. If he wanted to kill me he'd have tried to do it way before you got here." After some time, Nuriko let his arms drop to his sides, much to Tokaki's relief. They continued walking, Suboshi ignoring all the wary looks he was suddenly receiving. Mitsukake fell in step with Tokaki, his eyes showing concern.

"I'm happy to see you're alright, but where's Tasuki? And the Holy Water I gave him? Is Tamahome all right as well?"

"Well….Tamahome I had to drop off somewhere…" She flushed under Mitsukake's disapproving stare, "hey, I know he's in good hands! I have a gut feeling he's alright. Besides, the situation's desperate enough already! As for the Holy Water and-"

"AAARGH!"

"Tasuki…!" Tokaki transformed, leaving everyone in the dust in seconds.

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"Tasuki coughed blood as he felt a large vine stab itself further into his stomach. Was this truly an illusion? It couldn't be, it was too painful. He gave a choked cry again, faintly hearing Amiboshi and Miaka's screams.

"You shall stop your wordplay now, Suzaku scum…" Tasuki gave a pained smirk.

"Yer…tryin' ta cover it up…pathetic-AAAAAA!" He cried, the thorns driving themselves deeper into his flesh…

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Tears blinded Tokaki as a horrifying pain shot through her. She looked down at her right arm, fear lacing through her when she saw Tasuki's symbol burning like a flare…

She came to an edge of a cliff and looked down…and nearly screamed at what she saw. The one who was most dear to her, tied up in thorns, with his life blood gushing out upon the ground. Suddenly, Tasuki's eyes dimmed, and he slumped against his restraints. She couldn't keep it in her anymore. She screamed.

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Tomo, Miaka, and Amiboshi all turned, a scream so frightening piercing the air it turned their blood to ice. Miaka's eyes widened in horror as she saw Tokaki in her human form, standing before them…and going under a terrifying change.

Once kind blue eyes became gold and the whites became black. Pupils became canine-like slits. Fangs sprouted from her mouth, and human fingernails became claws. The now mutant-like warrior charged at Tomo, tears streaming from her wolf eyes.

Tomo's alarm quickly vanished. Drawing his strange power from within him, illusionary thorns shot from the ground. To his astonishment the Eighth Suzaku warrior dodged every one. Baring her fangs, she swung out her arm, her claws slicing open Tomo's shoulder like a newly sharpened sword. The next blow, which came as quick as the first, was barely dodge able.

Fear struck Tomo as golden eyes locked with his own, eyes that burned with hate…and with the thirst for his blood. Clutching his wounded shoulder, he suddenly spotted Suboshi. He flashed him a somewhat pleading look, and was shocked to find the 15-year old squirm under his gaze.

What's wrong with you, Suboshi? Can you not see that your fellow warrior needs help?

Suboshi was at a loss of what to do. His fellow warrior's silent plea for help tugged at him, but at the same time…Memories of an awkward gesture of kindness, from the enemy, no less, rushed back to him. His eyes moved over to that particular enemy, now going insane as he stood there, thinking. His brother, wrapped in Tomo's illusion, caught his eye, and rage surged through him like a tidal wave.

He swung out his ryuuseisui, grinning as the weapon smacked the surprised Tomo in the face, knocking him off his feet.

"Suboshi, what…?" He spluttered, spitting out sand.

"Although you may be my comrade…imprisoning my brother is something you will never be able to repent for!"

Tomo's eyes narrowed as he spotted the rest of the Suzaku behind him. He released his hold on Tasuki and Amiboshi, glaring daggers at the Seiryu twins.

"You will regret betraying the Seiryu warriors. Don't you worry, we'll make sure you are properly taken care of for this atrocity!" He hissed. With that, he vanished.

Tokaki rushed to the place he had been, a frustrated scream rising in the air at the escape of her prey. Claws furiously swiped right and left, causing even the Suzaku warriors to back away. To everyone's surprise, Chiriko rushed forth, tears streaming down his cheeks.

"Tokaki, please stop this!" The thirteen year old winced as claws slashed open one side of his face. Desperately, he grabbed her, putting her in a headlock. He looked up at Nuriko, his face pained as claws tore at his arms.

"Nuriko, there is a pressure point on everyone's neck, located right here," He yelled, indicating the said point, "press that point hard enough and she'll fall unconscious!"

"What? But we can't-"

"We don't have any other choice! Hurry!"

Nuriko dashed forward, narrowly missing a clawed uppercut. Placing his hand on the mad warrior's neck, he took a breath. He pressed, and immediately Tokaki fell. To Nuriko's relief, claws retreated and became nails once again, and as for those frightening golden eyes, they closed, probably returning to their original color.

Nuriko grunted, picking Tokaki up while Chichiri supported Tasuki. Nuriko turned to the Seiryu twins, smiling.

"Um, thanks for your help…we all really appreciate it."

It's no problem. It's the least I cold do after what happened at the ceremony…"

"Don't worry; it's all in the past, no da." Chichiri said, patting him on the back. "But-"

"What about me?" Suboshi blurted out, downcast. "I…I know after what I did to Tamahome's family I have no right to ask for forgiveness, but…" He shuffled about, obviously very troubled. "I…I am sorry…very sorry…I know it will never make up for it, but…but I…" Everyone looked at each other, Amiboshi giving everyone a pleading look. Finally Chichiri nodded, and looked at Suboshi.

"Well…why don't you come with us for now, and when we meet up with Tamahome we'll talk it all over with him as well." He patted Suboshi on the back. "It was thanks to you that Tomo left. That'll be…your ticket to come with us, no da!" He said cheerfully. Suboshi's eyes lit up, and he quickly bowed.

"Thank you…If there's anything you need of me, feel free to ask." Nuriko grinned.

"Well, I could use a good back rub…" He laughed as Suboshi began walking towards him. "Hahaha! I kid, I kid. Just come with us and behave yourself and that'll be good enough."

"Um…where are we to go though?" Mitsukake asked. "We have no clue where Tamahome is, Tasuki is unconscious, and not even my Holy Water can revive him, and we are stuck in the middle of the dessert." Nuriko sweatdropped.

"Um…"

"You all are in quite a fix, eh?"

Chichiri turned slowly, as if unalarmed by the newcomer's voice. Two elderly people, (A/N: Not Amiboshi's parents) a man and a woman, stood before them.

"Hello, no da," Chichiri said kindly, "yes, we are in a bit of trouble at the moment. How did you find us?" The old man lifted his hood, showing an intrigued smile. He pointed to the unconscious Tokaki.

"I happened to run into the young lady there, and me and my companion became compelled to follow her. This," He said, gesturing to the old woman, "is Subaru. My name is Tokaki."

"Wha?" Nuriko squawked, nearly dropping the female Tokaki in his arms. "But…but she's Tokaki! This gal! Right here!"

"But…" Chiriko began, eyeing the old man, "if that's Tokaki here, who is…?" Chichiri answered, his voice filled with awe.

"Apart from 'Tokaki', the eighth Suzaku warrior, there also was a Tokaki of the Byakko celestial warriors. So, you must be of…"

"The Byakko eight," Subaru said, smiling. "Come, you all are tired. You can come to our house, and we'll tend to your wounds. Your friend Tamahome is there." She looked at the Seiryu twins. "You two may come as well. I don't normally get along too well with Seiryu's bunch, but after seeing you two I'd be honored to have you com with us." They bowed simultaneously, giving their thanks. With that the Byakko warriors turned, and the Suzaku group and its new additions happily followed.

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Tokaki's eyes fluttered open. The sounds of soft-chirping birds greeted her. A cool refreshing breeze could be felt from a nearby window. She took a deep breath, smelling an array of fresh flowers. There was probably a garden near by.

Wow, this place is so peace-

Her thoughts were shattered as an old man suddenly leaned in only inches away from her face.

"Well, nice to see you're finally up!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!" Without a second thought her arm shot out, giving the poor man a good right hook to the face. An old woman shot through the door.

"Tokaki!" She yelled. The female Tokaki looked up.

"Huh? Oh, crap, uh…look, I can-"

"Oh, no, no, not you dear. This old lout is who I'm talking to!" She said, grabbing the old man by the ear. "I'm so sorry he disturbed your sleep, dear! Well, since you're up, I set out some clothes for you, right near the edge of the bed there."

"Oh, thank you…" A light bulb went off. "Oh, miss, I had some friends with me, do you…?"

"Oh, yes!" They're all here, alive and well. There are two others here as well, Amiboshi and Suboshi, I believe." Tokaki's face lit up in a grin.

"Oh, awesome! Thank you!" Subaru smiled, nodding, and left.

"Tokaki dashed over to the bed, picking up the small bundle. Her jaw dropped and she let out a groan. It was a dress.

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After much fuss she finally got into the accursed outfit. It was actually very pretty. It was of light material, a pretty crimson color with floral patterns on it. The dress was form fitting, with long transparent sleeves of an even lighter material than the dress itself. She examined herself in the mirror, putting on a facial expression that very much contradicted with her pretty outfit.

"Hmph…The guys will all get a good laugh outta this…" She muttered. She looked more closely, her eyes widening. Her ocean blue eyes now had some…gold to them…and was it just the lighting or did her pupils look like slits? She blinked and shrugged, grinning.

Hey, they look awesome! As long as they're not a sign of death or whatever, I'm fine with it!

With that she picked up her skirts, and headed out the door.

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She sniffed the air, searching for a sign of anyone familiar. She caught an all too familiar scent and she smiled. Sure enough, she turned and saw none other than Tasuki.

"Tasuki!" She yelled, running to him. Tasuki looked up, his jaw dropping. He quickly grinned.

"Wow, is it the end of the world already?" He teased, pointing to her dress. Tokaki stuck out her tongue, laughing. She smiled as Tasuki wrapped his arms around her, all his teasing aside for the moment.

"It's great ta see you, Tokaki," He whispered. "I…I was pretty worried, ya know." Tokaki stepped back, concern evident on her features.

"What about you? I saw what happened to you from Tomo. Are you okay?" Tasuki gave her a look of surprise.

"Yeah, I'm great! It turns out the whole thing was an illusion…I swear ta Suzaku I saw my life flash before my eyes though. Speakin' of which, do ya know what happened after I blacked out? I don't really remember."

"I…" Tokaki bit her lip. What did happen, anyway? She remembered seeing Tasuki black out, then…A scream?

Why can't I remember…?

"Ah, it's all in the past now anyway, so don't worry about it. Amiboshi and Suboshi are here too. All of us have decided to forgive em…even Suboshi."

"Yeah…he's actually not that bad. His family died when he was really little, and Amiboshi was his only family left. I could kinda see myself doing something along the same lines as him, if I thought someone I cared about died."

"I guess that's a good reason ta get pissed, but…killing an old man and kids?"

"It's…despicable, I know. None of us can ever completely forgive him for that, but we can try to put it aside-"

"Tokaki!" Two voices simultaneously yelled. Tokaki looked up and was suddenly glomped by two identical Seiryu boys.

"Eh heh, hey Amiboshi! Suboshi, I see you're here too!"

"Yup! Subaru let us come with you guys!"

"Any you won't believe what that old man's name is!" Tokaki became puzzled, taken aback by the sudden topic-change. Her eyes narrowed at the memory of him, but apparently went unnoticed as Suboshi continued to speak.

"It's Tokaki!"

"WHAT?"

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Chichiri whistled a cheerful tune as he walked down the hall of Subaru and (the male) Tokaki's home. Suddenly a scream that made a banshee sound like a girl scout rang out through the hall.

"YOU MEAN THAT OLD FART HAS THE SAME NAME AS ME?"

Chichiri was silent for a moment, the scream still ringing in his ears. After a few minutes he spoke.

"Well, I guess Tokaki discovered who her namesake is, no da."

( ) ()> (>)>

After the terrible shock, Tokaki, Tasuki, Suboshi, and Amiboshi all met up with the rest of the group. Pretty soon the only two left to find were Miaka and Tamahome. Tokaki walked ahead of the group, now the personal human Bloodhound.

"Hey, I smell Tamahome!"

"Good girl! Go on, find the scent!" Suboshi teased in a cheerful tone. The remark earned him a jab in the stomach and a few laughs.

Sure enough Tamahome came into view, but with him was not Miaka but a different girl! She had long black hair pulled up in an intricate hairstyle and a pretty Sairo-style dress. As Tamahome approached them, the girl said her goodbyes to him and disappeared, the others taking no notice of it. Tokaki stared off in the direction the girl had gone before turning to greet the teal haired warrior.

They continued wandering the beautiful hallways of the house, stopping every once in a while to take in the scenery. Sure enough, when the scent of food was followed, the trail led straight to Miaka. It was time to eat by then, and everyone sat down, acknowledging that this was their first peaceful meal they had eaten in a long while.

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A strange boy, so young he looked like an infant, floated in the air of a dark Kuto tent. A sliver of light cut through the darkness as the door flap opened. Tomo stepped in, his face grim-looking.

"The Suzaku minions have met with two of Byakko's chosen. This down not bode well." He glared when silence answered him. "Have you no idea of what to do Miboshi?" The child stroked a small rattle-like object fondly, beady eyes glancing at Tomo.

"I was thinking, you buffoon. You should know after your failure the Suzaku are not easily defeated."

"We must do something about the eighth Suzaku brat though! She changed, and it was certainly not to our benefit!" The one called Miboshi looked pensive, placing a hand on his chin.

"Well, what do you propose we do?"

"The Suzaku brat has gotten stronger?" Urumiya materialized out of the darkness, her violet eyes glittering malevolently.

"It's not nice to eavesdrop," Tomo muttered, apparently amused. Urumiya gave him a look that made him wilt, it was so icy.

"I have a plan…"

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Whoo! Long chapter! I'm so sorry I haven't updated for so long, but I hope I made up for it with this nice long chapter! If not…too bad. I have updated already, and if you want to waste your precious review yelling at me for not updating, then fine. Your yell will go unnoticed.

I have officially completely strayed from the manga:takes out a flamethrower and burns manga: Well, maybe not quite completely…I can't speak for future chapters…I just felt bad about making Suboshi a dick head in this story…he was actually pretty cool in the original series before he went psycho, killed Tama's family, and tried to rape Miaka…ANYWAY!

Hm…was the last chapter confusing at all? I received a review saying it was…if it was the last part I can understand that lol. The old man was (you can probably guess now and if you don't that's sad) the Byakko Tokaki. If there was any other things you didn't understand though, you can feel free to email me and I'll be happy to answer any questions you have! (just check my profile)

And once again, some jack-off decided to yell at me for not updating. (YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!) As much as I would love to have the time to spend my life in front of the computer 24/7, I don't have that time. If you (the particular reviewer…) do, please not only tell me how you do such an excellent job managing your time but also get a life instead of rotting your brain in front of the computer all day.

OKAY! I'm done ranting now. I received such nice compliments…I'm so happy! I appreciate all the loving so much! Thank you all! To all the reviewers who were nice and PATIENT about the review, thank you guys the most! I really am sorry about the late review…School is important, you know! (and if you decide to say it's not…SCREW YOU! lol I kid I kid.)

Well, that's all for now! Hope you enjoyed it!

Next chapter: Mix-ups, Realizations, and Mishaps

The two Tokakis bang heads as their identical names wreak havoc in the (male) Tokaki's house! Find out what Urumiya's sinister plan is, and the shocking truth Tokaki accidentally discovers! Then, it's a face-off with Miboshi, a Seiryu warrior who has the power to summon countless demons to his aide!