That evening, Nuriko and Nikki brought Miaka her dinner. They each carried a tray full of food, hoping it would help Miaka get back to her old self.
Nuriko looked out at the sky and complained about the stormy weather.
"You know," Nikki said, trying to lighten the mood, "I've noticed that in almost every show on TV, whenever it rains, something really bad happens. I mean, how realistic is that?"
Nuriko knocked on Miaka's door and went in. Miaka wasn't there. Nuriko dropped his tray and ran from the room. Nikki turned to set her tray on the table beside the door.
As she looked down, she noticed a small note on the table beside her hand. She unfolded it, and racked her brain to figure out what the Japanese characters said. After a moment, it came to her. They spelled the word `goodbye'.
"Damn, I hate it when I'm right," she muttered to herself, then ran after Nuriko. Common sense more than instinct told her to head towards Hotohori's room.
Nikki ran faster than she'd ever run before, and was able to get there only moments after Nuriko. She showed Hotohori the note. He quickly left the room to search for Miaka.
Nikki closed her eyes and tried to imagine where she could have gone. "Hotohori!" she called, "The pond! Check by the pond!" Nikki prayed that her instincts were correct.
"We should look for her too," Nuriko said.
Nikki nodded. "I'll notify the others." she said.
They arrived at the pond to find that Hotohori had dived in to save Miaka, and neither had surfaced yet.
A few tense moments passed until suddenly, from the centre of the pond, came a bright red light. Nikki shielded her eyes.
`I've seen this before,' she thought, `Back at the library! The same light came from that old book!'
From the light, Hotohori appeared, holding Miaka. The others rushed to Miaka's side, concerned for her safety. Hotohori assured them that she would be alright, and took her inside.
Nikki was relieved to know that Miaka was okay. Without knowing, she had begun to see the girl as a kind of little sister. She considered all the seishi to be the family she'd never had growing up.
As they walked to Tasuki's room to let him in on what happened, Nikki looked up at Nuriko.
`Okay,' she thought, `Then that would make Nuriko my big brother, or sister, or...this is not right.' She placed her hand over her face and shook her head. `My life is turning into a V. C. Andrews novel!'
On their way to Tasuki's room, they had to pass Hotohori's chamber. "I think I'll check in on Miaka," Nuriko said.
Nikki opened the door first. All she saw was Miaka, naked, and Hotohori making out on the bed. Feeling her face turn red, Nikki quickly turned and closed the door behind her.
"Um," she stammered, blocking Nuriko from getting near the door, "I just remembered that Miaka said that she had something to discuss with Hotohori-sama. I think we had better let them...discuss." Nikki grabbed Nuriko's arm and pulled him down the hall.
While the others talked, Nuriko stood staring out of Tasuki's window, daydreaming about the wonderfulness of Hotohori. Unfortunately, he was speaking out loud, earning him a smack in the head from Nikki.
"Well," Chiriko continued, "If Tamahome doesn't come back, we won't be able to call Suzaku."
Nikki turned towards the boy. "Tamahome?" she asked.
Chiriko nodded, with a slightly confused look on his face.
"Come back," Nikki continued, more than slightly confused herself, as something about those words clicked in the back of her mind. Her eyes widened, "Oh my God! He's here. Tamahome's here!"
The other seishi gave her weird looks. Mitsukake placed a hand on her forehead to feel her temperature.
She swatted him away and looked to Nuriko, who was probably the only one who would believe her. "Tamahome's here." she repeated.
Outside Tasuki's room, the seishi heard footsteps running down the hall. Nikki stepped out to see what was going on. A soldier ran past, nearly knocking her over.
"What's going on?" she asked. He pretended not to hear her, and kept running.
Nuriko, however, was not so happy with his treatment of Nikki, so he grabbed the back of the soldier's armour and lifted him off the ground. "Now," he said, "I believe the young lady asked you a question,"
"Tama...Tamahome-san has returned," the soldier stammered, "He says...he has to kill...Suzaku-no-miko." Nuriko dropped the soldier, who quickly continued on his way. The seishi turned to Nikki, amazed that she knew.
"What can I say," she said smugly, "I got the power!" More seriously, she continued, "We have to stop Tamahome from getting to Miaka. Who's with me?" Each seishi raised his hand, except Nuriko.
"I'll help Miaka, but you're staying here." he said.
"No, I'm not," Nikki said over her shoulder as she helped Tasuki to his feet, "I'm going to help whether you like it or not. Not only did Tamahome beat the crap out of Tasuki, but he hurt Miaka as well. That puts him on my shit list."
"Yeah!" Tasuki agreed. Nuriko glared at him, warning him not to say another word.
"Look," Nikki continued, "I know you just don't want me to get hurt, and that Tamahome's way stronger than me, and from what I hear, could probably crush my skull with one hand,"
Nuriko looked at her in horror.
"But I can take care of myself." Nikki assured him. She put her arm around Tasuki's waist, and helped him walk towards the door. Nuriko had no choice but to follow.
They entered the palace courtyard to see Tamahome waiting for them, alone.
Nuriko stepped in front of Nikki, ready to protect her. Tamahome just stood there, glaring at the seishi.
`This is not going to be pretty,' Nikki thought, `All this rain seems appropriate, though; it certainly sets the mood,'
Before anyone could make a move, Hotohori came down the stairs to the courtyard. He held his sword in his hand, and glared at Tamahome. He seemed to glow red, which Nikki assumed was the power of Suzaku. He came to the bottom of the stairs, and threw a sword at Tamahome's feet before drawing his own. Tamahome picked up the sword, and the two men faced each other.
Luckily, Miaka was nowhere nearby, so Nikki called out "C'mon Hotohori, kill him!"
Chichiri turned to her, aghast. "How could you say such a thing, no da?"
"Hey," Nikki shrugged, "He's your friend, not mine," `Especially not after what he did to Tasuki and Miaka,' she thought.
The crash of metal upon metal echoed throughout the courtyard. Tamahome and Hotohori fought fiercely, and Nikki knew that it would be a battle to the death.
"Shouldn't we do something?" Chiriko asked.
"No," Nuriko replied sadly, "All we can do is let them go at it."
Tamahome leaped into the air, ready to strike Hotohori.
At that exact moment, Miaka came running. "Don't!" she screamed.
Tamahome hesitated for only a second. But, it was too late. Hotohori had raised his sword to block Tamahome's attack, and Tamahome fell onto it. Hotohori seemed as shocked as Tamahome, as he slipped off the blade to land on his back.
"Tamahome!" Miaka cried.
Hotohori dropped his sword. The seishi stared in shock, including Nikki, who only felt sorry for Miaka. She couldn't have cared less what happened to Tamahome, but Miaka was upset, to say the least.
Miaka ran to where Tamahome lay, and knelt by his side. Tamahome looked up at her, and slowly his hand reached out for the sword that lay beside him. Seeing what he was reaching for, Miaka grabbed the sword and placed it into his hands. "Please," she begged, on the verge of tears, "If it will make you the way you were before, then kill me!" She leaned down and kissed him, as he raised the sword over her.
Nuriko took a step forward, but Hotohori stopped him. `He's just going to let this happen?' Nikki wondered.
Luckily, Hotohori's judgement proved right. Something about Miaka's kiss reawakened a part of Tamahome, the part that Nakago had tried to take away, and he dropped the sword. The sign of the ogre began to shine brightly from his forehead.
Suddenly, an old song popped into Nikki's head. "Hey, Miaka, your boyfriend's back and we're gonna be in trouble...okay, I'll stop singing now."
Tamahome smiled as he looked up at Miaka. "I promised..." he said weakly, "When the moon was straight up...I was late...sorry..."
By now, Miaka was crying. "No, you made it." she said, "Just now, it's straight up!"
Nikki felt tears come to her eyes. She looked to Nuriko, and saw that his shoulders were shaking. `He must be crying,' she thought. She moved to his side, and placed her hand on his shoulder.
Unfortunately, she forgot that she was supposed to be supporting Tasuki in his weakened condition, and he toppled to the ground.
Mitsukake, knowing that Tamahome didn't have much time left, healed his wound. The other seishi rushed to Tamahome's side, glad to have him back.
Nikki and Tasuki, however, remained where they were. "I'm not going over there," Tasuki said.
"Nope," Nikki agreed. She helped Tasuki to his feet, and they waited impatiently for the little reunion to end.
Nuriko looked out at the sky and complained about the stormy weather.
"You know," Nikki said, trying to lighten the mood, "I've noticed that in almost every show on TV, whenever it rains, something really bad happens. I mean, how realistic is that?"
Nuriko knocked on Miaka's door and went in. Miaka wasn't there. Nuriko dropped his tray and ran from the room. Nikki turned to set her tray on the table beside the door.
As she looked down, she noticed a small note on the table beside her hand. She unfolded it, and racked her brain to figure out what the Japanese characters said. After a moment, it came to her. They spelled the word `goodbye'.
"Damn, I hate it when I'm right," she muttered to herself, then ran after Nuriko. Common sense more than instinct told her to head towards Hotohori's room.
Nikki ran faster than she'd ever run before, and was able to get there only moments after Nuriko. She showed Hotohori the note. He quickly left the room to search for Miaka.
Nikki closed her eyes and tried to imagine where she could have gone. "Hotohori!" she called, "The pond! Check by the pond!" Nikki prayed that her instincts were correct.
"We should look for her too," Nuriko said.
Nikki nodded. "I'll notify the others." she said.
They arrived at the pond to find that Hotohori had dived in to save Miaka, and neither had surfaced yet.
A few tense moments passed until suddenly, from the centre of the pond, came a bright red light. Nikki shielded her eyes.
`I've seen this before,' she thought, `Back at the library! The same light came from that old book!'
From the light, Hotohori appeared, holding Miaka. The others rushed to Miaka's side, concerned for her safety. Hotohori assured them that she would be alright, and took her inside.
Nikki was relieved to know that Miaka was okay. Without knowing, she had begun to see the girl as a kind of little sister. She considered all the seishi to be the family she'd never had growing up.
As they walked to Tasuki's room to let him in on what happened, Nikki looked up at Nuriko.
`Okay,' she thought, `Then that would make Nuriko my big brother, or sister, or...this is not right.' She placed her hand over her face and shook her head. `My life is turning into a V. C. Andrews novel!'
On their way to Tasuki's room, they had to pass Hotohori's chamber. "I think I'll check in on Miaka," Nuriko said.
Nikki opened the door first. All she saw was Miaka, naked, and Hotohori making out on the bed. Feeling her face turn red, Nikki quickly turned and closed the door behind her.
"Um," she stammered, blocking Nuriko from getting near the door, "I just remembered that Miaka said that she had something to discuss with Hotohori-sama. I think we had better let them...discuss." Nikki grabbed Nuriko's arm and pulled him down the hall.
While the others talked, Nuriko stood staring out of Tasuki's window, daydreaming about the wonderfulness of Hotohori. Unfortunately, he was speaking out loud, earning him a smack in the head from Nikki.
"Well," Chiriko continued, "If Tamahome doesn't come back, we won't be able to call Suzaku."
Nikki turned towards the boy. "Tamahome?" she asked.
Chiriko nodded, with a slightly confused look on his face.
"Come back," Nikki continued, more than slightly confused herself, as something about those words clicked in the back of her mind. Her eyes widened, "Oh my God! He's here. Tamahome's here!"
The other seishi gave her weird looks. Mitsukake placed a hand on her forehead to feel her temperature.
She swatted him away and looked to Nuriko, who was probably the only one who would believe her. "Tamahome's here." she repeated.
Outside Tasuki's room, the seishi heard footsteps running down the hall. Nikki stepped out to see what was going on. A soldier ran past, nearly knocking her over.
"What's going on?" she asked. He pretended not to hear her, and kept running.
Nuriko, however, was not so happy with his treatment of Nikki, so he grabbed the back of the soldier's armour and lifted him off the ground. "Now," he said, "I believe the young lady asked you a question,"
"Tama...Tamahome-san has returned," the soldier stammered, "He says...he has to kill...Suzaku-no-miko." Nuriko dropped the soldier, who quickly continued on his way. The seishi turned to Nikki, amazed that she knew.
"What can I say," she said smugly, "I got the power!" More seriously, she continued, "We have to stop Tamahome from getting to Miaka. Who's with me?" Each seishi raised his hand, except Nuriko.
"I'll help Miaka, but you're staying here." he said.
"No, I'm not," Nikki said over her shoulder as she helped Tasuki to his feet, "I'm going to help whether you like it or not. Not only did Tamahome beat the crap out of Tasuki, but he hurt Miaka as well. That puts him on my shit list."
"Yeah!" Tasuki agreed. Nuriko glared at him, warning him not to say another word.
"Look," Nikki continued, "I know you just don't want me to get hurt, and that Tamahome's way stronger than me, and from what I hear, could probably crush my skull with one hand,"
Nuriko looked at her in horror.
"But I can take care of myself." Nikki assured him. She put her arm around Tasuki's waist, and helped him walk towards the door. Nuriko had no choice but to follow.
They entered the palace courtyard to see Tamahome waiting for them, alone.
Nuriko stepped in front of Nikki, ready to protect her. Tamahome just stood there, glaring at the seishi.
`This is not going to be pretty,' Nikki thought, `All this rain seems appropriate, though; it certainly sets the mood,'
Before anyone could make a move, Hotohori came down the stairs to the courtyard. He held his sword in his hand, and glared at Tamahome. He seemed to glow red, which Nikki assumed was the power of Suzaku. He came to the bottom of the stairs, and threw a sword at Tamahome's feet before drawing his own. Tamahome picked up the sword, and the two men faced each other.
Luckily, Miaka was nowhere nearby, so Nikki called out "C'mon Hotohori, kill him!"
Chichiri turned to her, aghast. "How could you say such a thing, no da?"
"Hey," Nikki shrugged, "He's your friend, not mine," `Especially not after what he did to Tasuki and Miaka,' she thought.
The crash of metal upon metal echoed throughout the courtyard. Tamahome and Hotohori fought fiercely, and Nikki knew that it would be a battle to the death.
"Shouldn't we do something?" Chiriko asked.
"No," Nuriko replied sadly, "All we can do is let them go at it."
Tamahome leaped into the air, ready to strike Hotohori.
At that exact moment, Miaka came running. "Don't!" she screamed.
Tamahome hesitated for only a second. But, it was too late. Hotohori had raised his sword to block Tamahome's attack, and Tamahome fell onto it. Hotohori seemed as shocked as Tamahome, as he slipped off the blade to land on his back.
"Tamahome!" Miaka cried.
Hotohori dropped his sword. The seishi stared in shock, including Nikki, who only felt sorry for Miaka. She couldn't have cared less what happened to Tamahome, but Miaka was upset, to say the least.
Miaka ran to where Tamahome lay, and knelt by his side. Tamahome looked up at her, and slowly his hand reached out for the sword that lay beside him. Seeing what he was reaching for, Miaka grabbed the sword and placed it into his hands. "Please," she begged, on the verge of tears, "If it will make you the way you were before, then kill me!" She leaned down and kissed him, as he raised the sword over her.
Nuriko took a step forward, but Hotohori stopped him. `He's just going to let this happen?' Nikki wondered.
Luckily, Hotohori's judgement proved right. Something about Miaka's kiss reawakened a part of Tamahome, the part that Nakago had tried to take away, and he dropped the sword. The sign of the ogre began to shine brightly from his forehead.
Suddenly, an old song popped into Nikki's head. "Hey, Miaka, your boyfriend's back and we're gonna be in trouble...okay, I'll stop singing now."
Tamahome smiled as he looked up at Miaka. "I promised..." he said weakly, "When the moon was straight up...I was late...sorry..."
By now, Miaka was crying. "No, you made it." she said, "Just now, it's straight up!"
Nikki felt tears come to her eyes. She looked to Nuriko, and saw that his shoulders were shaking. `He must be crying,' she thought. She moved to his side, and placed her hand on his shoulder.
Unfortunately, she forgot that she was supposed to be supporting Tasuki in his weakened condition, and he toppled to the ground.
Mitsukake, knowing that Tamahome didn't have much time left, healed his wound. The other seishi rushed to Tamahome's side, glad to have him back.
Nikki and Tasuki, however, remained where they were. "I'm not going over there," Tasuki said.
"Nope," Nikki agreed. She helped Tasuki to his feet, and they waited impatiently for the little reunion to end.
