I hope you don't mind, this chapter is kinda long, so I separated it into two parts. There is a major turning point in this chapter, so please read on!!
Chapter 5 Part 1
It was a beautiful morning, which came as a rarity around Konan. The sun was out, only a small amount of distance separated it from the horizon. It was a bit chilly out, but the warm sunshine made the temperature seem almost perfect. Miaka was sitting behind Chichiri on the horse that Taiitsukun gave them on loan. She didn't mind sharing a horse since she felt safer when she was close to him. She looked around, studying the area around her as it went by. Chichiri kept the horse at an easy trot, not rushing the animal, but making good time. He was a little uneasy with that creature out there. With the speed that thing was capable of moving at, there was no telling where it would show up next. It would be a good three day traveling time before they reached Mount Reikaku. That amount of time made him even more nervous. And on top of everything, he just couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched. He didn't want to alarm Miaka, so he didn't mention it, he just kept the horse moving.
Miaka's mind started to wonder as she watched the trees go by. The motion of the horse and the rhythmic sound of its hooves hitting the ground made her forget about the danger they were in. She watched as birds flew in and out of branches and saw squirrels chase each other. She turned her head to the other side and looked at the tree tops. They were swaying in the wind and their leaves rustled. As she watched them, she noticed a strange dark spot on one of the branches ahead of them. She studied it, afraid it might be that demon. But this was too small, and it didn't move, save a twitch here and there. Then the head swung around and two green eyes peered at them. When she realized what it was, she tightened her grip on Chichiri's shirt. Curious, he turned his head to regard her and noticed her looking at something rather intently. He followed her gazed and spotted the animal. He stopped the horse and looked more closely at it. He had never seen an animal like that before. It looked like a large black tiger. It stared back at him with a look of curiosity. Chichiri had never even heard of black tigers. Especially not ones that climbed trees. But that cat seemed quite content up there on that branch about twenty feet off the ground. Miaka was just mesmerized. 'Wow,' she thought, 'a black panther in China. And one that size.'
"Have you ever seen anything like that?" Chichiri asked her, at a loss as to what it was that stared at him.
"It's so pretty," she remarked, "I've never seen a black panther as large as that. 'Specially in China."
'A black panther' he thought. Suddenly the cat exploded into motion. The sudden movement startled Chichiri. He watched as the cat quickly leapt from one branch to another with ease and grace until it disappeared. He shook his head and put the horse back into motion. He wasn't too worried about the cat, but it just seemed strange to him at the moment. With things being the way they were, a cat that out of the ordinary only added to his nervousness.
The rest of the day went pretty smoothly. They stopped a couple times at brooks that they passed to water the horse and take a break for snacks and stretching. Chichiri concentrated most of his energy on scanning the area around him. He made sure there was nothing unusual to his senses out there. Sure enough, that feeling of being watched came back again. He tried to concentrate on that feeling so he could find the watcher, but wasn't having much luck. It must not have been very close. But that didn't ease his concern. He felt that presence every time he searched for it, but couldn't find it. All he could do was hope it didn't turn into anything more than just a feeling.
As the sun started to dip into the horizon, Chichiri decided it was best to find a good place to set up camp. There wasn't any villages around this area, so he had to find a good clearing that had water nearby. What he found was better than he hoped for. It was a small clearing that was surrounded by trees. About fifteen feet away was a small lake that was fed by a waterfall. That waterfall being fed by a foothill that was attached to the same mountain range that held Mount Taikyoku and Mount Reikaku.
He pulled the horse to a stop, dismounted and then helped Miaka down. He pulled off the supplies that they packed onto the horse and started to set up camp. Miaka decided to look around, since she had no idea how to help and it didn't look like he needed it anyhow.
She wondered off toward the lake and took in the peaceful look it had. The water was blue and sparkly in the light of the setting sun. She watched as fish darted about just below the surface. She knew Chichiri would love this lake, that is, if he had his fishing pole with him. She sat down and just observed the scenery.
She must have lost track of time because she heard the monk come up behind her. He was about to chastise her for disappearing like that when he noticed the fish in the water. He sized up the delicious looking morsels and then looked at Miaka. She looked back at him with a slight grin on her face. He returned the grin and then winked at her. With that he returned to the clearing. She knew he went to get his fishing pole.
'Guess what we are having for dinner,' she mused at herself. A playful grin took over her lips. She silently watched as he returned with his pole. Happily, he played through his normal fishing ritual that he took so much pleasure in. After baiting the hook, he threw it into the lake and waited. He didn't have to wait long since the string almost immediately pulled taunt. Miaka watched and giggled as Chichiri pulled out fish after fish. They would eat well tonight.
After returning to the clearing, they cooked the fish and then dined. Miaka must have gone through twenty of the things when Chichiri finished his third. He couldn't help but laugh at her less-than-lady-like eating habits. It had been so long since he had been with Miaka. He found that he really missed her lightheartedness and silliness. On top of that, he had never met anyone who liked fish more than he did. He found that to be very amusing.
Miaka was enjoying her fish quite contentedly when she noticed that Chichiri was watching her with a reflective look in his eye. She had never seen him like that before. He looked very contented. She smiled when she noticed a wry grin take over his features. She decided to let him be since there was still more fish that demanded her undivided attention anyway.
After they had both had their fill, they decided to settle in for the night. Miaka fell right to sleep with a grin on her face. That silly grin almost made her look like a child. Chichiri laughed at himself for thinking that. She was obviously no child. He noticed she was more like a woman than he remembered her being. She had mellowed out quite a bit since she left him and Tasuki here in Konan. If he had not been almost ten years older than her, he would have been jealous of Tamahome. Even despite that, he couldn't help but dwell on the 'what-ifs.' He watched her as she slept dwelling on how peaceful she looked.
He sighed, he knew he wasn't going to get any sleep in this state of mind. Besides, he thought it better not to. Who knows what might happen in the middle of the night. He got up and climbed into a tree and found a high branch to settle onto. He watched Miaka through the rest of the night, unaware that sleep was settling into him as well.
Chichiri awoke with a start as two sparrows fought each other beside his head. His sudden movement startled the birds and sent them flying in different directions. He looked down to see if Miaka was still there in her blankets. Sure enough, there she was. She didn't even look like she had moved.
He dropped out of the tree and stretched his muscles. They ached from the precarious position he was sleeping in. He looked around and found the horse had fallen asleep next to a large oak tree. He noted that the sun was already a good distance from the horizon and thought it best that they get moving. He walked over to Miaka and gently shook her awake.
"Miaka..." He called. She stirred a bit. He sighed and shook her again. "Miaka..."
Slowly she opened her eyes and looked strait up at him.
"Morning, Miaka, sleep well?" he asked with a whimsical gleam in his eye. "You better get up, we have a long day ahead of us." He smiled at her and then turned to start packing everything up.
Miaka gave him an odd look as he walked away. Why did she suddenly get the feeling that he had said that before? Still somewhat asleep, she sat up and wiped the sleep out of her eyes. She looked around and noted that everything was still very peaceful. Birds were singing and the sounds of animals filled her ears. It was an oddly pleasant sound. Yet something didn't seem quite right. She decided to ignore it as she continued to soak in the new morning. The sun was shining brightly through the tops of the trees and created sunbeams that danced on the forest floor. One sunbeam was resting over Chichiri. He seemed to glow in that light.
Suddenly a sense of panic welled up in her soul. This is exactly how things looked in her dream. Instinctively, she looked over in the direction that the monster came from. There was nothing there, but she wasn't convinced. She was about to mention this to Chichiri when she noticed it. That dark spot in the distance. It seemed to be getting bigger. No, she knew better, it was getting closer. She screamed and Chichiri swung around to look at her when he saw it. It was too late. The thing swooped in and grabbed him before he could react.
Miaka watched in ultimate horror as her nightmare played out before her eyes. Huge claws and fangs ripped at Chichiri's body. He screamed in pain and just as the thing was about to rip his throat out, a black blur streaked from the trees and landed on the beast. The contact caused the beast to drop Chichiri. The monk curled up in a ball and moaned in pain. Miaka ran to him and tried to help him. He was covered in blood that was pouring from the large gashes the beast gave him. As she sat beside him, she tried to stop the bleeding, but knew it wouldn't help since he was injured too badly. She looked up to see a strange looking man fight the beast off with blades that she didn't recognize. At least she thought they were blades. They were moving too fast for her to get a clear look at them. The beast shrieked in pain as those blades made contact with him time after time.
After a couple minutes of this, the beast realized that he was at a disadvantage with this new adversary. So with a mighty swoop of his wings he took off into the trees like a lightning bolt and was gone. Miaka watched as it left with such incredible speed. It was gone faster than it came.
Her attention was brought back to Chichiri when his body trembled. He moaned again and she was scared when she realized that he might die. Tears started to roll down her face as she looked at her injured friend. She felt a hand gently grip her shoulders. She turned around and found herself staring into deep lavender eyes. She had never seen eyes like that before.
The strange man reached into a pack he had at his side and produced a small vial. She watched as he set the vial down and reached for Chichiri. Miaka, unsure of what to do, watched as the man laid the monk onto his back. A painful gasp escaped his lips as he was moved. The man pick the vial up and pulled the top off. Slowly and carefully, he reached his left hand around the seishi's neck. He then lifted his head to a slight angle and pressed the vial against his lips. He poured a small amount of liquid into Chichiri's mouth and waited while the monk swallowed it. After that, the man laid his head back down and recovered the vial. Chichiri gasped and trembled for a couple of minutes, but then relaxed as sleep over took him. Miaka was in awe, but scared at the same time. She had never seen a man like this before. She was sure he was trying to help Chichiri, but she had no idea what that liquid was supposed to do.
"It's a healing elixir." He spoke as if he was reading her mind. She looked at him, startled. "He will be completely healed in a couple of hours." With that, he got up and started to walk away.
"Wait," she managed, with a trembling voice.
He turned and regarded her. He could tell the girl was frightened and didn't want him to leave. So he turned toward her and studied her.
Miaka studied him as well. She couldn't get over how this man looked. He had ebony skin that looked darker than the night, thick white hair that hung about his shoulders, and pointed ears. Pointed ears? She had never heard of a human with pointed ears.
When she realized that she was staring, she looked away not wanting to be rude.
"Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you for helping us." She managed a slight smile and then looked back at Chichiri. He was breathing easier now. It seemed as if that healing elixir was working. She was glad for it. She looked back at the man when she realized that he was studying her very intently. She suddenly felt embarrassed. She must have looked awful.
Wanting to break the heavy silence, she decided it best to just introduce herself. She stood up and looked at him. He wasn't much taller than she was. "Forgive me for not introducing myself, I am Miaka Yuuki, the Priestess of Suzaku. And this is Chichiri, one of my seishi."
The man gave her a quizzical look. Then he decided to return the respects. "My name is Drizzt Do'urden." He said this with a slight bow and then regarded the sleeping form again. Curious, he looked at Miaka again, "What is a seishi?"
The question startled her. She thought everyone in Konan knew who the seven stars of Suzaku was. She thought everyone knew who she was. "A seishi is a celestial warrior of their respective god." She looked at him wondering if that cleared anything up in his mind. Not being able to stand it anymore, she just had to ask, "you're not from around here, are you?"
Chapter 5 Part 1
It was a beautiful morning, which came as a rarity around Konan. The sun was out, only a small amount of distance separated it from the horizon. It was a bit chilly out, but the warm sunshine made the temperature seem almost perfect. Miaka was sitting behind Chichiri on the horse that Taiitsukun gave them on loan. She didn't mind sharing a horse since she felt safer when she was close to him. She looked around, studying the area around her as it went by. Chichiri kept the horse at an easy trot, not rushing the animal, but making good time. He was a little uneasy with that creature out there. With the speed that thing was capable of moving at, there was no telling where it would show up next. It would be a good three day traveling time before they reached Mount Reikaku. That amount of time made him even more nervous. And on top of everything, he just couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched. He didn't want to alarm Miaka, so he didn't mention it, he just kept the horse moving.
Miaka's mind started to wonder as she watched the trees go by. The motion of the horse and the rhythmic sound of its hooves hitting the ground made her forget about the danger they were in. She watched as birds flew in and out of branches and saw squirrels chase each other. She turned her head to the other side and looked at the tree tops. They were swaying in the wind and their leaves rustled. As she watched them, she noticed a strange dark spot on one of the branches ahead of them. She studied it, afraid it might be that demon. But this was too small, and it didn't move, save a twitch here and there. Then the head swung around and two green eyes peered at them. When she realized what it was, she tightened her grip on Chichiri's shirt. Curious, he turned his head to regard her and noticed her looking at something rather intently. He followed her gazed and spotted the animal. He stopped the horse and looked more closely at it. He had never seen an animal like that before. It looked like a large black tiger. It stared back at him with a look of curiosity. Chichiri had never even heard of black tigers. Especially not ones that climbed trees. But that cat seemed quite content up there on that branch about twenty feet off the ground. Miaka was just mesmerized. 'Wow,' she thought, 'a black panther in China. And one that size.'
"Have you ever seen anything like that?" Chichiri asked her, at a loss as to what it was that stared at him.
"It's so pretty," she remarked, "I've never seen a black panther as large as that. 'Specially in China."
'A black panther' he thought. Suddenly the cat exploded into motion. The sudden movement startled Chichiri. He watched as the cat quickly leapt from one branch to another with ease and grace until it disappeared. He shook his head and put the horse back into motion. He wasn't too worried about the cat, but it just seemed strange to him at the moment. With things being the way they were, a cat that out of the ordinary only added to his nervousness.
The rest of the day went pretty smoothly. They stopped a couple times at brooks that they passed to water the horse and take a break for snacks and stretching. Chichiri concentrated most of his energy on scanning the area around him. He made sure there was nothing unusual to his senses out there. Sure enough, that feeling of being watched came back again. He tried to concentrate on that feeling so he could find the watcher, but wasn't having much luck. It must not have been very close. But that didn't ease his concern. He felt that presence every time he searched for it, but couldn't find it. All he could do was hope it didn't turn into anything more than just a feeling.
As the sun started to dip into the horizon, Chichiri decided it was best to find a good place to set up camp. There wasn't any villages around this area, so he had to find a good clearing that had water nearby. What he found was better than he hoped for. It was a small clearing that was surrounded by trees. About fifteen feet away was a small lake that was fed by a waterfall. That waterfall being fed by a foothill that was attached to the same mountain range that held Mount Taikyoku and Mount Reikaku.
He pulled the horse to a stop, dismounted and then helped Miaka down. He pulled off the supplies that they packed onto the horse and started to set up camp. Miaka decided to look around, since she had no idea how to help and it didn't look like he needed it anyhow.
She wondered off toward the lake and took in the peaceful look it had. The water was blue and sparkly in the light of the setting sun. She watched as fish darted about just below the surface. She knew Chichiri would love this lake, that is, if he had his fishing pole with him. She sat down and just observed the scenery.
She must have lost track of time because she heard the monk come up behind her. He was about to chastise her for disappearing like that when he noticed the fish in the water. He sized up the delicious looking morsels and then looked at Miaka. She looked back at him with a slight grin on her face. He returned the grin and then winked at her. With that he returned to the clearing. She knew he went to get his fishing pole.
'Guess what we are having for dinner,' she mused at herself. A playful grin took over her lips. She silently watched as he returned with his pole. Happily, he played through his normal fishing ritual that he took so much pleasure in. After baiting the hook, he threw it into the lake and waited. He didn't have to wait long since the string almost immediately pulled taunt. Miaka watched and giggled as Chichiri pulled out fish after fish. They would eat well tonight.
After returning to the clearing, they cooked the fish and then dined. Miaka must have gone through twenty of the things when Chichiri finished his third. He couldn't help but laugh at her less-than-lady-like eating habits. It had been so long since he had been with Miaka. He found that he really missed her lightheartedness and silliness. On top of that, he had never met anyone who liked fish more than he did. He found that to be very amusing.
Miaka was enjoying her fish quite contentedly when she noticed that Chichiri was watching her with a reflective look in his eye. She had never seen him like that before. He looked very contented. She smiled when she noticed a wry grin take over his features. She decided to let him be since there was still more fish that demanded her undivided attention anyway.
After they had both had their fill, they decided to settle in for the night. Miaka fell right to sleep with a grin on her face. That silly grin almost made her look like a child. Chichiri laughed at himself for thinking that. She was obviously no child. He noticed she was more like a woman than he remembered her being. She had mellowed out quite a bit since she left him and Tasuki here in Konan. If he had not been almost ten years older than her, he would have been jealous of Tamahome. Even despite that, he couldn't help but dwell on the 'what-ifs.' He watched her as she slept dwelling on how peaceful she looked.
He sighed, he knew he wasn't going to get any sleep in this state of mind. Besides, he thought it better not to. Who knows what might happen in the middle of the night. He got up and climbed into a tree and found a high branch to settle onto. He watched Miaka through the rest of the night, unaware that sleep was settling into him as well.
Chichiri awoke with a start as two sparrows fought each other beside his head. His sudden movement startled the birds and sent them flying in different directions. He looked down to see if Miaka was still there in her blankets. Sure enough, there she was. She didn't even look like she had moved.
He dropped out of the tree and stretched his muscles. They ached from the precarious position he was sleeping in. He looked around and found the horse had fallen asleep next to a large oak tree. He noted that the sun was already a good distance from the horizon and thought it best that they get moving. He walked over to Miaka and gently shook her awake.
"Miaka..." He called. She stirred a bit. He sighed and shook her again. "Miaka..."
Slowly she opened her eyes and looked strait up at him.
"Morning, Miaka, sleep well?" he asked with a whimsical gleam in his eye. "You better get up, we have a long day ahead of us." He smiled at her and then turned to start packing everything up.
Miaka gave him an odd look as he walked away. Why did she suddenly get the feeling that he had said that before? Still somewhat asleep, she sat up and wiped the sleep out of her eyes. She looked around and noted that everything was still very peaceful. Birds were singing and the sounds of animals filled her ears. It was an oddly pleasant sound. Yet something didn't seem quite right. She decided to ignore it as she continued to soak in the new morning. The sun was shining brightly through the tops of the trees and created sunbeams that danced on the forest floor. One sunbeam was resting over Chichiri. He seemed to glow in that light.
Suddenly a sense of panic welled up in her soul. This is exactly how things looked in her dream. Instinctively, she looked over in the direction that the monster came from. There was nothing there, but she wasn't convinced. She was about to mention this to Chichiri when she noticed it. That dark spot in the distance. It seemed to be getting bigger. No, she knew better, it was getting closer. She screamed and Chichiri swung around to look at her when he saw it. It was too late. The thing swooped in and grabbed him before he could react.
Miaka watched in ultimate horror as her nightmare played out before her eyes. Huge claws and fangs ripped at Chichiri's body. He screamed in pain and just as the thing was about to rip his throat out, a black blur streaked from the trees and landed on the beast. The contact caused the beast to drop Chichiri. The monk curled up in a ball and moaned in pain. Miaka ran to him and tried to help him. He was covered in blood that was pouring from the large gashes the beast gave him. As she sat beside him, she tried to stop the bleeding, but knew it wouldn't help since he was injured too badly. She looked up to see a strange looking man fight the beast off with blades that she didn't recognize. At least she thought they were blades. They were moving too fast for her to get a clear look at them. The beast shrieked in pain as those blades made contact with him time after time.
After a couple minutes of this, the beast realized that he was at a disadvantage with this new adversary. So with a mighty swoop of his wings he took off into the trees like a lightning bolt and was gone. Miaka watched as it left with such incredible speed. It was gone faster than it came.
Her attention was brought back to Chichiri when his body trembled. He moaned again and she was scared when she realized that he might die. Tears started to roll down her face as she looked at her injured friend. She felt a hand gently grip her shoulders. She turned around and found herself staring into deep lavender eyes. She had never seen eyes like that before.
The strange man reached into a pack he had at his side and produced a small vial. She watched as he set the vial down and reached for Chichiri. Miaka, unsure of what to do, watched as the man laid the monk onto his back. A painful gasp escaped his lips as he was moved. The man pick the vial up and pulled the top off. Slowly and carefully, he reached his left hand around the seishi's neck. He then lifted his head to a slight angle and pressed the vial against his lips. He poured a small amount of liquid into Chichiri's mouth and waited while the monk swallowed it. After that, the man laid his head back down and recovered the vial. Chichiri gasped and trembled for a couple of minutes, but then relaxed as sleep over took him. Miaka was in awe, but scared at the same time. She had never seen a man like this before. She was sure he was trying to help Chichiri, but she had no idea what that liquid was supposed to do.
"It's a healing elixir." He spoke as if he was reading her mind. She looked at him, startled. "He will be completely healed in a couple of hours." With that, he got up and started to walk away.
"Wait," she managed, with a trembling voice.
He turned and regarded her. He could tell the girl was frightened and didn't want him to leave. So he turned toward her and studied her.
Miaka studied him as well. She couldn't get over how this man looked. He had ebony skin that looked darker than the night, thick white hair that hung about his shoulders, and pointed ears. Pointed ears? She had never heard of a human with pointed ears.
When she realized that she was staring, she looked away not wanting to be rude.
"Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you for helping us." She managed a slight smile and then looked back at Chichiri. He was breathing easier now. It seemed as if that healing elixir was working. She was glad for it. She looked back at the man when she realized that he was studying her very intently. She suddenly felt embarrassed. She must have looked awful.
Wanting to break the heavy silence, she decided it best to just introduce herself. She stood up and looked at him. He wasn't much taller than she was. "Forgive me for not introducing myself, I am Miaka Yuuki, the Priestess of Suzaku. And this is Chichiri, one of my seishi."
The man gave her a quizzical look. Then he decided to return the respects. "My name is Drizzt Do'urden." He said this with a slight bow and then regarded the sleeping form again. Curious, he looked at Miaka again, "What is a seishi?"
The question startled her. She thought everyone in Konan knew who the seven stars of Suzaku was. She thought everyone knew who she was. "A seishi is a celestial warrior of their respective god." She looked at him wondering if that cleared anything up in his mind. Not being able to stand it anymore, she just had to ask, "you're not from around here, are you?"