Wheee!! Finally got the next chapter written!! Yay! OVA 3!!! I can't wait until OVA 3 comes out in the US. Hehe. But then again, I absolutely loathe Mayo… =( There had better be some cute Tas/Chi scenes in it or else…!!!!!! But then again, if there isn't… *wah* … that's basically why I'm writing this. Kinda'. So… if you already know what happens in OVA 3 and… let's just say that there's some stuff that isn't exactly right to the show here, kay? This is supposed to be different. (but then again, I probably only wrote that because I don't know exactly everything in OVA 3 and then I'll be able to say "it's supposed to be different" if something's not right! -_-;;) Anyway, I'd better stop rambling and continue on with the story! Note: this chapter starts 9 years after the last one (I know, it's ten years, but time had to pass between the end of OVA 2 and when my fic started!). Oh yeah, and I don't know if Taka was really in a dust storm before Chichiri came, but it sounded cool, so I changed it. Hehe. v^_^

~SakuraBlossom

Oh yeah… it's been a while, but I don't (though I wish I did) own Fushigi Yuugi… wah!

Running Away

Chapter 17

Chichiri walked along the dirt path, his feet making small scuffing noises as they came in contact with small stones that lay strewed across it.

He bent down, observing a small plant that was growing ostentatiously in the middle of the path. He cupped his hands around it, trying to make out what kind of plant it was.

He'd felt uneasy all day for some reason. He didn't know why, couldn't make out why there was a feeling of anxiousness fluttering through him. It was as if… something was about to happen, and soon he'd be caught up in the middle of it.

He stood back up, stretching his arms above his head. It was at times like this that his thoughts always began to drift away… drift to his past, drift to his friends. Drift to Tasuki.

He knew that it was kind of crazy to still be thinking of the bandit after nine years of not even seeing him, but he couldn't help it. There was something about him that just stuck in his mind, that held on to his heart.

Even after everything that had happened, after the time that had past, he still knew that he loved him, loved him with all his heart. He didn't think he'd ever be able to love anyone else, anyone.

But he knew that Tasuki didn't love him. Which was the reason why he hadn't even tried to go back to the bandit compound after that day, that night when he'd found out the truth. Tasuki stayed only in his memories.

"And that's where he should be…" Chichiri whispered to himself. His heart ached as he said it, but he knew it was the truth. He knew that going back, that doing anything to see him again, would only result in more heart-break.

He sighed, and then resumed his walking, his head hanging down. His feet scraped across the worn, beaten path.

A sudden flash jumped through his head. It was like a sudden feeling of pain, of panic, that ripped through his mind.

His head jerked up, feeling out for what had made the cry. He stayed absolutely quiet, barely even breathing.

Chichiri!!! He stepped back a pace, startled at hearing his own name. He kept listening, listening for more.

Chichiri! H-hel… he… lp!

And then he felt it, felt his aura. It was Tamahome, it had to be. Well, it was Taka now… but that wasn't important. The only thing that was important was that somehow, somewhere, Taka was calling to him.

He tried to feel out, feel out to where the call was coming from, where the aura felt the strongest.

He looked up, determined, and then brought his hand up in front of his mouth, uttering a soft chant. And then he was gone.

* * * *

He couldn't see anything. There was nothing to see. Everything was enveloped in a blurring wind of sand. It rushed at him, scraping his body, flying into his eyes.

He called for him again and again, knowing that he must hear him. He had to… just had to.

He brought his hand up in front of his face, trying to shield himself from the ever-raining blows of sand. It stung as it hit his bare skin, sending up tiny pricks of pain along his arms and neck.

"Chi-!!" He opened his mouth and only received another deluge of sand. He coughed, trying to spit the sand out of his mouth, trying to get rid of its vile taste.

He felt another presence close to him, and looked up sharply. He could make out a figure through the sand, a shadow against the beating waterfalls of sand.

He felt another hand slip into his own, and then the sand stopped. Either that or they had teleported. He couldn't be sure, as he was too out of it to tell.

He opened his eyes, grateful now that he could open them without feeling sand rush painfully into them.

"Chichiri!" He smiled, looking across at his fellow seishi. Glad that now at least something had gone right.

"Taka, no da! Daijobu ka, na no da?" Chichiri looked worridly into the other man's face.

Taka coughed, his lungs and throat still coated with sand and dust. He gave a confident smile to Chichiri. "Of course I'm alright, a little sand storm couldn't hurt me."

"What's going on? Why are you back here, no da?"

At this question, Taka grew serious. "It's… I don't even know the whole story. You see, something's happened…"

Chichiri nodded, listening to Taka.

"There's this girl… her name's Mayo. She… I… I think she's fallen in love with me."

Chichiri tilted his head to the side. "And… that's problem because? There's nothing wrong with liking someone else, no da."

Taka smiled a bit, continuing his story. "Well, she found "The Universe of the Four Gods" and… well, she went in to the book. Now everyone thinks she's the Suzaku no miko."

Chichiri's face turned surprised. "But… that's impossible. She can't be the Suzaku no miko… where's Miaka, no da?"

"That's one of the problems. Miaka… she was going to have a baby. It was hers and mine, but when she went to the doctor's… it was like, she was never going to have a baby, it was just gone!

"And then she collapsed, and she won't wake up! I… I came here to find Mayo, because Keisuke knew she had one in here. When I found her, she, she said I was her husband, she, she even had my wedding ring. And she… she had the baby."

If Chichiri hadn't had his mask on, then Taka would have seen his eye grow very big indeed. "She had your baby, no da?"

"Yes, she's… pregnant with Miaka's baby. And, now everyone thinks that she and I are married."

Chichiri sat there a while, taking in this story. Finally, he said something. "We should ask Taiitsukun, no da. She'd know what was going on, and if Mayo is really the new Suzaku no miko, no da."

Taka nodded, and then stood up, ready to go.

"But first, there's someone else who would probably want to go too, no da." Chichiri held up his staff, and soon both of them were gone off the path.

* * * *

They landed a bit unexpertisely in a grove of trees a bit of ways away. Taka groggily got up from off the ground, brushing off the seat of his pants.

"Oh… my powers aren't what they used to be, no da?" Chichiri sat up beside him.

"Are you sure this is the right place, Chichiri?" Taka looked around at their surroundings.

Suddenly, there was a large swish, and both of them were soon caught up in a tangle of nets, not being able to move.

"Knock knock, excuse me. Who is it? I am the leader of the mountain. Oh how wonderful, please come in. Thank you." They could hear the voice from nearby.

A figure walked up to them, his arms across his chest. "Well, it's been a while since anyone came 'round here." The man picked up the net that the two of them were in. "Alright then, I'll just take everything you've got."

The man looked closely at his two captives, and suddenly tilted his head, a confused look on his face.

"Are… are you Kouji?" Taka asked.

Kouji looked closer at them. "…huh? A… aren't you, Tamahome? And… uh…" He looked over at Chichiri, his eyes widening.

He quickly dropped the net, letting the two seishi fall to the ground in a heap. He then untied it, apologizing at the same time.

Taka looked around. "Was Mt. Reikaku always this small?"

Kouji followed Taka's gaze. "No… half the mountain disappeared."

A frown crossed Taka's face. "Oh… but wait a minute. You said you were…?"

Kouji started mumbling. "Huh? Oh… that… well, I…"

There was a shout from up above in the trees. "What the hell you talkin' about? I'm the leader here!!"

There was a thud from near them, and suddenly, a figure grabbed Kouji by the collar, lifting him up.

"You start sayin' crap like that and I'll fire ya'!!!"

"Well, you should talk. You're the one that started snoozin' in that tree up there!!" Kouji shot back.

"Well what are you doin' havin' a nice chat with our prey? Why haven't you taken their stuff yet? You idiot! You know how long it's been since anybody's been here..!"

Chichiri was in a daze, staring at the new man that had entered the clearing. He couldn't take his eye off him, couldn't tear his gaze away.

He was so beautiful. If he had thought that Tasuki was beautiful beforehand, then it couldn't even have compared to what he was seeing now. He couldn't even describe it in words.

"T… Tasuki…."

The firey-haired man turned to face this new voice. "Tasuki…? Who's Tasuki?"

Kouji faced Tasuki, first in confusion, but then in sudden realization. He remembered, the moment he had tried his hardest to forget.

He konked Tasuki hard on the back of his head. "You dolt! You're Tasuki!!" He prayed that nothing would happen, that Tasuki wouldn't be able to remember them.

Tasuki looked hard at the two seishi. "Um… oh yeah!!! I remember now! You're…" he pointed at Taka. "T… Taka… right?"

Taka nodded, glad that the bandit could remember him.

Tasuki turned to Chichiri, and Kouji sucked in his breath.

"And… you're… um… Ch-… Chichiri, right?"

Chichiri felt like his heart was breaking into little tiny pieces. How could he have completely forgetten him like that? How could he have totally washed away everything that they'd been through? How could he… how could he do that?

He tried to keep the tears from coming to his eyes, which was made easier by the fact that he was wearing his mask. Tasuki, how could you do this to me?!

Off to the side, Kouji was feeling a bit of relief, as Tasuki didn't seem to remember much about the monk except his name. But… but the more they were together, the more that could go wrong, and he didn't want to throw away everything that he had built with him and the firey-haired bandit.