AN: Sorry that I haven't update this story for so long. *sweat drop* I've been busy with Promises, as you all know. And I've been busy watching Kaikan Phrase... Sakuya, Yuki…. *drools*, another bishie wonderland. I'm planning to write another Nakago/Usagi story very soon. Probably sometime during Christmas vacation. I'm also planning to write a short story for Dani, this one is going to be a Chichiri/Usagi story, for all of her funny reviews involving her chibi Chichiri. *giggles*
Thanks to: Chrys-Chan, Queen Celestia (I already have a few ideas for the Chichiri/Usagi story, hope that you'll like it when it comes out), Raven_chan, Blue Angel( *blushes* thanks. *jumps up and down* another Naka/Usa and Hoto/Usa fan!), Mei-chan( I hope that things are going well with your anime club), GoldenGoddess( gomen, I already chose Hoto-chan, but like I said, I'll try a Chichiri/Usagi short story), Ten'imuhmou Tenshi, Bluejello, Jade Diggory, Panda Babie, Teardrop, Chibi Michi, Akiko Joy (I already have a Naka/Usa story if you like the pairing so much. *sweat drop* It's a shameless plug), Luna, SenshiJupiter, chibi megami astraea ( we all love Naka-chan, don't we?), *~ Ivory-chan ~* (wow, I can never function at night. Well except when there's an exam, and I have my secret coffee supply…), Lady love, Usa-chan, Fleur de Lys (glad that you like. Hoto-chan…*swoon* he has to be the one of the most beautiful bishies I've ever seen. Just out of curiosity, are you French?), JLSCORPIO78, Tschubi-chan ( strange all these Hoto and Naka lovers. Don't worry about Promises. ^_^), Tegasus, adb, and Aidenn (you know, it's really weird, every time I have a new chapter or story out, you always seem to be the first one to review. Not that I'm complaining ^____^)
Disclaimer: Don't own anything.
Chapter 1
The sound of sharpening metal woke up the sleeping girl.
"What? Where am I?" The blonde girl gingerly pushed herself up from the hard cot she was lying in. Dim light filtered through the coarse blue cloth, that was over head. Judging by the sounds around her, she was sleeping in a large tent in the middle of a army.
"Your are in my tent," a deep male voice answered from a dark corner. As the girl watched, the figure slowly rose from his seat, and walked towards her, the only thing visible was the pair of intensive blue eyes that were glued to her.
Acting on instinct, the blonde girl pulled up the thin cover as the man reached out a large hand and traced the faintly glowing crescent moon on her forehead.
"Who are you?" the question was whispered quietly by the man. But, even the thick night air couldn't disguise his tone of urgency and anxiety.
"My name is Usagi," the girl answered as she tried to back away.
"You have the same name as her," the man said thoughtfully to himself. "Where are you from Usagi?"
"I...I..." a horrified expression crossed her face. Where was she from? Flashes of images appeared in her mind, but all of them were to blurry to distinguish anything. Usagi tried harder to remember, but all she accomplished to do was giving herself a terrible headache that threatened to tear apart her head. "I... don't remember..."
The man frowned. "You have to be her. You are almost identical in looks, and you also have the crescent moon mark."
"Who's she?"
"Do you want to hear a story?"
Usagi looked up in surprise. Even though she hadn't known him for long, it wasn't hard to tell that he wasn't the type to tell bedtime stories to injured girls. Wordlessly she nodded, before settling into a comfortable position on the bed. The blond man sat next to her. This time, instead of feeling threatened, a familiar warmth washed over her at his presence.
"Years ago, there was a tribe called the Hin in Kutou. All the people in Hin had blonde hair and blue eyes, unlike the rest of the people in Kutou. There was a single mother who lived in the Hin tribe. No one knew who her husband was, or if she was married or not. How she got pregnant still reminded a mystery. There were rumours that the young mother was a virgin. At the age of sixteen, she gave birth to a baby boy. Five years later, to a baby girl.
"The young woman was treated with utmost respect of almost reverence by her people, because there was a prophecy made during the ancient times about a maiden giving birth to two babies that were destined to change the world. The two babies were not like any other children either. The boy who was named Nakago was born with a blue kokoro symbol on his forehead. He was said to be destined to be the seishi of the Seiryuu no miko. The girl, who was five years younger than him, was born with a crescent moon mark. She was treated like a little goddess, because it was said that she would be the one to decide the fate of the universe. Her name was Usagi, because of the two pig tails that she wore her hair in."
The blonde girl could see the faint outline of his upturned lips in the darkness, before he continued. "The boy adored his sister. Even though the little girl was treated like a princess, and was spoiled by all the tribe's people, she grew to be caring and fun. No matter how hard the times were, she was always able to bring laugher and warmth to everyone around her. The two siblings were especially close. Every night, the little girl would not go to sleep, unless her aniki was there to hold her. And he was always there to protect her." The armoured man slowly reached out, and stroke the long golden strands of the girl on the bed.
"They were happy until it was the girl's sixth birthday. The whole town prepared a lavish celebration in the honor of their little angel's birth. Everyone brought their gifts to the young woman her daughter, and everyone was laughing and celebrating the joyful event until it was time to put the birthday girl to sleep. That night, Nakago was not allowed to sleep beside his sister, because she was forced to sleep alone in her bedroom as a big girl..."
"What happened next?" Usagi asked softly, as the man stopped talking.
"The next morning, when the boy went to wake up his imouto, all he found was an empty room. His imouto had disappeared. No traces of the little girl was left, except for a broken bracelet, which was given to her by him as his present for her. The tribe searched everywhere, but they couldn't find where the little girl had gone. From that day on, the tribe became poorer. The crops failed, and the climate became drier. The young woman and her son was blamed for the girl's disappearance. They became the scapegoat for the Hin tribe's misfortunes.
"The next year, the Kutou army attacked the Hin tribe. Everyone was killed, except for the boy, who was taken to the emperor. There he grew into a man and learnt to become a seishi for the Seiryuu no miko when she arrives." The man paused to tilt Usagi's head up to face him.
"He waited for almost eight years for his miko to come, so he could ask her to wish back his sister. And finally, three days ago, his prayers were finally answered. A girl fell from the heavens. Knowing that she could be the Seiryuu no miko, the man saved the girl. But never in his wildest dreams, could he have guessed that the girl he saved was his long lost sister..." The man finished as he finally moved out of the darkness.
A gasp was heard from Usagi, as she remarked at his features, which were nearly identical to hers. On his forehead, a faint blue symbol glowed. Kokoro. Even though she didn't know the character, she was able to guess its meaning from the story he just told. Usagi reached out a shaking hand and traced the familiar blue eyes, where wetness was slowly gathering. Her own eyes began to water as a single tear dropped on to her finger resting on his finger. Another set of images flashed across her mind. This time, they were clear. The sapphire eyes widened as memories of a lovely young woman and a laughing little boy resurfaced in her mind. "a...aniki?" The endearment slipped from her lips shakily.
"Imouto," Nakago whispered, his happiness showed under the cold facade.
"Aniki!" With a cry, Usagi lunged herself into his waiting arms, tears finally started to fall freely as bits and pieces returned to her blank mind. "I remember now. I missed you so much when I was taken away. I tried so hard to find you, but it was so dark and I couldn't see anything. Then..." here the memories stopped.
"Where have you been Usa-chan?"
"I...I don't remember," the girl in Nakago's arms frowned. "But I know for sure, that it was very different from this place. I can see blurred images of tall buildings, and people in different clothing, but that's all..."
"Don't worry about that now. All that matters is that you're back with me." The blond shogun hugged his imouto tighter. "I won't ever let anyone take you away, ever again. You've finally came home."
"Aniki?"
"Hai?"
"Where are we?" the bunny looked up, a little sheepishly.
"We are in the Kutou army."
"Why are we in the middle of an army?" Usagi asked confused.
"Because I..." the words were cut off when a soldier walked in.
"Sir! News from the emperor!" the soldier saluted before pulling a scroll from his cloak.
Sending a silent apology to his imouto, before his eyes hardened to the emotionless sapphires that his men was used to see. Quickly scanning the contents of the scroll, his mouth quirked up at the ends. So the old fool was mad that he retreated. It's a surprise that he even noticed. Handing the scroll back to the soldier, he said curtly. "Go and tell his highness that the battle was not lost. We've won beyond his wildest expectations. Tell his majesty that I will be arriving with the Seiryuu no miko shortly."
"Yes sir," the soldier bowed and left the tent, but not before leering at the blonde haired girl on Nakago's bed.
"Aniki?" Usagi asked as she pulled the covers higher, the stare that she got from the soldier chased away all of her new found confidence.
"What is it imouto?"
"Who's the Seiryuu no miko?" Usagi asked shakily, even though she already had an inkling of who the priestess might be.
Sighing, the blond haired man returned to his place beside the bunny. Taking up her hand, he slip onto the thin wrist, a crude bracelet made out of small wooden beads. "This was the bracelet that I made for you, for your birthday. I've kept it, hoping that one day, I could return it to you."
Feeling the tickle of the rough wood on her skin, Usagi lifted her wrist into the beam of moon light. The string of little beads was rough and plain, obviously made by a little child. "I remember. It was my favourite gift that night. But after you left, I was looking at the bracelet when it became very dark and cold…" New memories awakened by the jewellery. Usagi shivered as she remembered the sensations of the cool fog enveloping her senses.
"It was so quiet, I tried to call out to you, but no one answered. Then… there was someone next to me. A woman I think, with long hair. I was so scared, because the way her eyes glowed like ambers in the dark.
"She said that I would never be able to see you or okaa-san again. Because I was born in the wrong world. And that my destiny laid with another, who was in her world.
"I didn't understand what she meant, but when I asked her…" the blonde girl shook her head. "Why can't I remember what happened after?! She did something, I know it, but…"
The bunny didn't even know that she was crying, until gentle fingers brushed away the burning drops from her cheeks.
"Shh, it's okay. You're back with me again, and safe. That's all that matters. Your memories will come back, give it some time. As for that woman…" Nakago clutched his fists, anger and hatred shinning in his eyes. "If I ever seen her, she'll pay for ever taking you away!" Nakago quietly rocked his imouto, while her harsh sobs gradually softened into occasional hiccups.
"Don't disturb him!" A loud whisper said outside the tent, disturbing the two siblings from their quiet reunion. "Nakago-sama is busy right now." The man must have made some other lewd gesture, because the next moment, muffled laughter was heard.
"He's must having a VERY good time to ignore the army work." The second voice chuckled. "Whoever the girl is, she must be really good in bed to keep Nakago-sama from his work."
"I wonder if he'll be nice enough, and let us have a try at the girl, after he grows tired of her. After all, this is the first time that I've seen a woman with blonde hair and blue eyes, and a very pretty one at that!"
Usagi froze in the shogun's arms as she heard the crude comments. Carefully pulling away from his imouto, Nakago pushed her back onto the bed and covered her with the thin blanket, before he slowly walked towards the door, his expression covered by the familiar expressionless mask.
"I bet that she's still a virgin."
"Yeah, but not anymore if Nakago-sama…" before the second man could finish his sentence, he was slammed into a wooden fence by a large ki blast. The smell of burnt flesh scented the air as the black corpse dropped to the ground. All the soldiers look up fear as they stared at their shogun, whose hand was still stretched out, and had a disgusted expression on his face.
"If I ever hear anyone spreading rumours about the Seiryuu no miko, that person will share the same fate as the one you just saw. Is that clear?" The shogun commanded in a cold sharp voice, penetrating a hole through soldiers' hearts.
"Hai!" All the men fell to their knees on the dirty ground.
"As for you…" Nakago looked down at the other man who degraded his imouto. "Take him away, and behead him."
"No! My lord, please. I did not mean it!" The unfortunate man pleaded, as he was dragged to the centre of the camp, where his screams of terror was cut off by the executioner's axe.
Satisfied with the bloodshed, the blond shogun gave one last chilling stare to the army, before retreating back to his tent.
He quietly walked back to the bed, where Usagi laid on her side, body tightly curled into a ball, eyes squeezed shut and hands covering her ears. Nakago sat down beside the shivering girl, and covered her hand with his. "I'm sorry that you that you had to see that Usa-chan. It's over now. No one will treat you with disrespect ever again."
"Demo…Did they really have to die like that?" the bunny whispered.
Nakago sighed. "That's how the world is Usa-chan. If I don't set an example, the others will continue to spread rumours, or worse, possible even try to hurt you. In this world, only the strongest will survive."
The blond girl's eyes widened as she felt something being slipped into her hand. Bringing the cold metal to the dim light, it was a gold charm swinging on a thin red thread.
"Keep this on you all the time. It'll protect you, if any men try to take you by force. Rest well, imouto. Tomorrow, I'll start to teach you some basic self defence techniques. You need to know how to protect yourself, if ever I'm not there. We are heading back to the capital of Kutou in a week." the shogun pulled the cover up to her chin, before he dragged up a chair next to the bed, and tried to rest as comfortably as possible, while keeping an eye on his imouto.
~*~*~*~
"Any news from our spies in Kutou?" Saihitei asked his advisors kneeling before him.
Looking at each other nervously, one of the oldest members stepped forward. "Sire, our spies from the Kutou army reported that the girl who fell from the heavens, has been…"
"You have our permission to continue," the young emperor said in annoyance, patience wearing thin. He had to know. Would she be the one? The one to set him free from his gilded cage?
"Your majesty, the girl has been proclaimed as the Seiryuu no miko."
Silence. The beautiful young man closed his eyes. Why? Why did fate has to take away the one person that could've saved him. No. he could not except it. If he had to, he would fight to the end for her. Taking a deep breath to calm his raging heart, Saihitei said in a commanding voice. "Did you not tell me that when the girl fell from the heavens, both Suzaku and Seiryuu was seen fighting for her? That must mean her fate has not yet been determined . Before she summons Seiryuu, there might still be a chance for us to convince her to be the Suzaku no miko."
"That is true your highness, but the possibilities of going to Kutou and bring back the girl is highly unlikely," The old advisor said in panic. "It can lead to another war, your majesty. Please consider the consequences, and plus, we even have any evidences if she could be the Suzaku no…"
"Your majesty!" a guard ran into the room, sword drawn out. "There's an intruder!"
"What's wrong?" The emperor yelled out, as the guards surrounded him, weapons drawn out, ready to attack if anything happened.
"There was a monk at the gates. He demanded to speak to you. When we told him that a commoner like him couldn't just demand to see the emperor like that, he laughed and disappeared! He must be a sorcerer, sent by the Kutou emperor to assassinate your highness. "
"That's not nice, no da. I came all this way to see a fellow seishi, and all I get are false accusations and physical assaults no da." A strange man chided as he magically rose from the ground, right in front of the astonished palace guards.
Saihitei stared at the newcomer in shock. "Who are you? And how do you know that I'm a Suzaku seishi?"
The blue haired monk scratched the back of his head with his staff. "I'm also a Suzaku seishi no da. And I know you are a Suzaku seishi because when the Suzaku no miko fell from the heavens, I felt all the Suzaku seishi's ki being released."
A spark of hope burst in the emperor's lonely heart. "Wait… What did you say? The Suzaku no miko…"
AN: That's all for now. Have to get some sleep. Why can't cats hibernate? ^.^;;;