^*^AN^*^ I am SOO sorry I haven't updated in so long! School started, and
then I had to train the middle schoolers, learn how to play the guitar
(family tradition) and all sorts of other junk. Then I tried to find my
story, and couldn't, and it's just been so crazy. *bows* Please forgive me,
I'll go faster next time! Promise!
I want to thank Eria and Katrina B Trerrence for reviewing, you people are great!!! I hope you like this chapter, though Kyle doesn't make an appearance in this on, Gomen! (Note: I ALWAYS thank my reviewers, so if you wanna be mentioned, just leave a review! ^_^ Or if you don't wanna be mentioned, just tell me so when you review) Anyway, read and review!
Chapter 16
The next day, Lana woke up with a groan, she could tell by the sun outside that it had to be about noon. Lana's eyes slowly widened. Where was she? She didn't see anything familiar, and she hurt like heck. Suddenly she remembered Schola saying something about the 'palace' before she passed out, and grinned evilly. She was quite disappointed there was no one there to notice she had woken up, and she wasn't even SURE where she was, so she decided to get their attention in her own little way.
Lana filled up her lungs, and yelled at the top of her lungs, "WHERE THE HECK AM I?!?!?!?!?"
**********************************************
The seishi and Serena had finally gotten everyone to come eat lunch, and they were all sitting at the dining table, eating, when a scream echoed around the palace.
Serena made out, "WHERE THE HECK AM I?!?!?!?!?" and dropped her cup in shock.
"I think Lana-chan's awake." she said weakly. Immediately Kami, Allelu, Marisa, Joses, and Schola were running to Lana's room, where servants were blocking the hallway.
"Oi! Let me out! I hurt like heck and am NOT in the mood for this!!!" they heard Lana growl at someone, and another voice, a girl who worked in the palace probably, pleading with her.
"Please Miss! You need to get into proper attire before you explore, and we need a doctor to look at you, you don't seem to healthy."
"Aw, who cares what I'm wearin'? And your completely right, I'm not at the moment, but I'm supposed to feel better in a few days, now, LET ME PASS!" Lana replied sounding like she was about to loose patience.
Allelu managed to squeeze past all the servants who were watching this strange girl and the head of the staff, Engetsu, fight, and flung herself at Lana, yelling, "Lan-chan! You're awake!"
Lana halted her fighting for a second, and hugged Allelu back, saying, "Course I am, Allelu-chan, when have I ever stayed down for long? Glad to see you're okay, where am I?" Allelu quickly told her what happened, while Marisa shooed all the servants away. "The palace, huh? Looks like I won't have to travel as far to find your Dad, right?" Lana said, winking as Allelu finished her story.
"How are you feeling, no da?" Schola asked, looking concerned.
Lana smiled brightly, and said, "Like I should keel over in few hours, but don't worry. I'll be fine."
Kami laughed, and threw an arm around her shoulders, saying, "Yeah, you're tough, ain't ya?"
Lana pumped a fist in the air, ignoring the pain that shot up her arm when she did so, and cried, "Yur d@mn right! I can live through ANYTHING!"
Marisa gave a small cough, not knowing if Lana was still going to be mad at her or not, and looked a little worried. Lana, on the other hand, had already forgiven her, and glomped her saying, "Hey Marisa! Did you bring anything from back home? I miss my CD player, you didn't happen to bring one with ya, did you?"
Marisa laughed in relief, and hugged her back, exclaiming, "Are you kidding?! I brought two CD players, a million batteries, and even raided your room for all your CD's before I left!" Lana cheered, but winced when it caused pain in her side. "Come on, Lana, I'll get my pack, and we'll look through all the junk I grabbed." Marisa told her, and put her friend's arm around her shoulder since it was obviously painful for Lana to walk. Kami wrapped an arm around Lana's waist from the other side to help support her, but found himself being grabbed by the back of the collar and drug away. He went chibi, trying to twist around to see who it was, and finally saw Allelu looking a little peeved.
"If YOU end up helping Lana all the time, that doesn't leave any openings for Schola!" she hissed lowly, going chibi also, and dropping him.
Kami rolled his eyes, and got up, saying, "Hai, hai. Just don't try to strangle me next time." Lana and Marisa hadn't noticed, and were busy trying to figure out how to get Lana out of the room.
"Marisa, forget it. I can't walk. I can stand, but if I start moving on my feet, everything starts spinning." Lana sighed, and held her head, feeling dizzy. Lana yelped as she was suddenly swept up off the ground into someone's arms.
"I'll carry you, no da. We need to go see Sodom-sama." Schola said, shifting Lana so he could carry her easily, one hand supporting her back, the other under her knees. Schola looked at the others, saying, "Come on, no da. Everyone's gonna want to talk to her, we need to get to the dining hall."
Immediately Engetsu was there, saying sternly, "She needs to get properly dressed before she sees the Emperor! Now all of you, out! I'll call you when I'm done!"
They all sweatdropped, and mumbled, "Hai." Schola gently set Lana down on the bed, then they all walked out.
"Please hurry, we all need to talk to Lana." Marisa asked the woman, who nodded, then followed the rest out.
**********************************************
Marisa and the others all sat in the dining hall somewhat impatiently, when another yell rocked the palace foundations. "YOU WANT ME TO WHERE A DRESS?!?!?! NO DEAL!!!!"
Then Engetsu, who sounded like she had had enough, shouted back, "WHAT WOULD YOU RATHER WERE THEN?! MEN'S TRAVEL CLOTHES?!"
"HAI!" was the reply, and Marisa clapped her hands over her ears, knowing the next yell was sure to be an eardrum blaster.
"YOU ARE GOING TO WEAR PROPER PALACE CLOTHES FIT FOR A LADY, YOU ARE GOING TO SIT STILL WHILE I FIX YOUR HAIR, AND YOU ARE NOT GOING TO COMPLAIN!!! IN FACT, IF I SAY SO, YOU ARE GOING TO LIKE IT! YA GOT THAT?!?!?!"
Kami and Allelu whimpered, looking a tad frightened, and Joses gulped, saying, "Where the heck do you FIND people like this?"
Sodom chuckled, and said, "Well, we had to have SOMEONE who could lead the rest of the staff without a problem, didn't we?"
Schola grimaced, and commented, "She puts the fear of Suzaku in you, no da. Doesn't she?" They all listened for a while, but no more yells were heard.
"Did that woman kill Lana?" Allelu asked, looking apprehensive.
*****************************************
Lana gulped, and looked at the fuming Engetsu before her, who's voice had left her dizzy. She had made Lana take a bath, then had started talking about clothes as she helped her walk back to the room. Lana had tried to argue, but... well... "Hai." Lana said meekly, sitting down, good as gold. Engetsu grumbled a bit, and began going through a closet, picking out various pieces of clothing.
"Hm, blue would be nice, but then again, red would look good." Engetsu mumbled to herself, holding up a blue and a red kimono to Lana, comparing.
"Well, if I must..." Lana sighed inside her head, and said, "I like the red one."
Engetsu nodded and looked pleased, saying, "Yes, I think that would do nicely. By the way, what's your name?" Lana breathed a sigh of relief. Engetsu seemed to be back in a good mood.
"I'm Lana. Could you tell me why the Emperor wants to see me?" Lana asked, changing into the kimono behind a screen, and letting Engetsu tie up the sash since it hurt her wrists to twist them around.
"Well, from what I've heard, you're from the Miko's world, are you not?" the woman answered, steering Lana to a chair and sitting her down, pulling out a brush.
"Hai. I arrived here a few months ago." Lana told her, sighing as she realized how much she missed her home.
"That's most likely why. I also heard they seem to think you're Tamaho- My goodness! Your hair is strange!" Engetsu suddenly yelped, staring at it.
"What's wrong with it?" Lana asked defensively.
"I'm sorry, it's just that MOST people's hair doesn't change color every few inches." Engetsu said, turning her towards a mirror.
Lana grinned. "Yeah, back at home people called me 'Calico'. It's just the way my hair is." Lana's hair was bright red in some places, gold where the sun shone on certain places, brown in others, had little traces of orange here and there, and even had a streak of blond at the back of her neck. If you stood a few feet away, it just looked like a straight brownish red, but up close, you saw that it had every natural hair color possible all thrown together.
Engetsu's eyes went all sparkly, and she said, "Kawaii! I just HAVE to do something to make it more noticeable!" Lana sweatdropped, as Engetsu went chibi, and began doing her hair. In the end, some was done up in a bun, with the rest curling prettily around her face. Each curl, Lana noticed, seemed like it was a different color from the rest.
"Is that natural, or did she do that on purpose?" Lana asked herself, sweatdropping again. "It's nice, but I'm going to feel so embarrassed walking out there in front of everyone. Speaking of which, how am I supposed to get there? Even with your help, it still hurts to move." Lana said, slumping down in her seat.
Engetsu smacked her sharply on the shoulder, and said, "Sit up straight. And don't worry, I'll think of something. You! Go get Chimi, he should be at the archery range, he's a strong boy, he can help you." The maid Engetsu had ordered to get the man ran in a little while later with a boy, probably about fifteen, who looked at Lana and winked.
"So your the cripple, huh?"
Lana scowled, and said, "Not 'cripple', I still have full use of my legs, thank you." Chimi chuckled, and swept her up, Lana giving a yelp of surprise.
He held her as if she weighed no more than a feather pillow. "Yeah yeah. Where to, Engetsu?"
"Please take her to the banquet hall." Engetsu ordered, but Lana began squirming and trying to get down.
"No! Now way! I take it back! I'm NOT going to show up in front of everyone looking so helpless! I'll walk on my own two feet even if it KILLS me! I refuse to be lugged around like a piece of luggage!" she ranted, and finally managed to twist out of Chimi's arms, and land awkwardly on her feet, refusing to show she was in pain.
"Have it your way, I'll just tag along in case you need help. Besides, you need SOMEONE to show you the way." Chimi said, shrugging and putting his hands behind his head. Lana just snorted, and followed him out the door, forcing her vision to clear and ignoring the pain in her legs.
I want to thank Eria and Katrina B Trerrence for reviewing, you people are great!!! I hope you like this chapter, though Kyle doesn't make an appearance in this on, Gomen! (Note: I ALWAYS thank my reviewers, so if you wanna be mentioned, just leave a review! ^_^ Or if you don't wanna be mentioned, just tell me so when you review) Anyway, read and review!
Chapter 16
The next day, Lana woke up with a groan, she could tell by the sun outside that it had to be about noon. Lana's eyes slowly widened. Where was she? She didn't see anything familiar, and she hurt like heck. Suddenly she remembered Schola saying something about the 'palace' before she passed out, and grinned evilly. She was quite disappointed there was no one there to notice she had woken up, and she wasn't even SURE where she was, so she decided to get their attention in her own little way.
Lana filled up her lungs, and yelled at the top of her lungs, "WHERE THE HECK AM I?!?!?!?!?"
**********************************************
The seishi and Serena had finally gotten everyone to come eat lunch, and they were all sitting at the dining table, eating, when a scream echoed around the palace.
Serena made out, "WHERE THE HECK AM I?!?!?!?!?" and dropped her cup in shock.
"I think Lana-chan's awake." she said weakly. Immediately Kami, Allelu, Marisa, Joses, and Schola were running to Lana's room, where servants were blocking the hallway.
"Oi! Let me out! I hurt like heck and am NOT in the mood for this!!!" they heard Lana growl at someone, and another voice, a girl who worked in the palace probably, pleading with her.
"Please Miss! You need to get into proper attire before you explore, and we need a doctor to look at you, you don't seem to healthy."
"Aw, who cares what I'm wearin'? And your completely right, I'm not at the moment, but I'm supposed to feel better in a few days, now, LET ME PASS!" Lana replied sounding like she was about to loose patience.
Allelu managed to squeeze past all the servants who were watching this strange girl and the head of the staff, Engetsu, fight, and flung herself at Lana, yelling, "Lan-chan! You're awake!"
Lana halted her fighting for a second, and hugged Allelu back, saying, "Course I am, Allelu-chan, when have I ever stayed down for long? Glad to see you're okay, where am I?" Allelu quickly told her what happened, while Marisa shooed all the servants away. "The palace, huh? Looks like I won't have to travel as far to find your Dad, right?" Lana said, winking as Allelu finished her story.
"How are you feeling, no da?" Schola asked, looking concerned.
Lana smiled brightly, and said, "Like I should keel over in few hours, but don't worry. I'll be fine."
Kami laughed, and threw an arm around her shoulders, saying, "Yeah, you're tough, ain't ya?"
Lana pumped a fist in the air, ignoring the pain that shot up her arm when she did so, and cried, "Yur d@mn right! I can live through ANYTHING!"
Marisa gave a small cough, not knowing if Lana was still going to be mad at her or not, and looked a little worried. Lana, on the other hand, had already forgiven her, and glomped her saying, "Hey Marisa! Did you bring anything from back home? I miss my CD player, you didn't happen to bring one with ya, did you?"
Marisa laughed in relief, and hugged her back, exclaiming, "Are you kidding?! I brought two CD players, a million batteries, and even raided your room for all your CD's before I left!" Lana cheered, but winced when it caused pain in her side. "Come on, Lana, I'll get my pack, and we'll look through all the junk I grabbed." Marisa told her, and put her friend's arm around her shoulder since it was obviously painful for Lana to walk. Kami wrapped an arm around Lana's waist from the other side to help support her, but found himself being grabbed by the back of the collar and drug away. He went chibi, trying to twist around to see who it was, and finally saw Allelu looking a little peeved.
"If YOU end up helping Lana all the time, that doesn't leave any openings for Schola!" she hissed lowly, going chibi also, and dropping him.
Kami rolled his eyes, and got up, saying, "Hai, hai. Just don't try to strangle me next time." Lana and Marisa hadn't noticed, and were busy trying to figure out how to get Lana out of the room.
"Marisa, forget it. I can't walk. I can stand, but if I start moving on my feet, everything starts spinning." Lana sighed, and held her head, feeling dizzy. Lana yelped as she was suddenly swept up off the ground into someone's arms.
"I'll carry you, no da. We need to go see Sodom-sama." Schola said, shifting Lana so he could carry her easily, one hand supporting her back, the other under her knees. Schola looked at the others, saying, "Come on, no da. Everyone's gonna want to talk to her, we need to get to the dining hall."
Immediately Engetsu was there, saying sternly, "She needs to get properly dressed before she sees the Emperor! Now all of you, out! I'll call you when I'm done!"
They all sweatdropped, and mumbled, "Hai." Schola gently set Lana down on the bed, then they all walked out.
"Please hurry, we all need to talk to Lana." Marisa asked the woman, who nodded, then followed the rest out.
**********************************************
Marisa and the others all sat in the dining hall somewhat impatiently, when another yell rocked the palace foundations. "YOU WANT ME TO WHERE A DRESS?!?!?! NO DEAL!!!!"
Then Engetsu, who sounded like she had had enough, shouted back, "WHAT WOULD YOU RATHER WERE THEN?! MEN'S TRAVEL CLOTHES?!"
"HAI!" was the reply, and Marisa clapped her hands over her ears, knowing the next yell was sure to be an eardrum blaster.
"YOU ARE GOING TO WEAR PROPER PALACE CLOTHES FIT FOR A LADY, YOU ARE GOING TO SIT STILL WHILE I FIX YOUR HAIR, AND YOU ARE NOT GOING TO COMPLAIN!!! IN FACT, IF I SAY SO, YOU ARE GOING TO LIKE IT! YA GOT THAT?!?!?!"
Kami and Allelu whimpered, looking a tad frightened, and Joses gulped, saying, "Where the heck do you FIND people like this?"
Sodom chuckled, and said, "Well, we had to have SOMEONE who could lead the rest of the staff without a problem, didn't we?"
Schola grimaced, and commented, "She puts the fear of Suzaku in you, no da. Doesn't she?" They all listened for a while, but no more yells were heard.
"Did that woman kill Lana?" Allelu asked, looking apprehensive.
*****************************************
Lana gulped, and looked at the fuming Engetsu before her, who's voice had left her dizzy. She had made Lana take a bath, then had started talking about clothes as she helped her walk back to the room. Lana had tried to argue, but... well... "Hai." Lana said meekly, sitting down, good as gold. Engetsu grumbled a bit, and began going through a closet, picking out various pieces of clothing.
"Hm, blue would be nice, but then again, red would look good." Engetsu mumbled to herself, holding up a blue and a red kimono to Lana, comparing.
"Well, if I must..." Lana sighed inside her head, and said, "I like the red one."
Engetsu nodded and looked pleased, saying, "Yes, I think that would do nicely. By the way, what's your name?" Lana breathed a sigh of relief. Engetsu seemed to be back in a good mood.
"I'm Lana. Could you tell me why the Emperor wants to see me?" Lana asked, changing into the kimono behind a screen, and letting Engetsu tie up the sash since it hurt her wrists to twist them around.
"Well, from what I've heard, you're from the Miko's world, are you not?" the woman answered, steering Lana to a chair and sitting her down, pulling out a brush.
"Hai. I arrived here a few months ago." Lana told her, sighing as she realized how much she missed her home.
"That's most likely why. I also heard they seem to think you're Tamaho- My goodness! Your hair is strange!" Engetsu suddenly yelped, staring at it.
"What's wrong with it?" Lana asked defensively.
"I'm sorry, it's just that MOST people's hair doesn't change color every few inches." Engetsu said, turning her towards a mirror.
Lana grinned. "Yeah, back at home people called me 'Calico'. It's just the way my hair is." Lana's hair was bright red in some places, gold where the sun shone on certain places, brown in others, had little traces of orange here and there, and even had a streak of blond at the back of her neck. If you stood a few feet away, it just looked like a straight brownish red, but up close, you saw that it had every natural hair color possible all thrown together.
Engetsu's eyes went all sparkly, and she said, "Kawaii! I just HAVE to do something to make it more noticeable!" Lana sweatdropped, as Engetsu went chibi, and began doing her hair. In the end, some was done up in a bun, with the rest curling prettily around her face. Each curl, Lana noticed, seemed like it was a different color from the rest.
"Is that natural, or did she do that on purpose?" Lana asked herself, sweatdropping again. "It's nice, but I'm going to feel so embarrassed walking out there in front of everyone. Speaking of which, how am I supposed to get there? Even with your help, it still hurts to move." Lana said, slumping down in her seat.
Engetsu smacked her sharply on the shoulder, and said, "Sit up straight. And don't worry, I'll think of something. You! Go get Chimi, he should be at the archery range, he's a strong boy, he can help you." The maid Engetsu had ordered to get the man ran in a little while later with a boy, probably about fifteen, who looked at Lana and winked.
"So your the cripple, huh?"
Lana scowled, and said, "Not 'cripple', I still have full use of my legs, thank you." Chimi chuckled, and swept her up, Lana giving a yelp of surprise.
He held her as if she weighed no more than a feather pillow. "Yeah yeah. Where to, Engetsu?"
"Please take her to the banquet hall." Engetsu ordered, but Lana began squirming and trying to get down.
"No! Now way! I take it back! I'm NOT going to show up in front of everyone looking so helpless! I'll walk on my own two feet even if it KILLS me! I refuse to be lugged around like a piece of luggage!" she ranted, and finally managed to twist out of Chimi's arms, and land awkwardly on her feet, refusing to show she was in pain.
"Have it your way, I'll just tag along in case you need help. Besides, you need SOMEONE to show you the way." Chimi said, shrugging and putting his hands behind his head. Lana just snorted, and followed him out the door, forcing her vision to clear and ignoring the pain in her legs.