Blossoming Heartbeats Prologue: Fragrant Friends Summary: Kiie was never liked in the true world of Miaka, and was often bullied around to the point where Miaka led her into the world of the Universe of the Four Gods. There, she is destined to find true friendship, true love, and maybe even a new beginning. Will it happen like a dream, or move slowly like a nightmare? R&R Please. Disclaimer: I do not own Fushigi Yugi, nor any of the characters from it, they all belong to the wonderful artist Yu Watase ^^

"Kiie! Come on, I'll take you somewhere safe. Somewhere where you can be protected against the horrors of the real world. I promise that you'll be fulfilled!" Miaka shouted as she reached out a hand from the blinding red light surrounding her. From the moment she had opened the book in her hands, Kiie realized that she wasn't going to be afraid again, and she reached to Miaka, her arm stinging in what was not pain, but a refreshing calmness flooding her in waves. She could feel her body surge with currents of reassurance, letting her know that Miaka wasn't lying, that she would be safe. At that minute. Kiie felt her body rush with images, some of her past, some of her present, and some that she didn't recognize. Were they the future? Were they things to come? Or were they things that she could change? She could sense that Miaka and her self were protected by this immense red illumination, and that it wouldn't hurt them with sorrowful images. The last figure Kiie remembered before everything turned black around her was of a tall man with gorgeous sunset-colored hair and mysterious amber-violet eyes.

Kiie woke suddenly, sitting up too quick, causing a great pain to her chest. She groaned in agony and suddenly felt comforting hands on her shoulders. "Are you ok?" Kiie looked up to see Miaka staring down at her with grief-stricken eyes. Kiie stood slowly, clutching her stomach and moaned loudly. She looked around to see a barren desert with only a few dead trees scattered here and there. "Where are we?" she asked, suddenly curious as to what got them from the dark library to this strange place. "We're in the land of Konan," Miaka answered, wrapping a helpful arm around Kiie, "Come on, we need to get you to the palace." "Palace? How can you get into a palace, there's nothing around for miles..." Kiie trailed off as she saw a passing hay wagon on a small dirt road. Her eyes widened a little, but then squinted in pain as the sun flared in her eyes. "I know, I thought I was in the middle of nowhere when I first came here too," Miaka said as she gradually began to lead Kiie towards the road. She wrapped her arm tighter around Kiie's shoulder and could feel the poor girl shaking. She could just hear Tamahome calling her a dummy for bringing a defenseless girl into Konan. The cart was now in range, so Miaka forced Kiie to walk just a little faster. "Come on Kiie, otherwise we'll probably have to wait for another hour before the next wagon," she encouraged. Kiie nodded solemnly, her face surrendered to the throbbing emotions swelling in her chest. She carefully climbed into the cart and Miaka followed her, and they were soon on their way to the capital. Kiie twinged each moment that the rickety wagon rolled over a stone in the road. Blood slowly seeped through her shirt and soon her hand was stained red, but she refused to point it out to Miaka.

Amazement weaved over Kiie's face as she looked up to the houses around her as she walked on by; she was completely ignorant to the people around her who were bowing to Miaka. They soon reached the palace gates at the end of the main road, and Miaka called out to one of the guards above. "Uh, Miaka, exactly how are we going to be allowed in? I mean, we're just as simple as the people around us..." Kiie looked to Miaka in wonder, and Miaka just smiled warmly. The gates opened slowly, a loud creak coming from their hinges. "You'll see," she muttered. The guards let them walk right passed them and up to the main building without a word, and Kiie continued on, dumbfound. Miaka opened a large door at the top of the steps and entered, gesturing for Kiie to follow. When she finally came in, she watched as Miaka was surrounded by hordes of men. One with blue hair and a small ponytail embraced her with a tender kiss. A few of them patted her shoulders, almost as if they were welcoming her back from a long trip, and a man that looked to be the emperor squeezed her close as well. Suddenly, one of them looked towards her and appeared to ask Miaka who she was. Miaka laughed whole-heartedly, as if she had almost forgotten Kiie, "That's my friend Kiie, she's from my world. Kiie, these are my friends from this world. This is my boyfriend Tamahome," she pointed to the blue- haired man, "The emperor, Hotohori," she pointed to the man in the long robes, "Nuriko, careful, he's actually a guy," she pointed to what appeared to be a woman, "Mitsukake, the healer," she gestured towards a tall man with rugged features, "Chiriko, he's a genius," she laughed as she pointed to a small boy who bowed lowly towards Kiie, "Chichiri, the kindly monk, he's a lot of fun," she motioned to a man with a blue-gray mohawk and a cat- like face, "And lastly, Tasuki. He's a bandit, so keep your money well hidden." She pointed to a man with handsome features and sunset-colored hair. Kiie gasped quietly to herself as she realized he was the last image she saw before she had fainted earlier. Suddenly, her knees collapsed beneath her and she fell to the ground huffing, trying to catch her breath. She wheezed loudly as Miaka ran to her side and kneeled down beside her. "Kiie! Kiie! What's wrong?" Miaka shouted as her eyes filled in horror when she spotted the blood dripping through the blood-soaked shirt. "Mitsukake, please, help Kiie!"