A/N: well here it is folks, ch13 at long last! Sorry it took so long nearly ran out of ideas for this chapter then I came up with this… it might not be the best but hey, I tried. Also I have little to no knowledge of Chichiri's gaiden novel so some stuff is going to be non-canon with it. Please be patient with me. Anyways as usual I don't own Fushigi Yuugi but I do own Kyari. And on to the chappy…
The morning sun shone down on the ocean as the ship carrying six Suzaku Seishi, their miko and peacekeeper sailed serenely towards Genbu. A lone figure sat at the back of the ship quietly contemplating the water and letting his thoughts wander. His light blue hair fluttered in the soft ocean breeze, playing gently over his face. He smiled softly as his thoughts drifted to a certain girl he'd fallen for. How could one girl mean so much to him in such a short amount of time? he wondered. His face turned pensive. Was it because every time she looked at him her eyes were full of love and acceptance? Or maybe because she never asked him to change, taking him for who he was scars and all…Able to see past all of that and love him unconditionally…
He sighed. "Maybe because, in many ways, she's just like me…" he mumbled softly, propping his elbow on his knee and cupping his cheek in his hand. "Or maybe it's because I love her." He laughed ruefully as he remembered the days when he thought he'd never love again. Those had been dark days, full of sadness and bitter anger at his rash actions. Not until he met up with the monks of Suzaku, who had taken him in and given him a new reason to want to go on with his life, had he even thought of going back out into the world. Then everything changed. He had been taken to Mount Taikyoku and studied with Taiitsukun; there he had met up with his star brothers and they took him into a world of friendship and love. Finally he belonged somewhere. He had friends and they didn't care what he'd done or what he looked like under the mask. They had become his brothers and just as he would do anything for them, they would do anything for him. He smiled as a warm, happy feeling filled his heart. He had found his place and now, there was a new addition to the Suzaku family. Someone as lost and frightened as he had once been.
Maybe that's why I care so deeply for her. he thought I care because she needs me as much as I need her.
He sat there in silent contemplation, letting his mind drift and didn't notice as the girl he had been thinking of came and sat next to him.
"Whatcha thinking of?" she said softly.
The mage shook his head to clear it. "What? Oh. Nothing important no da." he replied, grateful for the mask that hid his bright red cheeks. "What brings you out so early, no da?"
"I was forced. My stomach doesn't like the ocean any more." she grimaced, moving nearer to him.
"Aww…Poor Kyari, no da." Chichiri said sympathetically. He put his arm around her shoulders, leaning back with his other hand for balance, and pulled her closer.
She sighed and put her head on his shoulder, reaching up and taking his hand in both of hers. "Yup. Poor me." she said lightly. She paused for a second then added, "At least I'm not Tasuki. I was kind of at the same rail as him before…" she explained " You should have seen his face! He was a lovely shade of mint green and every time his head came back up, you could hear him cursing from here to Puerto Rico!"
"Puerto Rico, no da?" the monk asked in confusion.
Kyari laughed and hugged Chichiri. "It's a place in my world. It's far from where I come from so I thought it made a nice comparison."
Chichiri nodded. "Is it nice in your world, no da?" he asked curiously.
"Well, that depends where you go. If you go to say, Hawaii, -that's an island with lots of trees and valleys and cool animals. - Then yeah, it's amazingly beautiful and serene. Then you have your big cities, like Montreal, that's where I live. Those are humongous jungles of stone and metal. There's maybe twenty-five trees in the whole city, there's smoke everywhere and if you want to keep your life you have to be careful what time you cross the street." Kyari told him.
"It sounds a bit like here." Chichiri noted, "If you come to Konan there's a lot of trees and small towns to visit, but go to Kutou and you'll find less greenery and more destruction."
Kyari smiled a little. "I guess no matter what world you live in, it's all the same. Some parts are nice, others not so nice, but it all fits together like pieces in a puzzle."
"Yup, a giant puzzle, that's right, no da." Chichiri laughed. "It's funny, but I never thought of it like that before."
"Well, now you have." Kyari said quietly. The soft sway of the boat combined with Chichiri's closeness had brought a sense of peace over her and she sighed. "Want to know something else?" she said, her voice soft and almost sleepy "I think everyone should have someone like you to take care of them when they're sick."
Chichiri smiled and gave her a kiss on top of her head. "Glad I could help, no da."
The pair stayed like that for a long time just watching the sun playing over the surface of the water and enjoying being with each other.
***********A/N: well there's ch13 for you. It's kinda short and stupid but hey, it got rid of my writer's block and next chapter'll be better. I swear! Anyways, yes no weird words and see you next chapter.
~Tenshi Kitsune~ **********
