Chapter 20
The gang huddled as close together as possible, watching the reeking corpses moan and groan as they got closer and closer to them.
* by the way, sorry for the bad ending, I didn't write it too well, but I suddenly realized that I had to get going, sorry! *
Katie fell to the ground, her cheeks flushed. "Oh, no," Caitlin moaned. "She has a fever!"
"She has a fever!" Tamahome cried. He flung his arms around her, protecting her from the corpses. Nuriko pulled out a tree from its roots and swung it at the corpses, trying to send them away. Unfortunately, only more kept coming up.
"What do we do?!" Caitlin squealed. Just then, a voice rang out.
"Watch out, I'm coming down now!"
Everyone ducked close to the ground, as the voice screamed, "REKKA SHINEN!" and suddenly hot fire devoured the corpses easily. As the fire died down, Caitlin looked up to see Tasuki standing up above them on a rock, the giant moon almost swallowing him. (watch this scene again and notice how abnormally large the moon is) Caitlin grinned as Tasuki began his lines.
"Sorry I tricked you," he said. "But I had to be the boss for the guys. Well, I gave that position to Koji, and well. yeah, I'm a celestial warrior." He pulled down his sleeve, showing his red, glowing character. "I'm Tasuki."
Caitlin squealed in delight, under her breath. Only Nuriko and Tamahome looked incredibly surprised and pissed off. "You were a celestial warrior and didn't come to save us sooner?!" they shouted.
Kristin gave a whine, indicating that she wanted to move on. Tasuki jumped down in front of her, and flashed her a grin. "Sorry, Priestess. I should have told you sooner, but the guys." Kristin gave a nod of understanding.
Katie had suddenly sat up, her cheeks still flushed, and said angrily, "But I might be the Priestess, too! Tasuki, don't you believe that I could be the Priestess?!"
Tasuki just gave an emabarrassed look over at Katie. Kristin wanted to hug him right then and there. She knew that look. He thought she had to be kidding, was she serious about this? She did not act the way a Priestess should, Kristin did!
Kristin did the best she could and gave him a happy yelp, followed by an affectionate rub against the leg. Caitlin was jumping to her feet, and she ran over to Tasuki, forgetting who she was, and throwing herself on top of him.
"You saved me -- I mean, us! You saved us, Tasuki!" she cried, hugging him tight.
Tasuki wrestled out of her grip. "Hey, watch it woman! I was doing it because I'm a warrior to this Priestess, not to her friend, Royal Consort!"
Caitlin narrowed her eyes, mad at both Tasuki and the Author. Then, she gave a big slap on his cheek, and walked away, standing next to Nuriko, her back to Tasuki. Tasuki looked flush, and Kristin was sure he heard him utter, "Damn! Now that's a woman!"
"We shouldn't stay here for too long," Nuriko said, as Tamahome lifted Katie into his arms.
Kristin gave a yelp, and soon, the gang was following her again. They followed up a path of the woods that infringed the city, and soon, they were at the place Kristin had been looking for. A small cottage tucked away at the end of the path. This was where Mitsukake would be. Katie whined, and Kristin heard her whisper to Caitlin, "Shouldn't I be wanting a fish?! Can't I say those lines! I have a megaphone with me, can't I?!"
"No!" Caitlin hissed back. Kristin grinned. She liked having a great sense of sound. She lead the gang up to the cottage door.
"You think there's a celestial warrior in here?" Nuriko asked, looking down upon Kristin. Kristin nodded, and it was Tasuki that banged loudly on the door.
"Be gentle, you oaf," Caitlin said.
"Shut ya mouth," Tasuki said before continuing, "Hey, celestial warrior! We know you're in there, so put your hands up where we can see them and get outta there, right NOW!"
"Tasuki!" everyone (except for Kristin) said at once. He grinned sheepishly, as the door opened and a tall man with scraggly hair and beard answered it, looking down upon his unexpected visitors.
"Who are you?" he asked, his voice deep.
Caitlin decided to take charge, and cleared her throat. "We are the celestial warriors of Suzaku," she said.
"We?!" Tasuki said. "You're not a warrior, you're a CONSORT to the Priestess, that's all."
"Oh you little. I'm going to get you for this.!!" and suddenly, Tasuki found himself running into the woods, with Caitlin chasing after him, the two of them screaming at each other.
The screams faded in the distance, and the gang stood quietly on the porch of Mitsukake's house. They all looked at each other, blinked, and then, turned to face the author, unsure of what to do next.
Finally, Mitsukake broke the silence. "So you're warriors to the Priestess of Suzaku?" he asked, trying to be friendly after the awkward moment of Caitlin and Tasuki.
He looked at Katie, and asked, "Are you the Priestess, then?"
Kristin growled. Darn it! If only she could speak!
"Actually," Nuriko said, "both Katie and Kristin here are Priestesses, according to either Taiiutskun or Naiidoska, the controllers of this world. It is up to the warriors whether they are to follow the path of Taiiutskun and make Katie the Priestess, or to follow Naiidoska, and make Kristin the Priestess. A similar fate is going on in Kutou with the Seiryu seven."
"I see," Mitsukake replied. "And how do things stand now?"
"I believe Katie to be the Priestess," Tamahome answered.
"I believe Kristin to be the Priestess," Nuriko answered. "So does Hotohori, Chichiri, and Tasuki, I believe."
Tamahome sweat dropped. Katie noticed this, and began to whimper. "Don't worry, I'll become the Priestess for sure," she said, and Kristin growled. "Taiiutskun is the good guy, and Naiidoska the bad, right? So of course I'll be the Priestess."
More growling from Kristin.
Mitsukake bent down, and examined Kristin. "You're the one they call Kristin?" She gave a sad nod. Mitsukake smiled. "Don't worry. I think I may know something that will cure you." Kristin's ears perked up. "Now, I can't guarentee that this will work, but we can give it a try."
Kristin gave a bow, showing her gratitude to the celestial warrior that know one ever pays attention to. What a great guy!
He let the gang in, listened for Caitlin and Tasuki, but gave up on them, and closed the door. As he got ready some medicines, he told the gang, "I don't know how you found me, but yes, I am a celestial warrior to the Priestess. I am Mitsukake."
"Kristin brought us here," Nuriko said proudly. Kristin grinned. She was really beginning to like Nuriko.
"But what about Katie," Tamahome whined. "She's sick. We ought to do something about, shouldn't we?"
Mitsukake strolled over to her, and glanced Katie up and down. "She appears to have the demon disease. I don't work with that disease any more, but. perhaps I'll give in for tonight."
There was a meow from the corner, and Kristin watched as Mitsukake's cat, Tama, crawled into view, meowing with hunger. Strangely enough, Kristin found herself fighting the urge to pounce on the thing. She laid her head down on Nuriko's lap, while he scratched her behind the ear. She pictured him as Hotohori, and almost began to weep again. Oh, how she prayed that he would be alright when they got back! They still had to pick up Chirko!
Mitsukake was truly a nice guy, and he fed the gang, let them spend the night in his little cottage, and he even brought Katie out of the fever by using his wonderful healing powers. Kristin managed to save Mitsukake's grief by growling loudly when Katie almost let slip something about Miss Shoka. There was no reason to bring that up.
Unfortunately, the medicine didn't work. Kristin was upset, but she didn't blame Mitsukake for it. It was the fault of the Lone Wolf Warrior, as Nuriko put it. Tamahome wanted another fight with him, and Kristin was glad that he was getting blood thirsty for Andrew rather than Nakago. Martha still had her man, whatever was going on back in Kutou.
Back in Kutou, a cry was heard in the palace, an alarm that hinted that the worst period of the great invasion of the tubas had finally come. A deep voice screamed out, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN WE DON'T HAVE ANYMORE CHEEZ ITS?!"
Back in Konan.
The gang got ready to move out, morning had set, and afternoon was on its way. As Mitsukake got his stuff and his cat, the first thing the gang did was look for Tasuki and Caitlin, who had been missing all night. They walked throughout the woods, calling their names, promising them cheez its if they came out.
It was Kristin who finally found them, though she wished she hadn't. Oh, those two really were made for each other, weren't they? As Kristin picked up the scent, her nose lead her to a giant bush at the side of the pond, and what did she see? Well, she thought, let's not jump to conclusions. Perhaps they had fallen into the pond, and THAT'S why their clothes were off, just simply drying. Tasuki still had his pants on, though. Caitlin still had her underwear, but. yeah, their clothes had to be drying. Caitlin wasn't that kind of person. was she? This was Tasuki she was looking at, not just any guy. And why was he holding her so close and tight to himself? Perhaps she had gotten cold since they had to let their clothes dry. yeah, that had to be it.
Whatever it was, once Caitlin and Tasuki awoke, and noticed that familiar looking wolf sitting by, staring with wide, confused eyes, they jumped a bit, and started crying out, "Augh! It's not what you think!"
"We fell in, yes we did.!"
"She got a little cold, that's all.!"
"We were drying our clothes, you HAVE to believe us!"
Kristin just shook her head. The others heard the voices of Caitlin and Tasuki, and made their way over. Everyone was making their assumptions of what had happened as they continued their journey, and later, Kristin learned from Caitlin that in fact, they had fallen into the lake. Tasuki had been especially mad and they dried their clothes, still bickering at each other. But the bickering began to fade, and Caitlin complained she was cold. and she smiled as she told Kristin the best part of it all, something that she had to swear NOT to tell the other warriors, or Tasuki would kill her. He had kissed her. They had gotten so caught up in their fight, that he kissed her, warmly, passionately. and she had fallen asleep in his arms, just like that. Nothing went farther, but it was such a perfect kiss!
Kristin promised not to tell, but deep inside, she cried, wishing that she could be back in the Emperor's arms, to have such a perfect kiss as that.
The gang huddled as close together as possible, watching the reeking corpses moan and groan as they got closer and closer to them.
* by the way, sorry for the bad ending, I didn't write it too well, but I suddenly realized that I had to get going, sorry! *
Katie fell to the ground, her cheeks flushed. "Oh, no," Caitlin moaned. "She has a fever!"
"She has a fever!" Tamahome cried. He flung his arms around her, protecting her from the corpses. Nuriko pulled out a tree from its roots and swung it at the corpses, trying to send them away. Unfortunately, only more kept coming up.
"What do we do?!" Caitlin squealed. Just then, a voice rang out.
"Watch out, I'm coming down now!"
Everyone ducked close to the ground, as the voice screamed, "REKKA SHINEN!" and suddenly hot fire devoured the corpses easily. As the fire died down, Caitlin looked up to see Tasuki standing up above them on a rock, the giant moon almost swallowing him. (watch this scene again and notice how abnormally large the moon is) Caitlin grinned as Tasuki began his lines.
"Sorry I tricked you," he said. "But I had to be the boss for the guys. Well, I gave that position to Koji, and well. yeah, I'm a celestial warrior." He pulled down his sleeve, showing his red, glowing character. "I'm Tasuki."
Caitlin squealed in delight, under her breath. Only Nuriko and Tamahome looked incredibly surprised and pissed off. "You were a celestial warrior and didn't come to save us sooner?!" they shouted.
Kristin gave a whine, indicating that she wanted to move on. Tasuki jumped down in front of her, and flashed her a grin. "Sorry, Priestess. I should have told you sooner, but the guys." Kristin gave a nod of understanding.
Katie had suddenly sat up, her cheeks still flushed, and said angrily, "But I might be the Priestess, too! Tasuki, don't you believe that I could be the Priestess?!"
Tasuki just gave an emabarrassed look over at Katie. Kristin wanted to hug him right then and there. She knew that look. He thought she had to be kidding, was she serious about this? She did not act the way a Priestess should, Kristin did!
Kristin did the best she could and gave him a happy yelp, followed by an affectionate rub against the leg. Caitlin was jumping to her feet, and she ran over to Tasuki, forgetting who she was, and throwing herself on top of him.
"You saved me -- I mean, us! You saved us, Tasuki!" she cried, hugging him tight.
Tasuki wrestled out of her grip. "Hey, watch it woman! I was doing it because I'm a warrior to this Priestess, not to her friend, Royal Consort!"
Caitlin narrowed her eyes, mad at both Tasuki and the Author. Then, she gave a big slap on his cheek, and walked away, standing next to Nuriko, her back to Tasuki. Tasuki looked flush, and Kristin was sure he heard him utter, "Damn! Now that's a woman!"
"We shouldn't stay here for too long," Nuriko said, as Tamahome lifted Katie into his arms.
Kristin gave a yelp, and soon, the gang was following her again. They followed up a path of the woods that infringed the city, and soon, they were at the place Kristin had been looking for. A small cottage tucked away at the end of the path. This was where Mitsukake would be. Katie whined, and Kristin heard her whisper to Caitlin, "Shouldn't I be wanting a fish?! Can't I say those lines! I have a megaphone with me, can't I?!"
"No!" Caitlin hissed back. Kristin grinned. She liked having a great sense of sound. She lead the gang up to the cottage door.
"You think there's a celestial warrior in here?" Nuriko asked, looking down upon Kristin. Kristin nodded, and it was Tasuki that banged loudly on the door.
"Be gentle, you oaf," Caitlin said.
"Shut ya mouth," Tasuki said before continuing, "Hey, celestial warrior! We know you're in there, so put your hands up where we can see them and get outta there, right NOW!"
"Tasuki!" everyone (except for Kristin) said at once. He grinned sheepishly, as the door opened and a tall man with scraggly hair and beard answered it, looking down upon his unexpected visitors.
"Who are you?" he asked, his voice deep.
Caitlin decided to take charge, and cleared her throat. "We are the celestial warriors of Suzaku," she said.
"We?!" Tasuki said. "You're not a warrior, you're a CONSORT to the Priestess, that's all."
"Oh you little. I'm going to get you for this.!!" and suddenly, Tasuki found himself running into the woods, with Caitlin chasing after him, the two of them screaming at each other.
The screams faded in the distance, and the gang stood quietly on the porch of Mitsukake's house. They all looked at each other, blinked, and then, turned to face the author, unsure of what to do next.
Finally, Mitsukake broke the silence. "So you're warriors to the Priestess of Suzaku?" he asked, trying to be friendly after the awkward moment of Caitlin and Tasuki.
He looked at Katie, and asked, "Are you the Priestess, then?"
Kristin growled. Darn it! If only she could speak!
"Actually," Nuriko said, "both Katie and Kristin here are Priestesses, according to either Taiiutskun or Naiidoska, the controllers of this world. It is up to the warriors whether they are to follow the path of Taiiutskun and make Katie the Priestess, or to follow Naiidoska, and make Kristin the Priestess. A similar fate is going on in Kutou with the Seiryu seven."
"I see," Mitsukake replied. "And how do things stand now?"
"I believe Katie to be the Priestess," Tamahome answered.
"I believe Kristin to be the Priestess," Nuriko answered. "So does Hotohori, Chichiri, and Tasuki, I believe."
Tamahome sweat dropped. Katie noticed this, and began to whimper. "Don't worry, I'll become the Priestess for sure," she said, and Kristin growled. "Taiiutskun is the good guy, and Naiidoska the bad, right? So of course I'll be the Priestess."
More growling from Kristin.
Mitsukake bent down, and examined Kristin. "You're the one they call Kristin?" She gave a sad nod. Mitsukake smiled. "Don't worry. I think I may know something that will cure you." Kristin's ears perked up. "Now, I can't guarentee that this will work, but we can give it a try."
Kristin gave a bow, showing her gratitude to the celestial warrior that know one ever pays attention to. What a great guy!
He let the gang in, listened for Caitlin and Tasuki, but gave up on them, and closed the door. As he got ready some medicines, he told the gang, "I don't know how you found me, but yes, I am a celestial warrior to the Priestess. I am Mitsukake."
"Kristin brought us here," Nuriko said proudly. Kristin grinned. She was really beginning to like Nuriko.
"But what about Katie," Tamahome whined. "She's sick. We ought to do something about, shouldn't we?"
Mitsukake strolled over to her, and glanced Katie up and down. "She appears to have the demon disease. I don't work with that disease any more, but. perhaps I'll give in for tonight."
There was a meow from the corner, and Kristin watched as Mitsukake's cat, Tama, crawled into view, meowing with hunger. Strangely enough, Kristin found herself fighting the urge to pounce on the thing. She laid her head down on Nuriko's lap, while he scratched her behind the ear. She pictured him as Hotohori, and almost began to weep again. Oh, how she prayed that he would be alright when they got back! They still had to pick up Chirko!
Mitsukake was truly a nice guy, and he fed the gang, let them spend the night in his little cottage, and he even brought Katie out of the fever by using his wonderful healing powers. Kristin managed to save Mitsukake's grief by growling loudly when Katie almost let slip something about Miss Shoka. There was no reason to bring that up.
Unfortunately, the medicine didn't work. Kristin was upset, but she didn't blame Mitsukake for it. It was the fault of the Lone Wolf Warrior, as Nuriko put it. Tamahome wanted another fight with him, and Kristin was glad that he was getting blood thirsty for Andrew rather than Nakago. Martha still had her man, whatever was going on back in Kutou.
Back in Kutou, a cry was heard in the palace, an alarm that hinted that the worst period of the great invasion of the tubas had finally come. A deep voice screamed out, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN WE DON'T HAVE ANYMORE CHEEZ ITS?!"
Back in Konan.
The gang got ready to move out, morning had set, and afternoon was on its way. As Mitsukake got his stuff and his cat, the first thing the gang did was look for Tasuki and Caitlin, who had been missing all night. They walked throughout the woods, calling their names, promising them cheez its if they came out.
It was Kristin who finally found them, though she wished she hadn't. Oh, those two really were made for each other, weren't they? As Kristin picked up the scent, her nose lead her to a giant bush at the side of the pond, and what did she see? Well, she thought, let's not jump to conclusions. Perhaps they had fallen into the pond, and THAT'S why their clothes were off, just simply drying. Tasuki still had his pants on, though. Caitlin still had her underwear, but. yeah, their clothes had to be drying. Caitlin wasn't that kind of person. was she? This was Tasuki she was looking at, not just any guy. And why was he holding her so close and tight to himself? Perhaps she had gotten cold since they had to let their clothes dry. yeah, that had to be it.
Whatever it was, once Caitlin and Tasuki awoke, and noticed that familiar looking wolf sitting by, staring with wide, confused eyes, they jumped a bit, and started crying out, "Augh! It's not what you think!"
"We fell in, yes we did.!"
"She got a little cold, that's all.!"
"We were drying our clothes, you HAVE to believe us!"
Kristin just shook her head. The others heard the voices of Caitlin and Tasuki, and made their way over. Everyone was making their assumptions of what had happened as they continued their journey, and later, Kristin learned from Caitlin that in fact, they had fallen into the lake. Tasuki had been especially mad and they dried their clothes, still bickering at each other. But the bickering began to fade, and Caitlin complained she was cold. and she smiled as she told Kristin the best part of it all, something that she had to swear NOT to tell the other warriors, or Tasuki would kill her. He had kissed her. They had gotten so caught up in their fight, that he kissed her, warmly, passionately. and she had fallen asleep in his arms, just like that. Nothing went farther, but it was such a perfect kiss!
Kristin promised not to tell, but deep inside, she cried, wishing that she could be back in the Emperor's arms, to have such a perfect kiss as that.