Disclaimer: I don't not own Fushigi Yugi or any of the characters found in
this fanfiction. If you happen to be the almighty creator, please don't sue
me.
(In this story, Nuriko is fully female. Don't ask me how it happened. If I figure it out, I'll write another fanfic to let you know.)
~*~ Chapter 1:
Yuuki Keisuke sat in his chair engrossed in the book he was reading. It was the Book of the Four Gods, the record of events in the Universe of the four gods. He was tracking the movement of his sister Miaka. She had just stepped into her room with Suzaku Seven Star warrior Tamahome. They had been kissing passionately before they crossed the threshold.
"Darn, what's happening?" The words appearing in the book had abruptly stopped.
"Doesn't it say?" asked Tetsuya. He tried looking over Keisuke shoulders but was nudged away.
"No, don't look. I don't want you, or me, to know what's going on." He had already guessed the reason for the books break. Keisuke tried to remind himself that his sister was a big girl and beyond his control. Still she was his baby sister. She shouldn't be. "Argh, darn censorship," he mumbled, the line between Big brother and pervert blurring. ~*~
Meanwhile in ancient China, lovers lay in each other's arms.
"Oh, Miaka."
"Tamahome," she purred in return.
"Miaka, I- I love you." It came out as a faint whisper, but Miaka heard it loud and clear. This time her response was a kiss as sweet and erotic as chocolate. In that moment of heady bliss Tamahome lost his inhibition.
"Marry me."
"Oh, Tamahome." Miaka was so shocked she stopped what she was doing.
Tamahome looked deeply into her eyes to prove his sincerity. Her shock turned to delight.
"What took you so long?"
The lovers returned to their embrace, this time wearing matching rings, each with a small red stone.
~*~
The next day, Miaka was bubbling with excitement she could barely contain. Oh, who to tell first? There was Yui, her best friend. But how was she going to talk to someone outside the book? Then Miaka remembered the ribbon from her school uniform. With her mind preoccupied with her engagement, Miaka had almost forgotten it. Her fingers reached up to search the intricate twists and braids styled on her head. Good, the ribbon was still in her hair. She rushed back to her room so she would have some privacy.
"Yui. Yui can you hear me?" she called out tentatively into the ribbon.
"Yes, Miaka." A voice answered. Miaka scrunched her face in confusion. The voice was deep like a man's. She tried again.
"Yui, is that you?"
"Miaka, it's me Keisuke."
"Keisuke." Miaka was equally glad to hear from her brother. For some reason, she didn't think it was unusual for Keisuke to have Yui's ribbon. She was bursting to tell someone her good news.
"Oh, Keisuke, Taka asked me to be his wife, and I said 'yes'. We're going to get married."
"What!" Keisuke screamed into Yui's ribbon. "You can't. Emperor Hotohori has already proposed. You can't marry Tamahome. You have to marry Hotohori."
"Why?" Miaka began to get suspicious. "There's something you're not telling me, isn't there?"
"Well."
"You better tell me what it is."
"You see, I kind of, accepted Hotohori's proposal on your behalf. The contract is signed and sealed."
"You what! You have no right to do that."
"Actually, I do. As long as you're in the book, their rules apply. A suitor seeks the permission from the head of the family, the man of the house. I'm the man of the house, even if you're not physically here at the moment."
"Arghh. I'm not talking to you anymore." Miaka undid the ribbon in her hair and left it on the bed before she stormed out of her room at the palace. She needed to think, so she headed to the kitchen.
It was there that Tamahome found her an hour later. She was stuffing her face with anything her hands could grab hold off. It didn't look like she was going to stop anytime soon.
"What's wrong, Miaka?"
"Womgh?" Miaka's mouth was full. She swallowed long enough to repeat. "Nothing's wrong."
Miaka dusted the crumbs off her dress. She picked up a chicken drumstick and was waving it wildly in front of her fiancé. "Nothing's wrong. I just need to see the Emperor." She continued to rant as she walked past Tamahome and out of the kitchen.
Tamahome was simply to bewildered to follow her. "What am I getting myself into?" he asked himself.
~*~ A minute later, in throne room:
"How could you?"
"I love you, Miaka." Hotohori knew straight away what Miaka was talking about.
"I know you love me. I love you, too, but not in that way." Miaka soften at his heartfelt declaration, but it was not enough to completely extinguish her outrage. "That still doesn't explain why you signed a marriage agreement with my brother for my hand. Why did you go behind my back?"
"I love you so much. I don't want to lose you to someone else when you go back to your world. I'm used to making decisions and giving commands.
"That doesn't make what you did right. I don't want to marry you. Can't you just tear up that contract you made with Keisuke?"
"No." Miaka was surprised at his answer.
"Why not? You're the Emperor, aren't you?"
"That is precisely the reason I can't annul the contract. The Emperor has to keep his word. How can my subjects trust me if I make a promise to marry you one day and break it the next?"
"You're just being stubborn," she insisted.
"I'm not being stubborn. I love you and always will."
Miaka didn't know what else to say. Her silence was interpreted as hope to Hotohori, so he continued. "The announcements will be posted throughout the empire tomorrow. I wish you would be by my side when the banns are read."
That sent fury skyrocketing inside her. Steam was coming out of her ears. Her face was now a bright red, and she found herself storming out the door. It seemed like she was doing that a lot this day.
~*~
Miaka had just made it far enough from Hotohori to calm down when *SMACK*
"Miaka, how could you?" Nuriko sent her hand flying across Miaka's face. It was by sheer will that she restrained from putting her normal strength into the slap.
Miaka was stunned. "What- what was that for, Nuriko?"
"How could you? You know I'm in love with Hotohori. How could you agree to marry him? I thought we were friends."
"We are friends, Nuriko. And I didn't agree to marry the Emperor. He and my brother decided for me."
"Oh, what does it matter who arranged the marriage. Hotohori loves you and not me." Miaka wasn't sure, but it looked as if Nuriko was fighting back tears.
"Well, if it's any consolation, I'm in love with Tamahome. We were planning on getting married before this whole Hotohori thing came up."
The wheels in Nuriko's head began turning. "What if you went ahead and married Tamahome?"
"No. That's not possible. The Emperor or the High Priest of Suzaku would have to approve the marriage. I don't think Hotohori is going to agree to it now, and the High Priest of Suzaku hasn't been seen in decades."
"Actually, there are rumors that the High Priest has been seen in the vicinity of the Temple of Seiryuu. Anyway you don't need the approval of either of them if you were in your world."
Miaka was beginning to catch on. "Yeah, Tamahome and I could elope. Now all we need is a way to get back to my world." She looked hopefully at her friend. "Nuriko, you wouldn't happen to know away, would you?"
Nuriko looked thoughtful for a moment. "Some people say strange things happen in the enchanted forest of Mt. Leikaku. You could try there. It's on the way to Kutou and the Temple of Seiryuu. If you fail to find the way to cross over, at least you'll be headed towards the High Priest."
Miaka was already planning what to pack. They would need lots of supplies, food especially. "Thanks, Nuriko."
Nuriko smiled smugly at Miaka's retreating back. "Anytime, girl. Anytime."
Taiitsu-kun: And so ends the first scene in this Suspicious Play
A/n: this is my first Anime fanfic, so please, please with a cherry on the top, review.
(In this story, Nuriko is fully female. Don't ask me how it happened. If I figure it out, I'll write another fanfic to let you know.)
~*~ Chapter 1:
Yuuki Keisuke sat in his chair engrossed in the book he was reading. It was the Book of the Four Gods, the record of events in the Universe of the four gods. He was tracking the movement of his sister Miaka. She had just stepped into her room with Suzaku Seven Star warrior Tamahome. They had been kissing passionately before they crossed the threshold.
"Darn, what's happening?" The words appearing in the book had abruptly stopped.
"Doesn't it say?" asked Tetsuya. He tried looking over Keisuke shoulders but was nudged away.
"No, don't look. I don't want you, or me, to know what's going on." He had already guessed the reason for the books break. Keisuke tried to remind himself that his sister was a big girl and beyond his control. Still she was his baby sister. She shouldn't be. "Argh, darn censorship," he mumbled, the line between Big brother and pervert blurring. ~*~
Meanwhile in ancient China, lovers lay in each other's arms.
"Oh, Miaka."
"Tamahome," she purred in return.
"Miaka, I- I love you." It came out as a faint whisper, but Miaka heard it loud and clear. This time her response was a kiss as sweet and erotic as chocolate. In that moment of heady bliss Tamahome lost his inhibition.
"Marry me."
"Oh, Tamahome." Miaka was so shocked she stopped what she was doing.
Tamahome looked deeply into her eyes to prove his sincerity. Her shock turned to delight.
"What took you so long?"
The lovers returned to their embrace, this time wearing matching rings, each with a small red stone.
~*~
The next day, Miaka was bubbling with excitement she could barely contain. Oh, who to tell first? There was Yui, her best friend. But how was she going to talk to someone outside the book? Then Miaka remembered the ribbon from her school uniform. With her mind preoccupied with her engagement, Miaka had almost forgotten it. Her fingers reached up to search the intricate twists and braids styled on her head. Good, the ribbon was still in her hair. She rushed back to her room so she would have some privacy.
"Yui. Yui can you hear me?" she called out tentatively into the ribbon.
"Yes, Miaka." A voice answered. Miaka scrunched her face in confusion. The voice was deep like a man's. She tried again.
"Yui, is that you?"
"Miaka, it's me Keisuke."
"Keisuke." Miaka was equally glad to hear from her brother. For some reason, she didn't think it was unusual for Keisuke to have Yui's ribbon. She was bursting to tell someone her good news.
"Oh, Keisuke, Taka asked me to be his wife, and I said 'yes'. We're going to get married."
"What!" Keisuke screamed into Yui's ribbon. "You can't. Emperor Hotohori has already proposed. You can't marry Tamahome. You have to marry Hotohori."
"Why?" Miaka began to get suspicious. "There's something you're not telling me, isn't there?"
"Well."
"You better tell me what it is."
"You see, I kind of, accepted Hotohori's proposal on your behalf. The contract is signed and sealed."
"You what! You have no right to do that."
"Actually, I do. As long as you're in the book, their rules apply. A suitor seeks the permission from the head of the family, the man of the house. I'm the man of the house, even if you're not physically here at the moment."
"Arghh. I'm not talking to you anymore." Miaka undid the ribbon in her hair and left it on the bed before she stormed out of her room at the palace. She needed to think, so she headed to the kitchen.
It was there that Tamahome found her an hour later. She was stuffing her face with anything her hands could grab hold off. It didn't look like she was going to stop anytime soon.
"What's wrong, Miaka?"
"Womgh?" Miaka's mouth was full. She swallowed long enough to repeat. "Nothing's wrong."
Miaka dusted the crumbs off her dress. She picked up a chicken drumstick and was waving it wildly in front of her fiancé. "Nothing's wrong. I just need to see the Emperor." She continued to rant as she walked past Tamahome and out of the kitchen.
Tamahome was simply to bewildered to follow her. "What am I getting myself into?" he asked himself.
~*~ A minute later, in throne room:
"How could you?"
"I love you, Miaka." Hotohori knew straight away what Miaka was talking about.
"I know you love me. I love you, too, but not in that way." Miaka soften at his heartfelt declaration, but it was not enough to completely extinguish her outrage. "That still doesn't explain why you signed a marriage agreement with my brother for my hand. Why did you go behind my back?"
"I love you so much. I don't want to lose you to someone else when you go back to your world. I'm used to making decisions and giving commands.
"That doesn't make what you did right. I don't want to marry you. Can't you just tear up that contract you made with Keisuke?"
"No." Miaka was surprised at his answer.
"Why not? You're the Emperor, aren't you?"
"That is precisely the reason I can't annul the contract. The Emperor has to keep his word. How can my subjects trust me if I make a promise to marry you one day and break it the next?"
"You're just being stubborn," she insisted.
"I'm not being stubborn. I love you and always will."
Miaka didn't know what else to say. Her silence was interpreted as hope to Hotohori, so he continued. "The announcements will be posted throughout the empire tomorrow. I wish you would be by my side when the banns are read."
That sent fury skyrocketing inside her. Steam was coming out of her ears. Her face was now a bright red, and she found herself storming out the door. It seemed like she was doing that a lot this day.
~*~
Miaka had just made it far enough from Hotohori to calm down when *SMACK*
"Miaka, how could you?" Nuriko sent her hand flying across Miaka's face. It was by sheer will that she restrained from putting her normal strength into the slap.
Miaka was stunned. "What- what was that for, Nuriko?"
"How could you? You know I'm in love with Hotohori. How could you agree to marry him? I thought we were friends."
"We are friends, Nuriko. And I didn't agree to marry the Emperor. He and my brother decided for me."
"Oh, what does it matter who arranged the marriage. Hotohori loves you and not me." Miaka wasn't sure, but it looked as if Nuriko was fighting back tears.
"Well, if it's any consolation, I'm in love with Tamahome. We were planning on getting married before this whole Hotohori thing came up."
The wheels in Nuriko's head began turning. "What if you went ahead and married Tamahome?"
"No. That's not possible. The Emperor or the High Priest of Suzaku would have to approve the marriage. I don't think Hotohori is going to agree to it now, and the High Priest of Suzaku hasn't been seen in decades."
"Actually, there are rumors that the High Priest has been seen in the vicinity of the Temple of Seiryuu. Anyway you don't need the approval of either of them if you were in your world."
Miaka was beginning to catch on. "Yeah, Tamahome and I could elope. Now all we need is a way to get back to my world." She looked hopefully at her friend. "Nuriko, you wouldn't happen to know away, would you?"
Nuriko looked thoughtful for a moment. "Some people say strange things happen in the enchanted forest of Mt. Leikaku. You could try there. It's on the way to Kutou and the Temple of Seiryuu. If you fail to find the way to cross over, at least you'll be headed towards the High Priest."
Miaka was already planning what to pack. They would need lots of supplies, food especially. "Thanks, Nuriko."
Nuriko smiled smugly at Miaka's retreating back. "Anytime, girl. Anytime."
Taiitsu-kun: And so ends the first scene in this Suspicious Play
A/n: this is my first Anime fanfic, so please, please with a cherry on the top, review.