Disclaimer: I own the writer's block that I'm experiencing now. Unfortunately, that writer's block isn't named Fushigi Yuugi, so I don't own it. -_-
The gigantic raindrops lashed down at us, splattering on our faces as the lightning flashed overhead. In normal circumstances, it was supposed to be cold enough to snow up here, but I guess we weren't high up enough. Still, rain seemed better than snow…only if it wasn't this freaking cold!
"We can't continue this forever!" I yelled, sputtering as a torrent of rain poured down from the gray sky, filling half my mouth with the fresh taste of rain water. "If we stay out here too long, we'll all catch a flu or something of that sort!"
"You think I don't know that?!" Takiko managed to screech while trying to concentrate on making her horse stop galloping in a zigzag pattern on the already slippery path in front of her. "Whoa, boy! Not so fast; you'll throw me off! St-"
She grabbed the reins just as the panicky gray stallion reared back and Hikitsu who was just behind her had to force his horse to a stop. He squinted, trying to see through the rain to get a better look on whose horse was acting weird all of a sudden and frowned, seeing Takiko hanging on for her dear life as the horse neighed, trying to throw her off.
"Takiko-san!"
I cursed under my breath, seeing that it would take a century before this wild thing would calm down and rode up to the alarmed stallion, quickly dismounting. It seemed that I was in time, however, for the rain had loosened her grip, making the reins in her hand more slippery than usual and she was thrown in the air. The three of us stared in horror as her body seemed to stay in the air for a few seconds before gravity brought her down once more…on to me. Ow.
"I hate horses," I heard her mutter on top of me and I sighed, pushing myself up (and throwing our dear miko off me in the process) and blinked, wiping my face clear of the slimy mud. It looked as if her baka horse had already taken the initiative to run away, and she was now left alone, sitting in a gigantic puddle, her clothes all smeared with the brownish-black mixture of wet mud and rain water.
"This isn't a very nice time for a rest!" I commented, glaring ominously at her as I grabbed her arm, quickly transporting her from the ground to on top of my horse, ignoring her squeak of surprise as both Hikitsu and Iname quickly nodded in grim understanding and mounted their own horses. The rain was getting heavier now, making it even harder of us to see as we made (or at least tried to) our way up the winding mountain path.
A flash of blue in a distance caught my attention, and straightened up, squinting through the downpour. Maybe it was just me, but I could somehow see some blue figures in a distance, somewhat resembling the Kutou armour, and my hands tightened on the rein. Genbu, not now! We were already in much trouble!
"Hey, Iname!" I yelled , wincing as the lightning struck somewhere behind us. "Do you know if there are any forests nearby? Can't you use your wind or something?"
"I can't, Tomite-san! My powers don't work like that!"
"Kuso…" I cursed under my breath, just as Takiko's hands tightened around my wrists. "Hang on, head-hitting onna; this is going to be the ride of your life!"
"Nani? Wha-"
She didn't have a chance to reply as I dug my feet into the sides of my mare. My lips moved silently, praying fervently to Genbu that he would spare us from the torture of dying up here, especially after what we had done for him by trying to send the miko to the capital and all. Genbu, I haven't seen all the girls to last me a lifetime yet!!
We were propelled forward by the sudden burst of energy and I scrunched my eyes close when a few raindrops went into them, quickly opening them again to keep my attention focused to the road ahead of us. It didn't look too good; one slip over the side and we'd all be de…WHOA!
The horse slid to a sudden stop, catching us off guard and thus propelling both of me and Takiko off her. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Takiko land on the hard soil, but I didn't seem to feel the ground below me- instead, I felt air. Thin air. Oh no.
Seeing the ground so far away from me (and possibly thousands of meters below me), my eyes widened and I scrambled frantically for anything solid, only to feel someone's hand catching my arm and hauling me up.
Hikitsu was smiling slightly with water running down in small rivers down his face as he set me back on the ground. "What would you do without me, Tomite?"
"Nothing interesting," I grinned back, trying to catch my breath as I had a good look at our bearings. We were standing in front of a deep cave; its unknown danger inside seeming as relieving as ominous as it could offer us temporary shelter from the pouring rain. "What do you say we ditch this freaking rain and risk our lives to go and dry ourselves?"
Hikitsu quirked an eyebrow at me. "Sounds good to me."
-------
The musty damp smell of the cave wasn't welcoming to its new visitors, but it would have to do. Looking around, I wondered if we could find away out of this place if we went through this dark unknown domain. Then again, hearing the constant drip drip in the background, I decided not to risk it, in case we might suddenly run into an underground spring and get lost.
So there we were, four shivering drenched people in our clingy clothes. It was hard not to look at the girls whose clothes had already stuck onto their wet skins, somehow hoping that they would peel off those…not so transparent layers just as Hikitsu pulled my ear and said something about blood coming out of my nose.
Wiping the small stream of red liquid from my nose frantically before Takiko had a chance to see it, I walked in a full circle, trying to make out the stone walls of this cave. I didn't mind the dampness here, it was the darkness that drove me crazy. The most obvious paradox from outside, this place was pitch black, even darker than a moonless night in the forest.
Hearing a sneeze from behind me, I saw Takiko rubbing her arms, trying to generate enough heat for herself through friction. We didn't know how long more the rain up here could last; maybe days, or even weeks. The weather up here in the mountains of Hokkan was often unreliable, thus making it an unpopular destination for the villagers. On top of all, it was COLD.
"Well, what are we going to do now?" I spoke my mind, breaking the silence that was only punctuated by the roars of thunder outside. "We have no idea how long this weather will last, and I'm not game to stay here until it stops. For all we know, this could go on for months. You should know, Hikitsu, your tribe's a nomad tribe, ne?"
"Something along those lines," he replied, sounding slightly distracted and I blinked and turned, only to hear: "Takiko-san, what are you DOING?"
The black haired miko looked up from the tunic that she was unbuttoning, looking as exasperated as the rest of us. "What am I doing? I'm wet, if all of you haven't realized at this moment. Besides, I don't want to catch pneumonia!"
I looked at her confusedly. "What's pneumuniah?" I pronounced the word slowly, wondering if it was supposed to be a curse word or something of that sort. And if I continued looking at her undoing that tunic, my nose was really going to bleed. Still, how can you turn away when a girl was doing it (especially Takiko, of all people) it on her own free will?
Iname was alarmed, judging by her frantic movements and the incredulous expression on her face. "Demo, Takiko-san, that…isn't…right."
Apparently, Takiko wasn't in a joking mood at that moment as she finished undoing the last button to reveal…another shirt. What the hell in Genbu's name?! I was this close! "You were wearing more clothes underneath…?"
She glared at me. "You were expecting me to do something, Chamka?" she snarled, and I backed away, this time fully subdued. She was not in a good mood, and it didn't take one long to see that crossing her path would prove to have very fatal circumstances.
"Er…no. Just curious," I laughed, retreating a few more steps. Man, she's scary when she was angry…
"Good," she snapped. "Then just keep that curiosity of yours to yourself."
I seriously suspected at that moment that all the other seishi was then afraid of Takiko, for never did I once hear a word from Hikitsu or Iname regarding Takiko's bad temper as we settled down, sitting cross-legged to the deafening silence that floated around us. Maybe it was because all of us feared the outcome if Takiko got really mad (and that seldom happened, did it?)
"Er…Takiko?" I squeaked softly after around ten minutes of silence. "Can we talk now?"
Silence. It was either she was going to make me face her most dreadful (and my most dreaded) outburst or…
I leaned over, trying to make sue of what little light we had, only to see the girl's eyes closed, her breathing regular, only punctuated by slight snores here and there. She was asleep, for Genbu's sake!
Around me, I could hear an audible whoosh, as the other two exhaled in relief, finding out that they wouldn't have to risk their skulls to face the rage of a furious miko anymore. "I suppose it's safe so speak without her threatening to chop off our heads now?" Hikitsu spoke as I leaned back, shrugging against the hard, rough surface of the rock that I was leaning on.
"I guess so. Any ideas on how to get out of here without our horses going berserk like hers?" I gestured at Takiko who seemed to frown in her sleep, as if she had heard me. "I already don't like the weather up here, and winter is fast approaching. It would already be the biggest miracle of all if we could even arrive at the capital before winter sets in."
"Neither do I," Hikitsu sighed as Iname gingerly poked Takiko to see if she was really asleep, only to receive a louder snore from the sleeping girl. "Maybe we should set off when the rain subsides a bit, but there's no telling when it will. We better get ready to stay here for quite a while if that's the case. Iname, stop doing that. You'll wake her up."
The girl drew back, looking slightly less agitated after making sure that Takiko was indeed asleep. "I guess that storm must have…hit a few nerves on Takiko-san," she spoke, being careful not to wake up the sleeping monster- I mean miko.
Looking outside to see the boring, colourless sky, I wondered how the sky on the other side of the mountain looked like. People said that the sky there was blue, not gray like all the place that I had been, and I really wanted to see a blue sky with nice fluffy clouds and-
"Tomite-san? Are you going to fall asleep too?"
My eyes shot open as I got a full view of a gigantic close-up of Iname's face as she loomed over me. "GYAHHH-mmph!!" I protested as Hikitsu quickly muffled my yell.
"If we wake Takiko-san up, are you going to be responsible?" he hissed, glaring slightly at me before I nodded, signaling that I wouldn't yell if he removed his hand. "We already have enough trouble as it is. Don't add to it, Tomite."
"I know that," I glared at him. "I'm not stupid, you know."
"Sometimes, I wonder if you are."
"Is that supposed to be an insult?"
"Something like that. Why?" He raised an eyebrow, and I had to restrain the urge to lunge and tackle him. Must…restrain…temper…! Oh, what the heck.
I dove for his neck, locking with him a fistfight, much to Iname's alarm and her pleas for us to cut it out before she woke up. Hikitsu didn't seem to mind indulging in this 'useless action' as he would call it under normal circumstances, for both of our nerves were already rather frayed, especially after those incidents.
Our fight didn't last long, however, as a gigantic shadow drew up above us.
-------
"WHAT DO YOU THINK THE TWO OF YOU ARE DOING?!"We cringed, hearing Takiko's voice, and looked up, with huge sweatdrops. Takiko was standing there, her hands on her hips, not looking sleepy at all as she glared at the both of us. Iname was quaking with fright in one corner as both I and Hikitsu detached ourselves from each other, not daring to meet her furious gaze.
Two severely beaten up seishi later…
"Remind me never to make her angry again," I croaked, having around a million bumps on my head; Hikitsu having about half the amount than me- Takiko must favour him or something. "She's so scary when she's angry…"
"You can say that again."
Hikitsu was lying on the ground not far from me, having less injuries yet looking in a worse condition, for some weird obscure reason which I cannot place my finger on. Takiko apparently had gone back to sleep, but it took more than five minutes before Iname could muster up sufficient courage to come closer to the two of us.
"I told you not to wake Takiko-san up!" she scolded softly, glaring at none of us in particular. "An angry girl is a dangerous one, trust me. I know."
"Thanks for the late advice," I mumbled, feeling pain rip through my entire body as I tried to sit up. That girl was strong, I had to give her that. "Itai…since when did she get to be so strong?!"
"That may have been my fault, actually, Tomite-san," Iname sweatdropped, smiling sheepishly. "I…sort of taught Takiko-san how to improve her strength. She wanted to learn!" she added, becoming defensive.
"No wonder," I muttered sourly. "Ow…this is going to hurt for days. Hikitsu, are you okay?"
"Under these circumstances, I haven't died…yet," came the reply from the silver haired seishi as he grimaced, gingerly touching a blue-black mark on his arm. "Iname, why did you have to teach her these things? I don't think girls are, well…supposed to do things like that. You're an exception, of course."
"Very funny, Hikitsu," I remarked sarcastically as I closed my eyes. "Maybe a little sleep would do me good. Now, don't go and wake me up in all sorts of creative little ways, Iname, I don't like being woken up…or let's just say I might react like our head-hitting miko here."
Iname shuddered. "Hai, Tomite-san. But when will we wake you up?"
"When the rain subsides," I yawned, leaning back, closing my eyes. I never heard her reply as I was taken adrift through the river of sleep.
Author's Notes:
Okay, maybe my writer's block was a little cured when I wrote this chapter. But I never write humour. I seldom do…it just isn't my genre. So how…? Oh, it doesn't matter now, does it? ^_^ v
*yawn* I've been sleeping at very unholy hours nowadays, despite the fact that I'm attending the morning session (yes, my school has morning and afternoon sessions), and currently, it's…2.10 in the morning. Ah. Okay. Parents are going to kill me. Anyway, before they come in wielding a set of knives that's more than enough to slaughter a cow…
Maybe I was a little carried away when I wrote all those bad things happening to Takiko- you know, getting thrown off the horse and so forth. She's a magnet for bad luck, what can I say? Maybe Tomite will also get magnetized by her… ^_~
By the way, were you people thinking that she was really going to go naked in front of two guys? You people are wayyyyyy to hentai. Hey, I know the rating is PG-13, but I don't go that far, trust me. I'm not going to raise the rating to an R, by any chance, If anyone's going to ask. Too bad, no da. :p
I've been listening to Voice again (that might explain my weird mood), so expect some sap soon, by the rate I'm going. Of course, if I'm caught up with school work, that's a different story…
Much obliged about the reviews, by the way. Tomite seems to revel in reading them- must be those comments about him and Takiko, I guess. What else could make him drool?
Tomite: *hurriedly wipes drool* I am NOT drooling!
Oh? Then what's that little dried stream of spit by your mouth there?
Tomite: It…it's glue! Yeah, that's what it is! Glue! I was playing with some glue and it got to my mouth and
Sure. Whatever. I'm sleepy, and I'm not actually in the mood for arguing at the moment. OR ELSE!
Tomite: Eep…fine. *goes back to reading reviews*
Much better. *stretches* Review, people! I need to know your opinions regarding my story (trust me, reviews are the light of an author's life…or at least good reviews are *hint*) so I can continue writing! If you don't, I'll…curlupinthatlittlecornerthereandcry! *points at corner*
Anyways...Kang Xiu, you've managed to clinch first prize again!! Yup, I've read 'Another Story' and 'Yet Another Story', and also 'ANIKI!!'. I'll go check out your fics as I ahven't yet though, but just a small note: Your fic 'When Blackmail Goes Wrong' is reallllly funny! As poor Juufan can't write humour, Juufan worships you!! ^^ Oh and by the way, you wrote, 'poor por Chamka'. Does it mean 'poor, poor Chamka' or 'poor, please Chamka'??Yup, I'm definitely suffering from sleep deprivation. Good night everyone, don't let the bed bugs bite. Until next time, ja ne…zzzz.
