Disclaimer: I do not own Fushigi Yuugi. I do own the original characters. I do not own Meru. I do own this pair of thumb-cuffs.

Author's note: Gosh, it's been a long time. I need to update more often. Which has bigger probability since SCHOOL IS OUT!!! I'll have a lot more a free time on my hands.

Chapter 6

A party was quickly assembled consisting of Yule, Chichiri, Tasuki, Horiko, Krin, and the four soldiers from before. Horiko was a bit antsy about letting Krin go with them, but Chichiri insisted that time was against them and a trip to Taiitsu-kun should be made immediately after Boushin's rescue.

They set off with little trouble. Krin rode in front of Horiko. Chichiri rode in front of Tasuki, cause he didn't trust Chichiri's slowly returning strength to keep him upright. Chichiri also calmed down the horse so Tasuki wouldn't be falling off. Yule and the soldiers had a horse a piece.

The journey to Briddidon lasted only a few days with minor stops for rest. Chichiri slept most of the ride, leaning back against Tasuki, who held him securely in place. A couple of the soldiers made some rather crude comments about that situation and were currently nursing burn wounds. Yule seemed rather miffed about them all in general as he kept insisting they speed on their way whenever Tasuki claimed rest for Chichiri's sake.

But eventually the road into Kutou was nearly rode. The gatekeepers let them through with little trouble as one of the unwounded soldiers greeted his brothers warmly and seemed to flirt with a third guard to gain them access, much to the amusement of his companions.

Soon they were outside of Briddidon and looking for a way in.

"It is un-doubtable that security has been increased after our escape and Boushin-sama's capture," Yule said, "Getting in will be difficult."

"There is no way we'll sneak in the way I did," Horiko said, "There has to be another way."

"Can't we be merchants?" Tasuki asked.

After quizzical looks from his party members, Tasuki explained in more detail.

"Could we not dress as merchants and enter?"

"We have nothing to sell," Yule reminded, "And we couldn't all get through that way."

"What about a slave line?"

All of them turned to Krin.

"What?" Horiko asked.

"A slave line. Some of us could pretend to be Briddidon guards and the rest could be prisoners of war."

"That sounds good," Horiko said, "Where will we get uniforms?"

They all glanced over at the prison walls.

"Taking them from the guards would be too risky," Chichiri said, "Someone will notice their absence."

"Can't Chichiri change into a guard?" Yule asked, "I've seen you do similar things before."

Chichiri nodded, "But one guard isn't enough for this many prisoners."

"Could you give the impression of there being more?" one of the soldiers asked.

Chichiri seemed to ponder, "I think I could. I can make replicas of myself, but I never tried to make those replicas into something else before. I don't know if it will work, or how long it will last."

"It should be worth the risk, though, right?" Yule asked, "It seems to be our only way in."

Chichiri nodded and went to work. Horiko watched in awe as Chichiri went about duplicating himself. He had never seen anything like it before. He watched as the duplicates began to change form to resemble the random guard before Chichiri himself changed. It was rather disturbing sight for him and seemed obvious that it was taking its toll on the monk.

"I hope this works," Tasuki said after noting the rather disheveled appearance Chichiri had taken up.

"Let's get to looking like slaves, gentleman," Krin said as she sat down in the dirt and went about soiling her clothes.

They all sighed and followed suit and the three different versions of Chichiri stood and waited. As Horiko went about tearing his clothes strategically, he began to examine the three of them. They all looked similar with slight little things changed so they looked related but you couldn't be sure about it. The two duplicates seemed off in a world of their own as they kept up a stern appearance. The real Chichiri had a slightly strained look upon his face, but looked much less tense.

Horiko glanced around the party and watched Krin as she tore her dress so it showed just a tad bit of skin. She gave him a mischievous look as she wrapped one of the scraps around his arm. Horiko gave her an incredulus look.

"What are you up to?" Horiko asked as she rose and walk toward the next soldier.

"If they think we are wounded, they'll think less about us. Wounded men bare no threat after all," Krin said, as she secured a scrap around Tasuki's thigh.

He nodded at the wisdom of that and waited as everyone else finished. They stood up looking like they had been traveling for weeks. Chichiri used his power to bring forth the illusion of handcuffs and they appeared all set. The soldiers went and tied the majority of the horses up a little ways off the road and Chichiri and his copies mounted the rest. Then the group proceeded forward, trying to look tired and hopeless.