Disclaimer: Please see the Prologue of Suzaku's Oracle for a blanket disclaimer.
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Warnings: Rated PG-13 or Fiction T. Language.
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Notes: 0-0-16 As a writer, I don't just track visions and timelines for OFG. There are lots of miscellaneous documents in my computer files. One type is dedicated to tracking story threads. For example, one of these documents is dedicated to the story thread following the Leikaku Bandits. Scenes taking place on Mt. Leikaku are fairly spread out through the narrative. Having to scroll up or down a dozen or more pages to reference a previous or later scene gets irritating. Putting all the Liekaku scenes in a separate document made things a lot easier. ~Sapphire
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Oracles of the Four Gods
"Suzaku's Oracle"
By: Sapphire
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Part Twenty-seven ~ Departure
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Taiitsukun found the two Suzaku seishi and Suzaku no Orakuru sitting silently at the breakfast table. Even Tasuki was quiet, which was rare, Taiitsukun thought. He was intent on eating his food, while the other two absently picked at theirs. Taiitsukun narrowed her eyes at them contemplatively before making her presence known to the decidedly unhappy group.
"Ah-hem," she cleared her throat, gaining the attention of the young people at the table. "I warned you there would be another discussion before I allowed you to leave Mt. Daikyouku," Taiitsukun announced. "While Aneko is not fully recovered, she is well enough to travel, and it is past time you returned to Konan. We will speak now."
"Travel?" Aneko's voice was soft and quiet. "I thought we'd go the same way we came..." she looked up at Chichiri furtively, then looked back down at her plate. "I suppose I shouldn't assume things," she added.
"This has nothing to do with Chichiri," Taiitsukun informed her impatiently, wondering what that was all about, but dismissing it for lack of time to pursue it. "I have a task for you, one similar to that which I have assigned the other oracles."
"Other oracles?" Aneko looked up expectantly. "They were here?" Ever since Taiitsukun had sat her down one afternoon to explain about the advent of the Oracles of the Four Gods into this world, the woman had been curious about the others like herself. Aneko had mentioned something about how good it would be to be able to talk to someone from her own world again. Taiitsukun didn't want her to seek them out just yet. Not until Aneko remembered Danno.
"Do you think they must come here for me to speak with them?" Taiitsukun asked instead of answering. It was an innocent question, though it was purposely misleading. Aneko shook her head. Taiitsukun was satisfied that she wouldn't question further, at least for the time being. "The demon you encountered is proof there is an immediate danger to this world. I have asked the other oracles to search it out. You must do the same, observe what goes on in Konan, and look into anything you find to be unusual, no matter how small. Whatever is causing this danger must have left some trace of itself somewhere, and it is up to the oracles to find it. I suggest the three of you travel back to Eiyou either by foot or by horse. It will be an excellent opportunity to begin your search. Nyan-Nyan will make sure you have sufficient supplies for your journey." That said, Taiitsukun turned to leave.
"Wait." Taiitsukun cringed. Chichiri again. He was being quite tenacious. Schooling her features into a scowl, the ancient one turned to face her former pupil.
"Yes?" she barked.
"You said we'd speak again about what I asked you when we arrived," Chichiri reminded her. "I need answers. I need to know more about Aneko's purpose here, no da." Taiitsukun noted that not only was Chichiri watching her expectantly, but so was Tasuki, and Aneko's interest had been piqued. She sighed inwardly. There was no getting out of this conversation, it seemed.
"I'm afraid you know all you're going to for foreseeable future," Taiitsukun told them. "It is not time for Aneko, or any of the other oracles, to learn of their destiny. You have your task and that is what you need to be doing."
"But when will I know?" Aneko asked worriedly.
"I suspect, when the time comes, it will not be me who explains your purpose here," Taiitsukun told her. "Things are not as they should be, and even I don't know precisely what your future holds. Only the Four Gods can determine what they require of you, and it will likely be they who eventually set you on your path." She left them to their own devices before they could question her further. She'd said all she could, and all that she would.
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"That old bat," Tasuki grumbled when Taiitsukun was gone. "What the hell kind a answer was that?" Chichiri couldn't agree more.
"I still think she knows more than she's letting us believe," Chichiri said. "The problem is, she's not going to tell us." Aneko sighed, pushing her plate away from her.
"I'm not hungry," she mumbled. "I'm going to go pack." She left quickly, leaving the two men staring after her in silence.
"Can't ya go chase the old hag down an' make her tell?" Tasuki suggested. Chichiri shook his head.
"She'd never let me find her, no da," he admitted, though it was tempting to try.
"Didn't you say we weren't leavin' until we find out?" Tasuki reminded. Chichiri let out a deep sigh, rising from the table.
"I was wrong," Chichiri admitted with a shrug. "We could try, no da, but we'd just be wasting our time." Tasuki heaved a sigh, and Chichiri knew the bandit was convinced of the futility. "You heard what Taiitsukun just said. She's not the one that will tell Aneko her purpose in this world anyway. We should do what Taiitsukun says and have a look around Konan. We'll stay with Aneko, protect her as Suzaku asked. Aneko will have to be told at some point, probably by Suzaku himself. When she knows, we'll know."
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It didn't take long for Aneko to reach her room. She pushed the door open and stepped inside. The scene that greeted her was utter chaos. Nyan-Nyan was inside her room, wreaking havoc. Aneko sighed at the clothing, shoes, and other items strewn about all over, everything in mass disarray. Nyan-Nyan was packing, she guessed, though she didn't know how things had gotten so out of hand, considering the only thing she owned in the room was a single yellow sleeping robe, and even that wasn't exactly hers.
"Aneko!" one of the Nyan-Nyan replicas squealed, spying her. "We have presents!"
"Presents? For me?" Aneko wasn't sure what to expect from the child-like Nyan-Nyan. "I'm sure I'll love it." She truly hoped she would.
"Look, new clothes!" one exclaimed as several held up assorted silk, linen, and wool garments for her to see.
"And pretty combs, too!" said another, handing her the lotus flower comb she'd worn the night before, plus one with a lavender butterfly.
"We're helping pack," a third told her, stuffing some blue article of clothing into a new travel pack. Obviously it was a gift as well. Aneko did love the gifts, but…
"Here, let me show you," Aneko said, pulling the blue item back out of the pack. "Here's how you fold..."
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Tasuki shook his head as they loaded the travel packs onto the horses Taiitsukun had provided for them. Chichiri was avoiding any unnecessary contact with Aneko, keeping as much distance between himself and her as he could manage without being overtly obvious about it. Aneko, too, was treading very carefully wherever Chichiri was concerned. It was as if she was afraid she'd offend him with her mere presence. They'd been acting that way all morning.
"Shit," he muttered to himself, "I ain't babysittin' the whole fuckin' way ta Eiyou."
"Did you say something, Tasuki?" Aneko asked softly from behind him. Tasuki spun around to face her, worried she'd heard too much.
"Ah, nothin'. Nothin' at all." She shrugged and turned back to her horse, giving one last tug on the straps holding saddle and travel pack in place. Then she put one foot in a stirrup and heaved herself upward. Tasuki rolled his eyes. Was every woman from the other world incompetent when it came to horses? Aneko failed miserably at getting into the saddle. She was determined, though, and tried again. Tasuki stepped over and gave her a push. She looked surprised to find herself in the saddle, until she saw him. She smiled gratefully, then arranged her long skirt around her to tuck it out of the way. "You gonna be okay ridin' all the way back?" Tasuki asked skeptically.
"I'll be fine," Aneko assured him with a laugh. "I've ridden some before. Just never in a long skirt." Tasuki shrugged and turned back to his own horse and gear and mounted up. When he was in the saddle, he turned to see Chichiri following suit.
"Ready ta go?" he asked. He got a nod from Chichiri and a slight wave from Aneko for confirmation. Tasuki rolled his eyes again and urged his mount forward down the path leading down from Mt. Daikyouku and back to Konan. He could hear the hoof beats of the other horses as Aneko and Chichiri followed his lead. After ten minutes of silence, Tasuki knew this was going to be a long trip. He almost wished Miaka was there, her and her incessant chatter. Even that would be better than the depressing silence that had formed between his two companions. He couldn't wait to get back to Eiyou.
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The small group had been traveling for nearly a week. In all the places they had stopped for either meals or to stay the night, not a single thing looked, sounded, or felt unusual. Life in Konan was, well, normal. The days dragged by, particularly because of the silence between Aneko and Chichiri. Tasuki found that especially irritating. After the first day, he decided he would have preferred cut-throat animosity over their self-imposed silence.
Aneko sometimes rode abreast with him and chatted for a while, which broke up the monotony, but she would quickly run out of things to say and fall back into her thoughts. From those tidbits of conversation, he gathered she'd had some kind of misunderstanding with the monk, and this whole...thing...had stemmed from that. What the thing actually was, he wasn't sure, but Tasuki knew that Aneko was remorseful over whatever part she'd had in the whole mess.
To cheer her up and take her mind off of it, Tasuki had made a rather nice gesture, if he did say so himself, and bought a map of Konan for her. She'd asked what it was for, and he'd suggested she use it to keep track of the places she'd been in the country. She'd smiled, pleased with the idea. Every night since then she'd marked all the villages they'd passed through. The novelty of the map eventually wore off, providing only a distraction in the evenings, and she grew silent again. Adding further to Tasuki's disgust, Chichiri didn't do a thing to ease the situation.
This night, it was quickly apparent there were no women for Aneko to socialize with or babies to coo over at the cozy village inn where they stopped. Tasuki and Chichiri made a silent agreement that Tasuki would remain with her while Chichiri made inquiries of the locals about anything travelers in the area should be made aware. There was nothing of note to report upon meeting up again, and as they finished a mostly silent supper, Tasuki decided he needed some real company. He looked around the large room that served as both tavern and dining area for some possible 'new friends' and spotted a group of men who looked about as close to his own Leikaku bandits as he was likely to get in this farming area of Konan. They seemed to be enjoying themselves, which was more than he could say for himself right then.
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To be continued…
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End Note: There are generally two ways to get around in the Universe of the Four Gods: by foot or by horse. Horses pose an interesting problem. I know nothing about ancient Chinese tack. Heck, I'm no expert on modern tack! I do have some limited experience saddling, riding, and grooming horses so what I do write about horses should be true enough to life. ~Sapphire
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