Disclaimer: I still don't own Fushigi Yuugi. But I do own Yume and Shiriko and...um... some other stuff!

Tasuki: Now that was convincing!

Smack: Shut up...

Smack's Thank Yous!

Otaku Pitcher: Wow! Thanks so much for being my first reviewer! Also, thanks for the great encouragement and review! I think that's the first review I've ever gotten that actually commented on the quality of the writing not just the story.

mini: I DON'T HAVE 4 CHAPTERS TYPED UP YET!!! ONLY 2!

Author's Note: Smack: Here's the second chapter! Poor Yume! Getting blackmailed by the evil Nakago and sent into a strange world. What will she find? I was supposed to tell you more about when this takes place, wasn't I? Well, I don't know how to describe it exactly. All of the warriors have been found, Suzaku's that is, and they are staying at the palace. Also, Amiboshi was discovered already. I don't know how else to explain it. I guess time will tell when exactly it takes place.

Tasuki: Well that's good because we know you won't...

Smack: :: looks at Tasuki evilly:: You'll regret saying that. Just wait...

Tasuki: :: looks scared:: Help!

On the off chance one of these fine characters is capable of thought, their thoughts will be represented like this: '...'

Chapter 2: A Whole New World! (I know...it's so original, ain't it?)

I awoke in a dark alley I could only assume was in Konan. Shiriko was standing next to me. My bag was a few feet away. "At least you're with me. What happened?" My head felt funny and I had trouble getting up. I went to grab my bag when an earring rolled out of my hand. "Nakago." I remembered what had happened, what I had agreed to. It wasn't like I wanted to agree to it. But if I didn't... I shuddered at the thought as I put the earring in my bag and looked around. I didn't know what to make of this place. Everybody was dressed in weird old clothing, and it seemed to be a thriving ancient city. "So this is the 'new world' Nakago promised me. What a strange place..." I muttered. Shiriko and I walked around, taking in all the sights and sounds.

The streets were crowded with people, all hurrying to go wherever they needed to be. Peddlers filled the streets, shouting their wears. The buildings were all pretty much the same, wooden and also filled with people. The people on the street who gaze me more than a passing glance looked at me weird, probably due to my clothes. They backed away hesitantly when they saw Shiriko. His leash was wrapped loosely around my arm, but he was staying with me. He doesn't like new, strange places, either. He eyed the peasants suspiciously, his lips curled up, revealing his pearly whites. I passed a group of old ladies and at the sight of my clothes and Shiriko I heard them mutter something that sounded like "it must be witchcraft." 'Great I just get here and already a bunch of old ladies are convinced I'm a witch. I'll be tossed in a lake or burned at the stake before sundown. Well, as long as nobody pops out and yells at me, I think I'll be safe.'

"Hey you! Girl! Stop right there! We want to talk to you!" Two men came rushing out of the crowd towards me.

'Oh no! What if they ask me about my clothes and Shiriko? How can I explain this? They'll think I'm a witch for sure.' "Shiriko! Run!" Shiriko took off, pulling me with him. My strength must have returned during the time I was passed out because I was able to run at his pace for a lot longer than I thought I could have otherwise. We reached an empty field, just outside the city, but they were close behind us. Two guys on horses appeared, followed by a girl. One guy looked kind of like a woman but still looked important and had long brown hair tied back at the bottom with a red ribbon. His clothes, though strange for sure, screamed wealth. The other man had long turquoise hair pulled into a braid and was dressed like the first. I didn't have time to notice too much about them, seeing how I was still being pursued. The two men pulled their horses right in front of me, blocking my path. I turned to run the other way, but found the two guys from before standing there. They had me completely surrounded, although the girl looked like she didn't want much to do with this. I think she felt sorry for me or maybe I scared her. I wasn't sure but as soon as she saw me, she froze up and an expression of shock came over her face. I looked around like a trapped convict. I had no way out. 'This is what I get for listening to what some weird guy in the middle of a forest says.'

Shiriko never did like being closed in. He started to snap and snarl at the horses, showing off his huge teeth. His hair was standing straight up on his back and he looked pretty scary. The girl drew back her horse just as Shiriko attacked it. The horse reared up and tried to hit Shiriko with its hooves but Shiriko just dodged and continued snarling. The boy with the turquoise hair grabbed the reins of the girl's horse and she said something that may have been "thank you." The wooziness was beginning to return and my head felt funny from the bump. I couldn't understand or hear what they were saying and that disturbed me. The brown haired man said something and the girl said something back. They argued for a little while until the man sighed in defeat. He then said something to the two guys behind me and one grabbed my arms. I struggled to get free and eyed the people in front of me with pure hatred. I had the feeling I must look like some sort of caged animal or villain but didn't really care. My attempts at freeing myself from their grasp didn't work.

"Let me go!" I managed to yell.

A blue-haired one leaned in and whispered, "I'm sorry." I felt something hit my head and I heard the girl scream. I felt my body fall and heard Shiriko's barking but then it all went black.

I awoke alone, in a place so cold and dark that I could only guess was in a dungeon. "Great...I just get here and already I'm in the dungeon," I murmured, rubbing the back of my head. "At least they didn't put me straight on the stake and burn me." I looked around and found my bag. I couldn't find any sign of Shiriko, though. A single tear rolled down my cheek. "Shiriko..." I knew what Shiriko must have done when they hit me. I heard him bark. 'What if they killed him? Who would protect me now?' Maybe that was what the girl and guy were fighting about. The guy wanted to kill Shiriko and didn't want the girl to be around. But she refused to go, so maybe they didn't kill him. Or maybe they killed him anyway... 'I hate not knowing!'

I knew grieving for my lost friend wouldn't get me too far so I began to plot escape plans. After plotting like 100 ideas that could never work, I sat in a corner of the cell silently crying. I was defeated. Just then, a door opened and the two men from before appeared. They stopped and talked to the guard. I still couldn't understand all that well but I assumed they were talking about me. When the guard pointed at me and the men nodded, my suspicions were confirmed. The two men approached my "cell" and the guard unlocked it. The guard then walked away and left me alone with those two. I got up and looked them up and down. One had orange hair and was wearing an awesome blue cloak with black trim. 'Damn, he's fine...' I thought, eying the stranger. 'But also the reason I'm a prisoner in the first place!' I reminded myself. The other's light blue hair defied gravity as three strands stuck up. He was wearing a weird hat and carrying a strange pole. I looked from the two men to the doorway of the cell and attempted to figure out the distance. 'If they come at me, I might be able to run and lock them in,' I decided. They didn't move any closer, well, the orange haired tried but the other stopped him. He said, "The Priestess will see you now."

I looked up. 'Priestess? Maybe it's who Nakago wanted me to find out about.' But that was not my priority. "Where's Shiriko?!? What'd you do to him?" I demanded. I wasn't scared of them. Well, not really. I mean, I'm not really strong but I can fight. Besides, I'm fast.

They looked at each other than at me. "Shiriko?" the orange haired one asked his friend.

The blue haired one responded, "You mean that beast that was with you before?" I nodded. "We were going to kill him but the Priestess said it only attacked because it was worried about you and that it was your pet. She has it with her now."

"She can't have him! I don't care if she's the fuckin queen of the world! Shiriko is mine..."

"You're a little spit fire aren't you? Are you unaware that you are a prisoner? No one cares what you have to say so shut up," the orange haired one said, smirking. 'What an asshole!' I moved towards him and slapped him across the face.

"I may be a prisoner but I don't have to take your shit, asshole!" I snapped. "As far as I'm concerned, you're no better than me. What right do you have to pull me off the street and take me here?"

"Why you little..." he started but his friend cut him off.

"Well, well, well, Tasuki. I think you finally met your match. Don't be too hard on her, though, or she might leave and then we'll never know. Anyway, she's obviously not from around here so she's probably just confused and worried about her pet, you know?" Then, turning to me, he added, "I'm sure she'll give him back. I'm Chichiri, by the way. And that hot head over there is Tasuki."

"I'm Yume," I replied, my voice dull with embarrassment. 'What do they mean "met his match?" I'll leave if I want to leave. Being mean to me will only speed up the process. Wait...I can't leave. Not until Nakago tells me I can...' "How come I'm a prisoner? I didn't do anything." I decided to change the subject.

Chichiri looked down for a minute. I don't think he really knew what to say. 'What's with his face? Why is he always smiling?' "I...I don't really know. His Majesty ordered us to bring you there. When we were chasing you before, we just wanted to talk to you. But Hotohori...I'm not sure why he made you a prisoner. Maybe because he saw that you were dressed different and could be from Miaka's...I mean the Priestess' world. Or maybe he thought you were an imposter sent hear to find out all you can about and our Priestess. And then you ran away so he probably believed that you were a spy."

"Oh." I looked down again. We continued in an awkward silence. That Tasuki guy kept looking at me. "How much longer?" I asked Chichiri.

"Well, just a few more minutes. They didn't want to put the dungeon too close to the living quarters, you know."

"I guess that makes sense."

We continued on, still in silence. Finally, Tasuki spoke up. "How come your name is Yume? Isn't that "dream" in Japanese? You don't look Japanese."

I clenched my fists in anger. 'How dare he criticize me?!?' I thought as I tried to control the rage that was creeping up on me. Finally, I thought of an answer. "I often wondered the same thing. I asked my mom once and she said 'it just seemed right.' My dad said the same thing." He looked at me with a satisfied smirk. 'Oh no boy, this isn't over yet.' "How do you know what Yume means in Japanese? And how would you know what Japanese people look like?"

He looked at the floor and played with his thumbs. I swear he was blushing. "The Priestess taught me a little Japanese. Not much, just what some words mean. And she's Japanese. You don't look like her so I didn't think you were Japanese. You look...different."

"We're here," Chichiri announced before I could reply to Tasuki's insult. 'Maybe it wasn't an insult. Who knows with this weirdo.' They opened the doors to someone's, the Priestess' I guess, bedroom. Shiriko's leash was tied to the bedpost. 'Probably the only thing he couldn't move or break.'

"Shiriko!" I yelled as I ran to him. I untied him and gave him a big hug. This may seem a little extreme but when he's the only thing you got in a strange world, you'd miss him, too. He jumped up on me and licked my face. "I was worried about you, little buddy." I swear I heard Tasuki laugh quietly at me. 'I don't care what he thinks. I can have Shiriko attack him anytime I want. Or I can just slap him again.'

"So his name is Shiriko. He's a nice dog. He's very loyal to you. He caused quite a lot of trouble once Chichiri knocked you out. He even bit Tasuki." Tasuki glared at Shiriko. I just pet him lovingly. 'Good boy.' "Is he part wolf?"

I turned to face the voice. She didn't look much like a Priestess in my opinion: she had reddish brown hair that was up in buns tied with these little red ribbons. She was dressed in a skirt and matching blouse. She looked like a regular schoolgirl. Well, not like the girls in my school but like the ones that go to some dumb private school or something. "Yea, he's half wolf. Thanks for taking care of him for me but if you don't mind, I think I'll take him back now." I rubbed his head and saw Tasuki give me a mean look. I winked at him. 'That should throw him off.' He almost fell over, in shock I guess.

"Don't mention it." She turned towards Chichiri and the recovering Tasuki. "You guys can leave now if you want." They said good-bye and left. She sank down in a chair. "Ok, now I can really talk to you." I didn't know what to say to that. 'Really talk to me? About what?' I just stood quiet. "So where are you from, anyway?" she asked.

I sat down in a chair next to her. "I'm from New York. You know, in the U.S."

Her face brightened. "Really? I always wanted to go there. Is it nice?" I nodded. "I'm from Japan." She looked at the carpet. "How'd you get here?"

I knew this question would eventually come up. 'How can I explain this? Nakago said not to tell anyone or...' I gulped. I didn't want to think about it. "I was walking Shiriko in the woods when I was surrounded by a blue light. I woke up in the city. Shiriko was with me though I don't know how he came." Ok, that wasn't exactly the truth but it wasn't a lie either.

"A blue light, eh? Mine was red. Blue is the color for Seiryuu, the beast god of the eastern country of Kutou. If your color was blue, I wonder why you came to Konan instead of Kutou? Actually, I wonder why you even came to this world. Yui and I got here through this book called The Universe of the Four Gods and so did the other two priestesses, years before now." She looked confused. "Oh well. I don't know why you are here but I'm glad to have another person from our world with me. Wait, I don't even know you're name yet."

"It's Yume." I saw her give me the look I normally get when I say my name but from a Japanese person it was too much. I quickly added, "I know I'm not Japanese. My parents just thought it fit me so that's my name."

"Yume...doesn't that mean dream?" she asked.

"Yup."

She looked thoughtful for a minute then her stomach growled. At least, I think her stomach growled. It sounded more like a fierce roar than a growl but whatever. "Umm...why don't we go get some food? I'm kinda hungry and I'm sure you and Shiriko could use some."

"Ok."

"Then you can meet my other friends. After all, it is dinnertime. I'll ask Hotohori to get you a room so you don't have to stay in the dungeon. I didn't like it there, either."

Author's Note:

Smack: Nice Miaka, nice! So Yume gets a room in the palace...or so Miaka says! Will she keep her promise?

Tasuki: Dumb mutt! How come it had to bite me? :: holds hand possessively::

Chichiri: ::covers mouth to hide laughter::

Smack: :: puts head down in embarrassment:: Because you went near Yume.

Tasuki: How come Chichiri didn't get bit? He's the one who hit her...

Chichiri: Because you went near her first, dummy. :: smirks::

Tasuki: Oh. Hey wait a sec! That's because you told me to grab her after you hit her...YOU TRICKED ME!!!

Chichiri: You think I wanted to get bit by that thing! It's not my fault you fell for it. :: disappears into hat::

Tasuki: Get back here you evil, tricky little...

Smack: :: laughs evilly:: That's all for now! Next time...dinner at the palace! Bye bye everyone!