Hey everyone! Thanks for the long wait!
Riverwood: Hey, thanks for the suggestion about the anonymous reviews. I totally forgot about that! I just completely didn't occur to me to click on that little button in my settings.
Roku Kyu: I feel very honored to be responsible for nearly killing you! No seriously, I'm glad to know the great Roku is enjoying my story so much. Just so you know, revenge is sweet: I had intense cravings for tomato soup with wasabe peas for an entire week!
Disclaimer: Me Zolac no Miko. Me no own FY. Me no own funky disco "Kung- Fu Fighting" song. Me own story. You no own story. You steal story, me disembowel you with blunted spork.
Warnings: Um... more mild Miaka bashing. Like I said, easy target. Do I even need to warn people about that?
CHAPTER FOUR: IN WHICH TASUKI IS AFRAID OF WATER AND PLAYS WITH FIRE
The warm Oahu evening found the whole gang walking the strip in Waikiki. As they wandered amidst the palm trees and crowds of fellow tourists, their jaws dropped at the dizzying maelstrom of lights, music, and wild street performers. There was a chinese violin player, a saw player, a one man band, a percussionist, several street bands and musicians, and maybe a dozen living statues glistening with silver, gold, or white paint.
A score of walking billboards for the Waikiki Gun Club stood on the sidewalk, trying to hand out pamphlets to the passersby who carefully averted their eyes.
"Tasuki-kun," asked Chichiri, "however did you end up with so many pamphlets no da?"
"Isn't it great Chichiri? Who woulda' guessed there was so many gun clubs in Waikiki?"
The older Warrior seemed about to say something, but shook his head and sighed, rubbing his temples.
Miaka was grateful for the bright lights and the musicians; all the confusion helped to keep her mind off of Tamahome. She watched a group of college age boys move through the crowd, acting smooth and flirting with all the girls they met. 'They *are* kind of cute,' she thought, smiling. 'Maybe I should talk to them. Granted, they're not as good looking as Tama- No!' She shook her head, frowning. 'At least they're real-'
As she passed a Burger King, the smell of a juicy hamburger and fries reached her nose, derailing her train of thought.
Slam! Her face was glued to the glass door, her eyes gazing lovingly at the menus while her stomach rumbled loudly. Her hands dug into her pockets; she almost cried. They were empty! She desperately needed to find someone with money. Her look of despair was quickly replaced by something else. Something more sly, and scheming. She almost looked intelligent.
"Oh, Hotohori!" she called, musically.
"I'll have meals 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, to go!" Miaka, clinging to Hotohori's arm, looked up at him and blinked her eyes in a manner that was almost cute. "Thank you sooooo much, Hotohori; I was simply starving!"
Hotohori just couldn't believe his good luck. He and Miaka left the restaurant carrying steaming bags of fast food. Tamahome, watching, ground his teeth. 'Must- control- fist of death!' he thought.
Chichiri touched his arm. "Shake it off, Tamahome. Women love to play games with a man's heart no da. Women..." he paused, thinking. After a moment, he brightened. "Women are like pasta no da." He walked off, leaving Tamahome confused.
Soon the friends came upon a building with a great aquarium inside of it. They could see people walking through a tunnel on the inside of the aquarium.
"Ooooohhhh!" shrieked Miaka, tossing her last bite of burger into the bottomless pit. "Let's go see the fishes!" She ran for the building, dragging Hotohori behind her. The others followed.
Inside the tunnel, Miaka pressed her face against the glass. "Oooohhhh, look at the pretty yellow fishies, and the puffer fish, and the sting rays, and the sharks." Her stomach began to growl again.
Mitsukake and Chiriko gazed at her with wonder.
"How does she avoid getting a stomach ache?" wondered the healer.
"She must have a digestive rate higher than that of a rufous throated hummingbird," marveled Chiriko.
"Why does this tunnel have to contain stairs?" complained Hotohori out loud. "We might get sweaty doing all this climbing." He glanced to the base of the glass tube. "Tasuki-san, aren't you coming?"
Tasuki sat on the bottom step, hugging his knees, his face pale and clammy. "I- I- I can't!" he exclaimed. "The water- this is worse than swimming!"
Everyone looked at Tamahome, waiting for the insult.
'Pasta?' he thought. 'How the hell are women like pasta? And what the hell does it have to do with *anything*?'
Nuriko sighed. "I have to do everything!" he complained. "Come on Tasuki-chan, what are you afraid of? Are you a baby or something?"
"I'm not no stinkin' baby!" he growled. "I just- I can't! The water- it's almost as scary as milk!"
Nuriko grabbed his arm and yanked, pulling him up the stairs. "You're coming, whether you like it or not!"
Tasuki squeaked, staring up at the sharks with wide eyes. "But what- what if the glass cracks, and I drown?"
Chiriko laid a hand on his arm, comfortingly. "Don't worry Tasuki- san. The glass is approximately 3.12 inches thick. The chances of it cracking are- are so small I can't even begin to calculate it!"
"And besides," added Mitsukake helpfully, "if you do drown, I know mouth to mouth resuscitation."
Tasuki screamed with utter horror and shot up the stairs, tossing innocent tourists aside.
Outside once more, the group paused to watch another living statue. He glistened silver in the light of a couple of tiki torches, not moving an inch.
Tasuki peered closely at his face, frowning. He waved his hand in front of the man's eyes, then turned and looked in the direction the man was facing. He scratched his head, then exploded, "What the @%^& is he lookin' at?!"
Chiriko watched passersby toss money into a hat near the man's feet. "Fascinating," he mused. "It's electrifying how much money he can make, just standing there."
His words penetrated Tamahome's mind, rousing him from his stupor. "Money?.... Money!!" Dollar signs lit up his eyes... or would it be yen... or... whatever it is they use for money in Ancient China?
Tamahome whisked a stereo and a hat out of nowhere. "... and everybody was Kung-Fu fighting..." blared the stereo, and Tamahome began doing all kinds of really really really cool martial arts moves. A crowd began to gather around him, murmuring oohs and aahs in appreciation as they tossed money into the hat.
"Tama-baby never changes,"murmured Nuriko, smiling wistfully. He raised his voice. "I want ice cream! Let's go look for some. Tell you what, Tama-baby, we'll come back in an hour or so when we're ready to return to the hotel."
Hotohori looked delighted. "Oooohhh! Ice cream! We want white chocolate ginger! It's our favorite flavor," he added, almost shyly.
"I like green tea," said Chiriko. "Tea is stimulating to the mind. What's your favorite flavor, Miaka?"
Miaka had been thinking how cute Tamahome looked, and was glad for the interruption of her thoughts. "Actually," she said, "I'm feeling kind of tired. Would someone walk me back to the hotel? Hotohori?" she asked, hopefully.
Hotohori's brow creased from indecision, and his lip trembled. "Ice cream?" he quavered.
"Nuriko? Beauty sleep?" Nuriko glanced at Hotohori. He didn't want to leave, now that he had Hotohori to himself.
"Chiriko? Past your bed time?"
"I'll go," said Mitsukake. "The only way to maintain one's health is to get enough sleep."
Mitsukake and Miaka headed to the hotel, while four of the Suzaku Seishi wandered off in search of dessert. Tasuki remained, staring thoughtfully at Tamahome. He was pulling in quite a bit of money with his acrobatics. Tasuki grinned, showing his fangs. The light of the tiki torches revealed a gleam of mischief in his gorgeous amber eyes.
'Business is going quite well,' thought Tamahome, when he heard a tremendous shout.
"REKKA.... SHINEN!!!!!!" FWOOSH!!!! A pillar of flame shot skyward from across the street. Everybody within ninety yards turned to look. Tamahome saw a flash of Tasuki's daredevil grin before the outlaw hit the music. Tasuki's theme song boomed out as he began to juggle his flaming tessen and three tiki torches. The crowd gasped in amazement as he twirled the flaming objects behind his back, and with a whoosh, Tamahome's audience had disappeared.
"That- that- aarrrgghh!" yelled Tamahome in anger. "Why does everyone seem set to piss me off today?!" Which reminded him of his problem with Miaka.
'That girl,' he thought. 'I have a thing or two to discuss with her.' Casting a last death glare at Tasuki, who was juggling with his eyes shut while he stood on one leg, Tamahome gathered up his money and headed toward the Ala Moana Hotel.
* * *
Notes: Hey wow, that one was a bit longer than the other ones, I think! FYI, most of the experiences described in this chapter are based on things that I actually witnessed or took part in while cruising Waikiki - hot tessen-juggling seishi excepted, of course!
Riverwood: Hey, thanks for the suggestion about the anonymous reviews. I totally forgot about that! I just completely didn't occur to me to click on that little button in my settings.
Roku Kyu: I feel very honored to be responsible for nearly killing you! No seriously, I'm glad to know the great Roku is enjoying my story so much. Just so you know, revenge is sweet: I had intense cravings for tomato soup with wasabe peas for an entire week!
Disclaimer: Me Zolac no Miko. Me no own FY. Me no own funky disco "Kung- Fu Fighting" song. Me own story. You no own story. You steal story, me disembowel you with blunted spork.
Warnings: Um... more mild Miaka bashing. Like I said, easy target. Do I even need to warn people about that?
CHAPTER FOUR: IN WHICH TASUKI IS AFRAID OF WATER AND PLAYS WITH FIRE
The warm Oahu evening found the whole gang walking the strip in Waikiki. As they wandered amidst the palm trees and crowds of fellow tourists, their jaws dropped at the dizzying maelstrom of lights, music, and wild street performers. There was a chinese violin player, a saw player, a one man band, a percussionist, several street bands and musicians, and maybe a dozen living statues glistening with silver, gold, or white paint.
A score of walking billboards for the Waikiki Gun Club stood on the sidewalk, trying to hand out pamphlets to the passersby who carefully averted their eyes.
"Tasuki-kun," asked Chichiri, "however did you end up with so many pamphlets no da?"
"Isn't it great Chichiri? Who woulda' guessed there was so many gun clubs in Waikiki?"
The older Warrior seemed about to say something, but shook his head and sighed, rubbing his temples.
Miaka was grateful for the bright lights and the musicians; all the confusion helped to keep her mind off of Tamahome. She watched a group of college age boys move through the crowd, acting smooth and flirting with all the girls they met. 'They *are* kind of cute,' she thought, smiling. 'Maybe I should talk to them. Granted, they're not as good looking as Tama- No!' She shook her head, frowning. 'At least they're real-'
As she passed a Burger King, the smell of a juicy hamburger and fries reached her nose, derailing her train of thought.
Slam! Her face was glued to the glass door, her eyes gazing lovingly at the menus while her stomach rumbled loudly. Her hands dug into her pockets; she almost cried. They were empty! She desperately needed to find someone with money. Her look of despair was quickly replaced by something else. Something more sly, and scheming. She almost looked intelligent.
"Oh, Hotohori!" she called, musically.
"I'll have meals 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, to go!" Miaka, clinging to Hotohori's arm, looked up at him and blinked her eyes in a manner that was almost cute. "Thank you sooooo much, Hotohori; I was simply starving!"
Hotohori just couldn't believe his good luck. He and Miaka left the restaurant carrying steaming bags of fast food. Tamahome, watching, ground his teeth. 'Must- control- fist of death!' he thought.
Chichiri touched his arm. "Shake it off, Tamahome. Women love to play games with a man's heart no da. Women..." he paused, thinking. After a moment, he brightened. "Women are like pasta no da." He walked off, leaving Tamahome confused.
Soon the friends came upon a building with a great aquarium inside of it. They could see people walking through a tunnel on the inside of the aquarium.
"Ooooohhhh!" shrieked Miaka, tossing her last bite of burger into the bottomless pit. "Let's go see the fishes!" She ran for the building, dragging Hotohori behind her. The others followed.
Inside the tunnel, Miaka pressed her face against the glass. "Oooohhhh, look at the pretty yellow fishies, and the puffer fish, and the sting rays, and the sharks." Her stomach began to growl again.
Mitsukake and Chiriko gazed at her with wonder.
"How does she avoid getting a stomach ache?" wondered the healer.
"She must have a digestive rate higher than that of a rufous throated hummingbird," marveled Chiriko.
"Why does this tunnel have to contain stairs?" complained Hotohori out loud. "We might get sweaty doing all this climbing." He glanced to the base of the glass tube. "Tasuki-san, aren't you coming?"
Tasuki sat on the bottom step, hugging his knees, his face pale and clammy. "I- I- I can't!" he exclaimed. "The water- this is worse than swimming!"
Everyone looked at Tamahome, waiting for the insult.
'Pasta?' he thought. 'How the hell are women like pasta? And what the hell does it have to do with *anything*?'
Nuriko sighed. "I have to do everything!" he complained. "Come on Tasuki-chan, what are you afraid of? Are you a baby or something?"
"I'm not no stinkin' baby!" he growled. "I just- I can't! The water- it's almost as scary as milk!"
Nuriko grabbed his arm and yanked, pulling him up the stairs. "You're coming, whether you like it or not!"
Tasuki squeaked, staring up at the sharks with wide eyes. "But what- what if the glass cracks, and I drown?"
Chiriko laid a hand on his arm, comfortingly. "Don't worry Tasuki- san. The glass is approximately 3.12 inches thick. The chances of it cracking are- are so small I can't even begin to calculate it!"
"And besides," added Mitsukake helpfully, "if you do drown, I know mouth to mouth resuscitation."
Tasuki screamed with utter horror and shot up the stairs, tossing innocent tourists aside.
Outside once more, the group paused to watch another living statue. He glistened silver in the light of a couple of tiki torches, not moving an inch.
Tasuki peered closely at his face, frowning. He waved his hand in front of the man's eyes, then turned and looked in the direction the man was facing. He scratched his head, then exploded, "What the @%^& is he lookin' at?!"
Chiriko watched passersby toss money into a hat near the man's feet. "Fascinating," he mused. "It's electrifying how much money he can make, just standing there."
His words penetrated Tamahome's mind, rousing him from his stupor. "Money?.... Money!!" Dollar signs lit up his eyes... or would it be yen... or... whatever it is they use for money in Ancient China?
Tamahome whisked a stereo and a hat out of nowhere. "... and everybody was Kung-Fu fighting..." blared the stereo, and Tamahome began doing all kinds of really really really cool martial arts moves. A crowd began to gather around him, murmuring oohs and aahs in appreciation as they tossed money into the hat.
"Tama-baby never changes,"murmured Nuriko, smiling wistfully. He raised his voice. "I want ice cream! Let's go look for some. Tell you what, Tama-baby, we'll come back in an hour or so when we're ready to return to the hotel."
Hotohori looked delighted. "Oooohhh! Ice cream! We want white chocolate ginger! It's our favorite flavor," he added, almost shyly.
"I like green tea," said Chiriko. "Tea is stimulating to the mind. What's your favorite flavor, Miaka?"
Miaka had been thinking how cute Tamahome looked, and was glad for the interruption of her thoughts. "Actually," she said, "I'm feeling kind of tired. Would someone walk me back to the hotel? Hotohori?" she asked, hopefully.
Hotohori's brow creased from indecision, and his lip trembled. "Ice cream?" he quavered.
"Nuriko? Beauty sleep?" Nuriko glanced at Hotohori. He didn't want to leave, now that he had Hotohori to himself.
"Chiriko? Past your bed time?"
"I'll go," said Mitsukake. "The only way to maintain one's health is to get enough sleep."
Mitsukake and Miaka headed to the hotel, while four of the Suzaku Seishi wandered off in search of dessert. Tasuki remained, staring thoughtfully at Tamahome. He was pulling in quite a bit of money with his acrobatics. Tasuki grinned, showing his fangs. The light of the tiki torches revealed a gleam of mischief in his gorgeous amber eyes.
'Business is going quite well,' thought Tamahome, when he heard a tremendous shout.
"REKKA.... SHINEN!!!!!!" FWOOSH!!!! A pillar of flame shot skyward from across the street. Everybody within ninety yards turned to look. Tamahome saw a flash of Tasuki's daredevil grin before the outlaw hit the music. Tasuki's theme song boomed out as he began to juggle his flaming tessen and three tiki torches. The crowd gasped in amazement as he twirled the flaming objects behind his back, and with a whoosh, Tamahome's audience had disappeared.
"That- that- aarrrgghh!" yelled Tamahome in anger. "Why does everyone seem set to piss me off today?!" Which reminded him of his problem with Miaka.
'That girl,' he thought. 'I have a thing or two to discuss with her.' Casting a last death glare at Tasuki, who was juggling with his eyes shut while he stood on one leg, Tamahome gathered up his money and headed toward the Ala Moana Hotel.
* * *
Notes: Hey wow, that one was a bit longer than the other ones, I think! FYI, most of the experiences described in this chapter are based on things that I actually witnessed or took part in while cruising Waikiki - hot tessen-juggling seishi excepted, of course!