Seconds seem like hours as the monk watches the assassin's features for a sign; anything at all. Her thin, titian brow twitches slightly under his watchful eye. Underneath his fingertips, a tremor ripples her slender figure. Startled, Chichiri jumps to his feet and steps back. Urami's face contorts in agony as her thin frame spasms. An unconscious, hideous sneer forms, baring her fangs. Her eyelids rise slowly, revealing glowing red oculi.
Chichiri raises his arm in defense against the terrifying sight. The holy water slips from his fingers, forgotten. The assassin girl's jaws part to release a stream of oily, black smoke, followed by the most piercing, wretched scream anybody in the palace had ever heard.
Suddenly, the world is silent. No sound come from Urami, nor himself. The stunned monk reaches for his ears, wondering if he was struck deaf. It comes into realization that he could hear the muffled noises of both of their breaths. So she wasn't dead, but merely unconscious. He peers down at her pallid features, slick with sweat. Her eyelids flicker, but remain closed. Tasuki, Nuriko, and Tamahome burst into the room, ready for a fight despite being clad in sleepwear. "What was that?" Tamahome asks. "Don't tell me yer playin' wit' my sister 'gain." Tasuki sighs. "She ain't worth no one's time."
Chichiri's eyebrows arch at the bandit's disgust, wondering what could arouse such an emotion. His own feelings catch him in a whirlwind. Why is he trying so desperately to save the life of the fae who tried to kill him? 'Sure she's beautiful, but there are many beautiful people in the world.' he muses, lost in the heavy solitude. Maybe that was it...Surely he couldn't love her. Love was something forbidden to a guy like him, a guy with so many painful memories. His scar tingles as he returns his gaze to Urami. 'She looks so harmless and weak, laying there like that....'
Suddenly, the thick silence is shattered by a heavy coughing spell. It takes the dazed monk a moment to realize where it is coming from. He steps toward the killer, completely ignoring his stunned companions, and kneels beside her. Her body is trembling from the exhaustion and pain of her long journey and laborious efforts to kill. Chichiri unconsciously lifts his hand and touches her cheek tentatively. Almost immediately, fat shimmering tears begin to slide down her cheeks, the only clue to her emotion.