Written by: Hoshihikari4ever
Disclaimer: I do not own Fushigi Yuugi. Nothing belongs to me!
Summary: A reincarnation fic. Five years after the TV series. Miaka and Taka are a week from marriage. Miaka walks in on something unexpected, causing them to break apart. What happens when a person who Miaka thought she lost forever, shows up to comfort her.
Parings: slight Mia/Tama, Tama/Yui, Tetsu/Yui implied, main couple Miaka/Hotohori
Author Note: Thanks to everyone who reviewed!! I really appreciate it! Remember to check out my bio. I'll be updating it regularly!Chapter 7
The two men headed for a nearby café. The two ordered some fast food and soft drinks.
"Well Tetsuya…so what was it on your mind anyways….?" His friend only smiled. "This would be good for Miaka you know…" Keisuke frowned. "What do you mean?" "I mean…with Taka gone from her life…hopefully forever…." Keisuke frowned even more. "It's about time that Miaka went out with another guy…." "Another guy? Tetsuya…she barely recovered…" "I'm sure Sai can help with that….Remember he is supposedly the reincarnation of the great emperor…" Keisuke chuckled. "and from what we've learned about him, Miaka's going to be alright….safe and sound…" "but why him…Miaka and Sai just met…you can't expect so much from…" "I don't expect anything from him….its just knowing Miaka this long…I can't bring myself to see her hurt…" Keisuke eyed the other intently. "Just trust me alright….there has to be a reason why Hotohori would be reincarnated…so many unanswered questions…." Keisuke nodded. "and until we find out exactly why he's here and not some other Senshi…it would be good for Miaka to go out with him…just to relive some of her pain…" There was a pause. "Besides…it might be the very reason why he's here…" "You mean to hook up with my sister…" "yes…."
"look at it this way…from the very start…. how after so many years after Suzaku's legend and the 'ending' of the Universe of the Four Gods that Tamahome suddenly decides not to love your sister and blows off the wedding…something that both were looking forward too…something that everyone had tried so hard to let it workout…even at the ultimate price…" Still Keisuke did not speak. "and then right when Miaka needs someone to love and care for her, to comfort and help her through it all…Hotohori conveniently gets reincarnated…." "Yes…the very man whom in the past had always been with Miaka from the very start….someone who Miaka might have occasionally not noticed….but was nevertheless still with her to the very end….has once again decided to come back for her…" "Exactly Keisuke….Perhaps there is more to this then we know…Do you know what I mean…" Keisuke thought for a bit. "Yes….the book has returned…the Universe of the Four Gods…and its legend has begun…." Tetsuya nodded. "Yes...that's what I thought….I don't think it was just a mere coincidence that the love sick emperor would be granted his wish, there must have been a reason behind it….perhaps something has happened within the book, whatever it is…I think its best for us to find it again…." "Yes Tetsuya I agree…"
* * *
Miaka heard the doorbell ring. She went and took a peek out of the eye hole in the door.
Whaa!! How did he get here? Da…how does he even know where I live? Why does he have to show up now?
Miaka heard the doorbell ring again. She took a deep breath before admitting her Senshi.
"Hi Sai!!" She said, a bit surprised at finding him here. "Hi….Miaka…" "Umm…umm…come on it…" She stepped aside, and the man walked in.
"How did you know I lived here….I don't think I told you…Why are you here?" Sai nodded his head at the flowers. "I just came to apologize about this morning…You really were freaked out. You ran out without saying anything. I just came to check up on you that's all…As for how I got here, I have no clue…I think something lead me here…."
Miaka nodded in understanding, remembering the past when she was still inside the book. Remembering how she never needed to say a thing and Hotohori would always know if something was wrong, if she was in danger, or if she just needed comfort. "Well…sit down, I'll get you something to drink…and something to eat…" Sai nodded. "If it isn't too much of a problem, then sure." Miaka smiled. "No, its not, in fact, I'll go and make it myself (uh oh…Miaka cooking?? How good is it going to come out…^_~) with that she went into the kitchen, deciding on what to cook for her friend.
Sai watched Miaka's back disappear through the door. He shook his head a couple of times before settling himself down on the couch. He placed down the flowers and then took out the new phone and fumbled with it. His eyes traveled the room, taking in the surroundings.
There wasn't much to see. It was like any other living room. Nothing special. The TV was in the far end of the room. There was a table in the center. The couch surrounding it. Nothing really stood out…that is nothing except for…..
….for a group picture. A picture with 8 people. 8 people who were smiling on a deck of a ship. 8 people who were wearing clothes from another land. 8 people who's faces looked awfully familiar.
Sai picked up the photo, and study it closely. He stared from face to face. He concentrated hard, trying to remember something….trying to remember something. But what? He did not know…Yet, he knew that he had known these people. He narrowed his eyes, squinting, depicting the secrets in which the photo held. His eyes finally landed on a certain man. He had worn robes, red ones, and on top of his head was a box shaped thing. Then his eyes landed on a dark blue haired man, and the women, which was between them.
A sudden pain seared across Sai's neck, causing him to gasped a bit. His world suddenly began to spin. Everything around him became unfocused. He reached out to grab onto anything for balance, but could not find anything. His body shook violently, as he swayed backwards and forwards on the couch.
* * *
Miaka stood back to marvel at her success. She had successfully made her first homemade colossal hamburger…one complete with french fries and raw tomatoes on the side. Technically she had not cooked a meal, but had spent the 15 minutes assembling the burger. She had gotten a warning from many that the food she cooked tasted horrible, and so she did not want to poison Sai with it. She wouldn't have minded if it was for Taka, Tamahome, her brother, Tetsuya or Yui…she'll just force them to eat it. However this was Sai, this was Hotohori, and it was because of who he was that made all the difference.
Satisfied, Miaka place the burger on a tray, took a bottle of coke out to the refrigerator and headed off to the living room.
* * * ( This isn't the original scene, changed it a bit…)
"Heika-sama…Tamahome is attacking the palace…"
"Tamahome…He's come…come for me…come to kill me…" The girl withdrew her body a bit. The man next to her grabbed for his sword. The girl gasped and grabbed for the man's arm. He held it for a bit, before throwing her gently onto the bed. "Hotohori!!" The man then existed his room. Upon leaving, he place a wedge to lock the door from the outside. "Hotohori!!" "Miaka, I'll be back shortly…Wait for me…" The girl pounded on the door. "Let me out Hotohori…let me out…" "Iie…You are to stay here…you understand me? I will come for you later…I promise you…" The tone of voice caught the girl, its meaning crept through to her.
Oh my god…! He's going to kill Tamahome…Oh my God…He's going to battle Tamahome for my sake…going to battle it out to the end…No…No…No!!
The man left, leaving behind rustle noises of shouts, screams and pounding from the locked up girl. His only thought intensified his chi.
Miaka…I swear I'll kill anyone…anyone who hurts you in any way. I swear I'll protect you Miaka…I will never forgive him for hurting you Miaka…I don't care who he is or how much he means to you…he will pay for hurting. I'll kill him. Kill Tamahome…even if…even if heaven had meant for us to be friends.
* * *
Miaka nearly dropped the food. She rushed over to Sai. He was shaking violently. Sweat covered him. His mouth was twitching. She placed down the food and took him into her arms.
"Sai…!! Sai!!" She held his body close to her. He was jerking uncontrollably. Miaka held him close, her heart thumped loudly. She called his name again and again, but he did not seem to be responding to her.
"Miaka…Miaka…I'll be back shortly…" Miaka froze at those words.
Nani?? What does Sai mean?
"Iie…you are to stay here….you understand me? I will come for you later…I promise you…." "Sai!! Sai!!" "Miaka…I swear I'll kill anyone…anyone who hurts you in any way. I swear I'll protect you Miaka…I will never forgive him for hurting you Miaka…I don't care who he is or how much he means to you…he will pay for hurting. I'll kill him. Kill Tamahome…even if…even if heaven had meant for us to be friends."
Miaka too shook repulsively. She had never forgotten those words, those words that Hotohori had once said, right before he went off to battle evil Tamahome. Memories of the past flashed through her mind. She was once again brought back to that rainy fateful night when two of her Senshi were at each others necks.
What's the matter with Sai? Why is he experiencing that memory again. It wasn't a happy one. Why though? What could it have been that triggered it?
"Kill Tamahome…Kill Tamahome…I'll kill him for hurting Miaka…I'll kill him for it…even if…even if Suzaku had meant us to be friends…even if…even if…" "Sai!! Sai…" She was desperate now, desperate to reawaken Sai from Hotohori's nightmare…Miaka secretly wanted him to experience it, to try to remember the past, but not this one…not this past…
Then all of a sudden, Sai's body froze stiff. He wasn't shaking anymore. Miaka gasped. "Sai!! Sai!! Hotohori!!! Sai!!" she called out his name. She let out a sigh as the golden brown eyes flickered open.
"Na…Nani Miaka….?" He asked softly, and then blushed hard as he noticed that he was laying in Miaka's arms. Hastily, he scrabbled off and sat at a more suitable distance.
"Are you alright Sai…are you alright…?" The man frowned. "Why won't I be…" Miaka was surprised. "Why wouldn't I be?" He frowned. "Anno…don't you remembered what had happened…you were shaking violently….you were sweating…and murmuring stuff…Do you remember…?" "What? Really? I feel fine now…Weird…No, I don't remember anything…." Miaka sighed. "What I do remember is…is…this…is taking a good look at this picture and then my neck started to seer with pain…I don't remember anything afterwards…" He held up the picture, and Miaka stared at it wide eyed.
"Soo desu ka….soo desu ka…So that's why…." She spoke more to herself then to him. She took the picture and then held it close to her heart.
After a while Sai spoke. "Miaka…who…who were those people…Were they…were they your friends…" Miaka looked up at his eyes, trying to figure out if she should tell him or not. "Yes…they were my friends…very close friends…" She showed him the picture. "See here, the four in the back…from left to right are Nuriko, Chichiri, Mitsukake and Tasuki. The four in the front, from left to right are Tamahome…known as Taka, Me, Hotohori, and Chiriko…" Now she waited for a response, a response which there was, but it disappeared in a flash. He was staring at the faces. "We were really close friends…except now…except now…" He looked at her, urging her to continue. "Now that 4 of them died…and 2 of them I haven't seen for at least 5 years and the last one, my boyfriend, broke up with me…" Sai was stunned for a bit, but recovered quickly. He knew it was hurting Miaka to speak of it, and so did not ask more. "I'm sorry…"
He had to add the last bit to it, the burning question. "Is that guy…Hoto~ dead… and if yes, then how…" Miaka tore away from his gaze. "I see…so it is…I'm sorry…I see now why you would have mistaken me as him…We do look a lot alike…though I am even more beautiful then he…" He chuckled at his own joke. "He must have meant a lot to you…He must still mean a lot to you…" Miaka shook her head furiously. "He's not dead…." "Nani? But you just said…." "Well his physical form may be gone…that part died while he tried to protect me, to make sure that I would survive, with my ex…. However… I know that Hotohori isn't dead. He never died. He never will. He will forever live with in me…That day, on his verge of death, he made a vow….a vow that we will meet again…and I, I believe in him…I believe that one day it will come true….Even after death, love ones do not truly leave…Their spirit remains, memories of the past remain…" She looked directly into his golden brown eyes. "Do you understand Sai…" "Yes…I do…you loved him…except you never gave him a chance…you never gave *me* a chance…" There was a sense of coldness, a sense of bitterness. "Why can't you just give it up…give him up…and perhaps…perhaps move on…move on with me…."
If it wasn't for the solemn atmosphere…Miaka could have burst out laughing. Here he was, Sai, Hotohori…telling her to give up loving his previous form. Here was Hotohori, the guy whom loved her since Suzaku knows when, giving her advice, advice to give up on him…Then again, this was Sai…Sai and not Hotohori…the guy, the guy who thought he was actually a whole knew person and was not in any way related to Hotohori, was telling her to give up her love for his path form and to instead fall in love with him as who he is now. To Miaka they were the same guy and so she found it quite funny that he would be telling her such things.
"Why can't you give me a chance…." Sai asked again. Miaka hesitated. "You remind me too much of him…of Hotohori…." Sai only stared at her. "He was a lot like you Sai…that's how I mistaken you as him the first time we met…I thought…I thought you were him…." She bit her lower lip. "You look like an older version of him, an older more matured version…. He, Hotohori had died, when he was 18…he was so young…" Another light flashed through Sai's eyes. "He too was rich, he too was kind and gentle, he too hated being alone, he too hungered for my love…" "Unrequited love?" "Yes…and he too, like you are now, was here for me, didn't need me to say a word, and knew what I wanted what I needed. He was with me, when Tamahome dumped me, when he hurt me…he was always there to comfort me…to cheer me up…just like you Sai…being here when my boyfriend dumped me…." "I'll always be here, no matter what…I promise you…I won't leave you…" Tears streaked down her cheeks. "You remind me too much of him Sai…and…and I don't know…I think that's the reason why I suddenly left this morning….It was just too much for me. Seeing you, I guess had kind of reopened the wounds of the past, of our past, Hotohori and mines… I guess I'm afraid, I'm afraid, if I open up to you…you might end up replacing him, something…something that I cannot afford to happened…Besides, you're everything that I wanted him to become, and what I had imagined him as…" Sai took her into his arms, wrapping them protectively around her. "Sh…sh…it's alright Miaka…I'm sorry…I didn't understand at first….but I do now…I won't force you to talk about it ok…to reopen the pain…or force myself on you…to replace him…I know it's hard…and very difficult….but I want you to know…I'll help you through this…I'll support you all the way through….I won't let anymore people hurt you….Miaka…." She held onto him tightly. "Thank you Sai…Thank you…."
Finally the two pulled away from each other. Sai brushed the tears away from her face. "There now…everything's going to be alright….I'll always be here for you…" "Arigatou…..arigatou….." He bent over and took a flower. Then he gave it to her. She took it and held it close to her heart. "Thank you…." Sai smiled. "I brought something else for you…." He said, changing the atmosphere to a relaxing state. Miaka smiled. He reached out and took the cell phone. "Nani…" "It's for you…." "But…" "You left your cell phone with me…." "but that's not mines…" "I know it's not…I got it this morning to replace yours…." He took out small bits of unrecognizable pieces. "I'm sorry, that's your original phone…I broke it so got you a new one…." Miaka stared at the pieces, in aw. "How did it get this small…." "I do not know….but I received a phone call on it…didn't say anything…My temper just rose…. It was uncontrollable. The person on the opposite line just pissed me off…." "Dare?" "A guy…by the name of Taka…" "Taka??!! He called?" "He's your ex right?" Miaka nodded. "Well, he said he was sorry he hurt you….and well I lost control, when he said he hurt you…and well the phone just smashed like that…." Miaka nodded.
Sai…he lost control. He was able to use his powers when he wanted to protect me… because Taka had hurt me…Yet, those aren't Hotohori's powers. It should be Nuriko's, he's the super strength Senshi…Oh…well…he did what his heart told him to do…and I can't blame him for it…
"So…Miaka…I know you might not believe me…I don't believe myself…" "Why won't I? I think its quite common for a person to have extra powers when s/he finds him or herself in a dangerous situation, or when one is really angry…People can do unusual stuff…." She shrugged. "All of those people in that picture...my friends…they all had unusual powers…" Sai seemed interested. "What did Hoto~ have…what was his ability?" "He was a really great swordsmen. It was he who I learned from, he's a master at his technique. It was he who the sword that I gave you once belong to… Besides that, I'm sure he had other abilities…" She thought back to the time when Hotohori had rescued her from the lake. Sai grinned. "Another similarity…Do you think….do you think I have any special abilities…and was that the reason why you thought I might be able to release the swords powers?" Miaka smiled. "Yeah, I think you do…I think everyone does….and yes…because you remind me so much of him, I thought that you might be able to bring out its abilities…" "Were you able to?" "Just once…but I think it was him who did it…even though he wasn't with me at the time…." Sai smiled even broader. "I've got to try that…."
At that moment, the doorbell rang. Miaka frowned. She stood up. "Who do you think it is…" "Don't know…but…its probably my brother and his best friend…they left to get something to eat…guess they're back…" Sai smiled. "I'll like to meet them." Miaka nodded and headed towards the door. Sai relaxed against the couch, sitting down in a very comfortable position.
Miaka headed towards the door. She opened it without peaking at the eye hole. "Keisuke, Tetsuya…You're…." She stopped and stared at the man before her. At once many thoughts rushed through her mind.
The man seeing her stunned quite a bit, pushed her slightly inside, before entering. He flashed her a smile before entering the living room. The smile instantly vanished, the instant he saw the man on the couch. The man, who was sitting on the couch, immediately jumped to his feet. The atmosphere tensed up. The two men stared at each other…both with cold stricken eyes.
Miaka quickly made her way back to the living room. She felt her muscles. In a few steps she was standing in between the two men.
Shit! Shit! Why does he have to show up now??
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Done!! Wow! Finished at last. So who was that guy who showed up? Find out in the next chapter…! R/R!! ^_~
