As he marched through the palace hallways, Nakago felt his goal coming ever nearer. Soon, Yumi would be wounded beyond healing, and his girl would take the blame. Unknown to his priestess, the remaining three members of the Seiryu seven had already arrived. And they obeyed him. Only him. Ashitare was nothing more than an obedient pet, as far as he was concerned, and Miboshi would soon attack the palace at Konan. He would probably be killed, but he might take one of the Suzaku warriors. According to his spy network, Yumi had found the fifth member of her group, but he was young and weak. Perfect for Miboshi to take down. And now he also knew which warrior Yumi loved the most. Tasuki. I can use him to hurt both Megumi and Yumi at the same time. Any day now, the Suzaku chosen would take Amiboshi into their ranks, believing him to be one of them. And when they realize their mistake, I'm afraid Amiboshi won't survive for very long after that… And then there was always Tomo, the trump card.

He entered the shrine of Seiryu. He still needed one more thing for all of this to work. He stared at the pedestal, concentrating, and it suddenly blazed with purple and black flames.

Nakago stared into the dark flames, willing his master to appear. It was vital that this part of the plan be carried out, or everything might fall apart.

"Nakago." He looked up, and a darker shadow appeared among the eerie flames. Tenkou. He bowed his head.

"Master, I call for your assistance."

-------

When Yumi awoke the next morning, she just lay in bed, refusing to open her eyes. When I open my eyes, my dream will have officially ended… and we'll be back to Tasuki and Hotohori constantly bickering. I won't… I don't want that to be just a dream! She bit her lip and gasped. She felt a tiny scar, right where she had dreamed Tasuki… She sat up suddenly, opening her eyes and looking over to where she knew he would be. Yumi jumped out of bed happily. Tasuki was on the other bed, still sleeping. He had figured out how to use her CD player, it seemed. He was wearing the headphones, and when she looked closer, she saw that he had even figured out how to use the "repeat" and "shuffle" features. He's pretty smart; I'll give him that. It's a good thing I have extra batteries…

Yumi decided to take this opportunity to change and wash her hair a little. She picked out a new outfit and grabbed a towel off of the washstand. Since there wasn't much clean water left, she wet her comb and ran it through her hair until it felt a little less dirty. Then, she managed to wriggle out of her sweatshirt. She hated it falling asleep wearing clothes like that. They always get twisted around! She pulled off her shirt and sniffed it, making a face. She sighed, wishing with all her heart for the chance to take a real shower, or that she could find a real washing machine. She tossed the shirt onto the bed and reached back to unclasp her bra, when she heard a movement from the other bed. Yumi turned to look at Tasuki. He was sitting leaning against the wall with his hands clasped behind his head, grinning like an idiot. Yumi suppressed the urge to smack the silly expression off his face.

"You were supposed to be asleep!" She said accusingly. He continued to smile, revealing his awesome teeth.

"I was, but you woke me, and I didn't want to disturb you." He replied, but didn't look away. Yumi couldn't decide whether to laugh or cry. Of course. He's a MAN. They do stuff like that… but…

She was distracted when she heard a tap on the door, followed by Nuriko's voice.

"Yumi! Are you awake?" Yumi saw the door begin to open. Panicking, she grabbed her blanket and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"Nuriko? Could you wait a moment? I'm, uh, busy." She said, trying to sound perfectly calm. Why can't I change in peace? Of course, I don't mind Nuriko for some reason I don't understand, but Hotohori is probably with him…

"Yumi? Are you almost ready to go?" Hotohori asked through the closed door. She hated it when she was right about stuff like that.

"Yeah, just hold on a moment. Okay?" She shot a glare at Tasuki, and he directed his gaze at the ceiling. At least he's pretending to give me privacy. She finished changing, tossing all her dirty clothes into her bag and zipping it closed. She didn't get a chance to check how she looked when she heard the door open. She looked over in bewilderment, until she saw that Tasuki had opened it, not Nuriko or Hotohori. Nuriko and Hotohori stood outside the door. Nuriko looked from Yumi to Tasuki curiously, but Hotohori looked only at Yumi. She tried not to feel guilty. I didn't do anything wrong. For a wonder, Tasuki helped her pack the rest of her things, and even carried her bag for her.

As a group, they left the inn, leaving Hotohori to take care of the bills. And why not? He can afford it! Yumi followed Nuriko and Tasuki into the stables. With Chichiri gone, they now had four horses, enough for everyone to ride alone. Yumi automatically headed for Kohaku. She knew she couldn't ride very well, but Kohaku seemed a tame enough horse. Regretting her inability to ride more than ever, Yumi reached up and tried to pull herself onto the saddle. She did no better than yesterday, and ended up being caught by Nuriko as she dove headfirst over Kohaku's back.

"Yumi," Nuriko said lightly, "you really should learn to ride." Yumi nodded, embarrassed, as Nuriko set her safely in the saddle. Yumi grabbed the reins, determined to figure this out. She watched as Nuriko mounted his chestnut horse, trying to copy the way he held the reins.

Hotohori entered the stables at that precise moment. Under his accusing gaze, Tasuki took the reins of Chichiri's dark gray horse and jumped into the saddle. Yumi could see that he wasn't a very good rider either, but at least he was strong enough to control the animal. Hotohori then gracefully swung up to sit on the black horse. These horses need names. Okay, the one Tasuki is riding will be called Yatsu, and Nuriko's is Ira, while Hotohori's… is Hana. As they left the stables, she asked if the horses had names. It turns out that they didn't, so it was a good thing Yumi decided to name them. Yumi had a little trouble maneuvering Kohaku out of the stable, and wondered if she should have waited until they were out in the street to get on the horse.

Once they were out on the street, Yumi had much less trouble, and she tried to relax. She was glad that Nuriko was looking out for her. Of her warriors, it looked like he was the best rider, but Yumi didn't really know whether he was skilled, of just confident. He kept Ira near Yumi, close enough that he would be able to catch her if she fell. They continued through the village, going the way Chichiri had searched before. Yumi suddenly remembered that she should check her jewel. She pulled it out, but it was as lifeless as ever. But she didn't tuck it back under her shirt. If it glowed, even a little, she wanted someone to notice it if she didn't.

Yumi sighed, wishing her legs weren't still sore from the ride the day before. The fact that they would be riding again had totally slipped her mind when she chose her outfit. This skirt will not be so comfortable in a little while, when the saddle starts to chafe… She considered riding sidesaddle fashion, but she would probably fall off if she tried to move, so she sat how Nuriko had deposited her. She stared at the jewel. It's so pretty… She didn't notice that her horse was drifting away from the group. Is it just me, or is the jewel starting to glow? She closed her eyes and looked at it again. It was hard to tell. The jewel was still pink, but it seemed a brighter pink than when she first saw it. She was brought back to reality when Kohaku suddenly changed directions, almost causing Yumi to fall off. She leaned forward and grabbed Kohaku's mane, barely managing to keep her seat. She looked up and saw that Nuriko had taken hold of Kohaku's reigns and was leading the horse for her.

"Hey, Nuriko." She called. "What do you think of the name 'Ira?'" Nuriko looked back at her for a moment, then shrugged.

"It sounds okay to me, why?" Yumi knew this would sound strange, but she went ahead anyway.

"Well, that's what I've decided to call your horse. If you don't mind, that is." Nuriko nodded, facing forward.

"Sure, that works!" He patted Ira's neck affectionately, muttering to the chestnut horse.

"I've thought of names for the other ones too, if you want to hear them." Yumi said to no one in particular. Neither Tasuki nor Hotohori answered, but she told them anyway.

"I think the pretty black one should be called Hana. And the dark gray one… Yatsu." She went back to studying the jewel. She hadn't really expected them to care what she named their horses, but they could at least admit that she existed. Since she was riding ahead of them, she didn't catch the glaring contest they were involved in. The jewel is definitely glowing…

"Tasuki, come here, I want you to look at something." She was surprised by how quickly he was at her side.

"What's up, Yumi?" He tried to look at her and keep an eye on the road ahead at the same time. Yumi held the jewel up in front of his eyes.

"Is this glowing?" She asked him. He looked at it intently, then blinked and looked again, just as she had done.

"Ya know, I can't tell. It don't look normal, but it ain't like it was yesterday, either." He looked back at the road ahead.

"What does it mean?" She asked him, knowing he wouldn't know.

"Why ask me? I don't know a damned thing about Taiitsukun's magic, except that it works." Yumi looked ahead to make sure Nuriko still had Kohaku's reigns. She felt as though they were slowing down.

"Nuriko?" She began to ask, but she saw what was happening before her warrior could tell her. It seemed someone had been caught stealing, and was now being punished, or that was what it looked like, anyway. A crowd was forming, and the crowd attracted more people. Nuriko looked back at her, a warning in his eyes.

"Don't interfere, Yumi." Yumi knew well enough that she had to stay out of this. If the priestess of Suzaku started handing out pardons to thieves, chaos would ensue. She wasn't stupid. She smiled inwardly, wondering where Tasuki and his band of criminals fit into this. She looked back at Nuriko and smirked. He got the message and turned to face the front again. Once they passed the ancient Chinese version of a traffic-jam, it was only a few minutes before the village was left behind. Yumi's attention was back on the jewel. It was glowing brighter all the time, and now it was even starting to turn red. Yumi looked up, but she didn't see anyone nearby other than the warriors she had already gathered. She looked down at her jewel again. As they moved, it continued to glow brighter. Now Yumi saw a symbol floating within the scarlet orb. It was fuzzy, but she could still make out what it said.

"Mitsukake!" She said excitedly. Faster than she could think, Hotohori and Tasuki were leaning in near her, one on each side, both looking into the jewel.

"Good work, Yumi!" Tasuki said encouragingly, as though she had done something. "Let's root this Mitsukake guy out from wherever he's hiding!"

"How will we find him, though?" Hotohori asked. Yumi watched as the outline for the symbol came into focus.

"He's very close." She said. "Maybe if we call for him, he'll hear us and come out! Chiriko was only about fifty feet away when the orb was this bright. He can't NOT hear us…"

Hotohori looked as though he were about to suggest a different method for searching, when Tasuki agreed with Yumi.

"We'll make him come out, right?" Yumi nodded, and they all went in different directions, calling Mitsukake's name. In the direction Yumi chose, the trees became thicker very quickly, and soon a small forest surrounded her.

"Mitsukake!" She called. "Mitsukake!" She could hear the others calling out as well, but their voices were growing fainter. Just as she was about to turn back so she wouldn't get lost, Yumi saw a house hidden in the trees. A movement caught her attention, and for a moment, she saw a man. His hair was short, held back by a bright headband, and the jewel flashed a final time before going dull. When she could see again, he had gone, and all she could see was the house. She started heading for it when she heard a familiar, yet unknown voice and the swishing of cloth, the pounding of feet.

"I have found you, Priestess of Suzaku…"