The whole group landed in a jumble inside a richly decorated hall. Ignoring his surroundings for the moment, Mitsukake immediately set about tending to the priestess. He gently disentangled her from the knot of arms and legs and carried her to the side, letting everyone else find their own way out of the mess.

"What happened, no da? Why was Tasuki trying to kill Nuriko, no da?" Mitsukake hardly listened to what was going on around him. He felt betrayed. Earlier, that man would have died for this woman, and now he's trying to kill her? Nothing made sense. Mitsukake gently tried to see Yumi's wound and winced when he had successfully managed to study her back. Involuntarily, he gasped.

"Butcher!" He muttered under his breath, taken aback. "What was he doing?" Yumi had been slashed along the spine, and it had only been a matter of more pressure and she would have been killed. The slice along her throat had stopped bleeding so much and he relaxed slightly. Yumi groaned and tried to push herself up on her hands, but Tamahome rushed over and held her shoulders down, forcing her to lie on her stomach. She turned her head to look around. Mitsukake was satisfied that she would survive, at least long enough for him to check on Nuriko. He could feel her gaze follow him to the wounded warrior.

"Oh my god!" She cried when she caught sight of Nuriko, who was covered in blood. "Nuriko! What happened? Did Tasuki do that to you?" The warrior was sitting, half supported by the child-warrior of Suzaku, Chiriko. Nuriko didn't answer. Mitsukake shook his head sadly and kneeled by Nuriko and peeled back the bloody clothing, revealing two deep gashes across Nuriko's chest and abdomen. Nuriko smiled slightly.

"I really made a mess of that, didn't I?" Yumi had managed to escape Tamahome's clutches and crawled over to her warrior and hugged his arm. Mitsukake wanted to tell her to lie down again, but stopped when he saw the look in her eyes.

"You fool! What if you had died? You need to take care of yourself!" Yumi said angrily. Nuriko put a hand on Yumi's head and smiled down at her, determined not to let his pain show. Mitsukake dutifully bandaged Nuriko's wounds with the best of his ability, knowing he could only do so much for Nuriko without use of his powers.

"I guess it's time for you to heal Yumi, right?" Nuriko said in a falsely bright voice, strained slightly by the recent turn of events.

"I can only do it once a day…" Mitsukake said slowly, getting ready to heal his priestess. She tried to scramble away, but Nuriko held her still, preventing her from doing herself further injury. She tried to reason with Mitsukake.

"No! If you can only do it once today, then you have to heal Nuriko, he's hurt much worse than I am." Mitsukake was torn between doing what he knew he should and doing what Yumi wanted. She must have seen his indecision for she continued.

"I'm okay, really! I was just in shock, and that painted guy knocked me pretty hard, but I'm okay now. Nuriko is the one who really needs the attention." She looked imploringly at him, and Mitsukake turned resignedly to Nuriko.

"Mitsukake!" Nuriko said in a shocked voice, somewhat weakened from pain and loss of blood. "I really am surprised at you! You'll let a lady suffer?" Mitsukake ran his hands through his hair in confusion. Don't they want me to heal them? Yumi shuffled back a little.

"Don't heal me…" she whispered. Nuriko looked at her in surprise.

"Why not, Yumi? You'll get horrible scars! You're too pretty to get all marked up like that!" Yumi smiled faintly.

"I want to keep this scar." She whispered, running a finger along the side of her throat, and Mitsukake doubted that he heard her correctly. His heart went out to Yumi and he complied with her wishes, using his powers to heal Nuriko. Chichiri, the one with blue hair, helped her out of the hall with Hotohori's assistance. He watched Nuriko's wounds disappear, a mixture of emotions swirling through him, none of which made sense, except that he knew he wished he could heal Yumi's heart.

-------

"Tomo, do I know the priestess of Suzaku?" Ashitare asked his companion.

"Of course not. Why do you ask?" Ashitare thought about that for a moment. He didn't really know, except…

"I don't know. I guess you could say that she felt familiar, that's all." Tomo nodded.

"I supposed you can find girls just like her in brothels everywhere. Girls are all the same." For some reason, Tomo's comment made Ashitare angry, like he didn't want Tomo to speak badly of the priestess. Why is that, I wonder?

"And why did they call me Tasuki?" Was he imagining it, or was Tomo deliberately not meeting his eye when he answered.

"I have no idea, Ashitare." Ashitare decided that asking Tomo anything was a waste of time. All the man did was lie to him. So he fell into his own thoughts. The priestess's face kept popping into his head. But not how she looked today, scared and confused. Her eyes were bright and… loving? He was probably greatly mistaken, but it seemed as though the girl knew him. Loved him, even. And he felt as though he should remember her. Ashitare searched his memory, but found there was nothing there. Nothing. That scared him. I have no memories. Okay, start with the beginning. I am Ashitare, a Seiryu warrior. Konan is the enemy. I serve Kutou. But it all sounded wrong, somehow. He needed to kill the girl quickly, or he might worry about her until he couldn't forget her. Once I kill the priestess, then I can go back to Kutou.

-------

Nuriko must have dozed off, for when he awoke, he was back in his room in the palace. He felt a little disoriented, and it took him a moment to remember why they were all back in the capitol.

That's right… Tasuki… that jerk! He came back and hurt Yumi! What was wrong with him? And then I… Nuriko sat up and looked down at his chest, expecting to see bloody gashes or heavy bandages at the least, but he was perfectly healthy. He scratched his head in confusion until he remembered about Mitsukake's healing powers. For some reason, his heart felt as though it was being squeezed. His chest hurt, but not from injury. He could almost feel what Yumi must be feeling right now. Confusion, anger, betrayal, sadness… Without further ado, Nuriko stood up and got out of bed. He slipped into an outfit he knew Yumi would like in an effort to cheer her up. It consisted of a bright red vest and pants, very manly by his normal standards, and made his way through the palace, wondering where Hotohori could possibly have stashed the priestess this time. After wandering several hallways without avail, Nuriko decided to ask the next servant he passed as to Yumi's whereabouts. The only problem was, there didn't seem to be a single maid or cook in the palace anymore. Nuriko headed for Hotohori's chambers with the small hope Yumi might be there. Or maybe, when he thought about it, he dreaded her being there. He picked up his pace.

"Nuriko?" He stopped when he heard a small voice call his name. He had just passed a room where the door was slightly ajar. He peeked inside and saw Yumi lying on her stomach in bed, staring blankly out into the hallway. She smiled slightly when she saw him. Nuriko entered and closed the door quietly behind him. He was in the process of sitting down on the edge of Yumi's bed when he saw that she wasn't wearing a shirt. He hadn't noticed because she had been lying chest-down and her hair covered her shoulders, but it did nothing to hide the bandages wrapped around her chest and back covering her hideous wound. Nuriko sat down and scooted closer to the little priestess. She buried her chin in her pillow, not saying a word. Nuriko didn't know what to say to her. The man she loved had just tried to murder her. He had tried to kill both of them, in fact. Nuriko put an arm around her shoulders comfortingly.

"Nuriko…" Yumi murmured. Nuriko could feel her voice through the pillow.

"Hmm?" Yumi inhaled slowly and asked him the question he knew was on her mind.

"Why did you fight him, Nuriko? You didn't even have a weapon. He could have killed you. He was trying to kill you." Nuriko thought about how to answer her, but before he could quite get the words he intended to say out, Yumi had started speaking again.

"No, don't tell me. You can when you're ready." She sighed slightly. "When Megumi and I were living in my world, we would share our dreams sometimes." Nuriko thought about this for a moment, and smiled slightly.

"You and Megumi were really close, weren't you?" Yumi shook her head.

"We ARE close. Megumi is my best friend. I know she had nothing to do with what happened." He watched as Yumi snuggled down into her pillow again. Her shoulders shook slightly.

"Last night…" Yumi began and Nuriko flinched, remembering the episode with Hotohori. Yumi still didn't know he had seen everything, and he didn't want to embarrass her. "I dreamed that I summoned Suzaku. You can't imagine how happy I was, all of Suzaku's warriors were there with me. Tasuki, Chichiri, Hotohori, all of us… even Megumi and some of her warriors." Nuriko smiled. Somehow, hearing Yumi share her dreams made him feel special.

"It was strange." Yumi tried to sit up slightly, but winced and instead settled for resting on her elbows. She looked up at Nuriko.

"I wished for peace for Konan, of course. Suzaku…can't even describe his majesty. He let me stay here in this world with Tasuki." She smiled, though Nuriko could see tears starting in her eyes. "In the dream… my daughter… I saw my daughter, our baby… she was lovely… she had reddish brown hair and blue eyes… I knew I would always be happy." Yumi really did start to cry. Nuriko didn't know what he could do for her. There was nothing he could do. Yumi's heart had been brutally torn to shreds and he had done nothing to prevent it. He loved Yumi as he had loved his sister, Korin, and it hurt him to see her so sad. He placed an arm around her shoulders, gently, conscious of her wounds.

"Yumi… I can't say everything will be okay, but we'll get through this somehow. I'll take care of you, I promise." And he meant it. He wouldn't let anything else happen to his little sister. Yumi wiped her eyes and looked at Nuriko, a single new tear trickling down her cheek.

"I still love him, Nuriko. Even after what he did… Don't hate Tasuki. The painted man accidentally let it slip that he was under a spell. A strong one. It wasn't his fault. If we can't get Tasuki back, that means I won't be able to summon Suzaku. I won't be able to go home. Ever." She sighed and dried her tears.

"If that happens, can I stay with you?" Nuriko was caught completely off guard by the question, but he answered without having to think about it.

"Of course. When the time comes, if that's what you want, you can live with me." Yumi smiled slightly.

"Thank you… Aneue." For the last time, she snuggled against her pillows and closed her eyes. Aneue. Big sister… he closed his eyes. Aneue. Why not Aniki? Nuriko didn't leave until he was sure she had fallen fast asleep. He tucked a soft sheet around her and left the room, closing the door quietly behind him. He wandered aimlessly through the palace once more. He knew he hadn't been much help; he hadn't been able to say much to Yumi. However, Nuriko knew that just letting Yumi talk would ease her pain at least a little. He was proud that Yumi trusted him enough to do that. He couldn't help wondering what kind of spell Yumi was talking about. He didn't hate Tasuki, not the person he used to be anyway. Not the real one. But he did hate the bastard that had taken Tasuki's body and hurt Yumi so much. That man… he wanted to rip him apart, limb by limb. I need to break the spell for Yumi…

-------

When Yumi woke again, she wondered why her heart hurt so much. She sat up and winced. And everything came back all at once. Her eyes stung, and tears threatened to overtake her, but Yumi blinked them back.

"Everything will be okay. Tasuki will come back, and he'll be normal again." Yumi whispered to herself. She knew she was trying to deceive herself, but Yumi didn't care. It was working. She swore that she wouldn't cry about this anymore. That won't solve anything. I need to figure out how to break that spell. Yumi threw a soft robe about her shoulders and left the room, in search of the baths. She walked briskly along the passage, not looking to either side, completely focused on the task at hand.

"Yumi?" She stopped in her tracks and looked around for whoever had called her name. Tamahome was leaning against the wall, dressed in palace finery. Yumi hadn't noticed him before, but now he and approached Yumi. She backed away a little. I don't really know anything about Tamahome…

"What are you doing out of bed?" He asked, concerned.

"I need to go take a shower." She said simply. Tamahome looked at her blankly.

"Who's shower will you take?" Yumi resisted the urge to scratch her head in confusion, but realized that the local word was "to bathe," not shower. She blushed slightly at her mistake.

"I need to take a bath." She corrected herself. Tamahome's expression cleared visibly.

"Oh." He said. "I was just on my way to your room to see if you needed anything." Yumi shrugged slightly and continued in the direction of the baths. To her great discomfort, Tamahome followed her. She went through the next hallway thinking that he must just be going the same way, that's all. But when she found the right room and was about to open the door, Tamahome stopped too, waiting for her to go in. She looked at him, puzzled.

"What are you doing?" She asked, afraid he had decided he needed a bath, too.

"Hotohori said we weren't supposed to leave you alone." Yumi took her hand away from the door. What was Hotohori doing?

"Why?" She asked. Tamahome only shrugged.

"To protect you, I guess. To make sure you don't get hurt." Yumi felt lost.

"How will I get hurt in the bath?" Tamahome looked uncomfortable. Oh. Hotohori thinks I'll hurt myself. Do I really look suicidal? Yumi smiled brightly and patted Tamahome on the shoulder.

"I'll be fine, don't worry. I won't do anything. You wait out here, though." Tamahome looked worried. But Yumi went in and closed the door behind her before Tamahome could think of an argument. Someone had already filled a tub for her. She could see steam rising from the surface of the water. Yumi let her robe fall around her ankles and slipped out of the remaining clothes she wore. For a moment, she hesitated before slipping into the water, vaguely wondering what to do about the bandages holding her together. She shrugged, winced slightly, and got into the water, pretending she wasn't wearing any bandages.

Yumi sat in the water and thought about the recent turn of events. She felt unreal, unconnected to anything, as though she were watching these things from afar, and she was not connected or concerned about what was happened to the people she was observing. It was unnerving. Maybe I am suicidal… Yumi didn't realize she had said that out loud until she heard the doors crash open, and Tamahome burst into the room, looking around frantically.

Yumi's mouth dropped open. Tamahome saw that she hadn't tried to kill herself and sighed with relief, then stuttered an apology when he realized that she was naked. He turned around and marched out of the room, apologizing over his shoulder.

"I- I'm sorry, Yumi. Bu- but…" Yumi interrupted him. She felt a little hurt and a little flattered that he had been waiting outside to help her.

"Hey, no big deal. Don't worry about it. But if you're worried about me, then you can call to me from outside. If I don't answer, then you can barge in and stop me from drowning myself, or whatever." She laughed slightly, the first time she had smiled since…

"Hey Tamahome! Was it really just this morning that we came back to the palace?"

"Yeah. Why?" Yumi heard Tamahome's voice from out in the hall.

"I was just wondering…" Yumi found a bar of soap and started to create lather between her hands. She thought about all the spells she had ever heard of and realized she didn't know any, really.

How will I do this? She thought to herself. She covered her legs in soapy lather and reached for her razor, which was in a pocket of her robe.

Okay. I need to start from the beginning. Who cast that spell on Tasuki? She knew that the Seiryu warrior didn't have any reason to lie. He probably thought she was going to be killed, so there was no reason Yumi couldn't hear the truth. What was his name? Oh, yeah. Tomo. Yumi nodded in satisfaction, proud that she could remember at least that small detail. Abruptly she shook her head energetically.

I'm getting distracted. Okay. It was a spell, I know that much. Maybe Tomo had something to do with it's casting. But Tasuki wouldn't be tricked so easily. Maybe another warrior was involved somehow.

"Yumi?" Tamahome called through the door.

"What's up?" She called back, but Tamahome didn't answer, satisfied that she was still alive and kicking.