Disclaimer: Kohana, Momo, Piaoliang Feng, Shen Yuan, Ayame and Ruri are my characters. I suppose that's it.

Red Wings of Fate

Chapter 2: The Priestess Wears Pants

"Speech"

'Thoughts'

Rewrite part two. I hope there aren't too many discrepancies because of this. If anyone notices any big one, please tell me and I'll try to smooth them over.

Kohana stared in shock at the most beautiful, well only, pair of golden eyes she'd ever seen. The man who rescued her looked a little older than Tamahome, certainly older than Kohana, and very handsome. His long chocolate brown hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail with a few stray strands hanging around his face.

"Miss, I asked if you were alright."

His voice snapped her out of her trance. "Um…yeah…I'm fine…thank you…" She blushed.

"I'm glad. But you shouldn't anger men like that."

"No one talks to me like that where I'm from…though that is the first time I've ever had a weapon drawn on me…" She wrapped her arms around herself.

"Come on." He offered her his hand. "You probably shouldn't hang around here now." He looked back at some of the men he's knocked over.

"I guess not…" She walked beside him but didn't take his hand. "I'm Kohana. Thanks again."

"Kohana…" The way he repeated her name made her blush. "I am Hotohori. It was no trouble at all."

She almost tripped at his name. 'Hotohori? Another seishi? Wow he's cute…I wonder if he's the emperor…' His hand on her arm yanked her back into reality.

"Are you alright?"

"Huh? Oh yeah…it's been a long day I guess…" She blushed again.

"I'm guessing you need a place to stay."

"Yeah…but I don't have any money so I probably won't be able to find a place."

"I think I know a place you could stay."

"You do?" She looked hopeful but was skeptical.

"Come with me." He led her to a small shop on a busy street. After speaking to the woman in the shop he came back to her. "Stay here. Someone will come for you later today."

"But how do I know they came from you?"

"The woman here knows all of my associates. She knows who to let you go with."

She stared at the floor then at him. "Alright…I'll see you again though, right?"

Hotohori nodded and gave her a short kiss on the cheek. "Later tonight most likely."

She watched in silence as he disappeared back into the crowded streets. The woman inside smiled. "Would you like some tea Miss?"

"Huh? Oh…umm…no thank you…" She went deeper into the house. "Umm…who is he?"

"Hotohori?"

"Yes. Is he a rich noble or something?"

"Miss, he's more than a rich noble. He's our emperor. A very kind man to all his people." She smiled.

Kohana's jaw dropped. "Emperor?! But he's so young!"

"He was next in line after his brother. He's been the emperor for about 5 years."

"Oh…" Kohana was silent again.

"Where are you from child? It seems our customs are foreign to you." The woman let her sit in a chair.

"Far. Very far…" Kohana answered, looking out the window.

"Interesting…" She looked thoughtful. "Maybe you are her…"

"Her who?"

"The priestess of Suzaku. A young woman from a far away land dressed in strange clothes that comes at a time of great need. I'd say you're a good candidate."

"A time of need? Is something wrong here?"

"Our relationship with Kutou has always been strained, but it's been getting worse lately. Hotohori wants to avoid war, but it seems to be less and less possible every week."

"Oh…" Kohana and the woman spent the next couple hours talking about Konan and it's history. The sun was beginning to set when a girl, no older than Kohana came into the shop.

The only differences between her and Kohana were the clothes and the face that the girl's eyes were green while Kohana's were blue.

"Lady Kohana, the emperor sent me here to bring you to the palace."

"The palace? Why there?" Kohana didn't move from her chair.

"Lady Kohana, I already told you he suspects you're the priestess. And it's for your own protection. You've attracted some unwanted attention today." The woman pulled her up. "This is Piaoliang Feng. She'll be your maid at the palace."

"Maid? I don't want a maid!"

Piaoliang seemed unaffected by her protests. "The emperor is expecting you for dinner. I'll be in trouble if you're late."

"Fine…I don't believe this…" She grudgingly said good bye to the woman and left with the other girl. "Are you really supposed to be my maid?"

"Yes ma'am. That's my job."

"So you'll have to do what I tell you to right?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Then please…don't be my maid…be my friend."

"Excuse me?" Piaoliang stopped her unrelenting course to the palace to face Kohana.

"I'm alone in a place I don't understand at all…I don't need a maid…I need someone to help me. I'm asking you girl to girl." Her eyes locked with Piaoliang's. "I'm terrified right now. I'm so overloaded and I've only been here a few hours…"

Piaoliang stared at Kohana. "I could get in so much trouble for this…but alright…I'll do my best."

Kohana smiled. "Thank you. And I'll make sure you don't get in trouble."

They went back up to the palace together. Piaoliang took her to a bedroom where a rather complicated outfit was laid out on the bed.

Kohana gave Piao a funny look. "Do I have to wear that?"

"You don't wear clothes like this?" Kohana opened her arms and gestured to her clothes. "Oh…guess not…well, I'll help you get into it. Can't say it's easy, that's for sure…"

After what seemed like hours of arguing and screaming, Kohana was finally in the dress. Piao did her make up and hair and let her see herself in the mirror.

Kohana stated at her reflection in shock. "I don't even look like me!"

"Welcome to noble life." Piao sighed.

"Do I always have to dress like this now?" Kohana lifted up the edge of her skirts and tried to walk around.

"Goodness I hope not." She laughed and grabbed Kohana's arm when she almost fell over. "You're not cut out for this."

"No…I'm not am I?" She pushed a piece of hair back into place. "Let's get this over with. You'll be in the dinning room too right?"

"Unless the emperor dismisses everyone. Sometimes he likes to eat alone…he's like you in a lot of ways…"

"Like me? How?"

Piao bit her lip. "Maybe I shouldn't say…"

"Hey, I won't tell him you said anything. Now you've got me curious!"

"Okay, okay…" She quickly looked at the door, wondering if someone would come in and catch her. "Hotohori has been the emperor for about five years…but he never wanted to. He prefers being among the people and being a normal person. Everyone in the palace has a fit when he disappears."

"He runs out?" Kohana asked, very amused.

"Most of the younger people in the palace would rather be doing just about anything else that hang around here."

"So why do you stay?"

Piao blushed. "I have my reasons…" She grabbed Kohana's arm. "Come on. Dinner should be ready soon."

Kohana hobbled after her. "Come on! Why'd you come here?"

"It's not important right now." Piao didn't look at her.

Kohana wrinkled her nose, but didn't press further because Piaoliang had brought her to the dinning room already. "Smells good."

She opened the door and led Kohana inside. The dining room was vast and mostly empty but for Hotohori sitting at the far end and a few guards and servers. Kohana saw him brighten when she got to her seat.

She looked around the large room. "Awfully big room for just a couple people…" She looked to Piao for help but the young maid had already put a lot of distance between herself and the emperor, afraid of breaking some rule or another.

"I'm hoping more people will be here soon." Kohana marveled at how different Hotohori looked now than when she'd met him earlier. His robes looked as uncomfortable as hers and his hair was pulled up tightly from his face.

Kohana avoided looking at him by looking down at her food. "The woman in that shop told me you think I might be the priestess of Suzaku…"

"I'm hoping I'm right…we need our priestess."

Kohana sighed and looked up at him for the first time. "I would like to help you Hotohori…but I don't know if I can…I'm not a particularly special person…"

"I think you are. You wouldn't have come to us if you weren't." He smiled kindly at her.

Kohana blinked and blushed, thankful the makeup on her face hid it a little. "I don't know…you're not asking me to decide now, are you?"

"No. I understand it would be a large burden on your part. You can say no." Kohana shifted in her seat. "Am I making you uncomfortable?"

"No…actually, it's really hard to breathe in these clothes…I've never worn anything this tight." She pulled at the fabric, desperately trying to give herself some breathing room. "I would be so much happier in pants and a shirt…" She tugged until the both heard something rip.

Piaoliang and some other attendants looked mortified wondering what happened. Kohana let out a sigh of relief. Something inside the dress had ripped and loosened considerably. "Much better."

Hotohori chuckled. "Perhaps we'll let you dress how you want at meals from now on."

Kohana pushed a stray piece of hair back into place. "Only if you wear comfortable clothes too. You look as uncomfortable as I do."

He absently tugged at the slightly ruffled collar. "That easy to see?"

She nodded. "Yeah…and it looks like that thing on your head is ripping your hair out." She picked up her napkin and wiped off some of the makeup on her face. "This is uncomfortable too."

He nodded. "It is. But I can't take it off."

Kohana stared at him for a moment then quickly reached out and yanked the small box crown off his head. The whole room fell into shock. Kohana shrugged. "What? You said you couldn't take it off so I did."

Hotohori laughed. "That's one way to break the rules." He turned to everyone else in the room. "You are all dismissed."

Kohana looked back at Piao who only shrugged and left the room with the others, unable to do anything else. Now she really was uncomfortable. "Umm…why did you…?"

"There is something I must tell you in private. Call it my last plea for you to consider being our priestess." He leaned over the table in order to get closer to her. "Today…when I saw you in that inn…I just felt that you were the one who will save us…and I'm not one to ignore what I feel…" Kohana felt her heart racing. "You are the hope I…we need…"

Kohana certainly didn't miss his slip into a more personal plea. She broke gaze with him for fear she wouldn't be able to speak if she lost herself in his eyes any more than she already had. "I just don't know…no one's ever asked me to do something so important before…I don't know if I'm cut out for it…"

"You won't be alone…I will be by your side as one of your seven warriors." He showed her the mark on his neck. "I'm one of the Suzaku seishi."

"One of seven?" In the back of her mind she thought it was a stupid question, considering she already knew that. Telling Hotohori would only make him insist on her being the priestess more so than he already was.

He nodded. "We'd have to travel the country for the others: Tamahome, Nuriko, Chichiri, Tasuki, Mitsukake and Chiriko."

"Tamahome…that was the name of the guy I was with in the inn…he was the one who brought me into town…"

"Then you already have two found."

She looked down at the empty plate in front of her. "Can I go lie down? This isn't what I expected to happen when I woke up this morning. I fell into some other world…got attacked by some creeps…got asked to save a country…"

"I understand. I've got other things to attend to." They both got up.

"I'll give you a decision later tonight, okay?" She walked out of the room to find Piao right outside the door. "Piao!"

"Did everything go okay? What did he say?" She hurried Kohana down the hall.

"Everything was ah…fine…he did ask me to be the priestess…"

"Well, what are you going to do?"

"I'm…not sure…I told him I'd think about it…" She pulled a comb out of her hair. "I don't know what to think right now…"

"Do you want to go take a bath? It's very relaxing."

"I guess…that doesn't sound too bad…there won't be a bunch of other maids in there, will there? I'd rather do it myself…"

"Well, alright…I'll go find some clothes for you to change into. Definitely pants this time. The seamstress is going to be so mad about the dress you wrecked during dinner."

"Oh, it was too small." Kohana waved her off. "Just tell me where the baths are."

"Down the hall on the right."

"Thanks." Kohana kicked off the shoes she was wearing, picked up the skirts and ran down the hall to the large bathroom.

About an hour later, Kohana came out feeling rested and relaxed. She had also made her decision about being the priestess. Piao had set out underwear and a robe to sleep in.

"You really don't need to comb my hair. I can do it myself." Kohana tried to swat her hand away.

"I know. But hair always looks better when someone else does it. You can't see that back of your own head." She tossed a towel over Kohana's head and began to dry her hair. "Did you have time to think about the emperor's question?"

"Yeah…it's really the only thing that's been going through my head. I think I've made a decision…"

Piao stopped for a moment. "You think? Lady Kohana…you have to be sure. If you think you might reconsider…maybe you should keep thinking."

"Stop calling me Lady Kohana. Sounds ridiculous." Kohana stared at herself in the mirror. "But you are right…this isn't something I can keep changing my mind about…but I have made a decision. I know what I'm going to do."

After Piao was satisfied with how dry Kohana's hair was, she picked up a comb. "So what's it going to be? Will you stay and help us?"

She nodded. "I will…I'll stay and be the priestess…Hotohori told me that he felt like I was the one…and I feel like it's the right thing to do. And there are even other reasons beyond that that I don't want to mention at the moment…" 'This is Ni-chan's home…it would be like turning my back on him if I said no…this is my chance to help the gods that helped my family…'

Piao combed out her hair and loosely tied it back. "I'm really happy to hear you say that. We need someone like you around here."

"Well, I hope I can live up to everyone's expectations…"

"I'm sure you will."

Kohana nodded. "Well, I should tell Hotohori right?"

Piao looked her over. "Well, yeah…but you're already just about ready for bed. You're not really dressed for talking to him…"

"So? I don't think he really cares any more than I do." She shrugged and stepped into a pair of slippers.

Piao opened her mouth to protest then stopped. She already knew there was no point in arguing with Kohana. "Okay. Follow me."

They walked down the hall in silence, both lost in their own thoughts. Piao stopped in front of a rather grand looking door and cautiously knocked.

A voice Kohana wasn't familiar with answered. "Who is it?"

"Lady Kohana would like to speak with His Highness…"

The door slid open. A tall young man with dark red hair and hazel eyes was the only other person in the room with Hotohori. He moved out of the doorway and motioned for Kohana to come in. "My lady…"

Kohana went in Hotohori's room and turned around to see if Piao was still behind her. But she was still standing in the hallway. "I have some other work to do…I'll see you in the morning Kohana…" Kohana noticed her look at the other man and blush just before she hurried away down the hall. She raised an eyebrow but turned back to Hotohori as the other man left the room.

"Who was that?"

"A friend of mine. He's been here for the past couple of years. About as long as Piaoliang has been here I believe."

"You didn't really have to send Piao to take care of me…"

"It's the way we do things." He offered her a chair. "You wanted to see me?"

"Yeah…" She passed on the chair and took a deep breath. "I've been thinking about what you asked me…"

"Have you come to a decision?" He turned to her, an unquestionable look of hope in his eyes.

"Yeah…I'll do it…"

"You will?"

"Uh huh…" She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I don't know if I'll be any good at being a priestess…but I'll try…"

In the blink of an eye, Kohana found herself in Hotohori's right embrace. Blood rushed into her cheeks when she realized that not only was she only in a robe, but he was dressed like her. If anyone were to see them, goodness knows what they'd think. But she couldn't resist his embrace and she wrapped her arms around him.

"You don't know what hearing you say that means to me…" Hotohori whispered in her ear, only making her blush deeper.

"I'll do whatever I can to help…" She reluctantly let go of him as his grip eased on her.

"What made you change your mind? At dinner it seemed you would say no…"

"I just needed some time to think…and I realized that I have a reason…or two…to stay." She smiled at him.

He smiled back. "Whatever it was, I'm glad it exists." His face was very close to hers and Kohana lost herself in his eyes. He leaned closer to her and kissed her deeply.

Kohana was surprised but made no effort to stop him. "Hotohori…"

He distanced himself from her. "I'm sorry…that was inappropriate of me…"

Kohana blushed again. "It's okay. Half the things I've done around here have been inappropriate so what difference does it really make?"

Hotohori chuckled and ran his fingers through her hair. "Kohana…you're everything I dreamed the priestess would be and more…"

Her eyes shifted to the ground. "You sure do know how to flatter a girl…"

"It's not flattery…it's the truth." He murmured. "Come, I'll take you back to your room and we'll search for Tamahome in the morning."

Kohana nodded, reminding herself that other seishi existed and she couldn't just hang out with Hotohori in the palace. "Alright…it's been a long day after all…" She couldn't help but yawn. Kohana would have liked to stay up with the handsome young emperor, but she couldn't deny how tired she really was.

Kohana awoke with a gasp. "Wow…I had the weirdest dream…" She murmured to no one in particular.

"About what Kohana?"

Kohana jumped when she heard Piao speak. She looked up to see the young woman holding a set of clean clothes in her arms. "Never mind…guess it wasn't a dream…" She ran her hands through her messy hair. "I really am here…"

"You thought you dreamt coming here?" Piao handed her a comb and the clothes.

She nodded. "This is just so weird…" She looked at her clothes. "Oh do I have to wear a skirt?" She pouted.

"Yes. You can wear pants as much as you want around here but you're going out with the emperor today. You should try to blend in at least a little bit."

"Going out with…?"

"Yes. Into town, remember? You speak as though I meant something else…" Piao gave her a curious look.

"Well…in my world…'going out with' someone is like…like the first step in courting someone…" Kohana kicked off the blankets and took the clothes behind a changing screen.

"You have strange expressions in your world…" Piao make Kohana's bed up.

"Yeah…I guess we do…" She stepped out again looking almost exactly like Piao. "How do I look?"

"Normal." Piao watched Kohana comb out her hair and pull it into a bun. "You can go through town without being noticed now."

"I guess that's better than being attacked."

"Hotohori's waiting in the courtyard. You'll probably get breakfast in town."

"Okay." Kohana rushed down to the court yard and found Hotohori near the doors dressed in the same clothes she'd met him in.

He smiled when he saw her, recognizing her immediately despite her clothes. "Good morning Kohana. Did you sleep well?"

"Well enough. Let's go." She slipped her arm through his and they headed into town.

After breakfast at the same place they had met the day before, they started looking around for Tamahome. Kohana was thankful not too many people around had hair like Tamahome's.

After only about an hour of searching they found Tamahome in another small inn. She slowly walked over to him with Hotohori close behind her. "Tamahome?"

He swallowed and looked up from his meal. "Do I know you?"

"Tamahome, it's me, Kohana. We just met yesterday."

"Oh yeah. You. What do you want?"

"I need you to come to the palace with me…"

Tamahome laughed. "And why should I do that? What are you doing at the palace anyway?"

"She is the priestess of Suzaku, Tamahome." Hotohori snapped, practically ready to kill Tamahome for his disrespectful attitude.

Tamahome's eyes shifted to the tall man next to Kohana. "And you are?"

"This is Hotohori. The first of my seishi." She answered, holding onto the emperor's arm.

"Oh…well…okay then…I guess I can't really argue…I'll come…" He tossed some coins on the table and picked up his own bag. "Let's go."

Momo read silently in the dark corner of the room. She really had no idea how long she had spent reading the book. It wasn't until she heard an announcement that the library was closing that she even looked away from the book.

"Oh crap…what am I going to tell the others?" She snapped the book shut and went to the door. After making sure no one was around, she ran down the stairs. Only a couple of the girls from the group were left.

"Momo! Where the hell were you? Did you fall in the toilet? And where'd Kohana go? We sent her to look for you."

"I ummm…we were getting help from a librarian…and Kohana left a while ago…she had what she needed so she left. Yeah…and I've got what I need so I'm gonna go too." She grabbed her jean jacket off the back of her chair and ran out of the library, clutching The Universe of the Four Gods under her jacket.

She ran all the way home, not thinking about anything but the book and Kohana.

-Shadow Hawk