Disclaimers: I don't own Fushigi Yuugi.

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Narrator's POV

As we all sat around Takiko's bed, watching the sweat run down her neck and hearing her labored breath, we heard the pounding of feet as someone ran down the hall. Suddenly, the door flew open.

You're the Genbu Seishi, right? Asked a young boy, probably a servant, breathlessly.

said Hikitsu slowly.

Kutou is attacking in force! The miko must make her first wish immediately! After the boy said this, a clatter was heard.

Yelled Tomite standing up so fast that his chair was knocked over. If she makes her wishes now, she may die! We'll go and fight until she's strong enough! At first, the others just looked at him. The, slowly, Hikitsu nodded. Very well, he said. You're right. If she makes her wishes now, Takiko may die. We don't know how much energy it will take for her to make a wish, and she's already worn out. Turning to the other seishi, he asked, Is that okay with you? The others nodded and each went to there separate rooms to prepare for battle. After a few minutes, they all met right outside Takiko's room.

Shouldn't one of us stay with Takiko-san? That way, when she wakes up, they can tell her where we are. Also, in case Kutou forces get inside the palace, there will be someone to protect her, said Namame.

I'll stay, offered Hatsui. After all, I don't like fighting very much, and I know the most about healing, so if she gets hurt somehow, I'll know what to do.

Good idea, said Iname. And with that, Hatsui went into Takiko's room and the other seishi quickly ran outside to where the fighting was.

Outside the palace, it was chaos. People ran through the streets and and there was blood everywhere. The Kutou forces were overwhelming the Hokkan solders and the few civilians who had come from their hiding places to help them. The Kutou soldiers had already gotten to the gates that separated the palace from the rest of the city and the Hokkan forces were having a very hard time holding them back and keeping them from getting into the palace grounds. The Genbu Seishi quickly joined the struggle. Tomite and Hikitsu went up on the wall that overlooked the battle. While Tomite shot his arrows furiously, Hikitsu sent out ice snake after ice snake, freezing every enemy solder he could. Meanwhile, Iname and Namame jumped directly into the middle of the battle and began to tear down the enemy in front of them like a tornado. The Kutou solders didn't know what hit them. Umiyame had disappeared somewhere, although on the other side of the battle field quite a few Kutou solders had fallen over dead for some reason that none of them could identify. In that general vicinity, there was panic. This left Uruki to charge into the enemy on her own. She did so bravely, her symbol glowing brightly on her bare shoulder.

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Hikitsu's POV

I sent my ice snakes as many places as I could at once, but up on the wall, I was to far away to do mush damage. I yelled. I'm going down; off the wall.

Okay. Be careful! He yelled back.

I will. He needn't have told me that. I had no intention of getting killed. That would have been stupid; getting killed right before we reached our goal of saving Hokkan. I charged into the masses of Kutou solders, freezing anyone in my way. I wanted to get to one of my fellow seishi. It would be dangerous to fight alone. I looked around and judged that Uruki was the closest to me. Crap. She wouldn't want me fighting with her. She still seemed to be mad at me because she had seen that other girl and I kissing. The problem was, I didn't know why. Why should she be mad at me for kissing another girl? And besides, that wasn't even what happened! I hadn't gotten a chance to tell her what had really happened. I hadn't kissed that girl. She had kissed me. She had pulled me into that room, telling me that she had something important to tell me. I had gone willingly, which made what had happened next my fault on part. She had kissed me, and Uruki had seen. Oh, why did it have to be Uruki who saw that?! I wouldn't have minded if it were anyone else. But it wasn't. It was Uruki. No amount of wishing and dreaming would change that. And now she hated me. Why else would she have avoided me to the extent that she had? She had even been going out of her way to avoid me. Why would she do that? Was it simply embarrassment or the fact that she didn't know what to say? But Uruki wasn't like that. Normally, I would have thought that she would have just laughed it off or teased me about it incessantly. But she hadn't. Instead, she had been avoiding me.

It hurt, to tell that truth. It hurt that she had been avoiding me. I had kept trying to take her aside where no one else could hear us and tell her the truth. To tell her that I loved her, even if it was betraying Sora's memory. I had to tell her. But first, I had to get to her so that nether of us would get killed from sheer numbers. I quickly began to freeze those people in my way so that I could get to her. Those people that I couldn't freeze, I would cut down with my sword. Not many people knew that I could use a sword, and I couldn't use it nearly as well as Uruki, but I could and I did. It was the only way. I had just cut down another man, when I saw it. Uruki didn't see someone behind her. She was cutting down one of the men in front of her, oblivious to the danger behind her.

URUKI! LOOK OUT!!! I yelled as loud as I could, but I was to late. The man began to swing his blade, and it bit into flesh. Blood splattered everywhere. My blood. With a burst of speed, I had blocked the sword... With my body. There was a dull pain in my chest; pulsing with a pain that was feeling farther away by the second. I tasted more blood in my mouth, but didn't care. With the last of my energy, I created an ice snake and froze Uruki's opponent. Then I fell. I saw Uruki's mouth open in a silent scream as she ran forward to catch me, by blood seeping into her clothes.

Hikitsu.... HIKITSU!! She yelled as she fully realized what was happening, tears streaming down her cheeks. She whispered to me again once I was laying in her arms. I looked up into her beautiful brown eyes, now swimming in tears. Strange... I had never seen her cry.... Why was she crying now? Why would she cry for me?

No... Hikitsu.... Please... Please don't leave me..... We'll get you to Hatsui.... You'll be okay... Just... Just hang on.... Uruki said through her tears. I tried to smile... Tried to smile for her.... But a horrible pain in my gut stopped me. I painfully looked down and saw a huge, red, soggy patch in the middle of my gut. Strange... I didn't remember getting injured. I looked up into Uruki's face again and saw the tears streaming down her face freely; she wasn't trying to stop them anymore. I tried to take my hand to her cheek and wipe them away, she was too wonderful to be sad because of me, but found that I couldn't. I was quickly loosing all feeling in my arms and legs. At the same time, my mind was becoming fuzzier and fuzzier. It was then, before my mind had completely lost all of it's focus, that I realized... I was dying. And I also knew, that no matter what was done for me, I would not live. Not even Hatsui could save me. I felt... satisfied, as strange as it sounds. I would die, not doing my duty to the Genbu no Miko as I had always thought I would, but saving the one I loved. Uruki. I would die saving Uruki. It was the most honorable death I could have hoped for. But before I left this world, there was something that I needed to tell her. I tried to speak, only to find that I couldn't. Finally, I mustered enough strength to tell her.

I began weakly, but she hushed me.

Shh.... Save your strength. She didn't understand. I had to tell her before I died. I was still hoping that I would make it, but I knew better.

No... There is something.... Something that I have to tell you.... Before I leave this Earth forever... Each word was a struggle to say. Saying each sentence hurt more that anything I had ever done in my life. But I had to do it. She deserved to know the truth. She had to know the truth!

She said forcefully. No! You won't die! You can't die! Don't even think of such things!

Yes... I will... And before I do... I must tell you.... I didn't kiss that girl.... She looked shocked by this.

But... But I saw...

That girl kissed me... I interrupted. I didn't have time to be polite. As we spoke, I could feel my life slipping from me. There was one more thing... Only one more thing... That I had to tell her before I died. Uruki... I have always lov.... But I never got to finish. I never got to tell her the most important thing. For at that moment...

I died.

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~End of Chapter 31~

Poor Uruki. I'm so cruel. Sorry to all you Hikitsu fans, but I had to do this. Believe me, I like him too. He's a great character. But later you'll see why I did this. There is a reasion. At least believe that, even it you don't like this. Well, more coming soon. Don't forget to review!