To Fire Pendant: Ah, you're a smart one.
To Metajoker: Thanks for the comment. Actually, there is no relationship with Inami and Tasuki. Basically Inami stupidly humiliated herself by announcing her random feelings, and Tasuki's avoiding the subject all together, giving you a hint of how he sees it.
My updates are fast because all I do is go through the chapters and double space them since I have a good 3/5 of the story written all ready.
Amaya-san: Thank you, I'll keep the "non-suckiness" in mind ^_^
To everyone else: I got a LOT of reviews in my inbox! Thank you SO much, you make me feel loved!
Chapter 26 : The First Mystery Revealed
"You'll be all right, I've healed your fever."
An older, plump woman smiled weakly. "Thank you, you're ever so kind to me. Please ask Etuin for your payment."
Mitsukake shook his head. "No, I won't accept any money. Please rest and gain your strength back."
The woman nodded and rested her eyes. Mitsukake stood from his kneeling position and turned to leave. Etuin closed the door behind him.
"How did you do that?" Etuin asked, curious. "How can a man have such great healing magic?"
"It is a gift given to me by Suzaku, and I use it in cases such as your mother." Mitsukake replied.
Etuin gasped. "Suzaku? You're one of the Suzaku seven?"
By now Mitsukake and Etuin had entered the front room where the others were, so they were overheard.
Mitsukake nodded.
Etuin looked upon the other guests in her home. "Are... are you of the Suzaku seven as well?"
"This is Chichiri, Nuriko, Tamahome, and Miaka." Mitsukake introduced. "They are warriors of Suzaku like I, Miaka is our priestess."
Etuin was amazed. "Amazing... but, didn't the priestess all ready summon Suzaku? Why have you returned?"
Miaka smiled. "Uh... long story..."
"Nuriko?" Etuin asked, looking at the purple haired man. She turned to the tall man beside her. "Mitsukake? Wait! There are monuments to your names near the palace, I thought you passed on!" She gasped again. "Could it be that the mighty power of Suzaku itself has restored your bodies?"
Nuriko could feel a sweat drop at the back of his head. He stood up, slightly taller than Etuin. "Etuin, I have a matter to discuss with you. You and your mother, Juuan."
Etuin stepped back. "How... do you know my mother's name?"
******************************
"Wow... this is intense..." Tetsuya read.
Yui's chin was on Tetsuya's shoulder, and she read silently with him. She slunk back onto the couch, resting her eyes and yawning. "I'm tired Tetsuya."
"Do you want me to stop?" Tetsuya asked.
Yui shook her head. "No, just read to me."
Tetsuya quickly relocated his spot. "The priestess of Suzaku could hear the old woman cry out loud from the other room. Tamahome and Chichiri had gone with Nuriko in explaining things, since it was partially their fault for his disappearance..."
***********************************
"I am so sorry for the grief I caused you." Nuriko bowed humbly before the bawling woman.
"We kinda had no choice, no da. We found Nur... Reishun, and immediately we were attacked. We had to leave the town quickly, and we had no chance to get back to you, no da."
"Please, forgive us. We didn't realize our actions would affect so many." Tamahome was truly embarrassed and a little ashamed.
"My..." The woman sniffed. "My Reishun was Nuriko of the Suzaku Seven? My Reishun is alive?"
Nuriko looked up. "Well, technically you could say that..."
"Reishun..." Etuin whispered from the corner of the room.
The woman leapt out of bed, throwing her arms around Nuriko's neck.
"Okaasan!" Etuin shouted.
"Thank the gods, my prayers have been answered!!!" Juuan shouted, tears flowing down her cheeks.
"You're not... upset with us?" Tamahome asked.
Juuan pulled away to get a better look at Nuriko, who himself was getting a little emotional.
"Suzaku blessed this family with the honor of bearing one of his warriors. My little girl has return home!" Juuan once again hugged Nuriko tightly, then stepped back suddenly. She wiped her tears away and sniffed again. "My, you're not exactly a little girl anymore, are you?"
The group minus Nuriko did return to the Inn that night, and informed everyone of the news. Etuin had offered to give them stay for the night, which they did except. Most of the night was spent catching up, as well as Tasuki's own apologies. All were quite surprised at how well the family seemed to take it. To keep the excitement levels down, everyone conveniently 'forgot' to mention that Hotohori was the Emperor. However, it didn't leave anyone's minds that the shinzaho clue still needed to be found, and it was near.
The next morning was when the group finally asked, or more so, Nuriko.
"A shinzaho?" Juuan asked.
Nuriko nodded. "We need it to complete our... mission. By any chance, do you have anything of the sort in this house?"
Juuan thought deeply. "I have no idea."
"You said it could be anything, Onisan?" Haku asked.
Nuriko nodded.
Tasuki folded his arms. "I say we take that stick 'o Chichiri's and wave it around until that thing on it bursts."
"I'm not sure that would work." Chiriko commented.
Sakusha ran into the room and sat down next to Nuriko, hugging his arm. The disk on Chichiri's staff glowed brightly.
Chichiri looked at the young girl. "Nuriko..." He said, getting the man attention.
Nuriko looked down at Sakusha. Something about her had made the disk react. Nuriko got off his bench and knelt down.
"Sakusha, do you have anything really unique? Really special?" He asked.
Sakusha blinked. "I got a new dress. this many days ago." She held up her fingers.
Nuriko smiled. "Something, not so material, possibly." He tried of think of a way to explain it to a girl so young.
Sakusha, who had a rag doll under her arm, thought hard. She lit up. "Yeah! I got something REAL pretty. You wanna see? Huh? huh?!"
Nuriko nodded.
Sakusha took his hand and lead him out of the room, everyone else following.
Sakusha and Nuriko rounded a corner down another hallway, and entered the little girl's room. Sakusha let go of Nuriko's hand and began looking around her bed.
"It's here, I know." She said. She crouched down on the floor and tried to peer under her bed. She turned her head and reached her arm around, trying to feel around.
By now the others, including Juuan, Haku, and Etuin were in the room.
"Do you think it's the Shinzaho?" Saori asked Miaka.
"I don't know, but I hope so." Miaka replied.
Sakusha stood up and pointed to her bed. "I can't reach."
Nuriko grabbed the side of the bed with one hand and lifted it off the floor, making it easier to see and reach under the bed. Though Sakusha didn't seem to notice, the others did.
"WOW! That is so COOL!!!" Haku shouted. "I wish I could do that!!!!"
Sakusha emerged from under the bed, her right hand in a fist. Nuriko put the bed back down gently, kneeling back down to Sakusha.
Sakusha opened her hand to reveal a smooth, pink stone. A gold chain was wrapped around it, but the stone wasn't attached.
The disk on Chichiri's staff glowed a full, bright red.
"That's it!" Chiriko shouted, noticing the reaction of the disk.
Nuriko took the stone and looked at it closely. He stood back up. "This is the thing we've been looking for?"
Just as the disk had before, the stone flashed a bright red, but for only a second.
Nuriko turned back to Sakusha. "Do you mind if I borrow this?"
Sakusha put a finger in her mouth. "I dunno..."
"How about a trade?" Nuriko asked.
"Trade?"
"Yeah, I'll give you something for it. I'm sure we have something." Nuriko looked back to his friends.
The group looked around, thinking of what they could possibly give a seven year old.
Tasuki reached back behind his neck and slipped off one of the two necklaces he was currently wearing. "Hey kid, how 'bout this?"
Sakusha's eyes lit up. She practically threw the stone at Nuriko and ran to the tall, orange haired man, stopping short once she reached him. Acting as if the beaded necklace could break at any moment, she slowly opened her hands and allowed Tasuki to give her the jewelry. Then very carefully she held it and walked slowly back to her bed, placing the blue and red necklace softly on her pillow, spreading it out into a full circle. She seemed to lose all interest in everything else.
Nuriko turned to his friend. "Arigatou, Tasuki."
Tasuki smirked. "No prob."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Nuriko, we need to get movin'!" Tasuki bellowed from his horse. Everyone was saddled up and ready to go, Saori riding now with Chichiri.
"Yes, I'll visit as soon as I can." Nuriko promised, holding Juuan's hand... or her more-so holding his. It was amazing at her recovery.
"No matter what form, you're still my baby, so if you don't visit it will put me to grief." Juuan scolded.
"Okaasan..." Etuin placed a hand on her mother's shoulder.
"Bye bye!" Sakusha waved, a beaded necklace much too long for her dangling from her neck.
"I'll be as strong as you!" Haku made a fist.
Nuriko was completely accepted in this family, and he was to say the least surprised. Though he couldn't remember everything of his life as Reishun, he was glad to have such loving people back in his life.
Nuriko waved goodbye for a final time as the Suzaku Seven left the house on horseback, continuing on.
"I'm so glad we found the first clue." Miaka sighed. "Now we're all that much more closer to summoning Suzaku."
***********************************
Yui was fast asleep on the couch, covered by a dull pink blanket. Her head lay firmly on Tetsuya's chest, her feet matching up with his.
Tetsuya's sunglasses were on top of his head, his arms around the blonde. The Universe of the Four Gods laid closed and marked on the dresser beside the couch, anxiously awaiting to continue its story.
********************************
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Wait a second!!!!" Tasuki shouted.
Everyone jumped.
"Aren't we forgetting sumthin?" Tasuki complained. ("What kind of lousy writing is this?")
"What now?" Nuriko asked.
"Well, isn't that piece of junk supposed ta tell us where ta head next, or are we just gonna wonder off aimlessly into fairyland?"
Chiriko perked up. "Oh dear! I nearly forgot about that!"
Tasuki stopped his horse and folded his arms.
Miaka got out a small satchel in front of her on the horse and pulled out the smooth, pink stone. Everyone pulled around to look at it.
"Is it supposed to be doing something?" Hotohori asked.
Tamahome shrugged.
Chichiri stepped off his horse and walked over, examining the stone. "It's just a rock, no da."
Saori, with some troubled, stepped off the horse as well. "Maybe... 'rock' is the clue? Anywhere around here rocky?"
"This whole damn place is a rock." Tasuki cursed, getting off his horse as well.
Eventually, everyone was surrounding Miaka and Tamahome, trying to decode the mystery of the Shinzaho clue.
Nuriko tapped it.
Chichiri waved his staff over it.
Saori tried to bite it.
Tasuki tried to fry it.
Miaka tried asking it.
"It's not... working..." Chiriko commented.
"We can tell." Nuriko added.
Miaka picked the stone up and placed it in the palm of her hand, examining it closely. "Common little thing, what's your secret?"
As if someone was invisibly engraving on the stone, a long, illegible scribble appeared on its surface.
"What the heck is that supposed to mean?" Tamahome asked.
As if answering his question, the mark began to glow, blue at first, and then a bright white. Light rose forth from the mark to about four inches off the surface of the stone. It flashed brightly as if it's power source was wavering. At the top of the projection was what looked like several clouds, and snow was falling from them. Miaka winced. The rock turned a darker color, and felt like cold ice in her hands. It became so cold she swore she could feel it burning a hole into her palm. Soon, she couldn't take it anymore. She pulled her hand back, dropping the stone onto the ground. The image disappeared, but the mark stayed.
Saori bent over to pick it up. "Ouch!" She cried. She tossed the rock back and forth from her hands like a hot potato. "Cold cold cold cold cold cold...."
Tamahome took the stone from her, surprised at how icy it was. He pulled his sleeve over his hand to act as a glove. The stone shortly returned back to its original color. Tamahome felt it carefully with his finger, but its temperature was back to normal.
"What does it mean?" Hotohori asked.
"I have an idea, Sire." Chiriko spoke up.
Everyone looked to the young boy.
"I don't know what the mark means, if it means anything, but the clouds and the snow, as well as the rock's sudden change, point us in one definite direction." Chiriko looked to Miaka.
"Snow... ice... cold?" Miaka asked. She thought for a moment, looking back on her journey as a fifteen year old. "Farther north... Hokkan perhaps?"
Chiriko nodded.
Hotohori returned to his horse. "Then we shall head to Hokkan, let us hope we happen to get a better idea where to look once we arrive. Hokkan is the largest country, not in population, but in size."
Miaka swallowed hard.
To Metajoker: Thanks for the comment. Actually, there is no relationship with Inami and Tasuki. Basically Inami stupidly humiliated herself by announcing her random feelings, and Tasuki's avoiding the subject all together, giving you a hint of how he sees it.
My updates are fast because all I do is go through the chapters and double space them since I have a good 3/5 of the story written all ready.
Amaya-san: Thank you, I'll keep the "non-suckiness" in mind ^_^
To everyone else: I got a LOT of reviews in my inbox! Thank you SO much, you make me feel loved!
Chapter 26 : The First Mystery Revealed
"You'll be all right, I've healed your fever."
An older, plump woman smiled weakly. "Thank you, you're ever so kind to me. Please ask Etuin for your payment."
Mitsukake shook his head. "No, I won't accept any money. Please rest and gain your strength back."
The woman nodded and rested her eyes. Mitsukake stood from his kneeling position and turned to leave. Etuin closed the door behind him.
"How did you do that?" Etuin asked, curious. "How can a man have such great healing magic?"
"It is a gift given to me by Suzaku, and I use it in cases such as your mother." Mitsukake replied.
Etuin gasped. "Suzaku? You're one of the Suzaku seven?"
By now Mitsukake and Etuin had entered the front room where the others were, so they were overheard.
Mitsukake nodded.
Etuin looked upon the other guests in her home. "Are... are you of the Suzaku seven as well?"
"This is Chichiri, Nuriko, Tamahome, and Miaka." Mitsukake introduced. "They are warriors of Suzaku like I, Miaka is our priestess."
Etuin was amazed. "Amazing... but, didn't the priestess all ready summon Suzaku? Why have you returned?"
Miaka smiled. "Uh... long story..."
"Nuriko?" Etuin asked, looking at the purple haired man. She turned to the tall man beside her. "Mitsukake? Wait! There are monuments to your names near the palace, I thought you passed on!" She gasped again. "Could it be that the mighty power of Suzaku itself has restored your bodies?"
Nuriko could feel a sweat drop at the back of his head. He stood up, slightly taller than Etuin. "Etuin, I have a matter to discuss with you. You and your mother, Juuan."
Etuin stepped back. "How... do you know my mother's name?"
******************************
"Wow... this is intense..." Tetsuya read.
Yui's chin was on Tetsuya's shoulder, and she read silently with him. She slunk back onto the couch, resting her eyes and yawning. "I'm tired Tetsuya."
"Do you want me to stop?" Tetsuya asked.
Yui shook her head. "No, just read to me."
Tetsuya quickly relocated his spot. "The priestess of Suzaku could hear the old woman cry out loud from the other room. Tamahome and Chichiri had gone with Nuriko in explaining things, since it was partially their fault for his disappearance..."
***********************************
"I am so sorry for the grief I caused you." Nuriko bowed humbly before the bawling woman.
"We kinda had no choice, no da. We found Nur... Reishun, and immediately we were attacked. We had to leave the town quickly, and we had no chance to get back to you, no da."
"Please, forgive us. We didn't realize our actions would affect so many." Tamahome was truly embarrassed and a little ashamed.
"My..." The woman sniffed. "My Reishun was Nuriko of the Suzaku Seven? My Reishun is alive?"
Nuriko looked up. "Well, technically you could say that..."
"Reishun..." Etuin whispered from the corner of the room.
The woman leapt out of bed, throwing her arms around Nuriko's neck.
"Okaasan!" Etuin shouted.
"Thank the gods, my prayers have been answered!!!" Juuan shouted, tears flowing down her cheeks.
"You're not... upset with us?" Tamahome asked.
Juuan pulled away to get a better look at Nuriko, who himself was getting a little emotional.
"Suzaku blessed this family with the honor of bearing one of his warriors. My little girl has return home!" Juuan once again hugged Nuriko tightly, then stepped back suddenly. She wiped her tears away and sniffed again. "My, you're not exactly a little girl anymore, are you?"
The group minus Nuriko did return to the Inn that night, and informed everyone of the news. Etuin had offered to give them stay for the night, which they did except. Most of the night was spent catching up, as well as Tasuki's own apologies. All were quite surprised at how well the family seemed to take it. To keep the excitement levels down, everyone conveniently 'forgot' to mention that Hotohori was the Emperor. However, it didn't leave anyone's minds that the shinzaho clue still needed to be found, and it was near.
The next morning was when the group finally asked, or more so, Nuriko.
"A shinzaho?" Juuan asked.
Nuriko nodded. "We need it to complete our... mission. By any chance, do you have anything of the sort in this house?"
Juuan thought deeply. "I have no idea."
"You said it could be anything, Onisan?" Haku asked.
Nuriko nodded.
Tasuki folded his arms. "I say we take that stick 'o Chichiri's and wave it around until that thing on it bursts."
"I'm not sure that would work." Chiriko commented.
Sakusha ran into the room and sat down next to Nuriko, hugging his arm. The disk on Chichiri's staff glowed brightly.
Chichiri looked at the young girl. "Nuriko..." He said, getting the man attention.
Nuriko looked down at Sakusha. Something about her had made the disk react. Nuriko got off his bench and knelt down.
"Sakusha, do you have anything really unique? Really special?" He asked.
Sakusha blinked. "I got a new dress. this many days ago." She held up her fingers.
Nuriko smiled. "Something, not so material, possibly." He tried of think of a way to explain it to a girl so young.
Sakusha, who had a rag doll under her arm, thought hard. She lit up. "Yeah! I got something REAL pretty. You wanna see? Huh? huh?!"
Nuriko nodded.
Sakusha took his hand and lead him out of the room, everyone else following.
Sakusha and Nuriko rounded a corner down another hallway, and entered the little girl's room. Sakusha let go of Nuriko's hand and began looking around her bed.
"It's here, I know." She said. She crouched down on the floor and tried to peer under her bed. She turned her head and reached her arm around, trying to feel around.
By now the others, including Juuan, Haku, and Etuin were in the room.
"Do you think it's the Shinzaho?" Saori asked Miaka.
"I don't know, but I hope so." Miaka replied.
Sakusha stood up and pointed to her bed. "I can't reach."
Nuriko grabbed the side of the bed with one hand and lifted it off the floor, making it easier to see and reach under the bed. Though Sakusha didn't seem to notice, the others did.
"WOW! That is so COOL!!!" Haku shouted. "I wish I could do that!!!!"
Sakusha emerged from under the bed, her right hand in a fist. Nuriko put the bed back down gently, kneeling back down to Sakusha.
Sakusha opened her hand to reveal a smooth, pink stone. A gold chain was wrapped around it, but the stone wasn't attached.
The disk on Chichiri's staff glowed a full, bright red.
"That's it!" Chiriko shouted, noticing the reaction of the disk.
Nuriko took the stone and looked at it closely. He stood back up. "This is the thing we've been looking for?"
Just as the disk had before, the stone flashed a bright red, but for only a second.
Nuriko turned back to Sakusha. "Do you mind if I borrow this?"
Sakusha put a finger in her mouth. "I dunno..."
"How about a trade?" Nuriko asked.
"Trade?"
"Yeah, I'll give you something for it. I'm sure we have something." Nuriko looked back to his friends.
The group looked around, thinking of what they could possibly give a seven year old.
Tasuki reached back behind his neck and slipped off one of the two necklaces he was currently wearing. "Hey kid, how 'bout this?"
Sakusha's eyes lit up. She practically threw the stone at Nuriko and ran to the tall, orange haired man, stopping short once she reached him. Acting as if the beaded necklace could break at any moment, she slowly opened her hands and allowed Tasuki to give her the jewelry. Then very carefully she held it and walked slowly back to her bed, placing the blue and red necklace softly on her pillow, spreading it out into a full circle. She seemed to lose all interest in everything else.
Nuriko turned to his friend. "Arigatou, Tasuki."
Tasuki smirked. "No prob."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Nuriko, we need to get movin'!" Tasuki bellowed from his horse. Everyone was saddled up and ready to go, Saori riding now with Chichiri.
"Yes, I'll visit as soon as I can." Nuriko promised, holding Juuan's hand... or her more-so holding his. It was amazing at her recovery.
"No matter what form, you're still my baby, so if you don't visit it will put me to grief." Juuan scolded.
"Okaasan..." Etuin placed a hand on her mother's shoulder.
"Bye bye!" Sakusha waved, a beaded necklace much too long for her dangling from her neck.
"I'll be as strong as you!" Haku made a fist.
Nuriko was completely accepted in this family, and he was to say the least surprised. Though he couldn't remember everything of his life as Reishun, he was glad to have such loving people back in his life.
Nuriko waved goodbye for a final time as the Suzaku Seven left the house on horseback, continuing on.
"I'm so glad we found the first clue." Miaka sighed. "Now we're all that much more closer to summoning Suzaku."
***********************************
Yui was fast asleep on the couch, covered by a dull pink blanket. Her head lay firmly on Tetsuya's chest, her feet matching up with his.
Tetsuya's sunglasses were on top of his head, his arms around the blonde. The Universe of the Four Gods laid closed and marked on the dresser beside the couch, anxiously awaiting to continue its story.
********************************
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Wait a second!!!!" Tasuki shouted.
Everyone jumped.
"Aren't we forgetting sumthin?" Tasuki complained. ("What kind of lousy writing is this?")
"What now?" Nuriko asked.
"Well, isn't that piece of junk supposed ta tell us where ta head next, or are we just gonna wonder off aimlessly into fairyland?"
Chiriko perked up. "Oh dear! I nearly forgot about that!"
Tasuki stopped his horse and folded his arms.
Miaka got out a small satchel in front of her on the horse and pulled out the smooth, pink stone. Everyone pulled around to look at it.
"Is it supposed to be doing something?" Hotohori asked.
Tamahome shrugged.
Chichiri stepped off his horse and walked over, examining the stone. "It's just a rock, no da."
Saori, with some troubled, stepped off the horse as well. "Maybe... 'rock' is the clue? Anywhere around here rocky?"
"This whole damn place is a rock." Tasuki cursed, getting off his horse as well.
Eventually, everyone was surrounding Miaka and Tamahome, trying to decode the mystery of the Shinzaho clue.
Nuriko tapped it.
Chichiri waved his staff over it.
Saori tried to bite it.
Tasuki tried to fry it.
Miaka tried asking it.
"It's not... working..." Chiriko commented.
"We can tell." Nuriko added.
Miaka picked the stone up and placed it in the palm of her hand, examining it closely. "Common little thing, what's your secret?"
As if someone was invisibly engraving on the stone, a long, illegible scribble appeared on its surface.
"What the heck is that supposed to mean?" Tamahome asked.
As if answering his question, the mark began to glow, blue at first, and then a bright white. Light rose forth from the mark to about four inches off the surface of the stone. It flashed brightly as if it's power source was wavering. At the top of the projection was what looked like several clouds, and snow was falling from them. Miaka winced. The rock turned a darker color, and felt like cold ice in her hands. It became so cold she swore she could feel it burning a hole into her palm. Soon, she couldn't take it anymore. She pulled her hand back, dropping the stone onto the ground. The image disappeared, but the mark stayed.
Saori bent over to pick it up. "Ouch!" She cried. She tossed the rock back and forth from her hands like a hot potato. "Cold cold cold cold cold cold...."
Tamahome took the stone from her, surprised at how icy it was. He pulled his sleeve over his hand to act as a glove. The stone shortly returned back to its original color. Tamahome felt it carefully with his finger, but its temperature was back to normal.
"What does it mean?" Hotohori asked.
"I have an idea, Sire." Chiriko spoke up.
Everyone looked to the young boy.
"I don't know what the mark means, if it means anything, but the clouds and the snow, as well as the rock's sudden change, point us in one definite direction." Chiriko looked to Miaka.
"Snow... ice... cold?" Miaka asked. She thought for a moment, looking back on her journey as a fifteen year old. "Farther north... Hokkan perhaps?"
Chiriko nodded.
Hotohori returned to his horse. "Then we shall head to Hokkan, let us hope we happen to get a better idea where to look once we arrive. Hokkan is the largest country, not in population, but in size."
Miaka swallowed hard.