0Chichiri Potter

and the

Sorcerer's Staff

Ch. 2 By Cui

Tasuki gaped at Chichiri, his mouth opened wide with shock.

"Chi-chi-.."he couldn't get his words out. It felt as though there was a huge lump in his throat. He swallowed hard and tried again. "Chichiri?"

Chichiri nodded and smiled. It was hard for him not to smile with his mask on.

"So-so, you…have it then?" Tasuki whispered nervously, his voice shaking. Tasuki gripped the leather on the seat tightly, in what Chichiri thought, was an attempt not to wring his hands.

"Have what no da?" Chichiri tilted his head sideways in a cute, questioning manner.

Tasuki was taken aback from this, and for a moment the brash young youth from the train station came back, "HAVE WHAT?" he repeated loudly, " What the hell do you mean have what! Have the scar, of course!" Tasuki pointed to his eye.

Chichiri arched an eyebrow at him, and became very serious, "How do you know about my scar?"

Tasuki shuddered for a moment at the absence of the 'no da's'. Then regained his composure and added, "…so then you do have it….underneath the mask"

Tasuki sat back up in his seat, and didn't speak of the scar again.

The rest of the train ride was very awkward. Chichiri kept trying to ask him questions, but Tasuki kept ignoring them, seeming, all of a sudden, fascinated by the window, and saying things like," Did you see those mountains, I love the mountains, ever since I was little," or, "Are you gonna eat yours," every time the snack wagon gave them treats.

Finally Chichiri gave up. His mind wandered off to other things, and eventually, without even realizing it, he had fallen into a deep sleep. His haunting dreams caused him to toss and turn in the seat making Tasuki have to hold him down a few times whispering so that no one else would see, "…it's gonna be ok, calm down, it'll be alright.." and other calming words.

Tired out, Tasuki eventually fell asleep himself.

"Oy, Chichiri! What the hell are you doing? Get up here before you get killed, baka!" Chichiri scrambled up the hill towards his fiery haired companion. "I couldn't find you, sorry no da." Tasuki quickly pushed Chichiri down and ducked himself, so they wouldn't be hit by the hoard of arrows being fired at them. "This is no time to be gettin' lost, Chichiri!" They ducked again as another pelt was being fired. " This is nuts, na no da! Why is the Kutou army attacking us, no da!" Tasuki smiled a wry, fanged grin, "They know we're the last one's left. There're no other Suzaku seishi alive anymore, just us. They decided now is a good time to pick us off, the bastards!"

As the soldiers were rearming them selves Tasuki and Chichiri got up and broke into a run.

"After them, don't let them escape! THEY KILLED LORD NAKAGO!" the leader of the army screeched.

"Can't you use that hat of yours to transport us somewhere?" Tasuki asked breathlessly as they ran. "I can," Chichiri stammered, " but I'm tired from running and fighting. I only have a speck of chi left," he stopped running and hung his head low, lifting the hat from his shoulders and over his head. , "enough to take ONE of us away from here. So, I suggest," Chichiri held out his hat, and smiled, a great warm smile without his mask, "…you get going."

Tasuki stared wide-eyed at him. There were no 'no da's' in that sentence, not a single one. He was being serious. Tasuki fought with his reason, " You can't be serious," he had stopped running now, and could hear the clanging of metal and the stomping of horse hooves closing in. The armies would be surrounding them in a matter of minutes.

"Get in the hat Tasuki!" Chichiri demanded. "NO! I can't! I won't leave you here to-to DIE!" Tasuki stammered back nervously.

The sounds were getting closer. They could here the men's shouting voices now.

"GET IN THE HAT, TASUKI!" Chichiri shouted, thrusting the hat at Tasuki chest, forcing him to take hold of it. "NO!" Tasuki threw it back.

In a matter of seconds they were surrounded. Barbaric looking men dressed in ragged blue and green armor surrounded the two on all sides. Some of them were riding horses, the rest where on foot, but all carried deadly weapons and a lust for blood in their eyes.

"And now," the leader smiled evilly as he lifted his spear, "you die."

After that it all became a blur of greens and blues for Tasuki. He had expected to feel the pains of the spear stabbing at him, as the leader of the army had been right in front of him, but instead he felt something light a feathery placed on his head, and before he knew it, the armies where disappearing. He was disappearing.

He could hear voices screaming, "He-he's vanishing," "He's disappearing, under that hat!"

Finally he understood. He turned and saw what he had feared. Chichiri had forced the hat onto his head when his back had been turned, "Chiri, why," Chichiri's face was slowly slipping away, "Chichiri, CHICHIRI!"

Tears streamed down Chichiri's face, turning his soft brown eye into a shimmering brown jewel, "Be safe, Tasuki-kun no da." He whispered softly.

"NO, NO, CHICHIRI! PLEASE CHICHIRI DON'T DO THIS! CHICHI-" his last words where cut short as the hat swallowed him inside.

Tasuki awoke with a start. Cold sweat was streaming down his neck, "CHICHIRI, CHICHIRI!"

Tasuki looked this way and that, before realizing he was on the train, he had been asleep, it had all been a dream.

It wasn't a dream Tasuki shook his head Yes it was! "CHICHIRI!"

"What, what, I'm right here no da!" Chichiri whispered harshly shaking Tasuki's shoulder. "Will you wake up!"

Tasuki could see out the window that it was about midnight, the moon was high among the clouds, and thousands upon thousands of stars could be seen covering the black sky.

Tasuki shook his head to clear his jumbled thoughts, then fell backwards out of his seat as he was pelted by several pillows.

"Oy!"

"Will you shut up, we're trying to sleep!"

Finally Tasuki came to, and threw the pillows back shouting, "YOU SHUT UP!" then slumped back in to his seat.

A ruby, red haired girl stomped over to his seat carrying three of the five pillows he had thrown back.

"You got some kinda aim, you know that!" she shouted at him, lifting the pillows over her head.

"I didn't even throw one, and you hit me with three!" her green eyes were blazing with fury.

Tasuki sunk as far back as he could in his seat without sitting on Chichiri, which wasn't very far. He covered his head with his arms to protect himself, "Ah, no wait a minute," he pleaded as he awaited the beating.

But nothing happened. He lifted his arms, and couldn't believe what he saw.

The girl had fainted.

Children all over the train were standing in their seats to see…but when they realized who it was who fainted, they all slumped back in their seats.

"What the hell are you guys doing? This girl just fainted! Didn't you fuckin' notice, or do you even care?" Tasuki yelled from his seat. Tasuki made a 'help me' face to Chichiri when….

suddenly they heard the girl muttering. He and Chichiri bent down to hear better, but the other children stayed sitting. They knew what she was going to say.

"….so hungry, can't…even…see…straight…."she babbled.

Tasuki stared back at Chichiri, both of them looking confused.

"That's Miaka for ya." A young boy said in the front.

"Yeah, that Granger girl can't even go a few minutes without food." A girl commented from the middle.

"Miaka Granger?" both Chichiri and Tasuki asked looking at the fainted girl.

They both felt that strange sense of de ja vu again.