Silver Pain, Thank you SOOO much for the reviews, they are much appreciated. One, I have never been that great a speller, and two, they remind me that I have more of the story ready to be read. So, these next few in sequence are for you. Also, I apologize for the unorganized Chapter Five, I forgot to load in the breaks as are in the other chapters. That is my fault and it should now be fixed. In answer to your question, Solei is Kamai, and she only has the two names. Sobrina is Spanish for 'niece'. Enjoy! MS
Chapter Six: Days
Amber inhaled the smell of crisp linen, smiling to herself as she opened her eyes. It was real. Tasuki was there, in the temple. A silly smile lit her face and she squealed into the pillow. Laughter sounded from the doorway and Amber spun, her cheeks burning.
"Breakfast." It was all Solei could do to spit out the word through her sniggering.
"Shut up, 'Lei."
"You are too much fun to tease." she choked out, closing the door behind her as she went to gather the rest of her guests.
"NURIKO, TASUKI! BREAKFAST!" She pounded on their door a few times for good measure and then continued down the hall to Nakago and Amiboshi.
"NAKAGO, AMIBOSHI!"
"You yelled?" Solei spun around, her face eyes level with Nakago's collarbones.
She tilted her face up to meet his eyes. "Breakfast is ready."
"Thank you." He offered his arm to escort her back to the kitchen and she accepted, mystified.
"Tasuki, how are we going to do this? We have no idea where they are. Suzaku ordered us to find the two girls, but the only two we have met have been Solei and Amber."
"Maybe they're the two were lookin' for."
Nuriko pursed his lips. "Maybe, but what if they're not? But then again, they have chi…"
"Does everyone here have chi?"
"I don't know, Tasuki. We can ask them."
"Later. Dinner is soon."
'I know she is the Goddess Protector. That means that Amber is the Daughter of the God. But why are they so important? They have chi, but nothing extraordinary.' Nakago mulled over the possibilities, his sword flicking against Solei's in a smooth rhythm.
"You're leaving your ribs open." he corrected idly, swatting her side lightly with his blade. She took the critique and the punishment and continued, carefully blocking as he had shown her the day before.
'Perhaps it has something to do with the other name that was given to Solei. Kamai…' The name sounded oddly familiar. 'I will ask her. Her face is expressive enough to give me a clue even if her words do not…'
Solei mulled over Amiboshi's disappearance. She had felt her uncle, but that could have meant any number of things. With a shake of her head she returned to the Spanish assignment she had been given.
"Stupid substitute…" she muttered. "Not knowing the difference between the imperfect and the preterit…"
"Girl."
She tuned away from her homework to stare up at Nakago. "Yes?"
"I have a question."
"Fire away."
Carefully studying her face he asked: "Who is Kamai?" To his surprise the only things he saw in her eyes or on her face were slight sadness and amusement.
"Kamai is a nickname of sorts. My father gave it to me after my mother died. Said it was my fault so I would bear the reminder. From that day on I was always Kamai to him."
"I apologize for making you relive that."
She shook her head. "It matters not. I am used to it, but I don't allow many to call me by it anymore. It reminds me of her, just like it was supposed to…" The sadness was dominant in her eyes; Nakago left her alone to her thoughts.
'Not that that is the only reason.' She added silently to his retreating back. 'After all, an Angel of Death must have a name befitting her station in Hell…'
"Uh, Amber?"
"Yeah, Tasuki?"
"Does everybody here have chi?"
"What do you mean?" 'Pretend like you don't know what he is talking about.' she ordered herself silently.
"You make fireballs and shields; does everybody here have tha' power?"
"Well, I'm the only one I know of with fire…"
"What 'bout other abilities?"
"Like?"
"Super-strength or weather or…yeah…" He scratched the back of his head nervously.
Amber shrugged. "Not that I know of. Solei can pull some cool stuff, but that might just be years of practice."
"Thanks."
"No prob."
Walking down the hall, Solei paused in the laundry room, dropping off her sweaty leotard and tights and grabbing a clean robe out of a neat pile, sending the rest cascading to the floor. With a sigh, she picked them up and restacked them. Pulling bobby-pins out of her bun as she left the small room she thought she heard a door slide open and closed behind her. She paused, but heard nothing. A short walk later and she was at the bathroom across the hall from her room. Hairs lifting on the back of her neck she started to step out of the bathrobe, but a quick glance in the mirror made her grab for it as it dropped to the floor.
"PERVERT!"
The sounds of Tasuki's snores rumbling loudly throughout the room woke Nuriko up. It was late, but he had no desire to sleep more. He got up, and brushed out his long violet hair. As he tied off his braid, he heard footsteps padding lightly outside his door and opened it to see who it was. He caught a glimpse of a navy-blue robe and blond hair before the person disappeared around a corner. He shook his head, and then followed, curious as to where the person was going. Quickly he lost his way in the maze of hallways. He opened the nearest door and saw Solei in the process of disrobing and stepping into the waiting shower. Nuriko slipped out the door swiftly, but as he closed the door he heard her shout.
"PERVERT!" He cringed as he wove back through the halls, promising to make it up to her later.
Solei was swearing fluently as she stepped out of the shower fifteen minutes later. After toweling her hair dry to the best of her ability, she realized that she had forgotten to grab fresh clothes out of the laundry room.
"Great. Just Great" she muttered to herself. More curses spilled from her as she curled back into the robe, wrapping it tightly around her. She opened the door a crack and saw that the hall was empty. She raced out of the bathroom and into her room; her face turning red as she recalled seeing Nuriko clad only in his boxers.
'What would Liz say?' she asked herself silently, trying to conjure the image of her Mexican friend who had recently moved back to her homeland.
The dark-skinned girl appeared in her mind. "Damn, but he has nice abs!" Solei started laughing as her brain recalled Liz's sure-fire answer to everything. She slid down her wall.
"Gods, they're hot…" she trailed off quietly. She closed her eyes and rested her head against the wall. She saw Nakago's face, a slight smile twitching at the corners of his mouth and his eyes twinkling the colour of the summer sky in hidden mirth at some action only he understood. A small sigh escaped her lips and she got dressed, an oversized button-up shirt and a pair of beat-up jeans, comfort above style, as always. Gathering the robe up off of the floor, she hung it up, waiting until her face returned to its normal colour before exiting the room.
With determined steps, she walked out into the training yard, needing to stretch out again after a dance class. A flash of silver caught her eye, and she side-stepped quickly, reaching to her side for a blade that was not there.
"Hello, Girl."
"Nakago." She inclined her head politely. "I did not mean to interrupt your training."
"You did not." He walked back over to the other side of the field and continued. Solei watched him for a minute, then began her stretches to the rhythm of his sword. Sinking to the floor, she let a smile spread across her face as she pressed her chest to the ground between her legs, eyes still following Nakago's motion.
"SOLEI!" With a groan she stood up, brushing off the seat of her pants.
"Yes, Grandfather?"
The old man glared as she neared his post at the door. "WHEN"S DINNER?"
"In an hour. Please, Grandfather, have some patience."
"FINE!"
She winced at his volume and shook her head, grinning as he shuffled away into the temple. Her brain reminded her that she needed to do a run-through of her dance, and she began to flow through the steps.
Please review!
MS