Disclaimer: By no means do I own Fushigi Yugi...or, sadly, Tamahome...
Thanks again to all those who've reviewd! To all the others, R&R, and I'm open to any ideas for the story if you have them
Reader Response:
Dreammaker13, Fuffy'sLova, Tiki-Chan, SaraJaye, Auron's Fan: Thank's for the compliments And here's the update that you wanted! Once exams are over the updates will be more often.
Silver Pain: Yay parties! Yes, there is a nice twist for Hotohori, but it may take a couple quizes to come out. Yeah it's scary, but I thought a more serious Miaka and a crazier Tamahome might be nice...
Chapter 4: The Second Constelation
"There are clues written here. The third constellation will be identified by the characters Gong and Wu; the first meaning palace and the second fierce strength."
"Ok…well then let's go find them. We should round up all the men in the palace and find the strongest one!" Tamahome ran off excitedly dragging Miaka behind him, with Hotohori following behind.
Ten minutes later Tamahome stood before the strongest men in Hotohori's army. "Sir, all the men have been summoned." One of the servants bowed slightly before backing up and taking his place among he others.
"Yes, well done. Now, Tamahome, how are you going to test these men?" The emporor asked curiously.
Tamahome paused for a moment before speaking, "So…Do you have any odd markings on your bodies? Characters maybe?"
The men just stared silently back.
"Or not then…" Tamahome said slowly. Right then, time for a new tactic. Well, the scroll said that this warrior would have the character for strong, so maybe I should test strength…
Tamahome looked around his nearby surroundings before finding the object he was searching for.
Quickly he ran over and grabbed a large elliptical stone decoration and heaved up into his arms. He waddled back over to the others, struggling quite a bit with the large object in his arms. Setting on the ground he turned to Miaka and Hotohori. "Ok, so we're looking for strength right? Well I figure if they can catch this thing they've gotta be pretty strong."
Not bothering to wait for a reply or for any input, Tamahome once again heaved the large object from the ground and, using all is strength that he had acquired from lifting weights in gym class, tossed to object at the by standing soldiers. "Heads Up!" He shouted as the heavy decoration sailed through the air.
The men standing by hardly had any time to react and, thankfully, most of them were bright enough to move out of the way, however there always that one who a bit dimmer than the rest. He was the one who managed to get his foot smashed beneath the stone.
"Hey! What are you doing you fool? Trying to kill us!" Uh oh, maybe that wasn't the best plan…
Slowly Tamahome back away from the warriors who now had a murderous look in their eyes, except of course for the one with the now broken foot.
Tamahome took off running as the men heaved some of the same stone decorations in his direction. He was running straight at one of the small temples that lay just beyond the main courtyard.
"TAMAHOME! Get away from there!" He faintly heard a voice screaming to him.
It was hard to tell who it was over the sound of the small explosions that erupted around him. Wait, small explosions….Oh, shit! The temples collapsing!
With no where to move, Tamahome flung his arms over head in hope of protecting himself. As he head the collapsing temple fall to the ground around him, he briefly felt a force slam into his body.
"TAMAHOME!"
"570 yen, please." Yui smiled up at the cashier grabbing her bad of items off the counter after receiving her change.
"Gods, Yui what'd you buy!" The girl smiled at her friends.
"Just some manga…and candy." She added the last part with a grin as she popped one of the round sour pieces into her mouth, puckering slightly at the acidic taste.
"Ohmygod! Yui, what happened are you ok?" Myya, one of her friends almost dropped her own bag as she pointed franticly at Yui's leg.
"What are--" Yui stopped mid-sentence as she looked down her leg. A large pool of blood had already stained the fabric of her uniform skirt and some of it was starting to leak down her leg. Suddenly, she didn't feell so good.
"Faster! We must get rid of the debris!" Hotohori shouted at the attendants who had rushed over to help at the collapse of the small temple. "Your highness, we can't. Most of the warriors fled when they saw that they destroyed the temple."
Hotohori ignored them and continued moving the pieces that he could get to.
Tamahome squinted open his eyes to see, not rubble like he had expected, but Miaka's face.
"Mi-aka?" He said almost quietly. Miaka's eyes were squinted in pain. I felt something hit my body…it was Miaka. Gods, if I were back home, being saved by a girl, the guys would never let me hear the end of it, but in this time, it's almost like's it…normal…
Tamahome knew that now was not the time to be thinking that but then again, did anyone ever really have control over their thoughts? No.
Miaka was straddling his stomach, her back bent and her arms braces firmly on the ground near his shoulders. On her back rest a large pillar that had fallen with the rest of the temple. He realized that she was struggling to keep the stone from crushing them both.
"Miaka! Stop! You're going to hurt yourself. Stop!"
Miaka opened her eyes and look straight at him. "You idiot. I'm supposed to protect you right? I wouldn't be very good at my job if I just stood by at let you get hurt." She tried to grin but it turned into a grimace as the strength in her arms wavered.
About ten feet away Hotohori was almost going into cardiac arrest. "Miaka, Tamahome! Gods, something must be done." He couldn't lose a celestial warrior or the priest or they would be in big trouble.
"Let me handle this." Hotohori spun around to look at the speaker, a wave of relief washing over his face.
"Urrghh…Gods, I-I can't hold it anymore…" Miaka's arms began to shake as her body pressed closer and closer to Tamahome's. "Miaka!"
Suddenly they weight on the girls back was lifted and Tamahome could see the blue of the sky above him. The rubble had been cleared.
"Ah, so you're still alive. Good." Tamahome looked up to see a man-no wait, a boy; seeming to be only a couple years older than he, standing above them.
"So you're sure you two are alright?" Hotohori asked, eyeing both Miaka and Tamahome suspiciously. They nodded un unison.
Hotohori didn't seem to believe them but he let it be as some of the attendants tended to their wounds.
"Ouch! Watch it will ya?" Miaka winced as the wet cloth slid over a particularly tender spot.
Tamahome glanced at Miaka. I thought my heart stopped right t here…he thought back to when Miaka's arms began to give out and she was being forced down closer to him.
"So, from your display of immense strength I assume you're a member of the inner seraglio? Or maybe…could you possibly.."
He was cut off when the boy before them pulled at the neck of his robes to reveal a kanji character. "I'm Kang-Lin. Or Nuriko, by constellation standards."
Tamahome popped out from behind the emporor, "Thanks for helping us out back there, I'm Tamahome." He finished his greeting by sticking his hand out.
Nuriko barely gave his hand a glance as she turned and stomped over towards Miaka who was having her arm bandaged.
He smirked, "The one I was interested in rescuing was her." Instead of indicating to Miaka like a normal person, Nuriko grabbed both sides of Miaka's face and slammed his lips against hers.
"M-Mi-aka!" Tamahome said in disbelief.
"Something's not right here. I mean what is this?" Yui said almost angrily as she shoved open the door that lead to the women's bathroom inside the store.
"It's not that time of the month is it?" Ayya asked her
Yui threw a look at her friend. "No it isn't and even if it were ho would the blood get all the way down there?"
Her friend shrugged.
Yui stood on her tip-toes and stuck the hem of her skirt under the faucet and scrubbed. "It's not coming out." She said, sighing in frustration.
"Let me try." Yui's other friend, Tsuya said, grabbing the hem and rubbing the material together. "You're right…it won't even fade."
Yui was about to give up when all of a sudden the stain vanished in a second, also drenching her with water. "Um…" That was pretty much Yui's response, what else could you say to that?
"Gods, finally. That took forever." Tamahome sighed, the blood stain was finally gone. He removed his shirt and threw both his shirt and pants into the tub of water. "Who knew blood stains were so hard to get out. Now I know why mom hates doing the laundry."
That boy, Nuriko. Where the hell does he get off kissing Miaka? What was that all about? Oh well, I can't focus on that, I've gotta get the other constellations so I can get back home. I'll just have to suck it up and be friends will them, even Nuriko.
Tamahome sat on the stool in just his boxers, dunking his clothes in and out of the water in the tub. Moments later a frantic Miaka came tearing into the room, "TAMAHOME!" she yelled breathlessly.
Startled he jumped up, but then quickly sat back down realizing he was only in his underwear. "Um, can I help you?" he said.
"Ahhh! Need a place to hide! Heeelp!" She wailed as she darted around looking for a place to cower, the meanwhile Tamahome just stared at her like she was nuts.
The girl look as though she were about to say something further but never got the chance because seconds later a hand darted out and grabbed one of Miaka's wrists that was flailing wildly about, causing her to stop abruptly, her face paling.
"Oh, hey Tamahome, what's going on?" Although it was question, Nuriko phrased it as a rhetorical one, so Tamahome didn't even bother responding.
Nuriko laughed lightly, "Miaka's just a little shy. Let's go." Tamahome tried not to bust out laughing on the truly genuine expression plastered on the girl's face. It was look of pure desperation and terror. He held in his snicker and watched as the girl desperately tried to hold onto the doorframe with her free hand.
But, seeing as Nuriko is amazingly strong, Miaka lost that battle and, seconds later, was torn from Tamahome's sight, although he could still hear her as she was dragged down the hallway.
Gods, what's with that guy? He'd never get off with that back home…Maybe I should make peace, give Miaka some help….
Sighing Tamahome stood up (now fully clothed) and wandered off to Find Nuriko.
"So you uh, wanna help me out huh? Ok, be my P.A." Tamahome nodded trying not to pay too much attention to the fact that Miaka was bound tightly from the shoulders down and lying on the floor.
Tamahome resisted the urge to throw a punch. Shouldn't Nuriko be the one asking for favors not him? He was the Priest of Suzaku after all. Well, either way he'd have to be able to at least get along with that guy so he'd better start practicing now if he ever wanted to refrain from killing him…
"Alright let's see….The hall leading to my room is very dirty. Clean it." Nuriko said, dismissively waving his hand. Tamahome grumbled under his breath.
Tamahome resentfully bent down a grabbed a cloth. Remind why the hell I'm doing this…?
Nuriko cast a glance over his shoulder, "Oh and if ya miss a spot, no dinner." This earned a very nasty glare from Tamahome. Who the hell does this guy think he is!
Sadly, Tamahome did clean the entire hallway; very well at that. But what he hadn't known was that Nuriko, behind his back, had been dumping dirt and dust all over the floor the second Tamahome had cleaned it. When he was finished Nuriko had chided him and promptly told him 'no dinner' and began laughing. Tamahome didn't find it funny….
Enter Miaka. She strolled in after watching what had happened, well actually she didn't stroll, it was more of a bounce seeing as she was still bound. "Nuriko knock it off! Quick being a jerk--" Miaka was cut off by Nuriko's mock sobs. "Me! You hate me!"
Miaka's face changed from anger to apprehension, "Now wait I never said--" Once again, Nuriko cut her of.
"Then that means you like me! OH MIAKA!" Nuriko grabbed Miaka and glomped her so tightly Tamahome could have sworn he heard a rib break. But by that point the was really paying attention to Miaka's possibly broken bone. He was too angry at their embrace, a painful one, but one nonetheless. He promptly stomped off grumbling something incomprehensible under his breath.
Damn, Nuriko's such a pain in the ass. What gives him the right to act like that anyway? And what about Miaka….Damnit…He seems to really like her….
Tamahome was perched on the railing over looking the five foot drop down to the ground below.
Miaka turned at the sound of heavy breathing. Miaka was desperately trying to squirm her way over. Tamahome just stared.
"Um, weren't you unconscious? Cause last time I checked you were…" He stared at the girl who was in a definite state of disarray.
Huff "Nah, I feigned it to fake Nuriko out till she left. Then I made my escape." Huff She was still trying to regain her breath.
Tamahome fought the urge to be nice, he was supposed to be mad at her right! "Yeah well, can't be that bad with a guy like Nuriko chasing after you." He said this more spitefully than intended.
Miaka's face instantly reddened. "What universe are you in! You think I like that? The only reason I'm not killing him right now is because we need him to summon Suzaku. Now, what you should be saying is 'Oh Miaka, I'm just ever so jealous, I need you!'" Miaka laughed lightly at her own little joke, while patting Tamahome on the head much like one would pat their dog.
Miaka pumped her fist in the air in victory as she disentangled herself form the last bits of her bindings. She skipped lightly over to Tamahome and linked her arm through his and began pulling him along with her until the reached a break in the balcony.
Pulling him down the few stairs with her she trotted over to the small fish pond a few feet away and plopped down on the ground. Patting the ground near her, she motioned for Tamahome to do the same.
After a few moments of sitting in comfortable silence Tamahome spoke up. "So, you like Nuriko then?
Miaka shook her head furiously, "No, I guess he's ok…maybe…but he's not my type. Besides I've known him for what, two days?"
"So you have no feelings for him then?" Miaka just turned at looked at the boy.
She suddenly cocked any eyebrow. "Ah, I see. You just jealous! I know, I know. I'm just such a sweet, kick-ass, kinda babe. Buuuuut, food is my first love."
Tamahome was quick to counter, "I'm Not Jealous!" I just felt bad for Nuriko…it sucks to be turned down…that's it…wasn't jealous whatsoever…right?