Chapter Thirty-Nine

His eyes were closed, but his mind was awake. He could feel a soft cushioning around him, and smiled in the sweet feeling. He hadn't felt anything this comfortable in such a long time. As he turned, pulling the warm substance with him, he winced. He felt a pain strip through his body, and he slowly opened his eyes.

Before him were many people he hadn't seen before. One was a woman with long lavender colored hair, next to her sitting a man with silver hair and dark skin. Next was a tall man standing with long brown hair, and then another one with short hair of the same color, only lighter. Lastly, he noticed the same shimmering green eyes and the same blonde from before. His tired, lazy mind jolted and he sprang up, backing as far up into the wall as he could. He still refused to say a word.

Ryeu-Chou-Rai, the King's attendant passed between Amefuri and Suzuno and in his old, wrinkly hands was a warm cloth. The boy looked down at it like it cautiously, but when he saw no threat to it he cautiously lied back down in the feathery divan and let the old man place the cloth on his forehead. It was warm and sizzly, which made him feel sleepy again.

"I don't get it," Lanva said in his backwards chair, looking around to everyone else. He spoke as if the boy weren't there with them. "He's not totally better, but you said you rescued him, Suzuno. Why's he acting so hostile?"

"It looks like he was abused," Subaru concluded, and Tatara nodded as well. The female warrior noticed a glare from the little boy as she said it. "He probably isn't too fond of people if that's the case."

"Then if he can understand our language, he should know that I wouldn't waste my time beating some kid."

Amefuri snapped at his friend, angry at his sarcastic words. "Lanva! Abuse is a different story; you don't believe what anyone says, no matter what. If that is what happened he doesn't care what you say." Suzuno looked to Amefuri, noticing something about him that seemed offended. A rare moment. He met eyes with blond underneath the covers. Trying to avert the gaze, the boy closed his eyes and shuffled so that his head was underneath the covers, not caring that the cloth on his forehead was slipping a bit. "I'm right, aren't I?"

There was a heavy silence in the room, and the only sign that the boy was even there was the steady rise and fall of the covers over top of him. No one wanted to ask him to come out from under there, knowing full well he was going to refuse.

After a moment Subaru became the brave one amongst them, reaching out slowly across to the center of the bed and pulling down the covers just enough to see the boys large, crystal blue eyes. From the way his eyebrows were arched, she imagined his face was in a cute pout; angry, but for some reason still cute. She smiled softly, trying her best to keep her hand close without actually touching him. "Hello. My name is Subaru; I'm a Warrior of Byakko, from the legend."

This little sentence already seemed to peak his interest, though the boy tried his best not to show it. He looked up into her sweet eyes, then to her hand and turned his body so he was facing the other direction. She continued to speak, nonetheless. "I don't know what happened, but my power is to turn back time on people. I did try it on you throughout the days while you were asleep. I could only go back five days before I had to stop. I'm sorry I couldn't help as much as I wanted . . ."

There was another long silence, then everyone turned their heads as the door to the guest room they were in opened. Walking in was Princess Nashie, a newly groomed and snowy white Aoi-Yuki in her arms. The moment she was in the room the little tiger hopped out her arms and into the ground, running in the direction of the bed. Suzuno turned and bent down to pick her pet up, but instead he jumped on the bed.

Aoi-Yuki's little paws stepped onto the surface of the bed, walking silently closer to the boy. When he came so that he was right behind his back the animal rubbed his head against the boys', and the blond swiftly turned around. The moment he saw the tiger however, instead of scowling he smiled widely. He pushed the covers off of him and sat up, pulling Aoi-Yuki into a tight hug around its middle. "Byakko!"

'Byakko?' Suzuno thought, looking around to see everyone's skeptical expression. However, unlike everyone else who was wondering how he suddenly had a connection to the Priestess' pet, she had other ideas. She wasn't sure if this was part of the hint that had been given to her, but she had learned through her journey in Sairou so far that it was much better to try than let it bother her. "Are you . . . Toroki, of the Byakko seven?"

The boy glared at her with a cute pouty expression, Aoi-Yuki still in his arms. He scratched the animals' ears a little before taking his long, flaxen hair and pulling it over his shoulder to the front, turning his body a bit so the others could see. On the back of his neck surrounded by a circle of a deep, red, gouge was the symbol meaning 'turtle's nose'. Suzuno smiled with relief, trying her best to ignore the gash that seemed to be infected. "You are!"

"Hey!" Lanva stood from his chair and pressed one foot against the top of the bed, leaning close to the boy now known as Toroki. His expression was fierce, as if trying to look intimidating. "If you're Toroki and Suzuno just happened to find you right after the fight with the Serpent, does that mean it was you who was causing all the trouble with the monsters! In Kutou and Sairou!"

For a moment the two locked eyes just as Amefuri and him had done moments before. There was a pause, then Toroki smiled and squeezed Aoi-Yuki's tummy, rubbing his cheek against the baby's head. "Awwww! You're so cute Byakko! I haven't seen you in forever! I love how clean your coat is, and you smell so nice, like girls perfume!"

Lanva looked as if he was fuming, being ignored by some little boy who would rather talk to an animal than him. Before he could shout any obscenities Subaru clamped her hand over his mouth and pulled him away from the bed, giggling a bit from the adorable site before her. She whispered into her fiancée's ear, "Don't get upset, he's only a child. He must think Aoi-Yuki is Byakko because our Guardian God is the tiger."

Though still with a childishly annoyed face that, strangely enough, much resembled Toroki's, Lanva sighed and nodded, giving her the 'ok' to uncover his mouth and let him be free to speak again whenever he wished. She was glad to see he wasn't lying, and had very well kept his mouth shut.

Nashie, who had walked forward to the bed while everyone was giving their full attention to Aoi-Yuki, was standing on the other side of Suzuno. She turned to the Priestess, not as wooed by the cuddling as Subaru was. "Suzuno. How did you know that this boy was Toroki of the Byakko seven?"

"Well . . . I actually guessed," Suzuno said, laughing a little. She turned away from the bed and scurried over to a dresser across the room, picking up the scroll that had been given to her by the Emperor. She opened it up as she walked back, her eyes scanning. She smiled as she found her clue and pointed to it, her other hand holding the top of the parchment.

"It's right here . . . Toroki's clues are 'Byakko' and 'Bravery'. The first thing you-" she looked at Toroki for a moment "-said was Byakko. And I guess if everything about what he think happened to you is true then . . . you'd have to be very brave."

Suzuno was surprised to see the astounded look on the young boy's face, his cheeks lined with a tiny bit of pink when she spoke to him. His large blue eyes seemed smitten, though she couldn't very much tell. Before she could read the new expression on his face he turned back to cuddle Aoi-Yuki, who was begging for attention by pressing his two front paws on the boys' chest.

"Okay," Lanva nodded, agreeing with what Suzuno said. "That sounds right, but I still think this brat was the one who caused all of the Toroki incidents too. Come on, who else could? Even if he's a half-pint something tells me he's done something he's not telling us about."

"Lanva!" Subaru snapped, throwing her fiancée a defiant stare as she hit the front of his shoulder lightly to get his attention. "I told you, the poor boy is just a child. And those marks on him show he wouldn't even have the strength to make all the monsters in Sairou and Kutou go haywi-"

"And what if I did?"

All eyes were turned towards rather cold eyes and a devilish smirk. The innocence in Toroki's face had gone and a dark lust flickered in them. Aoi-Yuki licked the side of his face, the warmth of the little animals' tongue bringing him out of the trance he was in.

"You see!" Lanva shouted, getting ready to lounge himself on the bed, "He admits it! He's the one who's been killing everyone, the little-!"

"Knock it off!" This time Amefuri was the one who had to grab hold of Lanva, standing behind him and locking his arms around the taller mans' shoulders. "He didn't admit anything; he's just provoking you because you're being an ass."

The older of the two stopped struggling, pouting like a child again and sitting back down. He crossed both his arms over the back of the chair and rested his chin on it, averting his eyes to try and find something interesting on the wall. "Hmph. Fine, don't believe me."

Amefuri ignored the last bit his friend had said and smiled at Toroki. The boy was lying back down now, yawning widely without bothering to cover it up in a polite manner. He giggled when the baby tiger looked down into the hole curiously before jumping away when he playfully snapped his jaws shut. Amefuri stepped closer to the bed, getting his attention.

He threw a peculiar look at Lanva when he spoke, but mainly he kept his focus on the young warrior. "We're sorry about him. My name is Amefuri; I'm also a member of the Byakko Seven. These two are Tatara and Subaru-" he pointed to whom he was talking about when he spoke, and leaned closer to Toroki, trying to keep his awareness. "Do you understand?"

Without a word Toroki nodded, for once focused on someone fully. He was quiet, waiting for Amefuri to continue, which he did. As he did, he looked to Suzuno, who looked like she had spaced out for a moment staring at the young boy. She snapped back to reality, smiling and waving just a little bit. "This is the Priestess of Byakko, Suzuno Oosugi. She came from another world and needs your help, just like she needs mine."

Another long silence followed and Suzuno worried that she might've done something wrong, even though there was nothing in particular she did. 'What if he was offended that I was staring at him and not paying attention?' she thought, looking around at the rest of her companions. They were all also looking at Toroki, but they didn't look to be gaping as she had. She suddenly felt very embarrassed and small, but at the same time she felt she could justify. 'He's just so pretty . . .'

Toroki looked down at Aoi-Yuki with his large azure eyes, a curious appearance on his face. He held the animal's front paws with his hands as he spoke, but unlike a normal feline he did not protest. "Is it true, Byakko?"

Aoi-Yuki yawned in answer, then tackled the boys' chest with his forehead where he was welcomed with more affection and petting. A second came by and Toroki met eyes with Suzuno, who made sure this time to stay alert. His eyes looked very sad and pleading to her, but it melted her heart how endearing he was.

"Priestess," he started, his eyebrows knitting. "Please, will you take me home? I miss my uncle."

"Your uncle?" Suzuno repeated, curious. He nodded.

"Please, take me to see him! I haven't seen him for over two months. I . . . I need to warn him about Reikoku! If you do, I'll help you! I promise!"

Suzuno was amazed and almost heartbroken when the large orbs of blue began to wet. She covered her mouth, biting her lip and almost wanting to cry herself; she could almost feel the pain he was going through, even if she didn't completely understand. But at the same time, she really did know when it came down to the basics. 'He's been so hurt . . . and all he wants to do is go home. . . '

"That name . . ." Nashie muttered, gathering the parties' attention. Suzuno at first didn't understand what she was talking about, but the powerful woman quickly let her presence be known as she lightly pushed Amefuri out of the way of the bed to speak to Toroki. She had one knee and one hand pressed on the bed. "Reikoku. That's one of the promising soldiers of the Kutou Army, right? Under Commander Shuri?"

Lanva had long stopped holding such a stubborn face, being just as moved as the Priestess by the young boys' teary, anxious face. "Wait a sec . . . I know that guy! He's the guy who went missing about two months ago along with Commander Shuri's-"

'Oh,' Suzuno thought, understanding. No one had spoken out loud yet, but it was as if everyone had said it already. She remembered the very same story Danko in Midoru had told her about the mysterious disappearance of the two people. She never thought another event so important to the world would connect to her.

"So . . ." Suzuno said out loud slowly, barely realizing she was even talking out loud, "Toroki is Commander Shuri's missing nephew."

X x x x x

Yeay, we're here! Officially and told, after . . . –counts- 30 chapters? Didn't Tatara come in chapter nine? I think! And this is thirty-nine? Gosh! 30 whole chapters without a new warrior . . . I hope the next one is revealed a little quicker than that!

But anyways . . . how do you all like him? XD It's Shuri's nephew! He's going to have a huge role for the next story arc, so keep him in mind!

Kaeru Soyokaze- -giggles- Oh, yes. What we don't really know is . . . Lanva is really a super-genius who is smarter than everyone in the entire story: D Just kidding. He's just lucky.

Care- XD I wish! Nakago was always hawt. But an ancestor of Nakago, perhaps? I don't really know myself, but he is part of the same clan! XD

Suzuno Oosugi- Yes, makes total sense:D I think it'd be cool to try and connect the two somehow. People of the Pin tribe are so pretty, don't you think? Flawless!