Chapter Forty-Eight

"Chu . . . Chin?" Amefuri's eyes widened as he repeated the name to himself. A powerful emotion hit him full-blown, so much so he had let himself fall to the ground. Lanva loosened his grip on Subaru and she hurriedly came down by her fellow warrior's side. Chu Chin. He hadn't heard that name in years. 'Not since . . .'

"That guy is still out there?" Lanva said, also surprised. He was looking straight to Jin-Shun, his eyes for once serious and hard. He also seemed to know this man, and also didn't seem to be on good terms with him. "Are you sure?"

"How do you know him?" Jin-Shun asked. "You didn't live near the Capital when he was in this city . . ."

Lanva paused, turning to Amefuri and Subaru for just a moment before looking back at the largest of the four of them. "Chu Chin is an S-rank ranked bounty, the highest class. But six years ago me and my dad and my friend caught him and turned him in."

At this, Jin-Shun seemed a little shocked, but he wasn't disagreeing. He looked around to see the people avoiding them all just a bit, a few stares looking down at Amefuri and a few up at himself but he decided it was best to ignore them all. He began to walk off more to the side and Lanva followed him to continue their conversation while Subaru helped Amefuri up to go as well.

"I wonder," Jin-Shun said, going into deep thought. "He was an S-rank bounty, but could it really be the same one?"

"A slave trader, right?" Lanva confirmed. "And no ordinary one, at that. He'll take anyone and anything, not just young girls. Animals, monsters, boys, men, women . . . He couldn't have cared less, and he would beat them until they were as obedient as dogs."

"Amefuri," Subaru said softly, just enough so only he would hear it and she wasn't interrupting the other conversation. "Are you alright? You still seem like you're in a daze . . ."

"What?" he said, snapping out of his trance and turning towards her. He was being held up by her, one of his arms behind her neck. He was also leaning back against the wall of a building. Sweat seemed to drip off of his face, and not from the heat. "I'm fine . . . really . . ."

'Liar,' she thought, her face twisted into one of deep concern. 'There's definitely something going on through his mind right now . . . I've never seen him lose his composure so much at such a serious matter before.'

As Subaru listened to Jin-Shun and Lanva talk in more detail about the one called Chu Chin, she could easily put two and two together. 'If he was a slave trader, and one so terrible, then Amefuri must have . . .'

"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."

Subaru remembered when Amefuri said that. It was back at the palace, when the party had just met Toroki of the Byakko Seven. With the way he seemed so knowledgeable about such a terrible thing as if he had seen it himself, she felt like she could confirm it. 'Yes . . . Amefuri was definitely a victim of the slave trader.'

But it seemed like as soon as she said that, Amefuri regained what stature he lost and pulled away from her, standing on his own and walking next to Lanva to face Jin-Shun. The two boys stopped their conversation, ready to listen to what he had to say.

"Where is he?" he asked Jin-Shun firmly, no trace of any fear left in his eyes. "Where is Chu Chin?"

Jin-Shun shrugged almost carelessly, but he gave an explanation along with it so as not to seem too lackadaisical. "I don't know where he is now, but I don't think he's going to go far. I saw him earlier, taking a boy. A real pretty, young one too. The most blond hair and blue eyes I'd ever seen in my life."

With that he had immediately gotten everyone's attention, and all three said the name of the person they were thinking of at the same time. "Toroki!"

"Then that means . . . Suzuno!" Amefuri shouted with realization as he turned, completely forgetting about the other three there. No one tried to stop him, but they were all feeling the same apprehension.

"Priestess? Toroki?" Jin-Shun repeated to himself, then he looked down at Lanva and Subaru. "That little kid was of the Byakko Seven? Could someone explain . . .?"

Lanva nodded and at the same time turned and grabbing Subaru's hand. "Sure, we'll explain on the way. Amefuri can go look after Suzuno, if he finds her; right now we have to get Toroki away of Chu Chin!"

x

Amefuri reached his home in no time, pushing people and ignoring whatever obscene remarks that were given to him just to get there as quick as he could. The whole time his thoughts were focused not on Toroki, but on the Priestess.

'Is she going to be alright?' Amefuri thought, seeing his small home and feeling a sort of panicky vigor rush through him. 'She'll be fine, she'll be fine, she'll be-'

As soon as he opened the door to his home, his heart nearly stopped. Things weren't fine. Suzuno was lying on the floor right before him, a thick amount of blood smearing her small, dollish pale face and soaking her school uniform clothes. Her eyes, though closed, seemed almost forced with how strained they looked and how harsh and uneven her breathing was.

"Suzuno," he said in a weak voice, going down and lifting her up, her forehead leaning against his as his hand propped her back. He could feel her heavy breathing, and feeling it made his whole body quiver in an unknown fit of . . . pleasure? He wasn't sure. But even more so, he was worried about her condition. "Suzuno . . ."

'She's really burning up,' Amefuri thought, and though he tried to keep focus something else was making him feel dizzy again. His eyes kept trying to focus on the heat where their temples touched but he constantly was looking down at her lips, and as soon as he tried to find something else his eyes would find their way back there again. A lump formed in his throat and he opened his mouth slightly, breathing out just a little bit to get out the new energy he was experiencing.

'Maybe I should . . .' he thought, his eyes half closing as he leaned in closer, a strong temptation drawing himself towards her. The memories of him kissing her for the first time appeared in his mind again that day, and the reason behind it. He remembered that he was checking to see if she had been poisoned. He wondered. 'Maybe I should just see if . . .'

As soon as his lips seemed to brush Suzuno's Amefuri felt something tug at the end of his shirt and he looked down, distracted. Aoi-Yuki's teeth were pulling on the edge of his shirt, his large blue eyes staring up at him in earnest. Just for a brief moment Amefuri felt like pushing the small animal away and going back to where he was, but he knew that if Aoi-Yuki interrupted him, it must have been important. He was a smart animal for one so young.

But still, even as he lied Suzuno back down on the ground, comfortably secured within the blanket something in his heart sank. His fingers lightly traced her cheeks, which were burning and sweating, then he nervously touched his lips. 'What's going on with me . . .? I've felt this weird all day . . . even yesterday and before . . .'

To distract himself Amefuri turned himself back to Aoi-Yuki, who walked along to another corner of the small entrance room where Higashi laid, still unconscious. Amefuri approached her, cautiously picking up her hand and examining the black and blue bruise that traced all along her arm. Suddenly an idea hit him, one that made him relieved and curious at the same time.

"This can't be Chu Chin who attacked here then," he concluded, speaking to himself softly. Knowing this fact alone made him relieved. But, at the same time he had no leads on who the real enemy was. As he did he picked up his mother, being wary of her arm and holding it comfortingly close to his chest. "I know he would have taken Mom if he had the chance, and Suzuno too. And that wound . . ."

As he glanced down at the injury once more, turning to go back to Higashi's room, he was completely sure that it was broken. The skin was dark, and in comparison to her other arm which was thin and smooth, this one looked puffy and large. He started to recall hurtful memories of the past, the envisioned face of an old, grinning man.

Chu Chin was an abusive man, but at the same time, he never gave wounds that were so extreme like this one. He was a slave trader after all, and everyone he kidnapped had to look strong. Broken bones certainly showed weakness in his eyes.

'That's right,' he concluded, using his back to open the door to Higashi's room. 'He did hurt us . . . he hurt everyone he captured . . . he believed that anyone who could stand bruises and scars and cuts were fit for work, but anything broken was useless.'

The room looked the same as normal and a strong, perfumed stench wafted his nose, but at least this time the floor was free of any glass shards. He walked over any bottles of cologne that were placed haphazardly all over the ground and laid his mother in bed, pulling the covers all the way up to her collarbone and being sure to fluff up the area around her arm. Right now, he couldn't do a thing for her.

"Don't worry, Mom," he said, giving her a soft peck on her forehead, "Just wait a while. I know the right person that can fix this."

x

Tatara opened his eyes slowly, the blurry vision of the dense, plant-filled room glittering around him. When he had walked in the night before and heated the lamp hanging from vines off the ceiling, everything looked quite dead and not taken care of, but now it seemed to glow. New flowers had bloomed blue or pink or yellow petals all around, and the old brown of the stems had been replaced with a vibrant green.

He looked down at the back of his hand, where the small symbol, his proof of being Tatara of the Byakko Seven, glowed brightly. As it did more floras seemed to cultivate around him, and pleased with himself he took in a deep, strong breath, taking in the sweet smell of nectar and scents.

It may have been a small room, even one without a bed, but somehow he could never feel more comfortable than he did here. This was his home for so long after he had no other place to go to, after he had given up looking for the family that could be alive. But thinking of that topic made him a little sad at the same time, going to many other things.

'I wonder,' he started, closing his eyes a little while rubbing them, trying to wake himself up. He still hadn't bothered to stand up from the small blanket on the ground he had been lying on for the night, instead just calmly reminiscing. 'Why did I even try to look for them anyway, when I already have a brother I spend no time with?'

Remembering the older brother of his, his strong, courageous smile and the same soft eyes that they had both gotten from their father, sword in hand and ready to fight made him smile again. How he had always looked up to his brother when their father was never around; he was truly the man of the house before he left to replace his father's position once he had been killed at war.

"Hazumu," Tatara whispered, saying the name of his dear brother. Finally he had opened his eyes and stood up from the ground, taking his time and stretching slowly to get the feeling back into his body. 'Father and brother, both the Commanders of Sairou . . . what a family I was born into.'

As he got ready to leave, or more or less check to see the details of the Haunted Mountain above himself he heard the sound of footsteps and turned to look in the direction of the cave. The protective vines that tightly intertwined to cover of the entrance seemed to slowly creep out of the way at his command and latch themselves onto the wall, making the long, sun-lit tunnel visible. Two figures were walking in his direction, one of them carrying a small child in their hands.

"Truly, Tenkou has done wonders to this body of mine!" the raspy voice of a rather old man said, though his laughter seemed to squeak like an excited child after he had spoken. "I never believed so much in Taiitsukun, anyway. I'm sure she's an ugly woman too greedy to share her power. I've never felt so strong in my life!"

"I have to agree," another voice said, though this one sounded much more feminine and desirous. There was an unusual accent to her voice, one that added an edge as she spoke. "Tenkou is the greatest creator among the two . . . And all we had to do was catch a naughty little boy."

The old man seemed to laugh again, this time the laugh so loud and piercing while echoing down the cave Tatara flinched. His heartbeat started to beat a little faster as he listened to the both of them, questions rising. 'Tenkou? The great enemy of Taiitsukun? What do they have to do with him?'

"Yes," the woman continued, her tone sounding completely unaffected by the old man's loud bellows. "All I had to do was find Kagasuki to give you your new body to free you from your prison. And he's already given us both enough strength to last us another hundred years!"

'Toroki!' Tatara thought, and this time he stepped into the cave and out of his little room, walking towards the both of them with strong strides. He had heard the mention of another Warrior of Byakko among them as well, but first thing was first: Toroki was already a companion of his.

The two heard his footsteps and stopped their conversation, looking straight at the young man before them in confusion. Finally, with the help of being closer to the light at the end of the cave he could see them.

The woman was a gorgeous figure, with a slim, curvy body that she had covered in a rich silk dress that hung low on her breasts and slipped off of her shoulders. She had pale, dollish skin and one dark eye under thick lashes, the other being covered up by long, curly black hair that came all the way down her back. She didn't look the least surprised when she saw Tatara; her full lips only smiled more.

The one standing next to her was much taller and had strong, broad shoulders despite being an old man as Tatara had guessed earlier from his voice. His skin was sagging off his boxy face, and he had dark moles along his cheeks and on his strong but bony looking hands. His short, white hair looked like he had shaved it all off his skull not long ago but was slowly growing back in. The most noticeable thing about him, however, was that instead of the welcoming grin the woman had he possessed a wide one, showing all of his disgusting, vile yellow teeth.

And even more noticeable than that was the young, unconscious figure in his arms. The first thing that came to Tatara's mind was not just the young warrior's safety, but of Suzuno's and Amefuri's as well since they had been with them when he left.

"You," the old man started before Tatara could speak, sounding surprised but still smiling broadly. "What might you be doing here in a place so haunted?"

X x x x

Ack! So much information here:D This chapter was so much fun to write, you have no idea. We now have more information on Chu Chin- And also the fact that he's connected to Amefuri, Jin-Shun and Lanva. So, major bad guy alert! And obviously the old, cackling man with the babe is Chu Chin. XD So he's not sexay like Reikoku.

We learned a little about Lanva too, I guess. Which will definitely come into play! He said that six years ago (He was 13!) he and his dad and his best friend caught Chu Chin. Important:D

Oh, and Tatara! You learned something more about him:D He is in all actual-ness a rich boy, the son of the former General of Sairou! And Hazumu, do you remember him? Danko back in Midoru filled us all in on him and everything. Tatara is the little brother who went missing after the war!

So um . . . yeah:D I'm so excited to reveal that. It makes me like Tatara a lot more now that he has more of an actual past- it's sad though. T.T If you did the math on things, his father died when he was ten. So he's been on his own since then and stuff! Except when he took care of his mother before she died.

Oh, and this also explains why he knew the Emperor so well- after all, with his father being the former Commander and everything . . . of course he's gonna know the Emperor! You know . . . I wonder when I'll be able to put in Hazumu in this story? It'd be interesting to see his and Tatara's reactions towards each other, being that they're brothers and all. XD

And Tenkou! Fwa. Tenkou will also have a vast amount to do with the story- if you've seen/read all of Fushigi Yuugi, you'll know him as the enemy of Taiitsukun, the one who grows more powerful when people are in pain. T.T It's such a shame though- with such an awesome background, but he's not handsome in the least! Bathing in blood like that . . . eew!

And one last thing- Kagasuki! While we haven't met the warrior, we now know it's a he. I can't wait to reveal him. He has huge development in this story!

BTW everyone, I got two jobs now. XD So if updates slow, please don't blame me!

Queen of the Paperclips- Thanks! Yes, Toroki has a definite crush on Suzuno, but I don't plan on developing it like I've done with Amefuri. XD Toroki has a sort of mix of admiration, family love and honest love for Suzuno. I wanted it to work out so it would reflect his child-like nature . . . Or something. XD lol!

Suzuno Oosugi- Yup, Chu Chin:D He's important for the future of this story, just like Reikoku. Oh, and the girl with Chu Chin is important too. –Hugs- Thank you so much for your full support in everything, as always. I could never ask for more!

sesshomaruobsessed- Thank you so much! –Hug- Yes, it was Chu Chin. More on him will be explained throughout the next couple chapters, so no worries! Hopefully much questions will be explained soon.

Kaeru Soyokaze- Toroki's such a girl. XD lol! And yes, Suzuno v. Michael Jackson would be scary. And hopefully Suzuno will be all better soon! Gosh, Ame-chan . . . you were so close to kissing her! Why miss the oppurtunity?

RabidMantisGirl- Yes, you did it! –Throws confetti- Toroki really is a brat at heart, and he knows it. He does want to change though . . . for Suzuno:D And I'll have to listen to the soundtrack you're talking about sometime. Right now I'm listening to Sugarcult. XD

I want Amai to come in so baaaaad . . . He was in one chapter back in the twenties or something, right? I can remember. I miss him! T.T Though he does come in a couple of chapters . . . yeay! With him, Toroki's story arc can begin! XD –Sarcasm- Bet you're so excited about that. Lol!

Care- Thank you! Don't worry aboutn not revewing right away or anything- I'm just glad you're still reading this:D One of my most dedicated readers. And yes! We must come up with a nickname for Tatara! Hmmm . . . Tata-chan? Ack, toogirly. XD lol!