Chapter Two up again. Insert standard disclaimer here. I love you all.
"Just wonderful. This is where my love of food gets me in trouble," Miyoko said. She had smelled a delicious smell earlier, but had lost that, and Tamahome. She ran around, silently, because a ninja can do that. Suddenly she heard a chuckle. Miyoko looked towards the sound.
There was a beautiful lady sitting nearby. "Looking for the way out?" she asked kindly. Miyoko nodded. "It's that way," the woman continued, pointing.
"Th-thank you so much!" Miyoko stammered, still staring at the beautiful woman. 'It can't be humanly possible to look like that!' she thought to herself. She turned to walk away.
"Please wait!" the woman said. "I won't call the guards on you, I promise. Where are you from?"
"Well, from what I can gather, I'm from a completely different world. I think a book transported me here! It sounds crazy, I know... Then I got lost, and then someone helped me, and I tried to find a way to pay him, but I couldn't, and we both got arrested, and now I'm here, and I lost him, and now... This sounds crazy, doesn't it?" Miyoko said, dismayed.
"Not at all," the woman replied. " I just love things like this!" She grinned. "My name is Hotohori, although most people refer to me differently. But come, don't speak of leaving! I just KNOW the Emperor would never let you be killed. What's the matter?" she asked, noticing Miyoko's expression.
"Uh... I was just thinking how beautiful you are!" she laughed.
"Oh, everyone says that!" Hotohori replied. "Footsteps! Hide!" she said, showing Miyoko a small closet to hide in.
"Where is she?!" a guard demanded to Tamahome.
"Beats me!" he replied cheerfully. "So she got away while you guys were chasing after me, huh? Too bad."
"So you were just some decoy?!" the guard said furiously, hitting Tamahome on the head.
Miyo, who had been watching from a crack in the door, jumped out of the closet. "Don't hurt him!" she yelled. "He really doesn't know where I am! Oops..."
Tamahome sighed. "That was just brilliant," he said sarcastically.
Two guards immediately captured Miyoko. "Let her go," Tamahome demanded.
"Like we'll listen to a commoner like you," one of the guards laughed. Tamahome began beating the guards up, with assistance from Miyoko.
"So you're a ninja? Do all ninjas fight like that?" Tamahome asked, seeing her pin one of the guards to the wall with shuriken.
She nodded. "Yep."
"Stop this at once!" the woman said, walking towards them. Immediately, the guards and Tamahome bowed. "You are not permitted to touch those two without our direct order!"
"Lord Hotohori," they mumbled.
"Lord? Don't you mean LADY Hotohori?" Miyoko asked, bowing, although she wasn't sure why. Tamahome nudged her.
"Actually, Miyoko, I am Emperor Hotohori," he said, smiling.
"I... I... I'm so sorry!" she said, with many sweatdrops.
"It's quite all right," he said, grinning. "I AM quite beautiful." Tamahome coughed to conceal a laugh. "Our apologies. Trickery was not our intention," Hotohori explained later. He stood in his royal robes before Tamahome and Miyoko. "We simply wished to understand you better. At least we've disproved our counselor's assertion that you are evil spirits," he said, casting a look over at his advisers who looked very embarrassed.
"So you're going to let us go, then?" Miyoko said hopefully.
"Of course, we will not let you be executed," Hotohori said, smiling.
"That wasn't quite the answer I was looking for..." she said.
"We do have one request. Will you protect our empire, Priestess of Suzaku?" he asked suddenly.
Miyoko looked around. "Where is she?"
"We were referring to YOU, Miyoko-sama," Hotohori said, sighing. "There's a legend in our land. At a time when the empire falls into disorder and is on the verge of collapse, a young lady would appear from another world seeking the power of Suzaku. The moment she possesses the power of Suzaku, she will lead the empire to glory.
"This young lady, the Priestess of Suzaku, stands before us now," Hotohori finished.
"You've gotta be kidding!" Miyoko laughed. "I'm a NINJA, not a Priestess! Even after all this explaining, I still don't have a very good idea of what is going on! I'm beginning to think that this is just a dream," she said, pinching her arm. "Ow..."
"Yet, you are a woman with a wish, correct?" Hotohori asked. He looked extremely graceful on the royal throne. There was no doubt whatsoever he was a true emperor. "You came seeking the power of Suzaku so that your wishes would be granted, right?"
"I've heard something like that before," she mused. Wracking her brain, she suddenly remembered the library. Right before she had fallen through the book, she had read those words!
'Herein contains the tale of a young lady and her quest to gather the Seven Constellations of Suzaku together. And if you, the esteemed reader, should read to the story's end, the spell contained within this book shall bestow upon you the powers of the heroine and grant your wish.'
"Then the reader of 'The Universe of the Four Gods' becomes the heroine, huh?" she said.
"Does she always talk to herself?" Hotohori whispered to Tamahome. He just stared at her, vaguely amused, and vaguely disturbed.
"All right! I'll be the Priestess of Suzaku!" Miyoko announced finally. "I think my whole life has been leading up to this!"
"Then we have, at long last, found the Priestess of Suzaku!" Emperor Hotohori announced. "This young lady will obtain the power of Suzaku. The Priestess of Suzaku, the one who will protect our empire, stands before you!"
Instantly, everyone in the room (except Hotohori) dropped to their knees to bow before the Priestess-even Tamahome.
"Whoa... this is weird..." Miyoko said.
Miyoko woke up. "Just a dream?" she asked sleepily. But she realized the grand room she was in wasn't hers. "Oh." And she flopped back down to sleep some more.
When she finally got up, she was so tired that she ran right into Tamahome, without realizing it was him. "Oh, sorry, Tamahome," she said.
"Morning!" he said cheerfully. "You're big news around Konan, already. And now that the Priestess has been found, I can live here at the palace!"
"Woot," she said, walking past him.
"Are you okay? You look really depressed," Tamahome observed.
"Just confused," she replied. She had a worried expression. "Tamahome, if other people were to read the book, do you think they would come here too? My best friend was in the library with me, and what if she comes to this world, and we can't find her?"
Suddenly Tamahome hugged her. "It's okay. You can cry if you want. Special offer, free of charge: I'll be your big brother, all right?"
"I'm not really the crying sort," she said sullenly. "But thanks anyway."
He released her. "Besides, if you really want to get home, why don't you just obtain the power of Suzaku and wish yourself back?"
So that's how Miyoko came to be walking into the throne room. "Hotohori-sama?" she asked.
"Miyoko!" he said, smiling.
"Um, I was wondering how I can obtain the powers of Suzaku," she said.
"I was researching that in 'The Universe of the Four Gods'," Hotohori said, extending the scroll he was holding.
"That's the book we're in!" she said, astonished.
"It's a book of prophecies handed down from Tai Yi Jun to his Majesty Tai Jun," Hotohori explained. "In the book, there was 28 Holy Constellations of Heaven. Each of the four cardinal points, north, south, east, and west, claims seven constellations. The southern Seven Constellations are called 'The Suzaku.' It's a general astronomical term." She nodded, trying to file all the information away so she could actually remember it later.
"The names of the Seven Constellations are Hotohori, Tamahome, Chichiri, Mitsukake, Nuriko, Chiriko, and Tasuki. They make up the southern Seven Constellations, Suzaku."
"Tamahome and Hotohori?" she asked.
"Yes. I, Hotohori, and Tamahome, and the rest of the Seven Constellations must protect the Priestess of Suzaku so that she can obtain her magical powers." Hotohori pulled his hair back to show the character on his neck, identifying him as one of the Constellations.
"So then there are five other people who have characters on their bodies?" she guessed.
"You must find the other five. Unless you personally gather them, you will not obtain the powers of Suzaku," Hotohori said.
"It's like a role playing game," she sighed, rubbing her temples. "Did you know about this, Tamahome?"
"I knew my name came from a constellation, but... I'm supposed to protect you?"
"No offense, Hotohori, but I kinda protect myself," she explained. "I'm a ninja."
"A ninja?" he asked, frowning. "Anyway, there are clues in the book. The third Constellation is referred to by the characters 'gong' and 'wu.' The first one means palace and the second means fierce strength. So when we find the most valiant man in the palace, we'll have found the third Constellation of Suzaku," Hotohori concluded.
"Sire, we have done as you requested!" a man called, stepping into the throne room.
"Good work," Hotohori said.
"Okay! Do we just ask them if they have characters on their body?" Miyoko asked. They stood in front of the huge crowd of men.
"They might not even know it if they do," Tamahome said. "It doesn't work that way. Duh, Miyo." She rolled her eyes, and he stood up. "I know! I'll just give 'em a little test! Although I would actually would've preferred them to be hot babes instead..."
"Well excuse me for not being a 'babe'," Miyo grumbled. But when she saw Tamahome fighting, even she had to admit it. "He's not too bad of a fighter. But I'm still better. He wouldn't last one day in Tokyo."
They watched the proceedings for a few minutes, until finally Miyo got tired of it. "What kind of test is this?" Miyoko asked. "Tamahome's just beating them up!"
"Tamahome..." Hotohori sighed. "Our purpose was NOT to let you show off."
Hotohori, Miyoko, the Emperor's advisers, and a few women watched this.
"He just wants to fight people. I could do that!" Miyoko insisted. No one paid any attention to her. 'Maybe if I get them angry, they'll fight better, and Tamahome will be beaten up! That would sure be entertaining,' she thought.
So she began to insult the men from where she was sitting. "You can't fight at all!" she jeered. "My grandmother can fight better than you can! Won-ton guys!" Then she screamed as all the guys ran after her, trying to catch her.
"You can't catch ninjas!" she said, jumping high in the air and over them. But one of the men threw a large hammer at the column above where Miyoko was going to land.
"Miyoko!" Tamahome yelled, running to save her. The column collapsed on the two of them.
Hotohori tried to get all the debris off to free them, but it was taking too long. "Miyo! Tamahome!" he cried. "Something must be done!"
"Leave this to me, Your Majesty," a sweet voice said. One of the women who had been watching approached him. She grabbed the column and lifted it off the two. Everyone else stared at her in wonder.
"That's amazing! She's so strong!" Miyoko said. Her shirt fell down just enough to see a character on her chest.
"So you are a Warrior?" Hotohori asked. "Fantastic!"
"I am Lady Kang-Lin," she said. "But you can call me Nuriko."