Summery; Warning; Disclaimer: See First Chapter.

Here's the second part! Thank my beta for being so darn quick, will ya? And you find out what her problem is! Now remember: THIS IS AN AU. I WILL NOT follow the storyline of the manga/anime, so don't get all offended or mad or whatever if it doesn't do that. I really hate when people get like that after I warn them it's an AU. Not that anyone's done it yet - just a warning.

Please review if you read. Comments, ideas, suggestions, and helpful criticism welcome.

"Can't ya walk yet?" Tasuki complained, as Kiore fell for the third time within the hour. She gritted her teeth and silently picked herself up, continuing forward stubbornly. She silently admitted to herself, with some self-depreciation, that she had grown dependent on her warriors to help her over the rough and unfamiliar terrain of China. Suddenly, she felt someone gripping her upper arm and realized it was Chichiri.

"A word of advice, no da," he said calmly, and her eyes flickered in his direction. "When you're blind, allow someone to guide you forward."

"Are ya saying this chick is blind?" Tasuki demanded, as she gasped in surprise.

"I could tell by her reactions to us last night, no da," Chichiri nodded, and she was temporarily mute from shock. "She never looked directly at us – and I had to touch her to get her attention. Just as when you stuck your face next to hers, she didn't move at all, no da. When she threw herself at you, she could have easily landed in the fire – if you hadn't had turned, she would have. No da."

"So that's why ya yelled me. Thanks a lot," Tasuki grumbled, having retained a few bruises from her fists.

"It's fairly obvious to anyone who pays attention, no da," Chichiri continued, turning to a stunned Kiore. "You listen for our voices or movements to tell where we are. And because you're in an unfamiliar area, you can't manage to walk on your own, no da. I imagine one of the warriors of Byakko aided you in that. No da."

"How…you're smarter than I gave you credit for," she relented with a sigh. "You're right – I was born with a sight defect which left me blind by the time I was three. But my other senses have become heightened to the point I hardly need to see. Mostly."

"Unbelievable…" Tasuki muttered, crossing his arms behind his head thoughtfully. "So, now whadda we do with her?"

"We'll bring her to the others, no da," Chichiri said calmly. "If she's from Miaka's world, than we must help her as well."

"Hey, you guys are finally back!" Nuriko noticed, glancing up as the two Warriors entered. "Took you long enough…"

"Who is this young woman?" Mitsukake asked calmly, bending down to look her in the face. "She's blind," he realized in surprise, and Tasuki grunted as Chichiri helped her sit down.

"She is, no da," Chichiri nodded, glancing around. "This is Kiore. Where are the others?"

"Miaka is wandering around the village looking for more food," Chiriko informed them, entering the room. "Hotohori and Tamahome are with her. This girl is obviously from Miaka's world, as her clothes prove easily."

"This is Chiriko," Chichiri said, noticing her eyes darting around at the new voices in the room. "And the man earlier is Mitsukake, no da." The fourteen year-old grinned, and the twenty-three year-old doctor nodded solemnly before sitting down, even though such formalities were obviously pointless. She shifted nervously in her seat, always having been uncomfortable with strangers.

"Why'd you bring her here?" Nuriko asked, peering curiously at Kiore.

"Kiore is the priestess of Byakko," Chichiri began, but she interrupted him firmly.

"Was," she corrected. "The seven from Seiryu murdered them two days ago. That makes me just a stranger again."

"Interesting…" Chiriko mused, inspecting her with sharp eyes for one so young. "Your Warriors must have helped you a lot, since you can't see a thing."

"They did," she nodded, but it was apparent she had no wish to continue talking further about her dead comrades.

"I thought maybe Miaka would know a way to get back to her world, no da," Chichiri put in, earning a snort from Tasuki.

"Please. Miaka was only able ta get back ta her world because that old hag, right? And that was with the help of Hotohori, Tamahome, and Nuriko – there's no way she'd be able ta get back."

"That may be true," Chiriko nodded in agreement, surprising the others. "Mitsukake, would you be able to cure her of her blindness?"

"I was born with this," she told them, and the doctor shook his head.

"I cannot cure an ailment that was present from birth," he said, causing her to shrug dispassionately.

"I didn't expect you could," Kiore said, and her head shot up as the three absent members of the group suddenly returned. Since her other senses had been forced to compensate for her handicap, she was able to tell there was three people from the footsteps and accompanying noises.

"You shouldn't have eaten everything so fast!" Tamahome chided Miaka, who apparently was suffering from a stomachache. They paused in their argument, Hotohori shaking his head behind them, when they saw the new person among them.

"Who is this?" Hotohori asked, and Miaka's eyes lit up.

"You're from my world too!" she realized, and immediately overwhelmed the disabled girl by sitting next to her and beginning to chatter away. "How did you get here? Did you come through a book – are you in my school? Or is there a copy, or what?"

"Miaka, calm down," Tamahome ordered and she stuck merely her tongue out at him.

"Miaka, this girl is Kiore," Chichiri introduced them. "And she is blind, no da. Kiore, this is Miaka, the priestess of Suzaku, Hotohori, the emperor and another Warrior, and Tamahome. In that order. No da."

"It's an honor to meet you, Miaka," Kiore said, and turned slightly to where she had heard Tamahome's voice come from. "And you two as well, of course. Please forgive me if I'm intruding."

"We found her in the forest a ways from the village," Tasuki informed them, leaning against the wall with his arms folded over his chest. "Chichiri decided ta adopt her."

"Tasuki!" Chichiri said sharply, dropping his easy-going attitude momentarily.

"So…you're from Tokyo?" Miaka blinked in surprise, after Kiore had finished telling them her story. "That's weird. Who knew a copy of the book even existed?"

"Much less contain the same power as the original," Hotohori added, and Kiore nodded in agreement.

"Yes," she said. "Toroki thought the same thing, since rumors of Miaka and the warriors of Suzaku apparently abound in China."

"Well, we are a good-looking bunch…" Nuriko began, flipping his braid over his shoulder. Kiore grinned at the remark and Hotohori nodded solemnly in agreement.

"And Mitsukake isn't able to cure her?" Tamahome checked, and the other man shook his head. "Weird. So, the warriors from Seiryu attacked you and killed the warriors," he repeated thoughtfully. "How'd you escape?"

"I'm not sure," Kiore admitted, squeezing her hands together on her lap. "I was running and next thing I knew I was in a strange area – I could tell by the smell and sounds. Everything went very quiet, and then I blacked out. When I woke up, I realized I had company."

"Which would've been us," Tasuki added, and glanced at Chichiri. "Chichiri mentioned he was sensing something – and that it was her. Care ta explain?"

"I believe my powers allowed me to sense hers, just as I am able to sense Miaka and any other Warriors, no da," Chichiri informed them calmly.

"Oh! Food!" Miaka's head spun around as the aroma of the village meal wafted into their hut. "Mmm…"

"Get back here!" Tamahome ordered, but Chiriko shook his head.

"Let's go get something to eat – it's easier to think on a full stomach," he said.

"Good idea," Mitsukake agreed, and strode out of the room with his cat on his shoulder. Nuriko followed Hotohori closely and Tasuki ambled out after Tamahome, with a glance back at the girl before leaving.

"Are you hungry?" Chichiri asked, straightening in his seat.

"No," she shook her head. "Not really. You don't have to stay, you know. I'm a big girl."

"All right, no da," he nodded, and moved to stand up. She suddenly clutched his sleeve and he looked down at her in surprise. "No da?"

"Chichiri…is something wrong with your face?" she asked, and his face beneath his mask froze in fear.

"Why do you ask?"

"Your voice…it sounds odd, like it's muffled a little or something," she shrugged, laughing nervously. "I'm sorry. It's probably just stress, but I thought something was off about it…"

"No da," he patted her shoulder briefly before striding out of the hut. Pausing before continuing down the path, he absently felt his mask and frowned. "Strange…she was very close to guessing about my mask and she can't even see me!"

"Hm?" Kiore murmured, lifting her head from the table where she had been resting her head on arms when she heard someone enter the room. She had been helped by a village girl into a bath and her hair, which had grown in the time she had arrived in China, was twisted into a knot at the base of her neck. She wore black Chinese shoes with white stockings underneath a long white robe, which flowed from her hips and had loose sleeves that gathered at her wrists with the material folding around her knuckles. Over the belted gown she had been given a plain dark robe, almost a plum color with silver trim and another belt. The robe was sleeveless and the front and back sections went to her ankles, while the sides had been removed for extra movement and revealed the stark white of her gown.

"Hey, this isn't funny," she began when no one answered, but stopped abruptly when a hot bowl of stew was suddenly pushed up against her hands.

"You need to eat to keep up your strength, no da," Chichiri said quietly, sitting across from her as a look of dawning comprehension came over her face.

"Thanks, Chichiri," she said finally. He watched as her hands slid along the rim of the bowl until she found the spoon and gingerly lifted the steaming meal up to her mouth.

"Impressive," he commented, and her eyes darted unseeingly toward him in surprise.

"What?"

"How easily you can eat," he said, and she shrugged a little before continuing to eat.

"Practice makes perfect," she told him, after a few minutes pause. "I'm sorry, I'm not a very good conversationalist," she apologized. "Thanks for bringing me some food, but you don't have to stay here and keep me company. You're a Warrior of Suzaku, after all."

"What's that have to do with anything, no da?" he asked, and she blinked.

"Well…you're Miaka's warrior," she said, taken aback by his point-blank question.

"Not one of yours?" he finished calmly, and she turned pink before returning to her stew. "I understand how hard it must have been, to lose all your warriors," he continued gently, while she apparently ignored his voice. "I once lost two people dear to me as well. But don't let it eat you up inside."

"I don't need you guys to take care of me," she said stubbornly, having finished her food. "I'm not saying I'm the enemy or something stupid like that, but you guys have your own problems to deal with."

Chichiri observed her silently, and sighed noiselessly before taking the bowl out of her grasp and leaving the room.

"What were ya doin' in there?" Tasuki demanded, coming up behind Chichiri as the monk headed back toward the main hut.

"Ack!" Chichiri shouted, and transformed into SD form, running around with the overturned bowl on his head. Tasuki growled for a moment before grabbing the miniature Chichiri by his ponytail and lifting him up to eye-level. "No da! No da!" Chichiri cried, and Tasuki closed his eyes in frustration.

"Would ya shut up!" he yelled, and Chichiri obligingly went back to his normal mode, stopping for a moment to adjust his mask before turning back to his friend.

"What is it, no da?"

"What were ya doin'?" he repeated, and Chichiri blinked.

"What? I brought her something to eat," he replied calmly and Tasuki frowned.

"She's another priestess!" he argued.

"She's not our enemy," Chichiri shot back evenly, and turned away. "We follow Miaka – it's up to her to decide what to do with Kiore. But it would be cruel to just leave her, blind and alone. Especially after all her Warriors were all slaughtered by Seiryu."

"Damn them," Tasuki muttered, clenching his fist. The two men whirled around in surprise when Kiore appeared from a corner of a house, slightly out of breath.

"I heard…you yelling," she said, addressing Chichiri. "Are you guys okay?"

"Of course we are," Tasuki informed her. "Quit being so paranoid – no one's gonna attack in this village, all right? Come on, I may as well get ya back ta the hut so monk here can eat something."

"All – all right," she agreed, her voice laced with both surprise and hurt. Chichiri shook his head as they parted ways, realizing she must have panicked when she thought Seiryu had returned to kill the Warriors of Suzaku.

"Huh?"

"I said Kiore can travel with us until we can find a way to return her to her world!" Miaka repeated, thinking the other priestess and warriors had merely misheard her.

"I don't want to travel with you!" Kiore burst out before realizing how ungrateful that sounded. "I don't mean I hate you guys – but I don't want your help," she added quickly, setting her jaw stubbornly.

"Miaka, bringing Kiore along will slow us down considerably, and may place us in even more danger than we already are," Chiriko reasoned, and Kiore nodded furiously in agreement.

"Miaka, why are you so determined to bring her with us?" Hotohori asked in confusion, and the girl grinned up at him.

"Well, for one thing, she's from my world – and another girl!" she informed them, shaking her finger a little at them. "But mainly because she's another priestess, just like me! And I can't just leave her alone – what if something happened to her…like Yui?"

"Good point," Tamahome said, to their surprise. "The last thing we need is Seiryu to get a hold of her and get even more power than they already have. And why put the village in danger just for her?"

"So well-put, Tamahome," Nuriko muttered sarcastically, shaking his head.

"What?" he demanded, but Miaka interrupted the usual bickering.

"Kiore, I know you don't want our help, but there's no way you can survive on your own," she started, but the young woman rose to her feet in a rush, her gown whirling around her feet.

"I am not a helpless little girl, Miaka," she said slowly, her blind eyes narrowing. "I am still the priestess of Byakko – it may not mean much now, but I still possess a certain power of my own. I do not require help from anyone, much less charity from Suzaku. I won't stay in the village, but I won't travel with you either."

"Kiore…"

"Oh, get off yer high horse," Tasuki ordered, and the young woman stepped back when she realized he was barely inches from her. "Stop being so damn stubborn and acting like yer perfectly fine! Yer blind, and that isn't gonna help much, is it? Suck it up and accept our help, or we'll just tie ya up and drag ya with us!"

"Tasuki…" Chichiri sighed in aggravation, and Mitsukake and Chiriko looked like they were just trying to stay out of everything.

"Kiore, I didn't mean to insult you," Miaka said, suddenly seeing the problem. "I just don't want you to be hurt like my friend was – and we're both from Japan, right? We're comrades-in-arms!"

"That's one way of putting it," Nuriko muttered, and Tamahome nodded. Kiore looked as if she was considering Miaka's words before sighing heavily and sitting down, almost colliding into Tasuki when she did so. The warriors regarded her curiously as her fingers curled into a tight fist in her lap, and she abruptly nodded.

"All right – but I don't want someone trying to always help me," she agreed. "If I have to go with you, I want to be an equal companion."

"Of course!" Miaka nodded cheerfully and plopped herself down next to the aggravated girl. Grasping her arm, she squeezed it companionably and grinned. "It'll be so much to have another girl along for the ride!"

"What are ya doin'?" Tasuki demanded in shock, coming back into the hut later that night, having agreed to leave early the next morning shortly after Kiore had given into Miaka's order.

"What's that look for?" Mitsukake asked, glancing up from his position along the wall. Miaka was sitting on the bench facing Kiore, who was running her fingers around Miaka's face with her eyes closed.

"Get your mind out of the gutter or wherever it is," Tamahome ordered, glaring at him.

"If I'm going to be stuck with all of you, I may as well know what you look like," Kiore informed him dryly. "The only way for me to do that is to feel a person's features and get a mental image in my mind. Along with telling me what they look like – eye color and stuff – I can create a pretty good impression of what someone looks like. It took some practice but I've got the hang of it now."

"Your turn!" Miaka said brightly, and Tasuki balked when she tried to drag him over.

"No way!"

"Fine," Kiore shrugged, but Miaka glared at Tasuki.

"Qui being such a pain!" she said. "The others didn't mind that much – you can do it too!"

"I hate women," he muttered, being dragged to the bench and forcibly seated. Kiore faced him calmly and he resisted the urge to jump up and run when her fingers made contact with his skin. After a few moments, he yelped when her finger made contact with his eye, and he backed away with a glare. "What was that for?" he demanded, and she couldn't resist a giggle.

"For kicking me when you found me, that's what," she informed him. "I may have been unconscious, but I still felt it. And it hurt! So sit back down and quit being such a baby."

"Whatever," he grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest as Miaka pushed him back. Kiore finished in a few more moments, and leaned back with a grin.

"Thank you," she said, and he blinked in surprise. "Miaka already described you guys to me…Where's Chichiri?"

"Him? I haven't seen him since Miaka made you agree with her," Tamahome realized, and Miaka punched him in the shoulder. "Ow!"

"He must be meditating," Hotohori suggested, glancing outside. "We shouldn't disturb him, if he is."

"That's fine," Kiore shrugged again, and muffled a yawn.

"You and I are sharing a room in another hut," Miaka told her, pulling her to her feet. "But first – a snack before bed!"

"But I'm not hungry!" Kiore protested, but was helpless against the bottomless pit that was Miaka. The men watched them disappear with amusement before Tasuki crossed his legs and grunted.

"So – where is he?" he asked, and Tamahome shrugged.

"He's by the river," Mitsukake told him. "I believe he didn't want Kiore to discover his mask."

"Figures," Tasuki stretched lazily and rose to his feet. "I'm hitting the sack. Anyone else?"

"Chiriko's already asleep," Hotohori informed him. "So don't wake him."

"Why would I want ta wake the brat up?" Tasuki asked, annoyed as he strode out of the room.

I LOVE writing Tasuki's character! I really do! And describing the outfit is hard, because I actually don't know what they're called. But I was trying to create an image of her, that's all! That's the only description in the entire story, I swear to you. Please review!