Alatáriël: You know what, guys?.... I just now noticed.... After over a year having this account that spelt my name wrong Oo;; Pretty sad, ne?

Kate:... I always knew you were a few waffles short of a pancake.

Alatáriël: glares Yeah, and you're a real pain in the--

Chichiri: Now, now! No need to be violent, no da!

Alatáriël: Glares at Chichiri

Kate: Well, at last I can get a boyfriend. Sticks out tongue

Alatáriël: Twitches violently before lunging for Kate

Chichiri: Sighs as he watches the cat fight... Alatáriël doesn't own myself nor any of the characters

you recognized before December 21, 2003.... However, she DOES own the box of rabid chipmunks

she keeps by her computer that have been breeded specifically to attack and maim all flamers, no da.

Looks over to the metal box and notices a hole has been chewed threw the side.... sweatdrops

Daaaaaaaaaa....

Chapter 24: Thoughts of a Prophet

The next morning Kate woke up early. She hadn't had too well of a night's sleep and now was restless.

She sighed inwardly as she looked up at the ceiling from her position as she lay on the bed. 'That

sure was a weird dream', she thought to herself. What she really hated about the dream was that it was

real... too real to be fake.

Now that she was awake the dream's contents were slowly slipping threw her conscience, like grains

of sand threw her fingers. Right now all she could make out was Nuriko's face looking up at her from

the ground. She wasn't completely sure what the dream meant, but it did leave her with some rather

disturbing questions. If Nuriko was alive or not, only being one of them.

However, seeing as it was still dark in the room she was going to have to wait to ask any questions...

If she could remember, that is. Kate sat up slowly from her bed, careful to not make much noise so

she didn't wake the others.

Staring around the room, she found her glasses and put them on. Threw the reseating darkness she could

barely make out the outlines of her friends as they slept. Josh slept like a rock so she didn't have to

worry about him, but Chichiri was a different matter.

She wouldn't have been surprised if the man woke up from the sound of someone's breath changing.

She wasn't sure why she wanted to be so careful (or even why she was so worried about waking

Chichiri), but she knew one thing... Come hell or heaven she was getting out of this room!

With that in mind, she had to be careful getting out of bed... getting out of the room itself would be a

whole another miracle.

'That's just a chance I'll have to take', she thought as she pulled away her covers carefully and stood up,

never taking her eyes off of Chichiri's form in the process. Mentally she was making a note of all the

things she could possibly do when she left the room while she tried to take her mind of the fact she was

holding her breath as she tip-toed to the door.

She cringed slightly when she heard the floor board creek as she neared the exit of the room. She

froze, and ever so slowly looked over to where Chichiri's frame could be made out clearly. She could

not see any differences, but that didn't make her feel any better. After all, the man even slept with that

damn mask on! 'I wonder if he even kept it on when we kissed. I wouldn't be surprised', she thought

ruefully before blushing and throwing that thought into a little black box in the back of her mind.

'Where did that come from?', she thought as she pried her eyes away from the sleeping monk and

finally reached her goal, the hallway. With a mental pat on the back for getting this far, she glanced

back into the room. Nothing could be seen, but a small smile of success edged its way onto her face

anyway.

Adrenaline from her small misadventure still present, she made her way down the stares and into the

lobby. Moonlight lit the room so seeing she wasn't alone wasn't a problem. "Oh! Good morning, miss.

It's a little early to be up, wouldn't you say?", the innkeeper asked. Kate blinked at him, "I could say

the same thing to you, sir...". The innkeeper smiled at her, "True, but someone has to feed our guests

when they get up! Got to make a living, you know? May I ask what you are doing up at this hour?".

She nodded, "I had a nightmare, though I can't remember what it was about now... Anyhow, I couldn't

get back to sleep so I thought I'd take a walk or something...", she said. "Oh? I wouldn't do that if I

were you... This is a good town, but even the best of towns have their bad apples. I really do think you

should stay near here... Just in case", he said.

Kate smiled, "It's very kind of you to think for my safety... Say, since it's a bad idea to go out... Can I

help you cook?". The man smiled, "Why sure! By the way... My name is Wong Po". (AN: Last

name first, btw) "Crichton Kate at your service, Wong-san", Kate said with a mock bow.

Josh woke up to the feeling of someone shaking him quite roughly. "What's the big idea?!", Josh slurred

like a drunk person as he sat up. "This had better be good", Josh complained with a yawn as he saw

Chichiri's worried face staring back at him. "Josh-kun, have you seen Kate-chan, no da?", Chichiri

asked. Had Josh been any more awake he would have raised an eyebrow at the "kun", but since

he wasn't he just glared. "The hell?! She's right over--", he began as he leaned over so he could look

past the monk, and in doing so he promptly fell out of the bed after not seeing the girl.

"What the hell?! Where is she?!", Josh yelled as he got up, now fully awake. Chichiri sighed, "That's

what I was trying to tell you, no da". Josh glared in reply, "WELL, WHERE HAVE YOU LOOKED?!".

Chichiri twitched slightly before going chibi, " LET ME FINNISH, NA NO DA! I wanted to ask you

if she told you where she was going before hand, na no da!".

Josh's glare, if possible, deepened more (AN: Though it's mostly because he's not a morning person),

"No, she didn't tell me anything. I didn't hear anything during the night neither... Well, I might as well as

help you look for her now that I'm awake". Chibi Chichiri just huffed in response and left the room.

Down stairs many of the other people staying at the inn were up and about. Some were getting food

from the kitchens, and eating at one of the tables scattered around the lobby. "This food is kind of

weird tasting, isn't it?", a woman asked a man sitting across from her. "Indeed, but not in a bad way

necessarily", the man replied.

Josh glanced at them before taking a double take, "An omelet?!". Chichiri, now normal sized, looked

over at the dish Josh had exclaimed at, "Omelet, no da?". Josh looked mildly surprised, "An omelet? You

don't know what it is?". Chichiri shook his head no... Then they both looked up at each other, both

looking as if a little light bulb had magically appeared over their heads.

"You don't think--"

"It couldn't be, no da!"

Both Chichiri and Josh made a mad dash for the kitchen, each as curious as the next. Throwing open

the door to the kitchen, they were both met with curious or startled stares from the innkeeper and

guests who were getting food.

"Hello their boys!", the Wong Po greeted. "Innkeeper-san, Kate-chan wouldn't be back here by any

chance... would she, no da?", Chichiri asked, slightly hesitant. Recognition lit the innkeeper's eyes, "Oh!

You are her friends! Yes, yes, she was here, but she left a little while ago... She gave me this great

recipe though! It's amazing really! Who would have thought chicken eggs mixed with all that could

taste so good!", Wong Po exclaimed happily.

Josh sighed, "Ok, Fine, Great... That's all quite interesting, but can you please tell us where our friend

is?". The innkeeper looked disappointed, but smiled anyway, "Oh yes. She said she wanted to go see

the horses for some reason... Strange girl she is... What kind of name is Crichton Kate, anyhow?"

"English", Josh said, getting irritated by the innkeepers talking," You wouldn't have any coffee here by

any chance, would you?"

Wong Po looked confused, "Coffee? English? What are those?" Josh gritted his teeth together. It was

going to be a long day.

Kate sighed to herself as she sat on the stale door. For the past hour or so she had occupied herself

with talking to the animal before her, but it didn't feel the same... the same to what she didn't know

(AN: cough Bob cough). "So, Josephine... Eaten any good carrots lately?", she asked the horse,

whom she had named not an hour ago. The horse just perked up it's ears slightly and threw its tail

about in response. "Yeah? I'm not much of a vegetable person... except for rice! I love rice. The

Spanish word for rice is el arroz.... Did you know the Spanish word for peas is Los Chichiros?

Sounds a lot like Chichiri, ne?... That's why it was my favorite Spanish word."

Josephine neighed and bent her head down to eat some straw. "Hm? Oh! Ha ha. I don't know the

Spanish word for hay. ha ha. The Spanish word for carrots is la zanahoria, though... I bet you'd like a

carrot, eh? I bet you'd also like to get out of here sometime, huh? Trapped in a little wooden box like

this... Ya know, I used to always think that too, but I was always afraid to take the first step... I never

took that first step outside my own door, but now it seems fate has done it for me... I hope I'll be

happy here", she said thoughtfully.

The horse looked at her in a "How the hell should I know?" sort of way before Kate jumped off the

door of the stall, "Say, would you like a carrot? I'll go get you one since you've had to put up with

my ramblings... Thanks a lot, by the way. It helps to have someone to talk to..."

"You can always talk to me, Kate-chan", a voice said from behind her. A shiver slowly made it down

Kate's spine at the unexpected voice. Kate turned around, blushing slightly in embarrassment to have

been seen speaking her inner most thoughts. The fact she was speaking to animal didn't bother her,

however. "Oh! Chichiri! Heh heh heh. Good morning!", she greeted awkwardly. Chichiri's seemingly

passive face greeted her with a nod as he held up a couple of carrots that were in his hand, "I heard

you were in here from the innkeeper, no da."

"Oh yes, I talk to animals sometimes when I need to think... Pretty weird, huh?", she stated. Chichiri

smiled and handed her a carrot, "No, not at all, no da. Everyone has different ways of working out

their thoughts or what not. Mine happens to be fishing, no da". Kate smiled slightly as she accepted

the carrot and walked over to the horse, "Why am I not surprised?"

"Oh! Careful, no da!", Chichiri exclaimed when he saw she was feeding the carrot to the horse with her

fingers holding the orange vegetable. "Huh?", Kate asked. Chichiri extended his hands to hers before

gently uncurling her fingers and holding her palm flat before placing the carrot on her out stretched

palm and lifting in to the horse's mouth.

Kate, slightly shocked by the unexpected contact, barely caught his next words as he pulled his hand

away from her own, almost causing her to drop the half eaten food. A silence passed before them as

they watched the horse eat before Chichiri spoke up, "May I ask what you were talking about

before I joined you, no da?"

"What? Oh! Uh... Sure. I was just thinking about silly stuff. Nothing important", Kate said. Chichiri

looked at her silently for a second before responding, "If you say so, no da... but I mean what I said.

I'd be more than happy to listen if you needed an ear, no da". Kate smiled, "Thanks, Chichiri. That's

very sweet of you."

Chichiri smiled as he gave his carrot to the horse, "Are you hungry, Kate-chan? I think Josh is getting

us some breakfast, no da". Kate nodded, "Sure."

Kate smiled to herself when they entered the Inn. Josh was at a table nearby with his head down;

Three bowl of rice were surrounding him. Making their way over to them, Kate and Chichiri

exchanged glances before sitting down. "Good morning, Josh. Have a nice sleep?", Kate said in a

sweet voice. Josh glared from his place at the table, "Go to hell."

Kate rose an eyebrow, "Well, someone got off the wrong side of the bed this morning!" Josh looked

like he was going to explode, "There is no coffee here! How am I going to survive?! I need coffee, and

I'd kill for a hot shower." Kate laughed slightly, "They have plenty of tea, and if you really want

coffee just wait a few thousand years! I'm sure they'll get some eventually!" Josh glared at her, "This

is all your fault, you know?"

Kate looked truly confused, "...My fault?" Josh looked at her for a moment before sighing and running

a hand threw this hair, "Ok... Well, technically I guess it's Alatáriël's fault." Kate seemed even more

confused, "Who's Alatáriël?" An awkward moment of silence passed over the table.

Chichiri could see quite plainly that Kate was beginning to get saddened with her memories gone. She

truly had no knowledge of her time with him in this world or her own. It was as if she had just wiped

everything clean.

Breakfast went by in almost complete silence. Kate barely ate anything and just played with her food

with a pair of chopsticks. Josh seemed to have taken on two stomachs as he ate anything he could

get his paws on.

After Chichiri had finished (Josh was a long ways from being finished!) she stood up and smiled at them

with difficulty, "I'm going to go back upstairs now. See you guys later." Without anything else to say

she made her way up the stairs slowly, as if afraid of what was ahead of her.

Chichiri frowned slightly and eyed the teenager next to him, who was watching where Kate had

disappeared with thoughtful eyes. "Was it something I said?", asked Josh.

Kate closed the door firmly behind her. She was being too emotional, she knew, but she couldn't help

it when she was forced to blink and two droplets of salt water ran down her cheeks. "Don't cry. Don't

cry... Everything's going to be alright... Don't cry", she chanted to herself. Despite her efforts, however,

the tears wouldn't stop. "What's happening to me?", she thought aloud.

She never let things get to her before. Tears were foreign to her. She didn't like to cry. 'You're weak',

she scolded herself mentally before wiping her eyes off with her sleeve and taking a deep breath.

'There', she thought happily,' no more tears'.

Still feeling a little shaky, she made her way over to the bed she had occupied and pulled her backpack

onto the bed beside her, which had been resting on the floor. "Maybe I'll find some answers in here",

she thought aloud as she opened up the bag. Little did she know she was about to come across the

most embarrassing moment of her life.

Meanwhile, not far from Chichiri, Josh, and Kate's present location, Nakago sat in his tent. Things had

been difficult since his first meeting with Miaka's companions the day he'd tried to force himself on her.

He wasn't a fool. It didn't take him long at all to figure out his shinzaho was a fake. This discovery

gave him many more questions than answers.

He wasn't bothered by the trickery as much as he was by the fact it had happened. How could they

have known of his trap and planes before they happened? Surely it wasn't a lucky guess? No... He

knew the Suzaku warriors better than that. They would never sacrifice one of their own for such a

purpose. They were too foolish to see the gain in those type of situations, where he was not.

His warrior's defeat was a minor set back in his eyes, and nothing more. Lady Yui, however, had been

infuriated. Nakago smiled to himself at the memory. She was completely arrogant to his plans... but...

His smile faded slightly... someone wasn't.

'A spy, perhaps?', he thought. No... he was the only one who knew of his true plans. He grasped the

fake shinzaho tightly in his grasp, almost to the point of breaking it.

Either way he was going to get the real shinzaho back. He, Suboshi, Tomo, Yui, Soi, and Miboshi had

already set their trap. Now all they needed was the Suzaku six, and the shinzaho. The next shinzaho

was kept in a monastery in Sairo, kept by the warrior of Byakko, Tatara. Getting it might prove a

problem, but he was confident he could attain it. It was only a matter of time.

He would get the shinzaho, that he was certain of, but one thing still perplexed him about his past

events this week. That girl's magical barrier. He didn't know her name, but he was certain she was not

a Suzaku warrior, nor was she anything out of the ordinary (unless you counted her weird eye jewelry

as strange). 'That was a shield of Suzaku's power though... Perhaps a form of the Miko's power?',

he wondered. He wasn't sure.

Suboshi had met the girl also, he knew, but he had informed him no such occurrence had happened

during their meeting. All in all, around the "ifs", "maybes", "perhapses", and ideas it was all a mystery.

It was a mystery, however, he intended to solve.

"Nakago-sama, preparations are complete. Shall I go meet Tamahome and the Suzaku no Miko?",

Tomo asked from outside his tent. "Yes", was the only reply Nakago gave before standing up, intent

to see what his own miko was up to.

He found Yui in her tent with Suboshi, talking in hushed and hurried tones. When Nakago entered the

room Suboshi sat up immediately,"Nakago, you're not going to believe this! It's Amiboshi! He's alive!

I just got a message from him." With that Suboshi lifted up his sleeve to show that their were bloody

scratch marks in the form of kanji in his skin, his way of communication to his brother.

"What does he say?", Nakago asked. "It's not good. He thinks the Suzaku warriors have a Prophet of

sorts! He's given her the oblivion herb, which erases memories. She's in his village now with Suzaku's

Chichiri and a young man, whom are trying to get her memory back."

Nakago rose an eyebrow in interest, "A Prophet, you say?" Suboshi nodded," Her name is Kate." "I see

... Well, Suboshi... It seems I have a job for you... Care to visit your brother?"

Alatáriël: does a little dance Finally! Some action!

Kate:... What have you done?

Alatáriël: Acually I just got out of a HUGE writer's block! I even know what I'm going to do after the

book ends!

Kate:....... Is that a good thing?

Alatáriël:...maybe?

Chichiri: Just remember, Alatáriël-san... Killing me off isn't an option, no da.

Alatáriël: Grins evilly Or is it?!

Chichiri: Looks at readers and winks I don't think that would be a good idea, na no da....

Alatáriël: What makes you say that?!

Chichiri: Points to reviewers with pitchforks...

Alatáriël:... Oh... them... right.. grumbles It's not rated for drama, angst, nor tragety anyhow...

Kate: Speaking of our reviewers....

Morgan: Laughs Good to hear it! signs her name on the paper That'll be $2:50.

Bishiglomper: Aw! Shucks! Thanks. Glad you like my little story and KFC reject.

Queen of the Fairys: Gets a far-off look Ah yes.... Volume eight... Seems like such a long time ago.

LOL. Not only are Tamahome and Tasuki in drag, but Chichiri is a girl! XD ha ha ha. Acually, I do

not think Miaka has ever cooked in the series. She has a whole palace and quite a few men to do it

for her. Ah, the greatness of being a miko. LOL.

Kiela: Thanks for reviewing! So glad to have been entertaining for you! Heh. You're so kind.

I try my best to make it humorus (though I also have quite a bit of drama. --;;) OO;; Weird...

Two of us. Who'da thought? Ha ha ha. Yes, the Gods were very fun to write. XD It was more for

my own entertainment than anything else. laughs Anyway, thank you again for reviewing. My

ego likes reviews.

Erailea Evenstar: Yeah, I figured the memory loss could prove helpful in story devlopment.

Coughs Ok, to tell the truth I was having writers block and was killing time, but it's working out

quite well. Heh heh heh. Thank you so much for the ideas! They really fed the imagination, and gave

me some funny mental images. Ha ha ha. Yes, I agree... Drama is good for romance. --;; If only

funny romance was easy in FY.

x-digitalangel-x: Ah.. yes... Not having read the manga nor wathching the anime would make it almost

impossible (for me at least) to understand what's going on. ;;... I'm glad, however, that you are giving

my story a chance. ;;

Neko-ane: Laughs Maybe! You'll just have to see... I really DO need to get them together. --;;

The show will end by their second kiss at this rate. coughs

Songwind: Ah! You're gunna give me a big head. LOL. I love that idea! The next chappie

is deticated to you for lemon-ness. heh heh heh. Too bad this is PG-13, ne?

Jedi of Oro: Yes, we are getting old! Time flies by so fast when you're bored out of your mind. Heh.

No need to worry, M. I plane to use her memory loss to it's full potintial. LOL. I have

three bookstores too. One of them is the size of a mall, AND on-line.

Holly: Whoa... One year and only up to chapter 5? And I thought I had bad writer's block... Heh

Thanks for the support! I hope I did well!

The Fire Youkai Paige: Ha ha ha. Why thank you! One year... thinks... I wonder how long til I

finish the fic... imagines herself as a thirty year old woman... no family... no life... lives in a mental

hospital Oo;; You never know... LOL

chiri26: Ha ha ha. She's not "innocent" exactly... just very confused and feeling kind of scared. (aww.

LOL) Yes... LEMON! BWA HA HA... Poor Chichiri... He's so fun to torture. heh. Too bad this

fic is PG-13, eh? get's smacked EEK!

Opaaru Tsuki: Ha ha ha. Yes, I'm sure many fangirls would kill for a chance to bear Chichiri's children.

Thanks for the support! Ha ha ha. I'll keep you to that promise! Hope you liked this chapter!

The Otaku Duo: Er... I really didn't have any good idea for Miaka... How about Yui? Heh heh??

Hope this chappie was to your liking. Cya later!

FireStarter911: Hey! LOL. I've updated at least every month to have 24 chappies! huffs slightly

Heh. Hope you liked this EARLY up-date. Cya soon!

Mistress Manga: Thank you! LOL. I'm glad to hear you weren't confused. ;; Hope this one was

not confusing either, and enjoyable! Heh. Ja ne!

Alatáriël: claps There! I think that's all of them! I might be a little late for the next up-date (I have

exams Monday and Tuesday and start all new classes Wendsday! Ahh!), so please accept this early

chapter as an apology. bows

Kate:... Why are you being so nice?

Alatáriël: Twitches violently New classes... Tests... HAVEN'T STUDIED!

Chichiri:... Da...

Kate:... Oh I see how it is... She's trying to get pity points. grins

Alatáriël: Glares I might not be able to kill Chichiri, but I can kill you. pulls out sword

Kate: OO You wouldn't.

Alatáriël:... I would,

Chichiri: Ano, Kate-chan?... I think I'd run if I were you.

Kate: AHHH!