Hiya guys! Just to let you all know, after today I'm going to be away for a few days. sobs I won't be able to update for a pretty long time, but just so you know, none of my stories are being dropped, no matter how long the wait! For those of you who are patient, I thank you. For those of you who are impatient, TOO BAD! You have to wait anyway! Ahem. Um…on with the story!

Chapter 4: Tai Itsukun

Asahi groaned as she opened her eyes. Memories of the village slaughter flooded back to her like rushing water. A sob wracked her body, and within seconds, she was crying.

>. >. >. >. >.

As Chichiri walked past the room Asahi lay in, his eye widened as he heard some muffled sobs.

Poor girl… He thought. He felt torn between two sides, one telling him to go in and comfort her, the other telling him to leave the girl alone until she had calmed down.

This time, his sense of reason took over, and he continued his walk down the hall.

>. >. >. >. >.

"Poor kid…" Koji said as he and Tasuki discussed the past events. "She was a perfectly normal girl, and suddenly…" Tasuki nodded, running his hand through his fiery red hair.

"She didn't deserve for crap like this to happen to her…" He said, looking up at his friend. "But there was somethin' weird about her...couldn't quite put my finger on it though…"

Guess 'Chiri was right about her chi bein' all weird…

Koji sighed.

"Well, at least we were able to give her village and family a proper burial." The blue haired man whispered. The two sat in silence, basking in their own thoughts. Chichiri suddenly walked into the room, breaking the silence.

"Hello, no da." The mage said cheerfully. The two bandits gave him their greetings. "Tasuki-kun, apparently Sakuradai-san has awakened." Both Tasuki and Koji's eyes widened. They spoke quickly and at the same time.

"Well, what happened?"

"Didja go see her?"

"Is she okay?" The monk smiled inwardly at their concern.

"She was crying, no, and I think if we leave her to her thoughts, yes. No da." He replied, answering all three questions with just one sentence. "We should all wait just a bit before going to check on her; I don't thing she'd appreciate us dropping in on her right now."

The two bandits nodded, understanding perfectly. But something about Chichiri's tone of voice set Tasuki on edge. Having known the fellow seishi for what seemed like an eternity, it was easy to tell that the monk was hiding something.

"There's gotta be somethin' more to all this. What are ya planning, 'Chiri?" The fellow seishi sighed, having been found out.

"Well, the massacre at Sakuradai-san's village is very…strange. I was going to take Sakuradai-san to see Tai Itsukun once she is feeling better. If we see her, she might be able to explain the youkai attack." Tasuki nodded pensively.

"That does sound like a good plan…Okay. I'll come too."

"We are going to have to travel on foot though. I don't want to use my teleporting skills because that might attract some unwanted attention, not to mention the whole experience might be shocking for Sakuradai-san." Tasuki sighed, and agreed. Koji agreed as well, saying he was going to get some supplies for their trip to Mt. Taikyoku.

>. >. >. >. >.

Asahi awoke once again, having cried herself to sleep when she first woke up. Now she was drained of all her tears; she couldn't cry anymore even if she wanted to.

Why them? She thought angrily. What had they all done? It just wasn't fair. After a few minutes of silence, she frowned.

There's nothing I can do about it now…I can't just wallow in my misery forever. She looked up, a new thought suddenly hitting her. Where in the world…am I…? Her brows furrowed. She couldn't remember much. She saw her parents' corpses…there was a flash of light…and then…nothing. As if darkness had suddenly consumed her, ridding her of all consciousness.

Asahi's eyes widened. What if she had been captured? Perhaps she was in enemy territory right now.

Then again… She thought, glancing around the room. This does seem a little…luxurious for someone who is supposed to be a captive!

This was true. The room certainly wasn't a dungeon or a cell. The bed she laid on was soft, a nice big window let sunlight stream in, as well as give a peaceful and beautiful view of the world outside the room. It was strange. The girl's eyes narrowed.

Maybe it's just for a false sense of security…?

Footsteps could suddenly be heard approaching the door to Asahi's room. Her eyes darted around anxiously as she wondered what to do. She noticed a small vase of flowers on a desk not too far from the bed. The door creaked open. Without thinking, Asahi grabbed the vase, flowers and all, and raised it above her head, ready to throw when…in stepped the man she had met only awhile ago: Houjun Ri.

Chichiri's eye widened in shock. There before him was Asahi. She was awake, and for some reason holding the vase of flowers that happened to be in his room. The frightened look on her face quickly turned into one of shock and surprise.

"H-H-Houjun-san! I-I'm so sorry! I didn't know where I was then I heard you approaching the room and I didn't know who it was p-please forgive me I am very sorry and-"

"It's alright! It's alright! Don't worry about it, no da!" Chichiri said, glad to see Asahi was alright. There was a slight pause before the monk spoke again. "Some friends and I…we found you at your village…":He trailed off, distraught when he saw Asahi on the verge of tears. "I…I'm so sorry."

"…It's alright."

The two sat in silence for a bit. Finally, Chichiri cleared his throat, eager to break the silence.

"Uh…a friend and I, we think that the appearance of the demon is very unusual, so we were going to visit a friend of ours. She…she may be able to figure out why your village was…you know…" He clenched his fists, frustrated with his stumbling. "We were planning on leaving soo-"

"This woman…" Asahi whispered quietly. "You say she can figure out why my village was slaughtered?" Chichiri leaned forward, trying to see Asahi's face through her curtain of hair.

"Uh…yes. I'm confident she can."

Suddenly, the girl looked up, determination burning in her violet eyes.

"I'm coming with you."

>. >. >. >. >.

Hee hee. Yet another cliffie. Sorry, but it's so fun leaving you readers in suspense! Well, here are the reviews!

Fire Dragon: Heh heh...well, if you thought that cliffie was bad, how about this one? lol. I'm just kidding. Here's the chapter. Sorry for the long update!

dark wolf: Well, I wrote more. I'm not sure if this chapter satisfied your "longer chapters" need though... All well!

guest: You may know where I live, but if you kill me, this story and "Eighth Star" will never be finished! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!

D.D.Z.: Thank you! Hope you enjoy the feeling of reading my chapters before anyone else does! lol.

InuyashaFushigiYugifan: Glad you liked this chapter! Hope you liked this one too!

Review or face my wrath, peoples! BWAHAHAHA!