Miaka slid off the horse on the side, ran up, and gave her a hug. Taiitsukun sighed and wrapped her arms around her. "Miaka I never dreamed you would try the same thing again. Although no one, but Lady Yui and you seem to remember the world, but as I created the universe I do too. At least to my knowledge." "I couldn't let them get hurt again. I would feel terrible, as if it was all my fault," said Miaka. She slumped forward and Taiitsukun felt her forehead. "We must tend to her fever or we may lose her."
They nodded and followed her to her home where Nyan Nyan attended to her as the three warriors sat at a table waiting for news on Miaka. "Sire, I don't understand you and Taiitsukun seem to know a little more about what is going on with Miaka. Why can't you tell us?" asked Nuriko. "That Nuriko is a promising idea, but why don't we start with your tendencies to dress as a woman when you're a man," said Taiitsukun. "You're a m…m…man!" shouted Tamahome. "Impossible, there is another man just as beautiful as me?" asked Hotohori. "Ahem… now listen up all of you. Miaka is indeed from another world, but she completed her quest as the Priestess of Suzaku nearly six years ago. She lost many people she loved dearly and would often read the book of her journey to feel close to all of you. One-night Yui asked Seiryu and Suzaku to grant their wish to return to the book. It was granted, but at a price. The priestess of Suzaku and the Priestess of Seiryu were erased from their own world and can never return…"
"Meaning they are stuck in our world forever," said Tamahome. "Correct Tamahome and that is why she knows you all so well including you Nuriko." They turned to see Nuriko looking upset. "Why did you have to tell them that I'm a man though?" She shook her head and looked at Hotohori. "Hotohori you must be worried about her. You met her first and I understand that you care for her deeply. Go to Miaka. I'm sure you would like to see her before your return to Konan." Nodding he followed Nyan Nyan into the guest room to see Miaka sleeping. Sitting at the chair by the bedside he took hold of her hand. "Get well soon Miaka and we will see you when you get better." He stood up and kissed her forehead and just sat there for a while before walking back into the main room.
"Nuriko, Tamahome we should return to the palace. Taiitsukun will continue to take care of her until she is better. "Yes, Sire." The three left with the promise that when Miaka was better she would send word for her retrieval. Over the next few weeks Miaka stayed with Taiitsukun and worked on getting better. One morning she woke up and felt refreshed. "Your fever has broken Nyan Nyan." She smiled at Nyan Nyan as they assisted her in getting dressed. Once dressed she stepped out into the garden for some fresh air when she saw Taiitsukun. "Miaka come over here." She walked over to the creator of the universe. "Nyan Nyan has informed me that your fever has broken, and you are well enough to travel."
She nodded as she was shown a pool of water. "This is the pool of reflection. It can be used to view others you wish to see from any universe." Miaka looked at Taiitsukun with a questioning look in her eyes. She nodded and with a wave if her hand she showed Miaka her desire. "Mom… Keisuke…" said Miaka.
The two were sitting in the living room of her old apartment watching a movie. Tears fell down her face as she watched them. Miaka knew this was the last time she would ever see them. "Taiitsukun is it… is it possible to hear them?" she asked. "It is not. There is only so much the reflection pool can do. Even if It could I wouldn't allow you to hear them for it would've only caused you sadness." Nodding Miaka stared at them a little longer before standing up and the reflection cleared itself. She returned to the house and found Taiitsukun with a letter in hand. "Nyan Nyan take this letter directly to Emperor Hotohori." "Nyan Nyan." The goddesses disappeared as Miaka looked at Taiitsukun.
"Miaka is Nyan Nyan still assisting you in getting dressed?" she asked. "Yes, but do you think you could show me how to properly dress in this time. I always rely on others to help me." She nodded and ushered the Priestess in the room she had been staying in. Taiitsukun had her strip down to nothing, but the white slip she wore under everything. As the creator instructed her, Miaka did everything she was told. When she finished Miaka looked into the mirror and smiled as the Kimono looked presentable. IT may not be perfect, but at least she could do it by herself. "Thank you Taiitsukun." She nodded as Nyan Nyan reappeared with a letter. Miaka took it and read it. Smiling she looked at everyone. "He said that they would be coming at first light tomorrow," she smiled.
Miaka excused herself and went to the pool of reflection to watch Hotohori. It was hours later when Taiitsukun found the Priestess still watching him. "Miaka I could always send you to Konan through the reflection pool." She looked at Taiitsukun and nodded smiling happily. The God explained that in order for this to work she needed to concentrate on those she wanted to see again. Shortly after Miaka was concentrating when felt herself being pulled through like when she traveled between her world and the book. Before she knew it, she was standing in her room. Setting her clothes on the chair she crawled into her bed glad to be home.
When she woke, light was streaming through her window. Quietly she opened her armoire to see it was full of dresses Hotohori had promised. She picked a pink and blue one. The solid blue skirt was complimented by the see through pink layered over it with tiny rose designs. The sleeves were blue as well layered with pink, but the chest and waist were solid pink. Quickly she dressed herself and ran out the doors into the courtyard to find Nuriko and Hotohori arguing. "Highness you can't…" "She must be protected at all Costs Nuriko." "Even if it means she becomes a caged bird?" asked Nuriko. Hotohori stopped and laughed. "Very well when Mei is better, we will release her and not keep her as a pet bird," he said.
Miaka let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. "Come on you two let's go get Miaka," said Tamahome. They nodded and got on their horses. At this point Miaka decided to stop hiding. "Excuse me your majesty…" "Yes… Miaka!" he shouted as he looked to see where the voice came from. Hopping down he pulled her into a hug. "I've missed you," said Hotohori. She hugged him back as tears slid down her face.
He felt his robes getting wet and made her look at him. "Miaka what's wrong?" asked Hotohori as he wiped away her tears. "Nothing. I just missed all of you and I'm really glad to be home," she said. Her eyes widened at the realization that this was the place she considered her home and smiled. "We're glad you're home too Miaka," said Tamahome.
Parting Hotohori and Nuriko filled her in on Kutou trying to invade Konan. "As such we need Suzaku to help us." "And Yui?" she asked. "Lady Yui is still in Kutou, but we have spies keeping any eye on her ready to take her out of there if things get dangerous." Miaka still looked worried and Hotohori placed his hands on her shoulders. "Miaka listen I promised you when Yui left that I would do everything I could to keep her safe and I intend to keep that promise. The ceremony for Seiryu is tonight, so we will get her out of there the moment the ceremony is over." She nodded but was nervous about what the night would bring. Yui was her best friend and would do anything for her, but something bugged her from the back of her mind.
The rest of the day she was in a daze and laid in her room until she heard a knock on the door. "Come in." Nuriko entered in men's clothing carrying a tray of tea. "Nuriko!" "Hey Miaka, Hotohori said you were worried and I thought some tea would help." She smiled and sat at her table with him. When they finished Nuriko looked at her intently. "How would you like to sneak out with me?" he asked. She grinned and nodded as they headed into the city. "Hey Nuriko, where is Tamahome?" "Oh, he went out into the city to help with the attacks. We might run into him." "But if it's so dangerous why are we going out?" she asked. Nuriko smiled. "How else are we going to find the other warriors?"
They hadn't been out very long when a horn sounded. "Crap, he found out." Miaka looked at Nuriko confused. "Nuriko… what's going on?" "I may have forgotten to tell his highness I was taking you out." "Nuriko! Why do you torment him so much? He probably is worried right now." They ran as some guards saw and chased them. Nuriko took her hand and she smiled. Just as they were rounding a corner they got separated. Miaka was roughly grabbed by her shoulders and slammed against a wall. "OW!" She opened her eyes to see Nakago. Miaka struggled, but he held her tighter against the wall.
"Hello Priestess of Suzaku. I must say Yui and you had caused quite a few problems, but that all ends now." "Let go!" she screamed. He laughed and used his body weight to hold her still while his left hand held her hands above her head and his right held her face, forcing her to look at him. "I'm surprised the Emperor would let you out of his sight considering you haven't summoned Suzaku, not that it will matter in a few minutes," said Nakago.
Miakas' eyes widened as she realized he intended to rape her. "Go to he… mmph!" Nakago kissed her and she felt him stick his tongue in her mouth and bit down on him causing Nakago to jolt back from the pain. He slapped her face as Nuriko rounded the corner. "Miaka!" Nakago looked at her and then at Nuriko. "SUZAKU!" screamed Miaka. A red light appeared and threw the general far enough away for Nuriko to grab her and run. Nuriko rounded another corner only to run into some Kutou men. "Look at this men the Priestess of Suzaku." "Miaka get behind me." Nuriko stood ready to defend when a pair of hands came out of nowhere and pulled them both through the darkness. Nuriko wrapped his arms around Miaka and when they opened their eyes they saw they were back at the palace.
"What was that?" asked Nuriko. Standing up Miaka smiled. "That was Chichiri. One of our warriors. Don't worry he will reveal himself soon enough," said Miaka. He was about to say something else when Hotohori came running up to them. "Nuriko! How dare you take Miaka out of the palace without the proper guards!" Miaka had never seen Hotohori this angry except for the one time he went to fight Tamahome. He took her by the arm and dragged her back into the inner palace walls. "Ow, ow, ow! Hotohori, you're hurting me!" He let go and looked at her sternly before his eyes noticed the red mark on her cheek. He reached out and touched it gently as she winced.
"Miaka… how did this happen?" he asked. She looked away and started to cry as the events of a mere fifteen minutes ago were still fresh in her mind. Hotohori sent her to her room to lie down. A little while later some maids came in with a cold press and towels. They assisted her with changing into her night robe. Once she was changed the maids left her to rest. Later that evening Nuriko came in with some soup and apologized. "Don't worry about it Nuriko. I know that I should keep him informed, but sometimes I forget we come from completely separate times." "Well you will have to get used to that since you will be living in this world. Speaking of which Miaka what do you plan to do once this is all done and over with?" She leaned back on her pillow and looked at the ceiling. "I don't know. I guess I will have to find a place to live…" she began. Suddenly he began to laugh so hard that he was on the floor.
"What's so funny?" she asked. "You! I can't believe you! Poor Hotohori, he will be so heartbroken." Miaka looked at him and blushed at the thought of Hotohori. "But I'm not Empress Material," she said. Nuriko sat down on the edge of the bed and leaned over her. "When will you realize he doesn't care? You are what he has fallen in love with not how well you can act in court. If you don't believe me go, ask him yourself." Nuriko left and Miaka thought about what he had said. Deciding she couldn't take it anymore Miaka got up, put her slippers on, and walked out the door. She was half way to his chambers when she felt someone grab her. Looking to the side she saw it was one of Seiryu seven and it made her blood run cold. "Its fine Lady Miaka I'm Amiboshi remember? Yui sent me. She overheard Nakago was going to make you pay for what you did to him in Konan today. He is on his way to you as we speak. Lady Yui wants me to escort you to Emperor Hotohori," he said.
She nodded as they quickly ran through palace. It wasn't long before they reached his quarters. Amiboshi saw the guards and before Miaka could stop him, he knocked them out of the way before they could register what happened. Upon entering she saw Hotohori had his sword at the ready. "Miaka? What the…" he began before he saw Amiboshi who knelt before him. "Lord Hotohori, I have a message for you from Lady Yui. She overheard Nakago speaking of attacking the Priestess of Suzaku. He was angry that it didn't go as planned this afternoon." Hotohori looked over at Miaka before focusing back on Amiboshi. "As such, Yui asked me to bring her safely to you at any cost. The ceremony is over, and she is on her way with Suboshi as we speak to meet your men."
He got up and dressed. "Thank you for bringing her to me. I promise you and your brother will have nothing to fear as long as you are on our side. We will offer you protection along with the Priestess of Seiryu." He came out from behind the folding screen and handed Amiboshi a sword. "Here you may need this. Please protect Miaka with your life." He nodded and they watched Hotohori leave. Miaka sat on the bed and held onto his pillow. "Lady Miaka…" She looked at Amiboshi and he smiled at her. "I know you are worried but try and get some sleep I promise I will protect you as he asked. Everything will be alright, I promise." She nodded and laid down closing her eyes.
What felt like minutes later she was woken up by Hotohori smiling at her. Sitting up she saw someone else standing behind her in her Priestess attire. "YUI!" She jumped up and ran to hug her friend. "Miaka, I'm so glad you are safe." "What about the Seiryu seven?" she asked. "Well Suboshi, Amiboshi, and Soi are the only remaining ones. Soi is tending to Nakago. He died because I sealed the power of the Seiryu seven which saved Hotohoris' life." Miaka took a good look at Hotohori and noticed a large cut on his arm. "Soi promised not to come after is and the twins claimed loyalty to Konan and as such, they were granted a pardon," said Yui.
After making sure Hotohori was alright Miaka and Yui walked into the garden holding hands and leaning against each other. "I'm glad that you aren't in Kutou anymore Yui. I hated it because I always worried about you." Yui sighed and turned to look at Miaka. "This is far from over Miaka. Until I seal away Seiryu and face the emperor, the Kutou Empire will be coming after you and Hotohori. In their eyes, you kidnapped the Priestess of Seiryu and killed the warriors." Miaka looked at her friend sadly and hugged her. "I'm sorry! It's all my fault you were in such danger." "Actually, if it hadn't been for a certain friend of yours Suboshi and I wouldn't have made it to the palace alive."
Miaka looked at her confused until she saw Tamahome and Chichiri. "Chichiri! Tamahome!" she called. They looked over at her and smiled. "Chichiri what are you doing here?" "I found Lady Yui in the forest with Suboshi you know. She was carrying the crest of Konan and being chased by the Kutou army. So, I knew that she was on our side You know." Miaka hugged Chichiri. "Thank you, thank you for saving my friend." Chichiri excused himself along with Miaka. Leaving Yui and Tamahome alone together. "So Chichiri how are you?" "I'm doing well Miaka and I see you have matured well from the last time we went through this journey together you know," he said.
She stopped dead in her tracks and looked at him. "I…how…?" "Simple I am very spiritual and knew something was up you know so I was trailing you from the moment you reappeared." She laughed and was escorted back to the palace inner walls. She spoke with Nuriko and Hotohori. She explained how to find Tasuki. Later on, Tamahome and Chichiri were with everyone and explained where to find Mitsukake. Finally, Yui, Suboshi, Amiboshi, and her would go find Chiriko. With everyone having their orders they all left to their respective areas across Konan. Hotohori had only allowed Miaka to go when Yui assured him not only was there two celestial warriors, but if anything happened, she would use one of her remaining wishes to wish them back to the palace.