Tenshi was lying on the floor, the water from the shower still running over her legs and starting to flood the bathroom. Shiryu turned off the water and handed her the towel that was hanging on the bar. Tenshi was still very confused as to what had just happened, but she knew that she had to explain things as best she could. She told Shiryu exactly what had just happened to her, beginning with when she stepped out of the shower and ending where she fell out of the shower into his arms.
"That sounds like you had some sort of a weird daydream. Was it anything like the dreams you've been having?" he asked her.
"No. Not at all," Tenshi tried to think of any similarities between her dreams and what had just happened but couldn't think of anything, "my dreams usually flash from one place to another and I am seeing myself like I'm out of my own body. This was nothing like that. It was like it was really happening to me. How long was I in here?"
"I heard the water running for just a few minutes before you were screaming for me and that's when I came in."
"There was someone dead in the apartment, Shiryu. What if it's a premonition or something?"
"I think that the pope is somehow responsible for this, but we should tell the other guys about what just happened. Maybe they'll have some ideas," Shiryu walked over to the door, "I'll let you finish up and get dressed. I'll be right out here, in case you need me for anything. Just call if you need me and I'll be in here immediately."
Tenshi nodded and he walked out the door, closing it behind him. Tenshi was a little nervous about showering again, and she had already rinsed off well, so she decided to just get dressed.
Back in sanctuary, a cloud was appearing before Satsuki and the pope. Neither of them said or did a thing, until the cloud began to transform into a person. The person was one of the female saints from sanctuary, and Satsuki began tapping her foot when the saint didn't begin speaking.
"The red-head is with the dragon. They are in a small apartment fairly close to the water. I managed to get a good look at her while she was pinning her hair up, and she looks healthy and strong. I haven't managed to seek the brunette and Andromeda yet. I believe they are under some sort of spell to hide them. I feel that the brunette is also regaining her strength. Even with the power limiter that Yujiro managed to place on the girl, she will heal quickly, and if she manages to return to Japan before we can re-capture the younger one, we could be in danger."
Satsuki seemed angry, suddenly, and lifted her hand to silence the other female saint. When she lifted her hand, a burst of energy was being emitted from it, and before the saint had the chance to scream in agony, she was nothing but a mask and ashes.
"There is no such thing as a hiding spell, and even if they are cloaked, any intelligent saint would be able to locate them with ease!"
"Will you be taking the two of them into your own hands, then?" the pope asked, pleased that he was receiving more than he had even wanted in the first place.
"Yes. Andromeda and the brunette will die. Tonight."
After dressing herself and brushing her long fire-red hair, Tenshi emerged from the bathroom to get her toothbrush and toothpaste from the sink that was outside of the bathroom. Once she had them, she went back into the bathroom, and Shiryu stood outside the door, watching her, to make sure she was all right. After she had finished brushing her teeth, she was ready to leave. She was just about to walk out of the bathroom when Shiryu cut off her path. He wrapped his arms around her waist.
"Well, now that you're minty fresh, how about that kiss?" Shiryu smirked slyly.
Before Shiryu could do anything, Tenshi planted her lips firmly on Shiryu's and he was too surprised to even react. Once Shiryu regained his composure, he began kissing Tenshi back, very careful not to be too forceful so that if she wanted him to stop, she could easily pull away. Shiryu pulled Tenshi even closer to his body and moved away from her lips and began kissing her neck.
"Shiryu, where is this going?" Tenshi asked, out of breath from their amazing kiss.
"Don't worry, Tenshi. I'm not going to do anything that would make you uncomfortable," he kissed her lips again and looked into her eyes, "or anything that either of us would regret in the future. If I begin making you uncomfortable, tell me and I will stop."
Shiryu began kissing Tenshi's neck again, and she relaxed, knowing that he wasn't going to expect anything from her. She began running her fingers through Shiryu's hair, wondering how he could get it so soft, and she began to feel very peaceful. She didn't even realize that Shiryu was no longer kissing her. When she realized it, she opened her eyes, looking into his.
"You looked very content," Shiryu smiled, "sorry to end this, but we should really meet the boys."
Neither of them really wanted to leave but knew that they needed to get to business. Shiryu had already dressed himself while Tenshi was in the bathroom getting ready. He was in his dragon cloth and ready for anything that came their way. When they walked out of the apartment door, the rest of the bronze saints were all standing around, talking.
"Sorry to keep you guys waiting. We had some trouble this morning."
Shiryu and Tenshi explained what had happened while she was in the shower, leaving out some minor details such as Tenshi not having the towel wrapped around her when Shiryu first arrived to see what was wrong, for fear of receiving unwanted comments from the boys.
"Well, that's not normal," Seiya stated the obvious.
"Maybe we'll know more once we arrive at sanctuary?" Hyoga suggested as more of a question than anything else.
"I hope so. If Ares is responsible somehow, then perhaps he knows where she is. That would put all of us in danger," Shiryu pointed out.
Tenshi couldn't help but feel guilty, as it was because of her that they were in danger. She didn't mean to put them in any danger but it did make her feel a lot of comfort that they cared enough about her to risk their safety. Shiryu grabbed Tenshi's hand and kissed the back of her hand.
"Are you alright? You look upset," he said, looking into her eyes.
"I'm fine. I'm just thinking about what happened this morning."
"Hey, looks like Shiryu is finally landing himself a girlfriend!" Seiya teased.
Shiryu smacked him upside the head and tried to glare, but everyone just laughed because no matter how much he wanted to, he simply couldn't hide the crimson red spreading across his cheeks. Tenshi smiled, but also was blushing.
"Okay, we don't have time to waste around here. Lets get to breakfast and decide what we're doing about sanctuary," Shiryu said, trying to regain his normal facial color.
Ikki led them to the diner they would be eating at, which ended up being IHOP. As soon as they sat down, the waitress approached them, bearing menus. They all looked their own menu over and decided on their meals. They all ordered pancakes but with different syrups and fruits. Ikki also ordered bacon, which he ended up losing half of, because Hyoga decided that he wanted some too.
"So, what is our first move?" Ikki asked, swatting Hyoga's hand away from his bacon.
"I think we should go straight for the pope. We ended up fighting the gold saints the last time we battled sanctuary so we shouldn't underestimate what he has planned for us this time. Chances are, he will have something waiting for us, just as deadly as the gold saints," Hyoga pointed out to them, rubbing his hand where Ikki had smacked it.
"Hopefully he won't expect us to make a move this soon and won't have anything planned. It is definitely a good idea to be prepared though," Shiryu started, "do we have a ride planned?"
"I spoke with Tatsumi. He arrived late last night from his vacation and wasn't very pleased to hear what had happened," Seiya began, "well, he has arranged for us to fly in tomorrow just after sunrise. Apparently most of the planes belonging to Saori were destroyed and the only one left needs a few quick repairs and then we'll be on our way."
"Will Tatsumi be joining us in the fight?" Tenshi asked them.
The boys all began laughing at once and Tenshi blushed, realizing she had unintentionally asked a very stupid question.
"No," Shiryu explained, helping her to feel a bit less embarrassed, "Tatsumi isn't one of the saints. He is just a very annoying, but normal person."
They all finished their food and split the bill between them. They were just leaving when Hyoga, who was in front of them, stopped in his tracks.
"Do you feel that?" he asked them.
"Yeah. It's a powerful cosmos," Seiya replied.
"A what?" Tenshi asked.
"Cosmos. It's a type of energy that we burn to increase our strength and fight with," Shiryu explained to her.
"Boys, long time no see," a voice that was familiar to the bronze saints spoke up.
A girl appeared from around the corner, standing between them and the exit.
"Shina? What are you doing here?" Ikki asked her.
"Is that any way to greet someone who is here to help you retrieve Saori?" she asked him, mockingly.
"How do you know about what happened to her?" Hyoga asked.
"I may not live in sanctuary anymore, but nothing happens there that I don't know about."
"Is she one of us?" Tenshi whispered to Shiryu.
Shiryu nodded to Tenshi and then spoke to Shina, "Will you be helping us in our fight as well?"
"Only because I know about their secret weapons. Also, I know why they want your little redheaded friend back. Getting her back is top priority at sanctuary. Pope Ares has requested the assistance of some of his strongest fighters to retrieve her, dead or alive."
They all looked at Tenshi, knowing that she was special, but not knowing exactly what it was about her that threatened the pope so much.
"She will be fighting with us. She has powers that can easily blow away any silver saint that Ares sends our way."
"I know what her powers are. She, however, does not. Do you even know how to rejuvenate after using your powers? Do you know which herbs will strengthen your powers?" Shina asked Tenshi.
"Well, no. I don't remember anything about myself. I don't even remember where I'm from."
"How much do you know about Tenshi?" Shiryu asked her.
"For starters, I know that she is not human."
In the cabin in the woods, Peggi was packing up the last of her belongings into her backpack.
"Are you ready?" she asked Shun.
"Yeah, I'm ready. If we leave now, we'll arrive in Japan by tomorrow evening. I just hope that Eevee is still with the rest of the gang."
"Me too."
The two set out on their long hike to the airport where they would fly to Japan and hopefully find out that everything was all right with Eevee. She had been in England before meeting Peggi to go to Feudal Japan, and chances were, if she'd ended up in Japan instead of going back to England after her journey through ancient times, something must've been very wrong. Eevee was a very independent girl, but knew that her powers were stronger when she was near her cousin. If she had shown up to meet Peggi without speaking with her first, the chances of nothing being wrong were very slim.
END OF CHAPTER FIFTEENPeggi- I just wanted to say something super random to Eevee. I know I don't usually say this, actually I don't think you've ever heard me say this to you, but I just wanted to say, I love you. I really do. You are more than just my cousin, you're my best friend, and you're my sister. You inspire me, you make me laugh and when I'm down, you know just how to put me into the right giggling fit that will make my day brighter. Without you, I wouldn't have started this fic, and I usually don't finish any of the ones I start, but this one is different. I want to finish it, because I started writing it as a tribute to you. I hope you like it so far, which, judging by my previous reviews, you do lol, but that's all I wanted to say. Also, James, thanks for reading this and I'm glad you like it too. Yay! I love you too, baby!
Shun-Wow this fic is really starting to come together!
Peggi-I know, I'm so proud of my work! I will try to update soon but I really need to start updating other things too. Review please!