No matter how hard I plead with the guards, they wouldn't be careful with Percy. If anything they were rougher on her then any of us.
And I think they gave her an extra "Umpf" when they threw us into the cold dark cell.
You think I'm exaggerating? Well, tell that to my bruised head then. I'm being quite literal. I was knocked out cold .
While unconscious, I dreamed I was running towards Yuui and Percy, Yuui sitting under a tree reading a book and Percy was chewing on some wheat, her head resting on said tree, her hands behind it as she laughed at a joke she had told.
"Yuui, Percy! Oh I'm so glad you two got back safe!"
"So you're taking the exam to get into Jonan school with me?" She said.
"Yea, it'll be like junior high, but we'll get into bigger mischief, huh?" Percy laughed. I was confused as I stopped running.
"What...?"
"I'm sorry honey, you can't" Yuui said, standing up as she morphed into my mother
"Mother? Mother, I-"
"No, it's impossible now" Percy said darkly, also turning into my mom as she stood up.
And it was like I was the only one on rewind as I was forced backwards away from the two moms.
"Mother, wait don't go!" I cried, but the ground under me shook and the crumbled, and gravity took hold and I was suddenly falling into an endless pit of nothing...
And I woke up just as suddenly, some how or another having clung onto Tamahome in the process of waking up.
"Are you alright?" He asked, his voice had IRRITATED all over it.
And I jumped off, still panicky from the nightmare as I yelled at him about threat of telling my mom on him...
"Hey, you're the one who grabbed onto me and held on tight!" He defended.
"Oh that's right, we were arrested..."
"Well no derf you freak! Now tell me who you really are and what that red glow was all about."
My eye narrowed guiltily as I looked down at the still unconscious Percy. She would be able to explain this better then I ever could. She was the smart one, just as smart as Yuui, but more street wise and better at wiggling out of situations like this.
But she couldn't breath well right now, let alone talk. She looked so bad. she had a large bruise on her left bicep from where one of the guards had "accidentally" punched her while they were trying to handcuff her, and dirt and grime covered her shirt, and sweat made it stick to her body and made the dark purple spaghetti strap shirt under it noticeable through the fabric, though thankfully no holes were in it. It was her favorite one her mom had given her.
Yuui and I had been there when she was hunting through her mother's closet for something to wear. We were going to the mall and everything else that was nice she owned was dirty. She had found it, the nice gorgeous white shirt, in the very back of her mother's walk-in closet. It was made of a delicate fabric, not silk, it wasn't shiny or anything like that, but it had a silky feel to it. It was a scoop neck, very low cut for anyone who couldn't fill it out properly, and even the busty Percy (no ryme intended) had to wear an undershirt when wearing it, and long sleeved, the sleeves going to Percy's knuckles.
I smiled at the memory. Percy's mother was so kind. She had walked in on us, and scolded Percy, not for going through her closet, but for the fact that wearing regular blue jeans with such a nice shirt was just asking for trouble and made her go change into her black skirt, a flowy one that complimented the outfit nicely.
This was that exact same outfit, converse, skirt, shirt and all.
"Hey, earth to Miaka!" Tamahome's voice shouted, snapping me out of my thoughts.
"Fine, don't tell me" He said childishly. That kinda snapped it for me.
"My friend...Yuui. She's back in our own world." I whimpered, not meaning to sound as pathetic as I did.
"You mean the other girl...got home?" Tamahome questioned.
"And I think Percy was supposed to go back to, but, being the stubborn jerk she is didn't want to, so now her soul is stuck in a dark limbo place, and I haven't even made it back yet!" Yes, I was on the verge of tears for the thousandth time that day. Sue me for being an emotionally confused and hormonal teenager who was having a bizarre and very bad day!
"Don't cry anymore Miaka" A now sympathetic Tamahome said "I'll find a way to get us out of here."
"Do you really mean it?" I exclaimed.
"Well, you gave me that promise for a reward so..." He said slyly, poking my forehead. I couldn't help but be guilty. How the heck could I pay this guy?
"Dummy" I pouted.
Suddenly I realized something very important.
"Oh I am STARVING!" I whined. I patted my pocket, and found some gum Percy had given me earlier that day before all this had happened.
"Maybe this will hold me over, if just a little..." and I unwrapped the gum and put the minty rubber in my mouth.
I guess one of the guards saw me, because he rushed over to the cell we were in and started yelling at me.
"Hey girl! What did you just put in your mouth?"
"This? What a Pain!" I whined/mumbled
"Show me what you put in your mouth!"
I sighed and started to blow a bubble, and the guard completely freaked out, yelling how gross it was. I was having fun with this, getting as close as I could and even stuck my head through one of the wooden squares of our cell to get closer to the freaked guard.
And then my bubble popped, naturally going all over my face.
"AHHH! A GHOST!" And with that, our oh so brave guard ran out of there faster then Percy with her skates on.
And trips. HARD. So hard in fact the keys that were on his belt loop fly off and land right in the expecting Tamahome's hand, who was convieniently right next to me.
"Hehe, that should do the trick! Quick thinking-" And then he saw my gum covered face, screamed like a girl, saying "monster!" and ran right into the wall on the other side of the cell.
"Idiots..."
After scraping all of the gum off my face, and convincing Tamahome it had been gum and I wasn't a monster, even giving him my last pieces, we used the keys to break out of the cell. And with Percy on Tamahome's back, we raced off in the direction that was what we thought was the right one.
Sneaking around the palace, I couldn't help but be awed by the enormity of it. We easily hid behind each pillar we came too.
"Are you sure I can have this incredible stuff?" Tamahome asked for the hundredth time "No take-backs, okay?"
"Why are you being so stingy about a couple pieces of gum?" I whispered harshly
Suddenly, footsteps could be heard coming down the hall. In a panic, both Tama and I slammed into each other trying to go different directions. I spotted a door to our left and dragged him over to it and slipped into it, silently closing the door.
"Geez, I picked the wrong guy to help me out!" I whispered to myself.
"Miaka" Said helper said
"What?"
"Look at that." And I turn around and see a sparkling golden statue of the same bird I saw in the library, and in the book!
I exclaimed this to Tamahome, who said it was Suzaku.
"Suzaku?"
"There's one god for the North, South, East and West. The God who protects the East is Seiryu, the God who protects the North is Genbo, the God who protects the West is Byakko, and the God who protects the South is Suzaku. Suzaku is the Guardian Deity of Konan, and of coarse the three other gods are worshiped in their respectful regions."
I'm sure this was all very important, but I suddenly smelled something delicious wafting from somewhere, and I wanted to follow that more then I wanted to here about some gods mumbo jumbo.
My nose lead me to a fancy kitchen where the smells almost made me melt. As quietly as possible, I crawled over to the nearest table where food piled upon food was.
"Time to eat~." I whisper glutinously to myself.
After eating as much as I possibly could, I made my way out of the kitchen.
"Ah, I'm stuffed! You just gotta love how great Chinese cooking is! By the way, Tamahome-" Then I realized what a mistake following my stomach had been.
"Oh crap! I've been separated from Percy and Tamahome! What'll I do~~! Where'll I go? I wandered all the way over here!" And then a scary thought occured to me.
"I'm lost!"
I suddenly heard an amused laugh behind me, and I turn around to see a beautiful woman sitting on the ledge of one of the wooden hand rails. She pointed left, and I just gave her a confused look
"What is it? Your lost aren't you?" Her voice flowed like liquid, gentle and kind "The gate's over there, you can get out."
I felt my face flush all kinds of red as I thanked the beautiful woman and ran in the direction she pointed.
"You're the girl they captured before, aren't you?"
Well that made me stop dead.
"It seems it's true. I heard you were rude to his highness."
"Haha, what are you saying? I'm just a middle-school student passing by! Anyway, see ya!" I sounded so nervous, it was pathetic.
"Don't worry, I'm on your side. I won't call the guards after you, so please relax."
"R-really?"
And the kind, beautiful woman nodded.
"I need to find my friends" I said suddenly
"Your friends?"
"Yes, they were arrested on my account, and one of them is very sick. And the other is helping us get to our own world!"
"Your world? Are you saying you came from a different world and not ours?" She sounded excited
"Yea, me and my friend Percy did..." I then realized how farfetched that sounded. She's never going to believe me!
"That's amazing!"
"Huh?"
"How interesting! Another world you say? That's just amazing!" And the woman held my face, looked into my eyes deeply and said
"Relax. My name is Hotohori, although I'm usually called something else."
"My name is Miaka Yuki, but you can just call me Miaka." I said in a daze.
"I'm pleased to have made friends with you." And I blushed
"What's wrong?"
"It's nothing. You're just so pretty Hotohori!" Yes, I am quite blunt. You'll get used to it.
"Indeed I am." She was conceited. But I guess that's the price of beauty, a big head.
Suddenly, guards could be heard coming around the corner.
"Quick, hide!" And she pushed me
From my hiding spot, I saw the guards yelling at Tama, Percy slung over the shoulder of one of the men.
"Wait!" I yelled, rushing from my hiding spot.
"Miaka!" Tamahome exclaimed.
"Please, don't hurt them!"
"Miaka, stay back! What are you doing here?"
"Because...well, because I couldn't just leave you!" Suddenly, one of the guards grabbed me.
"Tamahome!"
"Miaka!" and I saw his forehead light up again, and he suddenly broke free of his bindings and punched the guards that had been holding him, and caught the air born Percy, who had been so because he had punched her guard so hard. He rushed forward in his rage, Percy in one arm, and knocked out the man who had been holding me.
He set her down gently next to me and took a defensive stance in front of us.
"If you bastards lay a finger on her, I'll make you sorry!"
"SILENCE!" A voice roared from behind. It was the same woman I had befriended before.
"No one is to harm any of them without my orders!"
"Who...who the hell are you?" Tamahome asked
"I-it's the emperor!" one of the guards exclaimed, and they all bowed.
"R-really?" Tamahome exclaimed, looking around frantically at the grounded guards.
The emperor merely nodded, a coy smile etched on her face. And Tamahome bowed as well.
"Hotohori is the Emperor? This young, beautiful woman?" I asked
"You IDIOT! The emperor's a man!" Tamahome scolded.
"No way" I said stubbornly.
"Just bow already!" But Tamahome's demand was in vain, for I was over by the emperor, feeling his/her chest.
"Completely flat! Which means he's got one of those down there!" I concluded. Tamahome rushed up and hit me in the head.
"Don't think like that!"
The emperor, who I now knew was a man, lead us to his throne room, where many guards awaited us, and made a path leading to his thrown.
Tamahome laid Percy down in front of us. The poor girl looked like she was at her last minutes with the way she was wheezing.
"Please, can you help her?" I sobbed. I don't know what I'd do without my friend.
"Well, I she is who I think she is..." Hotohori trailed off, looking at her.
"Has she used any powers while she's been here?" He asked suddenly.
"Uhm...yea, there were these thugs that attacked us and she started to radiate this...I don't know, energy I guess. This pure, un-human energy that made her glow this bright, angry red and she beat the guys to a pulp with a strength I've never seen from her."
"Hmm, yes. I think I can help you. You there, bring the sword." He said, gesturing to one of his men.
A few moments later, the guard comes back with a large thing wrapped in a beautifully woven red and golden cloth.
"What is that?" Tamahome and I both asked
"This" Hotohori explained, taking the wrapped cloth from the guard "I the sword of Suzaku"
Peeling off the layers from the top of the wrapped thing, he revealed a bejeweled hilt. It was large, the neck the length of both of my hands, and thick as well, the silver iron rose us and wrapped around a ruby the size of the palm of my hand, and the two lower parts were just as intricately woven into 2 similar rubies half the size of the top.
Hotohori brought it closer to Percy, and suddenly, my friend stopped wheezing, and her face turned to it's normal color.
But she also started to glow that bright red color.
Suddenly, the sword vibrated and then started to levitate, as did Percy.
And, just as suddenly, when they were high off the ground, a blinding light filled the room.
PERCY'S POV AT LAST~
Have you ever had the flu? And every single part of your body aches, you can't move anything, breathing is a workout and you just wanna die?
Think that, times a thousand, and floating aimlessly in a cold dark space while voices are whispering for you to have a horrible death, and you have what I experienced for the last 5 hours.
I wouldn't recommend it for a vacation, to be sure.
And just when I was going to give up hope, a blinding red light radiates the space I was in. and suddenly, I was in a place that I don't think any human had ever been.
I was floating just above the surface of a river the color of sapphire and as smooth as melted gold. The sun was setting on the horizon in front of me, making the sky explode into an array of purples, yellows, oranges and pinks. The clouds framing the lowering sun so perfectly, it was a shame I had no way to frame it. Marsh grass, Hibiscus plants and palm trees lined the white sanded shore, and farther, rolling hills were spotted with multi-colored light dotting them in a red, blue, green and white pattern. A single mansion was atop the largest, plushest hill where wild flowers surrounded it.
And I saw a man looking at me from the large front porch. Just stared. From this distance I was from him, the only thing I could see was his hair and the bright cherry color it was.
"Just like mine..." I muttered under my breath, stroking a lock of my own hair.
Then, from the heavens, a bright red beam of light shot down right behind me, starling and causing me to make quite the girly scream.
And as my eyes adjusted to the overly bright entrance of the object, I was more then slightly confused.
It was a heavy looking iron sword that was about three feet in length, and as wide as half my hand. It had the symbol of the ogre in the middle of the neck.
I am Hono no Kaishi. I will aid you in your journeys to come. I am your power.
"Okay..." yea, I know, real smart trusting a large, sharp talking object, but I didn't see how much choice I had. I turned my body around to see if the man was still there.
But he wasn't. The mansion porch was empty.
I looked back at the talking sword and slowly and hesitantly, I grabbed the hilt.
It felt, at first, like a tornado had hit me. Winds at a hundred miles an hour, enveloping my in it's bright red light horrid-ness.
And then, it was over.
I felt totally fine.
Like nothing had happened.
Except for the fact I was in a strange, albeit regal and very posh, throne room, surrounded by guards, a overly pretty man, the ogre guy and a teary-eyed Miaka.
All of whom were looking at me as if I had grown an extra head.
And I said the only sensible thing a person who had been unconscious and sick for hours could.
"Wassup guys?"