Helllloooo my lovelies! So, I know it has been a ridiculously long time since I've updated. GOMENESAI! (yeah, I like to pretend I can speak Japanese :D) I have no excuses! But this one is a fairly long one, so I hope it partially makes up for it.:D

I DON'T OWN TMMMMMMMMMMMM *tear*

Chapter 5:

Only now did Kisshu hear the sounds of his people around him.

Turning his head, he watched the people. Some were on their knees, staring around in awe. Many were crying. A few children had started to whoop and shout joyfully. After a moment or two, the tension broke and people began to smile, laugh, shout, and run around in the newly reformed surface of the world.

The girl, the girl with the strange visions, however, looked straight at Kisshu with her big silver eyes filled with tears and wonder. "It's all just as I saw it," Searadesi whispered.

Kisshu stared at her. Did she really have psychic sight, then? Pai would have to check into it. After a short pause, he smiled at her, that cocky, mischievous half smile with his fang poking out. He hadn't smiled like that in a while. He felt almost like his old self.

Taruto shouted, "It worked!" He flew up and punched his fist in the air victoriously. Even Pai was smiling.

Kaybler turned to look at the group of returned aliens with a rough grin on his face. "Looks like you really did it, then."

Kisshu smiled again. He hadn't felt this exhilarated in who knew how long.

After the initial excitement had worn off just a tad, Kaybler started taking charge. There were, after all, many things that needed to be done in a new world, and as there were still many hours of daylight left, Kaybler wanted to get things done. He had always been like that.

Kisshu volunteered to go with a group to explore the surrounding area, see what kind of plants were growing, what food sources there were, what kind of animals, etc. Kaybler probably would have let him stay at the caves and rest up, but honestly, Kisshu was incredibly curious about everything.

He was in a group with Taruto, a medicine woman named Reeza, a pair of young brothers, and the vision girl, Searadesi.

Kisshu had a fond, almost motherly relationship with Reeza. When his parents had died and he had been injured in that storm, so long ago, Reeza had nursed him back to health, and calmed his fears. He had only been ten. When Kisshu had reunited with Reeza, she had embraced him and patted his cheek, saying, "So you're back, eh, hon?"

Kisshu had really missed the closest person he had to a parent.

"Oohwah! The air feels so good!" Taruto exclaimed, stretching his arms as they walked along. Tart looked around, eyes lingering on the trees and grass. "You know, this reminds me a lot of Earth," he remarked to Kisshu.

Kisshu considered, then nodded. "Yeah," he agreed.

The younger brother, a young man by the name of Benji, asked, "What's Earth like?"

"It's…well, it's…" Taruto looked at Kisshu, unsure where to start.

Kisshu cocked his head. "Hmm…well, parts of it look a lot like this," he gestured around him, "but those are getting more rare on Earth. A lot of Earth is many buildings and roads all grouped together. Oh, and cars."

Benji's brother, Marzac, asked, "What's a car?"

That one stumped Kisshu. How to explain? "Well, um…."

Suddenly, Searadesi, who had been looking around at the trees silently, snapped her head to the side and stopped. Her eyes were focused on something no one else could see. "Something's coming," she said, sounding frightened.

Almost immediately after she'd said this, there was a loud rustling in the trees and bushes Searadesi was staring at. Everyone backed away, and Kisshu automatically moved to stand in front of everyone else.

Out of the bushes emerged a large, hulking creature covered in black fur. It walked out on four legs, but when it saw them, it rose up to stand on it's hind legs. It bared sharp, menacing teeth.

Everyone was frozen. "Kisshu," Tart whispered. "It looks like a bear."

Tart was right. It looked a lot like a bear from Earth, but it was bigger and had a longer tail, and it seemed to have longer teeth. Bear or not, Kisshu didn't really want it anywhere near them.

Kisshu's Sais-his dragon swords-appeared in his hands. He held them up and shouted, "Oy! Get out of here." The bear creature simply looked at him and growled. Kisshu brandished his Sais. "Leave!" The creature backed up a little bit. Kisshu floated forward more and raised his Sais high and yelled. With a final roar, the bear creature turned and fled.

Kisshu's Sais disappeared. He relaxed and turned back to his group. They looked a tad shaken up. "It's okay," Kish said, not wanting anyone to have a panic attack. "Whatever that thing was is all bark and no bite."

Everyone other than Taruto stared at him. "Whaaaatttt?"

Kisshu smacked his forehead. "Earth phrase." He waved his hand forward. "Moving on, moving on."

Shrugging, Marzac started to lead the way, and Benji, Reeza, and Taruto followed him. Searadesi, however wasn't moving. Her eyes were squeezed shut and her hands were pressed to her temples. She was stark white. Had the bear-creature really scared her that much? Most people who'd lived on this planet were used to frightening things….

Kisshu hesitated, then touched her shoulder. "Hey. Are you okay?"

Searadesi let out a breath. "Yeah, sorry. It's just…these visions. They are so…confusing. They make my head hurt, when they come in a big rush like that." She began walking again. Kisshu walked beside her, wanting to make sure she didn't lag behind without them realizing it. He was also a little fascinated by her visions.

"When did they start?" he asked curiously.

She shrugged. "Not long ago. Couple months, maybe. It started with just feelings about things, feelings that I could almost pass off as intuition. But after a while, I could tell it was more."

"What are they like?"

Searadesi shrugged again, looking away from Kisshu. She hugged her arms to herself defensively. "They can be really interesting and helpful….but lately they haven't been too fun," she said in a low voice. Her tone made it clear she was done talking about it.

Kisshu felt a strange sense of shame. Now she seemed mad at him. He nudged her gently. "Sorry. Didn't mean to be nosy. Don't worry, we'll have Pai look into it. If he can't figure it out, no one can."

She smiled a bit. "Thanks."

They walked on, but Kisshu felt odd. Why did he care if he'd upset her? He hadn't cared about anyone else, besides his people and Ichigo, in a long, long time. Ichigo…and suddenly, the walk in the woods that had been feeling calm, interesting, even peaceful, felt a little darker. Because now he was thinking about Ichigo.

So, thoughts? Reviews? Is Kisshu too off character? I'm having trouble with that...I'm trying to make him be sad about Ichigo but happy about his planet but being a better person while still being KISSHU. It's hard, because Kisshu's biggest defining characteristic was his obsession with Ichigo, and without her around I don't know how to make Kish act. She might show up later though...hmm...

ON THAT NOTE! Please review, my darlings. They motivate me more than anything. :D I also have a survey question for you: What's your favorite anime/manga and character in said manga? Just out of curiousity. Thank you dearies.

*WEDDING BELLS* I march down the aisle!

Kisshu (at the altar): WHAT? how did I get here in this tux?

Me: Mwahaha...a little instrument called Duct Tape...