Ta-da! The next chapter! It hasn't been two months either! It's not as long as some of the other chapters, but I felt like this was the best place to cut this chapter. Chapter 15 should be along very shortly, maybe even within a few days. So read on dear reader!
I do not own Fushigi Yuugi; if I didn't I wouldn't have to go to college right now T-T I do own Rin Izaya. She's mine!~~~~~
Izaya picked up horse back riding so quickly that her two celestial warriors began to think she'd lied to them. Suboshi had been given the responsibility of teaching the Seiryu priestess how to ride. When Nakago checked in on their riding session two days later, Izaya looked as though she'd been riding all of her life, spurring the horse to a gallop. She guided her mare easily with the reins, Suboshi frantically trying to get her to slow down. Laughing at his efforts, Izaya dancing her mare to arm's length of Suboshi. Then she swiveled the creature out of his reach just as Suboshi made a grab for the reins. The mare brayed, laughing along with its rider. Needless to say, Izaya was riding alongside Nakago and Suboshi the following day.
"You're a fast learner, Lady Izaya." Suboshi commented as they had their horses walking side by side on one particular path. Izaya grinned at him, bobbing in beat with her mare's body movements.
"Yeah, I wasn't expecting horse back riding to be so easy." she reached out a hand and stroking her horse's neck. Its body twitched where Izaya touched it, tossing its head. A giggled escaped Izaya's throat. "It helped that this baby girl is so docile, neh?"
Humming, Suboshi nodded. "Or the way you talk makes your horse think that you're one of them." he laughed, blocking the punch that his priestess aimed at his shoulder. "You seem very fond of animals." Izaya's head fell back, a light laugh tickling the air.
"Well, they're honest." she nodded, rolling the leather reins between her fingers.
"Honest?" he asked and was answered with a hum.
"They don't pretend to be something that they're not," she raised one hand, rolling it in a circle several times as she spoke, "and they do what they must to survive. If they want to eat they find food; if they want sleep they sleep. Predators are not persecuted for being what they are; prey does not demand justice from an unjust world." sighing she shook her head as her eyes fell onto Suboshi. "I envy them; I want the freedom they have." leaning forward, she rested her head against her mare's mane, stroking its neck. No matter how many times Suboshi tried to ask her what she meant by that, Izaya never answered him.~~
On the third day of travel, they were making good progress. They were already ahead of schedule and when Nakago had informed Izaya of it, she bore her teeth as she grinned. She'd taken to proclaiming it loudly several times throughout the morning. It was almost noon when they came upon another group of travelers. Arching her neck and standing up in her stirrups, Seiryu's priestess tugged on the reins.
"What's that?" she jerked her head at the group, Nakago easing his stallion beside her. Suboshi spun his horse around, frowning and squinting.
"More travelers like us." he reported and Izaya rolled her eyes.
"I know that; I mean what's going on? Why are they stopped?" she said pointing at the two carts. They weren't too far from the other group; they could make out the forms of the passengers in the wagons and the four men that were in the long grass. The black outline of a horse shown between the men. The four ran to and fro around the creature.
"It doesn't matter; they're none of our concern." Nakago said.
"Oh, don't be a spoil sport! This is my first time traveling and these are the first group of fellow travelers that we've seen." Izaya scowled and glared at him at the same time.
"Looks to me like they lost control of one of their horses." Suboshi reported and before either warrior could react, their priestess had thrown herself from the back of her mare and took off at a run toward the two wagons and four men. Stunned, they both stared after her, Izaya's back retreating further and further into the grass that reached up to her shoulder blades.
She looked like a deer running through the plain, slapping one of the men on the back when she reached them. "Let me see if I can help." she said with a smile, the dusty haired man she'd touched startled by her sudden appearance.
"Let her join, Akaron!" the man on the opposite side of the circle called to his companion. "Maybe she'll have more luck then we've had with Longma." four people shifted, giving Izaya as much space to guard as the four strangers around her. Her two warriors had followed after her.
"Lady Izaya-!"
"Stay back!" she snarled before Suboshi could get more then these two words out of his throat. Her eyes hadn't moved off of the stray horse; a black stallion with a white patch shaped like an arrow near the base of its tail. As stallion during its dark eyes onto her, Izaya hopped in place. She never took her eyes off of the creature. "Especially you, Nakago! The big guy's already freaked out enough; the last thing we need to do is intimidate him more!"
"She's right!" the same man that had called from across the circle did so again then. "Back off! The five of us will handle it!" It was only after a moment of hesitation that Suboshi and Nakago stepped back. "Alright boys! Take it nice and slow, ya hear?! Don't try to rope him unless there's a chance to do it! Safety is the priority!" Izaya hollered agreement with the other three men and they worked carefully. They stepped forward one at a time, the others keeping the circle in place while the one man would try to coax the horse to quiet. There had been two failed attempts before Izaya was given a chance.
"Easy boy," she spoke as she stepped forward, the dusty haired stranger from half choking on a word of protest, "it's okay. You're okay, big guy. What a handsome boy you are too." hooves stomping, the stallion's head rounded, big, dark eyes focusing in on the priestess' face. From a few short meters away, Suboshi stood stock still, watching with wide eyes. Izaya hushed to the black horse, taking another step forward. "It's okay; I'm not going to hurt you. I swear that on my life." She drew an "x" over her heart with an index finger, gray eyes focused into those larger, dark horse eyes. The two men that made the circle as her sides started to step forward.
"Stay where you are, dammit!" Izaya snapped at them without looking at them. Both men froze and glanced at one another before stepping back one step each.
There was a moment of pause; the stallion had stopped stomping its hooves. Its head swayed and body shifted, but its focus was on Seiryu's priestess. She stood almost completely still. Both her hands were up, both palms held up and facing the horse and she stretched out one arm to it. "I'd like to meet you properly; my name's Rin Izaya." Another moment of utter stillness passed. Izaya gazed, unyielding, at the stallion.
It was the horse that closed the distance between itself and the priestess; it was the horse that touched its nose to her hand and snorted. Giggling, Izaya continued to gaze at the stallion. She began stroking its snout, tilting her head and smiling softly at it.
"There you are; you're not such a bad guy." as she continued to speak in a low voice to the animal, the men around her relaxed, turning befuddled expressions onto one another. One of them shrugged and laughed. Suboshi and Nakago watched it all unfold.
"How did she. . .?" Suboshi's voice was airy, as though he couldn't breath. Nakago stared on, silent and un-moving.
Eventually, Izaya had led the stallion back to one of the men that she'd been helping. A sheepish smile colored her face and she scratched the back of her head.
The man she stood in front of had the same hair style as she did; short, black and spiked up. His eyes were a vibrant red, the color of blood. There were two scars on his face, a small one that cut his left eyebrow in two and a long, thin scar that ran parallel along his right cheek bone. The warmth of his smile was warm; completely non-threatening.
"Thank you for your help, Miss." he bowed his head.
"Yeah, you really helped us out." it was the dusty haired man that Izaya had slapped on the back when she'd first arrived and he grinned at her with an equally disarming smile. His hair was curly, forming tendrils that half hid his green eyes.
"Not at all," Izaya flicked her wrist, glancing at the stallion, "he's a beautiful horse." The curly haired man rolled his eyes as his dark haired companion reached out to the black stallion.
"Longma is very beautiful." it was the dark haired man that spoke, taking the bridle and reins held out to him by the third man of their horse wrangling group; a boy that couldn't have been more then a year or two younger then Suboshi. The curly haired man snorted.
"Longma is a trouble maker, Kuhan" he retorted, "I told you we shouldn't have brought him along. He lives up to his name sake a little too well." Izaya giggled.
"Longma, dragon horse," she voiced, stroking the stallion's neck, "it suites you, big guy. Between you and Seiryu, I'm starting to think that I'm some kind of dragon tamer." as she laughed to it, Longma tossed its head, snorting as though it found her comment annoying.
The four horse wranglers that Izaya had helped looked between one another. After a second the forth man, a blue eyes man with a serious face and a scar trailing down in front of his left ear tapped Kuhan's shoulder, jerking his head at Izaya's shoulder. The dusty haired man frowned, arching his neck and looking along with the two of them.
"That tattoo," he murmured, eyes widening as he raised his gaze onto Izaya's face, "you're not the Priestess of Seiryu, are you?" that had gotten everyone's attention. Three women stood up from within the two wagons, one of them had a young boy clinging to her leg. Blinking, Izaya looked between the four men, then glanced at her two warriors. She scratched the back of her head.
"Looks like we've been figured out, neh?" she said. There was an explosion of excitement from the group of strangers. They gasped, squealing and laughing in delight. Throwing themselves together, everyone in the wagons piled out while Longma was strapped into place in front of one of the wagons by Kuhan. As they hustled to gather together, Izaya tried to get them to stop, but was completely ignored. She glanced at Nakago, her cheek reddening; Nakago mentally foot noted it as the first time that he'd seen his priestess blush.
"Let me introduce you to everyone." the curly haired man finally said, smiling, walking and talking at the same time. "My name is Akaron Yu and this here," as a dark haired woman with a long scar across the bridge of her nose stepped forward, he placed an arm around her waist, "is my lovely wife, Hanna." She gave a broad smile, one that reminded Nakago distinctly of Izaya.
"Pleased to meet you, priestess." she greet, shaking hands with the priestess.
"The pleasure's mine."
"Ah, and this little ankle biter is our son, Suna." Akaron placed a hand on the head of the eight year old boy clinging to his wife's leg. Glancing up from behind wavy black tendrils, Suna's eyes were the same amethyst shade as his mother's eyes were. Suna gave a tentative smile and wave at Izaya and her two warriors, never stepping from safety of his mother's leg.
"Over there is my wife's brother, Zukar Tor, his wife, Ena, and there two children, Hokar and Onara." Akaron waved at each respective person as he spoke. Zukar, the forth man of the horse wrangling group and the man that had pointed out Izaya's dragon tattoo, had an undeniable resemblance to Kuhan. He had given his bright blue eyes to his daughter, Onara. Both children had brown hair like their mother, Ena. Hokar had been the third man in the horse wrangling group and had Ena's steely gray eyes. A year or two younger then Suboshi, the stern expression he wore was nearly identical to that of his father.
"We're honored to meet you, priestess." Ena said, her warmth contrasting with the tension that showed in both her husband and son. Izaya smiled and nodded. Her smile widened when Zukar nodded back.
"And over here," Akaron jerked his head at the three remaining people, "is my other brother-in-law, Kuhan Tor, his daughter Elia and his lovely, pudgy wife, Astrad." With both hands on her rounded belly, Astrad scowled at Akaron, her blonde hair showing white in the mid-day sun.
"I'm not pudgy, I'm pregnant." she sniffed. The top of Elia's head only reached to her mother's waist, but she ran out in front of her parents, hair cascading behind her like a black waterfall. Akaron rolling his eyes.
"And as you can see, she hasn't gotten through the mood swing stage yet-" he yelped as Elia kicked him in the shine. While her uncle was hopping on one leg, Elia pouted, both hands on her hips.
"Don't make fun of Mama, Guzhang!" she said in a huff. Izaya laughed right along with Hanna and Astrad; Kuhan, the red eyed man from the horse wrangling group, laughed under his breath. Elia spun around, running up to her mother and aunt. "I scolded him right this time, didn't I? Just like you told me, right, Mama, Gugu?" Akaron was scowling as Hanna and Astrad laughed. Astrad trailed her fingers through her daughter's hair.
"Yes, you did very well, Elia." she agreed, Hanna patted Astrad on the arm.
"She learns fast." she bore her teeth as she grinned. While Akaron was aiming a glare at his wife and sister in law, Kuhan sighed.
"Aiya," he shook his head, coming up beside Astrad, putting his arm around her, "don't teach El something like that; I'm worried enough as it is about when she gets older. If she starts acting too much like the two of you it's only going to make me even more nervous." his wife raised a brow.
"Oh, you're always nervous," she rubbed her extended belly, "what are you going to do if this little one ends up being a girl too?"
"Don't even joke about that." bending down, Kuhan resting his ear against his wife's stomach. "The next one is going to be a boy; I just know it." Astrad rolled her eyes, shaking her head and sparing a glance at the priestess and celestial warriors.
Running a hand through Kuhan's hair, she said. "Whatever you say, airen; now stand up. We have guests and you're embarrassing me." Nuzzling her stomach, he mumbled something to it before giving it a kiss and standing. Catching Elia's gaze, Kuhan extended his hand to her. Smiling, she took her father's hand, hopping to his side and making bouncing noises as she went. Smiling at Elia, Kuhan raised his head and focused on Izaya and her two warriors.
"Seiryu has given us quite the blessing today," he bowed his head to her again, "thank you for helping us with Longma, priestess. We're in your debt."
A tight laugh left Izaya's throat and she scratched the back of her head. "It was no trouble, we were passing close by anyway." she spoke much too quickly then gasped, holding up her index finger. "Neh~! We haven't introduced ourselves to you." turning away, it took her a few seconds to gather herself together; Nakago mentally foot noted this as the first time he'd seen Izaya flustered.
"M-My name is Rin Izaya; call me Izaya. These are my two warriors." she waved at them, the hand motion also faster then normal. "Suboshi is the little one and Nakago is the big scary looking guy." Both of her warriors shot glares at her.
"Little?!" Suboshi scowled, crossing his arms. The children giggled, earning a glare from the young warrior. Then it was Hanna, Astrad and Ena who started to laugh. Giving a tight laugh himself, Kuhan bowed to the celestial warriors once each.
"You'll have to forgive us. If we were at home we could offer all of you a meal or at least a little tea," Twisting his head around, he looked at his siblings and their families, "but as you can see we're a little in shambles at the moment."
"No, no, you don't have to worry about that. I'm not really comfortable with that kind of thing anyway. Why are you all traveling right now?" Izaya's change of subject was abrupt, making it all the more obvious that she was struggling to keep up with the conversation. Exchanging glances, Zukar, Hanna, and Kuhan shared embarrassed smiles. Elia jumped forward.
"We're going to visit Yeye and Nainai!" she clapped her hands, bouncing in place as she gazed up at Izaya.
"Neh! Is that so?!" Izaya raised a brow. "And where do your Yeye and Nainai live?"
"In North Kuto," she declared, placing her hands on her hips and stomping a foot, "right near the Hokken-"
"Hokkan, Elia." Astrad interjected and twisted her head around, Elia pouted, nodding her head.
"That's what I said; Hokken." both Elia's parents rolled their eyes, but didn't correct her again. Izaya blinked, glancing over her shoulder at her two warriors, then back at the travelings families.
"What a coincidence; we were headed for Hokkan ourselves." she turned to her warriors. "Since we're all headed the same direction, why don't we all travel together? It's safer to travel in groups, isn't it? Besides, we're already ahead of schedule to meet with the others. We're not exactly in a rush." Nakago aimed a glare at Izaya. Catching his eyes, a wolfish grin crossed her face.
"Oh no, we couldn't." Ena's soft voice hit the air. "We'd be distracting you from your duties as priestess."
"Pfft!" Izaya flicked her wrist. "I can perform my duties quite fine around all of you. Honestly you would all be doing me a favor; helping me relax and take my mind off the bigger problems our country is facing right now." placing a hand over her heart, she shook her head and sighed. "These are troubling times."
"Don't we know it." Zukar sniffed, speaking for the first time. Turning, Izaya blinked at him. Turning to him, Ena slipped her arm, catching Zukar's elbow with her own. His facial features softened, but only a little. Kuhan gave a low sigh.
"Forgive my gege," he murmured, "he's been troubled as of late." Zukar glared at his brother, but if it bothered Kuhan it didn't show. Turning back to Izaya, he said. "If you want to travel with us and it will not trouble you or your companions, it would be our pleasure to have you in our company."
"We won't be troubling you, will we?" the tone of her voice caught her warriors by surprise. She sounded concerned. They turned stares onto Izaya, but if she saw them it didn't show in her face. She was focused on Kuhan and the rest. Pausing, it took Kuhan a moment to answer. He glanced at Astrad then back around at Akaron. Shrugging, Akaron made a face.
"No, you won't be any trouble at all." Kuhan answered, warm, Astrad nodding.
"Especially if you can keep Longma tame for us." Hanna put in, placing a hand on her hip. "He's not fond of anyone besides Onara and Kuhan around here and neither of them have been able to calm that horse as quickly as you did there." The smile that crossed Izaya's face seemed more like an extension of Hanna's smile rather then a separate one.
"Okay; let us know if we can be of any help to you while we're here. I'm not a free loader and I refuse to let either of my boys slack off." Izaya jerked her head at Suboshi and Nakago. Both of them glared at her, but it only earned them laughs from their new travel companions.~~~~~
Alright! That's the chapter! Kuhan and co. are all OCs that I actually made for an original story. I added them into this because I wanted to develop their family dynamics a bit more (plus I love them all to death XD). I'm hope that the family structures were understandable when I wrote them, but just in case I'll try to make it more clear here.
Zukar- Oldest Ena- Married to Zukar Hokar- Zukar and Ena's son Onara- Zukar and Ena's daughter
Hanna-Middle Akaron- Married to Hanna Suna- Hanna and Akaron's son
Kuhan- Youngest Astrad- Married to Kuhan (currently pregnant) Elia- Kuhan and Astrad's daughter
Zukar, Hanna and Kuhan are siblings. Hokar is the oldest of the children at 14; Onara is second at 12; Suna is 8; Elia is 6. All the adults are anywhere from early forties to early thirties (There's a 10 year age difference between Zukar and Kuhan.) Hopefully that helps clear things up. ^^;;
There are two Chinese lessons in this chapter too! "Long" is dragon in Mandarin and "Ma" is horse. So the stallion's name is a combination of the two. (Most Chinese first names have a two hanzi combination like this so it would be considered normal.)
The other Chinese terms I use in this chapter are forms of family titles such as aunt, uncle, grandfather, etc. The word for aunt/ uncle varies in Chinese depending on if said aunt/ uncle are older or younger. It also varies depending on if the person has married into the family or is directly related. Here's the list! I'll list terms as they are used chapter by chapter.
Gugu- Aunt (father's older sister) Guzhang- Uncle (married to father's older sister)
Yeye- Grandfather (father's family) Nainai- Grandmother (father's family)
Gege- Older brother
Mama- Mother (this is exactly the same in Chinese and English oddly enough!)
Okay, that should be everything I think! (I made up for that lost chapter space with these bottom notes; Opps ^^;;;) As I said, the next chapter should be up again very soon so be patient please! Until then review, fav, do as you please dear readers!