Chapter 4
Making peace and the talk,
"I still think you might love her," Murmured miaka as she watched as she watched him finished bandage her leg, she nearly let a cry of disappointment when the warmth of his touch left her skin, tamahome looked at her seriously before going to a different railing and leaned on it as deep in thought,
"How can I love her," "when I love someone else," at the moment, tamahome had miaka's attention, she just had to get her hope's up,
"Who is it?" Her voice filled with much hope but all of it was shattered when he said,
"I love money of course!" "Just thinking of how rich and successful he would be," "oh," "the idea is so more Enticing than love at the moment," pausing for awhile, He continued with a arrogant tone,
"I must admit finding love is not an issue," "of course with my Irresistible charm," "and good looks and brains," "who wouldn't fall for good ole me?" "Bwahahahahaha!" tamahome laughed evilly as he brought his hand's to his face while imagining gold everywhere,along with tons of woman waiting in line waiting for him to chose one of them,
"Grrr," "your completely hopeless," "you know that?" Yelled miaka,
"Bwahahahahahahahaha!" He continued laughing,
"Will you stop that it's freaking me out!"
"Bwahahahahahahahaha!"
"Oh!" "You stupid maniac!"
Later that night
Bella was walking the halls and flung found nuriko overlooking the pond with a sad look, feeling A little bit curious, Bella neared her and asked,
"Nuriko," "what's wrong?" The woman didn't face but answered her anyways,
"I was walking on the west side of the pavilion earlier when I came back Here," "all of a sudden," "I lost the mate to the night glow gem," nuriko shows her the beautiful earrings,and *sighed,* Bella marveled at the lovely gem,
"It looks special,"
"It is," "it's a hair loom my mother gave me when I joined the imperial consorts,"
"it was my favorite pair," "but," she *sighs* before,
"It shines at night," "so it's a good time to look," "its a good time to look for it now but my maids are to scared to venture into the west side pavilion at night," "and I have no one else to help me," Bella rolled her eyes none the less agreed to go help find it for her,
"All right," "I'll look for it but in return you must promise to pledge your allegiance to miaka and stop bugging poor tamahome," "all my cousin wants is to be your friend," "at least give her a chance," nuriko was surprised by the girl she so loved, to say the least, "how can this girl be still thinking that!" But nuriko nodded with happiness and gratitude, shaking her head, Bella walked off on her search for the gem,
With hotohori and the advisers
"Your highness," "your already 18 at the age to marry Any woman," "why don't you take interest into any of the imperial consorts?" "that is," "after all," "there purpose, Said one of his advisers, they have been encouraging him to take a wife lately" but he could not bring himself to consider that fact,
"You must choose an empress," "sire," urged the second adviser as they watch him look out of the pavilion, controlling a sigh of annoyance, hotohori replied,
"I have no intention of taking any female as my wife anytime soon,"
"B-but why?" "Your highness," they asked frantically,
"Because," they looked at him giving him a questions look, and repeated what he said,
"Because?..." Hotohori turned his head and smiled dashingly at them,
"Because," "I'm more beautiful than they are," they advisers fell over and them regained there composer, and asked again, even more serious this time,
"Sire," "this is no joking matter," "what about that nuriko woman?" "She quit
beautiful," Hotohori simply replied,
"Nuriko?" "Never in a million years," "she is one of the suzaku warriors," "I have to deal with more pressing matters than taking a wife as the next empress," he started walking out of the pavilion, his advisers where fallowing him out with a defeated look on there old wrinkled faces,
"Besides," "I'm already torn between two," shocked at there emperor revelation, they ask,
"Torn between two, sire?" Hotohori nodded before either party could say anymore,
"BOO!" Came the loud voice of a seemly happy Bella, the advisers had collapsed from her out burst a little away from the emperor and her, they have been shocked to many times today already, she snickered at there reactions and was amused to see Hotohori calm and and gentle expression,
"All bella," "what brings you here at this time of night?"
*Sigh*, "I'm just running Another errand for nuriko," and i think your advisers peed themselves, she stated while rolling her eyes with a glint of satisfaction,hotohori expression darkened a little bit as he asked,
"I heard from my servants that she has been giving you unbelievable treatment today," "if you wish," "I can give her a order to change her mind to giving the chores that she giving to the one should serve," "I do not think it was right when she dose it and it should be the other way around," Bella surprised him by looking offended for what he just said, giving the emperor a stern look , she said,
"You are to do no such thing mister," "I am quit content as things are at the moment," "and I will not go back on my word to miaka,'' "and besides," "I volunteered to do it,"
"Your word to miaka?"
"Yes I'm doing this for her sake," "I'll do anything for my cousin to make her happy," "besides," "you can't order someone to change there minds," "that's unthinkable and absolutely intolerable in my opinion," "besides I had offers liked that before and I think there is a option for those abuse there power or think someone is to weak,"
hotohori widen his eyes at her answer but continued to pay attention, she vary experienced and insightful in things like this, when he was about to ask more questions, she beat him to it,
"Oh," "enough chitter chatter," "I have to go," "see ya!" And then Bella was off leaving behind a surprised but happy Hotohori, he did not expect a lecture from her how to treat his subjects but he as thankful when she did, he would never cease to find her company comforting and welcoming, he never met such a person that only called him nothing but hotohori, he smiled at the thought and watched as she disappeared into the night before walking to his own chambers,
meanwhile With Bella on her search
Bella walked through the tall grass and damp soil, cursing the fact that she had worn her uniform, it just got dry, she going to get drenched, going through this place,
For all the places to venture for a stroll, couldnt the evil Cow find a much better place to venture off into, for all I know she didn't even come here and lied to me, then it clicked in Bella's head, "kuzo, the evil cow lied to me!" Just as she realized she been tricked, Bella slipped on a wet rock and went into the pond, bella struggled to swim up, as usual, the gods and fate won't have it, her feet was tangled with some extremely strong pond weed,
"This is just so humiliating!" "What will I tell my family and the others when I die," "oh I drowned in a pond by being tricked by a evil cow," "sesshomaru would kick my butt all over the place in the afterlife,"
Bella tried moving the pond weed strangling her feet the cold temperature was building pressure in her lungs, her vision starting to blur, again! Not to remove them, she tried to swim upward franticly, opening her mouth, she tried to call for help, even if it bloody ridiculous, reaching out her hand, hopes someone would see it, because she losing oxygen fast,
With yui in the library
Yui was still in the same room until she feels like someone dumped a bucket of cold water on her, she let go of the book in shock and looked at the picture, it was the shikon priestess fully emerged under water,
Yui shook her head at the weirdness of this Enchanted book, however, she could not let herself do so, somehow, she could not stop reading it captured her in a way she can not explain,sighing to herself, she continued reading as she tried to squeeze the water out of her clothes,
meanwhile With nuriko
"that girl is a fool love or no," "i had to show her not to protect her cousin," said the violet hair woman she looked in the mirror as someone brushed her hair, her maids and fellow consorts sitting in her room laughing with her,
"I agree," "who would ever walk in that part of the palace?" "that place is pathetic," "no one go's there now a days," "besides," "if it is was dangerous during the day time what would be difference at night," laughed the one,
"And why of all places I would go there?" "I barely leave the hall ways of this palace," "and I would be such a idiot to lose anything of mind," said nuriko,
"True," "and to think she the legendary shikon no miko?" all for the suzaku miko to be friends with you, its just to sad, said the other woman in the room,until they all heard a angered voice, and snapped out of their conversation,
"What did you do to Bella?" "Where is she?" The voice came from tamahome, tamahome was leaning on the door frame of nuriko room door angered,he was there long enough to know that they did something to Bella, he would never forgive someone if they hurt his friends,
Nuriko was surprised by his appearance, she wasn't able to sense him there until now, but his question made it clear that he was there quit some time, Tamahome, he repeated his questions,
"Where is Bella?" His voice sounded menacing and made all the girls jump in the room and cower and leave, nuriko stood her ground and refused to answer Him,
"Why should you care?" "you don't wan't her," It took a lot for tamahome not to strangle her for the answers he wanted,
"I will not ask again," his voice held a dangerous threat to it but nuriko seems Oblivious and stood up to him,
"It's none of your business!" "she is mine!" "i waited for her to arrive in this world since i heard the stories of the shikon miko as a child!" "i will not let you!" "his highness!" "or no one to have her but me!" yelled nuriko,
Nuriko had held feelings for the shikon miko since she was a child, she waited for her for a long time to arrive in this word, and now she only looks at her as the one of the suzaku warriors and a friend, it's all because of the priestess of suzaku and any other male, cousin or no it still hurt, Thoughts raced through nurikos head not even noticing that someone else was in the room with them, Figures, a vary wets and annoyed Bella entered the room with a bored expression on her face, she got out of that evil pond as she purified everything in the pond in annoyance, after getting those irritating pond weeds, she swam up to the surface,
Nuriko and tamahome turned around to looked at her, tamahome was more relieved to see she ok with her attitude intact,
"Bella thank goodness your safe," tamahome spoke, Bella walked toward a still shocked and indigent nuriko,Not knowing what to say that the girl heard her instead,
"What do you want?" "A apology?" "Well your not getting one," nuriko will not lose what little dignity that she has left to this girl, even though she loved her, she well not back down, she crossed her arms and tried to stare down Bella, but Bella still had a bored expression and stood there witch riled up nuriko more,
"Are you trying to insult me with your defense girl?" She slapped Bella acrossed the face, tamahome was about to do something when Bella slapped nuriko back and called her a bitch,
"Pathetic," nuriko faced her, anger wracked her whole body, Bella elaborated her statement,
"I thought you where raised better than that?" "If you have these so called feeling for me, "you Aren't doing a vary good job of showing it," "now are you", "from what I'm seeing," "you know of nothing of loving a person,"
"What would you know?" "Your a girl!" "You don't even care," "you do things you shouldn't do for that girl, all because she is your family," "your the one who is selfish!" "you even risk your life for her!"
"This shows you how much you know little of love and life," "I maybe a girl," "but you have no idea what I have been through," "or that I have had my heart ripped out buy the one I did loved," "and whe he nearly did to me," "he even killed my best friend who saved me," "what I did to survive after my father and mother and step father got killed by a crazy cow of a vampire," "and what I had to do to survive after that," "you are the ignorant and to resort to petty things to get revenge," "you meddle with affair's that don't concern you at all," "do you think Pestering Other people Who has the attention of the person you like Love?" "Do you think trying to trick and drown the person who you want," to show the person you don't want near that person," "love?"
Bella stared at her and waited for her to answer, tamahome was speechless, Bella wasn't who he thought she was, then again, when is it not a surprised, especially when it's Bella,
Nuriko remained silent bella could tell that she was thinking what she had said, nuriko felt utterly stupid and guilty,Taking pity on her, Bella soften her eyes and took nurikos hand, nuriko looked at her with a questionably look but Bella ignored it and placed something in the woman's hand and closed it softly,
nuriko opened her hand To see a beautiful stone with pink,white and blue colors swirling and blending together,nuriko looked at Bella with wide eyes,
"I realized that you lied to me and left me to drown," "when I finally got out of the water I found this," "and I thought that you would still cooperate with miaka if you had this," treat me as your as you wish," "but miaka need your help," " i'm sorry i'm not gay," "but i would enjoy being your friend thought," "if you want I can help but don't get your hopes up," Just as those words left her mouth, nuriko ambushed her with a hug and a sob,Bella smiled and hugged her new friend back,tamahome shook his head and left to go back to bed,Later that night
meanwhile later that night
Bella shuffled tiredly down the hallways wearing a dry pink silk robe, she quickly soaked in the palace hot springs which felt Devine changed into the pink silk robe and then headed straight for hotohori' s room,
it took everything in her to shuffle to get to the room and not face plant the floor and fall asleep which sounds appealing at the moment but she has job to finish for the night, she was so tired, everything happend so quickly for her today, even though she don't show it to the others, she felt like she would kill over at any minute,
She stopped right outside his door and went over the things she was going to say to him in her head before she went in, "oh for kami sakes girl," "get in there and get it over so you can crash for the night," "or you might just as well sleep outside the door like a dog," laughing a her joke because she a half dog demon,
shaking her head and slapped her self twice after her self pep talk, gathering what self control she has left over her body and tried to stay awake, after a big *yawn* Bella knocked on his door twice and then heard him say *enter*, she stepped in and tried not to trip her way over to hotohori ,
"Hey," she walk over and stood in front of him where he sat on his bed,
"Bella," "what brings you to my chambers at this time of night?"
"Long story short," "I came to see you about nuriko,"
"Is that so," "what is the problem?"
*Sigh,* "look I'm just going to come out and say it," "she loves me," "or she say's she dose," "so i'm here to ask you too see if you would hook up with her?" "and not as a mere suzaku warrior," "There was silence nothing but silence," "It was so deafening that it was annoying the heck out of Bella," so Bella sat down next to hotohori making sure he looked at her,
"I am sure that you have someone else on your mind and don't know yet," "but what guy doesn't?" "I'm not trying to force you to love nuriko," "I'm forcing you to treat her civilly in or out of official business," "and so she will not try to hook up with me," She searched his eyes to see if he'll do it but he was unreadable,
Hotohori looked At the girl who sat next to him and contemplated what she said, he was trying to find a way to grant Bella this without showing his fellow warrior false emotion, it was pretty hard to say the least but when Bella was about to give up, he spoke,
"You are correct that I love another," "and that I can not harbor feeling for nuriko," "however," "I will treat her as a friend as you requested," "will you be satisfied with that?" he saw Bella smile brightly up at him and warmed his heart,
"All right," "can you explain to me who you are in love with? he was hesitant but answer her anyways, i'll just dodge her vows of love, said bella, with a * sigh*
"When I was a boy," "I was told one day I will serve the suzaku no miko," "and she
would be the person who would save our empire from distruction," "I imagined what this girl would be like," "in that time I could not help but not to love her," "now I see miaka," "I also have another I am a sure about," he trailed off Bella had to refrain from smacking him in the face but just gave a sweet smile full of understanding,
may i ask you?, do you think you love someone because they look like there former lover?," "is right?" "and Getting there hopes up for something that isn't real," "is right?" The young man not sure where this is going, but answered anyways
"No,"
"Exactly," "if you love someone," "you love them for who they are," "not some imaginations you yourself though of," "I'm sure that you didn't imagine that your priestess would be this stupid girl," Bella chuckled at her statement, she. Meant nothing bad towards he cousin but it's sadly the truth, that girl will only accomplish something if she sets her mind to it, but can she grasp the situation fully yet or do they have to wait until she dose,
"You think you cousin is stupid?" Hotohori smirked, "he knew it was true but he wasn't ready to let go just yet," "he will give it sometime and thought before he moves on," "he will not make a move until then,"
"Compared to anyone?" "Yes," "anyways," "I don't think being a suzaku warrior is about having love problems," "but I'll give you sometime to think," "thinking of what else to say," before resuming there talk,
"Just giving you a heads up," "miaka already has someone else to," "I know you know who I'm talking about," "just promises me that you won't hurt anybody," "if you need to talk to somebody come to me," "don't let anger cloud your vision and screw everything up," "if you want to let out some steam," "then come to me," "alright?" she took his hand squeezed it tightly, showing him that she meant every word, not used to that sort of contact, hotohori nodded and eyed the girl and asked,
"Why do you do this?" The girl shrugged,
"All of you guys are important and special to me now," "since your friend's with miaka," "besides," "I don't anybody hurt to badly," he nodded again and continued to look at her, she asked,
"Who is the other?" "you know just wondering," she chuckled and shook her head lightly, hotohori's eyes widen didn't expect her to ask that,deciding not to betray anything, he simply said,
"I am still wondering myself if I love her," "but unlike your cousin," "I haven't imagine anything only but her age," "I thought that she was centuries old but I was proven vary wrong," "he thought that shikon miko would be this old hag but as it turns out," "that she quit young,"
"Well," "who is she?" Her brown eyes sparkled with interest and wonder, hotohori held back a blush and smiled at her lightly,
"I have yet to think about her," "I shall tell you when I come to a decision with myself," "it was official," "Hotohori is starting to like the girl in front of him," "how can he not?" "She's intelligent," "understanding," "kind and her look's are far from average," "but he could not yet tell her," "unlike miaka and any other female," "he was unsure about his feelings," "he needed to wait to see if this feeling is only temporary one or a long term one,"
"Alright," "I won't push it" i really don't wan't to see my crazy fan girl nuriko in the
morning," *sigh* hotohori could see how happy and content she is on how things worked out, he couldn't help but feel the same, before he knew it he felt her go limp and she was asleep,
Bella was filled with Mirth that her body forgot that she was tired,a smile graced her lips, her mission was compleat,well almost, speaking of which, she need to scold her friends in the morning as well, right now, she never felt her eyelids feel so heavy , a huge *yawn* escaped her mouth, before she knew it she passed out on his lap,
Her head rested on his lap he could feel her even breathing on his legged hand still griping his, he to drifted off to much need sleep,
"What do you think there doing in there?" Whispered nuriko,tamahome had a mischievous smirk on his face only to be whacked hard by nuriko,
"Ow!" "What the hell is that for?"
"It's the price you pay for being a pervert," nuriko crossed her arms and *huffed*,tamahome growled and turned away,irritated while nuriko snickered at his childish behavior,
"They've been eaves dropping soon as Bella went inside," "they'd thought they would be caught," "but shocking they didn't," "nuriko let a small scowl play acrossed her lips," "knowing the emperor will only treat her only as a friend she could accept that," "it wasn't enough for her that bella dose't love her back," "she will get her to love her back," "she's not giving up so easily on her true love just yet," "in the morning she needs to find a punishment good enough for bella," "and that cousin of hers too," of her mind but going to bed sound's good,
Tamahome was still and he thought at what he heard, the emperor still loved miaka and he was in there way, gritting his teeth, he stormed off,
"I can't believe it," tamahome spoke in hushed tones,
tamahome thought about how he would act and speak to miaka now, "he felt hurt that the emperor loved miaka," "even though she heard Bella say that miaka already have someone she loves," "that dose't make him feel any better,"
meanwhile The fallowing day
Hotohori woke up and found out that he must of laid down at some point, "and someone must of pulled the covers over him at some point," "speaking of someone where is Bella?"
"He was sure that she fell asleep in here," raising from his spot, he look around the room and found no traces of the girl, he stood up, and got dressed and walked out of his room,
Hotohori found miaka after bumping into tamahome, he seemed upset for some reason and acted cold towards her,nuriko popped up and was completely upset at miaka, tamahome walked away from miaka with a nuriko clung to his arm,
shaking his head he went towards his study to see what he has to do for the day, Passing by the royal gardens he noticed that there was a figure out there with some books under the sun reading by the lake, he walk toward her and saw how at piece she look reading, and the outfit she wore look good to it was a ice blue inner garment that reached her ankels and wrist and she also wore a simple pink and purple tale coat,
"So how long are you going to sit there and stare at me hotohori," Bella looked from the book with amusement,
"I was wondering when you would come back to reality?" "What are you doing?" Bella looked at him teasingly,
"What dose it look like," "I'm reading a book,"
"Yes," "but why?" Bella put the book down completely on the pile,
"I was bored," "I took a walk around and my fan girl nuriko popped up and smothered me," "so i pushed her off and flashed away," "so I decided to go find miaka she said that she had to go and find tamahome," "he on the other hand said that he is avoiding the girl," "and I think I know why to, propping her elbowing on the ground so she could lean back,
"It's probably from last from," "that could explain their behavior,"
"So you knew?"
"Of course," smirking at the girls disappointment,he knew she wanted to be the one to tell him to see his reaction when he found out that people where eavs dropping on there conversation, she pouted and crossed her arms, a while her features softened and she looked at him,
"Sorry for falling asleep on you last night," "nuriko made me do the Most stupidest thing's it wore the heck out of me," "he smiles and nodded in understanding,
"Now can you help me bring these book's back to the library," hotohori only looked at her and didn't move,he merely looked out at the sky,
"What?" "oh Your not going to help me?" "Oh that's really kind of you," sarcasm dripped from her words and it made the emperor wince but he settled with word instead,
"I am not familiar being ordered around," "or have you forgotten that I am the emperor," the girl merely arched and eyebrow,
"Have you forgotten," "i'm the lady of the western lands," "and I don't care about title," when he agreed, and helped bring the books back to the library,
"Your highness!" "lady Bella!" "lady miaka has fallen ill!" Cried a servant
To be continued