Yui returned to Tamahome’s home village, and although the visit was darkened by his abscence, Mitsukake was able to cure Tamahome’s father of his long illness, and it was there that Yui met Chiriko, the seventh and final Sei of Suzaku to be found.
Now, she returns to the palace of Konan, but although each of the seven names of Suzaku’s Seishi now has a face, her journey is not yet ended.

Episode Twenty:

Heat flooded the blue-decorated room, rising from the fireplace in waves, moving the delicate lace curtains just slightly with its currents. Nakago’s head rested on his shoulder, his eyes closed in uneasy sleep while sitting in the stiff wooden chair, one hand on the bed beside him. A gentle hand touched his forehead, and he started awake, found himself looking into one deep brown eye that glimmered in the firelight, its companion hidden by a curtain of periwinkle hair.

“Chichiri,” he gasped, starting up. A look of realization came to his face, and he gestured for her to be silent as his character glowed. A momentary blue crackle spread around the room, enclosing it in a barrier of his powers. “Chichiri, I’m always glad to see you, but you mustn’t be here right now. Miaka’s found Miboshi; if he discovers your presence...”

“She’s found all seven of her seishi, hasn’t she no da?” Chichiri asked.

Nakago paused, then sighed. Lying to Chichiri would do no good; one of her powers was Empathy, so she could feel it if he lied. “Yes, she has.”

“I suppose she had a head start, with you, Ashi-chan and Soi-chan all here in the palace before she arrived no da.” Chichiri turned her head and looked down at the bed. “It’s Koorinetsu, isn’t it no da?”

Nakago lowered his eyes and looked at the woman lying unmoving on the bed, buried beneath a mountain of blankets, then gently stroked the purple-red hair visible on the pillow and nodded. “She thought her room was just a little chilly at first, but slowly we realized it was she who was getting cold, slowing down... She barely even responds anymore. She’ll wake, but she doesn’t seem to see. Sometimes I see a flicker of recognition in her eyes, and I think she knows I’m here, but she doesn’t speak anymore. I’ve summoned the best doctors a Shogun can, and they can slow it down, but they can’t stop it. She just keeps getting colder; they say she’s going to freeze to death.”

Chichiri gently rested a hand on his shoulder. “It’s a horrible disease no da.”

He nodded. “Soi doesn’t deserve this. Her life’s been so hard already; I just wanted to make her happy. But if I hadn’t given her that particular servant, to follow her all the time, then she wouldn’t have caught it. It’s barely contagious... There’s no justice in the world, Chichiri.”

Chichiri was silent for a long moment, then softly lay her hand on his forehead again. “You have it too no da.”

“I take it back, then. There is some justice.” A faint, ironic smile passed over his lips. “I’d actually suspected as much. My room has been a bit chilly in the evenings.”

“I’ve come to cure you no da.”

Nakago jerked up. “Can you? I know Koorinetsu is a strong disease; are you powerful enough to cure it?”

“Only you no da.” Chichiri silently sat down in a chair opposite him, leaning forward and clasping her hands between her knees. It was only then that Nakago realized she wasn’t wearing her mask. “I’m sorry, Nakago-chan no da. I’m not strong enough to help Soi-chan right now no da. I can cure you because you’re in an early stage, but she’s very advanced no da. I’d need the help of a certain rare medicine, and I don’t have any of it no da.”

“Then return when you do.”

“Nakago-chan no da,” Chichiri said softly.

“I love her, Chichiri. I swore that I would always be at her side; if I can’t do that in life, then I’ll do it in death.”

Chichiri once again sat silently for a long moment. “Soi-chan is a very good friend of mine; I would rather die than leave her like this no da. But I haven’t been given that choice no da. It may be a long time before I can return to cure her no da. But, in the meantime, our two countries are on the verge of war; you are the best chance of preventing that, but only if you are healthy no da.”

“I’m not so important,” he said softly.

“Yes, you are no da. Your emperor is a power-hungry warmonger; we both know that no da. But the army is under your control no da. I know you don’t want to see innocent people be hurt, so I know you would do your best to prevent it if you have the chance no da.” She sat back. “I understand wanting more than anything to stay with Soi-chan in this way, but you’re very important to many other people as well no da. The choice is yours, Nakago-chan no da.” She held out her hand invitingly, her Mark of Suzaku glimmering behind the curtain of hair, but did not move toward him.

Nakago turned, studying Soi’s face for a long time. “Soi hates the military; she always has. She says its sole purpose is destruction, and she’s more or less right. My lovely flower...” He ran his fingers through the reddish hair peeking out from under the blankets. “I will find a way to help her or join her, one way or another.” Turning with a sigh, slipped his hand into Chichiri’s.

*

“Please, eat and enjoy yourselves,” Hotohori said, now dressed in Imperial splendor. He gestured to the meal spread out before his fellow Seishi: delicately colored fruits and vegetables neatly sliced and arranged in symbols of longevity and good luck, aromatic teas and wine, expensive spices set out in bottles, to be taken for nothing, and roasted meats that steamed appealing scents to the music being played beside the table.

“I haven’t seen this much food since I came of age,” Mitsukake said, putting a few slices of orange on his plate.

“And I thought my guys threw good parties,” Tasuki agreed, shifting awkwardly in his seat and trying not to think about where he was. He waved a servant over. “Um, can I get something to drink here?”

With a nod, a servant came up beside him and poured his cup full of tea.

“I don’t think that’s what he meant,” Yui whispered to Hotohori.

“I know,” Hotohori whispered back, “but after today’s revelation, I think it’ll be some time before he’s comfortable complaining. I may as well take the opportunity while it lasts.”

“So, now we have to wait for Chichiri to return,” Mitsukake surmised.

“And get Tamahome back from Kutou...?” Chiriko added.

“There is also the matter of Suzaku’s ‘Universe of Four Gods,’ which is also in Kutou,” Hotohori said. “An incantation must be read from it and the scroll must be burned as part of the ceremony.”

Tasuki gulped the tea and made a face. “Hey, I said ‘something to drink,’ as in ‘a drink,’ you know?”

The servant nervously returned. “Um, would you like fruit juice, or water?”

“Well, at least everything we still have to get is in one oh-so-convenient place,” Nuriko said cynically as Tasuki argued over his beverage. Yui looked down and played with the vegetables on her plate. “Yui, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean...”

“Yui, it’s all right,” Hotohori said softly. “There’s no use in laying blame; we’ll get it back.”

“So how’re we gonna get into Kutou to start with?” Tasuki asked. “I assume it will be us, and not those overpaid stooges they call the Imperial Army.”

Nuriko pointedly flicked a grain of rice off her Imperial Army dress uniform.

“Well, my village was very close to the border of Kutou. I know some ways we can get across without being seen,” Chiriko offered.

“We shouldn’t make any plans without Chichiri,” Yui said. “She got me and Tamahome in and out of Kutou once before, and she seems to have connections there.”

“Oh, hell!” Tasuki announced, rising. He marched over to one of the other tables, grabbed a jug of wine from in front of the Ministers of Treasury and Internal Affairs, and returned to his seat with it. “I don’t care if y’all are this suicidal normally, but I cannot talk about this sober. If ya wanna execute me for bein’ rude, go for it, I was probably gonna get it anyway.”

The table fell silent, the heat of embarassment pierced only by Nuriko’s icy glare.

“So, I haven’t really met Chichiri yet,” Mitsukake said. “Do you have any idea where she might have gone?”

“Not really,” Yui said. “She just always seems to be here when we really need her.”

*

Nakago rubbed his hand absentmindedly, waiting for the feeling of Chichiri’s chi within him to fade.

Chichiri tried to catch his gaze without success. “You believe what I said, don’t you? I wouldn’t leave Soi-chan like this if I had a choice no da.”

“Of course, I know you,” he said. “Even if I didn’t, I don’t suppose I could blame you. If it were my empire in danger, I can’t say it would be easy for me to hand the seventh Sei of Suzaku over to you.”

“But it isn’t no da. I know you don’t trust Yui-chan, but she really is a nice, sweet girl no da. She wouldn’t---”

“Chichiri,” Nakago said, waving her to be quiet. “I’ll be returning Tamahome to you as soon as possible. But not now.”

“Da?”

“I know it’s a bothersome request, but if my Emperor finds that the Suzaku no Miko has all seven of her Seishi, he’ll most likely panic and launch an attack in a desperate attempt to seize Konan before Suzaku is summoned. I have a better plan. Some of Kutou’s agents have access to exotic drugs, including Kodoku.”

“Kodoku no da?!” Chichiri blurted out. “That robs a person of their free will no da! You can’t give that to Tamahome-chan no da!”

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to; I would never do that to anyone. However, I’ll make it seem as though he’s taken it, and have Tamahome act as though he’s under its influence. Then, in two or three days, he can be rescued. The Emperor will let him go as a spy, and won’t attack. I’ll do what I can to let you take him, but I can’t make it too easy for you. After all,” he showed her a weary conspiratorial smile, “we can’t let the Sei of Suzaku think that we’re just letting them defeat us.”

Chichiri nodded. “I’ll let everyone know no da. Thank you very much no da.”

“You should return to Konan as soon as you can. Remember, give me two or three days to arrange things, and then his rescuers can come.”

“Good luck no da,” Chichiri said, picking up her hat and putting it on her head.

“To you as well,” he answered as she vanished into it. He sat in the silence, as if waiting to be sure she was gone, then leaned over the bed and kissed Soi’s forehead. “It’s happening,” he said. “For better or worse, I believe we’re going to win.”

*

Only the western horizon was still tinted with an opaque powder blue. The great dome of the sky towering over the palace of Konan was now rich and dark and transparent, admitting a view out into the galaxy of stars. Yui stood on the walkway along the back of the palace. She’d stared at the star charts on the tapestries, the constellations of the four gods lined up in neat rows, but she couldn’t find them in the sky. The sun sets in the west, so ninety degrees to the left of that...

Footsteps came closer in the starlight, and Hotohori walked up to her, now dressed more casually, with his hair all loose. Yui thought when he was in his room he must simply enjoy brushing his hair and changing his clothes. He was carrying a lacquer box. “Good evening,” he said, leaning over and kissing her cheek.

“I was just looking for Suzaku’s constellations,” she said.

“Ah.” He scanned the sky, then pointed. “There, right above Suzaku’s Shrine, do you see the diamond shape of four stars, with one in the middle?”

She looked straight up from the top of the shrine’s peaked roof. “Yes.”

“That’s Tamahome.”

“Is this some kind of veiled question?”

“No, no,” he laughed. “It’s strange, I’ve thought of him often lately. Even moreso than when he was here.”

“What’s in the box?” she asked, changing the subject.

“Incense and such,” he said. He took a step and offered her his hand. Accepting the wordless invitation, she took it and walked along with him to the Shrine of Suzaku. She barely noticed the palace guards, who followed at an unobtrusive distance.

The sigh of the water flowing down the tiered fountain from Suzaku’s feet was the only real sound in a room where the walls themselves seemed to sing in a mystic chant. The guards waited outside as Yui followed Hotohori to the center of the room, where steps parted the fountain’s waters and led up to the golden image of Suzaku. A small fire burned in a shallow golden bowl at the statue’s feet.

Hotohori set the box down on the step and opened it. He lit a stick of incense in the fire and lay it along the edge of the bowl, where it smoldered a subtly-perfumed herbal smoke.

Yui watched him kneel on the step in silence. The scene seemed surreal and dreamlike. If someone had asked her whether Hotohori prayed to Suzaku, she would have said yes, but she was strangely surprised to see him do it. She paced a bit, embarassed. How ironic, that the Suzaku no Miko would be the one person to find worship of that god alien. She came closer to the fountain and saw coins of various sizes sparkling in the bottom, copper and silver and gold, probably donated to the upkeep of the shrine.

Hotohori finally rose. “Yui, is something wrong?”

“Not really, just... We have the same ideas where I come from, but we don’t quite do this...”

He nodded. “I often think the gods are more patient than they’re given credit for. I don’t imagine Suzaku would hold such differences against people whose intentions are good.”

“Actually,” she said slowly, “no one worships Suzaku, where I come from. I believe that Suzaku is there, and that he can make all our wishes come true when we summon him, but after growing up in my own world, it’s hard for me to think of him as... as God.”

Hotohori looked at her, his face not judgemental, but puzzled. Still, Yui avoided his eyes. From his point of view, he’d probably just been told that his fiancee was a heathen. He smiled assuringly. “Don’t worry,” he said. “I’m sure that a Miko must have a place in a God’s heart.”

Yui paused, trying to think of an appropriate response, when she glanced beyond Hotohori and saw a mirror on the wall go dark. A moment later, it turn pitch black, and Chichiri slid out of it, hitting the floor with a thunk. “Chichiri!”

“Ow no da. I missed no da.” She picked herself up and brushed herself off, then waved. “Hi, Yui-chan; hi, Hotohori no da.” Walking to Hotohori’s side, she clasped her hands and gave a brief bow to the statue. “Good evening, Suzaku; I’m sorry for my rude arrival no da.”

Yui couldn’t help but be struck by the difference between Hotohori and Chichiri here in Suzaku’s shrine. Both of them seemed at ease, but Hotohori was reverent in the traditional quiet way, dignified as ever, whereas Chichiri, although respectful, seemed as casual here as she would be in her home---wherever that might be. In a way, Yui couldn’t imagine Chichiri ever being sombre, but at the same time, she was a monk. If she’d be solemn anywhere, surely that would be within Suzuku’s Shrine.

“Chichiri,” Hotohori said. “Where have you been?”

“Kutou no da,” she answered, rubbing her left eye. “Two of my friends were very sick; I did my best to help no da.”

“Kutou!?” Yui cried. “Did you see Tamahome? Is he all right!?”

“And ‘The Universe of the Four Gods.’ Did you see a way to get them back?” Hotohori asked.

“I didn’t see Tamahome-chan, but I believe he’s all right no da. And there is a way to get him and it back no da. Nakago-chan has a plan to make it easier for us, but he needs a few days to put it together no da. After that, we can go to rescue him, and probably retrieve the ‘Universe of the Four Gods’ as well no da.”

“Nakago? The Shogun of Kutou?” Hotohori asked.

“Chichiri, are you sure we can trust him? I know he was your friend before, but...” She decided Hotohori didn’t need to know about her brush with death the last time she’d been in Kutou.

“I know he acted as our enemy in the past, and I’ll admit I don’t know his heart on the matter now no da. But, Nakago-chan hates to see innocent people suffer, as is inevitable in war no da. I know he didn’t lie to me when he told me his plan no da. Also, Yui-chan, your friend Miaka has gathered all of Seiryuu’s Seishi, but one of them---Soi-chan, Nakago-chan’s fiancee---is too ill for the summoning and won’t get better no da. Given those things, I have faith that Nakago-chan’s realized the only way to stop this war is to let Suzaku be summoned no da.”

Yui and Hotohori stayed silent for a moment.

“If you really believe he can be trusted, I’ll respect your judgement,” Hotohori said at last. “Heaven knows it’s more than we had before, and if all the Sei of Seiryuu are gathered we should take whatever chance we have. We can talk it over with everyone tomorrow.”

Yui nodded slowly. “Just... I don’t want whoever goes there to be comfortable with this. Chichiri, if you don’t mind, I’d like you to go. You got us out of Kutou before, you’d probably be best able to do it again if it turns out to be a double-cross.”

“All right, that’s probably a good idea no da. I’ll try not to go anywhere for long for the next few days no da.” She waved slightly and headed for the door. “Good night no da.”

“We should probably do the same,” Hotohori suggested. “It appears we have several busy days ahead of us.”

Yui nodded, and watched him drop a few coins in the fountain before he took her hand and walked started back toward her room. Then, as he crossed the threshold of the shrine, he suddenly stopped. “Chichiri!”

“What no da?”

“I need to... have a talk with you. At your earliest convenience,” Hotohori said, almost a growl.

“Ah... Hai no da...”

*

“Let me get this straight,” Tamahome asked across Nakago’s desk. “You expect me to believe that you’re not going to actually feed me this mind-control drug, and that you’re going to help me escape. And I’m supposed to trust you to do this.”

“In all honesty, you don’t have much choice,” Nakago answered.

Tamahome only glared.

Nakago sighed. “I know you don’t trust me, and I don’t suppose I can blame you, but at first, I believed what my Miko told me about yours. I’m sure you can understand that. However, the reports I’ve heard about the Suzaku no Miko’s actual behavior have told me something very different. The self-serving motive of finding her Seishi may have been involved, but I still can’t ignore the fact that she was instrumental in resolving a bandit squabble, which could have hurt everyone in the surrounding area, with very little bloodshed. She and her Seishi rescued a village oppressed by a demon, and at a moment when she was racing against Miaka to find her Seishi and summon Suzaku, when time was crucial, she went some distance out of her way to heal your own father. Such actions seem to me to be marks of a noble character.”

“‘Bout time you noticed.”

“Tamahome, I know we aren’t friends, but if you could just try not to be so combative about everything---”

He stopped short as the study door rattled softly, then slid open. “Nakago?” The two men looked up to find Miaka standing in the doorway, sleepily rubbing her eyes.

“Miaka!” he replied, a little startled. “Is something wrong?”

She shook her head. “No, I was just wondering where Tamahome went. Sorry, I didn’t mean to chase you out of your room.”

“Oh, it’s OK. Nakago and I were just talking, but we’re done,” he said as she came in.

“Oh, then, Nakago, will you take me back to my room? I wanted to ask you something.”

“Of course.” He stood and put his arm over her shoulder, then turned back to Tamahome. “Good night. I assume you can find your way back?”

“Yeah. ‘Night.”

Miaka stayed silent until Tamahome was well out of sight, then took a deep breath, as if sorting her words. “Nakago, you have to protect me, right? I mean, you don’t have any choice about it, since you’re my Sei.”

He paused. “I am, of course, a person with free will, but because I was born a Sei of Seiryuu, I do have that duty, yes.”

“And you can’t get out of it? Not even if you want to?”

“Well, it isn’t as if I want to. A Sei isn’t a bad thing to be. It gives you a direction in life, respect from others; I’d be lying if I said the Power of Seiryuu isn’t useful on occasion. And if I hadn’t been a Sei, I would never have met you.”

“I know,” she said. “But what if you did want to, then what would you do? Rhetorically, you know.”

“Hypothetically,” he gently corrected, “I don’t suppose there would be much I could do, unless I chose to ignore my duty and disgrace everyone involved. They say that the Gods have understanding that humans don’t. I don’t think Seiryuu would choose someone as one of his Seishi who didn’t want to be.”

“So there wouldn’t be anything you could do? Nothing honorable, anyway?”

Nakago considered it for a moment. “No. Why do you ask?”

“I was just thinking about it,” she said with a shrug. “It’s kind of sad if you don’t get to choose what you do with your life.”

“Maybe,” he said. “Sometimes I think it’s easier than the life of a normal person. There are difficult things I must do as a Sei, but at least I know what they are. And it’s not as if I’m just a puppet; I decided on my own to join the military, to pursue promotion and become Shogun.”

Miaka only nodded as he came to the door of her room and opened it for her. “Is there anything else I can do?” he asked.

“No,” she said. “Good night.”

“Good night, Miaka,” he said with a slight bow.

*

“‘The Seiryuu no Miko lay awake, pondering the Shogun’s words for many hours. Like a cry passing through paper walls, these thoughts came to the ears of one for whom they were not meant,’” Hiro read. What on earth does that mean?

*

Miaka hugged her pillow to her chest, staring across her room into the darkness. It’s not fair. Tamahome shouldn’t have to go back and protect Yui if he doesn’t want to. It’s not his fault he was born a Sei. He should be able to stay here with me if he wants.

She rolled over restlessly, then started up at the sight of moonlight reflecting off a silhouette beside her bed.

“Good evening, Seiryuu no Miko,” said a childish voice.

“Oh, Miboshi,” Miaka said with a nervous laugh. “You frightened me.”

She turned and fumbled with the lamp on her nightstand. There was supposed to be a piece of flint somewhere in the drawer, but she never could get it to work right.

“Allow me.” A whirling of a turning wheel echoed across the room for a moment, and then the lamp flared up, the wick exploding into flames.

Miaka gasped, her heart pounding as the lamp settled down to a more reasonable glow. “Don’t do that! It’s creepy!”

“Many of your Seishi are ‘creepy’, as you say,” Miboshi answered, moving a bit more into the light.

None of the others were like Miboshi, though. He looked like a kid, but not any normal kid; rather, a miniaturized monk in full-sized trappings, like a child playing dress-up in loose robes and too many gold prayer beads and jewels, and too-large earrings that hung from his elongated earlobes. Strangest of all was the gold-and-ruby “third eye” in his forehead, but that still wasn’t as weird as his own eyes: orange irises and deep black pupils, both sharply oval instead of round. And he always carried a strange toy-like object, like a golden spool on a handle with a red spike---a prayer wheel, he called it. He’d said he was an important monk, the Lama of Daijin or something, when he’d shown up at the palace to claim his place as her fourth Sei.

From the moment she’d met him, he’d acted creepy, too. For all he looked younger than her, he talked like an old grandfather who thought he’d been around long enough to know everything. His Sei power was supposed to be telepathy, and he didn’t seem to have any qualms about reading someone else’s mind, whether they liked it or not. He knew magic too, and none of those comforting physical reasons for events seemed to apply around him. He levitated everywhere he went, floating cross-legged a meter above the ground for no reason. If he wished it so, doors opened and closed without a touch, water boiled without fire, fires started without matches. In a way, his powers were frightening, but still, Miaka was grateful for them. At least we have someone to balance out that funny blue-haired woman of Yui’s who blew up Seiryuu’s shrine, she thought. Someone who’ll actually do something, not like Nakago. Even if she used to be his friend, it was more important to stop Yui. I had to give up my friend, why couldn’t he?

“Taiitsukun’s student often has a... strong effect on those around her,” Miboshi explained.

“Stop that!” Miaka snapped. “I didn’t say you could read my mind!”

“I’m sorry, Seiryuu no Miko,” Miboshi apologized, “but it can be difficult to block out, especially in the case of strong emotions.” He floated towards her, lowering his high-pitched voice. “Your precious Tamahome will be leaving soon, and you don’t want to see him go, correct?”

“That’s none of your business,” Miaka pouted, pulling her knees up to her chest.

“But you would prefer that he stay with you, would you not?”

“He can’t. He has to go back and protect Yui, ‘cause he’s a Sei of Suzaku. He doesn’t have a choice.”

“There are ways.”

“That’s not what Nakago says.”

“Ah, but I know things that Nakago does not. There are ways to ensure that Tamahome remains here, willingly.”

“Hm?” Miaka asked, looking up. “Like what?”

“Well, for instance...” Miboshi held out his hand, with two small, round balls of some sort of herb in them. “Have you ever heard of Kodoku?”

“No...” Miaka reached out and took the two balls, poking them around in her palm. “What does it do?”

“It’s a wonderful concoction. With this, you’ll be able to open Tamahome’s mind, and show him the truth about the Suzaku no Miko.”

“But he’ll still have to go back to her.”

A smirk spread across Miboshi’s youthful face. “Not if he isn’t a Sei. Using the Kodoku, you can change that, ensure that the Mark of Suzaku never appears to bother him again.”

“But he wouldn’t be the same person if he weren’t a Sei.”

“He’ll be whatever you wish him to be. It’s a deceptively easy substance to control; I could easily teach you.”

Whatever I wanted... But if it’s that easy, wouldn’t he have to be what anyone wanted? Miboshi knows how; would he have to be what Miboshi wanted? Miaka though, with a frown. She closed her hand around the balls and held them out, squeezing her eyes closed. “No, I don’t want them. I won’t do that to him.”

“I promise, I’ll leave him to your will,” Miboshi said, apparently reading her mind again, but this time, she didn’t really care. “And think, if you don’t act, then he’ll leave you for good, and the Suzaku no Miko will win.”

Miaka slowly lowered her hand. Yui’d just tossed Tamahome aside, broken his heart, and she didn’t even care. And still he had to go back to her, to let her abuse him even more! That wasn’t right. But this... “I couldn’t get it to him anyway,” she said, opening her eyes and staring at her hand.

“Nonsense. Who brings Tamahome most of his meals, Miaka? Nakago plans to place an adequate dose of Kodoku in tomorrow’s dinner, then switch it with an untainted but otherwise identical plate. Of course, if two objects are switched twice, the original order prevails, does it not?”

Miaka merely sat silently.

“Consider it, Seiryuu no Miko,” Miboshi said, floating away from her. “If you wish to learn, you know where to find me.”

With that, he floated away, and the door slid closed behind him of its own accord.

Miaka turned her hand over, staring at the herbal balls for several long moments. “He’ll be whatever you wish him to be.” That meant Tamahome could be just the same, only not a Sei of Suzaku, didn’t it? He could be just like he was, only not have to go back to Yui. It’d... It’d be a gift. He could have his freedom, he could chose what to do with his own life; it wouldn’t be all mapped out for him. He wouldn’t have to go back to Yui, he could stay here.

No. No, she couldn’t do that to Tamahome.

Could she?

*

To Be Continued...

*

PREVIEW

Days pass, and as plans for Tamahome’s return are made, Yui grows secure and hopeful in her success and treasured friendships. Just as the Suzaku no Miko’s task seems nearly complete, an evil force as yet unnoticed prepares to strike a fatal blow.

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