Fushigi Yuugi Fan Fiction ❯ Suzaku no Saiai ❯ Chapter 4

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Suzaku no Saiai










Part IV















Nuriko awoke the next morning with a splitting headache and discovered himself gently

holding Kourin's hand. "What am I doing here?" he mused quietly.

"Chikusho, my head is killing me!" Slowly, the events of the past night began to

filter into his fog-filled brain: their terrible fight over his sister, his excessive

drinking and complaining to his companions at the bar about Kourin, Kourin slapping him

and generally making a scene. However, for the life of him, Nuriko couldn't remember how

he had ended up at the side of the bed cradling Kourin's hand.



Once again the young man marvelled at how sweet and innocent the girl looked while

sleeping. All the harsh lines were smoothed away, and she almost seemed to smile.

Suddenly, the dark lashes flipped up, and Kourin's slightly husky voice asked,

"Nuriko?! You're really still here?! Didn't you get the hint last night?"



"What do you mean?" Nuriko asked in surprise. "I thought I apologized

for the whole mess last night...or was that just a dream?"



Kourin's eyebrows raised in disbelief. "You really don't remember, do

you?" she sighed heavily.



"Remember what?" the young man retorted, growing a bit irritated.



"You aren't capable of remembering what your dreamself does, are you?" the

girl asked. She shook her head violently. "Of course, you can't," she scolded

herself. "You've never been taught how to. Besides if you had you'd know exactly what

I'm talking about."



"You don't have to act like I'm crippled or something because I can't do your

fancy magic tricks!" Nuriko snapped, wounded. However,despite his frustration, he did

not pull his hand away.



Kourin sat up with an upset expression on her face. "Ryuuen, I didn't mean it like

that!" she said with tears in her voice. "Dreamself remembrance is part of the

chi development techniques in my world. It was thoughtless of me to think that you'd know

what I was talking about." Her dark eyes teared up, and she looked down with

frustration and self-deprecation written in every line of her body.



Nuriko covered their entwined hands with his free one. "Don't cry," he urged

softly. "We managed to hurt each other once again, didn't we?" He squeezed her

hand and deftly pulled her other hand into the pile. "No matter how many times you

stomp on my feelings or ideas," or my heart he added silently, "I won't leave

you. I've sworn to protect you and until this adventure is over, you are mine to care for

and cherish boku no,...iie,ore no okusan." Nuriko lifted the girl's hands to

his lips and kissed them reverently.



Kourin looked up with a smile that was like a ray of sunlight piercing through the

clouds. "You do remember what we discussed," she said with delight. She

pulled her hands from his and clapped them like a child.



Nuriko felt bereft without the physical contact, but he grinned mischievously.

"I'm not entirely an amateur, ojousama," he teased. "However, since you are

so skilled, you must allow me to learn from you."



Kourin's smile grew wider, and her eyes sparkled with joy. Nuriko's clowning brought

happiness to her heart, which had too often been burdened with bitterness and sorrow. She

leaned back against the headboard and let her inner happiness bubble up to her lips.



The husky, throaty sound jolted Nuriko from his personal reverie. Kourin's head was

thrown back exposing her soft throat, and her hair was like a golden-brown halo. The

nightshirt had a little to reveal pale diamond of skin and hinted at the curves

underneath. He swallowed and began to breath deeply. Those stranges sensations again!

Looking at women never had aroused him before, but now... He knew the right thing for him

to do was to look away, but the young seishi couldn't tear his eyes from the innocently

erotic scene. The girl seemed infused with a golden glow, and, for a moment, Nuriko could

have sworn that she had a pair of golden wings.



Abruptly, Kourin's laughter stopped. "In all seriousness, Nuriko, I could probably

teach you. As a Suzaku seishi you already have some chi abilities; I just need to show you

how to maximize them."



"Nani?" Nuriko looked around as though he'd just woken up. "Did I miss

something important?"



"Baka," Kourin said with a smile, "I said I'd teach you, unless, you

weren't serious about learning."



Nuriko blushed a little. He'd just been trying to cheer her up, but...if he could

travel through dreams... "I'd like that a lot, Kourin. It will certainly make

travelling more interesting."



"Good," the girl said brightly, hopping out of the bed. "We'll start

today."



Nuriko puzzled over the situation as Kourin ran off to get dressed. She confused him so

much! She seemed to have completely forgiven him, but why? And she still wanted to get rid

of him as her protector. Had his dreamself apologized or was she going to ignore the fight

to concentrate on her second objective, getting rid of him for good?



"Anou..., Kourin," Nuriko called out suddenly.



"Nani, Ryuuen?" she answered. "I am dressing right now."



"I just wanted to know why you aren't mad at me," the young man said lamely.

"I behaved so badly last night."



Kourin walked around the edge of the changing screen in the red dress he had chosen for

her. She came towards him and put her hands on his shoulders, forcing him to face her.

"Nuriko, you saved me from being trapped in a nightmarish dreamworld. For that I can

forgive anything and forget much."



"Kourin, ari...arigatou," he stuttered nervously and clumsily embraced her.

To the young man's delight she snuggled a little closer into his warmth and trustingly put

her head on his shoulder. The girl's breath feathered over his skin bringing a return of

the disturbing feelings.



"Ryuuen," she said contentedly, "I'm so glad that you're my friend. I

don't know what I'd do without you."



Nuriko felt his blood run strangely cold. "Yes, friends," he said flatly. Why

was he so disappointed? He desperately struggled to regain his ocomposure. "When did

I become Ryuuen, Kourin? Yesterday it was Nuriko this and Nuriko that, when it wasn't 'you

bastard' and other choice epithets."



"If you don't like it, I can stop," Kourin said hastily,"but since you

are my husband...at least until we reach Konan."



"No, no, don't worry about it," Nuriko said quickly. "It sounds good

when you say it." The girl looked at him quizzically. "I mean I like the sound

of my name on your lips...I mean it's all right if you call me Ryuuen."



Kourin pulled away from him and turned towards the window. "Nuriko, there

is something we need to clarify," she said softly. "I'm not interested in you

romantically. I need your protection, and you would be a valuable friend, but there's

already someone I'm meant to be with."



"What makes you think I'm interested in you?" Nuriko blustered. "You're

annoying and a harpy, and you swear like a bandit..."



"Please don't try to lie to yourself," Kourin said quietly. "Somehow

when I saved your life and freed Kourin, I replaced her in your heart. I can't explain it,

but now you think that you love me."



"Who is he?" the young man blurted out impulsively. "How can you have

found someone so quickly?"



"You're one to talk," the girl pointed out. "We've known each other for

less than twenty four hours, and your mind's already decided that I'm the woman of your

dreams."



"Just tell me who he is!" Nuriko begged. "Is it Tasuki or Chichiri or

maybe Mitsukake? You two seemed awfully chummy yesterday."



"No, it's none of them," Kourin answered quietly. "In fact we've never

met in person, but I think I know why Suzaku wants me to go to Konan. I'm to be with him,

at least for now."



Nuriko's eyes widened, and his face paled. "Masaka! Kourin, you don't mean

Hotohori, do you?"



She turned to face him with a carefully expressionless face. "By this sign on my

neck," the sign began to glow, "I have been marked as being tied to him, perhaps

for eternity."



"You've never even met!" Nuriko protested. "How can you be in love with

someone you've only seen in your dreams?"



"My dreams don't lie," the girl whispered softly, "and besides I never

said I loved him. I am drawn to him like a moth to a flame, but is that love? Besides, NURIKO,

do you really know what love is? I am the first woman you have ever 'loved' that you

thought you could have, and now you're an expert! Maybe you don't have any feelings for me

at all beyond an intense gratitude for saving your life!"



The young man strode across the room and grabbed her by the shoulders. His face was

white with the strain of containing his emotions, and his violet eyes had darkened to a

deep, rich purple. "Maybe I don't know what love is, Kourin! Maybe I'm inexperienced

with life, but I know one thing. I can never touch and hold you the way my confusing,

burning emotions tell me to! I must be a man and hold back!"



"Maybe restraint isn't the best thing in love," the girl retorted,

"though in your case it's probably misguided lust!"



"Baka!" Nuriko spat angrily. "I would never forgive myself if I took

something from you that was not offered to me freely! Everytime I've made you cry, it

feels like a part of my heart has died, and I live only for the sunshine of your smile.

That warmth and light is the only thing I'm living for now. Kourin, I think that hontou ni

aishiteru!"



"You couldn't touch me anyway," the girl said coyly. She hooked a finger

under his collar and pulled. "Remember our deal. You touch me in anyway I don't like,

and I drain all the chi from you body." She stopped and cocked her head, and a look

of panic crossed her face. "Someone's at the door!" she whispered anxiously.



"Probably wanted to see if any bodies needed to be hauled away," Nuriko said

dryly.



Kourin fluttered her hands nervously, and she began to hyperventilate. "We can't

let them know that I'm not really your wife!" she gasped. "It would cause a

terrible scandal!"



"Shh, calm down, little one," Nuriko said soothingly like he were calming a

small child. "I'll take care of everything. Will you do what I tell you without

questions or recriminations later?" Kourin nodded her head slowly. "Good, it'll

be all right."



Nuriko wrapped the trembling girl in his embrace, and she snuggled against his chest

for comfort. He waited for her shivering to subside before slipping one arm around her

waist and capturing her head with the other. "Gomen nasai, Kourin, for taking

advantage of the situation," he thought, and he covered her lips with his. She jerked

back in surprise, but his strong hold kept her captured. He hungrily tasted her mouth and

her lips open to accept his questing tongue. He allowed his hands to begin to roam a

little, and Nuriko was surprised at how long he was able to masquerade as a woman with all

of the anatomical differences. A jolt of pleasure flooded his body when suddenly Kourin's

arms wound around his neck, and her hands entwined in his hair. Her spicy taste was

intoxicating, and Nuriko found himself gravitating towards the large bed. Kourin was soft

underneath him, and he began to press fevered kisses along her throat. Suddenly, the mark

for star burst into flame. The sight transfixed him, and Nuriko rapidly pulled away. He

moved to the edge of the bed and buried his face in his hands.



"Gomen, Kourin," Nuriko choked out despairingly. "I used the situation

to take advantage of you." He waited for her to attack him and ruin the last shreds

of his dignity. Instead, Kourin hugged him from behind and gently laid her head on his

back.



"Doushite, Nuriko?" she asked. "You only did what I asked." She

turned his head so their eyes met. "You protected me, and even if your methods were

not the most orthodox, arigatou, Ryuuen."



"But...but you just finished telling me that you were destined to be with

Hotohori," Nuriko stammered in confusion. "You refused me, and I still took

advantage of your need for protection."



The fair haired girl looked at him gravely and gently took his face in her hands.

"It's been a long time since a man has made me feel that I really am a woman,"

she said softly. Nuriko stiffened as she chastely kissed his forehead, cheeks, and,

finally, his lips. She made a slight gesture with her hands and spoke in a regal, imposing

voice. "I, the last daughter of the golden phoenix, call upon the four elements and

the four cardinal directions to give this man the strength of body and will to protect us

both from the darkness to come." Nuriko almost had to shield his eyes from the

intense golden aura flaming around the girl's body, and, once again, he thought he saw

golden wings before the light winked out.



"What was that?" Nuriko gasped awestruck. "What kind of power to you

carry within you?"



"I don't know," the girl replied shaking. "I've never done that

before."



From his view in the heavens Suzaku smiled. "So at last she has awakened. Perhaps

it's finally my turn."



Nuriko and Kourin left the inn as quickly as they had arrived the evening before

despite Nuriko's fuzziness from too much alcohol. The young man was still shocked by his

companion's mysterious nature, a nature that Kourin herself did not know or understand.



He looked back at the girl quietly seated behind him. "She looks so, well, normal,"

Nuriko thought, "but she's the 'last daughter of the golden phoenix', whatever that

means."



"Oh, Kourin," he exclaimed suddenly, "you promised to teach me that

dream remembrance thing. Can we start now?"



She raised her eyebrows. "You really want me to teach you?" the girl asked

incredulously. "I was sure that you were just fooling around."



He made a face of mock distress. "You really think that poorly of me, Kourin-chan?

I'm crushed."



"Dreamwalking isn't easy," Kourin said seriously, judiciously ignoring the

'chan'. "It takes a lot of practice, and no two people follow exactly the same

path."



"How on earth do you think you can teach me then?!" Nuriko demanded.

"You DID say that you'd teach me!"



She gave him a disgusted look. "I didn't say that I couldn't teach you,

baka! I just said that no two people dreamwalk exactly the same way!" Kourin took a

deep breath before continuing. "I'm not really teaching you dreamwalking because I

don't want to risk you wandering into someone else's dream and getting trapped. You'll be

learning dream remembrance and dream manipulating for right now. Tonight before you go to

sleep envision yourself travelling down a path towards a distant castle. Everything else:

landscape, companions, whether or not you reach the castle, will be up to you. Let your

vision shape itself, but use your mind to guide your actions. Eventually you will be able

to guide others' actions as well."



"That doesn't sound too hard," Nuriko said puzzled.



Kourin smiled enigmatically. "Just try holding onto your vision and keeping your

spirit alert as your body falls asleep."



That night they camped in a secluded glade on the side of the road. As Nuriko helped

her dismount Kourin gave him a wicked grin. "I sure hope that you can cook because I

can't do anything that's not microwaveable or instant."



"What's 'microwaveable'and 'instant'?" Nuriko asked quizzically. To his

bewilderment the girl just laughed in his face and began to walk away.



"That proves it," she giggled. "You are definitely cooking. What can I

do to help?"



After dinner the two sat contentedly together under the darkening sky. Somehow Kourin

had managed to care for the horse and set up the campsite while Nuriko had prepared the

food, so now they were perched on one of the two bedrolls. As the stars began to come out

Nuriko began naming the constellations for his attentive companion.



"See, Kourin, that one there is Tasuki, and over there is Chiriko," he said

learnedly.



"Do all of you have constellations?" she asked fascinated. At her companion's

nod she sighed happily. "So I only have to look at the night sky, and you all will be

with me." She pointed eagerly at a group of appearing stars and tugged at his sleeve.

"Ryuuen, who's that?"



The young man studied the sky, and his brow wrinkled in frustration. "I've never

seen that constellation before," he said puzzled,"but when I was a child, my

father told me that there were four constellations that hardly ever appear. They almost

never appear at the same time, and they are usually the portent of some sort of

upheaval."



"Which one could this be?" Kourin asked wonderingly. "What were they

called?"



"The were named according to their position in the sky," Nuriko explained,

"so in the north is the green tortoise, the west is the bengal tiger, the east the

white dragon, and in the south is the golden phoenix. I think this one is the golden

phoenix, but, look, Kourin! It's in the center of all of the Suzaku seishi's stars."



"They're trying to protect her," the girl said reverently. "They have to

keep her safe until Suzaku comes to take her back to the heavens."



"Baka," Nuriko said tenderly, ruffling her hair. "Stars don't have any

gender."



"Those four: green tortoise, Bengal tiger, white dragon, and golden phoenix, have

a physical form just like the seishi's stars," the girl insisted, "and they must

be women."



"How can you know that?" Nuriko asked. "You didn't even know what

constellation it was!"



"The stars spoke to me," Kourin answered in her eerie, regal voice. "My

sisters are there calling for me to join them. Lü Wugui, Mu Hu, Bai Long, I am

listening!"



"What is wrong with you?" Nuriko cried in fear and frustration. "Kourin,

look at me! Do you know who I am?"



She turned her head, and their vacant gaze chilled him. A golden flame flickered in the

center of each pupil, and she seemed more animal than human. The girl stared at him for an

eternal moment. She reached out to him, and for an instant her eyes cleared. "Nuriko,

tasukete!" she cried before her eyes clouded over again, and she, mercifully,

fainted.



"Oh well, there goes my evening," Nuriko muttered as he tucked his fallen

companion into one of the bedrolls. "I might as well practice that dream thing she

was teaching me."



He lay down in his bedroll and closed his eyes. "A path leading to a castle, huh?

I think I can do that." The young man began to visualize his mental journey, and the

gate to the dreamworld opened...









Glossary< br>
Chikusho -- mild cussing

Chi -- life energy

Boku no, ...iie, ore no okusan -- Literally it translates as "my, ...

no, my wife". However, this makes no sense. "Boku" and "Ore" are

both masculine words for "I" in Japanese, but "ore" has a more

masculine conotation. When Nuriko uses it, he is declaring his commitment to fully

becoming a man and trying to show off a little for Kourin. :)

Ojousama -- lady, miss

anou -- A Japanese space filler like "um" or "well" in

English

arigatou -- an informal form of "Thank you"

Masaka -- Imposible! That's ridiculous!

Honto ni aishiteru -- I really love you

gomen -- an informal form of "I'm sorry"

doushite -- why

baka -- dummy, idiot

Lü Wugui, Mu Hu, and Bai Long -- These are names for the other three

'mysterious' constellations that Nuriko mentions. The names are Chinese and mean: Green

turtle/tortoise, Tigress(I couldn't find Bengal tiger in my Chinese/English dictionary),

and White Dragon. In the next part the physical counterpart for the 4th constellation, the

golden phoenix, will appear. Her name is Jin Feng, which means, guess what, "Golden

Phoenix" in Chinese. This astrology is entirely my own invention, and as such

contains a lot of plausibility flaws. Please just ignore them, and enjoy the story for

itself.



















Questions? Comments?



I'm still intrigued! Rock

on Part 5!



You're being *soo* mean

to Nuriko! I don't wanna read any more.:(



© 1997 jscaife@austin.rr.com