Fushigi Yuugi Fan Fiction ❯ The power of a child ❯ Chapter 1 ( Chapter 1 )

Long ago, there was a young girl called upon by the fire god of the Shi Ji Ten Sho...and forgotten. Her story is unknown to any, and it is here that you will come to know of her story.
She was not a Miko, or a Seishi, but she held power unmassed by others. You see, the world of the four gods was coming to destruction. Help from those of our world was needed, and the girl, Sakoto, was the only one who could supply it. The young Japanese school girl did not know of the power she held, until she was summoned by the god in her dreams. She heard it and stumbled upon the Shi Ji Ten Sho, unknown book hidden in her local library. It was here that she began to read of the world that was to come to an end, and found herself and her true powers revealed.

"Hotohori-sama. An unusual girl has been found in the country." One of the Emperor's guards announced. He bowed as he entered the throne room. "Bring her in." He ordered his soldiers and a young girl, no more than sixteen, walked in between the two soldiers.

Hotohori sat straight up. The boy was only sixteen himself, just as young as the girl. He gazed at her. The Suzaku No Miko had not appeared yet. Maybe this was her. The girl he had been waiting for.

"Emperor...?" She whispered to herself. "What is this world?" One of the soldiers pushed her shoulder down.

"You will bow before the Emperor." He told her harshly, and she kneeled.

"Do not be so harsh." He ordered the guards. "Is this the legendary Suzaku No Miko?" He asked. The guards shook their heads.

"She does not appear to be. A strange symbol is imprinted on her forehead." One of the guards answered. The symbol stood for Saviour, and glowed white on the girl's forehead.

Hotohori sighed. The Suzaku No Miko was to be a girl that was unlike his people, a stranger. If she was not, then why...?

She stood up. The symbol blazed brightly on her forehead. She fell to her knees again, and she screamed in pain. Her body emitted a strange light, not a red, but a white around her, enveloped her.

Suddenly, the light stopped. She fainted on the spot. Her body couldn't handle the power given to her.

"Take her to one of the guest rooms." Hotohori ordered. The soldiers picked the girl up carefully, and carried her away. "Make sure she has food, and a bed to sleep in." He added.

The Emperor of Konan sighed again. If this girl wasn't the Miko, what was she here for? Why had Suzaku called upon her?

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Sakoto rubbed her eyes drearily. She stretched and sat up from the bed. Bed? Where had the bed come from? She blinked. She didn't remember any bed...
She shrugged her shoulders and thanked Kami. This emperor was nice. But she was in some strange land. In ancient China. The god Suzaku had called upon her from this world, to help it from complete destruction. Complete destruction? Everything in this world seemed fine. Nothing was coming to an apocalypse. What was the total destruction she had to save this world from? And what power did she hold?
Sakoto fell back on the bed. This was all too confusing. She realized her clothes had been taken off by the servants, to be washed and given back. She whimpered. This world was not her idea of a vacation.

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Hotohori sat on the throne chair, his chin in his right hand. He closed his eyes. Who was this girl? And what did Suzaku want with her? She had emitted that strange light...What was the purpose of that?
He opened his eyes again. He stood up and walked down the stairs of the throne room. He would go and see this girl, and find out as much as he could.

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Sakoto watched as one of the Emperor's servants entered the room. "O tabimasu!!" He pronounced, and held a tray of food in front of her. She smiled, and took it from the young boy.

"Arigatou." She said to him, and waved him out. He bowed and walked out.

As soon as he left, the Emperor entered. He sat down in the chair beside her bed.

Sakoto cocked her head. "Where am I?" She asked. She knew this was not her world. What was it then?

Hotohori sat patiently. He did not know the answer either. "You have a great power." He supplied, from the episode in the throne room.

"What power?" Sakoto asked, puzzled. She had been told many times she had a great power. She laid back in the bed, and covered herself in its sheets, trying to hide, and wishing herself back to her world. She didn't want to be here...All she had done was read a book...A book called the Shi Ji Ten Sho. Is this where she was? Inside the book? She shook it out of her head.

Hotohori answered. "I do not know what power you hold." He bowed his head. "It is up to you to find out." He stood up, bowed and exited the room.

Sakoto hid even further into her blankets. She did not want to be here...She hadn't asked for this! Who was this Suzaku anyway? What God was he? She didn't know the answer to any of this. And she didn't think she ever would.

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Chou Ryuuen walked regally across the Emperor's court, his(yes, his!!) servants following after him, carrying his robes. He had heard there was a new girl in the court. He wanted to see who it was.

"Chousama? This is her room." One of his servants told him, as they stopped in front of a door.

"Arigatou." He said, and the two girls bowed and walked away. He opened the doors. A young girl sat enfurled in the blankets. She didn't look happy. She lay naked in the bed, covering herself up.

"Ohaiyo Gozaimasu." Chou bowed to her. She blinked.

"Ohaiyo." She replied and gazed at him.

Chou didn't have anything more to say and walked out. He had just wanted to see who this girl was, if she posed any threat to his Hotohorisama. She wasn't all that pretty, she looked like a boy. Chou's Hotohorisama would never fall for such an ugly little thing. She wasn't as beautiful as him. Chou strode back to his own room, where his servants waited for him.

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Sakoto blinked after the young woman entered her room. That had to be the weirdest moment in her entire life.
She grabbed her clothes and pulled them on, her shoes last. She stood up and tried to spike her short, black hair in the mirror across the room, attached to the vanity. It didn't work, and her hair fell flat against her head. "Kuso!" She yelled at the mirror. She pouted in front of it. "I hate this world! I didn't ask to be sent here!" She crossed her arms in front of her. "Stupid book! Stupid world!" She kicked the edge of the stool in front and yelped in pain. "Itai!" She said and sat on the bed. She decided to go see Hotohori, once her foot stopped throbbing.

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Sakoto bowed as she entered the regal throne room. "Hotohorisama." She pronounced.
"Hai?" He asked her from his chair.
"Who is Suzaku?" She asked simply and he was stunned. She was a strange girl. She was from a foreign land, but as to how she did not know of the Suzaku god amazed him.
"He is the god of this land, the one we pray to." Hotohori told her. She looked at him, intrigued.
"Who or what is the Miko?" She added to her question.
"The girl who will summon Suzaku and make three wishes. A girl from a foreign land, like you."
Sakoto bowed, turned and ran out of the throne room. Hotohori sat, dazed, wondering what had sparked her sudden movement.

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Sakoto ran out of the courtyard of the Emperor. She was determined to find out as much information as she could about this god Suzaku and the Miko. She ran until she was outside the gates and all of the court. In the city of Konan, she stopped in the streets and took deep breaths. She didn't want Hotohori to find her, to keep track of her. She had to find the answers to her questions, and without the help of anyone or anyone breathing down her neck.
She looked around at the people in the city. The citizens walked through the streets, to the market, to the taverns, to wherever they pleased.
"A foreign girl." A voice near her said. She had heard this a lot. She was used to it.
"What the hell do you want?" She narrowed her eyes at the male. And noticed there were two males. She stepped back, prepared to run. A male from behind her grabbed her arms, and looped them around his. Sakoto glared at the two across from her.
"Don't touch me!" She yelled and struggled more, to no avail. The one who had spoken to her closed the gap between the two.
"We'll get paid well for you." He said.
"Don't even think about it!" She broke free from the grip, twisting his arms around and rotating her body to kick him. She hit his jaw square on, and he fell back, blood spraying, and Sakoto heard his jaw crack loudly. She turned to the one who had held pinned her arms back and punched him. His face swerved sharply to the right and he dropped to the ground, dead. The third one approached her cautiously. He grinned, holding his fists close to his side, ready to attack. Sakoto made her decision carefully, but was too late and was caught unguard. She was hit across the jaw, and her eyes went wide. She plummeted to the ground, and felt tears surface from her eyes. She looked up, and saw some sort of metal device laid across the man's knuckles. They looked like spikes, an early version of brass knuckles, except cruder.
Sakoto brought her fingers to her face, and found blood pouring onto them. She cried. Tears. She had never been hurt since she had entered this world before. She was stupid for leaving Hotohori's palace. She was vulnerable out here, and her quest for her answers had gotten the better of her. She punched the ground beneath her and felt herself shaking with tears. She looked up, and saw the male smiling. He knew he had won. He knew he had gotten to her weakness. He grabbed her hair and brought her up. Sakoto whimpered in the grip, and felt her hair rip from her scalp. Tears flowed down her cheeks.
"You! Let her go!" A voice broke into the air, and Sakoto felt the male release her hair and shove her to the ground. All she could do was lie there, and cry, as the two fought in the street, one becoming the ultimate victor.

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Sakoto woke once again in the same bed at Hotohori's palace. She smiled. It was warm and safe here...She had been stupid for leaving. Without anything, without any protection. Her body had taken a beating on those streets. She sat up, and went to sit down in front of the vanity. She brought her fingers to her face, and felt along where the brass knuckles had hit. It had scabbed over, and wasn't bleeding anymore, but it was long, and took up a large portion of her cheek. It was diagonal across her right cheek. She sighed and returned to the bed, curling up in its depths and falling back asleep.

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So Kishiku had dropped the girl off at the palace, and had ran back into the city. He didn't want to be blamed for her appearance. Besides, he had to make money some way, and he knew the girl wasn't going to pay him. Not anytime soon. Why had he saved her anyway, if he knew she wasn't able to pay? What a baka he had been!
So walked through the streets, and kicked at the dust in front of him. What was this strange feeling he was getting from her? Some kind of weird chi was washing over him, and he couldn't seem to shake it. It seemed to be calling him back to the palace, beckoning him. He refused to listen to it, and kept walking until it pounded so bad, his heart seemed to be ripping out of his chest. So turned his body back to the palace, and felt the pain in his chest subside.

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Hotohori watched as his guards dragged in a young boy, and shoved him to the floor.

"We found him trying to break into Sakotosama's room." The first guard told him, bowing quickly and placing himself back into a full standing position again. "What shall we do with him, sire?"

Hotohori stood up. "Let him go."

The guards balked. What was this? The emperor was letting someone go?

"Demo Hotohorisama, he was found without permission on the court! He should be punished!" The guard argued, and pounded his spear into the ground.

"I said let him go." Hotohori repeated. Cautiously, the guards stepped back and the boy ran out.

Hotohori sat back down after the boy left, and called upon his servants. "Send me Sakotosama." He told them, they bowed and left to retrieve her.

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Sakoto was gently shaken in her sleep, and she slowly opened her eyelids. "M? Nan...Nani?" She asked sleepily, and sat up, stretching. A servant bowed to her. "Hotohorisama wishes your presence in the throne room." The girl said and bowed again. She stood off to the door, and Sakoto swept her feet off the bed, on the floor and stood up. The only clothes she had with her were her school clothes. She hurriedly pulled them on over her body, and noticed a large scar running from the top of her thigh to her knee. For a second, she stopped and gazed at the scar and wondered how she had gotten it.

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Sakoto was ushered into the throne room, and the servant promptly left after her. Hotohori stood up from his seat and walked towards Sakoto. He brought himself very regally, and Sakoto looked up at him. He was as young as her, but did not seem it. His height, the way he carried himself proved him to be otherwise. He bent his head down, so he was close to her height.

"Are you all right?" He asked her, concerned. She looked soulfully into his eyes, and felt herself withhold the truth.

"I'm fine." She knew she wasn't. The scab from the brass knuckles dragged across her cheek, and she could see the scar on her thigh just above her knee. She pulled her skirt down discreetly, attempting to hide it, but Hotohori grabbed her hand.

"Kore wa?" He asked, and pulled her skirt up, revealing her entire thigh, and the scar. He looked down upon it, and Sakoto blushed.

"Hotohorisama!" She yelled and pulled her wrist free. She grabbed the folds of her skirt and pulled it back down.

"How did you get these? What happened?" All Hotohori knew was that the girl had been left on the stairs by that unusual boy, and was horribly bleeding. Someone had attacked her, and Hotohori wanted to know who.

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Haku Kaen walked through the palace garden on the Emperor of Kutou's palace grounds. She glanced around, taking in the beauty of the flowers, the plants around her. It was sweet, sensuous, gorgeous. She saw a bench, and sat down lightly upon it. From a bush beside her, she picked a flower off lightly, and smelled it. She sat back, and felt Nakago sit down beside her. She hadn't known of when he had followed her into the garden, but she decided not to bring it up.
Nakago almost grabbed Haku, pulling her back. He took in the scent of her hair, and said, "The Miko may have arrived."
Haku dropped the flower she held so delicately in her hand, as Nakago pulled her closer to him, and she could hear his heartbeat against her ear. They sat there for a few seconds, and Nakago stood up after a short while, walking away back to the palace.
Haku looked down at the flower on the ground, which had been trampled by Nakago, and picked it up again. It wilted in her hand, blowing away in the wind, and Haku felt a light drizzle against the back of her neck. She quickly ran off the bench, and to the safety of a canopy near the palace.

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"Nothing. I'm fine." She glared the way of the emperor. "Just leave me to figure this out." Sakoto turned on her heel out of the room. She headed back to the room she was staying in, and jumped onto the bed. She rolled herself over and stared up at the ceiling. She put her hands behind her head. She was mad. Mad at this stupid book, mad at this stupid world she was in. Mad at herself. She looked down at her thigh, and wondered once again how it had gotten there. She assumed the young man had rescued her soon after she had been saved by him...Maybe she was wrong. Maybe something had happened inbetween there. Not with the man, but with the other three guys....She couldn't tell how long she had been out of it. It could of easily been a matter of hours. She didn't want to think the worst of it though. Slowly, she sat up, and walked over to the mirror(a fav of hers, neh?)
Sakoto fiddled with her hair, pushing it around, spiking it back up, etc. Finally, she left it alone. She stood up sharply, and headed back to Hotohori's throne room.

She hoped that he would agree with the suggestion she had.

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Hotohori walked uneasily about the throne room. He worried about Sakoto. What had happened to her? That scar, that scab on her thigh hadn't come out of nowhere. Where from? His face bore a look of a puzzlement. He couldn't understand it.

Hoto stopped when he saw Sakoto enter the throne room, her head bowed. She stepped in lightly, one foot in front of the other diligently. Finally, only mere inches from the emperor's face, she stopped and gazed up. Her eyes met his, and he grabbed her shoulders.

"What happened, Sakotosama?" He looked into her eyes, trying to read any emotion that he could. Her pupils flickered back and forth.

"Nan...Nandemonai..." She whispered. "Hotohorisama?" She asked.

He let go of her shoulders. "Hai?" He asked back.

Closing her eyes, Sakoto took a deep breath and said, "I want to travel into the mountains. And with some of your men protecting me. I need to find answers to why I'm here. What I'm here for. Who Suzaku is." She looked down, and he lifted her chin with his hand.

"Do not worry. I'll prepare some of my best guards, and you will begin your journey soon." He let go of her shoulders, and hugged her close. She was so small, so fragile, yet her words spoke strong.

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Sakoto packed what she had with her, which wasn't much, in her backpack, and headed to the throne room. A month had passed since she had made the decision to head out in Konan, to find answers to her questions.

The first place she was headed with Hotohori's men were the mountains.

Sakoto stepped into the throne room, and Hotohori ran forward. He hugged her tight, and Sakoto blinked. She stood back, and looked up at Hotohorisama. He gazed down at her, and said, "My heart has only ever been for one person, but you have stolen my grace from it. Sakoto, I am forever your protector, first and foremost. You are like a sister I never had." He hugged her close again.

Sakoto blinked again, but returned the hug. Little sister? She supposed it wasn't bad. At least he didn't love her. Then she'd be in real trouble. Then...She didn't want to think of the possibilities that would ensue.

Pushing her overgrown hair out of her face, Sakoto bowed to Hotohori. "Thank you for your hospitality." She nodded, when she brought her head back up, and looked over. Hotohori's men stood off to the side, covered in glorious armour. and standing at close attention. Hotohori waved a hand, and they headed out to the front of the palace, where a carriage awaited. Sakoto followed them, and they escorted her into the carriage. As it rode away, she looked back, and saw a woman standing beside Hotohori, and Sakoto noticed it was Chou Ryuuen. As the two and the rest of the palace went out of her view, Sakoto thought maybe Chou was the one who had eternally stolen Hotohori's heart.

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Sakoto had been traveling for many days. Finally, the carriage had stopped in a small village, and Hotohori's men had dismounted, leaving the carriage behind. They had bought several horses, and had mounted those, Sakoto on one of her own. They had stayed in the little town for a couple of days, and had finally decided to pack up on the fourth day, leaving the village behind, and heading deeper into the mountains. For days, they sat upon the horses, riding through the heavily treed forest.

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Sakoto rode upon her horse, amidst the group of guards, and felt safe. She knew Hotohori had chosen his best men to protect her.
She smiled and squinted as the sun hit her face from beneath the tree branches. She held the reigns in her hands, and controlled the horse easily, making sure she didn't hit her head on any branches above, or anything else.

With one hand, she felt the left side of her face. The scab had long ago healed over, but a long, jagged scar fell across her cheek, preventing any kind of freckles, her skin to look flawless again. She brought her fingers back to the reigns, and felt her control slip a little when she only had her one hand holding them.

A darkness descended upon the group suddenly. Sakoto felt her horse jerk around, trying to dodge the attacks of what appeared to be men and arrows. Sakoto felt her hands loose the grip of her horse's reigns and she was flung off. She hit the forest floor with a thud, and felt a boot dig into her back. She heard men yelling, shouting, and then just as quickly, they were gone. As Sakoto tried to look around, she felt her eyes close beneath her and her body give in to the pain it felt.

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Sakoto woke up in a pool of her own blood. She snapped to attention and managed to bring herself to a standing position. She saw in horrific detail how all of Hotohori's men lay dead, among the horses. The horses were dead as well. Sakoto let out a scream. A blood curdling scream.

As she stood her bruised body up, Sakoto felt the wound on her cheek open. She brought her fingers to it, and the blood coursed through her skin. She closed her eyes in pain.

She looked around, and an arrow came flying at her.

"Looks like we left one alive." A voice said and another arrow shot at her. Sakoto could barely move, and saw one of Hotohori's men, who was still alive among the bodies, jump in front of her and take the arrow. It hit his back, and Sakoto gasped. He fell on top of her and she gently laid him onto the ground. Tears came to her eyes, and then another voice talked,

"Let her live. She looks valuable. She could be worth something." A man walked towards her, and she felt a metal fan strike her left collar bone/shoulder area and she fell to the ground, her eyes rolling up in her head, and she went unconcious.

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Sakoto felt her eyes ease open, and she groaned. She felt her wrists and ankles bound tight with rope, and could barely move her body around. She wiggled, as much as she could, which wasn't very much. She felt a gag in her mouth as well, put there to stop her from screaming. She squeezed her eyes shut, and prayed nothing had happened while she had been unconcious.
She heard footsteps enter the room, and she looked up as well as she could, without straining her eyes. A young redhaired man entered, a fan strapped across his front. The metal fan that Sakoto had been hit with. A large bruise was across her collar bone and shoulder from the point of impact. She winced as she looked up at the man, and gasped when she saw he was only a kid, probably no older than 16.

He stood over her, and dug his boot into her stomach. Sakoto gasped for air in her gag, and tried to cough. It came out ragged, and she found herself trying to suck in breath, which she couldn't. In turn, she felt herself with the wind knocked out of her.
The boy let up. He took his fan out, and slapped it repeatedly in his hand. "Unless you have something to offer, I suggest you leave now." He smiled, revealing a fang on the one side of his mouth. Sakoto winced again. She sat up slowly.

"Nan...Nani..." Sakoto asked. She felt cold metal hit her chin.

"Onaimawa." The boy ordered angrily.

"Sa..Sakoto desu." She replied.

"Peh." Sakoto slowly brought her pupils up to see the boy before her. He had orange hair, wild, untamed, and his outfit was a mixture of cloth, with a necklace of various beads around his neck. He crouched down. "I've always hated women. Too much trouble." He grinned, revealing the fang like teeth again. "But you seem different." He stood back up.

"Different? Doshite?" Sakoto asked quietly.

The redhaired male kneeled. He took her delicate chin in his hand and leaned towards her. He kissed her.

Sakoto blinked as she sat back.

"I am Genrou." He proudly announced to her. He stood up and walked around her."I'm the leader of these bandits."

Sakoto remained silent.

She felt her hands behind her still tied, as well as her ankles.

Genrou stood in front of her. Forcefully, he grabbed her shoulders and kissed her again. Sakoto couldn't do anything but respond. Genrou slid his hands behind her, and untied the ropes around her wrists. He laced his fingers in her and pushed her back onto the pillows that lay beneath them.

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