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Broken Willow Part 2
Standard disclaimer applies.
mbsilvana@yahoo.com

Nuriko was thoroughly enjoying himself. Things were finally going the way he
wanted them to. That idiot Kouji had managed to make himself scarce, and none of
the other bandits had anything that even resembled a conscience, so that left
Nuriko able to carry on exactly as he pleased. Right now Eiken was dragging the
annoying miko off to his rooms, and Hotohori was in the main room serving the
bandits.

Nuriko's thoughts softened as he thought of his previous reason for existence,
but he had to steal himself. They were going to meet soon- it was inevitable,
and he was determined that it would be on his own terms. He braced himself, then
headed off towards his fate.

Hotohori, meanwhile, was not having a good time. He and Miaka had been
separated, and right now he was stuck serving these men, many of whom were
giving him assessing looks. He knew his beauty was astounding, but these weren't
merely admiring glances- they were speculative. One of them was drunk enough to
keep glomping his waist, and he hoped that he would be able to maintain the lie
of his gender long enough to save Miaka.

"Hee hee hee," he giggled in a falsetto, trying to maneuver towards the door-
his sword was over there, and if he could get to it, he'd be able to take this
whole room. He had no illusions of totally defeating the entire gang, but if he
was careful enough, he could certainly be able to get himself and Miaka out of
there, and maybe even located the other Seishi.

He was about six feet from his objective when another of the bandits entered the
room. The bandit was different from the rest- he appeared to be so slender that
Hotohori could break him with one hand, and he was perhaps the prettiest man
he'd ever seen. Something struck him as familiar, but he was unable to place
him.

"Good evening, my lord," Hotohori said, nodding his head as gracefully as one of
his court princesses. "Can I get you anything?"

The man laughed, and his voice was like bells on the wind. "Anything, heika-
sama?" he asked, his eyes mocking.

Hotohori almost had an apoplexy, which was not a good thing for an eighteen year
old. "Nani?" he whispered, glancing around to make sure no one had heard.
Luckily, the bandits were all too distracted by a card game to even notice. Then
his eyes widened as he recognized the voice, and his heart leapt. "Nuriko!" he
whispered, coming closer. "Did they catch you to? If we work together, we can
get Miaka out of here!"

"They didn't catch me," Nuriko replied, walking over to the sword that Hotohori
had been gazing longingly at. "I guess you could say I caught them, in fact." He
picked it up, and to Hotohori's astonishment, threw it into the stone ceiling,
embedding it so deeply that only the hilt was visible. "Oh, my," Nuriko said.
"Did I do that?"

Hotohori had been confused enough- this was the first time he had seen his
fellow Seishi in male clothing, and the way he had just walked in was enough to
be bewildering, but now his actions made no sense. "Nani?" he asked.

Nuriko smiled like a cat about to pounce upon a particularly plump mouse. He
walked over to the table and sat himself down delicately on top of it, ignoring
the men who immediately moved out of his range. "I-" he began, but was
interrupted by a whirl of speed.

Genrou had come just in time to see to see Nuriko sit on the table, missing the
earlier incident with the sword. His quick mind assessed the situation rapidly,
and decided that the lavender-haired girl must be one of the prisoners, and as
the true leader of the bandits, it was his responsibility to get her away from
the brown-haired interloper. The man's garments were of very fine weave, much
too good for a common bandit. So that's Nuriko, he thought. Concentrating
briefly, he felt his powers come to his call, and he raced through the room too
fast for the normal eye to see, grabbing the girl and carrying her outside.

Setting her down, he looked down at her. "Sorry for grabbing you like that.
Didn't want anyone to do anything to you."

Nuriko decided to play along. Looking up at the bandit, he lowered his eyelashes
coyly, and adjusted his posture to a more retiring one. "Thank you, bandit-
sama!" he fluttered, twisting his hands. "Those men were simply AWFUL! When they
found out I had no money, they said- they said.... I could WORK my way through,"
Nuriko continued, artfully contriving a few tears. He placed his face in his
hands, though was careful to make sure he could still see the red head's
reaction.

"Kuso, don't go all goose girl on me!" the man retorted, his expression frankly
horrified. "Tell me where that other girl is, and we'll get the two of you outta
here," the bandit promised.

Nuriko pretended to go hysterical. While he was ranting about how close he'd
come to losing his virtue, he thought quickly. I bet this is Genrou, he thought.
The one Kouji keeps raving about, and the other men miss. I wonder where the
rest of the guys are? They should be looking for me about now.

Finally Genrou decided that he had had enough of the hysterical female. Raising
his hand, he slapped her sharply, though not overly hard. "Damn it, calm down,
will you? I'm getting you outta here."

Nuriko had barely kept from returning the slap. "Hai," he muttered resentfully.
Should be able to get rid of this guy. "Some guy named Eiken took her," he said.

Genrou smacked a hand against his forehead. "Great, just great. Listen. You stay
here, and no matter what happens, keep out of sight until I come back for you."

Nuriko managed a teary nod, then watched as the bandit raced off. "Looks like
things are going to get even more interesting," he mused aloud. "It was too
easy, anyway," he said after a moment of further contemplation. "I'm happy- I
get to REALLY torment Miaka."

******

Miaka was shrieking at the top of her lungs, and no one seemed to give a damn.
The bandit Nuriko had "given" her to was ugly fat lump of lard, and he was
laughing at her fear. His hands trailed over her breasts, as she decided that
she was going to have to help herself. Raising a knee, she tried to land a good
hit where it would really hurt, but Eiken was ready for that, and deflected it
easily. "Listen, little girl- be nice to me and it won't hurt so much.... I
might even tell you where Tasuki is, since you're the Suzaku no Miko," he said
in his harsh voice.

Her eyes widened eagerly. "Tasuki? Tasuki is here? But Nuriko...." she
whispered.

"Nuriko doesn't know, or else he'd probably have killed the guy. Are you sure
you want that psycho Seishi around?" Eiken slobbered, and then his hands found
the front of her blouse. Eager as she was to find all the Seishi, she was NOT
going to do what Eiken wanted.

Opening her mouth, Miaka let out an ear-piercing shriek, a shriek that was cut
off by as a rush of wind filled the room- a man with bright red hair. Before she
knew what had happened, she was on his shoulder, looking back at Eiken. "Hello,
Eiken- long time, no see," the newcomer said with a pronounced accent. His hair
was a fiery orange, and Miaka felt something click within her, but she was too
distracted by the events around her to really notice.

At that moment, the bandit whom the others had called Kouji raced in, trailed by
Hotohori. The newcomer's eyes narrowed on the brown-haired man suspiciously, but
Kouji heaved a relieved sigh. "Thank God you're ok," Kouji said to the man.
"Why'd'ya have to go and do something so stupid, Genrou?"

Genrou gave him a confused look. "I told ya I was going to save them, Kouji," he
said. "I got the purple-haired one out, and now all I have to do is get rid of
this one, and we're fine. What are you doing with that guy at your back?"

"This GIRL is one of the prisoners that was captured. You can't tell a guy from
a girl, can you?"

"Apparently not," a husky alto came. Genrou whirled and met the amused eyes of
the girl he had saved a few minutes earlier. To his surprise, everyone else in
the room tensed, and Genrou saw something he had never seen on Kouji's face
before- fear. "I appreciate your concern for me, but I don't need help. I think
you're the one in trouble."

Genrou was more confused then ever. "Then that guy isn't Nuriko?" he asked Kouji
finally, pointing at the attractive man with long brown hair and excessively
handsome face.

The girl let out an amused laugh. "You really aren't that smart, are you,
Genrou?" she asked. With a graceful hand she pulled the left side of her shirt
down, revealing the mark of Suzaku on her skin, and proving, beyond any doubt,
that she was a he. "Konnichi wa," he laughed. "We weren't properly introduced
before- I'm Chou Ryuuen, but you can call me Nuriko."

Genrou looked on in horror as the delicately built man walked farther into to
the room. "It seems you have a little itty-bitty problem here," he said. "I'm
rather unhappy about your return, you see, and my unhappiness has occasionally
been known to be fatal." Nuriko pursed his lips melodramatically. "And you seem
to know a little about what's actually going on here- I'm assuming Kouji's to
blame for that." He smiled sweetly at the scarred bandit. "You and I will have a
talk about that later," Nuriko promised.

Kouji's swarthy complexion paled by about three shades, and it infuriated
Genrou. "What makes you boss?" he demanded. "The old leader had me picked out to
be the new Leader!"

If anything, Nuriko's smile looked even more gentle. "Then where were you when
he died? The men needed you then, and all that was here was that fat slob. I saw
it as my duty to relieve Eiken of the position, for the good of everyone
involved."

Genrou's eyes were angry and sad at the same time. "The leader told me to leave
to explore, to get the experience necessary so that when it was time, I knew
more of the world then just Mount Reikoku. He was a young man! He shouldn't have
died," Genrou said in a fiery voice.

Something flickered in Nuriko's eyes, something that looked like sympathy, but
it was quickly extinguished. "Really. Then I guess I have no choice but step
aside," he said.

Genrou's face became suspicious. From his experience, he knew nothing came for
free. "And what will it cost to make you leave?" he asked.

Nuriko paused, savoring the uneasy silence that awaited his answer. He could
feel Hotohori's eyes on his face, but to his surprise he didn't feel his heart
leap in his chest the way it used to. Before he had looked into Hotohori's hazel
eyes and not felt the familiar wrench at his emotions. Well, well, well... he
thought, this might be fun. "Not much. I just want to take what's mine with me,"
he said gently. "Since I'm the one who ordered the capture of these two, I might
as well be the one to take care of them."

Everything that was good in Genrou cried out against striking such a devil's
bargain, but if he could regain control from Nuriko without a fight, so much the
better. And these were merely prisoners- he had no responsibilities to them.
"Very well," he agreed reluctantly. He unslung the girl from his shoulder and
set her on the floor. "I advise you to do what he says- Kouji says he's insane,"
he said to the two prisoners.

Nuriko shrugged at the implied insult. "Sanity is vastly overrated."

Hotohori found himself being tied back up by the bandits. He was beyond confused
at this point. Nuriko was acting decidedly nasty, and the fear-filled looks
Miaka was casting at his fellow star were worrying.

Soon he found himself being handed off to the feminine man. "Let's get going,"
Nuriko said, lifting Miaka over his shoulder with casual ease.

Genrou, of course, wasn't going to let Nuriko waltz off that easily. Now that
the slender man was burdened by a passenger, he saw it as the perfect
opportunity to rescue the prisoners- after all, he wouldn't want the bandits to
get the wrong idea- if he let Nuriko walk all over him, that didn't bode well
for his reign as leader.

Acting quickly, he withdrew a few papers, and flung them at Nuriko, enchanted
them with an incantation. They transformed into huge wolves, all of which went
for the man with the braid.

Nuriko had been expecting something- from what the men had let slip about
Genrou, the man was no milksop. What he HADN'T been expecting was magic, and his
slow reaction gave Miaka enough time to get free.

"Yamete! Don't kill him!" she cried, and she leapt away, hobbled by the ropes
around her ankles.

Nuriko grabbed one of the wolves by the scruff of the neck and flung it into the
wall, causing it to transform back into paper. The other four, though, were in
hot pursuit, and he gave an ironic shrug. "I know when I'm beat," he said as he
started to run. "We're not done with each other, yet, though! Just wait, Miaka!
The next time we meet, only one of us will walk away!"

The group watched as Nuriko dashed through the window and into the night, with
the hounds of hell on his feet.

******

Genrou had a world-class headache, and what really sucked was that he hadn't
earned it by drinking. At long last, the thing he had feared the most had
finally happened. The Suzaku no Miko had appeared, and she was seeking her
Seishi.

He would have been a fool not to know he was Tasuki; from the time he was
little, he had had the "wing" mark flare whenever he became angry enough. He had
not known what the mark actually meant until he had met the Reikoku bandits. The
old bandit leader had been a man of learning, and once, during a raid, the mark
had flared.

Part of him was overjoyed to see the small girl wearing foreign clothes- it was
though destiny was knocking on his door, screaming, "Wake up!". The larger part,
though, was worried. He had responsibilities here, responsibilities he couldn't
just abandoned to go traipsing about on a whim. If only the old leader, his
mentor was still alive.... it'd be a different story then.

Then there was the whole problem with Nuriko. Learning about the man who had
been keeping the bandits in thrall for the last month was worrying, especially
when Hotohori had hesitantly confirmed that Nuriko was a fellow Seishi.

Hotohori was yet another concern. Until he had seen the chest, Genrou had
positive the man was a woman. No man could possible be that beautiful. Then
again, Nuriko was.... he wondered if the rest of the Seishi were as androgynous,
and wondered what that said for him.

Three of his men- Kouji, Kirin, and Sheng- were bringing him up to date as
Hotohori and Miaka listened in. Miaka was stuffing her face, but between bites
she'd contribute a word or two. "But here's my major concern- where the hell is
the tessen?"

"Tessen?" Miaka asked, though it sounded more like "Mum-mum?" because of the
quantity of rice in her mouth.

"It's an iron fan that's enchanted to spit out fire," Genrou explained. "The old
leader had it."

Kouji looked embarrassed. "Eiken had it, but when Nuriko came, he got it away
rather easily."

"Nani?" Genrou asked. "How did he ever manage to do that?"

Hotohori sighed. "Nuriko is a seishi, and as such, possesses the power of
Suzaku. A simple magical trinket wouldn't have been too much of a threat."

Genrou snorted, but the men around the table shivered. "He's right," Kirin said.
"I've never seen anyone so blasted strong in my life. He broke Tsu's arm without
even trying, and he threw Eiken across the room like he was an acorn. The guy is
fucking strong."

"But what did he do with it?" Genrou asked in frustration.

"Dunno," the three bandits chorused. "He said that since he didn't need it, he
wasn't going to have it lying around for anyone to pick up- to keep us from
mutinying or something like that."

Smart man, Genrou conceded in his mind. "I guess he probably destroyed it then,"
he said wistfully. The old leader had meant for him to have it... damn it! It
just wasn't fair.

The six talked a while longer, but finally Sheng and Kirin passed out from the
sake. Genrou ordered Kouji to escort Hotohori and Miaka to some place they could
sleep safely, then went off to his rooms.

Opening the doors, he was pleased to see that little had changed. Apparently
they all had the wit to stay out of his rooms- and a good thing, too. Unlike
most of the bandits, he preferred to keep his room sparsely furnish, with only
the futon and a few weapons hanging on the wall for decoration. Sighing, he
removed his jacket, folding it neatly. The chest of drawers in the corner
contained all his worldly goods, and they weren't much. Quickly he removed his
beads and pulled out his earrings, then finally began to undress.

Just as he was removing his shirt, he felt something crawl down his spine. Like
most warriors, he had developed what was called by some a "sixth sense" which
warned him of possible danger. Whipping out a dagger from the top of his right
boot, he whirled towards the window to face the threat.

Nuriko was sitting there, playing with the tip of his braid. He wore a grave
expression on his pretty face. Something in Genrou prevented him from calling
out for help- all Nuriko had to do was use the tessen and poof! Roasted bandit.
Provided Nuriko had the tessen still, but from what Genrou had learned, Nuriko
was not the type to get rid of anything that could prove to be useful.

"What do you want?" Genrou demanded, holding his dagger threateningly in front
of him.

The purple eyes blinked, and Nuriko's voice was gentle as he replied, "I have
something to return to you."

"Nani?" Genrou asked.

"This," Nuriko answered, tossing the tessen to the surprised bandit, who caught
it with his free hand.

"The tessen!" Genrou exclaimed in surprised.

"Yes," Nuriko replied quietly, making no move to leave.

Genrou looked at the usurper in amazement, unable to reconcile this with his
prior actions. Taking a few steps closer so their conversation wouldn't be
overheard, Genrou came to a stop two feet away from Nuriko, trusting that the
seishi wouldn't hurt him. For the first time, he looked at Nuriko's face
closely, and was amazed at the bitter sorrow that darkened his eyes. "Why are
you giving it back?" he asked softly.

"Because I will deny no man what is his by right- you are the rightful leader of
the Mount Reikoku bandits, and thus, the fan is yours." Nuriko gave him a
hesitant smile and started to turn away, but then his eyes narrowed and he
whipped a hand out rapidly and grabbed Genrou's right arm. Genrou winced as the
seemingly delicate fingers locked around his upper arm like an iron shackle.
"What's this?" he asked, touching the "wing" symbol that was staring to flare.
"Wing... you're Tasuki...." His lips tightened and Genrou saw the insanity start
to return to the purple depths.

"So? You're Nuriko, big deal."

Nuriko appeared to consider, and again the rational light returned. "So Miaka
will be trying to recruit you," he said bitterly. "Don't let her- she'll betray
you."

"Betray? What do you mean?" Genrou asked.

"She's a selfish bitch who gives no thought of other people," Nuriko replied.
Tears started to form at the corners of his eyes, tears which he ruthlessly
suppressed.

Now, Genrou was no master of the art of observation, but he could tell something
was wrong with Nuriko's perceptions. Miaka might be a glutton, but she was not
unconcerned for others. Genrou knew enough not to try to reason with Nuriko, so
that left trying to comfort him or beating the crap out of him. He'd seen a few
of the walls Nuriko had broken, and realized that comforting was the only
options left. Now.... this would have been fine, had he had any ability in this
field. But Genrou was a blunt bandit.

"Now, it's seems like you've got something wrong- did she kill your sister or
something?" Genrou asked, trying to joke Nuriko out of his grim mood. Wrong
question.

Nuriko's eyes filled with tears and his grip tightened, affecting the blood flow
in Genrou's arm. "She might as well have! Thanks to her, Kourin is no more!" he
wept, tears slipping freely down his pale cheeks.

Genrou was unable to keep from flinching. "Kuso! So that little girl isn't as
sweet as she looks!"

Nuriko nodded emphatically. "Don't trust her, Tasuki. Whatever you do, don't
trust her." With that, he cast a final look at the bandit, releasing his arm.
Nuriko went out the same way he had entered, through the window, vanishing into
the night as mysteriously as he had appeared..

Tasuki stared after him, wondering what to do. Unfortunately, his sleep-deprived
body demanded rest, and he had little choice but to comply. With a sigh, he
threw himself down on his pallet and fell into an uneasy slumber, his dreams
plagued by wolves and fire and women who were really men.


Author's Notes:
More coming eventually!