Chapter 19

Disclaimer: Sorry for not putting this on for so many chapters… I meant to, but I kinda forgot at the end. Gomen! Yes, so now, here it is: I do not own anything that Yuu Watase created and am not trying to steal her story or any of her characters… so there you have it! -

By the way, thanks to all my reviewers! I have 91 reviews right now! That's only 9 more 'til 100!!!!

Sorry for not updating the story for so long! Please don't kill me!

Now, on with the story…

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"Wh-what the hell? I do not!" the bandit finally retorted back when he gained his senses.

What the fuck. I do not. What's she trying to make me do, anyways?

"Fine. Don't believe me," answered Sakura.

"Why should I?" Damn. Why was he asking this anyway? He should have left it with the 'I do not.' Who was she to tell HIM, the leader of bandits, that he loved someone? But somehow, he held a wanting… a wanting to know if it was true.

"The way you look at her… the way you guys fight, talk to each other… and why you're asking that question… it's SO obvious. Only an idiot wouldn't see it."

"Just like your love for Chichiri?" the bandit countered.

Sakura unconsciously turned to where Chichiri was standing, finding that he was trying to cast a barrier to prevent the snow from getting into the cave, since, even though the fire was still burning, was still far away from warmth.

"Oi…" Tasuki started, and then smirked as he followed the girl's eyes to the monk.

Upon feeling Tasuki slightly touch her shoulder, she realized that she had yet to answer his question.

"Wh-what? I DO NOT!" Sakura's face turned bright red. Did even someone as shallow as Tasuki figure out that she liked the monk? Someone so shallow who didn't even notice love right in front of his eyes?

She looked over to see if Chichiri noticed what Tasuki and she were talking about, but it seemed as if he didn't. Actually, he seemed to be checking up on Seiji… why did he get all the attention? A pang of jealousy swept through her, but she quickly dismissed it.

"Yer face answers everythin' ya know… and you've got to be an idiot not to see it. An' here I was thinkin' you were pretty smart."

"He's a monk and monks and love don't go together. You know that," she quickly answered, trying to avoid the subject, "and this is about you and Kisa, not me, 'kay?!"

"Why would ya care, anyways?"

"'Cause you two are in love…! And… she's been my best friend for… like, forever… and I won't let a selfish, shallow jerk like you ruin her happiness!"

With that, Sakura walked away, leaving an utterly confused bandit outside.

"OI! Who're you calling a selfish, shallow jerk?!"

'That you love her'

Trying to get those words out of his head, he headed toward the opposite side of the cave, the one farthest away from Kisa, and tried to get some sleep, only to find that the blanket that Chichiri had given him beforehand was missing… which wasn't the best thing to find out, especially when the temperature outside was freezing cold, and though it was dark, you could make out the blizzards rushing this direction and that and high speeds.

"This really isn't my day," he moaned quietly. Then, he started towards Chichiri to ask for another blanket when he saw a most amazing sight: Chichiri and Sakura, together, sharing the same blanket, asleep, with Chichiri's arm around her waist.

"What the heck… I can last one day without a blanket…"

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"Mmm…" Sakura squinted a bit as the first rays of sunlight hit the cave.

She made a move to get up and probably start the fire again when she found a tiny problem preventing her from doing so. Actually, tiny was an understatement. It was a gigantic problem.

Somehow, during the course of the night, Chichiri had managed to put one arm around her waist, slightly pinning her down.

Sakura turned around to face the monk that was now peacefully sleeping. Her face turned another ten shades of red as she realized just how close they were. Her head was five centimeters away from his lips.

Her heart stopped temporarily then picked up again, twice as fast.

Great. What would she do now if he woke up? He would think she was the biggest pervert in the… world of perverts! He would probably hate her now, especially since he was a monk! And he was so nice yesterday offering her his blanket so she could be warm… why the heck did she accept his offer in the first place? Sakura deeply regretted her decision.

"Anou… Chichiri?" she stated, in a barely audible whisper, her voice slightly shaking. Come on, Chichiri, she pleaded silently, wake up already.

When did it ever become like this? She could have sworn that there was some distance between them before she fell asleep last night. Well… what was before she fell asleep didn't last long.

"Chichiri," she started again, hoping she wouldn't wake anyone up. "Chichiri, let go of me… please?"

She sighed once again, more desperate now than ever.

So, this was what it felt like to be in the arms of the man you had been crushing on for a while, huh? She had had many imaginary visions of a moment like this back in her world, but nothing would compare to the heart-pounding feeling she felt at that moment. Sakura felt a bit of happiness in the part of her mind that was still working, but it was quickly overpowered by a wave of sadness.

Chichiri was a monk for crying out loud! And not to mention a character in some manga story by Yuu Watase. Then… why did it all feel so real to her?

Sakura shook her head. She couldn't be crushing on some imaginary character, could she? She would have to get that feeling of love out of her mind and heart. Gosh, they probably didn't even know each other for two months yet. What was she thinking? It would just get in the way of their mission to get rid of Itami or whoever that guy was, and she wouldn't know what to do if Chichiri found out and hated her forever for that.

She finally decided to try lifting his arm off her, which was way easier said than done. It didn't work at all. She slowly and carefully turned around to face him once more. So, he still wore his mask when he slept, she noticed. She couldn't believe she didn't notice this fact before… still, he looked so content.

She sighed for the third time that morning.

She surely didn't want to wake him up. It would be selfish of her to interrupt his sleep, but yet, it was also selfish of her, well, at least a part of her, to want to stay in this position.

She looked out the opening of the cave again. It looked as if it was still pretty early. What time was it anyway? She decided it would be in her best interest to fall asleep again. She probably just woke up too early. Chichiri was usually the first to wake up, anyway.

She closed her eyes.

Then, she felt Chchiri's grip grow stronger around her waist, pulling her closer to him, as he rested his chin on top of her head, her face fitting snugly into a place right under his neck.

Crap. What the heck did she get herself into this time? What if he woke up? What if everyone saw them in this position? What if he would hate her for having put him into such a position? A thousand possibilities made their way into her head.

And what about her brother? She felt as if it was her fault that he came through to this world. If he didn't come back safe, her parents would have her head, even if they didn't believe her explanation. Not like they would care about her, though… no, they wouldn't; it was always about her brother, and it would probably always be about him. It was better that way, she guessed. Of course she loved Seiji, but there were times that she wasn't so sure about that… depressing thoughts filled the girl's head as she slowly drifted off to sleep.

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The first rays of sunlight hit her face.

"Com on, Mom, 'couple more minutes, 'kay...? I thought today was a Saturday…"

Kisa suddenly jolt back up, breathing heavily at a quick pace as she remembered what had happened last night.

"Yer world, ne?" Tasuki said. "Miaka said th' same thing once, ya know?"

'Miaka'

"DON'T COMPARE ME TO MIAKA!" she shouted at him.

The slight happiness in his voice, the lift in his face, the brightness and hopefulness that he held whenever Miaka's name was heard or mentioned. His worry that he had sometimes seemed to have when concerning Miaka. Miaka. Miaka. Miaka. Miaka.

Kisa sighed. Now he must think I'm this stupid fangirl… if I thought he hated me before, he must hate me now for sure…He probably even knows now… that I love him…

Finding that it wouldn't help if she just sat and felt sorry for herself, she stood up and decided to take a look outside now that the blizzard had died down.

As she walked, something, or rather someone, caught her eye. There, lying on the ground, were Chichiri and Sakura snuggling right next to each other.

At least some people were happy.

She looked to her left and saw Seiji still asleep with the extra blanket he had gotten from Chichiri or Sakura… brat.

Kisa hated Seiji.

Hated was an understatement, actually. She loathed him with her heart. He was always in the spotlight, always getting what he wanted… stealing all the attention that should have been Sakura's. His parents loved him. It wasn't like they didn't care about Sakura, they just didn't really care what she did, but one wrong move and it would all be her fault that he got hurt or whatever, even if she wasn't involved.

She knew that her best friend tried so hard to please her parents, but her best wasn't enough. Whatever she did- music, academics, even the one time she took up a sport to please her father- Seiji would outshine her, even if she actually did better.

Seiji was naturally good at sports; Sakura wasn't, so basically, her father didn't care about her at all. Her mother showed her love, but she thought that Sakura was too caught up in manga and "should pay much more attention to schoolwork."

She hated Seiji for ruining Sakura's life.

Sakura rarely complained, but she could see it in her eyes. Whenever a moment like that would happen, she would try to cheer her best friend up, with an invitation to watch Fushigi Yuugi at her house- all six DVDs straight through, treat her to ice cream, or whatnot.

She took a tentative step past Chichiri's barrier. The snow sank everything up to her knees, but it was still nice to take a breather outside.

She felt a weight on her left shoulder and quickly spun around.

"What the hell do you want?" she coldly snapped when she saw who it was. "I'm not really in the mood to be made fun of today."

"Who 'aid I was makin' fun of ya?" the bandit replied.

"What? You're not making fun of me? Then what is it? Insulting me? Telling me how stupid I am? Rubbing things in my face?" she shouted.

"Well, actually, Saku-" Tasuki tried to start again, but was cut off.

"Why don't you just leave me the fuck alone!?" She didn't want to face him… didn't want to answer any questions about why she acted the way she did.

Kisa didn't want to face rejection… she wanted to put it off as long as she could… why the heck was she in love with this asshole anyway?

She tried to move forward in the foot-high snow, but didn't get very far when a pair of strong hands grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her around.

"I thought I told you to leave me alone," she spoke, her voice as cold as ice, able to pierce through anything in its way.

Tasuki flinched slightly before regaining his composure. He wasn't used to the girl acting… so distant.

"'nd where do ya think' yer goin'?"

"Somewhere you aren't. Look, do you understand the meaning of alone?"

With a forceful push, Tasuki suddenly forced Kisa inside the cave again, her back now against the rock wall.

Kisa yelped as she felt the wall collide against her back, pushing against Tasuki's arms, which were now on either side of her struggling body. To say that he wasn't intimidating her at that moment would have been a lie. Though she knew she wouldn't win, she continued her struggle.

Tasuki caught her eye- a mix uncertainness and fear clouded them. He had never seen her like this.

"W-what the hell!?" she screamed. Her heart pounded against her chest.

"You… you'll catch a cold if ya stand outside fer too long, Kisa," Tasuki started, softening his voice a bit. He didn't mean to scare the girl, if that was what he was doing.

"Yeah, and when in the fuckin' world did you start caring?" she questioned him, muttering "asshole" to end her sentence.

"When did ya know Miaka?" Tasuki questioned back, unable to hold his curiosity in any longer. "An' when did I start "comparin'" ya wit' her?"

"Jealous or somethin', hentai?" he added, unable to stop himself.

"I told you. There was… there was this book in our world…" Kisa trailed off, not wanting to answer his other questions, her face turning red. Damn, he looks so hot up close! Why did I just have to have that outburst? I knew it would come out sounding jealous…

"So ya are jealous?" he pushed that question on.

"W-who ever said that? I am not jealous. Why in the world would I be!?"

"'cause ya like me, hentai?"

"W-what the heck? Like? You? Don't make me laugh," she retorted, trying to make it sound as convincing as possible, though her trembling voice didn't help much. "And stop calling me hentai. I'm not that much of a pervert anymore… actually, I wasn't ever a pervert."

"Acutally, ya always were a hentai… and I've heard from a couple sources…"

"A-a couple sources… um… for what?" she asked as innocently as possible.

He turned his gaze from the wall directly into her eyes, her blush not going unnoticed by him. How in the world did this topic get into the conversation?

"Ya know fer what…" the bandit assured. Then, not able to hold it back, "And yer blushing, ya know?"

"A-am… I AM NOT! What are you getting to anyway?" Kisa said, a hint of annoyance in her voice. She didn't want this conversation to go any further.

Pretty sure that he got his answer to his previous question, Tasuki changed the topic slightly, knowing how uncomfortable it made the girl in front of him. She's actually pretty cute when she blushes and doesn't swear… wait. What the hell am I thinkin'? Just 'cause someone says that you love somebod' doesn't mean you do! How in the world did Sakura end up thinkin' I liked this hentai!?

He sighed.

"Actually, yer friend asked me to do somethin' fer her."

"Sak? What'd she want you to do? Come up here and accuse me of liking you? Well… well… well… you can tell her that there's not way I love a bastard like you. So why don't-"

Tasuki cut her off.

"Sorry," he said softly. "She told me ta go apologize ta ya… sorry fer whatever I did…"

"Don't give out apologies if you don't know what you're apologizing for," Kisa chastised. "But thanks for apologizing anyway…"

"Yer welcome, I guess… so no more ignoring me, 'kay?"

"What… so the bandit just apologized to me… and didn't want me to ignore him anymore… did Sak pay you to do that?"

"What!? Hentai, can't a man apologize to someon' without being accused of somethin' bad? I'm tryin' ta be nice here!"

Kisa laughed.

"You? Nice? Sorry, don't think that'll ever happen! And stop calling me hentai!"

"Jus' tellin' the truth…"

"WHAT'D YA SAY!?" Kisa demanded, then started chasing Tasuki around the cave, chibi-styled.

"Will you guys please shut up!?" a voice came. "It's too early for you guys to be bickering already… though I guess you did make up?"

Sakura, having finally gotten out of Chichiri's grasp, woke up just in time to see Tasuki apologize to Kisa, though she doubted that either of them noticed.

Both of the koibitos' faces turned bright red.

"Totally not!" Kisa yelled. "He's as mean as ever!"

"Watch what yer sayin', hentai."

"Stop calling me that!"

And the bickering went on.

Suddenly, Kisa became quiet and turned her attention towards Sakura.

"What?" Sakura asked. She felt a presence behind her and turned around. "C-chichiri!"

"So…" Kisa started slyly, "how was your sleep last night, Sak? Chichiri? You guys seemed pretty cozy there."

Sakura's face turned bright red. She knew something like this would happen.

"Chichiri… I… Seiji wanted an extra blanket, so…" Sakura started defending herself.

'So, Seiji could be helpful… once in a while.´ Kisa thought.

"Stop makin' up excuses!" the bandit chimed in, helping Kisa out. Well, there was a first time in everything..

"Your hand was around her waist and you two looked… so cute together!"

"Ddaaa… it wasn't an excuse, no da! And stop thinking like that! It was an accident! I'm a monk, no da!" Chichiri defended, even though, in the midst of the night when he was sure Sakura was asleep, he had put his arm around her waist purposefully.

'It was just to keep her warm' he told himself.

'But it feels so right, doesn't it?' the other part of his conscious told him.

'I told you. It's just to keep her warm' he insisted.

'Fine. Believe what you want… for now. You'll have to face the truth sooner or later'

'My only love is Kouran. My heart's already given to her…' he stated, though there was a sadness in his voice.

'You heart is given to no one yet.'

'Urusei! What do you know!? Give up on it already! I don't love her! How many times do I have to tell you!?'

And so it went with Chichiri's night until he fell asleep.

Sakura's heart dropped at his last sentence. A monk. Right- that proved the point that they were never meant to be even further. She shot a look towards Kisa and Tasuki as if saying "I told you so. He's a monk, so we'll never be able to get together anyway."

Chichiri turned chibi. If it wasn't for his mask, the bandit was sure his face would've turned as red as Sakura's.

Sakura, besides acknowledging the point that Chichiri was a monk once more, was actually pretty relieved that Chichiri didn't find out the position they were in before Kisa told him (or so she thought) and that he didn't hate her.

"So… what do we do now, Chiri?" Tasuki asked.

"I don't know, no da. Sakura," he directed his attention towards the girl, "will you wake up your brother?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah… sure. Of course. Sorry…" she rambled, but moved to wake up Seiji anyway.

She was greeted with a slap on her cheek.

"Sakura-chan, no da! Daijoubu, desu ka?" Chichiri ran to her, concerned, as she fell back.

Kisa stared at the scene before her. Sakura-chan?

"H-hai, Chichiri. He's just… not used to waking up so early… he's probably dreaming or something… happens all the time!"

Sakura smiled, trying to sound convincing, no matter how much her cheek stung at that moment. Did he just call me Sakura-chan?

"Come on, Seiji… wake up," she tried once more, slightly shaking him.

At this, the boy stirred.

"Alright, alright, I'm up!"

Sakura turned to Chichiri.

"Sorry it took so long… he's up," she stated.

"Are you sure you're okay, no da? Your cheek's turning red. Why don't I take a look at it, na no da?"

The natural blush one her face turned even deeper when her brain recognized what Chichiri was saying to her.

"N-no, that okay! I'm fine! Really!"

Then, out of nowhere, came a blinding flash of red light.

"Miaka!?"

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Again, sorry for not updating for so long! Hope this chapter made up for everything!

So… is Miaka really in the book world now? And how will Seiji play a part in this story? Tune in next chappy!

And please review! Any criticism is welcome… I'm sure it'll make the story a lot more enjoyable to read!

ChirikoFan