Hi everyone!!!!! Look, I'm doing another chapter!!!!!!! You all must be amazed as I am :o) Or maybe angry with me, as I am…

Still, I'm procrastinating today, and with the conversation I had last night, I felt that I must simply write today, so…

Disclaimer: I own nothing, and no one. Though, just to let you guys know, Chichiri, Tasuki, Chiriko and I are having a pizza party at my place tonight, if you guys think you can make it ;o) We need to go over chapter details…good thing I just bought a bottle of Gekkeikan! Tasuki would go crazy if I didn't have any sake in my place…

Exodus

I kneel down and feel for Tamahome-san's vital signs. He's alive, but he is so cold. I realize, with a start, that even though he is cold, he has yet to shiver! Hypothermia! No wonder my Otou thought it was more important for me to be by his side! Still, in order to help him, I need to find cover and since my more recent adventure, I feel less likely to trust the local caves. Picking Tamahome-san up by his shoulders, I'm able to move him to the closest lee out of the wind. Sheltered within the dry confines of the trees, I wait for the storm to blow over, all the while I am using my a small amount of my ki to both warm and revive my fellow Seishi.

Unfortunately, I can do no more than that small amount for him, as I feel Nakago-san's ki extend to our area, inspecting. This is a game that I hate playing. I feel as if Nakago-san is the cat and we, the mice. However, while I know I could hold my own in a fight, now, I have little doubt that Tamahome-san would be conscious enough to dodge in the case that Nakago-san decides to use him as a means of distraction. As I sit there, senses straining, I realize that Nakago-san is on to my game, and is heading towards us. From the calculated distance, I would say that Nakago-san would be in this vicinity within a day and a half, give or take a few hours. Thus, I decide that I no longer need to hide my ki, while I also acknowledge that Tamahome-san and I cannot stay in this spot for very long. The problem comes in the terms of mobility. Though the storms has died down from the raging storm it once was, it is still not the best conditions for flying. Teleportation is out, seeing how Tamahome-san would not be strong enough, right now, to withstand the sudden rush into Limbo that occurs when traveling by such method. Signing, I realize that the only option left, at this current time, is physical movement.

Now, I'm happy to say that my physical strength has increased enough, during our travels, for me to have little trouble moving my fellow Seishi; however, that is not one of my three problems.

Problem #1: I will have to drag Tamahome-san through the deep snow, thus leaving an easy-to-follow trail.

Problem#2: Dragging Tamahome-san will only harm him in the means of returning his bout with hypothermia.

Problem#3: Dragging Tamahome-san any certain distance will eventually tire me out. Should, and when Nakago-san, meet up with me, I may be too tired to put up a decent fight.

All three of these problem place a hefty snag in any escape plan. With an annoyed sigh, I urge my brain to think of some solution…any solution. I claim to be a genius, after all, so why should this present any problem for me?

Within a hand's span of time, I'm still no closer to finding a solution. Looking up, I find a pair of snow hawks, nestled together for warmth, mid-way up in a tree. Taking note of their feathers, I realize that the wind, on their level, seems to have greatly calmed down. Taking a greater look around, I begin to notice something that I should have realized before. My plan set within my mind, I undo my outer robe and tie it around my waist. This allows my wings to unfurl. I then take out my inner sash and my fundoshi (loincloth…ancient underwear)…

…Yes, as of now, I've gone bum to the breeze…

Using the sturdy cloths, I tie Tamahome-san's arms around my neck. With a little difficulty, I then tie his mid-body to mine with my fundoshi. I hope he will not kill me out of embarrassment later. Still, with Tamahome-san securely tied to my body I then set my plan in motion.

I jump.

Landing on a lower tree branch, I then jump again, till I've reached the mid level of the trees. Stretching my wings out, I jump and glide to the next sturdy branch of the neighboring tree. I wish I could fly, for it would be easier and less of a strain on my strength, but the closeness of the trees would inhibit me. Higher up, the wind is too strong for me to carry a passenger, below me, I would use up more time and strength trying to navigate within the snow. By going mid-way, I can use less energy then I would by walking, leave no trail to be found, other than my ki, I can hide easier when scouting parties hunt for me, Tamahome-san would have less of a chance of getting cold again and, though it would not be as fast as flying, it would definitely be faster than walking.

I keep this pace up for several hours. Heading southwest, still ahead of me, are more trees. However, I'm forced to stop. Though I can see well at night, I can feel Tamahome-san's temperature rising. Simultaneously, I realize that the both of us have had little to drink or eat since we first began moving. This is not good for his health. Untying the cloths from my body, but retying Tamahome to the trunk of the tree, I land on the ground in order to grab some snow within my personal rice bowl. Jumping back to my ally, I use my warmth to heat the snow and bring it to a boil. I now wish I had some herbs on me, for tea would be nice about now, not to mention that Tamahome-san should take some medicine.

I think back to the lessons I have had with my neighborhood doctor, plus my talks with Mitsukake-san. The only thing that I know of that would help Tamahome-san at this time, would be willow bark, for it is a natural pain killer. However, there is no willow trees that I can see within the vicinity. I wish I knew of more remedies, for the maybe under my very nose, yet I know it not. Medicine is one of the few areas in which I have little knowledge, due to the fact that the only thing that can cause an illness for me is the cold and that, being from the warm, if not hot, country of Kounan-koku, I have never faced such a problem before this trip.

Sighing to myself on my lack of insight during the sea voyage, I remind myself that what is done, is done and that I must attend to Tamahome-san, less he get worse. With the water a tad cooler, I try to rouse him in order to give him food and water.

"Tamahome-san…Tamahome-san, okite kudasai." (Wake up please)

"Mi…Miaka?"

"Gomen, demo Boku wa Miaka-san ja naize. Chiriko desu." (I'm sorry, but I'm not Miaka. It's Chiriko)

"Chiriko…naze…naze koko ni iru? Nakago-yaro wa bouya ga koroshareru ita. Bouya ga shinda…" (Chiriko…why…why are you here? That bastard Nakago killed you. You're dead…)

"Warui kedo, kimi wa netsu ga iru. Sore ja, netsu-yume ga iranakerebanaru shitaze. Bokutachi wa daijoubu. Demo, ima wa, kimi ga tabenakarebanaruze. Sugu ni, kimi wa Miaka-san ga mitsukeru. Kimi wa tsuyoi ni iru." (Sorry but, you have a fever. Thus, you must have been having a fever dream. We're fine. But, right now, you must eat. Soon you'll find Miaka-san. You'll have strength.)

Thus I got Tamahome-san to drink the water and to eat a little of the nuts that the squirrels seemed to miss. Nourishing myself, I pause to find Nakago-san's ki. He must have really pushed his poor horse, for he is half a distance away from our starting point. He seems to have stopped for the night, probably due to his aforementioned horse. This will give us some advantage, for I will not tire as easily. Retying a more coherent Tamahome-san to my body, I once more take off on my jumping and gliding through the forest. If I remember the map correctly, I am still following the path that will lead us to Sairou-koku. Plus, I have gained much ground since I started. I calculate that if I keep up with my present speed and time of travel, I will reach the end of the forest by the end of the next night. Therein lies a problem.

Once out of the trees, travelers of the path will find themselves in a wide open plain that stretches onwards till one leaves the snow to only come of a barren grassy field, with little to no water and edible food. The trip through there, usually only made by nomads and those with well stocked supplies, will take the longest of the trip, for holes that can harm a horse or a human leg are quite often hidden by the stub grass that the plain supports. From there, the travelers enter the outer land of the Talimakin desert. There are at least settlements in the outer rim, places to gain supplies and meet turban wearing foreigners on a path that they call "The Silk Road," who can give not only wonderful accounts of the outside world, but also give advice on the best ways to travel around the area and what gear to purchase. It occurs to me, that the tail end of the outer rim stretches into Kutou-koku and had been the area in which Nakago-san was born and raised, before the death of his mother by the hand of the Kutou soldiers.

But in truth, I digress. The problem is that Tamahome-san and I will be sitting ducks. With no where to hide, and no trees to glide to, our means of travel will be the slowness of the ground. Flying will definitely be out of the question, for with no trees to block the wind, even at full strength and with no passengers to hinder me, I would be hard pressed to fly without crashing into the ground.

The bright side to the grassy plain, however, is that if the original course that Chichiri-san and I plotted out has still been kept, then within half a week on the plain, we will meet up with our friends.

We must survive on our own till then.

Laying out my plans for gathering food and possible liquids, I look up to see that dawn has arrived. Luckily, I have kept my pace for the night, otherwise I would be dead tired right now. That's not to say that I'm not, but I must admit that adrenalin is an amazing thing.

Taking the dawn as a hint, I stop. During the night, Tamahome-san fell back to sleep. However, I do believe this sleep has been a healing experience for him. After I untie him, he wakes up. He looks around our vicinity and smiles a bit as I hand him a cooked rabbit, Chiriko-rotisserie style. Meaning, that the outside is burnt, but the inner meat is at least somewhat edible. After eating my own rabbit and drinking some water, I close my eyes and stretch my ki to look in on Nakago-san. Apparently, he has done the same, for he seems to be infuriated by how far ahead we have come during the night. His ki is erratic and I get the feeling that he is yelling at his soldiers to hurry up their packing a move out.

Opening my eyes, I find Tamahome-san looking at me, questioningly.

"I was looking for Nakago-san's ki. I wanted to see how far apart we are and whether or not he is on the move yet."

"You look tired. Have you slept at all since you found me?"

"No, not yet. But I'm still good. We'll stop at midday for a bite to eat and for water, but when midnight comes, after we eat again, I'm going to have to sleep some. Very soon, we'll hit the end of the forest and without a horse, time will be on the Seiryuu side, I'm afraid. We need only hold out for four or five days on the plains, however, before we meet up with Miaka-san and the others."

"How did you two get separated?"

"We were under an attack, so I had an…unusual friend send them to Chichiri-san."

Tamahome-san seems to digest this bit of information as I reached over and touched his forehead.

"You seem to be over most of your fever. This is good, because I afraid that I must ask you to keep watch while I sleep tonight. Given how much time we made, I doubt Nakago-san will feel up to sleeping as he did last night."

"What happens once we get to the plain?"

"We run. As fast of a steady pace that we can manage, while being careful, or at least, that's my plan. The problem is we need to look out for holes in the ground, food and water. We will be short on the last two items once we get past the snowed in areas."

"I gather that you will not be able to fly me, the way you did Tasuki?"

"The winds will have no barrier. I would last only a minute or so before I crashed."

"Can't you ask either Gembu or Byakko to help you?"

"No offense, but I rather not. I know that Soi-san and Amy-san can manipulate the weather, but what comes around, goes around. Manipulating something of that level will have effects on other areas, changing their weather maybe for the better, but usually for the worst."

"That's still a valid idea…Would it be possible for them to change the weather, yet send the backlash towards Nakago?"

I shot my head up at this. I can only blame my lack of sleep in not thinking that plan before Tamahome-san.

"Yes…yes, it may be a possibility! I would have to ask My jii-sans to do so, but they may still say no. It is worth a shot! I will also ask Seiryuu-seikun, for they are still his Seishi, whether he is mad at them, or not."

Looking around, I notice that much time has passed and, with the sun climbing higher, I know that we must get moving. That being known, I grab my inner sash and my fundoshi and begin to tie Tamahome-san back to me again. He nods with understanding, for his hands would surely cramp up before long if he was to just hang onto me. However, I hide my laugh and amused smirk as he realizes what I am using to tie his hands with.

"YOU'RE USING YOUR UNDERWARE?!?!?!"

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It's amazing how fast time can past when you occupy your mind. Midday comes and goes. With it, I can feel my strength beginning to wane. Tamahome-san must have noticed it too, for he asks me if maybe we should stop so that I an rest. Though we may be moving slower, I shake my head an reiterate that I want to be less than a days travel to the plain when we stop.

It amazes me to think that usually, Tamahome-san and I may have not worked this well before our current situation. I understand that he feels protective of his sister, Gyokuran, and that he may feel threatened that I have feelings for her. However, I dare not bring up this subject to pass the time, because I don't want him to be mad again and thus, cause us problems…maybe later, after we regroup with the other Seishis. The other reason being that he is currently asleep once more. Truthfully, I find this to be good, for he will be on the watch when I sleep tonight, yawn, and we will have little to no sleep once we leave the shelter of the trees.

On this leg of the journey, time seems to take forever. I find myself looking up ever few jumps to see if it is midnight yet.

Who am I kidding, it's not even sundown yet…

Got to think…must find something…um…wonder how my Okaa is doing…Otou…Gyokuran…yes, that's a good subject to pass the time, Gyokuran!

She's so sweet, and gentle…I know that she'll make a great mother…I know that I'm going to outlive her, however, if the looks of my Okaa's outfit was any indication, it seems that she is now a Tennyou. That being so, it wouldn't be too hard to make Gyokuran a Tennyou, would it? I want to grow old with her, I realize with a start, I don't want to see her grow old and die, while our children and I still obtain to looks and vigor of youth. Children? Will we have any children? If so, how many? Ever to the point, that would mean that we would have to be married! Would Tamahome-san allow us to marry? I'm sure his father would, however, I would not like to see Tamahome-san mad shudder. Though, I can picture how beautiful she will be in her red wedding gown. I can see us, under a flowering plum tree, whose beautiful purple and pink flowers give off such a intricate aroma, our hands tied together with a red sash while we wear our best clothing. Our friends and family will be around us, hopefully smiling. Maybe even remembering their own weddings by that time. Chichiri-san can marry us, for Oba will be situated at the head of my side of the family.

Byakko-jii will insist on throwing a bachelor party…

SHUDDER

Just as I begin to tally up how much food will be needed, for I don't know how, but I'm sure Miaka-san will be there, I look up and find it to be about midnight. Stopping and thus waking up Tamahome-san, I hunt and find us a deer! Quickly cooking…and burning…the meat, we eat as I make fast work of my kill. Ten minutes later we have deer jerky…of a sorts… that is easily stored within the pockets of our clothing.

Looking over at Tamahome-san, he gives me a reassuring nod and within a moment later, I find myself asleep.

"Hey kiddo, how are you holding up?"

I look up to find Byakko-jii looking at me with a smile.

"Pretty good, considering the circumstances."

"True, true."

"Um, Byakko-jii…I have a question…when we reach the plain, is it possible for you to divert the stronger winds and point it at the Seiryuu side?"

"hm…"

I shudder, again, as I see a nasty smirk appear upon his face.

…I seem to be shuddering a lot lately…

"I think I can. I am going to have to have a conference with your other Uncles, but I think it can be arranged, heh heh…"

Sigh, good. Hopefully it will work. I guess I will find out the answer once we arrive there tomorrow.

"By the way…about that bachelor party…"

Groan

"Wake up."

"Huh?"

"Chiriko, Wake up!"

"Tamahome-san?"

"You told me to wake you up at dawn, remember?"

"Yes…yes I did. Gomen."

"No problem. Did you ask your uncles?"

"Yes, I asked Byakko-jii. He had no real definite answer, but we'll know once we reach the forest edge."

We ate in silence, both of us thinking about what lies ahead. Before long, we were on the move once more. We apparently made better time then I thought, for before the midday, we came to the edge of the forest and found ourselves looking upon a blinding field of pristine white.

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This took far, FAR too long to get out. I invite all of you to flame me about this, because I deserve it for making you guys wait.

Tsukiyo Uchibayashi