OtherWorld 01
Chapter 16: The Seven Warriors
The visitors left the Castle two days later. Kagome wanted to go to her own time to tell her parents the news and Kouga needed to tell his clan. He could now feel his child's presence in Kagome's womb. He was going to have a son! Kenshin and Kaoru would go first to check on the progress of the new dojo and then go to their own world to pack their belongings. InuYasha went with them to help them bring everything back and to protect them on their trip. Sanosuke and Katsu both decided to live in Otherworld and they too needed to return to pack. Miss Megume decided she was needed more in the Human World so Kaoru gave her and Yahiko a joint deed to her old dojo. Miss Megume could turn it into a clinic and Yahiko would always have a home.
On the morning of fourth day, The Princess set out for the northern border and her meeting with Emperor Hotohori. She took Hiten and Bankotsu with her. She felt that two Thunder Demons would be enough to protect her and she wanted to make Hiten feel welcome, especially since he was having so much trouble with InuYasha and Kouga. She liked the Demon a lot and loved his flying fire wheels. During the trip, Hiten would carry her into the sky and let her see the lands for miles around. It was a most enjoyable trip!
Tamahome was also happy to be on the road and going home. He missed his friends and family, although he had enjoyed his stay in Otherworld very much. He had not expected the Princess and her Demon males to be so open and friendly. The only Demons he had ever met before were lower class Demons who were trying to kill him. He hadn't realized that the higher the class of Demon, the more human they appeared.
Early afternoon on the third day, they arrived at the village where the meeting was to take place. The Princess and her entourage were shown to a suite of rooms, consisting of three bedrooms and a common sitting room. That evening she was led to the great hall, with Bankotsu and Hiten walking on either side of her. The Emperor stood waiting for her.
Emperor Hotohori was very young, around twenty, and very handsome, with long dark hair and large amber eyes. His voice was cultured and refined. He nodded to her and asked them to dine with him. Over a small dinner for the four of them, Hotohori told her of his dilemma and why he needed an alliance.
The Four Gods World was divided into four kingdoms and there had always been strife between them. The kingdoms of Seiryuu and Suzaku had been bitter enemies for centuries and another war was brewing. The last war had killed his father and put Hotohori on the throne at the age of 14. The Emperor did not want another war and was desperately trying to find a way to prevent it. His army was greatly outnumbered and they would not be able to stand long against Seiryuu. Suzaku's eastern edge was bordered by the Northern Lands of Demon World, Raizen's lands. If the Princess could extend the alliance she had with Raizen to include Suzaku, then Seiryuu would more than likely not attack a kingdom that had a Demon nation as its ally, especially one ruled by a Battle Demon who would love nothing better than a war.
"And I will offer you an unbreakable alliance with Suzaku in return." said the young Emperor.
"How can any alliance be unbreakable?" she asked.
"There are seven celestial warriors that are required to call our beast guardian, the Red Phoenix. These warriors are born, not chosen, and each one is irreplaceable. They are born with a red rune on his body. Without the seven, the guardian cannot be called. The Red Phoenix protects our capital, ensures good crops, frees us from disease, and gives us many other gifts, but unfortunately will not aid us in a war with another of the kingdoms; it only protects. We offer one of the celestial warriors for you to bind. In that way, we are bound in an unbreakable alliance. We need the warrior to complete the seven and you are bound to that warrior as one of your males."
Hotohori's intelligence impressed her; it was a good alliance and one that would make her sisters happy. She nodded in agreement. Aara had already felt out Raizen before she left Otherworld and knew that he was agreeable to the alliance. He was coming to her Castle a few days after her return to talk about the alliance, and also about some personal matter. It should prove to be an interesting visit.
"The last of the seven warriors will arrive tomorrow and you can meet them then. You, of course, have your choice of any of the warriors. "
"Since Tamahome has a red rune on his forehead, he is one of the seven?"
"Yes, he is."
By the next afternoon, all seven had arrived. The Princess again made her way to hall, this time to meet the seven celestial warriors, one of whom she would choose to become her fifth male. The Emperor greeted her and one by one introduced her to the warriors. She took the hand of each of them, touching them gently with her power.
She greeted Tamahome with a smile. She was then introduced to purple haired Nuriko who had super strength. He was very nice, but seemed very feminine looking. Blue haired Chichiri was a monk warrior like Miroku but he had a badly scarred face that had permanently closed his left eye. She wished that she had brought Kaiba with her so that the mage could heal him. She liked him very much. She held his hand and, without thinking, allowed the feelings of warmth and friendship pour out to him. He smiled when he felt her gentle power.
The warrior who commanded fire, Tasuki, seemed to resent her even being there. He mumbled a hello and reluctantly offered his hand. The tall, stern Mitsukake was a healer and she wondered why he didn't heal Chichiri's face. Perhaps he did not have enough power or his healing power was different. Chiriko was a surprise for he was only a child of 13 years.
To her surprise, the Emperor himself was the seventh warrior. "Please take as much time as you need to choose which one of us you want to bind." Hotohori told her after she had met them.
"I need no time at all. I know which warrior I will bind." she said to surprise of everyone. "I will send Bankotsu to you in an hour's time to bring him to me." And then she left, her guardian Demons trailing behind, without letting telling them which one she had chosen.
After she left, Tamahome was in despair. "It has to be me! I'm the only one she knows!" he said unhappily. Tamahome was deeply in love with a girl named Miaka and was planning to marry her in a month's time. "If she takes me, how will her binding affect my love for Miaka?"
"You will remember that you loved Miaka, but there will be no feeling behind the memory. You will love only the Princess after she binds you." Chichiri told him. Tamahome was even more miserable after hearing that.
Emperor Hotohori tried to ease his mind, "She did meet me last night. And I am the Emperor. I would not be surprised if she wanted me." The handsome Emperor was well known for his vanity.
Tasuki, always blunt, growled, "Well, I guess the rest of us made no impression at all!"
They were still discussing the possible choice, when Bankotsu walked into the hall and pointed to the Princess' choice. He led the chosen warrior from the room, leaving only stunned silence behind.
The Princess had sensed him the moment she walked into the great hall where the seven were gathered. After that there was no choice at all; he was the only one she wanted -- and in truth, the only one of them she could have bound. It wasn't until after she met him that she realized that he didn't know what he was. She smiled as she waited for Bankotsu to bring him to her. A soft knock and then the door opened and her fifth male entered, now wearing only a loose robe. The always thoughtful Bankotsu had made it easy for her.
She went to him, taking his hand in hers. Tasuki was confused, not understanding why he was chosen over the others. He resisted her touch. He did not trust her and certainly didn't want to be one of five males. She moved closer to him and allowed him to feel her warmth, gently using her power. She could feel his resistance begin to melt. She slipped her arm around his waist and leaned her head on his shoulder. She poured trust and love into him and he responded to her power, wrapping his arms around her.
She slipped the robe off him, his body warm to her touch, and led him to the bed. She added desire to her power and felt him respond. Then she added the binding to her power, so gentle he never felt the change, and as their bodies joined, her power bound them to each other forever. She strengthen that binding slowly, melding his emotions to hers, then finally adding the binding to her other males. All were bound to her and they were bound to each other as brothers.
She looked at the young man, on the edge of sleep, and kissed him softly. He opened his eyes, golden as her own. "Hmmm." he murmured. She ran her fingers through his red-gold hair. "Tasuki." she whispered, "My dearest Tasuki."
He woke up a little more, and looked at her. She was so wonderful. He wanted nothing more than to sink deeper into her warmth and stay there forever. Was this binding? If so, why had he feared it? It was such an incredible feeling of love and warmth.
"Tell me about your parents." she said.
"Simple farmers. Nothing special. I have five older sisters." he murmured as he drifted back to sleep.
No, he didn't have a clue to what he was. She wondered what reason he had been given for his fangs. She was sure that no one in his family had his gold-red coloring. He got that from his father -- his real father. She had felt it the moment she walked in that room -- Demon, no, Hanyou. Half Demon. She would have to ask Bakura was kind of Demon his father was. Perhaps she could talk to his mother and get the truth of his birth from her before she left for home.
The next morning, the Princess quietly told Tasuki that he was a half Demon. She used her power for calmness, and even with it, Tasuki did not take the news well. She finally asked the Emperor to send for his mother. Only after hearing her story would he begin to believe it.
It was a very long day for Tasuki. His mind felt like it was a confused jumble. He was a Demon???
At dusk, the Emperor's soldiers returned with Tasuki's mother. Emperor Hotohori explained to Aida that Tasuki had been bound to the Princess last night and that she wished to speak to her. He then had to explain what binding was and the powers of the Princess.
Aida went into the Princess' sitting room full of fear and worry. This woman was taking away her son. Her only son. Her very special son!
The Princess could feel the worry even before Aida entered the room, and immediately began sending calm, trust and friendship to Tasuki's mother. She was a very plain woman, her body showing the signs of have borne six children. She looked nothing like Tasuki. The Princess gently told her that she knew that Tasuki was half Demon and just wanted to hear the story so she could help him with the fact of his birth.
Hesitantly, Aida began her story and Tasuki listened in amazement.
It was nineteen years ago, when her youngest child was six, her fifth daughter. Her husband was a simple man, as plain looking as she was. She had long ago accepted that this simple life was her lot. Until that evening. She was walking home after visiting a relative when she mistepped badly and turned her ankle. She was sitting by the side of the road when a young man came to her from the hills above the road and asked if he could help. He was the most beautiful man she had ever seen. His red-gold hair fell unbound like a waterfall past his waist, his large eyes were gold, and his skin flawless and fair. He picked her up as if she weighed nothing and took her to a small abandoned house that was near. He gently tended her ankle, wrapping it in a silk scarf that he took from around his throat. Then he sat next to her and talked for a while. His voice was music. Suddenly she found herself kissing him, drowning in the sweetness of his mouth. Then before she realized what was happening, they were making love on the floor of the little house. It was like a beautiful, perfect dream. All through the night, they made love, time after time, until she thought her heart would burst from joy. She fell into a deep, contented sleep and when she woke up, it was morning and he was gone. But his scarf was still tied around her ankle, the only proof she had that it was real.
Nine months later she would have more proof, when Tasuki was born. Her husband realized that the child was not his, but he never asked about Tasuki's father, just accepted him as part of his family.
"I'm sorry, Tasuki." she said sadly, "I never meant to lie to you. I didn't realize that he was a Demon. I never saw your true father again. I don't even know his name."
Later that night as Tasuki lay in bed with his Princess, he talked about his childhood. How he was always teased about his fangs. His sisters tormented him because of his difference from them. He grew up thinking all women were like them. Now he saw the truth.
"Do you know what kind of Demon I am?"
"No, but we will ask Bakura. He will know. We will also try to find your father."
The next day, Tasuki said goodbye to his mother and to the rest of the Celestial Warriors. They would send for him when they needed him to call the guardian. And then Tasuki headed toward his new life in Otherworld.
[Author's Note: Tasuki is pronounced "Tas -key"]