They wandered around the forest until dusk fell. At which point, Suzume gave up the pretense and demanded they rest.  Who knew what lurked about in the forest, waiting to come and try to devour her. Then again, she had been almost eaten so many times it was hard get excited about it anymore. They set up camp, which wasn’t much more than a fire pit and a few sleeping mats rolled out. Not for the first time, Suzume wondered why the immortals even pretended to rest. Surely they did not need sleep.

Suzume plopped down on her sleeping mat.  She was considering rolling up in a blanket and forgetting the world when Tsuki came and sat down beside her.

“You did good today,” he said with his characteristic grin.

Suzume scowled at him. “At what point did I do good? When I was clinging for dear life from the monster’s back or the part when you had to sweep in and save me?”

Though she knew she did not have the skills to fend for herself, she was tired of playing the weak and helpless damsel in distress. Whoa, that’s a new concept. Before this nightmare started, I would have loved to play damsel in distress. Men like feeling as if they’re saving the day. Of course, I never knew what real danger was waiting beyond the palace walls. It’s eat or be eaten out here, literally.

“You have the raw talent. You just need to tap into your potential as a fighter,” Tsuki said and the surprising thing was he sounded sincere.

She snorted. “I have raw talent because I am Kazue’s reincarnation right? Everything flows from her.” She could not hide the bitterness from her tone.

Tsuki shook his head and his long black hair swung from side to side. “No, that’s not what I meant. You have fire in you. I can see Kazue in you, but I also see something different. It’s a spark that sets you apart from her.”

She narrowed her eyes and regarded him. It was no secret she despised the fact that everything about her life seemed to be predestined by her past life. Which begged the question: was Tsuki just trying to get on her good side? And why?  

“What do you want?” she asked bluntly.

He had the good sense to pretend to be offended. He pressed a hand to his chest and opened his mouth in feigned shock. “Can’t I pay you a compliment?” he asked.

“No.”

He laughed. It was an almost sensual sound, dark and husky. That was one thing he had in common with his sister, their oozing sex appeal. Though Tsuki seemed to lean more toward playful, Suzume could not shake the feeling that the entangled siblings had an alternate agenda.

“You caught me,” he turned to look at her. His eyes were hooded and his mouth was parted slightly.

Suzume cocked her head back and gave him a look. “What’s with the bedroom eyes?”

He leaned forward. “Maybe I’m paying you a compliment so I can get closer to you. It’s been a thousand years since I’ve been near a woman I don’t share a body with.”

Suzume leaned back on her hands to put distance between them. “Can someone explain why all of you immortals seem to have no personal boundaries?”

Before he had a chance to answer, Kaito stomped over and plucked Tsuki off of her sleeping mat and tossed him aside like a rag doll. Tsuki hit the ground, rolled, and then jumped back to his feet smiling. He threw his arms out with flourish.  

“Did I hit a tender spot, dragon?” Tsuki asked. He had his hands on his hips but his body looked tense and ready for action. Kaito was standing in front of Suzume so that she had to crane her neck around Kaito to see Tsuki.

“The priestess is mine, and I don’t like to share,” Kaito snarled.

Suzume jumped to her feet and shoved Kaito hard in the back. Her final nerve had been struck.  

“How dare you!” She shouted. She balled her hands into fists at her side trying to curb the impulse to swing and hit Kaito. She could feel the rivers of energy coursing through her body. Flames were leaping along her skin and sparks flew from the ends of her hair.

The two men swiveled to face her. Kaito raised an eyebrow in question, as if he did not understand her indignation. This is all a game to the lot of them. I hate them all, the inconsiderate jerks.

“I am not yours; I do not belong to anyone,” she said through clenched teeth.

 Kaito’s expression was bland but she could see the fire –or in his case, ice—burning behind eyes. She knew from experience what the result of pushing his buttons was but she just could not stop herself. It was like a bad habit, one that she was powerless to correct.  

“Have you forgotten you were given to me on that mountain top? You were meant to be my bride,” his tone rumbled with thunder. Had Suzume not known Kaito, she might have been afraid, but she knew this was all just posturing on his part. Something about Tsuki getting chummy with her had struck a chord with Kaito and this was the resulting pissing contest. It’s like he’s jealous.

She did not want to think about that possibility and so instead she shoved him again. And this time she pushed with a thrust of her power. The red streak of energy that was rolling over her skin and breaking through all the dams inside her was turning into a tidal wave. The energy manifested in ball in the palm of her hands and with a rage filled push she hit Kaito in the chest sending him flying into the forest beyond the light of their campfire.

They had made camp in a small clearing. There were trees and bushes all around. Kaito landed in a bush but leapt to his feet quick enough. When he got back on his feet the air temperature dropped several degrees. Kaito was mad. It had been a clear night before, but storm clouds started gathering in the sky, big gray and ominous. This was quickly escalating beyond posturing and turning into a full blown battle royal and she was the challenger. She knew she should step down but she was too angry to do so.  She stood with hands on hips glaring at Kaito and at Tsuki.

“All of you think it’s ok to play games. That people’s feelings don’t matter. Well here’s the truth. I am not your possession and I am not a tool,” she glared at Tsuki, “I do not want to be Kazue. I do not want anything to do with her task. I’m tired of having my life threatened by monsters and I’m tired of the secrets. Now either everyone lays everything out on the table or I am out!”  She finished her tirade and panted from the effort of forcing the words out.

Her power was swirling around her over her skin and through her veins. She felt like she was in the middle of a storm. Every part of her was vibrating with energy. It felt like she was made entirely out of flame. Red light fanned around her flickered and moved like fire. Kaito stomped over to her but as he drew closer he stopped.  His face was washed in a red glow. Rin had been staying out of the fight, sitting on her own sleeping mat, but she rose to her feet now and stared at Suzume. Tsuki’s eyes were wide and terrified.

“Why are you all staring at me like I am some kind of freak?” She asked them.

“You’re on fire,” Rin said.

Suzume lifted up her hand, it was tipped with flames. She did not feel the heat but it rippled and contorted as she waved her hand back and forth.

“What is this? What did you do to me?” She looked over at the most likely candidate, Tsuki, but he looked just as shocked as the others.   

None of them would move any closer to her, in fact they all took a step back. Thanks a lot guys for your help. What If I had been really on fire.  In truth, she would have fled the scene just as quickly had the roles been reversed. As it was she was afraid to move for fear she’d ignite a forest fire.

Tsuki switched to Akira and she alone among the group was willing to cautiously approach Suzume. Akira stood a few feet away from the burning priestess. She reached out to touch Suzume. When she got close, the flames erupted, burning like an inferno around Suzume. Her hair whipped around her as if she was in the middle of a tsunami. The flames that encased her lit up the entire clearing, casting everything in crimson light.  The flames wrapped around Akira’s arm like a vine on a tree and unlike Suzume, it burned Akira.

Akira screeched as the flames scorched her skin. Her lips pulled back in a grimace. She batted at the flames that were crawling along her sleeve and catching fire on her clothes. She dropped to the ground and rolled around but nothing seemed to deter the fire’s ferocity.

“Do something!” Rin shouted at Suzume.

Suzume threw up her hands. She was locked in place, not sure what to do or how to stop the unnatural fire from killing Akira and Tsuki.  It was Kaito who came to the rescue and blew on the burns with breath made of ice. The two combating elements met and sparks and steam met in an explosion of fire and ice but it did extinguish the flames. Akira lay on the ground panting for a few moments. She was trembling all over and her skin had pink and black burns that looked like tracks on her arms from where the fire had touched her.

Suzume was still standing by, engulfed in flames that did not burn her. Kaito turned back to Suzume and he was titling his head as he regarded her, less afraid and more curious. “This was not a skill Kazue had. What are you?”

“Believe me, I wish I knew.” Suzume said in a shaky voice.

I wish none of this ever happened. Damn my mother for doing this to me. I wish everything would go back to normal. She tried to fight it but she was so mad and afraid that a tear escaped and rolled down her cheek. Once the tears started she could not stop them. Suzume fell to her knees and hid her crying behind her hands.

The wind died down and she felt the storm inside her calm. The flame must have gone out as well because someone had put an arm around her shoulder. She was mortified to have had so many people witness her moment of weakness. She did not want to open her eyes and face them but if she kept letting one them comfort her she would look even weaker.  She opened her eyes. She was surprised to find Kaito had put his arm around her. This led to a complicated series of emotions. Chief among them was thought that he was only doing it because he still saw her as Kazue. He did say he does not think I’m Kazue. Not that I care. He’s an arrogant jerk.  

No matter what she told herself, she did feel comfort when he was holding her, as evident by her body not sparking to protect her. There was also the possibility that she had burned out all of her spiritual energy in her fire display. It was difficult to tell. She did feel empty at the moment, but she wasn’t sure if it was because of her lack of energy or the feeling that she had lost everything the moment she had released Kaito.

She discreetly removed herself from Kaito’s grip. But she did not give him any spitting insults and he did not leer or make any suggestive remarks.

“Well that was interesting,” Tsuki said using Akira’s form.

Suzume laughed and it sounded insane to her own ears. The others were definitely looking at her in a new light.

“Any theories on what just happened here?” She asked.

Kaito had not moved away. He was near enough to touch. Their fingertips were just inches apart. She looked down at their close proximity, considered saying something then decided not to. She liked having him close, just in case anything decided to pop out of the woods and try to eat her. As weak as she felt she wouldn’t have the motivation to even try and defend herself. It was not because she wanted to be near him. At least that’s what she told herself.

Everyone took a seat and they looked at each other. No one spoke for a long time.

Surprisingly, Rin was the first to speak, “I think you’re some sort of fire creature, at least in part.”

“That’s not possible, both of my parents are human!” Suzume protested.

“I remember hearing back at the mountain temple that your mother and you were turned away because of some scandal,” Kaito said.

She glowered at him. Leave it to the dragon to drag up her past. Thanks for kicking me when I am down.  “Yes, she was banished for her infidelity. What does that have to do with me lighting up like a torch?”

“Maybe the infidelity charge was a cover up? Perhaps the emperor discovered that your mother was something less than human,” Akira said reasonably.

It was a sound theory, but Suzume was not willing to believe her mother had been some kind of monster. She tried to think of the few and far between times she had seen her mother. Her mother had, for most of Suzume’s life, been the emperor’s favorite wife. Though not his first, she was adored and often exploited her position to get whatever she wanted. Suzume was more inclined to believe her mother had an affair than that she had secret powers.

“Maybe we should find her after we find the forgotten priest,” Kaito said. She could see his wheels turning, planning another adventure.

“No. Not going to happen.”

“Why not? Don’t you want to have a reunion with your dearest mommy ?” Kaito teased.

She turned to face him and said. “Do you want to find your son?”

The smile was wiped right off his face.

“I did not think so.”  She crossed her arms and scooted a little further from him. She was not feeling as chummy with Kaito as she had been before. “Speaking of which, how do we even know this priest is alive?” Suzume asked.

“I just know,” Akira said with an air of superiority.

“Well I meant what I said earlier; I’m tired of the secrets. What are you two plotting?”

Akira stared at Suzume for a moment, giving her a steady look. “You want the truth?”

“No, I want more lies.”

Akira sighed. “The priest we are looking for is like us. He will live trapped as he was the day Kazue cursed him until Kazue’s spell can be broken.”

“Okay, why would you keep that information from us?” Suzume had a feeling they still were not telling her the whole story.

Akira looked away. She and Tsuki appeared to be having a silent conversation. I didn’t know that they could do that. I wonder why they have all the other back and forth. Maybe it’s for our benefit. Either way it was creepy.

They concluded their silent conversation and Akira turned to face Suzume.

“The priest is not just cursed, he’s our father.”

 **A/N*** I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that has been reading and thank you to the few brave adventurers who came over to like my facebook page. I'm posting a teaser for the next chapter on thursday so be sure to go to my profile for a link to my facebook page so you can get the sneak peek before all your friends. ;)