CHAPTER FOUR

	Lum, the Suzaku no Miko, had arrived with her Seishi at the gates of
the Kutou palace.  The sky was appropriately stormy and ominous,
promising a severe bout of rain and lightning.  Lum liked lightning.
	Behind her, Chicherry clapped his hands.  "It is a most ominous place,
na no da."  He started praying, until Mistukura whapped him over the
head with his own staff.
	Lum turned to her friends.  "Minna - are you ready?"
	Everyone nodded, especially Tamaboshi. *Oh, I'm ready, all right...*
	Suddenly laughter filled the courtyard.  "So nice of you to drop by,
Lum- chan!"
	"Ran-chan!"  Lum looked around, until she saw her friend at the top of
the steps.  The Seiryuu Seishi (or, at least, what was left of them -
Ran had taken out the creepy little guy and the wolf boy moments before)
stood behind her, Reikago still chowing down on a large bowl of rice.
	Ran smirked down at her rival, her eyebrow twitching erratically.  "At
last, I can finally get revenge on you for everything you've ever done
to me!"  She held up two scrolls - one red, one blue.  "And with both
copies of Four Gods' Earth and Sky, you can't stop me! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
	"Ran-chan!"
	"AHAHAHA... ha?"
	She stared in shock as Tamaboshi started to run up the steps.  "Help
me!  She wants to wish me into slavery!"
	"DARLING!  What do you think you're doing?!"
	He stopped and glared triumphantly down at her.  "This is what you get
for trying to force love on me!  My love is too precious to waste on
just one woman!  I can't let you make that wish - I'm on Ran-chan's side
now!"
	Lum shrieked in anger and fired off a series of lightning bolts. 
Tamaboshi dodged them with unusual ease (it helped to also be a martial
artist now), and started back up the stairs.
	"DARLING!"  Lum zapped him again, and this time connected just as he
was reaching the top - he plowed into Ran, who lost her grip on the red
scroll.  It bounced down the stairs until Tensuki collected it and
brought it back to Lum.
	Silence reigned for a moment, broken only by thunder and the sound of
Reikago eating.
	"So.  Now we both have a scroll."
	"Ran-chan, there's no need for this!  Let's just go home!"
	"Urusai!  I have my wishes to make, and I'm going to make them!"
	"Ran-chan..."
	Shutarohori stepped forward.  "Give it up, Ran-san!  You're missing
most of your Seishi."
	She smirked and gestured at the frazzled form of Tamaboshi at her
feet.  "You don't exactly have a complete set, either."
	The emperor shrugged.  "Such idiocy is to be expected - we'll get him
back.  But yours are unconscious, and you have to have all seven Seishi
to make your wishes."
	Ran laughed.  "You obviously didn't read the fine print!  Since I'm
with the bad guys, I can ignore that rule!"
	He opened the scroll and peered at it.  "I'll want to call my lawyers
on that..."
	"Well," Lum shouted, "if you don't need all of yours, then neither do
I!"
	"Fine by me!"
	"Fine!"
	As one, they opened their individual scrolls and read the incantations
aloud.  Two glowing auras, one red and one blue, filled the courtyard
until they solidified into a giant crimson bird and a menacing sapphire
dragon.
	The two Miko glared at each other, daring each other to make the first
move.
	Ran was the first to break.  "Seiryuu!  I wish... ACK!"
	"R-Ran... chan..."  Tamaboshi had recovered somewhat, and his first act
was to drape himself over the nearest female object.
	"DARLING!"
	Ran pushed at her personal barnacle, but he held on tight.  "Would you
get off me?!"
	*YOUR WISH IS GRANTED.*
	"What?"
	Tamaboshi was suddenly flying down the stairs, to land in a crumpled
heap at Lum's feet.  Where he immediately became the target for divine
retribution.
	Ran gritted her teeth, mostly in anger.  She'd felt a faint twinge,
which probably would have floored an Earth girl, but she was too ticked
off to notice. "Only two left... I can't have any other distractions. 
Seishi!  Get them!"
	Unfortunately, Suboshi and Amiboshi were too busy with a discussion,
trying to figure out who was who.  That left only Reikago, who
reluctantly put his beloved food aside and, summoning up his chi, took
on the form of a giant spirit tiger-cow.  The beast bleated a battle cry
and bounded down the stairs.
	Lum's Seishi moved into the fray, doing their best against Reikago's
attacks.  Shinobiko threw trees and ornamental statues at him,
Shutarohori slashed (ineffectively) with his sword, and Chicherry threw
enchanted pork buns at the general, when he found the time between
eating them.
	It was Tensuki who first got hurt.  He charged forward, taking a deep
breath.  "Lekka... SHI..."  At that point, Reikago batted him aside with
one massive glowing paw; the child flew backwards, forcing Lum to fly up
quickly to catch him.
	She looked down at the bruised form of her cousin.  "I wish you'd be
more careful."
	He smiled weakly.  "I'll try, Lum-chan."
	*YOUR WISH IS GRANTED.*
	"Oops..."
	Ran laughed.  "Serves you right!  Now it's my turn!  I wish that a
giant anvil would fall on Lum's head, crushing her!"
	*YOUR WISH IS GRANTED.*
	The air over Lum's head rippled, and she quickly shouted, "I wish it
wouldn't!"
	The rippling effect vanished. *YOUR WISH IS GRANTED.*
	Ran facepalmed.  "This is getting us nowhere.  Reikago!  KILL her!"
	The tiger-cow looked nonplussed for a moment but, since he was feeling
pretty darn evil for some reason, shrugged and leapt at the oni-Miko...
	...Only to be met with a massive uppercut as Tamaboshi jumped up with
titanic force, glowing with power.  Reikago soared upwards, vanishing
into the clouds.
	Lum blinked.  "Darling..."
	He turned to face her.  "Lum..."
	The pensive moment was broken by Ran's screech.  "That's it!  I've had
it!"  She looked up at the dragon.  "Seiryuu!  I... I..."
	There was a dot above her, getting larger.
	She covered her head and cowered down.  "I wish this was all over."
	*YOUR WISH IS GRANTED.*
	Lum and Ran started to fade, as did the changes they had wrought on the
story.  Impulsively Lum threw her arms around Tamaboshi's neck and
whispered, "I wish Darling would love me forever."  He tried to push her
away...
	And then they were gone.  But, perhaps, there was something left
over...
	*...granted...*
	Probably nothing at all.

	The Book carefully set itself back on the shelf and, when it was
absolutely sure nobody was looking, meticulously erased the horrible,
horrible revisions those barbarians had scribbled in its margins.  If
the Gods were willing, it would never have to go through an experience
like that again.
	Strange, though... that last wish should have taken effect, but as far
as the Book could tell, Ataru hadn't acted any differently.  After Lum
and Ran had escaped the story, the young man had instantly jumped at
Ran, claiming to want to "comfort her after that terrible experience". 
The sound of electricity flying through the air was becoming familiar to
the Book.
	Definitely odd.  The only way Ataru could have escaped the wish was if
he'd already been in love with Lum...
	The Book shrugged, or at least thought about shrugging.  The barbarians
were gone, and claimed that they'd never come back to this library
again.  Good enough.  All that was left was to wait for the next young
girl to come along - though at the moment, it could do with a rest.

	"Hey, look at this!  �Important Documents Reading Room.'"
	"I don't know if we should be up here..."
	"Aw, c'mon, Akane.  You chicken, or what?"


AUTHOR'S NOTES:
	Oh, dear.
	I have no idea where I got this.  I woke up this morning with the half-
dream notion that Ataru was in Fushigi Yuugi.  Once I asked myself, "why
not?", things started to snowball.  I had a mostly complete idea by
afternoon, and finished it this evening (so if it looks pretty rough,
that's because it is).  It was just so *obvious* - I don't know if
anyone's done this before, but the characters fit in so easily...
	Oh, and in case you were wondering... yes, I hate Nakago.  He deserved
a lot more than he ever got.  Though I do apologize to the Chichiri fans
out there - a horrible substitution, I know, but it just worked so well.
	Until next time...