Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Chapter One: Not in Kansas Anymore
Disclaimer: I don't in any way, shape, or form, own any of the characters from InuYasha. The only character I own presently is Asharti.
When a normal girl falls asleep she finds herself in a strange land. The Feudal Age of Japan and oddly enough, she seems to be caught in InuYasha's story. As she searches for a way home she encounters demons and magic that she'd never have imagined existed, even in this upside-down world.
Asharti finished the last touches of her homework and sighed in relief. The clock on her bedside table glaringly told her that the time was 12:36 in the morning. Her stomach grumbled a little as she tugged on her nightgown and switched off both lights in the room, curling around the bolster pillow she always slept with. If she hadn't been ordered to clean her room, maybe she could have gotten to sleep earlier, she decided grumpily as she tugged one of her blankets over her head.
The sound of birds chirping and light filtering through her eyelids awoke her and she groaned as she rolled over. Instead of the comforting feel of her bed, she felt pine needles. 'Has Mom resorted to torturous means to wake me?' She wondered as she creaked open one eyelid and found herself peering at a forest floor. She blinked, suddenly wide-awake as she sat up, her blanket the only thing of hers she could find near at hand. She scrambled backwards until her back hit something hard and solid. As she leaned against the pine-tree's trunk she thought, 'Ash, we're definitely not in Kansas anymore. And it doesn't look remotely familiar at all. The last time I saw trees this large was in Yellowstone Park.'
Deciding that she might as well stay calm and sort her problem out rationally, she tucked the blanket like a bath towel around her and, watching her step, began hiking. "Now what did that science book say about moss growing on the north side of a tree," she asked herself aloud. She shrugged. Science had never been her favorite class. She had always preferred English more. As she came upon a stream, she regarded it with delight. Kneeling she cupped some of the clear liquid in her hand and sipped it noisily. Her glance fell upon her reflection in the stream.
A golden-brown haired young woman stared back at her, blue-gray eyes slightly dilated. As she watched, her iris contracted, the color in her eyes widening at her hair's wild state. It tangled down to her shoulders looking as if a rat had been building a nest in it. Before she even began to worry about that she saw a new reflection forming just behind hers. With a wild shriek, Asharti flung herself forwards, landing in the water, even as her body turned to face the strange man who had appeared behind her.
He had raven-black hair that was pulled back to his nape and clear, innocent-looking eyes with just enough devilish sparkle to them to warn her of his teasing nature. He flashed a grin at her, his teeth perfectly straight and sparkling white. The staff in his hand jingled lightly as he bent to kneel on the bank. "Who are you," she squeaked out, taking in his purple robe as she pushed her now-damp hair out of her eyes. She studied his extended hand suspiciously before taking it as he pulled her out of the stream.
"I am a holy monk. They call me Miroku-Housshi. And who might you be?" His eyes told her he wanted to get to know her a lot better. She withdrew her hand to herself hurriedly as she said, "My name's Asharti. My friends call me Ash. Why are you dressed like that? Don't monks dress in a light orange color? Where are we anyway?"
He blinked at her, surprised that his charm hadn't worked as it always did on every woman, excepting Sango. "Well, Ash. I dress like this because I am a monk, but only the monks who are devoted to chastity wear orange. I could never wear orange. I have a duty to my family. I must have a son to carry on the line. On that note, would you be the mother of my children?"
Ash saw red and the next thing poor Housshi-sama saw was her fist flying at his face. And he heard this dreadful shriek emitting from her lips. A sound he only heard the like of perhaps hundreds of times in his life. "Hentai!" Shrieked Ash and watched as the imprint of her knuckles formed on his cheek. "Now tell me where we are or you'll match." She motioned to his unmarked cheek.
Miroku gulped and answered quickly, "Well, we're in InuYasha's Forest. You're just a few yards from the Door to Kagome's World." Catching sight of someone beyond her his face lit up and he escaped the scary female, "Kagome, you're back! Save me from this truly frightening creature." He slipped behind the petite raven-headed female who was shorter than him by at least a foot. Kagome's blue eyes widened on the view of a modern-looking girl about her own age who was drenched and had clearly threatened Miroku-kun. "Housshi-sama, did you rub her bum? You know you really shouldn't do that to every woman you meet. It's not polite," she nagged Miroku as he protested; "Wait a minute here, Kagome, I only helped her out of the stream. She fell in." She stared at him unblinkingly as he shuffled his feet with a slight blush to his face as he admitted, "And I asked her to…"
"Hentai!" Miroku saw stars as he sat up, a red handprint on the unmarked side of his face. He shook his head, dazed as the two girls greeted each other. "I'm Kagome. How did you come to be here? I thought I was the only one able to get here from our side of the world." Asharti shook hands with a small smile, "I'm Asharti, but you can call me Ash. I'm pretty sure that I'm asleep. I…" She worried at her lower lip with her teeth. "I don't know how I managed to get here. But is this really InuYasha? I thought this place was just a story."
"Oh it's real enough. It's sort of like the Chronicles of Narnia. No one would ever believe it's real. It's safer for InuYasha if everyone continues to believe that it's just a story. But you should be able to go through the Bone Eaters' Well to get home. It's how I always return." Asharti brightened as she stepped towards the well, prepared to go home and resume her busy life among her peers and friends.