A/N: Hi everyone! This is Raelin from the sisterhood of Mimblemimblesmirch. Um…this story is a crossover between Inuyasha series and the Naruto series, although the Naruto portion will probably take a few chapters to incorporate. I have only seen two of these so far and thought I would add one more. Any ideas or suggestions are welcome and desperately needed. Thankies. It's kind of Au-ish and there are no parings as of yet…I don't write romance well. Well on with the story. R+R
P.S. Please don't flame…
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Sniff….so don't bother suing for you will receive nothing but dust bunnies.
Only Human-Chapter one
They say that in the middle of an ancient forest, beyond the boundaries of eternity, there lies a holy place, guarded by the God Tree…
…Beneath the canopy of this tree, there is a sacred well, covered with emerald strands of ivy…
…Legend has it that long ago, when demons still freely roamed the earth, the well was used to dispose of demon carcasses. A demon corpse would be thrown in one night, and by the next… it would have vanished…
…The Bone Eater's well, they called it then. It has gone through many names since then, the most relevant being the dimension well…or the Eternity well. Yet most important is not the well itself (though it does play a significant role), but what resides inside it…
…For they say that in the infinite depths of the well, there rests a maiden. Once a Miko, a priestess with the purest soul mankind has ever been graced with…
…Protectress and Savior, kind and much-loved. Her adventures all began with a mischievous cat and an old well, on one fateful day. This very well, in fact. The Forgotten well, as it is now named. But then, that is why you are here, so that the legend surrounding this well is not forgotten…will not be forgotten….
…And all I ask in return for this precious tale is that you listen well and remember, and then, when the time comes, pass it on to the next keeper with the same request, so that it may live on. What is so special about this tale? Well, listen and I will tell you…
It was a bright, sunny day, and they were on the road yet again. A girl, no, woman, of nearly twenty strode alongside a battered and dusty pink bike, bleached almost white through years of travel in the sun. She turned bright blue eyes to her traveling companions. Up front strode Inuyasha, still in the bright red fire-rat haori with Testusaiga at his side. She watched the furry white dog ears atop his head twitch as a butterfly landed on them, then swivel to follow its erratic flight. Giggling quietly, she turned at the sound of a loud 'smack' to observe a woman with long dark-brown hair confined in a loose ponytail bicker with a man in the robes of a monk whose face sported a reddening handprint.
"Honestly, Lady Sango, my hand just slipped as I was reaching to swipe away the leaf that had just fallen on your shoulder," he explained, waving his hands placatingly, through the woman seemed to become even angrier. She caressed the giant boomerang strapped across her back with a slightly manic glint in her eye as the man started sidling away slowly and growled.
"My shoulder's up here, you stupid monk!" she shouted, hefting the boomerang as the waving of his hands became even more frantic.
"L-lady Sango, please calm down! I was truly—" he pleaded, only to be cut off as the boomerang descended on his head. Blue eyes twinkled as she shook her head, sighing fondly at their behavior. Her gaze was then drawn to a flash of white, and landed on a tall, regal looking demon. He had long silver hair that fell loosely to his knees and eyes of molten gold. Twin crimson slashes graced each cheek and a navy crescent moon adorned his forehead, marking him as the Lord of the Western lands, Sesshoumaru.
His ward, Rin, who would normally be seen tagging along behind him or skipping about with Shippou, was absent. She was back in the village under Kaede's tutelage, training the Miko powers that had just recently surfaced. Sesshoumaru's servant Jaken was also there, making sure she stayed out of harm's way. Then, a soft snore and a purr brought her gaze to the basket at the front of her bicycle and the two that resided in it. A small foxchild lay curled around a cream-colored cat with black socks, two black-tipped tails, and a black diamond on her forehead. The foxchild had bright orange hair tied into a high, fluffy ponytail, two fox-paws for feet and a bushy cream tail. He twitched his nose as the tip of one of the cat, Kirara's, tails tickled it, a canine that poked out of the corner of his mouth completing the adorable picture.
Shippou, the foxchild, had changed little in the past five years. She had gone to Sesshoumaru, worried, when he showed no signs of growth. In the time since he had joined their group (though not without a fight), she had grown to see the cold demon as an older brother, and he, in turn, had eventually come to see her as a younger sister(albeit reluctantly, holding out for a good year and a half before even offering more than the occasional word— aside from taunts, or if it could not possibly be avoided, a sentence). He had explained that while the amount of time differed, demon pups usually aged slowly when young, taking advantage of a demon mother's protective instincts for as long as possible, then aged rapidly( "At human rate" as he had put it ) for a few years until they reached their prime and stopped aging altogether. However, when demon young have a traumatic experience, they're either forced to the rapid-aging stage prematurely to accommodate, or their aging process is completely blocked until they can accept what happened.
While demons like Shippou, who had been orphaned early, usually had the former reaction, Shippou seemed to have adopted her as a second mother and so the latter had occurred. He had then assured her that the foxchild should be coming out of the reflexive reaction soon and begin aging properly again.
She smiled fondly at them before turning her gaze to herself. She had matured through the years and no longer wore the white and green uniform of her school to this era. She now sported the cream and azure fighting outfit that Sesshoumaru had given her on her seventeenth birthday. He had flatly told her that he would not travel with a companion that was so indecently dressed before striding once more to the edge of the camp. She had then proceeded to scream her lungs out at him for a few minutes before giving up due to his lack of response. But the next day, she had begun wearing the outfit, sensing the logic in his words. She had also determined that he had said what he did because of his stubborn need to maintain an indifferent, if not cold, exterior(partially to soothe her wounded pride—she was not indecent!).
The outfit itself was beautifully made, closely resembling the traditional miko outfit to yet not quite so baggy. It was made from spider demon silk, making it very durable and allowing it to function as very strong, but light, armor. On her back, she now carried a beautifully crafted long bow presented to her by Kaede and a quiver of arrows. She had improved dramatically from the first time she had wielded a bow and was now an expert with the weapon. At her waist was a plain, but well maintained dagger that Sango had taught her how to use after one too many incidents in which she had lost her bow in the midst of a battle. She still bore the scar.
However, her pondering was cut short when she noticed an ominous presence ahead of them. A glance at Sesshoumaru showed him to be tense as well, a hand resting cautiously on his sword. Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku soon slowed as they too sensed the dark aura. Kagome unslung the bow from her back and notched an arrow to it. Kirara awoke, blinking, then bristled and hissed as she also sensed the presence, jostling Shippou. He sat up yawning loudly and rubbed sleepily at his eyes, then quieted as he felt the unease of his group. He glanced at his adopted mother for reassurance, and she smiled briefly at him before gazing warily at the darkening clouds over head. Moments later, the peaceful afternoon dissolved into utter and complete chaos.
Well...tell me what you think.
Miko: a Shinto priestess
Testusaiga: Inuyasha's sword
….any others?
