A Mother's Blessing, Kagome Returns and Inuyasha Follows
The young woman paced around her kitchen, anxious and frightened. It's been three days, and Kagome still hasn't come back home. Where could…
Mrs. Higurashi's thoughts were interrupted by a group of shouts at the door.
"Mom, Kagome's back!"
"MOM!"
Mrs. Higurashi gasped and turned to the hallway; there stood her daughter, dressed in a miko's uniform and other than the small cut on her cheek and the tears in her eyes, was unblemished. At least she's safe…
"Kagome…"
It was then that the missing teenager burst into tears and ran into her mother's arms, sobbing into her blouse. Instinctively she wrapped her arms around her daughter, stroking her hair and rubbing her back.
"Sweetie are you okay? What happened? Where did you go?"
Kagome sniffled as she began to tell her story.
"It…it was awful mom. I went to help Sota get Buyo out of the wellhouse, when a giant centipede dragged me down the well!"
Sota did say she fell down the well, but a centipede?
"I woke up in some weird village in the Feudal Era, and the centipede chased me into the forest and I came across this boy with dog ears on his head. I freed him, and then he killed the centipede, but then he came after me and I subdued him by telling him to sit."
Oh my; this story's getting stranger by the minute…
"Then some bandits abducted me wanting a magic jewel that was in my body! Then the dog boy saved me again and a crow that had possessed one of the bandits stole the jewel. We gave chase and I shattered it, then I went back to the well and ran into this woman who could control hair and I fell down the well and ended up back here!"
A magic jewel? Oh boy; she must have hit her head really hard! Choosing to indulge Kagome's imagination, she turned to her son while still holding her daughter.
"Sota, would you please prepare the bath for your sister? She's obviously been through a lot, and I'm sure she could use some rest and relaxation now that she's back home."
Sota nodded and ran upstairs, leaving the two women alone. Mrs. Higurashi turned loosened her grip around her daughter and moved her hands to cup her face.
"Now Kagome, I want you to head straight to bed once you've finished taking your bath. Then you can come down for dinner. We'll talk more about what happened in the morning, okay?"
Kagome nodded, heading upstairs to the bathroom. Mrs. Higurashi watched her go, a concerned look in her eye as she replayed Kagome's story. Could her tale actually have some truth to it? Or is it just some weird dream cooked up by some other terrifying ordeal that she'd rather not remember?
The Higurashis, sans Kagome, were huddled around the kitchen table. Sota had just supplemented Kagome's retelling of her story with what he saw during her abduction. Grandpa Higurashi looked on, a thoughtful expression on his face.
Oh boy; here we go with another one of Father's wild fantasies.
"Come on, don't tell me you BELIEVE her story?!"
Mrs. Higurashi tried to keep the discussion grounded in reality, but before the old priest could debate his daughter-in-law, Sota interjected "But it IS true! Kagome fell down the well and then a monster came up and KIDNAPPED her!"
Encouraged, Grandpa Higurashi divulged his theory about the legend of the Bone Eater's Well, and its effect on time and space. Without another word, he stood up, dug his hammer, nails, and sutras out of one of the drawers, and marched out to the wellhouse. By the time he came back, he saw an anxious, if somewhat calmer Kagome kneeling next to the kitchen table, blow-drying her hair that was still damp from her bath. Ms. Higurashi gave him his tea, and he sat at the table near his granddaughter.
"I bolted down the well; it's now closed off from the Feudal Era Kagome."
"Closed it off?"
Kagome looked at him in surprise; after being dragged down by a giant centipede demon, she found it hard to believe that her grandfather could close it off with a hammer and nails.
Seeing his granddaughter's skepticism, he went on to explain "I used special spirit wards just in case."
Still not entirely convinced, but now knowing better than to question the existence and power of magic after her brief stay in the Feudal Era, Kagome kept silent.
What if it's not enough though? What if another demon breaks through, or worse, Inuyasha?
As it happened, the half-demon had just materialized at the bottom of the well, shaking his head as the sensation of time travel wore off.
Whoa, talk about a light show…
Inuyasha craned his head upwards and saw the wooden cover that had been bolted on top of the well.
What's that doing there? Oh well, nothing I can't bust out of…
Kneeling down briefly, Inuyasha made a strong jump, thrusting his fist upwards before reaching the top and causing the barrier to shatter as he altered his trajectory mid-jump to land on the edge of the well. As he jumped off, he saw the interior of the wellhouse.
"So, in the wench's world, the well is inside some kind of hut. No matter, now I can drag her back to my side and I can vanquish that demon…"
As he stepped forward, he noticed a couple of sutras stuck to his mane and haori, and gave a fearful expression for all of three seconds, before his face changed to that of confusion.
"What the? These are definitely sutras; I've faced my fair share of monks to know a sutra when I see one. That must mean that this wench comes from a family of priests. But, these sutras aren't affecting me at all. That means that she comes from a family of quacks!"
Inuyasha threw the doors open and walked outside, taking in his surroundings.
"What is this place? Aside from the small bit of grass on this piece of property, there doesn't seem to be a piece of wildlife in sight. And those buildings; they put the daimyo's palace to shame. This is definitely not your ordinary village…"
Inuyasha walked five steps forward before kneeling and covering his nose, his senses assaulted by an unknown scent.
"Ugh, what the hell is this smell? It's everywhere, and it smells AWFUL! How on earth does she survive here, much less function?"
It took several minutes before Inuyasha could stomach the scent of smog, taking several experimental breaths to get accustomed to the new atmosphere. At last, he stood up and walked the rest of the way to the house and gazed at the doorknob, confused by the strange device.
Nothing here makes sense! How does ANYTHING work around here?
He accidentally grabbed the knob in frustration and shifted his grip so that it turned, and a surprised expression plastered on his face when the door gave way.
Huh, weird but ok. Now I can find her, drag her back, and NEVER come back here!
He walked through the hallway, noting the fusion of modern and more familiar styles, putting him a little more at ease now that the structure didn't seem completely alien. His silent contemplation was interrupted by a familiar voice.
"YAY! ODEN, ODEN, ODEN, ODEN, ODEN…"
I'd know that annoying voice anywhere!
He followed the sound of Kagome's jubilance until it led him to a sliding door.
"ITADAKIMASU!"
At the sound of Kagome's ceremonial dinner exclamation, Inuyasha slid open the door, staring at four confused faces.
There's the wench! Inuyasha fought back a snicker at the sight of the futuristic girl with a shrimp hanging loose from her mouth.
The runt must be her kid brother. The woman must be her mother, and the old geezer must be her grandfather. But no father? Bah, why am I even wondering; after today this will just be an unpleasant memory…
His thoughts were interrupted by Kagome's startled and frightened utterance.
"Inu…yasha?" He's here? In my house? So that wasn't just a crazy dream? Oh no; I knew grandpa's sutras wouldn't be enough to stop him.
Kagome's mother couldn't help staring at their uninvited guest, shocked at the undeniable proof of Kagome's tale. A boy…with feudal era clothes…and DOG EARS to boot? So Kagome was really abducted by a demon? Her curiosity turned to steaming anger at Inuyasha's next sentence directed to her daughter.
"You wench. Who told you you could come trotting on home, ne?"
How dare he call my daughter a wench! He clearly has no manners…
"Uh, but, uh, where did you…"
"Through the WELL, of course!"
At this exchange, Kagome's grandfather stood up in disbelief, refusing to accept that his sacred sutras had no effect on this demon. "YOU LIE! I made those spirit wards myself. There's no way you could have…"
"Well I hate to break it to you, old man but, they don't work."
Inuyasha grabbed one of the sutras out of his mane as proof of their ineffectiveness, causing Grandpa Higurashi to cry in defeat, and Sota to groan in embarrassment.
He then proceeded to hoist Kagome by the arm, starting to stomp out the door as he attempted to drag her out to the well, causing Ms. Higurashi to steam further as she witnessed her daughter being manhandled by a bossy demon boy.
"Come on wench, we're leaving!"
Kagome wrestled her arm out of his grasp, aghast at being ordered around like a housemaid.
"NO, and you can't make me!"
Ms. Higurashi could stay silent no longer, she rose to stop the half-demon from dragging her daughter away.
"STAY RIGHT THERE!"
Inuyasha turned, annoyed at the added interruption as Ms. Higurashi stomped over to them.
"NOW what?"
He was not prepared for what came next, as Ms. Higurashi turned her gaze to his ears, all feelings of anger vanishing from her mind as she lightly jerked them in disbelief.
"Your ears, are they real?"
"ME NEXT, ME NEXT!"
Inuyasha grimaced as the Higurashis' antics played out.
"MOM, that's not really cool. Though I did it too…"
HER TOO? What am I, a toy?
It was then that Kagome noticed what looked like a long strand of hair moving along Inuyasha's haori.
"Inuyasha? Do you see that?"
Perplexed, Inuyasha answered "I don't see nothin…"
After pointing out what it was, she grabbed it, only for it to strangle her hand, leaving a slight cut, leaving her mother and grandfather shocked.
"Kagome, your hand!"
"What is it?" So, she wasn't dreaming; everything happened like she said!
Kagome panicked and ran out to the wellhouse, with her mother, grandfather, and brother following close behind. The last sight Ms. Higurashi saw of her daughter before she disappeared was when she closed the wellhouse and urged them all to not come in.
Several hours later, the Higurashis, sans Kagome, were sitting in front of the wellhouse doors, waiting for her return.
"If…if I hadn't seen it for myself, I probably wouldn't have believed Kagome's story at all…" Ms. Higurashi admitted.
"For this to happen once is strange enough, even by my standards…" Grandpa Higurashi mused. "But for Kagome to travel back to the Feudal Era twice…"
"What are you thinking, Father?"
Three days ago, she would have dismissed her father's tales as elderly delusion based off of Shinto fantasy. But ever since the dog demon boy known only as Inuyasha burst into their kitchen, the rational Mrs. Higurashi was forced to acknowledge a new reality, one where her father-in-law's stories were to be listened to.
"I don't think Kagome's journeys down the well were mere coincidence. Especially now that we know she can go back, I think it's safe to say that there's a reason that she can travel between the two eras."
"Are you saying…that destiny led Kagome to fall into the Feudal Era and meet Inuyasha?"
Grandpa Higurashi nodded. Before he could issue a proper reply however, the door opened. All three of them moved their heads to witness Kagome step outside of the wellhouse, unharmed save for a slight burn mark around her neck and a few bruises.
"KAGOME!"
Mrs. Higurashi moved to embrace her daughter, relieved to see her alive.
"The hair demon's gone, mom…"
Tears leaking out of her eyes, Ms. Higurashi murmured "Let's go inside, Kagome…"
Fifteen minutes later, Kagome had just finished explaining her story about the battle against Yura to her family.
"And that's what happened…"
"Kagome…I'm sorry…I'm sorry we couldn't protect you from any of that. But at least you're safe and will never have to go back there again."
"See, that's the thing…"
Kagome twirled a lock of hair around her finger in nervousness, wondering how she was going say this to her mother.
"Mom, I'm going back tomorrow morning, to help Inuyasha find the pieces of the Sacred Jewel."
Ms. Higurashi stared at her daughter in horror. Go back? She just got out of mortal danger, and now she wants to go back?
Before she could voice her objections, her father-in-law interjected "Sacred Jewel? You mean THE Sacred Jewel of Four Souls?"
Kagome nodded and explained once more how she accidentally shattered it into shards and sent them flying all over Japan.
"I'm the only one who can see him, and Inuyasha's the only one who has the strength to stand up to any demons who've already gotten their hands on the shards. So, I've got to go back mom; if I don't, then there's a chance that some great evil may get it and grow in power. If that happens, history could be rewritten and our present may not exist!"
Ms. Higurashi was about to object once more, but the look in her daughter's eyes made the matriarch stop. She sighed, and gave in.
"Your grandfather said when you were gone that it was your destiny to go to the Feudal Era. If destiny is indeed at work here, then who am I to stand in your way?"
Kagome smiled at her mother's acquiescence, grateful that her mother was letting her right her wrongs.
"Go to bed, Kagome. We'll make sure you have everything you need in the morning, okay?"
The young priestess nodded before dashing up to her room.
The next morning, Kagome had just eaten breakfast and grabbed her pink backpack from the chair, yelling "ITTEKIMASU!"
Grabbing the first aid kit from the cupboard, Ms. Higurashi caught up to her daughter and called after her.
"Mom, I can't; I've gotta GO!"
Holding out the first aid kit, Ms. Higurashi offered "Take this; I know you've got a lot to carry, but I…"
"MOM! I've got too much already!" Next time I come back, I should ask to borrow Dad's old camping backpack. That thing fits a house, I swear!
Not one to give up, and sensing an entry to teasing her daughter one last time, she pressed "Well you can use it for that friend of yours; the one with the cute ears. Didn't you say he'd been hurt in the shoulder?"
Acquiescing to her mother's request, in part due to her concern for Inuyasha's injuries and guilt for indirectly being the cause of them, she took the kit and expressed her gratitude.
Winking, the Higurashi matriarch took the opportunity to tease that she had been waiting for; "Just don't give me puppy-eared grandchildren too soon."
Turning as red as a tomato, Kagome yelled "MOM! I don't even like him, let alone want to marry him or anything like that!"
"You sure Kagome? You sounded pretty happy when you recalled how he said your name for the first time. Why, I remember when my mother told me about how I had the same expression when I talked about your father…"
Turning even more red-faced, if that was possible, Kagome turned around and ran out the door, yelling "BYE MOM!"
Ms. Higurashi chuckled, a look of proud melancholy twinkling in her eyes.
"I'm surprised you let her go at all…"
She turned to face her father-in-law, a tear going down her cheek as he embraced her with one arm.
"I'm still worried about her, but I trust that Inuyasha will protect her. Like you said, it was destiny for them to meet." She looked to her father-in-law, and to her son Sota who had just walked up to her, and she smiled. Wiping her face, she grabbed a broom and started to sweep in order to occupy herself.
I'm still worried about her…but at least I know that she's in capable hands. Inuyasha…take care of my daughter.