Keiko watched Yusuke and Kuwabara both stiffen as they abruptly cut off mid-squabble. Their heads turned in unison to look at the well house to their left as the door opened and a girl about their age, but from a different school by looks of her uniform, exited. She was toting an overlarge pack and shot the group a startled look before smiling hesitantly at them.
"Kagome! This is the class I told you about. You remember, the ones from Sarayashiki studying shrines and their history." The old man giving the tour shouted out to her.
"Oh yes." She hesitated briefly, "I'm finished in the well house, just let me put these supplies in the house and I'll come help you with the tour, okay Grandpa?"
"Yes, yes. That would be lovely." He turned back to the class, "This is my granddaughter Kagome. She's a shrine maiden in training. She can tell you all about the history of the Shikon no Tama and the Warring States period. For now, let's continue our tour."
The old man started jabbering on again about some demon history and its significance to this part of the shrine or that part. Even Keiko was ignoring his stories at this point. She turned her attention back to her companions and listened to them quietly, for once, discuss something they'd both picked up on their magical radar. Something she was lacking and didn't mind a bit.
"Was that the girl or something inside the little hut?" Yusuke was asking Kuwabara.
Kuwabara furrowed an eyebrow as he stared at the well house and then shifted his attention to the main house she had disappeared into.
"I don't know." Kuwabara responded. He glanced at the huge tree and back at the house before sending a startled glance at the tree, "something is odd about that tree, too."
"What do you mean?" Keiko really didn't understand exactly what they were referring to, but she figured if she could keep them talking, she'd figure it out soon enough.
Yusuke looked questionably at Kuwabara before he too, looked at what the old man had called the 'God Tree', "it's huge, if that's what you mean. I don't sense anything from it. Not even the old power that most of the big trees like it have."
"Exactly." Kuwabara responded, "Nothing. There is nothing anywhere anymore. The sense of power was there for a split second before it disappeared. You can't sense any power here. And that tree, that tree feels… weird."
"Why don't we come back with Kurama after?" Keiko recommended.
Both boys turned to her with a surprised look.
"What?" She snarked at them, "you think that just because I'm the only normal person you guys associate with means that I can't figure things out? I know Kurama is your plant, and all things requiring actual thought, specialist and that Heie is not human. Just like I know that you guys are discussing something about the supernatural that you pretend doesn't exist and will probably disappear for a few days again without word to anyone!"
Okay, maybe she had been a bit too temperamental with that, but they asked for it! It's not like she was stupid and she hated when they disappeared without so much as a thought. She may not mind not having any supernatural abilities, but she sure did mind being left out of the loop!
"Umm." Was Yusuke's intelligent response, "Sorry Keiko, I didn't think—."
"That's right! You didn't!" And with that she stalked off to talk to someone who had sense, one of her fellow female classmates of course.
"Well." Yusuke huffed. He turned to Kuwabara, saw the bemused look as he watched Keiko depart and snapped, "What!"
"She's right." Kuwabara commented.
"I know she's right," Yusuke returned, "doesn't mean she has to bite my head off, though."
They stopped talking as the girl, Kagome, according to her grandfather, bounced out the door. Kuwabara's attention flickered from her, to the tree, and back.
"What?" Yusuke murmured to his partner.
"I don't know. It's almost like I sense power coming from her, but I don't. It's the same as the well, but different."
Yusuke looked at Kuwabara thoughtfully and with a decisive nod fell quiet again. The pair watched the girl approach her grandfather and take over the tour.
They should have listened to her tale, but Yusuke was too busy trying to get Keiko to forgive him and Kuwabara too busy trying to keep their argument going, he liked when Yusuke got into trouble after all. Had they not been so preoccupied, Yusuke probably would have heard at least a little of the story she told, after all – he never could resist a girl in a short skirt. And had they not been so preoccupied, they'd have heard the tale that started the whole mess that was going to be their next great adventure.
Author's Note:
Okay, I realize it's very short. It's a start though. Please be kind to me - this is my first YYH or IY fic... I'm trying to keep them in character as possible, but I do realize that I will not get them perfect. I don't know if there will be any pairings, but they won't be the center part of the story if so.