This is going to be my first attempt at an Inuyasha fanfiction. Please bear with me if you come across any typos or horrible sentence structure. Lol.
Disclaimer: It's obvious. I don't own Inuyasha.
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Scarlet Skies – Chapter 1: The Arrival
As the shades of pink and gold in the sky transformed into deep blue a wave of exhaustion swept over the young miko and her companions – all except one red-clad hanyou who refused to stop walking. "Inuyasha, I think we should set up camp now." Kagome said with a yawn, stretching one hand up in the air as the other covered her mouth.
Inuyasha grunted and looked at her from the corner of his eye. "Quit being lazy. If we keep going at this pace Naraku's gonna find all the jewel shards before we do!"
Shippou plopped down on a nearby rock and began to whine. "My feet hurt! I want to rest!"
Miroku put his hand under his chin as he thought to himself for a moment. A smile came across his face as he remembered something. He pointed his monk staff to the east, motioning the group to head in that direction. "There's a village not far from here! Hurry! Follow me!" He broke off into a half-run, Sango dragging her giant boomerang behind her as she, Kagome, and Shippou tried their best to keep up. Inuyasha shrugged it off and walked behind them, not being in the mood to run even though he wasn't the least bit tired.
Several minutes later they came across the village Miroku spoke of. It was slightly larger than Kaede's village, and was surrounded by a tall stone wall that reached over fifteen feet high. There were two guards stationed in front of the wooden gate which lead to the village. They immediately raised their spears as they saw the group come closer. "What business do ye have here in Minakami[1]?!" One guard inquired suspiciously.
The other guard gasped as he caught sight of Inuyasha. "A – a demon!!!" He exclaimed, pointing his spear in the hanyou's face, trying to hide his fear. "S-stay back, you evil creature!!"
Miroku bowed at the guards and spoke to them with a serious tone within his voice. "Do not be afraid of our demon friend, for he means no harm and would not think of attacking a human." Inuyasha gave him an annoyed 'Feh!' and turned away. "As my companions and I were passing by I sensed a dark, ominous cloud looming over your village. I must speak with the your lord and fix the situation before it worsens. The cloud is a bad omen indicating this village will be the next target for a demon attack."
"The cloud again?!" Kagome hissed into his ear from behind, making sure the guards couldn't hear her. "Like they'd believe that stupid story!"
"Stupid story, indeed. There is no 'ominous cloud' looming over Minakami, and any person with half a brain would be able to know that."
Everyone but Inuyasha and the guards jumped up in surprise when they heard someone talk. Kagome turned to her left and spotted a figure dressed in a dirty brown cloak sitting in front of the village wall. 'How did he hear me? And why didn't I notice him before?' It was hard for her to determine how old the mysterious stranger was because of the hooded cloak he wore. Kagome wasn't sure if the person was a he. When he spoke his voice was so cleverly disguised…the stranger could very well have been a girl!
The second guard shot a hateful glare at the sitting figure and threw a rock at him, making direct contact with the center of his head. Clunk! He didn't even flinch. "Be quiet!"
The stranger stood up slowly, turned around and faced the Inu-tachi. Kagome shivered as she saw the eerie porcelain mask covering his face. The mask gave off a dull shine under the light of the slowly rising moon. It held no expression, nor did it have any holes where the eyes should be[2]. 'How can he see through a mask with no holes in it?' Kagome wondered.
The first guard took several rocks and threw them at the masked stranger, who still didn't move under the barrage of stones. "Go on, beat it! Get out of here, you lousy whelp!"
He stared at the guards, his mask keeping his true emotions from them a secret. Without another word he turned back to the Inu-tachi, gave a slight bow, walked into the forest, and disappeared.
Kagome blinked, watching his cloaked figure vanish behind the shadowed trees. 'How did he…? Who was that…?' She was never able to voice her questions, for the guards pushed her and her friends into the village and closed the gate before she ever had the chance to.
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[1] – Minakami was a name I got from Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly, for those who play the game. It means All God's Village, or so I'm told. All God's Village is where the game takes place. ^.^ Anyways…
[2] – For those who have played the original Fatal Frame… I'm trying to refer to the Mask of Reflection. I doubt any of you know what I'm talking about. x_x; Well, just try and picture it in your head.
That's all for now. I hope someone will review this story. If I get at least 1, I'll write another chapter. ^_^ Ja ne!