"The Sacred Box."
"Mama, I am going out for a walk. I need some fresh air. I should be back in time for dinner in half an hour. If I'm not then I am still ok, just taking longer to think than I thought. Don't wait for me to start dinner." Kagome told her mother. She had just had a fight with her brother. If that wasn't bad enough, they were twins and they, sometimes, knew what the other was thinking if they were to close. Kagome decided to distance herself so she could have all the malicious thoughts she wished without her brother knowing what they were and thus save there relationship and his feelings.
"Ok, don't you get lost and if you are not back by morning then I will have the village out looking for your sorry ass body." Mama said to her daughter jokingly. There were only fourteen years between mother and twins and sometimes they felt more like siblings than parent and offspring. "If you are out after dinner is cleaned up I will leave some cold bread and meet out on the table. Tonight is Sota's night to do dishes so its ok if you are out all night. Be back by noon tomorrow."
"No problem Mama. See you in a few hours." And Kagome walked out the front door and into the pleasant night air
It was a worm cloudy night, you know, like when the day was muggy and it rained just down the rode and it was a release but not enough to make the clouds go away. Kagome loved it like this, it was just the right temperature and not to humid.
As she left her house she had a funny feeling, almost like sadness or loss, and she looked back at the village. There were no more than thirty family huts, the male, then female bachelor compounds, and then the village leaders residents. Technically it should be called a town instead if a village but the elders never saw fit to have there out of the way refuge added to the imperial maps.
The funny feeling persisted and she looked around for its source, it didn't belong to her brother and it certainly didn't come from her. When she could not find the source she shrugged it off as left over anger towards her brother, though she new that it wasn't, and walked to the trail at the edge of the woods.
She had walked this path many, many times in the dead of night and at dusk, even a cloudy one, it was no problem. Her impossibly dark eyes picking out the darker objects of the path without difficulty. The trees on either side of the path hung over to just touching her black hair.
Contrary to her albino brother, or anyone else in the village for that mater, Kagome was as dark as she could be and still be considered caucation. Her skin was naturally tan and the villagers always told her that she should stay out of the sun or she would be burnt to a crisp before any of her very white friends would, simply because she had a larger head start. No matter that she had never been sun burnt and all of her friends had.
Kagome's complexion was as flawless as it was when she had been born. Even at that it was almost impossible to mar. She had been in a catfight a few weeks ago and had come out unscathed though the other two girls probably wouldn't be looking for husbands in the foreseeable future. Her figure was ideal for her age and the one idolized by every other age. The only thing unpleasant about her was her face. Not because it was not beautiful, radiant even, but she had the expression of one that has never known humor, never laughed, never even attempted to tell a joke. The villagers had grown accustomed to this face though it had not always been this way. Once she had bean the life of the village and had bean the highlight of every day, for every person. Never again.
It was a grate comfort to Kagome to be in the woods. They had this calming affect on her that she had always described as almost like being held. When ever she was upset or sad she always took a walk in the woods. She could talk and talk, and the animals would always listen and never criticize, sometimes talking to her and setting her at ease. The trees would hold her and cry for her when she cried. The whole forest was her soul, like a duplicate of herself, always there for her to lean on, seemingly indestructible.
She had been walking for an hour thinking of nothing at all and just letting her body take her where it wanted to go. Finding herself at the tallest tree in all the wood that she knew, Kagome leaned ageist it and closed her eyes to think about why she had left her home for such a spontaneous walk in the woods.
Sota was so controlling sometimes. If she wanted something and he did to, then he got it. If their was something that they disagreed over, then Mama was already gone, off to visit the bachelors to see if one of them was available to fix what ever it was that would be broken by the time that she got home. For a seventeen year old, Sota acted like a vary naughty two year old. Kagome felt pity for the woman that decided to merry her brother. There will be no end of broken things, even bones, if she is too strong-minded.
Leaning ageist the tree, Kagome started to feel hot. Not like it was becoming humid again, but like she was sitting in front of a fireplace and she was moving steadily closer to keep warm during the winter. Soon it was becoming unbearably hot and she was looking around for the source of the heat. Then realization struck her like a flying arrow, it was her brother that was feeling this intense heat.
Standing, Kagome started to run towards the village. She was half an hour sprint away but she didn't care. Sota was in danger. Soon Kagome could feel pinpricks all over her body that rapidly turned to pain. Intense, mind searing, unstoppable, pain. And the last thing that Kagome remembered before her body collapsed under her was: I am too late, and we didn't get to make up after the fight, and Sota coming into her thoughts and projecting, I love you and am sorry.
When Kagome became aware of her surroundings, she was in a wood with a path branching to the left and right. To the left Kagome could see the charred remains of an outpost used in small towns. Walking towards it Kagome felt the urge to poke around the rubble even though it was still hot.
Kagome entered the compound and moving around saw the blackened remains of a body. Right next to it was a small chest that the body might have bean holding since there was no way that it actually belonged on the floor, it was so ornate.
It was made of aged maple, though she couldn't know how she knew that. It was magnificently carved in designs and figures. The clasp was of striking silver, even tarnished by the fire. Bending over to pick it up Kagome saw a small plate with inscription on the back. And though she couldn't reed it, the symbols just wouldn't form coherently in her head; Kagome knew that it would be valuable information.
There was one figure on the chest that she recognized. Carved into the plate in the back at the very top and in bigger letters than any other were these symbols…
He had smelt the burning of human flesh for some time and was beginning to become sick. He had bean on many battlefields and in many battles, but this was worse than the smell of death. It was destruction, unneeded, and though many would say that the battles were the same as what were before him, he could tell the different. This inferno, it was indeed an inferno, was set to massacre; in battle every man had a chance. Maybe because he had seen so much blood, or maybe because he knew himself to be the cause of so much of it, Miroku could not stand the sight, or smell, of wasted human life.
When he had come upon the hidden village, Miroku looked at it with no outward emotion on his face. Inside however, Miroku was in a rage. Who could have done such a thing? To slaughter a whole village was unjustifiable.
This village was not marked on the imperial maps, so it had probably still bean growing. All the huts had probably bean small; they were all gone, burnt away by the fire; and there were the long frames of long dormitories used for bachelors. The charred stone foundation of the temple and town hall and maybe the community leaders were not far away.
Some of the men with Miroku started to poke around the rubble looking for the bones of any villager. They knew not to loot a place like this, if there was anything left after the fire. Miroku said that even spirits need comfort, and the fact that a soldier would be left to the mercy of the spirit he was robbing left not enough comfort for the living. They would try to put as many of the spirits at rest as they could, as they hoped one day someone may do for them or their village. Do as you want done unto you was the motto of these soldiers.
"You and you, join the others in searching for the remains. The rest of you, search the perimeter for the outposts, maybe one of them survived."
When Miroku was left with just some of his personal guard, the demon slayer Sango, the slayers in training, Shipou and Kohaku, and the transizing (she changes sizes) demon Kirara, he drought out his spirit staff and started to pray for the lost souls.
What many of the men that worked for Miroku didn't know was that he was a battle priest. Whenever there was a soul that needed help to be put to sleep he would do his best to help it. He trusted only a few of his closest friends with this secret because of the way that he prayed for the souls. The religion and system of prayer that he fallowed were forbidden, punishable by death.
Being a Buddhist monk was a dangerous thing in this day and age. The Shinto priests had corrupted a prince two generations ago and he had had all Buddhist monks slaughtered. Only a very few managed to escape. There were even less today, but Miroku had a hope that some day the Buddhist religion would be a respectable pursuit.
When Miroku had done all that he could do from a distance the small group that had remained behind entered the clearing. As they entered one of the men came running from all the way across the other side of the village.
He reached them, panting slightly. It had been a long day and the depression of the fire did not usually give a soldier an adrenalin rush.
"Sir, ma'am, we found an outpost that wasn't completely destroyed by the fire. There is one dead body and it looks like someone has bean there recently. Maybe three hours ago. It looks like they took something from the sight, a box that was in the dirt. Hojo thinks that this maybe either the person that set the fire or a survivor. They headed into Inuyasha's forest. Hojo says that since we are going there anywise we might ask Inuyasha if he would help find the person who did this. The village is not on any of the maps so it might as well be in his territory as much as it is in the western lands."
"If lord Sesshomaru ever heard you say that anything was as good as his as Inuyasha's you would be a dead man. I do understand what you are saying though." Said Sango who had bean included in the conversation by the "ma'am", though she would have had all of the information anywise.
"Yes," said Miroku. "On both accounts. We will ask Inuyasha if he will help, and you need to be careful. We will not camp hear for the night. We will push on into Inuyasha's forest and be as far away from this grave as possible. In the morning we will be on the lookout for Inuyasha's home."
The soldiers finished saying prayers over any of the bones that they had found and they all moved off into the woods on the far side of the clearing. Only a few of the soldiers looked back on the grave.
It was about an hour before sunset and the girl was beginning to tire. It had only bean a few hours since she had left the charred remains of the outpost but she guessed she must have sustained an injury and she would need a place to safely rest and food soon.
When the girl came into a small clearing and spotted an old well she decided to take a rest. Looking down at the box, the girl wondered what was inside it. If she were to open it would there be a terrible catastrophe? Would someone try to kill her for doing something that was forbidden if the box said to? She decided to not open it and maybe even keep it concealed.
She had come across some items in an old hut not far from the outpost. Inside there were some things that a resourceful girl would keep handy. There had bean some old and broken crockery that lay on a shelf, some clothes that had bean in a chest at the end of the bed, a burlap sack on one of the cupboards. It was amazing that any of this stuff was intact since the outside of the house appeared to be so old. But it was there and she took it.
One of the things that she found was a book that she, again, couldn't read. But when she looked at it, a word came to mind. 'Kagome.' She couldn't know what it meant or ware it came from, but she decided to use it as her name. She was to be known as Kagome for the rest of her life she decided.
She had left the book in the old house and gone in her way, saying a prayer of thanks to the spirit of the house. Ware she soon found herself in the space with the well.
The sun was going down and it was getting dark. She looked around for a place to sleep and was rewarded with the sight of a tree. It wasn't as tall as some that she had seen on her walk through the forest, but it had branches that only a humanoid creature could reach, which if there was then she would be in trouble ether way.
Climbing into the tree Kagome felt exhausted. She had walked all and had hardly eaten anything, she had found a few berries that she had eaten, but a lot of those that she had found she had not trusted and left alone. In the morning she would have to hunt for food.
And she fell asleep.
Miroku had not liked the village that he had seen. As soon as lord Sesshomaru found out about it he would be furious that someone had damaged what was his, even if he didn't know that it belonged to him until after it was damaged. Yes, there would be hell to pay.
It had only bean an hour or two since the group of dignitaries and guards had left the village but they were all exhausted. They had planed to stop a while ago but the sight of the village had inspired them to march farther. Now it was almost dark, they had no food made, no fire, no camp of any kind that they could see.
Just as Miroku was about to call a halt and tell then all that they would all have to sleep ware they were one of the soldiers gave a shout.
There was a small clearing a little ways away and, there in the center way a little girl. She looked to be only about ten, with white hair and an extremely pail complexion. She lay there asleep and didn't twitch. That is until Sango approached her.
When the little girl looked up all of the soldiers took a step back. Her eyes were not the red of one possessed or of that of a demon. Her eyes were dead. Not blind, but dead.
She blinked up at the group and didn't make a sound. Kirara was the first to react. (Even she had bean shocked by the girl's appearance.) She took a step forward and took a good long sniff. When she gave a 'mew' and started to purr the soldiers all started to murmur.
Sango walked closer to the girl and squatted next to her. "Ware are you from." She asked.
The little girl replied, "the village."
Kirara walked up to the girl and lay down next to her. She began to purr as the girl pet her head.
"What is your name?" Miroku asked.
The girl looked at him and lay down curled around (the now big) Kirara. "Kanna." And she went to sleep against Kirara.
He awoke to the sound of a scream. He would usually just let the animal be eaten but this didn't sound like an animal. It sounded like a girl.
He got lit of bed and threw on his clothes and jumped out the window. From about ten stories up.
He landed on a branch about thirty feet below his window and took a good sniff of the air. He could smell something unpleasant in his woods. They were a gift from his brother when their father died and if he didn't take care of them he would loose them.
Running from tree branch to tree branch Inuyasha fallowed the sent. There was fear, demon, innocence, and deviance. Why couldn't his brother give him a peaceful part of the forest? Because then he would be having trouble and Inuyasha would be at peace.
Drawing closer to the sent Inuyasha could smell human. 'What is a human doing in this part of the woods?'
Coming around a tree Inuyasha could see a demon with a maiden pinned against a tree. She was beautiful. The girl, not the demon.
"What is a pretty morsel like you doing in this part of the woods? You are lucky that I found you before Inuyasha did, or who knows ware you might have ended up." He just kept talking and the girl just kept standing there like an idiot.
Finally it looked like Inuyasha was going to have to save the girl. The demon was gnashing its teeth and shifting to get a better position.
Inuyasha waited till the last moment, not because he wanted to scare the girl more than she already was, but he really did not want to have to get involved in affairs that were not his business, even though everything that went on in this part of the wood was his business.
When the demon opened his jaws to place the girls head in his mouth Inuyasha rushed forward and slashed right through the demons head. The girl stood ware she was against the tree that she had apparently been pulled out of and pinned against. Then she crumpled.
Inuyasha sighed. He would have to take her back to his home and look after her until she was well again, and then find transport. The only thought that cheered him was that Miroku would be coming soon and he had promised to bring his betrothed. She would know how to take care of a girl, he hoped. They should be arriving within the next few days. He hoped soon
As Inuyasha picked the girl up she snuggled into his chest and he had a thought that caused him some discomfort just a moment, he just wanted to keep holding this girl who he had just saved. He wanted to hold her and protect her. Inuyasha sighed again. He hoped that this betrothed of Mirokus showed up soon. Or he would be having a hard time over the next few days.