punkish furball—Hey, there!
Words to Ponder:
First off, my laptop crashed. (Le gasp!) I'm still able to use the family computer and the computers at school, but it's in my little bro's room and they monitor the computers . . . it'll be a while before we can do something about my laptop (Hopefully a new one!)
Thank you Five Tailed Demon Dog, BadGothicChick, pheonixstar123, Kira, Bishonen'sFoxyMiko, StarlitBaby, Kitty463, Ls-girl, CrOsSoVerz, Starlight - Wild Koneko, Lawliet, Ebony Cassandra selene Riddle, Shin Wal-New Moon-, ice-cold-bunni, 43InuAsha, PrincessVictoriaAnnMacbeth, Reads-way-2-much, C.A.Q, Watashi No Sukinahito, Gothic Lust, Evil RULZ, PowerfulMind, IchikoKitsuneKoumori, WhiteDemoness11, Natasumi Tsuchi-Ookami, xXxLuna-the-ChosenxXx, Ai Megami Murasaki, and cowgirlkitten2000 for reviewing.
I got an interesting...I wouldn't call it a flame really. Spark? Sizzle? Yeah, let's go with that. Anyway it was one of those anonymous, no e-mail type deals that make any author want to tear your hair out when they piss you off. I didn't really think too much about it, but it did bring up something I wanted to address. Mimirou and Mayaru are important to the plot of the story. They are not "mary sues" or at least I don't think so (I had to look it up on wikipedia and ask around to find out what it meant). They are not used to "to make me feel like I am included in the story" (Okay that is pretty creepy). And, last but not least, if you leave a review saying something like that and then say "I'll never read any of your stories again. Goodbye." I will not care. It's still up; it's someone's opinion and I can't delete just because I disagree with it.
Also, so there isn't any confusion, Mimirou is a half-demon/hanyou and Mayaru is a demon/youkai.
Other fun stuff: There is a lot of stuff about the pairing. I really don't know. :P I came up with the idea and didn't think of anything like that. I'll have to see if it comes along.
On with the chapter!
Normal transition: -O0o0O-
Flashback transition: -O0o0O-
Chapter Two: Occursus
"So this is food?" Mimirou asked Kagome while looking down at the cup sized portion of light pink creamy substance with little red bits of fruit littered throughout it. Her sister held an equally sized portion only hers was as white as milk. The two of them were sitting on the kotatsu in the Higurashi kitchen eyeing the cups and spoons with suspicious eyes.
Earlier when they had all arrived at into the future, the two sisters were amazed at all the new sights, smells, modern advances this time had to offer. The two demons lived up to the reputation of all felines; Kagome didn't think she had ever answered so many questions before all at once. They had asked all sorts of questions: Why are there so few trees? What is that horrid smell? Where are all the other 'villagers'? Why is her home so big? What are the clear walls made of? How do they capture light into those small orbs? And much, much more.
When they had all reached Kagome's house, Kagome's mother, Kun-loon, had greeted them at the doorway with her grandfather, Takeshi-, and little brother, Souta. Mimirou and Mayaru introduced themselves and bowed until the older woman told them not to be so formal and that they would always welcome. While Kun-loon prepared dinner, Kagome took the girls upstairs to experience the modern wonder of indoor plumbing. After being showered and groomed, Mimirou and Mayaru dressed in a pair of thin cotton pajama pants, light aqua and mint green respectively, with holes made for their tails and a white cotton camisole. While Kagome showered and donned her own pajama set with light pink bottoms, the two demons asked more questions. Kagome didn't mind. It was a nice change of pace to actually educate and explain some features of her era to an interested audience.
Dinner was a pleasant affair, after Kagome had taken her grandfather's sutras away. The sisters conversed comfortably with Kagome's family and vice versa. Kagome could tell that her mother and grandfather appreciated the two demons' polite and respectful demeanor, a change from the brash behavior of InuYasha. Souta was especially interested in the two especially Mimirou, who was a hanyou like his hero.
'They are fitting in so well,' Kagome thought. She was glad that the two were comfortable with the change in scenery. The only challenge came when the main course of dinner was finished and they moved on to dessert, ice cream.
"Of course it's food," Kagome said. She picked up her spoon, took a big scoop of her own strawberry ice cream, and put it in her mouth. She let out a big sigh when she swallowed.
"It's delicious," she urged, "Try it." Mimirou lifted up her spoon, examining her reflection in the foreign piece of tableware and Mayaru refused to touch it.
"It's okay," Kun-loon said and added jokingly, "We're not going to poison you."
Not wanting to insult their hosts, Mayaru hesitantly picked up her spoon, holding it awkwardly, and got a small dot of vanilla ice cream on its tip. She lifted it up to her mouth and flicked the ice cream with her tongue. She jumped when it melted on contact.
"It's cold," she said, "and sweet." She put her spoon into the ice cream again and got a larger scoop. Mayaru put the whole portion in her mouth.
"It's good?" Mimirou asked her sister. She was answered with a content purr and a nod.
Mimirou looked down at her own spoon. She picked it up and got a much larger scoop of her strawberry ice cream with frozen strawberries embedded in it than her sister. She put it in her mouth and swallowed it whole without waiting. Mimirou immediately cringed and her ears flattened to her skull. Kun-loon giggled behind her hand at the distressed hanyou.
"It's okay," Kagome said, "It's only a brain freeze."
"My head is turning to ice?" Mimirou asked.
"No," Kagome said, "It's a headache you get from eating ice cream too fast."
"Try eating it slower," Souta suggested. Once the headache subsided, Mimirou tried again and was immediately smitten with the frozen treat.
After dessert was finished, the three girls went into the living room to watch a movie. Kagome explained the basics of television while Mimirou and Mayaru got settled on the couch. She put in one of her favorite DVDs, Shrek ™. She chose an animated, children's movie so that the two would not have too much trouble following it and not get too confused. To her delight, the two watched in rapt attention laughing and enjoying the movie. Once the movie was finished, it was time for bed.
Kagome took the two upstairs to the guest bedroom which contained a small desk, two twin sized beds and a side table between them with a lamp on it. The color scheme was light blue and creamy white.
"Ready for bed?" Kagome asked. Mimirou pushed down onto on of the beds with her hand being careful not to pierce the fabric with her claws.
"What kind of futon is this?" she asked.
"It's not really a futon," Kagome said, "It's a western style bed with a large cushion like a pillow called a mattress raised up on four posts. It is one of my personal favorite luxuries of this era."
Mimirou sat on the bed and after a few seconds, she bounced up and down a few times with a smile.
"I like this," she said and lay out on the bed on her back. Mayaru got onto her bed and curled up like a cat with her head resting on the pillow and her tails brushing against her legs.
"Do you think we are going to do acceptable at the festival tomorrow?" Mayaru asked quietly. Kagome giggled quietly and sat on the end of Mayaru's bed. "Shy" wasn't a word that came to mind when one thought about either of the two sisters, but Kagome figured that confronting bus loads of rowdy students from another time period would make even the stoic Sesshomaru a little nervous.
'Okay,' she thought, 'maybe not him.'
"I'm sure you'll do fine. You won't be alone. There are other volunteers and plus I'll be nearby," Kagome said and thought of a way to take their minds off of it.
"It'll be much more comfortable if you get underneath the blankets," she suggested.
The two got up for a moment and got under the covers and pulled them up to their chins, snuggling into the warmth of the blankets.
"Sleep well," Kagome said, getting up and walking to the door. She was answered with two low purrs. Kagome switched off the lights and waked to her room and left the door open just incase they needed something.
-O0o0O-
"Light, where are we going?" Ryuk asked the teenager sitting on the back seat of the bus with girl from his class while he stood in the aisle. It was morning and Light's entire senior class- had boarded a chartered bus after they had taken roll call. They were in a rush seeing as they were running late to arrive at the destination. Light turned his head to the side and whispered to the shinigami; he was sitting on by the aisle so the girl next to him wouldn't notice. Luckily, she also had her ear buds jammed in her ears with the volume on her iPod™ as high as it would go-.
"It's a field trip," Light answered quietly, "to a shrine in Tokyo. I need you to keep to yourself occupied. I can't be seen talking to you."
The girl at Light's side noticed that he wasn't looking her way and tapped his shoulder. When his attention turned from Ryuk to her, she pulled out her ear buds and began to speak.
"Light-kun, what are you staring at?" she asked.
"Nothing really," he said and flashed a charming smile, "I was just thinking."
"Oh," the girl said and wrapped her arm around Light's and leaned towards him, "I'm so happy I get to have you all to myself today."
"Yeah," Light said and nodded absently, not really paying attention to what she was saying. He didn't even remember her name. "Miyuri" or something of that nature. He looked at Ryuk again. The shinigami was shaking violently for some reason. Light sent him a confused look and the shinigami erupted with laughter. Light rolled his eyes at his actions.
'What is that shinigami laughing about now?' Light thought, 'He must know something I don't; he has the habit of laughing when he does. I wonder what it could be.'
Ryuk could not control the peals of laughter when he felt the familiar presence of holy energy ripple across his blue skin. It didn't take long for him to figure out who the shrine maiden of their destination was.
'She really is here,' Ryuk thought, 'I didn't expect Light to meet her so soon.' Ryuk also felt the presence of two similar demonic energies as well. That made Ryuk's laughter much louder. Ryuk's laughter died down when the bus slowed to a stop. The class got off the bus and immediately gaped at the sight of the large stone steps.
"Do they expect us to climb all those!" a male student with glasses exclaimed. A few other voice their opinions in agreement.
"Of course, we do. How else to you suspect to get all the way up there?" a voice asked. A girl was sitting on one of the stone railings kicking her legs back and forth resting with her hands on the back of her head. No one noticed her before; she was a hard one to miss. She was younger than most of the students present, maybe about thirteen or fourteen. She definitely wasn't of Japanese descent. Her complexion was darker, a rich creamy brown like melted caramel. Her attire was white, a kimono style outfit with short sleeves and ended at mid-thigh. A black obi was tied around her waist with a small bow in the back. She wore a black vest-like garment that looked like some kind of leather that fit tightly to her body resembling a corset and over that there was a golden colored chest plate ending at her midriff. Long black leggings ended at the top of her knees with black boots that looked like they were made of the same leathery material. Her hair was long and pure black tied into a high ponytail that brushed the middle of her back. A golden coronet was around her head with her bangs fanning over the front. A black pouch was wrapped around her left leg at the hem of her kimono and another on her right arm. A sword was sheathed at her side. She was smirking at the group of students with her eyes twinkling with laughter; one of them golden yellow in color and the other crimson red.
"Excuse me," one bold girl asked the stranger, "but would you happen to be our guide for the shrine tour?"
The girl stopped all motion; one of her legs was still in mid-swing. She looked over at the girl and raised one of her slender eyebrows.
"I suppose you could call me that," she said after being silent for a few moments, "but that's only if you go up the stairs." She paused and began to dig in her ear with a finger on her right hand, "If not, I suppose you could leave."
A group of boys decided to take the advice and turned back towards the bus. Before they could begin to walk towards it, a kunai flew through the air and pierced the metal of the bus door. Everyone looked at the girl sitting on the railing, who was still attending to her ear only this time twirling a kunai on her finger on her left hand.
"I thought you said we could leave!" one of the boys exclaimed, breathing heavily in shock of the sudden action.
The girl's finger left her ear, but she continued to twirl the kunai about.
"I did say that," she admitted, "but I never said I would not stop you." She slid off the railing and the class began to walk up the stairs deciding it would be wise to follow the girl and repeat their classmates' mistake. The girl walked behind them most likely to make sure no one when astray.
"Not that it matters to you," she began once they were about halfway up the steps, "but my name is Mimirou." Once she announced her name to the group, Ryuk began to laugh again. Light fought the urge to look back at the shinigami.
'That girl,' Light thought, 'There's something about her…' Light could literally feel her eyes boring into the back of his head like she was glaring at him.
'Or if I didn't know any better, I'd say that she was looking at Ryuk,' Light thought, but he immediately dismissed that thought. According to the rules of the death note, she should not be able to see the shinigami. After thinking for a while, Light remembered something Ryuk told him when he first appeared to him. He said that death notes had made there way to the human world before. Could this girl have found one before?
'Even if she did,' Light thought, 'Ryuk said told me humans, who have previously found a death note, returned it to the shinigami, thus, resulting in a loss of all memories of the shinigami, the death note, and all events that occurred because of it. But Ryuk would still retain his memory. His reaction when she said her name must mean they have come in contact with one another whether she remembers or not. There are many simple explanations for her glare; she could just be mad at us because some of the students tried to leave. Plus she is a teenaged girl; it won't take much to put her in a bad mood. I'll have to be on guard. I have a feeling that she will be trouble.'
"Light-kun?" asked his date, Miyuki, walking by Light's side, tugging on the arm she was holding. He looked in her direction.
"You're pretty quiet? What are you thinking about?" she asked him.
"Nothing," Light answered and looked ahead, "We're almost to the top."
The class finally reached the top of the shrine stairs. In front of them, there was a variety of stands and booths set up. There were other groups of high school students being lead by other guides and attendants; most of them older than their guide, Mimirou. A guide with a group of students behind her stopped in front to the stairs. Mimirou pushed her way to top and stood in front of her. It was almost like Mimirou was looking into a mirror; they were twins. This girl's hair was noticeably shorter only touching the bottom of her shoulder blades. Her eyes were both red in color and very catlike. Her outfit seemed a little more conservative than her counterparts covering more of her skin. It was a black cat suit that covered her either body from her neck to her ankles. Leather looking boots covered her feet, similar to Mimirou's. She also had gloves made of the same material. There were golden designs around her neck, wrist and feet. Green armor pads were on her knees and elbows with an additional one around her waist.
"What took you so long?" she asked Mimirou in a somewhat more proper tone, "The event is nearly reaching its close."
"It's not fault," Mimirou answered haughtily, "They were late and they were stubborn." The girl sighed.
"Very well," she replied and began to walk away motioning the group behind her to follow. Before she did, her eyes scanned the crowd behind Mimirou. Her eyes lingered at Light or more accurately beyond him but only for a second.
'It also seems as if she is able to see Ryuk as well,' Light thought, 'but it doesn't make any sense. Ryuk gave a response when Mimirou said her name; it's probable he had met her. Mimirou and that other girl are twins so it would also be plausible to say that if one came into contact with Ryuk then the other did as well. The two girls didn't acknowledge Ryuk directly; just a few glances in his general direction don't seem like enough to cause any alarm. But Ryuk laughed which obviously means he knows something that I don't. It's a consistent behavior of his; he finds it amusing when he has some sort of knowledge that I don't possess or am trying to uncover. It's similar to when Ray Penber's fiancé gave me her alias instead of her real name. He began to laugh when I wrote that name on the death note paper and waited for her to do as I wrote.' Light sighed, 'Looks like I'll have to keep on guard from both twins.'
"Okay," Mimirou said and turned to the group of students, "let's all try to make this go as smoothly as possible. Follow me and at least pretend that you have the least amount of common courtesy to be quiet while I talk. I do not mind talking between groups so long as it doesn't bother me." Mimirou turned away from the group and began to walk ahead. The students followed, talking amongst themselves in no louder that a dull whisper.
The group of students was mildly interested in what Mimirou had to say. There were exhibits dealing with life during the Feudal Age of Japan.
"This exhibit," Mimirou began, "depicts the typical lifestyle. People lived in villages isolated from others. Village people coexisted as a single unit. There were specialized tasks for each villager such as farming, hunting, and protecting the village from attacks." Mimirou picked up one of the spears from the exhibit, "Common weaponry consisted of spears like the one I'm holding or bows and arrows or small daggers. It was rare for common villages to possess any advanced weaponry. Follow me to the demonstration area and I will also tell you a bit more basic information."
The class followed in rapt attention. The mention of the "demonstration" caught the group's interest.
"The role of women in villages was primarily to produce offspring and tend to individual households. However," Mimirou paused and stopped in front of an open area with a large tree baring a target like one used for archery.
"Possibly the most important female role in this era besides those of royal heritage was that of the village priestess or miko. Her duty was to take care of the village's ill or injured, performed certain rituals, and, according the a few ancient records, protected the village from demonic attacks."
One member of the group scoffed, "Demons don't exist."
Mimirou ignored the comment and continued to talk, "A demonstration of our shrine maiden's abilities will begin in the arena."
Everyone looked at the open area; a girl emerged from the sidelines. She was wearing the customary garb of a miko; red hakama- and white haori- with tabi- and zōri- on her feet. Her raven black hair was tied into a high ponytail with a white ribbon and her bangs in front of her face. Her slender fingers held a longbow style yumi- and on her back was a quiver of arrows. She was looking confidently at the target; her pink lips pulled into a gentle smile and her clear blue eyes twinkling brightly.
Standing between 40-50 meters from the target, the shrine maiden shifted into her stance of choice. She loaded the bow, notching the arrow in her desired position. In one fluid motion, she shot the arrow. It flew through the air and hid the bull's eye. The crowd of students applaud and cheered while the girl ran out further to nearly 100 meters.
"No way is she going to make it again," Miyuki said at Light's side. Light had to disagree. The girl was practically brimming with confidence; her smile grew into a smirk as she drew another arrow. It hit the bull's eye again and split the other arrow in half. Another round of applause began.
'She's good,' Light thought, 'She uses the instinctive method of shooting. She focuses only on the center of the target and nothing else. It's an older type of method; I'm surprised someone her age uses it.'
Mimirou began to walk into the arena followed by her twin and a small boy with black hair and brown eyes. He was wearing a monks' outfit consisting of black and dusty orange robes that hang off slightly (it was a little big for him) and a golden colored staff. Mimirou went to the target and removed the arrows from the target. The boy followed her. Once the target was clear the boy stood in front of the target with the bull's eye right above his head. He took something from the fold of his robes, an apple. Mimirou took it and placed it on the boy's head.
"Don't tell me she's going to do the whole apple thing?" Miyuki said, "I hope she doesn't poke the poor boy's eye out." Light just nodded and kept his eyes on the girl. Mimirou's twin step behind the archer and tied a blindfold on her eyes. The twin stepped away and the shrine maiden loaded her bow as easily as she did when her vision wasn't hindered. She let the arrow go and the apple split in half. This time she bowed when the applause begun and walked away from the field long before it began to die out. Light was not applauding. In the direction the shrine maiden was headed in, Ryuk was standing ahead of her. He wasn't doing anything in particular but this behavior was suspicious enough. The shrine maiden did not falter in her step; she continued to walk towards a modern looking building probably the home of herself and her family. Once she passed Ryuk, he followed after her.
Before Mimirou returned to his group and when his date was preoccupied with her friends, Light managed to sneak away. He found his way through the crowd, keeping his eye on the shrine maiden. She disappeared into the house and Ryuk went through the door.
'What does he think he's doing?' Light thought, growing a little frantic, 'What does he have in mind? He does have his own death note…is he going to use it to reveal himself to another human?' In minutes, Light reached the front of the house. He placed a hand on the door knob and was delighted to find it unlocked. He stopped for a moment to slip off his shoes; he didn't want to seem rude if the girl caught him.
'I'll say that I was curious about her abilities and tried to catch her before she came in but couldn't,' Light thought, 'Hopefully, she won't think I'm too much of a stalker.'
Light walked into the hallway, peaking into the rooms. He reached the kitchen; the girl was at the counter and Ryuk was standing over her. She hand an apple in her hand and a knife in the other. She peeled the skin off the apple, cut the core out, and cut the apple into slices. She placed the apple slices on a napkin and took them to a low table. Ryuk followed her looking at the apple slices hungrily.
'An apple?' Light thought and the more suspicious he grew.
The shrine maiden took one slice and bit into. Then Ryuk grabbed the remaining pieces and ate them all at once. He looked at the piece in the girl's hand with wanting.
'Is he insane?' Light thought, 'He just ate in front of a human!' Instead of the panic and confusion Light was expecting, the girl just sighed and held out her piece to Ryuk. He took in greedily and swallowed it.
"Why don't you join us, Light?" Ryuk asked, "I'm sure that you're not imposing. Just ask Kagome."
Before Light could say anything, the shrine maiden turned to him and smiled.
"Of course, why don't you join us, Yagami-san?"
-O0o0O-
punkish furball—There we go. Light has long and drawn out thoughts. I hope I managed to capture his personality well.
- I don't know his real name and I just like that one.
- I think Light is a senior, right?
- Don't you hate that?
- pants worn over a kimono, like Kikyo's
- top worn over kimono, like Kikyo's
- long white socks worn with sandals
- sandals
- a bow
- Occursus – "An unexpected meeting or encounter"
There were a lot of those. I hope this was a good chapter. Remember: Questions? Comments? Words of Wisdom? Contact Me! L83R, DUDES!
(edited 08.05.2010)