Authoress Notes: Yes, I realized that I have not updated in… let's see… Over two months! And I apologize! I really wanted to, but I just couldn't! At first I had a major writer's block! Then after Phan-chan helped me through that, I just couldn't find the time to write! I'm sorry. But with the little time I have now, I'll try to update.
Special Chapter Dedication to: All my faithful reviews! Thanks for not giving up on me!
Disclaimer: I do not own Shaman King or Inuyasha and claim no rights to them but I DO own this fan fiction story.
A Look Into the Past…
The forest was lively as the two children that ran around and frolicked through its greenery. Carefree birds chirped and sang their joyful songs as they watched from the top branches of trees. The familiar human children that ran around and played their games of imagination did not frighten the usually shy forest critters. The two of them came to the forest everyday, but they never ventured too far inside the forest. They made sure never to go beyond the clearing with a field of golden rods.
One of them wore blue jean overalls, a plain white long sleeved turtleneck, and black gym shoes. While the other wore a cute pink dress, white leg warmers, and shiny black dress shoes. Although their attire was very different, their physical features were quite similar. One had messy jet-black* hair that fell just above their shoulders, bright blue-gray eyes, and nicely tanned skin. The other had long, straight black hair that was worn in a high ponytail and almost identical blue-gray eyes. It was obvious that they were siblings, seeing as the two looked alike and were even holding hands as the shorthaired* child led the longer haired one through the forest.
"Monkey-chan, where are we going?" the long haired child ask her sibling. They had already run passed the field of golden rods. They were not forbidden from going pass the field, but they never did because they both agreed it was too scary. "I don't know where we are anymore!"
'Monkey-chan', as the girl had called her sibling, replied, "Just a bit further, Hime-chan. I wanna show you a really fun place to play!"
"What fun place?" 'Hime' inquired curiously. "And how do you know about it and not me?" Usually they played and stayed together always, so it was odd that one would know something that the other did not-
"Oh! Yesterday, 'member when Kaede-baasan came by and told Okaa-san that she would begin training you to become a priestess?"
"H-Hai… I remember."
"Well, while you were busy, I went off to play by myself. And I met this cute little bunny and we played for a while!" Monkey explained. "Then he took off for some reason and I followed him! That's where I found the fun place!"
"Are we playing True Love and War again?" Hime asked hopefully. It was her favorite game.
"Yup!" Monkey nodded and replied enthusiastically. The stick in their hand was suddenly grasped tighter. "And of course, I'm the samurai, and you're my princess!"
Chapter 4: Higurashi Shrine And the Lonely Soul
(Part II)
This was definitely not what Kagome had planned to do tonight. Originally, she planned to be sleeping by now. Then, she changed her plans to having a sleepover with Manta and Yoh! Now, her cousins were hosting a sleepover party while she was trying to sleep!
'I mean, who doesn't sleep at a sleepover?' she thought in a frustrated manner.
She pulled a blanket over her head and turned over so the light did not keep her awake. Not that it would help anyway. Momiji and Botan were running and jumping around the house hyperactively gathering unhealthy snacks and different kinds of movies and games.
Meanwhile, Yoh, Amidamaru, and Manta were interested in examining all of the family photographs on the wall in the living room. Yoh pointed at a picture of a younger version of Kagome and laughed aloud. She was standing in front of the Goshinboku, embracing a toddler Souta from behind, and there was another child with a big grin on their face, standing on top of the fence around the great tree. "Look at this one, Manta, it's so funny!" Yoh stated, plucking the framed photo from the wall and holding it down for his friend to see it.
"Mmm…" Manta narrowed his eyes skeptically for a moment before saying, "…kawaii…"
Amidamaru floated over from the photo he was looking at the take a look at the photograph as well. He stared hard at it with an indecisive pout on his lips… "If that is Kagome-sama…" he pointed at the girl in the dress. "And that is Souta…" The samurai pointed at the toddler that was being embraced by Kagome. "Then who is that?" he asked, pointing at the grinning child.
"I was wondering the same thing," Manta admitted as he looked from the picture, to Amidamaru, to Yoh. The shaman had a thoughtful look on his face before a light bulb lit above his head.
"Ahhh, I think I know!" Yoh told them. "-That I have no idea-" Amidamaru and Manta anime fell.
"Stop being an idiot!" Manta yelled. He then sighed and said, "I don't think we should ask her about it yet…" Amidamaru crossed his arms, and nodded in agreement.
"Hai… There seems to be a lot of dark secrets revolving around the Higurashi family," the spirit stated. "And they should only be brought up when Kagome-sama is ready." For once, Yoh nodded silently and placed the picture back on the wall. Within the blink of an eye, Botan had once again swept Manta in her arms while rubbing her cheek against his. Yoh had been attacked too, but by Momiji, who had wrapped her arms around his neck while giggling.
"It's time for the very first Higurashi/Oyamada/Asakura/Amidamaru sleepover party!" the twins announced happily. "Feel free to make yourselves at home!"
Souta, who had been ordered to bring in as many horror movies he could find, sweat dropped and mumbled, "…this is coming from the two that doesn't live here…" He carelessly dropped the armful of tapes on the floor and sighed as he plopped down on a pallet. "Yoh-niisan, you and Manta-niisan will have to sleep on the pallets!"
"Heh, heh, that's fine with me."
With a flick of the light switch, the living room was dark besides the blue light of the blank TV screen. Momiji snapped her fingers and shouted out orders, "Botan, you shake up the orange soda as fast as you can! Souta, you put on A Nightmare on Elm Street! Yoh-sama, you put up a disclaimer! Manta-san, stand there and be cute." Momiji then hopped on to the couch were Kagome was sleeping… "And I'll wake up Kagome!" The hyper twin bounced up and down on Kagome's back…
"Sakuma-san does not own A Nightmare on Elm Street," Yoh said blandly. He then turned to Manta and asked, "Who is Sakuma-san?"
"How the hell should I know?!" Manta asked back. His attention was then diverted to Momiji, who seemingly lost her mind…
"Ka-go-me-Ba-Ka!" Momiji sang each time she jumped on her older cousin's back.
"Momijjjiiiiiii!" Kagome growled before moaning in pain.
"Wait-! Don't do that Momiji!" Manta exclaimed. He ran up to in front of the couch but froze when he learn a loud, CRACK!
"AAhhhhhh!!!" Kagome screamed in a frustrated way as she sat up quickly, forcing Momiji to fall off the couch. The red haired girl landed on poor Manta…
"Whatthehelldoyouguysthinkyou'redoingandMomiji, whatmakesyouthinkit'sokayjumponmyback?!" Kagome yelled swiftly. Her rant blew everyone else away… Literally. Everyone stared at the fuming girl with wide eyes and messy hair.
…Silence…
"Uuuhhh… What?" Botan asked.
S.H.A.M.A.N.K.I.N.G.
How Kagome was able to sleep through the Higurashi/Oyamada/Asakura/Amidamaru sleepover party was beyond amazing! From nine p.m. to three a.m. the party raged and kept the Higurashi shrine alive throughout the night. Kun-Loon, Kaede, and Grandpa must have been heavy sleepers too… There was glompage, blood curdling screams from horror scenes, cat fights, soda pop fights, and pillow fights every six seconds. Manta did not enjoy the loud noise and the fighting, Yoh was just happy to have snacks, but neither of them was too keen on leaving…
As for Amidamaru… He disappeared as soon as Kagome got back to sleep. Now it was four o' clock in the morning and Kagome was just waking up from her slumber. The raven-haired girl slowly sat up with a yawn and a quick rub of her eyes. She looked around the room, which was dimly lit by the light of the television. "Those guys…" she sighed as she stood up and walked towards the television. She pushed the largest button and turned it off. It was on the most annoying channel invented: The Static Channel.
Kagome's eye twitched when she stepped on a potato chip; it was crushed beneath her weight and its last words were an air splitting: CRUNCH! "Okay," she said to herself. "That's just gross…" Suddenly a bright light that rushed through the windows briefly lighted up the dark room. Seconds later, the light was followed by a deep rumbling sound. "Rain…" Kagome whispered. "It was raining then too…"
Another Look Into the Past…
Just a little pass the field of goldenrods was another clearing, but this clearing brought an odd looking cave along with it. There were old, worn sutras plastered all over the surface area of the cave's opening. "See? Isn't it cool?!" Monkey asked, before running up to the cave and turning around to smile at Hime. "What do ya think?"
"It's… not that big… and it's… weird…" Hime responded hesitantly.
"Don't mind the small, petty details," Monkey stated before winking.
"You just copied father…"
"Did not!" Monkey yelled back. "Anyway," there was a brief pause before Monkey turned around to the cave. "This can be the grave of me! The lonely samurai spirit!"
"Okay!" Hime agreed with a soft smile. "And I'm the princess who summons your spirit from the dead!" Monkey grinned and nodded, they were glad that Hime understood what their next adventure would be about.
"First, let's remove these old sutras!" Monkey told Hime. Hime's blue-gray eyes widened and she reached out to her sibling but it was too late. Monkey had already begun to peel the old paper away from the aging rock. Somehow, Monkey did not notice how each time a sutra was removed, it went up in flames and the sky became darker.
"Stop it! Monkey-chan, get down from there!" Hime yelled uncharacteristically. Tears were forming in her eyes. Monkey was oblivious to the things going on. Hime was the priestess (in training) after all. "I said stop NOW!!!"
"Woah!" Monkey yelled, startled, as they fell back. Hime's outburst surprised them, and Monkey ended up removing the very last sutra from the rock. They fell onto their back with a thud and Hime ran up to them worriedly.
"Are you okay?" she asked with a watery frown.
"Ow…" Monkey hissed, "but what was that for, Hime-chan?!" Before Hime could explain to Monkey what was about to happen, it was too late. A bolt of lightning struck down from the sky and hit the cave, blowing the two children a few feet away. They rolled and tumbled a few times until they came to a stop.
"Monkey-chan… Are you alright?" Hime asked for the second time.
"H-Hai, demo-"
Their conversation was interrupted by a deep, dark chuckle that immediately made them tremble with a newfound fear. The young pair of siblings slowly looked up at the cave and saw the most horrific creature they had seen in all of their nine years. A few yards away from them, stood a demon. It was seven feet tall, even with its hunched over form, and its skin looked more like a mixture between mud and clay. There was over a thousand eyeballs of different, shapes, and colors littered all over its body. A giant pair of plump red lips was at the center of its torso.
"Kami…" Hime whispered, breathless at just the sight of the creature.
The lips soon cracked a jagged toothed grin before a forked tongue licked them. "God?" The demon asked incredulously. "For you two…" The eyes of the right side of the body stared at Hime while the eyes of the left settled on Monkey. "There is no God."
Kagome shivered at the horrible memory. But why was she thinking about that now? Was it because of the house? Was it her family that reminded her of that time? She shook her head and gazed at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. She ran cold water in her cupped hands and splashed her face. "No…" she whispered. "It's something else…" Kagome never told anyone of that day in the woods. She had been too afraid. And truthfully, up to the scene where the demon told them that there was no God… She had no more memories of that.
'But something must have triggered those memories… But what?' Kagome thought her heart missed a beat when a more recent memory came to her. She dropped her white ponytail holder onto the tile floor.
I, Higurashi Ran, will record the story of the Great Dog Demon Sesshomaru and my younger sister Higurashi Rin to inform future generations of a tragedy in the family.
We were only children when we were orphaned with no other living relatives. I was thirteen years old and Rin was nine years old when a horde of demons raided our village and attacked our shrine. Our father was a priest and he fought the demons as much as he could. Our mother, however, married into the family, and had no powers to fight, was killed mercilessly…
Alone, and unwanted by the villagers that survived the attacks, we took off into the darkness the next night. We traveled long and far until we could not walk another step… We were weary, exhausted, starving, and heartbroken… "I am sorry little sister," I told Rin when both collapsed onto the forest floor. "I am your older sister, yet I can not take care of you. I can not go on from this point…"
Rin, who had lost voice from the horrific events of the demon raid, only shook her head, crying… Her silent tears broke my heart even more… I knew that she did not blame me for her starvation and evitable death. We lied next to each other, and I grabbed her hand and squeezed it.
"Let us meet again in the next life…" I told her. She nodded wordlessly and closed her eyes… And died…
I did not die. But just lied there for days, next to the corpse of my younger sister. Just as I felt my last drop of energy leave my body, a sudden flash of warm, white light washed over Rin and me. I felt energized; I sat up and saw Rin opening her eyes. A beautiful demon with long silver and gold eyes had revived us with his sword, which is known as Tenseiga.
Kagome quietly read the scroll from start to finish… The story was interesting. At first, it turned out that this Sesshomaru guy had revived the Higurashi sisters just to test out the abilities of his sword. Both Ran and Rin became his servants, but the demon lord favored Rin for some reason… But one day, a group of demon bandits launched a surprise attack on Sesshomaru during Rin's eleventh birthday celebration. Just after Sesshomaru was giving Tenseiga to Rin as a gift, it was stolen from her, and she was slain… Sesshomaru soon killed all the bandits and recovered Tenseiga…
But for some reason, Rin's spirit departed from her body quickly. Although a funeral was held for her safe departure to the next world, Ran and Sesshomaru sensed that Rin's spirit was still wandering the world of the living. Sesshomaru took Tenseiga and set out to find Rin… But he never returned…
'Hmmm…' Kagome thought to herself. 'That guy… Sesshomaru… I remember seeing him from somewhere… but where?'
'Golden eyes… and silver hair…' Kagome thought blankly. She knew that the words had some sort of significance, but she did not what they had to do with anything. Now she was dressed in her priestess outfit and sneaking pass her friends and family. She was having a hard time trying not to step on the sleeping forms on the floor. Somehow, everyone except Kagome ended up sleeping on the floor.
"Finally," Kagome sighed once she reached the front door. She turned and smiled at her friends and said, "I'll be back soon." With that said to nearly deaf ears, Kagome closed the front door that had an automatic lock. Unbeknownst to the priestess in training, there was one who did hear her…
The two of them broke out the fastest sprint they ever did. Monkey was ahead of Hime by a foot, but it was those twelve inches that made a whole lot of difference… "There's no use running or hiding!" The demon yelled at them from several yards away. "I can smell your fear, I can hear your racing hearts!" Hime screamed when the demon's arms stretched out like rubber and grabbed hold of her legs. The ground slipped beneath her feet and within a blink of an eye, the demon held Hime upside-down n the air with its rubber-like arms.
"Release me, you foul creature!" Hime demanded indignantly. She blushed modestly and held down her skirt so that her underwear did not show. "I'm a priestess! So put me down, or you'll regret it!"
It was rare for Hime to blow her top so Monkey anime fell, 'Now's not the time to be humble!' However, Monkey immediately regained their posture when the mouth on the demon's torso opened up. Hime was dangling high above the mouth, but when the demon released her, she would surely fall right into its mouth. "Drop my sister, you forty-eyed freak!" Monkey shouted angrily. Although the two of them were mouthing off at the demon, they were more afraid than angry.
"I said…" Monkey whispered just loud enough for the demon to hear. The stick that Monkey planned to transform into a sword using imagination was now a "real weapon". …A real flimsy weapon. "Let her gggooooooo!" Monkey blindly charged at the demon with the stick in hand.
"Monkey-chan! No, you can't!" Hime told her sibling. "Go on without me!"
"I'm tired of people telling me that because I don't have the power or knowledge of my Hime-chan" Monkey admitted with hot tears blurry their blue-gray eyes. "People are always looking down on me because I'm don't have the power or knowledge like you!!!" The demon chuckled and turned to Monkey, planning to finish the nuisance with a simple slap. "But you know what I'll say?" Monkey asked.
"No, we don't." The demon laughed. "Tell us what you say!" he taunted mockingly.
"I say…" Monkey replied. Monkey held the stick above their head with both hands to make a downward slice motion. "Yes. I. CAN!" Instantly, there was a blinding bluish white light and it was followed by two painful screams.
Kagome was now lost in her thoughts. The flood of memories that invaded her mind made her goes numb on the inside. She was aimlessly walking through the forests. She originally set out to find a good place to meditate, but now… 'But what does it all mean?' she asked herself. 'I was so useless that day…' It was only when a boom of thunder startled her into awareness that she noticed where she now stood. All around her was a bunch of brownish-gray crunchy weeds.
"The field of golden rods…" Kagome said. 'If I retrace my steps, maybe… I'll remember everything that happened on that day… And then… I'll be a step closer to solving the mystery.' She thought to herself as she trudged through the damp yet dead weeds. The ground was wet and muddy. Her sandals did not stop her socks and feet from becoming dirty and soaked. She casually kicked them off and removed her socks. Normally, doing something like that would make her wanna puke. The feel of squishy mud between her toes was odd, but oddly, she was able to ignore it.
What if she caught a cold? It would only be a reason for her to stay home from school. A feeling of recognition and melancholy washed over Kagome after she ducked under a low tree branch and came to another familiar clearing. It was the one with the damned cave of that grotesque demon. "This is…" Kagome said as she walked closer and closer to the cave. She ran her hand along the rough rock and sighed, "Where it all started." Kagome closed her eyes and waited for more memories to come to her. This place had a lonely air about it. Kagome slowly looked up at the dark, cloudy sky.
It was about to storm. 'Kagome-baka,' she berated herself before climbing into the cave and hugging her knees against her chest. 'Now I'll have to wait here until the rain comes and goes…' she thought glumly. The air was becoming a bit colder-
"Onna-ko…" a cold, serious voice addressed her from behind. "What business do you have here?" the voice inquired suspiciously.
Kagome blinked and turned around slowly. Heavy arm, a fluffy boa, small black boots, long silver hair, piercing gold eyes, a graceful haori and hakamas pair. There stood the most beautiful man that she had ever seen! She blinked again. He was probably the most beautiful anything she had ever seen! "Ano… Are you talking to me?"
The man lifted his arm and cracked his knuckles, revealing blue stripes along his forearm. "Do not play games… little girl." The man took a step toward her and made Kagome involuntarily jump back. Not liking to appear weak and defenseless, the girl stood up and took a step toward the man to show him she had no fear.
"My name is not girl, it's Kagome! Ka-go-me!" Kagome corrected the man and gave him a spelling lesson all at once. She huffed and crossed her arms. "And if you must know, I'm here to wait out the rain!"
"This cave belong to me, Sesshomaru," the man told her in an almost callous voice.
Kagome huffed again. 'What's with this guy?! He uses a single statement to tell me that I'm not wanted here!' Her eye twitched and she thought to herself, 'and just who does he think he is?! This Sesshomaru, is not the boss of me! Or even a Higurashi for that matter!'
"Since humans these days lack basic intelligence then I will tell you in simple words," Sesshomaru told Kagome before slowly walking towards her in graceful yet confident steps. "Leave this cave before I have you leaving in several pieces." He threatened. It was when Sesshomaru placed his hand on the hilt of his sword did Kagome notice how frightening this guy really was-
"Hey-" a light bulb lit up over Kagome's head and she slowly walked toward Sesshomaru. She successfully imitated his graceful walk of regality until she was only a foot away from him. For a moment, the man looked slightly taken aback at the girl's bravery… or foolishness. "Well, Sesshomaru-sama, let's see you back up those words!" Sesshomaru's eyes hardened and with a swift, fluid movement, he unsheathed his sword and sliced through the priestess.
"Hn." Was the only thing Sesshomaru said as he stared down at the small but brave girl. Although she seemed confident enough, as soon as he unsheathed his sword, she had flinched and raised her arms over her face… "It seems that you're the one who talks big but can not back it up."
Kagome lowered her arms, blinked, and thought about what just happened. 'He… cut through me, didn't he?' She sighed in relief then glared back up at Sesshomaru. "I knew it!" She roughly jabbed her finger into his chest. "You're just a ghost so you can't hurt me!" she said with a grin. She gasped when suddenly there was barely an inch between her and Sesshomaru.
"Who are you?" he asked. "And how can you touch me?"
"Well, since I know your name then I guess you should know mine," Kagome smiled a bit. "Higurashi Kagome!" she told him proudly. Why did it feel so good to know that Sesshomaru was curious about her?
A small flicker of recognition burned in his golden eyes yet Sesshomaru said nothing. Kagome's grin faltered into a frown that was almost a pout. "And what's with that look?!" she asked indignantly. Wordlessly, Sesshomaru lowered his arms into a normal position at his sides, then slowly turned around. Kagome was almost awed at how coolly the man turned, the small yet fluid twist of his body caused his long, silver hair to slowly trail behind the rest of his form. Only one word went though Kagome's mind, '…cool…'
"…Onna-ko," Sesshomaru said as walked away. "I will allow you to stay here until the rain passes. But if you disturb me, I will kill you." Kagome ignored the shiver than ran down her spine and still glared at Sesshomaru's back.
Once he disappeared into the darkness of the cave, Kagome sighed and dropped to her knees. 'That guy- He's got more bark than bite yet he's so haughty!' Suddenly Kagome's pulse sped up when she was attacked by another memory… It was the final piece to the incomplete puzzle of that fateful day from her past…
"Hime-chan!" Monkey yelled when the monster and Hime were assaulted by a light that did not belong to Monkey. No. The culprit of the surprise attack was standing tall and proudly with a glowing sword in his hand… The man stood in front of Monkey and they both watched with morbid fascination as the light incinerated Hime and the monster. The screaming stopped when the light finally subsided. The monster immediately released his death drip on Hime and she fell to the ground… The monster fell too… dead.
Monkey was horrified and too petrified to move. The man turned around and looked down at Monkey. "Rin- I have found you."
"Rin?" Monkey asked. "Who is that?! My name is not Rin! I'm not even a girl-" Monkey gasped pushed past the man to check on his sibling. "Hime-chan!" Monkey screamed once he got to his twin's side. She was lying motionlessly, face down, in the grass. Her clothes were blacked and charred, as were her skin… Monkey almost did not want to see his poor twin's face… her beautiful face.
Monkey carefully flipped Hime over, causing her to wince and hiss in pain. Hime's once flawlessly white skin was like her once flawless dress, black, charred, tender… Hime let out a painful cough. "Hime-chan… Hold on!" Monkey yelled. "I'll get you some help, I promise!" Monkey got up to leave but Hime somehow managed to grab hold of his leg before he could go. "Hi… Hime?" Monkey asked, fighting back tears.
The painful and lonely look in Hime's eyes… "Don't leave me… Don't leave me here all alone…" Hime told Monkey. countered. Hime closed her eyes and laughed and bitter and defeated laugh. One that scared the life of Monkey. It was a laugh that he never heard Hime laugh before…
"Stay with me…" Hime pleaded desperately. She reached out towards her twin and smiled sadly. Monkey nodded and settled for lying next to his twin sister… He lied there until she fell asleep…
"Well… Sesshisamurai," Monkey got up and quickly smiled a fake smile. "Thank you." He thought that would be the last time he ran into Sesshomaru… And it was.
"B-But! Kaede-baasan said it's dangerous to touch someone who is burned very badly!" Monkey
"I'll come back for you, Hime-chan…" Monkey whispered. "I promise." With that silent and unheard promise, Monkey bolted away from his defenseless twin. He ran through the away from the cave, ducked under branched, jumped over tree roots, until he ran into something else-
"Oomph!" Monkey fell on his butt. "What the- Who put a wall in the middle of the forest?!" That was when he saw them… Those tiny black boots… Monkey's eyes trailed up from the boots until he was looking into a pair of piercing gold eyes. "You're that man!"
"I am."
"You hurt my Hime-chan!"
"…I had no intention of saving that girl."
"Then what was the point of even doing that… thing you did?!"
"I thought you were someone else, but I was obviously mistaken."
"And what's your name…?"
"Sesshomaru."
Kagome was left frozen at that memory. 'Did that really happen? It couldn't have! Or else-' "Kagome-chan!" Was someone calling her? "Kagome-chan!"
Blink. Blink. Why was a pair of dark brown eyes looking right into hers? Blink. Blink. Blush- "Ahhhhhhhh!" Kagome pushed the person who was invading her personal space away. "Pervert!" Was the first thing she screamed.
"Ouch!" Yoh was thrown against the cave wall. He rubbed winced and rubbed his back. "Mou… Kagome-chan," he complained. "Don't call me that!" Kagome sweat dropped, her friend was more worried about being called a pervert than being thrown against a wall. "I was only checking on you."
Kagome's blush deepened and she turned away to hide it. "W-Well, I was just fine, ya know! You didn't have to…" Suddenly there was a cool hand on her forehead that brushed her bangs.
Yoh told her, "but your face is all red, you might have caught something." The dense teen then put his hand on his own forehead to compare their temperatures. "You are a little warm."
"I said I'm alright!" Kagome exclaimed, moving his hand. "The rain may have just given me a little cold. That's all." She blushed more and pouted a bit.
Yoh's eyes sparkled and he cooed, "Kagome-chama, so kawaii!" He teased with a grin.
"Leave the fandom to Momiji and Botan," Kagome said in a deadpanned voice. The two then shared a short lived laugh. 'Oh yeah-! I should tell Yoh-kun about Sesshomaru!' A wide grin spread across the raven haired girl's face.
"Uh… Kagome-chan… That smile is happy, yet at the same time, scary!" Yoh exclaimed, slowly backing away Kagome. He was even more disturbed when she continually stepped toward him as he backed away from her. "Uh… Kago…chan…" He sweated a bit, before finding that she had him backed against a cold, stony wall.
"…YYoohhhhh-kkkunnnn…" Kagome sang cheerfully in a whisper. With her standing at a pathetic 5'0" and Yoh being 5'3", she had to stand on her tippy-toes just to see eye-to-eye with him. "Guess what?"
"Um… Kun-Loon-san says let your darling children travel?" Yoh asked dumbly. Kagome caught the hidden meaning and punched him in the arm.
"You're way off," she blushed and back away. "I found him."
"Found who, exactly?"
"The man I've been looking for."
Yoh paled and began counting off reasons why Kagome did not need a man, "Kagome-chan! You're too young for that sort of thing! And- He's probably just using you because you're young and cute!" Kagome whacked Yoh on the head and blushed.
"What gives me the feeling that Manta-kun has all the brains?!" she asked haughtily.
"D-Demo…" Yoh said while rubbing his head. "That means you're not smart either, right?"
"Do you want me to tell you or not?!" Kagome huffed and asked impatiently.
"Tell me what?"
"Arrrgghh! BBBBBBBBAAAAAAAAAAKKKKKKKKKKKKKKAAAAAAAAAA!!!"
(Mean while)
It was 5 am and it was that time for Manta; it was his bathroom time. The gnomish teenager groggily rubbed the sleep from his eyes and ventured slowly to the bathroom. It took 5 minutes to get there, 3 to do his business, and another 5 minutes to get back to the living room. He stood in the doorway for a moment. He slowly looked from left to right. There was something off about what he was seeing… Besides the huge mess they left in the room before going to sleep for the night.
…Something was missing… Something… Important.
'Hhmm…' There was Momiji sleeping on one end of the couch. Botan took up the loveseat. Souta had wormed his way off his futon in his sleep… Manta absently wondered if the twins switched sleeping spots… 'Iie.' He scolded himself, shaking his head of the insignificant thoughts.
…Something was definitely missing… Something… Important.
"Gah!" he shouted when he realized what was wrong with the picture. "Yoh-kun and Kagome-chan are MISSING!!!"
(Back at the cave)
The rain had not stopped yet. The thunder still cackled demonically at them. Lightning still flashed every few moments or so. The storm did not seem to get any better. Yoh and Kagome had finally stopped kidding around to just chat and wait and watch for the storm to disperse. "So, you came all the way out here just to meditate?" Yoh asked curiously after Kagome explained to him what she was doing out here in the first place.
Kagome nodded slowly and stared at her lap. "It does sound pretty dumb, but I had a lot of things on my mind… Well… It's like… When I woke up this morning, something was luring me back to this cave." She turned her head and looked Yoh in the eye. "Someone told me to come here."
Yoh scratched the back of his head and admitted, "I never experience anything like that, ha ha."
"I don't think it's funny, Yoh-kun." Kagome said solemnly. When Kagome's eyes darkened, that was when the young shaman noticed the dark aura that was coming from off the walls of the cave. "Someone wants to hurt me. Badly." she whispered.
"Nani?!" The earth began to violently shake and a throaty, evil laughter resounded through the cave. Yoh shook Kagome's shoulders and said, "now is not the time to zone out, Kagome-chan!" The raven haired teen only stared off into space. "Hey! This place is caving in!" Yoh told her. He groaned and lifted his friend into his arms bridal style… She was wwwayyy heavier than she looked.
"Oi! Kagome-chan?" Yoh shouted over the loud boom of thunder, the continuous pitter patter of heavy rain, and the crumbling of large rock. "Are you alright?" 'She's heavy,' he thought and sighed and set Kagome down a good twenty feet away from the cave. She was still had the emotionless look in her eyes. Suddenly the both of them were overshadowed by something big and tall standing behind them… It had extremely bad breath.
"She won't be for long, I have bone to pick with that girl!" a voice exclaimed. Did Yoh dare to turn around and see who it was? He did… Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Yoh daringly turned his head and looked over his shoulder. He only caught a glimpse of the monstrosity that towered above them before a giant, rough hand, that was as big as his own body, slapped him clear across the forest.
Kagome slowly looked up and stared blankly at the familiar monster that stood before her. The towering height, the thousand glaring eyes, and the scowling red lips. It was the demon from four years ago. 'The one Sesshomaru saved us from…' Kagome thought glumly. 'This cave… It's so gloomy… It feels like the cave is sucking away my energy. Was it all a trap?'
"We finally meet again… Little priestess," the demon said smiling. "It's been quite a while and your spiritual powers have grown immensely." The demon used the eyes on his hips to look at Yoh, who was struggling to get up. "It looks like I broke your mate's bones… He won't be moving for a while." A slobber covered tongue slipped through the lips and slowly ran over the smooth surfaces. "Which is good. We have you right where we want you. And I'll have a snack."
Kagome tried glaring at the beast but found herself too weak to do so. Something was definitely wrong here! "What did you do to me?" she asked in a dull tone. On the inside, she felt angry and worried but her body was too weak to act on those emotions…
"I'll explain everything to you since you'll be dead…" The demon stated cockily before flashing Kagome a toothy smile where she could see its thick, long fangs. "Hundreds of years ago, I, a swamp demon and a priestess eater met. We were both weak compared to other stronger demons that dwelled in the darkness of the swamp. Every demon's iron rule of survival of the fittest would have led to our starvation if we had not decided to work together…"
"Are you're the type of swamp demon that can eat souls instead of flesh?" Kagome asked.
"Indeed, you're pretty quick-witted for a human girl," the swamp demon complimented mockingly. Kagome would have scowled, if she felt like it. "The priestess eater would use its aura to lure priestesses to it and devour the priestess' fleshly body, then the priestess eater would spit up the soul and I would feast on that… However, priestesses became rarer to find so we began to devour young maidens instead. But one day, the spirit of a girl who you resemble greatly wandered through the swamp. Her soul was bright with innocence but it was worn so I decided to not to eat the pathetic girl. But she haunted the swamp for years, screaming the name of a powerful demon-. That twit annoyed me so I decided to eat her…"
(A Long Time Ago)
"Sesshomaru-sama! Where are you?" Rin called as she wandered aimlessly through a cold, dark place. "Ran! Onee-san! Please answer me!" Rin sighed and pouted a bit, wondering where her lord and her sister could have gone off to. It seemed like ages since she had last seen them. How many hours had it been? Three or four, perhaps?
"Sesshomaru-sama! Onee-san!" Rin called out for the millionth time. "I hope we're not playing hide and seek! You two said yourselves that I'm getting too old for this game! So come out already!" Rin pouted until the point that she was scowling. Now she was mad!
"Shut up, you stupid little girl," a deep, dry voice commanded in a calm yet slightly annoyed voice. Rin blinked twice before she was able to see something large and grotesque climb out of a pool of muddy muck. The monster slowly came out of its hiding place in front of a cave and stood up straight.
"Mister demon!" Rin cried. "Where can I find Sesshomaru-sama?" She asked the question with no fear or apprehension. Either she was very brave, or she was just too naïve.
"I know nothing of this Sesshomaru-sama that you speak of," the swamp demon replied. "But I do know something about you…"
Rin tilted her head to the side a bit and asked curiously, "what is it?" She did not have any clue how a demon she just met knew something about her already!
"You've been wandering around the astral plane for quite some time…" The demon informed Rin, not that she knew what the astral plane was anyway. "You may think you're alive and just lost… But no, you're a lost soul and you're so annoying that I am going to devour you. And you'll cease to exist!"
Rin's eyes widened and she took a step backwards… All of it was too hard to believe! There was no proof of him being right! …But there was also no proof of him being wrong either. Either way… 'He's gonna EAT me???' Rin fell backwards onto her bottom. "Ran… Onee-san… Sesshomaru-sama… Sesshomaru-sama… Sesshomauru-SAMA!!!"
(Present)
"So that Sesshomaru was the guy from the story of Ran and Rin Higurashi," Kagome whispered. The effects of the priestess eater's power was really getting to her! She was not even inside of it! 'It's true… I'm not as nearly as strong as-' The priestess in training would have shooken her head if she could- Now was not the time to be thinking about such things! "…Yoh…kun…" Kagome whispered. That he could hear her anyway. She had to do something!
"After I devoured the girl's soul, the demon known as Sesshomaru soon found me. Out of rage, he transformed into a great white dog beast and mauled me to near death… Luckily, physical attacks can not work on me, but I was shamed and defeated by that demon!" The swamp demon exclaimed. "And it's because of Higurashi Rin! I curse all Higurashi's! Especially you!"
'What the heck did I do???' Kagome thought panickedly as the swamp demon purposely walked toward her slowly. He was trying to intimidate her- And it was working!!! 'What should I do? What can I do?'
'I have to…' Kagome thought desperately when the thousand eyed beast raised one of his extremely long arms. Its huge hand was balled up into a fist. The beast would smash her like hammer would smash into a nail. 'If I fail now… I won't just die, my soul will be eaten! And I won't ever be able to see Yoh-kun or Manta-kun again…' Kagome closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on a barrier… 'Please God… I'm not asking for something great, but… Let me live…'
Kagome's world was silent and slow… The giant fist above her was coming down like a judge's gavel… "I want to live!!!" Kagome shouted, squeezing her eyes shut.
Then there was nothing…
Followed by a feeling of lightness, like she was flying-!
"Am I flying?" Kagome asked, peeking one eye open. She blinked confusedly when she found herself in the arms of her brown haired friend. "Yoh-kun-" she started, "I thought you were-"
"It's okay, help has arrived," Yoh grinned cheesily, flashing his pearly whites.
"Ah! I see," Kagome said as she gently sat onto the muddy ground. "It's you, Amidamaru-sama." 'When did that happen?' she asked herself as she watched Yoh stand up to face the monstrosity.
"You should thank us, you know," Momiji and Botan chorused in unison. Kagome just sweat dropped when the twins patted each other on the backs. "We're the ones who tracked you and Yoh-sama's energy levels and came here to save you."
Manta stated as he calmly walked into the scene, "in other words, they just ran after Amidamaru, who found you guys before anyone else." The midget smiled at Kagome and she smiled back weakly. His gaze then turned to the icky beast with a thousand eyeballs and all the hairs on his head immediately stood up. "What the hell is THAT??!"
Amidamaru answered using Yoh's voice, "it looks like an ancient swamp demon."
"Impossible!" The swamp demon cried, stomping its feet in a childlike way. The impact of his strength caused the entire clearing to shake. Yoh steadily held his ground as Kagome and Manta stumbled and lost their balance. Momiji and Botan looked at each other then briefly glanced at the demon disguised as a cave… They sighed and sat down.
"Don't be so immature," Yoh said haughtily with a smirk on his face. He then pulled out a wooden sword from his belt and held it by the hilt with both hands. "Now-"
"What is the meaning of this disturbance, do you all crave death?" a deep, cold voice suddenly said as a tall, well-built silhouette emerged from the darkness of the cave. First there was small, black boot, followed by another, and white hakamas-
"It's Sesshomaru!" Kagome gasped. She was surprised that Mister Big Shot even cared enough to come see what the commotion was about. By the look on his face, Kagome could tell that he was… Well, she had no clue how the hell he was feeling.
The beast ignored the presences of the humans to laugh and point at Sesshomaru. "Ha ha, you're all talk." Each eye closed as the swamp demon continued to laugh heartily. "As if a useless demon without a physical body could even lay a finger on me!"
Manta, Kagome, Botan, and Momiji visibly stiffened when Sesshomaru's stony gaze turned their way. But it was Kagome who almost peed in her hakamas when his eyes landed on her. "Onna-ko…" Sesshomaru addressed her. "Dig." He simply commanded. Kagome almost fell over-
"What good will that do?" Kagome screamed. But when she saw that the spirit was slowly walking her way, she sighed and then began to dig her nails into the moist soil. "This sucks."
Having enough of it all, the swamp demon roared, "do not act so cocky! Turning your back on me is foolish, Sesshomaru-sama!" He hissed 'sama' out with sarcastic distaste. "I will swallow your soul, just as I swallowed Higurashi Rin's years ago."
Botan and Momiji, having read the story of Higurashi Rin, winced then cried out," you bastard!" Sesshomaru seemed unaffected by the demon's cruel taunting as he continued to walk across the clearing to Kagome with a solemn expression. Kagome frowned and she continued to claw ferociously at the dirty, despite the uncomfortable compressed dirt clumps under her fingernails.
"Kick his ass, Yoh-sama," the twins, "in the names of the Higurashis!"
Yoh nodded, "I got it!"
Yoh then charged at the demon and whacked it with the wooden sword… The blow would have been devastating to a human, but to such a strong demon… Yoh's eyes widened, "my attack had no effect!" He easily jumped back to dodge a punch from the beast. Its fist collided with the ground and created a small crater. The demon chuckled and licked the lips in the middle of its belly.
"Your soul will taste delicious." The demon stated.
"This won't be easy," Amidamaru told Yoh from within his mind.
"Yeah, but it'll be interested," Yoh replied back with a smile. "So let's not give up."
"Of course not, Yoh-sama." The short conversation between spirit and shaman ended with that statement from Amidamaru. They charged at the swamp demon again.
Meanwhile, Manta watched Sesshomaru cautiously from the corner of his eye. The spirit was towering over Kagome as she dug and dug into the ground. Manta frowned at the determined and tired look on Kagome's face. 'I don't even see why she's listening to him-' Manta thought to himself. Sesshomaru suddenly turned his head to his eyes met Manta's. The short human quickly turned away, easily intimidated just by Sesshomaru's gaze. 'Okay, I can see why!'
The observative teen then noticed how both Momiji and Botan were sweating and panting lightly on their knees, like Kagome. "And why aren't you guys helping? You look tired, but you haven't done a thing!"
The twins gave Manta smile as weak and tired as the one Kagome had given him earlier. Botan replied slowly between pants, "we're as useless as Kagome right now… That cave over there is actually a priestess eater… It feeds on the spiritual power of priestesses… It has a special, alluring aura that calls priestesses to it… Much like bugs to light, or flies with honey… It usually takes a priestess being inside of it to drain her powers… But since we haven't tapped into all of our powers yet, just being near the cave drains our strength."
Momiji nodded to Manta to confirm the information. She then looked in Kagome's direction and wandered aloud, "it's amazing though… Someone as dim witted as Kagome… One who can't even create a barrier at the age of thirteen… She's been around the priestess eater much long than we have. But… Look at her, she's digging like she's not even affected by its presence. A moment ago, she looked as weak as we do. I guess, if she really puts her mind to it, Kagome can be strong."
Kagome winced when her nails dug into something cold and hard. "I think I found something!" she announced. Everyone except Yoh and the monster, who were still fighting, turned their attention to Kagome and Sesshomaru. A small ray of golden light was leaking from the underground. "It's pretty… I think I struck gold!" Kagome said aloud. She smiled up at Sesshomaru, but her face fell at the sight of his cold eyes and unpleased expression.
"Keep digging." The demon said.
"Ugh!" Kagome groaned. "You slave driver!" She then reached into the loosened dirt and gripped whatever it was beneath the soil. She yanked her arm up as hard as she could and she fell backwards when her arm popped out of the ground. "Oomph!" Kagome moaned in pain before looking at the thing she had dug up. It was a long, golden, crescent-shaped bow that was emitting a golden light as bright as the sun's rays. "Is this what you wanted?" she asked, raising the weapon up.
Sesshomaru gave her a curt nod. He looked around at the faces of everyone in the clearing, everyone except the swamp demon was looking at the bow in awe…
A dumb move on Yoh's part- The beast took the opportunity to punch Yoh square in the guy. The wind was knocked out of his body and he and Amidamaru were sent flying across the clearing… It was déjà vu for Yoh.
"Yoh-kun!!!" Kagome and Manta cried in unison. The blue-gray eyed girl turned the demon with a serious, determined look on her face, but the desperation in her eyes was easy to see.
"Sesshomaru- What comes next?" she asked hurriedly. She gave a side-glance at the swamp demon that was now coming their way. To the surprise of everyone, Kagome hastily got to her feet. "Tell me!"
Sesshomaru stared down at her for a moment then stated, "once and only once will I commit such a degrading act…"
"Get on with it, he's coming!" Kagome yelled back. Manta trembled tremendously as he stood in front of the twins in a protective sort of way.
"Join with me, human." Sesshomaru commanded sternly. "You are without strength, and I am without a body."
Kagome blinked before asking, "you want… to be my oversoul?"
"Just this once."
Manta asked nervously as the swamp demon continued their way; the demon was a mere ten feet away. "Could you guys hurry it up back there?"
Kagome replied with a frown, "shut up! This is the first time I've ever done something like this!"
"Just stay silent," Sesshomaru commanded. He placed his hand on Kagome's shoulder. Her eyes widened at the surge of power that suddenly pulsed through her body. Even the swamp demon was taken aback by the bright light was being emitted from the two beings… Sesshomaru's red aura flared up against Kagome's pink one. With a quick flash of blinding white light, the two auras disappeared…
When everything returned to normal, Manta lowered his arms from his face… Though he did not remember ever putting them up in the first place. He blinked his eyes a few times then looked at Kagome… Sesshomaru had disappeared. It was only Kagome left standing, with her eyes closed…
"A-Ah! The merging worked-" Manta began to cheer, but everyone froze again when Kagome's eyes flashed open and they were a gold color instead of blue-gray. Manta jumped behind the twins at the cold look in Kagome's eyes. "S-Something's not right about that! When Yoh merges with Amidamaru, his physical appearance never changes!!!"
Botan's eyes hardened as she replied through clenched teeth, "that's because Kagome and Sesshomaru did not merge. They did not become one as a shaman and an oversoul would…"
Manta, Momiji, and Botan watched in horrified curiosity as Kagome cracked her knuckles just by flexing her fingers. Manta said back, "b-but! Sesshomaru has disappeared! And her eyes are like his! He must be inside of her!"
Momiji nodded and continued the grim explanation, "exactly. The two of them did not merge. This is a case of demonic possession."
Manta's eyes widened at Momiji's last two words, 'oh crap- Who knows what'll happen next?'
Kagome then gave the swamp demon a stony glare as she aimed the bow at him. The demon was so in shock that he could not move. "Now… Die." She whispered.
Chapter 4: Higurashi Shrine And the Lonely Soul
(Part II)
(!ENDS!)
Quick Japanese Words to Know
Onnako/onna-ko- girl; young woman
Pairing Voting Results So Far…
Yoh/Kagome- 47
Harem/Kagome- 39
Ren/Kagome- 17
Faust/Kagome- 4
Sesshomaru/Kagome- 10
Hao/Kagome- 22
Horo Horo/Kagome- 3
Anna/Hao- 1
Lyserg/Kagome- 2
You guys can't be see it anymore, but some of these votes came from a poll I had posted in my profile over the summer… I'm counting those votes too! Now that the voting for Kagome's primary spirit is closed, I'll re-post the pairing poll in my profile soon, so you can go vote there too.
Kagome's Primary Spirit Voting FINAL RESULTS
Sesshomaru- 39
Kikyou- 2
Midoriko- 18
Multi- 2
As you can see, Sesshomaru wins! I did not rig the voting either. Check for yourselves if you're suspicious! To Kikyou fans, don't worry, I have special plans for her! And for Midoriko fans, Kagome will meet her sooner or later in the story!
Authoress' Notes: I suck, right? I hate when people leave me with cliffies, but oh well- Here you guys goes- a nice cliffhanger if I do say so myself! J I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter! . It took me FOREVER to complete this! I tried and tried to write a whole 20 page chapter and it took such a llooonngggg time! But… I don't worry, it's not only because of laziness and a writer's block, I was really distracted by other things like house work, school work, and my new hobby- Voice acting and singing! ^-^
But I haven't forgotten about my ficcies, as you can see! It just took a while to get back to them. This is a bit more than twenty pages worth of Shaman King goodness so someone please pat me on the head and say "Good job, Neko Neko-chan!" Or -chama! I love being called -chama! X3
And everyone, thank my lovely friends Beautiful Phantom and Bishonen'sFoxyMiko
for keeping me going! God knows how much trouble they went through just to help me! TT-TT There are many other people too, but- Yeah, the list will go on and go on! So thanks to everyone! J
Anyways, this is my early Christmas present to you guys! I hope I'll be able to update Coming to the Light before Christmas too! If I take a break from my voice acting for a while, then I think I can do it! But my you tube buddies are gonna be ppppppiissssseedddd- And worried. (lol) If I don't update CttL before Christmas, then I'll say this now!
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to All! Review me as a present in return! :D