Hello everyone, I know it's been a while, but I've been very busy and hadn't had time to post this chapter despite having it drafted up for a good minute. Hope you enjoy and please don't forget to let me know your thoughts in the comment section.
Kagome sat in silence, "And if that were to be true, how would you know such a thing for certain?"
"Well for one, I would like to think that I am fully capable of recognizing my own sibling's face. My aptitude in purification might not have been as strong as my sister's, however I have always had an exceptionally good memory, especially when it comes to identifying faces if they are already familiar to me. That is something that has remained unchanging for the past fifty years," Kaede supplied offhandedly.
The younger female blinked slowly as she digested the information that had been presented to her. Studying the old woman that sat calmly before her, seemingly unfazed by Kagome's presence, Kagome took a stabilizing breath. This was certainly unexpected, to say the least. It was rather unsettling to have been caught red-handed by an unassuming little old lady. The only question was, whether or not she could trust her. The picture Kagome's mind had painted of 'Kaede,' younger sister to Kikyo, was certainly different from the woman that sat before her. The story she'd read had portrayed Kaede as a strong and unyielding character, despite her old age, however the woman that sat before her at the moment looked diminutive and fragile. And yet… in spite of her outer appearance, the hard lines of her face and knowing look in her eyes deeply suggested otherwise.
Kagome glanced down at the forgotten cup that was nestled between her hands, wisps of steam rising into the air. Taking a long swig from the cup to quench her parched throat, Kagome fixed her gaze onto the miko before speaking in a slow and steady voice, "I should be getting back home soon."
Kaede's eye flitted towards Kagome for a brief second before looking back out the small window of her wooden hut with a faraway expression. "That may be so, but I get the feeling that at the moment that isn't a possibility for ye, now is it?"
Kagome sucked in a sharp breath. An uneasy feeling settled at the pit of her stomach.
"Settle down now child. I mean ye no harm. Who ye are is none of my business, after all." Kaede sighed as she glanced at Kagome's stiff form, however this did little to reassure Kagome's mind.
Kagome hesitated, but after a moment's reflection, she braced herself and addressed the old woman once more, adopting a more controlled tone,"I would like to return to the forest, if it isn't too much trouble."
Kaede snorted in an undignified manner. "I'm afraid that won't be possible for ye either. Unless ye happen to be a slayer by trade."
Kagome emitted an indignant sound from the back of her throat, before the old woman interjected once more.
"Mistress Centipede still lurks within the forest of Inuyasha. However, if ye would like to take your chances with her, then by all means, be my guest." Kaede clarified before Kagome could argue any further. The younger female exhaled deeply as she mulled over the elder woman's words. Her options at the current moment were quite limited, indeed. Stay in the village and risk attracting the centipede's presence for it to wreak havoc among the villagers or enter the forest and risk getting eaten by a half woman half centipede or even worse awakening a certain bloodthirsty canine.
The thought of said teenager waking up and mauling her to death was not a pleasant one at all. As it was, the plot was digressing by leaps and bounds from the original storyline. She could no longer rely on what she thought she knew about the current world she lived in and to place the entirety of her faith on an old manga she'd read in passing would be a foolish thing to do. Tapping her nails on the rim of her cup, Kagome's eyes wandered over to an old bow that rested in the far corner of the house. Her gaze shifted back onto the old woman, observing her critically. Living as a miko in an era where youkai ran rampant and having managed to live as long as the old woman had moreover, was no easy feat. It would not be too farfetched to presume that the miko had some proficiency in archery.
Kagome groaned in frustration as she quickly dispelled this line of thought. Even if she mustered up the courage to request that the miko instruct her on how to use a bow properly, there was no guarantee that Kagome would be able to pick it up quickly enough to have the ability to slay a youkai of all things. Kagome felt the oncomings of a headache as she sat there in the shabby hut while fighting off an existential crisis. As things stood, her only other option was to release a grudge-holding adolescent hellbent on vengeance from his eternal sleep, on the off-chance that he'd hear her out for a split-second, instead of immediately aiming for the jugular. This was, of course, not weighing in the fact that said adolescent could travel through the well, which would certainly put a damper on things if she so much as tried to escape.
Yeah, I'd rather take my chances with the man-eating centipede, Kagome mused bitterly at how laughable it was that she'd rather go toe to toe with a giant centipede than deal with the unpredictable nature of a teenager. Regardless, Kagome could not risk leading the boy to the well. If he managed to travel through time, the boy would have no qualms in slaughtering her family in order to pry the shikon jewel from her corpse. She was no longer in the twenty-first century, wherein people often thought twice before committing murder. No. Kagome knew that the residents of this era lived a completely different lifestyle, one that was solely focused on survival and when up against youkai, it was hard to tell how one might react towards the presence of humans. There were really only three possibilities. Said humans would either be seen as a nuisance, something to be ingested, or—the least likely option—friends.
"Lady Kaede!" A loud voice interrupted Kagome's thoughts. Kaede rose to her feet and hobbled over to the entrance of her home, leaving Kagome by herself to greet her visitor. The door slid open to reveal a young male villager who wasted no time in looking over Kaede's head to peer at the miko's guest with a hint of curiosity.
"Speak boy," Kaede fired off sharply, snapping the young adolescent back to his senses.
"Uh…" The young man's face exploded in scarlett upon realization of his ill-mannered staring. "Lady Kaede, Haruto has returned and brings terrible news. Aiko has fallen ill in a village near the west and was unable to return with him. They require your assistance and wish to know if you'd be willing to make the trip."
Kaede's expression took a turn for the worse. Narrowing her eyebrows, the old woman pursed her lips and remained silent for a few moments.
"Who is with Aiko at the moment?" The woman inhaled slowly.
"Their eldest. Emica returned with her father. Aiko insisted that she return with Haruto, as she feared Emica would catch her illness."
Kaede hummed in response with a thoughtful expression. "Inform Haruto that I will be making the trip."
The boy nodded in acquiescence and took his leave. Kagome watched with rapt attention as the old woman bustled about her home. Kaede had deposited an arrangement of herbs and other essentials in a large hand woven basket without prompt. She then proceeded to fill the insides of a tattered old sack that had undoubtedly seen better days, in a practiced and methodical manner.
"Well girl, have ye made a decision?" The old miko startled the younger female with the abrupt query.
"Pardon?" Kagome broached carefully.
"Ye have been sitting there looking as though ye were contemplating the sum of your life's choices for an eternity. For a good second there, I almost believed ye to have gone mute." Kaede expounded unceremoniously, as she slung her bow over her shoulder.
"That…" Kagome began weakly only to be cut off without warning.
"If I may suggest, perhaps an excursion might clear your head?"
"Oh. Oh!" Kagome scrambled to her feet as realization hit her and proceeded to stumble over her words with all the grace of a three-year-old toddler, "Sorry, but I really do need to get back home, I can't... T-that is I don't think that would be a wise—"
"Well forgive me child, but I have no intention of leaving a complete stranger alone in this village unsupervised. Granted we are a poor people and thus have nothing worth stealing, but the fact that ye are a complete stranger is still an issue. So ye may either travel with me or leave the safety of this village alone and go along your merry way," Kaede delivered the scathing retort, with a face devoid of expression.
Kagome shifted her weight from one leg to the other, the floorboards creaking beneath her. Returning to the forest wasn't safe, but neither was traveling with an old woman in a land infested with youkai. However, of the two options she still felt safer among the presence of someone who could actually wield a weapon.
"I'll go with you," Kagome relented begrudgingly.