Author's Note: This story takes place mainly during New Moon. I have plans to continue it through the rest of the Twilight Saga. I'm still playing around with some chapters and ideas so I don't know when it will all be updated. I do have a rough draft for the entirety of New Moon finished, so you can count on at least this part being completed. I do try to keep Japanese terms to a minimum, but do use a couple.
Youkai - demon
Youki - energy used by youkai
Miko - priestess
Reiki - energy used by Miko
Imouto - little sister
Kitsune - demon fox
Chapter 1: Everything Changes
The ground was slick, the earth mixing with demon entrails making it difficult to sledge through the battlefield. The sky was blackened with miasma and blood pored like rain as we demolished the low-level demons Naraku had sent to tire us. The saimyōshō made it impossible for Miroku to use his wind tunnel to save us from exhaustion. We'd been fighting for over an hour already and the small scrapes and poisonous air were starting to tire the humans among our group, myself included. Under Sesshomaru's tutelage I was able to learn how to use my reiki to strengthen my body and fight on equal ground and speed with demons, but despite my 6 years training, my sword skill was not my strongest aspect. My blades, created by Totosai using a fusion of Sesshomaru's fang and my own reiki, were one of a kind. Two thin, one sided blades were forged that could be connected by my ki to become a bow. Right now, the blades were more useful. I impaled one demon, filling its body with purification energy while simultaneously slashing at another. I was moving quickly, forcing my way through the hordes with little difficulty. Inuyasha and Sesshomaru were already battling Naraku. Kouga and his two companions were fighting Kagura. Miroku, Sango, myself, and Kirara were reducing the hordes and protecting our comrades backs as best we could. Blood dripped down my face from a light scratch just above my right brow. The blood was irritating, but easily ignored. The throbbing in my shoulder from a demon's teeth was less so. I turned quickly when I heard Sango's scream. Lying not ten feet from me was Kirara, half eaten and unmoving. Anger and tears started to build as I fought harder. Most of the demons near me had been slayed. I connected my blades and shot off sacred arrows, destroying the demons off in the distance, forcing my way towards Sango and Miroku.
"Can you handle the rest?" I questioned, yelling over the sounds of battle.
"Don't worry about us Lady Kagome. Go help Inuyasha!" Miroku answered.
I double checked my surroundings, making sure they'd be able to fight without me before running towards Naraku's hideous form. Naraku was keeping the brothers busy with his tentacles and puppets. Both had wounds, though they looked minor. I sent an arrow to destroy a tentacle that had been trying to impale Inuyasha's back, simultaneously destroying a puppet and drawing Naraku's anger.
"You bitch. I'll kill you first then." He spoke, voice dripping with malice.
"Kagome get back! This is our fight." Inuyasha yelled.
"Like hell I'm letting you have all the fun." I yelled back.
"Miko, pay attention." Sesshomaru chided as another tentacle attacked me. I dodged and sliced off the appendage with my bladed bow. I no longer had time to talk as Naraku attacked in earnest, fighting all three of us on equal footing. I grunted in pain as a tentacle bit into my thigh, gritting my teeth to keep myself from screaming and distracting the others. The more we fought, the stronger Naraku seemed to get. No matter how much of his body we destroyed, he refused to die. Hours had passed since our battle began. My limbs slowed down as the blood loss from my leg started to hinder me. I shot off a sacred arrow to fuse with Inuyasha's wind scar. The damage was significant, but once again Naraku regenerated. The corrupted jewel shard aided his quick recovery, making it almost impossible to do any real damage. I watched in horror as Inuyasha was impaled. Too horrified to scream, paralyzed in grief and horror. Everything seemed to stop moving. I couldn't see anything other than Inuyasha's body, hanging in the air, tentacle piercing his stomach and his eyes wide in disbelief. I saw the poisonous purple miasma seeping from the wound and watched as Naraku flung Inuyasha across the battlefield in triumph. I wanted to go after him, heal what I could, but knew I would never make it. Naraku laughed, ecstatic to have the half-demon thorn in his side out of the fight.
"Little Kagome, did you really think you could kill me?" Naraku taunted in the sweetest sickening voice he could. Amusement lit his eyes as my frozen form melted into pure hatred.
"You will die Naraku!" I spat out, building up my reiki to create the strongest arrow I could. Naraku laughed once more, entertained by the idea of a human attempting to kill him. Multiple tentacles attacked, forcing me to dodge and slice in order to protect myself. My thigh wound made movement difficult and my lack of blood even more so. Still, I fought. I would not let Inuyasha die in vain. For another ten minutes I dodged, sliced, and purified pieces of Naraku's body. Then my vision went fuzzy for just a second and I felt extreme pain seize my abdomen. I looked down in shock, the exact wound that had killed Inuyasha now on me. I refused to die, to let Naraku kill everyone I loved, to poison the very air. My pain, sorrow, and anger all coalesced and a dam broke inside of me. I grabbed hold of Naraku's body as I felt my soul pulse with purity. Using only my willpower and the tiny piece of my soul that still clung to my body, I forced the purifying energy into Naraku's body, burning him from the inside out. I felt his roar of malice and pain more than heard it. I could no longer see anything; I could barely feel my heart try so hard to keep beating. As my energy destroyed Naraku on the inside, Sesshomaru sent a wave of destruction to finish him off. I felt Sesshomaru next to me, forcing the two purified halves of the Shikon into my hand.
"It is done, Miko." He stated.
I smiled weakly, clenching the jewel and feeling tears slip down the sides of my cheeks.
"Burn the jewel with my body. Look after Shippo, tell him…I love him…I'm sorry…I made him…lose his mother…again." my voice quivered, so soft no human would be able to hear my words.
"I will. Rest in peace, Imouto."
That was the last thing I heard before I let the blackness take me. I believed that would be the end of everything, at least for this lifetime. Tenseiga would not revive me. The jewel would leave this Earth till I was reborn once again. I felt heat pulse through my body, a burning fire emanating from my stomach wound that could not be snuffed out. I screamed my pain to the world, feeling as my organs were recreated, healed, and the skin growing at rates even a demon could not hope for. I thrashed around, willing it to end, to just let me die and end the pain. Still the fire spread, coating all my limbs now. I choked out a sob, feeling my body shrink, the air pulsing around me, and a weightlessness taking me from my would be grave.
It felt like hours as I hung in limbo, unable to wake, unable to feel, or hear, or smell. This was not the afterlife. Slowly, ever so slowly, my senses came back to me. My body felt heavy, exhausted but unharmed. The air smelt stale and wooden, the ground hard beneath my weight. I groaned into consciousness, forcing my eyes to blink open and then stay so. I looked around, taking in what little detail I could. It was dark, the ground beneath me dirt and surrounded by a square wooden structure. I must be in the well, I thought to myself.
I hadn't been through the well in over 6 years. After graduating middle school, I decided not to go to high school and focus on the jewel instead. Within a year after that I stopped going home altogether. My body moved sluggishly as I forced myself to stand. My body was no longer injured, though I was exhausted beyond comprehension. My clothes were in tatters. The dark blue hakama and white Kimono top, made of yokai silk and gifted to me by Sasshomaru when he adopted me into his pack, were stained with blood and torn horribly, both from Naraku and the lower demons that were able to get close enough to me before their death. Using my reiki to strengthen my legs, I leapt out of the well.
I noticed the broken board and seal on the floor. Leaning down to investigate it, I realized it was the seal that had been broken eight years ago by mistress centipede when she dragged me into the feudal era the first time. This just kept getting stranger. I was supposed to be dead; no human could live through the amount of wounds and blood loss I remembered dealing with during the final battle against Naraku.
I looked around the well house, searching not with my eyes, but my energy for anything abnormal. My eyes snapped to the well itself. There was no energy in it at all. No hint that it had ever held power. It was a black hole to my senses, as if the life energy from the tree it was made from had corroded and poisoned itself. I tried imbuing it with my powers, but they bounced off the wood, refusing to take root. I stared in horror, realizing I'd never see my friends and family on the other side again. I didn't even know who had survived the battle. All I knew was that Sesshomaru survived while Inuyasha and Kirara had not. I didn't know if Sango and Miroku were able to live and have a family or if Kouga and his pack had been able to kill Kagura without loss. So many friends I would never know about. I would never be able to hold Shippo again, mother him and help him grow into the kitsune he could be. I failed him as a mother, I failed Rin as an aunt, I failed Sesshomaru as a student and sister. Being able to kill Naraku was little more than a consolation prize. The life I had grown to love was gone, the people I loved, gone; the world I knew, gone. My legs gave out as I silently wept. I wept for those that had died. I wept for those I had lost and what that meant for my child. I wept for those that lived and had lost loved ones. I let the emotions from battle finally take purchase and wept tears of anger and sorrow and pain as I leaned against the lip of the well.
Slowly, my sobs ebbed and stopped. I pulled myself together, forcing myself to leave the well house and find my family that I had not seen in so long. I wiped away the tears and sedately walked towards the main house. It was dark outside, late night or early morning, I knew not which. When I tried to open the door, it refused to budge. I sighed, wondering why they had locked it, something they had stopped doing after my travels started. Perhaps they gave up on my coming home after so many years. I leaned against the door and stared at the sky. Clouds covered the night sky, illuminated slightly by the streetlights below. The air smelt of chemicals, something I didn't remember noticing before. My eyes grew heavy and finally, sleep overtook me.
"Kagome!" I heard someone scream. I jumped up, fully awake with one of my blades already unsheathed ready to fight before I realized it was my kid brother. He looked younger than he should, short with wide innocent eyes filling with tears.
"Souta" I breathed out in relief, sheathing my blade and leaning down to hug him. His body shifted nervously in my embrace.
"Um, Kagome, what's going on? Where were you? Are you ok? What are you wearing? Is that blood!?" Souta asked rapid fire, voice squeaking at the end.
"I'm ok, just a little tired. I just got back, for good this time." I stated calmly.
"What do you mean for good? This is the first time you've left." He asked, his look telling me I was crazy.
"What are you talking about? I've been coming and going for years. I know I haven't been back to visit for a couple years, but still…" I stopped talking as I noticed Souta staring at me in complete disbelief. I looked closer at him. There was no way he was a teenager. Baby fat still clung to his face and his voice was prepubescently high. He should be about 17 now but he looked younger than the last time I saw him.
"Souta, what year is it?" I questioned slowly.
"2003, why?" He answered just as slowly. I stood frozen, mind working overtime to figure out what had happened. Obviously, my time in the well had been real or I wouldn't be wearing what I was, and my reiki wouldn't be so strong, yet it was the same exact year I had been dragged down the well the first time. Perhaps, whatever healed me and forced me back to the present sent me to the day everything started.
"What day is it?"
"November 14. You went missing yesterday. On your birthday." Souta explained slowly, as if talking to someone particularly dim witted. I glared at him for the tone and pushed my way past him into the house, irritated.
I could smell breakfast as I walked towards the kitchen. Grandpa was at the table reading the newspaper as usual while Mama was cooking. Her stance was rigid, obviously worried. My heart beat quicker at the sight I had missed for so long. Normal, everyday, modern morning. No war to worry about, no wondering if we could find food and shelter for the night; just my family and a comfort I forgot existed.
"Mama" I whispered, barely loud enough for her to hear. She gasped and turned around quickly, staring at my torn and bloodied clothing.
"Kagome, what happened?!" She cried hysterically.
"I'm ok Mama." I responded with a slightly embarrassed smile.
"OK? You're covered in blood. You've been missing for an entire day. I was about to call the cops." She yelled, voice rising to a squeak at the word 'cops'.
"I'm not hurt. I'm back and won't be leaving again." I stated, putting my hands on her shoulders to help calm her down.
"Tell me what happened" She ordered.
"It's a long story. Can I tell you after I bathe?" I asked, gesturing to my bloodied form. She sighed, a hand against her rapidly beating heart.
"Of course, honey, that's probably a good idea. I'll get you a change of clothes and get rid of those for you."
"Please don't throw them out, Mama. I can repair them."
"How are you going to do that? There are huge holes in them, you'd be better off starting over."
"I'll explain later, just please, they were a gift."
Mama stared me in the eyes, searching my gaze for a moment before she nodded her head. "Alright, I'll leave it to you then. At least take off your shoes before you go upstairs though."
I blushed in embarrassment, completely forgetting that I needed to take off my cloth boots.
"Maybe it'd be better to cover them for now and take them off in the bathroom." I hinted, knowing my boots were covered inside and out in the blood and guts of demons. No one needed to see that. Mama glared at me but acquiesced, grabbing some plastic bags for me to tie around my feet.
By the time I was done cleaning my clothing, the bathroom was dyed red. It was a good thing I didn't take off my boots downstairs, as my feet were covered in blood and intestines were stuck between my toes. Even after the many battles I fought, I was grossed out. I had never been quite so thoroughly drenched in battle before; no matter how close I got to death. It had taken me an hour and a half and a bottle of stain remover before I was content with the state of my clothing. I'd repair the rest with my reiki later. The wonders of Youkai Silk was that it repaired itself when fed energy. Both reiki and youki worked. Finally, I could relax in the bath. I didn't realize how much I missed indoor plumbing. Sesshomaru's castle had natural springs to bathe in, but the same could not be said when we were traveling. It was rare that we would be able to stay near a hot spring, often bathing in the cold river instead. I could get used to these comforts.
"Kagome, what happened?" Mama asked again as we all sat in the living room.
"As I said, it's a long story." I sighed, fiddling with my cup of tea nervously.
"We have time." Mama stated gently, worry evident in her eyes.
I took a long drink from my tea as I worked to get my thoughts together. How could I tell my family what happened when they were back to being innocent and ignorant of the war I fought. Grey hair no longer streaked Mama's hair from worry, Grandpa was more energetic, and Souta had innocent excitement coating his face as he tried to keep his energy levels under control.
"You all know the story of the Shikon jewel, right? How it gave tremendous power to both humans and demons alike?"
"Of course we do, that's our shrine's history." Grandpa stated. I nodded at him, amused at his irritation that I even had to ask.
"You were right Grandpa, the jewel, demons, all of it is real."
"You've got to be kidding me." Souta replied, jaw dropping at my words. I had always argued against Grandpa, believing it all to be fairy tales and superstitions.
"On my 15th birthday, I went into the wellhouse to find Buyo. Before I could leave, a demon by the name of Mistress Centipede grabbed me from inside the well and dragged me to the bottom. I was able to get away, but when I got out of the well there were no buildings or people, just a small clearing and Inuyasha's forest. Long story short, I found out I was in Edo some 500 years ago. The priestess there helped answer my questions, but we were attacked by Mistress Centipede again. She was demanding we give her the Shikon jewel. I noticed she was coming after me, so I ran towards the well to lure her away from the village. She caught up to me and bit the jewel out of my side. I was in too much shock to feel any pain though. I had to free Inuyasha; a half demon that had been sealed to the sacred tree in order to kill her." My voice broke at his name, unable to hold back the pain of his death from drowning my voice.
My family was shocked into silence. Mama looked like she wanted to say something but couldn't figure out how to word it. All their faces held horrified disbelief.
"After she swallowed the jewel, no one could hurt her. The villager's weapons couldn't even scratch her. Inuyasha has able to save us though. We found out I was the reincarnation of the previous protector of the jewel who had it burned with her body at her death 50 years prior. It came from my body, so it was my job to protect it." I smiled slightly at the memories of the early days, back when I knew nothing, couldn't fight, but was really good at running away. It was terrifying at the time, but now they were fond memories. Meeting Inuyasha, protecting Shippo. It was the beginning of the experiences that made me, me.
"The next day I was taken by bandits. It quickly became apparent that their leader wasn't in his right mind. He was slow, attacking his own men too and calling out for the jewel. I threw the jewel away to try to get him to leave us, knowing I couldn't fight him, and his men were too slow to realize he wasn't really their leader. Inuyasha came and saved me then. In actuality, the leader was dead, and a crow demon was nesting in his chest, animating his corps." I stated mildly.
"Ew, ew, ew, ew, ew. That's so gross, Kagome" Sōta whined. I smiled, amused.
"Not nearly as gross as other things I've seen and fought." I responded humorously. Souta's face tinged green at the thought.
"Anyway, the crow then swallowed the jewel. In order to get it back, I tied the crow's foot, Inuyasha had torn it off saving a kid, to my arrow and shot it, knowing the foot would force the arrow to hit even though I couldn't aim to save my life at that time. It hit the crow, alright, but it also shattered the jewel." My tone turned bitter at the memory of the worst mistake of my career.
"We watched as pink streaks of power spread out across the sky. We found one shard in the forest nearby, but we had to find all the shards and put the jewel back together. In order to do so, we traveled around Japan. The shattered jewel caused a war to start among the demons and the human lords were already fighting each other. We fought many battles, against demons and humans alike, and gained many allies as well. Our biggest enemy was a half demon named Naraku." I spat out the name with complete contempt, unable and unwilling to hide my hatred of the one who caused so much pain and suffering.
"Our battles became less random. Naraku was also gathering the jewel shards and created incarnations using his own body to send after us to steal our portion of the jewel. Most of our allies were gained because of Naraku's despicable nature. We all wanted him dead for his crimes. It was the only thing that kept us from fighting each other in the beginning. But no matter how often we fought him, we couldn't kill him. It wasn't till we found out he had hidden his heart elsewhere that we realized why."
"As long as his heart still beat, he could create a new body. It took us years to destroy him. I studied under Lord Sesshomaru, Inuyasha's older half-brother and demon lord of the western territories. He owed me for protecting his ward and refused to have a weak ally. He taught me how to use my reiki the same way demons used their youki. It's surprisingly similar for how much both sides believe they're polar opposites."
"You consorted with demons?" Grandpa yelled. "I've warned you against them. How could you trust them?" Grandpa yelled, outraged at my disregard for our holy lineage.
"Youkai are not inherently evil Grandpa. Just like humans, some are good, and some are bad. Many of our misconceptions are from ignorance. Humans don't understand youkai culture and unknowingly offend them. Youkai wipe out offences to their honor in blood. It is their way." I explained.
Grandpa harrumphed but didn't speak further. I could tell he was upset. Grandpa always believed that youkai existed and could only harm those they came in contact with. In his old age, I doubted I would be able to change his mind. Even when he liked Inuyasha, for the most part, he refused to stop throwing purifying salts at him. I smiled fondly at my Grandfather indulgently.
"Anyways, Miko-ki can be used in the same ways, sent to different limbs to make them stronger or faster, sent to the eyes to help you see, molded into different weapons. Sesshomaru taught me not only hand to hand combat and sword fighting but also demon culture and laws. He said he couldn't have an ignorant human in his household where I could anger a visiting Lord." I laughed shortly as I remembered how his eyebrow would twitch in irritation when I first showed how ignorant I was to demon culture.
"After a year and a half of training under him between hunts for new shards he asked if I would join his pack under demon law. I agreed and was adopted into his pack as his younger sister. After the ceremony we went to Totosai, a demon sword smith. Sesshomaru gave him his fang which I then merged with my own reiki. The fang created a one of a kind weapon." I stated, laying my hands on the hilt of my swords.
"Most believed that reiki would destroy the fang, but reiki and youki actually complement each other. It's the intent that causes the two energies to battle each other. As such, I can heal a youkai with my reiki just as easily as I can humans."
"I spent eight years on the other side of the well. At first, I would come home every once in a while, to take tests and graduate middle school. However, it was too dangerous to continue. We needed to find the shards quickly, before Naraku could grow stronger and every time I went through the well, I was putting you guys in danger. If Naraku found out about my connection to the well, he could have tried to pass through. If he couldn't do that, he would destroy it to make sure I could never come home. To keep both from happening, Miroku, a monk ally of ours, and I sealed the well. After Naraku was dead, we would open it again if need be. For most of the 8 years I was in the feudal era we fought against Naraku and his incarnations. Then yesterday, or maybe two days ago now, we finally killed him. We fought for hours with little luck. It wasn't till Inuyasha was felled and Naraku impaled me that I was able to purify him with Sesshomaru's help." I took a steadying breath, the pain and sorrow still raw and burning.
"I was dying, but then I felt like I was on fire and when I came to, I was in the wellhouse, in this era, completely healed. I don't know what happened. I have a theory, but I need to meditate to see if I'm right."
"Kagome…" Mama started slowly. "You've been fighting in a war for 8 years?"
"Yes" I stated, looking her directly in the eyes so she could see I was serious.
"So cool!" Souta exclaimed in childish glee.
"If it wasn't for your weapons and clothes when you came home, I'd have a lot harder time believing you." Mama stated sadly, tears pooling in her eyes as she took in her daughter's appearance. She saw deep sorrow in her eyes that could only belong to a veteran. "Kagome, are you OK?"
"I'm alive Mama, that's more than I can ask for." I answered truthfully.
Mama embraced me, holding me tight against her body in comfort as she wept. I never thought I'd see her again, or Grandpa, or Souta. The maternal care that I had missed so much while on the other side was overwhelming. I hugged her back just as tightly and cried with her. I wiped away my tears as I pulled back, happy that I could see my birth family again.
That night, I sat in my room meditating on the Shikon jewel, hoping it was gone, but not holding my breath. There was only one thing I knew that had the power to heal people and move them through time the way I was. My breathing evened and my power focused inward, searching for any abnormalities. Slowly but surely, I noticed the power of the jewel, however, it wasn't located in just one area. It flowed through my body in tandem with my blood. The jewel hadn't just merged with me like it did at my birth, it was me. The jewel no longer had a physical form. I would be the last protector of the jewel. Would it move on with me when I died? Would it even let me die? The jewel was a semi-sentient item, it wouldn't disappear without a fight. I had so many questions about this new revelation and no way to answer them. I sighed softly, why can't my life ever be normal?
Before everything started, I was just a schoolgirl, normal friends, normal interests, normal problems. Now, here I was, a 23-year-old warrior in the body of a 15-year-old schoolgirl. School. I'd have to go back to school on Monday. My meditative state snapped away at the thought.
"oh, fuck" I swore to myself softy. I'm not sure I even knew how to act like a normal 15-year-old anymore. 8 years could change a person, not to mention war. I couldn't care less about the hottest guys or the newest trends. My heart ached harshly at the idea of guys, yearning for Inuyasha, my intended.
I would have to find a way to seal my weapons so I could keep them on me without anyone noticing too. How would I even get along with Eri, Ayumi, and Yuka? This would take a lot more getting used to than I first thought. I least this time I'd be able to go to High School.
On Sunday, I rummaged through the shrine's collection of scrolls and artifacts looking for a way to seal my swords. I needed to find it fast if I wanted to keep them on me.
"Nope, this one's useless." I stated to myself as I threw it over my shoulder. "This one too, and this one. Ooh, this looks interesting…never mind. Aha! Got you!" I stated triumphantly, holding up a scroll with an old spell that could miniaturize items.
I read through the list of items I'd need: something to hold the items in place that could also hold the seal, my blood, burdock root, and Cinnamon bark. I should be able to get the burdock root and cinnamon bark at a specialty store. I nodded to myself, grabbing the scroll and heading back inside to grab my purse and train pass.
"Mom, I'm heading out for a little bit, I'll be back soon." I yelled into the living room as I ran out of the house.
"Be back before dinner!"
"I will"
It was surprisingly easy to find what I needed. At an accessory shop I bought two leather wrist cuffs, I got a pestle and mortar at the same shop I got the burdock root and cinnamon bark and was able to get a round linear needle from a tattoo shop in the seedier part of town. It had only taken me two hours to get everything and make it home.
I quickly mixed the root and bark in the mortar before cutting my hand open and letting the blood, imbued with my reiki, mix with the herbs. I mixed it together a few times as I healed my hand, my reiki disintegrating the herbs until only a smooth blood ink remained. Methodically, I embroidered the runes into the leather cuffs. When I finished the first cuff, the runes glowed briefly, burning fully into the leather. I smiled successfully as I carefully connected my first blade and watched as it shrunk and laid innocently on the center of the cuff, the sheath tied down by the magnetic powers of the seal. I set my hand over the charmed blade and pulled it from the sheath. As I did so the blade transformed into its original size, similar to how Tetsaiga grew once unsheathed. Returning the blade to its sheath, I began working on the other cuff. It took most of the night to finish both and double check for any errors, but at least I'd be able to keep my blades with me at all times. Just the two short hours I was out of the house without them made me feel naked.
"Kagome, you're going to be late!" Mama yelled. I groaned into my pillow, wishing I didn't have to go to school. Four hours of sleep is not enough to deal with teenagers all day. Even if I technically was one again.
"Do I have to?" I asked petulantly as Mama opened my door.
"Yes, now get up or you won't have time for breakfast." I sighed but got up as asked. The uniform skirt was shorter than I remembered it being. You could see part of the long scar that ran from my waist to knee clearly. I hadn't gotten completely out of the way when a demon tried to bisect me. I was lucky it got my leg and not my chest. Sesshomaru had used his poison to sear the wound closed so I wouldn't lose too much blood, but the scar left behind wasn't pretty.
"Oh my God, what happened!?" Mama screamed.
"A fight with a praying mantis about half the size of our house." I stated nonchalantly.
"Kagome, how many scars do you have?" Mama asked horrified.
"Enough."
"How much did you leave out of your story." She asked sadly.
I didn't answer her, instead taking a large sip of miso soup. I could see mom's face drain of color and stare at me worriedly. Souta was wide-eyed, unable to look away from my leg.
"Right, well, I'm off. I'll see you after school." I spoke quickly, rushing out of the house to get away from the shocked and pitying looks they sent me. I did not need any pity. These scars were proof that I was strong enough to survive.
I walked slowly past the school gate, taking in a site I never thought I'd see again. 'Right, you can do this.' I thought to myself.
"Kagome!" I heard three voices yell just before I felt a pair of arms against my shoulders. For a second the school in front of me was a castle and the corpses of Kouga's men laid strewn across the ground. I stared at Yuka in panic, forcing my body not to attack. My breathing increased rapidly, and I couldn't keep myself from reaching for my waist, where my blades would normally be located.
"Kagome, are you ok?" Yuka asked in concern. I took a deep breath, calming myself as the world returned to the 21st century.
"Yeah, I'm good. How are you."
"How am I?!" Yuka asked incredulous. "You skip two days of school, on your birthday no less, without so much as a 'sorry the party's cancelled' and you ask how I am? What happened to you?"
"Too much" I stated under my breath. "Oh nothing, I just got sick for a couple of days. Sorry I forgot to call."
"In that case" Ayumi spoke up from my other side, "why don't we go out today after class. There's this really cute new bakery that just opened up down the road from my house. I heard they have the most amazing crepes."
I smiled at the idea, easily agreeing. It was strange being back. Nothing had changed for them. It had literally only been three days since they last saw me. I listened as they debated what the best toppings for crepes were going back and forth between chocolate and strawberry. Classes passed quickly. It had been so long since I last studied that I needed the review, but it wasn't nearly as hard as it was the first time I went through middle school.
The café was cute, light blue and Peter Rabbit themed. My girlfriends enjoyed the atmosphere and chatted animatedly about the latest gossip.
"I heard Hojo's really interested in you Kagome." Yuka stated. "How awesome would it be to date Hojo? He's like the hottest guy in our school."
"He's not really my type." I responded. All conversation halted as the three girls looked at me like I just told them I was going to dye my hair bright orange.
"What?" I asked skeptically.
"You don't like Hojo? What changed? Last week you were at least a little interested in him." Ayumi responded.
"He's too…docile, maybe. I'd be more interested in a guy who is adventurous. Someone who's strong and reliable in a fight." The girls continued to stare at me.
"Who are you and what have you done with Kagome? You never wanted the bad boy type before." Yuka inquired.
"Not everyone who's good in a fight is the bad-boy type you know." I responded slightly irritated.
"I'm just saying, he'd have to learn how to fight somewhere. You'd do better without someone who starts fights."
"Whatever" I mumbled, done with the childish conversation.
"So, I heard that Do As Infinity is having a concert here in Tokyo in a couple months. We should all go!" Ayumi segued. I smiled at her in thanks.
The girls all gushed about the possibility. I politely declined, not wanting to go to a concert at this time and decided to head home. It would be harder than I thought to fit in again. My friends had chatted so easily together, but the topics were of no interest to me anymore. They didn't pay attention to their surroundings either. The entire day, and not a single student had noticed the large scar on my leg. I guess eight years of do or die, youkai politics, and comradery forged in blood made basic gossip and music seem surface level. We had known each other for years, but we didn't help each other through mourning our lost loved ones or put our lives on the line to protect each other. The bond I had with them had weakened over the last 8 years, and now that I was back, the existing bond seemed lackluster.
I tried to remember what I used to be like at 14. Who I talked to, what I enjoyed doing, but couldn't remember. The only music I had even heard in the last 8 years were at the political balls I was forced to attend. Who was I before I became the Shikon priestess? My mind blanked. That wasn't me, the girl I vaguely remembered was nothing like me. I couldn't become that girl again, I didn't even want to. So, how could I live in modern society? I hadn't a clue.