Author's Note: I do not own Inuyasha or any of the source material for this story. All are owned by Rumiko Takahashi. This fic is labeled MA per standards for eventual violence, sex, and language so be warned.
2020/02/11 - Updated a few errors and added some extras. Sorry. No major changes.
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Reconciliation
Chapter 5 - Voodoo Woman
A few weeks later…
"Faster, Kagome-sama! Pivot and strike!" Miroku yelled.
"Right!" Kagome gasped as she finished the move set.
She jogged back over to the edge of the training field and readied her wooden training staff. Deep breath. Knees bent. Open stance. Staff resting lightly on her back in one hand for quick strikes.
"Again!" Miroku's voice boomed in her ears.
She lunged forward, legs pumping hard toward her target. Closing the 30-foot distance quickly, she shifted one leg underneath her and slid under the training dummy's outstretched arm. Then she planted a foot and stood up, striking the head of the first dummy with a back kick before whirling around to the second. Ducking under its arm and giving a resounding 'Thwack!' with her staff. Dust and straw shook loose from the dummies and fluttered to the ground as the priestess remained still, catching her breath and waiting for her teacher's appraisal.
"Better." Miroku conceded, one hand on his shakujou. "But you're still wasting energy when you rise and we have not tapped into reiki strikes yet. You have to find a way to expend less energy to attack with your staff but that will come with time, I suppose. I think we should add another dummy to the fight now."
"Who knew we had such an expert right here in the village?" Kagome was still catching her breath but happy with her progress today.
"Hey!" Sango called out from across the yard, making her way over the pair. "Experts abound in our little village but I know Kagome needs your help right now so I won't be offended." She threw up both hands to emphasize as she came to a stop in front of them.
"Wait until I'm a little better before you jump in, too, Sango-chan. I remember how you fight and I am not ready." Kagome was smiling but the admission was honest.
Sango was coming to collect Miroku for dinner again. Kagome felt badly for dragging him away from his family for even a few hours but this training was necessary.
"My wife is indeed quite an expert warrior. I am continuously impressed with your work with the children, my love."
"The kids?" Kagome stood perplexed. "What about the kids?"
"They're being training by my darling wife in the same skills. Did she not tell you?"
"Gah! Isn't this a little rough for children to be learning? They're still so little." Kagome was surprised her loving friend could be tough with her small children.
"Kagome-chan, I was the same age or younger when I started training as they are with play swords. Soon we'll move on to hand-to-hand strikes when I'm sure Komori is big enough to run away. He's faster and less fearful than they are even now and he'll learn even faster with Satori and Shizuka chasing him constantly."
"Yes, and my son will benefit from the exercise immensely at such a young age. His stamina will no doubt exceed his sisters' by the time he's their age."
"Are you two raising warriors or children? Geez."
They didn't miss a beat. "Both." they answered together and then smiled at each other.
"But," Miroku added, "we have no way of knowing if any of the children will develop spiritual power so that will change their training outlook immensely if it happens."
"Well, gods help anyone fool enough to mess with your house." Kagome giggled. "One more round, Miroku? Then we can call it a day?"
"I underestimated your zeal for physical punishment, Kagome. Now I understand why Inuyasha is so contented all the time…" he smirked knowingly at her.
Kagome sputtered. "No! That's not the only reason!" But realizing she as much as admitted their intimacy again, she clamped her hands over her mouth. Miroku let out a hearty laugh at her flustered admission.
"Miroku…" Sango warned and slapped him on the back. "Let's leave that alone for the day, shall we?"
"Ah hah, yes, dear. All right, Kagome-sama, once more. This time, shift your dominant foot to the rear and repeat the sequence. Then five laps around the shrine grounds and you may go home for the day."
"Gotcha… cardio. Ugh…" She rolled her eyes but knew it was important. She was already fantasizing about the cool river and a bath.
After Kagome repeated the exercise and began to run, Sango turned to Miroku.
"So how is she faring with the training? She looks like she's doing well to me."
"Hmm, she is. I am pleasantly surprised. I am also mad at myself for not having taught her sooner. We did not have much time during the hunt for Naraku but any training would have been helpful. I am glad to be able to help her now." He sighed sadly but recovered. "Honestly, I have never taught a pupil more apt to smile the harder she works. She is a wonder. I am more eager to get to our spiritual training but her body must be strengthened first. I have never encountered reiki like hers. It has grown even more formidable in the years she was gone. I am tempted to send Shippou away when we start for his own safety."
"I know, and she is truly enjoying it. I wonder what has her so motivated. Have you asked her?"
"I have and she will not reveal her true motivation but tells me simply that she is overdue for training to survive here."
"There! Five laps!" Kagome stopped in front of them and held her arms over her head to take deeper breaths. "Thanks again for the combat outfit, Sango. It's been a lifesaver. So much easier to move in. I can see why you favored this over traditional clothing."
The young priestess absently pulled some straw out from between the shin and ankle guards. The armored plates that covered her weak spots were a deep violet color. They were made of a reinforced amalgamation of demon bone, not unlike the weapons used by the taijiya clans, covered in demon leather that had been skillfully stained to match Kagome's coloring, and laid flush to her black body suit.
The suit also housed a few of the trade specialties of the taijiya including a mask that protected human lungs from inhalants, the poison salve used to coat blades, a coil of thin grappling wire, and a few of the bombs Sango had occasionally used for distraction. It had been her best friend's wedding gift and she was thrilled to be able to put it to good use.
Kagome's hair was tied up into a ponytail with a golden yellow ribbon Inuyasha had found in a merchant's wagon at the start of autumn. She looked fierce standing there rolling her now well-toned shoulders and arms, hair tied up, quarterstaff locked into the dirt with the other hand, flushed with effort and grimacing at the soreness developing… well, everywhere. Then she spoke.
"Whew! All right now it's bath time! I'm going to home to start dinner and grab Shippou to join me. That kit is always dirty."
"Very well, Kagome-sama. We will continue in a few days' time. Good evening!"
"Good-bye, you two! Thanks again!"
The priestess was happy at the burn of her muscles at the end of the day. She was making progress and she was going to be useful, strong, and more prepared for whatever it was Sesshoumaru had been so worried about. If the daiyoukai was worried enough to warn them about it, it must be serious.
Time seemed to have changed him for the better, she thought. He had spoken rather nicely to Inuyasha, all things considered. He had joined four humans for tea inside their own house without making a superior remark about anything. He had become the patron of their shrine in the past, making him solely responsible for its existence, and by extension, her ability to join the adventure in the past. Apparently, she had much to thank him for in the future. So if he was concerned for their safety and requested she train herself to be useful, she would.
…
The next week, after recovering from a soreness she was sure would never fade, Miroku called Kagome to the shrine to begin the practicing the basics with her reiki. She had launched herself into the discussion with gusto. Miroku was less intimidating than Kaede, due to their closeness, and he talked to young woman as an equal and not as a child, as the elder priestess was wont to do.
Inuyasha was busy with more jobs around the village and had left to hunt for the rest of the day so this was a welcome distraction.
Shippou had returned home from kitsune school for a week and they had been catching up and playing together as she worked around the shrine and the village. He had left a little while ago to play with Rin though what they did was talk more often than not.
Since Rin had grown so much taller and was maturing now much more rapidly than Shippou would, Kagome hoped they would remain close friends as long as Rin was here. The younger woman had told Kagome that Sesshoumaru had spoken to her of a plan to take her to the Western palace once she was an adult by human standards, and then her education would continue there. Kagome was shocked to hear that Rin was to be educated. It was easy to forget that education was not a standard of living here for anyone truly but for an orphaned young woman, it seemed highly unlikely. She was glad to hear that Rin was so well looked after and was pleasantly surprised at the continued attention from her stoic half-brother-in-law.
Most importantly, Kagome felt that these friendships between demons and humans should be cherished if both species were to coexist in the future. Not a day went by that Kagome didn't wonder where Shippou was in the modern era and why she hadn't seen him. Maybe if she could continue to foster understanding between the younger generations, like with Rin and Shippou, she would return one day to find a different version of her first home. One where Inuyasha would be more accepted, and any children they would have wouldn't be seen as taboo. Who knew how long he and their children would live? But first things first.
"So why is youki so different than our reiki? It's energy that's native to us both but why are they so different?"
"Reiki is not like youki most specifically because it is intended to quell negative forces of nature where youki exists to amplify them. The priest or priestess is trained to heal, to help, and to defend utilizing both their energy and their body against those who would go against the laws of nature set forth by the kami. This is the most basic foundation for the function of our spiritual energy. Do you understand?"
Miroku sat in the center of the prayer room on the floor with legs crossed, Kagome mirroring him a few feet away. His hands were tucked in his dark sleeves but his eyes were serious and intent. Kagome was excited and her body hummed with anticipation at finally being able to master herself. Her body was strong and her heart was full and now it was time to corral her spiritual energy. She straightened her miko robes with chilly hands before settling them in her lap. Autumn was moving in and the air was colder now by the close of day.
"I think so. But when you say 'forces of nature' what exactly do you mean? It sounds like storms and earthquakes and lightning…" Kagome cocked her head to the side with curiosity.
"No, that is not what I mean but it is similar. Storms are the amplification of energy in the air, in a sense, so while I have never thought about the weather as a target for our training, if one could manipulate reiki in the heavens, it is reasonable to assume one could quell a storm, yes, by manipulating the energy to become counter to the destructive force of the storm."
"Wow."
"Indeed. That is, to assume that you perceive the storm is indeed destructive. Most storms bring necessary rain for crops and drinking water, and winds to drive ships at sea and mills to work. Be careful what you assume is negative. There are many viewpoints to consider. But to begin, you must be able to recognize the negative and positive forces around you in all their forms. Close your eyes. Good. Now find Shippou."
Cerulean eyes snapped open. "What?"
"Find Shippou. You know, little red fox kit, about this tall, green eyes, makes trouble?"
"Funny, Miroku, very funny. I don't want to play hide and seek. I want to master my reiki."
"Then finding him using only your reiki should be a perfect exercise. I promise he is somewhere nearby. Close your eyes." He tilted his chin up and challenged her.
Kagome wilted. She had tried this so many times. Her reiki, whatever was different about it, was temperamental. It wasn't that she hadn't tried on her own to work with her natural energies. The arrows she fired were charged with spiritual energy but that talent was borne out of desperation and fear most of the time, so they were charged to damage, to shock, to kill. She knew reiki was capable of so much more but Kagome couldn't seem to make it bend to her will when she wasn't fighting for her life or someone else's. But if Sesshoumaru had thought enough to warm them about danger in the near future, she was going to be better. She steeled her nerves and made the decision succeed today.
"Promise me that if I start to lose control, you'll protect Shippou, wherever he is?"
"You have my word, but you will be fine. Now, close your eyes. Good. Deep breaths.
First, open your ears to the sounds around you. Hear nothing else.
Quiet your thoughts.
Feel the gentle wind through the shrine.
Now imagine it as an energy, not simply as wind. Give it color in your mind's eye. Give all of the sounds color.
Now find those things that are not given color in your mind's eye and give them shape. Forcing shape upon that which you do not recognize will cause your energies to find and recognize them."
She nodded, eyes still closed.
Kagome felt the wind. Positive. Pale gold. Suddenly hundreds of ribbons of gold slithered through the open spaces in her mind's eye.
Kagome heard birds. Positive. Blue. And instantly the birds alit from the trees with blue auras, flitting through the air like icy fireflies.
She heard the trees and grasses rustling around them. Positive. Green. So much green. Verdant plains opened in front of her, towering over her, and blanketing the world outside.
People of the village down below. Positive. White. But not totally. Some were infused with other colors. Negative. Gray. Red. Black. Ghostly figures moved about down in the village. Some were working, some were sleeping, some were running fast.
But suddenly, something moved beneath her. Creeping slowly but purposefully. Positive. It didn't have a shape. She gave it one. Small and round at first. But then arms and legs appeared. It was blue, no green, sea green with flecks of gold. The emerald shadow was sneaking across the foundation of the shrine beneath them.
'Gotcha!'
Kagome jumped up and stomped hard on the floor four feet to her right. "Found you, kiddo!"
She heard a muffled 'Gah!' and then a bump which might have been his head. Miroku laughed out loud.
"Congratulations, Kagome-sama, you have found him." Miroku bowed his head and was smiling genuinely at her accomplishment.
"Yes!" She pumped a fist in the air and laughed herself. "Oh Miroku, thank you so much!" She threw her arms around his neck then. He patted her awkwardly but was immensely happy for her as well. She released him from the hug and he cleared his throat. Kagome let out a breath and refocused on Miroku's face. "Ok, what's next?"
She was instantly serious. The look of determination there was clear. Miroku wondered what it was that was driving his friend to work so hard but since she refused to tell him, he was left with the task of teaching her as much as possible from now on.
"Next," he smirked at her, "we combine what you've learned so far to test you. Change, and go get your staff."
"… I'm not gonna like this, am I?"
"Not in the least."
...
Note: The chapter titles don't really mean much except they were the songs I was listening to when I was writing but some of them are appropriate for the subject matter anyway. ;)