Author Notes: PLEASE READ!!! I NEED TO EXPLAIN THE CONCEPTS OR YOU WILL GET CONFUSED!! The most important thing to say right now is the relationships of everyone in the School.
Kagome's Father=founder of the school, called "Master Father". Kagome's Mother=Master Mother." Kagome's grandfather=Master of the School(currently). Kagome and Souta are either "little sister/brother" or "elder sister/brother" of the school, depending on the age of whoever is calling them-if caller is younger, they call them as "elder", and so on.
But, if the caller is calling someone else in the school, then it goes accordingly to who entered the school first; i.e. if 21 year old "Mack" is new, even 12 year old"Sherry" would be classified as "elder." As well, the "School" will also be referred to as a clan, because that's the clan is so big it has it's own styles and so on(to cut it short.) Last thing. The clothing, language and cultures/traditions with alternate between Chinese and Japanese. Don't worry, I'll have translations next to it.
Now on with the thanks. If you really cant wait to read the fic, go on. Anyhow, thank you so much, for trying out my first fic. I know it'll be a little odd, but I'll try my best to alter it the way the reviews go. I won't force you to write reviews, but feel free. Other than my first chapters(assuming I'll write more in the future), I'm going to start putting the ANs at the bottom so you can jump straight to the story. Sorry for babbling, just didn't want for you to give up on my first fic because you didn't understand it...eheh...and NO. I don't own Inu Yasha and co. you should be smart enough to figure it out!!
Chapter One: Kagome of the Phoenix Clan
"Today, you die! I'm gonna kill you just like I killed your father!"
"No I won't, you old hag! YOU'RE the one who's gonna pay for killing my father!"
"Kagome! Look out! Make sure she doesn't get you with her Scorpion's Tail!"
"I know, Mother! Father died from the hag's poison. Hya! Hup!" Jumping up onto a high tree branch, 15 year old Kagome dodged the scorpion demon's attack. She had waited and trained since 5 to avenge her father's death. Now, as she delivered her final blow with her last arrow, what her mother had said about her father's death flashed before her eyes
"Kagome, you are 5 now, able to start training martial arts. It's also time that I told you of your father's death he would want you to avenge him He was killed by a scorpion demon while healing from wounds that were caused when he fought against a group of 12 other youkaiHer name was "Ai Xue" "To Love Blood" After she injected her poison into your Father, she took her dagger and cut into his flesh, forming the words: 'If you survive my poison, 15 years later you may be able to stop me. But if not, then death it shall be for you and those you love when I return!' She'll be back in 10 years, as you were born the day your father breathed his last"
'Mother Father I won't let you down! I'm as good as any 17 year old fighter! Everyone in the School knows that! And I'm going to make it known to those who had once hurt Father, as well! Father'
"THIS IS FOR YOU, FATHER!!!!" She let her arrow fly.
The onlookers, sisters and brothers of her father's martial arts school and clan, including her Mother, grandfather, and 8 year old brother, seemed to watch the arrow cut through the air and pierce the demon through the heart and out again, stabbing into the tree behind the gruesome creature in slow motion, all the while hearing the fierce whistle of the arrow head splitting the air. They watched, and all was silent except for the agonized cries of the demon, melting into the ground bit by bit, until a smoking ditch spread by her acidic poison lay where she had, moments before.
Breathing harshly from her fight, Kagome lowered her arms from her shooting stance and her determined face softened to her usual bright smile. This time though, she smiled because she had successfully fulfilled a responsibility. She could hear her large family cheering clearly, yet her vision was blurred. They cried thanks and cheered joyously up to the daughter of the Master Father of the School, granddaughter to the present Master of the School.
In their eyes, though there was no way to share thoughts amongst the crowd, she was a goddess who avenged Master Father's death, standing high above their heads as if to challenge the world for more hardships. How serious her wounds were didn't matter anymore, as they had long since forgotten that the young girl had suffered blows and slashes to achieve her goal. Her smile, the one that could make the sun hide behind clouds in shame during day hours, make the stars seem as if they didn't glow at all in the night. Her smile was reassurance that she was as healthy as she had been when the day started.
That is, it was reassurance until they saw her fall
** ** **
'Where where is this?' I looked around.
Mist.
Everywhere.
I started walking forward; time itself seemed to have slowed. Every ripple of the black water under my feet took minutes to spread, my hair flying in an insensible wind.
Slowly Slowly
That was when I finally noticed that I was walking on water. Not in water, but on water. I opened my mouth to cry out in surprise, but no sound came. Puzzled, I noticed that there were dark figures in the mist, seemingly to be wearing hooded cloaks that spread down to their feet, making it impossible to tell even the slightest detail of the hidden person, or thing.
My head turned to look around me, my hair slowly following.
Surrounded.
I took out an arrow, reaching back to my filled quiver — which I didn't recall being on my back some whiles ago, along with my bow — and strung it professionally on my bow, drawing it back all the way, arrow pointed down as I further studied the dark figures around me.
I don't know why I shot the arrow, but I did. I fired it at the shadow in front of me, and the shadow to my target's left stepped in front, taking in my arrow, the force of it throwing back his hood.
A handsome young man, black hair tied back in a short ponytail. My former target, having cradled the one hurt, pulled back her hood. An attractive young woman in a black, body fitting fighting suit, armor and all, her long, sleek black hair tied in a high ponytail. She cradled the young man's head in her lap, having knelt down to better accommodate the injured man. Their eyes locked, filled with emotions like pain and understanding.
I don't know what made me do it, but I pulled out another arrow and released it towards the shadow to my right. He howled silently in pain, his long white hair gleaming like silver in the misty darkness of where we were, his golden eyes full of pain and confusion, anger and disbelief. He fell to his knees, eyes begging for an explanation of why I had hurt him for no reason. I didn't even know.
'Three down, three more to go.'
Again I took an arrow and again I took aim. This time to the shadow to my left. I let fly. The cloak fell. My arrow ripped the empty cloak in half, straight down the middle. I blinked.
'Two...'
Had I seen correctly? Maybe. No...
'No... Something...something's on my leg!'
Looking down quickly, I felt myself soften at the cute boy clinging to my left leg. Tears rolled down his face, soaking into my fighting suit's pant leg. After not obtaining an answer for some silent question I knew not what of, it leapt over to the male with white hair and — I gasped. Or rather, I would have, if I was able to utter even the tiniest sound. Why didn't I notice it before?
'He...he has...DOG EARS?! Youkai?!'
No. Not a youkai. Youkai ears were elflike. He was a hanyou. But the cute child was a youkai. A kitsune. The kitsune was tugging on the man's wide kimono sleeve, crying, while the man just kneeled there, staring at me, palm pressed against his chest to stop the flow of blood, the arrow I shot between his fingers.
'What about the second shadow I saw? Where is it?'
I looked around and found her, a little girl with large, curious eyes and layered hair in a short little ponytail on the right side of her head. She was hiding behind a very tall shadow, diagonally behind me to the right. Yet again I fired an arrow at the cloaked figure. It caught the arrow at an arm's length distance, this time. Like a waterfall the cloak fell off the broad shoulders of the figure.
A male youkai, white tail wrapped around his right shoulder, white hair cascading down his back like the hanyou. The same golden eyes. A set of parallel stripes across each cheek level to his youkai ears, and a crescent moon on his forehead, all purple-blue, framed by his white bangs.
I took a step back.
'His eyes...'
His eyes were cold, much colder than his expressionless face. I studied his clothing now. White kimono decorated with fuchsia colored patterns at the neckline and the ends of the sleeves, a katana to his left waist. My eyes traveled down his sleeve and stopped short at his hands.
His clawed hands.
They held the same purple-blue stripes that graced his cheekbones, unconsciously directing the center of attention to his deadly claws when one looked at his hands. I looked into his eyes again, and was not surprised to find the same lack of emotion and warmth there had been seconds ago.
A distance next to him, the shadowed figure to my current right stepped forward gracefully, permitting me a peek of wide red pants. It reached back and took its bow, long and taught, strung with an arrow.
As did I.
We both released at the same time, and both arrows left bright trails of light, slicing into the air in their way, clashing in a burst of fiery brightness in the middle of the space between the two of us. I watched as the silent wind of the collision soundlessly ripped the cloak off her shoulders, revealing a young girl clad in Miko clothing.
'She...She looks like me...!?'
As quickly as I had entered this world of nothingness, I was sent to another. I walked aimlessly around again, taking in my surroundings. As if there were any other surroundings than the black and the mist.
'Who...Who's calling me?'
I thought I'd heard someone calling my name.... must be my imagination.
Kagome.... please.... Kagome....
There it was again. I quickened my pace, then suddenly lost consciousness to the strange world I was in.
** ** **
"Kagome! Please, Kagome! Wake up!"
"Mother Higurashi, you mustn't shake your daughter so! It could re-open her wounds!"
"Sensei{Doctor}, jie-jie{elder sis} has been unconscious for three days now. You said so yourself that it may mean she'd live in a coma for the rest of her life. Of course Mother would worry like that."
"Yes, Souta, but it isn't good for Kagome to be shak— oh! good, she's waking! Souta, please take you Mother outside for a bit, get some fresh air. I need to see to Kagome."
"Hai. Mother, let's take a walk in the gardens for a while."
The doctor waited until the door was closed, then turned to his waking patient. She seemed fine, just a bit banged up from her fight, and the fact that her eyes showed the pain she was currently in relieved him to know that her brain was still functioning properly, unaffected by the sharp blow she had obtained on the back of her head during the bloody duel.
"How are you feeling, Ms. Higurashi? Do you remember everything? Any particular part of your body hurting more than the rest? Try not to move, just rest and tell me if anything is out of place."
"Ugh... I so clearly. Nah, just the usual pains you get from battling, nothing out of order. Thank you for taking care of me while I was out. By the way, how long has it been?"
"Just a couple of days. Three to be exact. We were worried about the long period of time it took you to awaken, but now everything is fine. Did you have a nice three-day rest? You were sweating and clenching your hands quite a bit."
"Three? It felt like only an hour... I'm sorry if I worried anyone. I think I had a dream. I can't remember anything though..."
"What? I thought you just said you remembered everything! Oh my, that blow must have been harder than I thought. Relax and let me see that bump again." The doctor immediately started to study Kagome's huge bump, courtesy of a certain very nasty scorpion youkai, while Kagome rushed to reply.
"N-no, not that! I meant I didn't— OWowowow!— remember anything from my——eek! That HURTS!— dream....ack...."
The doctor sighed in relief after hearing her words, and lightly patted Kagome on her shoulder, rewarding her affectionately for not swinging her fist at him in response to the pain the way most of his patients did. After all, he is a doctor for a whole clan of martial artists.
** ** **
"Well, this is it. I've finally healed from my wounds and now I'm off to challenge the world. Father would be so proud of me."
"Yes, Kagome. Your father would have been if he were here to see you. I'm so happy you're willing to give up your freedom as a youth to help those in need... even if I don't like the fact that it's in the youkai capital. But I trust you. I trust that you'll take good care of yourself and the innocent people there. Still, be careful! You know full well that your skills in fighting were meant for combating with humans!"
Mother Higurashi wept at her grown child. She was so proud that Kagome had mastered every weapon there was to learn, and was using it for a positive purpose. She was also proud that her daughter was able to beat any fighter in the clan, including herself and Kagome's grandfather. Her daughter had beat all the other top fighters from the other clans as well, even though she was only fifteen, earning an echoing reputation for her skills and her clan.
Yet, despite her confidence in her one and only daughter, she was still uneasy about the fact that the clan's fighting techniques were not directed at youkai. Although it was possible, and clearly proven by Kagome when she avenged the Master Father of the School, to defeat youkai with the human fighting tactics, there were many other youkai that were much stronger, if not quicker, than the scorpion youkai that the whole School despised to the bone.
"Don't worry Mother. I'll be fine. Take care of Gramps and Souta for me, 'kay?"
With that, she kissed her beloved Mother, hugged her grandfather and younger brother Souta, and bowed respectfully to the large group that had come to see her off, the way all martial artists bowed to each other off the fighting grounds. The crowd replied with its own bow full of gratefulness for the young heroine.
They watched as their best warrior traveled down the path and over the lush hills, sword at her slender waist, bow and arrows slung over her strong shoulder, small pack of clothing and possessions accompanying the bow and quiver. They watched until even her tiny shadow was out of sight, then turned and traveled back to the collections of well built houses to continue practicing and training.
AN: Ah, yes. I forgot to mention the very last thing-here, Kagome is a fighter, not a miko, and she isnt the reincarnation of Kikyou; you'll get intro-ed to Kikyou*shiver**glare**back to normal* next chapter...^^ feel free to review or email- athena_amy@hotmail.com