Shugorei
Chapter Three
by Shadou-sama

Sunset Shrine used to be a mile away from the closest village. It used to have many acres to its name. It used to be famous throughout the country. But as the years passed, it was swallowed up by the city and forgotten by most of Japan. Now it was a single acre of land in a wealthy part of Tokyo. The Shrine's owners, the Higurashis, didn't mind for their neighbors loved to buy charms and other knick knacks from the Shrine's kiosk.
Kagome was home from one of her quests. Her grandfather had promptly put her to work, manning the small kiosk. "Everyone in the family should help with the shrine," he has said, "even if they're saving the world."
Why should she even bother? No one was coming. It had stopped raining but it was still horrible out. Everyone else was snug in his or her homes like her own family. No one would think to come to the Shrine today.
She fingered one of the spell scrolls and stared out at the giant Genboku Tree in their yard. Maybe she should tell her grandfather that she had promised to go back soon. No, this was supposed to be her break! She would not go back until Inu-Yasha came and dragged her back!
Hey, it was her break. Why couldn't her grandfather do this? It was his job after all. But no, he was inside watching those Bey-things with Souta. She bet he made up that thing about the whole family helping out. Souta never helped out, just played.
"Excuse me," a voice interrupted her rebellious thoughts. A girl stood outside the window. A customer!
"Is there anything I can help you with? We have charms for love and luck, souvenirs, and scrolls to protect you from spirits. Our priest could even exercise a spirit in your home!" Was it her imagination or was the girl getting more uncomfortable while she talked about anti-spirit items?
"Do you have a fan?"
Kagome looked around at the merchandise. She wasn't sure if she would see one. Most people bought their fans in stores, not at Shrines. Then she spotted one in the corner. "Just a second, Ma'am."
She ducked down and pulled it out. Dust lied thick on the fan, so she tried to get it off with her sleeve. She jumped up and handed it to the girl.
"Thank you." The girl bowed slightly.
Kagome looked over at the price sheet. "That'll be – hey!"
The girl was running off, no, more like flying over the ground. "Spirit," she groaned, and ran out of the kiosk, grabbing her bow and arrows. Moving quickly, she fired the arrows in rapid motion. A shower of arrows hailed down on the spirit girl.
Ka-Shoku dodged. "Miko," she groaned. Of all her luck! Maybe she should have taken a good luck charm too. She moved side to side, flipping over, sometimes kicking the ground to move her body out of the path of an arrow.
She clutched her bag to her chest and opened the fan. With a flick of the wrist, she murmured, "Tutsureiniku." Her human body dissolved away and formed a longer, stronger body. She was a Ka-Riu dragon, soul and now body. She took off into the sky. She was going to Russia!
Kagome was left to stare. Her arrows were spent, and even if they weren't she knew better then to get into a fight with a dragon. She just wasn't strong enough. Now what to tell her grandfather. How about a dragon spirit stole it to fly off to that World Championship thing the two males were crowing about?

Kai and the stooges, as he privately dubbed them, were walking up to their hotel room. Minds were heavy with what they had just witnessed in the abbey.
Why had it seemed so familiar to him? He felt like he'd been there before. But when? And why? And why couldn't he remember it?
Tyson opened the hotel room door for them. The room had a coffee table, a sofa chair and three large beds. It looked like they were going to have to double up. Woe to whomever had to sleep next to Tyson.
A redheaded girl walked into the room from what looked like the bathroom, toweling her hair dry. She wore gray and black Oriental style clothes, which had faint mud stains on them. She looked up at them.
"Who are you?" Tyson asked brashly. Kai felt like smacking him. It was obvious who she was.
"Ka-Shoku. Are you the Bladebreakers?"
Their new teammate seemed as stupid as Tyson. They would be the only people that had the room's key, unless she thought they might be the maids. In that case, she was even stupider than Tyson. He studied her. She didn't look anything special, except maybe for her serious and even cold expression. A flash of recognition shot through him. He knew that girl! From where, though? Just like the abbey. It didn't matter since she would probably be bailing as soon as Kai showed her his new training schedule. Playtime was over.
"Yep," Max replied in a cheery matter. Ka-Shoku didn't even give any indication that she had heard him. Her towel lay on her shoulders, and her hands were pulling her hair into a ponytail with a weird shimmering elastic band.
She looked up at Kai and noticed him watching her. Now he was the one being judged. What was she seeing? Kai wondered. A cool bad ass loner to be left alone or a poor soul in desperate need of love and care? He wouldn't appreciate the second one.
"Looks like we've got another Kai on our hands," Tyson whispered to the other stooges.
"I guess that's what he meant by a personality problem."
"Kai's not that bad. You just have to get to know him and I'm sure it's the same with Ka-Shoku," Ray whispered back.
"If she can beyblade like Kai, we can't lose," Kenny stated optimistically.
"Bet she's as grumpy as Kai too," Tyson grumbled.
Ka-Shoku was still watching Kai, and vice versus. Waves of protectiveness and love washed through her. She was actually feeling! What could be so special about this boy that could invoke emotions in her dead soul? Maybe he was from before, the time when she was happy. He could show her the domain she ruled, where her own fan is. She should follow that new feeling of hers. She should protect him. Nothing must hurt him. Nothing.

To be continued...