Guardian Princess By Forbidden Elf
Chapter 1: Guardian of the Jewel
A young girl sat on a rock ledge overlooking a small valley far beneath her. She stared up at the moon where it hung a small crescent in the late night sky, barely visible among the high peaks surrounding the valley completely. A place completely isolated from the rest of the world, with only one entrance through a labyrinth of caves. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she looked down at the ground before her, then at the dark lake that rested at the foot of the peak she called home.
Her name was Kagome, the guardian of the Shikon no Tama, a powerful miko cursed to forever protect the jewel. She would neither age nor die, staying in the form of a 15 year old girl for eternity. She lived in the valley hiding from the world. It had been years since the last seeker of the jewel, and she dreaded having to slay another living being. In her mind her hands were eternally stained with blood.
Her sleep was troubled with visions of all those she had had to kill in protection of the jewel. And it normally resulted in her climbing up here to sit and think. Her thoughts as they usually did drifted to a youkai that had once come to the valley, and her lips twisted into a smile full of pain and betrayal. He had come to her late one night seriously wounded, even for a youkai, and had collapsed into her arms. He was a handsome inu-youkai named Inutaisho, she had grown to trust, even love him. He had lain near death for many weeks, then after he'd healed he began staying of his own will, treating her with care she hadn't had for thousands of years and giving her the companionship she had longed for more than anything else.
Then one night she had woken to him trying to kill her and steal the Shikon no Tama. Her trust betrayed and forced to fight for her own life as well as protect the jewel she had shot him with a purifying arrow. He fled for his life into the lands to the west. Fearing a repeat of that incident she swore to herself never to let there be the chance of it re-occurring. From then on she killed on sight anyone who entered the valley. But it got lonely being the only one here, the wild animals not very good companionship.
She knew her duty though, and knew that loneliness was one of the things she had been warned to expect. She sighed, yes they had warned her, and she had expected it, but not for so long. When would the one destined to destroy the jewel arrive? She was tired of waiting, and wished nothing more than the chance to live a normal life, and to leave this earth forever.
Kagome stood stretching as the sun slowly appeared above the mountain peaks. Taking a running jump she leapt off the ledge into mid air then into the water far below, making a graceful flip mid fall. Diving deep beneath the water's surface she opened her eyes searching for the dark hole leading up into her caves inside the hollow peak. The tunnel was dark and she had to trust in the water to lead her the right way.
With a splash she broke the surface of a pool inside a huge cavern, illuminated by the morning sun through an entrance lower from where she had been perched on the cliff face. After pulling herself out of the pool, she shook herself, sending water flying through the air. Her long black hair down to the back of her knee's, her blue eyes bright as she watched the sun finish rising, loving the reds and purples it created as it ascended into the sky.
Turning sadly from the sight she walked to another cave attached to the main one, pushing aside the heavy fur curtain. Inside she walked over to several stone containers that sat on the floor along all the rooms walls. Frowning she peered inside them. Her frown becoming more pronounced as she found two of them only half full of dried nuts, and green's. "I feel like a squirrel collecting nuts," she murmured to herself as she picked up the trowel and bag by the door.
She then walked towards the cave entrance putting the bag and trowel down as she stretched preparing for a long days work. As she turned to get down her bow and arrows from their place hung on the wall she noticed that she was shivering.
Shaking her head in sorrow about the loss of summer heat, despite the promise of winter snow. Now she would have to begin collecting wood as well as finish collecting food. Putting the bow and arrows down next to the bag, she walked back into the main part of the cave, walking to another room covered by a fur curtain.
Pushing it aside she entered, going straight to a wooden box taking out a thick black vest that reached to mid calf, also taking out a pair of black fur leggings with ties up the outside of her legs. Her usual short sleeveless black dress no longer enough in the pre-winter weather. Soon she would have to wear the leggings all the time and change into a sleeved dress just to keep warm.
Leaving the room she walked back over to her things picking up the arrows and putting them in a quiver she had leaning against the wall. She hooked the trowel and the bag to her belt and slung the quiver over her shoulder, before stringing the bow. Which she then put over her shoulder as well. Thus prepared she exited the cave carefully picking her way down the cliff. Upon reaching the bottom she headed into the lush forest to scrounge what she could.
***Meanwhile***
In the afore mentioned caves that were the valley's entrance, a small party traveled. A mix matched trio indeed. Two humans and a hanyou.
"Inuyasha are you sure this is the right way? I think we've been to this cave before," said a pretty girl with long dark brown hair, and brown eyes with pink eye shadow. She had on a tight black battle suit with red metal plates for protection on her knees and elbows, and huge boomerang strapped across her back. Without looking backwards she added, "Don't even think about it monk," in an annoyed voice.
The tall man behind her froze his hand inches from touching her butt. He hesitated before moving his hand away, a glance at the huge boomerang making his decision. A frown crossed his handsome face as he realized that he wasn't even allowed to think about it. Then suddenly he smiled flirtatiously his doubly pierced ear making it look even more reckless. He jogged forward catching up with her, his loose purple and black jacket flapping behind showing his black battle suit, a monk staff was tucked under his arm. He had black hair in a short ponytail and bright violet eyes which were dancing with humor.
"Why my lovely Sango, what were you talking about? I wasn't doing anything." "Houshi, shut up while you have the chance. You know exactly what I was talking about." "But Sango…" "Miroku, do you NEVER give up," interrupted an annoyed Inuyasha. A tall hanyou with long silver hair that came down to mid back, golden eyes, and small dog ears atop his head. He was wearing a tight battle suit like Miroku, with a jacket matching Miroku's, the only difference that Miroku's jacket was purple and black, while Inuyasha's was red and black. He also had a sword strapped around his waist.
"Never," Miroku smiled at Sango charmingly, making her blush slightly. Inuyasha rolled his eyes, "Well can you save it for later, I've got a headache from thousand times in the last hour that Sango has hit you with her boomerang and yelled hentai. If you guys keep this up you'll alert the guardian about our presence before we even reach the valley."
Miroku looked at him with a frown, "Tell us again why you're so certain there is a valley at the other end of this maze?" Inuyasha sighed with the look on his face of one in long suffering. "My father years ago came through these caves to a valley beyond, then traveled back through them. He told me all about it often in the short time before he died."
Sango looked at him a frown appearing on her face, "You guys know what, we don't have a plan of action. All we have is that we're going after the jewel, which has a guardian we know almost nothing about. Unless, do you know something Inuyasha?"
A hesitant look crossed Inuyasha's face as he thought about what he knew, finally he spoke, "Not much, I do remember him saying it was a girl about 15 or 16 years old, with long black hair and blue eyes. Supposedly very beautiful. She's a powerful miko I guess, since she can shoot purifying arrows. That's about it." He looked at Miroku with a grimace.
"Poor girl," whispered Sango, voicing what was going through his mind also. Miroku busy trying to picture exactly what she looked like didn't even notice the drool hanging from his face for a few minutes, while the others looked away in disgust. "Hey, why didn't you tell me I was drooling," he shouted when he realized it. "Miroku, you were in your own private pervert world." "Was NOT." "Were too." "Ok maybe I was, but you could have at least tried." "Whatever monk." They began walking away. "Hey guys wait up!"
***Later***Much Later***
The trio emerged from the caves blinking in the bright sunlight after hours in the dark. "See I told you my nose never lead wrong," crowed Inuyasha jumping in the air punching his fist into the air mid jump. Miroku and Sango sweat dropped. "Now we just have to find the guardian and get the jewel," he said excitedly.
Sango frowned, he had to be joking, there was no way they could beat the guardian without a plan. So ignoring Inuyasha she sent Miroku to get wood while she set about making camp in a nearby clearing. The sixteen year old girl was trained to fight and kill youkai, she was a feared demon exterminator, but working with perverts and…err…Inuyasha, was exhausting and not something she was prepared for. All she wanted at the moment was to rest from their journey, for which Inuyasha had set a very quick pace.
Fighting the guardian was not high on her list of things to do at the moment. A girl, Inuyasha had said the guardian was a human girl. How were they supposed to fight and kill another human being. Deep in thought Sango stood up walking slowly from the campsite. The guys looked up from the fire they had started, curious, then deciding they didn't care turned back to making lunch.
Walking slowly through the valley's thick forests, ignoring the dirt she collected amazed at the beauty around her, she made her was towards the faint sound of waves on a shore she could hear in the distance. Pushing aside vines and ducking under low branches she made her way towards the sound. As she pushed aside a heavy curtain of vines she came to a halt staring at the lake before her. Surprise and delight crossed her face as she looked out across the water. A mist hung over it despite the hot noon sun, sparkling in the light.
"It's beautiful," she whispered to herself, the tree's and bushes surrounding it were dark and mysterious compared to the clear bright water and sparkling mist. Suddenly behind her a soft voice spoke, "You should see it at night." Spinning quickly Sango stared at the girl sitting in a tree behind her.
She was quietly gazing out across the lake. When she spoke again it was in the same soft voice, "When the moonlight makes the water shimmer, and reflect the world around it. The water extends into little hidden coves, and pools outside of the lakes boundries, that are almost as beautiful as the lake itself." The girl regarded her with narrow blue eyes, sad in her lovely face. "It'll be a shame to have to kill you. Your so young, and the first to see the valley's beauty and not just focus on getting the Shikon no Tama." Smiling slightly she added, "Your antics earlier in the caves were quite amusing." Sango looked at her disbelief written openly on her face, "Wha…what but wouldn't Inuyasha have smelled you nearby?" "Do you mean the hanyou? No, I can hide my scent if I wish to." She looked at Sango quietly for a minute. "I think I'll let you live for a little longer," adding as an afterthought, "My names Kagome." With that she disappeared jumping out of the tree. Sango stared at the spot she had been in for a minute before whispering after her, "Goodbye I guess." With a last long look at the lake she turned and made her way back to camp slowly retracing her steps.
Inuyasha looked up at Sango as she entered the clearing. Miroku noticing where he was looking and smiled at Sango gesturing for her to join them, asking her curiously what she had seen of the land around them, questions which she answered carefully. Inuyasha had a puzzled look on his face. Something wasn't right. Sango smelled differently, she smelled faintly of something foreign to him entirely.
Then it hit him. This was the guardian's scent, his father had smelled like this faintly too when he'd finally returned home. He raised his head testing the nearby air currents. Suddenly he stood up quickly, moving so fast he was a blur he launched himself into the trees on one side of the clearing.
His hand reached out grabbing on to something, causing a cry of pain as his claws broke skin. Sango and Miroku grimaced understanding how much that had to have hurt. Inuyasha's face showed surprise as he pulled the figure into the light of the clearing. "Kikyou?"
Well that's it for this chapter. Hope you liked it. Please review. Though I don't mind if you don't, I normally don't! ^o^