DISCLAIMER: I do not own the characters of the Inuyasha series nor do I own the original storyline.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Thanks for waiting! Here's another new chapter of this story! Have fun reading
it!!
Italic: thoughts or emphasized words
-- --: locations
"...": spoken words
~*~*~*~*~: time gap or change of perspective
*...* : noises
-by Kittymui-
Phoenix of Ice
Previously:
"Let me know when you're ready and I'll have someone lead you to your room,"
the manager said and jumped off of the desk to leave the girl to think on her
own.
"Wait!" she halted her.
The woman turned to her with an expectant look.
"I...I'm ready..." she said after a moment of silence. I will become
famous...somehow... she thought determined.
~*~*~*~*~
[AN: Don't be too confused, but since Kagome won't be using her real name for
a while, I'll call her Maya from now on ^-^]
"Look! It's the Phoenix of Ice!!" a citizen cried, pointing at a woman who walked out of the Phoenix's Paradise.
Everybody on the street turned their attention to her and gawked at her unmistakable beauty.
She was dressed in a silvery blue dress with a wide V-shaped neckline that accentuated every feminine curve of her body. The ends of her long silky sleeves were wide like a trumpet and decorated with silver edges. And the bottom of her dress was long enough to cover her crystal sandals.
Her raven-black hair was kept together in a loose knot on the back of her head with an azure-colored hairpin that had a figure of a phoenix at the end. It was a gift from the manager when she officially became the Phoenix of Ice several weeks ago.
~*~
Some time has passed and there wasn't a single youkai or human in Omoshi that didn't know about the Phoenix of Ice, who was also known as Maya. She had now become one of the treasures of the famous Phoenix's Paradise.
Although the ones who have become treasures are often known because of their skills in bed or seduction, Maya did none of these things to be noticed. Yet, the customers kept coming because of her beauty.
In spite of the fact she refused to do anything else other than pouring wine for her customers, they were somehow still attracted and amused by her icicle wall, hence she was granted the name 'Phoenix of Ice' by the customers and officially by Kaya.
Though in another way than normal, the newcomer still managed to attract more customers and receive more money than other girls, so she also became the most precious treasure of the manager. And in return, she gave the girl a privilege, which stated that she might choose how to please a customer and refuse if she doesn't like a request.
But unfortunately, freedom was something she could not grant the girl. It was the golden rule of the business: either you earn enough money to buy yourself free or persuade another person to do it. And nobody was allowed to break it.
~*~
Daytime was free time for the girls working in the brothel, for the business
only started in the evening.
During the afternoon, Maya usually went outside to kill time. Yes, killing time was the word she used to hide her true motive, which was actually to let herself be known by the entire city as much as possible. Because the better she was known, the easier it was to be found by someone.
The man, who captured and sold her, did keep his promise eventually as he indeed returned one day to buy her freedom. But Maya refused. She knew it would be the same as giving up her own freedom to someone else, had she accepted the offer.
She decided that if there was a good place to stay and wait for the person of her memory it would be the brothel. With the privilege she had, this place could be the safest of all places.
~*~
Maya's expression remained stoic as she made her way through her audience.
Being well-known ensured her safety when going out in the city of Omoshi, but also brought her unwanted attention.
I wonder if I'll ever be able to buy myself free? And if not, will he ever hear about me and come to find me? she mused as she continued her promenade through the streets.
There wasn't a single day that she didn't ponder about these two questions. A part of her wanted to go home and prevent everyone from worrying about her, but another part told her to stay rather than going back and marrying the jerk.
Being deep in thoughts, Maya didn't realize someone was running into her from the opposite direction.
"Ite!" she heard a small voice shriek and instantly snapped back into reality. When she looked down, she realized it was a little girl. She was wearing a worn-off orange yukata and her black hair looked as if she hadn't washed it for days.
"I'm sorry, are you okay?" she asked, bowing a little as she looked into the little girl's dark eyes.
The girl got back to her feet and patted her behind to get rid of the sand on her clothes. "I-I'm okay."
Shortly after her meek reply, the sound of a grumpy stomach could be heard.
Maya smiled. "Are you hungry?"
The child nodded while placing her hand on her stomach.
"Follow me then, I'll buy you something to eat as an apology for making your beautiful yukata dirty," she offered as she straightened herself up.
The little girl hesitated for a moment but nodded eventually as she couldn't fight her stomach.
~*~
"So...what's your name?" Maya asked as they waited in a simple noodle-restaurant.
"R-Rin...euh...miss..." she replied hesitatingly as her gaze darted around.
"You can call me Maya, Rin," Maya responded.
"Rin nodded and suddenly noticed the blue hairpin in Maya's hair. "You're the Phoenix of Ice people are talking about...right?" she asked.
Maya nodded. "Yeah...I may look cold-hearted on the outside but that's not really me, don't worry."
The child opened her mouth to say something but halted herself when a delicious smell of noodles drifted to her nose.
"Thanks for waiting! That'll be 10 gold coins please," the waiter behind them said as he put down a large bowl filled with noodles in front of the little girl.
Maya reached into her sleeve and pulled out a small blue bag of coins. She picked out the right amount and handed it to the waiter. "Here you go."
The waiter left after a polite 'thank you' and she turned to Rin again. "My my, you must be very hungry," she said surprised as she noticed how hastily the infant filled her small mouth with a mass of noodles using a pair of chopsticks.
The girl quickly bit off some strands of noodles to close her mouth and started to chew.
Maya watched how she managed to finish the entire bowl within several minutes.
"Do you want another one?" she asked.
Rin shook her head and covered her satisfied stomach. "Thank you...I haven't eaten for two days now..."
"Two days?!" Maya said wide-eyed. "Where are your parents?"
"They died...they were killed by bandits when we were on the way here..." the little girl replied as a sad look appeared on her features.
Maya froze. Bandits...? she thought and reached for her heart as if she
was getting a heart-attack. W-what...what's this painful feeling I'm having...?
A-am I...remembering something...? Without realizing it, she had started
to breath heavily.
"O-onee-san...? Daijoubu?" Rin asked, a little frightened by Maya's sudden change.
She snapped out of it, but not without a throbbing headache. "G-gomen...I don't know what's gotten into me..." she groaned, rubbing the bridge of her nose.
"Y-you don't look so well onee-san...maybe you should lie down and rest..." Rin suggested with a worried tone.
Maya looked up at the little girl and forced a weak smile. "M-maybe I should..." she agreed and pulled the small blue bag out of her sleeve again. "Here...take it..." she said as she handed the bag to her.
The infant widened her eyes. "D-demo__"
"Just take it, you'll need it more than I do," she cut her off. "Take good care of yourself, okay? You can always come to me whenever you need help."
With that, she pushed herself up from the wooden chair and slowly made her way to the exit of the restaurant, leaving the startled Rin behind.
~*~
Curious as she was about the amount of money she had received, Rin quickly left the place shortly after watching Maya disappear around a corner and went to a safe alleyway.
She slowly and carefully opened the bag as if it was made of glass and peeked inside.
Her eyes sparkled with joy. Oh my God! She gave me more than 80 gold coins!! she cried inwardly. But then her eyes caught something else in the bag. Eh?
She stuck her small hand through the opening and grabbled in search for the strange non-monetary object. When she pulled it out, she realized it was a small opaque bottle made of porcelain. Kirei... she thought as she ran the tip of her forefinger over the blue crest that was carved on it.
As the little girl continued to admire the small piece of art, a flash of silver and red passed by at the end of the alleyway where it met another street.
~*~
What am I doing? he thought as he walked through the streets and passed
several alleyways. He looked around and found himself almost completely surrounded
by mainly youkai. He had heard some rumor about a girl, who's description matched
the one of the maid he was looking for, being here, but he hadn't had the slightest
idea how he was going to find her in this busy city filled with non-humans.
Why am I searching for her anyway? I shouldn't be wasting my time on this...
Because you've promised Lord Takada that you'll find his daughter, your fiancée, remember? his conscience replied.
Inuyasha dropped his face. I've promised Kagome too...and now I'm looking for another girl when I should really be looking for her... Not to mention I've been looking and searching for some time now...without success.
You're not going to give up...are you? the voice in his head asked.
I don't know...but I don't think she'll be here... he reasoned.
Who? Kagome, the maid or your snobby fiancée?
Neither of the three, because as far as I'm concerned, this place is mainly inhabited by youkai and the only places with human girls are the brothels here, so there... he replied.
You can't really cast out that possibility you know... his conscience argued.
Inuyasha scowled. I don't even want to imagine my Kagome, fiancée OR the maid working in an impure place like that...serving those... he quickly shook off the thought, as he didn't even want to think about the details. "Anyhow, I'm not going to stay here any longer!" he decided aloud and turned around to head to the gates of the city.
During his way towards the exit, he heard an awful lot of gossips and rumors
about a certain girl known as the 'Phoenix of Ice'. Within 10 minutes, he probably
picked up more information about this person than an average gossip-lady.
"Man! I just wish she was one of my concubines!"
"Yeah, she's really gorgeous, ain't she?"
"I heard she's quite new there..."
"There's no way she would choose YOU tonight! Ha!"
"I really want to see her again...if only a glimpse. Aww come on! Let's go to the Phoenix's Paradise tonight!"
The hanyou scowled as he picked up the name of the famous brothel. He realized
that this girl was in fact a treasure of the impure place.
He wanted to cover his sensitive ears and dash towards the gates, but that was not before he picked up something totally different about the same person.
"Yeah it's true!! I met the Phoenix of Ice today, she was really nice!!"
"Really? How?"
"I accidentally bumped into her, it was actually my fault. But she was kind enough to buy me a huge bowl of noodles as an apology for making my yukata dirty. Can you believe that?"
"Where is she now?"
"She became ill when I told her that my parents were killed by bandits on the way here. But look! She even gave me her purse before she left!!"
"You sure you didn't steal it? It's a lot of money in there."
"Believe it or not! She gave it to me willingly and you know what? I found this in the purse."
"What is it?"
"I think it's a porcelain medicine bottle, it's pretty don't you agree?"
"Yeah, look at that blue crest on it...that's a dog...howling to a crescent moon right?"
His ears twitched. A porcelain bottle with a blue crest...?! A dog howling...to
a crescent moon?!?
"Uh-huh, but I don't think it's meant for me to have...so I'm going to
give it back when I see her again!"
The hanyou turned to where he had heard the conversation and pushed his way
through the crowd. Could it be it? The bottle I gave her...?? he pondered
as he made his way to the corner of a retail-shop.
When he finally managed to break through the streaming crowd after a lot of squirming, he realized it was actually a conversation between two children.
They were both girls around the age of 10 and both had dark untidy hair and worn-off clothes. One was dressed in an orange yukata while the other wore a mud-green one.
"S-sir?" the one dressed in green asked, looking up at him.
He dropped his gaze and widened his eyes when he saw what the girl in orange was holding in her tiny hand-palm. "Where...did you get that bottle?"
"Someone gave it to me," she replied. "Why?"
Not wanting to intimidate the girls with his height, he knelt down until their eyes were on the same height. "That bottle might lead me to a person I've been searching for a very very long time," he explained as he pulled out a small, flat and solid gold object and showed it to the girls. "You see...the blue crest on that bottle you're holding is in fact my family crest."
The girl in orange studied the crest carved on the golden plate and compared it with the one on the bottle. "You're right. It is the same crest," she agreed.
"Why are you carrying your family crest around on a golden plate?" the other girl in green asked curiously.
Inuyasha smiled. "It's to prove my identity, see?" he said, flipping it over and revealing an carved name on the back. "It's says 'Inuyasha'; that's my name."
"Ohh..." both girls nodded in unison.
"I'm Rin, and this is Mika," the girl in orange introduced with a small smile.
"Well then Rin and Mika, could you please tell me about the person who gave you this bottle? That person might be able to tell me the whereabouts of the one I'm looking for," he asked, returning a smile.
"All right!" Rin decided. "I guess the true owner of this bottle has the right to know who stole it! But you have to promise me something first."
Inuyasha raised a brow of amusement. Hmm...she got the wrong idea...but I guess it won't change the answer I'm looking for. he thought to himself. "No problem!"
"You have to promised me not to hurt the person after I told you who she is, okay?" she told him.
He smiled. "I won't hurt that person who gave that bottle to you, I promise."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
Rin let out a sigh of relief before explaining. "Her name is Maya, but here in Omoshi, she's more known as the Phoenix of Ice of the famous Phoenix's Paradise."
Inuyasha widened his eyes. "Wait a minute, what did you say her name was? Her real name?" he asked, afraid he might have misheard it.
"Maya," Rin repeated.
Maya?!? he thought shocked. Isn't that...that's...the name of Kagome's personal maid back then!! he recalled. "Where is this Maya now?"
"I don't know exactly...she didn't feel very well so I think she went back to the brothel to rest," she replied. "Are you going to look for her now?"
He nodded.
"Then can you give this back to her for me? I don't think she had meant to give it to me," she said as she handed over the small porcelain bottle.
The hanyou gladly took it and smiled. "I will give it back to her, don't worry," he assured the girl and put it, together with his golden plate back, into his red sleeve. "Will you two be okay?" he asked, with a slightly worried tone.
They smiled. "Don't worry, we'll be fine by ourselves," the one in green told him. "Good luck with finding the one you're looking for. I'm sure you two will meet eventually."
"Thank you," he responded with a firm nod and turned to leave.
The Phoenix of Ice huh? he thought determined as he blended himself with
the crowd of the streets again and headed into the direction of the famous brothel.
I'm sure everything will be solved once I meet her...
Woops, another cliffhanger...sorry about that ^-^. I cannot seem to stop with cutting chapters off at the most suspending moments, please forgive me!! Anyway please leave a small review behind to tell me what you think ne? Thanks!! Look forward to the next chapter! Oh I'm still working on the next chapter so the update won't be as fast as this one, sorry!
Next chapter: Found yet lost
~*~
Sorry! No teasers this time ^-^!!
~*~
Vocabulary:
ite!: ouch!
onee-san: (big) sister
daijoubu?: are you okay?
gomen: I'm sorry
demo: but
kirei: it's beautiful/pretty
~*~
REPLIES ON REVIEWS:
LadyJynjr: Sorry for the suspense, I'm trying to update as soon as possible ^-^!!
Kaiyouu: I'm glad you like the twists ^-^!
Dragon Man 180: Thanks! Hahaha indeed, Inuyasha would NEVER enter such place, or would he? *peeks at Inuyasha and quickly averts her gaze after receiving a cold-glare* Woops...okay I never said that...
osuwariIYK: Hahaha, well Kikyou is still going to appear in the story, but not in the way you're afraid of ^-^, so don't worry!
michelle: Thanks! I'll try to update as soon as possible. I hope this chapter isn't too boring, but I can assure you that the next chapter is going to be better!
Inukamisashi: Thanks!! I'll try!!
Kyia Star: Thanks so much for reviewing my other story, I really appreciate that ^-^!
nekomoongirl: Thank you very much ^-^! And sorry for the suspense hehe.
Ks-Starshine: I'm glad you like it! Thank you!
Shrimple13: Thanks!!
Clearwater-Faerie: You're welcome. And don't worry, Inuyasha will get her out of it, I promise ^-^!
InuyashasBabe08: Honestly, I suffer that kind of problems from time to time too ^-^. I'll get really frustrated when I can't find the right words to express what I want to write. Thanks for reviewing!
Donna: Thanks!
Milk.shake: Sorry for the suspense! And thanks for telling me that my English doesn't suck ^-^.
kokoro: Thanks for explaining and reviewing!!
inuyasha's angle!: Don't worry! I won't stop ^-^!
~*~
Lots of greets
~Kittymui~
Posted: 21 March 2004
Last Edited: 21 March 2004
Spelling check: YES