CHAPTER TWO
*
Kagome watched the clouds going by, lazily tracing circles in the grass with her fingers. Above her, the trees rustled and shimmered in the midday light. Birds chirped and danced on the branches, and a fox ran through the tall grass.
There were so few times like this one, where she could just lie around and enjoy the scenery. She had lived in Tokyo for as long as she could remember, and of all the things Tokyo was known for, natural scenery was not one of them. Not as far as the eye could see, anyway. Not with the fresh air, clean water, bright sky...
"Are you asleep?"
And the demanding half-demons.
"No, I'm not," Kagome said. "Why do you ask?"
If she looked out of the corner of her eye, she could see a boy dressed in red half-hanging out of a nearby tree bough. His pointed dog ears were perked. "Whatcha lookin' at?" he asked.
"The sky."
"Feh. The sky's always there."
"You have no aesthetic sense, you know that?" Kagome said, sitting up. "Have you ever just looked at something because it's pretty?"
Inuyasha flushed and mumbled something incoherent. When he did that, it usually meant "yes," but he didn't want to admit it. Probably, she thought, he would rather have his claws pulled out with pliers than say what he thought WAS pretty. He let one leg drop over the branch, kicking at the long grass. "Sango found rumors of some more jewel shards," he said finally. "A lot of 'em."
"Okay," Kagome said, scrambling up onto Inuyasha's back. He started off running before she was fully settled, and skidded to a stop as Kagome squealed and almost fell off him.
After pulling herself back up, Kagome grabbed fistfuls of his shirt and said, "Okay, go!"
"Why can't you hang on better?" Inuyasha muttered as he began running through the woods.
"I do hang on. You just go too fast for me," Kagome retorted.
Inuyasha just mumbled, "Feh," and continued running. Kagome rested her chin on his shoulder, watching as the ground sped away under them. Suddenly Inuyasha had a burst of speed, leapt into the air, and landed lightly on a rock-covered rooftop.
As he bounced down into the dirt road, Kagome sighed. They hadn't found any shards for quite some time, and it was making their entire group edgy and nervous. While there were quite a few in the little bottle in Kagome's backpack, they were nowhere near as many as Naraku had -- as Inuyasha reminded Kagome constantly. It was a nagging source of fear.
What if Naraku gets the rest? Kagome wondered. She pressed her knees against Inuyasha's sides, feeling a little more secure while he was carrying her. Then she slid off him and dusted herself off.
Sango and Miroku were sitting in front of Kaede's house. Shippo was running in circles with Kirara. "... don't know about it," Sango was saying. "It almost sounds too good to be true."
"What does?" Inuyasha asked, crouching down.
"The story about jewel shards," Sango said, folding her arms. "It sounds like overkill to me, if it isn't true. After all, even one jewel shard is hard to find and obtain. But several? All in one place?"
"Are you saying we shouldn't investigate?" Kagome asked.
"No, I'm not saying that. I think we should be cautious, though," Sango said, putting a hand on her boomerang. "The village is three days to the south of here."
"Feh. I can get there faster," Inuyasha scoffed.
"So can Kirara," Sango said. "I was talking about normal travelling. Most of what I've done, I did on foot."
Inuyasha made an indeterminate noise, and Kagome nudged him in the ribs. "Have you ever been to that village, Sango?" she asked.
"No. In fact, I didn't even know there was a village there. They must be very reclusive," Sango said. She picked up a short sword and slid it from its sheath. "Demon-slayers knew of almost every village and city there is, but I'm fairly sure no one went to that valley. Perhaps they just didn't have much need for outsiders."
"Or maybe it's all a trap," Miroku said thoughtfully. He rested his chin on his covered hand. "But such crudity would be ... unusual for Naraku, don't you think? After all, we would simply have to be on our guard to see any problems that come."
"That's what made me think," Sango agreed. "He's more devious. If it's a trap, it's a rather obvious one."
Inuyasha folded his hands into his sleeves. His face had the peevish expression that Kagome knew was frustration. "You lost me. Are we going or not? 'Cause I don't have all day!"
"I'm going," Sango said, sheathing her blade. After Miroku and Shippo had voiced their agreement, Kagome looked up at Inuyasha. He shrugged. "S'pose I've got to go, just to keep everyone outta trouble," he grumbled.
Kagome smiled. "Okay, let's go, first thing in the morning."
TO BE CONTINUED
*
Kagome watched the clouds going by, lazily tracing circles in the grass with her fingers. Above her, the trees rustled and shimmered in the midday light. Birds chirped and danced on the branches, and a fox ran through the tall grass.
There were so few times like this one, where she could just lie around and enjoy the scenery. She had lived in Tokyo for as long as she could remember, and of all the things Tokyo was known for, natural scenery was not one of them. Not as far as the eye could see, anyway. Not with the fresh air, clean water, bright sky...
"Are you asleep?"
And the demanding half-demons.
"No, I'm not," Kagome said. "Why do you ask?"
If she looked out of the corner of her eye, she could see a boy dressed in red half-hanging out of a nearby tree bough. His pointed dog ears were perked. "Whatcha lookin' at?" he asked.
"The sky."
"Feh. The sky's always there."
"You have no aesthetic sense, you know that?" Kagome said, sitting up. "Have you ever just looked at something because it's pretty?"
Inuyasha flushed and mumbled something incoherent. When he did that, it usually meant "yes," but he didn't want to admit it. Probably, she thought, he would rather have his claws pulled out with pliers than say what he thought WAS pretty. He let one leg drop over the branch, kicking at the long grass. "Sango found rumors of some more jewel shards," he said finally. "A lot of 'em."
"Okay," Kagome said, scrambling up onto Inuyasha's back. He started off running before she was fully settled, and skidded to a stop as Kagome squealed and almost fell off him.
After pulling herself back up, Kagome grabbed fistfuls of his shirt and said, "Okay, go!"
"Why can't you hang on better?" Inuyasha muttered as he began running through the woods.
"I do hang on. You just go too fast for me," Kagome retorted.
Inuyasha just mumbled, "Feh," and continued running. Kagome rested her chin on his shoulder, watching as the ground sped away under them. Suddenly Inuyasha had a burst of speed, leapt into the air, and landed lightly on a rock-covered rooftop.
As he bounced down into the dirt road, Kagome sighed. They hadn't found any shards for quite some time, and it was making their entire group edgy and nervous. While there were quite a few in the little bottle in Kagome's backpack, they were nowhere near as many as Naraku had -- as Inuyasha reminded Kagome constantly. It was a nagging source of fear.
What if Naraku gets the rest? Kagome wondered. She pressed her knees against Inuyasha's sides, feeling a little more secure while he was carrying her. Then she slid off him and dusted herself off.
Sango and Miroku were sitting in front of Kaede's house. Shippo was running in circles with Kirara. "... don't know about it," Sango was saying. "It almost sounds too good to be true."
"What does?" Inuyasha asked, crouching down.
"The story about jewel shards," Sango said, folding her arms. "It sounds like overkill to me, if it isn't true. After all, even one jewel shard is hard to find and obtain. But several? All in one place?"
"Are you saying we shouldn't investigate?" Kagome asked.
"No, I'm not saying that. I think we should be cautious, though," Sango said, putting a hand on her boomerang. "The village is three days to the south of here."
"Feh. I can get there faster," Inuyasha scoffed.
"So can Kirara," Sango said. "I was talking about normal travelling. Most of what I've done, I did on foot."
Inuyasha made an indeterminate noise, and Kagome nudged him in the ribs. "Have you ever been to that village, Sango?" she asked.
"No. In fact, I didn't even know there was a village there. They must be very reclusive," Sango said. She picked up a short sword and slid it from its sheath. "Demon-slayers knew of almost every village and city there is, but I'm fairly sure no one went to that valley. Perhaps they just didn't have much need for outsiders."
"Or maybe it's all a trap," Miroku said thoughtfully. He rested his chin on his covered hand. "But such crudity would be ... unusual for Naraku, don't you think? After all, we would simply have to be on our guard to see any problems that come."
"That's what made me think," Sango agreed. "He's more devious. If it's a trap, it's a rather obvious one."
Inuyasha folded his hands into his sleeves. His face had the peevish expression that Kagome knew was frustration. "You lost me. Are we going or not? 'Cause I don't have all day!"
"I'm going," Sango said, sheathing her blade. After Miroku and Shippo had voiced their agreement, Kagome looked up at Inuyasha. He shrugged. "S'pose I've got to go, just to keep everyone outta trouble," he grumbled.
Kagome smiled. "Okay, let's go, first thing in the morning."
TO BE CONTINUED