Author's Note: I was so sad when I finished writing The Story of Two but at
the same time relieved. That story was so hard for me to write towards the
end because it was frustrating on how I was going to make this story work.
But anyways what I wanted to say is thank you guys! I'm glad you like the
story.
Oh and Happy Easter to you guys!
Disclaimer: I like others am merely borrowing them for the enjoyment of this story.
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The Lost Jewel
Chapter Two
Uncovering the Secrets: Part One
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Shippo looked over at the sleeping figures beside him. Inuyasha was seated with Sango. And Kagome was seated next to Miroku, all of them were asleep. Shippo grinned like a mad-man at Lanai. She was listening to music on her headphones and wasn't paying attention to Shippo's scheming plans. She did finally turn around when Shippo tapped her gently on the shoulder. She pulled down the headphones so she could hear him. "Yeah?" She asked. Shippo's eyes darted to the sleeping figures and then back at her. He nodded slowly.
Lanai's eyes grew wide. "Oh..." she said getting the message. Shippo whispered into her ear. Lanai bit her lip. "I don't know Shippo, you shouldn't bother Inuyasha, he's not exactly known for being docile and gentle like a lamb." Shippo rolled his eyes. "Trust me I know what I'm doing. Just watch me." He said all knowingly
The stewardess that was on the private plane woke up the crew when they had arrived at the island. Inuyasha who was eager to see the island first, grabbed his bags and slowly walked down the long stairs leading to the island.
Kagome had never been anywhere exotic and wanted to see the island as much as possible before she had to actually work tomorrow. She was right behind Inuyasha, and Shippo was right behind her. Lanai slapped a hand to her forehead lightly muttering under her breath "This is going to be trouble..." Miroku smiled as he was behind Sango. His hands flexed, Sango turned around. "Don't you even think about you pervert!" She said, knowing his antics now, experiencing them during the flight on the plane.
He looked at her innocently giving her a pretend confused look. "What are you talking about I was stretching my hands. It's good to stretch out your hands after a good sleep." Sango scrunched up her face in disbelief. "Okay..." She said as she started exited out slowly with the group. Miroku wiped away the pretend sweat and winked at Lanai. She sighed disgustedly and pushed him aside as she too starting exiting. Miroku stood there. "What did I do?" he said out loud to the empty space.
Kagome was walking down the stairs of the plane looking at the island before her. It was beautiful, just what she expected it to be like. What she didn't see were the small pair of feet poking out to trip her. It was from behind, she had never seen it coming.
Her feet caught onto the small pair of feet. She fell down on top of the person that was in front of her. They both tumbled down the stairs finally stopping when they landed on the soft sand.
Inuyasha looked up at Kagome, who was on top of him. He smirked at her knowing what he was about to say would annoy the hell out of her. "Kagome is there something that your sexual appetite desires?" Kagome got off him and gave him a dirty look. "I tripped, you moron." She said dangerously quiet and picked up her bags that were scattered on the sandy ground. Inuyasha stood up and shook the sand off him. "Oh well, your loss."
Kagome turned around stiffly and was forming a slight twitch in her left eye. "I said I tripped, it was accidental, you imbecile! And I do not have any sexual appetites or desires towards you whatsoever you... Pompous, arrogant, pigheaded, narcissistic, JERK!" She stormed off towards a small trail that led to their cabins. Miroku was behind Inuyasha now. "What did you say to her this time now?" Inuyasha finished dusting off and smiled at the retreating figure. "I can't say... But she's a feisty one."
Miroku nodded "Yeah but when she gets mad, she gets mad. Gotta watch that temper of hers." Inuyasha picked up his bags and walked with Miroku. "So tell me some things about Kagome. Like what kind of clothes does she wear when she sleeps at night? Does she prefer to sleep in the nude? Or does she..." Sango threw a small pebble at Inuyasha's head. "Perverts!" she screeched, eyeing the men.
The two men ran to their cabins fearing Sango's wrath of her pebbles. Sango looked over to Shippo. "I hope you never ever turn out like them." She said firmly. Shippo snorted. "Puh-lease. Even I have more common sense than that." Sango patted Shippo on the head. "Good. There are enough men out there that just like those two. We need more fresh variety if you ask me." She said dryly.
Lanai secretly smiled at Shippo. Shippo smiled back to her. If only they knew...
Kagome threw her bags on her bed. She looked around and saw that the cabins were fairly nice, considering it was located in the middle of nowhere. There was a small kitchen for them with a gas stove, a small sink, a refrigerator, a small pantry, and a dining table for three. There was also a small area were she supposed was the living room, expect they were missing the TV. Kagome was feeling at home already.
But her smile dropped when she saw the huge mosquito nets around the beds. "Oh no..." She said sitting down on her bed. "I hate bugs." Sango and Lanai entered then and looked around at the cabin. "Sweet!" Lanai commented taking the bed nearest to the door, while Sango placed her stuff and took the bed next to Kagome's.
Lanai pulled back the mosquito nets and tossed herself on the bed. This is better than sleeping in tents. Last time we had to sleep in tents in the middle of the Sahara Desert." She shuddered. "The worst experience of my life." She added. Sango laughed as she unpacked her stuff. "That's nothing. One time me and Inuyasha had to stay awake during the nights because all the bugs would come out then, and most were known for eating human flesh. We never went back there again."
Kagome had put her clothes away in her side of the dresser and sat down on her bed Indian-style. "Are you and Inuyasha, a couple?" Sango turned around to Kagome. She shook her head vehemently. "No we were... Well it was a love hate friendship. When I moved to Kyoto in the first grade, I moved right next door to him. At first our parents would try to make us be friends and it sort of worked. I mean we enjoyed playing pranks on each other more so than playing nice, but as we got older things changed. We were just friends after that, not enemies. Kagome felt more relieved after hearing that. She switched the topic before it got to in depth.
"Don't you guys think this expedition is a bit shady?" Kagome said looking back and forth between the two girls. Sango sat on her bed and stared at Kagome. "What do you mean?"
Kagome shrugged. "Oh I don't know it's that the Jewel hasn't been talked about for a long time, and all everything relating to it is hush-hush. It just seems weird."
Lanai rested her chin in the palm of her hand. "You felt that too? I thought I was the only one. I mean that one guy, he creeps me out. Why is he here in the first place? I mean he hardly looks like he's here to help us with the expedition and he's always muttering to himself under his breath. Also we don't know his name and what the reason he is here for."
Sango nodded. "Yeah... It's weird but I guess we'll just have to lie low for now. We don't want to screw up this opportunity." Kagome fell back on her bed and closed her eyes. "I just hope we'll be able to find the Jewel."
Sango yawned and looked out of the window. It was getting dark. She grabbed her pajamas and toothbrush and toothpaste, and headed towards the bathroom to get ready for bed. She came out a few moments later only to find herself being the only one awake. The two girls were out and sleeping like a baby. The trip had worn them out. She crawled into bed and before going to sleep she whispered. "Night girls."
Inuyasha looked over at Miroku. "When do you think he will stop?" He whispered. Miroku looked at the figure that was jumping on the bed while laughing maniacally. "About two hours. Maybe three at the most. I mean you did give him a lot of pixie sticks." Inuyasha looked over at Shippo who was still jumping on the bed and acting all giddy. "I was only giving it to him to shut him up."
Miroku cringed when Shippo bumped his head on the ceiling for jumping to high. However Shippo continued to jump on the bed and laughing at the same time, as if it never happened. Miroku shook his head and looked at Inuyasha. "Kids and sugar do not mix. Everybody knows that." "But he's not a kid, he's a full grown teenager going on twenty, sugar shouldn't be affecting him like this!" Inuyasha said defensively.
Three hours later when Shippo had finally stopped jumping on the bed and was now looking at the ceiling claiming he was looking for rainbow squares and triangles, Miroku turned over on his side so he was looking at Inuyasha. "So how do you know Kagome?" he whispered. Inuyasha who too was looking at the ceiling, but not for the same reasons as Shippo, laughed at the question.
"You really want to know?" Miroku nodded. Inuyasha shifted the arms under his head so that he was more comfortable. "Our fathers were planning to meet at this big Archaeologist Convention in Tokyo. When my dad introduced me to Kagome, you could say that I was rude to her. I was at that stage, you know that stage where boys hate girls?"
Miroku scrunched up his face. "That's funny I never went through that stage, I've always liked girls..." He smiled mischievously. Inuyasha turned his head over to Miroku and gave him an odd look. "Well anyways, I was showing off that boys were better than girls and then it just happened. She pushed me into the water fountain that was behind me. I guess I did deserve it now that I look back." Miroku laughed. Inuyasha and Shippo both looked at Miroku as if he was crazy.
When Miroku finally stopped laughing, he said "She pushed me into the lake when I grabbed her butt the very first day we met." Inuyasha laughed. "So she still does that huh? Looks like I have to watch out for her then."
Shippo looked at the men wondering if they were mental. 'Honestly who said girls liked being groped or being called stupid?'
A few minutes later he concluded that they were mental and closed his eyes to go to bed. Tomorrow would be a long day, after all he had to work with those two idiots and their love for perverted things, in which he would hear about all day tomorrow.
Tomorrow... Shippo was suddenly dreading tomorrow, as images of Inuyasha and Miroku popped up in his head. "Great..." He muttered before dozing off.
Kagome woke up and saw the two other girls were up and awake already. "Why didn't you guys wake me up?" she asked. Sango who was at the stove answered. "Well we still have about a good hour left and we thought you could use the sleep. Come on hurry up and have breakfast so you still have time to get ready." Kagome pulled herself out of bed and sat at the table with the girls eating breakfast.
Kagome finished putting on her hiking boots and headed out the door with her backpack. Sango locked the door and the girls met up with the guys. Kagome looked at the map that she had received earlier this morning. It was given to her by Mr. Berkley, the 'mysterious' man who came with them on the trip. She pointed to the mountain that was in the distance.
"The notes on the map indicate that the mountain over there had to do with the location of the Jewel." Kagome said showing the map to the group. Inuyasha snatched the map and looked at it. "Well this trail here is going to take a while to get there. We need to get going before it gets dark." He handed the map back to Kagome.
Kagome and the group headed into the jungle. Five minutes later all of them were covered in bug bites or had rashes from the effects of the unknown plants. Kagome was covered in bug spray and yet it seemed to have no effect on the bugs. She waved her hand in front of her face to keep the bugs away. It did little to help. "God this is getting to be on my nerves." She said angrily smacking the bug that was on her arm, she watched it fly away. She looked back at her arm and saw a red bump slowly forming.
Inuyasha placed his jacket over Kagome's shoulders. Kagome looked up at him. "Wear it. It'll help you more." He said and walked away, heading towards the front of the group. Kagome slipped the jacket on, her eyes fixated on him. She smiled to herself on the inside. 'He really does care.' She thought and walked alongside Sango and Lanai happily in thought.
It was late afternoon when they arrived at the mountain, only getting lost once. Kagome gasped when she saw the mountain. It was covered in exotic flowers and towering over the jungle. She went closer to the mountain and saw that she had never seen flowers of this sort before. "You guys look. These flowers..." Sango went closer to the mountain and looked at the flowers.
"Don't touch them." She warned. Kagome looked at Sango in confusion. "Why?" Sango dropped her bag and rummaged through her knapsack. She pulled out a small brown book and flipped through several pages till she stopped at a page, her eyes skimming the words. "Because these flowers are poisonous, if you touch them you'll get a rash that'll travel around your entire body and last for three days. Then you'll have a fever that can kill you, especially in this kind of heat."
Kagome backed away from the flowers and looked at the rest of her group. "Well how are we supposed to go up there?" Kagome said, pointing up to the top of the tall mountain. "That's where the map marks where the Jewel was supposedly seen." Miroku rubbed his chin, deep in thought. "Well if you look on the left side there is a small pathway where it seems the flowers have been cleared long ago." The group looked to where Miroku was pointing. Kagome nodded and agreed with Miroku.
"I think that's the only way to go." Kagome said seeing there was no other way. The group put on long pair of pants over their shorts and long sleeved sweaters. Kagome looked at the map once more and put it away in her bag. "Come on guys we have to do this now, four hours from now it will be dark. We need to be back at our cabins before then, if we can."
They climbed the mountain taking the time to stay away from the flowers. They had finally reached to the top and saw a small cave perched at the top. The cave was covered in green moss and a small river flowed beside it. She headed closer to the cave and pushed some of the moss off. There were writings on the cave exterior.
Her eyes widen when she saw the marks that were exposed. She pulled more moss off. She saw more writings. "Lanai! Come here, I see some sort of writings here on the cave but I don't know what it is." Lanai came beside her and looked at the exterior. "These writings take no form or similar shapes like any type of writing known to man... It's as if they came from a completely different existence. I... I don't know what to even make of it." Lanai's hands glided across the writings, feeling the deep outlines of the unknown writings.
Kagome copied a few of the writings onto her small notebook for notes. She put it in her back and took out a flashlight. She shone the flashlight directly inside the cave. She stepped inside and saw inside was more beautiful than the outside. Inside the top of the cave had crystals shining and reflecting off of Kagome's flashlight. The cave was much bigger than she thought it would be.
She jumped slightly when she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Inuyasha. "Relax, the others are setting up camp and I decided to join you, just incase anything happens." Kagome nodded and went deeper inside of the cave. She stopped when she saw there was a huge dead end. On the wall also carried the same marks that were outside. "What does this mean?" She whispered.
Inuyasha looked at it closer. He shook his head and looked at her. "I have no idea." Kagome touched the center of the wall where there was a small sphere shaped indentation. She touched it and saw that it seemed like a keyhole. "I think the Jewel goes in here, look at how small it is." Inuyasha peered closer to where Kagome was pointing at and nodded with her. "You're right... Does that mean that the Jewel could possibly be somewhere else?" Kagome bit her lip unsure.
"It could, but I think it might still be up here somewhere, I don't know it's just a feeling." Inuyasha nodded and said "I think we should head back." Kagome sighed and followed him out but as soon as her back turned away from the cave wall, she heard whispers.
It sounded as if they were everywhere around her. Her head spinned, she fell down from all the loud incoherent whispering. Inuyasha rushed over to her. "Are you okay?" Kagome nodded. "Yeah... I just need some air," Kagome lied. Inuyasha still stared at her, with concern in his eyes. He helped her up and guided her to the entrance.
She sat down by the fire and watched her group members making food around the fire. She was deep in thought. When she had heard the whispers she felt a rush of coldness shoot through her, taking over every part of her skin, deep into her pores. The whispers were soft then loud and harsh, like it was a warning.
But the thing that bothered her the most was she had understood the last three words perfectly. "...The Shikon Jewel." Then the whispers had stopped. Kagome looked up and saw that it was Inuyasha standing behind her. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked once more. Kagome nodded feeling guilty that she was lying to him. But she didn't want to him to think she was crazy, after all how did you explain to him that only you had heard these whispers that you didn't even understand?
"Yes I'm fine now, thank you for your concern." Kagome added. Inuyasha put on a small smile and patted her on the shoulder. "Okay, well you should have something to eat then." Kagome shook her head. "I think I'm going to bed early, I'm not really hungry." She pulled off his jacket and handed it to him. "Thank you for letting me borrow your jacket, it was kind of you." She gave him a quick hug and headed to her tent that she shared with the girls.
Inuyasha stood there in a slight daze. He noticed that everyone was watching afterwards. He snapped at his group members. "What are you looking at the show's over. Go on back to eating. Nothing to see here."
Everyone went back to eating a giving small knowingly side-glances at each other. Especially Shippo and Lanai.
It was more than just concern in their opinion.
Kagome couldn't sleep. The whispers had some what managed to stay in her head. She was cold even though she was dressed quite warmly. She couldn't get rid of the shivers that crept up and down her spine. She pulled over a coat and headed outside of her tent as quietly as possible.
She followed the river and saw an opening ahead that was hidden by trees. She sat down on a rock looking at the opening. Something had led her here, and she didn't know what it was. Her hands touched the soil. It was like sand, sieving through her hands.
She looked up and saw two transparent figures sitting across from her on the other side of the river. She blinked once, then twice to make sure what she saw was real.
They were still there. She didn't move not wanting to ruin the opportunity. She saw it was a young woman and a young man. The woman was sad and her face was covered by her face.
The voices were soft but she could here them clearly. She could understand what they were saying.
"Inuyasha we can't see each other anymore. It's too much of a risk." The woman bent her head down and Kagome could see the tears hitting the ground and making the soil around her darker. The man took both of her hands in his and kissed them both.
"Why? There is no longer a threat anymore. You are free now; the Jewel no longer needs to be hidden. He's gone, he's dead Kagome. We can be together forever."
Kagome's body froze. She had heard the transparent young woman and man use both her and Inuyasha's name. 'What does this mean?' She kept on listening, trying to understand what was going on, what had led her here...
"The Four Souls of the Jewel called to me. There is a bigger threat coming our way. I must leave you, to go away. Far away, my love and... I'm afraid I will not be returning."
The man's head bowed down in defeat. "Must you go? I... I don't know what I will do without you." The woman cupped her hands around the man's face and looked into his eyes.
Kagome still could not see the two transparent faces. "I would take you with me if I could, but the Fates will not allow it. It is my duty to protect the Jewel, I am the guardian of it, I cannot abandon it or else I will tarnish with the Jewel. We are one. Till this threat is over it will not be safe for me and the Shikon Jewel to stay here with you. Please understand it's for the world, for mankind and all of this world's creatures and creations. Stay with me tonight and be by my side before I have to leave in the morning."
The man hugged the woman and the woman responded back. Kagome saw the woman's face when her hair fell away from her face.
Kagome gasped when she saw that the ghostly figure looked like her. Just like her. She blinked, caught up in the moment and saw that nothing was there now. The figures had vanished. It was as if it never happened.
Kagome walked over to where the two figures were and saw the rock that the woman was sitting on. She touched it and found that the rock was neutral. She saw that it was neither cold from the weather nor hot at all. She looked around and saw a bracelet on the ground.
She picked it up and held it up to the moonlight. The writings on the sliver bracelet were same as the ones on the walls of the cave. She saw on the silver bracelet that the sliver chain was interwoven with silver hair. Like Inuyasha's and the transparent Inuyasha's hair. She put on the bracelet and saw that the writings on the bracelet flashed gold.
Suddenly she was spinning or at least her mind was. The whispers had come back now this time she could hear bits and pieces of it.
"Danger approaches nearer and nearer each day, Princess Kagome..."
"The wrath of this creature can destroy the world if he is to have the power of the Shikon Jewel..."
"The world depends on you... Only you..."
"This is a mission that cannot be avoided... You must act quickly..."
"The journey you will take will be long... You may not be returning..."
"...If you even survive the task that we are to put you through..."
"The task..."
"... Is uncompleted..."
"You must leave..."
"The..."
"He approaches quicker my lady..."
"...Judgment day..."
The whispers stopped and Kagome fell to the ground. Her body felt as if she was in lock position. She couldn't move. She feared to move. She didn't understand.
She didn't want to.
The voices she had heard made little sense at all. They were cut up pieces from whole sentences. Important parts that were taken out and tossed to Kagome as clues to figure out on her own. Puzzles that have gone missing, leaving blank spots open. It was incomplete. She didn't know what it was about.
A few minutes later the coloring of the writings on the bracelet went back to normal. She could move again. Her hands dug in to the earth to push herself up from the ground. Her fingernails however uncover a small sliver book that was barely poking out of the earth. It was just the tip of the book, it was so small she could've mistaken it for a small rock. Could've but didn't.
It was as if someone had buried it for protection, to keep it hidden. She kept digging until she was able to pull the book out of its hiding. It was buried deep considering the great amount of time Kagome had used to uncover the book.
The book was large and heavy. It was the size of a standard-sized dictionary. She opened the book and saw the same writings but it was in sliver with gold outlining. She kept flipping through it and stopped when she saw a small painting.
It was a painting of her and Inuyasha. But it wasn't her and Inuyasha at the same time. It must've been the transparent figures she had seen earlier in the clearing.
Because the date marked under the picture was unheard of. Kagome wasn't alive or anywhere near born at that time and neither was Inuyasha.
And Kagome wasn't a princess and she knew Inuyasha wasn't a prince.
Also Inuyasha didn't have dog ears on the top of his head.
The clothes and the symbols that were marked on there hands...
It wasn't making any sense to Kagome. 'What is going on? Why is this happening to me only?' She felt the cold sensation rush through her again.
Pain surged through her head. She put one of her hands to her forehead, the pain intensified even more. She pulled her hand away and saw it was red. She looked the book and saw that it was glowing.
The book closed automatically on its own and fell softly on the ground beside her.
It was the last thing Kagome saw before she hit the ground unconscious.
AN: So there's Ch. 2, my next update will be later this week or weekend and it will be High School Reunion and A Country Life. Tell me what you guys think of this chapter!
Oh and Happy Easter to you guys!
Disclaimer: I like others am merely borrowing them for the enjoyment of this story.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Lost Jewel
Chapter Two
Uncovering the Secrets: Part One
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Shippo looked over at the sleeping figures beside him. Inuyasha was seated with Sango. And Kagome was seated next to Miroku, all of them were asleep. Shippo grinned like a mad-man at Lanai. She was listening to music on her headphones and wasn't paying attention to Shippo's scheming plans. She did finally turn around when Shippo tapped her gently on the shoulder. She pulled down the headphones so she could hear him. "Yeah?" She asked. Shippo's eyes darted to the sleeping figures and then back at her. He nodded slowly.
Lanai's eyes grew wide. "Oh..." she said getting the message. Shippo whispered into her ear. Lanai bit her lip. "I don't know Shippo, you shouldn't bother Inuyasha, he's not exactly known for being docile and gentle like a lamb." Shippo rolled his eyes. "Trust me I know what I'm doing. Just watch me." He said all knowingly
The stewardess that was on the private plane woke up the crew when they had arrived at the island. Inuyasha who was eager to see the island first, grabbed his bags and slowly walked down the long stairs leading to the island.
Kagome had never been anywhere exotic and wanted to see the island as much as possible before she had to actually work tomorrow. She was right behind Inuyasha, and Shippo was right behind her. Lanai slapped a hand to her forehead lightly muttering under her breath "This is going to be trouble..." Miroku smiled as he was behind Sango. His hands flexed, Sango turned around. "Don't you even think about you pervert!" She said, knowing his antics now, experiencing them during the flight on the plane.
He looked at her innocently giving her a pretend confused look. "What are you talking about I was stretching my hands. It's good to stretch out your hands after a good sleep." Sango scrunched up her face in disbelief. "Okay..." She said as she started exited out slowly with the group. Miroku wiped away the pretend sweat and winked at Lanai. She sighed disgustedly and pushed him aside as she too starting exiting. Miroku stood there. "What did I do?" he said out loud to the empty space.
Kagome was walking down the stairs of the plane looking at the island before her. It was beautiful, just what she expected it to be like. What she didn't see were the small pair of feet poking out to trip her. It was from behind, she had never seen it coming.
Her feet caught onto the small pair of feet. She fell down on top of the person that was in front of her. They both tumbled down the stairs finally stopping when they landed on the soft sand.
Inuyasha looked up at Kagome, who was on top of him. He smirked at her knowing what he was about to say would annoy the hell out of her. "Kagome is there something that your sexual appetite desires?" Kagome got off him and gave him a dirty look. "I tripped, you moron." She said dangerously quiet and picked up her bags that were scattered on the sandy ground. Inuyasha stood up and shook the sand off him. "Oh well, your loss."
Kagome turned around stiffly and was forming a slight twitch in her left eye. "I said I tripped, it was accidental, you imbecile! And I do not have any sexual appetites or desires towards you whatsoever you... Pompous, arrogant, pigheaded, narcissistic, JERK!" She stormed off towards a small trail that led to their cabins. Miroku was behind Inuyasha now. "What did you say to her this time now?" Inuyasha finished dusting off and smiled at the retreating figure. "I can't say... But she's a feisty one."
Miroku nodded "Yeah but when she gets mad, she gets mad. Gotta watch that temper of hers." Inuyasha picked up his bags and walked with Miroku. "So tell me some things about Kagome. Like what kind of clothes does she wear when she sleeps at night? Does she prefer to sleep in the nude? Or does she..." Sango threw a small pebble at Inuyasha's head. "Perverts!" she screeched, eyeing the men.
The two men ran to their cabins fearing Sango's wrath of her pebbles. Sango looked over to Shippo. "I hope you never ever turn out like them." She said firmly. Shippo snorted. "Puh-lease. Even I have more common sense than that." Sango patted Shippo on the head. "Good. There are enough men out there that just like those two. We need more fresh variety if you ask me." She said dryly.
Lanai secretly smiled at Shippo. Shippo smiled back to her. If only they knew...
Kagome threw her bags on her bed. She looked around and saw that the cabins were fairly nice, considering it was located in the middle of nowhere. There was a small kitchen for them with a gas stove, a small sink, a refrigerator, a small pantry, and a dining table for three. There was also a small area were she supposed was the living room, expect they were missing the TV. Kagome was feeling at home already.
But her smile dropped when she saw the huge mosquito nets around the beds. "Oh no..." She said sitting down on her bed. "I hate bugs." Sango and Lanai entered then and looked around at the cabin. "Sweet!" Lanai commented taking the bed nearest to the door, while Sango placed her stuff and took the bed next to Kagome's.
Lanai pulled back the mosquito nets and tossed herself on the bed. This is better than sleeping in tents. Last time we had to sleep in tents in the middle of the Sahara Desert." She shuddered. "The worst experience of my life." She added. Sango laughed as she unpacked her stuff. "That's nothing. One time me and Inuyasha had to stay awake during the nights because all the bugs would come out then, and most were known for eating human flesh. We never went back there again."
Kagome had put her clothes away in her side of the dresser and sat down on her bed Indian-style. "Are you and Inuyasha, a couple?" Sango turned around to Kagome. She shook her head vehemently. "No we were... Well it was a love hate friendship. When I moved to Kyoto in the first grade, I moved right next door to him. At first our parents would try to make us be friends and it sort of worked. I mean we enjoyed playing pranks on each other more so than playing nice, but as we got older things changed. We were just friends after that, not enemies. Kagome felt more relieved after hearing that. She switched the topic before it got to in depth.
"Don't you guys think this expedition is a bit shady?" Kagome said looking back and forth between the two girls. Sango sat on her bed and stared at Kagome. "What do you mean?"
Kagome shrugged. "Oh I don't know it's that the Jewel hasn't been talked about for a long time, and all everything relating to it is hush-hush. It just seems weird."
Lanai rested her chin in the palm of her hand. "You felt that too? I thought I was the only one. I mean that one guy, he creeps me out. Why is he here in the first place? I mean he hardly looks like he's here to help us with the expedition and he's always muttering to himself under his breath. Also we don't know his name and what the reason he is here for."
Sango nodded. "Yeah... It's weird but I guess we'll just have to lie low for now. We don't want to screw up this opportunity." Kagome fell back on her bed and closed her eyes. "I just hope we'll be able to find the Jewel."
Sango yawned and looked out of the window. It was getting dark. She grabbed her pajamas and toothbrush and toothpaste, and headed towards the bathroom to get ready for bed. She came out a few moments later only to find herself being the only one awake. The two girls were out and sleeping like a baby. The trip had worn them out. She crawled into bed and before going to sleep she whispered. "Night girls."
Inuyasha looked over at Miroku. "When do you think he will stop?" He whispered. Miroku looked at the figure that was jumping on the bed while laughing maniacally. "About two hours. Maybe three at the most. I mean you did give him a lot of pixie sticks." Inuyasha looked over at Shippo who was still jumping on the bed and acting all giddy. "I was only giving it to him to shut him up."
Miroku cringed when Shippo bumped his head on the ceiling for jumping to high. However Shippo continued to jump on the bed and laughing at the same time, as if it never happened. Miroku shook his head and looked at Inuyasha. "Kids and sugar do not mix. Everybody knows that." "But he's not a kid, he's a full grown teenager going on twenty, sugar shouldn't be affecting him like this!" Inuyasha said defensively.
Three hours later when Shippo had finally stopped jumping on the bed and was now looking at the ceiling claiming he was looking for rainbow squares and triangles, Miroku turned over on his side so he was looking at Inuyasha. "So how do you know Kagome?" he whispered. Inuyasha who too was looking at the ceiling, but not for the same reasons as Shippo, laughed at the question.
"You really want to know?" Miroku nodded. Inuyasha shifted the arms under his head so that he was more comfortable. "Our fathers were planning to meet at this big Archaeologist Convention in Tokyo. When my dad introduced me to Kagome, you could say that I was rude to her. I was at that stage, you know that stage where boys hate girls?"
Miroku scrunched up his face. "That's funny I never went through that stage, I've always liked girls..." He smiled mischievously. Inuyasha turned his head over to Miroku and gave him an odd look. "Well anyways, I was showing off that boys were better than girls and then it just happened. She pushed me into the water fountain that was behind me. I guess I did deserve it now that I look back." Miroku laughed. Inuyasha and Shippo both looked at Miroku as if he was crazy.
When Miroku finally stopped laughing, he said "She pushed me into the lake when I grabbed her butt the very first day we met." Inuyasha laughed. "So she still does that huh? Looks like I have to watch out for her then."
Shippo looked at the men wondering if they were mental. 'Honestly who said girls liked being groped or being called stupid?'
A few minutes later he concluded that they were mental and closed his eyes to go to bed. Tomorrow would be a long day, after all he had to work with those two idiots and their love for perverted things, in which he would hear about all day tomorrow.
Tomorrow... Shippo was suddenly dreading tomorrow, as images of Inuyasha and Miroku popped up in his head. "Great..." He muttered before dozing off.
Kagome woke up and saw the two other girls were up and awake already. "Why didn't you guys wake me up?" she asked. Sango who was at the stove answered. "Well we still have about a good hour left and we thought you could use the sleep. Come on hurry up and have breakfast so you still have time to get ready." Kagome pulled herself out of bed and sat at the table with the girls eating breakfast.
Kagome finished putting on her hiking boots and headed out the door with her backpack. Sango locked the door and the girls met up with the guys. Kagome looked at the map that she had received earlier this morning. It was given to her by Mr. Berkley, the 'mysterious' man who came with them on the trip. She pointed to the mountain that was in the distance.
"The notes on the map indicate that the mountain over there had to do with the location of the Jewel." Kagome said showing the map to the group. Inuyasha snatched the map and looked at it. "Well this trail here is going to take a while to get there. We need to get going before it gets dark." He handed the map back to Kagome.
Kagome and the group headed into the jungle. Five minutes later all of them were covered in bug bites or had rashes from the effects of the unknown plants. Kagome was covered in bug spray and yet it seemed to have no effect on the bugs. She waved her hand in front of her face to keep the bugs away. It did little to help. "God this is getting to be on my nerves." She said angrily smacking the bug that was on her arm, she watched it fly away. She looked back at her arm and saw a red bump slowly forming.
Inuyasha placed his jacket over Kagome's shoulders. Kagome looked up at him. "Wear it. It'll help you more." He said and walked away, heading towards the front of the group. Kagome slipped the jacket on, her eyes fixated on him. She smiled to herself on the inside. 'He really does care.' She thought and walked alongside Sango and Lanai happily in thought.
It was late afternoon when they arrived at the mountain, only getting lost once. Kagome gasped when she saw the mountain. It was covered in exotic flowers and towering over the jungle. She went closer to the mountain and saw that she had never seen flowers of this sort before. "You guys look. These flowers..." Sango went closer to the mountain and looked at the flowers.
"Don't touch them." She warned. Kagome looked at Sango in confusion. "Why?" Sango dropped her bag and rummaged through her knapsack. She pulled out a small brown book and flipped through several pages till she stopped at a page, her eyes skimming the words. "Because these flowers are poisonous, if you touch them you'll get a rash that'll travel around your entire body and last for three days. Then you'll have a fever that can kill you, especially in this kind of heat."
Kagome backed away from the flowers and looked at the rest of her group. "Well how are we supposed to go up there?" Kagome said, pointing up to the top of the tall mountain. "That's where the map marks where the Jewel was supposedly seen." Miroku rubbed his chin, deep in thought. "Well if you look on the left side there is a small pathway where it seems the flowers have been cleared long ago." The group looked to where Miroku was pointing. Kagome nodded and agreed with Miroku.
"I think that's the only way to go." Kagome said seeing there was no other way. The group put on long pair of pants over their shorts and long sleeved sweaters. Kagome looked at the map once more and put it away in her bag. "Come on guys we have to do this now, four hours from now it will be dark. We need to be back at our cabins before then, if we can."
They climbed the mountain taking the time to stay away from the flowers. They had finally reached to the top and saw a small cave perched at the top. The cave was covered in green moss and a small river flowed beside it. She headed closer to the cave and pushed some of the moss off. There were writings on the cave exterior.
Her eyes widen when she saw the marks that were exposed. She pulled more moss off. She saw more writings. "Lanai! Come here, I see some sort of writings here on the cave but I don't know what it is." Lanai came beside her and looked at the exterior. "These writings take no form or similar shapes like any type of writing known to man... It's as if they came from a completely different existence. I... I don't know what to even make of it." Lanai's hands glided across the writings, feeling the deep outlines of the unknown writings.
Kagome copied a few of the writings onto her small notebook for notes. She put it in her back and took out a flashlight. She shone the flashlight directly inside the cave. She stepped inside and saw inside was more beautiful than the outside. Inside the top of the cave had crystals shining and reflecting off of Kagome's flashlight. The cave was much bigger than she thought it would be.
She jumped slightly when she felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Inuyasha. "Relax, the others are setting up camp and I decided to join you, just incase anything happens." Kagome nodded and went deeper inside of the cave. She stopped when she saw there was a huge dead end. On the wall also carried the same marks that were outside. "What does this mean?" She whispered.
Inuyasha looked at it closer. He shook his head and looked at her. "I have no idea." Kagome touched the center of the wall where there was a small sphere shaped indentation. She touched it and saw that it seemed like a keyhole. "I think the Jewel goes in here, look at how small it is." Inuyasha peered closer to where Kagome was pointing at and nodded with her. "You're right... Does that mean that the Jewel could possibly be somewhere else?" Kagome bit her lip unsure.
"It could, but I think it might still be up here somewhere, I don't know it's just a feeling." Inuyasha nodded and said "I think we should head back." Kagome sighed and followed him out but as soon as her back turned away from the cave wall, she heard whispers.
It sounded as if they were everywhere around her. Her head spinned, she fell down from all the loud incoherent whispering. Inuyasha rushed over to her. "Are you okay?" Kagome nodded. "Yeah... I just need some air," Kagome lied. Inuyasha still stared at her, with concern in his eyes. He helped her up and guided her to the entrance.
She sat down by the fire and watched her group members making food around the fire. She was deep in thought. When she had heard the whispers she felt a rush of coldness shoot through her, taking over every part of her skin, deep into her pores. The whispers were soft then loud and harsh, like it was a warning.
But the thing that bothered her the most was she had understood the last three words perfectly. "...The Shikon Jewel." Then the whispers had stopped. Kagome looked up and saw that it was Inuyasha standing behind her. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked once more. Kagome nodded feeling guilty that she was lying to him. But she didn't want to him to think she was crazy, after all how did you explain to him that only you had heard these whispers that you didn't even understand?
"Yes I'm fine now, thank you for your concern." Kagome added. Inuyasha put on a small smile and patted her on the shoulder. "Okay, well you should have something to eat then." Kagome shook her head. "I think I'm going to bed early, I'm not really hungry." She pulled off his jacket and handed it to him. "Thank you for letting me borrow your jacket, it was kind of you." She gave him a quick hug and headed to her tent that she shared with the girls.
Inuyasha stood there in a slight daze. He noticed that everyone was watching afterwards. He snapped at his group members. "What are you looking at the show's over. Go on back to eating. Nothing to see here."
Everyone went back to eating a giving small knowingly side-glances at each other. Especially Shippo and Lanai.
It was more than just concern in their opinion.
Kagome couldn't sleep. The whispers had some what managed to stay in her head. She was cold even though she was dressed quite warmly. She couldn't get rid of the shivers that crept up and down her spine. She pulled over a coat and headed outside of her tent as quietly as possible.
She followed the river and saw an opening ahead that was hidden by trees. She sat down on a rock looking at the opening. Something had led her here, and she didn't know what it was. Her hands touched the soil. It was like sand, sieving through her hands.
She looked up and saw two transparent figures sitting across from her on the other side of the river. She blinked once, then twice to make sure what she saw was real.
They were still there. She didn't move not wanting to ruin the opportunity. She saw it was a young woman and a young man. The woman was sad and her face was covered by her face.
The voices were soft but she could here them clearly. She could understand what they were saying.
"Inuyasha we can't see each other anymore. It's too much of a risk." The woman bent her head down and Kagome could see the tears hitting the ground and making the soil around her darker. The man took both of her hands in his and kissed them both.
"Why? There is no longer a threat anymore. You are free now; the Jewel no longer needs to be hidden. He's gone, he's dead Kagome. We can be together forever."
Kagome's body froze. She had heard the transparent young woman and man use both her and Inuyasha's name. 'What does this mean?' She kept on listening, trying to understand what was going on, what had led her here...
"The Four Souls of the Jewel called to me. There is a bigger threat coming our way. I must leave you, to go away. Far away, my love and... I'm afraid I will not be returning."
The man's head bowed down in defeat. "Must you go? I... I don't know what I will do without you." The woman cupped her hands around the man's face and looked into his eyes.
Kagome still could not see the two transparent faces. "I would take you with me if I could, but the Fates will not allow it. It is my duty to protect the Jewel, I am the guardian of it, I cannot abandon it or else I will tarnish with the Jewel. We are one. Till this threat is over it will not be safe for me and the Shikon Jewel to stay here with you. Please understand it's for the world, for mankind and all of this world's creatures and creations. Stay with me tonight and be by my side before I have to leave in the morning."
The man hugged the woman and the woman responded back. Kagome saw the woman's face when her hair fell away from her face.
Kagome gasped when she saw that the ghostly figure looked like her. Just like her. She blinked, caught up in the moment and saw that nothing was there now. The figures had vanished. It was as if it never happened.
Kagome walked over to where the two figures were and saw the rock that the woman was sitting on. She touched it and found that the rock was neutral. She saw that it was neither cold from the weather nor hot at all. She looked around and saw a bracelet on the ground.
She picked it up and held it up to the moonlight. The writings on the sliver bracelet were same as the ones on the walls of the cave. She saw on the silver bracelet that the sliver chain was interwoven with silver hair. Like Inuyasha's and the transparent Inuyasha's hair. She put on the bracelet and saw that the writings on the bracelet flashed gold.
Suddenly she was spinning or at least her mind was. The whispers had come back now this time she could hear bits and pieces of it.
"Danger approaches nearer and nearer each day, Princess Kagome..."
"The wrath of this creature can destroy the world if he is to have the power of the Shikon Jewel..."
"The world depends on you... Only you..."
"This is a mission that cannot be avoided... You must act quickly..."
"The journey you will take will be long... You may not be returning..."
"...If you even survive the task that we are to put you through..."
"The task..."
"... Is uncompleted..."
"You must leave..."
"The..."
"He approaches quicker my lady..."
"...Judgment day..."
The whispers stopped and Kagome fell to the ground. Her body felt as if she was in lock position. She couldn't move. She feared to move. She didn't understand.
She didn't want to.
The voices she had heard made little sense at all. They were cut up pieces from whole sentences. Important parts that were taken out and tossed to Kagome as clues to figure out on her own. Puzzles that have gone missing, leaving blank spots open. It was incomplete. She didn't know what it was about.
A few minutes later the coloring of the writings on the bracelet went back to normal. She could move again. Her hands dug in to the earth to push herself up from the ground. Her fingernails however uncover a small sliver book that was barely poking out of the earth. It was just the tip of the book, it was so small she could've mistaken it for a small rock. Could've but didn't.
It was as if someone had buried it for protection, to keep it hidden. She kept digging until she was able to pull the book out of its hiding. It was buried deep considering the great amount of time Kagome had used to uncover the book.
The book was large and heavy. It was the size of a standard-sized dictionary. She opened the book and saw the same writings but it was in sliver with gold outlining. She kept flipping through it and stopped when she saw a small painting.
It was a painting of her and Inuyasha. But it wasn't her and Inuyasha at the same time. It must've been the transparent figures she had seen earlier in the clearing.
Because the date marked under the picture was unheard of. Kagome wasn't alive or anywhere near born at that time and neither was Inuyasha.
And Kagome wasn't a princess and she knew Inuyasha wasn't a prince.
Also Inuyasha didn't have dog ears on the top of his head.
The clothes and the symbols that were marked on there hands...
It wasn't making any sense to Kagome. 'What is going on? Why is this happening to me only?' She felt the cold sensation rush through her again.
Pain surged through her head. She put one of her hands to her forehead, the pain intensified even more. She pulled her hand away and saw it was red. She looked the book and saw that it was glowing.
The book closed automatically on its own and fell softly on the ground beside her.
It was the last thing Kagome saw before she hit the ground unconscious.
AN: So there's Ch. 2, my next update will be later this week or weekend and it will be High School Reunion and A Country Life. Tell me what you guys think of this chapter!