Virtual Reality
Chapter Three
Kagome gasped as she fell into the shallows of a large body of water, the cold, salty liquid soaking her slippers and the hem of her pants. The water was clear, revealing sand beneath her feet and little pieces of sea plants floating around her. Two feet away from her was the dry beach, and further out to the west was a dirt trail that appeared to have been made by wild animals walking over the same path multiple times. The beach around her was nothing more than ten feet of clean, yellow sand, which quickly gave way to cliffs to the north and south and a grassy, small strip of land which contained the dirt path about twenty feet wide that was wedged between the two cliffs. The strip of grassy land almost looked like a valley in-between two mountains... two small mountains.
Inuyasha was already out of the water and walking across the beach to the path, the sand clinging to his wet bare feet. "Are you coming already?!" he hollered over his shoulder.
Sighing, she quickly jogged out of the water and up to him. He could be loud and rude when he wanted to be, that was for sure. "Inuyasha, I have to tell you something," she said, voice tense. She had just remembered the other piece of the stall keeper's advice, which she had to relay to her ally.
"What is it?" the dog demon responded, briefly glancing back at her. He saw a look of worry in her eyes, so he paid attention. Even in the short amount of time he had known her, he had grown to believe she wouldn't burden him with stupid or useless information.
"Someone I met in the village said that there's a demon around here who kills mikos and only mikos," Kagome informed him, praying that he would promise to protect her. She didn't want to die.
"I guess I have nothing to worry about then," Inuyasha stated gruffly, but when she punched his back, he chuckled. "I was just joking, Kagome, so relax. I'm not going to let some demon kill you."
She breathed a sigh in relief, a small smile appearing on her face. It had felt good to hear those words. "Thank you."
"You're welcome," he replied, suddenly stopping and smelling the wind. "A demon, right?"
Kagome nodded, her brown eyes serious. "Yes. Why? Can you smell him?"
"I do smell a demon, but I'm not sure if it's the one you were talking about," Inuyasha answered.
"I hope not." She shivered. "If the demon is capable of killing enough mikos to gain a reputation, then I don't want to meet up with him or her."
He frowned. "Well, we're going to find out who it is soon enough, because the smell is coming closer." Without thinking, he placed himself between Kagome and where the demon would probably approach from. He was going to keep his promise to her no matter what. No demon was going to take her life as long as he was around.
"Oh me, oh my! Look at what we have here!" a light female voice exclaimed, and air-headed giggling following that statement. "A miko and a little inu hanyou. How quaint."
"Show yourself!" Inuyasha demanded, his hand automatically going to his sword. For some reason or another, he didn't trust the female demon, even though he had only heard her voice. There was just something about the way she spoke that made him not trust her.
"That was rude of you," she complained. "Don't you know how to speak to a lady?" A woman with shoulder-length black hair in a short, low-cut, v-neck black dress appeared at the top of the northern cliff. She stood there, a single short sword at her side.
"Who are you, and what are you doing here?" the dog demon wanted to know. 'I can't just attack her for no reason. I have to find out if she's our enemy.' "Oh my... so you finally got around to asking me that." She smiled. "I'm Yura of the Hair, and I've been given the quest to guard this path for a month and keep those who are unworthy of seeing the Oracle from well... seeing her." She giggled. "You see, this path leads straight to Sacred Way, the road that leads to the Temple of Apollo."
"And how do you figure out who's unworthy and who's not?" Kagome inquired, although she had a good guess. More than likely, Yura fought with the any and all travelers.
"Simple, I let the demons and priests pass, and I kill the mikos. Demons are automatically worthy, because they're strong and the priests usually go to Delphi to serve in the temple, but mikos are just pathetic human females who can kill demons. I don't like mikos," Yura stated, glaring down at Kagome. "So, hanyou, you can keep going, but the girl has to stay here."
"No," Inuyasha retorted. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Oh me, oh my. I guess that means I'll have to kill you both." Shrugging, the black-haired demon leapt from the cliff, drawing her sword in the process.
Kagome reacted by notching one of her arrows, and Inuyasha unsheathed his sword. The transformed blade blocked Yura's attack as Kagome's arrow sunk into the female demon's shoulder. Purple pink light briefly flashed as the raven-haired demon jumped back, pulling the arrow out, wincing only slightly.
"Now, that wasn't very nice," she mildly scolded. "You two should die like good little boys and girls are supposed to."
The miko stared in shock. 'Why didn't my arrow work? It did so much damage to the hurroks; yet, Yura wasn't barely even bothered by it.' Taking a deep breath, she fired another arrow at the demon.
Yura dodged the shaft without difficulty, landing about twenty feet away. "Oh my, oh me. I think I need to show you why I'm called Yura of the Hair." She sheathed her sword and then gestured at Inuyasha with one hand and Kagome with another.
Suddenly, neither could move. Inuyasha tightened his grip on his sword, trying to move his arms. For some reason, they were plastered to the sides of his body. He glanced over at Kagome to find her on sitting on the ground, her arms at her sides as well. She was acting as if her feet were tied together, and her arrows were scattered across the ground.
Kagome wiggled, attempting to untie herself. She failed, although she didn't know why. She could barely see what was wrapped around her, and all of it seemed to come from the enemy demon. Saying a quick prayer to the gods of Greece, she pushed some of her purification magic into the tiny cords. The magic had a little effect but not much. It would take time for her to break her way out of the cocoon she was in.
Growling, he glared at the scantily-dressed demon, his golden eyes nothing but narrow slits. "What's going on?!" he demanded, fighting against the invisible cords that bound him.
Yura laughed, eyes twinkling. "Why, I've tied you up with hair." She smiled. "Now, who wants to die first? The miko? Or the hanyou?" She cocked her head to one side. "I think that you should!" Jerking her hand back, she watched the many strands of sharp hair tighten around the dog demon.
Inuyasha struggled against the tightening hairs, feeling each and every one press into his body. He couldn't move enough to use his sword to cut his bindings, not that he could even see what he needed to cut.
"Huh?" The black-haired demon blinked. "Oh my, it looks like you're stronger than I thought. My hair won't cut you." She sighed. "It seems that the miko will have to die first." With a shrug, she turned to Kagome.
Kagome gasped, knowing that she couldn't free herself in time. She was doomed, doomed to die before she had even completed her quest. 'And I was even beginning to become used to Inuyasha.'
"Let's make this slow." Yura smiled, tightening the hair's hold on Kagome until tiny wounds began to appear. Tiny sounds of pain came from the miko's lips, despite her efforts to force them back.
At the sight of Kagome's blood, Inuyasha's eyes turned red from anger. He could barely believe it. Yura was actually going to kill her right in front of him, was going to kill her right in front of the person who had promised to protect her. If he didn't do something soon, then she would die and his promise would be broken.
"Leave her alone!" he roared, using all his strength to finally break the hair around him. Before Yura could react, he was in the air, coming down at her with his sword. His silver hair whipped behind him, and his red eyes practically glowed, giving him a crazed look. "Kaze no Kizu!"
With a flash of orange power, Yura disappeared, leaving nothing but a crater where she had once been. Inuyasha stood there for a few minutes, allowing his rage to wash away. His eyes slowly bled back to normal, revealing the beautiful gold color once again.
As soon as his anger was gone, he went to Kagome's side. She was still sitting on the ground, gathering up her fallen arrows. He knelt down to help her. "Are you okay?" he inquired, handing her the few wooden shafts he had picked up.
She shrugged. "I'm okay; however, my outfit has seen better days." She smiled wistfully, glancing down at her torn hamaka pants and shirt.
"You can get a new outfit in the next village," Inuyasha replied, standing up. "For now, we need to keep going." He offered her a hand.
Kagome sighed, dropping her arrows into her quiver. "I know, I know," she muttered, taking the offered hand, allowing him to pull her into a standing position.
As soon as he released her hand, he began to walk off, following the dirt path. Kagome followed.
They walked along the dirt path until they came to another, wider path, which they assumed to be Sacred Way. After exchanging glances, they took the new path. It twisted this way and that, but it seemed to lead towards the north most of the time. Hours later, they were still walking. They took a break from the game for supper and then resumed traveling.
Inuyasha and Kagome talked a little but not too much, as they both had to stay on the alert for enemies. Fortunately, nothing happened, except for the fact they walked even more. Around eleven in the evening, they called it a night, logging off to go to sleep.
The woman with long blond hair smiled softly. "They are progressing nicely," she commented, blue eyes twinkling. She placed one pale hand on the edge of the reflecting pool before glancing at the other two females in the room: one with raven hair and one with silver.
The black-haired woman shrugged, her black eyes watching the reflecting pool, which was showing what had happened during Kagome and Inuyasha's battle with Yura of the hair. "Yes, they are, but perhaps we should do something else?" She smiled as she dipped her dark fingers into the pool, destroying the image.
"We've already thrown the hurroks at them... as well as made sure Yura was assigned a quest that would clash with theirs," the silver-haired one responded, her soft voice flowing through the air as her kind silver eyes gazed at the her two companions. "What more could we possibly do?"
The raven-haired woman grinned mischievously at the other females, her dark eyes filled with images that hinted at her plans. "Easy. In the morning, we see how they deal with wyverns."
Kagome yawned as she trudged behind Inuyasha bright and early in the morning. She was tired of walking, tired of not getting anywhere. So far, all she had seen were some trees, flowers, and shrubs... and grass, of course, lots of grass. She found it all boring.
Since the VR set was controlled by brain waves, if she was tired in the real world, then she was going to be sluggish and tired in the game world. It was just how it worked. Normally it wasn't a problem, but with the late night and early morning she had pulled, her feet were almost literally dragging.
"Inuyasha, do you have any idea how far away Delphi is?" she inquired, silently praying that it wasn't too far. She wanted to be there already so she could sit down and rest.
The dog demon rolled his eyes, kneeling down on the ground. "If it will shut you up, then climb on," he ordered. Mornings were not his thing, as they were obviously not Kagome's thing either. Why they had agreed to meet so early, he didn't know; however, he didn't feel like listening to her complain at the moment, even though she had yet to utter anything that resembled a complaint. He just wasn't in the mood to chance it.
The miko had no problem obeying, wrapping her arms loosely around his shoulders. She rested her check against his shoulder, his face nuzzled against his neck. The position was rather comfortable, and she was quickly becoming used to it thanks to the previous rides she had received. "Thank you," she whispered, yawning again.
Inuyasha easily heard the kind words and blushed, glad that she couldn't see it. "Forget about it," he replied, beginning to race off.
'He really is a softy at heart, isn't he?' Kagome mused, a small smile on her face. 'I guess I did a good job when I made that deal with him. He's reliable, as well as strong. He did an excellent job of protecting me from Yura, and-'
Her thoughts stopped dead when she felt a familiar forbidding sense in the back of her mind, jolting her completely awake. It was the exact same thing she had felt right before the hurroks had appeared.
"Inuyasha..." the miko began, voice tense.
"What is it this time?" the hanyou wanted to know, not sure if he was annoyed or pleased with the break of silence. He was leaning towards the former.
"Something's coming," Kagome answered. "Something like the hurroks but... different."
Inuyasha glanced around and sniffed the wind, finding a funny smell in the air. He didn't like it. "How close are they?" he asked, searching the area with his golden eyes.
She frowned thoughtfully. "I... don't know, but it's coming in fast." The forbidding sense was quickly growing stronger.
"Dammit!" the demon cursed, finally spotting Delphi off in the distance. It was quite a distance away though, and judging by the urgency in Kagome's voice, he doubted his ability to reach the place in time.
Kagome gasped when seven wyverns broke over the horizon, heading straight at her and her ally. Their powerful wings beat furiously fast, and their yellow on red eyes made them look like they were possessed. Above all, they looked like legless, flying dragons with spiked tails, and they were a little like the hurroks in the respect that they were strong and rare. Luckily, the wyverns were susceptible to magic, and they had no poison anywhere on their body; however, they could breath out a yellow fog that gave anyone who breathed it a nasty cough as well as blinded them for a few hours. On top of all that, they were fast... incredibly fast.
She watched the game AIs swarm overhead, amazed by their speed. It was great that she could harm them with magic, but it wouldn't do her any good if she couldn't hit one with her arrows. She hadn't learned how to fire her purification magic straight out of her hand, but she had a feeling that she needed to learn really soon.
Inuyasha came to a graceful stop, setting Kagome down and drawing his sword, which quickly transformed. He didn't know what was going on with all the attacks in the past few days, but he had an idea as to whom to ask--the Elves. 'They must really hate my guts to keep sending stuff like this after me.'
He swung his sword at a dive-bombing wyvern, completely missing. Kagome tried shooting it with a purification arrow, but she was off by a few yards. The creatures were just too fast to hit the normal way, and it was back up in the sky with its friends before Kagome could even reach back for another arrow.
"Stupid fucking things are faster than my internet connection," the hanyou grumbled, scowling at the AIs overhead.
The miko almost laughed at that statement, highly doubting that anything could be faster than an internet connection, but she understood that it wasn't the time to laugh or even chuckle. If the wyverns came too close, then they'd shower her with their yellow breath, robbing her of her sight and ability to breath normally. If she lost her sight... well, she'd be dead meat. It was that simple.
Inuyasha, deciding that he didn't have time to mess around at all, figured it was time to use his new attack once again. "Bakuryuuha!" he cried out as he jumped up in the air, swinging his sword at the swarming monsters.
The flash of light and power surged forth, filling the area. When the sky was clear again, he realized that all but one of the wyverns had dodged. The flying beasts really were way too fast for anyone to defeat.
"Kagome!" Inuyasha shouted, coming up with an idea. "Fire as many of your arrows as you can at them as fast as you can. I'll sneak up from behind while they're distracted."
Kagome nodded, understanding perfectly. Within moments, she was rapidly firing arrow after arrow at the six wyverns, fighting the urge to growl every time they easily dodged. Luckily, they didn't seem to understand that her ally had disappeared, and they kept their attention centered on her.
Three swooped down suddenly, heading straight towards her right as Inuyasha came up behind the other three in the air, preparing to use his powerful attack.
Fear in her eyes, the miko dropped to the ground, narrowly avoiding being hit by spiked tails. She couldn't avoid the dangerous breath though. Her eyes watered slightly, and her throat felt a little scratchy as she breathed it the yellow patch of air, but it wasn't near as bad as she had thought it would be.
"Bakuryuuha!" Inuyasha shouted as the female moved to stand up. The surge of power from his sword destroyed the three, unsuspecting AIs, but not before they sent a cloud of yellow breath Inuyasha's way. He couldn't help but breath it in, his eyes blurring badly and his throat burning.
The silver-haired demon hit the ground hard, unable to see and coughing worse than he could ever imagine. It felt like he was going to cough up a lung. He was helpless, blind, and weak, not to mention he was in the middle of a battle. 'I'm doomed,' he thought darkly, annoyed that he could be done in by stupid flying snakes.
Kagome looked around for the three wyverns that had attacked her, hoping to find them within firing range, which she did. The only problem was, they were going after Inuyasha, who seemed to be completely defenseless at the moment.
Determined to help her friend, she fired as many arrows as she could, hitting two of the AIs before she ran out of ammo. The wyvern turned to look at her for a moment but quickly resumed its previous course.
"Inuyasha, move it!" she screamed, not knowing what else to do. "One's headed your way!"
The hanyou tried to stand up and run away, but he couldn't stop hacking long enough to even try to stand up. Plus, he didn't know which way to run. He couldn't see the demon, his nose did no good because the wyvern scent was all over the place, and his ears were no good due to his loud cough.
Kagome took a deep breath and pulled the string back on her bow without an arrow on it. "Please, Zeus, Hera, Apollo, Artemis, and whoever else is listening," she whispered. "Please, let this work."
Not exactly knowing what to do, she forced her power out of her body and to the bow, letting it form a shaft of pure miko magic. The arrow glowed pink-purple, the form flickering slightly as she aimed.
"Please, let me hit it." Saying one last prayer, she fired the arrow. She watched it arch through the air, flickering and sparkling as it did so. Little bolts of lightning came off of it as it began to fall, the head coming down at the wyvern.
The wyvern was less than ten feet away from Inuyashsa, and the arrow was perhaps fifteen or more. The arrow wasn't going to make it.
"No... please don't let him die. Please, pretty please just speed up," Kagome murmured, hands clasped together. She didn't want Inuyasha to die, especially when the arrow was so close to hitting the AI. She didn't want to lose her new friend and wonderful ally. His rude attitude no longer mattered, and all she could think about was his amazing voice, his soft heart, his beautiful eyes and hair, and his absolutely adorable ears.
Right after she spoke, her arrow sped up, actually gaining ground on the wyvern. It was ten feet away, and then eight... five... and finally three.
When the wyvern was close to digging into Inuyasha's neck with its tail, the arrow hit home, causing the creature to disappear in a burst of purple-pink light. The last of the enemy was gone, and Inuyasha was still alive, as was she.
Kagome couldn't help but smile as she ran over to check on her partner and ally. She knelt down beside him, checking him for wounds. He seemed unharmed, but his cough just wouldn't stop, and his eyes were watering, the excess moisture running down his cheeks.
"Inuyasha, I'm going to see what I can do about your cough and your eye problem," the miko stated, bringing forth what little energy she had left. She forced it into the hanyou's lungs, trying to destroy the yellow fog in them. She succeeded, allowing him to breath a little easier. He still coughed, but it wasn't anywhere near as bad as before.
With his lungs taken care of, she went to work on his eyes. She searched for the remains of the wyvern's breath but couldn't find any. The demon was merely experiencing the aftereffects, and there was nothing she could do.
"Sorry, but I can't fix your eyes," Kagome said softly, voice sad. She hated not being able to help him, especially since he had helped her so much. "But they should heal on their own eventually."
"We can't stay out here in the open," Inuyasha told her, frowning as he thought out loud. "Without my vision, I'm a sitting duck."
"I could lead you to Delphi... if you wouldn't mind me doing that," she offered.
He muttered a few things under his breath but eventually nodded. "Yeah, sure. I don't have much of a choice."
Since she had his permission, she placed his arm around her shoulders as hers hesitantly went to his waist. She wasn't sure if he'd draw away at the last second or not, and he thankfully didn't. The demon allowed her to help him stand up and lead him off down the road.
Kagome and Inuyasha safely arrived in Delphi a few hours later without having any more problems. The going had been slow due to Inuyasha's loss of sight, but no demons had attacked and no AIs had appeared, making everything that much easier.
They went into Delphi through the main entrance, finding the place relatively busy. Most of the people walking around were priests instead of normal humans though, and all were players. Many of the men were dressed in black and purple robes, and some even had golden-colored staffs with clinking rings on the top. The priests meandered around, making offerings to the god Apollo, visiting the treasuries, or just talking to other men.
To the north she could see Mount Parnassus, the shining rocks, which were cliffs that served as a protective barrier between Delphi and the rest of Ancient Greece on the northern side. Far to the south she could see a mountain, which she knew to be called Mount Cirphis.
Kagome continued to guide Inuyasha down the street, admiring the treasuries with Doric pillars and the many places for offering all along the road. It was a comfortable setting that made her feel safe. After all, everything around her just brought the fact to mind that Delphi was sacred to Apollo, meaning that it was under protection. No one was allowed to attack Delphi or anyone in Delphi.
As the sun continued to draw close to its highest point, they walked west for a short amount of time until they came to an open place, at which time Sacred Way pulled a 180 turn and had them head back east. Kagome would have complained, but she didn't see any point in it. Since Inuyasha had been quiet, she decided to as well.
They went eastward until the road came to a wall and turned north. The miko growled slightly with annoyance. She knew that Sacred Way led straight to the Temple of Apollo, but she was tired of the road zigzagging back and forth. It was quickly growing tiresome, and it didn't help that the going was literally uphill all the way.
Kagome sighed when the path turned westward once again but figured she couldn't complain too much since she could finally see the temple.
"We're almost there," she told Inuyasha, a smile on her face.
"It's about time," he grumbled in reply. "It feels like we've been going in circles."
The miko huffed at that. "Didn't you trust me to keep us from doing that?" she snapped back.
Inuyasha's mouth froze as his brain considered the question. He did trust her, strangely enough, so he couldn't lie and say no, even though he wanted to. "Well... yes, I guess I trust you," he responded after a few moments.
"You do?" Kagome blinked a few times in surprise, astonished by those words. She hadn't been expecting them. She had thought that he would say no and go on to grumble a little bit more.
"Of course," he retorted. "Why wouldn't I?"
"No reason." Shaking her head, she came to the front of the temple, pausing to stare up at it. The structure was magnificent with tall Doric columns and beautifully planned architecture. The pediments above the door depicted Apollo and the Muses on one side and Dionysus on the other, the quality of the artwork impressing the female.
Tearing her gaze away from the architecture, Kagome led Inuyasha up the stone ramp and into the temple. The inside was spacious enough but filled with more Doric columns that supported the roof. Torches lit up the darker areas, making the area seem more inviting. Moral sayings had been carved into the walls, most of which she actually liked. Others were just too difficult for her to comprehend and therefore sounded silly.
Almost immediately, they were greeted by a priest dressed in the normal black and purple robes, his golden staff held in his left hand. He had pulled his black hair into a small ponytail at the nape of his neck, and his dark blue eyes stared out from underneath slightly arched black eyebrows. He had a polite smile on his face and a flirtatious look in his eyes.
"I'm Miroku, one of the priests that serve the Oracle. What can I do for you today?" he inquired, his middle-ranged voice sounding kind.
"We want to see the Oracle," Inuyasha stated roughly, finally noticing that his cough was gone. He couldn't see, but at least he could breath easily once again.
Miroku blinked. "I was talking to the lovely lady, who appears to be in some trouble." He paused. "May I ask your name and what happened to your clothes?"
"Oh, I'm Kagome, and Yura of the hair attacked us. My clothes were damaged during that battle," Kagome explained. "And it's Inuyasha's who's in some trouble. We were attacked by wyverns a little bit ago, and they breathed on him. His cough is much better, but his eye sight is still poor. Is there anything you can do to help?"
"Hmmm... I don't know," the priest replied. "But for a beautiful woman like you, I'll see what I can do." He paused. "And if you have a question for the Oracle, I'll have Shippou bring you some paper and a pen so you can write it down." With a charming smile, he walked off.
The raven-haired miko stood there for a few moments, contemplating what had just happened. 'Did he just flirt with me?' she wondered. 'I think he did, but why would he do something like that? He doesn't even know me.'
Shaking her head, she guided Inuyasha a few steps to the side, helping him sit down with his back to the wall. She sat down next to him, finding the stone floor a little uncomfortable.
"I don't like that guy... Miroku," the hanyou growled out. "He sounds unreliable."
"Really? I thought he seemed kind of sweet," Kagome replied. "He was nice enough to ask what had happened to me."
"And rude enough to pretty much ignore me," Inuyasha snapped, crossing his arms. "All I have to say is this Shippou person better appear soon or I'm going to be teaching a priest a lesson."
"Did someone call for me?" a boyish voice inquired as a short, red-headed boy came into view carrying a piece of parchment, a quill, and a bottle of ink. His bright green eyes shone with youthful exuberance, a pair of red fox ears twitching on top of his head and a tail swishing back and forth behind him. He was dressed in dark blue pants, a medium blue shirt with light blue leaves on it, and a tan fur vest.
"Are you Shippou?" Kagome asked, earning a nod from him. "I'm Kagome, and this is Inuyasha."
"It's very nice to meet you. You're very pretty," he commented. "And I brought the things you need to write down your question." He placed the items in front of her.
All questions had to be written down and presented to the Oracle by the priests in such a form. Then, after chewing on a plant and drinking some sacred water, the Oracle would go into a trance and answer the question.
She smiled affectionately at him. "Thank you. You're very cute." She gently patted him on the head and set about writing down her question.
Shippou sat down next to her, watching her as she quickly scrawled out a few words. He liked watching her, because she seemed so nice. She had been sweet toward him so far, and he wanted to stay near her.
Kagome finished writing down her question right as Miroku reappeared, a cup of something in his hand. He was smiling, his eyes on the female as he knelt down.
"I have returned with something to help your friend's sight," the priest stated. "It will taste bitter, but Mushin says it should heal whatever damage was done to his eyes." He placed the cup in the hanyou's hands.
Inuyasha brought it up to his lips, drinking it down in one gulp. He regretted that action a moment later, making a face at how horrible the liquid had tasted. It was a mix between crab apples (which he had been stupid enough to ask his house for when he had been younger), green tea, lemon, and something else he couldn't describe.
"What was that?!" the demon demanded angrily. "Are you trying to poison me or something?!"
Miroku chuckled. "No, but perhaps I should have warned you about the flavor. I have heard that it is rather tart."
"Tart?!" he repeated, almost sputtering. That statement sounded ludicrous to his ears. Only tart? The drink had tasted down right horrid, like something from a swamp.
"I don't think he liked it," Shippou commented, snickering, causing Kagome to giggle softly.
"Yes, tart," the priest replied, turning to the miko. "So, have you finished writing everything down?"
Kagome nodded, handing the piece of parchment to him. "Yes, thank you." She paused. "About how long will it take to receive an answer?"
"At least a week," Miroku answered.
"WHAT?!" Inuyasha exclaimed in shock, unsure if he had heard the male correctly or not.
"Because of all the questions the Oracle is being presented with, it will take at least a week," he clarified. "Of course, if you do something for me, then I'll make sure you have an answer by tomorrow."
The raven-haired miko studied the priest for a moment. "And what exactly is this something?"
Miroku placed the parchment on the inside of his robe and took one of Kagome's hands, his face serious, endearing, and charming all at once. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze before opening his mouth again.
"Here it comes," Shippou whispered softly, knowing exactly what the priest was going to say.
"Kagome," the holy man began. "Will you do me the honor of bearing my child?"
Kagome was so surprised that she just sat there in shock; however, Inuyasha reacted a little differently. He reached out and snatched her hand away from his, scowling.
"She isn't going to bear anyone's child, okay?!" the hanyou snapped, pleased that his eyesight had already improved enough that he could easily make out different shapes and colors. "This is a game, so she can't bear your child anyway!"
"Shot down again, huh?" Shippou declared triumphantly, a large smile on his face. He was expecting a slap to come, as it usually did. The priest was known for his wandering hands and his strange question.
Miroku laughed. "But she could give birth to my child in the real world."
"I don't think so," Kagome stated firmly, chocolate eyes serious. "I'm not ready to have a child. I don't want a child." She paused, making sure he had understood what she had said. "We'll wait a week."
"Very well." The black-haired priest sighed sadly, standing up. He had been hoping for a positive answer just once. "When the Oracle has given an answer, I will find you two. I suggest you stay in Delphi until then." He suddenly smiled. "I'll be seeing you later, Kagome."
The miko watched him walk off and shook her head. After a moment, she looked down at Shippou. "Is he always like this."
The fox-eared boy nodded. "Yep. He asks every female that."
Inuyasha growled. "Then there is no way he's going to be seeing Kagome again, absolutely no fucking way."
CotA: Well, 5,800 words later, I have a new chapter complete with two battle scenes (which means that I finally classified a story correctly for once. Yea for me!), the arrival of two more Inuyasha characters, and the lovely reappearance of the three strange people. I hope you people are happy. This chapter took forever to write, partically because I had to figure out what Delphi looked like, and more specifically, the temple. However, I'm very proud of this. It turned out rather well in my opinion. By the way, Sess-chan, Sigmund, why are those three strange people picking on Inuyasha and Kagome? I don't understand.
Sigmund: That's our secret.
Sess-chan: But I'd be willing to tell you for a price.
CotA: A price? *blinks* What exactly do you want?
Sess-chan: *whispers something in CotA's ear*
CotA: *blushing* If that's it, I guess so. *walks off with Sess-chan*
Sigmund: *staring* Um... I guess I get to say that- *gets cut off by Sess-chan*
Sess-chan: *shouting from off in the distance* The review responses are below.
Rebecca: You'll get to see Sango eventually, the same as Sesshoumaru. I'm trying to figure out a way to work in Kouga and a few others. I'm also trying to include some actual history, although finding information on exactly where in Delphi the Oracle had once been was hard to find; however, the method for asking questions and receiving answers is pretty close to the truth. :) I don't like doing research too much, but I am willing to do some for my stories.
Silentslayer: Thanks. I appreciate the compliment. ^_^
ME: Love every bit? Why don't you wait until you've read all of it before you say that?
Flowerblossom: I like almost all pairings, which is just a little strange. I love Sess/Kag, Inu/Kag, Kouga/Kag, Miroku/Kag, and I've even read one Shippou/Kag that took place after he grew up. It was pretty good, and I'll probably go back and read through it again soon, which is saying quite a bit for me. I usually only read through a fanfic once and then never look at it again.
Inu-chan 613: I don't update fast. The last chapter was an anomaly... nothing more. And this story's rated R for violence, cussing, and whatever I decide to throw in as little extras at the last minute. That's kinda what happened with the hurroks. I had not been planning on using them, but I thought "hey, why not?" So, they... appeared, and they definitely served a purpose. You'll have to wait and see what that purpose was.
Kittymui: I'll update asap, as usual. You should know me well enough to know that.
Drake220: Of course Kagome's not totally useless. And the kaze no kizu didn't work because the attack wasn't strong enough. I think I said something about the hurroks being powerful, which is the main reason. I didn't say that they showed up only once a year for nothing. If they were normal, everyday monsters, then they'd end up devastating the game world.
Raining Fire: You want the collar? Okay. *hands Raining Fire the jeweled collar* I hope you like it. Oh, and that wasn't Sango... it was Kikyou. *laughs nervously* I don't like her much when she comes back, but before she died, she was an okay person. I decided to use that version of her.
Jo: Thanks for reviewing. You should added to my list, but if you didn't receive an email, tell me please. Sometimes, yahoo acts up on me.
Demongirl6381: Thanks... although I'm not sure I deserve that compliement.
Sakura onto Hitomi: I always seem to have a few errors, but in such a long chapter, it's hard to catch them all. Thanks for reviewing. *hugs Sakura-chan* I can't wait to hear from you again. Hearing compliments from a great authoress like you really means a lot to me.
Miaka Kiri: Thanks. I was hoping that at least a few people would consider the VR world cool. I think it's pretty intereting, at least.
PWA: Okay, I know this is a bit late, but happy birthday! I remember when I turned sixteen. Maybe that's because the day sucked. I had to go to school on my b-day. Well, I hope you had a good birthday.
Dog demon: Yeah, I guess Inuyasha does dislike the Elves quite a bit. He really seems to enjoy insulting them. I guess I didn't notice because I was just too busy typing. I tend to do that. *shrugs* Oh well.
Sashlea: I have tried to make this story more detailed than any of my others. It's hard and takes time, but I believe it's worth it.
Eruinichil: I guess I kinda see Inuyasha as a jerk, so that's how I portray him most of the time. And Sesshoumaru isn't coming in until the... *looks at chapter summaries* sixth chapter. Sorry, but he isn't a major character in this.
PhoenixIsis: I can understand that this idea is not totally original. I stole stuff from two different book series and two different tv shows. However, I think this is a little more original than my other Inuyasha stories.
Kim: Thanks. I am trying to keep everyone in character, but it tends to be a problem with me.
Yanou: There may be a connection; there might not be one. I'm not telling, though. It's a secret. You'll just have to wait and find out. And you'll find out if the blond chick was one of the Elves or not when you meet the council. Unfortunately, you don't get to meet them until chapter ten. ^^;
Sterling: Wow, I put someone at a loss for words. I guess I'm doing okay then. ^_^
Mitsuki-kun: Yes, the shopkeeper was Kikyou. All your other questions you'll just have to wait for answers.