Fumetsu no Fushigi Chapter 3: Naraku and Ayami, what's going on?, an inuyasha fanfic

Disclaimer: I do not own copyright to Inu-Yasha. I'm working on owning him, though, I have connections enough for that. Don't tell anyone else this, but Umi, my best friend, is going to get Inu-yasha as her eighteenth birthday present. We're going to dress him up in modern clothes, make him strip, and give the rite of ownership to her. XP It's going to be great. ... Don't tell Inu-yasha that either. He'd be after my blood.

A/N: Shukujo means "lady"

Chapter Three-Naraku and Ayami, what's going on?

The night passed without mishap and sunrise found the group awaking one by one with Ayami missing. Miroku and Sango, awaking in the normal way, with a grope and a slap, got a little frantic when they couldn't find the older creature. Sesshoumaru wasn't all that worried. After Kagome was awoken by the sounds of the other two calling Ayami's name, it was Inu-yasha that found his half-brother's mother. She was sitting in a tree top that rose above the rest, watching the sun rise over the trees. She looked over at him as he landed near her in the tree.

"Hey, popinjay, what are you doing up here at this time in the morning? They looking for me? You shouldn't have worried. Well, I suppose I should get down there, then, since they seem to be so worried and I've seen what I wanted."

The two smiled at each other and jumped down from the tree, Ayami taking a direct route to the ground while Inu-yasha jumped to a few branches before landing on the ground. Ayami stretched, putting on a show of yawning, even though she had been awake for the past hour or so. All of the demons and the humans that could sense others froze. One word was whispered around.

"Naraku."

And so it was. Ayami was the first to spot him, her sharp eyes picking out where he would be even before he was there, at the opposite end of the clearing from her. The rest turned to face him and all but Sesshoumaru readied for a battle. One voice, soft yet strong and clear, tinkled across the clearing to stop them all. It was Ayami's.

"Naraku? Ah, yes. I remember now. You should be a good boy for now, and you are, right?"

Ayami had been smiling sweetly and nicely, but when she asked the evil demon there was a spark of danger in her eyes, as if the wrong answer could lead to a life-threatening situation. The pelt Naraku always wore outside his castle was shaking slightly, humor evident from the sounds of chuckling.

"Quite, little Miss Righteous Angel. What do we have here? Inu-yasha, a female? Well, well, well. This should prove interesting."

Ayami twitched, her silver hair becoming lightly streaked with red. There was the strong scent of blood. Her clenched fist was dripping with the aforementioned blood. Ayami looked up, not deigning to notice the looks she was getting from the demons in the company. Her blue eyes glowed ominously.

"Leave now, weakling, lest you invoke my wrath upon you."

Surprise flickers over the demon's aura. Fear, surprise, and curiosity are evident on each person that isn't expert at concealment, to some degree at least. Naraku laughs lightly and flexes a hand.

"And how, precisely, do you plan on doing that? I don't think you are capable anymore."

Ayami's anger flares higher as she rushes, seeming to disappear. Several feet from Naraku was a tree that soon became nothing more than kindling and firewood. Ayami stood next to it.

"Don't think I'm capable anymore, Naraku? Then what is capable?" As she spoke, she fiddled with something in her hand. She lifted it to eyelevel. It was the larger part of a broken pink jewel. The larger of the Shikon no Tama shards, the very one that had been stolen from Kagome, only larger than before. "It seems you are missing something, dear Naraku. You should keep better track of your possessions. They could get lost so much more easily than this. And to think, I wasn't even trying."

She laughed lightly, but her red-streaked silver hair belied her mood, showing she was still incensed. Ayami slipped the near completed Shikon no Tama into her pocket absentmindedly. Naraku glared at her, but apparently knew better than to ask for the jewel back, for he didn't. Ayami slid over to a tree and leaned against it, head drooping with a weariness not of the body. She sighed heavily.

"What did you come here for, Naraku, besides taunting Inu-yasha and goading his friends? Dispense with the pleasantries and answer me, for it will not be enjoyable if you don't."

Naraku scoffed at that, but stopped when Ayami leveled her deep, clear blue eyes on him. He left with his usual entrance/exit flare, but not before throwing a comment over his shoulder.

"I came to see if the rumors were true. You should listen to the demons more often, Ayami-sama."

Ayami herself was fuming. How dare he come while I am here and anger me? He will pay for his stupidity. She inhaled and exhaled slowly, seeking to master and calm herself. Her fists relax as she repeats a calming mantra under her breath. Inu-yasha heard this mantra and became deeply disturbed by it.

"Calm, he will pay. Patience, he will die."

Inu-yasha shakes his-er-her head and heads over to where Miroku and Sesshoumaru were crowding around Sango and Kagome, begging to know what things they were being forced to change in their lives from being changed into females. She was curious as to what she would have to do as well. Sesshoumaru knew a little more for herself, being full-blooded youkai and caretaker of Rin. She just hoped that Jaken would not come, or come with Rin. That, in her mind, would be disastrous. Sesshoumaru was, in her mind, there only because of curiosity. Sango walked off, shaking her head. She didn't want to deal with the boys'-turned-girls' perverted ness. Kagome looked after the taijiya longingly; she really didn't want to explain all this to the three. She shook her head softly and went back to explaining things they would know about being a female. Miroku, amazingly, didn't know everything there was to it. Kagome reached the part about menstruating.

"Whoa! Hold it. You do WHAT?"

Kagome groaned at Inu-yasha's outburst and interruption. She explained, once again, the concept of the tampon and how to use it. The monk, hanyou, and youkai looked utterly shocked.

"Kagome, your time is messed up. Sango!! We need your help!"

The demon exterminator glared slightly at them. She was really busy with packing everything else up. While Sango managed them, Kagome went around packing everything from her bag up. There was a lot of stuff around. It seemed Shippou had gotten into the chocolate again. Sango looked over at the wrappers and spilled bag and shook her head softly before turning her attention to the three that supposedly needed her help.

"Lady Sango, Kagome-sama explained this to us, but we don't understand her method of dealing with such womanly problems. Could you kindly explain to us how--"

Sango grabbed the monk and Inu-yasha, figuring them as being the "instigators," and dragged them into the forest to explain the process of "such womanly problems." Sesshoumaru did not bother to follow. She went to converse softly with her mother on things from the past and what they would be doing. When Kagome was finished and Sango, Miroku, and Inu-yasha had returned from their little tête-à-tête in the forest, the group gathered around Ayami and stared at her accusingly. Sango spoke up first.

"You must explain to us, shukujo Ayami, what is going on."

Ayami stared at them blankly for a moment, and then figured out what Sango was getting at.

"You mean with little Mister I-Must-Have-Everything-My-Way? That's nothing. We just had a, ah, run-in several years back. I do believe he actually remembers that one, too. A pity."

Ayami beamed and headed in the direction the group had been traveling in for the past couple of days. Sesshoumaru followed after her mother hurriedly. Inu-yasha looked at Miroku, Sango, and Kagome questioningly. They all started sprinting after the now-female youkai and her mother, with Shippou clinging to Kagome's back and Kirara on Sango's.

Several hours later, close to dusk, a village came into view some distance down the path they had been following. Ayami strolled into it with a familiarity and ease that did not quite belong to a supposedly complete stranger. The villagers that were out and about, doing work and toiling in the fields the mismatched group passed, looked up to watch the strangers. The villagers thought them brave to have come here in such troubled times. Miroku was looking around with extreme interest and a frown on her face. One villager stopped what he was doing, dropped his tools, and took off for the other end of the village. The village leader was informed and got together a reception company.

The group that reached the biggest building at the end of the village was a motley and ragged bunch. Clothes were travel-stained and ripped. Hair was dirty and unkempt, though not for the lack of trying. Most in the group were female, but there were a few youkai with them and there was Ayami. The village leader, Bengoshi, knew that "angel" and visibly brightened at the thought of having her here. Ayami stepped forward immediately and bowed politely to Bengoshi. She would begin introductions and try to get a good place to stay, though that was already assured, if the look on the leader's face was any clue.

"Bengoshi, it is ... pleasant to see you again. As you see, I travel with others now. We would like to stay in your village for a while and hoped you could help. In turn, we will help you with your ... trouble. This is Kagome, Inu-yasha, Shippou, Sango, Miroku, and Sesshoumaru."

Ayami pointed to each as she named them; they, in turn, bowed slightly to indicate who they were. Bengoshi was pleased and agreed to give them a place all their own. He signaled to a young boy to show them to the building, which had a bath. There were only two real rooms in the bathhouse they were staying in: a kitchen-type room and a changing room. The only way to get to the changing room was to go through the room with the fireplace, racks, and soup bowl. The bath was right next to the entrance room, since it had a fireplace, bowl, and a small closet with towels in it. They were told food would be brought later, if they would like it, and that tomorrow there would be a feast in their honor.

The troupe looked at each other and set out to decide who would sleep where. It was decided that Kagome, Shippou, Sango, Kirara, and Miroku would sleep in the changing room while Sesshoumaru, Inu-yasha, and Ayami would sleep in the main room. It would be hot for them with the fireplace right there, but Ayami told the other two she would divert the heat into the bath and changing rooms. Bedding was brought for them and they all bathed in sets of two's and three's, so modesty and education could go on in peace. The clothes that had been left at the far edges of the bath had been taken up by someone, presumably a villager, to be cleaned. Someone commented that it was nice of them. Miroku commented that there weren't any women around, besides themselves.

"Only a lech like you would notice that!"

"My dear Sango! I take offense that you would call me that. I am a monk."

"That reminds me, 'monk'. You are a woman now, and therefore cannot be a monk. You may now do as your heart desires and go after anyone you choose, at least for now."

"Lady Ayami! I am appalled you would think such of me."

"Mother, cut the theatrics and let's go to sleep. The humans need their sleep, after all. –sniff, sniff- ... Inu-yasha, why do you smell like blood?"

"What? ... Aahh!! I'm bleeding! It's not stopping! I'm going to die! The PAIN!!"

Inu-yasha jumped up and looked around frantically. Kagome and Sango jump up a moment later and drag him off to remind him of menstruating and how to take care of it. Ayami sighed, shook her head, and lay down to sleep for the night, even if it was just lightly. Sesshoumaru lay down on her bedding. Miroku waited until Kagome, Inu-yasha, and Sango came back. She let the others precede her into the changing room. The door closed as Inu- yasha lay down on her own bedding. It had been decided that Miroku would sleep with the two girls, so that, if a demon attacked, the hanyou, youkai, and the youkai's mother would take care of it. If Kagome and Sango found themselves in trouble, they had Miroku, Shippou, and Kirara as well as their own skills to rely on. They all fell asleep, even if it was a light sleep, eventually, seemingly oblivious to the troubles of the village.

A/N: I was going to say that if I didn't get what I felt to be enough reviews by the time I got this chapter up I would give it a month then stop with the story, basically put it on hiatus. I got four new ones, so I'm not too worried about it. And ... COOKIES FOR THE REVIEWERS!!! You that reviewed, you brightened my day, seriously. I was getting pretty upset that it had only one review and was already at chapter two. I expected at least two. Then you came along and pulled through for me. Kudos to you all.