The Stranger
Inuyasha sat by the Bone Eaters Well entrance, waiting for Kagome to return from her time. The sun had just risen in the feudal era of Japan and the forest around him was just barely kissed with the young morning rays. One of his white triangular shaped dog ears pricked at the sound of someone crawling out of the well. He looked down into the dark abyss and shouted down to Kagome.
"Come on wench! I'm hungry and you're late, again!" Inuyasha waited for the usual smartass reply from Kagome. When none came he was puzzled. He again peeked over the side. I can hear someone down there but Kagome would have sat me by now, he thought. He leaned over as far as he could…and two emerald green eyes that definitely didn't belong to Kagome met his amber eyes. He jumped back in shock. The stranger also started at the sight of him. Her jet-black triangular shaped ears flattened to her skull as she leaped out of the well and into the forest. A long silky foxtail followed behind her as she ducked for cover in the brush, clearly frightened by Inuyasha. Inuyasha was still confused as to who she was or why she was in the Bone Eaters Well. He caught her scent and followed the stranger into the forest.
A couple hours prior
Hikaru walked home from school on a brisk Tuesday afternoon. A crisp autumn breeze had kicked up and tousled her long blonde hair about her head. Absently, she kicked an empty soda can down the street. Leaves fell all around her, showering her with the brilliant colors of the season, but the teenager was too upset to stop and admire the beauty around her. How can anything be beautiful when Hiroshi is gone, she thought, her green gray eyes staring up at the sky. His handsome face and chocolate hair and eyes danced before her in a tormenting vision as Hikaru blinked back her tears. Hiroshi had been one of the most handsome students in the school, and her longtime boyfriend. A leader of the Demon gang, he was a street lord that was widely feared…yet widely respected. No one in their school would have suspected Hiroshi, a model student and soccer ace, to be one of the most feared gang leaders in Tokyo. Hiroshi had a dark side to him…Hikaru couldn't deny that, but yet he had been taken down in the most unceremonious way…gunned down in a drive by that he didn't even see coming. He had done nothing to deserve it… Hikaru couldn't help herself as she dissolved into a fit of tears on the sidewalk. The cool pavement met her hands and knees as she dropped to the ground, unable to control her sobbing. Realizing there were people staring, she quickly regained control of herself and began to walk towards the cemetery where Hiroshi had just been buried four days ago. A white rose was clenched in her left fist so tightly that she felt her blood being drawn by its thorns. But she didn't feel any pain. How she wished she could. Any pain was better than this. She slowly approached the newly dug grave and tenderly laid her white rose down on the freshly turned up earth. Whispering words of how much she loved him and missed him, she slowly got up and continued to walk down the path of the cemetery. Before long the path had dead-ended, and there in front of her was a well, an old one. Hikaru was puzzled as she approached it. This well must be at least five hundred years old, she thought. It probably goes down pretty deep, if I fell from here, I would never survive. Just then she sensed someone behind her. Before she could react, they pushed her in. Hikaru screamed as she lost her balance and began what seemed to be a nonstop plummet to the bottom of the well. Shutting her eyes tightly, Hikaru braced herself for what was to come. Suddenly, instead of hitting the rock bottom of the well, Hikaru was enveloped in a blue violet light. What she didn't know was that she was traveling through space, through time. The light disappeared as quickly as it had come. Hikaru found herself crouched at the bottom of the same well, unharmed. Her legs shaking violently, she stood up cautiously and climbed out of the well. As she reached the top and poked her head out, she found herself staring into a pair of huge amber eyes. The stranger was sitting on the edge and he had long silver hair and was wearing a red kimono. The red kimono in itself was strange enough but what had Hikaru baffled was the two small pointed dog ears that were sticking up out of his silver mane. There were claws on the end of his fingers and toes and in his mouth was a set of fangs. What the hell is he, Hikaru thought. A dog man? Then she realized, a dog man! She leapt out of the well and ran for the forest, leaving the dog man behind her completely confused.
Who was that? Inuyasha thought. She acted as if I were the scariest thing she's ever seen. From what he saw of the stranger, she had long red gold hair with jet-black cat ears standing out of her fiery mane. She had a foxtail of the same color as her hair and petite fangs in her mouth. Claws were also on her fingers and she had the feet of a fox. Two violet stripes went across each cheek and she had a magenta sun on her forehead. Her eyes were like two glowing emeralds, the same color of the pendant she had around her neck.
I've never seen a demon like that before, Inuyasha thought. I think I'm going to follow her and find out who she is and where she came from. With that Inuyasha dashed off into the forest in search of the stranger. His sensitive dog nose quickly picked up her scent and he followed it into the thicket. It wasn't long before he found the demon crouched under a bush, shaking in fright. He pulled back one of the branches to reveal her hiding spot. With a small cry of fear, she ducked her head into her knees, apparently waiting for Inuyasha to attack her. Inuyasha couldn't help smirking.
"Hey, don't be afraid of me. I'm not gonna hurt you." Inuyasha reached out his hand to help her stand. She timidly took it and he pulled her to her feet. "I've never seen a demon that looks like you around here before. What's your name?" Hikaru looked at him, dumbfounded.
"What do you mean a demon? I'm not a demon, I'm a normal teenage girl. And I have no idea what has happened or where the hell I am." Inuyasha laughed.
"You're not a demon? Okay, then what is that foxtail coming out your ass and the ears on your head? Not to mention the claws and fox feet." Inuyasha folded his arms across his chest and studied Hikaru's ears. "Hey, wait a minute. Those aren't fox ears, they're…CAT EARS! You're a cat?!" Hikaru rolled her eyes.
"Not since I've been born have I had a foxtail or cat ears. You must be crazy." Inuyasha growled at Hikaru and she stepped back.
"Look at your hands stupid. You have claws. I can see them. And I'm sure since you have your head up your ass you can get a clear view of your tail." Inuyasha sat back, looking smug as Hikaru gaped at her new claws and turned around to see her foxtail.
"Wha…what happened to me? I wasn't like this before." Hikaru was now thoroughly confused as to what was going on. As was Inuyasha. He couldn't understand why this demon had no clue who she was.
Why doesn't she know who she is? Could she be like Kagome and come from the present? I mean, she DID come out of a well. He decided to ask.
"Did you come from a different time?" Inuyasha asked quietly. Hikaru whirled around in surprise.
"Yes, yes I did. How did you know?"
"I have a friend who does the same thing. She comes from five hundred years into the future." Inuyasha said.
"What time are we in now?"
"The fifteenth century, Japan."
Hikaru could only stare at the dog man. So it was true. She HAD traveled through time. But, could she get back? She shook her head. What did it matter, she thought. She had no reason to go home. Her father was dead, and her mother didn't give a rat's ass about her. The only shred of sanity she had left was Hiroshi and he too was gone. She blinked back tears as she thought of Hiroshi, but not before Inuyasha saw them. She had sat on the edge of the well and he sat down next to her.
"Hey, why are you crying?" The dog demon asked. Hikaru looked up to see the dog man staring at her concernedly. She looked back down at the grass.
"The man I love is dead and I really have no reason to go back to my time. And it's not like my mother will realize I'm gone. She'll probably be happy, I was nothing but a burden to her anyway." Hikaru said bitterly.
Inuyasha timidly put a comforting hand on Hikaru's shoulder. "Hey, you never told me your name." She looked up at him.
"Neither did you dog man."
"I asked you first." Inuyasha grinned playfully.
He looks like a playful puppy when he grins like that, Hikaru thought with a smile. Wiping her tears, she replied, "My name is Hikaru. I'm 17 years old and I come from the year 2001." She looked at Inuyasha expectantly.
"My name is Inuyasha and I'm a half dog demon. Why don't you come back with me to my tribe since you don't have a place to stay obviously."
Hikaru smiled at him. At least he was showing her kindness, despite how strange she knew she must look. "I would love to. Thank you so much for your kindness Inuyasha." She bowed to him.
"Feh, you don't have to bow to me woman." Inuyasha laughed. Hikaru grinned back.
"Okay then dog man." She stuck her tongue out at him and ran away. She heard Inuyasha growl.
"Don't you call me dog man, wench!" And he took off after her. Hikaru squealed and ran faster but it was no use. Inuyasha caught up to her easily and picked her up without any effort. He laughed as she squirmed. "Did you really think you could outrun me kitsune?"
"Well it was worth a shot." She gave him a wry grin. "Say, how far is it to your camp, Inuyasha?" She said his name, liking the sound of it. It has a nice ring to it, she thought. He grinned malevolently.
"Too far for your weak ass to walk." He said as he took off with Hikaru in his arms. Hikaru growled at him.
"I can SO walk that far." She said indignantly.
Inuyasha looked up at the sun, then back down to grin at her. "Well, from here if we walked it would probably be mid-afternoon before we got back. If you shut up and let me carry you we'll be there by noon. Oh and just between you and me, you might want to work on that pathetic little growl of yours."
Hikaru flattened her ears to her head and bared her fangs at his last remark. "Alright alright you win, dog man." Hikaru grinned at him in self-satisfaction. She knew that she had pissed him off. Her suspicions were confirmed as Inuyasha flattened his ears and snarled. Hikaru jumped. Inuyasha just sat back with a smug look on his face. "Damn you," Hikaru muttered under her breath.
"What was that?" Inuyasha said.
"Oh nothing. Nothing at all." Hikaru looked at him innocently.
"Feh." Was the only retort Inuyasha could think of. Hikaru bit back the urge to mouth off about him saying something more intelligent as they took off in the direction of the rapidly rising sun.
Just as Inuyasha predicted, by midday they had reached his tribe's camp. Hikaru expected to see more hanyou dog demons like him but instead she saw an odd bunch. Two young human girls with raven hair were sitting together talking and laughing while a monk stood by close to them, probably watching over them, Hikaru thought. A little boy was running around chasing a little catlike creature but what really startled Hikaru about this little boy was the fact that he had a foxtail. She stared in awe at the mismatched tribe.
"Ah, Inuyasha you have returned." The monk walked over to the pair. "And who might this be? I have never seen this lady before. She certainly doesn't look like Kagome." Hikaru noticed a gleam in his eyes that made her a little bit uncomfortable. Just then one of the raven-haired girls stood up and walked over to the monk.
"I'm right here Miroku. Guess Inuyasha was late coming to get me." She giggled. Somehow Kagome had managed to slip by Inuyasha when he wasn't looking. It was then that she noticed the young demon standing behind him. Kagome stared at the strange creature. "Um, hi." She began hesitantly. "What's your name?" The young demon looked up at her with eyes filled with sorrow.
"Hikaru. My name is Hikaru." Kagome studied her. She must have just endured some great hardship. I can sense it. She seems overcome by grief. Kagome decided she was going to try to be as friendly as possible with the newcomer and make her feel very welcome to the group. One by one she took Hikaru around and introduced her to the rest of the gang.
"This is Sango, she's a demon slayer. That boomerang she carries is her weapon." Sango waved to Kagome and Kagome waved back. "That's Miroku. Make sure you steer clear of him. He's a hentai. The little boy is Shippou. He's a fox demon, and he's adorable. He likes to pick on Inuyasha. It's quite funny actually. The little fire cat there is Kilala. She transforms and we ride on her back to travel." On command, Kilala transformed into her bigger size. Hikaru stepped back a little. She looked quite intimidating but Kilala came over to Hikaru and rested her head on her shoulder, just to let her know she wasn't going to hurt her "And of course you know Inuyasha."
"Feh, of course she knows me. I found her remember?"
Kagome rolled her eyes at his rudeness. "He's a handful sometimes. A real pain in the ass." She whispered into Hikaru's ear. The two giggled. "Oh and by the way I'm Kagome. I never told you my name." Inuyasha growled.
"I heard that wench." Kagome clenched her fists and looked at Inuyasha, furious.
"Oh shit."
"Inuyasha…" Kagome stopped. He looked at her questioningly. As did everyone else. No one could figure out why Kagome didn't finish. Then she smiled and held out her hand to him. Inuyasha smirked and took it. Kagome's eyes suddenly turned.
"SIT BOY!" While Inuyasha was leaning out of the tree, the necklace he was wearing glowed a bright pink then suddenly, he went crashing into the ground, face first. Hikaru jumped back, completely startled. Shippou ran up to her, a smirk on his little demon face. Hikaru looked at Shippou questioningly.
"What just happened there?" She asked the little demon. Shippou, feeling important that Hikaru asked him, puffed out his little chest and answered her.
"Inuyasha has a spell put on him so whenever Kagome gets mad at him, she says sit and he goes face first into the ground. He always likes to torment me, so when he chases me, Kagome sits him as punishment." Shippou had a little smirk on his face. "It serves him right anyway. He's so short-tempered." Shippou stuck his tongue out at Inuyasha while Inuyasha glared at him.
"Watch it Shippou or I might be having fox for dinner instead of ramen." Inuyasha bared his fangs menacingly. Shippou's eyes widened.
"Kagome! Help!!" Shippou ran towards Kagome on all fours. In one leap he landed on her shoulder and cowered. "Inuyasha's gonna kill me!" Inuyasha came tearing over to Kagome.
"Inuyasha knock it off. You know he's only a little boy."
"Feh, a fifty year old boy. He's old enough to know that when he teases me he'll get hurt!" Inuyasha advanced towards the little demon boy again.
"Inuyasha, you take one more step towards Shippou and I'll sit you again."
Inuyasha stopped in his tracks. He did NOT want to be sat again. The only thing he could do was glare at her. "Feh," was all he said before he slunk off in a corner, arms crossed. Kagome looked satisfied.
"Well, that takes care of his troublemaking for now. Why don't we go for a walk Hikaru? You Sango and me. We'll have some girl talk." Hikaru smiled at Kagome. This was certainly an odd bunch but she was starting to think she would like being a part of it. She giggled to herself. Shippou was the most adorable thing she had ever seen. Kagome of course, was very friendly to her and even Sango was warming up to her fast. She had yet to speak to the hentai monk, but she was sure she would in good time.
"Sounds great. I haven't had some good girl talk in forever." The three girls went off into the forest, giggling, with Kilala perched on Sango's shoulder. Before they could go very far however, Miroku chose to make his appearance.
"Lady Kagome and Lady Sango, you both look exceptionally beautiful today." A light blush colored Sango's cheeks as the houshi spoke. "So tell me, why haven't I been introduced to this lovely lady here?" Miroku put his arm around Hikaru, and then slid it down her waist. Sango's eyebrow twitched slightly.
"You weren't introduced because Kagome and I were afraid your…antics…would scare her away." Miroku sidled up to Sango.
"Now Sango really. You know I'm a perfect gentleman around lovely young women such as yourselves." He put his arm around her waist and his hand slowly wandered downward. When it had reached its destination, Sango tensed up.
"Perfect gentleman my ass! Though you sure like to touch mine you hentai!" Sango slapped him across the face, leaving a nice red handprint in its wake. Kagome took that as their cue to depart, and quickly. The three girls walked briskly away from the temporarily unconscious monk into the sun-dappled forest. None of the trio spoke for a few moments, they could only stare in awe at the splendor of the midday sun as it played hide and seek with the treetop branches, creating breathtaking sun kissed patterns on the leaf littered ground. It was Kagome who finally broke the peaceful silence.
"So tell me Hikaru. Where do you come from? Like, what tribe are you from? I've never seen a demon like you before." Hikaru looked down at the leaf-strewn path and kicked at a few pebbles lying in front of her.
"Well, actually, I had no idea I was a demon until now. I'm actually a teenager from the 21st century but somehow when I fell down or rather was pushed down a well, I was transported through time and I ended up here." Kagome stared at her.
"So you're from my time??" She asked incredulously.
"Yes I am. I'm not sure how much I have truly changed since I came here but…well…here's a picture of me in my wallet. That should give you an idea of how different I look." Hikaru pulled out a red leather wallet from her back pocket and flipped through her pictures. She stopped at one and tears slowly began to form in her emerald eyes.
Sango was the first to notice. "What's wrong Hikaru?" Hikaru hastily wiped her eyes and managed a fake smile.
"It's nothing. Just my boyfriend's in this picture and…" Hikaru trailed off. Sango and Kagome leaned over Hikaru's shoulder to look at the picture Hikaru held in her hands.
"Ooh he's handsome, Hikaru! How long have you two been together?" Kagome said as she looked at the picture of the blonde-haired young woman and the exceptionally handsome young man with his arms wrapped around her shoulders.
"Well it was two years before he…" Hikaru couldn't bring herself to say it.
"Oh, he broke up with you? Well, I'll bet he'll come back. It's like that old saying goes, you never know what you have until it's gone." Kagome chatted on cheerfully.
"No, he didn't break up with me. We didn't break up at all. He…he was killed in a drive-by right before I fell down the well and ended up here."
"Oh, gosh Hikaru…I'm so sorry…"Kagome pulled Hikaru into a big hug while Sango stood there speechless. Sure Sango had lost her family to the evil hanyou Naraku, but to lose the one you love…Unbidden thoughts of the hentai houshi suddenly floated through Sango's mind. Why, she could not completely place. Maybe, she thought, it was because of the wind tunnel in his hand and she knew that if they didn't defeat Naraku, Miroku's time was running out. But she didn't really love him…did she? Sango was shaken from her thoughts by a loud and rather sinister growl from the bush directly in front of the trio. Her whole body stiffened and readied for battle. Even before the youkai came into view, Sango could feel her adrenaline level soaring as she readied Hiraikotsu. Kagome looked up at Sango in alarm and the young demon stranger could only give them a confused and increasingly becoming concerned look. Suddenly, Kagome sprang into action.
"Hikaru, you get behind me and Sango. I have no idea what is in that bush." Hikaru gratefully but rather shamefully stepped behind Kagome and Sango. Coward, she hissed at herself. Back when she became intertwined in the affairs of the Demon gang, she was known as Hiroshi's fearless woman. She could look a gun barrel down to the face of the person holding it and not bat an eye. Being the girlfriend of a notorious gang leader, many of Hiroshi's enemies tried to get to him by getting her. Unfortunately any attacks on her were not successful. Hikaru had balls large enough to face up to any of the gang members and possibly more. She was the innocent one, but she regularly put her ass on the line for Hiroshi, even acted as a decoy once or twice. Innocent as she was, she knew how to use a gun and knife and she knew how to use it well. She was basically a trained killer. But here, here there were no knives or guns for her to use, just her fists and her speed. She could fight a human in hand-to-hand combat sure, but a demon? Hikaru had her doubts.
Sango had jumped onto the back of a now transformed Kilala and was flying towards the hideous demon that had finally decided to show its ugly face. Hikaru couldn't believe how gruesome this creature looked. It was what a little kid's nightmares were made of. With a pitch black leather skin, the lizard scorpion cross looking demon had glowing red eyes and proved to be quite a handful, even to the skilled combat hands of Sango and Kagome. Though they were both battling the demon with everything they had, it seemed like this monster was slowly gaining the upper hand. Hikaru watched as the ugly creature raised its scorpion-like tail and pointed it at Sango and Kilala. It quivered for a second, then as Hikaru shouted out to Sango in warning, the monster emitted a blue light from its stinger that headed straight for Sango. Luckily, Sango held out her Hiraikotsu and deflected the demon's attack into a nearby tree. In a flash of blue, the tree disintegrated from the blast. Sango soared way up into the sky with Kilala, forming in her mind a plot to dive-bomb this creature.
Meanwhile Kagome was on the ground, shooting arrow after arrow at this formidable beast. In addition to its leather skin, it also had plated armor protecting all of its exposed body from Kagome and Sango. Shit, Kagome thought. The only way to beat this thing is to get UNDER it and stab it in the heart. I really wish Inuyasha were here! She looked backwards to the frightened neko kitsune and gave her a reassuring smile. Hikaru tentatively smiled back. Then she became angry. No way was she going to let this ugly fucker take out these two people who had shown her so much kindness! As her anger grew, she felt a tingling heated sensation beginning in her palms and spreading all the way down through her body. Kagome watched the neko kitsune in wonder as a green aura of flames slowly began to appear around the infuriated Hikaru. She must have powers that she hasn't discovered yet, Kagome thought. Hikaru experimentally began to focus her energy into one of her hands and was a mixture of surprised and delighted as a small fireball began to form in her hand. As she concentrated harder and harder, the fireball grew in size. When it had grown to the size ofavolleyball, Hikaru chucked it with all her might at the hideous abomination in front of her. She held her breath as it homed in on the demon and flew towards its target. In an explosion of green light, the fireball found its mark. Unfortunately, this beast was smarter than any of the girls imagined it to be. Hikaru could have sworn she even heard the hellish thing chuckle as her fireball evaporated. In frustration, Hikaru muttered, "Screw this" and ran at lightning speed towards the ever increasingly dangerous demon. Sango and Kagome could only watch in horror as Hikaru sprinted towards what looked like it was going to be her certain death. This whole time her fiery aura was growing brighter and brighter as her rage became greater and greater. As she charged the huge demon, it readied its deadly stinger. Hikaru outstretched her foot and focused all her energy into the kick at the demon's vulnerable underside. Just as Hikaru hit her mark, the demon's chest region that contained its dark heart, the demon shot the energy out of its stinger at Hikaru, and their two energies met in a fiery blast of blue and green. An ear-piercing scream was heard then, as the light grew bigger, an earth-shattering blast was felt. A few tears fell down Kagome's face, as she was certain that the young demon had met her death. Finally, all the dirt and mist cleared. There in the shadows, amongst a huge pile of the demons remains, was Hikaru, struggling to free herself from the demons ghastly carcass. Kagome shouted in rejoicing as she realized that Hikaru was alive. Sango meanwhile, walked over to the demoness and patted her on the back.
"That was some fighting skill Hikaru. I had no idea you had such strong powers." Sango said in praise of the young demoness.
"You want to know a secret Sango?" Sango leaned over to Hikaru. Hikaru whispered loud enough so Kagome could also hear, "I had no idea I had it either." Her catlike features split into a goofy grin as the two laughed in awe and wonder. This demon has only begun to understand her powers. Who knows how powerful she'll eventually be, thought Kagome. She may even surpass Tetsusaiga… She giggled. Wouldn't Inuyasha love that. A female surpassing his beloved sword. She knew what his immediate reaction would be. He'd just scoff and challenge her to a duel. The three finally gathered themselves back together and headed back in the direction of the camp.
Meanwhile, back at the camp, Inuyasha began to pace. Miroku sat very calmly by the fire as he watched the irritated hanyou wear a hole in the ground. Finally, not able to take his pacing any longer, he stood up and grabbed Inuyasha's shoulders. Inuyasha snarled at him.
"Houshi, get the fuck off me before I rip you a new asshole!" He had his ears pinned to his skull and fangs bared. He looked much like a cornered wolf at this point. Miroku took the hint and sat back down with a sigh. "Feh," Inuyasha scoffed before he resumed his pacing. Not moving from his spot Miroku spoke to Inuyasha, eyes closed.
"Inuyasha, don't you think it's strange that Lady Kagome and Lady Sango haven't come back yet with the newcomer?" He opened up his eyes again and turned to face him.
"Keh, why do you think I'm wearing a hole in the ground, baka?"
"Then why don't you go find them?"
"Feh, you remember LAST time I cut in on 'girl time'?" The houshi chuckled at Inuyasha's remark.
"Yes Inuyasha I remember it quite well. I don't think I've ever heard Kagome use the word sit to you more times than that in a row. You'd think you were caught doing something you shouldn't have." Miroku raised an eyebrow at the hanyou.
Inuyasha flattened his ears again in remembering how mad Kagome was. His back had hurt for days afterwards. He blushed a little when he remembered why he had been sat so many times. Kagome and Sango had retired to the hot springs and they were…not fully decent to put it lightly. It was an honest mistake though not such an innocent one Inuyasha thought with a smirk. He couldn't help but admit, he didn't exactly look away immediately from Kagome's beautiful body…" Inuyasha shook himself and blushed a little deeper as he pushed his rapidly becoming hentai thoughts from his mind. Of course he'd never admit this to the letch sitting in front of him. "Keh, it wasn't like I saw her naked." He spat. Though, he added in his head, I don't think it would have exactly have been a bad thing if it were so.
Miroku had turned away from Inuyasha, laughing to himself. Inuyasha must have been caught doing something, he doesn't just blush like that for no reason. Oh well, he thought, I'll find out soon enough. And maybe I'll accompany him on his next excursion so I can get a peek at Sango. He closed his eyes as he felt himself become excited at the thought. But it quickly diminished when he saw a very annoyed hanyou staring down at him and his…predicament. In disgust, Inuyasha scoffed.
"So did I interrupt anything…important…that you were thinking about?" He fairly spat the word important as he growled to Miroku. Miroku just simply opened his eyes.
"Now Inuyasha, let's not be hasty in jumping to conclusions." The unfazed monk stated calmly.
"Feh, I know what your hentai mind was thinking of Miroku." Inuyasha growled at him.
"I do not what you're talking about Inuyasha." Miroku looked at him innocently.
"Feh!" Was all the dog demon said in retort. He crossed his arms and glared at the monk. Suddenly, his triangular ears perked up. Miroku looked at him questioningly.
"What is it Inuyasha?"
"The girls are coming back thank Kami. Certainly was a long girl talk." Inuyasha wandered down the path where he heard the faint female voices laughing and giggling. Curious, he walked down farther to hear what they were saying.
"I can't believe you didn't die fighting that monster like you did Hikaru."
"Yea, even Inuyasha wouldn't have been able to pull that one off." Inuyasha growled a little bit at hearing himself being belittled. Suddenly he had an idea. With an evil grin he silently jumped up in the tree that he knew the girls would soon pass underneath. He squatted down on his branch and waited patiently for the voices he heard growing louder to reach where he was hiding. The girls then came into view over the tiny hill. He smiled to himself as he watched his prey getting closer and closer to his trap. When they were about five feet before the tree, Inuyasha started to shake the tree and make growling sounds that he disguised to sound like a panther deva.
Upon hearing the growling, Sango rolled her eyes and looked at Kagome. Their expressions read the same thing: not again. Kagome pulled the last arrow out of her quiver and took aim. She had to make her only shot count if this demon proved to be a foe. Sango took Hiraikotsu and poised to strike when the demon showed itself. Both were motionless as they anticipated the battle that they knew was sure to come. The tree branch rustled again as they sensed the demon jumping down lower in the tree. Finally, it landed down in front of them and it had silver hair, a red kimono and…dog ears? Sango sighed and Kagome gave him an evil look as Inuyasha smirked at the girls.
"Fooled ya!" Inuyasha said gleefully. Kagome looked at him with what Hikaru swore was flames in her eyes.
"You baka! Sit, sit, sit, SIT!" Inuyasha's amber eyes widened in horror as he crashed down to kiss the forest floor…four times in a row. "Hmph, that oughta teach you how to behave." Inuyasha glowered at her from his crater in the ground. Hikaru couldn't help herself as she started laughing at the dog demon's expense and Sango quickly joined her. Even Kagome couldn't help herself as she chuckled at the other two girls on the ground helpless from laughter.
"Feh, I'm heading back to camp. So much for making sure you girls were okay."
"Okay! Do you realize we had just fought a demon before we came here?!"
Hikaru chimed in. "Yea, it nearly killed us!" Inuyasha scoffed.
"Keh, that's why you wenches shouldn't be out without me or Miroku with you. You can't fight demons without us!"
"We fought that demon very well thank you." Sango's eyes blazed with anger at the ignorant hanyou.
"I agree with Sango." Hikaru said. In her anger she had begun to develop her flaming aura again. She created a fireball in her hand and grinned wickedly at the two girls. They grinned back as they just realized what Hikaru was going to do with the fireball. Inuyasha had turned his back on the three girls, which couldn't have been a bigger mistake. With a demon's stealth, Hikaru crept up behind Inuyasha, and then flung the fireball into his back. When it had hit its target, Inuyasha howled in pain and fury, and whirled around on the girls. His amber eyes had a tinge of crimson to them. He focused his angry glare on Kagome.
"You bitch!" He growled. "You realize those arrows could kill me. Plus you just wasted a perfectly good arrow screwing around! It's not an endless supply you know."
Kagome went up to the half demon with ire to top his. "You baka! I didn't shoot an arrow into you. It would still be stuck in your back!" Sure enough when Inuyasha looked over his shoulder, he couldn't see an arrow anywhere. His ears flattened in alarm.
"Then who hit me in the back?" He asked tentatively.
Hikaru couldn't keep herself from grinning. "It was me Inuyasha. I couldn't help it. You were being so condescending to us. I had to make you pay for your chauvinism somehow." Inuyasha burst out laughing.
"You?" He scoffed. "What, pray tell, could YOU do to ME?" He laughed again. Hikaru once again felt her temper rising and her aura building up. She began to form another fireball in her hand. As he laughed, he turned to look straight at her. He was horrified to realize what she had in her hand. Shit, she DOES have powers. Why didn't she tell us she had these in the first place? Inuyasha was interrupted from his thoughts by Hikaru's fireball that she threw directly towards him. With a yelp of surprise, Inuyasha quickly ducked. The fireball flew over his head…then dove back down to hit him on the back yet again.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!" he roared as the girls doubled over in laughter. Hikaru looked at him innocently between her peals of laughter.
"Well seems like my fireballs have a homing ability as well." She snickered.
"Feh!" Inuyasha was clearly pissed about this newcomer's pretty impressive power. The group fell into an awkward silence as they walked back to where Miroku and Shippou were sitting at the fire. Sango was the first one to break the uneasy quiet.
"Hikaru, maybe Kaede can tell you what your powers are and where you came from." She suggested.
"That's a great idea Sango! She could tell better than any one of us could." Hikaru looked at Kagome, puzzled.
"Who is Kaede?" She asked.
"Kaede is a miko in a village not too far from here. She may have the ability to see into who you are and the strength of your powers." Miroku stated matter-of-factly. Hikaru turned to him with a questioning look.
"Can we go see her?"
"Well sure. We can head down there right now if you like." Kagome said to her.
"Feh, why do you want to see that old hag? She couldn't tell a demon from a human let alone her powers." Inuyasha huffed.
"Oh Inuyasha stop being such an ass!" Sango said, exasperated with his bad mood. Her expression suddenly turned to such an evil stare that even Naraku would have been impressed. "Or maybe I'll have to sic Kagome on you, and you KNOW what she'll do!" Inuyasha could only sneer in response. He knew fully well what would happen. He'd end up kissing the ground. He flattened his ears and walked in silence beside Miroku.
The group started on the short journey to Kaede's village and within an hour they had arrived. The villagers stopped and waved at their group as they entered. Kagome waved back as they proceeded through the small village to the near end where Kaede's hut stood. Kaede was out in front, tending to her herb garden. She waved as she saw the group approaching.
"Ohayo, Kagome!" Kaede's expression changed to one of amusement as she saw the grumpy expression on Inuyasha's face. "So Inuyasha, why so glum? Did Kagome sit ye one time too many?"
Inuyasha growled at her but said nothing in retort. Kaede then turned to Hikaru.
"Kagome, I don't recognize this young demon here. Has she joined your group?" Kaede inquired.
"Well at this point yes she is a part of our group. Inuyasha found her climbing out of a well and we don't know who exactly she is and neither does she."
"I see." Kaede looked pensive. "Child, could it be possible that ye merely have amnesia and have just forgotten who you are?"
"No Kaede, I traveled through time. You see, I am also from Kagome's time but I have no idea why I am here or why I have suddenly changed into a demon. I was hoping you might be able to answer some of my questions if nothing else."
Kaede looked at Hikaru in understanding.