Author's Note: I hope you all had a HAPPY HOLIDAYS and here's wishing you a HAPPY NEW YEAR too!
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Inuyasha or any characters affiliated with the series. I am simply borrowing the characters for the duration of this story. It's sick I know…taking already established characters and forcing them to do what I want them to do, but I guess if all of us are doing so I think I am okay.
Life's Little Imperfections
By LadySword04
December 25-31, 2004
Previously on LLI:
'I guess I have to go another night without cutting off my ears. I need Sango's sword, and I need to get that cat nip stuff tomorrow too. Right now though I better get all this blood off of me before it dries cuz' then it will be that much harder to clean, and I am not going to reek of demon all night long. That'll only remind me of how much I long to be a true demon and I don't need to be distracted right now. Tomorrow night I am GOING to get that sword and I am DEFINITELY going to cut my ears off no matter what.'
All that said and done, Inuyasha headed for the hot springs to rinse off before taking a swift run through the forest to dry off and eventually head to his tree. Tomorrow would come soon enough, and with it, the promise that he could accomplish his task if a certain miko would give him time to do so.
Chapter Four: The Problem With Oversleeping on a Nearly Full Moon
Same as always the sun rose above the horizon the next morning, and brought with her the promise of a new day to accomplish personal goals. Had Inuyasha been paying attention and waiting for the sun to rise, he would have sworn that today the sun took longer than normal to assume her place in the sky and paint her backdrop of both cool and warm colors.
However, the hanyou was on a mission this morning. He had remained untouched by sleep throughout the night as he had slept almost all of the previous day and was now determined to find a certain herb.
Trouble was he couldn't exactly remember the way the plant smelled or what it looked like for that matter, and these small details were causing quite a problem. He had spent the majority of his time roaming the woods and even Kaede's garden with the hope of coming up with something, but every time he thought he had the right plant, one or more qualities immediately threw each herb out of the running.
'No. . .no. . .Ah ha! No wait. . .nope. . .that doesn't smell right. . .and that one doesn't look right. . .that one looks too similar to the other thing I saw. . .gross, that one is just nasty. . .this looks like the one to decrease swelling. . .no, too many flowers. . .this is the wrong color. . .Where the HECK is this darn stuff!?! If I don't get the right plant, Kirara won't be distracted enough to let me get to Sango and her sword. Not to mention that I could end up poisoning the darn animal, and then both Sango and Kagome would certainly kill me. I just wonder which will be more painful, being 'sat' to death, or being beaten senseless by that dumb boomerang thing.' He irritably groused.
Deciding to give his so far fruitless quest a much needed rest, Inuyasha headed back to the hut. 'If I get there before the old hag starts breakfast, maybe I can ask her what the plant looks like or at least smells like. I hate to admit it, but I need her help to get what I want. I just have to come up with a round about way of askin' for the information so she doesn't get suspicious.'
Thought completed and mission currently put on hold, Inuyasha raced back to the hut with the hope that Kaede had not yet begun her morning cooking. He arrived at the hut a few moments later and proceeded to silently stalk his way to the door.
'Good, I still hear Miroku snoring, Shippo's twitching in his sleep, and both Sango and Kirara are breathing evenly. Kaede is moving around now, better be quick.'
With that, he carefully brushed the reed mat aside before he crossed his arms and leaned on the wall as he waited by the fire pit for Kaede to arrive. Before she was able to utter a word, Inuyasha had glared at her while then turning and raising an open palm to face her in an attempt to signal to her that her silence was required.
As soon as she got the message, he walked up to the mat and motioned for her to follow, which she silently did. When both had moved far enough away from the hut for Inuyasha to be pleased, he turned to Kaede as he waited for her to ask her question.
"What is troubling ye Inuyasha, and why did ye bring this old woman so far away from her hut?"
"I want information, and I don't wanna' wake up the rest of the group. Soon as Kagome gets back we're on our way to findin' jewel shards again so they'll need all the sleep they can get."
Raising an eyebrow, and with a smile on her face she asked, "What information do ye seek that I could possibly answer?"
"It's an herb, Cat nip to be exact."
"Aye, and what do ye need this for? You're a dog demon. . ."
Irritation at not getting a straight answer began to show in the form of Inuyasha's next response. "I don't need it for me you old hag and that's none of your business either." 'Smooth, real smooth, curse me and my big mouth!'
"Well then, this 'old hag' will just withhold her information seeing as she has no reason to provide ye with an answer."
"Fine, fine whatever. There's a youkai a few miles from where a jewel shard is rumored to be. Something's tellin' me that there's a neko youkai guardian with the ability to teleport and multiply that's easily defeated with the stupid herb." He answered in a huff while crossing his arms and placing his hands inside the folds of his sleeves.
"Ah, so ye are simply looking out for the safety of your friends then ne?"
"If you're sayin' that I can't defeat that thing on my own you're dead wrong! I don't see the need to endanger anyone here before the real battle starts. It would be senseless to go into a huge battle half dead if it can be avoided. Having one of them injured or dead would only slow me down anyway. Not to mention that I don't want to waste the time or energy on a creature that doesn't have a shard if I can help it. So now are you gonna' give me my information? You happy now?" He angrily spat.
"I never said anything of the sort, and yes I am going to give ye the information that ye seek, but only after ye eat." Kaede replied with a heavy sigh. However, she was going to have a little fun with the hanyou for his lack of respect.
That said and done, both the human and the hanyou walked back into the hut to find the remainder of the group just waking up and looking for breakfast. Kaede lit a fire and began boiling water like she did every morning to make her famous stew. While they waited Inuyasha had returned to his tree and Shippo went back to sleep.
Sango was quietly stroking Kirara as she talked to Kaede while Miroku sat 'meditating' or should it be said daydreaming either about all the girls he had groped or the next time he could reacquaint himself with Sango's rear.
Smelling that breakfast was ready, Inuyasha leapt out of his tree and made a bee-line for his spot in the hut. A few moments later the meal was served and everyone silently dug in. Inuyasha was done first as usual, but instead of heading back to his tree after he ate, he waited where he sat for his answer.
After noticing that Kaede would be awhile longer, Inuyasha decided to give a heavy sigh before rising, rolling his eyes and then looking Kaede before heading outside. He went to the location where his discussion with the old miko had taken place earlier that morning to wait for her to arrive and give him the information he so desired.
By the time the priestess arrived, the sun had already displaced the moon in the sky and turned her canvas a light blue color. 'Jeeze, took her long enough.'
Noticing that his ears were turned in her direction, Kaede sat down in the long grass and spoke. "Inuyasha, do ye still require information or not?"
"No, I want you to tell that tree over there. Of course I want an answer! You sure made me wait long enough." Was the only answer she received as he turned to face her and sit down in front of her.
"Alright, this old woman understands that ye are in a hurry so I will be quick in my description. Though I may not be able to describe the scent well enough for that inu nose ye possess, I should be able to describe how it looks to ye."
"Fine, whatever information you got is better than what I've been goin' on."
"Cat nip is green in color, has a sweet smell, and at this time of year it should have dull white and purple speckled flowers. Its leaves are shaped like very elongated hearts in that they have a sharp point at the end and are rounded and heart shaped where they come in contact with the stalk. Each leaf should have many deep veins and some more shallow ones, giving them all a crinkly look. One stalk that rises from the ground, should give rise to four leaves, and the smell should be somewhat strong as well. Ye should also be able to notice that the vein that runs along the middle is the deepest part of the leaf as the edges curl up into a 'v' shape. All around the edges should be multiple half circles placed side by side to form a fringe of sorts. Hopefully that should be enough information for ye to find the plant. Good luck Inuyasha."
"I just have one more question, where exactly do I find such a plant?"
Deciding against leading the hanyou on a wild goose chase that would take him all day, Kaede simply responded with, "There should still be some in the center of the forest that was named after ye. Oh and one more thing, the rest of us are heading into the next village to assist the miko that has been overwhelmed with the number of villagers that have mysteriously been getting sick of late. We should be back later tonight."
With a satisfied sounding huff, Inuyasha was off like a shot through his forest. The next four hours of his time were spent combing through the undergrowth in his search for the elusive plant. So far, he had five sprigs of different herbs that fit Kaede's description; obviously, she had not been specific enough for Inuyasha.
So, the inu hanyou spent even more time trying to find any other plant that might work. Lucky for him, he remembered to pick herbs that smelled sweet and had four, not three leaves, or else he would have ended up spending weeks itching and further spreading poison ivy or sumac over his arms.
In the meantime, Kaede and the rest of the group headed out to a village close by. Upon arrival, a few healthy children welcomed them to the village and led them to the miko's hut as they had been instructed. Within minutes the miko, Kasumi, walked back into her home and offered her own greeting while filling her guests in on what had been occurring over the past few days.
As expected, Kasumi was indeed beautiful with long flowing onyx locks that reached her waist, ice blue eyes, and a figure to die for even though it was hidden under all those robes. Needless to say, Sango had to remind Miroku to behave on more than one occasion.
Oddly enough, Kasumi informed Kaede that no child had been harmed, as only the adults over the age of twenty were affected. No one knew what was going on, and the affected villagers had a myriad of symptoms. So far the miko had been trying her best to provide supportive care while treating each symptom as it appeared, but her efforts were in vain as no one was improving.
The first thing Miroku suspected was an evil creature sporting a shikon jewel fragment that was lurking somewhere nearby. Sango and Kirara went out to investigate the entire village, and even a half mile into the surrounding forest as they had been advised by Kaede.
Their search turned up absolutely nothing. Had a demon or sorceress cast a spell on the adults, he or she would have to remain within a half mile radius at the most; even the most powerful of sorceresses would not be able to maintain a spell over an entire village for a prolonged period of time from a distance.
Kaede and Miroku used the time where Sango was out investigating the forest to more closely examine each household. After two hours of searching every shrine and hut, the two returned to Kasumi's hut both to await her return and that of the slayer and her companion. Roughly an hour later, the miko returned from her rounds and sat down to discuss the condition of her patients and ask about the progress on the group's search for whatever was the cause of this illness.
Sango reported that she and Kirara had found nothing in their search, and the same went for Kaede and Miroku. That's when Shippo asked a brilliant question from Sango's lap.
"I don't get it. If Naraku isn't doing this, and no sorceress is either than what could be doing this? Do each of these people have something in common like a daily activity?"
He was rewarded with a pat on the head by Miroku and a favoring smile from the village miko. "Four days ago there was a cleansing ritual in the village that only people twenty and older could participate in, and a day later they all fell ill."
"What exactly does this cleansing ritual entail?" Miroku asked.
"That information has been guarded for generations, and only members of my village are privileged enough to know what goes on. But I can tell you that a special herb mixture is used to cleanse the body and spirit." Kasumi responded.
"And may this old woman get a look at the mortar and pestle that ye used to mix this concoction up in, as well as the ritual vessel that was used to distribute the potion to the villagers?"
"While I can show you the mortar and pestle, the vessel is only brought out once a year for the ritual."
"Aye, that should be fine." With that Kaede stood and followed Kasumi over to the corner where her mortar and pestle were located. Almost immediately Kaede gasped and clapped a hand over her mouth in horror.
There, shining from the bottom of the pestle was an ominous black light. Kaede picked up the object and found what she believed to be the cause of the problem. Inside the bottom of the pestle was a black shikon shard. Picking it out of the pestle, Kaede turned to Kasumi and asked her, "Did ye not notice the tainted sacred jewel shard in the pestle? Is this the pestle that ye mix every herbal remedy up in?"
"So then, it would appear that Naraku once again had a hand in another evil occurrence." Sango thoughtfully replied.
After the initial shock had worn off, Kasumi replied, "I do not have the same spiritual powers that you have elder Kaede, so no I did not realize the shard was there, and to answer your second question, yes this is the set I mix my remedies up in. Do you mean to tell me that every time I have been trying to help the villagers, I have ended up poisoning them further?"
"Aye, that must be the case. I believe that with the shard now removed, any potion or remedy ye create from now on can only help. This old woman also believes that if ye continue to give the people of this village the same supportive care that ye have been giving, then they should begin to improve within the next few days." Was the wise remark from Kaede.
"When the vessel is brought out again next year may I have you inspect it?" Kasumi inquisitively asked the older miko.
"Of course, I would be honored to do so." Kaede stated.
That said and done, the group assisted Kasumi in gathering herbs and mixing up more of the remedies she needed before they were to be distributed to each villager. After that was done, the group noticed how the sun had already begun her descent behind the mountains, and wisely decided to get back as soon as possible after saying farewell and wishing Kasumi well. Luckily enough, Kirara was able to take Sango and Kaede, and Shippo transformed into a pink bubble that Miroku was able to ride home on. They arrived shortly before nightfall and quickly began making dinner.
Roughly an hour ago, Inuyasha had finished up his search and headed home with his collection of twelve sprigs of different herbs that closely matched the description Kaede had given to him. He quickly bounded over to his tree where he tied the stalks together before hiding his stash up in one of the higher branches; he didn't want Kirara to find it before he was ready for her to do so.
Again the meal came and went with little if any spoken words. Either the group members were too tired and hungry to feel like speaking, or the tension, anticipation, and frustration that both their inactivity and waiting for Kagome's return was at a level that they feared talking would cause someone to snap.
As soon as dinner was over, Sango took Shippo and Kirara to the hot springs to relieve tension and get clean. Miroku turned in early for the night, and Inuyasha went to sit and brood in his tree while Kaede cleaned up before she was due to go to bed.
Pretty much everyone in the group had at least one thought in common that night. "I wonder what is taking Kagome so long to get back. She's more than a day late. I hope nothing happened to her. Inuyasha will have to go get her now which I know he doesn't want to do. Maybe the fight about Koga with Kagome was the last straw and she's decided to never return. I hope that isn't the case though as I would hate to lose a friend I consider like a younger sister." Sango spoke to no one in particular as she whispered her thoughts into the dead of night.
She dried off before dressing and heading back to the hut with her two friends. When they got back, Sango dropped to her pallet after removing her weapons. Getting settled, she motioned for Kirara and Shippo to join her if they felt so inclined to do so.
Little did she know that a lone pair of ever watchful amber eyes happened to be observing her and planning their next move. As soon as everyone had fallen into a deep slumber, Inuyasha grabbed his secret weapon and stalked over to Sango's sleeping form. As expected, Kirara was awoken by his approach and mewed warily once at him.
In the blink of an eye, Inuyasha took his cat nip supply and waved it in front of the neko youkai, and almost as quickly, Kirara jumped up and tried to grab one of the sprigs. Reacting even faster than Kirara's paw could fly, Inuyasha moved to the far corner of the hut and waved his prize at her. Without a moment's hesitation, Kirara ran over to him and waited expectantly for the hanyou to give her what she wanted.
Seeing that he had her attention, and most definitely had gotten the right herbs, Inuyasha smugly smirked before allowing Kirara to take the correct sprig. To his surprise, she ran outside with the plant in her mouth before curling up contentedly on top of it and mewing with contentment.
Returning to the task at hand, Inuyasha once more stalked over to Sango only to be confronted with Shippo's sleeping form too. Deciding that it would be best if the kitsune was moved, Inuyasha carefully picked him up before setting the young youkai down on the pallet Kagome slept in when she was with them. Luckily for Inuyasha, Shippo curled up in the hay and snuggled deeper under his blanket while remaining asleep.
Now he had two down, and one to go. For the third time that night, the inu hanyou carefully made his way over to Sango. In her desire to get to sleep quickly, Sango had left her sword unguarded and on the floor just in front of her. Deciding that unsheathing the weapon here would wake her up as it did the last time, he decided to take the sword and sheath with him. Silently he crouched down and retrieved the weapon before making his way out of the hut with his trophy.
'Victory is mine! Now I can finally do what I need to do, and better yet there's no miko around to stop me! Things couldn't get any better than this' he mentally celebrated. Now outside of the hut, Inuyasha stepped confidently out into the light of the moon that was close enough to being full that only a sliver remained black.
The light played over his features, his haori, the sword in his hands and the one at his side as he moved in the open. His shadow trailed behind him like a faithful animal companion. Realizing that he probably had all night, Inuyasha just briskly walked over to the well, and into the trees close by.
He made sure to hide both himself and his shadow from view as he crouched down. However, he also made sure to keep himself within viewing and hearing range of the well should Kagome come back before he could accomplish his task.
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Meanwhile 500 years into the future
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Kagome was sitting in her last class of the day, cramming before he biology quiz that Sotatsu-sensei had dumped on his class.
'Ok, so Mitosis involves the creation of somatic or body cells…phases are interphase, prophase, metaphase, anaphase, telophase, and then cytokinesis. Meiosis is where gametes are created. . .the stages are the same, though there is a phase one and two to this process, and each stage.' After studying her pictures for a few more minutes, Kagome closed her book feeling ready to take on the world. 'Alright! I think I got it! Bring it on Mr. Sotatsu!'
Thirty five minutes later found Kagome finishing up her test. While the diagrams, descriptions, and phases did not give her any problems, the final four questions that were from a previous lecture she had missed were killing her. She then realized that she had only ten more minutes before time was called, so she decided to put down whatever she thought made sense and hope she got partial credit at least.
Class ended right on time, and Kagome had finished just in time. Her three friends, Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi were waiting for her so they could discuss how they felt they did on the test like they usually did. However, Kagome didn't feel like doing that at all so she decided to excuse herself and go home.
She had tuned out their banter minutes ago, and out of nowhere just began speaking, clearly oblivious to the fact she had cut Eri off. "Sorry guys, but I am not feeling too well right now. I think I am gonna' go home and take a nap. I'll catch up with you all later ok?"
To that they all just nodded and told her to feel better soon.
Kagome arrived home fifteen minutes later to find a note on the fridge that said her mom and grandpa would be picking Sota up from school early for a doctor's appointment, and would be home after they went to pick up some things from the grocery store.
'Figures, every time I am home, they have to go somewhere. Oh well. I need a nap before I go back to see Inuyasha. I really hope this headache goes away. Light and sound are really starting to bother me!' With that, Kagome dragged herself up to her room, flopped down onto her bed and set her alarm clock to wake her up at five-thirty. As soon as she closed her eyes, she was gone into the land of dreams.
Her alarm sounded promptly at the time it was set to go off, but Kagome decided to hit the snooze button and get the extra five minutes she wanted. Little did she realize that she had unconsciously turned the alarm off after she hit the snooze button. Needless to say, that extra five minutes turned into an extra hour and a half. By the time she woke up it was seven at night.
"That felt so good to sleep. I am so glad my headache is gone! Wait, it's too dark to be five-thirty. . .what time is it?"
Turning her head to her clock, she freaked out and screamed when she saw the seven. Hurriedly, she grabbed her bag and ran downstairs to put a note on the fridge to tell her mother where she was going. Grabbing a snack bar and opening it as she ran, Kagome arrived at the shrine, slid the doors open, jumped down the stairs, and leapt into the well as she took a bite of her 'dinner.'
"Oh man! Inuyasha is going to KILL me! I am more than a day late, and it's already dark outside. I just hope I don't run into anything dangerous tonight before I can get to the hut! Maybe I can slip in unnoticed. . .Nah, Inuyasha would smell then hear me for sure. . .maybe I should come back tomorrow morning super early then." Kagome thought out loud.
It was at this point in time when our favorite miko heard then saw something that made her freeze in her tracks, her blood run cold, and the air in her lungs escape in one big rush.
To be continued
Author's Notes: Ok, so there are two chapters left at most. I hope to have this story wrapped up in the next one though. . .but I'll just have to see. Every time I make a plan, I find myself changing it in some way. Anyways, this chapter was even longer than last time. . .eight and one-half whole pages!
And what could she have possibly seen? Find out in the next chapter, Explanations In The Moonlight! See ya' then!
Personal Review Replies:
GoldAngel2: Don't feel bad for not reviewing the last chapter right when it came out…no you're not bad at all, I myself am guilty of doing the same thing! I understand the issue with work completely. . .I too have been working a lot lately therefore the lack of updates. If anyone is bad, it's me! Thanks so much for the compliment, I hope this story is living up to your expectations of it. Oh you're so lucky to have all the episodes and the three movies and manga. I have the first nineteen translated manga volumes, the six ani-manga ones, the first two movies now, and the first season box set…still waiting on the next one to come out. I loved the 'not the brightest light in the marquee' comment you made, I haven't heard that one before, very creative as always! And thanks again for the encouraging words about reviews or the lack thereof. Maybe in a few years when the series finally ends over here that new stories will slow down just enough to let each story get the attention they deserve. I can't wait to read the one you have been planning though, and you can bet I will check out the one shots you have written! See you next chapter!
