I do not own Inuyasha, so do not sue me.
Dragondiva88 here! This is the chapter you have all been waiting for- Kagome and Inuyasha will finally meet! Yay! Anyway, I hope you like it. It should be funny. Here we go!
The Island
Chapter 3: Air
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The trees began to sing for me, as they always did, and the wind made my heart flutter. I took flight, the air passing over the tips of my wings like water. Flight was my freedom from my burden of life, and I knew that even if it only lasted as far as I needed to go, that was enough.
My mind drifted to many things while I was in the air, but never drifted very far away from my sisters, the only family I would ever know. I was chosen to be the Deity, their leader, yet I was restless at the prospect of governing them. I was sixteen centuries old, a mere child compared to some of the others, the human equivalent of sixteen years, I suppose. My tasks would be far from easy at this turning point in my lifespan, and a mere teenager, in my opinion, would not be able to accomplish these tasks easily. My mind raced with the falcons at my side, wondering how long I would last with the pressure of ruling a race, but that tension eased as I touched down.
I perched in my favorite tree on the other side of the island, in the highest and most sturdy branch that I knew of, and watched the stars twinkle. An owl shrilled behind me, and my ears swiveled around on the top of my head towards it. Half-breeds are not often blessed with normal pointed demon ears, so neither was I in this case. My ears were triangle shaped, thanks to my father, who had been human, and to my mother, who was of my kind. She was the last . . .
I smelled a fire burning a distance off towards my home. I knew the hunting party had come in, and it smelled as if they had caught something very delicious. I took off again, more hastily this time, for I was very hungry after a day's pondering. My wings were a grayish color, a sign of adolescence, but my mother had told me that it would fade in time. They flapped at an alarming rate, a sign of my hunger, and I reached my destination in no time at all.
I rolled into the clearing where my mother stood in my way, tapping her foot impatiently as I smiled up at her innocently. As was the way of our race, she mind spoke with me, making my head hurt with every word.
"Kagome, I have discussed this with you before, have I not? I really wish that you would take the fate of your people in mind when you-"
"They are not my people yet, Mama. As far as I am concerned they are still yours." I blew a piece of stray hair from off my forehead intolerantly as I ignored her thoughts. I had become quite good, much to her chagrin, in blocking out people from mind speaking with me when I grew irritated, which I became very often. The truth was I was restless. I had seen the trees grow from seedlings to great stalks tediously, and I had watched the waters of the distant ocean recede and flow in with the tides a countless number of times. The process of daily life on this small island had taken its toll on me, and I could not stand to wait for my destiny any longer.
My mother sighed; one of those motherly sighs that drained all courage from her children and made them ashamed . . . well almost all the time anyway. I simply rolled my eyes and turned away from her disdainfully, even though I could feel her eyes on my back. She seemed to enjoy bringing up the subject. Again, I was bored with it. My appetite had fled, and I was in an adventurous mood once again, happy simply to leave without a moment's hesitation. I let the guard in my mind down shortly, and the barrage of questions and thoughts from my mother flew in, like water from a floodgate. I cringed, as the only word I heard was "destiny" before jumping down to where my sisters were bathing in a nearby stream.
"Getting into trouble again, Kagome?" one of them said. I shuddered at the condescending tone. I had too many sisters to count, so I disregarded it. They continued.
"Why can't you be normal like us, Kagome?" another one said. I turned sharply to the group, a look of annoyance present on my face yet again.
"If I was normal like you, I would be bathing there instead of finding my path in life. . ." I thought for a moment before continuing.
"Plus I'd be as dumb as a rock and twice as ugly."
This seemed to shut them up, but I felt an object whiz past my pointed ear, and I dodged it easily, expecting it somewhat. My sisters were as vain as birds-of-paradise looking at their reflection, so I chose to leave them to their pettiness. I grabbed a mango from a nearby bowl as I dashed past them, trying to calm my stomach's objections, and I took to the air yet again.
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I chose a new path this time, traveling to the sacred stream where my ancestors had once lived, and a favorite thinking spot of mine. The waters and shady spot that lay nestled under thick green foliage was a haven for anything that knew of its existence, and I chose it only in the most desperate of occasions. This was one of them.
A new smell reached my half- breed nose, striking it like a sharp pinprick, and I felt my entire body stiffen. I touched down directly below where I had stopped to hover, landing in a sycamore. Sycamore trees were notorious for being sufficient when making bows and arrows, so I constructed one in a rush. It was mediocre, but it would do if I had to deal with intruders.
I flew quietly to the sight of where I smelt it first, scouting a location on the ground by the sacred stream, only to find a figure hunched over the waters. It was . . . well I did not know by the looks of it, but it was not human by all aspects. It smelled like nothing I had ever smelled previously, but did not look dangerous. Two others emerged from the large cloth-covered huts, and I could see the shadows of two others still inside. I recognized one, although I thought that my eyes had been deceiving me. Sango . . .
I cocked my head in confusion as a smaller, cuter figure walked out of the hut sleepily, yawning and rubbing his eyes. The one by the water got up, and began speaking a strange language I had never heard before. They were foreigners- they had to be. Yet, Sango had had no reason to lead them here.
Suddenly, they were on the move, leaving their small hut completely, and branching off in different directions. I wanted desperately to know what they were looking for. The one with the silver hair sniffed the air experimentally, and I flinched, suspecting that he had known that I was there. He had not, and I sighed deeply.
With my nerves completely frayed, I left the group of travelers. Mama would want to know of them, as well as the elder, Kaede. I stopped in mid-air, remembering what day it was.
Today was my training day. That was why I had left home so early that morning. That was why my mother had spoken to me of my destiny. I swallowed hard, but kept on flying. I would pull through this day, although many others had not. I would prove that I was not who they thought I was.
I touched down on my mother's tree, feeling thousands of eyes bearing down on me as if I was the afternoon entertainment. I gulped again. They began to sing a slow, repetitive melody, that made my pace quicken and my heart race. The beat began to quicken and get faster until . . . it stopped . . . completely. The voices echoed into the shadows, and I saw my mother approach me, a look of pride in her eyes.
"Mama. . ." I thought pleadingly. That was when I noticed the long, wooden dagger clenched in her fist. I backed away, but because she held the powers of the Deity, I was pulled closer to her with every step. Then I felt my hand being brought out in front of me, and an uncontrollable urge to obey what she said. My mouth shut, and her powers brought me in front of her. My hand was steady, despite my fear, and she brought the dagger up over her head.
This time, she used her own vocal chords when she spoke . . . or yelled if you want to get technical.
"Mia de parodna!" My eyes widened. She had just told the people of my home that this was my destiny. Then, the dagger came. It slid down slowly on the palm of my hand, and a sensation I had never felt before consumed me. My mother's power still kept my mouth shut, so I could do nothing but let the hot tears roll down my cheeks. A red liquid was now trickling out of my palm and into a bowl held by one of my peers.
Outside, I was being calm, quiet and self-contained. Inside, I was screaming.
I heard footsteps approaching me, and suddenly the power was diminished. I was blown back by the force, and was too startled by the blow to notice that the liquid in the bowl had turned golden. My mother approached the bowl, and then began to laugh. She held it up to my sisters, and everyone cheered. I was utterly confused. My mother handed the bowl off and then sat next to me. I heard the fluttering of wings, and knew that my sisters had left.
"Pain . . ." she thought to me. She then pointed to my hand, and I understood. She continued anyway.
"That feeling is called pain. That red liquid that came from your hand was called blood, and we needed it to prove who you were." She tilted my chin up to face her. She still had that pride in her face, and I smiled despite myself.
"You are the next Deity."
My eyes flew open in an instant. I looked at her, searching for any trace of a lying attitude, but found none. I pushed back hurriedly, only stopping when I felt the hard bark of a tree behind my back. I pulled my legs into my chest, and began to rock back and forth. She continued, for I had no more strength to block her out.
"In order to continue with your training, you will have to experience every feeling. Pain was the most difficult, so I got that out of the way first. Now it is up to you. You must lead your people, Kagome, even if you do not want to. They depend on you and-"
"Shut up!" I thought finally. I did not want to hear this lecture- not again. I got up, and then jumped off the high branch. My wound had already closed up, thanks to my half-breed healing, but I paid it no heed. Maybe Sango, my big sister, would know what to do.
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I could see no one around from that strange group, and I was beginning to get impatient, so instead of waiting for them to return, I went looking for them. My nose led me in different directions, and I groaned, knowing that it would be a wild-goose chase from then on. I sat, feeling utterly hopeless and confused, knowing that if I did not find her soon, I would break down and cry. I did.
My tears came down in a torrent, and I gasped and gulped for air as I let out all of my sadness. I did not want this. I did not want to be what my mother wanted me to be. I did not want to be locked on this island forever. That was what I was destined to do, and I hated everyone for it. I decided that I had to compose myself for my sanity's sake, so I went to the pond that was nearby.
My people's heritage gave me the power to clarify water, so when I submerged, I could see all the way to the bottom. The water was warm from being in the sunlight, and I sank into it, letting my tears and the blood on my palm wash away within it. I floated there, too overwhelmed to notice my wings growing smaller and smaller. They did that when I was very relaxed, an insurance against an enemy who approached. Now, without my wings, I was as good as a human, except for my ears. They twitched in all directions, as I lay there motionless. I did not even smell the new figure approaching me.
My clothes had been carelessly thrown to the side, not as if they covered much. The top was nothing more than a bikini top that out of animal fur, and the bottom was only a longer version of a loincloth. That was also fur. The figure drew near enough for me to smell him so close to the water. I jumped nearly out of my skin.
I grabbed my clothes, trying to cover anything I could with them. I looked up angrily, only to stare into intense amber eyes. I had seen this man earlier. My blush increased a hundred fold. The one with the silver hair . . . yes this was one in the same. I growled and he stared. What was I going to do?
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Ha-ha, this chapter took me forever to write. I hope you people like it. Anyway, next time it might get a little more understandable. So see ya! (^_^)