They felt themselves be hazily transported, tumbling and fumbling into a new world. They emerged submerged, blind and desperate in an a calm ocean. Eventually, they realized that unluckily the well had been filled with water; however, it meant that they were truly experiencing the world at the other side of their wishing well.
When they finally escaped from the water, they were too short on air, too short on strength to move another muscle, and collapsed before their eyes could see the environment of the world that was to save them.
Byaku's condition was the worst and was the last one to waken. There were four people waiting for her recovery. She didn't recognize either the grandpa, who was mumbling some unorthodox prayer incantation and holding a redundant charm to ward evil, or the mother, who offered her some warm soup. She thanked them properly, then savoured her first swallow as she hadn't eaten in a long time.
"I didn't think that the well still worked," the grandpa exclaimed. "It hasn't worked for 14 years. It's a good thing I still remembered how to make that remedy."
"The medicine here must be very advanced," Shihai remarked.
"It's not that great! Everyone prefers the new snappy and flashy technology; No one cares about shrines like this. People just don't seem to appreciate the value of the traditions this shrine upholds!"
"The times are changing," the mother said to calm him down.
"It's unbelievable! Even my own grandson left this shrine to become a businessman!"
Byaku saw a photo, of a family. She watched it sadly. The young boy's absence was explained, but there was another figure, a bright and brilliant teenage girl, full of spark and potential. "The girl in this picture..." - the words fell from her mouth.
"That's," the mother began, with a definite tone of extended sorrow, "my daughter. This is her room. We haven't been in here for a long time."
"She's got rheumatism. She's in the hospital," the grandpa interjected.
Byaku humoured them, deciding not to question them any further. The mother left, to cook oden for dinner, and told her guests they were welcome to stay. The grandpa followed her out of the room, complaining about having the same dish yet again.
"I'm perfectly fine now," Byaku told to her friends. "We should probably leave. I don't want to endanger these nice people. Somehow, I feel like we're putting them in danger, with this shard. It feels like a heavy burden in my hand, calling forth a greater threat."
They all agreed, and once again formally thanked their hosts with a bow, including Kiara, then returned to the well. Along the way, they noticed a large tree, and pinned to it with an old weathered arrow was a boy with dog ears, a hanyou, a half human and half demon. Intrigued, surprised, and concerned, they decided to take a closer inspection.
They got as close as they could, until the arrow's barrier rejected them. As a demon hunter, Byaku immediately thought the boy was a threat, but he actually seemed peaceful, and sad, as the arrow sealed his existence. At his side was an old and rusty sword with its scabbard; she wondered how long he had been there at the tree, suffering peacefully and silently.
The shard began to glow, reacting. The sword began to rattle and the arrow began to glimmer. "Is it because of him?" she wondered. Although both he and his weapon seemed harmless, she didn't want to risk unsealing him.
She stepped away, but the reaction didn't stop. The grandpa and mother hurried outside to see what was happening, leaving the oden to boil over. The cloud darkened, and a large black butterfly appeared.
"Youkai?" Byaku wondered aloud. "Did it follow us through the well? Is it attracted to the shard?"
"You have a shard!" the grandpa exclaimed. "Do not worry, I will defeat your enemies." He threw a talisman charm, but it disintegrated before making contact, causing him to gape with extreme shock.
"It didn't work," the mother noticed.
"It's impossible! These charms were handed down through many generations. This monster must have incredible power to withstand them!"
With one clean stroke, the butterfly was defeated by hiraikotsu, augmenting the grandpa's disbelief and indignation. After the butterfly disappeared, a thin piece of paper fell from its former position, and landed softly on the ground. Byaku realized that the it was not a youkai, but a shikigami, a monster with a paper base, usually controlled by a kuro miko, an evil priestess. She hadn't expected to witness a hanyou, a shikigami, or a kuro miko in the future, but she wasn't unprepared, having dealt with shikigami.
She had never dealt with a kuro miko, however. The paper returned to the owner, floating without the aid of wind. The owner wore only black and dark blue. She carried a bow with her, and immense jyaki, evil energy, could be sensed from her. Despite her darkness, she was still a human, like Kohaku. Her face was human. Not only that, Byaku recognized her face from the picture, except this version of that girl had lost all of her brightness, like someone who had lost all her dreams and hopes and joys of everyday life.
"I'm here for the shard," she declared harshly.
"Kagome..." the grandpa and mother uttered in unison.