Okay, so here is the first chapter chapter. It's not as long as I would like, plus its kinda boring but it is informational you could say. Also excuse the bad grammar (I'm horrible at it) and if I did any of the Japanese wrong, forgive that too, I'm still trying to learn. -_- But I hope that it's an okay beginning but if it's not go ahead and tell me, I appreciate all comments, compliments, and complaints.
Chapter 1: The Beginning
The small raven haired koneko youkai jumped up and down in anticipation as she watched her maids pack a few of her belongings and walk out of the room to the awaiting guard in the courtyard in front of the palace that belonged to the Lord of the Eastern Kingdom, Higurashi-sama. She took a quick glance around her room to make sure she didn't forget anything, then the eight year old ran out of the room and towards the voice that was calling her name. She easily navigated her way through the halls and rushed out of the main doors and into the bright sun.
"There you are Kagome. What do you think you were doing making your father wait like that. Now hurry up, and make sure you remember your manners," the koneko's mother said sternly, before giving her a quick kiss and ushering her to her own small pony.
"Wait, kaa-san, where is Souta?" the girl looked around for her younger brother hopping to not only say good bye but also make him jealous because she was able to go with their father and he wasn't. She couldn't help but love to rub things in her young sibling's face and not usually in the literal sense.
"He is inside so he won't get in anybody's way," however the look the woman was giving her clearly stated that he was inside so he wouldn't throw a temper tantrum like all three years old did. And so that Kagome didn't agitate him and make his bad mood worse. "Now stop asking questions and get on your horse."
Kagome opened her mouth to reply about the little fact that her "horse" was a pony, just to make her mother even more annoyed. Kagome liked it when adults lost their calm, it was hilarious to watch even if she got in trouble afterwards. Before she could two strong arms picked her up and placed her on her "horse" and made sure that she safely put. She watched as her father walked to his own horse.
The fact that her father rarely ever lost his temper was probably why she respected him so much. She wanted to be like her father in everyway. Kagome watched attentively as her father mounted his horse, and was fascinated by how he looked at ease on such an awkward creature. He turned to his mate who had followed him, and whispered his good byes before sitting comfortably on his mount. Kagome did the same. Higurashi-sama nodded to the bystanders. Kagome mimicked the action. Then the train of the royal bodyguards began to move.
Kagome made sure to stay close enough to her father to easily see him, but far enough so that he wouldn't see her. It wasn't that long into the trip when Kagome got bored of mimicking her father to the perfect detail and let her young mind and youthful eyes wander around the surrounding scenery. She didn't realize before that they were so close to the ocean. There was a small bay of water where her home was but it was nothing compared to the grand scale of what she was seeing. Her small furry black tail began to swish in excitement. It looked to her as if the whole world was covered in water, then all she had to do was turn her head the other way and she saw forests and villages and farms.
It was true that Japan was surrounded by water but the Eastern Lands were know for their great quaintly and quality of water. Just like the North was renown for their great trees and forests, the West their mountains that were great for defense, and the South for their great farming plains. Even though all of the lands had something of everything, they also had a unique feature that made it special. And as Kagome looked out among the endless blue that sparkled in the sunlight, she couldn't be more proud of becoming the heir to such a grand place.
This was the first time she was actually traveling outside her father's domain. She was so excited about meeting another Taiyoukai and his family. Actually she was going to meet all three other Taiyoukais this trip. They were going to a meeting where the four Great Taiyoukais got together to discuss about the economy and possible enemies and other such subjects. But she really wanted to meet all the other heirs. Her tou-san said she was special because she was going to be the only female heir.
Her mind wandered as did her eyes throughout the day and into the evening. Finally the party had to stop for the night and began to set up camp along one of the roads that lead throughout the whole land. Little Kagome hopped off her pony and began to wander through the rising camp but it wasn't long before her attention was drawn to the meadow the road ran through. She inhaled sharply when she got a good look at the pretty flowers the meadow had. With her mind set on the aromatic plants she began to pick all the different kinds. But something caught her eyes near the other side of the field.
She looked back towards the camp to see if anyone was paying attention to her. She smiled, placed her flowers on the ground, and ducked beneath the grass when she realized that she was free from any attention. She began to crawl towards the thing she saw, occasionally surfacing to see if she was heading in the right direction. As she got closer she began to crouch lower to the ground and tried using her other senses instead of her eyes.
Kagome heard some rustling and prepared to strike. Her little claws were digging into the ground and she was concentrating on focusing her energy for the jump. Finally she did just that, and went soaring through the air to her target. But she immediately tried to stop when she realized she was attacking another youkai. And judging by the red eyes, it wasn't happy. She quickly landed a little away from the red-eye youkai and began to run back to the camp, but the thing was following her as well.
Just when she thought she was going to be safe she caught her foot in a hole and she fell to the hard earth. She cried out and covered her head with her hands, waiting for the thing to jump on her. She was saved however, when someone picked her up off the dirt and held her close. She immediately buried her head in the person shoulder. She heard the thing talk though she couldn't make out the words, it sounded as angry as it looked. Then she realized it was her otou-san who held her, "Gomen nasai, I promise it won't happen again."
The thing snorted and walked away. Higurashi-sama put his daughter down and looked at her sternly, "What were doing out here young lady?"
She quickly looked to the side and scooped up some flowers, "Picking pretty flowers."
She looked up shyly to her otou-san, and held out the plants to him. He sighed, and took them from her. "Kagome, you can't go attacking people like that. Some could be dangerous, whether their human or not. You're lucky that was just a mother trying to defend her children."
The little neko youkai sniffled, "Gomen, tou-san. I didn't know I was bothering anybody."
The Taiyoukai sighed again and took his daughter's hand and lead her back to camp, "We'll get you cleaned up and then have some dinner, but after I want you to go straight to bed, understand?"
It was the young girl's turn to sigh, "Hai, tou-san."
They started out early the next day; this time Kagome was watched very carefully. So that meant she could not wander off during the trip but had to remain safely within the group. She sighed and looked over to one of the guards, "Hiten-san, are we almost there?"
The grown lightening-youkai looked up from his walking and gave her a small smile. He and his brother used to be bandits, and were infamous among the humans for they seemed as if they couldn't be beaten. One day they found a group they couldn't rob; it turns out it was a team under Higurashi-sama. They tried attacking and the soldiers thought they were trying to attack the Taiyoukai and tried to defend him. They did just that but in the process killed Maten, Hiten's younger brother, before Higurashi could call off his guards. As an apology for the loss of his brother, the neko-youkai offered his own protection to Hiten.
At the time, he could do nothing because he was to badly injured to respond. So Higurashi took him back to his palace and he was seriously ill for weeks afterwards. This, however, worked in the favor of the neko lord because this showed Hiten the kindness and the nobility of the Taiyoukai. It was inevitable that Higurashi would gain another magnificent and loyal warrior. "Don't worry so much, Kagome-sama, we should be arriving soon."
Kagome beamed at the polite tone he used with her. It made her feel like she was the Lady of the East. Which in a way she was seeing as how she was Higurashi's heir.
Hiten was right, as soon as the sun stopped rising in the sky and began its descent, Kagome was able to see a castle bigger than her own, surrounded by beautiful meadows, much like the one she was in. She stared around in awe at the site until Hiten laughed and told her to look at the castle once more. She did and she saw a small group gathered outside. She asked him who were the people standing by the front entrance. He looked up at her with a puzzled expression, "Don't you pay attention in your studies? That is the Taiyoukai of the South and his family."
She looked more closely as they neared and gasped when she saw that weren't neko-youkais. Hiten again chuckled, "Not all of the royal families are."
Kagome looked at him appalled, "But they're kistunes! Otou-san has to work with a kistune?"
The way the guard looked at her made her blush in embarrassment, "What do you do when in your studies?"
Kagome grew even more red, and stuttered "I…I pay attention." But that wasn't the exact truth, she would much rather be out training with the warriors than inside learning from books. She knew it was necessary though if she wanted to be a successful Taiyoukai, but she couldn't help but be bored by some of the subjects. Hiten just shook his head and remained silent, as did she, for the rest of the travel.
It wasn't long before the whole group was standing in front of the massive palace and before the royal kistune family. Kagome was helped off her horse and lead to her father who was talking with the one who could only be the father and Taiyoukai. Her father turned to her and she took his offered hand and tried to stay hidden behind his legs. She has heard a lot of rumors about kistunes in general. Both bad and good things, so she didn't know what to expect.
The family standing before her didn't look very mean, in fact they looked like a normal family. The Taiyoukai and his wife and their children, a son, he must be the heir, Kagome thought, little girl standing behind her Okaa-san's legs, and the woman was holding what appeared to be twins. Her tou-san pulled her in front of him, and she looked up at the rather short man before her.
"Kagome, this is Sakamoto-sama, a dear friend of mine, and this is his family," Higurashi introduced, pointing to each one as he presented them. She greeted each one with courtesy but her eyes remained on the boy.
He looked about the same age as her maybe a bit older. He had deep green eyes like his father but had the golden-red hair of his mother, and like Kagome he was to young to have markings on his face, but he did have a short bushy tail. The markings, if a demon had any, showed maturity, but judging by the father, he would most likely not have any markings at all, except for the green diamond that was probably hiding behind his hair and on his neck, which would show that he was the heir.
He starred back at her, his eyes judging her like she did him. The kit was the one to break the silence, "Judging by the tail, I'd say you were a cat demon, but cat demons are supposed to be powerful. You don't look that strong to me."
Kagome glared at the fox, and retorted, almost mimicking him, "Judging by the tail, I'd say you were a kitsune, but kitsunes are supposed to be cunning, but you don't look all that clever to me."
The boy glared right back at her, and they could both hear some muffled laughing coming from the ones that surrounded them but they ignored it, both more content with trying to burn holes in each others head with only their eyes. If it weren't for the parents they probably would have stayed that way all night, but luckily the were split apart and ushered inside, where they would await the other Taiyoukais to arrive.
Kagome sat in her bed for the fourth night in a row unable to sleep. The Taiyoukai of the West arrived the same day her tou-san and her did, but the Northern Lord didn't arrive till the day after. They didn't even bring their children, so Kagome didn't even get to meet them. Plus she was bored and the boredom lead her to realize she was homesick.
She stayed in her temporary room most of the time, and she didn't get along with the kit, Shippo at all. Every time they saw each other it was like a miniature war would break out, so the adults decided it was best if they were kept separated.
She got up off her bed and began pacing around her bedroom. It wasn't fair! She wanted to go home and play with her friends and her brother. She wanted to sleep in her own bed and wander around her home. She would even pay attention to her studies if it meant she could back to her house. She couldn't tell her tou-san that though. He was in meetings most of the time, either that or he was to tired. Lord, what did they do all day anyways!
Kagome looked out her window and into a garden below. Ok, time to get some fresh air, she decided as she made her way to the bedroom door, and opened it slowly, carefully checking for any people. So when she knew that no one would hear her she silently slipped out the door and into the hallway. She kept to the shadows and made as little noise as possible, but that wasn't hard considering she has had much practice at her own palace. However since this wasn't her house she soon lost her way and began wandering the dark passageways trying to find a way outside.
She jumped when she heard a voice behind her, "You'll wander around till dawn if you keep this pace up."
She regained her composure, and turned her angry gaze to the deep green eyes of the kitsune pup. "What are you doing out of bed?" Kagome hissed at him, trying to hear if anyone had woken up.
"This is MY house. I should be asking what are YOU doing out of bed? Not sneaking around are you?" Kagome was going to give an outraged comeback but she realized her wandering was looking quite suspicious and if she were in his position she would be asking the same thing.
It has happened in the past where a ruler and heir would make a friendly journey to an ally for some reason or another. While the ruler was busy distracting everybody, the heir would sneak around and try to learn of some secrets that would be useful to the ruler. Though it hasn't happened in recent times, it still doesn't mean that that type of technique wouldn't be used again.
Kagome's gaze softened a bit, and she replied gently, "I was trying to find my way outside to the gardens but I got lost and couldn't find my way out."
Shippo released his glare but he narrowed his eyes, "Why do you want to visit the gardens at this time of night?" He was still suspicious of her and wouldn't let her continue easily.
Kagome's cheeks turned a pale pink with embarrassment, but the dark covered it up well. "I-I'm homesick, I thought some flowers and fresh air would help me feel better."
Shippo eyes turned from accusing to understanding, "This way, we'll talk outside. Try to keep quiet." Kagome nodded her head, and as quiet as a mouse as she followed Shippo through the winding passages until they came to a door. They both pushed but stopped when it made a loud creaking noise. They stood as silent as statues for a few moments before continuing. Soon as they entered the gardens the breath that they've been holding was finally released.
They walked over to the fountain that was in the middle of the gardens and sat down. Both of them sitting on the ledge, but Kagome was looking down at the water as Shippo was looking at the stars. Each of them wondering why they weren't at each others throats like they've been before.
Shippo was the one to break the awkward silence, "So you were out of bed because you were homesick?"
Kagome rolled her eyes because she already said that, but at least he was trying to make some sort of conversation. She hesitated a second but finally responded, "I know it seems kinda of weak but I miss my kaa-san and brother, even though I have otou-san with me."
Shippo stopped looking at the stars but instead at Kagome, and Kagome looked up from the water. The stayed quiet like that, looking at each other and questioning themselves. Shippo than smiled, not a triumphant smile like when someone finds a weakness to exploit but a smile that said the person has been through the same thing, "It's not weak. My tou-san took me to visit with one of the lesser lords a couple of weeks ago, and we stayed there for only two days, but it was enough because I felt like I was going to die if I didn't get home."
Kagome returned the smile, "Was that your first time away from home?"
He sighed, "Hai, and I don't think I ever want to leave. But when I told him he said that my responsibilities as an heir would make me, and I couldn't stay home forever."
Kagome nodded, "I got the same thing when I said I didn't want to go. He then told me all the different things I would see and I got excited. I thought I would be an adventure, but it's so boring! If this is what being a Taiyoukai is like than I don't want to get older."
"Hai, I already turned nine, and it seems as if my parents want me to be even older."
Kagome pouted, "I'm going to nine in a two months."
Shippo laughed, "So that means I'm six moths older than you."
"That's not a lot," Kagome huffed.
Shippo's gaze returned to the sky while Kagome's returned to the waters. This time a comfortable silence fell upon the two. "Do you ever what it would be like to be normal? You know not of royal blood?" Kagome asked for the thought had occurred to her many times in her life.
"Hai, but I don't think I would want to be." He smiled at her, "If I was than I wouldn't get such great food to eat."
For some reason, though it wasn't funny, they both burst out laughing until they were clutching their sides trying to breath. The pressure of maintaining a royal appearance was taken away since they both knew that it didn't matter between them. It was like some unspoken agreement. When they finally quieted down and caught their breath they returned to talking.
It was surprising how two kids who seemed to hate each other could find so much in common with one another. Once they began talking it appeared as if they would never stop. They talked about their families to their studies to their thoughts on the future. "You know what this means then?" Kagome asked the kitsune pup with a fake sigh of resentment.
"That we're now friends." Shippo stated, shaking his head in mock disgust. Kagome nodded and gave him friendly smile. Shippo gladly returned the smile. Both laughed when she yawned and decide that it was time to go to be, but both were too tired to get up.
So Kagome lied out on the edge of the fountain, covering herself with her tail. Shippo positioned himself on the ground and made himself comfortable. Soon both were fast asleep, and thankful that they both found a friend who understood. That was the way the frightened parents and servants found them the next morning, both lying near the fountain sleeping soundly.
As soon as the parents came upon the site they smiled at each other, knowing that a friendship had been found during the night. So they parents gently awoke the sleeping children and scolded them for worrying everybody.
When it came time for Kagome and her out-san to actually leave, she was surprised by the fact hat she didn't want to go back. But both Higurashi-sama and Sakamoto-sama promised the children that they would be able to visit each other if they wished. They smiled and nodded eagerly. No matter how many friends they would make over the years, the friendship they formed would certainly last a lifetime and for a youkai that was a considerably long time.
*Okay so that wasn't as bad as I thought it would be but it's not up to me. So would you like me continue or not? That's all I'm asking for at the moment. So PLEASE let me know cause it would be a waste it I continued and no one was reading it. Thank You!
~Ryuu Madoshi