Title: The Jomon Bow
Author: The Painted Lady
Disclaimer: I do not, nor have I ever, owned Inu Yasha. I will return them to Rumiko Takahashi, washed and pressed, when I am done with them.
Chapter 2
Kagome ran up the shrine steps, completely exhausted. She had just sprinted the mile and a half distance between the school and her home in hopes of avoiding another scene involving Inu Yasha and her friends. Totally out of breath, the young woman glanced around the grounds, trying to catch a glimpse of the crimson hayori that the hanyou wore so frequently. Seeing nothing out of place, Kagome let a little sigh of relief escape her lips.
'At least that's one disaster evaded today,' she thought as she entered her home.
Just as the notion entered her head, it was quickly dispelled by an irritated voice calling from the other room.
"Oi, wench! Its about time!"
Sighing again, Kagome tried in vain not to roll her eyes. Clenching her hands at her sides, she retorted back,
"Shut up, I'm not late!"
"Keh, for once."
She felt her blood pressure starting to rise, and forced herself to calm down. She was counting backwards from one hundred when she was interrupted at ninety-two.
"Why are you just standing there? Go get your stuff!"
Kagome attempted to ignore him, instead favoring the kitchen with a nonchalant air. Inu Yasha, who had entered the room at her silence, waved a hand in front of her face.
She leveled her gaze at him then, this time she couldn't resist rolling her eyes.
"Knock it off!" she swatted his hand away from her and stalked over to the refrigerator, intent on getting a chilled bottle of water to cool her thirst, and hopefully, her temper.
"What's crawled up your butt today?" Inu Yasha muttered, crossing his arms and staring at the back of her head.
"Nothing," she replied, a bit testily as she gulped down the water. "But I need to stay here in this time for a few more hours."
Before she could explain her reasons, the half demon balked, "You've just spent a whole week here! What more could you possibly have to do?" His expression suddenly darkened. "You're not going out with that boy again, are you? The one with the funny name?"
"Its nothing like that!" Kagome sputtered, a little to quickly. She wasn't able to keep the slight blush off her face when he had mentioned 'Hobo'. It wasn't that she liked him, quite the opposite was the case. But just the mere fact that Inu Yasha was asking about her love life was a bit much, even more so because of the low rumble that was now emanating from his chest.
'Time for damage control', she thought, 'Diversionary tactics are a go.'
"I may have learned of a new weapon that could help us defeat Naraku and I need to go and investigate it."
At the combination of the words 'weapon', 'defeat', and 'Naraku', the hanyou's ears perked up.
"Well, why didn't you just say so before?" Inu Yasha grabbed her arm and started to haul her out into the shrine grounds. "Let's get moving!" In his haste, the half demon forgot she was holding something and she dropped the water bottle on the floor, its contents spilling over and wetting the white tile, soaking her socks and the hem of Inu Yasha's hayori.
Kagome planted her feet firmly into the ground, impeding the half demon's progress, slipping and sliding in the proccess. "You know the rules," she said, "If you go out in public, you have to wear normal clothes" There was much complaining at that, but the prospect of being able to defeat Naraku was enough to convince him, but only barely.
So fifteen minutes, three wardrobe changes, and one hat later, Kagome and Inu Yasha were on the subway
Inu Yasha and Kagome milled around the lobby of the Natural History Museum, trying to look normal. According to the plan that they had devised on the subway, they would wait until the museum was closed, then get the bow. As it was, they were a bit conspicuous, for Inu Yasha had tried to attack the escalator, along with the elevator, the revolving doors, and he had also performed a very acrobatic leap into the air when someone's voice came on the intercom speaker.
Right now, however, the twosome were hiding behind a rather large potted plant by the elevator, waiting the required ten minutes before the museum closed. They watched a security guard close and lock the main doors, then he went back to the front desk, propped his feet up, and started reading a newspaper.
"Now's our chance," whispered Kagome, and they snuck from behind the foliage and up the stairs to the room where the Jomon Exhibit could be viewed. The bow was in the center of the room, under a glass case with a single light shining down upon it. As they approached it, Kagome noticed that it looked even older than in the picture that she had seen in class.
"Are you kiddin' me?" Inu Yasha growled, "This old bow couldn't shoot down a field mouse, much less Naraku! Its not even strung! No doubt because stringing it would demolish this old piece of crap!" He huffed and put his hands into his hayori, putting on a show of pouting.
"It didn't look like this in the picture," the young woman protested. Putting her hand up to the glass, she could feel a faint power radiating into her hand. 'It's so fragile', she thought, 'There is no way that this bow has enough power. It was a stupid idea, anyway…' She saw her reflection in the surface of the case, her face showing the disappointment that she felt.
"Excuse me, but the museum closed ten minutes ago," a voice, rough and gravely from years of usage interrupted Kagome's thoughts. Both she and the hanyou turned, he with a small rumble.
"I'm sorry, sir," she apologized, shooting Inu Yasha with a 'Sit, Boy!' glare. "We just got here, and wanted to know more about this bow. There's just something about it…."
As she trailed off, the old man who had disrupted her train of thought came around a corner of the exhibit and gave them both an appraising look. He was small and shriveled, like the bow in the case. The man's graying hair was sparse on top, but he held an aura of vitality and there was a spark of something steely behind his dark eyes. His face seemed tough and hard, like it was carved out ofthe same wood as the Goshinboku. Then, a thoughtful expression crossed his haggard features, and he smiled softly, causing a transformation. He now seemed welcoming and warm.
"Yes, that bow has some history in it. Have you heard the legend?" they nodded their heads, as Kagome had told Inu Yasha about the bow on the subway. "Good," he continued, "I am glad that at least some young people have a respect for history."
Kagome would later reflect on those last words as ironic, but for now, she just politely nodded her head once again.
"I am the curator of this exhibit," the old man stated, "And I also know that you two have come for the bow."
At this, Kagome was startled, but Inu Yasha leapt into action. He seized the man by his collar and hissed,
"How do you know what we've come here for, old man? " Answering his own question, he continued, "Are you a demon who can read minds?"
He just smiled serenely into the enraged hanyou's face, and said, "I have my ways. And I assure you, I am no demon. I knew it was only a matter of time until you came looking for it," he said, looking at Kagome who gasped and clutched her hand to her chest. "And I also know," he persisted as Inu Yasha's grip tightened on him, "That I cannot give you the bow at this time."
"What do you mean?" Kagome queried, starting forwards towards the man, "If you know why we've come, then you surely wouldn't deny us! We need it!"
"Think about what I said, Kagome! I cannot give you the bow at this time!"
Then, it clicked. Inu Yasha set the man back down to his prior position on the ground, and Kagome exhaled forcefully.
"You mean, I have to go back to Feudal Japan and get the bow?" she asked.
"Yes," the old man whispered, straightening his rumpled shirt and adjusting his askew glasses. "As you can see, the bow is useless in this time. It is fragile and feeble. You must seek it in the past."
"How do you know all of this, old man?" the hanyou questioned, still not trusting enough to stifle the growling in his chest. "How do you know of, " he caught himself before giving too much away, "the past?"
The elderly gentlemen just gave another small grin, straightened his thin, graying hair, and bowed to them both.
"I wish you both luck in your quest," he said, then shuffled out of the room, the knowing smile still firmly planted on his face.
Inu Yasha and Kagome shared confused glances, and Kagome shrugged at him. 'Demented old gank,' the half demon thought.
"That's just great," Inu Yasha muttered, as they departed the museum a short while later. "We wasted all this time, just to hear the ranting of a crazy old man. I hope you're happy."
"Quit being such a pill," Kagome answered. They were walking home as the subways had all closed down for the night. "I think it was worth it. Anything that we can get to defeat Naraku will be of great help to us. Even if it didn't pan out this time, we have to be on the alert for anything that will help us, right?"
"Keh," he answered after a moment, looking up into the night sky. He hated this time, he couldn't see the stars or hear the song of the night crickets. The only thing that he could detect was the noxious fumes of the cars and the rumbles of the city streets. "I'm going to take care of Naraku," he muttered after a long while, "You just worry about finding the last of the jewel shards."
They strolled side by side in silence until they reached the shrine. As the well transported them back to Feudal Japan, Kagome's thoughts were not on the jewel shards, but on the strange man at the museum, his advice, and how, just how, did he know her name?
End Part
A/N: I screwed up in that last chapter. Ayame wasn't as school with Eri and Kagome. I meant to put Yuka, but my brain had a flat. So sorry! Anyways, the next chapter will have to do with the gang's quest for the bow. Lots of action next time on "The Jomon Bow"!
Feed the beast! Push the little blue button!