"There, There"
Chapter One: The Sea of Demons
Written and Edited by: Kosaten
All characters and original ideas belong to Rumiko Takahashi
Spring. Sakura trees were just beginning to bloom, casting an enchanting scent throughout the polluted air of Tokyo, Japan. Kagome Higurashi adjusted the backpack that hung loosely on her shoulders, as she felt the strap slowly sliding off her body, threatening to fall to the ground. She anxiously bobbed up and down, staring at the electronic crosswalk sign with gritted teeth. Traffic was almost at a stand still, as the traffic light further ahead turned a bright shade of red. The business men and women surrounding the young girl looked impatiently down at their watches, some talking of important business deals on their overworked cellular phones. The girl sighed, as she pushed a lock of stray, black hair behind a delicate ear. She was growing irritated. How long had she been here, waiting for the crosswalk to turn green? Five minutes? Ten? She skimmed the crowd adjacent to her, searching for a school uniform that was identical to her's. She frowned at finding none.
The traffic light down the street blinked back to green. The automobiles' engines were pushed forward, and then slowly, one-by-one, they descended down the road to an office cubical on the other side of the city. The girl moaned in frustration. She reached her hand around to her back, and fumbled with the frontmost zipper on her bag. She rummaged inside until her fingers intertwined with the familiar piece of paper her mother had given her just minutes before. She brought it before her, carefully unfolded it, and found herself staring at the directions to her new school. Her heart sank into her chest the moment she glanced at the street names. She quickly refolded the paper, and shoved it back into her bag. She had already memorized the way to her school, and had walked the way to familiarize herself not a day before.
The crosswalk changed to green. The sea of people carried the girl across the street, and she followed them, yet her feet were not aware of their moving. Her mind was wandering, as she arched her neck to look up at the looming towers that stood at a higher point than she. None of these had a memory in which she could recall. Everything was new, and nothing held a past. The sinking feeling in her stomach grew. She hated it here. There was a thick layer of smog blanketing the city, and it seemed only she was aware of it. There was no grass, only concrete. It was a kind of concrete that forbid life, beauty, and metaphor. It was not poetic. It was foolish. The people here were rude, and only bothered themselves with money. The greed of this capital city!
She allowed her feet to stop moving, finally aware that they were in the first place. Her eyes shut tight as she tried to hold back a desperate tear that threatened to stream down her face. Oof! Before she could have time to react, a man behind her rammed into her back, knocking her to the ground.
"Watch where you're going, wench!" He stepped over her fallen body, and continued on his way.
With a stream of curses that would make a sailor blush, the girl pulled herself up and glared at the retreating form of the individual that bumped into her. Just as she was getting ready to brush the dirt from her skirt, another passer-by knocked into her, sending her on her knees. Like the former, this person yelled at the girl for her clumsiness, and went on with his own business.
"What is the matter with you people?" she shouted, as she hastily stood up. Those that walked by rolled their eyes with disgust. She picked up the yellow backpack that had fallen off of her shoulder, and grumpily followed after them.
And so she drifted between the seemingly infinite sea of formal wear. Each face was a mask, each body a puppet, all of them zombies. No one talked to each other, only their electronics. Each building was the same with no distinction but the addressed numbers: 942313, 942315, 942317...it was all a predictable pattern. These creatures that walked beside her were not humans, but demons. Was she one of them too? How long had she been here, in this city? Five minutes? Ten? An hour? Days? Weeks? When did she start losing count?
It felt as if all of her organs were about ready to collapse into her stomach. She began to wonder if this is how suicide felt when one jumped off of a building. Then, she began to wonder how many areas of this street had become a death bed. She had never before thought that death was real. Of course, it happened, but never to her or to anyone she knew. It was one of those things that she thought she would just never have to deal with. But she was wrong. Everything she had thought about life came crumbling down in a mere moment. Who would have thought that one second could change a life forever?
Author's Note:
If people like this story I will do my best to continue it. This chapter was a bit short, and I hope to write longer ones in the future. Anyways, it may seem like this will be your cliche high school, alternate universe fanfic., but I am trying to add a twist. Comments and critique would be most appreciated.
Thanks for reading,
Kosaten