Hey guys! Well, it's time for the Witch's Council and a new comrade appears. However, this new ally atracts the fury of a certain demon. Could this mean mass destruction of private property? Read on and find out.
Disclaimer: ChibiBean does not own nor claim rights to InuYasha or any of its characters nor do we own the lyrics by Relient K. Thank you.
Council
"'Cause we all control the chaos in the back of our minds.
Our problems seem so small but they grow on us like gravity.
And gravity still makes us fall." –Relient K
It was a warm day. Sun shone on a peaceful dirt road. Trees lined one side of the path while an open field stretched away into the distance on the other. A girl, very young in appearance, was kneeling on the field-side of the road, staring at a butterfly. She giggled and the bug took flight. The girl stood and chased it around until a woman called her name. She stopped abruptly, suddenly serious, and bowed to the woman. "Hello, Rose."
Rose eyed the girl's outfit: a bell-sleeved white, shimmery shirt and a short, blue skirt that puffed out like a modern day tutu. She wore no shoes and her hair was tied up in intricate loops that seemed impossible to make unless one used magic. "Serena, is that proper attire? You know you're supposed to wear your robes this close to the council date. You'd best change before the others start to complain." She gave the girl a rare smile that nobody but Serena had ever seen for ten years.
Serena bowed again. "Right away, ma'am." She ran towards her and they walked back to town together.
"Did you hear? Sade has died." Rose stated.
Serena became solemn. "Oh, dear. What happened? I must admit, she was a wicked woman with evil intentions, but this is still quite a shock."
"Serena, you must not speak poorly of the deceased," she scolded. Serena bowed her head in apology and Rose continued. "It was her eldest daughter. Sade pushed her too far, and…there was a fight. Ironically, it is that same girl who must now join the guild so that the council can take place, especially seeing as Sade was second in command. Tell me, will you challenge this girl and try to rise up the ranks?"
"Nah, you know I don't care about rank. I would like to meet her though."
"You will. I'm putting you in charge of receiving her and explaining things. Sadie is bringing her today. Is that alright?" she asked, knowing the answer.
"Of course, ma'am. It'd be my honor."
"Good. Now, go change…and take a nap," she added when she saw the young girl yawn.
"Okay, Rose." She waved and went off to her home.
"So, who's this Serena we're supposed to meet?" Azurine asked as she and Sadie made their way along the woodland trail.
"She's a lot like Sarah, actually. They look very similar, last I remember. I haven't seen her in years. I will warn you of this, though: don't let her initial personality fool you. When you first meet her, she seems quite innocent, which she is, actually, but I've seen her in battle. Did you know she's third in rank in the guild? Mom and Rose are the only ones higher than her in status. Well, you and Rose now."
"Really, that powerful? How do you decide on rank?"
"Well, you start out in the rank your mother was in. Then you go through tests and challenges, stuff like that, and you either rise or descend in status. Serena's the only one I've ever heard of who advanced so quickly, though. She came in way down the ladder, ninth or something; her mom wasn't all that strong.
"The day before her test, some demons attacked a nearby village. I was there. She was scary. She took out double what anyone else did. I saw her actually rip out the heart of one of them with out so much as a thought. Right after, she was her normal, peppy self, but I'll never forget her eyes in that battle. They seemed to change from blue to gray. She was only 14, too."
Azurine shuddered thinking about what kind of sinister person Sadie was bringing her to.
"The next day, she passed her tests easily," Sadie continued. "When it came to challengers, almost everyone forfeited. She didn't really care about rank, but they let her pass nonetheless. If they did challenge her, she fought seriously because it was a fight, not because there were advantages to winning. Mom and the Head were the only ones to beat her. Mom only just managed a victory." Sadie looked seriously freaked at the memories. "But, she's really sweet, as long as you don't upset her," she reassured.
"That definitely sounds like Sarah."
When they reached the small village, Sadie brought Azurine directly to Serena's house. Despite the image Azurine had created from Sadie's tale, she was taken off guard when a young girl appeared at the door, rubbing her eyes sleepily.
"Um…is Serena here?" Azurine asked, slightly confused. Perhaps this was a servant of some kind? Surely this girl couldn't be the threatening figure Sadie was so wary of. She looked so young.
However, much to Azurine's surprise, the young girl suddenly perked up and said, "You must be Azurine! I'm Serena! Come in, come in. Hello, Sadie. It's been a long time."
Sadie bowed. "Indeed. How are you?"
"I'm just great! Oops!" She exclaimed looking at herself. "I forgot to change. Be right back." She rushed out of the room.
"She does look like Sarah a bit," Azurine reflected, still shocked by Serena's appearance. "Maybe if her hair wasn't in such a crazy style."
"Yeah, she always liked to play with my hair and put it up like that."
Serena returned a few minutes later and Azurine gasped. The young witch wore a sky blue witch's robe and had her hair tied in a simple ponytail. Except for the red streak of hair and the tiny belly, she was the spitting image of Sarah. They even owned the same color robe.
Azurine turned to Sadie. "You don't think that she's…"
"Sarah's pre-incarnation?"
"Yea, but never complete my sentence again. That was creepy."
"Right." Sadie smirked.
Serena bobbed her head. "Sorry about that. Rose warned me that I should be dressed formally."
Sadie started at the sound of Rose's name. "Serena! YOU refer to her by her first name?"
"Oh," she gasped, placing her fingers to her lips. "I'm sorry. That's right, I must use her formal name in front of others. You see, Ro…I mean, the Head Witch has been like a mother to me, so I've gotten to the point where she let's me call her by name…when no one else can hear, that is. Forgive me."
"It's alright. We all make mistakes," Azurine assured her.
Serena smiled. "So, you're Sade's daughter, the hybrid." Azurine was shocked at her bluntness, but the girl continued. "It's nice to meet you. I suppose you'd like to know what's going to happen at council, yes?"
"Uh, yes I would."
"Right, we basically discuss problems going on in the country and decide if we should intervene or not. We also place new members, discuss any omens we've seen, blah-dy-blah. A whole bunch of boring stuff, if you ask me."
"I don't know any of those things!"
"Don't worry. You learn as you go. I didn't know anything when I first joined. Your tests are more answers of the heart, common sense, and such. It's nothing you can study for. Just do your best."
"Thanks."
The next few days were filled with discussions, tests and rituals. Azurine passed her tests easily and, being Sade's daughter, everyone forfeited the fighting competitions. Serena didn't care to fight unless she was directly challenged, which Azurine was smart enough to avoid. Her fight with Rose only lasted a minute before Azurine was out, such was the power of the Head. So, Azurine remained in second rank, the rank her mother had been in.
One week later, on the last day of council, Azurine brought up a delicate topic. During a discussion involving current threats, Azurine asked about Naraku. "Don't you think something should be done about him? If we're talking about threats, I'd say he's number one."
The others shifted uncomfortably until Serena spoke up. "We've tried, many times. However, he's much too powerful for us and we can never track him. We may be witches, but we're only human. We don't have heightened senses like demons so it's almost impossible to find him. We've decided to steer clear of him." She looked slightly disappointed and her tone hinted at contempt. Obviously, when 'we' decided, Serena hadn't been one of those in favor.
The discussion was left at that and council finished up for the day and the year. All that was left was the ceremony to close up the council proceedings and then they were all free to go. It being still early, Sadie and Azurine decided to set off for home.
They had only gone a little way when they heard a shout from behind them. Turning, they found Serena running towards them. She had a bag that looked as if it had been packed in a hurry, and not very neatly, slung over her shoulder. The two girls seemed concerned.
"What's wrong, Serena?" Azurine asked.
Once she caught up to them and stopped a moment to breathe, she looked at them and smiled. "Can I come with you?"
"Uh…" Azurine looked at Sadie who shrugged. Serena made the pouty face that Sarah was famous for. Azurine laughed and said, "Don't even bother. Sarah gets me every time with that face so I know it's no use to resist it. Besides, I have no problem with you coming along."
The weepy look dissolved instantly from Serena's face and split into a wide smile. "Yay!"
In the midst of the woods, Serena paused, mid-sentence, and listened intently. "Someone's following us."
Sadie nodded. "I feel it, too. Let's keep going. Serena, get on the other side of Azurine. We need to protect her baby." Azurine rolled her eyes, hating the extra protection.
Moving into position, Serena listened again. "It's a wolf demon. I can tell by his gait…" Just then, the same demon they had been sensing jumped from the tree he had been perched in and landed directly in front of them.
"Hi, Koga," Azurine said flatly, walking past him.
"Oh, it's you," he sneered. "And I thought I smelled a real witch."
"Ka-hem," Sadie coughed. "Azurine is a real witch, as am I."
"Well, that's too bad. A witch killed most of my pack a while ago."
"Uh-huh." Azurine walked past, ignoring him.
He fought down his anger and continued. "But, no, I felt someone stronger than the two of you, but…" He sniffed the air suddenly and turned to Serena. He sniffed right in front of her face and gasped. "It's you! You're the witch I smelled?"
Serena giggled and patted his head, just as she would a dog's. "That's right. Very good."
He pulled back sharply and growled at her. "What's the big idea? Who do you think you're talking to?"
Serena shrugged innocently. "I dunno. Who are you?"
"I am Koga, leader of the wolf demon tribe," he pronounced proudly.
"Oh, that's nice." She walked away and continued to walk with Azurine and Sadie.
"Witch! Get back here!" Koga shouted.
She turned around. "Yes?"
"Stop messing around!"
"Messing around?"
He growled angrily and, powered by his Shikon Shards, kicked out at Serena. Azurine and Sadie readied themselves to attack, but didn't even need to bother. The blow Koga struck would have made a small crater in the ground, but Serena simply raised a hand and knocked his foot away with ease.
She smiled. "Too slow."
Koga flipped and landed. He gaped at her and managed to croak out, "H-how'd you do that?"
"Simple. Come on guys, let's go."
The other girls, who'd never seen Koga's speed, had to be pulled away. "How'd he do that? How'd you do that?"
Koga followed behind them. "Witch! I'm not done with you! How did you do that?"
Serena turned around and glared at him. "I have a name. It's Serena."
"…And that's why Koga followed us home." Azurine finished explaining her adventure to Miroku when the girls arrived home several hours later.
"I have a feeling InuYasha's not going to be happy about this," he replied.
Serena ran in through the door at that moment, laughing her head off. "Shush!" she said through her giggling. "I'm hiding from Koga." She crouched down behind Azurine.
"Did he get you?" Azurine asked, laughing as well.
"Nope!" She stood abruptly and pointed to herself. "There's no way he'll get me!"
Right then, Sarah waddled herself into Azurine's house. "Hello, welcome home. Did you know that Koga is…" She paused when she spotted Serena. They were even more identical than Azurine had pictured. "Who are you?" she asked politely.
"That is Serena," Azurine explained. "She's third in the council and she housed us during our stay. Serena, this is my best friend, Sarah, also known as Tanpopo."
Serena bobbed into a bow. "Pleased to meet you."
Sarah bowed dumbly. "And I you, but." Here, she turned her focus to everyone. "Why is Koga here?"
"He followed us…Serena, actually. He's trying to hit her."
Right on cue, there was a crash and wood came spilling down in the midst of the group. When the dust cleared, Koga was standing there and tried to attack.
Dodging easily, Serena saluted her friends and rushed from the house, Koga at her heels. "Get back here, witch!"
"You're still too slow!" she yelled behind her.
Sarah looked at the hole in Azurine's ceiling. "Why does he want to hit Serena?"
"Because he can't."
"He must really be aggravated with her. He's not even paying attention to InuYasha." Sarah sighed. "If it's not one thing it's another."
Miroku went to sit beside Azurine, grazing his lips against her cheek. "By the way, we figured out a way to calm your morning sickness. We'll need to visit the future, though."
Azurine blushed, recalling their last visit to her own time. She leaned against Miroku and joined Sarah in staring at the new 'sky-light' Koga had made.
"Besides, you should see a doctor and check how far along you are."
"Well, it can't be more than a month."
Meanwhile, Koga was still trying to catch up to Serena.
"I'm gonna kill you when I get my hands on you!"
"You have to catch me first!"
The two came to a clearing and Serena stopped, allowing Koga to catch up. Without a pause, he attacked viciously. The girl stepped aside and let him run past. He whipped around and punched at her face and she turned so that his fist went past her right ear. She grabbed his wrist and upper arm, and threw him over her shoulder. He landed with a thud, sending up a cloud of dirt.
Looking down at him she laughed. "Are you quite done?"
He jumped to his feet and glared, ready to strike again, but gaped when Serena jumped in the air, landed on his head, and jumped off, running back to the village.
Just as Koga was about to finally catch up, he spotted Kagome and screeched to a stop. "Kagome!" He ran over to her and grasped her hands. "Did you miss me?"
"Oh, Koga! What are you doing here?"
Serena watched from a distance, head tilted to one side. "Are they a couple?"
Back in Azurine's house, the three were startled when they heard InuYasha's voice ringing through the town. "What is that flea-bitten wolf doing here!"
"Oh, no." Sarah grasped her head. "InuYasha found Koga. We'd best stay in…"
She was cut short when InuYasha barged in, carrying a bored looking Kagome under his arm. She propped her chin in one hand. Koga followed closely behind. Serena came in last.
"You mangy mutt!" Koga cried. "How dare you handle Kagome so carelessly? Kagome, how can you bear to stay here with him? Don't you see you belong with me?" he pleaded.
After the two men had argued for a while longer, Serena whispered in Azurine's ear. The two witches giggled and stood. Azurine went over to InuYasha and Serena to Koga. They each poked their respective demon just below the forehead, on the bridge of the nose, and said 'Silence.'
Both Koga and InuYasha's mouths opened and closed, but no sound came out.
"I wish I could do that," Kagome muttered, staring at the girls in awe. "It'd be nice to shut him up sometimes."
Azurine smiled and was about to reply when a shadow fell across her. InuYasha was looming over her, glaring intently.
"Oh, don't stare, InuYasha," Serena warned. "I can do worse, much worse…and don't even think about it, Koga. I can hear you." She turned to him and found he had only gotten two or three feet from his original spot. Koga soundlessly sighed. Serena smiled and touched his forehead again, uttering 'Release.'
He tested his voice once or twice and looked at Serena. She smiled warmly at him and he paused in his fuming. Her smile…so…
"…I'm going to beat you. Just wait," he mumbled.
"Not today, my friend." Serena giggled as Koga sat in a corner and fumed. "And don't forget, you still have to fix that hole you made in Azurine's ceiling."
Koga tied to look menacing, but ended up pouting childishly. However, the roof was repaired by nightfall.
Chapter End
Bean: I think it's time for a rant. A rant about Yukito. Poor kid. I felt so bad killing him off; I had to bring him back. As a side note, his little sister, Aiko, is not brought back into the story, but so you know, Cain had kidnapped her. Yup.
Chibi: There ya go! Hope you like Serena. She'll be around for a long time. Um, I'd like to tell you what happens next, but Bean has yetto give me more of the fic so I dont' have anything to reference off of. Sorry! Just tune in to find out. Bai-bai!