And now present the next installment of my story!
Did you people find the variety of the 'hiding places in the story to be interesting? I just thought that a person should have lots of places in which to sit and not be bothered. Goodness knows I'd love to have a few places like that. Just to be in a place that no one could find me is my idea of paradise. Until I get hungry, that is, because it is totally impossible for me to enjoy something if I feel hungry. Partially because I'm hypoglycemic, and partially because I have the attention span of a five-year-old. There may be other contributors, but I have yet to identify them at the moment.
When you have finished reading, please review!
Singing to the Wind
Chapter 9
Pack Animals
It was a mask. An animal mask, to be exact. Hikari had never seen such an animal, so in reality, she shouldn't have been able to identify it. However, since part of her mind was inexplicably trained on the future, she quickly came to a conclusion.
"What's a monkey mask doing in the middle of a mountain peak? Monkeys don't live anywhere near here."
As she mused to herself, she began to notice that the wind outside was picking up, and the light was flickering with an ever-growing speed as the plants on the peak swayed in the air currents.
Hikari's head snapped up, suddenly knowing that someone- or quite possibly something- was coming towards her hideaway. At a speed no normal thing should be able to achieve. Normal meaning human, of course. She had no idea what a youkai would be able to do, having had so little contact with them.
As unexpectedly as the wind had come, it dissipated, leaving the fiery-haired girl dazed and confused. She stood quietly, facing the hollow's entry with an expression that most modern day adults would find eerie, her eyes wide and solemn.
A figure with black hair, piercing blue eyes, and a furry headband poked his head through the hole. "Naraku," he growled, then took notice of Hikari. "So we meet again."
The girl cocked her head and quirked and eyebrow. "I've never met you," she answered simply, without quipping. Somehow, that didn't seem to appease the intruder. He, in the blink of an eye, slipped into the hollow, down the steps, and to where Hikari was standing, picking her up by the throat and holding her against the wall. Hikari being Hikari, of course, she responded to that maneuver by giggling. "That tickles!"
She should have figured that the demon holding her up wasn't amused. He only seemed to growl louder. "I have waited so long for this, Naraku. For the chance to kill you. Your pitiful wind witch killed many of my tribe, and now I will kill you!" He reared back his hand, grinning devilishly. "Any last words? I'd hate to have to not let you have a say in your own death, you despicable bastard," he said.
She looked at his furs, and something seemed to click in her head. "You're a wolfie, aren't you? We had a wolf in the forest once, but I caught him trying to hurt one of my rabbits, so I'm afraid I kind of singed his tail. I really didn't mean to, but Annabelle was so scared, so I kind of stopped thinking, and honestly, do you not have a nose, wolfie-boy?" That last string of speech had taken on a rather indignant tone of voice.
The demon appeared more than slightly puzzled at the multitude of words that had just spouted forth from her mouth, and hesitated. The gears in his head began to crank at last, and he cautiously formed a reply. "Are you sure you're not Naraku? How do I know you aren't one of his incarnations, luring me away, or perhaps another form of his?"
Hikari sighed. It was going to take more than a simple claim of innocence to convince this one. Maybe some random words would help the situation. "Purple pansies hate big boots," she chirped, as a way of telling the wolf that she wasn't lying at all. "From what you keep saying about that Naraku guy, I think he wouldn't say something like that. Or one of his flowers."
The demon blanched. "Incarnations," he muttered.
Hikari nodded, prying his hand away from her small neck. "Right, his flowers. Or does 'incarnation' mean something else? It's so hard to tell these days," she sighed once again.
At that point, the demon's clutch on her throat loosened enough for her to plop back down to the ground on her nimble feet. However, he was still wary. "Who are you, if not Naraku or one of his acolytes?"
Hikari smiled brightly up at him. "I'm Hikari. I live here. Well, not here exactly, I live on a nearby mountain. This is one of my playing spots. All of these mountains are my home, actually. There's a valley in which a small village lives." Her statements, while slightly nonsequitor, still made enough sense to the demon.
"I'm Kouga," the wolf stated unceremoniously. "I belong to the wolf demon tribe of the west. And if you aren't associated with Naraku, why can I smell him?"
Hikari sniffed her kimono sleeve, then scrunched up her face in obvious confusion. "Pardon," she asked. She certainly couldn't smell anything out of the ordinary.
"I smell him here. Him and his evil scent follow me wherever I go."
The redhead bit her lip while thinking. Then, it was as if a light bulb went on in her head. She turned around and picked something up. "Could it be this? I found it just before you got here." She held up the monkey mask for Kouga to see. It was mostly nondescript, with a gray face, and white fur around the face, it had two tiny triangular ears up on the top. The nose was long and had two large nostrils at the end of it. Kouga took it from her hands.
He sniffed, and then put his hand to his nose. "That's it all right. It reeks of him, which is probably why I was drawn to it. Why was it here?"
Hikari shrugged. "Like I'd know. I was just sitting here when I noticed something was different, so I dug, and that's what I found. I think someone may have come by and put it there while I was in the village. Sneaky stupid-head." She was surprised when Kouga didn't laugh. Most people found comments like that to be funny. But Kouga was concentrating on the mask.
"Dammit," he cursed, "I can't tell how long it's been since Naraku left this here. It's almost like he saturated it with his smell." He turned to her, holding out the mask again. "I have no further use for it."
The well-dressed young girl took it and studied it for a few moments, a far-off look on her face. "It's only been here an hour, but he's already long gone. He went back home after planting the mask."
This time it was Kouga's turn to be disbelieving. "How did you know that," he questioned.
She looked up at him. "The moth told me." Hikari pointed to a small moth on the cavern wall that Kouga could just barely see. "It said that there were bad waspy things with the man all in fur, and that he was talking to himself. I get the feeling like Naraku does that a lot."
Kouga tilted his head. "You talk to insects?"
Hikari became very scientific. "No, not at all. I communicate with almost every animal I've met, not just insects. They all have very interesting things to say, you know."
The demon turned away, looking to the entrance. "Doesn't matter, it's still creepy. We should get out of here. I don't like it in such tight spaces." He then proceeded to climb up the makeshift steps and out of the hole, Hikari following him.
They got outside, and Kouga stretched. He'd been rather cramped in the cavern, unlike his newfound companion, who was just small enough for it to be comfortable. He noticed after a few seconds that Hikari was looking out into the trees, and he sniffed the air.
"Don't worry," he said, "It's just Ginta and Hakkaku. They tend to be rather slow, and I often lose them when I'm chasing something. Of course, I travel in a twister, so I can hardly expect anything else."
Sure enough, a small time later, two other wolf demons trotted dejectedly out of the woods, breathing hard. The first one, a fellow with a blondish mohawk, pointed at Kouga and wheezed, "Kouga, you need to stop purposefully losing us like that!"
"Yeah," joined in the other, who had a black forelock in otherwise light gray hair. "What happens if something happens to you! We wouldn't get there in time, and you might die!"
Kouga smacked that one in the head. "Don't be stupid, Ginta, I'll fare better than you in any fight. And you, Hakkaku," He now turned to the other one now, "You'd do well to remember that too."
Both wolves whimpered under their leader's steely glare. Until, that is, their leader was suddenly on the ground, with a sizable lump forming on the back of his head. Then they finally took into consideration the young-looking girl dressed in a fairly noble kimono. They looked from her to Kouga, then back again, not knowing how to react. They hadn't seen anything touch the alpha wolf, yet he was on the ground, having been bonked hard on his skull.
"Hi," said the girl. "I'm Hikari. You can call my Hii-chan. He really shouldn't talk to you guys like that, should he?"
Abruptly, Kouga was up and angry again. "What do you care? Their part of MY pack, not yours! You aren't even a wolf, so stop telling us what to do!" he then spun around and crossed his arms in indignation. "Stupid wench," was added to the mix of insults. Which, of course, provoked an unexpected response from Hikari.
Kouga smelled salt, and turned back to see that she was sniffling. He hadn't wanted to make her cry. he had entirely expected her to just bop him on the head again, or storm off into the trees, but crying? Definitely not one of the top ten responses he was going for. It was possible that he would never become used to the girl's sudden mood swings.
"Now look what you did," muttered Hakkaku. "You made her cry 'cause you yelled at her. She's just a girl, even if she isn't human or one of us."
Kouga shot the two a warning glare, then refocused his attention to Hikari. "No, please don't cry," he tried, putting his hands on her shoulders and lowering himself until his eyes were on a level with hers. "Really, don't cry, please. I hate crying." Naturally, that worked about as well as a twig can hold up a boulder. Meaning, not at all. Hikari kept on sobbing in a hysterical way.
Now Ginta had two cents to put in. "Try apologizing. Maybe that'll help."
The wolf tribe leader once again glared at his subordinate. "You expect me to apologize? I don't do apologies!" This comment just seemed to make the girl cry even harder, so Kouga made the wise decision to swallow his pride for once. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Just, please! Don't cry. I'm sorry I hurt your feelings." Then he pulled her to him, giving her an inexperienced and slightly awkward hug. While doing this, he failed to see that Ginta and Hakkaku were trying to get his attention about something. Not that him noticing would have help at all...
WHACK! He was smacked over the head again, and started seeing stars, with little chirping birds flying around his head. Hikari stood there with a giant hammer, smiling happily.
"Serves you right! You shouldn't make little girls cry," she pronounced energetically. She was even bouncng around a little bit, too.
"Why you little," Kouga growled from his position in the grass. He got up as fast as he could (which is pretty fast, mind you), and began chasing Hikari around the clearing, her giggling all the way. "Get back here! I'll get you," he yelled.
Ginta looked to Hakkaku. "Do you get the feeling like Kouga may just have met his match?"
The other wolf nodded. "Hii-chan seems to be the perfect person to keep Kouga in check. Other than Kagome and Ayame onee-chan, she has the most energy I've ever seen." He thought for a moment, then added, "Scratch that, actually. She IS the most energetic girl I've met."
Ginta concurred. "I'd have to go with you on that one." A moment of light silence followed.
Hakkaku perked up at a random thought. "Two fish says that she comes out, mock crying again."
His friend smirked. "No way. She's gonna be dragging his ass out of the forest for sure."
"So it's a bet?"
"Heck yes!" They shook on it. Neither one of them thought about the fact that they were kind of insulting their leader. They were too wrapped up in the prospect of fish. Yum.
Three minutes later, Ginta won the bet, as Hikari skipped out of the trees, a ground bound Kouga being clutched by the tail. It was apparent that he was mostly unconsious, judging by the way the grass stains were accumulating on his face. And by the way that he wasn't making the least attempt to get out of the situation.
"Just take him home," she said. "I think he's had enough fun for today, don't you?" Neither wolf answered, so she took it as a yes when the mohawk one- or, rather, Hakkaku- slung Kouga on his back. Before they could run away, however, she posed a question. "Can I come with you? I mean, you probably live near, and I think it would be a better idea for me to come along, since Kouga is kind of not in the mood to fight, right now."
The idea seemed reasonable enough to them. "Sure, Hii-chan," Ginta chirruped. He liked Hikari's company already. She seemed to be one of those characters that were helpful to a fault, but would certainly be of use in a fight. She was an easygoing person, and very amiable, that was plain to see. Ginta was sure that any other member of the wolf demon tribe would most definitely agree with him.
Now that he thought about it, he realized that Hikari was very much like Kagome onee-chan with her personality. Happy, caring, and a fierce defender. He probably shouldn't tell Kouga that, though. He'd get annoyed for no apparent reason, and most likely it would come to blows.
Within the hour, they made it back to the caves, which were just east enough to not be in the lands of Lord Sesshomaru, though Hikari didn't really realize it. She'd pretty much forgotten about him, though she'd met him only that day. She was a girl of many words and little attention span, you see. As another way of saying it, everything she heard went in one ear, and out the other. If she was lucky, her brain would photocopy it, but it'd be stored in some dusty corner of her mind until the time came for it to be used. Much later, for sure.
The group was immediately greeted by a handful of wolves and several small demon cubs. Seeing that Ginta and Hakkaku weren't threatened by Hikari's presence, they all welcomed the newcomer. A wolf cub licked her hand, then got down, with his tail wagging high up in the air. He obviously wanted to play.
"Okay, little one, I'll play," Hikari cooed. She conjured a ball, which startled all the adults, both canine and demonic, but the children thought it was cool. She threw the ball past the small cub, and giggled in delight as she saw six others join in the chase. "Kawaii," she sighed. The little ones were always so unbearably cute and adorable.
"Who are you," said a sharp voice. Hikari spun to see a wolf girl, taller than her, with hair just as red, tied up into pigtails, and complimented by emerald orbs. She was wearing a chest plate similar to Kouga, but had white fur and accenting instead of brown. She also wore a white cape. And a very distrusting look upon her face. For which Hikari could find no definite cause. She hadn't done anything to make anyone hate her here.
"I won't ask again," the girl snapped. Hikari stared up at her, with wide eyes and an innocent look, while probing into the demoness's mind. Then she outright grinned.
"I'm Hikari. I live a ways east, in a valley that is between several large mountains. I was born twice, my hair color is three shades darker than yours, I have blue eyes, and I like to eat and sing. Is that enough information?" Needless to say, the other redhead was struck rather speechless. This girl, Hikari, had told her both of the things she'd wanted to know, and some things she never would have thought to ask of. Most people who did that were either being fresh or being stupid. It was possible that this girl was being a combination of the both. Not unheard of in the world.
"I suppose that's enough," the demoness mumbled, trying to cover. "I'm Ayame, by the way. I'm the wolf princess from the northern tribe. And Kouga's fiancee." She almost expected Hikari to be at least surprised, but all that was evident was intrigue on the small girl's face.
"Well, I haven't known him for that long, so I wouldn't really know if he would be engaged or not. I only met him a little over an hour ago. He found my hiding space, you see," she explained, as if that would answer any questions.
Ayame led Hikari over to a bench that was carved into the rock face. It was smooth and gray, with no embellishments. "Why was he there? In your hiding place, I mean."
Hikari stared after the children and the cubs, wistfully smiling. "Some weird evil dude named Naraku left a monkey mask in there, and Kouga said he smelled it. He thought I was Naraku at first."
Ayame caught her breath. "Wait- Naraku? He was near your home? He practically sets you up to get killed, and all you can say about him was that he's 'some weird evil dude,' who left a mask in your hiding place? Don't you know how dangerous he is?"
Hikari shrugged, looking right into Ayame's eyes. "I don't know him enough to hate him, although when Kouga was threatening me, he said that Naraku had killed half his tribe, I just can't help it. I need to see and hear a person speak before I can really despise them. It's the way I am."
Ayame snorted softly. "Well, you're a lot more generous than I am. If Kouga would let me go on his missions, then I'd surely tear the bastard to pieces." Her voice was filled with unexpressed anger and hate.
The smaller girl looked away again. "As soon as I meet him, I might just do the same." Her words lacked the fervor of the wolf princess.
Hikari's new companion studied her closely, marveling at how she could act so old and look so young. Then, another question came to mind.
"How old are you," she asked.
Hikari turned back to Ayame and grinned wholeheartedly. "Four hundred and ninety-seven, give a few months."
Ayame laughed. "No, really," she pleaded, "How old."
The more childish female among the two nodded. "Really? Four hundred and ninety-seven, give a few months."
The wolf's jaw dropped impossibly. "But... You look so... little," she staggered.
Hikari simply shrugged. "It's the way I am. I haven't grown since I was twelve."
Ayame looked away, totally stunned. "Nobody in the pack is anywhere near that age. My grandpa was, but he isn't alive anymore."
The other girl looked to the ground. "Sorry to hear that." Her voice was very sincere. She turned her head to the sky. "What's a pack," she asked suddenly.
The question very much took the wolf off guard. "It's what wolves travel in. Or, rather, it's a group."
Hikari smiled. "A pack of wolves." she giggled once, then said to herself. "I'd never be able to travel in a pack."
Ayame scrunched her nose. "Why not?"
Blue eyes glinted. "Wolves can't fly."
Hikari- Ah, another wonderful cliffhanger. I probably won't continue with the same day, because it's getting a little too packed for me. I think any more would cause a timeline confusion. But don't worry, You'll know how much later the story continues on. And the next chapter is seriously lengthy. And still going. It'll be a while before I'm able to post it. In the meantime, enjoy this public service announcement.
Commercial man- Have you been feeling depressed lately? Are you down on your luck? Then you need-
Hikari- Whoops, that was the commercial channel. I'll put it on the actual announcement.
Man- Every year, almost all the people on the face of the earth will experience a severe and sometimes crippling occurance. A thing that could kill you, if it happens at the wrong time. A thing called-
Hikari- What is it, random man?
Man- Stupidity.
Hikari- Aah! Noo! Not stupidity!
Man- Do not fear, gentle people of America. While there is no cure, you can still prevent stupidity. Just use these steps.
Hikari- What are they?
Man- One- whenever you witness stupidity, the best policy is bringing it to everybody's attention. You can do this by either asking if the person suspected to be inflicted actually did the thing you think you saw them do. This will make everybody think about what they saw. And then, they will likely not follow in the person's example. You could also say that the person committing the 'stupid' act is in fact, 'stupid'. Many will agree, and the stupidity will be halted.
Hikari- What else can I do?
Man- The second action would be to partake in an action called 'video gaming'. It is a cleverly disguised activity that leads all others to believe you are wasting away brain cells, when you are, in fact, honing your reflexes. Some of the better games are ones that require quick thinking, and ones that you can't pause in the middle of something. Games such as Dance Dance Revolution (there are seven versions of this- I suggest Max 2 or Extreme.) or Pong. Sometimes, the oldies are the best ones. These will sharpen reaction time, preventing moments of 'stupidity'.
Hikari- Thank goodness- I have DDR!
Man- However, if you stay up all night, doing these, then the likelihood that you will do something 'stupid' actually increases. Lack of sleep causes deep exhaustion, which can lead to a judgement lapse, and eventually to 'stupidity'. So eat right, get plenty of sleep, game, and criticize, my friends, procrastinate as much as possible. Others may view you as cynical, but you will be preventing stupidity from spreading.
Hikari- Well, that makes me feel much better. I can now prevent it from passing on to me!
Random person in background- Are you talking to youself? That's not healthy.
Hikari- No, you idiot, I'm talking to my audience! Learn to tell the difference! You are undoubtedly stupid!
Randon person in background- Um... ok. I'll be going now.
Hikari- Bye, then! Please review!
