wrote this up and decided I may as well post this now so there's more to work with and expect with this story. I haven't written something other people would see for a while and no one is beta reading this so bear with me! Point out mistakes and I'll fix them ASAP.
eventually this rating may change to m NOT because of sexual content but because of the violence and swearing. I'm going to make characters say fuck, but not excessively. We'll see. I'm trying my best to make sure characters are not ooc while also allowing myself room to develop them for this story. Nothing too off the walls though!
I hope you have fun reading this passion project.
[2. paradisus]
There's something strange in the air and Sai can sense it; on the way to their destination, there wasn't a single sign of life in the area. Everything was alarmingly quiet in the mountain pass they were taking save for the crunch of the pebbles under their feet. Sai huffs and looks around them, glancing up at Nana flying overhead. A shadow passes over the sun and Nana cries out in warning, diving down to their shoulder.
"It seems we have guests," they sigh. "Let's deal with them swiftly."
Nana lets out an angry screech and transforms in a mess of feathers as Sai leaps into the sky.
Kagome stands with her back to a cliff staring down a very angry pack of wolf demons. They're snarling and pointing their weapons at her and she has no way to defend herself. She can't very well jump off the cliff, especially with no one to catch her! Shippo is already too far gone for that to be a choice.
"I'll eat you alive!" One snarls, taking a step closer. This is it, all of the things she's been through and this is how she finally dies.
A severed wing from one of those things suddenly swings around and slams into the wolves from above and Kagome can do nothing but watch in shock.
"Hey," her savior says, "have you stooped so low as to resort to ganging up on a single human girl?" They put their hand on their hip and extend the other arm for a corpse crow to land gently on it. It's a lot to take in.
They stand mostly obscured by a feather mantle, the only things Kagome can really pick out is the dark hair, bones around their neck and—
A jewel shard inside one of the bones!
"Who are you!?" Kagome is yanked back to the present by the wolves shoving the wing off of them and now turning their weapons on the strange visitor.
They raise a brow and snort, taking a few steps forward. "A friend. Where's Koga?" At that, the body of a boar drops down onto one of the wolves and everyone looks up to where it came from.
"What did I say about eating her, huh?" The wolf in question calls down. "I warned you!" The demons below stutter and look around nervously, Koga not seeming to have paid any mind to the stranger.
A burst of laughter erases much of the tension as the attention is once again turned towards the stranger. "Koga!" They shout, "You haven't changed a bit since the last time I saw you." In a move that shocks Kagome, their feather mantle extends as if they were wings and grants them a burst upwards letting them practically fly upwards to the cliff where Koga is standing.
Koga is confused for a moment before his face lights up. "Sai! It's been so long since we've seen each other. What brings you here?" The stranger—Sai's face goes dark and they shake their head.
"We need to talk. You have a pest problem and I would like to sit somewhere that isn't a damp hole for once."
Sai takes in the state of the pack as they walk through the den to a more private area to talk. There aren't very many of them, but they remember Koga specifically claiming one for himself should he ever need it. "Your numbers have dwindled," they state, eyes focused on the injured being tended to.
"You've seen those birds," Koga huffs, "one of them has a shard of the Sacred Jewel."
Sai stiffens, something that didn't go unnoticed, and shakes their head. "Surely a single shard isn't able to amplify a demon's abilities that much."
Koga once again huffs and shakes his head, motioning to the alcove they've come to covered by animal pelt. They step inside and he sits, telling Sai and the strange girl they saved to do the same. "It took out fifty of our wolves in one sweep. Trust me, this thing is no joke."
Sai sucks in a sharp breath. So many of them? "Fifty? I'm so sorry, Koga. I didn't realize that the shards were so powerful." They grasp at the bones around their neck, the fang their father gave them practically screaming.
"Ha! It'll be just fine. After all," he throws his arm around the girl next to him, "I just found myself someone who can see the shards. When I get my hands on that bird, I'm going to tear it apart piece by feathery piece."
Sai locks their eyes on the girl, humming softly. "Is that so? That's very useful indeed. To add to your benefits, I would be willing to take some of these pests out myself. They had the audacity to try and swipe up Nana." Sai grimaces, scratching at Nana's chin, demon bird cooing in response. "You know how I feel about my crows."
"You'd really do that for us? Hey, what does your father even think about you being all the way over here, he's usually much more strict." Koga leans forward in interest and asks so genuinely that Sai can't bring themselves to tell the truth.
They chuckle and smile. "I promise you Father won't be on your doorstep with his entire guard in the morning. His opinion isn't my concern right now." And they aren't lying necessarily, just not saying everything they could.
Koga grins, sharp and feral, and gets to his feet. "Wait until I tell everyone that I got a crow demon to work with us. They'll never believe it! I have some things to get to, so I guess we'll catch up later." He looks at the girl sitting on the floor. "Come on."
Sai doesn't know what makes them speak up. "I can keep an eye on her," they offer with a small smile. "I would watch the fledglings at home all the time, you know this." Koga nods and pulls back the pelts, then he's gone.
"I'm not a fledgling," the girl says, fists clenched, "I'm a human. And my name is Kagome!" Her hair is dark and her clothes are… strange. They smell of something wrong but Sai can't place it.
"And you already know my name is Sai. I'm not a fledgling either, I'm a fully grown crow demon," they offer as a sort of olive branch. They don't want Kagome to fear them. "You also know that I have a shard of the Sacred Jewel. I would appreciate it if you said nothing to Koga about it."
"Why not?"
Sai raises a brow. "Humans ask the most riveting questions," they joke. "It's best he doesn't know. He feels stronger than ever, does he have shards in his possession?" At Kagome's nod, Sai curses under their breath. Using the shards for power, does Koga have a death wish?
"In his legs," Kagome says reluctantly, "and one in his arm." Sai thinks that she's only telling them this because she's afraid they'll eat her.
"Well." Sai leans back against the cool wall and closes their eyes. "I suppose all we can do now is wait."
[2. paradisus | end]