Her everything hurt, but that wasn't the thing that got her attention first. The thing that dragged the woman into full awareness wasn't the feeling of grass tickling her nose. It wasn't the air that smelled so different than the smog she was used to. It was the sound of breathing - heavy and loud in the space above her. Eyes snapping open, she found herself staring into the wide, red eyes of a furry blue demon that looked almost like a horse... or maybe a llama.
Kagome shifted her grip slowly towards her left, feeling the hum from her bow and reached for it. She wasn't going to just go ham and shoot everything in sight, but she wasn't exactly going to stay down and wait for it to eat her. Fingers touched the wood, but the demon above her had moved away, head lowering to graze on the grass instead, having found her not at all interesting. Slowly, she got to her feet and winced at the pain in her back before looking around. What the woman found had her heart stuttering in her breast.
She was back.. Returned to the feudal era! For a heart stopping moment, she wanted to cheer, to get to her feet and run back to Kaede's village. But, the fact that there was a demon standing in the field gave her pause. Kagome climbed to her feet, dusting her hakama off and readjusting her quiver of arrows, taking the time to look around.
The field was much changed from what she was used to. Where once there had been a wide open area of wildflowers and grass surrounded by trees with the well in the center... there was scars dug into the landscape. She recognized the damage from Inuyasha's windscar immediately - but when she ran to inspect one of the deep claw like gouges in the terrain, there was moss and grass already growing in it. Kagome swallowed past the lump in her throat, her stomach doing flips as she worried about this. If the windscar had healed over already.. how long ago had it been unleashed?
Turning back to the trees, she saw that many were broken, as if large objects had been thrown into or come out of the forests. Kagome felt tears prickling at the edges of her eyes as she walked to the limit of the clearing and rested her hand on the bark of a fallen tree. The trees in "Inuyasha's Forest" were old, and easily wide enough she couldn't get her arms around them.. That five people couldn't get their arms around them. To see them crashed over like this broke her heart. The wind was gentle, and as she took in her surroundings, she could see the blue horse like demon grazing in the meadow, right next to the scars from Inuyasha's attack.
What she didn't see was the well. Eyes widening, she ran to where she knew the well to be, her feet crashing through old, rotten debris and grass that was as tall as her knee. It was a mound of rubble when she found it, and digging only proved that this had been done a long time ago. But, if that was the case, then how was she back here? Was it because her side of the well worked and the other didn't? That was a question for another day, something to file away for later. The most predominant question was.. What had happened here? And where where her friends?
The stiffness in her back had subsided with the flood of adrenaline at seeing the meadow like this, and she found that she could run without much pain. The red and white clad woman ran through the forest, slinging her bow back across her chest and following much changed landmarks, but a forest that was familiar all the same. One thing she noticed is that she was woefully out of breath, and was gasping for air by the time she made the last ring of trees.
Kagome had noticed that the forest was much the same as the meadow on her run through. Broken trunks, and fallen trees everywhere. Many of the trees had moss growing on the tops of them, a telltale sign that they had been there for a long time - maybe as much as the Windscar gouges in the ground had been. Pausing just beyond the last row of trees, she paused, lowering her hands to her knees and bending over to try to catch her breath. It wouldn't exactly do to come crashing headlong out of the forest dressed as she was.
It was strange though, as she focused on her breathing, inhaling through her nose and forcing it through her mouth... she noticed that there wasn't the normal sounds she would hear from the village. At this time of day, Kagome expected to hear people talking as they worked the fields, or smell smoke from the huts.. but she didn't notice either. Straightening and gathering her nerves - nerves that wanted to eek into another panic attack at thoughts the woman refused to listen to, she stepped forwards.
Not three steps later, a crashing came from her right and she was forced to throw herself forwards with a rather high pitched scream of terror. Behind her came the slashing claws of a demon that she only caught a glimpse of pale flesh before it came at her again. Scrambling to her feet, she did run this time, and ran for her life. Breaking through the trees into what SHOULD have been a rice field, she had a only a moment to notice that the ground wasn't wet.. Nor was it a field. Well, technically, it WAS a field, a field of debris and grass with wildflowers having taken over.
What...? Having no time to finish that thought, Kagome felt the ground give beneath her as the demon slammed its hand into the ground right at her feet and she found herself propelled forwards, landing with enough force that she had to roll to get stopped. "Ouch..." Groaning, she got to her hands and knees, holding out her hand as if to stop the demon from charging her. Power gathered in her palm, much like it had with Mistress Centipede and she had time to scramble back to her feet and draw her bow back to her cheek, arrow aimed at the demon.
It was writhing in pain on the ground, one arm and part of its shoulder disintegrated and pouring some sickly green substance she could only assume was blood. "Noooo! It's mine... It'ssss miine it'sss miiniinneee!" The screaming of the demon was pitiful, or it would be if the thing hadn't tried to kill her. Kagome took a few steps backwards, firming her stance and staring at the snake like demon. Nagas.. it reminded her of Naga's from lore.. except it only had two arms. The face was very spider like though and she had to repress a shiver.
"What's yours?" Maybe if she could figure out what the thing wanted, she could get it to go on its way. Not like the demon had any jewel shards, and if it left her alone after a warning shot, she wouldn't chase it down like some kind of barbarian.
"Foresst.. ITS MINE!" The demon lunged, screaming at her with the remaining arm as jaws opened to reveal fangs that dripped with a green fluid that she did not want touching her. Kagome wasn't sure WHY she didn't want it touching her, but she didn't. Maybe that's because it reminded her of Sesshomaru and his poison. Lurching to the side, she felt her sleeve catch on a rock and rip, the sharp burn telling her she also caught her forearm on the same rock.
"Where's the people here?! Where's Inuyasha!?" She planted her feet again, sending an arrow to the ground in between the demon and herself. Raven hair whipped around her as did the clothing, her blood staining the white sleeve of the haori. "Tell me right now, demon!" To her, her voice sounded harsh, barky, afraid. What had happened to everyone?
The laugh that tumbled from the lips of the demon as it paused, cowering behind the holy light of the arrow made her hair stand up along her arms. "I ate them!" Cold fingers seemed to grasp her heart and she froze, eyes widening before the arrow was leaving her fingers. For a split second, she wanted it to die, she wanted it to suffer, and in those few seconds before her conscious mind caught up, the arrow was flying.
There was a short scream, then the demon was gone, disintegrated to ash and she sank to her knees, tears pouring down her face. "No... I ... I didn't mean it." Kagome hadn't intended to kill the demon, she would have let it live.. but her own inner desires sent her to letting the arrow fly with malice in her heart. A malice born not of a need to protect herself or others, but a malice of revenge. It almost hurt, it made her feel almost like she couldn't breathe.
Hands shaking, she reseated her bow and stayed kneeling, forcing air into her lungs in great, heaving gasps. "Get up, you can't stay here. Come on, don't be a baby." The words were spoken to herself as she often did now, and forced herself to her feet. Knees wobbled, but then her legs firmed and she went to collect her arrows. Without knowing what had happened to the village, Kagome wasn't going to waste them, even if her hand shook to collect the second arrow she had fired. The one that had purified the demon without warning.
Pressing onwards, Kagome took the time to look around the fields, seeing details she had missed before. There were more claw like gouges in the earth, and she could see that it had been some time since they had happened. Large hill like mounds of grass and tall weeds she came to realize were houses.. Reclaimed by nature. Kagome felt the heat of tears across her cheeks once again and started to work her way through the village she had come to know so well. Huts had been flattened, reclaimed by grass.
The edge of the village, leading to the north had her frozen when she saw the posts hammered into the ground. Heart seizing once again, she made her way slowly towards the rows of flower covered graves. There were over a dozen at first glance, and she was terrified that among them her friends would be resting. Kagome trailed her fingers over the first post at the end of the row and knelt behind it at the head of the grave. Hands coming together, she said a mental prayer for the name carved into the shaft. Himiko Runigawa. A name she assumed was a female, but not a name she was familiar with.
The priestess made her way down the row, trailing her fingers over the carved names before kneeling to say a prayer - to wish their souls find peace. Kitsiga Hoshuro. Ruminako Kusutori. Kimimara Kanitagi. Rikichi Kamitawa. This name had her bowing low to the post with his name, hands cupped under her chest. "Rikichi... thank you for your help with Kaede.. I hope you find peace wherever you are, please forgive me for not being here." She had met the man multiple times during her original adventure... and knowing that he had died in whatever had caused the village to fall cut deeply.. Even if she didn't know him well, Kaede respected him, and he often helped her.
The names carved on these posts were ones she didn't recognize well, but there was one that had her once more prostrate on the ground, shoulders heaving as she cried. "Kaede...I'm so sorry." Kagome couldn't breathe, she couldn't think, she wouldn't have been able to move had something come up with the intention of killing her. Finding out her mentor had been killed in whatever this was felt like her heart was ripped from her chest once more. It took time, what felt like hours to get herself back together.
Kagome was tired of being a crybaby.. of giving in to her fears and anxieties, of letting her sorrows rule her. Wiping her face on the unbloodied sleeve of her haori, the priestess got to her feet and lovingly caressed the worn smooth post. "Kaede... I'll find out what did this...Find peace with your sister... I hope you two reincarnate together again." She noted that the post, unlike many of the others was smooth on the top, worn into a soft curved shape. How often had someone come and run their hand over it? And where were they? Was it Inuyasha? Sango or Miroku? Shippo wasn't tall enough she didn't think.
Turning from the graves, she gathered flowers together into a boquet and stipped off a piece of her hair ribbon with the head of an arrow, using it to tie the flowers together. Kagome settled them at the head of Kaede's grave, tucking it against the wooden post and pressing an arrow into the ground beside the post, away from the grave mound, and putting the flowers upright. "I miss you, Kaede... Thank you.. for everything." Folding her hands together once more, Kagome bent at the waist and bowed to the grave before she gathered her bow and quiver once again to start heading north.
She stopped at the crest of the hill to turn and look back at the remnants of the village, one hand holding the string of her bow, and the other holding the blowing hair back so she could see. Kagome had to admit that the village was pretty this way, if it didn't hold such memories.. She smiled, looking up at the sun and debating simply staying overnight in one of the remaining overgrown huts. It had merit, but she didn't want to live in the ghost of someones home and tarnish the legacy left there... So she continued on.
One thing that Kagome was learning as she walked was that she had grown complacent and soft in her time back home. Her feet had lost the calluses that came from walking everywhere, and even so, she didn't exactly have time to bring anything with her. There had been no sign of her bike in the village, but then again, she doubted that it would have remained. Probably rusted away, or taken somewhere by someone who didn't know what it was. Walking would be her preferred method of travel, she supposed.
It wasn't hot out, at least, merely warm, but the breeze helped to cool things down. It made the sweat cool almost as fast as it trickled down her face. Kagome found the silence both bothering and peaceful. Walking these roads made her think back to the travels with her companions. Inuyasha had been a constant since the beginning, and his gruff voice was never quiet it felt. Then Shippo came along, and it got exponentially louder. Then Miroku and Sango and that rounded out their group.
There hadn't been a day that went by that she wasn't talking to someone, but now, she had only herself and the ghosts of the past. Kagome kept to the side of the road as she walked, so as not to clog it up or get run down by a horse or something. These roads were hilly, and riders often came barreling down them in some form or fashion. Looking back at the sun and shading her eyes, she had to squint, the brightness watering her eyes. "I wonder what time it is...It would help if I could-aha!" She made her way to a bare patch of dirt off to the side and used her palms to scrape away the grass and leaves to make a flat, almost clean spot. "If I put this.. here.." She pulled an arrow and stabbed it head first into the dirt and tried to make it as straight as possible before getting up and backing away.
"Okay, so... I know it's afternoon.. which puts the shadow there..." She quickly drew short lines in the dirt with her fingers to try to guesstimate the four cardinal hours. "So... That makes it.. around three or four!" Pleased with herself, she plucked her arrow back and scrubbed the makeshift clock away with her sandal before continuing on her path. Three or four .. that meant that it was almost time for dinner, and boy was she starved! Having not had breakfast, and running around as she had, she hadn't noticed her hunger until she thought about it.
Just then, her stomach gave a mighty growl and it set her to laughing. "Allright, Allright.. Let's see what we can find." Kagome didn't have anything to fish with - unless she wanted to fire an arrow at a fish and race downstream to catch it.. But even then, the idea of gutting it made her shudder. Inuyasha had always gutted the food for them. A few bushes with summer berries caught her eye, so she snacked on a few of those to try to tide her stomach over for now.
Something was gnawing on the woman as she walked. Normally, these roads would have imprints in them from the last rainy day where carts with their animals had walked.. Hoofprints and wagon wheels.. Yet she saw none of those. It was as if the last rain had washed the road smooth.. Glancing back, she supposed it wouldn't be strange to not leave a footprint - she was leaving the barest of ones in the dust behind her. Still, it chewed on her anxiety and had her struggling to fight it off. Maybe here she could finally kick that stupid thing her body did when the first bit of bad news or worry took hold.
The sun started to track its way down the sky, and she still hadn't seen a single soul. Sure, there had been the occasional animal that darted across the gass and roads back into the forest, but people... no. Every so often, she would feel a tingle against her senses and wait tensly with arrow nocked to defend herself from whatever demon was passing by, but she went largely undisturbed. Only once had she had to defend herself, and a well placed arrow that exploded into a tree trunk sent it scurrying back into the bushes.
Kagome started to look for a place to rest, debating on trees - but she had never been one to sleep in a tree.. The problem was she didn't have anything with her for sleeping. Nothing to start a fire, nothing to cook with .. Nothing to sleep ON. Oh god, she'd have to sleep on the ground! The idea had her grumbling and mentally recoiling in terror of all the bugs. It was either find a place to bed down, or try to keep walking.
Her legs already hurt, and her feet were throbbing, so she guessed that it wasn't walking. With a sigh, Kagome started to look around for a few things she knew that she'd need. Dried twigs, brush that was brown or mostly brown, and a heavy rock were a few of the things she gathered. Finding a place that was backed up against a river bank, Kagome deposited her items and started to clear out a small spot for resting. The water nearby would be good to have, and if she could get her arrowhead and rock to spark against each other, she could potentially have a fire to cook something on.
Setting down to rest her feet, Kagome gathered her dry kindling together and drew an arrow, trying to spark it against the stone without luck. Fire making was something Inuyasha always did, or if she did, it was with a lighter. Never before had she cursed herself for NOT smoking but now she did.. because no matter how she sliced attempting this fire, she couldn't get the stuff to light! Maybe a magnifying glass, or a candle.. something! Frustrated with her own failures, the priestess sat with her back against the river bank, knowing that it was making her muddy, but she didn't care. The one thing she wasn't going to do was sleep with her back exposed. If she would sleep at all...