A/N: Yeah. I a funke right now, but I'm slowly getting my groove back! And my English teacher would be so proud with all the vocab words I'm using today. :)

Disclaimer: Don't own InuYasha or any of it characters.

Chapter 6: A New Traveling Companion

Whatever I did, I just couldn't seem to stay with the same group of people. I guess living in semi-isolation in the Forest of Souls has given me poor social skills. I was still storming through a lightly wooded area, when Haruki finally had enough of me dragging him around. "KAR-MI-NA!!" He whined loudly, struggling in my grasp, which caused me to stop.

"Oh, I'm sorry," I said calmly, although I really wasn't very sorry. My anger was still boiling. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"Y-you didn't," he seemed to be apologizing to me instead of the other way around.

His innocent red face caused me to calm my raging mind. "It seems you and I are very similar. I can hear water nearby. Let's get a drink." Without waiting for his consent, I continued down the trail I was storming through and soon met with a bubbling brook. I knelt down and brought the sweet water to my lips. The cool liquid trickling down my throat. I exhaled, satisfied. Then I turned to see Haruki drinking from the spring, like a young buck next to his mother fawn. The analogy made me smile softly which caused the shy deer to blush and hide his face.

"Can I call you Ha-chan?"

He looked at me, disgruntled and red. "Ha-chan? But that sounds so girly!"

I chuckled. "Yes, but it's fitting for you."

"Gee, thanks," he stuck out his lower lip sarcastically, but then smiled softly. "Call me whatever you wish."

I stood up and flicked my hair in a supercillious manner. "And you may call me Master Karmina, Queen of the Spirit World! No, all the worlds!"

Haruki gave a small gasp of surprise. "You're the queen of the Spirit world?!"

I bonked him on the head with my fist. "Of course not, you idiot! If I was, what would I be doing, wasting my time here? It was obviously a lie! Just call me Karmina."

He rubbed the lump that had formed on his head, but smiled in a cute, childish manner that nearly made me blush it was so cute. "Karmina then."

I nodded, feeling satisfied with the change of mood. I straightened my legs and stretched out my stiff muscles. I opened my mouth to speak, but then closed it. I was about to say "Let's head out!" but I didn't exactly know where to. My purpose in life now, was to make Sesshoumaru's life miserable, if possible, but I had no idea where to start. Ha-chan saw my anxious look and spoke up.

"Are you alright, Karmina-san?" he asked with polite concern.

I nodded. "Now that I'm not with Inuyasha and the others, I don't really know what to do. Where am I supposed to go now?"

Ha-chan was silent, thinking of how to answer me. It was many minutes before he spoke. "Whenever I got anxious, my mother always said that life will find you. So, for now, we can search for a new place for me to live, and then surely adventure will find you."

I sighed and slowly fell forward so that I rested my forehead on his shoulder. Because of this position, I couldn't see how he interacted, but I could feel his muscles tense up. "If you keep saving me like this, Ha-chan, I might not let you go."

His only reply was a silent "Un."

I lifted my head off of him and inhaled the sweet, fresh air. "Well, I suggest we walk along the main roads, where human villages would be. That'll be the easiest way, as far as I can see it."

He nodded and we started our journey together.

Our first soujorn was at a bustrious human city. It was quite large and full of squabbling people. I tasted many different flavors of souls around here and it was making me kind of hungry. Even though I could taste souls I never ate them. The very thought of it digusted me, like it was cannibalism.

In the center of the city lay the infamous Inajuku castle which housed the king and his three daughters, said to be the most beautiful princesses in the world. Ha-chan was so excited to meet these people, but I knew simple travelers like us would never be allowed into the castle without a legitimate reason, which was few.

We were wandering around the bizarre when we heard some commotion coming from the town square. Curious, we drew forth along with the rest of the crowd to see a man holding up a poster and shouting.

"Exorcist for hire! Exorcist for hire!"

Exorcist? I mused while reading over his poster. And for the castle, nonetheless. Doesn't this place have a shrine with preist or something? They're not so pour as to have to beg on the streets? I was about to move on to look for food when the holy symbol painted on the poster caught my eye. MONEY!!

I turned to the lady running a produce booth next to me an inquired about this event. "Excuse me ma'am, but why does the castle need an exorcist?"

The middle-aged woman looked at me as if I was stupid. "You must be a traveler. Mitsuko-sama, the youngest and also the only unwed princess of our castle has taken ill suddenly and won't eat anything. The king believes it to be the work of a poltergeist or demon."

I nodded. "That's quite a quandary. But doesn't the king have his own preist to exorcise for him?"

"Yes," the lady replied, forlorn, "but they have all failed. Nothing they do will work. We've even hired preist from all over the country to cure her, but nothing seems to work. The king is desperate, the reward just keeps getting bigger, but we've run out of people to help us. Plus, if you fail, the king hangs you out of scorn. He's very emotional, miss, so don't try it, if you think you can scam some money out of him."

I shook my head with a sly smile on my lips. "Oh no, no, miss. I'm not going to scam him. He'll get his money's worth, for you see, I'm the greatest exorcist around!"

After making my bold decleration, I left the stunned and slightly doubtful lady to take the spokesman up on his offer. He too, seemed doubtful, but lead me to the castle. He asked us to wait inside the lobby of the castle which was elegantly flourished. It was so wide and spacious that two whole families can live in here comfortably and not know of each other. Now that we were alone, Haruki turned to me and whispered apprehensively into my ear, "Since when were you an exorcist?"

"Oh, I'm not, but I am psychic, in a sense. I think I can scope the princess out and see what's wrong with her."

Haruki frowned, which made him look so cute, my insides squirmed. I knew he'd make a good pet. "I don't like this one bit."

Soon, a steward came to greet us and led us to the top of the castle in a long and grand hallway. He stopped in front of a large sliding door with exquisite patterns of a lake scene painted on the paper. "This is the young princess, Mitsuko-sama's room. The king is inside with her."

"Ah, yes, I can feel the dark aura all the way from here," I lied through my teeth. Well, not a total lie. I could definitely taste a strong soul with ill intent coming from the room.

The steward slid the door open slightly and bowed. "Excuse us, Your Majesty, but I've brought an exorcist who says she can heal your daughter."

"Enter," a low voice growled from inside. The steward opened the door completely, and I was gestured into a dark room. The first thing I spotted was the king. Who couldn't? Even in that commodious room, he still took up all the space. Not that he was fat, but more that he was so muscular and big-boned. He was truly a giant with a grizzly beard and bags under his beady eyes. I could tell he was a smart man, with a sharp wit and tongue, but he appeared worn down from old age and sorrow. I sincerely felt pity for this man from the bottom of my heart.

Next, I saw the princess lying on a tatami mat on the floor and millions of covers over her. He was definitely sick; she gave off all the signs: pale, yellow skin, with the bones showing through, tired, droopy eyes that sighed into her sockets, the tired way her chest moved up and down as she breathed, her dry, white lips, and all the gleam that had gone from her long black hair. I thought these princesses were supposed to be beautiful.

When the princess layed her tired, sickened eyes on me, she immeadiately appeared full of life. She flew on me in a rage, screaming and clawing at me like a demon. Like a demon. . . Her father and two gaurds held her back as she screeched and made inhuman sounds from her throat. She was definitely possessed. I could taste her soul, faint as it was, hidden beneath the zesty taste of the demon one.

"You!" the young princess croaked in an unworldly voice. "You are a pure soul! Give it to me!"

A transparent, ghost-like figure, flew out of the girl and came straight towards Ha-chan. I pushed him out of the way, and we avoided the demon, as he hit a servant behind us. He screamed in terror as he shrivled up into a lifeless being. Then it released te servant and it grew bigger, and more solid. The demon was huge and wore red armor and had a red demon mask with horns and white hair. It carried a sword and made its wy towards me and ha-chan.