A/N: Thank you for whoever nominated Dog Guardian and Canine Curse Crisis for the Feudal Connection awards. I'm humbled and also grateful for your patience.
Beta; Lord Yaulendil who reads mme Neverwhere

The Miko Gets Scolded

Kagome sighed and shivered. The spring water pooling around her in a shallow basin was definitely pure.

And cold.

The young woman knelt in the water, covered by a practically transparent robe that stuck to her skin, and was glad that the day was rather warm, it took the bite from the cold bath she was subjected to.

The pool was located in a small tranquil glen near the temple compound that crowned the mountain. Lush greenery obscured the view and hid the ancient buildings from view. In the temple, Miroku and Sango waited for her, probably admiring the lovely landscape and peaceful atmosphere of this sanctuary. A small waterfall fed into the pool and the excess water flowed away as a small bubbly stream.

Kagome wondered if it came to the foot of the mountain somewhere near where Inuyasha was. She reached towards him with her mind, but he was way too far away for words; she could merely sense a faint shadow of his emotions - a mix of impatient annoyance and resignation. She imagined him, sitting cross-legged under a tree, hands in his sleeves, adorable ears cocked back. She wished she could stroke those ears, make them perk up in easy joy.

They had reached the mountain in a good time, according to Inuyasha, and she had expected to get to the sanctuary with her friends. Travelling with them was fun and Kagome hoped to do it often in the future. But as soon as they had started to climb up steep stairs that went uphill until they disappeared in the mist that shrouded the path, a miko had stopped them with a regal gesture of a hand.

Kagome glanced to where the same woman sat on the edge of the glen and meditated. She looked like a statue of a perfect priestess, not a woman of flesh and blood. A part of Kagome couldn't help but compare her pristine looks to her own from not too long ago, dusted and crumpled.

The miko had demanded that Inuyasha and Kirara, who had brought them to the sanctuary, stayed at the bottom of the stairs. She had insisted that no matter if they were good or evil, any youkai or hanyou couldn't get to the temple hidden by the mist. She had even congratulated Kagome on putting beads of subjugation on a shiro inu, roping him into service of humanity.

Kagome, backed by Sango, had told her with no little annoyance that Inuyasha and Kirara were friends and companions. She had spoken highly of the shrine guardian who had never failed to assist her. And she had told the miko that she didn't appreciate prejudice and wouldn't help them if they thought either of their youkai companions could taint the sanctuary.

She had stomped down the steps and it took the joined efforts of Inuyasha, Sango and Miroku to persuade her into going along with the miko's demand. Inuyasha clearly didn't like to stay behind, but he trusted Sango and Miroku to watch over her, so he resigned himself to wait for them. Kirara simply accepted her fate and went to sleep in a low hanging tree branch, resting after a small fight they had had earlier that day with a big scorpio thing. She had been injured a bit before Inuyasha had blasted the bug with his sword, and Sango had carried her the rest of the way to the temple. The nekomata certainly could use some time to rest and heal. Kagome suspected Inuyasha needed rest as well.

When Kagome had yielded to their arguments that she should just go along with this treatment of her friends for there was nothing they could do to complete their quest otherwise, Kagome had hugged Inuyasha and had promised to be quick.

And then the woman had led her to this pool and had instructed her to purify herself and meditate while she'd led the others to wait for her in the temple. Now she was back, serene and silent, aloof and distant.

And all Kagome wanted was to curl in Inuyasha's lap and feel his arms around her as she soaked in his warmth.

"Focus, young one," the miko's voice was smooth, emotionless. "Purge yourself of flawed thoughts and cleanse your body."

"Ugh, sure," Kagome muttered, not excited about it. She was subjected to this ordeal after she had told the miko that she was a priestess, and Inuyasha was her friend who had carried her to this place. She wondered briefly how the stern miko would have reacted if she had known the fact that he was more than a friend to her.

It took a couple more minutes before she could leave the pond. The miko showed her a small thicket of bamboo where she was obscured from view and was provided clean, dry clothes. Then, finally Kagome could be escorted to meet the governor of this place and see what their request was.

"You should distance yourself from the youkai that serves you,'' her guide said.

"What?" Kagome blinked at her, confused.

"You are far too familiar with that man," the woman elaborated. "As a miko you should strive to preserve your purity and distance yourself from men, especially youkai. They might cause your reiki to fade and you have such a potential to master and power to harness. Do not throw it away for a fleeting thing like that."

"You mean... By being friends with youkai I can lose reiki?" Kagome started slowly.

"Yes. It is most prudent to refrain from such affectionate displays as the one you showed earlier."

Kagome scowled. She had held Inuyasha's hand and had hugged him.

"Fuck you," she said with feeling.