A/N: Happy chapter three! I feel like I'm getting into a good roll with this story and I've been enjoying writing out my idea of a satisfying post original cannon storyline. My goal is to post every other Friday from here on out so that I have plenty of time to get the following chapters together. Thanks for being here
Chapter Three: The Mayose
"That's it Kagome! Great job girl" Kaede, bow and arrow in hand, encouraged the miko as she hit the mark on each target set before her with her eyes closed. Kaede was teaching Kagome how to use her Reiryoku to increase her accuracy with her mind's eye. The girl was not only a natural, but had excelled in every task Kaede had given. With the seal of the Shikon Jewel broken, and the strict teachings of the older woman, Kagome's spiritual powers were overflowing from her. "Ye will be as strong as sister Kikyo in no time." The woman smiled, knowing that Kagome had already surpassed the late priestess in raw power.
Kaede had held back on this bit of information so as not to overwhelm her. Kagome and Kikyo, despite ending on good terms, had a rocky relationship in all the time they knew one another. Kaede had the suspicion that Kagome still held her sister in incredibly high regard, and would not soon be able to accept that she truly could be stronger.
Kagome had been shooting since the sun rose and while it was not quite noon she was tired. The weight of it was evident as the sweat formed on her face and her shoulders hunched forward after each draw. Kaede could see the strain that training had been taking on the girl over the weeks passed. However, Kaede also saw the leaps and bounds she was making in her growth and knew it was worth it.
"Next," Kaede announced with a clap of her hands, "we will practice the Mayose." Kagome recalled the powerful spell Kikyo had cast to destroy the rat demons that Kohaku and Hakudoshi had let loose so many years ago.
"Do you think I could cast a Mayose as strong as Kikyo's? I thought you had to be highly skilled to even begin one" Kagome asked. She was still adjusting to her spiritual powers and had her moments of uncertainty.
"Aye girl! Trust yourself" Kaede placed a hand on her shoulder reassuringly.
"Did I hear Mayose?" Inuyasha bounded up over the rooftop of Kaede's hut to the clearing behind it. "Miroku and I just heard that there was a swarm of bird demons on a war path. I figured we could handle it but if you need to practice a Mayose…" He trailed off looking questioningly at Kaede.
"Hmm. I had planned to have her construct a Mayose only briefly-" She mused. "But a swarm of low level bird demons should be pulled in by the Mayose well enough. Then we can see how well it works. We leave in an hour aye?" Kaede looked to Inuyasha who smiled widely and nodded. Kagome diverted her gaze to the ground and, taking a deep breath, collected her Reiryoku around herself. Without looking up she fired off an arrow and hit the target before her with a deadly accuracy.
"Alright. Let's do it." She agreed. She caught eyes with Inuyasha who was staring at the target in awe.
"Goodbye my love. We will be back by nightfall." Miroku kissed Sango lovingly with his hands on either side of her face. He leaned down and then kissed each of the girls on their foreheads. "I love you." he said to them all. This had become the routine each time he left with Inuyasha. Sango and the girls would walk them all to the edge of town and say their goodbyes. Then she would distract herself and the girls by doing some foraging and teaching them about different plants.
Sango hiked Hiraikotsu higher onto her shoulder and the three of them headed in the opposite direction. "Be safe." She called out as the hunting party split off. She knew that they would all be okay, especially only fighting low level bird demons. But the worry was always a huge burden to bear. Especially being pregnant as she was now. She couldn't shake the ominous feeling that had taken root in her.
"Don't worry! We will be back soon!" Kagome called back reassuringly, easing a bit of Sango's fear. She knew having the two mikos along this time would make them all so much safer. And if Kagome's Mayose was anything like Kikyo's they would be just fine. Sango looked down at her girls as they all traveled further into the woods.
"I think Gyokuto should look for purple flowers." She paused thinking, "And Kin'u should look for red." She exuded excitement to get the girls to mirror it. The girls clapped and started scouting the area for pretty flowers they would get to bring home with them. Sango would let them enjoy the bright colors and textures, while also teaching them about the medicinal properties behind each. As they wandered among the trees she was thankful for the peace here. As much as she missed fighting demons she had to admit there was something wonderful about her life now.
There were so many days in their fight against Naraku, and after she lost her family, where she felt hopeless. It truly felt as though days like these were an impossibility back then. She felt that her fate was to kill her own brother and then join him and the rest of her tribe in the ground. She sighed aloud at the thought of her brother. His purpose in life had become keeping as many people safe as possible. He had headed up their fathers position in their old village and was slowly gathering more and more demon hunters to rebuild what they had lost.
She so wished that he would spend some time on himself and enjoy life a little more. But the boy's trauma was just as deep as hers, and he had no ability to relax. It had been months since he had made it back to their little village and spent time with his nieces. She was struck again by a sadness that he wouldn't know her children in the way he wanted to. The way she wished he could. Her thoughts were halted by Gyokuto.
"Mommy! Violets! Violets!" Gyokuto ran ahead and pulled on some wisteria vines.
"They are so lovely! What a find." Sango smiled at her daughter as she plucked the wisteria flowers off of their vines. "This is wisteria. Can you say it?"
"Wisteria." the girl repeated perfectly. She was incredible with words already.
"This one can help older people who have pain in their hands and knees. It makes a good medicine but it's also very pretty."
"I like it!" she brought the flowers to her face and took a big sniff. Sango laughed in agreement. She put the flowers in her basket and they continued walking ahead.
The smell of the forest filled her senses again as she became more present. The girls were chatting and giggling as they enjoyed the warm breeze. Up ahead she saw a patch of blue peek through the grass.
"Ooh girls. What is that?" She asked, and they ran forward to take a look.
"Morning Glory!" Gyokuto said it confidently.
"Very good! What does it do?" Shes tested them. At the same time both girls yelled out,
"It helps you poop!" and then dissolved into fits of giggles. Sango joined them in their laughter and added some Morning Glory to their basket. They continued walking in a loop around the village. She saw a familiar rock that marked the end of their route. They were very close to the village now.
"Mommy look." Kin'u called out from a distance away, drawing Sango's attention.
"Kin'u you're too far from me. Come back here and then take me over with you, okay?" Sango chided as the girl turned to her and started frolicking back. Sango met her half way. "What is it?" She asked as the girl led her to where she had been before. There was a bush of red camellia flowers.
"What is it?" Kin'u asked, excited. She had finally found the red flowers she was looking for.
"Camellia!" Sango said excitedly. "You can make a good tea with this one. But it also happens to be one of my favorite-" Sango paused. There was movement under the ground that didn't look natural. "Kin'u!" she screeched as a root propelled itself from the ground and wrapped around the girl's ankle. "Back!" She yelled the code word to Gyokuto who jumped up onto her mother's back and held on tightly.
Sango took a steadying breath as the rest of the root emerged from the ground and held her daughter upside down by her ankle. "Kin'u roll!" The girl was clearly terrified and tears were freely falling from her eyes into the mud. She had been taught her entire life how to react in dangerous situations, so following the instruction she curled herself into a ball the best she could.
"Hiraikotsu!" Sango threw her Hiraikotsu toward the root twisted around Kin'u's leg and it sliced through effortlessly. The girl fell to the ground and let herself roll once before standing and bolting to her mother. Kin'u joined her sister on their mother's back and, once secure, Sango ran as fast as she could back toward the village, one arm around her back supporting the girls and the other on Hiraikotsu. Her senses were on high alert but they were not attacked again or followed.
Once they were safely home Sango brought the girls inside and held them both while they cried into her chest.
"Shh. Shh. Everything is going to be just fine." She stroked their hair trying to calm them, and reassure herself that they were still there and safe. The sun was just beginning to set and she knew the others would be back soon.
The trek Kagome and the others took to the bird demons was not a long one, but the walk was not easy. They walked for 3 hours over rocky ground and fallen trees in the direction they were told that the birds had traveled. The further they got the worse the destruction around them became, confirming the path the demons took.
"I'm glad we made the trip." Miroku said, eyes on a burned hut that was little more than a wooden floor now. Bodies were piled around the town unceremoniously. He grimaced at the sight. There were likely no survivors from this attack. "Even as rough as the travel has been." he said as his foot caught on yet another exposed root.
"You're tellin' me!" Inuyasha exclaimed, hoisting Kaede a little higher onto his back. The old woman could only make it so far before needing his assistance.
"I just hope we make it to the next town in time to save everyone." Kagome said sadly. "I wish we had been able to help any of the people here. Her eyes passed over the bodies on the ground as they continued walking. Her heart clenched at the sight of so many bodies.
The time ticked on as they approached the village. They heard it before they saw it, the shrill squaw of birds and the screams of humans that died down to gargled cries.
"Hurry!" Kagome yelled as the three of them ran faster. As they came around the corner they saw the chaos before them. Demon birds descended in flocks onto the inhabitants of the town, 4 or more attacked a person at a time. There were easily hundreds of birds to the maybe one hundred people and bodies they saw. Some were lying still on the ground, some were hunched over hiding to no avail, and many others were running as fast as they could away from the birds. Kagome winced as a man fell to the ground with blood pouring from his mouth.
Inuyasha pulled his Tessaiga and began to unleash the wind scar against as many birds as he could. Miroku used sacred sutras and his staff to purify and slice as he went, freeing a young girl from the bird's clutches. Kagome heard a shriek and saw a woman fall to the ground as several birds tore into her shoulders. Drawing her bow she fired two sacred arrows at once, imbuing them with her Reiryoku.
"Hit the mark!" She called out as she let them loose. Two of the birds shattered.
Kaede grabbed at Kagome's arm, "Kagome we must make the Mayose now." And started to head away from the wreckage. Kagome worked to pick off the birds that lunged for the old woman.
"Kaede duck!" She just missed the demon as it collided with Kaede's spiritual barrier and was instantly purified to dust.
"Your barrier Kagome." Kaede yelled back to her. "And don't forget ye are aiming with your Reiryoku, not your eyes!" The reminder helped re-center Kagome. She remembered that she was not the defenseless human she had once been. She called on her Reiryoku, surrounding herself in lilac energy as she ran alongside Kaede.
As they reached a clearing next to the town, Kaede pulled an ogotama branch from her bag and handed it to Kagome.
"Quickly now girl, like we practiced before. Draw the seal." Kagome steadied herself, pulling in her aura as she kneeled on the ground. She drew the pentagram Kaede had shown her several times before in her studies. She guided her magic through her body and into the ground around the star chanting the sacred mantra to build the Mayose. Once she was satisfied she thrusted the branch into the center of the seal. She stood and took a few steps back, pulling her hand to her chest with a single finger extended toward the sky. She focused on the image of a sprawling holy tree. Willing it up she felt the life explode out of the branch as it expanded itself toward the sky. Soon the seal was swallowed up by the massive tree that looked as though it had been growing there for hundreds of years.
"It's-" she paused, amazed. "It's bigger than Kikyo's" she said it softly as though she didn't truly believe it.
"Aye girl. What did I say to ye? Without the seal of the Shikon Jewel ye could even surpass sister Kikyo in power." Kaede quoted herself. Then the woman winked at her, "But not without my guidance. Now come let's wait a safe distance away while the swarm is attracted." The women headed away from the tree.
Once at a safe distance they allowed themselves to look back and watch as the sounds from the town died down. The chirps and squawks from the birds began to draw closer as the demons swarmed the tree, pulled in by its aura. The birds circled its trunk in a mass of winged bloody bodies and hurled themselves up to the clouds where the branches disappeared. In moments the last of the birds made their way to the top and were purified, never to be seen again.
"Wow." Kagome was struck by the display before her and then she felt a tug on her wrist.
"Time to save those who can be saved." Kaede said as she started marching to the village beyond.
Bodies lay strewn about in the mud, most of them already long passed. They came to the unbreached keep and were elated to find many humans inside still living. The children and adults alike cried out their appreciation to the two priestesses who saved them. "Thank you! Thank you!" They heard over and over as the villagers surrounded the holy women and moved in to touch their arms and hair. No doubt hoping that being this close to powerful priestesses would grant them some kind of protection for the future.
"You did it! Did you see how fast they were pulled in." Inuyasha and Miroku caught up with them then.
"Without you here Kagome this would have taken much longer. I don't think we would have been able to save as many." Miroku looked around taking in all of the living. Kagome gave them both a soft smile, feeling overwhelmed by the sight of this village in disarray. She wished there was more she could have done, but knew that they did everything they could. Regardless, these people's lives were forever changed and that heaviness sat in her chest the rest of the day.
For the following hour they tended to the wounded and helped the townspeople gather their dead. Inuyasha and Miroku circled the town to ensure no straggling demons remained. Once they were done the monk and the hanyou negotiated with the grateful lord of the village who wanted to reward their group for their help and kindness. They were able to walk away with a cart of foods and goods that the Lord insisted they take with them. On their way out of the town they passed the Mayose and Kagome stopped.
"That's odd." She said, reaching for something shiny in the mud. She freed it from the ground with a squelch. "This is a first aid kit. It looks like it's from my time. Could I have left this behind here at some point?" Inuyasha came to stand behind her, one arm around her waist.
"Weird. Looks new." He agreed. "When would you've had that here though." He wondered aloud as he took the box into his hand. At the half demons touch the item sparked and seared into his flesh. "Oh shit!" He yelled out dropping the offending object, but just before it fell from his hand Kagome saw Inuyasha's yokai surge up. His eyes bled to red and purple marks slashed the sides of his face. It was over almost as quickly as it had begun.
"Are you okay?" Kagome panicked, touching his face.
"Yeah I think so. What was that?" Inuyasha pressed his cheek into her hand for a moment.
"There is a strong aura emanating from that box." Miroku said aloud as he went to hold it. "It's not demonic, or at least not only demonic."
"Aye." Kaede agreed, coming closer. It did not burn Miroku, Kaede, or Kagome.
"Let me take it. Kaede and I can look into it more in the morning. We have to train anyway." Kagome tucked the box into her bag to do some further investigation as they headed toward home. An overwhelming panic hit her in that moment and she stumbled a bit as they continued walking. Inuyasha caught her as she fell, her breaths coming quickly.
"Kagome.." He questioned
"Something is wrong. I can feel it. I don't know what it is but I think we need to hurry home."
The group set out immediately, Inuyasha taking Kaede onto his back so that they could run.
When they got into town they rushed to Miroku and Sango's, expecting to see her and the girls outside. The sun had just set as they arrived. Miroku threw open the door and found Sango sitting on the floor crying quietly with two sleeping girls in her lap.
"Miroku." She whispered, reaching out to him. The group huddled in to hear her recount their experience in the woods. Inuyasha looked more concerned than Kagome had seen him in a while.
"It sounds like root head, Sango." He said simply. She nodded.
"It looked like Root Head. I really thought we killed it. You even used the Meido Tessaiga."
"But if I missed a piece then it would make sense that it might have been able to stay alive."
"Wait. What is Root Head." Kagome questioned. Miroku began to explain.
"Root head was a demon we fought before you came back. Kikyo had sealed it away in the past, but the seal had broken and it was released. It was obsessed with looking for Kikyo and the Shikon Jewel, so it was pretty easy to defeat once it came here. Or so we thought, I guess." He pulled Sango closer to him.
"So it's looking for power like the Shikon Jewel?"
"It seemed so. But we told it that the jewel didn't exist anymore so it must be looking for other ways to get power, right?" Sango said as she ran her fingers through Kin'u's hair. "But why Kin'u? I'm sure a child wouldn't have enough power for a demon like that to want her. Why didn't it try to kill me?"
"Maybe it's looking for a specific kind of power? Kin'u has already seemed to lean toward the spiritual power side right?" Kaede had told Kagome that of the two girls, Kin'u seemed to be following in her father's footsteps.
"You may be right." Inuyasha mused, "But we won't have a way to figure it out today. I think you guys should get some re st." He offered. Miroku sighed but nodded his agreement.
As they walked back to their hut Inuyasha pulled Kagome close, a hand draped over her shoulders.
"Poor Sagno. That had to have been so scary." She said, as Inuyasha nodded.
"Yeah really. I wish there was more we could do." His free hand rested on the hilt of Tessaiga. "I'm going to go out that direction in the morning while you're with Kaede. Just see if we can find anything. But, I have a feeling it's long gone by now."
"Okay. But please take Miroku with you. You should have back-up just in case." He squeezed her shoulders reassuringly.
"What, you think I can't handle a weakling like Root Head?" He laughed.
"I'm not saying you can't! But, let's avoid getting you killed in the process." She rolled her eyes at him. They made their way into their hut and wrapped themselves around each other on their mat.
"I promise I'll be safe." He kissed the top of her head as she pushed in closer to him.
"I love you." She whispered.
"I love you too." Was his response, before drifting to sleep.
The next morning Kaede and Kagome spent some time pouring over the first aid kit. This was undeniably from her time, but Kagome was sure it had never belonged to her. Kagome was able to feel an energy pulsating from the box, but wasn't able to identify it.
They opened the kit and found that its contents were empty. It was just a metal box now. The energy signature did not change with the box open and Kagome prodded the offending item with her Reiryoku.
"I don't know Kaede. It's powerful, sure but not inherently evil." Kagome paused feeling as though a memory was pulling at the edges of her mind. And then it hit her as InuYasha entered the clearing. "Inuyasha! Do you remember when we fought Princess Kaguya?"
"Yeah, that ugly demon Naraku wanted? Why?" Inuyasha questioned. "We didn't find shit by the way." He added, he and Miroku had scoured the forest outside of town all morning looking for any sign of Root Head." Kagome sighed in disappointment.
"I suppose that was to be expected." She paused before continuing her earlier thought. "You four and Kirara put on the bandages from my first aid kit and were unaffected by the time stop spell Kauya used!" Kagome stood. "What if this is something like that? Objects from my time have a special power here."
"I don't believe I'm familiar with this story." Kaede looked very interested.
"It was during the time Naraku tricked us into thinking he had died. He lured out the demon masquerading as princess Kaguya of the moon so he could absorb her. She had time stop magic and she was absorbing spiritual energy to make herself more powerful. The whole event played out almost like a movie. It was one of the stranger things Naraku did in his quest for more power." Kagome recounted the events in brief.
"So the bandages were immune to the time stop because they were not of this time. That is very interesting. It does say something about the curious box." Kaede looked as though she was thinking intently, and then continued
"One thing I know about powerful magic is that those who can take advantage will. If a demon got their hands on this there is a lot they could use it as a vessel for. Inuyasha, may we inspect your hand?"
He held it out to Kagome and she removed the bandages she had placed over the burn yesterday.
"It's almost healed already." Kagome said a bit disappointed. She wanted to study it a bit more. "But I do see the outline of a scar," she paused, twisting his hand around in different directions. "Kaede? Doesn't it look like a tree?" The woman came over to look.
"Aye. It does. I would guess that this scar is really a mark of the power the box holds. A symbol it leaves behind." Kaede also traced the outline on his hand. "How do ye feel Inuyasha? Any lasting effects."
"I feel fine." He said with a shrug.
"I don't feel any energy coming from your hand. But, I saw your yokai yesterday Inuyasha. Either your life was in danger, or this thing was impacting your demon powers somehow."
"I dunno Kagome. It didn't really feel like a big deal. I can't imagine my yokai would have reared its ugly head unless it was.. coaxed somehow, ya know?" Inuyasha now traced the outline of the scar, he agreed it was very tree-like in its appearance.
"Guess we'll never really know." He shrugged and moved to stand from his seat.
"Never say never, Inuyasha." Kaede whispered it to his back as he wandered off. Kagome nodded back to her in agreement. She was weary of another threat, but right now there was little to go on but half baked theories. Kagome felt a fear rise in her chest and sighed.
"Only so much we can do right now, Kagome. Perhaps we can move on from this for today. We can think more about your theories and try to draw some connections. If there is something malicious at play here ye can bet we will not be hearing the last of this." After a moment's pause,
"Let's see if Lotus can get some target practice." She gestured to Kagome to call upon the Shikigami.
"Okay." Kagome felt dejected at the idea of letting the kit go. But, she also knew that there was nothing they could do with so little actual information.
Kagome called upon her Shikigami and the little fox popped into existence and burrowed itself into Kagome's hair. She laughed and called the fox down to her hand where it perched on the back side, alert. Its ears were raised and its back arched as it looked around for any danger.
"Lotus. On the right." Kagome swiveled as the fox flew off of her outstretched arm and through the target. This became a fun game for the two of them. Kagome would call out a target and Lotus would jump through it with fervor. Soon Kaede started to throw paper targets into the air for the fox to destroy as it hopped around, lilac energy trailing behind it.
"Much energy in that one. It has a strong personality." Kaede remarked, "Remember that Lotus is only limited by what ye give it. The more power ye give, the more it will have. And on that note I believe we are done for the day. Tomorrow we will discuss demon sealing." Kaede and Kagome walked out of the clearing and around to the front of her hut as the sun rose to the top of the sky. "Take lotus out today and let it interact with others. It will strengthen its abilities." The woman looked over to the men talking a few feet away and approached them. "I think ye should go on some hunts with Miroku and Inuyasha so that ye can grow your power in combat. Maybe ye can wander past the town with the demon birds and look for clues if it will help your anxiety."
"Yeah, Kagome can come along with us." Inuyasha agreed. "Miroku was just telling me that he sensed a demonic aura passing by and wanted to go check it out. We were about to head out."
"Let's do it! Thanks Kaede." Kagome touched the old woman's shoulder as they started into the woods.