~Forest and Sky~
by Paw85
Ch 22 – Brush with death
Day – 16
"Ah, Lady Kagome, good timin'!" Jun rushed back into his father's workshop when he saw the priestess coming to pay a visit, "I finished these for 'ya the other day and have been waitin' for 'ya to come by. Here!" he handed over an expertly crafted bamboo yumi and quiver filled with arrows.
The bow was made of several layers of laminated timber bamboo and wax tree, colored scarlet from bottom to top, strung with hemp thread treated with pine resin and had a wrapped leather grip. The arrows were of similar bamboo and painted the same scarlet red in color with feathers at the end and supremely sharp arrowheads made of iron. The quiver was an unusual design that looked more like a long, black, hard leather pouch with flower details. It also could take a larger volume of arrows than the typical order he filled. Any samurai warrior would be thrilled to have this bow and arrow set.
"I had to use some tail feathers from Ma's chickens for the arrows," he chuckled, "Normally, I would wanna use feathers from a falcon or somethin' like that but chickens were more handy."
Gasp! "Jun-kun! These are amazing and so beautiful! The arrowheads are actual metal too!" Kagome exclaimed!
"'Actual metal'? What were you using before?" Jun chuckled.
Far as he knew, Kagome was always well equipped. Her holy arrow and archery were well known around these parts.
"Animal bone, mostly, and sometimes I could sharpen a rock into a decent arrowhead. Every once in awhile, I recycle a used arrow with a metal end that I find along the road somewhere," Kagome tried to innocently explain away her crude bow and arrows set.
"Sometimes, one has to use whatever materials are on hand. A village or town aren't always conveniently nearby and blacksmiths aside from you are harder to find around here," she further explained.
"Yeah, that's true, I guess," Jun nodded as he gathered new materials for his next order to fill, "I don' travel much but if I did, I would do the same as you. This bow is the type Pop and I make for hunters or samurai. I figure 'ya could make good use of it since you travel around battling demons and I bet you hunt too!"
"Oh, Jun-kun, I don't purposely seek out demons to fight," Kagome laughed nervously, "I'm not a demon slayer or anything. I mainly help the sick and wounded and try to stay away from battling demons, if possible. Plus...I think demons aren't that dissimilar to us. I have seen small demons run away from me instead of trying to hurt me."
"Are you sayin demons can live peacefully?" the teen stoked the forge some more as he turned the thought in his head, "I dunno, Lady Kagome. If there are demons out there not tryin' to hurt us humans, I haven't seen any. In fact, I think a small one may be stealin' food from Ma's food stores. I have been tryin' to trap the little varmint so I can teach 'em a lesson."
"One time, I was out traveling and heard a rumor about a hanyou that is a healer and grows herbs on a farm," Kagome strapped the new bow and quiver to Hayate's furry body, "If somebody like that exists, there's bound to be more."
"That's just a rumor though, innit?" the young blacksmith folded his arms in thought, "I'm not sayin' it can't be true...but seems unlikely, 'ya know?"
"I suppose so..." Kagome answered while folding her own arms, "but humans are a mix of those that like to live in peace and others that are more warlike or violent. The same could apply to youkai, couldn't it?"
"I'll believe it when I see it," Jun smiled back at her, "but, it's a nice thought," he set about stoking the fire some more.
'I wish he could see what I have...' Kagome lamented in her mind.
Back at the eastern den, they weren't hurting humans anymore as per her deal with Kouga. She liked to think that ensured peaceful days here in Kanto and surrounding villages. If they kept that up long enough, would they lose interest in raiding human settlements or using humans as a source of food all together? She sincerely hoped so.
"I have been meanin' to ask," Jun walked back over to the young priestess, "where did'ja met this guy?" he looked down at the large chocolate colored wolf that sat faithfully at her side.
"This is Hayate," Kagome smiled as she ruffled the wolf's furry ears, "I found him on my travels. He started following me after I shared a deer I hunted and has been with me ever since."
"He sure is a big fella," Jun sized up her lupine companion, "I don' think I have ever seen a wolf this size."
As he gazed at the wolf, the wolf seemed to be gazing back with his sharp topaz eyes. Was the wolf sizing him up too?
"If he wasn't this big, I wouldn't be able to ride him," Kagome giggled as Hayate began to rumble deeply underneath her touch, posture softening, eyes drifting close.
"Are 'ya gonna bite me if I pet you?" Jun kneeled down semi-close to the wolf before slowly extending a hand, as if waiting for permission.
"Oh, Jun-kun...I don't know if that's a good idea-" Kagome began to worry before Hayate took a careful step or so forward towards the boy, ears forward and tail at attention.
"It's okay, Lady Kagome," Jun assured her, not breaking eye contact with the wolf, "If he thinks I'm okay, he'll come closer. If he don' like me, he'll keep his distance. How about it, big guy? Wanna be friends?"
Jun stayed patiently rooted to his spot, breathing easily, keeping his posture loose and relaxed, facial expression gentle.
Kagome watched the interaction, still feeling apprehensive. She had seen what those big jaws of Hayate's could do on many occasions. If he decided that he didn't like Jun, the boy could get badly hurt before she could attempt to get control of the situation.
"Thank you for taking care of Lady Kagome," Jun used a gentle voice in hopes of placating the wolf, "I bet 'ya have been a great companion for her what with how strong 'ya look and I bet yer real fast too, aren't 'ya?"
Hayate slowly closed the distance between them until Jun could feel the huffs from his mouth. Licorice nostrils flared as the wolf sampled the scents from the boy's hand and face. Jun held his ground, waiting for the wolf to make his decision. After what seemed like a small eternity, Hayate's ears relaxed and he sat as if inviting Jun to come closer. Jun slowly stroked the soft fur of Hayate's cheek, careful to keep alert if the wolf suddenly had a change of heart. When Jun brought up his other hand to pet the wolf's head, he smiled wide as a long, bushy tail swished over the snow.
"See? It's all a matter of patience and respect," Jun looked over Hayate's shoulder to a stunned priestess.
"That was amazing," she walked up in awe, " He's usually aloof most of the time with anyone else and he growls at Inuyasha. I thought that meant he doesn't like strangers."
"Well, we're not strangers anymore, are we?" the young boy ruffled the wolf's ears and face before standing back up, "I have always loved animals and they seem to like me too. They're great judges of character too. Maybe there's somethin' off about Inuyasha?" he smirked in mischief.
"I heard that you little brat!" the aforementioned hanyou joined the scene.
"Ha! Ha! Ha! Only joshin' 'ya!" Jun laughed good-naturedly!
"Anyhow, I got work to do so I'll be seein' 'ya, Lady Kagome," Jun waved as he went back into the workshop.
"Thank you again for these!" Kagome waved back in return.
"Good morning, Inuyasha," she turned to smile at her companion, "Did you enjoy sleeping in?"
"What d'ya mean? I have been up for awhile already," he responded.
"You have? I went straight here after I woke up and didn't look to see if you were still asleep," she began walking back into town with him.
"Meh, don't worry about it. I've just just been walking around," he laced his hands behind his silver crown.
"What are we doing today?" he asked after a few minutes of walking together in silence, snow crunching underneath their footfalls.
"I want to pay a visit to Johto today. There's a little girl that had a bad fever a few days ago and I want to check on her progress. Her family may need some more herbs too," Kagome began rummaging around in one of her many bags of herbs.
When she left the eastern den, she packed as much as possible without totally depleting stores. There was always the possibility of somebody needing help while she was away. The grand majority of the herbs there would be very hard, if not impossible, to find locally. If something ran out, the choice was either cross fingers and hope that the herb won't be needed for something or travel about looking for a market or another healer that may have excess supply. She was already running a bit low on chamomile, which was helpful for upset stomachs, and mint, which had several uses. With things being as they are, maybe she should seek out this rumored hanyou that tends fields of herbs. The rumor she had heard didn't offer a place to start looking for this half-demon though... It wouldn't hurt to ask around town and see if anyone knows something.
'Oh, wait...' her thought process stopped, 'I have less than a week left before the Lunar Festival is over. If I don't return on time, he'll worry and...,' her inner monologue stopped a beat, 'and...I...kind of want to go back.'
Memories came into the forefront of her mind. There was that time he poked her forehead and called her 'a weird little human', the time he opened up about his parents, how happy she had felt to see him after returning from the west...and...the way he had been holding her at night to ensure she was warm enough. The irritating smirk and cocky attitude that used to get under her skin on the regular felt nostalgic somehow. She missed it...and she missed him.
'He wouldn't be doing anything dangerous, right? He's smarter than that...but...what if he was forced into something? What if the howling I heard last night had nothing to do with the festival? Are the kids okay? Did I train them well enough before leaving?...' the worries kept compounding on each other as she wondered how things were back at the den, 'What if the kids get in over their head with the healing? Nobody else is there that could help! If Kouga got hurt, he might be too proud and stubborn to accept their help and then what?'
"Hey," she bumped softly into a carmine colored chest, "What's got you all worried?" Inuyasha asked curiously.
He saw the marathon of thoughts flitting about her face but mostly it was the fear in her eyes that made him stop. She was worried about something. Very worried.
"The girl's gonna be fine," he tried to cheer her up, "We're already on our way there and you'll see for yourself."
Thank the gods for assumptions.
"Yes, you're right," Kagome tried to smile, "It's just that high fevers in young children or elderly can be tricky and I was wondering if I have done enough for her to get her well."
"Right, well," he turned and kneeled down some, "Hop on and I'll get us there in no time. I'm much faster than the fleabag," he grinned down in challenge at Hayate that was walking slowly beside them.
"Please, not so fast this – gasp!- TIIIIIii iimmm meeee! " she screamed as Inuyasha took off with a dash!
"And we're here!" Inuyasha landed on his bare feet, agile and light as always, at the gate to the village of Johto.
Kagome slide off his back and was glad to have solid earth...er, snow...underneath her feet once more.
"That," she breathed, "wasn't as bad as the first time...but, I think I'll ride with Hay-chan next time."
"Sure, if you prefer filthy mutts like him," the hanyou grumbled.
"Hey, I said he's a clean wolf, remember?" Kagome chuckled, "He doesn't make fun of you so why do you get to pick on him?"
"Pft! You mean that you're not aware of anything he has been doing, right? He could be a complete ass to me and you would just smile and pet him all day," her companion continued to grumble in annoyance.
Kagome paused as the realization hit her that he was probably right. She couldn't understand canine speak. Who knows what dialogue they may have had?
"What has he been saying?" the priestess asked.
"Nuthin' much aside from 'keep your distance' and you 'belong to him'" Inuyasha responded, "He's real possessive of you."
Kagome didn't know what to say or do about that other than shake her head with a sigh. Her miko training or life experience didn't cover anything about how to deal with overly possessive wolves. Maybe in a different situation, she might feel a bit flattered about the men acting that way, but, this was just vexing.
'If it's not Kouga, it's Takeshi and if it's not them, it's Hay-chan...Oh, well...' she decided to make her way to the sick girl's hut.
To Kagome's delight, the sick girl's fever was turning and only needed to rest for a couple more days! The priestess spent most of the time talking with her and having tea at the behest of her grateful parents. Both had questions about her appearance since it was so unusual for her to travel about in anything else other than her miko garb. Kagome's responses were starting to become automatic. She surmised that people will only keep asking so long as she wore these clothes made of furs and animal hide. Maybe she should have taken her priestess outfit when she cleaned out Kaede's house last summer.
Kagome emerged from the hut to find Hayate lying in the snow, patiently waiting for her arrival.
"Hay-chan, where is Inuyasha?" she looked around to find her companion but couldn't locate him.
"Maybe we'll find him if we walk around," she started walking into the main thoroughfare of the village, wolf trotting behind.
The village of Johto was roughly the size of Edo. It was small and comprised mainly of farming families and a couple of tradespeople. Much like Edo, a peddler came through every once in awhile to sell goods.
Kagome looked about, hoping to find something to keep her attention. She was getting tired of fretting about what may or may not be happening back at the eastern den. If she kept busy, the time to return would come soon enough (she hoped). Too bad she didn't have Kaede's journal with her. This interlude would have been a good time to revisit it for the next entry. There were many pages left and gods knew what else was in there. She hoped to find more information about her birth or maybe some new healing or miko techniques. Kaede was so practiced, there was bound to be some things that she hadn't passed on to Kagome.
Thinking about the late priestess now, after having a few days to process the journal's entries, left her feeling a little less raw than before. There were so many questions and unknowns. If she wanted answers, she was going to have to keep reading the tome. No matter how confusing. No matter how tough. No matter what Kaede wrote...she must continue and "finish the mission", so-to-speak. There were still a few days left on her leave from the den. Better to seize the opportunities now before things got busy again.
Miko and wolf now reached the snow covered fence of one of the farms. Kagome sighed as she took in the snowy landscape. The sun was climbing into midday and yet the village still felt very empty. A quick chirp and flap of feathers sounded off from here or there. Other than that and the mild wintery breeze caressing her face, the scene was silent. It was a certain quiet that only the winter months were known for. Kagome rubbed her arms with mittened hands to generate a little heat as she looked up into the sky. Would there be another snow storm soon? So far, the skies were crystal clear.
If the conditions remained as such when night fell, there would a glamorous, sparkling sky to behold. The winter months were a wonderful time for stargazing. The longer nights afforded more time to appreciate the constellations and dream about what else may be out there, if anything. Kagome particularly liked it when she got to see a shooting star racing across the black velvet. The gods up there in the celestial plane were said to have a magical, otherworldly home. As a little girl, Kagome wondered if the falling stars were a bright ball that got away during a game. Every once in awhile, one of the children in her village would chase after a ball that didn't get caught or got kicked too hard.
She asked Kaede back then, " Why don't the gods chase the ball to bring it back to their game?"
Kaede took a moment to figure out and understand what her little girl was asking about before responding with a smile, " Perhaps they wish to show us something pretty. They bless us in so many ways. It is important to not to lose sight of all that is and give thanks for this world and all that live in it."
" Even the meanies?" little Kagome scrunched up her nose and furrowed her brow.
" Aye, 'even the meanies', " the old priestess responded as she swept her porch, " All living things have lessons to share. Even the boy that pushed ye yesterday had something to teach."
" Hmph," Kagome crossed her arms in an annoyed pout, " the only thing he taught me is that he's a meanie. "
" Hm, would your thoughts change if I told ye that his older brother had been picking on him a lot lately?" Kaede asked.
" Maybe he deserves it ," Kagome looked to the side, still fuming.
Thanks to that little brat, she skinned her knee and dirtied her hands. What was worse is that he didn't apologize or care that he hurt her. Some friend he was.
" Hurt is as hurt does, " Kaede sighed, knowing that her daughter couldn't see the connection now but would eventually.
" When someone wounds us, we automatically label them a bad person and they must repent so that we can feel better or that justice was served...but we don't always see the larger picture," Kaede continued.
"I don't care about any picture!" Kagome stomped her foot, "He should've apologized! What he did was wrong!"
Kaede finished sweeping and placed her broom against the side of her hut, " I wager that he knows what he did was wrong. He may not have been ready to say 'sorry' or perhaps he does not know how to say it. It takes courage to admit when one has done wrong. Maybe he was still mad at his brother for doing the same thing as he did to you. If he was mad, then, I imagine his brother didn't apologize either so he acted out his hurt and disappointment on ye."
" Why should I care about any of that? " Kagome grumbled, kicking a small pebble on the dirt road.
" To tell ye the truth; ye don't have to, " Kaede affectionately rubbed her daughter's head, " One cannot force another to treat ye in any certain way. Ye can voice when ye feel hurt or disappointed but they must decide whether to act on your words or not. "
" But, that's not fair! " Kagome suddenly looked up with angry tears beginning to form, " Why should he not have to say sorry? You always said that I need to know what's right and wrong! And you always made me say sorry if I was bad! "
" I know we have talked about how to treat others and do the right thing. I wanted ye to learn how your actions affect others and how to make up with someone ye may have hurt. An apology can be a very powerful thing, Kagome. When ye did disobey me or said something hurtful, I did say I wanted an apology but I also knew ye had to decide on your own whether to say 'sorry'. If ye were to discover the joys of friendship or any companionship, then it is important to learn empathy. I want those things for ye, " Kaede smiled down at young Kagome's pouting face.
Sniff "...It's still not fair... " Kagome looked back down, anger cooling and sadness taking hold.
" Oh, I know, Kagome, " Kaede crouched down to hug her little girl, " If everyone in this world knew how to say sorry, I think our world would be a much more peaceful one. Treasure those that can say 'sorry' from the heart and wish well those who cannot. We do not have control over what anyone does and carrying a grudge that this person must make things right in the way we want it when we want it will only hurt ye further. Better to find the grace to forgive in your own time and release yourself from the hurtful actions of others. Ye will find more peace this way. "
" Any ye know what? " Kaede pulled back from Kagome, " For all ye know the person that wronged ye already is paying the price. The gods in their infinite wisdom have a way of balancing the scales. It just may be in a way we are unaware of. And...who knows? He may not have said sorry today...but that doesn't mean he won't say sorry tomorrow after he has had a chance to reflect on his actions. The two of you have been friends for awhile now. Grant him a little faith and see what he does. He may surprise ye in a good way. "
"Okay, " Kagome nodded, a small smile working it's way into her lips, " I'll try. "
A little crystal bead fell over Kagome's rosy cheek as she came out of her memories. She wiped it and any other gathering droplets with her furry mittens.
'I...need to find a way to forgive Kae...erm, Mother...somehow...' she thought to herself, 'Maybe not now since it still really hurts...but someday.'
The tumultuous feelings that clashed in her mind and heart robbed her nights of peace and her insides felt tight from anxiety. Carrying those feelings around for awhile could cause all sorts of trouble...from nightmares to skin conditions and various other symptoms. Her miko power could be affected as well since energy is energy. Be it mental, emotional or physical...it's all energy and they all overlap and affect each other.
'If she were alive now...would she have said that she was sorry for not telling me about my birth? Or keeping other secrets from me?' Kagome wondered, 'Or would she have continued to keep these secrets?'
Then again...Kaede did tell her many a time that Kagome would inherit her journal when she came of age and a reached a certain skill level as a priestess. Maybe all of this would have come out organically when that time came. She supposed that it was a moot point now but it still had been a possibility, nonetheless.
Grooooowwwlllll... suddenly came from beside her.
"Hm, what's wrong, Hay-ch-..." GASP! a freezing chill raced up through her spine and into her chest!
'What? What is this feeling?!' Kagome immediately began to panic without reason as to why!
Alarm bells rang like crazy in her mind as dread began to set in, simultaneously twisting her insides in knots and turning them into stone.
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
She whirled around, looking everywhere around her to find the source of this horrid foreboding!
As a priestess, she was gifted in being able to discern different energies from up close or a short distance away. Sensing demonic youki always sent a shiver up her spine but this was something else. With low level youkai or ghosts, it felt more like an itchy pinprick. With stronger youkai, like Kouga when he was truly pissed, it felt like fear but she was so used to feeling the spectrum of these energies that she could ready defenses accordingly. Her logical mind was still present then so she could consciously decide to fight or flee and execute a quick plan. With this energy...wherever it was coming from, whatever it was coming from...her mind seemed as frozen as her body. All she could sense was thick, icy fear that screamed at her to run but her feet wouldn't budge! Her arms wouldn't move to ready her bow! Her breaths became short as her heart began to race with frenzied pounding in her ears!
"Kagome! Kagome!" Inuyasha shook her lightly by the shoulders until she regained her senses.
"Oh...Inuyasha..." the girl tried to get a grip on herself.
"What's the matter with you?" he continued to look into her face with worry, "You look scared out of your mind!"
'That's putting it mildly...' Kagome thought to herself wryly.
Grooooowwwwlllll... Hayate's gaze was locked on the wintery wood nearby the town, hackles raised and all teeth on display as he snarled!
"What's your problem?" the hanyou looked down at the wolf in confusion before his own instincts of warning kicked in!
Inuyasha turned to look at the same spot of woods. Something truly terrible was lurking nearby. He had been in many dangerous situations before but this one was in a class all of its own!
"Ah! Kagome, what the hell are you doing!?" he pulled back on an arm of the priestess that was slowly walking towards the woods, "Something really bad is that way!"
"I, I know," Kagome looked back at him in trepidation, "I know it's something bad...but...if whatever that thing is is this close to us, innocent people could get hurt. I can't let that happen!"
"You're out of your mind!" he spat back at her in disbelief!
"Nope!" he was suddenly in front of her and tossing her over his shoulder, "We're leaving and right fucking now!"
"Ugh! Inuyasha! Put me down!" Kagome struggled in his hold!
"No way! Whatever that is over there can have the fleabag but we're getting gone!" he made ready to leap away with girl in tow - " Agh-ah!
He dropped the priestess into the snow with a crunchy whump!
"Did you-? Did you just ZAP me!?" he bit out whirling around to face her!
"I told you," Kagome sat up, brushing snow off herself, "I can't let whatever that is hurt anyone is this village!"
"Come along or don't but I have to do something about it!" she stood up on legs that continued to tremble from the horrifically negative energy coming from that forest!
"They're defenseless here! I think I may know what that thing is and if I'm right...nobody in this village will survive an encounter with it!" she kept trying to get a grip on her shivering body.
"Right. You're going off to play hero with your knees knocking like that? I don't think so," the hanyou responded flatly with a deadpan expression.
Kagome glared at him as she turned to to get her new bow ready and sling her quiver over her back. Her senses were all still screaming at her to run but thinking of the villagers' safety, as well as a somewhat morbid, and potentially stupid, curiosity pulled her towards the woods.
"Come on, Hay-chan, let's go see what it is," the young priestess breathed while mounting her wolfy steed.
Inuyasha couldn't believe his eyes or ears. He had had many an occasion of running head first into danger for a good fight. Sometimes, that brash nature cost him a bit but he always conquered. Still...this wasn't one of those take-a-risk-because-it'll-make-things-interesting-times. This girl had to have a death wish.
"Oi!" Inuyasha leapt in front of her and the wolf, "You're seriously going after it!?"
When he looked into her determined face again, he knew it would be pointless to try to talk her out of it.
"Rgh, fine! I'll go with you," he finally gave in with an exasperated sigh, "Let's hurry. That thing is getting closer."
A short travel later and they found the source of danger they all sensed back in the village.
"Urk! What the hell is that!?" Inuyasha whispered harshly as he covered his sensitive nose to protect it from the stench radiating off of some big, black thing meandering through the woods.
After getting this close, he had to fight back the want to vomit. This creature had to be the foulest thing he ever had had the misfortune to smell!
Kagome somehow managed to do the same thing after pushing her aura out a bit to make a shield of reiki.
"Oh, my gods...I don't believe it...is it really?" she asked out into the chilly, winter air.
"Is it what ? What ?!" he whispered again while burying his poor nose into a scarlet sleeve.
The creature was almost as tall as the surrounding trees, obsidian black with a glossy sheen like tar. It "walked", or more like "poured" over itself to move over the snow. Kagome couldn't say if it was a quadruped or not. The form didn't really have a whole lot of definition or anything that could be seen as a working limb. The creature looked like the biggest pile of black slime with the most putrid air of death about it. Strangely, some of the "liquid" body, or whatever it was, looked semi-transparent if it was thin enough. An otherworldly moan rasped from somewhere and followed the creature. With every step came a most unpleasant squelchy sound. It seemed to not have noticed them hiding behind some snowy covered bushes and continued plodding away through the wood. The environment looked to be withering away wherever it stepped and its aura hung about the atmosphere like a heavy, frigid cloak of death.
'This has to be what Kaito and Takeshi saw! This must be the main body of the parasite that was feeding off of Takeshi's youki!' Kagome realized!
It matched the description that they gave her back in the summer...though they made it seem smaller than what she was seeing right now. They said it was roughly the size of a large bear...but she would describe it as more like a small house.
As a working priestess, she had seen many a strange thing between demons, ghosts and the like but this thing made the top of the list for "weird".
If it weren't for her reiki shield, she may not have been able to be this close to the parasite. Hayate was protected as well since she was riding atop him. How Inuyasha was still standing upright was a complete mystery to her. Maybe it was through sheer strength of will?
Now that they were here and figured out what this thing is...what do they do now?
The tiny by comparison puddle she purified in the west was enough to threaten Takeshi's life and he had a very strong aura. Kaito was struggling to deal with it too.
Should she challenge it? See if she can purify the whole being? Her miko senses were still sounding off like crazy in her head. She was needing to spend more and more concentration on maintaining the reiki shield around herself and Hayate too. What if she couldn't take this thing out? If she were being honest, she wasn't as practiced with her holy abilities as she should be. Training them was a rare occurrence these days since she was focused on her duties at the eastern den to hold up her end of the bargain with Kouga. It had been a long time since she had truly stretched out her power to its full extent. Is now the best time to see if her skills are lacking in any way?
"Kagome! What is it?!" Inuyasha asked again!
"It's some kind of parasite," Kagome finally began to answer, "It seems to prey on people's auras and energy. I have seen it before in my travels but what I saw was a tiny piece of...that," she gestured to the lumbering pile of goo.
"Hah?" the hanyou stared at her, slightly wide-eyed, "I have never heard of such a thing. Parasites are tiny and annoying! How can that be a parasite?"
"Well...the tiny piece of it I saw was taking in a large demon's youki. How is that any different from a tick sucking blood?" Kagome asked.
"'Parasite' seemed the best way to describe what it is...or what it does, anyway," she further explained.
"Hm..." Inuyasha pondered on her words a moment, "Oh! This is that parasite thing you were talking to the old lady about," he continued to whisper.
"Yes, that's the one," Kagome nodded.
"What did you do the last time?" he asked, "I didn't hear that part back in Edo."
Kagome felt momentarily annoyed to recall that he had eavesdropped on what was supposed to be a private conversation with Kaede...but decided to let it go as it had been unintentional.
"Hay-chan and I pursued it, cornered it and I purified it," she responded.
"D'ya think you can do it again?" he asked.
"I have to try," she met his questioning look with a determined gaze.
"Then...what's the plan?" he turned to watch the beast continue along its path.
Kagome began working the situation through, "I don't think you or anyone should touch it. It's aura is so incredibly negative that I think it'll burn us."
"What? I can't punch it or use my claws?" the hanyou turned back to her, "I can still use my blades of blood technique. I soak my claws in some of my blood, charge it with youki and fling it at my enemy. I won't have to touch it with that!"
"That probably won't do any good!" she whispered hurriedly back while shaking her head, "The thing eats energy! It'll absorb it!"
"All I can do is move?" Inuyasha blanched, "...Then, what are you going to do? The fleabag can't do shit to it. Your power is energy too so won't anything you do also be absorbed?"
This plan was getting worse by the second and Inuyasha was seriously doubting that they should be anywhere near this thing.
That huge mass of ultimate disgustingness trudging through the snow didn't look like a pushover. The fact that it still hadn't noticed them was a good sign at least. Inuyasha began to feel wary about Kagome's fighting capability. All he had seen her do so far was destroy a few weak-ass shibugarasu. Being a successful hunter was a different story too compared to something that was in no way woodland game. He looked over at her profile nervously.
"I think my reiki is the only kind that can work against it. If it didn't, then I wouldn't have been able to purify that smaller piece of it," the young priestess responded, courage finally beginning to build.
If youki didn't work, even from a powerful alpha like Takeshi and Kaito, then reiki was all that was left. Maybe if she charged a holy arrow up enough, she could destroy the beast!
"Moving is still a good thing, Inuyasha," she steeled herself, "You can draw its attention until I have built up enough reiki."
"Be a distraction until you charge up? That's the plan?" his shoulders fell, not liking that he couldn't go all out and fight the beast the way he would any other foe.
If this plan went sideways, he may not be able to do anything to save her and he was determined to let no harm come to her. There were still a pile of questions surrounding her that he needed answered. It was also nice to make a friend too...though he planned to keep that info to himself just in case she changed her mind at some point and decided to hate hanyou like everyone else. Some small part of him believed that she was genuine in her kindness but decades of being ostracized warned him to be cautious.
Inuyasha turned and studied the monster a little more closely. Its movement seemed sluggish and it didn't look like something that could move quickly. Maybe he could simply draw its attention like Kagome thought.
And then the creature stopped and looked to be searching for something.
Kagome and Inuyasha traded identical looks of apprehension before he tore a piece of his suikan, fashioned a scarlet colored face mask in attempt to protect his delicate nose and jumped out of their hiding place! Gliding over the snow light as a feather, he leapt gracefully far in front of the beast, careful to give it a wide berth.
"Oi, you piece of shit!" the hanyou waved, "Think you got what it takes to catch me?"
Grooooaaannnn... shrieeeeeekkk! it bellowed in a very shrill voice as it lifted its head!
Hanyou, human and wolf all collectively cringed in pain at the assault on their ears!
"Damn it, that thing can scream..." Inuyasha toddled over the snow a few steps, needing a moment to regain his bearings.
"Whoah!" he leaped backwards several feet as a the monster threw a slimy projectile at him with a semblance of an arm!
The sludge sank into the snow with a kssssssss!... sizzling kind of sound.
"You're gonna hafta do better than that!" Inuyasha waved at the beast while taking it's grotesque features in.
The monster's "face" was like a distorted skull, dripping in rancid slime like the rest of the body. Layers of the icky muck dribbled down the face and into the snow, melting the fluff wherever it touched. Its gaping wide mouth had "teeth" but they didn't look to be made of bone. Instead, jagged forms made of the same material as the body lined its mouth. The "eyes" of the beast were by far the most disturbing feature. Two deep, dark pits sat in the face over the mouth and where a nose would be if it had one. Somewhere within the sunken portals of total black, two eyes glowed eerily in a swirl of violet, pink and white.
Inuyasha kept his gaze focused completely on the monster in front of him. He hadn't expected it to be able to throw things at him but that information would help him keep it busy until Kagome was ready to attack. So long as he kept some distance from the thing, he should be able to dodge any more slime thrown his way.
The beast shrieked again in protest, shattering the quiet winter air! Somewhere deep in its body, the same eerie glow as its eyes lit up as its body swelled in size! It braced itself with its "arms" and expelled a barrage of deadly slime at the antagonizing hanyou!
Inuyasha did his best to dodge what suddenly became a shower of death but some did singe his suikan.
"Shit!" he bounded further away from the beast, continuing to lure it away from Kagome!
That kind of attack had caught him by surprise. He went into this battle feeling confident about his speed but there was obviously more to this thing than met the eye.
"Hng! Shit-shit-shit-shit-shit...!" he now had to turn tail and sprint through the woods as the creature charged after him!
'Kagome! Do something!' he mentally screamed at the priestess!
Back in the bushes, Kagome watched in dumb shock for a moment at how suddenly this beast moved with such speed! It had been a slow, lumbering mass only moments ago...
Grrrrooooowwwllllll...grroooowwwlll... Hayate snarled with raised hackles, swishing tail and full display of sharp teeth!
"No, Hay-chan! You need to stay here!" Kagome held him back from pursuing the monster.
She feared that he would get badly burned if he was allowed to attack it, "Wait, just a little longer...I have a plan for dealing with this thing and I'll need your help!"
The angry wolf continued to snarl but heeded her command.
'Okay...I need to breath and calm down...focus...' she closed her eyes and shut out the environment around her while repeating a soft mantra in her mind, 'Breath...focus...'.
This creature was so big and overwhelmingly negative. An average holy arrow probably wouldn't be enough, so she called every part of her being to focus. She mentally envisioned a pinkish-violet ball of reiki drawing more and more power into itself within her being.
'Focus...breath...Gods, hear my prayer...Grant me the strength to purify this foe..please let my power be enough!' she took an arrow and began to transfer her reiki through the shaft, concentrating at the metal tip.
"Come on, Hay-chan!" she mounted her wolfy steed, notching an arrow in her new bow!
Hayate sprinted through the freezing fluff, pouring around trees as he went!
"Come on! Come on! Is that all you got?" Inuyasha threw over his shoulder at the putrid beast in hot pursuit of him!
He had taken to leaping through the tree branches to keep the monster guessing at his movements. It continued to roar while they tore through the forest, snow melting and plants withering in its wake! After seeing the destruction by the thing's influence, Inuyasha felt very thankful that Kagome cautioned him about touching it. Punching or clawing it would've led to serious injury. Plus, the thing seemed solid yet liquid so his attacks would've been ineffective anyway.
"Whoa!" the hanyou darted to the left having almost been hit by a sludge ball!
'Damn, this thing is getting wise to me!' he swallowed hard as he sped up his leaps and bounds all the while beginning to panic, 'Kagome! Where are you!?'
Fear was creeping up his spine and constricting his chest as he pushed harder and harder to stay ahead of the beast.
Making things worse was that it didn't seem to be tiring in the slightest and kept having more unexpected types of attack! As a hanyou and seasoned battler, he could run for quite some time before needing rest but who knew how long this thing could go!
"What the-?!" he looked ahead and suddenly saw a smaller blob of it bounding across the snowy forest floor at an alarming rate!
"No way!" he looked on in horror before the tree he was about to leap into began to wither from the presence of the rotting blob of grossness!
Ksssssss...creeeeeeaaaakkk... sounded beneath his feet before the wood of the tree's trunk splintered and collapsed into itself!
Inuyasha dove out of the dying tree's branches before the trunk completely broke, rolling in the snow into a fighting stance a fair distance away!
'Crap, that was close...' he breathed in lite relief before backflipping out of the path of the attacking smaller blob of slime!
It slithered like a snake back and was absorbed back into the rapidly approaching main body!
Simply running away was looking less and less of an option now. After seeing how fast it could move and how it was proving capable in a fight, the hanyou looked hurriedly for any options left in his mind.
'I can't touch it with my claws...I don't have a weapon to use against it...I can't run forever from it...Eventually, other people will get caught up in this...What am I gonna do?!' the boy kept jumping as best he could to dodge the continuing attacks of the monster, 'Is there really nothing I can do!?'
They had entered a clearing within the woods. There was maybe twenty feet between him and the beast now.
Grooooaaannnn... it slowed down it's pursuit on the other side of the clearing, almost as if to silently taunt 'Give up yet?'
" Inuyasha! Get back! " his dog ears twitched, hearing Kagome's approaching voice!
'Heh, now you're toast, you literal piece of shit!' the hanyou smirked in victory!
Inuyasha made a large graceful leap far away from the deadly slime just in time to see Kagome riding atop of her wolf companion with her bow and arrow at the ready!
'Hit the mark and let this scourge be no more!' she cried from within!
Gathering up every ounce of what reiki that she could muster, and taking the energy from the shield around her and Hayate as well, she took aim at the monster's side when it turned towards her direction and let her purest arrow fly!
The arrow sliced the air like a scalding hot knife through butter and lodged deep into the monster's side! Upon impact, the concentrated reiki exploded in a brilliant show of voilet-pink, blinding the hanyou and priestess as the monster shrieked in terror! The blast was so intense that Inuyahsa found himself leaping back several more feet to avoid getting hurt by the reiki.
The bright light was gone after several moments and Kagome warily lowered her arms. Where the monster stood was now a large black puddle melted through the snow. A few bubbles popped here or there in the disgusting filth that still stank of death.
Did she do it? Was the monster purified? Had they won?
Kagome wanted desperately to believe that but she had to make sure the beast was truly killed.
"Eyyuuuuckkk! I can still smell it from over here!" Inuyasha whined, hiding his nose deeper in his sleeve.
The priestess dismounted her lupine steed and commanded him to stay there as she carefully approached the puddle.
He was still growling and whining now and then. Kagome figured that was because of the smell. What an assault it must be for those with sensitive noses. Hers wasn't nearly as sharp but the stench was plenty offending enough.
"Well? Is it dead?" Inuyasha peered over her shoulder after she reached the edge of the puddle.
"Hmmm..." Kagome looked over the monster's remains curiously.
The liquid quality of the sludge showed a clear reflection gazing back at her.
"I'm really not sure," she turned to answer him.
"Dont'cha just have to purify it some more or something? Like what you did earlier with that smaller part of it?" he asked from behind his sleeve.
"I guess...Maybe?" she planted a hand on her hip and the other on her chin in thought.
'I don't know what else to do...' she pondered in her mind.
"Hmph, what's his problem?" Inuyasha turned to a still growling Hayate.
"I think it may be the smell..." the priestess answered offhandedly.
Guuuurrrgggle...plip...plop... grooooaaaannnn...
"Kagome, behind you!" Inuyasha yelled in alarm, starting to reach out for her!
A freezing tingle began racing up her spine, warning her of impending danger, "Inuyasha, get Hay-chan away!"
The priestess whirled around while encasing herself in a bubble made of reiki right as the monster was attacking!
"Hnnggggh...ngghh..!" she struggled under the weight of the monster pushing against her shield!
As she did so, the slimy beast was pushing her back through the snow, inch by inch!
'It's so strong!...I don't know if I can hold it back!' beads of sweat began running down the side of the young miko's face, 'I can't let it win! I can't let it...'
Kazzzzz! Boom! GASP! "Arggggh!" Kagome was suddenly thrown back several feet by the auras colliding!
Kagome lie there in the snow on her back, air still crackling with erratic reiki discharge. Her bow had gotten tossed somewhere behind her from the impact of the explosion.
"Kagome!" came a muffled masculine shout!
Growwwl...SNARL! Hayate pulled in vain to get out of the hanyou's grasp and attack the monster!
'Hnnngh...what...happened?' blurry forest eyes blinked as they tried to focus on the clear cerulean sky above.
Somewhere in the background, she thought she heard somebody yelling "Kagome! Get up! It's coming!" but her head was ringing too much from the blast to understand anything.
Was there someone talking? Her mind felt so muddled and confused. She shook her head a couple of times to try and get her bearings before a sense of danger zinged up her spine causing her to automatically throw out her hands in defense!
The beast hovered over her now as she cowered in fear in the snow! As much as the monster's face horrified her, she couldn't tear her eyes away. Its sunken "eyes" stared unblinkingly into hers almost as if in a trance. Somehow, she managed to keep scooting back into the snow as it advanced on her; never breaking its visual hold on her. She needed to get back on her feet! Staying on her back like this was dangerous! Her stomach winced at seeing the goopy slime dribble all over her protective shield. The reiki crackled and sparked as the thing tried to bite through her shield with its strange, gaping mouth! Looking down the throat of this thing was like staring at a black hole of oblivion...until it started to light up from inside!
"NO! GET AWAY FROM ME!" Kagome screamed as her reiki sparked, raging out of control and exploded once again, forcing the creature back!
Several stray bolts of wild reiki zapped surrounding trees, fried bushes and... "Whoah! Watch it!" a certain hanyou protested behind her as he held fast onto a very angry wolf!
Kagome scrambled up to her feet as soon as the thing was blown back, breathing as rapid as her pounding heart against her ribcage!
The monster landed several feet before reforming itself once again, shrieking as it did so!
'It's not working! It's not working! I'm not strong enough! I...I...I...what do I do?!' she managed to think through the panic that roared through her veins!
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the yumi bow and ran back to get it!
"Kagome! Forget it! We need to run!" Inuyasha yelled at her back as she struck another shooting stance with a new arrow notched!
Inuyasha couldn't believe she was still trying to take on this beast that was clearly out of their league. She had to be out of her damn mind!
"What the hell are you doing, you idiot!?" he called behind her once again before noticing the fur on his ears standing on edge.
He could feel energy building around her, 'Damn it, she's just gonna charge again like before!?'.
It didn't work the first time so he was certain it wouldn't work a second time! He had to do something!
Growwwl...SNARL! Hayate continued to struggle against him!
'Fucking flea bag!' Inuyasha glared daggers at him, 'If it weren't for him, I would be able to do something!'
For a moment, he considered letting the wolf do what he wants but Inuyasha knew Kagome would never forgive him if something happened to her lupine friend.
"Hey!" he yelled at the wolf, "You need to STAY here! I have to help her and I can't if you're just going to charge that thing. She would be sad if you got hurt so stay put !"
Hayate quieted down almost immediately but started to whine in distress as he looked upon Kagome in the distance.
"Don't worry, I'll get her and we'll get out of here," Inuyasha affirmed, "But you gotta stay here. Got it?"
The wolf grunt-whined, seeming to be accept the hanyou's direction.
The priestess over the snow drift with the monster continued to amass what reiki was left within her, 'This is my last chance. I have to make this count!'
This time was taking considerably more effort and time to gather power...Kagome seriously regretted letting her abilities get so flabby. What good is a priestess that can't vanquish a terrible foe like this one? Now, she was in a real dangerous situation and her best attack was largely ineffective!
'It could tear into the town and kill everyone! And it may not stop there!' her mind began to run wild!
'What if it can't be stopped? What if it keeps getting stronger?' the air crackled harder with sparking reiki.
Tears of worry began to form, 'It may go to Edo...gasp! Granny and the rest of the village won't stand a chance!'
'What if it went to the eastern den?' she suddenly felt robbed of breath as images of her friends flashed in her mind, 'Nami! The kids! Ginta and Hakkaku!...and even Kouga won't be able to fight it off! And...!'
Seeing that confident smirk of his only served to make everything worse!
The tears she tried so hard to keep from falling began to stream down her face, 'And it'll be all my fault! Because I was over overconfident! Because I'm too weak!'
The air came alive with crackling reiki as something unknown began swelling up from deep within her, 'I can't let it happen! Kamis, please, I need more power!'
'I beg of you! Somebody! Anyone that can hear my prayer...I need more power!' her soul cried on repeat!
'What the hell is happening?!' Inuyasha pulled Hayate back further from the fight!
He could sense her aura expanding but it felt chaotic and unstable as her body began to glow! He didn't know what was happening here but he was sure he didn't like it one bit. The reiki charged atmosphere also made it where he couldn't get any closer without injury. Being part human afforded him a little defense against the holy arts...but being half demon still meant he could be harmed by it.
'How am I supposed to get us out of here with all that going on?!' he wondered as he and the wolf looked on in worry.
'More...I need more power...I can't let this thing roam free!' her vision was starting to lose focus and fatigue began to set in.
All of her worries and fears were like a stranglehold on her heart that was getting tighter as the minutes wore on.
Strangely, as her body tired, the odd swelling sensation from within continued to rise.
'Please let this be enough...please...' was the last mental prayer as she reached a breaking point of exhaustion!
'What's happening?!' Inuyasha hid behind a sleeve to block the light that suddenly surged from her glowing body!
He grabbed Hayate roughly to hide behind a tree for cover as the reiki exploded with a resounding KA-BOOOOOOOMMMM!
Inuyasha held fast onto the great, whining wolf as a shower of lite snow blew past them!
'Holy crap! What the hell was that?...' the hanyou peaked through his eyelids cautiously, GASP! 'Kagome!'
He hurried out from behind the tree as Hayate rushed to his human charge fallen in the snow!
"Kagome!" Inuyasha ran to her side!
He kneeled next to the girl and turned her over to find her unconscious and pale.
'Shit!...' he mentally cursed, 'Wait, what happened to the monster?' he looked around wildly to find the lumbering blob of death.
He was surprised and awed to find the reiki explosion made a blast radius of at least 20ft all around them.
The snow was also blown away to show soggy, icy soil that lie underneath and many trees all around were either blown down, splintered or some mix of both.
Inuyasha continued to scan the silent scene of ruin. He sniffed the air for the beast's horrid stench but all he could smell now was burning from the reiki. His amber eyes eventually landed on a suspicious group of destroyed trees. Walking closer to them, the putrid smell of the beast began to overtake the one of burn. He could see splatters of the black ooze on what was left of the broken trees, eating through the bark like a potent acid. The hanyou didn't dare go much closer as the stench was getting worse. He didn't see the large body made of noxious sludge from earlier but his senses still rang with danger as they did before.
Whether that thing was still alive or not, he had to get Kagome and that fleabag out of here! Not only that but Kagome needed help right away. Her breaths were shallow, beads of sweat dotted her hairline and her lips had a tinge of purple. He didn't know of any healers nearby since he usually kept to himself...but maybe that Jun kid knew somebody that could help! He ran back to the priestess, gathered her to him and sprinted away as fast as he could! Hayate followed closely behind until they arrived back in Kanto at Jun's workshop.
"Oi! Brat! Are you here?" Inuyasha called as he jogged to the workshop!
Finding it empty, he yelled louder while walking around to the front door of the house, "Oiiiii! Is anyone here?"
Slide, clack! "What's all of the yellin'...?..Inuyasha! What are you doing here?" Jun answered in surprise before taking in the unconscious priestess in his arms, "Lady Kagome!" he exclaimed in worry, "What happened!?"
"Honey, who is it?" a mature female voice came from behind him, "Oh, my, who are you...?...Oh, my gods, Lady Kagome!" she pushed her teenage son aside as easily as moving a kitten, " Jun-chan! Don't just stand there! Show them in! I'll get some bandages, blankets and hot water!" she retreated into the home!
"Ah...Of course! This way!" he stepped aside for Inuyasha and company to walk in and led them to their common room with a hearth.
Jun located a mat made of reeds and rolled it out on the floor, "Place her here where she can rest."
The hanyou crouched down and gently placed Kagome on the mat.
"She's in a real state!" Jun looked her up and down, taking note of anywhere that looked injured, "I just saw 'ya guys a short while ago. What could'a happened since then?" he looked to Inuyasha for an explanation in panic before narrowing his gaze, "What did 'ya get her into?"
"Eh? Whaddya' mean me?" Inuyasha retorted, offended the boy would automatically assume this was his fault, "I didn't do nuthin'!"
"Oh, my goodness. Oh, my goodness. Oh, my goodness," the woman came back with a bunch of odds and ends to help the miko, "Look at her, she's white as a sheet!" the woman kneeled over Kagome as she tried to figure out the problem.
Distraught worry turned into suspicion as she took in the image of Kagome's mysterious "rescuer". She had never seen somebody like him before. What could a wild looking ruffian like him want with sweet, delicate little Kagome?
"I don't know who you are..." her expression turned icy as her protective maternal instinct kicked in, "...but if you did something to her...I swear to the kamis above...!" she threatened while rolling up her powder blue kimono sleeve, ready to pummel this unsavory character into a pulp if she had to!
"I just said I didn't do anything!" Inuyasha bit back, already tired of being accused of something he didn't do!
"Mmmmm..." a deep, masculine voice suddenly broke the dispute as he sat at the young miko's side with a heavily callused hand on her forehead, "She is definitely not ill."
"Geh! Pop! Where did 'ya come from?!" Jun startled at the sudden appearance of his father!
"The workshop," the man now known as 'Pop' answered simply, "Where you should've been but I see something awful has happened," he lightly patted Kagome's forehead as concern weighed on his features.
He turned on his feet to take in the scene around the hearth. There was some strange boy in his home and his wife looked about to pummel this stranger's head head into the ground. He knew that look very well as he had been on the receiving end of it for a couple of decades. His wife could have a temper to rival the heat of the forge he stoked outside for his smithy work.
"Better 'fess up, son," the man sighed, addressing Inuyasha, "It'll only get worse from here."
"For the last time; I didn't do anything!" Inuyasha got to his feet, gritting his teeth, "It was some monster that did this!"
Jun and his family looked on in surprise before slowly calming down.
"A monster, you say?" the man spoke calmly, "What kind of monster?"
Inuyasha managed to calm down as well and sat down cross legged at the side of the hearth.
"It's...hard to explain..." he began, trying to find the words to properly recount what he and Kagome had gone through.
"Hmph, of course it is," the woman grumbled as she tucked Kagome in underneath their warmest, thickest blanket, "Everythin' is hard to explain when you're lyin'."
"Midori..." the older man cautioned, "I'm inclined to believe this fella. Like I said; she isn't sick. She isn't very hurt either to explain looking so pale. Something else is to blame. Let us hear what he has to say," he finished looking Inuyasha in the eye.
Midori looked down at Kagome's ashen face and decided to follow her husband's lead. She turned to also look at the hanyou as a silent acceptance of his words. Jun scooted closer to the group as he wanted to hear the story too.
"Alright..." Inuyasha sighed, "Like I said; it was a monster. It was huge, black and the worst thing I've ever smelled and that's saying something."
"Where did'ja see it?" Jun asked.
"Hm, it wasn't far..." Inuyasha scratched the back of his head, "Maybe a mile or two outside of Johto?"
"That close?" Midori began to worry again, "Oh, Ken, what if it comes this way?"
"Patience, dumplin', patience," Ken took her hand and ran his thumb over her knuckles.
The texture of his hands built by hard work were a welcome comfort, soothing her fraying nerves.
Jun smiled softly behind them. His dad always seemed to know what to say when his mother was getting upset.
"Believe me, you would know if it was close," Inuyasha continued, "Anyway, Kagome was trying to purify the thing and it...it didn't work."
"'Ya don't say..." Midori's chestnut eyes widened as did Jun's.
Lady Kagome was known around these parts as a very competent and powerful priestess. She had tended many sick and dispatched many evil types of energies. To hear of something her abilities couldn't handle was a shock to them.
Inuyasha's expression turned grim, "I think she threw everything she could at it and overdid it. There was this big explosion at the end and I found her passed out on the ground."
"Did she made that explosion?" Ken leaned in looking serious.
"Yeah," the hanyou nodded, "It was made of reiki."
"Why does that matter, dear?" Midori asked her husband.
"It's the energy!" Jun piped up from behind them!
"Heh, look whose learned from his past mistakes!" Ken chuckled as he ruffled Jun's hair, "That's ma' boy."
"Whatever do 'ya mean?" Midori tried and failed to keep from giggling at their display.
"Tell her, boy," Ken chuckled again.
"Ma, remember when I was younger and I would come in with parts of my clothes burnt away?" Jun asked.
Giggle! "How could I forget?" Midori reflected warmly on the memory, "I kept running out of fabric and thread to mend your clothes. And to took some doin' to get the soot out of your clothes too!"
"Pop always says that the most important thing for blacksmiths to know is how to understand, nurture and respect the flame," Jun stated with confidence.
"M-hm, and what happens if ya' don't?" Ken eyed his apprentice with a knowing grin.
Jun took his cue with a silly grin, "It'll burn 'ya, one way or another! Hah! Hah!"
"My tired hands didn't think it was so funny," Midori rolled her eyes, "But what does that have to do with Lady Kagome?"
"Reiki is like fire," Ken explained, "When fire isn't properly guided or taken care of, it can fail, explode or cause a bunch of other bad stuff. I think she lost control of her power for some reason. Maybe it was stronger than she could handle..." he contemplated with a thoughtful index finger curling around his stubbled chin.
Years back when he was an apprentice to a smithy in the town of Hoenn, he had lost control of the fire many times. Keeping the flame happy was a delicate balancing act of the kindle, the kind of wood being used, the weather and air flow to name a few. He learned quickly that fire had many faces. Each material he worked with had its own needs from the flame in order to be used for work. Failure meant false starts, poor results or sometimes weeks of work lost. Maybe for holy folk, failure meant what they were seeing here with Lady Kagome being unconscious and looking so pale.
"Didn't you do anythin'?" Jun looked back at Inuyasha.
"She told me not to," Inuyasha looked down at the girl again, "She said the thing couldn't be touched and it would eat any youki-type attack I could throw at it."
Remembering about it left him feeling bitter and very guilty. He could've been more insistent at the start. Maybe if he had found the right words, he might have coaxed her away from the crazy idea of approaching that thing...but, then again...Kagome was so stubborn that this may have been the only outcome that could ever happen. Even if that was true, he still felt at least partially responsible.
"Well, maybe she just needs some rest and some home cookin'," Midori stood up, smoothing out her well used apron and kimono, "Jun-chan, would you fetch some more rice, please, some roots and meat too. We will need extra for our guests."
"Make that a lot of extra meat!" Ken also stood up.
"What ever for, dear?" Midori called back from food preparations in the kitchen.
"Maybe we should address the wolf in the room," Ken stated more than asked as he looked at the large brown wolf that took up residence next to Kagome where Midori had sat moments ago.
"'Wolf in the room'? Dear, are you al-?" she stopped mid-sentence and dropped the knife she had started to chop some roots with.
There next to the sleeping miko was the biggest wolf she had ever seen. Had he always been there? How did she miss his presence?
"Ma, it's okay! He won't hurt her," Jun assured her before getting the food items she wanted, "This is Hayate. He's Lady Kagome's companion and she rides him like a horse."
Midori looked her son almost not believing him but then she met Inuyasha's eye and he confirmed it with a nod of his head.
"W-w-well, then...more meat it is..." she responded with a slight tremble in her voice as she slowly bent down to pick up the knife she dropped.
'Oh, my goodness. Oh, my goodness. Oh, my goodness...' was on repeat in her mind as she tied her deep brown hair into a low bun in preparation for cooking.
How everyone could be so calm with a dangerous wild animal like that was beyond her.
"She 'rides him like a horse'?" Ken looked over his shoulder at his son with a bushy salt and pepper eyebrow raised in skepticism.
He just had to make sure he had heard that right. A powerful priestess like her riding a big wolf around...the idea was as ridiculous as it sounded.
"Yup!" Jun nodded.
Father and son held their gazes for a moment or two before Ken shrugged his shoulders with an "Alrigh'".
"After you get those things for your mother, come in to wash up and help her with dinner," Ken walked to the front door, "I'll close up the workshop."
With a slide and a clack!, each member of Jun's family had left the immediate room where Kagome lie resting.
'Finally it's quiet...' Inuyasha grumbled mentally.
All of that excitement probably wasn't helpful for Kagome being in the state she was in but he doubted she would remember any of it. He looked down at her again. Her face was just as pale as when he brought her in. It worried him but at least she had a safe, warm place to rest. He figured Jun's family will be having them stay the night. He planned to keep watch over her, no matter how long it took. It was the least he could do for her.
