"Thank you for helping us, monk. We hope this will be enough to repay you." Both the chief and his wife bowed before Miroku as he stashed the bag of coins in his robe. It was more than enough and if circumstances were different, he would be ecstatic.
"No problem, glad we came when we did," He responds.
The chieftain's wife perked up at that and gave him a questioning look.
"If you don't mind my intrusion but you had a companion with you. Is he alright? You looked troubled."
"He is fine, physically at least. The witch left us a parting gift but I'm not sure how to help him but to just wait it out…..I guess." Mirouku replied. "Do you mind me asking what you know about their spells?"
"Why of course. Honestly, we had an understanding with the witch; some of the spells we got from her helped with crop growth and even medical issues we had. But some of the surrounding villages had brought up some issues with them before they started attacking us out of nowhere," the chief explained. "What spell did they use on your friend?"
"They didn't use a worded spell, it was some white sparkly powder. My companion took most of it to his face."
The chief and his wife paused, looked at each other before giving him a confused look.
"Did you say white?"
"...yes."
"Sparkly? Did it get on you as well?" The wife asked.
"Yes and yes. Should we be worried?"
The chief and his wife shared a look again before the wife stepped into the monk's space, squinting her eyes like she was inspecting his face. Miroku was becoming more confused and a little apprehensive.
"Do you know how much they used?" the chief asked.
"It looked like a handful..."
"A handful?!" The chief's wife cut him off and grabbed his face, inspecting his eyes. She could see it now, there was what looked like red webbing on the iris of both eyes.
"Monk, do you mind me asking what your feelings are towards your companion?"
Miroku doesn't think his face has ever felt hotter or been as red as it is now. Why was this woman even asking him that? He took her hands form his face and tried to look everywhere but at the two of them.
"W-what does...what does that have to do with anything?!" he replied, his voice reaching a higher octave from embarrassment.
Both the chief and his wife shared a knowing smile.
"I'll take him to Ayame," the wife said, pulling the monk up and down a winding path. Confused, Miroku looked back at the chief for clarification but he only smiled at him and waved him off.
"Good luck, monk."
What did he even mean by that?
Kimiko, the chief's wife, pulled the still blushing monk along through the village. As they passed, the villagers offered their thanks to him. Some even gave gifts, small tokens of appreciation. Some gave herbs, bracelets, one gave him a robe, another a knife. One old lady gave him a woven basket and matching hat, said it was great for blocking out the sun as she put the hat on his head. Another gave him quilts, said she would make another for him to take before he had to travel home. Some even gave him picked cotton and fruit. As much as he appreciated everything, the monk knowing not to say no to free items, he still felt restless. Almost feeling like the small journey to Ayame was taking forever and he needed to get back to Inuyasha.
Finally, they walked up to a large long hut with open doorways, a healer's hut as they called it. Some injured men and even women sat around the tree that was planted next to it. Miroku assumed they were waiting their turn to be examined. Moving in and out of the hut, ladies in white kimonos were either tending to them or grinding herbs for medicine.
"Ayame, we have a visitor." said Kimiko as she sat on the floor near the entrance.
A much older lady dressed in a dark blue kimono paused in her herb grinding to regard the monk.
"What seems to trouble you monk? You look a bit flustered?" Before Miroku could answer, Kimiko chimed in.
"The witch used that dust on him and his half demon friend." Miroku gave her a questioning look, being very confused as to why she phrased it like that and why she looked to have the juiciest piece of gossip behind her smile. Before he could question her, Ayame pulled his face down to her eye level with a hum. Just like Kimiko did, she inspected his eyes and hummed again.
"Is there something in my eyes?" Asked the monk.
"Yes but I'm waiting for Kimiko to say more," she said, still holding his face but looking at the other woman.
"The half demon took a handful to the face."
"A handful?! Aye! Where is the half demon now, monk?"
"A cave we found behind the waterfall nearby. He asked that I seal him in it, in case he did something stupid again."
"Again?" Miroku tried to look everywhere but at the woman holding his face, realising he said too much. He heard Kimiko parrot and repeated what was said.
"What did he do, monk?"
His face began to get hot from the deep blush very quickly rising on his cheeks, still avoiding eye contact with the older woman. He sighed.
"He made...a pass at me, essentially. I told him to stop, which he did. He's withdrawn since and won't even listen or look at me."
Ayame finally released his jaw allowing him to stand upright again and observed the look of sadness in his eyes before addressing Kimiko.
"I think we have a separate consciousness case again but we should be alright. Doesn't seem like the half demon will be a problem for the village."
"Can somebody please tell me what the hell is going on!?" Miroku was getting frustrated, feeling like he wasn't getting anywhere with these two. "Look, I really need to get back to-"
"It's a love potion." Ayame answered before she ducked under a table. Did he hear correctly?
"Pardon?"
"The witch has been passing through these villages for a little while now. They had different spells and coloured dust they kept on them or even sold to the villages for a high price. Each would vary in what it did but one in particular was the white sparkly dust." Ayame had a scroll in her hand when she returned to her table with a scroll.
"Ayame likes to make a record of different ailments, sickness and even events that happen to the villages around here," replied Kimiko, "so that if we have a repeat or similar event we can be a lil more prepared."
" ...but...are you sure-" Ayame handed a now opened scroll to the stuttering monk for him to read.
The Love Potion: Aphrodisiac (very potent)
'A white glittering powdery substance which can be administered by rubbing into skin and dissolves immediately, can even be absorbed through clothing. Effects can take 1 minute to a few hours to show, and vary with each subject. General dosage: 1/2 teaspoon
Increased dosage has shown either an increased amount of time for the effects to phase out of the body and other oddities.
Symptoms Include and are not limited to:
Increased body temp.
Eye colour: red, pink, marron and other colours based on emotion
Hot flashes
Hyperventilating
Said to only speak the truth
Increased libido
Mood Swings
Violent Tendencies
Oddities with overdose include but not limited to:
Uncontrollable urges
Increased length of time for effect to phase out
Subject said to have multiples personalities; all subject reported that it felt like their emotion were fighting for dominance
Becomes very irritated when away from desired partner
Subject only found relief with being accepted by partner
Subject seen to transform after being rejected by partner/ the person they were pursuing'
"Miss Ayame, what do you mean by "transform" ?" asked the monk.
"Mukino, a young man from a nearby village, heard the powder could make someone fall in love with them but was sadly mistaken." Ayame walked to the monk and point to a phrase written on the scroll before continuing to speak:
'Acceptance must be mutual. Most subjects said they could only act on their based desire with regards to their partners or people they felt strongly for. Others would be outright ignored by subjects under the influence.'
"The boy had his eye on a young lady in the same village and tried to use the powder on her to get her to fall for him while using it on himself. Once it took effect, she ignored him and went after someone else. He, on the other hand, couldn't handle it and turned into a monster with large eyes, multiple arms and even had wings. Took 30 men to bring him down and kill it," said Ayame.
"And the girl?", asked Miroku.
"The girl didn't even know Mukino. She was in love with another, a carpenter who lived a few houses down. They're married and have a baby boy now. He's adorable" chirped Kimiko.
So, Miroku? It doesn't seem that you've rejected your companion outright. I think the witch's plan was for him to be rejected and he transformed into some gruesome beast. However the hell that would work," Ayame spoke like she was giving him a quick diagnosis while she placed two containers onto the table. "The first instance is usually a little jarring so he was probably fighting it but time has passed so he should be a little more...'receptive' to your words. Take these with you, they'll help."
Miroku wanted nothing more than to hide under a rock, in a ditch, anything from the snickering giggling women that surrounded him. This was not how he wanted to know that Inuyasha had felt something akin to more than friendship towards him or to be outed in such a way either. He could only hide his face in the parchment given to him as Kimiko began to poke him gently in his sides while giggling. He took one look at the containers before he went back to hiding his blushing face in the parchment. It was a bottle of oil and what looked to be ointment.