Another Feudal Fairy Tale

[Shy]

The woman ventured out of her hut, adjusting the jingasa she wore to shield her eyes from the blazing sunlight. "Don't be out long!" a woman's voice called out for her as the thatch fell closed over the doorway. "Don't worry, mother, I won't!" she had replied back. She started forward, taking in a sharp inhale of fresh air, then hoisted the quiver of arrows securely over her shoulder, a tight grip on her hunting bow.

Her sandals shuffled softly through the dirt and gravel of the makeshift road, destination being the forest a couple miles away outside of the village's boarders. The hut she had resided in along with her mother sat isolated from the others made the journey a little more taxing, but it was a necessary evil. She often wanted to avoid the trek on some days. And it wasn't the walk that had her concerned. She lowered the jingasa further over her eyes with a small grimace.

A familiar smell of charred wood and cooked meats filled her nostrils as she entered the small village. Her ears rang with the chatter of common folk and shrieks and laughter of young children as they chased one another. She could feel a few judgmental gazes bearing holes into the back of her head as she passed.

"Ye' see that?" one man whispered. Her ears perked.

"Aye'," replied an old woman.

"Isn't that the witch who consorts with demons?"

"Some say her mother was a renowned spiritual healer. I wonder what had gone wrong. I bet she couldn't handle living up to those standards."

"I hear she turned back on her faith and made a pact with some devil."

"Something must have happened to make her go insane and burn down an entire village."

"Shh! She might hear ye' and put some kind of curse on ye'!"

She remained stone faced, gripping the bow so tight her knuckles began to turn white. 

---

The woman paused at the entrance of the forest, taking a deep breath. She closed her eyes, calming the buzzing in her head, and relaxed her shoulders. Upon this moment of meditation, something had tapped her gently on the foot, making her jump with a small gasp. Her eyes focused on a round object on the ground, smooth surface brightly reflecting the sunlight that made her squint. "A.. Ball?" she muttered, squatting down and setting her tools aside to inspect the toy. "Who could have...?"

"Oh hey! Excuse me, miss!" a girl of seven or eight years of age bounded toward her, waving her hand to grab her attention, practically beaming. "My ball! You found my ball!"

The woman tilted her head at her exuberance, fingertips gingerly touching the ball before handing it out to the child. "Indeed I have," she gave a smile, "you should be more careful. These woods can be dangerous. You're lucky it hadn't ventured too far."

The child giggled, "I know. Thank you, miss!" She held her hands out eagerly to take the toy, then was forcibly tugged away from the woman. "What have I told you," her mother hissed, "Not to wander away from the house!" She gave a sharp glare to the other woman, still holding out the girl's ball to take. "And I've told you," she continued, "NOT to take anything from strangers." She stormed off, little girl in tow. 

"Sorry, miss!" she hollered, then was silenced by her enraged mother.

"Enough! Don't speak another word to her! She'll put a curse on you too!"

The woman frowned, then let out a sigh. She set the ball down where she had found it, then stood straight. She turned away and headed into the brush.

---

The calm breeze brushed past her, making her shiver a little. The woman removed the jingasa, tendrils of red hair cascading down her back like a crimson waterfall. She gave a sigh of relief, raking her fingernails through her hair to scratch at her scalp.

"Much better," she groaned, and dropped her bow beside her. She reached into her hakama folds, fingers capturing a thin parchment cut into a shape of a small person. She brought the parchment to her lips, and hummed a quick incantation before thrusting it into the air. There was a flash of pink light, and emerged a white wolf that gracefully landed in front of her, gazing curiously at her with glittering black eyes.

"Now," she said, "time to fetch dinner."

The creature yawned and stretched out. She placed her hands on her hips, "really?" With a chuff, the canine bounded off into the brush. With a roll of her eyes, she picked up her bow and headed after her familiar.

---

"Now, where has that mutt gone?" She grumbled, using her hand as a visor over her eyes as she searches the dense foliage, squinting.

The air grew heavier the further she journeyed into the brush, the sounds of nature fading into an eerie silence so only the trunks of great oak creaked and moaned. She swallowed hard, the rhythm of her own heartbeat rang in her ears as she stood still, focusing on her senses and gathering her wits. 

A rustle sounded in the distance to the right of her. She turned sharply, bow and arrow ready. The noise grew closer, she held her breath and aimed. Her ears began to ring, and drew her arrow back. The rustling was followed with a heavy bound. It's getting closer.

The wolf sprang out of the bushes, the woman dropped her shoulders with a look of disappointment. "Awe, man!" she declared in disdain. The canine looked at her with expressive eyes. "She raised an eye brow. "I almost shot you. Y'know," she said to it, a matter-of-factly. Her attention focused on the mass that hung from it's jaw and wrinkled her nose. She knelt down to her familiar's level, inspecting it's find. It was a head of a ghastly fanged beast. It's eyes still blazed with malice.

"A demon, huh?" she questioned, "not exactly my choice of beef, buddy." The animal rolled it's eyes, and dropped the head in front of her with a defiant bark.

"Hey, I can't help what I like or what I don't like," she shrugged. 

A glint of dark light shone brilliantly within the demon's forehead that grabbed her focus. "Huh?" the woman reached out then, however retracted her hand quickly once the mass began to shift. "Still alive," she murmured. 

A guttural noise bubbled from the demon's gaping maw. "My body," it said, "Where is my body!?" The wolf began to paw at the hunk of flesh with mild curiosity.

"You!" it began to shriek, "you attacked me you no good mongrel! How could I, a great demon be bested by some fleabag!"

"You underestimate me then," she interrupted. She held out her hand, and with a similar flash of light as some time ago, the animal had disappeared and instead was the same parchment she began with.

"A shikigami? Are you a priestess? How dare you!"

"Hardly."

"When I regain a new body. I will devour you!"

"I don't think you'll be doing anything without that jewel shard."

Again she reached out more boldly, fingers grabbing onto the fragment. "What!? No! Not my jewel shard! I beg of you!" the creature pleaded. She frowned, "I'll be taking this." The woman plucked the shard from it's flesh, it's light had converted from a deep violet into a pale pink. She tucked the jewel into her robes, watching the mass disintegrate into nothing but bone.

She gazed up towards the canopy, what little light gleaming through the thick green. 

"I guess we'll be having fish tonight."


 

[Amara<3]

On the other side of the forest that Shina was in, almost directly across, sat a village with a very different dynamic. They had three priestesses, all living in their sacred grounds. Well, two of the three. Crystalaous was the newest of the trio though she'd been there several years already. Once upon a time a demon attacked the village, and though their spiritual prowess was strong it hadn't been enough for the two young priestesses alone to handle. The younger Crystalaous had been forever drifting in the village, not sure what her role was going to be within it. That fateful evening changed everything for her. She'd gotten the courage (or stupidity) to go again the people who were running away from the demon until she was face to face with it.

No one could have gotten to her in time to save her, and everyone trying to fend off the creature could only watch as it swooped down to devour her. With a glint in her eye, she set the demon's arm on fire, and halted time for a moment. The men who were left to defend with the two priestesses were shocked even more than the demon had been. Without warning the demon attacked with a new dedication to killing the girl -now more a threat than the rest- and in a moment the entire demon was set ablaze and was soon after incinerated.

As the demon's ashes fell to the ground, the world around Crystalaous was changed forever. She was celebrated for her destroying the demon, in fact quite the opposite. She wasn't ridiculed, but she was taken by the priestesses and her powers were no longer allowed. They recognized her power as a great thing to behold but hushed it in fear of it. She was more than interested in becoming a priestess, someone important, and they all treated her like she was one after her assimilation into the sacred grounds. She learned of all the priestess responsibility, their daily routines, what they were to do in light of a demon showing up to eat everyone. You know, except for using her innate ability to kill them without spiritual powers or binding spells.

Fast forward back to present day, Crystalaous had chosen several months ago it was time to stop living inside the sacred grounds with the other two priestesses. Claiming that having all of them staying there would be an "all eggs in the same basket" sort of situation. They agreed and let her move living quarters to the edge of the village by the forest. Her real reason for leaving the grounds? Her new friend wasn't able to enter it. He was a wonderful panther but he was also a demon, she learned when noting he wasn't able to go past the front gates of the grounds. So he stayed in the forest where he was safe from the eyes of the village, but it made her time spent at home almost always turn into time spent in the forest. Not that she minded that much.

It was one of those days where she'd finished her chores and went to the forest to hang out with her panther friend and pretend the rest of the world didn't exist. Except, apparently even in the forest, the world did exist somewhere. Crystalaous heard yelling from a distance, and saw a faint light off in the same direction. She huffed slightly and looked her friend. "Should we go, Naru? Jewel shards never bring good news with them..." The large black cat gave a small growl while staring in the same direction. "Kind of what I was thinking," she added and looked back at the light. "Still, if it's going to end up coming this way, we should know what's coming." Naru inhaled and exhaled loudly, and began walking forward with Crystalaous. As they moved toward the light, they both became aware of the priestess looking girl who had just taken a shard from whatever the bones had been only minutes before. "Guess we can take the chance on this one," Crystalaous whispered. She swallowed, hoping this wasn't some foul trick, and took a step into the small clearing with the new girl.

"Uh, hey," Crystalaous said slowly, trying to make sure she didn't startle the girl into attacking her. This girl looked maybe the same age as herself, but they couldn't look more different. This girl's fire red hair against her light brown, the girl's oddly selected garb versus her own very feminine, and adorned, attire. Blending in with the forest still worked as the beading and highlighted parts of her dress were also green, and not shining but smooth. She almost looked like she was important and going somewhere important, though this was her normal wear outside the village and while not in her village's sacred grounds. She swallowed again. "Fancy meeting someone else here."

[Shy]

The woman's ears had perked ever so slightly towards the sound of soft footsteps emerging from the brush. With swift movements, she readied her bow and had an arrow drawn, the sharp tip gleamed at the light that had barely shown through the trees' canopy. She aimed right between the girl's eyes. 

She narrowed her gray eyes, skeptical. The woman took note of the pale pink hue radiating from her silhouette as a sign of purity in her soul. However, the creature at her side began to growl, hackles erect fiercely as it readied itself to pounce at any moment. The woman had remained calm.

A Priestess? She thought to herself. And she travels with a demon.

"Indeed," she replied coolly, "I wasn't aware there were others than myself who roamed these woods."

I must stay Vigilant.

There had been many rumors of sightings of a girl dressed in odd robes who was accompanied by a demon in search of jewel shards. Yes, this was relayed by one of her Shikigami that was sent out to scout out the area in case of strange happenings. It seems speculations were correct. Although, she wouldn't consider this woman any queer looking than she. She just appeared to be some ordinary Miko. Well, albeit the colors she adorned weren't the traditional form of dress. It just didn't fit what was described. 

Her fingers coiled around her bow tighter. She couldn't let her guard down. "Tell me," she inquired, "What exactly is your business here? Are you lost?" 

It seemed a rather redundant question. The answer was obvious. But, she was curious. And what of the demon she travels with? She could sense no ill will from either of them. It did concern her, however, that the presence of a mere fragment had already brought them here this quickly. Perhaps they were hunting down the same demon she had brought down moments ago? 

---

((I'll be temporarily playing the part as Inuyasha, Kagome and shippo until there are volunteers.))

"ACHOO."

The young man let out a loud sneeze, startling the woman who had straddled his back as he bounded at incredible speed through the trees. "Inuyasha?" the young girl questioned, "Is something the matter?" 

"I dunno," he replied with a sniffle, blinking his amber eyes numerous times as they glazed over a little. 

"All of a sudden, I had this weird feeling just now."

"Allergies?" the brunette furrowed her 'brow. "Tch, as if," Inuyasha scoffed.

"I know!" a pygmy sized child chimed in, brushing a few strands of rust colored hair strands from his forehead, snuggling deeper in the woman's hair as he perched on her shoulder. "Maybe somebody is thinking about him!"

The girl blinked, "Shippo?"

"What is that supposed ta' mean?" the man barked. 

"Well," Shippo explained, "My father said that when you sneeze, someone somewhere is thinking about you! Do you know who could be thinking about you, Inuyasha?"

"How the hell should I know?!"

"Okay, what about you, Kagome?"

She pursed her lips thoughtfully, "Your guess is as good as mine." That was a lie. Of course she could think of one other person of interest. It was so blatantly obvious. It made her chest hurt. 

"Oh?" She stiffened, "I'm starting to sense the presence of a Sacred Jewel Shard."

"Yeah," the hanyou responded, "I can smell a demon close by, too. Let's say we go give them a proper 'hello'. Hold on Kagome!"  

Kagome nodded, "Right!"

((It's unbelievably short. I'm sorry! D: ))

[Amara<3]

((Keep writing like you are, it's all good. I'll take Sango, Kirara, and Miroku, for now... when Naraku comes in, I call dibs lol.))

Crystalaous swallowed slowly at the arrow pointed in her face's direction. "Heard a ruckus, saw the light of a Sacred Jewel Shard, figured I might as well check it out," she said and frowned as she looked at the girl. "I'm sure you don't come in here too much, or else we'd have seen you sooner than now," she began and took in a deep breath, letting it out in a sigh but never looking away from the girl's face. She nodded to the arrow. "I really don't think that is necessary," she said softly. "I don't want the shard. Just wanted to make sure it wasn't a demon killing a demon for it. You can definitely take it back with you wherever you are going." She very obviously didn't talk in the normal 'ye' and 'thee' style of most priestesses and general folk of the time. In fact, the priestesses that taught her were the reason for this. They didn't speak like that either.

Naru's teeth were bared and he was ready to attack the moment the new priestess raised her bow. Some new girl attacking his friend? Not on his watch. Any sign that her fingers were going to let go of that arrow and he was going to rip her bow bearing arm off. He growled when the bow wasn't put down and moved forward to get in front of Crystalaous. He wouldn't take the hit because he was obviously too short, but he was that much closer if he was in need of redirecting the path of the arrow. Crystalaous' hand seemed to move absentmindedly to her friend's neck. He gave a deep huff at her but continued to stare at the girl's fingers.

----------------------------------------

"Looks like they're changing direction," a black haired woman sighed. "Again."

"Should we follow them, Sango?" a purple robed monk asked the woman. "Maybe they're onto something."

"Yeah," Sango frowned. "Kirara! Follow them!" she called to the large fire demon cat they were riding. Kirara let out a small roar and bounded through the air after InuYasha, Kagome, and Shippo. "What do you think it could be?" Sango asked Miroku.

"Could be anything," he said, his eyes staring after the trio ahead of them. "A sacred jewel shard, a powerful demon rampaging a village, one of Naraku's puppets, who knows."

"Well if they wouldn't take off so far ahead of us, we'd already know where they were going," she frowned again as they began to close in on them. "Hey Kagome! InuYasha! Where are we going?"

[Shy]

"I'm usually less careless," she responded.

She lowered her weapon slowly. "Quite the pet you've got there," she nodded to the demon. "Actually. I frequent these parts quite a bit. I've got a family to feed," she explained. Shina nudged the skull with her foot, making a face of disgust. "I just happened to be hunting for game when my Shikigami stumbled upon some vermin." 

With a sigh, the red-head relaxed and rolled her shoulders. "It's not very common considering these happen to be part of sacred grounds," she said. Shina rummaged in her grey hakama, retrieving the shard. "Even more odd that the creature had this in it's possession." She held it out in her palm for the Miko to take.

"Here, surely you're better at handling this kind of stuff than I am, though, right? I've been under the impression it was the duty of Miko to purify and guard the shards of the Shikon no Tama. Since it's been established you pose no real threat to me. If that were the case, that demon would have torn me limb from limb and you would have burned the remains by now."

Her eyes were calculating. This was no ordinary Priestess. That was certain. Shina had always had a knack for reading people's potential. Not only could she see the pure aura clear as day, she could feel the heat radiating from this girl's body like a furnace. She could plainly see she was outmatched.

"I don't want it," she said tersely, "nothing good comes from it. I figured I would be the closest person to keeping it safe, since my mother was a spiritual healer. But, now that you're here.."

"The name is Shina, by the way," she introduced herself casually.

There was a faint buzz in the air.

She closed her palm, instinctively grabbing her bow and firing an arrow with impressive speed. Her kill fell with a hefty thud in the damp leaves on the ground. Shina stepped closer, furrowing her eyebrows. "A giant... Wasp?" The insect writhed and hissed a few moments, then went still.

Her eyes followed up toward the canopy, marveling at the horde of similar wasps just hovering over the trio, their red eyes gleamed menacingly as they spectate. 

"That..." she began, "Isn't normal...-Huh? Hey!"

Just like that, the swarm began to fly away almost mechanically in a cloud of thick, purple fog, off toward the direction of her village. "Ugh!" she grunted, covering her mouth and nose with her sleeve, "this fog... I think it's poisonous, be careful!" Without hesitation, she ducked down wind, away from the miasma, also grabbing the Priestess' arm and taking her down with so she didn't inhale the deadly fumes as well. She dug into her hakama once more for her piece of parchment, tossing it into the air. The wolf had emerged in the same grace, nose immediately in the air to smell out the change of atmosphere, and let out a growl.

"I want you to follow them," Shina instructed her companion. With a firm nod, the creature bolted off into the brush.

---

"Kagome sensed another jewel shard!" Shippo hollered out to the exterminator, holding onto Kagome for dear life.

"I'm also sensing a strong spiritual presence," the girl added. 

"Huh?" the hanyou's ears twitched, "you do? Do you think it might be Kikyo?"

Kagome felt a knot in her stomach, and swallowed hard. Why was THAT the first thing on his mind when I said that?

"Kagome?"

She shook her head, cheeks flaring up. "U-uh... I don't think so," she stammered out, "this feels... Different. And there's two of them."

"Two of them?"

"Yeah... One of them seems to have the shard with them, too."

The fox child pointed out in to the distance, face drained of color, "uh.. G-G-Guys!" The two followed Shippo's finger, and Kagome gasped softly, "is that... Saimyosho?" Inuyasha frowned, "Yeah... It's them, alright. And it looks like they're heading the opposite way we're going." He began to change course.

"Are you sure you want to follow them Inuyasha?" the boy asked fearfully. Kagome could feel the poor child trembling as he pressed himself into the crook of her neck, hiding in her hair.

"If Naraku is anywhere close by. I'll take any chance I get to take him down. The jewel will have to wait," Inuyasha declared confidently. The brunette with him nodded, "right."

"I can smell human blood going that way."

[Amara<3]

"I'm Crystalaous," she said back in introduction. "You can just call me Crystal if you want, pretty much everyone does," she added just as the girl named Shina tried to pass the shard to her, even after her saying she didn't want it. She felt the same way about the shard Shina did - they only cause problems. Though the thing about it was... she didn't want it because it would enhance her already terrible fire powers. She would give it to her elder priestesses, and they would know exactly why. She hadn't even moved to take it yet before Shina took it back to quickly shoot something.

Looking over to where her arrow went, she noted what it was with shock. She'd heard of these before. "Saimyosho," she said curiously. "I've never seen them here." She looked up as well to see the swarm of them, meanwhile her panther friend moved in on the dead one to get a whiff of it. He growled and looked up as the miasma began to fall down on them. "A purple... cloud... wha-?" she began to ask as Shina pulled her down into the bushes to get away. She covered her mouth and nose with her sleeve, while Naru seemed to be searching for something and keeping low to the ground.

As Shina sent her wolf out to follow the killer wasps, Naru bounded off with it. "Naru!" Crystalaous' call was muffled by the material over her mouth. She didn't try to run after him. She looked at Shina, "We need to get out of here! Whatever they're here for, I think they're leaving."

-----

Sango and Miroku watched the wasps flying away from what was presumably two priestesses. "Shouldn't we check on the two in the forest?" Miroku asked in a somber tone. "Something might have happened to them."

"They're priestesses," Sango reminded him. "Or people with great spiritual powers, and it was just the Saimyosho, they should be fine," Sango said as she lifted her poison mask over her face. "Wherever those wasps are going, you can bet Naraku is there. Kirara!" With an ever louder roar, the great cat leapt through the sky, speeding up but keeping in line with InuYasha, Kagome, and Shippo.

Miroka looked back in the direction of the girls, and frowned. They didn't seem to be moving anywhere, but there was more moving in the forest than what Kagome seemed to have noticed. He noted two other things in the forms of animals running a little behind, but in the same direction as the Saimyosho, and he determined they must be following the swarm. "We're not the only ones on their trail!" Miroku called to InuYasha and Kagome. "There two others following the swarm!" If one looked closely, Naru and the wolf could be seen streaking in and out of gaps in the trees above them.

[Shy]

((Kagura in this part will be played by me. Aaand, maybe a little bit of Kohaku. I need more people for canon characters. Gadzooks.))

"I don't understand what we're doing here. Honestly," The woman grunted, lithe frame leaning against a tree. She tapped the tip of her fan to her chin, painted lips curved into a dissatisfied frown. She watched the horde of demons, devouring and terrorizing whatever and whoever they could find, uninterested. A teenage boy approached her, ignited torch in hand. 

"Huh?" 

The woman turned her crimson gaze to the embers, "what's that for?" With no reply, he turned, venturing towards the hut that settled further away from the others. She raised an eyebrow,"what on Earth is that boy up to?" She followed him with mild curiosity.  

"There are two priestesses with immense power that could be of use to me. One, in a small village, there, she lives in a hut remote from the others. And, the second, neighboring this village is a temple with only three shrine maidens. She is one of the three. I have sent a little distraction their way to keep them busy and off your trail. Kagura, I want you to proceed to these destinations while they are away. I have already veered Inuyasha off course. He will be headed your direction. So be quick. I will send Kohaku with you with a task of his own."

"Tch," Kagura scoffed, "This is your grand plan? Have mere humans devoured by demons and burn down some witch's hut? What are you thinking, Naraku?"

This house isn't anything special, she thought. It looked like any other residence of a peasant. She rolled her eyes, and moved forward. A sudden force shot through her like electricity as she got closer, sending her backward a couple of steps.

"A barrier?" she spoke under her breath, puzzled. She reached out with her hand, the current of spiritual energy surged around her fingertips like spider webs and singeing her flesh. 

"How irritating."

She watched the boy, unphazed by the force field as he ventured through it with ease. "I see," Kagura muttered, "the barrier is meant to keep demon's out. But humans can come and go freely. Now I get it. But, why go these lengths just to set a random girl's home ablaze?"

Kagura looked over her shoulder towards the sound of heavy footsteps. "Oh great," she groaned, eyes meeting with the black orbs of a large, white wolf, head low and haunches up, ready to attack. The creature wasn't alone. A demon taking the shape of a black leopard accompanied it, posture the same. They bared their fangs, growling in unison. 

"I see you've come to watch the light show," she commented smugly, holding her fan away from her with a smirk, "alright then, I'll play."

Kohaku emerged, disposing of the torch. "We're done here," he finally spoke in a flat tone, nodding to his handiwork. The flames began to swallow up the hut in a great blaze. 

"We need to leave, now."

"Huh, too bad," the wind sorceress shrugged. She plucked a feather from her hair, then flung it upward. It grew in size, and she and he boy leapt into it as it ascended into the sky.

The leopard bounded forward, however it was too late. The animal let out a roar, swiping at the ground in anger as it watched the two fly away in haste. The canine, meanwhile, dashed into the scorching flames with a frightful bark.

---

"Inuyasha! There!" Kagome said urgently, pointing in the direction of a black smog rising from a village nearby. "Yeah, I see it," Inuyasha replied, nose twitching a little. The smell of demons and flesh were pungent. 

"And demons!" Shippo cried out, "a lot of them!"

The trio landed on the ground into the fray. "Iron Reaver!" the hanyou shouted, ripping and tearing through an onslaught of demons attempting to get in their way with his own claws. The girl hopped off of his back, readying her bow. She shot through one of them, arrow emitting a brilliant light. 

"There's too many!" The fox child wailed, now away from his perch on Kagome's shoulder, only to hide behind her leg, gripping desperately at her white sock.

"Kagome, you go on ahead and gather any survivors. I'll take care of these guys," the man ordered. The brunette nodded. "You got it," she replied, running off and away from the crossfire, Shippo hot at her heels.

A few creatures took this opportunity to give chase after the girl. 

"Oh no you don't!" Inuyasha yelled, unsheathing the katana at his side.

"Tessaiga!"

He leaped forward, swinging the great sword and vanquishing the demons in one stroke. 

---

Kagome sprinted as fast as her slim legs could carry. She looked around desperately, and managed to grab a handful of village folk, ushering them into the brush to conceal themselves. They praised and thanked her, reaching their hands out with pleading eyes.

"Stay hidden until this is over, okay? We've got this!" she gave an encouraging smile.

"Kagome! Look over there!" 

The girl turned to Shippo, "what is it? What's wrong?" The glaring light of flames caught the corner of her eye. There, a lone hut was engulfed in flames. She had a bad feeling in the pit of her gut. She instinctively ran towards the fire.

"Kagome, wait! Where are you going!?" the child bellowed.

"There might be people in there! We've got to go help!"

---

The smoke grew heavier as she approached closer, soot stinging her eyes. "Hello?" she called, "is anyone still in there!?" She entered the flaming hut, the mere blistering heat was so intense it caused her to cough violently. Kagome held her arm over her nose and mouth, squinting through the heavy ashes.

"Kagomeeee!" Shippo cried, hopping after her. He flew backward with a yelp. He landed face first into the dirt. "What was that?" he groaned, rubbing at his head.

Shippo tried again, only to meet head to head with the barrier again, producing the same result. He looked on with worry, face dirty and bruised. Shippo proceeded to call out, eyes welled with tears. The roar of the flames too great it drowned out his cries. 

"Kagome!-- WAH!"

A black mass had passed him in a blur, knocking him down again.

"Hey! Watch where you're going!-- Huh?"

A leopard proceeded to slam his body weight into the barrier over and over with a cry of pain each time. He watched it, almost speechless.

"Is he.. trying to help?"

The creature looked onto him with a snarl. Shippo shrieked and shrunk away from it's piercing gaze. "E-Easy there," he pleaded, "I'm on your side. See? Good Kitty?" He sighed in relief as the feline turned away.

It let out an urgent howl that sent a chill down the child's spine.

"R-Right," he agreed, "I should go get help! Hang on Kagome!" The young kitsune turned abruptly, and scurried off to find Inuyasha.

---

Shina could barely see through the mist, struggling to breath through the sleeve of her hakama. If she didn't get herself and the other girl out of there, they would surely succumb to this horrid miasma. 

She searched anxiously for any kind of clearing. It seemed all hope was lost until she finally caught sight of an area where the fog began to break. It was a long shot, but she had to try. Shina ushered Crystalaous to follow her as she crawled on her belly through the thick foliage as quickly as she could. Her eyes began to glaze over and her chest burned, in dire need of fresh oxygen. She grabbed onto the Miko again and broke into a sprint, squinting her eyes shut to protect her sight. 

Shina wheezed heavily, leaning against a nearby tree once she has gotten the two to safety. "What... On.. Earth.. Was that?" she asked in between breaths. Her entire body trembled slightly, her legs felt weak.

"And what were those things called? Saim-what-now?"

The woman fastened another arrow into the notch of her bow cautiously. "Well.. Whatever they are," she began, "they're headed toward my village." 

She cleared her throat, struggling to stand up straight. "I'm going after them. I sense a bad omen coming. So, you can either help, or get to somewhere safe. It doesn't matter to me," she said to her. Shina looked at the Miko, clearly distressed.

"You might want to go after your friend, though."

She felt the air shift. There was someone watching them. Her attention drifted to a silhouette hidden within the shrubs. Shina closed her eyes and exhaled sharply, then aimed her arrow. "I'm not in the mood for more surprises today, damnit," she said through gritted teeth, clearly agitated. 

Laughter echoed throughout the trees. Her cheeks flared in fury. She felt as if she were being mocked.

"I will not be made a fool out of. Show yourself!"

((Time for Naraku's debut. ))

[Amara<3]

Sango and Miroku jumped off of Kirara, and she didn't turn back into her small cat form - she jumped right into the action with InuYasha, pouncing on demons and tearing at their flesh with her claws and formidably sharp teeth. The demon exterminator pulled her large boomerang from her back with a single powerful movement. "Hiraikotsu!" she yelled and sent it flying, cutting down demons as it went like they were warm butter.

"I'll go gather any survivors, and find Kagome, I can't see her anywhere!" Miroku called as he ran into the mess of demons and bodies, trying to find anyone that could still be alive, while battling off any demons that got close to him.

-----

"Yep, those things have names," Crystalaous said with a frown. "Something bad is happening," she added and shivered. As they got out of the miasma, she took a deep breath of the normal fresh air around them and sighed. "I don't know what's going on, honestly, but you're right, I need to go find Naru," she said lightly, and paused as she felt something else with them, just as Shina readied her bow to the bushes near them. Her facial expression turned to stone as she saw something right where the arrow was pointed. Something about it didn't seem right, like it was something sure, but what she didn't know.

As it laughed, she could tell it was male, but what kind of demon? After Shina yelled at him, he chuckled again and moved just slightly to their right, but not into a visible spot for them to see what he was. He appeared to be covered in some sort of fur, but what kind again she couldn't tell. She wasn't interested in his attire, she wanted to see his face.

"Your village is under attack by a demon by the name of InuYasha," he began, and Crystalaous tilted her head slightly. It felt like this thing was what had brought the miasma to them, but why try to poison them if he was trying to aid them? Was this is all some trap to get them to go there and be murdered as well? Where was Naru and why hadn't he come back yet? She knew something was happening in the direction of Shina's village, just... hm.

"What does this InuYasha look like?" she asked suddenly, knowing it wasn't any time to be asking silly questions, and the thought of Shina's village being under attack was likely going to send the girl into a frenzy any moment.

"He has silver hair, and dresses in red," the demon said from the darkness. "He travels with a group of demons, and a girl with long black hair that is peculiarly dressed." All this rang a bell to her, but she hadn't heard any bad things about this group. She furrowed her brow and looked at Shina.

"We better go," she said quickly, glancing at the demon only to find he'd already vanished. She looked all around them, and questioned whether someone had been there at all. "Now," she insisted, and began running toward Shina's village. Her mind wandered back to her village. They could already be wondering where she is.

[Shy]

Shina squinted suspiciously at the man clad in a baboon pelt. "Right," she replied dryly. She lowered her weapon. Though the stranger had disappeared, she could still hear his laughter.

"That's enough information that I need to know, then."

The red-head gave the Miko a knowing look. Her lips formed almost a straight line and sighed, as if she were considering her next move. Then, without hesitation, she shot her arrow straight through the trees. The man that was hidden had dissolved, leaving nothing but a wooden puppet behind, now sliced in half. 

"Figures," Shina muttered, "coward must have sent this out as some sort of distraction. Could it be the work of this Inuyasha?"

She had realized she still had the fragment of the jewel still locked in her palm. Shina stared at it, then tucked it away into her hakama. "I'll need your help after all," she said to her.

"We'd better go," she heard the Priestess say. She nodded, "let's go then."

---

As they both ran, the heavier the pit of her stomach felt. All she could think about was the safety of her mother. However, with the barrier she had set up, she should have more of a fighting chance. Somehow, she had the feeling there was something up this demon's sleeve that would make it possible to drive her out of her home. She wondered if her shikigami alone was enough for now until she got there.

But, why would a demon decide now would be the appropriate time to attack her village of all places? Even if it were possible that word of her possessing the jewel in that short amount of time, it would most likely be Shina that be the target, not her own mother. Unless, it were to serve as a ploy to get her to lower her guard? Or, has her mother made enemies due to her spiritual prowess? Why make a move now?

She couldn't consider the reasons right now. She didn't have the time to. The only focus was to get there as fast as possible. 

"I need you to do me a favor," she began telling Crystal, "there is a hut further away from the village. I'll need you to make sure nobody has gotten there first. I'll take on this 'Inuyasha'."

Shina felt her chest tighten. Was she really ready to take on this demon by herself? She could feel her legs burn the more she picked up the pace, it felt like weights were tied to her ankles. It was almost some force was keeping her from venturing further.

Even so. If it could mean her own end, she had to try.

---

They drew near. The scent of ashes and decay already assaulted her senses. She turned to Crystal in panic, then pointed off towards the distance to what appeared to be a fire.

"Go! Now!" 

She had already vanished into the fray. She frantically searched for survivors. All she could find were corpses of fallen demons. Her face twisted into puzzlement. Why would there be bodies of dead demons? Wasn't all this because of a demon? Was this a result of some sort of feud? Shina chewed at her lower lip. The last thing she wanted was to think that her own home was some kind of demonic warzone.

"Tessaiga!"

She could hear someone bellow through the cries of demons not too far from where she stood. Her feet carried her to the commotion, arrow ready and notched into her bow. She slid behind a collapsing yurt, peeking around the corner to watch a man in red slice through a horde of demons with one stroke. The woman watched, with a combination of awe and horror. The sheer size of his blade was almost enough to make her reconsider and turn tail to follow the Miko she traveled here with.

She closed her eyes and slowly breathed in through her nose, held it for a mere second, then exhaled through her lips. "Okay," she told herself, attempting to ease her trembling.

"You can do this."  

The sound of roaring flames and shrieking demons thundered in her ears, bringing her to her senses. Shina opened her eyes with a sound resolve. The woman emerged from her hiding place, then shot the first arrow right at the man's massive weapon. The force of the impact and the spiritual power she sent with it forced the blade to reduce into nothing but a rusted sword.

---

"Huh?" the hanyou stared at his weapon with bewilderment. He frowned, "there's only one other person I know with that kind of power to do this to Tessaiga..." His heart nearly leapt into his throat. Was Kikyo really there? Did she know Naraku would already be here?

He turned eagerly, then found himself surprised that this wasn't, in fact, the person he was expecting. Inuyasha scowled. "Oh..." he finally grunted in disappointment. His eyes focused on he tip of the arrow already pointing at his direction, then at the face of his attacker.

She was just a girl, face dirty and hair as red as his robes. She was dressed awkwardly in male clothing that was obviously a little too large for her. What held his attention more was the look she gave him. Her eyes held fury. It confused him, because he could also see uncertainty there, too. It seemed like deep down she really didn't want to fight him.

She's got guts, he'll give her that.

"So, you're Inuyasha, huh?" she asked him, "you don't look like much to me. Tell, me. Why have you come here? Why did you attack these people!?"

Oh, here we go...

"Look," he replied, "I don't know what you--" Inuyasha took a step forward. The girl fired another arrow, grazing his cheek. He winced a little, the flesh searing a from the small cut there. 

"Don't take another step forward, demon!" she barked. 

"You have the wrong idea, lady!" Inuyasha yelled back, waving his sword at her.

"You're the one who's brought demons here and swinging a sword at me! So, don't tell me I'm wrong!"

"What the hell are you talking about!? They were here before I was!"

"Stop lying!"

Inuyasha threw Tessaiga away in frustration, "I'm not a threat to you, okay!? Look!" He held his hands up.

The red-head sneered, "yeah, right. I was told by a man in a monkey suit that a demon in red by the name of Inuyasha would be attacking my village. And here you are. So, why are you here!?"

The man blinked, "wait, did you just say-"

"Inuyasha!!"

His ears perked at the call of his name. He turned to the fox child bounding towards him in urgency. "Shippo? What is it? Kagome isn't with you?" he asked. Inuyasha tilted his head up, nose sniffing out the air.

This couldn't be good.

"Over there!" Shippo pointed, "it's on fire and, sh-she went inside and..." he wiped away his tears, "there's a barrier! I couldn't get in to save her!"

"Damnit," the man muttered, turning his heel to sprint into the direction of the flames off to the distance. 

"Oh, no you don't!" The woman pressed her two fingers to her lips in prayer. A barrier had emerged in front of the hanyou, driving him backward.

"You've got to be kidding me!"

---

"Hello! Anyone in here!?" Kagome called, dodging around the embers. 

"Shina?" a woman replied back, "are you in here? Shina? Get out of here while you can!"

"Shina?" the girl questioned to herself, then shook her head, bringing herself back to her senses. She could see a woman only a few feet away from her through the black smoke, already attempting to make herself a path through the wreckage, all the meanwhile trying to fan away the flames. Kagome could see a faint light of a barrier around her frame, however she could tell it was fading fast the weaker she got from inhaling the smog.

"Ma'am? Are you alright?" 

"Who are you?"

"That's not important right now, I'm here to help!"

She reached out for her, "here, grab my hand-Ah!" There was a sudden crash, and she fell to the floor. Kagome coughed, trying to steady her blurry vision. "Are you hurt?!" she heard the woman holler. "Yeah. I think so," she replied back. She peered at the fallen debris where she had stood.

"Something... Pushed me out of the way?"

Her watery eyes met with a pair of black ones, shining with concern. The wolf sniffed at her face, then snorted softly. Kagome patted the creature, "thanks." The animal chuffed, then proceeded to leap over the rubble toward the older woman. She nodded with understanding, wrapping her arms around the large creature's neck as it bounded towards Kagome. It barked at her, motioning it's head to an exit. "Right," she agreed.

Then the three practically threw themselves out of the burning building before it collapsed.

[Amara<3]

Crystalaous moved swiftly from Shina and toward the burning hut. As she got closer she noticed her friend trying to ram his way through what appeared to be a barrier... like the one at her village surrounding their sacred grounds? "Naru!" Crystalaous called, and he did in an instant, turning and bounding toward her and jumping around so she could get on his back. She jumped onto him and he took off to the barrier like a shot. She jumped off him and put her hand through it. Just as she thought, demon repelling barrier. She ran in as she heard a girl calling out. She got to the hut as collapsed as the Shikigami wolf came flying out with two other females. She caught them all and almost fell with them. The wolf jumped from her and began helping the older of the two females to her feet.

"What is going on here? The demons couldn't get past the barrier, so how is this even possible?" she asked, steadying Kagome back up. What odd clothes. She was reminded of how the guy in the forest said a demon in red and a girl in weird clothes were attacking the village. If that were the case, then why was this girl trying to help the woman, and why was the Shikigami helping both of them escape? "Something is... oh, man, we better get Shina or she's going to kill the demon that came here with you."

She turned and looked at Naru. "Run ahead," she told him and he turned right away, running back to the village.

-----

Sango and Miroku had gathered a couple more people, and Kirara was sniffing around as Shina came on to their situation. "Oh, who is this now?" Miroku asked and Sango side-glanced at him, knowing what his intentions were going to be. If this turned out to be a nice girl... he was going to be in trouble.

"Don't even bother, Miroku," Sango warned. "She looks less likely to deal with your behaviour than I am." Kirara looked up as she saw a black panther demon come running in their direction. Her tails raised and she gave a feral growling hiss in the demon's direction. She was about to leap at him when Sango stopped her. "Wait, Kirara! He's not attacking anyone."

[Shy]

"Shina is here?" the older woman asked, the wolf tilted it's head upward with piqued interest. Kagome craned her head towards her, "Shina? Who's Shina?" 

"She is my only daughter," she answered, then looked to the Miko. "And-" she ushered to the remnants of the dissipating barrier, "she is the one responsible for the barrier you had seen before you." She shook her head solemnly, "Originally it was something I had once conjured up for our own safety from demons. Sadly my power wanes the older I age. Moreover-" The woman turned her gray gaze to the girl in foreign garb, "she be the very same that this Priestess speaks of. If what I hear is correct, your friend--in extent--is in danger. Albeit her powers have not yet developed. She can still deliver significant damage."

"Inuyasha?" Kagome inquired, "you mean Inuyasha? But, he didn't do anything wrong!"

"Whatever she has been lead to believe, Shina seems to deem otherwise. And I fear what harm will come to her if she were to pursue this companion of yours," the mother shook her head solemnly.

The girl's posture stiffened, fixing the quiver to her back. "I have to go help Inuyasha," she proclaimed.

"Allow me to go with you," the older woman spoke, then stumbled, the earlier smog clouding her senses to the point where she couldn't stand straight. The wolf gave an audible huff. "No," Kagome replied, placing a hand to her shoulder, "you need to rest. I'll make sure neither of them end up getting hurt." She turned to leave, until she had felt a harsh tug at her uniform. "Eh?" she blinked, focusing on the canine that held her skirt in between it's teeth, it's own eyes bore into hers with strong reluctance.

"At least take he shikigami with you," the woman chimed in, "it's aide will be proof to her that you mean no ill will here."

Kagome nodded in understanding, giving the creature a pat on the head, "alright."

As the two ventured farther away from them, the mother gazed at the Miko with scrutiny. "It seems you have an acquaintanceship with my child. Tell me, Priestess. What had conspired while in those woods?"

---

"Inuyasha!" the child cried out, pounding his tiny fist against the erected barrier that stood between him and the older male. 

"Damnit," Inuyasha growled through gritted teeth. He placed his palm along the force field, a strong sensation shot like violent pinpricks through underneath his palm. The hanyou balled up his fist and slammed it against the barrier. A dull ache reverberated through his very core that made him wince a little. His canine ears perked ever so slightly. He was aware of Sango and Miroku's presence nearby.

"Listen to me, Shippo," Inuyasha instructed. "I need you all to go back and find Kagome."

"What are you saying?!" Shippo wailed, "there's no way to get beyond that barrier! And now you're trapped too!"

"I know that okay!?"

He gave a loud sigh, "look, there has to be another way." He said this as if it were more to reassure himself. He turned his back on the kitsune to face the red head, "I'll deal with this." 

The fox child trembled, "Inuyasha...- Huh?" He turned his attention to the sound of something approaching. He shielded his face away from the flying dirt and pebbles that were flung into his direction as a creature skidded to a halt before him. "The demon from before?" Shippo questioned, tilting his head to the side curiously. The leopard gazed at him with intensity, then let out a chilling howl, causing Shippo to cover his ears and shrink away from it.

Inuyasha's nose twitched. "Tell me something," he demanded. "Are you working for Naraku?"

The girl narrowed her gray gaze. "Why would that matter to you? I should be the one asking the questions here!" She readied another arrow. With a blink of an eye the demon was gone. She had not noticed within her bewilderment that he appeared behind her, grabbing her wrist roughly and forcing her to drop her bow with a yelp of surprise.

"Let me go!" she shrieked, grabbing a hold of the hanyou's arm and forcibly trying to pry him off to no avail. The silver haired male held her up a bit higher so she was more at eye level. "Not a chance," Inuyasha grunted. "I don't know what Naraku has filled your empty head with. But, I ain't the real enemy, ya' hear?" The girl had not heard him, beating her fist against his shoulder vigorously, visibly biting at her lip to stifle a whimper. He rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Oh, brother," he mumbled under his breath. He shook her once, "hey, are you even listening ta' me?!"

"Inuyasha!" a feminine voice called out to him. He lifted his head, "Kagome?" His expression softened.

Good. She's safe.

"Let her go Inuyasha! That girl isn't your enemy!"

"Are you out of your mind!? She tried to have me killed just now!"

"You're not helping your situation, here. Look, you're scaring her!"

"You're joking, right?!"

Kagome stomped her foot in frustration, "oh, that stupid--." The wolf at her side barked in urgency. "What's wrong?" the girl questioned the shikigami. She looked to the sky. "Oh no!" she exclaimed.

"Inuyasha!"

The hanyou followed the direction of Kagome's cries. "Damn," he grunted, narrowing his amber eyes to the swarm of demon insects hovering their way.

The red headed girl bared her teeth at the male, "I said let. Me. GO!" She grabbed at his sleeve, and with a flash of pink light, the hanyou bellowed in pain. The flesh of his arm burned at the contact, the fabric of his hakama ruined and torn from the intense heat of her assault. This shocked even the girl he still had in his grasp, leaving him an opening to strike the back of her head and causing her to fall limp in his arms, unconscious. The barrier began to dissolve.

"Inuyasha! What do you think you're doing!?" Kagome scolded him from afar. 

"Shaddup! I know what I'm doing!" he shouted back, scooping the girl into his arms bridal style and taking a single bound toward the brunette. He set her down onto the ground at her feet. "Here," he said, "you take care of her, then." Kagome knelt beside the girl. The shikigami promptly sniffed at her face with a whine. "You didn't have to be so hard on her," she frowned. Inuyasha scoffed, "I dunno about you." He pointed to his singed arm, "but I don't think she was gonna listen to reason." He faced the horde of saimyosho, flexing his fingers, knuckles cracking.

"Now then. Let's settle this."

[Amara<3]

As Kagome left with the shikigami, Crystalaous helped Shina's mother to sit on a nearby rock. She frowned as the woman asked what happened in the forest. "It seemed like so many things happened so very quickly," she said honestly. "There's a lot to tell with so little time that went by." She moved from the woman and stood, looking down at her and wondering what she could do to help her. She smiled softly and sat down so Shina's mother didn't have to look up at her. "A demon with a shard of the Shikon-No-Tama attacked Shina, and she killed it after removing the shard. I was travelling a bit, spending some time with a friend in the forest when I heard some voices and noticed the light of the jewel shard, so I went to check out what was happening. That was how we met. We'd barely introduced ourselves when another demon appeared before us and told us what was going on here... though it seemed that he wasn't entirely truthful of how it happened..." she trailed off, looking back in the direction of the now ruined village. "We sent the shikigami and my friend here to check things out, and when they didn't come back right away we ran here ourselves, to find all of this..." she sighed heavily. "I certainly wasn't planning to spend my day here, and my village may already be wondering where I have gone."

-----

Sango and Miroku moved silently around InuYasha and the red haired girl as they argued, over to the panther demon who seemed to standing there unsure of what to do next. There was little else for him there and he was about to turn when he noticed the demon slayer and monk coming his way.

"Hello," Sango said cautiously. "Can you speak?" the panther shook its head. Sango hummed and wondered how she could ask questions with yes or no answers. "Do you know what happened?" The panther nudged her hand suddenly and turned back in the direction he came from and huffed with another nod for the two to follow her. "Alright," Sango answered and looked at Miroku.

"InuYasha! Will you be alright? We need to go this way for a few minutes," Miroku called, noting the red haired girl was now unconscious and that Kagome had stopped scolding him just then- there were Saimyosho hanging about. "You can take care of them, can't you?" Kirara turned back into her small form and jumped into Sango's shoulder, then into her arms with a small meow escaping her little form.

They followed the panther demon until they noticed the green robed miko talking with an older woman. "Maybe we'll be able to get some answers now," Miroku said in a low tone to Sango as they approached.

[Shy]

"Honestly," Kagome muttered quietly. She shifted the girl's head gingerly onto her thighs, fingers lightly touching her forehead as she examined her for any more injury. Shippo perched onto her shoulder, small frame leaning in curiously, "Will she be okay, Kagome?" With a nod, she simply replied with, "I think so." The brunette brushed a few fiery strands from the girl's face. "I wonder where all that spiritual energy came from," she pondered.

"Maybe she's another priestess?"

Kagome shook her head, "This kind of feels... Different. I can't explain it." She used the pad of her thumb to idly smudge away the dirt that blemished the red head's cheek. 

"She has some weird colored hair," the fox child commented.

She moved her attention from her face towards the ground a few yards away where a faint glint of a shard reflected the sunlight. "Ah! There it is! A shard of the Sacred Jewel!" Kagome declared. She pointed, "Inuyasha! There!"

"Got it," Inuyasha replied, lunging at the fragment with impressive speed, then shredding the insect that dared to pick it up and fly away with it. He retrieved the shard, squeezing it tightly in his palm. His amber eyes glared at the retreating swarm, lip curling into a sneer. "Runnin' away huh?" He leaped into the air, hacking and slashing away at the remaining few.

---

"Kagome," the hanyou approached the three, retrieving Tessaiga on his way, "are you alright?"

"Yeah," Kagome replied, cradling Shina's head on her lap. The Shikigami at her side stared at Inuyasha with intense black eyes. The male's nose twitched. "Got a problem, fur ball?" he confronted. The wolf chuffed at him loudly, then nosed at the red head's cheek.

Shina began to stir. With a groan, she managed to hoist herself up enough to prop her upper half against her elbows. "Oh, you're awake!" Kagome said happily. The girl squinted at the brunette suspiciously. Her vision was blurry, the welt on the back of her head ached, and the world around her was spinning. "What in the hell..." she managed to say, her speech slurred a little. Shina touched at the knot on her head, then pulled away with a sharp intake of breath through her clenched teeth.

"Damn, that smarts!"

"Try not to move too much," Kagome urged gently. "He hit you pretty hard, but he had his reasons..."

"Who? What? When?" the girl grumbled, confused. She sat up now, pressing her palms into her temples. Inuyasha scoffed, resting the blade of his sword on his shoulder, "if ya' would have listened, I wouldn't have to knock you out to begin with."

Shina craned her head towards the hanyou with puzzlement. It had taken only a moment until she recognized the the tone of his voice, snapping her out of her dazed stupor. She fell back with a shriek, "YOU!"

She hopped back onto her feet--almost too eagerly, causing her to nearly stumble backward. Kagome followed, positioning herself behind the girl to catch her if she had fallen. "Be careful!" she chided. Shina took a step back, pointing an accusing finger at Inuyasha.

"Easy, easy! Inuyasha isn't your enemy."

"The hell he ain't! He attacked my village!"

"The hell I did!" Inuyasha retorted, matching the same volume. "Inuyasha!" the brunette shouted. 

The red head's eyes began to well up with tears. She rubbed at them furiously with her sleeve. "Look," Inuyasha started, "you mentioned earlier that a guy dressed in a pelt approached you and told you I would be here. Right?"

Shina remained silent. The man continued, "what you saw then was a demon by the name Naraku. He's told you some bold faced lie to try to get you to kill me, or die tryin'. See? This is what he was really after." He held the jewel shard close to her face.

The girl looked away in defiance.

"Hey. Are you even hearin' me!?"

"That's enough, Inuyasha," Kagome told him sternly. She stood before her now, then rested her hands onto the other girl's shoulders, "It's a lot to take in. But, believe me. Inuyasha isn't here to hurt anyone."

The Shikigami that accompanied them began to growl. Shina furrowed her eyebrows, "What's the matter with you?" She looked up. A rock had been thrown at her direction, colliding right onto her brow bone. 

"Hey!" Kagome screamed, quickly looping her slender arm around the other's waist to balance her on her feet. Inuyasha turned, "well, look who decided to show up."

A man had shuffled out from the brush, another large rock in his hand. Others began to follow him, looks of complete revulsion on their soot covered faces. Shina brushed her fingers over the wound above her eye, feeling over a warm fluid trickling between her fingertips.

"That wasn't very nice!" the brunette huffed. 

"Get away from her," the man said gruffly, "Get away from that witch!" Kagome was astonished, "What? What do you mean?"

"It was her... It was her that summoned those demons!"

The other village folk began to join him, chanting and cursing.

"She means to kill us all!"

"She's a demon!"

"These people saved us. And she meant to destroy them!"

Kagome protested, "what are you all saying? She was trying to help! She's one of you!"

"Witch!" they bellowed, and another rock was thrown. 

Shina squinted her eyes shut, bracing for the impact. However, it did not come. The Hanyou stepped forward, his arm extended out to shield the girl from the onslaught. Her attackers shrunk away under Inuyasha's harsh glare, then began to whisper among themselves. He sneered, "Looks like we've overstayed our welcome." The male turned away, and began to walk into the direction where he had caught Sango and Miroku's scent. "Let's go Kagome. And Shina, was it? We're leaving," he said gruffly.

The red head blinked stupidly. Inuyasha paused, then shot her an agitated look, "did I stutter? You're coming too!"

---

"That girl tends to go off on emotion than reason, I'm afraid," the woman responded, shaking her head with the faintest of smiles, "bless her." She peered at the Miko's face, studying her. "I have trust that you have no ill intentions," she said, "this character you speak of does cause some concern. I've heard of such a demon who's prowess involved deceiving others with great skill. However, I never would have predicted he would have found his way here. And to use my girl as an instrument to his manipulation in the process." Her jaw tightened for a moment. Her features had remained hardened again, unreadable. She tucked a strand of dark hair back underneath her kerchief behind her ear with a sigh of her own.

She rummaged into the folds of her worn kimono, retrieving an old parchment. She whispered that ancient spiritual chant. The parchment had responded to her words, glowing brilliantly and taking shape. Perched elegantly on her forearm was a great peregrine falcon, tilting it's head ever so curiously to and fro at it's surroundings until it's gaze finally landed on it's summoner. 

"Take to this girl's village. Let them know what had transpired here and the time before that. Be weary of what follows you," the woman instructed. With a shrill cry the bird stretched out it's wings and took flight. "It will find the way," she reassured, "it has the capability to pick up even the faintest trace of spiritual energy. Finding the path to your residence will be no issue."

The woman folded her hands onto her lap, peering past the Miko with little urgency. "have you also come here in search of answers?" she asked the approaching duo with acute perception, hinting that perhaps she could indeed hear their brief conversation as they drew closer. Her eyes searched their faces, "this priestess tells me of this demon who approached her with the intention of deceit. Tell, me do you know of such a creature?" She quietly challenged the monk and the demon slayer with calm countenance. Whether they were there as an ally or foe remained unclear. But, she was pressing for answers.

However, despite her cool exterior, there was still a feeling of dread that clouded the back of her mind. She questioned them further, her gaze fixed on the two intensely, "have you also by any chance come across a girl with red hair?"

[Amara<3]

"I have no intention to hurt or do anything otherwise to anyone here," Crystalaous said quickly to the woman before her. She was upset by the day's events, but she was also happy that she didn't need to do anything at the same time. She was forbidden to use her ability at all, which was one thing, but it was another to need to use it - regardless of not being allowed. They'd gotten there nearly too late for her to help at all anyway, most of the damage had already been done on their arrival.

She watched at Shina's mother created a Shikigami herself, but as a beautiful falcon. Her was almost mesmerized by it until the woman spoke to her about what she was going to have it do. "Interesting, that's convenient," she said, watching it fly away. As she turned to watch, she noticed Naru being followed by the demon slayer and monk. Obviously Naru trusted these two, so it meant they weren't a threat - at least not to her. She heard something about getting answers, just like Shina's mother did, and she waited for the woman to speak first.

"The girl with red hair? Oh, she's back there," Sango said, nodding her head back in the direction they came.

"She wouldn't listen to anyone, so InuYasha... well, he knocked her unconscious for a minute. Don't worry, she's awake now," Miroku said, putting his hands up with a cautious look about him. The two slowed as they got near Crystalaous and Naru sat down beside her.

"We followed your friend, he seemed to want us to," Sango said, now nodding at Naru. "I believe he figured you could help us sort some things out."

"We know of this demon you speak of," Miroku answered Shina's mother. "Unfortunately we know him all too well."

"He's taken control of my brother," Sango frowned. "We're trying to get him back, and I've been following him with the group since he made my brother kill everyone in our village. He's betraying and tricking everyone in his path to keep us away."

"His name is Naraku," Miroku said and Crystalaous' eyes flicked to the mention of the name. "Have you heard of him?"

"Only whispers," Crystalaous admitted. "I've never come into contact with him, nor has my village. I wonder what his plan is in this area..."

"Whatever it is, it's not good," Sango frowned. "We're very sorry this happened to your village," she added. Crystalaous sighed. This wasn't her village, but it could have been. The two were only separated by the forest.

"Hey, InuYasha! Kagome! Come on over here!" Miroku called as he turned and noticed Shina was also up but looking rather confused. Crystalaous stood up and turned in the same direction, and waved at Shina. Naru gave a small huff and laid down, catching Kirara's eye and she bounced out of Sango's arms so she was face to face with him. He stared at her with his black eyes and she stared back for a moment before letting out a little 'mew' laying down, facing him.

[Shy]

"Ah. So," the older woman began, "the rumor is true." She closed her eyes for a moment. "I have heard of such tales of this Naraku. Alas, I was only a child then. My family for generations was built on the foundation of vanquishing demons and purifying evil spirits. However, there has never been one such as he." She opened her eyes again to focus on the monk. "It is said he takes on many forms," Shina's mother pondered on this, dark eyes now watching the sky. 

"To think... he has come all the way here."

"Miroku, Sango!" Kagome called out in relief, and waved for them with one free arm, the other giving the red head support as hey walked. 

"Shina," her mother said, swiftly standing and moving toward her child. "Mother?" Shina answered hoarsely. The woman brushed the girl's fringe away from her face, examining the wound over her 'brow-- which had already began to clot and dry. "What happened?" she demanded sternly. Her gaze shifted from one face to the other. Shippo let out a squeak and hid behind Kagome's hair, and Inuyasha merely looked away with a grunt. 

"It was all a misunderstanding, ma'am," the brunette said, "The demons.. We took care of them. But, Shina thought Inuyasha was responsible... We tried to calm her down.-- And the villagers--" With a sigh, Shina's mother nodded, "I figured as much. It was only a matter of time before they decided to turn on us..." She held her arms out, "Here, I'll take her off your hands. I thank you for looking after her."

The woman helped her daughter to seat herself. The wolf let out a loud bark, lapping away the dried blood on the girl's face. Shina waved the creature off with a huff, "alright, alright! I'm fine. Jeeze, you're worse than she is." 

Her mother raked her fingers through the girl's hair, grazing over the welt on the back of her head which caused her to wince. "That's quite a bump," she commented under her breath, then shot a look at the hanyou, "Did you have to hit her that hard?"

"Guh? Well... I... Uh," Inuyasha stammered, scratching nervously at his cheek. Kagome pinched the bridge of her nose. "Ignore him," she finally said, "he can be thick-headed and brash sometimes. And he really has no consideration of anyone's feelings--"

"Ya' got somewhere you're going with this?" he interrupted, irritated.

"But," she continued, "he really meant well. Albeit he went about it the wrong way, he only did it to calm her down. She really could have hurt Inuyasha, and vise versa." She frowned, "what really did the damage was the rocks they were pelting at her. I just don't understand it..."

Shina's mother tore off a section of fabric from her kimono sleeve, then began to clean away the blood and dirt from her child's face. "They fear because the don't understand," she said solemnly, "many think she's born from demons just because of her lack of experience of spiritual power which will come out in sporadic bursts if she isn't careful. I do my best, but I fear I'm not a very good teacher." Shina puffed her cheeks out, but kept quiet. 

"Huh, ya' sure it isn't because of how she looks?" Inuyasha asked.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome scolded.

"What? Do you know anyone else with red hair? 'cause I sure don't!"

"Don't be rude! You're no better than they are!"

"No. He is indeed correct," Shina stated with a sour expression. Her mother shook her head, but thought it best that now was not the time to argue on the matter. "The important thing is that you aren't gravely injured," she reassured. "I could say the same thing, mother," the girl gave her a half-hearted smile. 

"So, my guess is you two couldn't detect Naraku's whereabouts," Inuyasha directed his question toward Miroku and Sango. Amber eyes searched the area, and nose in the air. "The air is totally clean, no trace of him left," he muttered gruffly. 

"What do we do now?" Kagome asked.

"I know what I'm gonna do," Shina answered sharply, staggering to stand herself up, "I'm going after the creep who did this." "Oh, no you're not," her mother interjected, hands on her daughter's shoulders to firmly sit her down again, "not right at this very moment."

"She's right," the male agreed, "you're no good to anybody if you can barely stand on your own two feet."

"That's rich coming from you," she snapped back. "Shina, that's enough," her mother chided. "Whatever, I'm not staying here, anyway," she grumbled, pouting like a child. "Where will you two go?" the fox child asked finally. Shina's mother gave him a slight shrug in response, "Who knows. Perhaps, we'll find another village hopefully not too far off. Or.. Maybe we'll finally be able to live in the quiet.. Although, I'm not as strong as I used to be. Re-building would prove to be difficult on our own."

"Why don't you come with us then?" Kagome offered, "There's a village we know of that is protected by an old priestess. You'll be safe there for sure."
Shina looked to the Miko for some sort of confirmation. "if it's all the same to you," she started, "I want to... Go with you." She switched her fixated gaze back and forth from Inuyasha, then to Kagome. Her eyes were slightly glazed over.

She began to grit her teeth, "I want to find this demon... And make him pay for what he did."

"Yeah, that's nice and all," Inuyasha remarked, catching Shina as her legs began to buckle underneath her, falling forward. "But I think we should go with plan A." He looped an arm around the girl's waist, hoisting her up effortlessly. She glared up at him, cheeks dusted with a light shade of pink. "I can handle myself," she said defiantly. The hanyou rolled his eyes, "do you have to be so damned stubborn?"

"Shina," her mother called to her softly, "these people here are doing there best. Perhaps we should take advantage of this opportunity and follow their lead. We must recuperate and think of a plan of action. You can't just go off on instinct and anger alone. You know that." Inuyasha's ears twitched once. Shina wrinkled her nose a little, "fine." 

"Then it's settled!" Kagome clapped her hands together happily. She turned to Crystal, "I'm sorry, you must be confused by now. I totally spaced and forgot to introduce ourselves. I'm Kagome. This little guy here is Shippo." She motioned her head to the child on her shoulder before continuing on, "as you might have gathered, this hot head is Inuyasha. That's Sango and Miroku, and finally Kirara. And I think she likes your friend." She brought her hand to her lips to stifle a giggle as she watched the two feline demons fondly, then extended it towards the Priestess, "you're welcome to come with us!"