InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Another Feudal Fairy Tale ❯ A Parting and a Meeting ( Chapter 1 )

Another Feudal Fairy Tale

Chapter One: A Parting and a Meeting

 

AN: Only two people have reviewed so far…. Doesn't anybody love me??? Is there anyone who cares for Sid the Sloth???? I mean NYA? Oh boy, quoting kid's movies again…. Muahahaha. Anywhoodles, enjoy chapter one. ^_^

 

~*~*~*~

 

Kikyo hadn't returned yet… But Kagome was sure she would. My sister can handle herself. She is a perfectly capable priestess… She just ran into a patch of the herbs we were looking for. She chewed her lip as she got ready for bed. Yeah, that's it. A sudden chill went down her spine, and she stood up straighter. What was that? I've got a bad feeling… She shook her head. No, it must have been a draft. She got into bed, tucking the covers around her chin. I'm sure Sis will be back soon.

 

~*~*~*~

 

When morning came and Kikyo was still missing, her doubts resurfaced. What if she wasn't okay? If a demon had ambushed her while she was by herself… All alone… With no one there… She shook her head. Okay Kagome. Gotta keep it together… I'm sure she's fine… She looked up at the sky, praying silently for Kikyo to be safe.

 

A voice shook her out of her reverie. “Kagome!!!” It was Kaede, another priestess. She rushed up, placing her trembling hands on her shoulders. “They found your sister!”

 

A relieved gasp wormed its way out of Kagome's mouth. She was okay! “Take me to her! How is she?!” She kept asking questions as they walked into the village square, not giving the woman enough time to answer.

 

The older woman hesitated. Should she enlighten this girl about her sister's death? Could Kagome handle it? Well, there was only one way to find out. “Kagome…” she said, still hesitant. “Kikyo… Is dead. They found her on the outskirts of the village.”

 

Kagome stopped abruptly, her face turned white. She looked at her sharply, her tone scarily calm. “Where is she?”

 

It might be better if she didn't see… “Kagome, don't-”

 

“Take me to her! NOW!” Face set, deep blue eyes pleading silently. She looked desperate. The Kaede's eyes strayed over to where the crowd was gathering, wanting to see for themselves if their protectress was truly dead. Kagome followed her stare, and her eyes locked on to the group.

 

Walking unsteadily over, she stopped at the edge of the cluster of people. As if they sensed her presence, the crowd parted, allowing her a full view of her sister. Kikyo was face down in the reddish dirt, arms over her head. Her left shoulder was sliced up; five long claw marks extended from her neck and around her back. The remnants of her quiver clung uselessly to her back. Kagome fell to her knees with wide eyes, refusing to believe that her partner, her sister, had been killed and was lying there in front of her. Yesterday she was fine! They had worked together to bring down the centipede…

 

The centipede! Had it survived? No… The claw marks were from something with an almost human hand. Moving closer, she traced the claw marks with a shaky hand. The more she knew about the killer, the easier it would be to bring down. She looked deeper into the forest, and let her eyes find the final path her sister had walked down. A trail of red marked it, a long stain of her sister's lifeblood. With great difficulty she brought the boiling heat of her rage down to a slow simmer, she decided the killer could wait long enough for her to give her sister a proper burial.

 

“Ka-” she coughed and cleared her throat. Her voice came out a mere whisper. “Kaede.”

 

The Elder moved to her side, surveying the ashen-faced girl next to her. “Yes, child?”

 

“I want you to help me...” Her voice wavered, and Kaede could see she was having a hard time holding back the tears.

She nodded. “Say no more.”

 

~*~*~*~

 

Kikyo must have known she wouldn't make it to the village, Kagome thought. The trail she left was clearly marked; branches had been broken along the path, little marks that guided Kagome through the forest. She was still trembling, but was much steadier now that she had a goal in mind: Find it and kill it.

 

The trail of broken branches cut off the main path; marked by a furrow in the grass. She followed it for a minute, then gasped as she entered a clearing. A gigantic tree grew in the center, so tall it dwarfed any other trees in the forest. But that wasn't what shocked her. A boy was pinned to the tree, halfway up. His hair shone unnaturally silver in the dappled sunlight, and two triangular ears perched atop his head. As she stared, she took in the puddle of blood that was the end of the trail, and an arrow that was unmistakably her sister's sealing the part-demon to the tree.

 

~*~*~*~

 

^.^….I ain't sayin' nuthin.

 

Hatori: Too late.