InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Sight Unseen ❯ Destination: Unknown ( Chapter 12 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: SylverAngel 
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Adventure / Action | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 06.30.2003 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.4K | Visits: 1.6K | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: InuYasha Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Adventure / Action | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 06.30.2003 | Pages: 2 | Words: 1.4K | Visits: 1.6K | Status: Completed
Sight Unseen
Chapter 12: Destination: Unknown
"If you will wait here for a moment, the lift will be available for you," Maruku informed them as he stopped at what appeared to be a random point along the path.
Most of the other youkai had disappeared in the last few moments, much to Inuyasha's annoyance. He could still feel and smell their presence, but he was no longer able to see them. The windwalkers might've changed back into their bird forms, but he didn't know how their auras would seem bigger when they were smaller in size. Perhaps he'd been right all along, and the demons were preparing an ambush and calling in reinforcements?
Maruku interrupted the hanyou's thoughts as he continued to speak. "I must report to Lady Tamaeri that you have arrived. I trust my daughter will behave herself if I leave you with her," the dark-haired windwalker added with a pointed glance at Marieko.
"Yes, sir," she replied with a nod.
"Good." Maruku leapt high, shapeshifting as he glided into the trees towards some unknown destination.
Marieko watched him go, then turned back to the others. The giggling, school-girlish demeanor had been replaced by a somberness that resembled her father's. "I'm sorry for the way I behaved earlier. I truly do know better than to act like a child, and I'm positive I'll hear about it later. My father continues to remind me that if I want to be treated like a hunter, I need to act more like one." She sighed, but a small smile lit her features. "I was overwhelmed by the prospect of meeting you, however. It's rare that we have visitors, and even more so that they are not windwalkers themselves."
Miroku smiled widely in return. "There is no need for an apology from a girl as lovely as you."
"Idiot," Sango muttered after whacking him on the back of the head.
Marieko giggled and shook her head. "As I was saying, it's very, very rare that we have humans wander into our territory. I was anxious to see what you three were like."
Miroku just grinned while Sango rolled her eyes.
"You didn't want to meet us?" Shippo asked, drawing the youkai's brown gaze to where he stood with Kirara, next to Sango.
"Of course, I did. And I don't believe we have officially met, since I don't know all of your names yet."
Inuyasha wasn't sure becoming acquainted with the demon was in their best interests, but he kept quiet, eyes and ears open and waiting for anything unusual.
"I'm Shippo," the kitsune smiled brightly, trying to look his cutest. "And this is Kirara," he added, pointing to the two-tailed cat sitting beside him.
The windwalker nodded, then turned to Sango.
"My name is Sango," the demon exterminator responded on cue.
Marieko nodded once more, then grinned slightly as she pointed at Miroku. "Does he have a name other than 'idiot'?"
Sango grinned in return. "Not in my opinion."
"Hey!" the monk exclaimed indignantly. "It's Miroku, Lady Marieko."
"We'll see," the windwalker continued to tease. She moved on to Kagome before he could say more.
Inuyasha nudged her hand under the cover of his long sleeves, indicating that the youkai was waiting for her to introduce herself.
"I'm Kagome," the girl smiled, tapping the hanyou's hand in return to show that she received his silent message.
"And you," Marieko began after nodding to Kagome, "must be Inuyasha."
The half dog demon sputtered as the windwalker just grinned at him.
"Yes, news travels fast," she laughed as Inuyasha finally shut his mouth and glared at her. "Even to those of us who are not, ah, usually, allowed to leave the village until we are finished with our training." The youkai suddenly looked around for something else to focus on as her face flushed pink. "Oh, look. The lift has been let down." As she spoke, a wooden platform, fenced on each side and suspended by multiple ropes, came to rest on the forest floor between two fairly large trees. "We usually don't use it, but since you can't fly, this is easier than some of us carrying you up."
Inuyasha eyed the wooden... contraption skeptically. Obviously, he wasn't afraid of heights, but he preferred to jump into trees under his own steam whenever possible. And this thing could easily be part of their trap...
"Don't worry. It's very safe." Marieko tapped the hanyou on the shoulder, then laughed at the glare he gave her out of the corner of his eye.
It took Shippo's calling him a coward and smirking to get Inuyasha to board the platform, and by that time, everyone else was already settled. Little room was left for the half dog demon to seat himself as the others were doing, so he was crammed in the center, arms crossed and sulking.
The lift began to move as soon as Marieko latched the gate in the fencing. Everyone but Kagome was fairly startled at the slight lurch the platform gave before slowly being hoisted upwards.
"Like an elevator..." the girl pondered aloud, drawing a strange look from the windwalker riding with them.
"An ehl-eh-vay-tor?" Marieko pronounced, cocking her head to the side.
Kagome smiled in the direction she'd heard the voice come from. "From my t-- country," she corrected quickly. "We have metal boxes suspended by cables that carry people from floor to floor in tall buildings."
"Your buildings must be as tall as our trees if you need lifts to carry you between levels!" the windwalker exclaimed in awe.
"I... Yes, some of them are as tall, and much taller than the trees here." Kagome's smile faded when she instinctively turned her head upwards to see how high the nearest trees were. She sighed and shifted her shoulders against the wooden fencing, trying to loosen the knot that was forming in her back.
Marieko spoke more quietly, some of the excitement gone from her voice when she asked the next question. "You are from far away, then?"
Kagome nodded. "You could say that." 'Centuries away, in fact,' she added silently.
"I'm sorry. You miss your home, then, don't you?"
The girl was surprised at Marieko's perception. "Yes. I miss my family more than anything."
"Hey, what about us?" Shippo asked loudly from across the platform. He was squeezed between Sango and Miroku at the demon exterminator's insistence.
Kagome gave another small smile. "You guys are my family here, Shippo, but... I can't just forget about my brother, and mom, and grandpa, now can I?"
The kitsune seemed to consider her question. "No," he finally replied quietly. Hesitantly, he climbed between the other two humans, over Inuyasha's lap, and into Kagome's. The hanyou's protest was forgotten at Shippo's next question. "When you're there, do you miss us?"
"Always, Shippo," the girl responded, patting the little fox demon's head.
Inuyasha ducked his head and watched Kagome out of the corner of his eye as silence fell over those on the moving platform. He felt guilty; it was pretty much his fault she wasn't able to return to her own time, if you counted the fact that he was the one really searching for the shards. Sango and Miroku were out to kill Naraku. Shippo was merely with them because he had no one else. Kagome... Kagome was only helping because she was the one to break the Shikon no Tama in the first place. How different would things be if just that one event hadn't occurred? Would she have returned home and never come through the well again? Would she have taken the jewel with her? Or left it with Kaede, or someone else? She certainly would not have given it to him.
The hanyou forced himself to look away. It never helped to dwell on what might have been, he was slowly learning. And the main thing they needed to do to get things back to where they should be was to find some way to cure Kagome's blindness. At least then things would be as normal as they could be, or so he thought.
Chapter 12: Destination: Unknown
"If you will wait here for a moment, the lift will be available for you," Maruku informed them as he stopped at what appeared to be a random point along the path.
Most of the other youkai had disappeared in the last few moments, much to Inuyasha's annoyance. He could still feel and smell their presence, but he was no longer able to see them. The windwalkers might've changed back into their bird forms, but he didn't know how their auras would seem bigger when they were smaller in size. Perhaps he'd been right all along, and the demons were preparing an ambush and calling in reinforcements?
Maruku interrupted the hanyou's thoughts as he continued to speak. "I must report to Lady Tamaeri that you have arrived. I trust my daughter will behave herself if I leave you with her," the dark-haired windwalker added with a pointed glance at Marieko.
"Yes, sir," she replied with a nod.
"Good." Maruku leapt high, shapeshifting as he glided into the trees towards some unknown destination.
Marieko watched him go, then turned back to the others. The giggling, school-girlish demeanor had been replaced by a somberness that resembled her father's. "I'm sorry for the way I behaved earlier. I truly do know better than to act like a child, and I'm positive I'll hear about it later. My father continues to remind me that if I want to be treated like a hunter, I need to act more like one." She sighed, but a small smile lit her features. "I was overwhelmed by the prospect of meeting you, however. It's rare that we have visitors, and even more so that they are not windwalkers themselves."
Miroku smiled widely in return. "There is no need for an apology from a girl as lovely as you."
"Idiot," Sango muttered after whacking him on the back of the head.
Marieko giggled and shook her head. "As I was saying, it's very, very rare that we have humans wander into our territory. I was anxious to see what you three were like."
Miroku just grinned while Sango rolled her eyes.
"You didn't want to meet us?" Shippo asked, drawing the youkai's brown gaze to where he stood with Kirara, next to Sango.
"Of course, I did. And I don't believe we have officially met, since I don't know all of your names yet."
Inuyasha wasn't sure becoming acquainted with the demon was in their best interests, but he kept quiet, eyes and ears open and waiting for anything unusual.
"I'm Shippo," the kitsune smiled brightly, trying to look his cutest. "And this is Kirara," he added, pointing to the two-tailed cat sitting beside him.
The windwalker nodded, then turned to Sango.
"My name is Sango," the demon exterminator responded on cue.
Marieko nodded once more, then grinned slightly as she pointed at Miroku. "Does he have a name other than 'idiot'?"
Sango grinned in return. "Not in my opinion."
"Hey!" the monk exclaimed indignantly. "It's Miroku, Lady Marieko."
"We'll see," the windwalker continued to tease. She moved on to Kagome before he could say more.
Inuyasha nudged her hand under the cover of his long sleeves, indicating that the youkai was waiting for her to introduce herself.
"I'm Kagome," the girl smiled, tapping the hanyou's hand in return to show that she received his silent message.
"And you," Marieko began after nodding to Kagome, "must be Inuyasha."
The half dog demon sputtered as the windwalker just grinned at him.
"Yes, news travels fast," she laughed as Inuyasha finally shut his mouth and glared at her. "Even to those of us who are not, ah, usually, allowed to leave the village until we are finished with our training." The youkai suddenly looked around for something else to focus on as her face flushed pink. "Oh, look. The lift has been let down." As she spoke, a wooden platform, fenced on each side and suspended by multiple ropes, came to rest on the forest floor between two fairly large trees. "We usually don't use it, but since you can't fly, this is easier than some of us carrying you up."
Inuyasha eyed the wooden... contraption skeptically. Obviously, he wasn't afraid of heights, but he preferred to jump into trees under his own steam whenever possible. And this thing could easily be part of their trap...
"Don't worry. It's very safe." Marieko tapped the hanyou on the shoulder, then laughed at the glare he gave her out of the corner of his eye.
It took Shippo's calling him a coward and smirking to get Inuyasha to board the platform, and by that time, everyone else was already settled. Little room was left for the half dog demon to seat himself as the others were doing, so he was crammed in the center, arms crossed and sulking.
The lift began to move as soon as Marieko latched the gate in the fencing. Everyone but Kagome was fairly startled at the slight lurch the platform gave before slowly being hoisted upwards.
"Like an elevator..." the girl pondered aloud, drawing a strange look from the windwalker riding with them.
"An ehl-eh-vay-tor?" Marieko pronounced, cocking her head to the side.
Kagome smiled in the direction she'd heard the voice come from. "From my t-- country," she corrected quickly. "We have metal boxes suspended by cables that carry people from floor to floor in tall buildings."
"Your buildings must be as tall as our trees if you need lifts to carry you between levels!" the windwalker exclaimed in awe.
"I... Yes, some of them are as tall, and much taller than the trees here." Kagome's smile faded when she instinctively turned her head upwards to see how high the nearest trees were. She sighed and shifted her shoulders against the wooden fencing, trying to loosen the knot that was forming in her back.
Marieko spoke more quietly, some of the excitement gone from her voice when she asked the next question. "You are from far away, then?"
Kagome nodded. "You could say that." 'Centuries away, in fact,' she added silently.
"I'm sorry. You miss your home, then, don't you?"
The girl was surprised at Marieko's perception. "Yes. I miss my family more than anything."
"Hey, what about us?" Shippo asked loudly from across the platform. He was squeezed between Sango and Miroku at the demon exterminator's insistence.
Kagome gave another small smile. "You guys are my family here, Shippo, but... I can't just forget about my brother, and mom, and grandpa, now can I?"
The kitsune seemed to consider her question. "No," he finally replied quietly. Hesitantly, he climbed between the other two humans, over Inuyasha's lap, and into Kagome's. The hanyou's protest was forgotten at Shippo's next question. "When you're there, do you miss us?"
"Always, Shippo," the girl responded, patting the little fox demon's head.
Inuyasha ducked his head and watched Kagome out of the corner of his eye as silence fell over those on the moving platform. He felt guilty; it was pretty much his fault she wasn't able to return to her own time, if you counted the fact that he was the one really searching for the shards. Sango and Miroku were out to kill Naraku. Shippo was merely with them because he had no one else. Kagome... Kagome was only helping because she was the one to break the Shikon no Tama in the first place. How different would things be if just that one event hadn't occurred? Would she have returned home and never come through the well again? Would she have taken the jewel with her? Or left it with Kaede, or someone else? She certainly would not have given it to him.
The hanyou forced himself to look away. It never helped to dwell on what might have been, he was slowly learning. And the main thing they needed to do to get things back to where they should be was to find some way to cure Kagome's blindness. At least then things would be as normal as they could be, or so he thought.