Thick framed glasses obscured the stunning view of her azure blue eyes; her raven hair was parted into curtains covering most of her porcelain smooth skin, the markings of her inu-youkai heritage striped on her cheeks, wrists, ankles and hips in jet black – although most were unnoticeable under her new uniform.
Her nose was buried in a brown dog eared book as she tilted her head to lightly rest on the cool window at the back of the coach; the seat next to her was empty, although it seemed everyone else was crammed into each other’s personal space. Everyone avoided, even though they did not know her she could already hear the whispers and giggles about how geeky she looked or what a loner she was. Good. They could form their cliques and she would stay out of it. Kagome had worked hard in order to place all of the concealment spells and charms on herself, she concealed her aura, the length of her claws and fangs had shortened to resemble that of a humble medial levelled dog demon.
You ask why she would willingly put herself in this situation? All Kagome wanted was peace – a moment where she isn’t bombarded by tutors, wanting her to practice her reiki skills one moment and the next pointing a sword at her throat in mock battle. And did she mention her parents’ psychopathic murderer was on her heels, that’s particularly important too. She was fed up of all of it.
Finally a passage in her parents will became Kagome’s salvation, her beloved mother and father- although she knew little of them- had decided that at the age of eighteen she was to attend ‘Taisho Elite Academy, for supernatural beings, TEA for short as every member of her family had before her. From the copious amount of books in her parents old library she gathered her family used to be close with the Taisho’s but after Naraku had murdered her parents her household devised the plan to spread word that an illness had taken the young mistress Kagome, therefore ending her bloodline. Maybe it fooled some but Kagome always had a sneaking suspicion that some outsiders knew the truth.
The shadow inu was pulled out of her inner musings when the coach jolted, making the vehicle sway, in doing so sliding the luggage at peoples’ feet with heavy thuds. Kagome shifted so she faced the window, watching as the rural surroundings whizzed past, they had travelled deep into the rural western lands – most likely to get away from prying eyes. As more time passed Kagome picked out a greyish blob on the horizon, the closer they got her enhanced sight picked up on four large spires reaching up into the cloudless sky, at the base of the thick pinnacles was a gargantuan castle like building. Further inspection reviled a large plot of barren land stretching half the length of the main structure, where distinct shapes flitted about, some Kagome was sure were demons and humans fighting, random bursts of light (youkai and reiki no doubt) swirled around the foggy figures, maybe this was one of the classes the academy provided – battle training.
Suddenly the coach came to an abrupt stop, leaving everyone in a state of confusion; there were at least a couple miles to go before they reached the school. The sound of the door pistons silenced everyone’s babbling.
“Everyone out, just follow the trail set and you might make it to the school. Good luck on your first exam.” the gruff slightly amused exclamation of the driver caused a split reaction. Some students stayed silent and wide eyed, others looked ready to have kittens whilst some cockily started betting with their new found friends on who was going to make it to the school first. All the while Kagome closed her book, stood and went to grab her luggage.
“You don’t need to take your luggage it will be transported to your dorm rooms.” The driver’s voice called out again. Whilst others got to their feet Kagome subtly made her way to the front doors, “Good luck girly, you’re gonna to need it.” the driver encouraged as she stepped away from the bus. Unfortunately his kind words only served to place a feeling of dread in her gut– this might be harder than she anticipated.
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Everyone soon filled out behind her, the coach zoomed off into the far distance. Suddenly pulse of power rang through the air startling everyone before bright purple light surrounded her, an uncomfortable feeling in Kagome’s gut grew as the world seemed to twist and turn in every direction.
Realisation her as soon as she smelt the pungent aroma of damp soil and a multitude of wood – she had been teleported. Just like that, not even at the snap of fingers, she was in a different place. Her inner beast whimpered in her head, as Kagome furrowed her thin eyebrows in question.
She heard a howl in the distance; it seemed she wasn’t alone in her confusion.
In response to the call, a voice in a deep baritone that screamed alpha spoke like surround sound giving off the air of an omnipresent being.
“Students welcome. I am Inu no Taisho, Head of Taisho Elite Academy. This is your first test, you have two choices. The first is to fight, the second to hide – either way you have forty-eight hours to reach the portal that will take you to the academy and not be captured by assessors. Fail to meet these expectations and you will be immediately expelled. Good luck.”
Silence. All sound stopped after Inu no Taisho had finished his speech, making her surroundings seem eerier and Kagome’s heart beat faster. The tall trees seemed to stretch further to cover the already sparse light, the thick foliage crept closer to a claustrophobic extent and the humid air grew hotter.
Ignoring the slight hindrance her glasses and hair gave to her sight, Kagome pressed on at a slow almost hesitant pace. Her plan was to hide – what else could she do? If she were to fight and meet someone stronger than her – although highly unlikely – she could lose grip on her concealments and give her away. She would have to travel in a sedate walk in order to reach the portal at her expected time; she wanted to be late to make her seem as weak as her appearance but meet the deadline.
Now deep amongst the trees she reached out her powers to find the portals aura to guide her in the right direction, all the while discretely evading other students’ senses. In this act, she realised many people would be picked off by this test, however she agnoliaged a handful showed magnificent power and strength that radiated of them in- almost- frightening waves, those are the people she would have to be wary of. Kagome withdrew her aura and wrapped it impossibly close to her body then trudged on soundlessly towards the west.
Now only five miles away from her check point and estimably another twenty-four hours before she had to pass through the portal, Kagome wished she had brought her book. Though the terrain may have been difficult for a lower levelled demon or ill trained human, this test was a walk in the park for her.
She decided after a full day and night without rest now was the time to settle for at least ten hours before moving again. So finding a suitable tree Kagome gracefully leaped into the branches and vines and disappeared from sight. Once she was satisfied with her hiding place she closed her eyes, set her mental alarm clock and settled into a light, dreamless sleep.
Kagome was awoken by the sound of a feminine voice and two sets of light footfalls.
“I can’t believe your father made you an assessor this year, it’s so bothersome to have to fight such worthless beings, it’s disgusting enough that they breathe the same air as us.” a snide voice assaulted Kagome’s ears followed by a high pitched laugh. “I mean, me and you could be doing something much more... fun.” The voice purred seductively.
The owner of the voice passed under her tree, when Kagome recognised the woman her blood ran cold, a cold stone of dread settling in her gut.
Kagura – Naraku’s daughter.