The marking of a miko by NeoQueenBee
Reflection and Beginings
Hello all, Grin, this is my first ever fan fiction even though I admit to greedily reading well written fan fiction for years. I have a surprise correlation in this story that coincides with another famous Manga. Let me know if you think you figure it out. Also since this is my first ever fan fic I am in DESPERATE need of one bad ass Beta. Grin so if any one fells up to the job let me know. Happy reading.
Disclaimer: Unfortunately my genius is limited to the imagination of other authors. I will never be talented enough to dream up a world like Inuyasha and its characters so, therefore, I do not own them. Though I really wish I did. Grin
Reflection and Beginings
A Pair of big blue eyes snapped open in the middle of the night fully aware and watchful. Kagome slowly viewed her surroundings, wondering what could have possibly roused her from such a deep slumber.
She took in the gentle glow of the still burning fire, allowing it to reveal her companions slumbering forms. Shippo was tucked safely against her side, burrowed deeply into her middle with his russet hair hiding his features. Kagome smiled warmly at the sight of her kits peaceful form. She then looked across the valley that their group had bedded down in for the night.
Sango was curled towards the fire, bent at the middle with her hand resting at a warrior’s impulse ready to grab her Hiraikotsu if needed while Miroku rested a few paces behind her, his cursed hand seeking out Sango’s well rounded back side even in sleep. Kagome had to stifle a laugh
The monk was just asking for brain damage.
Finally she allowed her gaze to travel to her protector. Inuyasha sat with his back against a tree in his customary position. His hands deeply imbedded into his hoari with his head slightly bowed. The moonlight was bouncing off his silver strands as if drawing attention to the sinfully gorgeous locks that adorned the stubborn head of the hanyu.
Kagome shook her head, allowing her own blue-black tresses to dance around her pretty face. Today had been such a horrible day Fretted Kagome as she thought back on the events of the day. Kaede’s health was starting to fail and it worried the tender hearted young woman. The elderly miko had her left leg broken during a youki attack on the village Edo two months prior and recently, with her age as well as weakened immune system, she had started to develop flu like symptoms that appeared to have lasting power. Kagome couldn’t figure it out, not even the medicine from her era was having any effect on the miko’s health. She just seemed to be getting worse and worse. Kagome was sure the elderly miko’s chest must hurt horribly due to her hacking cough but nothing they tried was easing her pain. The inutachi didn’t like to discuss it but they all feared her end was looming.
Kagome allowed a frustrated sigh to escape her lips. As if all that wasn’t bad enough she had been feeling sickly herself, what with her random headaches and stupid itchy nose. She had also been failing miserably at her miko studies. She had taken up with kaede and miroku a few months earlier trying to hone her abilities. So far all it had resulted in was an almost poisoned monk and a singed Shippo. The monk she didn’t feel too bad about, besides it was no worse than what Sango did to him on a daily basis but pore Shippo! And she didn’t even want to think about her actual studies, she just kept getting further and further behind thanks to a certain hanyu who didn’t understand the importance of letting her take her tests!! Kagome had to practically growl to bring herself out of her thoughts.
She was just stressed that was all, that’s why she couldn’t sleep. She sighed again and decided she would go for a walk to clear her head. Besides her nose kept itching and she had a killer headache. The tiny miko slipped from her sleeping bag with ease she than moved her pillow to rest beside the suddenly restless Shipppo. Once the kit took in her scent that was imbedded in her pillow he visibly relaxed again. Kagome’s blue eyes danced in amusement. It had taken her a while but she had slowly started to pick up on her son’s youki ways. Some things were easy to understand like auras and jaki, she was a miko after all, but the scent thing had taken her a little while to grasp. She forgot how his other senses were so much stronger than hers. He could often tell when she was sick or upset just by scent so it was no wonder that he could sent her out even in sleep. She had used this same trick many nights when she had to return to her time.
She grinned; pore Shippo had never known the difference.
She allowed her fingertips to dance across his forehead as she knelt to kiss him. She grabbed her bow as well as a few arrows, slipped on her shoes and headed towards a hot spring they had passed on the way. Kagome fingered the little bottle housing the jewel shard at her neck. Their little group only had one, and they knew where the last three were. Kohaku and Koga. That left the rest of the jewel with Naraku and that was a whole other problem unto itself. They hadn’t spotted the retched hanyu in months and it was starting to make them uneasy. Was he planning something? Where they ready? Kagome sighed again. She needed to quite thinking so negatively. Positive, Positive, Positive….oh my birthday! She thought with joy. Her birthday was only a week away if she had kept her days right. This thought added a little bounce to her step. This was something to be excited about she was officially going to be an adult, the big 1-8. Goodness 18 already, it seemed like only a few months ago that she had first fell down the well and fallen in love with a stubborn hanyu.
This thought brought on a whole new round of emotions. Recently she had been reevaluating her feelings for Inuyasha. Oh she knew she loved him, that she knew without a doubt, but she couldn’t help thinking that maybe it wasn’t an in love kinda love, maybe more like a best friend kind of love? It didn’t help that she had no idea how he felt about her. I mean he was rude and loud and obnoxious to her most of the time, but when Koga came around he was all male and arrogant like he was the one staking a claim on her, not Koga. It was enough to make a girls head spin.
*SNAP* Kagome spun around at what sounded like the snapping of a twig only a few paces behind her. Before her next breath she had the arrow notched and drawn, using her mouth as an anchor. She may have been failing at her miko training but her archery was steadily improving, of course she still ran the risk of injuring a bystander on occasion, but hey it was progress right? “Who’s there?” Kagome asked in a surprisingly clear, calm voice. Nothing but the call of the wind reached her ears. Kagome began to take slow steady steps backwards, attempting to put her back against something so she could concentrate fully on protecting her front.
Rather unexpectedly Kagome’s nose began to itch fiercely. Well hell she thought. It’s not like she could let go of her hold on the arrow to scratch her suddenly difficult appendage. So instead she settled for twitching it much like a rabbit.
“My my you have certainly grown.” Spoke a distinctly feminine voice from deep within the shadows.
The sudden unannounced voice startled Kagome so much that she lost her grip on her arrow. The arrow appeared to fly harmlessly into the night, and by the sound of it imbedded itself deeply into the trunk of a tree, at least she hoped it was a tree. “H…He….Hello.” Kagome called out again rather nervously. She was having a mental debate with herself trying to decide whether or not she should draw another arrow. Before Kagome could come to a decision a woman of unparalleled beauty stepped into her line of sight.
“Oh my…” breathed Kagome. The woman before her was indeed a beauty. She was tall for a woman possibly 5’8 or so with a beautifully lean form, full of curves. Her face was rather narrow with very deep set cheek bones. She appeared to have a pretty dusting of pink across her cheeks that made her skin tone look far more tanned than what was considered proper for the region. She had twinkling green eyes, (wait, did she have green eyes, how unusual?) That were framed by thick sooty lashes. Her mouth was drawn into a rather tight line, almost as if she was displeased. But the slight pout of her full bottom lip and deeply furrowed brow gave away the look as one of deep contemplation. As she walked towards Kagome her silky golden hair danced across her calves. Drawing attention to the exotic nature of her appearance, she definitely was not native to Japan. But then how did she get here? Thought Kagome this era was well before the time of mass globalization. And….did she say I have grown? Kagome was drawn from her internal musings by a slight chuckle from the woman in front of her.
“You seem shocked my little Miko, why are u so surprised?” asked the strange woman.
Kagome fixed the woman with her best you-have-to-be-kidding-me look. “I….Im sorry, ….I don’t mean to be rude….but.., do I know you.” Now that she thought about it, the woman felt familiar and what was that in her aura? It felt kind of like the jaki from a youki, but. . .different?
The unusual woman fixed Kagome with an amused stare. “Surely you didn’t think just anybody could fall down a well and get sent 500 years in the past my dear. You had to have at least assumed you were favored play thing of the Kami.” Said the stranger.
Kagome allowed her jaw to flop open in disbelief Kami……did she say Kami?!?! Kagome took a deep breath to calm herself. She gave up attempting to remain upright and fell back on her rump with her mouth still somewhat agape. The strange women allowed a dazzling smile to break across her face and a knowing gleam to enter her (oh my, they are green!) eyes.
“I’m sorry my dear perhaps I assume too much, allow me to introduce myself. I am Amaterasu but you may call me Asu.” She said with a twinkle of mischief.
Kagome’s jaw truly dropped then. “Amaterasu……as in the sun goddess! The divine mother, Queen of the Kami!!!.......that Amaterasu?” Kagome croaked out in a very undignified voice.
The woman’s smile brightened even more and she simply nodded her head.
Kagome placed her head between her legs. “I think I am going to be sick” she stuttered.
The goddess’s beautiful smile was replaced with a slight frown. She approached Kagome slowly, almost as if to not frighten the pore girl away.
“My dear, I am disappointed, I had heard of your loving heart and accepting ways, I was hoping those traits would extend to the Kami also” she said
Kagome’s head shot up. “Of course Asu-sama, its just, I mean it is a little much don’t you think? and how is one to address a Kami anyway, and not just any Kami but the devine mother, the QUEEN of the Kami…..Im afraid im a little lost at the moment.”
Asu nodded her head in acceptance as she knelt before Kagome. “My dear I have come to you tonight because it is time that you awaken the powers that have been given to you as your birthright, you have a long road ahead of you, one that extends well beyond the defeat of the evil Hanyu you and your group are fighting currently” Asu graced Kagome with a smile as she extended her hand to the earth. She picked up a tiny pebble and folded her hand around it. “Give me your hand my dear, this shall be a token of my favor for you, where it proudly so that all may know you are favored by the Kami.” Asu dropped the pebble into Kagome’s outstretched hand.
Kagome allowed her gaze to drift to the pebble she now held. What was once a rock was now a brilliant blazing stone that had the house of the sun engraved upon the front with a small hole through the top of the stone that was just large enough for a chain to slip through. Kagome’s shock filled gaze drifted back up to the face of the…Kami? Divine Mother? Asu-sama?
“Asu-sama Im afraid I don’t understand, what could you possibly want with me?” asked the confused miko.
Asu gave the young woman a warm smile as she slipped her left hand above Kagomes rapidly beating heart beat. “Something’s you will need to find out on your own my little Miko.” She replied.
Kagome’s brow furrowed when she realized her nose was itching yet again. She raised her hand to that blasted nose only to catch a glimpse of a familiar glow across her chest. She lowered her head to see that asu had her hand place directly across not only her heart but the vile in which the jewel shard was placed. She began to get nervous; would even the Kami desire the stupid jewel? Asu smiled at Kagome as if reading the thoughts flashing through her head. She gave a little chuckle and then allowed her breath to cover the young woman. Kagome’s eyes began to close as her body swayed towards the ground. Asu aided Kagome in laying in a comfortable sleeping position then removed her hands from the woman to look at her handy work. The jewel that Kagome fretted so frequently about was gone and even better her birthright was finally visible.
Asu turned her face to the full moon hanging high above her in the tree tops. “Tsukuyomi she does not know about you yet, but rest easy my brother she will know the truth soon enough. Sleep well” With that she turned to scoop up the young woman and carry her back to her companion’s camp for the remainder of the night. Though the journey was not a necessarily long one it still gave Asu plenty of time to contemplate the quickly growing woman in her arms as well as the newly formed Safire crescent moon that adorned her brow.