Wings by Riku Ryuu

Chapter 1

Hi! This story was written for Nano Wrimo and I am just getting around to fixing it up enough for other's sight. Because I have a nice chuck of this story finished, I hope to have a new chapter up at least once a week.

Enjoy.

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Kagome smiled the man taking tickets and handed hers over. She had been waiting in line for well over twenty minutes and was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet in excitement for what awaited her behind the gate. After having her bag checked by a security guard, one of three checking over the new arrivals, she was permitted into the fair.

Booths of splendid colors and wonderful merchandise lined the crowd of people. The shop owners called out advertisements that could just barely be heard over the confusion of the crowd but none of them used electron means to get the messages heard. Further down, Kagome could see the top of a castle with flags that waved joyfully in the breeze and the same breeze carried the scent of cooking food to her nose, causing her mouth to water. Kagome loved the Renaissance fair.

Kagome moved through the crowd, focused on the smell. She barely stopped in time when a smiling man stepped in front of her.

“Hello beautiful.”

She looked at the man quizzically. He wore a white long sleeved shirt with a blue vest over it. He had a sword sheathed at his hip and an empty quiver at his back. Brown hair reached just above his ears and brown eyes that smiled down at her. He was not a tall man,  but he was a few inches taller than her own five foot four. All in all, he was handsome in a harmless sort of way.

“Would you like to come to my guild with me?”

Kagome instantly shook her head.

“Sorry, I want to take a look around before it gets dark.” She was amused when his smile fell a little. Kagome did not see herself as beautiful, as he had said, she knew there were many women better looking than her walking around at the fair. Kagome knew that her long black hair was common, not thinking about how silky it looked, and she didn’t even think of how rare it was to have blue eyes with her dark locks. Kagome had no idea that her eyes were so bright as to enchant the man.

“If you come with me, I can make your time here more… enjoyable.” He licked his lips. Kagome blinked at him, not comprehending his meaning and instead thinking about how out of place the gesture seemed. Then his meaning hit her and her cheeks flamed.

“Uh… No thank you.” Kagome walked away from him, faster than was perhaps polite, but though he was handsome she did not want to do anything like that with someone she had just met.

“Wait!” The man yelled after her. Kagome moved faster and thankfully lost him in the crowd. Once she was sure he was nowhere in sight, Kagome slowed and looked around at the booths again. She wanted to find the food that smelled so good, but who said she couldn’t look around as she went?

Kagome contemplated little pirate boat earrings, watched someone get a corset tied the right way, and wandered around completely content. She stopped at a sign that read ‘fortune teller’. A lady of maybe 25 sat beneath the sign, a table placed in front of her with a chair for customers. Her face was covered by red fabric with little coins sewn to it, like a jingle skirt. All Kagome could see of her face was her purple eyes that seemed to glow at Kagome. Figuring they were fake, contacts, Kagome guessed her stall was just as false. She turned to move on.

“Kagome.”

She stopped. How-

“Kagome Higurashi. I have been expecting you.” The fortune teller‘s voice was soft, but Kagome could still hear her clearly over the crowd. The woman waved one elegant hand at the chair.

Curious, Kagome sat down. Without preamble, the fortune teller started.

“Your fate is set by what you do now. The choices you make now will affect all else that comes. I see four paths that you may take; three normal and one extraordinary. One will lead you to a normal home, normal family, normal love. Two will take you to an unexpected life and a random lifestyle. Three will lead you to darkness, moodiness.”

Kagome waited a moment. When the woman did not speak, Kagome leaned closer.

“And the last?”

The fortune teller’s eyes stared into Kagome’s, as if she could see into her soul.

“The last will lead you to things that you have only imagined.”

Kagome waited again. The two stared at each other in silence.

“Is that it? Nothing else to tell me? No hint on what to do?” Kagome did not like the sound of some of those endings. She was hoping for some more information, maybe even a clue as to what would lead where.

“I can tell you no more of your future.”

Kagome got up from the chair and took a step back.

“Do I owe you anything?” At her question, the woman shook her head. Kagome stood there for a second, thinking, before she continued on her way. Kagome pushed her future to the back of her mind and focused on the present. Besides, the fortune teller’s words seemed too strange, too vague but at the same time definite, to be taken seriously.

After continuing to looking at the vendors for a while, she moved along a dirt path. The fair was set up in a park with a beautiful lake in the middle that sparkled in the light from the setting sun. The path continued around the lake, and she knew for a fact that all the food was on the other side.

Kagome went around the side with no guilds set up, figuring she would go that way when she wanted to go back across the lake. She made it to the other side and looked at all the food stalls. After looking over her options, she got a turkey leg and sat down on the grass like many others to eat. A band played on a stage nearby, entertaining her while she ate in a very un-lady-like way. Kagome finished and got up to throw the leftovers away. Once that was done, she sat back down and listened to the music. Kagome figured she could spend a few minutes off her feet before beginning the trek back around the lake.

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Somewhere on the other side of the lake, three men stood together talking. This was a normal thing, but for the fact that they were so different. Not only did their hair color and clothing differ, but their attitudes where so diverse no one would ever expect them to be friends.

The first man, a brown haired man, was speaking to the others.

“-and exciting eyes! She was the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes upon.” The others snickered. They could practically see the little stars in his eyes.

“Does this wench actually exist, or are you making it all up?” The man next to him asked cheerfully. His hair was black color pulled up in a ponytail that had many beads flashing from it, but even flashier were his clothes. The man wore no shirt, but his pants had so much fabric that it made up for the loss. Jingle skirts every color of the rainbow had been tied to his flowing pants, emphasizing his movements with soft music. As Prince of the Gypsies, he was the most flamboyant of the three.

“If she is real, I would not mind claiming her for myself.” The other man licked his lips. His face was unusually pale thanks to makeup and black eye liner made him seem even paler. The makeup continued down his arms and under the studded pants he had on and the barely there black t-shirt he wore. His black hair was messily spiked, looking like someone, most likely feminine hands, had run through it. Though his appearance was the most fearful of the group, he got the same amount of attention from women as the others. And they got a lot of attention.

“She does exist, Koga! I have not even told you the strangest part. She was not the least bit interested in me. She walked right past me and when I tried to follow, she ran. A woman, running from me!? This has never happened before.” The brown haired man shook his head. His pride had taken a beating by a single girl that he did not even know the name of. He figured he had to find her.

“Maybe she doesn’t desire some nice knight fighting for her… attention. Maybe she wants a bad boy.” The pale man smirked as the other snarled at him. None of them could be described as ‘nice’, but out of the three, the knight’s guild was the only one known for chivalry. The other two were known the lack of it.

“Naraku, I do not want you going after her. I wanted to ask you guys a favor.”

“Hojo, you know how I feel about favors. If I do a favor for you, you will owe me.” Naraku said with a scowl.

Koga frowned.

“I am willing to do a favor for you if it is within reason.”

“I want you to help me find her. I have a buddy watching the exit and he is to tell me if she leaves. She is in here somewhere and I want to talk to her again.”

Both of the other men stared at him, completely surprised.

“You want us to find a girl.” Koga said after a moment. At Hojo’s nod, both he and Naraku started laughing. Neither of them could understand why Hojo would want to go after a reluctant woman when there were so many willing ones to be found. Hojo glared at them.

“I will do two favors of any kind for whoever brings her to me.”

That stopped the laughing. Calculating expression fell over the two. After a brief hushed conversation between them, they turned back to Hojo. Koga was the one to speak.

“If one of us brings you the girl, you will owe us both one favor. Deal?”

“Deal.”

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Yes, I know how completely random this is and yes, it will get more random. I would love to hear what you think, so please leave me a review.

Thank you.