New Star of the Shikon by blue_angel36

Prologue

Anxiety griped her chest, her heart fluttering frantically and her lungs

constricted. Never before tonight had she'd felt such a feeling of

nervousness. It was almost as if she was afraid of dying out there. Which

wouldn't be considered cowardly by many. After all, how many had already

died or injured themselves during this specific act? The count was said to

be staggering. But when she heard a soft laugh behind her, the anxiety

lessened. A little.

"Chickening out yet Kagome?" Looking up, she saw her elder sibling. His

outfit was already sparkling even in the dim light. His hair, which had

always been unruly, was now spiked and the tips dyed a deep royal blue to

match his costume. Altogether, Souta was quite the sight.

"No! I'm just..." Souta sighed and placed his hand on her shoulder gently.

"Nervous, I know. I was too actually." Kagome gasped quietly and her eyes

widened in utter shock.

"That's impossible! You and the trapeze are like one! You flow through the

air like you were born doing it!" At this, Souta chuckled.

"I guess dad never mentioned the days when I was still in training, did he?

Cause the truth is that I was so horrible at acrobatics that many were

afraid I'd never continue the legacy." Again, Kagome gasped.

"But how could you have so much trouble? I only had trouble the few first

times!" Souta smiled knowingly.

"So I heard. But you're an exception Kagome. You're special. My bet is that

you'll soon enough surpass me and be the one to continue on with..." But a

deep masculine voice cut Souta off.

"Come now you two, get yourselves ready." The two siblings looked to their

right to see their father, already his own costume of pristine white. The

costume's design was enough to make people stare, but with the silver

accents everywhere it was probably one of the most gorgeous costumes Kagome

had ever seen. Yet, the costume could not be compared to her father.

Like most performers, he was very lean but toned. He was tall as well,

extremely tall. It was because of his height that her grandfather had been

apprehensive to allow his son on the trapeze bars. But in the end, his fears

were put to rest. Higurashi Taiyou became the greatest performer of all time

in many eyes, dazzling millions of people with even his simplest maneuvers.

Sometimes, like now, Kagome found her father to be rather intimidating. Her

small hands began to grip the sheer fabric of her dress. As a small thought,

she realized her costume was rather stunning tonight as well.

The bodice was tight, but movable for her acrobatics as well, and was the

same royal blue as Souta's regal costume. The skirt of the gown was made up

of several layers of sheer fabric in varying shades of blue that sparkled

with glitter whenever she moved. In that moment, she thanked the Kami that

the costume maker had remembered to put a small pair of blue shorts at the

end of the bodice. She didn't think she could take anything smaller, far too

uncomfortable.

"Kagome, what did your mother say about fiddling with your costume?" Kagome

jumped but removed her hands from her gown, seeing the woman in question

coming up alongside her father.

"Now Taiyou, it's Kagome's first time actually being on stage other than the

occasional fill-in for a sick clown. You can clearly see why she's fiddling

with her dress." Her mother, a beauty like no other Kagome had ever seen,

was from another family of acrobats. But like her mother before her, Yuki

doubled as the stage's personal singer. She was said to have a voice given

to her directly from the Kami, and Kagome believed it. But sometimes, again

like now, Kagome would look at the members of her family in awe. Her parents

in the pristine white costumes of a king and queen, her brother in his royal

blue knight's costume, and she was stunned. How was she related to them? She

held none of her mother's gentle, almost naturally aristocratic looks, she

couldn't sing very well, and she never had the confidence they did.

Had she'd been adopted?

No, that couldn't be it. For there were some things that made her a

Higurashi undeniably. Like her sapphire blue eyes, her long onyx colored

hair that tended to have a blue shine to it in the sun, and her build. For

all Higurashi's as far back as anyone could remember had always been taller

than average, even the woman, and had always been naturally lean.

"Kagome, come stand next to your mother." Her father's voice was a whisper

now, and Kagome felt her anxiety light up once more as she heard the

tinkling sounds of the house orchestra beginning the score for their

performance. But as she came up alongside her mother, something happened.

A stunning calm settled over her as she began to run the act through her

head. First, her mother would walk out from behind the sparkling curtain and

sing a touching ballad before it faded into just the orchestra playing a

very loud piece for a battle scene. Yuki would remain where she was until

nearly the end of the scene, looking terrified, before her father would come

out and unsheathe his sword.

It was strange how she remembered it all so well. She'd always had a bad

habit of forgetting things, especially act, but now it was as if she were a

robot running on a program.

"Ladies and gentlemen! The show you've been waiting to see is almost ready

to begin!" She could hear the boss talking over the long, mystical intro to

her mother's song, and she could tell he was particularly excited about this

production.

'Myoga-san always gets excited before...'

"But before the show begins, I want to make an announcement! For the first

time ever, the youngest Higurashi will be joining her family on stage! At

the age of twelve, Kagome shows a lot of potential so be sure to keep your

eye on her!" A small flutter of anxiety erupted in her stomach again at his

words, but not enough to break her calm.

'Myoga-san really overdoes it a lot of the time.' But she forced herself to

become quiet as her mother flowed out onto the stage, the microphone

attached to her dress turning on as she did so, and then it came, the first

unwavering note that rang out across the stage, silencing the audience with

almost magical ease.

'Mother's always been able to silence the crowds with her voice alone. I

only wish that I could do that one day.' As though reading her thoughts, she

felt her father's hand upon her shoulder and when she looked up at him, she

saw his smile. A moment later, Souta leaned over and smiled from the other

side of Taiyou. Although she had to admit, Souta looked like a complete goof

when he smiled like that.

'Father has a smile that makes women the audience nearly fall out of the

chairs. Well, at least that's what mother says. But Souta has a smile that

makes me want to giggle.' She almost did too as they stood there, but she

knew better and reigned her mirth. Her skin tingled as her mother reached

the climax of the song, and when she looked out from behind the curtain

through a small crack, she could see her mother's face alight with emotion

as she held out the last note, so high and yet so beautiful that Kagome felt

her eyes tear up.

'Now father will go out...' As if on cue with his daughter's mind, Taiyou

readied himself as the sound of pounding drums, blasting brass, and the

numerous footsteps of the "soldiers" echoed out across the stage. Then, as

Kagome saw several silhouettes leap out towards her mother on the other side

of stage, Taiyou leapt from backstage and drew his sword, fending of the

acrobat soldiers.

'Father has always been the hero, even in the tragedies.' Then, a loud

tympani roll signaled Souta and he too ran out and drew his sword, coming to

their father's "aid" as the crowd erupted into cheers. Even from where she

stood, she could tell Souta was glowing.

'Souta, always such a ladies man. At least, that's what he thinks.' By now,

the stage was full and silhouettes of performers were running across the

curtain from everywhere. Then, the choreography changed and instead of

coming at Souta and Taiyou one at a time, the rest of the performers

suddenly turned and lunged as one.

Had she'd been in the audience, she would have been on the edge of her seat.

'Suspense will always stir a rise from the audience.' She heard two clangs

against many, and squinted as one of the perfectly placed stage lights lit

up. As she heard the audience gasp, performers came backstage still wearing

their soldier uniforms. Some simply walked by her, but most stopped and

place a hand on her shoulder or gave her smiles and winks as they passed.

Again, she felt a twinge of anxiety as the stage lights dimmed.

'The lights will dim and mother shall call for me.'

"Where is Kaori?"

"Kaori!" Upon hearing her "name" Kagome inhaled a deep breath and then

sprinted out onto stage, hearing the immediate whispers of the audience as

she did so. A rush of adrenaline almost made her dizzy as it rushed through

her veins. Was this what her family felt when they were on the stage? This

euphoria she was experiencing?

Yes, she was twelve and she knew words like euphoria.

She looked at her mother and smiled, received a smile back, and then heard a

flute trill that served as their signal as well as an entrance to the next

scene.

'And now the bars will drop from their holdings and down to our reach.' And

they did, a bar for each member of the family. Souta went first, grabbing

his bar and swinging from the platform they were on. Since their family was

known for their specific spiral techniques, each bar was made to spin. Souta

swung in a wide arc, turning left and flying over the crowd, making many

female gasps echo in the air. Her father went next, getting the same

reaction, if not a little more intense from the crowd.

Then her mother flew out after giving her youngest a small smile, her gown

flowing out in all its glory behind her. She looked like a wingless angel

flying out to meet her destiny, however corny that may have sounded even in

Kagome's mind. But she couldn't help but stare in awe until her cue came and

she grasped the cool bar in her hands and leapt from the platform,

surprisingly earning loud round of applause as she did so. She felt as

though she was dead and in heaven, in complete bliss.

'Remember to make eye contact with the audience.' She looked below her and

smiled, her eyes latching on two faces in particular.

They were two young boys, brothers, and one was clearly older than the other

was. Both had long silver hair, which seemed quite odd to her, but she

smiled on. The younger of the two was actually jumping in his sitting and

laughing, his eyes wide and bright. But the second looked bored. Completely

bored.

'Well, I'll just have to change that.' Having seen Souta do this already

three times in the last few minutes, Kagome smiled brighter and swung her

body to her left, going into a tight spiral. She could hear several gasps

and squeals as she did this, and when she finally stopped, just as she was

actually swinging over the two brothers, she saw the younger one practically

dancing.

But what satisfied her the most, was the older brother.

He hadn't moved, his arms still crossed over his chest, but his face was

what made her giggle as she passed over them as if in slowed time. His eyes

were widened just enough for her to see, and his mouth that had been pressed

in a thin line was now ajar in a silent gasp.

'That'll show him!' Then, just as she passed them, she did a small flip over

the bar and kept going. Time sped up to normal once more, and she smiled

brightly as she followed behind her mother who was now doing a spiral like

she had, only more complex.

That's when she heard it. A scream.

A truly horrified scream. At first, it was just one. Then, it seemed to

spread as one by one, screams begun to erupt in the audience. Kagome felt

the smile slip from her face as she looked towards her family. Souta was

looking at his mother, who in turn was looking at their father. Kagome

looked at him as well, and saw that he was looking up to the bar anchoring.

Then, he fell.

Kagome wanted to scream as she watched it, but found she couldn't. The ropes

of her father's bar seemed to snap from somewhere up towards the top, and

they simply plummeted, a loud yell from her father ringing out across the

stage. As if in slow motion his face alighted in true fear and fell towards

the floor. It was then she realized why so many people became injured or

worse doing this particular act. The nets, which were usually beneath them

during an entire performance, were removed for this particular one. Because

even though several people had died during this show, those in charge still

said it was far too easy of a show to bring out the nets, which took several

hours to do.

Kagome made herself look to her mother before her father was anywhere near

the ground.

'This has to be a nightmare!' She closed her eyes tightly as if to will away

the frightening dream she was in, but they were quickly snapped back open

when she heard a loud snap from in front of her, Her mother was no holding

onto the trapeze bar as it hung from only side. As if sensing her daughter's

eyes on her, Yuki turned and looked into the eyes of her daughter sadly.

Then, her last restraint of safety snapped as well.

'Daddy...mommy...please let this be a dream!' But even as she thought that and

looked towards her brother across from her, she knew it wasn't.

Now it was just the two of them in the bars, the rest of the performers

safely on the ground and the audience was half gone and half frozen in their

seats. Distantly she noticed that the older of the two silver-haired

brothers was still in the audience only standing as he watched her.

"Kagome! Jump to the audience balcony!" She gasped as she turned to her

brother.

"Souta!"

"Do it! Leap to the balcony!" Kagome's eyes widened drastically. She

couldn't do that! He knew she was horrible at leaping up! Going far wasn't a

problem, but the height...

"I can't do it!"

"Yes you can! Now leap!" Kagome finally did scream when he finished. Both of

his lines snapped just like their father's had, and he went plummeting

towards the ground. Again, she looked away. Frantic, she looked around for

help in the audience. But by now there was practically no one, including the

silver haired boy, and for the first time she noticed that a fire had begun.

'I have no choice! I'll have to jump!' Looking up, she saw the balcony that

circled the stage. It was almost eight feet up, no problem for Soot or her

parents. But for her, it was nearly impossible.

As if commanded to, her body began to swing back and forth, building up

momentum, as she simply became blank. Her parents were gone. Souta was gone.

Now, the fire growing steadily beneath her would be taking away her home as

well. Why should she jump to safety? Why hadn't her family jumped as well?

But all questions were forced from her mind as she flew forward once more.

'If I don't make the jump...' She didn't finish that thought. Instead, she let

out a cry as she flung her body up and out. Her whole body was perfectly

positioned for the jump, her hands outstretched and reaching for the balcony

she would never reach. Behind her, she heard her own trapeze bar smash

against the ground. The balcony's edge loomed nearer and she stretched out

her arm further, her expression desperate. But just as the fingers of her

right hand were about the graze the edge, she felt her body beginning to

fall.

'I knew I wouldn't make it.' She let out a sob as she began to fall, her

fingertips actually grazing the cold material of the edge. She expected the

feeling of failure, she expected the fear of the fall, but what she didn't

expect was the pale hand that reached out and grabbed her wrist in a strong

grip.

"Hang on!" Looking up as her body hit the side, she gasped. The person who'd

saved her, the person who was now grabbing her left hand in his own, was

none other than the silver-haired boy she'd thought had left like everyone

else. He was breathing heavily, as if he'd been running, and in the back of

her mind, she realized he'd run all the way up the stairs that led to the

balcony.

But why?

"I need you help me! Put your feet on the side and try to walk!" She nodded

and did as she was told, feeling him pulling her up as she did so. Behind

her, something on the set crashed loudly and she let out a frightened

shriek, almost losing her footing as she tried to curl in on herself.

'Souta, I'm scared!'

"Don't be scared! We'll get out of here! Together!" Kagome's head snapped up

and she looked into the boy's eyes. They were such strangely colored eyes,

looking like deep pools of liquid gold. They showed his concern, his

desperation to help her, shining in his eyes even if his face only showed

his effort as he continued to pull her up. But she snapped out of it and

nodded before beginning to walk up the side of the balcony once more.

'One foot in front of the other. Right, then left. Then I'll be safe.' For

those few moments, her family was pushed from her mind. The burning building

was gone as well. What was left was her and the boy she'd showed off for

earlier in the show.

"You can do it!" There were only a few steps left, but Kagome felt another

surge of adrenaline in her veins and simply shoved herself up. It was just

enough to make it so the young boy could catch her around the waist and pull

her back. "See?! I told you!"

"Yeah..." She looked up at him then, seeing a sort of delirious happiness in

his eyes when he realized she was safe. Safe, something her family wouldn't

know again. It was then, as a strange boy held her as her world burned down

around her, did Kagome finally cry. It started with a small sob, but that

opened the door and she ended up burying her face in his shirt and crying

for all she was worth. She felt him tense for a moment, but then he hugged

her tightly and let her cry, putting his chin on top of her head. She

realized then that he was several years older than she was, assuredly in his

late teens, and this would probably be the last time she saw her savior.

After all, he'd soon be off home, wherever that was, and she'd...she didn't

know that part.

"Come on, we gotta get out of here before the fire spreads anymore than it

already has." She nodded and was about to pull away when he simply bent down

and lifted her into his arms bridal style. "Hang on! I'm probably not as

good as you but I can at least get us out of here a lot faster than someone

else!"

She wasn't sure what he meant, but she wrapped her arms around his neck

securely just before he simply took off at a sprint towards the stairwell.

But instead of going down the stairs, the boy looked up, seeing a window

about a hundred feet above them, opened for ventilation of the stairwell.

But as they stood there for a short time, Kagome realized something odd. The

window, which was usually only opened halfway and could only open halfway,

was completely open with no glass in sight.

But barely finished that thought before the boy simply crouched low and

tightened his grip on her, smiling down at for a moment and then springing

into the air. Had she'd not been in such a state of shock, Kagome would have

screamed. For not only was he able to jump high, he jumped with speed like

she'd only seen from her parents.

They flew through the window with ease, neither of them touching the frame

at all, and gasped inwardly when she saw how much higher they'd gotten. For

the boy had jumped at least nearly sixty feet higher than the roof itself.

"Wow..."

"I'm still only in training, not nearly as good as you!" Kagome looked at

him in shock, their faces barely inches apart.

"Maybe on the bars! But you saw how pathetic I am at jumping! Souta could've

made that..." But she cut herself off with a strangled gasp, the weight of her

family's fate sudden hitting her again. He seemed to know why she stopped

because as he landed smoothly, with almost fluid ease, he held her closer.

"If we see each other again, we'll teach each other what we know. Deal?"

Kagome smiled through her sadness and nodded as he begun to run towards the

edge of the roof.

"Deal."

She thought she heard him laugh along with her as he jumped from the

building, headed for a large merchandise tent below them. On that night,

Higurashi Kagome lost her family. But in turn, she gained a friend who would

aid her more than he'd ever know in the coming years.