[AU, rated R] Dog's Body 1/? "His History Is of Legend

Smarty Cat · Post by **Smarty Cat** » Sun Jan 26, 2003 5:28 pm

Chapter Summary: Enter Kagome. Little Red Riding Hood, eat your heart out.

A.N. There is a prologue to this. Just thought I'd mention that since some people have missed it and been a bit confused by what is happening now.

Dog's Body
by
Smarty Cat
smartycat9383(at)yahoo(dot)com

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Chapter 1: His History Is of Legend 
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~At once he became a thing of the wild, stealing along softly, cat-footed, a passing shadow that appeared and disappeared among the shadows.
--Jack London, The Call of the Wild~

As dusk fell across Tokyo the streetlights flickered on one by one in a vain attempt to stave off the encroaching darkness. A slender girl glanced around warily, clutching her jacket tightly to her body as she moved away from the guttering yellow pools of light. As dangerous as it was to walk among the shadows, walking beneath the lights was even more perilous, and she knew it. People who stayed in their false security could not see out into the night although they themselves were easily visible.

Easy targets. Well, I refuse to be an easy target.

Youkai roamed freely at night while most humans remained safely in warded homes with their doors and windows locked as an extra precaution.

"But not Higurashi Kagome, miko in training!" she whispered bitterly under her breath.

She bravely traversed the city in the darkness night after night. But was it for some noble cause such as fighting the evil youkai who preyed upon vulnerable humans like that blonde girl on that gaijin TV show? Oh no, she was stuck traipsing around among murderers, rapists, thieves, and flesh-eating demons because cheerleading practice always ran late!

Kagome brushed a strand of wavy black hair away from her face as she increased her pace to a ridiculous looking but ground covering running walk, a familiar litany of plaintive questions running through her mind. Why did practice have to last so long? Why did she have to live in an isolated shrine several blocks away from everyone else? Why did she have to pass through the dark and frighteningly empty park on her way home? Why didn't her family just buy a car?!

Not that anything had ever happened to her during her nightly trek home. No youkai had ever come leaping from the shadows and tried to rip out her liver as a dessert. Kagome had never even been accosted by a common mugger, but all that was irrelevant. The chance always remained, and it seemed to be growing more likely than ever.

"The muggers have more sense than to be out here after dark anyway," she muttered, ducking her head into her collar against a sudden frigid gust of wind.

Deeper patches of darkness moved among the shadows of the night just on the edges of her vision, and lately strange whisperings and rustlings always filled the air. Kagome might have thought such things were nothing more than figments of her overactive and adrenaline overloaded imagination, but youkai attacks had been on the increase for several months. The winter had been particularly long and hard, leaving humans trapped in their homes except for a few far too brief hours of gray daylight. Food had been scarce for all the wild creatures, and the hungry youkai were growing bolder, sometimes even emerging during the day to fulfill their bloodlust.

When consulted for help in quelling the attacks, Jii-chan would merely ramble on about the reemergence of the Shikon no Tama, whatever that was, and a great battle between human and youkai that was to come. Jii-chan had been dipping into the ceremonial sake quite frequently though . . .

"Hardly cheerful information. Too vague, mostly useless. Rather like me I suppose . . ." Kagome sighed quietly.

She knew she disappointed her grandfather. Since the day of her birth he had always had such high hopes that she would be the one to inherit the family shrine, but some miko she was turning out to be. She could not even handle a bow properly. Her little brother Souta was a better shot! As for the latent powers miko were supposed to possess, the powers that were hers by right of her bloodline . . . well, they were taking their sweet time to manifest.

Honestly, she had never met a person with true power. Jii-chan, for all his knowledge, seemed completely incompetent and ineffective. His wards and charms almost never worked, and when they did it usually was not in the manner that he had intended. Perhaps it was merely the sake hindering his ability . . . Nevertheless, Kagome had started to believe that the great miko of legend were merely benevolent youkai who had used their power to prevent the slaughter of their weak human "pets."

"And those youkai were probably killed by the others for their 'weakness,' leaving us poor humans alone and defenseless with only a handful of warded areas to take refuge in."

Kagome fully realized that talking to herself, even under her breath, was probably a bad habit, especially when stealth was required, but she needed the noise, the companionship of her own thoughts verbalized, to keep her sane during her nerve shattering nightly journey.

One hand curled nervously around the ofuda in her pocket, her sole protection against any attackers.

"And what protection it is," she muttered sarcastically.

A thin strip of paper with carelessly inked characters stretching down one side was meant to serve as a shield. Yeah right. She was seriously considering quitting the cheerleading squad.

"Maybe I'll take up kempo. It lets out earlier in the day, and then I'd actually have a practical way of defending myself."

A twig snapped somewhere in the distance, jerking the girl out of her moody reverie. Kagome froze, fear and adrenaline pumping through her body and raising goose bumps on her already chilled skin. She turned her head slowly and with exaggerated care, scanning the empty expanse of the park, eyes wide and dark in her pale face. Gently sloping hills of green stretched out around her with only the occasional tree scattered about. Nothing moved with the exception of the lazy swaying of the tree branches. The cold wind tugged lightly at her loose hair, and an owl glided overhead on silent wingtips. She shivered.

"The bird of death!" the girl gasped then shook her head violently. "There is nothing to be afraid of. It was just a bird, just a nocturnal predator out searching for its breakfast."

Just like the youkai . . .

She gulped nervously, hating the cynical whispering thought that appeared unbidden in her mind, and stepped forward a few paces, listening to the usual night sounds around her carefully. The birdsong was suspiciously muted. It was nearly full dark now, the soft gray colors of twilight almost completely replaced by the darker tones of midnight. Kagome silently cursed her bright red jacket that stood out like a beacon among the gloom. School uniform and dress code be damned, she was going shopping for camouflage clothes in solid navies and blacks tomorrow even if she had to skip practice!

Kagome bit her lip in indecision before reluctantly closing her eyes and extending her senses. Her breathing slowed and evened out as a stylized, dreamlike image of the area around her filled her mind. Youkai felt very distinct. They had a natural aura that gave away their presence to anyone who cared to look, but it required a high level of concentration and left humans vulnerable to attack even as they learned the location of their enemies. Most humans could sense youkai with a little effort, but Kagome was slightly better at it than the majority. It was the one concession to any sort of power that she might have, but the old fishwife from the market possessed the same enhanced ability, and she was certainly no miko or priestess.

Nothing?

Kagome was surprised to find the area clear of any youkai presence other than the lingering half shadows of youkai that had passed through a day or so ago. Nevertheless, she shuddered at the thought of the creatures walking the same path she always used. Just a few hours had made all the difference between a safe passage and a deadly one.

Wait a minute . . .

A faint spark of something to the north lit her mental landscape before flickering down to nothing, but it was not a youkai. She was certain of that. Kagome's brow furrowed as she opened her eyes and began to jog swiftly across the grass.

I've never been able to sense people or normal animals before. So if it's not a youkai, what was it?

As her path wound up to a wooded tree line she slowed to a brisk walk. This was the part of her journey home that she hated the most. The lights scattered along the edge of the open park glowed as dimly as distant fireflies at the edge of the trees, and for the next mile she would be completely shrouded in the shadows of the forest with only the few shafts of moonlight that managed to break through the treetops to guide her.

The demon beast's forest.

Old people spoke of the area in hushed voices, and many refused to set foot beneath the green canopy even in broad daylight. It had been that way for as long as Kagome could remember, and according to her grandfather the fear went back fifty years.

It was said that five decades earlier a great beast, neither youkai nor animal, emerged from the leafy shadows, bringing with it the greatest storm Tokyo had seen in over a century. The beast, covered in blood and enraged to the point of madness, had savagely attacked anything in its path. Pools of crimson stained the ground amid a wet black torrent, and lightning and flooding cost many people their homes that day. Finally after several hours of intense fighting, a group of taijiya managed to injure the beast and drive it back into the forest. It had not been seen again since that day, but the elders swore that the demon beast still lurked among the trees, plotting vengeance and thirsting for blood.

"It's just a story. Just a story to frighten little kids. And I'm not a little kid."

Kagome took a deep, ragged breath, squared her shoulders, and stepped into the forest. The temperature seemed to drop radically, and she huddled into the meager warmth of her light jacket, thrusting her hands deep into her pockets as she shuffled along the worn dirt path.

A sudden flash of white appeared against the darkness in the corner of her eye. The girl whirled around, bringing out the ofuda and thrusting the paper ward in front of her in a strangely instinctual and fluid move. When absolutely nothing happened, she cautiously opened one eye. The area around her was completely deserted, and the barely visible sky was becoming increasingly darker over the treetops. Only the faintest sliver of a moon glowed in the sky. It was nearing the end of its last quarter. Tomorrow night would be the new moon, and her trek would be in complete and total darkness.

While staring up at the sky and fearing the night to come, Kagome abruptly realized that a good distance still separated her from the safety of her home. She stifled an exclamation of alarm and took off, resolutely bounding over the dips and bumps of the familiar trail and completely missing the pale-colored gleam that reappeared among the trees behind her.

Golden eyes narrowed as they watched the girl dash away, and lips rose to reveal only the faintest hint of strong fangs as one single, overwhelming thought ran through a hunger-maddened mind.

'Prey.'

Sissi · Post by **Sissi** » Sun Jan 26, 2003 10:35 pm

Oh no! Inuyasha! You can't kill Kagome!!

Now, seriously, this chapter was great. Good descrption and nice way you portrayed Kagome's thoughts. I loved the beginning of this chapter, where you wrote a small piece of "Call of the Wild". It is an awesome book, it was great choice, just as the prolougue's one. ^^

I can't wait for the next chapter !

Sissi

wicked · Post by **wicked** » Mon Jan 27, 2003 2:12 am

I most definitely agree. Excellent chapter with excellent storytelling. Maybe this fic of yours will inspire others to write about Inu Yasha. We need more of it.

~Wicked

Beck · Post by **Beck** » Wed Jan 29, 2003 12:41 am

Ya know, when Kagome has IY's robe on for protection, she could pass for Red Riding Hood

Nice build up with this chapter, poor Kagome, I'd be on nerves end on walking through that area at night and jumping at every little noise. I hope you have more in the making.

dark-angel · Post by **dark-angel** » Sun May 11, 2003 9:09 am

[quote="Sissi"]Oh no! Inuyasha! You can't kill Kagome!!

Now, seriously, this chapter was great. Good descrption and nice way you portrayed Kagome's thoughts. I loved the beginning of this chapter, where you wrote a small piece of "Call of the Wild". It is an awesome book, it was great choice, just as the prolougue's one. ^^

I can't wait for the next chapter !

Sissi[/quote]

I agree. I hope Kagome puts Inuyasha in his place at some point in time :evil:

Dark-Angel{quote}

Kuno-baby · Post by **Kuno-baby** » Thu May 22, 2003 7:58 am

Very good, my props to you. Now I'll be biting my nails until you put out more. Poor Kagome. She has a time...

Amanda Dale · Post by **Amanda Dale** » Sun Jun 01, 2003 12:14 pm

This is a neat looking AU! You've written Kagome really well; she stays in character while fitting into the background you've given her really well. The atmosphere is wonderful too...very vivid.

Kanya Barton · Post by **Kanya Barton** » Tue Jul 01, 2003 12:12 pm

Great story! I have to go read the next chpater now! See ya!
Peace out!

SimplyTurquoise · Post by **SimplyTurquoise** » Sun Aug 03, 2003 12:37 am

Forward march... me like!

dark-angel · Post by **dark-angel** » Sun Aug 03, 2003 9:04 am

Write more please

Blissful Ignorance

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