InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Crossing Paths ❯ The baffoon and his gifts ( Chapter 2 )

DISCLAIMER: Although Inu Yasha and the others have not been seen yet, I do not own them. I DO however, own Onekan.

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Completely soaked from the un-ending rain, she wanted to rest and find shelter but she was not nearly far enough away from her former home. So Onekan trudged onward. Her thoughts drifted back to the day's earlier events.

 

She knew better than to hunt, she knew better than to use a man's weapon. But that didn't matter now, Azriel and Sato needed food. She too needed food but that could be avoided for now. She needed to provide for those that couldn't. How stupid her uncle is made her fists clench in rage but she had to be patient. Her prey was in sight. Her emerald hair, dragging on the forest floor, blended in with the shrubbery around her making her nearly invisible to the boar that lumbered within her range. Her nose picked up the boar's scent and waited till it came close enough she could stun it with her sling, then she would pounce on it rip its throat out. Her scarlet eyes widened as she grew impatient with hunger, she calmed her nerves and readied her sling. Just as her rock connected with the boar's head, a spear was thrown from her left, landing in the boar's side, piercing its heart.

 

Her limbs went stiff as she realized she was hunting the same prey as her clan hunters were and she knew what was going to happen to her. Death. She would be put to death because she was hunting to support her younger siblings.

 

One of the hunters spotted her and called the others forward, forgetting the kill in front of them.

`Shit!' She stood upright and confronted him.

 

“Onekan, you have made a deadly decision.” Her only friend in the clan, Drelin, approached her telling the other's to tend to the kill. He tried to hide her from the rest of the hunters. “I will give you what time I can. Go to Azriel and Sato, I will protect them while you are gone, but you must move quickly I can only hold them off for so long.”

 

“Thank you, my friend.” She turned and ran as fast as she could to the cave she shared with her younger siblings. Sato was not there, but Azriel was and she was folding the pelts so that she could take them to the river to be washed in the morning. She put the fresh ones down where they each slept and greeted her older sister.

 

“Where's Sato?” Onekan went to Azriel and hugged her.

 

“He went to our uncle's dwelling to ask to be taught to hunt.” She smiled up at Onekan, “won't that be great, and then you won't have to worry anymore.” She hugged Onekan harder.

 

Sato appeared later. Azriel was already in bed and drifting off to sleep, he walked straight over to Onekan and stared at her. He hugged her and went off to get himself ready for bed.

 

With night approaching, she felt it would be best that she waited till then to leave, using the cover of night to cloak herself. The scent of rain was in the wind and it made her feel somewhat better that she would have that extra security to aid in her escape.

 

Shortly after Sato made his way to bed, she heard them. The mob was headed her way and they wanted her blood. She assumed this was the limit that Drelin could hold them off. He was captain of the hunt and the hunters were to listen to him, but she knew he had to tell Shralin of the news; else he would lose his head for not speaking as captain.

 

She grabbed her sling and her knife and pelt. She went to Azriel's mat and kissed her cheek. She went to Sato and nudged him awake, but he was already. He was there when they told Shralin of her treachery. He knew what she had to do. He had grabbed her tail biting back the words he wished wouldn't come out but he could only tell her, “Hurry back, Onekan.”

 

That moment stuck in her mind for quite sometime. She wiped her face with her hand trying to rid herself of the water on her face, mostly tears but a lot rain too. She trudged on further, no longer hearing the angry shouts and grunts of the men climbing to get to her cave where her siblings were.

 

`Be good to them Drelin' She thought to herself, still angry that this was the only way to go.

 

She climbed a hill and saw in the distance, a lantern. Weary of the beings using that lantern, she gave wide berth and opted to go higher and thankful she did.

 

Before her stood an abandoned shack of some sort. She really didn't care what it was used for since it offered her shelter from the onslaught of rain. She pushed the door open and crawled inside. Nothing more than a room with one window and a broken stool in the corner, she curled herself into the farthest corner from the door and tried to stay warm. She didn't know how long she was walking for but she only now realized that the sky was turning lighter despite the thick, dark rain clouds that hovered over the landscape. She closed her eyes and dreamt of her family before her mother died.

 

She woke to the sound of a cart being pulled and metal pots and pans clanging. She heard a person singing, if that's what you call singing, and the crack of a whip. She stretched and yawned wanting more sleep but she had to move on, the rain had stopped and that means the clan might track her still. She opened the door to the little shack and peered outside. Approaching was a wagon and what looked to an ox or a really ugly bull, pulling a covered wagon with an assortment of things on it. She appeared in front of the traveler and took note of his wares.

 

“Gid' de mi lazz. Mah eh entwest ew en sumsen? The merchant cackled in a nearly unintelligible language. Hell, it was gibberish.

 

“I'm sorry?” Onekan was beyond confused.

 

“Muh wores, ould ew leek sumsen? The merchant hoped off his cart and opened a curtain on the side revealing an array of jewelry, pottery, pelts, bones, leather material, daggers, knives, swords and so much she couldn't see buried under what she did see.

 

`The buffoon wants to know if you want to buy something from him. He's a speech impediment so don't bother trying to understand him. It'll make your head hurt.' A voice said, smooth and calm. A silky voice that threaded its way into Onekan's mind. She searched for the person who spoke but saw no one.

 

“I haven't anything to trade.” She said, holding her only pelt and sling close to her dissuading him from trying to barter them from her.

 

“Neww preblum, eh geese ew dis fir newsing. Ew luck ed zee ef dears sumsen ew ould leek. Edysing fir une iz ewrselp” The merchant waved his arm showing he meant what he said. What the hell did he say?

 

`He said, `No problem, I give you this for nothing. You look and see if there's something you'd like. Anything for one such as yourself.''

There was that voice again. She questioned the merchant's generosity.

 

“What do you mean, 'someone such as myself'?” She crossed her arms and glared at the merchant.

 

`He means no harm, really, he does this to everyone. He thinks his speech is a curse so to appease kami, he just gives things to strangers in hopes that his speech returns to normal.' The silky voice quieted and again she looked around.

 

She finally asked, “who is speaking to me?”

 

`It was I.' An ear twitched above the back of the wagon followed by a snort. Then she saw a tail swish from the side of the wagon and she went to investigate.

 

“What are you?” She peered around the wagon to see a demon the size of the wagon if not larger, tied to it.

 

`I am a horse demon, known more specifically as a Lecithinian Stallion. My name is Crickett. The buffoon of a merchant is called Nesthaniel.'

 

“See mi lazz, hote ur ew leeken fir?” He followed her around the wagon when he saw her talking to his prisoner. “Hep, neww, ee's newt fir seal. Het uvey froom eem.” He grabbed Onekan's arm and dragged her away from Crickett. She turned to Nesthaniel.

 

“I was only talking to him, although, if you were just going to give me anything, I'll take him.” She went back to untie his rope from the wagon when Nesthaniel grabbed her again.

 

“EE's newt fir seal. Vaet, ew ken tuk tu em? Ziddy anew, ee's doost ahn urs deeman. Day dew newt tuk.” Nesthaniel looked quizzical at Onekan. To him this mere horse demon was just that, a horse demon. But Crickett's bloodline ran back thousands of years to when the dragons once roamed the earth and this horse demon was like he said, a Licithinian Stallion. Ranking themselves amongst the greats for carrying the most noble dragon-lords of the northern lands; Priding themselves on their lightning fast speed and incredible stamina. This Lecithinian would outlive any normal horse demon by more than 600 years. To call him a simple horse demon was an insult.

 

`He thinks you are a silly hanyou because you are talking to me. To him, I am just a horse demon. Only those with pure souls can speak with my kind. That's why he can't understand me. I am his prisoner. I was captured two years ago when an army raided my home in the far north. I must respect the ones that defeated us; it is my code.' Crickett stood with his head low, a heartfelt sadness seeping into is mind-voice.

 

Onekan felt his sadness and wished nothing more than to help him, but she had her own agenda to attend to. She dropped his rope and went to the front of the wagon where Nesthaniel stood.

 

“I will take a gift from you, Nesthaniel. A bow and a quiver of arrows. And also, a sword. If you shall allow me two.” She waited for his response in which he agreed.

 

“Boot, dees ur newt oost enee ar'os ed dis es newt oost enee shwurd. Deey ur mejekel. Da wiver weel neevear ehmptee. Da shword weel neevear breek.”

He handed her the bow and quiver, she placed the quiver over her left shoulder and the bow across her right. He then gave her the sword which she placed on her right hip.

 

“Thank you Master Nesthaniel. Your deed will not go unnoticed.” Closing his wagon curtain, he climbed aboard and kissed to the ox while tapping it on the hind end with a whip. The wagon lurched forward and rolled along the path.

 

“Well, we better not stick around for too long else he finds out he's missing something.” Onekan turned around to face the Stallion. Whom was still standing where the wagon once rested. The rope, attached to a halter on Crickett's head, coiled on the dusty road below his enormous feet.

 

`You are either very brave or very foolish young one.' Onekan removed the halter and slung the ensemble over her shoulder as well.

 

“Well, whatever I am, I couldn't allow you to stay with him anymore. Not against your will. No one should be a `prisoner' of another. This way, if you so choose, you can still follow him, or not.” With that said, she returned to her task at hand and began walking in the opposite direction of the merchant.

 

`I mistake you, friend, you are very wise.' Crickett made no mistake when he chose to stay with this odd looking female, but then, what's odd when you've seen dragons?

 

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A/N: I borrowed the idea of the horse from a book called `Dragon and Phoenix' by Joanne Bertin but with a few twists to it's personality and abilities. I did change the name of the breed also.

 

Being my first “published” fanfic, I apologize if it seems odd, but I promise that the Inu gang appears. Sorry if it is slow in the beginning, I am trying to build up a back history without creating several stories before hand. If you find that some details of my characters are unclear, please let me know and I will attempt to correct it. When I can, I will post a drawing of Onekan.