InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Firae Circus ❯ Twisted Sisters ( Chapter 3 )

Alright, here's some more. Please Review. Evil tactics! Bua hahaha! Enjoy!

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Chapter 3: Twisted Sisters

 

Light was pouring into the darkness. It was a single ray of torment that lay right in the eye of the unsuspecting sleeping girl. She was pulled from her dreams by the red that she saw from behind her lit eyelids. When she opened them she cursed loudly and covered her eyes with her hands while flinging the covers over her at the same time. Her name was Kagome, and she hated the light infiltrating her darkness.

It was morning already, she thought. And today was the day that her twisted sisters were dragging her out to that deranged circus that was passing through town. She wasn't really into the whole `making the demons suffer' thing. But it was a favorite past time of most people, especially her sisters.

She laughed at that last thought. They weren't really related to her by blood. Hell, they were barely even friends, let alone sisters. She got out of bed and began getting ready for the day as she thought of her `sisters'. The elder girl was named Akemi. She was tall and beautiful. Her long athletic build made her lithe as well as eye candy for the men that they passed, especially with the revealing clothing she liked to wear despite the mothers requests for something more decent. She had long auburn hair that was naturally perfectly straight. She liked to let it hang freely with a bit hiding the side of her face giving her (what Akemi liked to call) a mysterious aura. Her face was long and narrow and her nose was straight. Her usually blood red lips were full and pouty. Her skin had a natural tan to it that matched her brown eyes, which could give you such a look that you could feel your terror like bile in your throat.

The second girl was named Nami. She was Akemi's best friend. She too was lovely, though Akemi was more of a blast of beauty while Nami had more of a soft warming beauty. Nami had shoulder length curly red hair that she tied behind her in a loose, flowing pony-tail. She was pale with several attractive freckles dancing across her cheeks. She had gray-green eyes that loved to smile, but loved even more to spit vile in your direction. She was a copy of Akemi in all her actions except that she dressed a bit more conservatively and she actually had a heart, even if it was usually black.

Kagome didn't know why Akemi or Nami had decided to befriend her one day, but she did know it was better to be friends with the devil than his enemy, and in a place like Haven House, any friend or ally was better than being alone. Haven House was the local orphanage. Most of the children that were sent there had parents who were murdered by demons or evil humans. Needless to say, hopeful parents hardly ever dropped by to choose a child, and even if they did drop by, they hardly ever left with one.

The ones who took care of the children and ran Haven House were lovingly named `mothers' despite their gender. When the new mothers arrived they were usually full of hope and compassion. The tenants of Haven House usually cured them of that flaw pretty damn quick. The children who lived there were too scarred, their pasts too dark to allow such idiocies in their lives.

Kagome had arrived at Haven House 7 years ago when her parents who had been ambassadors to the Demon Realm had been brutally murdered by some demons that had caught them unsuspecting. Kagome sighed. They had to be unsuspecting. They had been powerful sorcerers and excellent fighters. They had given Kagome their same talents with magic and fighting but hadn't had time to properly train her. Now magic was considered a gift from the demons and to be associated with the neighboring species was to be outcast from the Human Realm so she could never improve her talents and find out what really happened to her parents.

Some people found it strange that she didn't hate the demons though they had murdered her parents. She usually just shrugged. The only ones to blame for her parents deaths were the ones who actually disemboweled them, not the entire demon race. The one thing that Kagome's parents had left behind was a sense of right or wrong and the wisdom to choose her enemies properly. It wouldn't be smart to assume that every demon was an enemy. Then they could never help her or become an ally. Besides, her parents had had many demon friends who had mourned her parents passing.

Kagome heard footsteps outside her door and grabbed a band for her hair, just in case. Kagome had a long mane of raven that glinted blue in the light. Her almond shaped eyes were dark brown with thick, dark lashes. Her skin was pale, but not unnaturally so, and her cheeks were always a pleasant rose. Her lips were neither plump nor thin but carried a bright and loving smile even if it was hard to find. She was of average height but had an athlete's body. She made sure that she was in top condition so that she couldn't be mistaken as weak. She knew she could run for three miles with barely a sweat and could run ten without a hitch in her stride. Some thought she was a bit obsessive with staying in shape, but she didn't care. If she needed to escape, she could and she could do so quickly. And if she needed to fight, she could even if she was a novice; her fist had some power to it.

She made sure she wasn't missing anything. She was wearing her favorite light brown pants that had ties crisscrossing up the sides. She also had on her dark green tunic with silver edging that she had bought last week. It hugged her agile body beautifully without looking too decadent despite the triangle shaped cuts that reached up to just below her pant line. She had a thin belt wrapped around her waist, hidden under her tunic, with a single pouch tied to it. The pouch had a long string on it so that it would hang comfortably lower in one of the cutouts of her shirt. It was usually used for a money purse but Kagome carried around random other things in it like herbs, string and even some flint. She might not be practiced in magic but she knew a few tricks and her necessities were kept there. Her money was in a flat pouch tied to a string that hung around her neck and tucked under her shirt. She had a thigh sheath around the outside of her right leg. The blade was made of fine silver and was the length of her forearm from hilt to tip. Kagome checked to make sure it slid easily from its sheath.

An irritated knock came at the door and Kagome quickly grabbed her cloak which was a green so dark that it almost looked black. She walked over to her door as she tied the cloak about her shoulders. She opened the door to an annoyed Akemi. She was wearing her favorite style of dress in a dark blue. It came down low with a bodice that barely contained her. The sleeves were tight from her shoulders to her elbow where they loosened and draped down. A black cape graced her shoulders and flowed down her straight back. She was wearing her favorite black knee high boots. They were flat soled that had lacings up the outside of the boot. It was made from good leather and made her look good. She had loved them so much she even bought a black pair for Nami and a dark brown pair for Kagome. Needless to say all girls nearly always wore those boots. Kagome stepped out of her room in said boots and closed her door behind her.

“Sorry I took so long, Akemi. I couldn't find my dagger.” Akemi shook her head.

“Well if you stopped putting it under your pillow you wouldn't lose it.” Kagome laughed. She was a very restless sleeper and tended to throw things about while she dreamed. She threw her dagger, sheath and all, almost every night. Needless to say, Kagome got a room to herself for fear of impalement of the other tenants. Kagome looked up at the taller girl with beseeching eyes.

“Are you suuuure I can't bring my real blades?” Kagome asked with big puppy dog eyes. Akemi shook her head as she laughed.

“The circus has a maximum blade length, and that dagger of yours is it. Besides, what do you need your spine blade and your katana for anyway?” Kagome shrugged as she pouted.

“I don't know. I like them.” Akemi laughed at her again and slapped her on the back as they walked down the stairs of Haven House, “Anyway, we won't actually get to the circus until nightfall, why can't I have my blades until then?”

“Because we don't know if those blades of yours will be stolen when you give them to the weapon check,” Akemi sighed, “And besides, they'll be suspicious of you and think you're going to go all homicidal on the demons.” Kagome frowned.

“I would not, and why would they think that anyway?”

“Oh, just stop complaining already! They'll see your spine blade and wonder where else you've got them.” Akemi lifted an eyebrow suggestively successfully making Kagome blush and shut up. They walked out of the giant, worn down building and walked outside to the courtyard. The grass was dead and the flowers wilted. It was fairly pathetic. Nami was sitting on the broken fountain in the middle of the courtyard looking extremely bored.

She was wearing her hair up in the usual droopy style. She was wearing the boots that Akemi had purchased for her along with a cape that was almost identical to Akemi's. The only difference was that Nami's cloak had a thick rope design gracing its edges. She wore a very tight shirt that was low cut, but higher than Akemi's. It was red with black edging and long sleeves that ended just above her hands. Her pants were black and tied in the front, but the tie was hidden beneath the bottom of her shirt. Kagome knew she would be wearing a black belt that was hidden beneath her tunic. In the back, Nami would have tied her money pouch to her belt in similar fashion to Kagome and her herb pouch. Kagome and Akemi reached Nami and saved her from her boredom.

“Thank KAMI. I was about to go mad!” Kagome giggled and Akemi shook her head. They knew it was most likely true. Nami wasn't exactly the most…stable of people, “So where we headed for now, Akemi?” Akemi shrugged and started walking out the gates. You may think it's strange to leave Haven House without telling a mother, but you have to remember that the mothers didn't care what the children did as long as it didn't reflect poorly upon the House so much so that they lost the government support that they received. They came and left as they pleased. And as long as the mothers weren't bothered by officials or anything it would stay that way.

“I figure we blow some time in the market, maybe buy some things, maybe lift some things.” Akemi smiled wickedly. Her parents had been very wealthy merchants when they had been killed and had left her quite a bit of money. But that fact didn't stop her from stealing more than occasionally. Kagome frowned, she didn't like stealing, and Akemi knew it. She laughed at Kagome's look. “I'm only kidding Kagome. I won't steal around you,” she shrugged, “Besides, you always look so guilty that it's near impossible to get away with it.” Kagome pouted. She didn't like stealing, but she liked being made fun of even less.

“Jerk.” Kagome muttered. Akemi laughed at her.

“Oh, you know it's true!” She turned away from the pouty girl and looked down the long road to civilization. It would take them about 20 minutes just to get to the town. Oh well. The sky boasted few clouds and a lot of sun. It would be a hot (but not unbearable) day and a warm night. Akemi couldn't wait for the darkness to come. She was always more comfortable when the sun was down. Most of those at Haven House felt the same. It was as if the light was too bright and loving, too full of hope, making the world so colorful and alive. The worst thing about the light was you couldn't hide. The darkness hid you and protected you. Other children were afraid of the dark, afraid of what monsters it held. What those children didn't realize was that those monsters were there in the light too.

Kagome punched Akemi in the arm softly bringing her out of her reverie and pointed to the cart coming towards them. It was a tinker by the name of Koji. He was very tall and extremely shy. He blushed whenever he talked to the girl's and could hardly say a whole sentence without stuttering unless he was talking about his inventions. Koji was brilliant. He could fix anything and could create even more. He had said once that the pieces that he saw just snapped together in his head. Usually he didn't know what it would do, he only knew that it was supposed to be put together. He would say that the parts asked him to be put together. They knew what they were supposed to be and wouldn't tell him until he had finished. Koji wiped his palms against his light brown tinkers' apron. His pants were the same color and his shirt was a washed out blue. His sleeves were rolled up when he waved at the girls.

A small blush had already tinged his tanned cheeks as he approached. Akemi leaned over Koji's cluttered cart and folded her arms under her chest giving him a very good view. Koji's face turned beet red as he looked away from Akemi.

“Koji, where have you been? We've missed you.” Akemi cooed. Koji laughed nervously.

“Oh, you know. I've…ah…been around.” Kagome leaned over his shoulder to look at his work area. His cart had several drawers and cabinets to keep his many pieces, parts and inventions. There were posts on the four corners that held up a water proof cover. There was a display cabinet in the center that had glass walls. In it were several things that he created as well as things he had fixed. Most of his gadgets were unusual and hard to understand but there were a few things that were easy to understand. Like the time piece he created out of leftovers or the rolling shoes to get you places quicker. He also made an automatic flipper for your stove. Most of the things he made were nonsensical and were more like toys than anything else. Like for one of the younger kids' birthday, Koji had made an acrobat that did flips and twists all at the press of a button.

Kagome had always been interested in this other kind of magic, but it never made much sense to her. There were so many different mechanical pieces that simply looked the same, and it was hard to grasp that their purpose could be almost anything. She admired Koji and his talents with technology. Right now there were a lot of different parts lying all over his enclosed work space. She couldn't make any sense of it. All she could really understand was that he had a blade that was about 6 inches and several strips of metal along with the usual springs and cogs.

“What are you making there, Koji?” Kagome asked as she poked at the pieces curiously. Koji's blush left him as he turned to his work, pride glittering in his eyes.

“That's the leftovers of my prototype weapon!” he explained. He opened a drawer and pulled out a six inch hilt, “Ok see this?” he held up the none too impressive silver piece, “Inside here is a 5