InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Once Upon a Time ❯ Lessons Learned ( Chapter 15 )

Disclaimer: Inu & Co. still don’t belong to me, but I have some lottery tickets….

15. Lessons Learned  

The old woman continued her trip without incident, trying to block out the incessant chatter from the back of the wagon. When she had decided to stop at the old temple and bring Momigi and Botan, the two mikos-in-training, with her she hadn’t remembered that the two were relatively unsophisticated. Still, they had been left to their own devices by the demise of their teacher and--although they showed considerable promise--they were sadly untrained in the more practical aspects of their duties as mikos.

It was not likely that they would be of much actual use in the treatment of the wounded at the battle site, but they could fetch and carry. Besides, they had to start learning somewhere….

Although she did not really know either of the girls especially well, she had been impressed with their mastery of their spiritual talents during her journey to find the kuromiko Tsubaki who had earlier cursed Kagome. Still, they were young enough to be carried away with their perceived roles as youkai slayers.

Momigi ran her hand through her chin-length brown hair. She hadn’t traveled any distance away from the temple in which she had been training since her arrival--it had never occurred to her that travel could be so messy and uncomfortable. “Kaede-sama, will we be stopping soon?”

Kaede glanced at the sun, which was beginning its descent into the west. “Not for a while yet. We have to reach the site of a battle in time to tend to the wounded. I’d like to make a bit more distance before we camp.”

The other girl, Botan, brushed the road dust from the sleeve of her white and pale blue robes. “Maybe we should have changed into other clothes before we left.” Looking at the old woman driving the wagon, she asked, “Are you sure you’re doing the right thing? We trusted Tsubaki, and look at what happened.”

Kaede shook her head slowly. “I knew Tsubaki when I was a child--she took some advanced training with my sister. I never would have expected that she would become a black miko and study curses. She was always very persuasive: she could talk people into almost anything. I think that the one thing she could never convince someone to do was to place the Shikon no Tama in her care. If she had been given the jewel, who knows what might have been different?”

Botan shook her head, the mass of black hair hanging down her back swaying with the motion, and asked, “What will happen to the Shikon on Tama once all the shards are retrieved?”

The old woman thought for a long moment. “I don’t know. All depends on what the young hanyou who is collecting the fragments chooses to do with it.”

Momigi looked shocked. “Is that the same monster you were traveling with before? Isn’t it dangerous to allow a creature like that access to the Shikon jewel?”

Kaede chuckled under breath. “Inuyasha is a special case, Momigi. He would never admit it, but he’s one of the most kind-hearted people you’ll ever meet. He’s been helping Kagome, a miko from far in the future, collect the Shikon shards. Unfortunately, many of them have fallen into the hands of our enemy, a powerful hanyou named Naraku. That’s what this war is all about.”

The two girls, suddenly realizing the gravity of the situation, fell silent. This was a lot different than playing at hunting youkai as they had done back at the temple. It was entirely possible that people would be killed during the fighting.

The old miko noticed the sudden change in them and nodded. At least they had enough wit to finally understand the seriousness of the matter. “When we stop tonight I’ll try to find you something else to wear--those robes aren’t the best possible choice for either traveling or the work we’ll be doing once we reach our destination. I also want to talk to you both--I saw that your spiritual abilities were relatively well-developed at our last meeting, but have not been able to assess your skills as healers. Have either of you received any training in that area?”

Botan shook her head. “Ever since I can remember, I was chosen to enter the temple. I was told this from the time I was old enough to understand. I never received any other training aside from learning to read and write.”

Momigi shrugged. “I know a little I can change a bandage and make a medicinal tea, but I don’t know anything about treating serious injuries or about compounding medicines, or even about growing or preparing the materials. The only reason I know as much as I do is because my mother died when I was very little and I was raised by my grandmother. She wasn’t formally trained, but she did a little healing in our village.”

Kaede nodded. It wasn’t as bad as it could have been, but it could also have been much better. “I think we’ll start your training as healers tonight. That will, after all, probably be the largest part of your work as mikos.”

Momigi stared at the woman, eyes wide. “Really? I thought we would be spending most of our time killing youkai.”

The old woman shook her head. “Not in my village. We have a number of friends who are youkai and hanyou. One of the first things you will need to learn is how to tell the difference between friends and enemies. As I recall,” she said, “You were somewhat lacking in that ability when we met earlier.”

The thinning of the woods around the road on which they traveled told the woman that they were probably getting close to a village. As soon as the first few structures came into view, she parked the wagon and got out, telling the two girls to remain where they were. Botan, who seemed to be the slightly older of the pair, looked around nervously. “Where are you going?”

The old miko looked at her. “I hadn’t originally planned on two extra people on this trip. I’m going to the village to try trading for some extra supplies. We’ll need more food, as well as more practical clothes for you and any specialized medicines peculiar to the area.”

The dark-haired girl nodded. “But what will you trade?”

Kaede laughed. “I’ll trade my skills as a healer, if they don’t have one. If there’s no miko in this village they may need that as well. If you two want to be of some help,” she said, “You can take the water jars back to that little stream we passed a bit ago and refill them.” Then, carrying a small bag that held her most basic healing materials and equipment, she headed into the middle of the village.

The two girls looked at each other for a moment, then Botan leaped down from the wagon. She ran forward, snatching the golden combs she wore from her hair. “Wait, Kaede-sama. Even though I know I’m not fully trained, I can’t sense any presence of youkai here, so these people probably won’t need a miko. Take these,” she said, thrusting the combs into the old woman’s hands. “They’re not much, but they may be enough to get us a little extra food.”

Looking up, she saw that Momigi stood behind her friend, holding the band of gold that had held her shorter hair out of her face. “This should help also. It’s only right that you should be paid for teaching us--this is the best we can do right now.”

Kaede was growing more and more impressed with the potential she saw in the girls. With just a little time and some maturity, she was sure that they would grow into fine mikos. If only, she thought, she could give them that maturity without sacrificing their enthusiasm for what could be a difficult life.

She returned more than an hour later with two strong young villagers and an assortment of packages and bundles. To her surprise, the girls had not only filled the water jars but had also set up a simple camp, complete with a couple of rabbits roasting on a spit. The pair ran forward to relieve the villagers of their burdens. “What is all this?” Then, realizing that she had spoken out of turn, Momigi lowered her eyes and whispered, “I’m sorry, Kaede-sama.”

For all her knowledge and considerable power, the old woman had a basically kindly nature. She patted the girl on the shoulder. “Never mind that. We now have nearly everything we’ll be likely to need for the rest of the journey. Even more important,” she said, “Is the fact that I have news. The villagers have seen a swarm of venomous insects controlled by the hanyou we’re hunting almost directly to the north of here. I’ve heard of these poisonous bees before--they don’t have an unlimited range. Their master has to be somewhere not too distant.”

After a light meal of roast rabbit and roots cooked in the ashes of the fire, Kaede broke out one of the bundles she had brought from the village. Though not of particularly fine quality, the fabric within was clean and undamaged. She turned to the two girls with her. “We need to tear this cloth into strips to use as bandages.” While the girls worked on tearing the bandage strips, Kaede brought out a selection of her herbs. Though there was no time for a complete medical education, there was enough to show the pair a couple of basic herbs used to relieve pain and prevent infection.

Later, as she watched them sleep, Kaede decided that she and the rest of the group who based their activities in her village were uniquely suited to taking on the continuing education of the two girls. It would certainly be an interesting experience.