InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Reincarnation Isn't Always a Good Thing! ❯ 15 ( Chapter 15 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

"Um... ah.. that is to say.." Nakago stuttered while Kotan fumed.
"It is, isn't it?"
"Well.....yes." Santu said slowly, mentally shooting the others a message. 'She can't figure out your names by knowing mine. Let's keep quiet about them.'
"It's nice to know one name at least." Mahkoto said, looking at the others, almost hoping that they'd give up their names. None were forthcoming.
"At least we have dinner. How soon can it be ready? I'm starved." Nakago put into the awkward silence. Mahkoto smiled at him, though something seemed held back in her smile.
"An hour, if everyone helps me with the fire and skinning the rabbit and gutting the fish....." As she spoke, she picked up the food. She gave it a critical glance, then turned to Nakago. "You can look for the nearby stream- we should probably wash these." She held up the carrots. "We'll need boiling water for these too, unless you guys want to eat them raw?"
"Raw carrots are fine. Who's skinning the rabbit?" Kotan asked.
"I will." Mahkoto said. "You can go find the firewoord and some small sticks. Santu, you can sharpen them- they need to go through to rabbit and the fish." Everyone nodded, then went where they were assigned. Mahkoto took Kagosha aside.
"If you want, you can get sticks, water, or sharpen the sticks. It doesn't matter to me. You could even just stay here."
"Why'd you give them assignments and not me?" Kagosha asked. Mahkoto paused and looked at her for a moment.
"They don't like me much. You're kinder to me then they are or would be if they had the option to act just like they pleased without alienating me." Mahkoto continued on, grabbing a small knief from her boot and skinning the rabbit. She seemed repulsed by the work, but didn't stop until it was done. By then, the others were back and she washed her hands in some spare water. Her hands were red at the end of it, but not from blood, and the water wasn't hot. It wasn't even warm. Kagosha also noticed that Mahkoto had cut the rabbit up so that it didn't look even remotely rabbit-like anymore. The fish- once gutted- got no such treatment. They were just prepared like usual. Once the fire was hot enough to cook things on, the stuck the stick with the meat on them into the ground near the fire so that they would cook. It took about a half hour, but- true to her word- the food was done in an hour.
"Mm...... this is excellent!" Kotan mumbled, chewing her way through a fish.
"It is pretty good." Mahkoto nodded, eating her second piece of the rabbit.
"These carrots are very good. Want to try one?" Santu offered. the feeling was light in the cave. They had food, they had heat, they had light.... what more could one want?
"No, thanks."
"Why not? Don't you like carrots?" Kagosha asked, trying to make conversation and learn about their..... friend? Care-giver? Fellow teenager? She chewed her rabbit thoughtfully.
"Not just carrots. I don't like any vegetable." There was an awkward silence for a while.
"Well...... want a fish?" Nakago offered, breaking the ice again. He bit into his rabbit again, throwing the now empty bone aside and grabbing another piece- the last piece.
"I don't eat fish either." A louder silence filled the cave, if that makes any sense. The crickets chirped once, twice, then hopped away to find someplace less tension-charged.
"So all you eat is rabbit?" Santu asked, slightly shocked.
"I eat deer too. Red meat. I don't like much else." She put aside the bones of the rabbit that she had been chewing and looked for more. There was none, the last of it in Nakago's hands. He looked down at it, then offered it to Mahkoto. He could always eat the fish after all, and she must still be hungry. To his surprise, she shook her head.
"I don't eat food bitten by others. That's yours. I can eat tomorrow." Mahkoto backed away from the fire. 'Wake me when you're done eating. I have to rest now, and I'll take first watch."
"What makes you think we have to post a watch?" Kotan demanded suspiciously.
"One, it's obvious you're running from something, and two, you posted a guard when you went hunting." Mahkoto nodded in Kagosha's direction. "At first I thought it was because you didn't trust me-"
"-we don't-" Kotan muttered, glaring at Mahkoto.
"-but it was because you wanted to protect me. Correct?" Mahkoto took their silence as an affirmitive and leaned against the cave wall. "Remember to wake me up." In minutes she breathed deeply, like a sleeping person would.
"How...." Nakago stared at her.
"She has great observation skills." Kagosha said. "She caught Santu's name and noticed everything we do."
"I still don't like her, but she could be a great spy."
"What if she is?" Nakago asked, then hesitated. "Switch to mental- she could wake up or someone could hear us from outside the cave.
"Baka, someone could've heard you say that!" Kotan barked, taking a cautious sniff of the air. Nothing human, hanyou, or youkai came to her nose. 'We were lucky that time.'
'Gomen- I wasn't thinking.'
'Damage would've been done, had there been anyone listening, but no one was, so let's not worry about it.' Santu put in, a thoughtful look on his face. 'The more intriging problem is Mahkoto. Who is she?'
'Human, obviously. No one can transform like we can.' Kotan scoffed.
'Why does she live here though? Is she cursed or something? Her clothes are relativly new- she has someone looking after her enough to clothe her, but it seems like she was turned away, that she didn't leave by herself.' Kagosha noted.
'It can't be a curse- she knows what goes on in this forest, so it goes to show she's lived her for a long time. A curse would've killed her before now. Besides, are there really any kuromikos left?' Nakago asked.
'No.....' Santu said, agreeing with Nakago. He shifted around a bit, then glanced at Mahkoto. 'She's asleep, and there aren't any more people around here...... why don't we get comfortable?'
'Transform?! Are you crazy?!' Kotan demanded. 'She wakes up, finds us human, half-human, and youkai, when we were all youkai before? Let's just give her a card with our names on it!'
'She looks like she's asleep, breathes like she's asleep, so she's asleep!' Kagosha said. 'It's not that risky.'
'I think we should.' Nakago said, reverting to human. Santu did likewise, while Kagosha went halfway there. They visibley relaxed.
'Much better.' Santu thought. They carried on with their theroies about Mahkoto for a while, forgetting to wake her up. Soon, day turned into night, and with night Mahkoto woke up. They were still chatting, and no one saw her until she was fully awake. The ones who had changed quickly reverted back to youkai, hoping they were quick enough.
"Oh...." Mahkoto looked out of the cave. "It's night. My watch." She stood up and walked to the enterence, facing out. She looked over her shoulder at them suspiciously, but they didn't notice.
'They.... they were human. Two of them. That one girl... the dog-youkai... Was half-human. Now they're all youkai again. They couldn't-?' She looked over her shoulder again.
'They could.'
She formed a plan, then waited until they all slept. She stood up. She walked out of the cave, then whistled two high, sharp whistles. A wind rose up, curling around her and messing with her hair. She waited, concentrating. Sweat poured down her face. This was going to cost her, but she had to know. She felt the wind stretch, reaching out. She nearly collapsed with all the energy this was taking, but the wind held her up. Finally, after minutes that had stretched into infinities, a small piece of paper blew into her hands. The wind let her gently down, but it did no good. She collapsed onto her knees anyways. The wind, comforting as always, stuck around and played with her hair, but eventually left. She stared at the picture that had landed in her hands. On it were her charges, but with names this time.
"'Depicted here are the children of the 8 Gods at age 13. From right to left; Higurashi Kagosha, Taionk Santu, Fanord Kotan, and Boirl Nakago.'" she read, staring at the pictures of the inu-youkai, the boy she knew was Santu, the wolf, and the bird-man. She staggered to her feet and dragged herself inside the cave. She hazily search for her energy replenisher, made from an herb called derubll. She took a swig of it and felt mare awake, more alert. It tasted terrible, but it worked. She wouldn't be calling up any more spirits, but she would last the night.
She stood up and walked back into the moonlight, her mood getting lighter with each ray that touched exposed skin.