Yu Yu Hakusho Fan Fiction / InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ The Shadow Riders ❯ Being One ( Chapter 13 )

Chapter 13~ Being One

Kagome sat languidly in Hiei's embrace as her concentration hardened and the dragon on her arm settled comfortably around her neck and rested it's head in the opening of her shirt so it could see everything around it. Since Kagome was wearing her headband, Shan came out and wrapped himself around her upper left arm and rested his head on her shoulder.

Hiei was contently `sitting' in Kagome's head and letting her soothe him into a blissful, and wholly concentrated state of being. Her scent calmed and warmed him as his dragon mimicked Kagome's by wrapping itself around his neck so it could see through the opening in his shirt. Neither was going to take the chance of underestimating Hojo and risk losing each other. Kagome had outlined the basic rules of demon opposition in courting. If Hiei lost at archery, as well as his chosen weapon, they would never be able to see each other again.

Unbeknownst to Hojo, by sitting together and meditating they were sharing power and technique in a way that prepared them better than anything else could, it was like teaching by being the other and having them doing what needed to be done, it insured understanding of a level one can not get by watching and takes hours of practice when just shown what to do. Here it was like sharing the practice already accomplished by the other and makes both more than they originally were. It was like being one for a brief moment in time.

After exactly ten minutes, Hiei and Kagome stood up and walked to their positions on the field. Hojo was already there having not done anything in his confidence. Zenji and Rika stood to the side of the field and together announced, "You are each awarded three shots, whoever has the highest combined total score shall be the winner. There is no time limit and you may begin when ready."

Hojo raised his bow and aimed for the target in front of him. As he aimed, Hiei and Kagome slowly raised their bows before them, and in sync released their arrows with a twang. There was the sound of a single thud as the arrow's simultaneously landed in the perfect center of their respective targets. Moments later Hojo's arrow hit his target dead center as well. He smirked at Kagome before notching another arrow to his bow.

Kagome paid him no heed as she and Hiei notched another arrow and raised their bows at the same time. This time it was Hojo who got the first shot off. His landed as close as possible to his first arrow in the center of his target. He raised his bow with his last arrow and waited to see their next shots before he would shoot his last arrow.

Still in chorus Kagome and Hiei released their arrows splitting their first arrows directly down the center. Hojo gaped as he entertained the possibility that he might actually lose the match, and with it any chance at Kagome.

`Oh well,' he thought, just a little too loudly, `if I lose here, I can always go after the sister and it looks like she still has her innocence. I can take hers just as I have countless others, including the girls Kagome used to hang out with. Besides, it looks like the bitch already gave it to shorty over there anyway. Maybe I can get one more use out of that Eri girl before I move on to my next conquest, she starting to lose her tightness, just like all the others before her.'

As one, Kagome and Hiei looked over at Hojo with death in their eyes, `After,' they thought simultaneously as they released their last arrows with such fury that they not only split their previous arrow, but pierced the entire target and soared through the air until they pierced deeply into the wooden fence at the end of the 100 meter field. Hojo released his final shot seconds after they did and landed just to the outside of his second arrow.

After their final arrows had been released, they had broadcasted Hojo's thoughts to their friends and now everyone was seething in rage. Yukina was mad because he had the audacity to think she would look at him twice, let alone let him take her innocence, for she was very much an innocent; Kurama was mad that a mere human thought he could take something of his; Kuwabara was mad because that was against the code; Yusuke was mad because of what he was planning to do to his cousin, and Hiei and Kagome were pissed off at everything, what he thought about Yukina and Kagome, and the challenge for one mate simply to take her innocence then dump her. He had wanted to forever tare them apart only to use and then leave her.

As one, the pups that had also heard finished the ritual announcement, "Hojo has lost to both Kagome and Hiei, and as such is no longer aloud contact with her or her family. As the stakes for Kagome's and Hojo's match were not set before hand, the winner may state her prize."

Rika and Zenji took their places on either side of Kagome and took her hands. Kagome conferred with the others for a moment, and came up with the perfect solution, "As the winner of the challenge issued by Hojo, I claim my prize. From now on, you may no longer lie, not in words, personalities, thoughts, or actions. You will now no longer be able to play the innocent, and play with others hearts just to get into their pants." Kagome bound her words around Hojo as the took root in his soul his eyes hardened, and the innocence formally written in his expression vanished as a hard scowl to it's place and he took on an aura of malice.

"What makes you think you can make me do that?" Hojo asked in a mocking condescending tone, "You wouldn't be able to tell if I was lying or not, and you have no power to enforce it."

"I already have, and even if I hadn't everyone now knows the truth about you anyways, the way you use people, the way you dump them afterwards, and the way you pray upon the innocent." It was then that Hojo looked around, and realized that the entire school had showed up to see the match, had shown up to see Kagome's announcement.

He opened his mouth to deny Kagome's words, to call her a liar and save his name, but he couldn't, Kagome's spell refused to allow him to tell a lie. "What did you do to me? You'll pay for this you insolent little bitch, you and all your little friends!" Hojo screamed in a fury. He then turned on his heel and marched to the locker rooms.

Kagome watched him go with a slight look of annoyance on her face but let it drop upon hearing the bell ring for the next class, Concealable weapons.

Kagome walked into the class and looked into her friends to see what they knew of concealable weapons. Boton knew absolutely nothing, and would have to be taught from the beginning, Keiko who was a pretty good cook, had a sort of (obsessive) fascination with knives, but was completely ignorant in the use of them, however she could name almost all the different types and when and where they originated from. Yukina was excellent in the use of small throwing knives and daggers, but would have to be taught how to conceal, and use them in close combat, and other concealable weapons.

It was while Kagome was thinking that a loud smack rang through the room with an equally loud cry of, "Hentai!!" This drove home an idea that had been toying in the back of Kagome's mind for the last hours, Keiko reminded Kagome so much of Sango, just as Yusuke reminded her of Miroku. `It couldn't be, could it? Are Yusuke and Keiko the reincarnations of Miroku and Sango?'

`Yes,' a slightly feminine voice said in her mind, it is your wish, that they all be happy, they can't be truly happy with out you and each other.' Kagome recognized the voice of Midoriko and smiled faintly as she realized that she never really lost her friends, that they had been with her since the beginning.

While Kagome was pondering about the wish, Hojo was lurking in the corridor watching her with narrowed eyes, `She will be mine!' He thought to himself, and as he said that a small serpent appeared on his shoulder.

`You would have won had you finished your training as I instructed you, you would have been as good as either of them, and better than them in just about everything else. The only real competition you might have is against another Rider and demons.' The snake on his shoulder hissed in his mind.

`Well, we'll finish that training, and come back and kill that bastard, then the bitch will be mine to do with as I please.' Hojo thought with malice. (AN: Rider can only be distinguished by the symbol on their foreheads, or if they tell, also the only reason Kagome can sense demons are that she is a miko. It is not a Rider or Shadow power.) With that, Hojo disappeared into the corridor, to train for the next few weeks.

Kagome and the others had just sat down when the Sensei finally entered the room. Once again they were sitting on a dojo floor, and the cubs were sitting in her lap. There were a few questions and comments about them as the students who weren't in the other classes asked about them. Unlike the other teachers, this one was not oblivious to the students and quickly focused on the two cubs. "Ms. Higurashi, why are there two children here?"

"They are my students, and shall be helping me in training the new student, Rei Boton, Ukimura Keiko, and Jaganshi Yukina." Kagome had also been thinking that as she reached the level of the boys with the girls she'd bring them into her lessons as well. `Bring that up when it happens.'

"You know very well that I can't permit you having children with all these sharp weapons around, especially not without parental assent." What he didn't realize was that for the last few minutes, the gang had been feeling two exceptionally strong demons heading towards them.

Before Kagome could answer, the shoji screens to the dojo opened and Kouga and Ayame entered the dojo and turned to Kagome and their cubs. Zenji and Rika ran to their parents, bowed low in respect, then launched themselves at them with a shout of glee.

"What are you doing here?"

"We don't have to come back yet do we?"

"We didn't do anything bad!"

"Yah, we've been good! I even stopped making fun of Rika!!"

"We're not taking you back yet, we just thought that Kagome might need permission for you to attend her school with her. We cleared it with the principle and also wanted to tell Kagome that we'd be gone for a month, and if that's too long for her to be watching you, Daokotsu said you could stay with him at Sesshoumaru's main house as long as you didn't annoy his Majesty."

The cubs let out a cheer and rushed back to Kagome, "Did you hear that Auntie Kagome!!!" Rika said in delight.

"They said we could stay with you and Dak!" Zenji added.

"Since you won't see your parents for a while why don't you give them a demonstration of your advancement in concealable weapons?" Kagome asked with a smile.

"For the last time Higurashi, you can not have inexperienced children fight on school grounds without parental consent." The teacher said to Kagome.

"She has it, and has had it for quite a while. Besides, these cubs have been handling live weapons for most of their lives." Ayame said with quite authority.

Before the teacher could contradict Ayame, Kagome threw a multitude of knives throwing stars daggers, and other concealable weapons at the cubs. All were live, and all were out of their sheaths. They caught them all and had them hidden in the blink of an eye. "Now, no blood, and you can use anything you can conceal, no hand-to-hand. Understood?" They nodded, and Kagome went to stand at the opposite end of the dojo as Hiei so that they could catch stray weapons thrown by the cubs.

"Begin," was all Kagome said before an all out war was started between Zenji and Rika to show their superiority to their parents. They began to quickly circle one another throwing random weapons at one another, which were all safely dodged and caught by either Kagome or Hiei. Eventually it came in close, Rika using her fan, which was sharp steel covered in silk cloth, and Zenji used two daggers that he kept hidden in the sheaths in his sleeves.

Zenji rushed in, one dagger held above his head in for a down ward sweep, and his other aimed straight for her gut. Rika flipped out of range at the last second, throwing Zenji off balance, then rushed in, she impaled one of his gagger on her fan between two of the spines while snapping it shut. She then twisted it sending the dagger flying point straight at the teachers face. Kagome caught it an inch from his face.

After her last maneuver, Rika was forced into retreat to dodge Zenji's counter attack with his last remaining dagger. The two rushed each other, and in a swirl of hands and the clang of metal, the dagger went flying at Hiei, and the fan at Kagome. Both were effortlessly caught, and the match declared a draw. There was applause first from their parents, then the class.

"You both have gotten much better," Their mother praised.

"I'm impressed." Their father commented with a roguish smile.

They both smiled, until Kagome walked up to them and said, "Never throw away all of your weapons before you have been disarmed. If you had held on to even one blade, or even your chopsticks, you would have easily won and surprised your opponent." Kagome said in both reprimand and exasperation. She had been trying to drill that into their heads for nearly a month now. They bowed their heads in shame and apologized lowly. Their parents left with a last embrace and final good-bye.

"Now you have both improved in both aim, stealth, and technique, but please try to remember to keep one of your weapons."

"Yes Sensei," they said in unison.

Kagome smiled and tickled them both lightly before walking toward the door.

"Where are you going?" The teacher asked, still in shock of the display he had just witnessed. Just then the bell rang.

"To my next class." Kagome said evenly as she and the rest of the group exited the room.

It was time for their last class of the day, Hand-to-hand Combat.

Kagome walked straight to the teacher to explain the situation, that she and some of her students would be training the new girls, and once she got permission strode off outside with Hiei to meet the girls and cubs.

Once they reached the field, Kagome threw up a time barrier to make the period last for five hours. "Now, we are going to spend the next two weeks increasing your strength, speed, endurance, and spirit energy so that you can keep up with even the most powerful of demons. Then we will work on actual fighting and how to apply your senses and spirit energy and awareness to it. When we reach that stage, the boys will be joining us." They were all wearing identical outfits as Kagome, Black miko style Hakamas and Silver Hori's. Only Zenji was wearing the black and silver version of the boys school uniform, black pants with silver trim, and a silver sleeveless, shirt with black trim.

Kagome had them running, meditating, and gaining awareness of their spiritual selves for the whole five hours. At the end of the session, everyone was ready for food and bed. "Now, since I know that everyone will probably sleep till about one in the morning, I want you all at Genkai's by two so that we can train some more. I will give you the hour five till six, extended to last three hours for homework and a quick nap. At six we will shower, eat, and prepare for school. That gives everyone a goodnight's sleep, and a chance to soak your soar muscles. See you tomorrow Keiko." Kagome said as the final bell rang. As soon as they saw the others, they said their goodbyes, explained and went straight home. Keiko taking time to eat and about an hour soak before falling into a dead sleep.