• Heart of a Wolf
    Chapter two
    A new power, And an old friend.


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    She sat up and looked around. She looked to her right and saw a fire burning with a vat of boiling water over it. She looked down to see that she was laying on a straw mat. Her bookbag was leaning up against the wall to her left and her shoes were set neatly down in front of it. She looked up at the entrance to the hut, it had a straw curtain hanging over it, That's strange... she thought ...where's the door? she stopped and shook her head, On second thought...where am I!? she stood up and put on her shoes. She picked up her bag and quietly slipped out of the hut. The scene she was met by outside was shocking. She looked around franticly before eyeing a horse and carriage, "...ok. I'm dreaming. No. I've lost it. I've finally lost it!!" she laughed shakily before sliding to her knees. She burried her head in her lap and began to loose it. As she continued to cry, she felt a warm hand lightly rest on her shoulder, "Young lady, are ye feeling better?" and elderly voice asked. Emily looked up to see an old woman smiling down at her. Emily sniffed and bit down on her lower lip before speaking, "I-I'm fine...M-m-my name is Emily ma'am..can you tell me where I am?" she whimpered. She didn't really know what to say at a time like this-- considering the condition of the predicament she was in... The elderly woman nodded and kneeled in front of her, "My name is Kaede, young lass..and right now ye are curently in the feudal era of Japan." the woman stated. Emily smiled politely in hopes that she had misenterpreted the old woman, "I'm sorry ma'am. But I could've sworn you said the Feudal era..." she laughed nervously. The old woman nodded slightly, "aye, I did lass. Ye are now in the feudal era of Japan." the woman confirmed. Emily stared at her for a moment before burrying her head in her lap again. She didn't say anything. She only assumed that she had gone insane like her mother always told her she would...It was then that she heard a semi-familiar voice, "Just let the runt be, y'old hag! She obviously isn't gonna accept it." Emily looked up to see the boy from before pirched up on a wooden fence. "You!" Emily cried before leaping up and jolting from her position towards the boy. She grabbed hold of his Kimono and began to shake him violently, "THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!! IF YOU HADN'T PULLED ME INTO THE WELL I....!" Emily trailed off as she began to remember what had happened. That's right.. she thought, he pulled me into that well... She released the cat eared boy as she rekindled what had happened. The boy fell from the fence he was pirched upon and landed on his rump on the other side. He began to shout and curse but his words fell on deaf ears, for she was lost in the endless abyss of her memories.

    She closed her eyes and could see herself falling through the well -the white haired boy still clinging to her wrist as they fell- the rotted brown walls of the well had turned into a sea of blue, black, and white. She remembered the vision she had before she came in contact with the boy...everything after that was all a blur... "That's right...then I woke up here..." she said. The elderly woman named Kaede had approched her, "Are ye begining to recall the events past?" she asked. Emily turned to her and nodded. It was hard for her to believe, but everything seemed to fit into place...besides, she had seen harder things to believe...like her mother getting married to a dime-store smut novelist of all things... She turned back to the boy and glared at him, "So, what's your name fuzzy...or should I just call you Neko-Chan? And what's with the cat ears--aren't you a little old to be trick-or-treating?" she snapped. The boys ears flicked from side-to-side before leanning over the fence and looking her square in the eye, "First off, call me Fuzzy again and I'll rip your head off. Second, my name is Inuyasha. I-NU-YA-SHA!!! And third of all, they're dog ears!!
    DOG EARS!!!" he grunted. Emily hiked an eyebrow at him and stiffled a laugh, apparently she seemed to forget all about her current predicament. She grinned and pointed a finger at him, "I KNOW!! I'll call you Fido! C'mere Fido! Here boy!" she laughed mockingly. Just then, Kaede walked out of the house with a small wooden bath bucket. She approched Emily and handed her a beaded braclet made of black prayer beads and what looked like wolf fangs. She then turned to the furious Inuyasha and forcfully slipped an identical bracelet around his wrist. She then smiled at both of them knowingly, "Young lass, this bracelet is for ye own protection. Sometimes Inuyasha becomes quite a bother and needs to be controlled. In this kind of situation, all ye must do is utter a subdoing spell to keep him in line." she said. At this point, Inuyasha's face went as pale as snow. His ears ducked back against his head as he began to whimper, "K-Kaede...this ain't..." he said in a squeemish voice before Emily cut him off, "A subduing spell? Like maybe.."sit"?" At that, Inuyasha was knocked to the ground by a strong force. Kaede nodded in affirmation as Emily grinned down at him, "So this bracelet lets me controll him huh...? This is gonna be fun..." She laughed, causing Inuyasha to shudder in fear.

    She stared down at the bracelet in her hand and looked back up at Kaede, "So, what's this one for?" She asked. Kaede picked it up and held it out in front of her, she then glanced back at the bookbag that Emily had left by the hut, "This bracelet can become an extention to that jewel hanging from your bag." she said. Emily looked up and stared at the bag "Jewel? You mean the Shikon no Tama?" she asked. Kaede nodded "Aye. It's not the real Shikon no Tama, but the air surrounding it is giving off a holy aura. This aura means that it has been blessed and purified by the priest or priestess who gave it to ye." Kaede said, "String the jewel onto this bracelet. It will serve as the connection between your world and this one." she said. Emily smiled and bowed politely, "Thank you Kaede. I very much appriciate it." she looked up at the sky and sighed, "So..how am I supposed to get home?" she asked. Kaede turned to Inuyasha who was now sitting on the other side of the fence, "I am unsure. When ye and Inuyasha fell through the well, he left ye there for the night in hopes that ye would've transfered back into ye'r own world. But ye did not. Thus, I am unsure of how to return ye home." Kaede explained. Emily glanced back at Inuyasha with a menacing glare spread across her face, "He left me in the well...?!" she growled "I could of been eaten by wolves or bears...or worse!" she leaned over the fence and sent a furious fist to smack him upside the head which sent him keeling over in pain. Emily stood back up and let out a frustrated sigh. She stared down at her feet and seemed lost in thought as she began to slowly pace back to her bookbag. She bent down and unclipped the jeweled keychain from the strap on the side of the bag. She broke the chain and took the jewel off the centerpiece. She then strung it onto the bracelet and tied it onto her wrist. She looked at her bag and remembered that she had a spare set of her own clothes with her. It was her first day at school so she used it as an excuse to forget her books. Instead, she stuffed the bag with her cloathing. She picked up her bag and turned to Kaede, "Is there a place where I can change?" she asked. Kaede nodded and pointed to the hut. Emily nodded and walked into the little straw shack. She set her bag down on the straw mat she was lying on earlier. She then pulled out a plastic bag with her clothes inside. She tied her hair back and began to pull off her school uniform. She sighed softly and stared down at the bracelet Kaede gave her, "The connection between worlds..." she thought aloud. She thought of her mother and how worried she must be, "What if...what if I never get home...?" she said. At the thought of her mother she began to cry. Even though her mom and she had drawn appart since she remarried, her mother was still her best friend. And even though she hated her new step-father, Kyogoku, she put up with him because she new how much he loved her mother...and how happy he made her. But now, she was away from home and stuck in this dump of a village. She wiped her tears away as she pulled on her shoes, "I have to be strong. If I'm ever gonna get back home I need to be strong and put up with that moron, Inuyasha..." she said to herself before she walked out of the hut.
    Upon exiting the hut, she took in a deep breath and smiled. Even if she had to put up with this strange new world, at least she can do it looking her best! She was wearing a long layered red and black lace skirt with a short black dress that hung over it. A black laced corset was strapped around her center, it was tied together with a ribbon that was blood red in color. Her earings were molded to look like little black dragons which cradled the arches of her ear. And last of all, a black velvet cloak hung from her shoulders; along the bottem was a hem of black and red lacing. Her makup was done up in the traditional gothic style. She had also let her hair down all the way which caressed her mid-back. All-in-all, she looked like she walked right out of a victorian vampire novel! She had left her bookbag in the hut so that she didn't have to carry it. Emily looked around again before spotting Inuyasha and another familiar figure standing next to him... "Kagome?...Kagome!" she cried before flinging herself into the arms of her schoolmate. "Oh Kagome!! You're really here!! Did Inuyasha drag you down the well too?" she asked. Kagome laughed and shook her head, "Nope. I come here all the time. The well you fell down is called the bone-eaters well. It's been a part of my family history since this era. When I heard that a girl from my time was here I almost didn't believe it!" she said. Emily sighed happily to herself. At least she wasn't alone in this crazy place...the thought of having to travel through this world alone--with Inuyasha--almost killed her!

    That night, Emily couldn't sleep. It was decided earlier that she would be traveling with Kagome and Inuyasha to help collect the shards of the Shikon no Tama. She didn't really know how she could help them. From what she was told, demons were common here...she had never even seen a demon before, little the less fight one! She didn't really know what to do. She bowed her head and pulled her knees up to her chest. She sighed softly before begining to fidget with the bracelet around her wrist. She then lifted her head and looked around at the other people in the room. Kagome was laying on a randomly placed straw mat fast asleep. Inuyasha was sitting upright in the corner with his head bowed... and Kaede was nowhere to be seen. She got to her feet and quietly tiptoed outside. Maybe a light walk would help her to clear her head and help her calm her down. She had taken a tour of the village earlier so she kind of knew where she was going...kind of...
    She looked up at the forest in front of her and gasped lightly...The forest was...glowing. It sent a frightened shiver down her spine, but somehow -once she got used to it- the aura seemed somewhat familiar..like she had felt it before. Once she got up her courage, she began to trot towards the light. She had to see what it was...and why it was so familiar to her. She looked around as she came to a clearing..the feeling was all around her now. Then, in a flash of light she saw it. A serpent. Just like the one in the vision she had before she fell into the well! It was HUGE!! Easily the size of a truck.....a monster truck(O.O)! The snake just seemed to float in mid-air, unmoving, staring straight at her. Then she remembered what Kaede had warned her about earlier, Oh no...what if this is one of those demons she told me about! C'mon Emily! THINK!! Snake. Floating. Mid air. Size of a truck. OF COURSE IT'S A DEMON!! She thought as she began to back away. She turned to run but stumbled on a rock in her way. In a frightened yip, she fell to the ground. No matter how much she tried, her legs just wouldn't move! She closed her eyes tightly and waited for the blow to come...but it never did. Slowly, she got to her feet and turned to the serpent. It hadn't moved an inch, it just stared at her as if waiting for her to make the first move. Then she heard it, "Child, why do you flee from a kindred spirit...?" the voice was calm and soothing "You search for acceptance...I search for someone to accept..." Emily found herself frozen as she stared into the eyes of the serpent. She new the voice was comming from him, but the idea of a giant talking snake seemed just a tad nutty. The snake lowered itself to the ground and quickly made its way over to her. She was suddenly taken over by a feeling of total peace. Reaching up, she gently brushed her hand over the silvery-white scales of the large snake. Closing her eyes, she lightly leaned against its massive body. She knew this creature...somehow. She and it had connected before. The serpent gently leaned its head in and softly nuzzled her cheek. Looking up, she stared into the cold black eyes of the beast, "Who are you...?" she asked softly. The serpent stared back at her in interest, its sky blue eyes focusing entirely on her "I am named Seres. In this world, I am known as shikigami. In your world, I am sometimes known as a sixth-sense...but some see my kind as the guardians of those who were chosen." he said. Emily stood there in confusion, "Guardian..of those who were chosen? What does that mean?" she asked. Seres lifted its head to the sky, its massive form bathing in the light of the full moon. "Shikigami only present themselves to those who are worthy of our power. Only those who are capable of using our power effectively can be called our masters." he said before turning to stare at her again. "Child from another world, from you, I sensed a power reborn. Although you may not recall, you have been my master before..." Emily was shocked and confused by this. She shook her head slightly, "That can't be right. Seres, I've never met you before!" she said. Seres turned to her and bowed its head, "Not in your lifetime child...but I have served as your guardian before...and I will again." he said softly before reaching down with his massive head and plucking out a large silver scale from his backside. The moment the scale separated from the serpent, it transformed into a pearly, gem-like orb attached to a silver chain. He gently dropped the necklace over her head so that it hung just above her chest. She lightly ran her fingers over the orb in awe, "Seres, is this for me?" she asked as she turned her head back to him. Seres nodded slowly and closed his eyes "This charm will act as the light which will call me to you when I am needed. Child from another world, I have chosen you as my master. That charm around your neck is proof of your pact with me. You may now use my power as you like..." he bellowed. Then, in a second flash of light, he was gone...

    Emily stared down at the pendent in silence. No matter how she looked at it, the situation wasn't getting any easier to understand. She took one last look at the space once occupied by Seres before turning to the path which lead back to the village. She exhaled softly "This world just keeps getting weirder and weirder..."

    A/N: Well, that's it for chapter two! Who is Seres you ask?...stay tuned to find out! Oh! And please reply, it would be nice to know what people think of my unfinished masterpiece!