Wings of Prophecy

Chapter 6: Favors And Recovery

The muffled sound of birds and rustling leaves slowly roused her. She found little will to open her eyes and her head felt like it was going to split wide open. Nonetheless, she made the effort. Cracking an eye, she was immediately bombarded by the bright light of the world. She squeezed her eye shut for a moment before opening it once more. This time, her vision cooperated and it focused a little, allowing her to catch a glimpse of her surroundings. She gathered that she was in some sort of open walled hut, the walls being replaced by intricately woven railing. As her vision continued to return, some of the finer details of her surroundings came into focus. There was a peculiar fixture hanging from the ceiling of the hut, quaint little glass jars covered with some sort of woven covers which currently hung down flush with the bottoms of the jars. Shifting her hand, she felt something akin to a fur pelt beneath her. She then realized she was laying on a raised bed covered in animal pelts.

She slowly moved to sit up, wincing at the sudden painful twinge from her leg. Looking down, she noticed her wound had been neatly wrapped in a clean bandage and her leg propped on a pillow. She reached down to touch the bandage but a flitter of movement from the corner of her vision had her tensing and jerking her head in its direction. She was immediately relieved upon realizing it was just Inuyasha standing at a countertop across the room.

"Took ya long enough to wake up. Welcome to the realm of the living," He chuckled lightheartedly, throwing a teasing grin over his shoulder.

"Thanks... I feel like I got hit by a freight train..." She groaned sarcastically, caressing her pounding temple for emphasis.

He chuckled once more before making his way over to her with a cup in hand and sitting on the edge of the bed. "Drink this. It'll help ya feel a little better at least, you did dance close to death after all..." He trailed off, sounding less teasing than he did a few moments ago as he held out the cup for her to take.

"What happened?" Kagome questioned, taking the drink hesitantly before sipping at it.

"You don't remember? I took you back to the well and a snake demon attacked. You got poisoned when you dodged it at one point," Inuyasha retold the events that happened the prior day.

The memories of the day before came flooding back in a rush and Kagome shivered. "I do remember jumping out of the way, and that... thing's fang catching my leg..." She trailed off, her voice uneasy as she clutched the cup to her chest.

"Well, you survived the night so don't let it bother you too much. The more you let it bother you, the worse you'll feel," Inuyasha reassured.

"I know but still..." Kagome replied, unsure of how she felt about the situation.

Suddenly, Inuyasha tensed and his wings fluffed causing Kagome to arch a brow. Just as she was about to ask him what was wrong, a flurry of wing flaps outside the hut alerted her to another presence. Kagome looked over just in time to catch glimpse of another winged figure as it made its way toward the door. Kagome tensed as the figure passed through the doorway and almost immediately met eyes with her. The newcomer was an older woman who also possessed wings, though hers more resembled a falcon's wings. She had beautiful face with fair tanned skin and diamond blue eyes. Her long, white streaked brown hair swayed gracefully as she walked and framed her face perfectly, only adding to her beauty. She wore a simple long navy blue robe and loose fitting white pants which both flowed delicately around her ankles. She wore a gentle smile as she approached them, her robe swaying elegantly around her.

"I see you've finally awakened. You gave my poor Inuyasha quite the scare with your condition.

"Keiko! No she didn't! I knew she would be fine!" Inuyasha barked, his cheeks aflame with embarrassment.