"Come on Inu! Can't catch me!" I called out with a laugh, running across the grass.
My name was Mitsuki, and I was a full blooded Bakeneko yōkai from the Feudal Era. I was good friends with the hanyō Inuyasha and his companions: the human priestess Kagome Higurashi; the demon-slayer woman Sango; Miroku the monk, and Shippo the young kitsune.
The six of us were traveling Japan in search of the Shikon no Tama, which had been shattered into many pieces by Kagome, the reincarnation of Lady Kikyo, the priestess charged with protecting the Jewel. The Shikon no Tama, also known as the Jewel of Four Souls or the Shikon Jewel, was a legendary jewel that granted the wielder with immense power. We were on the hunt to find and restore the Jewel, but none of us wanted it for power; no, we wanted to destroy it before our enemy Naraku could use its powers for evil.
I was a full yōkai, a Bakeneko (which was a high-ranking cat demon), meaning I had both a human form and a demon form. In my human form I had fair skin. I had my mother's long and silky auburn hair. My eyes were like cat eyes, a deep golden-green with slit pupils. Instead of fingernails I had long, retractable claws that were my deadlier of weapons. My canine teeth were very sharp. All of my senses were heightened: I had twenty-twenty vision, impeccable hearing, and my sense of smell matched that of Inuyasha's. My ears were those of a cat and they stuck out from beneath the roots of my hair. I had two black stripes marking my cheekbones.
My clothing consisted of a blue silk kimono decorated with white Chinese blossoms. I had a long, flowing sash of red silk tied about my waist that trailed down the leggings that I wore. I had simple flat-soled shoes.
Being a demon, I had a vast array of weapons. I had my teeth and my claws. My primary weapon was the bow and arrow. I carried two daggers at my waist, as well as a fan that was edged with a deadly blade. However, I had something else also. Over my kimono I wore a long-sleeved robe of fine, genuine tiger fur that was not only thick enough to stop a sword or arrow, but it was also a part of my true form.
In my true form I was an enormous tiger-like creature. My canines would greatly enlarge into fangs and my claws would come out. The stripes on my cheekbones would curl down my cheeks and down my throat. My fur was tough and smooth, acting like armor. When I was in my demon form, if anyone looked me dead in the eyes, my sharp gaze could literally freeze an opponent in their tracks for a short period of time, giving me time to either escape or attack.
Inuyasha and I were very good childhood friends, but not even he knew of the dark secret that I carried. I didn't speak a word of it to anyone, and it wasn't a secret I carried lightly.
Inuyasha laughed and raced ahead of me. "You really think that, do ya Mitsu?" He grinned as he ran past. I scoffed and pretended to be angry. "I told you I don't like that nickname!" I stated, when secretly I did.
'Mitsu' was a nickname Inuyasha had given me, once used as a mockery. Now it was used as an endearment and a sort of private joke between us.
Inuyasha stopped running and strode over to me. He smirked slyly and put his arm around my shoulders. He fiddled with my sash, tossing it around his neck like a scarf. "Well who gave you the right to call me 'Inu'? You're basically just calling me 'dog'."
I giggled. "But you are a dog Inuyasha!"
He rolled his eyes. "Half dog, Mitsu. Unlike a certain full breed demoness that I know."
I grinned and playfully shoved him. "Oh, shut up!" He grinned.
Someone screamed.
I whirled around. "What was that?" I heard another scream. Inuyasha narrowed his eyes and looked around. His hand went to Tetsusaiga, his sword. "I don't know, but whatever it is I don't like it."
"Inuyasha! Mitsuki!" I turned and saw Sango, Miroku, and Shippo on the back of Sango's Nekomata companion Kirara.
Sango looked grim. "The village is being attacked by demons." she said as Kirara landed on the ground before us. I gulped. "Great." I said sarcastically, drawing my bow.
"Great?" Shippo exclaimed in his child's voice. "That's not great! It's the opposite of great!"
I opened my mouth to reply, but Inuyasha beat me to it. He struck the kitsune on the head, such a common sight that none of us reacted to it. "She was being sarcastic Shippo. Grow up!" he said nastily. Shippo frowned and crossed his arms. "Hmph!"
Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "I've been itching for a good fight! Come on Mitsuki." he said, picking me up piggyback style. I wrapped my arms around his neck for the ride. "Hold on!" He began to run towards the village at top-speed. The others followed above us on Kirara.
We reached the village and I climbed down. My eyes widened.
Dozens of scorpion demons were scuttling around the village wreaking havoc. I felt a mask being pressed into my hand. "Put this on." Inuyasha said, coming up behind me and pulling out Tetsusaiga. "I smell miasma." Miasma was a highly toxic gas that was deadly to all living things. It wouldn't kill a full yōkai such as myself but it could make me ill and slow me down greatly if I were to inhale too much of it.
I nodded in thanks and pressed the mask to my face. I rushed into the village and immediately fired an arrow into the back of one of the scorpions. It fell dead and the child it was terrorizing screamed.
"Run! Get inside!" I called to him, my voice muffled from the mask. He stood frozen in fear, no older than six or seven. I sighed and bent over him. "Climb on my back and cover your mouth. Shut your eyes if you want, but do not let go! Do you understand?" He nodded and clung to my back, burying his face in my tiger fur. I stood up and ran to find Inuyasha.
I found him slicing off the stinging tail of a demon with Tetsusaiga. The demon hissed at him and bore down upon him. "Inuyasha!" I cried, and fired at the demon, striking it in the heart. It fell dead at his feet.
Inuyasha glanced up at me. "Nice shot!" he called with a cocky smirk. He nodded at the boy clinging to my back. "Who's the kid?"
"A villager. Where's Sango at? I want to give him to her- he'll only slow me down as I fight." I said.
Then I heard a shout of, "Hiraikotsu!" There was a swishing sound and a nearby scorpion was sliced in half by a large boomerang made of demon bones. Sango's Hiraikotsu. I looked up as a shadow passed over us. Kirara swooped down and landed, her fangs glistening with slobber. I ran up to her.
"Do you have room for a child?" I picked up the boy and gently handed him to Sango, who placed him in front of her. "Don't be afraid. Sango is a demon-slayer. She will protect you." I told the boy. I took off my mask and gave it to him. "Put this on. It'll keep you safe from the miasma."
As the child put my mask on, Inuyasha pulled me back. "What about you?" he demanded.
"I'm a demon. Miasma will slow me down but won't kill me like it would kill him. I'll be alright." He nodded. "Just don't go gettin' yourself killed by demons!" He ran off.
I went off in the other direction and found my path blocked by a towering scorpion demon. This one seemed much larger than the rest, with a shell that was thick like armor. Its stinger hung over its body, dripping deadly venom.
I fired at it but my arrow bounced harmlessly off of its shell. I gulped. Abandoning my bow and quiver, I unsheathed my claws and swiped at it. I gasped as the scorpion grasped my hand in its enormous pincer, holding me. It hissed at me and struck me with its stinger. I cried out in pain as the stinger stabbed me in the abdomen.
My vision went immediately blurry and I slumped to the ground, weakened. The scorpion hissed again and began to crawl on top of me, ready to devour me.
Suddenly, the demon moved off of me and chattered. It turned away. I saw a flash of silver and then a cool voice shouted, "Poison Claw!"
There was a heady scent in the air and then the scorpion fell dead. I whimpered as the venom coursed through my blood. The last thing I knew was a shadow leaning over me.
