Ficcage:: 1001 Futures, SessKag
Later, when everything was over and everything had changed, it would be difficult to explain. Later, when the girl became a woman and the woman became his woman, it would be difficult to explain that all had occurred because of the girl’s clumsiness.
It was still nothing but the truth.
**
The witch smelled downright awful. A mix between feces and pungent herbs, he was sure she would have offended even a less sensitive nose. As it was, he thought it a mark of honor that he didn’t react to the noxious odor. It was all a test of his strength, much like everything else was.
“I never thought I’d live to see the day the great Western Lord asked for the future of a simple human girl,” the witch croaked as she stared at him shrewdly. It was tempting to kill her for her impudence, but then he’d never get the answers he wanted. Besides, if he killed everyone for impudence, there wouldn’t be too many left now, would there?
“The girl is unfortunately necessary to the success in the battle against Naraku. Her survival should be confirmed,” he stated. The witch didn’t deserve an explanation, but far be it from him to allow her to spread rumors about what did and did not interest him personally.
“Always battle on your mind, young general. Just like your father, when he was your age. That will change with time. Very well, very well. Step outside and let an old witch work. You will have your futures when the sun finishes setting.”
She ignored him then, which was very good as he might have actually killed her had she continued speaking to him. Instead, he took the chance that was provided and made a strategic retreat outside the confines of the cave. Once he could breathe cleaner air he forced himself to remember exactly why he’d made this trip to begin with.
He’d always known the girl would play an integral part in the battle against Naraku. Considering the importance of the Shikon Jewel in all of their dealings, it was all but obvious the miko who could sense and purify the fragments would be a welcome addition to the fight. However, he hadn’t forced himself to recognize her necessity until recently when he’d been in the unenviable position of paralleling his half-brother’s group for a few weeks. This had resulted in several encounters and each had given him insight on how the group functioned.
It had caused him to realize the first fundamental truth: the group would not be able to function without her. As much as the strange group considered themselves a family, it was only with the strangest and flimsiest of ties that they were all held together. Were something to happen to the miko, there would be accusations, guilt, and regret, and it would destroy whatever bonds were in place. Though he thoroughly denied that he needed any assistance in the actual killing of the evil half-breed, he was more than happy to leave a portion of the clean-up to his half-brother. This wouldn’t be possible if the group was unable to function because of a dead miko.
It wasn’t until several days later when the miko had retreated to her own time to replenish supplies that he came to realize the second fundamental truth: the miko was necessary to the disposal of the damned jewel. While he was more than confident of his ability to kill Naraku, he did not want to bother with any shiny baubles. Still, it would be irresponsible to leave the jewel unprotected and tainted. The miko’s short absence had resulted in only one shard being gathered, by chance alone, and the other members of her group had struggled hourly with those whom the shard attracted. Tainted shards, it seemed, had a much larger range than purified shards. Despite her inelegance, the miko had ways of defending the jewel that were as ridiculous as they were successful.
The acceptance of this truth then led to his realization of the third fundamental truth: the miko was going to die. It was only luck that had let her survive thus far. His half-brother was a woefully inadequate protector and the rest of the group could only do so much against the strong opponents the jewel attracted. The miko herself was headstrong and idiotic when it came to battle. She would cower when she should attack, and attack when she should take defense. Even he had been forced to rescue the girl on occasion. She was even stupid enough to get into fights that would never have happened had she kept her mouth shut. It was only a matter of time before she died, either at the hand of an enemy, at the hand of an ally, or even by accident. He’d seen her trip over her own feet enough to know she was a danger to herself. She was surely going to die before anything was ever resolved with Naraku and the jewel, and this, as accepted by the first two truths, would cause him problems.
It didn’t take much thought on these truths to realize that it was in his best interest to find a way to keep the miko alive. He’d contemplated various scenarios but all were unfathomable in some way or another. He quickly found that he was unwilling to start on any one path until he was assured of its ultimate success.
This led him to the witch. The crone would see a thousand different futures for the miko and give him his options; whichever sounded the easiest and resulted in the miko living long enough to let him be rid of Naraku and the jewel would be his course.
“I have seen your futures, pup.”
He wanted to growl, but he knew it would do nothing. At the very least, he’d wait to kill her until after she’d given him the information he needed.
“You are not going to like this,” the witch continued. “The girl is a walking hazard. In 1000 futures, I saw her dead before the end of the battle with Naraku. In half the futures, the girl is dead before the battle even begins.”
“Hn.”
“If there is a way for a human to die, she will manage it. Your involvement changes little. There is nothing that can be done to save her life.”
“Unacceptable. The miko must survive.”
The witch glanced at him slyly. He was immediately suspicious. His father had always warned him about the witch. Never trust anyone before you know their motivation, the Great General had told him, back before he’d become an idiot and mated a human.
“I can only tell you what the futures tell me. There is nothing that can be done to save her life as long as she is human.”
A lesser youkai might have missed it. His half brother would have missed it. Sesshoumaru did not.
“Explain, witch.”
The crone croaked a laugh that sounded more like a cough as she took a seat on her ragged cushion against the rough wall of her cave. She seemed happy he’d spotted her hint.
“I saw the ningen die a thousand times, in a thousand different scenarios. I saw plans you were considering, and I saw how easily they would fail. Training, protection… it matters not. The miko will die unless truly drastic action is taken.”
“What action.”
“If she dies as long as she remains human, she should not remain human, now should she?”
He blinked. The witch smirked grandly.
“After I saw one thousand futures with the miko dying, another future appeared that I did not expect. In this future the miko lives, but only after a painful transformation that changes much of her -and your-present circumstances. The miko can only live, and the battle can only be won, if the miko is transformed into a youkai.”
Sesshoumaru would never allow anyone to say he’d ever been dumbfounded. It was an insult to be thought capable of such a thing. Still, at that moment, he very much was so.
“Such a transformation is impossible. One cannot change the nature of one’s birth,” he stated once he’d sufficiently overcome his surprise.
“Yes. Had you asked me if such a thing was possible before I saw the extra future, I would have thought you ridiculous. However, I cannot doubt what I have seen. The miko will only live as a youkai.”
He made another strategic retreat then, into his thoughts, as he considered all the implications of this possibility. If it truly was the only way to keep the miko alive, it would have to be thoroughly examined and explored as an option. There would certainly be drawbacks - he couldn’t see his half-brother being too happy with the discovery nor was he certain how her miko powers would effect such a transformation. Yet he could also see the benefits; as a youkai, the miko would be less destructible, in a better state to receive battle training, and would certainly be easier to deal with. He hoped.
It still didn’t seem possible, but it was certainly interesting. He liked interesting things. Now that he was really putting some thought into the problem, he was starting to become curious as to how, exactly, the process worked. There was also the issue of the girl being a miko. Mikos and youkai generally did not mix very well. Would she still be able to sense and purify jewel shards once she was changed? That could be a deal breaker. After all, what use was the girl if she could not perform her only useful function?
He pulled his mind back to his surroundings and caught the witch staring at him with a certain calculated look in her beady eyes.
“You are giving the future the weight of thought it deserves. Good. I am sure you have questions. I have told you what I have seen; I can tell you no further besides this - seek an ancient tree youkai to learn more of the process.”
The serious tone was unlike any she’d ever used with him before. If there was any thought that she had been lying to him, he knew better than to think so now. He kept his expression blank as he nodded to her and took his leave.
As he walked away into the blissfully clean air, he continued his consideration of the idea the witch had provided. The miko becoming a youkai… it certainly had appeal. Still, he wouldn’t rush his decision until he knew all the details. The witch had mentioned an ancient tree youkai, and he just happened to know of just such a creature. It would take time, but he would go to Bokunesou and get the answers he needed.
He just hoped the miko didn’t die in the meantime.
**
to be continued...
It was still nothing but the truth.
**
The witch smelled downright awful. A mix between feces and pungent herbs, he was sure she would have offended even a less sensitive nose. As it was, he thought it a mark of honor that he didn’t react to the noxious odor. It was all a test of his strength, much like everything else was.
“I never thought I’d live to see the day the great Western Lord asked for the future of a simple human girl,” the witch croaked as she stared at him shrewdly. It was tempting to kill her for her impudence, but then he’d never get the answers he wanted. Besides, if he killed everyone for impudence, there wouldn’t be too many left now, would there?
“The girl is unfortunately necessary to the success in the battle against Naraku. Her survival should be confirmed,” he stated. The witch didn’t deserve an explanation, but far be it from him to allow her to spread rumors about what did and did not interest him personally.
“Always battle on your mind, young general. Just like your father, when he was your age. That will change with time. Very well, very well. Step outside and let an old witch work. You will have your futures when the sun finishes setting.”
She ignored him then, which was very good as he might have actually killed her had she continued speaking to him. Instead, he took the chance that was provided and made a strategic retreat outside the confines of the cave. Once he could breathe cleaner air he forced himself to remember exactly why he’d made this trip to begin with.
He’d always known the girl would play an integral part in the battle against Naraku. Considering the importance of the Shikon Jewel in all of their dealings, it was all but obvious the miko who could sense and purify the fragments would be a welcome addition to the fight. However, he hadn’t forced himself to recognize her necessity until recently when he’d been in the unenviable position of paralleling his half-brother’s group for a few weeks. This had resulted in several encounters and each had given him insight on how the group functioned.
It had caused him to realize the first fundamental truth: the group would not be able to function without her. As much as the strange group considered themselves a family, it was only with the strangest and flimsiest of ties that they were all held together. Were something to happen to the miko, there would be accusations, guilt, and regret, and it would destroy whatever bonds were in place. Though he thoroughly denied that he needed any assistance in the actual killing of the evil half-breed, he was more than happy to leave a portion of the clean-up to his half-brother. This wouldn’t be possible if the group was unable to function because of a dead miko.
It wasn’t until several days later when the miko had retreated to her own time to replenish supplies that he came to realize the second fundamental truth: the miko was necessary to the disposal of the damned jewel. While he was more than confident of his ability to kill Naraku, he did not want to bother with any shiny baubles. Still, it would be irresponsible to leave the jewel unprotected and tainted. The miko’s short absence had resulted in only one shard being gathered, by chance alone, and the other members of her group had struggled hourly with those whom the shard attracted. Tainted shards, it seemed, had a much larger range than purified shards. Despite her inelegance, the miko had ways of defending the jewel that were as ridiculous as they were successful.
The acceptance of this truth then led to his realization of the third fundamental truth: the miko was going to die. It was only luck that had let her survive thus far. His half-brother was a woefully inadequate protector and the rest of the group could only do so much against the strong opponents the jewel attracted. The miko herself was headstrong and idiotic when it came to battle. She would cower when she should attack, and attack when she should take defense. Even he had been forced to rescue the girl on occasion. She was even stupid enough to get into fights that would never have happened had she kept her mouth shut. It was only a matter of time before she died, either at the hand of an enemy, at the hand of an ally, or even by accident. He’d seen her trip over her own feet enough to know she was a danger to herself. She was surely going to die before anything was ever resolved with Naraku and the jewel, and this, as accepted by the first two truths, would cause him problems.
It didn’t take much thought on these truths to realize that it was in his best interest to find a way to keep the miko alive. He’d contemplated various scenarios but all were unfathomable in some way or another. He quickly found that he was unwilling to start on any one path until he was assured of its ultimate success.
This led him to the witch. The crone would see a thousand different futures for the miko and give him his options; whichever sounded the easiest and resulted in the miko living long enough to let him be rid of Naraku and the jewel would be his course.
“I have seen your futures, pup.”
He wanted to growl, but he knew it would do nothing. At the very least, he’d wait to kill her until after she’d given him the information he needed.
“You are not going to like this,” the witch continued. “The girl is a walking hazard. In 1000 futures, I saw her dead before the end of the battle with Naraku. In half the futures, the girl is dead before the battle even begins.”
“Hn.”
“If there is a way for a human to die, she will manage it. Your involvement changes little. There is nothing that can be done to save her life.”
“Unacceptable. The miko must survive.”
The witch glanced at him slyly. He was immediately suspicious. His father had always warned him about the witch. Never trust anyone before you know their motivation, the Great General had told him, back before he’d become an idiot and mated a human.
“I can only tell you what the futures tell me. There is nothing that can be done to save her life as long as she is human.”
A lesser youkai might have missed it. His half brother would have missed it. Sesshoumaru did not.
“Explain, witch.”
The crone croaked a laugh that sounded more like a cough as she took a seat on her ragged cushion against the rough wall of her cave. She seemed happy he’d spotted her hint.
“I saw the ningen die a thousand times, in a thousand different scenarios. I saw plans you were considering, and I saw how easily they would fail. Training, protection… it matters not. The miko will die unless truly drastic action is taken.”
“What action.”
“If she dies as long as she remains human, she should not remain human, now should she?”
He blinked. The witch smirked grandly.
“After I saw one thousand futures with the miko dying, another future appeared that I did not expect. In this future the miko lives, but only after a painful transformation that changes much of her -and your-present circumstances. The miko can only live, and the battle can only be won, if the miko is transformed into a youkai.”
Sesshoumaru would never allow anyone to say he’d ever been dumbfounded. It was an insult to be thought capable of such a thing. Still, at that moment, he very much was so.
“Such a transformation is impossible. One cannot change the nature of one’s birth,” he stated once he’d sufficiently overcome his surprise.
“Yes. Had you asked me if such a thing was possible before I saw the extra future, I would have thought you ridiculous. However, I cannot doubt what I have seen. The miko will only live as a youkai.”
He made another strategic retreat then, into his thoughts, as he considered all the implications of this possibility. If it truly was the only way to keep the miko alive, it would have to be thoroughly examined and explored as an option. There would certainly be drawbacks - he couldn’t see his half-brother being too happy with the discovery nor was he certain how her miko powers would effect such a transformation. Yet he could also see the benefits; as a youkai, the miko would be less destructible, in a better state to receive battle training, and would certainly be easier to deal with. He hoped.
It still didn’t seem possible, but it was certainly interesting. He liked interesting things. Now that he was really putting some thought into the problem, he was starting to become curious as to how, exactly, the process worked. There was also the issue of the girl being a miko. Mikos and youkai generally did not mix very well. Would she still be able to sense and purify jewel shards once she was changed? That could be a deal breaker. After all, what use was the girl if she could not perform her only useful function?
He pulled his mind back to his surroundings and caught the witch staring at him with a certain calculated look in her beady eyes.
“You are giving the future the weight of thought it deserves. Good. I am sure you have questions. I have told you what I have seen; I can tell you no further besides this - seek an ancient tree youkai to learn more of the process.”
The serious tone was unlike any she’d ever used with him before. If there was any thought that she had been lying to him, he knew better than to think so now. He kept his expression blank as he nodded to her and took his leave.
As he walked away into the blissfully clean air, he continued his consideration of the idea the witch had provided. The miko becoming a youkai… it certainly had appeal. Still, he wouldn’t rush his decision until he knew all the details. The witch had mentioned an ancient tree youkai, and he just happened to know of just such a creature. It would take time, but he would go to Bokunesou and get the answers he needed.
He just hoped the miko didn’t die in the meantime.
**
to be continued...