Author's Notes: This story is basically...uh...weird. It's dedicated to a friend of mine who like iaido (japanese swordplay) a lot, and is a perfectionist (in a good way, though). Of course, she's in the story...uh, just read for youself. I don't know what possessed me to write this but I think it had something to do that she commented on Inu-Yasha's sword technique once...
Disclaimer: Inu-Yasha and the entire gang belong to Rumiko Takahashi. I ain't own anything! And Ari is of course her own person.
CHAPTER ONE: A FALL THROUGH THE WELL AND A RANDOM ENCOUNTER
Once upon a time...no, wait. That's kinda wrong. Let me start again. Well, it was a warm and sunny day in Tokyo, Japan. A foreign looking girl walked down the streets on the outskirts of the large city. It wasn't anything special, nowadays many gaijin walked the streets of Japan. That girl, however, carried an elongated carrying case with her.
During her stroll through the outskirts of Tokyo, she noticed a small shrine and well adjacent to it. Perfect, she thought. The ideal place to practice.She headed for the well and unslung her bag. Taking a look around at the surrounding area, her smile broadened. Green fields were stretching out, the sun was shining brightly, and the sakura trees were blooming.
She opened her carrying case and took out a sword – and iaito, to be exact. The metal replica of a Japanese katana was unsharpened; still, the metal gleamed in the sun and reflected the landscpae as she drew the blade out of its sheath. The girl started to go through a few basic moves to warm up, then started a standing kata. She tripped over the rim of the well and fell in.
"F"§%%$&§%%$§$"%$%&§%&!!!!!!!!" could be heard emanating from the well, until the exclamation suddenly cut off.
The girl slowly opened her eyes and blinked. She was staring up at a clear blue sky that was taking on a slightly red tinge. Probably from the setting sun, she though. I wonder how long I've been out. She tried to sit up and swore slightly at the headache that formed. "Great. And I forgot the Japanese word for 'headache'," she muttered in English. "Now, how am I going to get out of here?"
Suddenly, something growled, and she swirled around. "Who are you and what are you doing here?" A low voice growled. Futilely, the girl glanced around trying to discern where the speaker was. "Uh...Just tell me where I am, and I'll be on my way," she told the air.
"Not buying to, wench," the voice snarled again.
Something in the girl snapped, and she felt fury burning up in her. Wench? He called me a wench??? She glared in the approximate direction of the voice. "You just come out and fight me, you bastard!"
Inu-Yasha stepped from behind the shadows of the trees and into the clearing in front of the well. Who the hell was this girl? And why did she come through the well? And, more importantly, how? He repaid her glare in kind. "Well, you have anything to say, wench?"
The girl stared dumbly at the figure in front of her. In the light of the setting sun she could make out he was a young boy, maybe even younger than her, and wearing a red kimono and yukata. Her gaze drifted up to his face. She noticed he had amber eyes, but what really shocked her was the two dog-ears on top of his head. She instinctively tried to reach out and touch them, but he snarled and backed off, putting a hand on the hilt of his sword. Now she noticed he was also carrying an old worn katana in an equally worn scabbard.
"Leave me alone, wench!" He shouted. "And you still have to explain yourself."
She stared at him, her fury renewed. "Grrr...How are you talking, anyway? Didn't you ever learn manners?" Her temper was flaring.
Inu-Yasha scrutinized the girl in front of him for a moment. Her temper was hot, and he noticed absently that she was also carrying a sword and scabbard – although hers looked a lot newer than the Tetsusaiga. "I don't have all day," he added.
The girl snorted as she noticed his gaze wandering over her. I'll teach that guy a lesson, she thought. She placed her hand on her iaito. "Are you always this rude?" she asked him. "Because, if you are, then I'll have to teach you a lesson in manners!" The figure snorted. "If you feel up to it, wench."
They both moved into duelling stances, and bowed, then waited for the other to draw first.
Inu-Yasha stared at the girl before him. Feh. That wench has a lot more guts than you'd think. He sure as hell wasn't going to draw first – later, his useless half-brother Sesshoumaru might even accuse him of attacking harmless girls!
The girl glanced over at her opponent. Damn him! And this was supposed to be my vacation! She didn't want to draw first – she knew that would open her up.
When they finally drew, they did it at the same time. Steel clashed against steel as the two blades met in an identical cut in mid-air. Both stared for a moment before jumping back a little. The girl stared in surprise. Wow. That was fast.
Inu-Yasha glanced at the girl again. Didn't think the girl had it in her. No one I've met so far has been able to draw that fast. He decided not to transform the Tetsusaiga – he didn't want to kill her.
The girl looked at the boy who held his rusty, worn blade in an expert defensive stance. Looks like he actually knows what he's going. She considered backing off for a moment, but her pride took over.
Inu-Yasha watched as she charged into a kata, and blocked it, let the cut sweep aside and tried to hit back. However, she sidestepped his cut and her sword slashed inches from his right hand. He smiled slightly, impressed. They jumped apart. "At least tell me your name. I don't like fighting nameless people," he told her.
The girl glared at the boy. "Name's Ari," she said in Japanese. "Not that it's any of your business." She charged again, and they fought, never once scoring a hit, despite giving it their best. Finally, after about an hour of exhaustive combat, they both collapsed at the base of the well.
Geez, that guy has some stamina, Ari thought. And he's fast, too. Good thing I kept out of the way of his blade. Who knew that a rusty old sword could cut through a tree trunk like butter? She shuddered as she recalled when Inu-Yasha had swept the blade at her horizontally, missed, and hit a tree trunk instead. The tree had fallen just as if it had been felled.
Inu-Yasha sat panting in the grass. Feh. That girl is good. Wonder where she came from? The hanyou glanced sideways at the girl named Ari again. She was panting with exhaustion, her face flushed red, her iaito laying by her side, but within easy reach.