A Feudal Fairytail

Chapter 18

A bird cawed in the distance, causing Kagome to jump in fright before she realized that was all it was. She was so jumpy right now; every little sound made her heart flutter. It had not been very long since her escape, probably about an hour. After proceeding down the main road directly toward the city for a few minutes, she had veered off onto a side street, and was now on her third or fourth such secondary road. When Yoshida and his gang decided to look for her, she didnt want to make it easy for them. She had only seen a handful of cars; apparently, this area was not heavily traveled during this time of day. It was not surprising, considering the fact that she had seen nothing but forest and farmland. Sasakis house was probably the only one for miles.

Perfect for him, perhaps, but not for Kagome. She couldnt just knock on someones door, explain that she was in trouble, and ask for a ride into the city. That left either walking or hitchhiking. She couldnt currently see Morioka through the trees, but she knew the general direction in which it laid. She did not, however, know how far away it was, or how long it would take to get there. Could she make it there today, or would she be forced to wait out a cold night in the woods? And what kind of city areas would she have to walk through to get somewhere safe? Industrial zones? Bad neighborhoods? Plus, the longer she stayed out here, the more likely her former captors would find her, especially if they were using the dogs to track her. The safest place for her to be right now was in a crowd; a mall or busy city street would be perfect.

The other option, hitchhiking, seemed like the quickest way to put her in those favorable surroundings. But hitchhiking came with its own set of problems, not the least of which being what would happen if she attempted to solicit a ride from a vehicle driven by one of her former captors. There were also the typical dangers associated with getting in a car with a stranger who could be a robber or even a serial killer. Still, the vast majority of drivers on the road were not criminals. She would take those odds, since her chances of making it to Morioka by foot seemed significantly worse.

Decision made, Kagome stopped and looked down the roadway in both directions. It bordered a forest, with farmland on the other side. She was on the right, among the trees, and facing oncoming traffic in her lane. She was currently in the middle of a straightaway about a quarter mile long, as good a place as any, she guessed. The last car had passed in the other direction perhaps ten minutes ago. She would wait here for awhile, and move on in search of a better spot if that failed. She would make sure to remain close to the forest, in case she needed to make a quick getaway. With her experiences in the feudal era, she was sure she had more practice running through woodland than her pursuers. It would at least give her a chance.

Seating herself on a fallen log, Kagome settled in to wait. She started to hum a tune then stopped, focusing instead on listening for the sound of approaching vehicles. Time seemed to slow to a crawl, but it was only a few minutes before the low thrum of engine and tires reached her ears from the right. She peered around a tree as the car came into view. It was an old, boxy four-door sedan, with visible dents and faded paint. It was perfect; neither Sasaki nor the mercenaries would be caught dead driving something like that. She stepped out of the forest and onto the tiny rural shoulder, waving both arms above her head, not so much a request for a ride as a plea for help. She figured the driver would be more likely to stop that way.

But the car simply moved into the other lane, actually accelerating as it passed her instead of slowing down. Kagome hung her head; perhaps this would be more difficult than she hoped. Such was the trouble with depending on the common decency of her fellow man. Then she heard the squeal of ancient brakes, and spun to see the car pulling over to the side of the road a couple hundred feet away. Grinning, she jogged to meet her potential rescuers.

"I still say this is a bad idea, Haruka," she heard a male voice speak in a hushed tone as she approached. "What if shes a serial killer or something?"