Chapter Nineteen: Fighting
Sesshoumaru's castle, Western lands
Night had fallen, and the whole castle was dark. Everyone, youkai and their human slaves were asleep. In one room, however, a single candle was lit.
Sesshoumaru stood looking down at the dark haired woman who was now peacefully asleep. In a very unusual gesture he had made sure she was covered by blankets so she wouldn't get cold. He might've been disturbed by his actions, had his thoughts not been otherwise occupied.
If one looked closely, it appeared that the proud youkai had a guilty look in his eyes. He, Sesshoumaru, Lord of the Western Lands, had never broken a promise before… until now.
He had promised the silly elf he would stay calm and in a way he did. Compared to the last time, as he found his father, he certainly stayed rather calm. That time, he had gone on a rampage, his usual control snapping. Now he and his father never really got along all that well, but he did respect and love him in a way. So he just… snapped.
And as soon as she had told him the name of this murderer, he had felt it. That well known shift in one's youki… he was about to transform into a very murderous and angered youkai.
And he was still holding her.
He didn't know what it was, but the only thing that ended up completely destroyed was the table right next to him. Pieces of it had flown everywhere as he smashed it with his claws.
Now to him, this was relatively calm. This was in no way what he was capable of if he truly was enraged. But to her, it had seemed rather frightening.
He knew his eyes must've been a blood red colour, his claws and fangs lengthened. As soon as he came to himself, he was not surprised to find her curled into a tight ball against the head end of the bed, her arms covering her head against the pieces of table that had been falling down on her.
So that is how he had to pull himself together and then comfort a terrified young woman. Now his brother would've probably been amused at his behaviour, but to someone who wasn't used to it, it was probably rather horrifying.
And finally, she had fallen asleep and left him to his thoughts. That was a few hours ago, and since then he had been standing at the window, staring out side, every now and then looking back at the young elf.
He should've known it.
That was the one thing that kept going trough his head. Wasn't it obvious? The only reason he and his subjects thought it was the fault of those stupid elves was because they didn't realize that he was capable of such magic.
Now he really had something else to worry about.
If the bastard had been standing before him right now, he would've ripped his eyes out along with his heart. Rather murderous thoughts, but there was no doubt in his mind that he would do it. Even as he stood thinking, his eyes were bleeding red.
As he stood gazing at the moon, he sensed how Kagome began to stir. He didn't mind for her waking up, because he had come to a decision. He was proud and arrogant and wouldn't admit a mistake too easily, but he wasn't stupid either. Not only had he made a mistake, but his people too had made a grave mistake and he felt the need to apologize for it.
She was up now and staring at him, he could just feel her eyes pricking in his back. But she said nothing. Was she still afraid of him? Whatever it was, he grew impatient.
"I know you are awake Kagome," he grinned as he could almost imagine her surprised expression.
Still no answer.
"You know, in a way, you have made things easier and more difficult at the same time with your little announcement." He turned to look at her and indeed, her eyes had widened somewhat. But soon she was looking at her feet again. The uncertainty of her situation and his behaviour still made her somewhat wary around him. Not the usual cheery person he knew. But then, she surprised him again.
"What did I make easier then," she whispered, disbelief in her voice.
He didn't know if she saw his smirk but he liked her old talkative and cheery self better than the scared one. But of course his highness wouldn't admit that too easily.
"I can hear you doubt me. But indeed, you made one thing easier. Tell me, what do you think, what would be my opinion of Naraku?"
She didn't seem to like the fact how he challenged her to speak again, but she answered anyway. "I… I always had the impression you don't really like him…," she offered.
"Go on woman and just say it," he snorted. "I always distrusted him and I absolutely couldn't stand him and that's the truth. Don't be hesitant to say it." He continued in a softer tone. "I always intended to ignore his pitiful self one day, but I could never really decide on when to do it. I was still out on revenge for my father's death and I still believed it was one of you who did it."
She did look at him then, with a rather hopeful expression. "Then do you believe me? You just believe what I saw? No one accepts what I see that easily, they always doubt it somehow."
"If I didn't believe you that table would still be standing and you would long be gone for spreading such lies," he growled. "So now that we know that this same, pitiful creature who calls himself Naraku was the one who killed my father, I find it rather easy to break with this so called 'ally'. But I won't just ignore him, be sure of that."
"Are you going after him?"
"What a clever conclusion," he snorted. "Now if that Jewel didn't exist, I would take my time by hunting him down. But the damn thing does exist so we don't have all the time of the world. And here I believe that you come in."
The way her eyes began to shine with hope and joy, how she clasped her hands together and really looked at him for once… well… it did do something to him. "Are you… are you going to make peace? You are not going to fight us again?" she stammered.
"I wish to apologize to you and your people," he stated. "You were accused of something which you had absolutely no part in."
At the prospect of peace, Kagome's usual talkative self seemed to appear again. She was practically bouncing with glee now. "Apology accepted," she managed to say before rambling on. "So this means no fighting anymore? No deaths? Can all three races finally live in peace together?"
He sighed at her over enthusiastic behaviour. "I think it will take some time before all wounds are healed Kagome. And there will still be some deaths. Remember, the Shikon no Tama was shattered and is still out there. This is not over yet."
That joyful look disappeared then as her face fell. "I know, I am always way too optimistic," she admitted.
"But…," he said in a secretive tone. "I intend to send a message to your mother. I do believe we are after the same person and I think it would be foolish to work against each other." He nodded at her as again, hope began to appear in her eyes. "If your queen decides to agree to it, I intend to go after Naraku together. I promised my father I would keep the Shikon no Tama out of his greedy hands and I do believe this would be the best way."
A small squeak left her throat and he had barely enough time to steady himself before she lounged himself at him. "We are going to work together!" For a moment she practically seemed to shine with happiness. "And we are going to defeat Naraku and then it'll be peace!"
"I do think you should calm down somewhat," he murmured. "Not only are there still people sleeping and will it be a long time before there will actually be peace but you are also doing a good job at suffocating me. And if you do that, there won't be peace for another hundred years."
He noticed with some amusement how her whole body went stiff as she realized that she was embracing him. Her fear of him had been forgotten for the moment, but reality set back in, and with it her fear.
She began to back away, no doubt with the intention of getting to the opposite of the room, but the hand he laid on her arm prevented her from that. He had to frown, however, as she hissed in pain. He wasn't holding her that firmly was he? And then it dawned on him.
Slowly, he began to pull the rich material of her dress up her arm to see what was causing her pain. She however, seemed to disagree with his action, and she tried to pry his hands of her, face flushed. "It is nothing, really," she stated.
"I will decide if it is nothing," he snapped, effectively silencing her. Finally her whole arm was left bear for everyone to see and it was not a pretty sight.
Like he suspected, some very ugly bruises were marring her otherwise perfect skin. Bruises, caused by none other than him. A quick investigation showed that the other arm didn't look much better.
Now he knew he had been irritated and angry the day he got her out of that hellhole and away from Naraku, but he hadn't realized really how much worse it really was. A frown appeared on his face and as soon as his grip lessened somewhat, Kagome was quick to cover her arms again and look away in embarrassment.
"Don't ever call such a thing 'nothing' again," he ordered.
"Oh but it is n- …," she flinched under his angry look. "It's not so important really. I understand if you were angry at me or just at the world in general or… it doesn't matter, everyone gets angry in his life so-…"
"And don't call it 'not important' either," he interrupted her. "Angry one can be, yes, but there is no excuse for this. I will lower myself to another apology tonight because it was really not my intention to hurt you, nor was I angry at you."
"Apology accepted," she muttered half heartily.
He suddenly spotted a few tiny pieces of wood in her hair, pieces that once formed a table. He didn't know why, but he reached out to remove them. To his surprise, the young elf flinched and moved away from his hand, as if on instinct.
"You have no reason to be afraid of me," he noticed how she intended to speak again. "And there will be no denying it, you haven't been your usual self ever since you came here. No doubt I scared you with my violence, but if you still doubt me, I let me make it clear to you once and for all that you will never see the dungeons of this castle, as long as I can prevent it."
"I… I just miss my home and…," she sniffled. "…and I didn't know what you wanted to do with me or… you are just…so…"
"Well… what? I am what? Just say it Kagome," he prodded somewhat.
"You are confusing as hell," she blurted out, then clasped her hands before her mouth and frantically shook her head. "I never said anything, I wasn't trying to insult you, honestly! I-…"
"Ah…," he sighed, nodding. "I heard that one before. From my dear brother no less…and my parents. I guess I am."
"You just don't say anything or show what you feel!" she said vehemently. He knew she was clumsy and again, she was only blundering more. Again, she seemed terrified at what she had said.
"I guess that's true as well," he admitted, feeling rather generous today.
"You shouldn't just guess, you should do something about it!" Again, the shocked expression at what she said, but she didn't seem to be able to stop. "You should trust people for once, let someone in! Like… I trust my mother, and my sister, and my friends and… and hell I even trust you!"
His eyes narrowed at her. He wouldn't admit it, but she had come too close. "As the elder of us two, I'd say you should think about what you let out of that mouth of yours," he snarled.
But now, it seemed like she was angry too. "You… elder?" she huffed. "Only by a few years, which might matter if it concerned humans, but to us it's hardly anything."
"In this case, it's everything."
And with that, he rudely walked away, just like that. He knew that right behind him, Kagome was ready to explode. Her emotions really ran away with her sometimes. And in the heat of something which one could call a fight, she would soon forget her fear and just go for it.
But still, he didn't want her to fear him. It hurt somehow. But that didn't mean she could just say anything to him. He wouldn't allow it. Somewhere, a tiny voice objected to this reasoning; it was him after all who had almost ordered her to speak what was on her mind. And that same tiny voice accused him of running away from the truth.
But he ignored it, as usual.
He paused as he reached the door but he didn't look back. "And Kagome," he said in a low voice. "I would think twice about trusting me… after all, I'm just as much a murderer as Naraku is."
Having said that, he opened the door and walked out without another word.
Elven castle, Southern lands
He was absolutely livid.
Kouga was pacing around near the huge gates of the castle, his eyes beginning to bleed red. It was still dark around him, but that didn't mean everything was quiet. All of the youkai, in fact, were involved in a fierce battle with none other than those damn elves.
'The little snakes,' he thought to himself. 'Surprising us in the middle of the night.' As soon as the first elven soldiers were discovered, his thoughts turned to those of the young elf Naraku had captured. As she entered that study and stumbled upon him, he could swear she was looking for something there. Those damn elves were bound to have some secret way in and out the castle and he was pretty sure that passage way would be found in a certain study.
And that damn Sesshoumaru, what was he thinking, pulling his army back and leaving him to deal with Naraku? But still, the only thing he would absolutely love to do is to split in two the head of Naraku. Not long after Sesshoumaru departed, Naraku left as well. The Great Lord of the Western Lands had left leaving no explanation for his departure, nor why he had such a triumphant gleam in his eyes, and now Naraku was gone too.
And leaving him to fight off those elves.
It made him wonder if Naraku had expected this attack. With a frustrated growl, he noticed that his own army was losing. Their combined armies had been huge, but now it seemed he was outnumbered. A surprise attack and the fact that some of his men were drunk from their little parties seemed to ruin their chances of victory.
"Ginta," he roared. He could see somewhere in the fighting mass, a small figure began to fight his way back towards him. It took awhile but then one of his best friends – and generals too – stood before him, panting and bleeding from a wound on his arm.
"Yes, Kouga?" he managed to say between breaths.
"We pull back now-," he growled. "I refuse to let them slaughter us just because our allies abandoned us."
Ginta nodded his head with so much force one would be scared it would fall off. "A very wise decision," he stammered. "We're loosing Kouga, many men are already killed. Even you are wounded, this is not looking good."
"I know," he snapped. He would refuse to show anyone how bad the wounds on his legs really were, but they damn well hurt and forced him to stay at the back of the fight for awhile now.
He threw his head back and let out a powerful howl. After all, they were wolf youkai and every single one of his men knew this call meant they had to retreat.
And that is how they rushed out through the gates one by one, getting as many wounded men with them as they could. The dead they had to leave behind, much to their dismay. As they sped away, the cries of victory from their opponents followed them for a long, long time.
Hours later
It was still dawn, the first rays of the sun began to show as the sky turned red. A very macabre coincidence, since the once so peaceful and clean courtyard was now covered in the dark red colour of blood too from the previous battle.
Kikyou walked around in distaste, her stomach protesting against what she saw. Never had her people needed to fight within their own castle. The closest war came upon them right outside their gates. At such times, the respective parties would've the chance to remove their dead themselves.
This time however, the wolf clan had pulled back and left their dead. Now she didn't know what youkai were used to do in such a case, but she ordered her people to treat every dead person with respect and give them a proper burial. It was not as if they would've done otherwise anyway.
She met up with her mother who was carrying a frightened kitsune pup. She had sent a messenger trough the same secret passage way trough which they had surprised their enemies after they won the battle. Shortly after that, the gates were securely shut, locked up in every way possible and the first women and children had entered their castle again.
She knew what those hopeful looks meant that were directed towards her, but she shook her head in defeat. "I'm very sorry mother," she whispered. "I have sent soldiers to search the whole castle, but she's not here."
"NO!" the kitsune pup began to sniffle. "She probably hid herself, I'm sure!"
"Although it hurts, I can assure you that we know even the smallest corners inside this castle and all has been searched. She's definitely not here."
She put a comforting hand on her mother's shoulder as she saw how the woman was fighting against the tears. "We'll get her back," she whispered, before walking past them and entering the castle.
"You," she halted a terrified looking young boy who was staring with wide eyes at a pair of doors which were almost completely destroyed. "Go to Kaede and order her to make a list of everything destroyed. She may call upon the help from as many women as she wants. My soldiers are to be left alone, they are tired enough."
The boy nodded before running away. She turned to great the monk and the taijiya, their eyes just as sad as hers. After all, they were Kagome's best friends. "I am going to inspect the castle," she announced. "I thought you might want to come with me."
They made their way trough the whole castle, walking in a brisk pace and assessing the damage. The monk appeared to be in deep thoughts and the taijiya was unusual silent. Although she knew everything had been searched, she still moved up towards her sister's room to check if she would be hiding up the tower. A quick glance into the room, however, proved that the invaders had found their way into this place too. If possible, her room looked even worse than others.
They moved downstairs again, until Kikyou halted in her steps and stared at the only pairs of doors that hadn't been destroyed. With a frown upon her face she moved towards them, clutching her bow tighter in her hands, the other two trailing behind her.
"Odd," she muttered once she had opened the doors.
They were standing in the library and what surprised them the most was that it was completely unharmed. Rows upon rows of books stood there as if nothing had ever happened.
"Somehow, I doubt there were any book loving youkai in that army," Sango muttered from behind her.
She carefully put her bow down upon one of the tables and walked around the room, her eyes trailing over the books. She really didn't understand this. There was no sense to it. Why would they destroy their whole castle and leave one, damn library unscathed?
"I have a feeling we have to thank Kagome for this," she heard her mother's voice from the door.
She quickly turned and stared sceptically at her. "What? Do you think she spent precious time defending a library where she could've fled?"
"Don't you remember Kikyou, how much time she would spend here the past few months with another person?"
She frowned then. Not this ridiculous theory again. "Mother, I really think you should lie down. You're looking tired."
"Yes…," the woman sighed. "I'm feeling quite drained actually…" And she walked off. She really did look like a ghost. She wouldn't have been surprised if her mother had fainted, so she sent a soldier to go and see if she got to her room without too much trouble.
Then she sat down on a chair with a sigh. "So," she began. "I suggest we start searching for Kagome outside this castle. She was not with the wolves, so either Sesshoumaru or Naraku has her I suppose."
"Very true," the monk commented. "And let us hope it is not the latter."
Sesshoumaru's castle, Western lands
Inside his study, a certain youkai lord was seething with anger because his pride was hurt and outside, a certain elf was sitting once again in her now beloved garden, trying to calm down.
It was day now, but Kagome hadn't slept a single minute or even second after her fight with Sesshoumaru. And a fight it was. She had forgotten all her fear and just screamed at him and frankly, she was surprised he hadn't at least slapped her or something. He certainly seemed to be angry at her after what she said. But she wouldn't back down, because it was true.
But somehow, his last words had hurt her the most. It made her worry for him. Did he really see himself as a murderer? He must've killed a lot of men already during this damn war and she was sure it hadn't stayed by that. But somehow, even though she knew this, she still couldn't hate him. If she compared him to Naraku, he would still be something akin to a saint.
His words hurt her too because it was evident that he wouldn't let her trust him. Nor would he trust her. She would never dare to tell him what she really felt about him because it seemed impossible to her that he would ever feel the same, but if he would just trust her and stop acting so confusing, that would already be a miracle… and she would be happy, really.
Yesterday, she had been crying almost on this same spot and today it looked as if she was bearing to worries of all the people in the world on her shoulders. And like a little angel, that small girl appeared again.
She hadn't heard her approaching, so Kagome startled somewhat as she raised her head and saw the girl smiling brightly at her, her hair to the side in a little tail, another brightly coloured flower in her hand.
Dumbfounded, she reached out and accepted the girl's gift. The child's eyes seemed to shine with happiness and pride that she would accept her flower and so she could not help but smile at her. But not without a small pang of regret in her heart as she thought of a certain kitsune who was bound to hide somewhere in the mountains now and would probably be worried he would loose another mother.
To her alarm the child turned and walked away again while humming a song. "Wait," she called out. "What is your name?"
The girl turned and gave her another one of her bright smiles. "Rin."
"My name is Kagome," she offered. The girl nodded, bowed to her and was off again.
What an odd girl. But how cute…
Somewhere in the woods, Southern lands
"Take this!"
Kagura moved her fan and sent her opponent flying trough the air until his back connected with a few trees. But again, the idiotic creature moved to attack.
She gave a wary sigh while she inspected her nails, throwing another attack his way. She was sooo in a bad mood. A very bad one. And if she had been anymore friendly and her opponent anymore humanoid, she might've warned him to not tempt her any longer and just give up already.
But as it was, her opponent wasn't anything like a normal individual and actually, she really didn't know what it was supposed to be other than that it was indeed a youkai.
And that it had a certain shard.
The first dead soldiers weren't cold in the grave yet and her master had already set out upon another quest. But he wouldn't concern himself with it personally yet. He had given her orders to set out with part of the army and go on a search for those shards. He, however, had locked himself up in his library and from the noise that came from within; she guessed the books were not happy… if they could feel anything.
She was pretty sure he was searching for information on the Shikon no Tama again. How he could find anything more on the damn thing was beyond her, but apparently he thought there would still be another piece of paper or another book written about it. If she hadn't hated him with a passion or feared his wrath, she would've pointed out that he had spent years reading on the subject, so there was hardly anything left he could find, especially in his own damn library.
But alas, reason is lost upon fools… or obsessed people. So why would she bother to tell him anyway? The ass. She had other things to do than go around and kill another something; she was quite sick of all the killing she had to do in the past days already. But it was not as if he would give her some rest. She would always be his assassin, as he liked to call it. If you asked her, one could describe her as 'his toy', because that was all he did, toy with her. Like a little boy actually.
But who was she to talk about? Truth to be told, she did nothing but toy with that damn youkai too. And actually, she was growing tired of it. The damn soldiers who were sent along with her were taking their time and watching the display. Goddammit, did she have to kill them all on their own or what? Oh they wouldn't be happy for long because they could expect a long reprimand from her and if she was in a mood like this, she wouldn't go easy on them.
"Fujin no mai!" she cried, sending a huge wave of blades flying at the youkai. It was dead within minutes. A shame it had to be some creature without any real brains, she would be much happier with a challenge for once.
"Get me the damn shard!" she snarled at a close by soldier. As he only looked stupid at her with an expression that clearly stated 'just get it yourself' she felt very inclined to strangle someone. "I said get the damn shard!" she bellowed. "So get your lazy ass working you idiot or by god I will make sure you receive the same treatment!"
That seemed to help considerably.
And just as she was making her grand retreat by walking elegantly away while sending the others death glares, he had to torture and embarrass her again.
Soldiers laughed behind their hands as she reached to her chest and collapsed with a painful expression on her otherwise beautiful face. Oh why did he have to do this now, of all the damn times! A searing hot pain shot trough her body and now she had the distinct urge to blow up a tree or something. The only way she always got through this torment was imagining how she would someday scratch his eyes out and kill him.
Finally the pain disappeared and she straightened herself, looking around at the amused faces. With an outraged cry she moved her fan and called the winds towards her, blowing the damn bastards of their feet. Then she turned and walked away, fuming.
But although the pain was gone, it didn't mean he would leave her alone. He had summoned her, no doubt to do his dirty work again.
Damn, was she mad.
Sesshoumaru's castle, Western lands
As the door to his study flew open with a loud bang, Sesshoumaru was not happy. Neither was he too joyful about the little toad like creature that came flying in. Nor about the next individual that dared disturbing his peace.
Inuyasha.
In short; his mood had just turned worse than ever. The air just froze. But as usual his brother seemed to be blatantly ignorant to that.
"Don't you just sometimes have this sudden urge to kick his butt?" his brother inquired while he plopped down on a chair, without invitation Sesshoumaru added in his mind. "Well I damn well did today. Couldn't you send another messenger?" Inuyasha proceeded to further dig his grave as he put his feet on his brother's desk and made himself comfortable. "But he did make me hurry actually," he mused. "Damn toad kept telling me how your highness was in a horrible mood and so on. I always wonder how you can stand him. Mmm, fits your ego I guess."
At the dry cough that interrupted him, he finally decided to look up. A very wise decision, although it might be a bit too late. "Damn," he swore. "You are in a bad mood. Who the hell achieved this!"
It was true; it had been awhile since he had last seen his brother in such a state. His pupils had turned into mere slits and his gaze was so murderous that Inuyasha had the urge to flee.
"Eh, sorry?" he offered weakly.
"Jaken," his brother snarled. "Get out."
The toad wasted no time in hurrying out of the room, running for his life, all his devotion to his master forgotten. Inuyasha watched how his brother carefully put down some papers, before sitting back in chair, eying him.
"Oh come on Sesshoumaru," Inuyasha tried. "I did come quickly, you have to admit that. I've never been in such a hurry before."
"That might be," his brother replied in a calm voice that stood in a stark contrast with the anger in his eyes. "But once again you come barging in and disgrace this place with your presence while it is uncalled for."
"Damn it!" now Inuyasha began to heat up too. "I thought I would get in serious trouble if I wouldn't report to you immediately and now this! What happened?"
"Nothing but bad news," his brother's gaze hardened. "As you left the castle, was Naraku still present?"
"Yeah," Inuyasha replied, wondering what this meant. "Why do you ask?"
"Tell me, little brother, what do you think happened with the Shikon no Tama?"
Inuyasha shrugged. "Blasted from here to eternity. Completely destroyed I expect, with that light."
"Once again, you disappoint me with your so called intelligence. The Jewel was shattered."
Inuyasha still didn't seem to get the point, according to his blank look which clearly asked what could possibly be wrong with that. His brother allowed a small sigh to escape from his lips and stood, walking over to the window. Inuyasha almost jumped as his brother suddenly turned those scary eyes at him.
"It means that there are an unknown number of shards out there and I bet you anything that Naraku is out there, collecting them as we speak."
"So…," Inuyasha started. "Are you planning on joining him?" To be honest, he thought his brother would join Naraku again so he could watch him from close up, like he had done all those years. But apparently he asked the wrong question.
He had to jump and duck away as from his brother's hand appeared a deadly whip and it was aimed directly at him. "You insolent whelp," his brother growled. "You disgrace our family with your stupidity!"
Inuyasha crouched on the floor and faced his brother. Unknown to them, servants outside had stopped for a moment at the noise, then shook their heads and continued. They were quite used to fights like this.
"Well if I'm such an idiot than just tell me!" Inuyasha hissed, his eyes tinning red.
"I highly doubt you are capable of comprehending the whole situation. Remove your pitiful being from this room, immediately. I will tell you about my plans when I deem it right."
Inuyasha let out a low growl but managed to compose himself. He straightened and marched from the room, closing the door with such a loud bang that everyone close by jumped in fright, before going on with their activities.
Their masters really had a short temper.
Elven castle, Southern lands
As Kikyou finally made sure that everyone was settled down, all the bodies carried from the courtyard and everything cleaned up as best as they could do for now, she finally allowed herself to return to her room.
Of course she expected a disaster once she opened the door, but she found that all in all, it wasn't that bad. Most of her furniture was still whole, as were a few portraits that hung on the wall. The curtains were torn though, like everywhere else and the room was thoroughly searched, clothing and other personal items were strewn everywhere.
She quickly made an inventory of the room and found to her horror that there was only one thing missing. She always doubted if she should keep that very same item, but she always figured that if an army would take their castle, they would hardly care for such a thing. But apparently, they did because the cushions on her bed were moved aside and one spot now looked rather empty. She should've hidden it better anyway…
She really questioned who would care enough to take her diary.
Sesshoumaru's castle, Western lands
Kagome was making her way back from the garden, thankful that she hadn't seen Sesshoumaru the whole day. She imagined he was still rather angry and she'd rather have him calm down before she faced him again.
So it was understandable how her heartbeat began to quicken as she saw a person with silver hair coming her way, and quickly too. She frantically looked around to see if she could hide herself somewhere but of course it would be her luck to be trapped inside a hallway with almost no furniture whatsoever.
As he came closer, however, she frowned. She had never seen Sesshoumaru in red clothing, only in either white or black. Apparently the youkai wasn't one for bright colours. Still, she was absolutely sure she didn't want to face him yet so she quickly turned and looked out of a window.
She had almost taken a deep breath and praised her luck as he passed without acknowledging her, but then suddenly an arm came from out of nowhere and she was turned around.
Her heartbeat quickened again, but then she relaxed. This was not Sesshoumaru. Everything looked the same, but this guy didn't have his markings and his eyes were amber, not golden. Also his face had more rugged looks and she got the impression that he was younger.
He was looking at her with wide eyes, almost as if he had seen a ghost. "K-… Kikyou?" he finally stuttered.
Now it was her turn to give him a blank look. Kikyou? Did he know her sister? "Who are you?" she demanded.
He growled then. "Inuyasha, who else?"
So this was Sesshoumaru's younger brother. She found herself to be rather excited at the prospect of meeting someone in his family. But first she had to make something clear. "I am not Kikyou," she admitted. "I'm Kagome, her younger sister."
His eyes widened again. "You damn well look like each other," he blurted out.
"I know," she smiled brightly. "So, how do you know my sister?"
"What do you think wench?" he huffed. "Your damn sister is one of our worst enemies so I'd say I should know her."
Now he had done it. She could feel herself getting angry and unlike with his brother she wasn't too scared to say what was on her mind. Compared to Sesshoumaru he looked like a little puppy. "Excuse me!" she cried. "It's Kagome, you ass. You had better pay some respect to my sister!"
"God," he exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air a hopeless gesture. "Go and drown yourself for all I care. What is it with you people? First I almost get my head cut off because my dear brother decides to act as if everything and everyone insults him and then I get yelled at by some stupid elf. Well I've had it!"
And before she could tell him off or require after what happened between the two brothers – she was rather shocked at the violence they used towards each other – he was gone, like a whirlwind.
'Well,' she thought. 'So far about learning anything about his family… other than that they all have a short temper and act like complete jerks.'
She continued on her way, a little bit worried about encountering an angry Sesshoumaru. From what she had heard of his brother, it would be better to avoid him since she really had no death wish…
Boundary between Southern and Eastern lands
Night was slowly falling upon them and so Kouga ordered his men to stop and rest. They had managed to cover quite a distance during the day so he thought it would be safe. He didn't expect the elves to go after them anyway… it was not their style and they definitely had other things to worry about.
Despite the fact that they were almost within their own boundaries again, he still wasn't satisfied with how fast they moved. They had so many wounded soldiers, including himself, that some had to be carried. Others were limping. He himself had refused to be carried, although his best friends Ginta and Hakkaku had insisted upon it.
By now, he almost cursed his pride. His legs hurt like hell and several of his men noticed how he gave them a miserable look. He had always been known for his speed so right now he felt like a cripple.
"Kouga!"
His friend Ginta was the one to free him from his dark thoughts. He had sent him away with a few men to search the vicinity. He wanted to make sure they could rest here in peace. He really hoped that Ginta had found nothing; if they were attacked now it would be a disaster.
Ginta had found something, that much was clear, but it didn't seem to be something bad. As he came closer – they refused to let him move - he noticed how his eyes looked excited and how he was holding something in his hands.
Finally Ginta had worked his way through the groups of wolf youkai who were gathered around little fires. He fell to his knees and showed Kouga the contents of his hands.
Kouga's hands trembled a bit at first, but soon he had steadied them enough to take a better look at the two tiny pink objects. They looked like little bits of the Shikon Jewel. He didn't question how this was possible. He figured he would discover what happened eventually.
All that mattered now was that somehow, his men had managed to find a piece of the Shikon no Tama. He figured this must've been the reason for the look in Naraku's eyes. His mind was too tired to think about all that now. All he knew was that with the powers this Jewel possessed, even two tiny pieces could help. And he already had an idea to test this theory.
He lowered his gaze and he saw how his friend followed it. He seemed to understand what Kouga was about to do and he frowned. "Kouga, you'd better wait a bit. We don't know…"
"I'm tired of waiting," Kouga announced. And before Ginta could stop him, he had moved towards his legs. A little experiment wouldn't hurt, or so he thought.
What he didn't know however was how someone was watching him, miles away, towards the North. And that person didn't look too happy…
Sesshoumaru's castle, Western lands
It was getting dark outside and Kagome was sitting in her room… something which she had done all day, except when she paid the garden a little visit and had ran into Inuyasha. Other than that, she had made sure she would see no one. Dinner was brought to her room, like always since she stayed here.
It appeared that the wing in which she stayed was pretty quiet. She had no idea who occupied the rooms surrounding hers, but servants hardly came here. And so it happened that the sound of voices made her curious enough to stand up and make her way to the door to see who it was.
She opened the door on a small crack and her first instinct was to draw back again, because all she saw was Sesshoumaru. But he couldn't be talking to himself now, could he?
And that is when her heart almost stopped.
She watched in astonishment how the same little girl that had cheered her up twice already was clutching Sesshoumaru's leg and looking up at him with such a loving gaze that she just had to be dreaming.
This couldn't be true.
By now, she didn't want to hide in her room anymore. She seriously considered showing herself and save the girl because really… since when was Sesshoumaru kind to children? Especially humans!?
But then he surprised her even more. Her jaw dropped as he patted the child on her head, a rather gentle look in his eyes.
"Good night Sesshoumaru-sama!" the child squealed.
And to her astonishment, he nodded at the girl. The girl disappeared behind the door and she quickly shut the door before he would see her. She slowly slid down and sat on the ground, staring at the wall opposite from her.
She had to be dreaming…
Honestly.
Elven castle, Southern lands
Sango slowly made her way up the stairs, but for the first time, she was not cursing them. Her thoughts were on other things really. Like how Miroku suddenly seemed to be forgetting about groping women, instead showing a rather serious side of him. And how, despite the fact that he tried to cheer her up and assure her they would find Kagome, they still hadn't done just that. And how a little kitsune had been crying his eyes out all day because he was convinced that he had lost another mother, again.
Shippo had gone missing an hour ago and currently half the castle was looking for him, afraid he would set out on his own and try to save his mother. But Sango had an idea about where she could find him…
And her suspicions were confirmed as she opened the door to Kagome's room. The child was sitting on her bed with such a hopeless look, clutching a destroyed pillow to his chest - no doubt still smelling her on it - that it just broke her heart.
She spent the night comforting the child and assuring him all would be alright. Unfortunately, since no one knew they were up in that tower, they never knew there was news on Kagome until the next morning.
Sesshoumaru's castle, Western lands
It was very dark outside now, but it was still light enough to notice the dark clouds drifting across the sky. Kagome knew and sensed that bad weather was on its way, but she didn't care. She just had to get outside for a moment and that is how one could find her wandering trough the halls on her way to the garden.
She really was getting addicted to it now.
The only people she encountered were a few servants, finishing their last chores. She no longer shrank into the shadows and waited for them to pass. She had to get outside to think and fast.
As soon as she stepped outside and found her favourite bench, she noticed how deadly quiet it was around her. 'Quiet before the storm,' she mused. Almost nothing moved, no birds were heard nor seen. She was convinced that it would take only little time before a harsh wind began to blow and rain to fall. But until then, she would stay here.
Rin. The wealthy look and the rich clothes… it was all explained now. She couldn't be a slave then. Could it really be that Sesshoumaru had taken in a child, just as she had with Shippo? A child from a different race?
She smiled softly. She couldn't say she disliked this change in his behaviour. He could deny it all he wanted now, walk out on her and confuse her to no end, but now she knew she had changed him at least a bit. She didn't think he would've done this last year.
Definitely not.
In a way, her day spent in hiding had been productive too. She had decided she wouldn't be scared anymore. She hadn't been scared of him while he was their prisoner and she wouldn't be now. Instead, she had decided to at least get him to trust her and talk about his worries for once. She would let him see the truth.
Suddenly, a bright flash illuminated the little garden and soon afterwards the sky seemed to groan and growl like a dog. A thunderstorm. Her eyes saddened. She knew Shippou didn't like them… she just hoped the weather was somewhat better at whatever place he was hiding.
Deciding she better get going, she slowly stood and turned. It was very dark now and she couldn't see much, so she let out a little scream as another flash lightened the sky and showed that a woman was standing directly in front of her, her dark red eyes seeming to look right trough her.
A second later, everything was dark again. She was breathing hard now. Who was this woman? All she saw were those dark red eyes, the rest of her face hidden behind a fan.
Sudden an amused chuckle clang from behind her and Kagome turned quickly. A fan appeared out of nowhere and lifted her chin up to meet those eyes again, glinting in the dark.
"Well, well," the woman murmured. "This is a surprise really. I didn't expect to find you out in the open, still alive… girl."
"Who… who are you?" Kagome croaked, her throat suddenly dry.
Another flash showed the woman had a mischievous grin on her face. "I knew I was right after all… there is something going on here," she purred, completely ignoring her previous question. "Why else would you still be alive? Everyone already thinks you to be dead now…"
The fan moved to her cheek and her head was turned into different directions, the woman studying her intently. "Not too ugly," she murmured. "But I still don't know what he sees in you…"
Kagome was really confused now. She didn't understand what the woman was talking about, or who she was. All she knew was that this woman was a youkai and that she didn't trust her.
"But," the woman concluded. "You must mean at least something to Sesshoumaru… or else you wouldn't be alive right now…"
"You know him?" Kagome rushed, finally understanding at least a bit of what the woman was saying. Apparently, she thought she and Sesshoumaru were close or something.
"Know him girl?" the woman laughed. "Better than I'd wished to do… I assure you there is only one person on this earth who utters more death threats towards me than he does."
"He considers you an enemy then?" Kagome asked, her heart beating like mad.
"I have no idea," the woman grinned. "Honestly. He might have the looks, but not the personality. He's a block of ice and hardly says anything, so how am I supposed to know what he thinks?"
"He's not like that!" Kagome said before she could think.
"Mmm is he? I suppose he's not around you," Another bright flash and Kagome gulped as she noticed how close the woman was now. That same fan tapped against her chin lightly. "So tell me; what is the real Sesshoumaru like?" she asked with sarcasm in her voice.
But before Kagome could say anything, the woman was suddenly gone and she was staring at something white… or something which would be white during the day but was now a dull grey.
Sesshoumaru's back.
And indeed, the Western Lord stood before her now, blocking her view of the woman. But she wanted to know what happened to her and so she peeked from behind his back.
The woman was just in the process of picking herself up from the ground. She looked pissed now as she pointed her fan at Sesshoumaru. "Damn you!" she snarled. "Because you don't like a decent conversation doesn't mean no one else does either!"
"Intimidating and scaring innocent people is hardly what I would call 'a decent conversation'," Sesshoumaru replied with venom in his voice.
'They're definitely not the closest of friends,' Kagome concluded. She was curious as to why Sesshoumaru had suddenly turned up and who this woman was, but she had the feeling she wouldn't get an answer soon.
"Intimidating? What are you accusing me of?" the woman said in a mock voice.
"I could accuse you of anything," Sesshoumaru growled. "Now what do you want, Kagura?"
Another flash and thunder appeared again and this time it was as if the sky had just been split in two. The storm certainly seemed to get worse. Both youkai were facing each other now and Kagome couldn't see Sesshoumaru's face, but the woman's looked absolutely furious, her fangs clearly visible during the small span in which the sky was illuminated.
"I have a message for you," she spat at him. "And you'd better damn well listen to it because I don't like my time wasted."
Kagome blinked again as suddenly Sesshoumaru disappeared, only to reappear again a few feet away from her, holding the woman against the castle wall, slowly choking her.
"Sesshoumaru!" she exclaimed, shocked. The woman hadn't done anything to them yet, so what was he doing? But her voice was lost in the wind and even if they heard her, they still didn't pay attention to her.
"Well then I suppose you are wasting your time here because I am not going to listen to anything Naraku has to say," Sesshoumaru replied.
An incoherent gurgle was all the answer he got to that. But he didn't seem to mind. "And now Kagura, since you are so scared of wasting your time, you are going to tell me something. I remember you standing in this very same garden, telling me Naraku was after the Shikon no Tama and not only for its power… so if you want to live, I'd suggest you start telling me what you meant with that."
He lessened his grip on her a bit to let her talk, and talk she did. "Bastard," she spit at him. "You didn't have to fucking choke me to get that piece of information! And now let go!" she said, bringing her fan up in defence.
He backed away a bit, but he still eyed her with distrust. "Naraku," she continued. "Has deceived you all. He is far weaker than you might think, because he is not of pure blood." As Sesshoumaru's eyes widened and Kagome only looked questioningly, she added. "He's a hanyou."
"Impossible," Kagome whispered.
Once again, Kagura found herself against the wall. "It can't be," Sesshoumaru's eyes seemed to be aflame. "I would've noticed."
"Oh he has his ways of covering it up," Kagura said bitterly. "You'd only noticed if you paid close attention to it."
"Damn," Sesshoumaru swore suddenly. "A few days ago… I felt it… but I didn't realize what it was…"
"Ah," Kagura grinned, looking at Kagome. "When you were defending your-…"
The rest of her words came out in a hiss as he added pressure with his hand. But Kagome had heard…
"As he did what?" she inquired, looking suspiciously at both of them. Then she noticed how Kagura really seemed to be in trouble now, her hands clawing away at Sesshoumaru's hand as she had accidentally let her fan fall earlier.
"Sesshoumaru!" she cried, running towards them. "You'll kill her if you don't stop." She tried to pry his hand of the woman with her tiny ones, but it was only because he let go that Kagura was able to breathe again, not because she managed to make him stop with her strength… which was hardly worth anything.
The woman fell to the ground again, her hair now completely disordered and her throat bruised. "You bastard!" she fumed at an unfazed Sesshoumaru. "That girl," she pointed with a shaky finger at Kagome. "Is much more than you will ever deserve!"
Kagome watched in fascination how the youkai pulled a feather out of her hair and turned it into a large one, jumping on it and quickly ascending into the air. But Kagura wasn't done yet.
"And I will never understand," she called at Kagome. "How you can stand to be in a relationship with him, but I hope you are happy!"
And then she was gone.
Leaving a very red faced Kagome and a positively enraged Sesshoumaru behind. But people weren't done with screaming at her yet, Kagome soon became to realize as Sesshoumaru now turned on her. Not that he screamed, but if he had been anyone else, he would've done just that.
"Next time," he said, towering over her. "You will stay inside your room after the sun goes down and you will not meddle again with what only concerns me."
"How can you possibly expect me to just stand by and watch how you kill her?" she countered.
"That woman has already killed enough people, no one would care if she would be gone. But if it satisfies you, I wasn't planning on killing her just yet."
"Oh yes," she said, tears forming in her eyes. "I forgot... how could I? Sesshoumaru the mass murderer!"
"Watch your tongue," he sneered.
"No, I won't do it any longer!" she stated. "You said it yourself! And now we're at it, I think I can join the party."
He frowned then. "What do you mean?"
"Oh well, don't you think I am a murderer too then?" she asked in a sweet voice.
"You," he chuckled. "You can't even hurt a fly."
"Ah so you forgot already," she whispered. "You don't remember, do you? Those two youkai that were after Shippou? I killed them! So, wouldn't I be a murderer then?"
"That was self defence."
"But the only thing that matters is that I killed!" she cried out. "And just like I'm not evil because of that, you aren't either! So if you ever object to me trusting you again, I'll … I'll… I don't know what I'll do…"
"You're hopeless," he sighed and to her anger, he turned, fully intend on walking away again.
"See, there you go again! Walking away! How am I ever going to understand how that brain of yours works when you walk out on me?" she couldn't help it, she was crying again. "Or what you think of me…" she added in a low whisper.
She failed to notice how he had stopped once he heard that, instead, she was looking down at her hands, watching how her tears fell. "One minute you break my arm or bruise it, then you are rescuing me from some spy or… or…" she swallowed. "Why did you do that when you left? Why?" God did she feel like a stupid little child now, but she couldn't stop.
Another flash lit up the area and she was shocked to find Sesshoumaru directly in front of her. But before she could do anything, he had bent down and claimed her lips. He was kissing her rather hard and it didn't last long, but it was enough to make her legs go all weak. And then he pressed his cheek against hers and whispered his answer to her.
"I don't know."
And for the second time he left her outside, in the cold and crying.
Elven castle, Southern lands
Kikyou was raised from her troubled sleep – in fact, she had been having a nightmare in which Kagome died - by a loud banging on her door.
Five minutes later, she found herself in what had once been a throne room, thunder and lighting outside, looking down on a youkai with dark hair and pitch black eyes, soaked to the bone from the rain.
A messenger… but from whom?
He extended a letter towards her, miraculously the only thing that hadn't been soaked. She opened it and quickly read the contents, her heart fluttering with joy and anxiety at the same time.
She paced around the youkai, answering his challenging gaze with one of her own. "How," she inquired. "Does your master know that we have this castle in our hands again!"
The youkai shrugged, a lazy, boyish grin on his handsome face. "He doesn't… he just gave me orders to find you, whatever it took to find you and give you this message…" he eyed the stormy sky outside with an angry look. "I must say, that weather made me expect the worse. But then I come here and what a surprise… everyone is gone and the elves are ruling again… but at least that made it quite easy for me."
"Yeah well I suppose it does," Kikyou muttered, her thoughts already on the letter again.
It appeared that Sesshoumaru was the one who had her sister… and he was inviting her to a meeting with him… at his castle. But there was no doubt in her mind as to what she would do. He did have her sister after all.
Even if it was a stupid trap, she would go.
Argggh I can't believe how much bad luck I have! I finished this chapter within two days and then I send it to my beta and… guess what? My email isn't sending anything and hers isn't receiving anything… but here we are, more than a month later and finally, here is chapter 19… I hope you enjoyed reading :P And as usually, thank you all for reviewing!
MorbidGal22: The romance will come, don't worry… and you know how he reacted in this chapter :P
Lady Lydia: Yep, it's Naraku… pretty obvious really :P But killing his father is not the only thing he did… but now I'm saying too much… anyway, Shippou is still with the elves, but there will be more of him and Rin in the next chapter.
Slayergrl001: Wow, sounds like I would want to trade with you… So, what language do you want me to speak:P I know Dutch, German, French, English, Latin and Greek and from a whole bunch of other language enough to survive while I am staying there … or enough to read some of it with the knowledge I have from other languages :P Sounds like you saw a lot of the world :P Istanbul huh? My best friend is from Turkey :D And I know people in Tunesia too… Funny… I'm Dutch by the way… if you wondered hehe :D
Zeppelinsgirlalways: Yes, right now there's more fluff in order… I know :D Led Zeppelin? Not really, sorry :P
Amin Vanima Mellonea: Don't worry, you weren't the last to review… Funny poem! I'll admit I'm not that good at those… it's alright in my own language but English…nah… hey, what would you say if I put your little poem at the top of this chapter:P with your name beneath it of course… god my friends would laugh their heads off if I ever proclaimed I wrote a poem… hehe…
RedButterfly-1216: Oh yes, A killing perfection… that site is still down isn't it? I didn't have the time to read much on that site, sorry… do you have your story on other sites too? And a Single Spark yes… the story is still on that one too..
Ele: Genau, wieviele Cliffhanger kann man einbauen… Ich weiss… Es ist nur, ich finde es immer so unglaublich lustig wie manchen Leute darüber herfallen oder frustriert werden... Und ich kann dir versichern, einige waren ziemlich frustriert... es währe eine Idee mit den ersten Kapiteln anzufangen, aber mach dir kein Stress, soweit ich weiss hab' ich keine Eile :P es ist nicht schlimm wenn du mal keine Zeit hast oder so... du weisst ja mittlerweile schon wie ungehauer langsam ich sein kann :D befor ich es vergesse, eine email adresse wäre schon eine idee. Wenn du urgendetwas fertig hast, egal was, kannst du's hierhin schicken: I don't know yet when they are going to confess their feelings… but I don't intend to wait long with that :P
Churry: I'd say there wasn't too much of Naraku in this chapter and the last one… mmm… I guess there will be more later… and he's going to be evil.
Sakura Blossom-Cilla-85: Oh yes, Naraku is going to die… but I'm not gonna tell who's going to do it yet…
Shezel: Uhm… I don't know where you can't find the Inuyasha category? Sorry, maybe I'm just acting like a stupid blonde again but I didn't really get your question…sorry :P Glad you found the story again ;)
Liberatedmysterygirl: Wow… you're just like me… if I read something and I can't stop I'll read day and night…
Sessoumaru-Sama's Girl: Yep… who else would it be? grins
Dah: Yeah, did you notice how a lot of things are almost similar to the original, but just a bit different? Like, Shippou's parents are killed and he's being chased, but Kagome's kills the Thunder Brothers and not Inuyasha… or the Shikon no Tama is still shattered, but not at the beginning… or Sesshoumaru who gets captured… normally it's always the other way round… I was getting sick of that :P yeah I think it's funny to remodel the story again… the ending is going to be a tiny bit different too… but I'm not saying anything…
Snowball & her identical twin: hehe… I don't think I have to write a death scene anymore…
TiA aRiEl: Oh well it's not really a 'secret' garden… but who cares :P