NOTE: USE OF DERAGATORY LANGUAGE I WOULD NEVER USE AND ATTEMPTED NON-CON THAT DOESN'T ACTUALLY HAPPEN.
WRITTEN FOR INUVEMBER 2K15
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Kikyo already wasn't having a good day to begin with.
With the entire fiasco earlier in which soldiers of Judge Naraku Onigumo tried to take her and Inuyasha's hard-earned money, and that female soldier giving it all back, Kikyo was hoping to be able to relax before the festival. Being grabbed by said-judge was not part of her plan.
"What do you want?" Kikyo growled, fruitlessly trying to escape his grip. Why on earth was his grip so tight? Though his eyes were a strange red color, that stop him from being completely human! She had escaped from Inuyasha's grip multiple times, so what made Naraku's hard to escape?
Unless… Kikyo's train of thought disappeared when Naraku leaned over to hiss into her ear, and she suppressed a shudder.
"I want you to tell me where the Court of Miracles is," Naraku growled. "Tell me, and I might let you live."
"If you honestly think I'd tell you where my home is, then you're more of a fool than I thought," Kikyo snarled.
Naraku just let out a laugh that sounded more like a growl. "I am a patient man, and gypsies don't do well when imprisoned, do they?" He turned his head into her hair, and when he took a great breath as he sniffed her hair, her heart turned cold.
"What are you doing?" she asked lowly, her free hand slowly curling into a fist.
"Just imagining a rope tied around that beautiful neck." He raised his hand to stroke her neck, and Kikyo took that opportunity to jab her elbow hard into his gut and turn, wrenching her arm away from his grasp.
"I know what you were imagining." Kikyo ignored the obvious lust in his eyes, instead glaring up at Naraku, her heart filled with disgust.
"Such a clever witch," Naraku hissed towards her. "So typical of your kind, to twist the truth to cloud the mind with unholy thoughts."
Before Kikyo could retort angrily at the blatant racism in what he had said, she was suddenly swept under her feet. All she could see was a blur of white and Naraku's angry red eyes and equally angered glaring gold eyes before they were launched off the ground. She quickly wrapped her arms around his neck, and winced when a gruff voice nearly yelled,
"What the ever living fuck were you thinking?!"
###
"You are the most irresponsible, idiotic, stupidest woman I have ever met—!"
"That's ironic, since it's coming from you."
"Kikyo," Inuyasha growled. "I am not in the mood for your smartass comments. I want to know what the fuck you were doing with Naraku!"
"I was grabbed by him, it wasn't like I wanted to be around him—" Kikyo protested.
"Yeah, no kidding," Inuyasha scoffed. "I leave you alone for five minutes…"
Kikyo frowned at the half-demon, and opened her mouth to retort angrily, but then Inuyasha collapsed onto the bench inside of their tent, burying his face into his hands. His red bandana slipped, showing the puppy dog ears that were his most distinct features inherited from his demon father.
"Naraku is ruthless, Kikyo - you know what he did to my father." His voice cracked, and he rubbed his face tiredly, looking up at her with barely-concealed worry. "I don't like that he's taken an interest in you. I can't afford to lose you. You're all I have."
Kikyo's heart melted, and she blamed purely the dog ears being shown - normally, if it was just the puppy-dog eyes, she could resist. But add the ears that he kept hidden most of the time, and she was lost. Damn him and damn his lost puppy dog look.
Kikyo sat right next to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "You know I'm not going anywhere. Naraku won't get his hands on me - you won't allow that, and I won't allow that." She kissed his forehead. "You're all I have, too."
Inuyasha grumbled and playfully pushed her aside, rubbing his forehead, as if Kikyo was his annoying older sister and had cooties.
Now that Kikyo thought about, she sort of really was his annoying older sister.
"Hello hello, everyone decent in there?" Miroku poked his head through the gap, and smiled charmingly even when Inuyasha turned to glare at him. "You guys gotta get dressed! The Feast of Fools is about to begin, and you two have that big dance!"
"We'll start to get ready soon, Miroku." Kikyo nudged Inuyasha, who just groaned at the idea of having to do the Feast at all.
"I don't know what you're complaining about, Inuyasha! You're an incredible dancer—"
"Shaddup, perv!" Inuyasha threw a gold armband at Miroku, and Kikyo laughed.
###
On top of Notre Dame, a large half-demon covered himself in a large cloak. Large blue eyes shone underneath it as he looked around, hesitating.
"Remember what I've taught you, Jinenji." Naraku, his red eyes so cold, put his hands on Jinenji's arms. "The world is cruel, the world is wicked…it is I alone who you can trust in this whole city."
Even so, Jinenji wanted to see. For all of his life, he had watched from afar what would happen in the city. For just once, he wanted to be there himself. The tower was so cold and lonely, and the only person he ever talked to was Naraku - Naraku told him that talking to his imaginary friends didn't count. Just once, he wanted to enjoy the Feast of Fools.
His mind made up, he began to jump down in the shadows of the cathedral, still hiding from view as the music played and the crowd sang behind him.
"Come one, come all! Leave your loops and milking stools, coop the hens and pen the mules!" the crowd sang merrily as they walked around the festival. Jinenji grabbed onto a rope to watch from a pole, but it unraveled and made him swing in front of the main crowd singing. "Come one, come all! Close the churches and the schools, it's the day for breaking rules, come and join the Feast…of…"
"Fools!" Miroku, the one in charge of the festival every year sang loudly on his knees, jumping to his feet in front of Jinenji. He grabbed Jinenji's arm and began to skip with him in a circle. "Once a year we throw a party here in town! Once a year we turn all Paris upside down! Ev'ry man's a king and ev'ry king's a clown; once again it's Topsy Turvy Day!"
Jinenji could only take what was happening in stride. Miroku seemed to be everywhere at once, singing and making kids laugh, and always seemed to pull Jinenji into a dance. Also dogs were making the humans walk? He knew that the Feast of Fools was weird on purpose, but it never looked this weird from the top of Notre Dame!
"It's the day the devil in us gets released! It's the day we mock the prig and shock the priest!" Miroku had a puppet Naraku hit Jinenji in the head several times, which the half-demon did not enjoy. "Ev'rything is topsy turvy at the Feast of Fools!"
"Topsy turvy!" the crowd chanted.
"Ev'rything is upsy daysy!" Miroku laughed from on top of a booth. No, seriously, Jinenji wondered with confusion. How on earth did he get up there?
"Topsy turvy!"
"Ev'ryone is acting crazy!" Of course they were, it was the Feast of Fools! Jinenji was seriously lost in what was going on. "Dross is gold and weeds are a bouquet - That's the way on Topsy Turvy Day!"
Jinenji tripped over a cobblestone in the street, making him tumble right into a tent and probably destroying quite a few things in it.
"Oi! What the fu—"
"Are you okay?"
Jinenji quickly hid his face in his hood, scrambling backwards. "I'm sorry, I won't do it again!"
"Are you hurt?" It was a woman in a robe trying to get him to look at her, but a man with no shirt on who pulled his hood back. They were a strange pair - the woman with pin-straight, silky black hair and pale skin, and the man with far darker skin and messy white hair. They didn't seem to have anything in common other than their one hoop earring - the woman had hers in the left ear, while his seemed to be in a hole through his bandana, so the hoop was slightly poking out.
"Seems to be fine to me," the man said, looking at him with a raised eyebrow. His eyebrows were black but his hair was white? What was going on?
"I-I am!" Jinenji stood up and began to usher himself out.
"Just be more a little more careful!" the woman told him gently, opening the flap of the tent for him.
"I will," Jinenji assured her, pulling up his hood again, hiding his face.
"Nice mask," the man called. And with that, Jinenji backed up slowly - right into a horse. He immediately cowered, but then a voice said gently, "Hey, don't hide! Achilles is friendly."
Jinenji looked up, his eyes immediately drawn to the woman wearing bright gold armor. Some of her dark hair escaped from her helmet, but her bright grey eyes and her smile was far more radiant than the armor she was wearing.
Jinenji said nothing, only pulled harder onto his hood and rushed away.
"Topsy Turvy!"
"Beat the drums and blow the trumpets!" Miroku pretended to play into a trumpet for a while as the crowd chanted:
"Topsy Turvy!"
"Join the bums and thieves and strumpets! Streaming in from Chartres to Calais." Miroku began to follow the dark carriage in which held Naraku began to pass by, the bells on his outfit jingling. "Scurvy knaves are extra scurvy, On the sixth of Januervy! All because it's Topsy Turvy Day!"
Naraku was let out of his carriage, taking his place on his chair, disinterested. He hated the Feast of Fools enough as it was, he didn't need to pretend he did on top of all that. His new Captain of the Guard, a young woman by the name of Kagome, spread out the guards to keep watch. Naraku had warned her of the dangers of a peasant festival, but…
"Come one, come all! Hurry, hurry, here's your chance! See the myst'ry and romance," Miroku nudged Naraku with no fear, knowing he couldn't do anything about this festival. He jumped away, missing how Naraku cleaned himself off from any confetti that had landed on him.
"Come one, come all!" Miroku grabbed Jinenji's arm and pulled him closer to the stage, then let him go to jump onto it. "See the finest pair in France, make an entrance to entrance! Dance Kikyo an' Inuyaaaaaaasha!"
He threw down some powder, and when it cleared up it was the pair from before - Kikyo, now wearing a bright red dress and a gold crown, and Inuyasha, with no shirt at all and only wearing matching red pants with a white see-through wrap around his waist, still wearing his bandana. Inuyasha hit on the tambourine lightly as Kikyo began to dance, jumping around and moving as if he was made of water. Kikyo used her looks to bring in the crowd, twirling on one foot to match Inuyasha's dancing, pulling out a see-through handkerchief to dance with.
Naraku, who had leaned forward in his chair at seeing her coy look, settled back against his chair. "Look at the disgusting display."
Kagome, who had eyes only for Inuyasha, leaned forwards on Achilles and lifted her helmet to see better. Her only reply was, "Yes, sir!"
Kikyo began to leap towards Naraku's chair, sliding onto it easily and wrapping the handkerchief around his neck to pull him close. Though her lips were in a coy smile, her eyes showed all the hatred in her eyes as she went to kiss him only to push his judge's hat over his face and jumping back towards Inuyasha, backflipping to land in a split.
Inuyasha grabbed a spear from a nearby guard, and moved it around his body skillfully before tossing it to Kikyo, who caught it easily. She began to run, stabbing it into the ground and twirling around it, finally stopping to nod at the audience and letting Inuyasha leap to the top of the spear.
At Kikyo's nod, people began to throw coins onto the stage, including Kagome. Inuyasha leaped off the top of the spear and Kikyo got off to stand next to Miroku, and he tossed it back to the guard he had taken it from. He didn't even bother hiding his smirk when the guard was nailed in the head with the bottom part of it.
"And now, ladies and gentlemen, piece de resistance!" Miroku announced while Jinenji clapped silently for what was truly a great dance.
"Here it is, the moment you've been waiting for! Here it is, you know exactly what's in store!" People began to nudge each other around Jinenji, and Jinenji looked around in confusion. What was about to happen? He could never really hear that well from the top of Notre Dame.
"Now's the time we laugh until our sides get sore! Now's the time we crown the King of Fools! You all remember last year's King?" Miroku gestured towards the man in a makeshift throne, who belched loudly as if to say hello.
"So make a face that's horrible and frightening! Make a face as gruesome as a gargoyle's wing, for the face that's ugliest will be the King of Fools! Why?" Miroku put a hand to his ear to hear the crowd's response.
"Topsy turvy!"
."Ugly folk, forget your shyness!"
Inuyasha offered a hand towards Jinenji with his lips tugging upwards into a smile, and without thinking of the possibility of Naraku being able to see him, he accepted it, letting him pull him onto the stage. Inuyasha pat his back as he followed Kikyo to the start of the line of men in costumes.
"Topsy turvy!"
"You could soon be called Your Highness!" Miroku gripped Jinenji's face - how he got up there, he would never know - before jumping back down to pump up the crowd.
"Put your foulest features on display, be the king of Topsy Turvy Day!" the crowd sung along with Miroku, who went to stand next to Kikyo. One by one, Kikyo pulled off the masks of every men up in the stage, and when the crowd booed they were pushed into the mud by Inuyasha. Jinenji realized too late what this was about when they reached him and Kikyo reached up to pull off his mask - only to realize it to be his face. Inuyasha stared at him in shock while she gasped.
"That's no mask!" one man in the crowd yelled out in shock.
"That's his face!" A woman clutched to the man next to her in fear.
"He's hideous!"
"It's the bellringer from Notre Dame!"
People began to murmur unhappily as Naraku straightened up in his chair when he realized who exactly is on the stage. Jinenji looked around and all he could see were the disgusted faces, all looking up at him, all considering him to be too ugly…he buried his face in his hands, devastated. I should've never come to the festival!
Miroku looked around and jumped in front of Jinenji, his hands up in a soothing manner. "Ladies and gentlemen, don't be afraid! We asked for the ugliest face in Paris, and here he is!" The crowd looked around at each other and slowly began to nod, feeling the festivity return to them. Miroku pulled out a crown and placed it on Jinenji's bowed head. "Jinenji, the half-demon of Notre Dame!"
The crowd rushed towards Jinenji, all going on top of him to put him into the throne where the old guy used to be, while Miroku began to lead the people carrying Jinenji's throne while shouting, "Ev'rybody!"
"Once a year we throw a party here in town!" the crowd sang in a loud voice as they trailed behind the crusade.
"Hail to the king!" Miroku grabbed the wooden "leg" of one of the people to walk around to be tall, ignoring how they struggled to stay up.
"Once a year we turn all Paris upside down!"
"Oh, what a king!" Miroku winked the crowd.
"Once a year, the ugliest will wear a crown!"
"Girls, give a kiss!" Two girls on top of a balcony kissed Jinenji's cheek, and it was then when Jinenji met Naraku's eye. He only waved shyly, while Naraku rose an eyebrow as he tapped his fingers on his arm.
"Once a year on Topsy Turvy Day!"
"We've never had a king like this!" Miroku wrapped a mock king's cape around Jinenji's throat, and kindly offered him the specter. Jinenji accepted it with tears beginning to fall from his eyes. This…this was all he ever wanted.
"And it's the day we do the things that we deplore on the other three hundred and sixty-four! Once a year we love to drop in where the beer is never stoppin'!" The crowd began to circle around the platform Miroku and Jinenji were on, while Miroku gently pushed Jinenji to the center. "For the chance to pop some popinjay, and pick a king who'll put the 'top' in Topsy Turvy Day! Mad and crazy, upsy-daisy, Topsy Turvy Day!"
Jinenji actually smiled at the crowd, and for once in his life felt accepted, felt like he could actually belong to this world that Naraku had called cruel so many times…
And that was when the first tomato hit.
The crowd went silent, before all of the sudden more produce began to hit him. The crowd quickly began to join in, and Jinenji cowered, desperately trying to escape the sting of the produce. He turned around to run away, but a rope was wrapped around his neck and legs, and as he tried to escape those more wrapped themselves around him. This time, strength was beaten by numbers, and he got tied down onto the rotating platform and began to spin. Struggling, he made eye-contact with Naraku.
"Master! Master, please! Help me!" Jinenji cried desperately, and his eyes widened in sorrow at seeing Naraku pointedly look away, his long fingers intertwined.
Kagome, with a look of disbelieved shock, turned to look at Naraku. "Sir, I request permission to stop this completely unnecessary cruelty."
Naraku held up a hand. "Wait for a few moments longer, Captain. A lesson needs to be learned."
Kagome's eyes hardened, and her hands on Achilles's reins tightened. She turned back to look at Jinenji and prepared herself to jump off the horse to go help him, when she stopped.
Someone was already approaching him. More appropriately, two people - Kikyo, wearing a simple red skirt with a black wrap tied around her waist, a silver corset and a simple white blouse, who was unwrapping her wrap to clean up Jinenji's face. And behind her was Inuyasha, still wearing his red pants and red bandana, only now he was also wearing a white shirt with a deep V-neck and a thick black cloth belt around his waist, who was glaring at the entire crowd. His golden eyes seemed to dare them to throw another produce.
Jinenji flinched away from Kikyo's wrap, and she sighed. "I'm sorry. This wasn't supposed to happen."
Inuyasha crouched down next to him on his other side. "Are you hurt? Are these ropes cuttin' ya?"
Before Jinenji could say a word, Naraku stood up to his feet, furious. "Gypsies! Get off of there at once!"
"Yes, your honor," Kikyo said with a voice so sweet that Inuyasha visibly shuddered. He knew what that tone meant. "Just as soon as we free this poor creature."
"I will not allow you to do it! The half-breed needs to learn his lesson!" Naraku yelled.
Both Inuyasha and Kikyo's eyes narrowed, and Kikyo turned her head slightly to nod at Inuyasha. Without hesitating, Inuyasha pulled out a knife from his belt and cut away at the ropes, releasing Jinenji.
"How dare you—" Naraku growled, his fingers clutching at the arms of his chair.
"You mistreat this poor boy the same way you mistreat our people and my kind!" Inuyasha shouted, standing to his full height next to Kikyo. "You speak of justice, yet you're cruel to those most in need of your help!"
Naraku tore his gaze away from Kikyo to glare at Inuyasha. "Silence!"
"Justice!" both Kikyo and Inuyasha yelled, with Inuyasha pumping his fist into the air.
"You will pay for this insolence, gypsies." Naraku pointed a shaky finger towards them.
Both Inuyasha and Kikyo raised an eyebrow and exchanged glances at each other. "Say, Inuyasha, don't you believe we've crowned the wrong fool?" Kikyo said casually, putting a hand on her hip.
"Keh, you know it. Especially since the only fool I see is him!" Inuyasha snatched the crown from Jinenji's head and threw it at Naraku, nailing him in the face. Naraku furiously threw the crown to the ground.
"Captain Kagome! Arrest them!" Kagome, with an unpleased grimace, snapped her fingers at the guards to surround the stage.
"Now let's see…" Kikyo put a hand on her hip and began to count the heads she saw. "How many do you count, Inuyasha? I see seven."
"Nah, there's ten." Inuyasha put his knife back into his belt, an eyebrow raised.
"So there's ten of you, and two of us?" Kikyo began to pull a handkerchief out of her blouse. "What's a poor girl to do?" She began to cry, and then sneezed into it, causing a puff of smoke. When it cleared, both of them were gone.
Naraku's eyes widened and he leaned back. "Witchcraft!"
"Yo, bastards! Over here!" On top of one of the tables, Inuyasha and Kikyo had their backs leaning together, with Inuyasha throwing an apple into the air. He immediately threw it at one of the guards and grabbed Kikyo's hand, running off with her to evade the guards. Kikyo jumped up towards two guards, grabbing their helmets and crashing them against each other. She pulled one helmet off and tossed it towards Inuyasha.
Inuyasha grabbed it easily while he was running and through it like a frisbee, watching in amusement as it knocked out three guards and nearly Kagome, who merely ducked. The helmet imbedded itself in the pole behind her, but she only straightened up with a dreamy look on her face.
"What a man!" she sighed, absentmindedly making Achilles go closer to them.
Kikyo and Inuyasha exchanged looks, before Inuyasha offered a hand. Kikyo began to run towards it, using Inuyasha's hand as leverage to jump and land on the roof of the stage. Inuyasha quickly followed, and with both of them making direct eye contact with Naraku, Inuyasha pulled up the cover on the roof and twisted it around them, slowly disappearing.
When Miroku pulled the cover away, they were gone.
Naraku turned his glare to Jinenji, still on the platform. He got onto his horse, slowly approaching the half-demon still cowering, trying to hide from view.
"I'm sorry, Master. I'll never disobey you again…" Jinenji whispered, looking down at his arms filled with scars. Kagome bit her lip, staring at him in worry.
"You better not." Naraku pointed to the cathedral. Jinenji nodded, slowly getting off of the platform. His clothes were torn from trying to escape the rope, and as he looked around all he saw were terrified humans and demons, staring at him as if he were some sort of monster…
The rain began to pour down on him, and he quickly rushed towards the cathedral, opening the door with too much force. Heaving against the door on the other side, tears soon began mixed with the raindrops on his face as Jinenji closed the door on his one chance to freedom.
###
"Kikyo, listen to me—"
"Your idea is idiotic!"
"My idea is reasonable!" Inuyasha shot back, looking around. They were hiding in an alley, but he knew they couldn't stay like that forever. "You know as well as I do that if Naraku gets his hands on you, that's the end of the line for everything you are. Go to the Court of Miracles. I'll stay behind to lead him off your trail."
"Inuyasha—!" Kikyo protested. "Didn't we just talk about how we're the last thing the other has? What happens if he catches you?"
"Keh, he won't," Inuyasha scoffed. "He's more angry with you than he is with me - I'll lead him around in circles and then I'll go back to the Court."
Kikyo looked ready to continue arguing, but when she heard Naraku's angry yelling at his Captain to find them in one piece, she bit her lip harshly.
"If you die on me I won't forgive you," Kikyo finally said, covering herself with a cloak and pulling up the hood. "Be careful, Inuyasha."
"Feh. I always am. Now get out!" Inuyasha pulled on his own hood, looking around to make sure that the cost was clear. Making sure that Kikyo was following with the plan, he hunched over dramatically and pulled up his pant legs, so that the only things people would see when they looked at him was a hunched, barefoot old man.
Wobbling forward to sell the look, Inuyasha's gold eyes shone underneath the black cloak as he avoided the guards. He ignored the rain pouring down on him as he entered his temporary sanctuary - Notre Dame.
He didn't notice a Captain's gaze on him.