The Villages Secrete

Chapter 1: No more "what could happen's"

Sango the Taijiya stood on the edge of a large cliff that hung over a vast distance of cool clear water. Waves crashed against sharp jagged rocks that stuck up from the white puffy fluffs of foam. Giant trees with there autumn colored leaves surround Sango from the back. The leaves of gold, red, and brown flew away from their homes of thick branches and plummeted to the ground or fluttered their way to the restless water. Big black birds circled overhead waiting for a chance to dive to the water and rip out their evening meal of a nice fat glistening fish. A soft breeze blew kicking up crunchy leaves from the ground and swaying the long still meadow green grass and the little purple flowers below Sango's feet.

The wind caught her hair and pulled it forward in it's grasp so she could smell the essence of her long locks. The swaying grass and flowers tickled her calves and the backs of her knees right through her green knitted skirt. The waves crashed again at the cliff spraying Sango with a light mist of cold and wetness, making her shiver slightly though it did not make her move. If anything it made her want to stay. The look of this place, the feel of this place, even the smell of this place was amazingly peaceful. Unfortunately, Sango hadn't had much peace in her life for a while now. At the moment, though, everything was hushed.

There was a small "mew" from below her and Sango tore her gaze from the view to her feet. There stood her small little cat-demon Kirara, staring up at her with big cute red eyes. Smiling, Sango leaned down to lift the small kitty off her feet and to her shoulder where the cat sat down contently. Though in spite of being in her favorite spot, Kirara "mew"ed softly in her mistresses ear to get her attention again. Looking down at her little kitten, Sango cast her a questioning look. Kirara turned her head to behind them in response.

Turning slowly, Sango then looked off into the distance toward the trees that had been facing her back that now had her undivided attention. Kagome the futuristic priestess stood just beyond the tree line with a wistful smile on her face. She stepped forward, her short green skirt swaying in the breeze. The future priestess finally made her way fully to the taijiya and stood silently watching out toward the horizon. Blinking her brown eyes, she then turned her wistful look to the older girl that stood beside her.

"This is beautiful," Kagome whispered to her as if trying not to ruin the rhythm of all nature's sounds going on around the three.

The Taijiya nodded in response. It was beautiful. The atmosphere shading around them was just so calming and peaceful. If every place were this amazing then everything might not be so dense and overwhelming as it seemed to always be now-a days. But right now the two girls were utterly immune to the horrible thoughts of the past few months they had spent together. Until a soul sucking battle cry erupted from the forest behind them.

Damn

A humongous caterpillar demon burst through the trees, showering the two girls with splinters of bark and dried leaves. Sango studied the demon for a moment. It looked a little different than most caterpillar demons. The blood red eyes and green and yellow patterns that ran down its back were all normal but it seemed to have a few extra suction-cup feet. She wasted no time moving protectively in front of the young priestess as the bug inched nearer. It hadn't seemed to notice them yet, a good thing because Sango had not brought along her weapons to such a serene place. InuYasha the half demon and Miroku the holy monk came only seconds later with a little Shippo the fox demon on their tail.

InuYasha, with his trustworthy weapon Tetsusaiga drawn, slashed furiously at the caterpillar's eye's trying to blind the creature to make a quick takedown.

"InuYasha!" Kagome cried out from behind the slayer as soon as she spotted the half-ling.

"Shush!" Sango angrily hissed. The demon hadn't noticed them yet and she was weaponless for the moment. There was no need for the girl to make reason for the demon to attack. They always go for the weak ones first, and right now they were the weakest. It seemed that InuYasha had her Hirokutsu weapon strapped to his back. At the moment it was useless to try and ask him for it. He would only get hurt if he got distracted now and would also earn her a good scolding for interrupting during his attack.

Unfortunately, InuYasha and the caterpillar heard Kagome's shrill call to the young half demon. InuYasha turned his head toward the cries source and the demon swung it's back end around, knocking him sideways and into a pile of fallen trees that were tossed aside when the demon had demanded it's way through the forest. The caterpillar raced forward toward the two stunned girls.

"A shard," Kagome whispered. "It has a shard of the Shikon jewel in its eye."

Great, now she whispers. Wait what was that? A shard of the Shikon jewel? If it has one it must want more. Kagome! It's after her!

"Kirara, take Kagome away from here now!" Sango shouted. Her pet quickly complied, turning into her larger more elaborate form, she plucked Kagome from the ground with her teeth as if she were nothing but a infant and flew into the blue cloudless skies above. Making a point that no one was getting Kagome without a fight. She looked around. Miroku was now running off in the direction Kirara and Kagome were flying off in with little Shippo on his shoulder. Good, now the only one to worry about was InuYasha who had yet to peal himself from the fallen logs and trees. All of a sudden something grasped her calves and ripped her upward. She bumped her head on the ground as her feet were pulled right out from under her. Little dots swirled her vision for a moment, then a sharp stabbing pain went through her legs and to the top of her head. She looked up. The demon was holding her in it's thousands of thin razor sharp teeth, had her dangling helpless by her own body. It's huge blood red eyes stared at her. She was done for.

Wait! Kagome said there was a shard of the Shikon in one of the creature's eyes. Well Sango wasn't completely weaponless, she still had her fists. She grabbed hold of one of the teeth encasing her legs and pulled herself up as far as she could. Gods it hurt, hurt like hell! But she had to do it. She had to reach that eye.

Once close enough Sango pulled her hand back and straightened all her fingers so that her nails pointed forward. Then, she swung her hand forward and in one swift motion plunged her hand deep into the demons eye. Now, the once blood red eye was really covered with dripping warm blood. Since the caterpillar didn't have eyelids it couldn't blink away the awful irritation that Sango had created. Her fingers touched something small and hard; she put her hand around it and ripped her clenched fist from the inners of the eye. The demon roared out in pain and agony as soon as Sango ripped the only thing keeping it alive from were it was placed, though it still wouldn't remove it's sharp pearls from her legs. It swung its head from side to side and Sango felt herself start to slide inward closer to the demons teeth. Now instead of holding her calves the caterpillar's teeth carved into her thighs. Finally, Sango aloud herself to moan out in pain. The demon was dieing, it wasn't going to live long enough to tell how he had made a Taijiya cry out in suffering.

The demon caterpillar let out one less yell of distress as it slowly turned to dust starting at the back end and up to its head. Only then was Sango released. Gravity over took and the Taijiya fell from her high footage above the ground. Oh! Here comes more pain! Sango thought and closed her eyes ready for impact. But she landed on something that made an "oomph" and wasn't as hard as the rocky ground below. She opened her eyes and looked up into the bright golden orbs of InuYasha's eyes. Somehow he'd run fast enough to snag her into a bridal style hold before she met her immanent doom. Sango let out a sigh of relief and leaned her head back slightly and closing her eyes for a moment. Then she opened them after a quick few seconds and opened her hand that held a sparkling purple shard on her palm. She closed her hand and put it to her chest. She could hear her own rigged panting and the furious beating of her heart.

Talk about an adrenaline rush.

"What t-took you so long—so long," Sango tried to talk between breaths. She closed her eyes again and leaned her heavy head sideways and onto InuYasha's chest. It seemed like her body wasn't getting enough oxygen to function properly.

"Hit the ground a little too hard a blacked out for a little bit," InuYasha answered gruffly. Obviously he didn't like the idea that a demon slammed him hard enough to make him pass out. "You should have gone with back with the others. Would have been safer."

Sango smiled with her tired eyes still closed. "Please, then who else would the demon of had to pick on," she joked. Though they both knew it wasn't a joking matter. When he said nothing, she opened her heavy lids to look at him. He was staring down at her with disgusted look on his face, as if she had really meant what she said with all seriousness. She sighed and closed her eyes again; the half demon never could take a joke. "I was kidding. Besides if I would have went off with everyone else then the demon surly would have followed. You were nowhere in sight and it would have thought that you had left with us; caterpillar demons aren't that smart you know. Now you have my Hirokotsu I would have gotten tossed around anyway."

"Yeah, but with them you wouldn't have gotten swooped up and throw around this badly! If I hadn't caught you, you would have broken your neck!"

That was it! No more arguing! Sango snapped upward and rolled herself out of InuYasha's arms, landed on the hard ground. It probably wasn't the best idea but it got the stubborn half demon's attention. She tried not to cry out as she stood on her two pain exhausted legs. At the moment, she didn't even want to think about the bloody mess they must look like.

Gross.

"If, InuYasha. If, if, if, if, if! Instead of 'if you hadn't' how about 'you did'? You did catch me. I didn't break my neck. But all you can think of is the stupid 'what ifs'." I am sick of always thinking about what could've happened instead of what did happen! That's all I ever hear now! What if, what if!" she stamped her foot to the ground creating a dry ring of dust around herself. The force of her foot to the ground shot pain up through her leg and to the top of her head. Her quaking knees started to buckle beneath her from the douse of pain that went through her. And for the second time that day she fell and was caught by her armpits from the same pair of strong arms that had caught her from her first fall.

"Fine," he said quietly. "No more 'what ifs'."

She looked up at him, completely in shock. She had never ever heard InuYasha give up on an argument so quickly. Another different shock came only seconds later as he lifted her from the ground and into his arms a second time.

"And no more standing for you. Kagome'll have my head if I let you walk all the way back to the village. I doubt you could do it anyway in the condition your in," he mumbled the last part as if she wouldn't be able to hear it.

"Hey! I could if you let me try!"

He cocked a skeptical eyebrow and started running anyway. Sango looked over InuYasha's shoulder and back at the place she had once thought was so beautiful. The long grass and tiny purple flowers were now all pushed down and crushed. Pieces of wood and logs scattered throughout the clearing. All the birds from above had disappeared. Everything was caked with demon blood and other various bodily fluids. The once serene place now looked like an ancient battleground! Who would have thought that one fight with one demon could do such damage? "I highly doubt that."

"I could!"

"Without any help?"

She said nothing. InuYasha own this round but she had own the first.