The Softest Touch

Prologue: Of Fear

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha. It's owned by Rumiko Takahashi. I don't own money with this.

Kagome walked through the forest in which Inuyasha had once been banned onto the tree. Her black hair was tied into a low ponytail and she wore the clothing of a Miko, a white gi with red hakama and straw zoris on her feet. Her bow was slung over her shoulder and her mind was fully concentrated on the piece of paper between her index and middle finger.

Kaede-sensei had given her the opportunity to train her (rather undeveloped) Miko powers while Sango-chan, Miroku-san, Inuyasha and Shippo-chan made a break and strolled through the village; training by themselves, flirting (in Miroku's case) or playing around. Inuyasha hadn't liked the thought of Kagome "dressing up" like Kikyo and wandering around by herselve but those five days under Kaede-sensei's influence had already made the black haired girl so much stronger that she felt like she had been learning for years instead of days.

While Kagome prayed and thought about the things that she still had to do (both here and at home, in her own time), she didn't notice how far she wandered into the forest. The trees became taller, shielding their green inside more and more from the spring sunlight, and the floor became muddier, the plants became rougher and greener. But Kagome still felt safe because of her aura that swung in content waves along with her steady thought of prayers.

Her blue eyes were half-closed as she made her way through the forest. After a few meters, the banner in her right hand was finished and filled with her spirit energy, coated in her Miko powers and therefore the perfect weapon against any kind of youkai. "Wow, this took me pretty long… I hope I can improve the speed," she muttered to herself and looked up, taking in her surroundings—only to gasp and turn around frantically. "Where am I?" She got lost.

Confused, Kagome put the banner under her gi and closed her eyes. While she stood completely still, she sent her spirit energy out to feel if there was any kind of living creature near. And there was someone. Black strands of hair got loose and fell into her face as she started to dash forward. The living creature was a child that was obviously in trouble since it was alone and moving fast forward. The Miko ran a few meters before she heard the child crackling through the branches beside the small way on which Kagome was standing.

The cracking went louder and louder until Rin broke sobbing panically through the last layer of thorny bushes and whirling around when she noticed Kagome's presence. "Kagome-chan?" she wailed and threw her slim body at the older girl. "What's wrong, Rin-chan?" Kagome shouted but an answer was unnecessary—two onis entered their view and growled in pure lust of blood. Immediately, Kagome pulled out the banner from before and sent it flying at the one oni where the banner stuck to his forehead and froze him on the spot.

"Run, Rin-chan!" Kagome screamed and pulled the girl along with her, stumbling over roots and small stones. Because running dumbly down the way wouldn't have been enough to confuse the oni, the black haired Miko broke into the undergrowth on the other side of the way and didn't pay attention to Rin's fearful whimpers. "Faster, Rin," Kagome said and hurried forward while still holding the girl's wrist in a tight grip. The left oni could be heard rummaging through the same undergrowth and destroying multiple trees on his way.
Because the oni was about the size of a small elephant, it was much easier for the both girls to move through the undergrowth. Otherwise, Kagome would have had to fight and she wasn't sure if she could handle such a big and aggressive oni on her own…

After a hundred meter of thorny branches and leaves getting in their faces, they reached a small clearing. "Look, Kagome-chan!" Rin pointed at the large stone wall in front of them. "God… This is a dead end," Kagome said to herself and knew that now, fighting was her only opportunity. They were at the hellish hills at the north of Inuyasha's forest. The hills were stony at their edges and went like a snake through the land so that it was most likely that to both of their sides, there would be only one thing: more stone.

Kagome looked down at Rin and saw that here were multiple scratches on the girl's face and kimono and that her feet were bleeding. And of course she was weaponless. "Rin, listen to me," Kagome whispered and pulled the girl towards the stone wall. "You have to hide in those thorn bushes on the right. The oni comes every second and I will fight it. But you have to stay here, hidden!" Rin was too frightened to say more than "Yes" and Kagome pushed her in the direction of the thorn bushes.

The moment Rin dove into them and suppressed any cries of pain from the sharp thorns that cut her skin, the oni broke onto the clearing, roaring in impatience and more bloodlust than before. The Miko pulled an arrow from her quiver and drew her bow. Without more than a determined glare on her pale and dirty face, she shot the arrow and watched as the right arm and shoulder, as well as a part of the rib cage, vanished into the electric blue energy of her arrow.
Large puddles of dark youkai blood dripped on the floor and the smell of death and rotting flesh filled the air. But it wasn't enough; the nervousness and fear had made the arrow only scratch the oni. It tumbled forward and its claws ripped three deep cuts over Kagome's chest and stomach. The hot pain made her cry out and gasp before the oni's large fingers closed around her form.

Desperately screaming now, she heard her bow break, as well as all of her arrows. Only her left arm was free and she gripped behind her where she clasped the ends of the four arrows in desperation and tried to pull them to the front. Three moved easily, one was stuck. She pulled harder and prayed to God that this just had to work and—after the worst seconds of her life—she succeeded. The three of the arrows were already broken, the fourth would any second.
Suddenly, Rin ran out of her hiding and jumped up and down in front of the stone wall while she threw stones at the oni's head. "I'm here you big, fat dummy! Come here! Come here!" One rip of the older girl broke with the tightening grip of the oni because of its annoyance and Kagome screamed. "Rin, ran away," she shouted in both panic and vain and coughed; she was running out of air. Her blue eyes were starting to give up their function. Kagome needed to put more energy than usual into the arrow. But her brain wasn't as determined to find the right words as her heart was to survive. Or so it seemed. The few seconds she mumbled a slurred prayer of hope and power felt like hours and since her bow had been crushed, the only way to fight with the arrow was to throw it.

Kagome finished the prayer with a fighting scream and threw the half-broken arrow forward where the metal hit luckily the exact middle of the youkai body and the whole oni broke down and faded into green dust with a last painful whimper. The black haired Miko fell to the ground as well and landed with a dumb "thump". Rin was at her side immediately and shook the girl's shoulder forcefully, tears glistering in her large brown eyes again. "Kagome, Kagome, Kagome-nee-chan! Don't die! Please! Don't.. Don't… die!" Tears started to flow freely over the girl's cheeks but Kagome was too weak to wipe them away. She wouldn't die. With a bit of luck…

But there was just no power left to move a single finger or to speak.
The child continued to cry and shout her name. But there was no answer that would stop Rin from continuing to cry or that would sooth her pain. She lay down helplessly next to Kagome and curled into her side, smearing the Miko's blood on her face and kimono in the progress without even noticing or caring.

"Sesshomaru-sama," Rin whispered exhausted and desperate, "Please come.."

To be continued…