A/N: Hello, and welcome to Chapter 2. I hope you're ready for a long one, cause this is a whopping 24 pages long on word! I haven't done any editing yet, but I plan to use the rest of my Golden Week holiday to clean up this and chapter 1, as well as work on Letters and Numbers. Happy reading!
Inuyasha: The Novel
Chapter 2
Kagome squirmed and struggled as her captors attempted to bring her closer to their leader, doing her best to stay away from the strange swaying ogre of a man. Her hometown of Tokyo was one of the safest cities in the world, and she had – until this point in her life – little cause to be concerned about kidnapping, murder, or any other type of danger to her person. Her very short experience in this strange land, however, was kicking those dormant instincts into high gear.
"Shi…kon…no…Tama…" the leader said, slurring his words. He stood, lumbering over to the captive girl with an unsteady gait.
Desperately trying to get out of arms reach, Kagome leaned back, but the two men holding her prevented any further movement. The leader was upon her in less than a minute.
"Give…it…"
Kagome shut her eyes as a hand came towards her. She then felt herself be lifted by the front of her uniform shirt and then thrown down unceremoniously. She was now free of restraints, but upon looking up, she saw that the leader had somehow pulled the necklace with the jewel from her neck. She touched the spot where it had rested unconsciously, remembering the old miko's words.
"Not just youkai, unfortunately. Anyone with evil in their hearts could use the jewel to make their evil desires a reality."
Nodding to herself, Kagome stood up and brushed off her skirt. She hoped that by faking confidence she would be able to ignore the uncomfortable pounding in her chest and maybe catch these bad guys off guard. She stomped up to the leader.
"Hey! Give that back," she yelled, smacking him solidly on the shoulder. The meaty flesh of his arm was hard under her hand, and she took a step back in disgusted surprise.
The leader, seemingly unfazed by her show of bravery, simply pushed her down and stabbed a sword into the floorboards before her. He attempted to prop himself up on the blade, and Kagome could see the thin metal bow under his weight. She scooted back on the floor apprehensively.
Her previous captors chose this moment to show up again, lifting her up from the floor and dragging her struggling body forward toward their boss.
"Restrain…her…" the boss ground out. His underlings obliged, forcing the captive girl in the arms to stand as tall and still as possible.
A few of the other men in the hall shook their heads. To kill a girl, particularly such a pretty one, was certainly a waste.
The boss raised his sword ominously, and Kagome shut her eyes in defeat, wishing this was all a bad dream. How many times had she wished that these last few days?
The whoosh of air and the boss's grunt told her that death was on its way, but the pain never came. Tentatively allowing one eye to peek open, Kagome saw the shocked expression of the guard on her right, who was currently staring in horror at the guard on her left. Turning her own head, Kagome could now see why: The man had a deep, oozing gash on his shoulder and was slowly crumpling to the ground.
At first, Kagome could only stare in shock at this sudden bloodshed, but instincts flared up again, and she realized she only had one captor to deal with, not two. She took a step back as the remaining guard tried to reason with his boss.
"Okashira, why would you attack us, your loyal followers?"
"Oops," the bumbling man replied, clearly out of it. "That…was a mistake."
The boss turned his attention back to the girl, ignoring his underling. "This time," he continued ominously, "the girl's neck."
Kagome tried to swallow, but her throat was completely parched. She took another step back.
"Die!" the man shouted, raising his sword above his head.
The young girl ran sideways, barely avoiding the blade. The man swung again and again, trying to catch his prey and keep his balance at the same time. His swings more often than not found a body, although not the one he was intending to hit. As the girl ran about the room, he followed her, leaving a trail of half-dead, twitching bodies.
The underlings quickly came to the conclusion that their boss had little concern for their well-being in this chase, and wisely began to pick up and leave while he was distracted with the girl. Kagome, noticing some of their abandoned equipment, decided to pick up a spear.
"This has got more reach than your sword," she said, trying to sound confident and threatening.
The disoriented leader walked up to her and swung his sword, completely destroying her "advantage" in reach.
"I'm… this is really it…"
Kagome shrunk under his gaze. There was little room for her to run and absolutely nowhere to hide. With the large, swaying man now directly in front of her, Kagome could only pray for a miracle.
Crash!
Kagome could feel the air change around her. The pain of the blow did not come either. Tentatively, Kagome opened one eye and then the other, frightened tears blurring her vision but not enough to prevent her from recognizing the red and white in front of her.
"Inuyasha…"
Inuyasha crouched slightly, ready for a fight.
Kagome smiled through her tears. "Inuyasha, you came to save..."
"Where is the jewel?"
"…the jewel!?"
"Yes, the jewel. Why else would I be here!?"
Kagome didn't get a chance to respond. The hulking giant of a man had recovered from his surprise at the entrance of the half-demon and was readying another strike. Inuyasha watched him with careful eyes, but it was his nose that helped him put everything together.
"What an awful smell! It's like a rotting corpse." Inuyasha wrinkled his sensitive nose and tried to cover it with one of the sleeves of his haori. Unfortunately, it did little to block the unpleasant odor.
The giant man did not seem to care about the hanyou's discomfort, gripping his sword and raising it once more.
Inuaysha, however, was ready. "You're in there, aren't you? Stupid corpse-controlling crow!" Inuyasha extended his claws, slicing the front of the apparent corpse's armor. A gaping hole near the heart was readily apparent, and from within a sinister cawing could be heard. Suddenly, a three-eyed crow burst forth from the body, much to the horror of all the humans present.
Kagome felt the blood drain from her face and the bile rise in her throat. She had seen a few horror movies in her time, but nothing in a movie could have prepared her for this.
"So, you ate his heart out and crawled in there sometime last night, did ya?" Inuyasha continued, undisturbed or surprised by this development. His nose didn't lie.
"How cruel…" Kagome said, trying hard not to either run away or pass out.
Inuyasha extended his claws once more. "You're not strong enough to fight for yourself, so you try to control others. How pathetic!" He jumped forward, digging his claws into the hole in the man's chest and forcing the crow demon out the back. The Jewel of Four Souls was clasped tightly in its beak.
"The jewel!" Inuyasha exclaimed, both relieved to see it unused and angry that it was in the metaphorical hands of his enemy. He jumped forward again and swiped at the creature but missed. The crow demon took this opportunity to escape, leaving the irate half-demon and teenage girl behind. "Damn it all! Wait! Ugh…"
Inuyasha scanned the room, thinking quickly about how he was going to get the jewel back before the crow used it. His eyes fell upon a bow and a quiver of arrows. Taking a peek behind him, he saw the strange girl was still standing there, looking at him expectantly. He was momentarily impressed that she was still standing upright as his first impression was that she was rather useless, but he pushed those thoughts away in favor of focusing on their present predicament. He picked up the weapons he had spotted and grabbed the girls wrist, pulling her towards him as he knelt before her.
"Get on," he commanded, refusing to look at her.
"Ah… ok…" Kagome replied hesitantly. She wasn't in much of a state to refuse.
Kagome gripped the shoulders in front of her and lifted her left leg, preparing to hoist herself up. She was surprised, however, when Inuyasha swept his left arm under her thigh and lifted her like she was nothing, holding her in place with the one hand. He leapt out of the hall through the exit he had created upon his entrance.
Kagome squeezed Inuyasha's shoulders and buried her head in his hair, trying not to think about how fast she was moving or how high Inuyasha was jumping. Avoiding those thoughts though lead her to focus on where his hand was resting at the moment and the fact that anyone below them probably had a good idea what color panties she was wearing today. While she normally would have been indignant and probably would have bopped any pervert smack on the nose, she felt that these extenuating circumstances – namely that he could drop her at any moment – gave him a bit more leeway.
Inuyasha, for his part, was doing his very best to ignore everything about the passenger he carried. Unused to human contact as he was, being so near a human – and a female at that – made him very uncomfortable, even if the skin under his hands was not entirely unpleasant. Eyes set firmly ahead and ignoring those clearly unnecessary thoughts, Inuyasha growled as the demon came into view once more.
"I won't let you get away!"
Remembering the bow and arrows still in the grasp of his right hand, Inuyasha passed the set to the girl on his back. She took them but did not release her grip on his clothing, even though he now had a better hold on her with two hands.
Realizing she had no intention of using the damn weapons, Inuyasha glared over his shoulder. "What are you waiting for!? Shoot the damn thing down!"
"Are you crazy!? My experience with a bow and arrow is…"
"As it is now, that crow only feeds on humans. What do you think will happen if it eats the jewel?"
Approaching the demon, Kagome could see the glint in its eyes as it looked back at them. It knew they were close. In one gulp, the crow swallowed the jewel.
"Oh, no!" Kagome said breathlessly, almost like a whisper.
"Damn it all," Inuyasha grumbled. "Well, are you gonna do something or not!?"
Kagome paused for a moment, then tentatively loosened her grip on Inuyasha's shoulders to string a bow.
"I'll try."
"Yosh!"
Inuyasha smirked, trying not to let his pleasure show.
"Once she shoots the stupid crow down, I can just drop her and take the jewel for myself," Inuyasha thought. His plans to be a full demon would soon be fulfilled.
"Do it in one shot," he continued, "Kikyo was a master archer."
"I told you," said Kagome, irritation distracting her from her nervousness, "I'm Kagome, not Kikyo!" She raised the bow and drew the string back.
But right now, Kikyo, I could use your help!
She released the arrow.
Let it hit!
The arrow seemed to be flying true, and for a brief moment, both Inuyasha and Kagome thought that, by some miracle, Kagome had managed the shot. That moment ended, however, when the arrow quickly lost momentum and fell uselessly to the ground below.
"Huh?" Kagome asked, surprised and slightly embarrassed. "Um… when you said Kikyo was a master archer, were you just lying?"
"No," ground out Inuyasha, adjusting his grip and trying to pick up his pace, "you're just useless!"
"How rude! I told you I've never even held a bow and arrow before!"
Inuyasha chose to ignore the young girl on his back, watching as the demon they were chasing morphed before their eyes. It suddenly changed trajectory, diving towards a small village below. Clearly interested in finding a meal, the rapidly growing crow plucked a small bow from one of the fields and carried him off, much to the shock and horror of his mother.
"Ah! Kokichi!"
"Damn," said Inuyasha. "It's already becoming stronger."
"That… thing…" Kagome said, so low that Inuyasha almost didn't hear it above the wind rushing past them, "it's not going to eat… that child… is it?"
He felt her hands holding onto his shoulders tightly once more, her palms warm and a bit sweaty as the gravity of the situation dawned on her.
"I told you before," Inuyasha said with a bit more bite than he intended, "that thing eats humans. However…" He looked at the fleeing demon and was struck with a thought. "His movement will be more limited if he's carrying a snack. I'll rip it apart in one swipe!"
"Inuyasha, you can't! What about the child!?"
But it was too late. In one more bound Inuyasha leapt up and clawed at the demon. Before he could make contact, however, Kagome screamed, alerting the demon to their presence. The crow avoided Inuyasha's attack but had to let go of the child in the process. Without thinking, Kagome jumped after him, cradling his small body to hers.
"Bitch! Are you trying to get in the way!"
His tirade was cut off by the reappearance of the crow in his line of sight. It was heading straight toward Kagome and the boy.
"Shit!"
Inuyasha launched himself at the demon and swiped once more, this time striking him right down the middle. Kagome landed on a soft patch of upturned farmland, although the hard landing would undoubtedly leave a bruise. She would have rubbed the abused flesh now, but the squirming boy in her arms was desperate to return to his mother.
"You're ok now, kiddo. Don't worry," Kagome said, half to the boy and half to herself. She noticed that one of the demon's claws was still gripping the boy's arm, so she pried it off before releasing him.
"Kokichi!" a woman called, approaching the pair on the ground.
"Mama!"
The boy ran to the embrace of his mother, and Kagome stood on shaky feet, happy that the two were reunited. It was definitely worth the back pain she was currently experiencing.
"Girl! Where's the jewel?"
Kagome snapped her head toward the sound. She was about to tell Inuyasha that if he wanted her help he could use her name, but the words died on her lips. The demon was already reforming.
"Damn it!" Inuyasha cursed and leapt after the demon again, but its speed was increasing at the same rate as its strength. Inuyasha landed near Kagome and growled. "It's tryin' to run and hide until it can absorb the damn jewel completely."
Kagome frowned and looked up at the crows retreating figure. She could see the glow of the jewel clearly even from here.
I've got to do something!
Looking down, Kagome noticed the demon's claw in her hand. It was trying to pull away from her and rejoin the rest of the body. Suddenly, she was struck with a thought. Quickly removing the red neckerchief from her uniform and using it to affix the claw to another arrow. She strung the arrow and took aim.
The villagers looked on in shock, mumbling about the impossibility of a shot from such a distance. Inuyasha turned to see what she was up to and almost laughed.
"Are you serious? Someone as useless with a bow as you…"
"It'll make it!" Kagome shouted, releasing the arrow in one fluid motion.
Inuyasha watched it cut through the air, surprised at how far and fast it traveled. Then he got a good look at the arrow itself. A slight pink glow enveloped it, but he was even more surprised was what it carried.
She attached the leg to the arrow!
Kagome tried to be confident. If the body regenerates with the help of the jewel and the leg is part of the body, surely it would carry the arrow all the way. Her theory was confirmed only moments later, when a shriek and a bright light erupted from the crow demon's body.
"It struck! I did it!"
Kagome's excitement was short-lived. The bright light continued to grow, and a bright pinkish light shone, making all who witnessed it shield their eyes at the brightness. When it dimmed, Inuyasha grabbed Kagome again, yelling something about finding the jewel before the demon regenerated again.
Kagome, lost in thought as she rode on his back, wondered about the light she had just seen. She had a bad feeling things had just gotten a whole lot worse. Her thoughts were interrupted, however, by Inuyasha.
"Oi, girl, do you see the jewel?"
"Huh? Oh… no…"
She was about to look around again, when a cry from above drew the pair's attention.
"Just the head?" Kagome asked.
"Heh," Inuyasha said, dropping the girl off his back. She fell on her bruised backside for a second time that day. "Looks like it's coming to me this time. Die!"
Kagome groaned in discomfort, but her hanyou companion either didn't notice or didn't care.
Inuyasha crushed the head of the transformed crow into the hard earth, the glow of the Shikon no Tama dislodging and landing a little further away like the rest of the creature's brains.
When it settled on the ground, Kagome crawled over to retrieve it.
"Huh?"
What lay before her was not the Jewel of Four Souls but a single piece of glowing crystal.
Inuyasha, sensing her hesitation, came closer to see what she was looking at.
"It seems to be," Kagome continued, "just a shard of the jewel…"
"Are you shitting me?"
Inuyasha walked ahead of Kagome on the dusty road back to Kaede's village. Without the pressure of having to chase a demon, he adamantly refused to carry the girl or be near her. However, it would be impossible for her to travel through the bush as he would prefer, so he compromised by allowing her to follow him on this relatively untraveled road.
The girl was a total mess, smelling mostly of a mixture of sweat, dirt, and blood. The last of which might have been his fault although he would never admit it; her wound had reopened at some point during the fight with the crow. Even now though she was trying to keep up, usually walking for a short while then running to catch up again.
The worst part, Inuyasha decided, was the incessant talking.
"Ne, Inuyasha, so you're really a half-demon, hm?"
"Do your ears do something or are they just for looks?"
"It must be cool to be able to run so fast and jump so high!"
Inuyasha groaned and contemplated squishing his ears against his head in an attempt to drown out her rambling.
Who the hell does she think she is talking to? She should be ignoring me if not attacking me or running away? What the hell is wrong with her?
Inuyasha stole a glance back at the girl, who was running to catch up with him yet again. She seemed tired but in otherwise good spirits. He stopped suddenly and extended his claws, whipping around to fix her with what he thought was an angry scowl.
"Can't you be quiet!?"
She looked surprised rather than scared, but the questions ceased and Inuyasha went back to walking ahead as quickly as possible, trying to put some distance between them.
Eventually he heard a muttered apology, but other than that, the return trip was made in complete silence.
"Old woman! Explain what the hell is going on!"
Kaede looked up from her dinner preparations to see an irate half-demon darkening her doorway. He was closely followed by the young girl, who respectively bowed her head and asked pardon for her intrusion before entering the hut.
"I see, so that bright light from before was your doing?" the old priestess surmised, motioning the pair to sit down. Kagome sat by the fire, but Inuyasha opted to sit further away, legs still on the dirt floor of the entrance in case he needed to make a speedy getaway.
Kagome calmly explained what had happened, making the half-demon very uncomfortable when she praised his strength and speed. The old woman made no comment though, sitting quietly until the whole tale was recounted.
"It seems," she said eventually, "that Kagome's sacred arrow not only destroyed the body of the demon but also shattered the jewel."
"What!?" Kagome and Inuyasha yelled in unison.
The miko continued, "I imagine the jewel shards have been scattered all over. It could be in just a few or hundreds of pieces. Even a single piece of the jewel could grant vast strength to any being that possessed it..."
Kagome had the grace to look very embarrassed.
I did that!?
"…so you two will simply have to combine your strength and put it back together again."
"Eh!?" the pair exclaimed again.
Inuyasha recovered first.
"What do you mean combine our strength? She's useless in a fight. And anyway, I'm one of the demons after the jewel, remember?"
Kaede sighed and rubbed her temple, a growing headache forming both in her head and in front of her.
"And how do you propose to collect the shards if you cannot see or sense them, Inuyasha? For now, this is the best option."
While Kagome normally would have been annoyed at Inuyasha's insult, she had been too distracted by Kaede's words to even register them.
Put it back together? But that means I'd have to stay here for I don't know how long! I want to go home!
A cool spring breeze rustled the leaves of the trees about the lake. Below the branches, a young girl shivered in the cool water.
"Brrrrr…. It's so cold!"
The elderly miko called out from the shore. "Don't be unreasonable. Come out of the water, child."
"No way! I'm covered in blood, dirt, and guts. I can't take it anymore!"
As if to prove her resolve the older woman, Kagome dunked her head under the frigid waters and went about scrubbing at her skin and scalp furiously. Without soap she would never feel truly clean, but this would have to do for now. Coming up for air, Kagome briefly let her hands travel over her side. The wound from where the Shikon no Tama had been torn from her side was already well on its way to healed, pink lines of new skin and some darker scabs the evidence of where the Sacred Jewel had resided for 15 years. Kagome wasn't sure if it would scar or not but pushed those thoughts away in favor of submerging herself once more.
"I can't believe Kaede-baasan wants Inuyasha and me to work together," Kagome thought to herself, feeling a strange mixture of confusion, excitement, and dread at the proposition. "I don't have any idea how to fight, and he is so mean!"
Inuyasha peered over the edge of a cliff situated near the lake. While it was true that he disliked the girl immensely, natural curiosity led him to watching her shadow as it moved under the water. The villagers had described this as a purification ceremony, but he neither smelled any ritual words nor heard the chanting of ancient prayers. In fact, the old hag seemed to be nothing of importance at all.
As quickly as her bathing began, Kagome pulled herself out of the water and toward the cloth Kaede had provided as a towel. Covering her chest protectively with one arm, she moved out of the water until it came right below her navel. It was at that moment that a flash of red caught the corner of her eye, and she turned around suddenly to see a black-faced Inuyasha staring down at her.
"Kyaaaaa!" the girl screamed. "Osuwari!"
Inuyasha suddenly found himself pulled to the earth below, landing behind an unsurprised Kaede.
"Ah, so you've come, have ye?"
Inuyasha groaned, peeling himself from off the ground. Once he got to a sitting position, he picked up the kotodama and stared at it with hate. "I forgot about this damn necklace," he grumbled mostly to himself.
Kagome, having used his time spent staring into the ground to quickly extract herself from the icy cold waters, called out from behind the bushes where she was currently changing. "I can't believe you'd spy on me, peeping Tom!"
"Keh, I don't know who or what this 'Tom' is, but I ain't interested in staring at someone who looks like a kid."
"What the heck is that supposed to mean!?"
Inuyasha half-worried that she was going to continue screeching in that high-pitched voice at him, but she seemed distracted by what she was doing in the bushes. Muttered threats came to him on the breeze, proving the girl was more interested in her current task than chewing him out.
Kaede took this intermission in their bickering to continue their conversation. "You came to try and steal this shard, didn't you?" As if to further punctuate his failure at being caught, she held the piece up in her worn hands, letting the sunlight glint off the surface.
"So you do get it, hag," Inuyasha said with fake admiration at her pointing out what should have been the obvious.
"I have an uneasy feeling about what the future holds, Inuyasha. If you do not combine your ability to fight with Kagome's ability to find the shards, I fear…"
"I get it, I get it. I already said I'd work with that useless girl in order to find the jewel shards, didn't I?"
Any response Kaede might have had was cut off by the reappearance of said "useless girl."
"Do you really hate me so much?"
Inuyasha's eyes slowly trailed over the figure of the woman before him. Clad in the traditional robes of a miko, the girl looked uncannily like the priestess from 50 years ago who she was supposedly reincarnated from.
Kikyo…
Kagome stood before him a moment, possibly expecting an answer to her question. Her shoulder-length black hair was tied behind her in a loose ponytail much like the woman he once knew, but it was her piercing grey gaze that stopped Inuyasha in his tracks. He could clearly see the annoyance in her expression, combined with the tension and apprehension that had clung to her scent since the moment they had met. She may have resembled that woman, but her attitude and expressions were strangely foreign to him.
Seeming to give up on waiting for a reply, Kagome practically stomped over to where she had left her dirty uniform, taking it back to the waters edge to hopefully wash out the worst of the stains.
"What's with that face, Inuaysha," Kaede asked with a suspiciously knowing look.
Inuyasha was about to tell the old woman she could shove it, but he was distracted by the sounds of footsteps and labored breathing coming from behind him. A village woman dragging along a small child broke through the tree line, coming as close as she dared to the glaring Inuyasha before calling out of the priestess.
"Kaede-sama, my daughter… she suddenly collapsed."
Standing slowly and brushing off her robes, Kaede inserted the jewel shard into a small pouch and handed it to the younger woman. She then grabbed a her things and began to follow the villager toward her hut. Before she left the clearing, however, she shared some advice with the young ones left behind.
"Try not to fight."
Neither Inuyasha nor Kagome responded.
Kagome straightened her clothes on the drying rack, her task finally complete. She had aimed to keep her mind as busy as possible with the washing of the practically ruined garments, primarily because she was annoyed at Inuyasha but also because she hated how, when thinking about her current situation, her heart began to pound painfully in her chest. But as she finished her work, she could not help where her mind wandered. Her thoughts were interrupted by her unwilling companion.
"Oi."
"What?"
"Take those clothes off."
Kagome hesitated a moment, wondering if she had just heard what she thought she heard. A brief glance behind her confirmed her suspicions. The boy was glaring at her clothes pointedly.
Bang!
Inuyasha groaned, glaring at Kagome and the rock she was currently wielding.
"You… bitch what the hell are you thinking!?" he ground out, a painful lump already forming on his head.
"Pervert!" she retorted, backing away from him with an expression that looked both angry and confused.
Inuyasha frowned. While he had tried to ignore her presence when she was washing those strange garments, it was impossible for his nose and ears to ignore the evidence before them. Every few minutes her breathing and heart rate would pick up only for her to shake her head and purposely slow her breath. Something was bothering this strange girl.
Once the worst of the pain had subsided, Inuyasha let his injured pride take the forefront. "I wasn't saying 'get naked,' stupid. Just change back into your own weird clothes."
Kagome rolled her eyes, thankful for the distraction he was providing, knowingly or not. She fixed him with a glare of her own and replied, "Because I look like Kikyo?"
It was more of a statement than a question, but Inuyasha was annoyed that he was so easy to read.
"That's got nothing to do with it."
He's like a little kid.
"Look, we can't work together if you're gonna be like that, Inuyasha."
"That's fine by me. I can collect the shards by myself."
"Ah, so it's ok if I'm not around," Kagome said thoughtfully. She briskly turned around and went back to where her clothes were hanging, quickly removing the still damp pieces and folding them up.
Inuyasha watched her, confusion evident on his features. Why the hell would she be taking them down already? It was only when she began storming away from him and the clearing that he was shaken from his stupor.
"Hey, wench! Where the hell do you think you're goin'?"
"I've decided to go home. Goodbye, Inuyasha," she said with an air of finality.
"'Going home?' Hey! Get back here!"
"Don't even try to stop me," she replied, keeping her eyes trained forward in what she thought was the direction of the well.
Inuyasha jumped in front of her, attempting to block her path. "But you still have the jewel shard. Give it to me first."
"Oh…" Kagome said, reaching in the robes and procuring the little bag which Kaede had given her. "You mean this?"
Inuyasha, not catching the sarcasm in her voice, came closer, hand outstretched greedily toward the jewel.
"Osuwari."
"Shit…"
Crash!
"I'll be keeping this," Kagome said smugly, leaving Inuyasha alone and twitching on the ground.
"You…"
Kaede followed the woman down the dirt road until they came to the hut where her daughter lay.
"In here, Kaede-sama," the woman said, ushering the elderly miko past the screen that served as the door to her humble abode. Once the priestess had her eyes on the young girl, the mother continued, "She was fine this morning, but…"
Kaede nodded, "Let's see what we have here…"
She was about to remove her shoes and step all the way into the room when a subtle movement from the girl lying on the futon caught her attention.
"What…?"
Suddenly, the girl lurched up into a sitting position, arms dangling in front of her as though they were suspended from above.
Kaede pushed the girl's mother behind her and warned her to stay back. As she did so, the younger girl seemed to be pulled right out of bed, almost as though she was floating. For a moment, Kaede found herself at a loss for words or explanation. How could a human float like this?
A light from outside the hut caught something Kaede had not noticed before. Peering closely with her one good eye, she saw a few thin threads wrapped around the girl's hand and wrists. Looking more carefully, she saw that they were in fact not thread but human hair.
Hair? But how?
More hair reached out and grabbed a butcher's knife from beside the fire pit. The knife was drawn into the hand of the floating girl, and Kaede took an apprehensive step back. The disoriented, unaware look in the girl's eyes made it clear she was under the control of some demon or spirit.
The girl continued her forward assault, raising the cleaver ominously above her head.
This cannot be a good omen…
Kagome sighed in relief as the old well came into view, thankful for her good sense of direction. As she got closer, however, her steps became shorter and slower.
If I jump in, maybe I can return home…
The well seemed so innocuous at this distance, but Kagome remembered clearly her fear and surprise upon being pulled in the first time by Mistress Centipede. Even though she had finally made it back, she was hesitant to try the well again. After all, if it didn't work, it would mean she was stuck here forever. The unknown possibility was more comforting than the possible confirmation that she could never go home.
Kagome squared her shoulders and chided herself for being such a coward. She purposely walked over to the well and looked into the depths below.
Bones…
She felt a shiver make its way down her spine, her false courage giving up on her already. Kneeling by the side of the well, she closed her eyes and found herself recalling something Kaede-obaasan had mentioned earlier.
The dried up well is known as the Bone Eater's Well. The bodies of whatever demon has been killed are tossed in there and disappear after a few days.
"So those were the bones of Mistress Centipede then. I don't wanna jump in there. It's too scary. What should I do?"
Trying to distract herself from her thoughts, Kagome tried to focus on her breathing and the sounds of the forest around her. There were birds chirping nearby, a happy sound contrasting with the darker thoughts of the young girl.
The bird song was unexpectedly cut short, and Kagome looked up in time to see the bodies of the birds land in neat chunks on the ground near her. Kagome felt a cold sweat break out on her brow joining the shivers she felt before. She attempted to stand up and investigate but was prevented by something cutting into the skin of her arm and cheek. She hissed in pain.
Ignoring the sting, Kagome opened her eyes and was met with the sight of crisscrossed strands of hair strewn throughout the whole clearing. The confusion and shock she felt paralyzed her body, and Kagome found that she could only keep herself upright by leaning on the edge of the well for support.
Suddenly, a distinctly feminine voice called out to her.
"Oh? So you can see it?"
Kagome felt her eyes dragging up to meet a figure balancing gracefully on a single strand of hair above her. The woman wore an impossibly short and low cut black garment, something Kagome thought would have belonged in a modern-day dance club rather than feudal Japan.
Another demon?
The strange woman continued. "This is my cage of hair, but simply being able to see it won't help you at all, I'm afraid."
The fake courage Kagome had somehow mustered before rose up within her again. "Who are you?" she asked, trying to sound more confident than she felt.
"I'm called Yura of the Hair," the being replied smoothly, fixing Kagome with a sultry smile. "But there's no reason for you to remember that. You'll be dead soon anyway!"
Yura raised her hand and the strands of hair woven through her fingers began to move according to her silent directions. Kagome was assaulted on all sides from the various strands of hair, some of them cutting into her skin others passing precariously close. She closed her eyes but opened them again only a moment later when she felt one of the strands remove the pouch with the Shikon shard from the fold of her robes and brought it into the waiting hands of the hair demon.
"So this is what happened to the jewel, hm? Oh, well. You can die now."
Yura pulled a sword from her hip and charged at the girl, swinging the sword in an arc above Kagome's head. In an attempt to dodge, Kagome leaned back over the edge of the well but lost her balance and tumbled backwards into the void. Yura flung her sword down into the well to finish the job but, upon coming to a standstill on the lip of the well, pursed her lips and looked down into the darkness.
"Eh? She's gone? How strange…"
I've decided to go home. Goodbye, Inuyasha.
The words replayed in Inuyasha's mind in a mocking falsetto. Who did she think she was? Stupid girl.
"Keh," he muttered to no one in particular. "Things are probably better without her around anyway."
Inuyasha bounded leisurely through the forest, heading back to Kaede's place, although he had no idea what that was going to accomplish. He didn't know where the stupid girl was going and frankly didn't care. But this did leave him without the ability to find the jewel shards he so desperately wanted. He supposed he could have tracked the girl by scent to whatever weird village she came from, but he wasn't in the mood now. Maybe he'd lull her into a false sense of security and bring her back sometime in the middle of the night. That would show her!
The half-demon's thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of women floating around the village, each carrying a sharp knife or farming tool. Now that he was focused on the world around him, Inuyasha could smell the metallic tang of human blood and some other strange scent he couldn't quite place.
The floating women seemed drawn towards him, and Inuyasha dodged their wild swings without issue, eventually finding openings to knock them out on the ground. He picked up a few of the women, muttering something about all women being crazy, when he noticed the glazed over looks in all their eyes. Something was wrong.
"Don't you dare harm them!"
The voice that called out to Inuyasha belonged to nonother than the old priestess who was crawling toward him with a serious-looking shoulder wound.
"Keh, like I'd waste my time on killing weak humans," Inuyasha spat out, annoyed. He walked over and squatted next to the old woman. "Ne, Kaede-baba, what are you up to? That's a lot of blood."
Kaede fought the urge to roll her eyes at his complete lack of concern. "Couldn't ye have at least worded that a little more nicely?"
Inuyasha's ears picked up the movement of the girls moving about in that strange, otherworldly way. He looked at the priestess for explanation, ignoring her previous question.
"Are they targeting me?" he asked, getting a little more serious.
"They are being controled by someone," Kaede replied, wincing in pain as she tried to sit upright. Looking around, she suddenly noticed the absence of the young woman. "Where is Kagome? You need to bring her here immediately."
Inuyasha was a little surprised at how frantic she sounded but shook it off in favor of standing and cracking his knuckles. "I'll just have to knock them out again, won't I?"
Kaede sighed shakily and glared at the hanyou. "That won't work, Inuyasha. We need Kagome."
If he doesn't work with her, he'll never discover the source.
"I don't need that stupid girl's help!" Inuyasha shouted, knocking another village woman out. It was only a temporary measure though. They would quickly recover and attack him again. Inuyasha dodged and punched, avoiding giving the women any serious or permanent injuries.
"Inuyasha!" Kaede called again. "You need to cut the hair that is controlling them!"
"I don't see no hair, granny!" But he swung wildly anyway, hoping to come into contact with the supposed strands.
From behind him, Kaede could see the looming figure of another village woman preparing to strike the distracted half-demon. She called out, but it was too late. Inuyasha was bound by strands she could barely make out and that he could not see at all.
The hanyou was worried for a moment, but quickly formulated a new plan.
"Even if I can't see the damn hair, I can certainly drag out whoever is controlling it!"
From somewhere in the forest, Yura laughed quietly to herself, lounging in the branches of a sturdy tree.
"Too bad for you, hald-breed. This hair just grows and grows." She made a complicated design with the strands of hair wrapped around her fingers and then pulled it tight, trapping Inuyasha against a thick tree in the middle of the village.
Yura smiled, pleased with her work. "Soon your neck will be mine."
Inuyasha struggled against the unseen bonds, growing more irritated by the moment. The strands, while unable to cut his thick skin, dug into the flesh. In particular, the strands around his neck made it difficult to breathe. Not willing to be squished to death or have his neck sliced clean off, the half-demon cursed and kicked into the tree behind him, causing enough structural damage that it collapsed. The hair cut into tree, but the slack was enough that he could escape for now. He returned to the old miko, who still lay bleeding on the ground.
"Ugh, I thought for sure I was a goner."
"Had ye been human that hair would have sliced your head clean off your body."
Inuyasha rubbed his neck uncomfortably. He was about to reply when sounds from behind him caused his ears to twitch. "Newcomers," he stated simply. "We're getting no where like this. Let's go, granny!"
The elderly priestess found herself on the back of the half-demon moving much more quickly than she would really like through the village and into the forest. Just as she was getting used to the lurching and blur of trees, she was suddenly set down at the foot of the God Tree.
Inuyasha addressed her directly. "You can see the hair, right? Tell me where it leads!"
"What you ask is impossible. In this condition and at my age… I simply do not have the power to see the hair well enough. You must hurry and find Kagome."
Inuyasha frowned, his eyes staring blankly into the distance for a moment.
So, she can see the hair?
Kagome groaned and slowly pushed herself to a sitting position. She was at the bottom of the old well, although whether she was still in the past or in her own time was unclear. Above was darkness and below was death. She winced as she tried to remember that had happened.
That's right… that strange girl – demon? – was attacking me and I fell into the well.
Tentatively, Kagome reached out to place a hand on the wall, using the sturdy surface to steady herself and her wobbly legs. A pair of voices were coming near, barely audible from within the depths.
"But we've already checked the well multiple times."
"Kagome fell in. I saw it!"
"You must have been dreaming."
"It's true!"
Kagome, unable to believe what she was hearing, looked up expectantly. Above her, shining a bright flashlight in her face, were her grandfather and little brother. She called out their names, but they had already caught sight of her.
Her grandfather was the first to recover, commanding the younger boy to find a ladder; neither of them were strong enough to pull Kagome out. When she had climbed out of the well, she walked toward her home in a daze.
She took in the large wooden shrine, the colors of the trees, the little shop where her grandfather sold his amulets, and the well-worn paths that led from one structure to another, her brother and grandfather trailing behind her with confused expressions on their faces.
This scenery… I'm back in my time.
Her grandfather's voice brought her out of her thoughts.
"Kagome, it's been three days. We were worried sick about you, young lady."
"What's with the weird clothes, sis?" Souta asked, keeping his priorities straight.
This isn't a dream. I'm home.
The spell was broken. Kagome threw herself into her grandfather's familiar embrace and cried without reserve.
"Kagome, what are you…?"
"Grandpa, I was so scared!"
The elderly man patted her shoulder awkwardly, unused to such a fierce show of emotion from his granddaughter. When the sobs subsided, he pulled away slightly to rub the tears from Kagome's face.
"Let's go back to the house," he said, gently pushing the girl toward the family home. "Your mother will want to see you."
Kagome nodded mutely, having no energy left to argue.
Inuyasha was about to go back to the lake to search for Kagome's scent, when the old miko's ragged breathing caught his attention once more. He frowned, looking back at her injury. If he left her out like this, any weak demon could off the old biddy with little resistance. Mind made up. He started digging a hole at the foot of the Goshinboku and didn't stop until it was miko-sized.
Nodding at his handiwork, the half-demon gathered the elderly woman from the ground and placed her in the hole.
"It's the least I can do to bury you, Kaede-baba," he said with mock sincerity.
"I'm not dead yet," the miko pointed out.
"Exactly. You will be if you sit out here in the open. Just hide here until I get back. I'll help you out again if I don't forget," he replied, covering her in dirt and other debris to obscure the scent of her blood.
"You better not."
Task completed, Inuyasha bound away from the God Tree and started to make his way to where Kagome and he had separated earlier. His progress was halted when he caught a whiff of something coming to him on the breeze. Changing trajectory, he jumped another direction, following the scent of the girl he had only just met.
"Stupid girl," he mumbled to himself, "where the hell did you get to now?"
Entering into an open field, Inuyasha stopped to test the wind with his sensitive nose. Kagome's scent was heavier here; he was definitely closing in on her. Taking a few more steps forward into the clearing, another stench assaulted the half-demon's nose: the strange smell that permeated the village earlier. Now on the defensive, Inuyasha crouched and moved forward more carefully. He found himself running into what he could only assume were strands of hair. They broke easily against his skin. Clearly whoever was controlling them was not paying attention at the moment.
The girl's scent was strongest around the old well in the center of the field, but for the life of him Inuyasha could not see her anywhere or track her path farther than the well itself. A few drops of her blood were evident on the ground and lip of the well, and he could clearly see some thread from the red and white of the miko robes she was last wearing. By the side of the well, her own strange garments lay discarded.
Inuyasha looked into the darkness, testing the air for Kagome's scent. He was surprised when he found it.
The half-demon sighed and ran his claws through his long, silvery white mane. Either his nose was going haywire or the stupid girl had jumped down the well and was simply not visible from up here. Betting on the latter, he stood on the ledge of the well, looking down.
Here goes nothing.
He jumped in.
"Ah… this is true happiness."
Kagome settled into the bathtub after her long-overdue shower. The water was a little hotter than she normally liked, but she felt she had to make up for that awful cold dip in the pond earlier that day. Determined to make the most of her pampering, Kagome had spared no expense tonight: she had shaved, put on both a face and hair mask, and now she was letting the hot water soak her stress away.
But it was impossible to completely forget everything that had happened in the past three days, especially the last few hours.
Upon being united with and crying into her mother's shoulder, she had learned that not only could she not change out of her dirty and bloody clothes right away, she had to go to the local police station and explain why she had left and where she had gone. She had tried to explain what had happened to her family, but the incredulous looks were enough to convince her that if her own family didn't believe her, there was no way the police would.
The family had decided to tell the police that she had wandered into the forest and somehow bumped her head. Being knocked out for three whole days was pushing things a bit, but at least she had the hair and clothes to match that story.
Kagome sunk a little lower into the water, her nose hovering just about the water's surface. The ordeal was over it seemed, but why didn't she feel better?
Downstairs, her grandfather was holding court at the low dinner table.
Kagome's mother was the first to speak. "Grandfather, about Kagome's story…"
Kagome's grandfather only frowned into his quickly cooling tea, unsure how to respond to his daughter-in-law's unspoken question.
"It's true though!" piped up Souta, "I saw the ghost pull her into the well!"
Grandfather nodded, taking a thoughtful sip of his bitter drink.
Mama continued, "Well, it's not like Kagome to lie. But such a story…" She placed their empty tea cups on a tray and carried them back to the kitchen intent on beginning dinner. Kagome had requested her favorite: Oden. It was a bit too warm for the hot soup, but Mama would do anything for her little girl, especially when she seemed to have gone through quite the ordeal to get back home. Smiling to herself, she set about cutting the vegetables.
The elderly priest and caretaker of the Higurashi Shrine stood slowly, his back cracking as he shifted his weight from one leg to another. There was only one thing that could be done about this mess: the well would need to be sealed again, properly this time. He set about gathering the supplies he would need.
"The legend of the Bone Eater's Well has been passed down for centuries. The body of whatever demon was killed would have been tossed in there only to disappear after a few days. But what if it is also a passage through time…!?" the old man let his thoughts wander freely as he removed some sacred ofuda and dried herbs from their shelves in the storage shed. "This is the best I can do."
Preparations complete, the patriarch of the Higurashi family faced the doors that led to the well house. Although he was not frightened of ghosts and spirits, raised from a young age with a healthy appreciation for the supernatural, he would be lying if he was a bit more cautious after hearing his granddaughter's tale.
Steeling his resolve, Grandfather pushed open the door and walked down the steps. He purposely did not look into the well, choosing instead to focus on the task at hand. He nailed some planks into place, attached multiple ofuda, lay down a sprig of leaves, and said a prayer over supposed portal. Pleased with his handiwork and confident nothing else would come out of the well and bother them, the old man returned to his home with peace of mind.
He entered the dining area once more, this time finding his granddaughter drying her hair. He got another cup of tea from the kitchen and settled in beside her.
"I've sealed the passage."
"…sealed?" the girl replied, focusing the hairdryer on the damp ends of her hair. She would have brushed off this type of conversation before, but after seeing what she had seen…
"Yes, using some powerful ofuda I've been saving. It has created a barrier around the well. You don't need to worry about anything now. That well will never be opened again." Grandfather took a sip of his tea, secretly pleased that Kagome seemed impressed.
The girl finished with her hair, returning the hairdryer and her towel to the bathroom. She was trying very hard not to think about what she had been through in the past, but somewhere in the pit of her stomach she had a weird feeling. Realizing that there was still a little time before dinner, Kagome decided to take a walk to clear her thoughts. Her treacherous feet, however, took her back to the well house.
Sliding open the door like her grandfather had done less than an hour ago, Kagome walked down the steps slowly to stand before the well itself.
Somehow it all feels like a bad dream, but I wonder if everyone over there is ok…
Kagome shook her head and exited the eerie building, sliding the door behind her. Maybe she would take a nap? She entered her room and lay on the bed, but sleep would not find her. Her thoughts stayed firmly centered on what she was sure was the past.
I can't believe I was in the past… in Sengoku Jidai! It seems so unreal… And that Yura of the Hair… she was after the jewel too, of course. Inuyasha will be pissed when he finds out I've lost it…
Thinking of the irate half-demon for the first time since returning and recounting her tale, Kagome found herself suddenly becoming very annoyed.
So, he thinks he can collect the shards by himself, does he? Fine by me. He doesn't need me, and I definitely don't need him. Hmph!
She sat up and knelt on her bed, clapping her hands purposely in front of her.
"Alright," she said to herself, "I'm going to make myself forget everything, because it's all in the past now."
"Kagome?" her mother's voice called from downstairs, "Dinner is ready!"
"Coming!"
Inuyasha found himself in complete darkness, the glow of the afternoon sky completely absent from above him. He knew the well was not that deep; he had seen the bones at the bottom before jumping in. But that strange sensation as he fell… He knew that he had fallen for far longer than he should have. And now he was in pitch darkness, an unsettling feeling for someone who was used to being able to see at least the outlines of shapes around him.
"Her scent is thick here," he thought to himself. "She must be nearby."
Unsure what to expect but not willing to just sit around waiting, the hanyou sprung up, only to crash through some boards. Landing outside the well, Inuyasha frowned at the remaining wood and strips of paper covering the well. What idiot had put them there? Brushing off the wood shavings and other bits of paper, Inuyasha ignored the voice in the back of his mind that wondered why he was standing in a building rather than in the middle of an open field.
"Okay, now to find that stupid girl," he muttered, annoyance growing by the second.
Her scent was fresher outside the well, and he followed it out of the building, practically knocking the sliding doors off their track in the process. When he looked outside, however, he paused a moment.
This… is different.
Before him clearly lay a shrine. A well-established one by the looks of the building before him. Walking around it cautiously in the growing twilight, Inuyasha was struck by a strange feeling. He was definitely not in the same place as before.
It did not look the same, it did not sound the same, and it certainly did not smell the same.
The hell…?
Focusing on the one scent he did recognize, Inuyasha followed it behind the shrine and to another two-story building. Opening the door before him carefully, he slipped inside. The scent initially carried him towards a set of stairs, but the familiar voice of the girl pulled him toward a pair of sliding doors.
Stupid girl, did you think you would get away so easily.
Kagome happily floated downstairs, the familiar scent of her beloved Oden wafting up to her nose and making her mouth water. She entered the dining area and plopped down on one of the cushions, grabbing a bowl and a pair of chopsticks.
"Hey grandpa," Souta began, "about the well… it's not gonna open again, right?"
"Of course not," the old man replied. "I sealed it after all. No demon could every get through it. You and Kagome should have a little more faith in your grandfather's abilities…"
Both men looked over at the girl in question. She was staring longingly into the pot simmering on the portable stove, clearly not paying attention to their conversation and mumbling "oden" over and over again in an almost monk-like chant.
Her mother brought over a ladle and knelt at the table, pouring broth into each family members' bowls before working on her own. Kagome, however, was unable to resist starting first even if it was bad manners. She lifted a piece of meat, blowing on it gently.
"Itadakima-"
Suddenly the sliding door behind her was flung open with great force, revealing an extremely irritated half-demon.
The family stared blankly at the strange-looking boy who had interrupted their meal. Kagome, still lost in her Oden-induced haze, did not really comprehend the gravity of the situation.
"Oh, Inuyasha? What are you doing here?"
She put the food in her mouth and chewed thoughtfully.
Inuyasha wasn't sure he could be any angrier, but her nonchalance seemed to bring out the best in him.
"Damn you, girl. Who said you could leave?"
Looking down one the girl before him, he could see the realization start to come over her, face paling slightly with the realization of who was standing before her.
"Wait, what? How did you even get here?"
Inuyasha fought the urge to roll his eyes. "The well, obviously."
She looked like she wanted to argue, but the next voice to be raised was not hers but an older man next to her.
"That's impossible. The seals I used on the well have been passed down for generations. They are powerful enough to prevent a demon from getting through them."
"You mean this?" Inuyasha replied, peeling a recently discovered piece of paper from his hair and tossing it carelessly on the table. "The power must have worn off with time. Those things didn't work at all."
Inuyasha found himself growing tired of the conversation and roughly grabbed Kagome's arm; he would drag her kicking and screaming if necessary.
"Hey, wait! I don't wanna go!" she protested angrily.
"I don't care what you want. You're coming with me and that's final."
"Now wait just a moment!" a new voice joined the conversation.
"Mama…"
"What the…?"
Inuyasha turned and found himself face to face with a pretty middle-aged woman almost as tall as him. Her expression was unreadable, but her scent identified her as Kagome's mother. He took a step back, unsure what the woman would do. He flinched when she reached her arms out toward him, but his sudden fear quickly became irritation when he realized she was only rubbing his ears.
"Are these real?" she wondered out loud. From somewhere below him, he vaguely heard a child's voice crying for a turn.
"Mother," Kagome began, "now really isn't the time…" Kagome could tell Inuyasha was uncomfortable with the attention and wanted to get him away from her family before he did something stupid. Before she could drag her feudal friend from the room, however, she noticed something on his sleeve.
"Inuaysha," she said softly, getting his attention, "those strands of hair…"
"Huh?" he replied intelligently, finally escaping from the hands of Kagome's mother. He looked to where Kagome's eyes were trained but saw nothing. "What hair?"
"You can't see it?" Kagome asked, clearly confused. She picked up the strands, but they quickly tightened around her hand, drawing blood. She winced.
They are still being controlled!
Inuyasha wrinkled his nose at the sudden scent of her fresh blood. Her movement had drawn the attention of the rest of her family too. Her mother rushed over with a towel, trying to stop the trickle of blood.
"Kagome, dear? What happened?"
I'm the only one who can see the hair? No way!
Concern growing by the second, Kagome raced out of the room to the surprise of her family and the half-demon. Those remaining in the dining room looked at each other a moment longer before following the girl out of the house.
It can't be…
Running across the yard and through the open doors of the well house, Kagome felt her stomach drop at what she saw. Coming out of the well was a mass of hair, swaying back and forth like it was being blown in the wind. But there was no wind that night. Kagome swallowed the lump in her throat as Inuyasha appeared behind her.
"The hair is after you…" she said, annoyance and fear apparent in her voice in equal measure.
Inuyasha, ignoring her comment, leaned against the inside of the well house wall. "I guess the old biddy was right. You can see the hair well enough."
"You brought this evil here!? To my family!?"
Inuyasha was a little surprised by the vehemence in her voice but made no comment. From behind him he could hear the approach of the rest of the family. Kagome, who had been facing the doors, could clearly see them too.
"No, stay out of this. You can't come in here!"
She slammed the doors closed and leaned against them, contemplating what to do next.
I have to stop this somehow…
Without warning, the hair shot out toward the half-demon beside her.
"Inuyasha," she called out," In front of you!"
He sprung out of the way and brought his claws down on empty air. "Here?" He asked, swinging again.
Kagome tried to call out where the hair was coming from, but everything was moving too fast. Suddenly, a mass of strands appeared behind Inuyasha, wrapping around his arms and legs and effectively halting his attacks.
As Inuyasha fought and cursed the invisible strands of hair, Kagome could hear her family pounding on the door to the well house begging to be let in.
Even if he is able to cut some pieces, more and more hair appears. We have to end this quickly…
Following the path of the hair with her eyes, Kagome saw something suspicious. She moved closer to the edge of the well to confirm her suspicions.
"Inuyasha! Look! Cut this one!" she shouted, pointing above her.
"You know damn well I can't see any of this shit!" he replied, clawing wildly in the general area she had indicated.
The hair moved out of his way and redoubled its efforts to incapacitate the hanyou.
"He'll never be able to cut it if he can't see it," Kagome thought to herself. "I guess this can't be helped."
Inuyasha watched as the girl ran around the edge of the well and grasped something in the palm of her hand. To his surprise, she drew her hand down the length of what must have been the hair, leaving a trail of coppery blood on the sharp strand.
Wasting no time, Inuyasha leapt toward the girl and sliced the controlling strand. To their relief, the attack died down.
Kagome could see the limp pieces where they lay on the ground. She frowned.
If Yura had only wanted the shard she would not be trying to attack us now. There must be something else.
"Inuyasha," Kagome said, getting the half-demon's attention. "Let's go back."
Inuyasha stared at the girl as she walked down the stairs and turned to look at him expectantly. There was a surprising fire in her eyes. He had thought she would protest going back, but here she was practically begging him to come with her. This girl really was strange.
"You're a strange one wantin' to go back all of a sudden."
"I don't really want to…" the girl admitted quietly.
But if I stay here my family will be in danger…
Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft piece of cloth being draped over her head and shoulders.
"Hm?"
Inuyasha looked away, suddenly embarrassed. "It's made from the fur of a fire rat. It's stronger than most armors."
"Oh, thank you," Kagome replied, running her fingers over the strange, soft fabric. Could it really be stronger than armor? Then again, his clothes hadn't been cut by the hair…
Inuyasha continued, trying to cover up his uncharacteristic show of concern for this strange girl. "You'll need it more than be 'cause your skin is so weak."
A sweat drop formed on Kagome's brow. "Isn't it more like you're unnaturally think skinned?"
Ignoring the girl's comment, Inuyasha hesitantly wrapped his arm around her back and helped her step up to the edge of the well. They both stared down a moment, not sure what would happen on the other side.
"Let's go," Inuyasha finally said, jumping into the darkness with a firm hold on his new companion.
Somewhere on the other side of the well, Yura of the Hair sat in her lair, combing the strands of her favorite skull.
"They'll be here soon," she cooed to the old bones, "so we'll have to give them a warm welcome, won't we?"