A/N: Inuyasha and all characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi, this story is the brainchild of Kajatk8, and belongs to her. No profits are being made from this, it is just a fun way to pass the time and expand my writing capabilities.
Thank you to my superb reviewers: LunAmooN23, Nyght elf, shadow miko, o0-SilverMoon-0o, MirrorFlower and DarkWind, Wren210, imaginesakura.
And a special thank you to Ariel-Mystic-Siren for Beta-Reading!
Just as I was about to post I read saw that these countries had visited my story this month, let's give them all a warm welcome! *Claps*: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Bahrain, Philippines, Romania, Mexico, Poland, Japan, Malaysia, Brazil, Singapore, Australia, France, Austria, Spain, Germany, Denmark, Peru, Ireland, Iceland, Croatia, Sweden, Bahamas, Netherlands, Hungary, India and Taiwan. Eat your heart out Stephanie Meyer, I'm read in 28 freakin' countries!
Chapter 9. Aftermath
Sesshomaru cursed inwardly for hesitating so long to make up his mind and finally follow the enigmatic girl riding the fire-cat. Of course he would revive Inuyasha with Tenseiga. There was no reason why he wouldn't. Why in the world had the thought of his brother's death struck him so…emotionally? Especially when it wouldn't be final? He didn't know. He shook off his troublesome thoughts, dismissing them for what they were, his over-exhausted mind at work.
He sped on following Kirara's trail towards the well. He was speeding along as fast as he could despite his weakening body and to the outside observer he appeared to fly over the ground. He moved with an otherworldly elegance that just reverberated inhuman grace – that was of course before he unknowingly crashed into a barricade.
'Another barrier?' he cursed again. He truly was losing his strength, if he unknowingly ran headlong into a barrier. He looked around and saw that his eyesight was losing its crisp focus. He jumped back rubbing his arms against the purity he'd run full into. He focused his slowing mind, and narrowed his eyes looking for any weakness in the faintly glowing lavender barrier.
After a few moments of scouring he found what he was looking for; just there about ten feet to his right at knee height he could see a flicker of light. While the rest of the barrier was hardly noticeable, this single spot was distorted, indicating weakness. He smiled and pulled out Bakusaiga aiming at the slight irregularity. He was glad he had paid attention to Ena back then, she had taught him this particular trick. Every spell had a weakness, one just needed to locate it. He brought Bakusaiga up and swung with full strength at the distorted spot.
Immediately upon contact there was an explosion where Bakusaiga's green lightning met with lavender. A noxious white smoke billowed outwards from where he'd struck. Sesshomaru was pushed back by the force of the blast and he braced himself, waiting for the smoke to dissipate.
However, it did not. He smirked at the idea of someone trying to poison him, better youkai had tried. However, as he looked on, he realized that was not its intent. In fact the smoke continued to flow out of the weak point he'd struck, and displayed intelligence as it morphed into the forms of animals. Ravens, snakes and moths took shape from the smoke and flowed outwards encircling him.
They spit balls of reiki and darts of poison and Sesshomaru leapt into action. He dodged and parried where he could, and he struck with a full swing of Bakusaiga to shield himself where he could not. They moved with an eerie grace, and it was like no animal he'd ever seen. Yet, they did not smell of demons either. The birds dive bombed him from above, the snakes attempted to trip him at his feet and the moths wove in between the fray sloughing off a blue powder wherever they went. As he took the first breath of air after the moths had coated him, his vision tilted uncharacteristically sideways. 'The powder must be spelled with sleep to affect me,' he thought drunkenly. He needed to end this battle, now.
He wanted to finish it. He raised his sword-arm above his head and struck in a counterclockwise circle. Spinning all the way around gracefully until he was back to facing the lavender shimmer where he had started. He hoped to destroy all of the smoke-formed creatures in one go. He put as much of his youki into the swing as he felt he could, though it was becoming difficult to stand up straight and he felt mildly intoxicated. He had to be careful, clearly this battle wasn't over and yet, he was almost completely drained.
As the lightning cackled and cracked against the sky it met the smoke and the wispy animals dancing in the wind. They were destroyed upon contact with his swing and small burned pieces of paper fluttered down around him. He watched as Bakusaiga continued to arc into the cloud of billowing smoke, until finally his attack and the smoke subsided. He narrowed his eyes and frowned at the sight, more Shikigami? How many more of these tricks must he wade through before he met their creator?
His vision swam and the world tilted again for him, this time, his vision spun sideways with afterimages. He sank to his knees and willed his body to expel the poison. Spinning he decided, had not been a good idea. He had only ever felt this inebriated a handful of times, and he would be truly ill if the symptoms didn't soon subside.
"Enough," Sesshomaru said to the air. He wouldn't disgrace himself so far as to puke on a battlefield. He was no greenhorn, ready to spill his guts at the first sign of trouble. He forced himself to stand and taking a deep breath he walked forward determinedly.
He thrust Bakusaiga into the shimmering spot and twisted his arm violently to the right forcing youki through the barrier's weakness until he felt it give. Once it quivered again, he tried something he hadn't since he'd had Tokijin. Sesshomaru narrowed his focus and expelled youki from his body, down his arm and into the blade, forming a Soryuha. The barrier quivered for a moment, and then died. The image of an emerald dragon-headed Soryuha continued to arc in a semi-circle against the sky until the entire barrier fell away in a dance of vibrant green and purple colors.
"Hnn," Sesshomaru was pleased at the results. He'd felt useless in the intervening years since Naraku's demise, whiling away, protecting villages and twittering his thumbs. He hadn't had anyone even come close to rivalling his prowess in years. He smiled uncharacteristically wide; he hadn't realized how good it felt to see his own attack again – this time made with a sword from his own fang. It felt right to fight with his full potential. He shook his head and cleared his thoughts, his vision was still doubled at the edges, but it had cleared somewhat in the aftermath of his attack.
Sesshomaru had wasted enough time, and he sped on. He thought he could sense an old enemy ahead, but no, Kuriko was gone. He'd killed her himself, in his youth. He still remembered her eyes when she realized she'd been defeated. It'd been his first kill of a woman, and he wouldn't soon forget the look or the feeling that came over him from the battle. She had deserved what he'd done to her, deserved that, and then some. Nonetheless he'd discovered the killing of women to be distasteful, whenever he could avoid it, he had. Still, he didn't like thinking that an enemy from years long gone by was still alive. Yet, he thought he heard her sweet high voice.
He realized he'd heard that same voice before, but he'd been too exhausted to place it, and he'd been distracted at the time. He listened to that cackle of laughter on the wind but it wasn't the exact same voice he remembered. It had become marred with low male tones, and as he approached he caught whispers of a low conversation. He thought he heard a response, but he wasn't sure. He entered the meadow and his breath caught in his throat as he took in the sight that lay before him.
Whoever was wearing Ena's armor, he was not going to admit to himself that it was Kagome, but she was standing beside the well – her bow raised with an arrow half-nocked, but not fired. There was a cold looking demoness with yellow hair and yellow eyes standing just outside the copse of trees. She was garbed in a full set of blue o-yoroi and had a familiar looking sword on her hip. And there in the middle of everything, was Rin.
Rin, of course, she was the bait. She was always the bait, and Sesshomaru groaned at all the idiots who thought Rin was his weakness. Many found out completely differently, but they never lived to tell their tales. Maybe, that was the problem? That he left none alive? Perhaps the next one that attempted to take Rin's life, he'd let live? Just so they could spread stories of his destruction…? But no, then they would instead spread stories of his mercy.
He sighed and again shook his head to clear his thoughts. It seemed that his overtiredness was getting to him more than he thought. He could usually focus on an enemy when they stood in front of him. 'It must be the fatigue,' he found himself repeating in his head. There is no way he could be this weak. He couldn't seem to stay focused on the task at hand and continuously deviated from his goal.
Before he had a chance to move and rescue his wayward ward, the demoness spoke. "Now prepare yourself, I almost envy you. You will see Uta before I do."
The demoness said this while she pulled out a dark bow from thin air, strung an arrow and aimed at Rin. Sesshomaru wasted no time and launched himself into the air to stop the arrow in its path. However, before he had even made it halfway, the field burst with reiki. The arrow had come from the direction of the girl and it streaked across the sky. It was far more powerful that he'd ever felt from Kagome, and the arrow left shimmering green leaves behind it in its wake as it zoomed across the sky. Where it struck there was an eruption of brilliant pink light speckled with green. This light made a shield around Rin's prone form and for that he was grateful.
At that moment, there was no doubt in his mind who stood by the well. Only Ena could fire an arrow like that, she was the only priestess that he knew who had the power to imbue an arrow with both reiki and youki. And not just any youki either, but that of a fox. Sesshomaru's chest swelled with emotions he'd thought he'd kept bottled for centuries. He couldn't believe that now, after all this time, she had come back to him. He'd thought she'd been dead for centuries. How else could he explain her absence?
He spared a glance at the well and the girl who stood there, but she had already strung and fired another arrow at the demoness while he'd been contemplating his past. This one did not have the same strength, nor youki infused with reiki or leaves blowing in its wake. It was solely a pink-reiki infused arrow, and yet, it still spoke of Ena. He stood there transfixed by her arrow, and watched as the arrows passed each other midair. Time seemed to slow down, and the girl's arrow had barely left her bowstring when the arrow that the demoness fired split into several arrows and the girl by the well took all of them square in the chest.
No.
Time seemed to come to a standstill. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. From the look on her face neither could she. She had flown backwards at the impact and slowly looked down at herself unbelieving while attempting to stay upright. She tried to speak but instead violently coughed up blood. She put her hand up towards the arrow directly below her chin and her eyes widened. He looked on in horror as she took one more fateful step backwards and tripped.
Sesshomaru finally propelled himself forwards but of course it was too late and time knowing this, seemed to speed up, just to spite him.
He flung his arm out to catch her, but she had already slipped past his reach. By the time he made it to the well, she'd already fallen over the lip and deep into its depths. He glimpsed her face right before her head hit with a sickening thwack against one of the inner walls. After that the ground shook and there was an explosion as white light enveloped her body and shot straight out towards the sky.
Just like when So'unga came into this world from beyond the well, the white light streaked up and touched the stars. Within the well, he could feel an extremely powerful being putting up a great fight. The well seemed to reverberate, shaking the ground and struggling to spit the girl out. Likewise he felt holy powers push against restraints that he could not see. It felt like they were being propelled into the body within the well and its force was attacking the girl like a foreign object in a wound. The light continued to brighten and a blue cloud of the well's magick hit purifying reiki, both combined on impact and outshined even the sun in a daze.
The light became so bright that he was blinded for several moments. When he felt the light start to dim he blinked to clear his vision. He looked up and saw a flurry of green leaves creating a cyclone up and out of the well as a ghostly wind blew them skyward. The white light faded as soon as it had come, and darkness claimed the meadow again once again. The leaves lost their upward momentum and fell towards the earth. He was reminded of a puppet master cutting the strings on a marionette – there was no life left in them as they plummeted to the ground in a sad meandering dance. When the last leaf touched the ground, the well stopped reverberating and shaking and instead stood silent.
She was gone. Just like before.
Gone.
His vision instantly cleared, mind coming into pristine focus as his thoughts turned swiftly to anger. He liked anger. It was clear, concise. There was no thought, only action, and a vast sense of accomplishment when allowed to pursue that anger to its fullest. He turned on his heel and strode towards his enemy, unleashing all his built-up wrath and fury from the past centuries onto his prey.
"You," he growled out savagely as he stalked towards the yellow demoness. She was skewered with a green feathered arrow. Blood freely flowed out of her chest and stained her blue armor a sickly shade of black. The arrow was still shining a pale pink, its futile attempt to purify the demoness, despite its owner being lost to time.
His heart sang a harmonious tune at the picture she made. It looked painful, yes, he liked that very much. He leered over his prey, demanding an explanation with his eyes alone.
"What's wrong Sesshomaru, are you afraid? Did I take away the one thing you held dear?" She choked, coughing and dribbling blood down her chin as she did so. The voices that she used were cracking under the sheer amount of reiki. Sesshomaru knew that she wasn't much longer for this world, and he felt robbed of his vengeance. If her pain wasn't meant to last, then he would have answers.
"Why?" He rumbled.
"Why? Ha-ha, why not? Consider it payment, for all the hurt you caused me."
Sesshomaru narrowed his eyes, "How'd you survive?" He wanted to keep her talking, anything to force her to endure as much pain as possible.
"With the help of many different dark magicks. But all in all it was actually Ena that helped me out the most." She said, smiling as more blood trickled out of her mouth and awkwardly dribbled down her chin.
"She taught me how to focus, so I did. I focused on Uta. On revenge, and it worked. I called Metsikatsi. He along with Ryota combined within my dying spirit, and so Shanpan was born, the woman you see before you." She continued between her labored breathing and rasping chest wound. It sounded as if she had pierced a lung. Such a pity, those wounds were so tricky to heal.
"There is no woman, just an abomination," Sesshomaru said as he raised his hand cracking his knuckles and calling forth his poison, ready to deal the final blow. His sword was too good for her. He wanted to see firsthand the life flow out of her, something he should have done in the first place. He wanted to feel the slip of her innards and crack of her bones against his fingers for robbing him of a friend.
Yet, just as he began his strike, several ravens took flight from the forest behind her and completely covered her body. He was still going to swipe; not caring if he killed a few unruly birds, but several of them dive bombed him, and burst into flames as they struck the ground. He jumped back alarmed, but as he did so, he knew that Shanpan had escaped. He looked up and saw three feathers gently glide down towards him, only to be swallowed up by the flames below.
Though Shanpan was gone, the sickly voices filled the meadow and in laughter said callously "I've cursed her; she'll not remember who you are, or who she is. I decided to take everything away from you, just as you took everything away from me."
He gripped his sword tightly and scowled. He wouldn't let her get away. He would seek revenge and he would end Kuriko, Shanpan, whatever disgusting name she called herself, for good... Except, now was not the time, he removed his hand from his sword, promising to get revenge and then find her, Ena.
He walked towards Rin's shielded body warily, and delicately held his hand out towards the barrier. His hand passed through like it wasn't even there, and his arm tingled with a familiar power. He was reminded of testing the waters in an onsen to make sure they weren't too hot. The barrier flowed over him, and it was calm and relaxing. He almost smiled, before remembering that Ena was gone, likely dead. If not dead, then… Did she remember him? Would she?
His face hardened as he walked forward, bent down and picked up Rin. She moaned in her sleep as he placed her in his arms, looking down at her peaceful face. He had to remember that though he may have lost Ena, not all hope was lost. He still had Rin, and she was safe. He pulled Rin closer towards him and gave her a little squeeze. She seemed to understand his gesture and she shifted comfortably into his pelt and let out a sigh of contentment.
He rose and left the barrier, leaving the comfort of Ena's presence. He forced himself to do this as he much rather would have just sat wrapped within her power like a snug set of armor; resting until he had regained his strength. He hadn't felt her in so long, and it offered him comfort and a type of wholeness that he hadn't felt for many years.
Nevertheless he kept moving forwards until he stood over the well and looked into its depths. No one was there. There was no body, no armor, pack, nothing. If it had been Ena, nothing remained of her to reassure himself that she wasn't an illusion. That it wasn't just his mind playing tricks, or perhaps a spell showing him what he wanted to see. He sniffed the air, but all he smelled was bitter purity burning and biting at his nose. Nothing of her remained.
The only evidence that showed a battle had even taken place were the blood stains. Where the girl had been standing there was a pool of blood and a smattering trail that lead to the well. He looked on the inside wall of the well and noticed another streaking stain where she'd hit her head on her journey down. The blood tickled his nose, smelling sickly sweet and coppery, with a hint of jasmine. The scent tickled his nose and pulled on memories long since buried.
He heard a small noise and glanced down past his left foot, there the fire-cat lay mewling in pain. He had almost forgotten about her entirely, the girl had ridden away on her, yet she hadn't been in the battle. She must have been incapacitated early on before he got there. He squatted down, picked up the small cat and placed her in Rin's arms. Rin seemed to know the importance of the package she carried and she further curled into the fire-cat. Likewise, Kirara seemed to know she was being transported and stilled, but she still mewled and shifted in a pained manner. Sesshomaru thought he should get her looked at as soon as he got back to the village, yet he was loathe to leave.
Sesshomaru straightened and closed his eyes and taking in the few remaining snippets of the girls scent. Somehow it still wasn't exactly that of Ena, yet he knew of no other who could wield arrows like she. He took a deep whiff and steadied himself. Her arrows hadn't been the same either, only one possessed Ena's true strength, the other was more reminiscent of Kagome… Perhaps if she didn't smell exactly the same, then he would see her again? Would she know him if they met again? Would he know her?
He could only hope.
She'd survived once before when he thought she was dead, perhaps she would survive this too? He wasn't sure what made him think that; he wasn't a very optimistic person in general. If anything, he was a realistic-pessimist, just as she'd always accused him of being in the past. Possibly just seeing Ena (or thinking that he'd seen her) had made him hopeful, if only for a moment.
He held onto that thought as he forced himself to turn from the well with Rin and Kirara in his arms and he slowly walked back towards the village. He would hold out hope for as long as possible, for now he had to attend to Rin, the village and his potentially dead brother.
Sesshomaru mournfully approached the village with a somber expression. Jinenji hadn't spent much time around Inuyasha's brother, but he knew that look. Working as a healer, he knew when someone carried grief. It hunched men, made women and children weep, broke even the most stout-hearted warriors. He'd had that same look many times on his own face when whomever he was treating was beyond his assistance. If Sesshomaru's expression and the set to his shoulders were to be believed, then he carried a cart-load of grief.
Jinenji not sure exactly what to say, asked the only thing he could imagine to ask.
"What happened? Is Rin alright?" he said quietly.
"She is resting." Sesshomaru replied as he placed her sleeping form in front of Jinenji.
Jinenji noticed that Kirara was in Rin's arms and after assessing that Rin was merely asleep, he moved on to the obviously ailing cat.
"What happened to her?" Jinenji asked taking Kirara into his arms to treat.
"I do not know. I found her in that state." Sesshomaru said stiffly, voice full of emptiness.
Though his voice held no emotion, just the same as every other encounter they'd shared, Jinenji knew something was wrong. He finally identified what it was and stole himself to ask.
"Where is Kagome?" He asked hesitantly, poking and prodding Kirara to determine what had happened to her.
The fire-cat cringed and mewled continuously, but after Jinenji found the vibrant blue powder coating her, he reached into his pocket for a common remedy to most ailments. He crushed several dried leaves in his hands and rubbed the plant over the fire-cat's nose. The cat licked the powdered plant off and her thrashing slowed. Her breathing evened out and Jinenji sighed in relief. She was a close friend to the village and Kagome, and he would have hated to lose her.
Sesshomaru didn't answer for a long time. He just stood there impassively and quietly observed Jinenji while he worked. After Kirara's pains subsided Jinenji met Sesshomaru's eyes; and he was met with a cold look. After what seemed like minutes to Jinenji, Sesshomaru spoke calmly but he could tell there was a storm raging within the youkai.
"I don't know." Sesshomaru said.
Jinenji frowned. How could that be? Kagome had ridden Kirara and followed the prompts of the voice to leave the village. If Sesshomaru had found Kirara, why hadn't he found Kagome? He tried to use logic to his advantage and work out what had happened.
"Kagome left riding Kirara, if you found Kirara, was there truly no sign of Kagome?" Jinenji asked slowly. He didn't want to think the worst, that his friend was de-. No, he couldn't even think it. Kagome was a radiant ray of sunlight in an otherwise dark and cruel world. He wouldn't think the worst. Not yet.
Sesshomaru said nothing and slowly approached the still form of his brother lying just an arm's length away from Jinenji.
Jinenji followed his gaze and looked down in shame. No matter what he had tried to do, he was unable to save Inuyasha's life. The arrow had taken him directly above the heart, and he had bled out within minutes of being struck. Jinenji had worked on reviving him tirelessly until he noticed that his body had grown cold. Jinenji had never felt so useless in his life. He was ashamed. Inuyasha had rescued him, had saved him from the cruelty of villagers, had saved his mother, had welcomed him as a friend into his village, and yet, he couldn't even repay the small favor of staunching a wound.
Jinenji was a master of potions and herbs, concoctions and remedies. But the one thing he was unable to prevent was death. He had tried many times in the past to save children from a plague or epidemic, men from grave battle wounds, even a few mothers from losing their children and their own lives in childbirth. Yet, sometimes, the kami's willed it to be so, and no matter what he did, he lost the battle.
Jinenji still felt shamed whenever this happened. He felt such disappointment in himself. He knew he was not a god to wield the power of life and death in his hands, but he strived to save those under his care. Yet, he hadn't managed to do so. Not in this instance. He had failed.
Jinenji looked up at Sesshomaru; he wasn't sure what to say to him. Jinenji knew there was no love among the two brothers, but he had been around them enough to see there was a certain amount of respect that they shared. He also knew the burden of loss, particularly that of a family member. His mother still became extremely sad and melancholic whenever thinking of the loss of his father. He couldn't imagine what it would have been like to lose a brother.
"I am sorry. I did all I could, but I couldn't save him." Jinenji said sadly. He knew it wasn't what Inuyasha deserved, or Kagome for that matter. Oh, Kami, he hadn't even thought of Kagome's reaction at all until this moment. He hid his face with his hands and thought he might start crying again. He'd tried to put on a brave face when he'd heard Sesshomaru approach and he'd dried his tears. But he could still feel them, lingering just behind his eyes, beyond his control.
A moment later he heard the sickening squish of blood spurting and he looked up to see that Sesshomaru had knelt down to remove the arrow from Inuyasha's body. He dropped the blood covered arrow on the ground, where it hissed and crumbled into dust before their very eyes. The dust was picked up when a small breeze blew through the village and carried them away. Jinenji watched Sesshomaru unsure of what to do. Sesshomaru abruptly stood and removed one of his swords from its scabbard with a steady 'shink.'
"Sesshomaru?" Jinenji asked slightly horrified, was Sesshomaru going to cut up his own brother into little pieces? Or perhaps he was going to deal Jinenji a death blow for not saving his kin? Jinenji was far too terrified to move and draw attention to himself, so he just sat there immobile. He watched as Sesshomaru's face became etched in concentration and his eyes hooded with a faraway look while he pointed at Inuyasha's body with his sword in hand. Then after only a breath he swung and Jinenji dove to the left to avoid the blow he thought was coming.
"What are you doing!?" Jinenji shouted while rolling away from Sesshomaru like Inuyasha had taught him to do and spinning to face his now-enemy. Jinenji stood in his best defensive stance, ready to fight, but far too scared to make the first move. To his surprise however, Sesshomaru re-sheathed his sword and raised his eyebrows at Jinenji.
"Reviving my… Reviving Inuyasha." Sesshomaru said. He turned then and sedately walked away.
Jinenji just stood and stared after him. His heart was racing and he peered curiously at Inuyasha's form. To his utter surprise, the wound had closed and Inuyasha's chest was rising and falling, he seemed to be in a deep sleep just like the rest of the village.
Jinenji spluttered; he didn't know what to say. Here he had attempted to save a life, yet Sesshomaru could recall the dead back to life! He'd never really believed Rin or Jaken when they spoke about Sesshomaru's father's sword, Tenseiga. But that must have been the sword that he'd used. He'd heard it possessed great powers to rival that of Tetsusaiga, except he'd never seen it in action. He'd always thought that Rin was just exaggerating like children are wont to do. Jaken was also untrustworthy when it came to Sesshomaru as he pretty much worshipped the ground that he walked on. Jinenji was utterly stunned and he thought of all the people he could have saved if only he'd possessed such an awesomely powerful object.
From several feet away Sesshomaru's voice came, "How do we awaken the village?"
Jinenji looked up, Sesshomaru's back was to him but his head was slightly turned in his direction. Jinenji thought for a moment, his mind whirling and trying to remember what Kaede had said.
"I don't know, Kaede said Kagome was needed, but if she's gone... I don't know how to revive them, I've tried…" He trailed off hopelessly.
"Kaede said that Kagome was needed to put a stop to the culprit. Which she has done, whoever was behind the attack on the village has fled." Sesshomaru said.
"They did?" Jinenji replied. He was surprised by this, but then again, if Kagome was gone, then perhaps this was the price? His heart hitched and he could almost not breathe for a moment. He didn't want to think past today, so instead he focused on the here and now, and this conversation.
"Yes." Sesshomaru replied.
"Then we must find and destroy the focus that is keeping the villagers asleep. They may wake on their own, if the spell is broken." Jinenji said.
Sesshomaru nodded and walked away towards the outskirts of the village where Jinenji had felt a strong dark presence.
Slowly but surely, the village felt like it was being cleared of noxious gasses, which in a way it was. The air became lighter and more breathable. And with the lightening of the air, several villagers started to stir. Eventually the sun began to rise, and Jinenji watched in fascination as Inuyasha's black hair streaked white, his ears disappeared from the sides of his head and reappeared at the top in dog-form, and his nails grew into elongated claws.
'Just like me, except not. He's much more handsome…' Jinenji thought. His face darkened for a moment, before he frowned away the unbecoming thoughts. He was not angry with his mother or his father for his appearance. In fact, he was proud to be his father's son. He was far stronger than a regular man, he was able to protect his village and welcomed into an elaborately exclusive family. He shook off the dark thoughts, and felt the last remnants of the spell break.
When Jinenji felt the last bit of darkness leave from the village, several villagers started to stir. Many were malnourished and weak from their enchantment. He administered aid where he could and reassured scared children that surrounded him in front of Kaede's hut.
Kaede, like many of the villagers, believed that the best way to recover was a full stomach and had begun cooking almost immediately after reviving. She'd started a large pot of stew to feed the children who'd been left in her charge. Many other villagers followed suit and soon the smells of cooking fires and various dishes were carried on the wind.
Sesshomaru made his way back to Jinenji's side and they nodded to each other as they stood outside of Kaede's hut. Though neither of them spoke, they both knew they were waiting for the group to gather. They had much to discuss. They waited for Miroku, Sango and Jaken to join them, and for the last few of the villagers to come around. Rin, Inuyasha and Kirara some of the last few to wake, but all did eventually.
The first words out of Rin's mouth were "Where's Kagome?" and she was echoed not a moment later with Kirara issuing a demanding 'mew.'
Jinenji didn't know what to say, he was at a loss for words. All he knew was that she'd ridden away on Kirara, and Sesshomaru had followed, yet only he and Kirara had returned. Jinenji just looked plainly at Sesshomaru.
The rest of the group seemed to catch on and all eyes swung towards him.
"She is gone." Sesshomaru said slowly.
Rin made a sound in between an exclamation and a cry of dismay, turning to Jaken, she clutched him hard as she burst into tears.
The rest of the group waited for Sesshomaru to elaborate, but he didn't seem inclined to. Jinenji looked towards Inuyasha, he knew that the other hanyou possessed a fairly short fuse, and watched his face closely. Yet, even more surprising than a disappeared Kagome, was Inuyasha's expression of utter bewilderment. He didn't seem to grasp what was going on around him, and when he voiced these thoughts all of them looked at him curiously.
"Who are you people?" Inuyasha said gruffly his angry tawny eyes fixing on each face that stared back at him with looks of dismay.
Miroku spoke up, "Inuyasha, it's us, don't you remember?"
Inuyasha glanced about, his hand never straying far from grasping for Tetsusaiga. "I've never seen any of you before in my entire life. If you've done something to me, I swear you'll be sorry." He ground out angrily.
Jinenji was at a loss for words. He looked between Sesshomaru and Inuyasha. Sutra to his head, he didn't know who looked the worse for wear. He was sure that Sesshomaru knew more than he was letting on. It always seemed to be that way, and Jinenji had found that the youkai hardly ever offered up any information unless he was speaking to Rin or Jaken. Alternatively, Inuyasha's face was entirely bewildered and looked to and fro in utter terror at the prospect of being attacked.
"Inuyasha, do you know who I am?" Sango said gently.
Inuyasha glanced at her. "Keh, I don't know who you are. You're clearly a girl. And for some reason you're wearing the garb of a warrior. Whaddaya do, protect this village or something?"
Sango blanched. "Something like that. Here, let's go see Kaede, she'd love to see that you are okay."
"Who is Kaede?" Inuyasha's voice cracked, rising in apparent fright.
"She's the miko of this village, you know, Kaede-baa-chan? You often call her Kaede-baa-baa." Sango replied kindly, placing her hand on Inuyasha's arm, the one that kept grasping for his sword.
"Kaede-baa-baa?" Inuyasha said, obviously confused. A look of almost recognition passed over his face, before it was replaced with puzzlement.
"That's right, this way, follow me. She'll be so happy to see you, and I hear she's making stew." Sango lead the confused hanyou into Kaede's hut, and reappeared a few moments later. The men who had remained in the circle hadn't uttered a word, and instead just listened on in silence to Rin's sobs into Jaken's tunic.
When Sango returned she desperately grabbed onto Sesshomaru's sleeve and said, "Listen, I don't know what happened while we were asleep, but you better start explaining right now. What happened to Inuyasha? Why doesn't he remember us? And where is Kagome?"
Sesshomaru didn't say anything at all. He simply looked at her with cold eyes. Slowly he turned his head to Jinenji and subtly nodded at him.
Jinenji took this for, 'you first,' and began telling all he knew. How Inuyasha had taken an arrow in the chest, fallen from Kirara, and Kagome had been called away. Sesshomaru had followed Kirara and Kagome shortly after. Jinenji was left to try to save Inuyasha's life but…but…he had not been successful and Inuyasha had turned cold in his hands.
"If he died, how is he still alive?" Sango uttered.
Jinenji pointed to Sesshomaru's sword, "He used that after he returned with Rin and Kirara. Inuyasha was cold, but… the battle was over."
"Inuyasha died. Then I revived him." Sesshomaru said quietly. Everyone jumped; it appeared that they'd all but forgotten about the stoic white demon standing right next to them.
"Tenseiga?" Miroku said, surprised glancing at Sesshomaru.
Sesshomaru tilted his head in the ghost of a nod.
"That still doesn't explain why he doesn't remember us," Sango said, her voice cracking with emotion and a stifled sob.
"They were cursed. Her name is Shanpan, an old enemy. She hoped the curse would erase their memories." Sesshomaru said. He gave the outward appearance of not caring at all what he was saying, but Jinenji knew it cost him dearly. He could tell that Sesshomaru was on the edge of collapse, and the state his brother was in had truly rattled him.
"What do you mean they, Sesshomaru?" Miroku said carefully.
Sesshomaru replied in kind just as carefully, "Kagome and Inuyasha."
"Where is Kagome?" Sango said looking from Jinenji to Sesshomaru.
Jinenji didn't know what to do, and he raised his hands offering her a placating gesture. He honestly didn't know what had happened to the miko, and he glanced at Sesshomaru.
Sango turned her anger and exasperation full on Sesshomaru instead.
"... She is gone." Sesshomaru said glancing downwards, and Jinenji almost thought he looked remorseful.
"What do you mean gone?" Sango replied, her voice rising in anger. It was obvious to Jinenji that she'd had enough of the short clipped dialogue that Sesshomaru was so fond of.
"She took several arrows to the chest, and then fell in the well. There was a light, and she disappeared… She is gone." Sesshomaru said mysteriously.
Jinenji didn't really know the significance of the well like the rest of the group did, and he was slightly perplexed by this statement. Just because she'd encountered arrows, it didn't mean she would disappear. He didn't think anyone could survive from several arrows in the chest, but he glanced around at the group for an explanation. Instead of any words, all he saw were saddened faces surrounding him. It seemed that Sesshomaru had in fact delivered news of her demise, but he couldn't work out exactly how. In confusion he looked from one to another of his friends.
Miroku and Sango reached for each other somberly, as Sango burst into silent tears. Jaken was still grappling with Rin, who appeared to be holding all of Rin's weight up with his small frame. Jaken was holding her up as best as he could, but his legs were shaking and about to buckle. Yet, he didn't tell her to let go like he usually did when she grabbed him like a doll, instead he patted her back gently while he tried and failed to hold back his own extremely loud tears.
Jinenji had finally had it; he didn't know why the rest of them had decided that if Kagome had fallen down a well she was gone from their lives? Surely she was just sitting at the bottom of it, probably with a broken ankle, several arrow wounds and extremely angry for being left there while they stood in a circle discussing her fate. If they got to her in time, perhaps he could save her? Unlike with Inuyasha, he would work faster, quicker? Yet, when he voiced his thoughts the group appeared to have been hit with her enigmatic "death" all over again.
"She is lost." Sesshomaru said.
"What do you mean lost, where is she?" Jinenji replied, slightly agitated at the lack of information he was receiving.
"She is lost… in time." Sesshomaru said.
A/N:
Please review! I love the input, and seriously it keeps me writing. =) I respond to all reviews, sometimes twice if I forget even! And I will keep a dialogue open with you, if you don't like my direction.
Something superbly irritated me today. And it's not just once, but in several fanfics I've read recently: chocked vs choked.
To chock is to prevent the forward movement of (a wheel or vehicle) with a chock. I.e. supporting (a boat, cask, etc.) on chocks.
To choke is to interfere with the respiration of by compression or obstruction of the larynx or trachea. I.e. she choked on her words, or a piece of bread.
Please! Re-read your own fanfics! I know I'm not perfect, but it just kind of hurts my soul to read this happen. I'm imagining people up on chocks every time I read she chocked. I'm wondering how exactly that happened in a feudal fairytale…Okay stepping off my soap box… =)
Other Pokémon news: The world's largest trading card mosaic has been revealed in Paris, featuring none other than Pikachu! (Go to for all the deets.) Essentially, the world's largest Pokémon card has been entered into the Guinness book of world records. Pretty freakin' cool right? Right? … Okay, not that cool. But still, as a hobbyist artist, I really appreciate the skill involved.
Also, don't forget, next month on Pokémon ORAS or XY you can download Jirachi, a mythical Pokémon from April 1-24th. That's right; some freaky white, yellow and golden baby with an eyeball in its belly can be yours, freeeeee!
Also, more Pokémon news, I've already pre-ordered Pokémon Sun and Moon. Yes, I'm just that much of a Pokémon fan. =P
Happy reading,
Kajatk8
