Chapter 10
It was now the third time in less than twenty years that The Order of the Phoenix had to be called together all for the same foe. A meeting was in recess at the residence of Grimmuald Palace, but the members were not discussing the creature that was known as the 'Beast' nor was the next seemingly futile plan of attack being considered. No, they were discussing the spectacle half the world recently saw on the television—one that they were present for.
"That wasn't him," Ron Weasley, Junior Auror stated, pacing the room full of Order members. His fiancé pursed her lips, shaking her bushy head of hair in disagreement.
"You saw him Ron. We've been over this a hundred times; no one else could have that kind of power over Voldemort!"
"Hermione—he's dead! And he was most certainly not a demon. That was just a demon that looked like Potter."
"I have to agree with Weasley," Moody growled, "it was obviously a demon that just resembled the boy. The question we should be asking is: is he on our side?"
"But the Beast called him 'Potter'," Hermione argued strongly, "Why would he do that if it wasn't him?"
"Hermione, I know you would like to think that was Harry, but you must accept the fact that he's dead," Tonks said sympathetically. She knew more than anyone else how much the girl regretted throwing away Harry's friendship just before he died.
"Besides, if that was Potter, then where is he now?" Owen Chambers, a former Hufflepuff asked, "I mean, did he just abandon us to fend for ourselves against that demon? Why isn't he fighting it now?"
"For the last time," Ron said annoyed and angry, "That wasn't Potter! That was a bloody demon!"
"I was just saying 'what if'..."
"Demons...wizards...muggles..." Dumbledore trailed. He and the new minister both agreed that, while they should be worrying about the exposure of the wizarding world to the muggle one, there were simply too many higher priorities that had to be taken care of. In his old age and at the pace things were happening, he was having trouble thinking of a course of actions. And the longer he took the more lives it cost.
Ginny sat in the corner of the room gazing at her lap while an internal battle raged on in her mind. A few more choice words from Ron about how Harry was dead was all it took for her to speak up.
"It was him." She said confidently, shocking a few of those close to her with her sudden, strong tone. Dumbledore peered over the rim of his half-moon glasses at her.
"And what makes you say this, Miss Weasley?" She was hiding something from them, he could see it.
"I know this because..." having everyone's attention on her at once made her throat tighten. She swallowed a few times, "Because he isn't human."
The room burst with activity, people crying out in disbelief or outright laughing at her, before Dumbledore held a hand up for silence.
"Explain."
Ginny kept her eyes on her knees. If she looked at the critical faces she wouldn't be able to break her promise to Harry that she made over three years ago.
"He—he showed me back in my fifth year...after he came back from hell...I—," She blinked a few times and took a breath, "I first saw him in his true form in the library that day Madam Pince died..."
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Kouga set Kagome down on the ground outside of the well house and stepped back. It was almost eerie for him to see the young woman so grown up. Her hair was much longer, reaching mid back now and she seemed to have grown a few inches. The thought that he had intended to make her his wife at such a young age almost made him shudder. Or perhaps that was because he had grown accustomed to the customs of his present time.
"Kouga?" she spoke almost in a daze, "I don't understand...how are you?...the well..."
Kouga raised an eyebrow and grinned.
"I'm from this time Kagome, calm down. Long time no see."
"From my time, you mean?" she asked in disbelief. It would certainly explain why he looked so much older.
"Yeah," Kouga confirmed, "Apparently Inu knew he was going to bite it because he's left everyone instructions on what to do. According to the little love note he left me, I'm supposed to make sure you don't meet his past self."
Kagome momentarily dismissed the fact the Kouga just called Inuyasha by a nickname and focused on the more important matter.
"Why can't I?"
"Because, he hasn't seen you since you sealed the well. He's been working for the Powers that Be for quite a long time, or so I've recently discovered, so I would think that he'd be pretty familiar with the consequences of messing with destiny."
While Kouga had anticipated her to argue with him, he never expected her to punch him in the arm angrily with watery eyes.
"But then I'll never see him!" she cried, the full weight of the situation suddenly dawning on her, "I've been trying to reach him for five years just to apologize—five fucking years—and now he's dead! This was the only chance I'd get to see him! He has to know how sorry I am! He has to realize how much I regret that day! He died thinking of me as some selfish...selfish bitch."
She felt furious with herself as hot tears began to well in her eyes; she promised she would stop crying years ago. Kouga himself seemed rather alarmed at her sudden outburst and tears.
"H-hey, calm down. It's going to be fine. Right now we have more important things to worry about than Inuyasha."
Kagome sniffed and wiped her tears away with the back of her hand, "Like?"
"Like that freak of nature and its public displays of destruction, perhaps?" Kouga suggested, slightly annoyed. His features softened at Kagome's trembling form. He realized how hard everything must be for her; suddenly Naraku's back, the well is open, and Inuyasha is just out of reach—dead.
"H-he's dead..." she trailed. She hadn't seen him in five years and he wasn't even the same man she once knew, but the thought still left her feeling hollow inside. Kouga placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Look, I've known Inuyasha a long time, and if there's one thing I've learned about him it's that he never stays dead. Why don't I take you back to his house? It's become a headquarters of sorts for the rest of us. You can meet some of his kids and see Shippo again, how would you like that?"
Kagome nodded and sniffed, idly wondering when Kouga got so mature before remembering it wasn't the same man who used to propose to her every other week.
"Alright," she said quietly. Maybe by talking to his kids she'd be able to learn more about him, more about who he was. Even in the year that she spent with him there was so much she never knew and that, above all else, she truly regretted.
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Alaina decided to speak first, since her sister was too busy staring at her "pirate" father. Apparently those bedtime stories were true; even the one about him having longer hair than them.
"We—"
"I don't want to know!" Inuyasha said quickly, clamping his hands over his ears.
"But—"
"Don't tell me! You're my kids, you're from the future and I'm dead—that's all I need to know."
Alaina raised her eyebrows impressed. This made things much easier for her.
"Well in that case, we'd better be going," she grasped her sister's forearm, preparing to leave.
"Are you really a captain of a pirate ship?" Bridget cut in excitedly before Alaina could apparate them to the well.
"Yeah—," Inuyasha nodded and looked like he would have said more before a look of horror washed over his features, "Oh shit! My crew! They're still at the harbor! Crap, I've got to get back there!"
Alaina giggled, remembering that her father almost lost his whole crew to a woman.
"Yes, I think you should hurry," she agreed.
"Hey Dad, go to Ameri—" Bridget's little piece of advise was cut off as her sister furiously apparated them out of there.
"Go where?" Inuyasha muttered, staring at the spot there were seconds before. He wanted very much to go get his crew from where he left them. He told them one week at the most and it had nearly been two! But he couldn't—and wouldn't—leave without his book. Inuyasha sighed and hopped up on his favorite branch in the God Tree. He'd just have to wait patiently. He could be patient...no problem...
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As a guardian Harry had open access and leave of hell which he used to his advantage many times over the years. One would think that with the number of times he had gone there he would have the routine down pat. Standing in the middle of an everlasting white room, Harry wasn't so confident anymore.
"Harry Potter."
Harry turned on the spot to see five, white-robed figures lined in front of him. They had an all-powerful presence like he'd never seen before and their lack of scent could only tell him one thing: this was the Powers that Be. He had never actually met them before, and knew Inuyasha had only a handful of times.
"Um...hello." He really had no idea what to say to them as they were technically his superiors.
"We know what you intend on doing..." the shortest began.
"...And we strongly advise against it," continued the female bodied one.
"There is a reason and purpose for all death," said the tallest, "It is a cycle that not even we dare to interfere with."
Harry felt a small tick go off on his right temple at the way the spoke to him like a child. Although compared to them he was a child...
"Well maybe the reason for Inuyasha's death was to wake a few people up," Harry said boldly, "Maybe he died to help us understand what kind of power we need to defeat the Beast."
"We warned Inuyasha what would happen should he fight against Voldemort."
"And yet you knew he would fall nonetheless," Harry countered. He was beginning to understand why Inuyasha became so easily annoyed at these beings, "I don't care what you have to say about this, I don't care what principles it goes against; I'm bring him back. And I'm doing it with this book."
He held up the ancient text for the beings to see. The one farthest left spoke next.
"We do not approve with your choice of action. Spell work can go wrong in many ways, as you have learned yourself. You are not quite a half-demon."
Harry shrugged.
"The spell seemed rather simplistic when I found it, but since you bothered to warn me against it, I can only assume that it will work."
"It matters not; it is against our morals."
Harry could see that they were only advising him against doing it, but they were not known for acting on their words.
"Will you try to stop me?"
The PTB gave no answer. Harry took that as a negative.
"Then I'll be on my way."
He shimmered away from their vision. The PTB stared on, where the youngest guardian ever once stood.
"We should stop him," the one on the far right stated futilely.
"Yes," agreed the tallest, "We should...but we won't. For the sake of mankind, we won't."
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Barren, red terrain; a portentous chill sweeping the land; stormy, crimson skies...now this was more like it.
Harry smiled and took a deep, refreshing breath of the ill-omened air. Humans would wet their pants if they were in his position, even demons were uncomfortable with the ominous setting, but for a Guardian...this was practically home.
A couple demons in the distance caught sight of him, froze, and then fled. Demons, no matter how stupid or how low their class was, could always recognize a guardian when they saw one. They knew better than to mess with one.
Harry knew exactly where he was going. It was a designated part of hell he'd never been in before, where the souls of the dead resided when they first departed from their body. A quick, shadow-walk later and he was in a green-tinted cavern. The moans of souls echoed off the rocky walls as greenish orbs of light swirled around in the air, purposelessly. It could have been described as beautiful if it weren't for the pitiful moaning that ran chills down his spine.
"I think you're lost, hunny."
A figure jumped in front of him—a demoness; tall and willowy, with long, shining sliver hair, pointed ears, and lavender eyes. She wore a wine-colored, satiny dress that looked as if it were welded to her figure. It flowed to the ground on one side and was bunched high on her left hip, revealing a long, smooth leg. She bore knee high leather boots and a matching black choker with two, large, leathery wings folded behind her. Harry couldn't help but notice that her scent was that of a half-demon, and it was a familiar one as well.
"Do I...know you?" Harry asked, staring at the young woman appraisingly. He had to admit she was very attractive.
"Don't you have enough of my siblings after your sweet ass without lusting after me as well?" she replied emotionlessly as he gaze lingered on her chest. Harry coughed and brought his attention back to her face. Now he knew why she looked familiar.
"You're Nadia, aren't you?"
She smiled and winked, the cold look breaking instantly; making her look more like her father and less like her uncle.
"God it in one, kiddo."
Harry scowled and would have made a remark on the 'kiddo' comment if it weren't for the fact that she was hundreds of years older than himself.
"So what brings you to my humble abode?" She asked, circling him casually.
"I just need to summon a soul and reattach it to its body...just a standard procedure," he said, trying to sound informal. She frowned.
"I'm sure with being a guardian and all that you would know the very purpose of my existence is to not let people do that."
"And I'm sure, being the guardian of hell itself, you would know that it's your father's soul I'm trying to resurrect, and for the greater good, might I add."
She sighed, resigned, "Yes I know. I figured I should at least make sure you know how very wrong this is. Go on and do your thing. But if anyone asks: I tried to stop you."
Harry grinned and nodded, flipping open the book to one of the last pages.
"Good," Nadia replied, seeing him get to work, "I'll be off now. Oh, and Harry? Don't fuck this up."
"Right," Harry said, "No pressure."
He looked down at the ritual he was about to use. It really was simple and didn't require much blood. It basically transported the body to the place of the spell casting and, if the body was whole and able to function, the soul would rebind itself to the core. The hard part about this spell was getting in and out of hell. What are the odds that the only two people able to use this magic would be guardians as well?
Harry laid the book down and made two, deep slits on his wrists. He began to trace a pattern in the rocky ground with his blood coated fingers, copying the book symbol for symbol.
"Arcesso prolixi Inuyasha Julian Black Nagasaki—Guardian of the seventh gate!" He muttered as the rune he was creating began to glow.
One green-tinted ball of light shot out from the millions floating around him and began circling over the blood runes.
"Refero cuius inexpugnabilis..."
The soul began circling faster, creating a humming noise. Harry threw both hands downward across the emblem, leaving two, thick lines of blood.
"Nequam atqui nocens...adustum atqui acerbus...offero corporis!"
The soul began to take a form—lengthening and darkening...
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Sesshomaru looked up at the ceiling from where he was seated at the island in the kitchen. There was something not right; something that had to do with his deceased brother.
In less than a second he was in the master bedroom where his brother's body was laid across the bed and was slowly fading from sight. Alarmed, Sesshomaru reached forth with a clawed hand, trying desperately to stop the body from leaving. His fingers managed to grasp air, falling through the now rapidly vanishing body.
He had in fact tried numerous times before to use Tenseiga on his brother's still body, to no effect. He could neither see the death imps nor the chains, much to his confusion. He could only hope that this would somehow bring his brother back to him as the body completely disappeared from sight. Not only because they needed him to fight this Beast character, but also because he was his brother. As much as he tried to hide it, he did indeed care for his brother, and sometimes had to stop himself from thinking back on the pain he caused him as a pup.
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. Something caught in his fingers, something papery and light. Curious, Sesshomaru brought the mysterious object to his face. It was a small piece of paper, folded neatly in the grip of his fingers. The demon lord opened it, careful not to rip it with his claws.
'Thanks for caring'
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"Reverti hic olim..."
Before Harry was Inuyasha's complete body, still in the very clothes he died in with an ethereal green glow pulsing around it.
"...reverti pridem infinitio," he finished in a whisper. Harry held his breath, staring at the still body. Nothing happened for a moment; Inuyasha's heart didn't beat, his blood didn't warm...
Then amber eyes fluttered open and Harry felt his throat constrict with overwhelming emotion as the slow, steady beat of a heart reached his demonic ears. Inuyasha shot up into a sitting position taking a large, fresh gulp of air. Harry resisted the urge to hug him, not wanting to alarm Inuyasha any further as the hanyou took in his surroundings with wide eyes and heavy breathing. After a few moments he calmed down and looked up at Harry who stood above him with bleeding wrists and shining eyes. Inuyasha's gaze went from Harry to the rune he was sitting on, to the soul-infested cavern, and back to Harry.
"Harry...?" Inuyasha said in a slow, questioning tone. His voice was quiet as he gazed up at the wizard lost and confused. His fluffy, white ears drooping a bit, making him look just like a puppy. Harry grinned and held out a hand, which Inuyasha took, allowing himself to be pulled to his feet.
"Harry," Inuyasha said again, this time with something akin to amusement.
"What?" Harry asked, a smile playing on his lips even though he didn't understand what was so funny. He couldn't get over the fact that Inuyasha was standing right in front of him...alive. The freaking spell had worked.
"You've forgotten, haven't you?" Inuyasha asked, his eyes alight with amusement.
"Forgotten what?"
"—Otherwise you wouldn't be standing so close to me."
"What are you—? Mmhmm!"
Inuyasha had suddenly leaned forward and cut Harry off by pressing his lips against the younger man's—holding both of his biceps in his grip to keep him from escaping. Harry's eyes shot wide open at the contact and he struggled, pushing futilely against Inuyasha's chest.
"INUYASHA!" He cried out outraged once he freed himself. He wiped his mouth with the back of his arm and spat on the ground. Inuyasha skipped backwards laughing hysterically.
"I told you I'd get my kiss!"
"You are SO FUCKING DEAD!" Harry screamed at him. Inuyasha turned and ran for his life.
"After all that work resurrecting me?"
"Shut the fuck up!"
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HAHAHAHA! There's that kiss! Hehe, this will not be slash, I just had to add it for my own sick pleasure. You know you liked it.
Nadia is a character who will be appearing in RTR. Well...not really. Oh, snap, it's hard to explain, you'll see one day—all you must know is that Inuyasha sired the custodian of hell.
Anyhoo, I did a lot of skipping around in this one just to give you all a general idea as to what's going on with everyone—that's why the chapter's so long. Thanks for the reviewies! Kiss kiss kiss!
On a very happy note...Pig Run this weekend! Hurrah!