Answers to your questions :)
Llebreknit : Thank you! Yes, this is a sess/kag fic :)
Taisho Touga : Thank youuuu :) I have fixed the spelling error in past chapters and I shall remember the spelling for future chapters (:
Elvin BlueEyes : Thank you :) SessKag all the way! xD
InAyUsha : Thaaank youu :) Read and find out ;)
Chapter 10 - Silver Tresses
She fought her natural instinct to run. She couldn't run now, she had something to protect.
Kagome squeezed her eyes shut. She had heard that before one dies, their life flashes before their eyes. Yet she saw nothing; she assumed it was because she had shared her soul with another.
Her train of thought was ripped from its tracks; the demons had reached them and they were merciless. Claws ripped fiercely through her silk kimono and scraped her tender flesh. Fangs sank hungrily into her trembling muscles; tearing at her tendons.
Clenching her teeth, Kagome willed herself not to cry out. She could feel her eyes start to water in response to the sudden pain. Desperately, she tried ignoring the pain and attempted to put up a barrier. Faintly, she could feel her spiritual powers slowly becoming tangible.
An audible crack broke her concentration. She gasped and felt herself losing her balance. A wolf launched itself at her and she fell backwards, landing in a sitting position; her back pressed against Rin's trembling legs.
Kagome barely noticed the young girl crying and screaming hysterically behind her. Vaguely she noted that her leg seemed to have two joints. 'Is it broken?'
She felt demons latch onto her arms, but she didn't feel any pain; her body was numb. Her vision blurred and she could feel her eyelids becoming heavy. The horde of bloodthirsty demons no longer had distinct outlines, they were becoming a blur.
She could no longer hear Rin's cries or the demons' hungry growls. A deafening silence filled her ears and frightened her. What had happened to Rin? Had she gotten away? Was she still alive?
Her head lolled backwards and she struggled to open her eyes. Unable to turn her head, Kagome found herself staring at a hazy canopy of bright green leaves high above her.
Her eyes zeroed in on something silver. Focussing, she felt relief seep through her. Silvery locks were meandering lazily in the gentle breeze.
A single thought passed through her mind before she felt consciousness slip away from her, 'Inu Yasha?'
Jiya, Miroku, Jinenji, Inu Yasha and the man from the village hurried through the fields heading toward the village. Over the roofs of the small huts, three towering demons were visible. They were terrorizing women and children. Every so often, a demon would smash a hut to pieces and laugh at the subsequent screams that would pierce the air.
Arrows could be seen flying through the air and sticking insignificantly in the hides of the demons; the demons seemed to be too big to be affected by arrows.
From a far corner within the village, an arrow was shot; it lodged itself into a demon's eye. The demon roared in pain, swaggered slightly and pulled out the arrow. A mess of blood decorated the demon's face. The beast began to thrash wildly. It threw around its arms and crushed several huts. Unfortunately for the thrashing demon, its arm struck another demon.
This demon located the owner of the offending arm and launched itself at it. Both demons fell, fighting viciously and crushing more homes in their wake. In the end, the victor was the demon with both eyes still intact. It stood up with a handful of cuts and bent down to feast on the defeated demon.
"Disgusting," Inu Yasha muttered.
"Stand back," Miroku warned before planting his feet and thrusting his right hand in the direction of the demons, "Wind Tunnel!"
Within minutes, the demons were gone. As Miroku wrapped the sacred beads around his hand, he noticed the messenger bow gratefully and run off.
"That was easier than expected," Miroku commented. He turned and frowned to find that Inu Yasha had disappeared, "Where is Inu Yasha?"
The group looked around quizzically, he was gone.
Jinenji lifted his nose to the air and sniffed. Sorting through the different scents, he found Inu Yasha's. Motioning that his mother and Miroku should follow, Jinenji began following the other hanyou's scent.
Within minutes, the trio found themselves in the village.
Jinenji looked back at his companions, "I can no longer follow his scent. It has been masked by scents of the village and demons."
Miroku looked worriedly at Jiya, "We must find him before he causes any trouble."
Inu Yasha rummaged through the wreckage, following a faint but slightly familiar scent. The scent had thickened on his way, he figured that whomever it belonged to had been hurt in the destruction of the village.
Inu Yasha had decided to come into the village on his own because he'd noticed something that the others had missed. The arrow that had pierced the demon's eye had a soft glow around it. Curiosity and suspicion had taken over and he'd slipped away when he was certain that no one was watching.
A discarded bow caught his attention and sniffing it, he was sure that it belonged to the mystery archer. His eyes dissected the landscape and finally spotted a body lying face down a little ways off.
Moving towards it, Inu Yasha concluded that it was a woman. Her glossy black hair was stained with blood. As Inu Yasha bent down next to her, her scent buffeted him; sakura blossoms with a light mixture of fresh mint and crisp cinnamon.
Gently, Inu Yasha turned the woman's body so that she was facing upwards. He tucked long black strands behind her ears, exposing her soft features. The hanyou's eyes widened and his hands froze. This woman's face belonged to the two women he had loved and had recently lost.
Inu Yasha's mind raced. Kagome had only appeared after Kikyo had died. Did that mean… no. It couldn't be. Kagome couldn't be dead. She had to be alive. She had to be! His eyes stung and he suddenly understood her scent. Sakura blossoms were a scent shared by Kikyo and Kagome both while cinnamon represented Kikyo's fighting spirit. Fresh mint symbolized Kagome's kindness and eagerness to help others.
A tear escaped Inu Yasha's eye and he felt a part of him die. Sliding his arms under the woman he lifted her bridal-style and carried her off into the forest.
Sango lie on the floor of the hut staring listlessly at the ceiling. It had been days since Kagome had been taken and she was tired of sitting around and doing nothing, but without Inu Yasha's support, there really was nothing they could do.
She sighed and sat up. Kirara was watching her intently, "Hey Kirara."
The neko mewed in response, twitching restlessly.
"I'm sorry Kirara, I know you're tired of this, but if we're out and about Inu Yasha will get suspicious."
Kirara went to Sango and curled up in her lap. She purred, sensing her owner's distress.
"I'm sure he'll come around soon enough," Sango murmured, yawning.
Shifting into a more comfortable position, Sango allowed herself to drift off.
A grief-stricken cry roused Sango almost as soon as she closed her eyes. Scanning the hut, she found that it was still empty. Kirara was staring at the door with her hackles raised. Something was wrong.
Picking up Kirara, Sango exited the hut and went to investigate. An eerie glow was coming from within the forest. Frowning, Sango checked to see if the gang was coming back; they were not. Limping, Sango set off, following the light deep into the forest. 'I hope I don't get lost.'
A little ways in, Sango heard voices. Choosing a thick tree, Sango quietly slunk through the foliage and hid behind the tree.
"Did you get the girl?" a gruff voice demanded.
"Well…" a second voice began.
"The demon's ruined the village—" a third voice began.
"I told you I need her!" roared the first voice.
A fourth voice trembled, "We swear Boss, we went in to look for her after the demons were gone and she was gone."
"Hai, hai, we couldn't find her anywhere," yet another voice piped.
"Go back and find her!" the leader thundered.
Deciding that she'd heard enough, Sango turned away and continued exploring the forest; searching for the source of the panicked cry.
'I wonder who they were looking for,' she wondered absently, putting distance between herself and the men.
Limping on silently, Sango jumped in surprise when Kirara meowed loudly. Looking down she followed the neko's gaze. Telltale strands of silver hung shining in the moonlight on a protruding tree branch. Inu Yasha was here. Sango's eyes widened and she looked around any indication of what direction he'd gone.
Mewing softly Kirara hopped down from Sango's arms and followed the hanyou's scent. After a few minutes, Kirara paused behind a large bush and turned to face Sango.
Sango knelt down next to Kirara and peeked through the bushes at a clearing. Feeling slightly uneasy, she spied the scene before her.
Jinenji, Jiya and Miroku stood at the heart of the village and took in their surroundings.
"It looks like we're going to have to split up," Miroku sighed.
"Iie, there is much confusion, the villagers will help us look," Jiya instructed.
The trio joined a large group of villagers that had congregated and asked for their help. As Jiya had predicted, the villagers agreed. Organising them into teams, they split up and searched the village for the hanyou or clues to his whereabouts.
At the far corner of the village, Miroku found silvery strands caught on a piece of splintered wood.
"Inu Yasha was here," the monk stated, bringing Jinenji's and Jiya's attention to the strands.
With renewed determination, the group continued searching for the hanyou.
A/N) Yes Kagome's shin broke . I'm sorry kind of graphic.. it used to be a lot worse and I thought I'd make it less visual.. I hope I didn't scare away my younger audience. :$