Final exams are coming up fast... So much work to do... Must... study... Ok, that's it, I need a break -.-
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.
~Stars Of The Moon~
Chapter 10
"Alright, start explaining why you looked so mad at me when you weren't," Bankotsu said as soon as Hikari stood up.
"What?" She was still half asleep.
When she woke up, Bankotsu was already up and staring at her, and she wondered why he seemed so curious. In some way, he almost looked worried about something. Sure last night, he was worried too, but this time, there was a little bit of suspicion in his eyes.
"You heard me," he said. "You looked really mad at me yesterday."
Now, she was fully awake. "Oh, that," she remembered. She looked down nervously. "Right. I was mad... Of course I was. I looked angry didn't I?"
Bankotsu groaned. "Spit it out! You know how I can't stand listening to people mumble about random shit!"
She rolled her eyes and tried hard to hide how nervous she looked. "There isn't a particular reason. Really, maybe I was just mad that I couldn't burry all the bodies. Some of them were burned, and I couldn't take care of them. I was frustrated that I couldn't do anything for those people."
He narrowed his eyes and stared at her all funny again. Hikari took a step back. "What?'
"Did you know that you're really bad at lying?"
She stiffened. "I-I... What makes you say that I'm lying? I'm not lying!"
"And there you go again, another lie. Can't you just be honest?"
"I am totally-"
"Lying?" he cut her off. "Yes, you are. I'm not going to accept something as vague as what you said. You wouldn't be as mad as that for not being able to burry people in one piece. It's something bigger isn't it? Big enough to make you look... I don't know... kinda different."
Hikari flinched. "... Different? What... What do you mean by that?"
He shrugged. "There was this dark mist covering you when you talked to me. And then... I don't know, you looked kinda weirder than usual. What was that?"
She chocked down a gasp as her eyes widened in shock. "They... saw it...?"
She shook her head to take that idea out of her mind. "No... that can't be right... I'll tell him that it was nothing. He was just imagining things. Yeah. That's probably it. There no way that he could've..."
"Hey, are you listening to me?"
Hikari nodded and said, "I didn't look any different or anything. You were just imagining things, that's all."
Bankotsu stiffened. "There's no way that I could have been imagining it! My brothers saw it too! So just tell me what happened to make you look so angry!"
She sighed and looked away from him. "I guess... that I was mad... because I couldn't do anything... when everyone was killed." Her eyes darkened and she forced herself to keep her voice straight. "I knew that I had to do something when people were being killed, but I couldn't.
"I sat there staring at nothing like an idiot. I knew that I should have done something! But I couldn't move! I couldn't do anything. I felt so useless and weak that I couldn't even move a finger! I should've at least taken a few kids to safety before they were next, but I couldn't because I was frozen!"
Just as she said those words, she felt the same fury rising up again. She whispered, "I wasn't mad at anyone. If there was one person I should have been mad at, it was myself. For being such an idiot. For not doing anything to save at least one person. For... For..." she trailed off.
She didn't say anything else. And the only thing Bankotsu was able to do was sigh. A sigh of relief, maybe?
He walked up to her and held her in his arms. She trembled under his grasp, and he whispered into her ear in a comforting tone, "It wasn't your fault. It was perfectly normal that you reacted that way."
"But I'm a leagendary healer!" she retorted. "I'm supposed to be used to these kind of things..." "Especially with everything I've went through..."
"'Used to these kind of things'? I don't think so. You don't see an entire village being slayed everyday."
"You're right, though," he continued. "You could have done something. You could have kept someone alive. But what will happen to that one person? He or she will live with the burden of loosing his family and friends for the rest of his life. I'm sure that no one would have wanted to live that way."
The next words were forced out, "Resting in peace would have been a lot better than living with no one to live next to."
Hikari knew that he didn't believe in the afterlife or the other world. But she was thankful that he tried to cheer her up. And perhaps he was right. Maybe the villagers would have liked to rest in peace than live any longer on this world called hell.
He felt her stop shaking and she relaxed. She breathed out gently, "Thank you."
Bankotsu inwardly smirked and pulled her closer. She was acting so differently than usual. He's only seen this part of her a few times. He kissed her forehead. "I can't stand seeing you in pain. I want you to keep that beautiful smile of yours, no matter what happens."
When he looked down at her face, she was blushing. He smirked. "Ah, so you're reading my mind now, aren't you?"
She tried to push him away, but Bankotsu didn't move an inch. She stuttered, "W-we h-have to get g-going! If we're gone too long, your brothers will think that..."
He closed the gap between them in one swift movement and snickered when he saw her face go red again. "Let them think what they want. They can wait... Now that we've got more time to ourselves than before."
She looked down and hid her red face from him. She tried to sound angry. "S-stop saying things like that! It's not like we can stay together much longer! I'm used as a slave in your band, and I hardly have any freedom at all! We'll never have any free time if this goes on!"
Bankotsu stared at her in amusement. "So... Does that mean that even if you think that there isn't any chance of you and me together, you still want to be with me?"
Before Hikari knew what she was going to say, everything came out, "Of course I do! Out of all the guys who flirted with me, you're the only one who actually managed to grab my attention and to make me fall in love with you!"
Almost immediatly after she said that, she clamped her mouth with both of her hands. "Shit. Please tell me that I just didn't say that out loud."
He was just as shocked as she was. Only, he was praying that her words were true. Hikari was a girl who didn't share her feeling often, and now that everything she's kept inside shot out all of a sudden, it was quite hard to handle.
Anyways, it was just what Bankotsu had always wanted to hear.
His grip around her tightened and he smiled. He looked perfectly clam, but inside, he was practically screaming out in joy. He got his answer now. He was sure of it.
Hikari remained paralysed. She couldn't believe just how everything came out all at once. She was better than that, wasn't she?
But... maybe it was the way that he made her feel that made her act so confused. Everything was all so blurry when he was around. And just now, she couldn't think. She felt so warm in his arms... and she closed her eyes.
"He feels warm..."
FLASHBACK
"The best position to be in when you want to defend yourself is having a foot stretched out towards the front and the other in the back, and having your chest facing sideways... Yeah, just like that!"
Bankotsu was practicing his defensive stance with Hikari. He didn't train with Banryuu for the moment, since Hikari thought that he should try defending himself without his sword for a change. So far, he didn't seem too bad.
"You sure that this is right?" he asked. "It feels like it's giving more space for an attack..."
"Oh, don't worry, it always feels that way. But trust me, it's useful." She circled him and frowned. "Hold on... Your arm should be a little bit more like this..."
She took his right arm and moved it closer towards her. "And your other one should be closer to your chest..."
"Like this?" He shifted his left arm.
Hikari nodded aproovingly. "Yup! That's it! If you face your opponent sideways, they won't be able to see any opening. And even if you do get hit, there won't be any serious wounds. Like your chest, for example. It's facing somewhere else, so you should be fine."
Bankotsu nodded and shot out his arms as if he was fighting against someone in front of him. "This does look pretty useful when you can't use your sword."
She raised a brow and crossed her arms over her chest. "Did anything I ever showed you look useless?"
He chuckled. "Of course not. I'm just saying that this one is good if you can't fight with weapons."
She smiled and breathed into his ear, "Then why don't we try it out?"
"What?"
He turned his head to look at her, but she jumped off and faced him. Almost as soon as he turned to look at her in front of him, she stormed at him and tried to deliver a blow to his chest. Bankotsu was unprepared, but with a swing of his arm, Hikari flinched away.
With a satisfied look on her face, Hikari said, "See? Doesn't it work well?"
He smirked. "Don't worry, I've never doubted your moves. Not even from the start."
She smiled and sighed. She looked up at the darkening sky. The stars were now visible, and the light of the sun was fading away. "Wow, the sun's already going to sleep..." she thought.
She said, "I think that we'd better stop. Naraku's insects are close, and if we make any more noise, we'll alert them." She stretched her arms out and yawned. "We should probably get ready to rest."
Bankotsu was about to protest, but then, he yawned. He shook his head and said, "Alright, fine. But we're going to continue this tomorow."
"You already know that we will."
He watched her lay against a tree and sit down. She took off her swords' shethes and placed them next to her. He pulled out Banryuu from the ground and walked up to her. "Aren't you hungry?" he asked.
She shook her head. "Nah, not today. I think I'll just eat something tomorow."
He shrugged and sat down right next to her.
He saw her flinch slightly and smirked. "What's wrong? Don't feel comfortable around a mercenary like me?"
Hikari blushed and looked away, which only made Bankotsu's grin widen. He absolutely loved teasing her. And he loved to see her blush even more. She mumbled under her breath, "D... don't act to cocky... It's not like that..."
He chuckled and moved a little closer to her until his mouth was at the level of her ear. He whispered in a husky tone and mouthed the words slowly, "Then... what is it... Hikari?"
She shivered as she felt his hot breath run down her neck, and he grinned. She felt her face go red and she stuttered, "I... I... It's just... getting a little cold... I don't think... that being too close... is a good... idea..."
She shouldn't have said that, because Bankotsu just looked more and more amused. He laid his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him until their bodies touched. Hikari stiffened. "Wha... What are you doing?"
He smirked. "Well, since you're cold, we might as well warm your body up with... something."
Hikari was as red as a tomato, but Bankotsu seemed perfectly fine. In fact, he was enjoying this. Not because he could see how embarassed Hikari was, but because of something else. The warmth her body was emitting made him feel comfortable and warm inside, and being close to her felt...
He just couldn't explain how she made him feel. All his emotions twirled in his mind whenever he was close to her, and this was the closest they've been to each other. It made the blood rush in his veins, but it felt good.
Hikari, however, was so confused. Sometimes, he would be arrogant, cocky, and impatient, just as she expected. But some other times, he would be kind and gentle to her. Even though those times only happened rarely. He'd tease her and play with her, sometimes tackle her to the ground whenever she sounded too mad. And somehow, doing this would always make her smile.
She didn't understand how he could switch moods so suddenly. Out of all the other men she met, he was the most complicated one to deal with. The others were usually stood with one mood at a time, but Bankotsu seemed to be a few people in one. His aura shifted constantly. He was so difficult to understand.
And he made her go nuts.
Just now, for example, she said that being too close wasn't good idea because she was cold. Did that make any sense at all?
She felt her heart beat at an incredible speed. She forced herself to take a few deep breaths and to let the red drain out of her face. She decided to stay calm. If he could look okay even like this, then she can too.
Since she was feeling rather cold, she snuggled in a little closer to him. She might as well take Bankotsu's offer and make the best of it.
Suprisingly, he felt warm. Hot, even. She closed her eyes.
Unconsiously, she said, "You know, for a corpse, your body's pretty warm."
And then, she bit her bottom lip. Another thing that came out of her mouth without her even knowing. "How many times did this happen already? And how long will this go on?" she thought.
He raised a brow and stared at her. "Was that supposed to be a compliment or an insult?"
Hikari looked down at her feet and blushed. "Umm... just take it as a compliment."
Bankotsu didn't say anything else. She sighed and closed her eyes again. Being in his arms really did feel... nice. She inwardly smiled. "Oddly enough, I feel safe and warm whenever I'm with him."
Bankotsu was lost in his thoughts. The way Hikari's head nestled in the crook of his neck felt like two puzzle pieces coming together. It was perfect. Nothing was missing. He smelled in the sweet sent of her hair and smiled.
When was the last time he'd ever felt this peaceful?
As more and more stars started forming in the sky, the two fell asleep, warm in each others arms.
END FLASHBACK
"And he's still as warm as he was then," Hikari thought.
Bankotsu noticed the smile on her face and smirked. "What are you thinking about now?"
She kept her eyes closed and snuggled closer to his chest. "Nothing much. Just wondering about a few things of the past..."
He didn't say anything else. He wanted this moment to last forever. He felt like he could hold her in his arms forever. If only if that were the case... but apparently, they're going to have to go back soon, sooner or later.
His mind drifted off to last night. He remembered how shocked she had seemed when she woke up from her nightmare, how she moaned, sweat and constantly rolled in the grass in her sleep. Looking at her suffer hurt something inside him.
He didn't want to see her in that state. He was a mercenary, and someone who loved to see people scream in fear. But somehow... seeing this one girl weep and groan in pain crushed him. She was the one and only person he didn't want to see suffer.
He wanted to wake her up that time, but he wasn't sure if that was a very good idea. He wasn't sure of what to do.
And then, he thought about what she could have dreamt of. It must have been horrible- that was for sure. Hikari wasn't a girl who could cry easily. In fact, Bankotsu never saw her cry once. Even when she was injured badly, he couldn't see any sign of a single tear.
Somehow, this dream had something to do with the village he and his brothers just killed. He was sure of it.
"If that means that she's going to have more of these bad dreams... Then I'm never going to keep her with me when we're off killing something," he swore. He was determined to Hikari in a good mood at all times.
He looked down at her face. He felt his heart warm up when he saw her face. He silently vowed, "And if I can't even go out killing, then so be it. I'll stay here and never leave your side. Even if it means losing my job as a mercenary."
They stayed in the same position for a few more moments, until Hikari broke them apart. "They're getting impatient, and Jakotsu's heading this way."
Bankotsu inwardly growled. They just couldn't leave him alone, could they? Was God the one making all these sweet moments break so easily? (A/N: Nope. It's just me :3)
He sighed as he heard Jakotsu's yelling. "BROTHER BANKOTSU! Where are you? Come on, don't we need to get going?"
He answered him, "I'll be there in a bit!"
Hikari took a step to her side and asked, with a little gleam in her eye, "Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's hurry!"
As she started walking away, he smirked. Instead of walking, he ran past her and yelled over his shoulder, "Race ya!"
She blinked in confusion, and then, she raised a brow. And she grinned. "You dare challenge me into a race? That will be one of the most biggest mistakes you'll ever make in your life, my dear Bankotsu," she said ironically.
With that, she ran past him, laughing. And he smirked. "Looks like the real Hikari's back. For a while, at least."
*O*~*O*~*O*
"I'll see you in a few days!"
Kagome waved 'bye' to her friends and jumped into the well. As she felt the blue light envelop her, she found herself in her own time in a matter of a few seconds.
She climbed up the ladder of the well and took a quick look outside. Sota was playing with that soccer ball of his again. So she guessed that it was either the weekend or that school was finsihed.
She waved to her brother and called, "Sota!"
The little boy turned around and his eyes beamed. "Hey, sis! Welcome back! It's been a while, huh?"
Now that Kagome thought about it, it really has been a while since the last time she visited her time. The last time was a little after the Inutachi met Hikari. So... maybe four or five weeks? Wow, it really has been a long time.
He ran to his sister and asked. "Where's Inuyasha? Did he come?"
She shook her head. "Not this time. I'm just going to be here for a few days to stock up on some food, medicine and some other things, so Inuyasha doesn't need to be here today."
As she walked away, Sota mumbled, "Somehow, I have a feeling that Inuyasha will be here even if you are here for a few days."
Kagome could already smell the food her mom was making in her house. She passed by the kitchen and greeted her mother, who must have been preparing dinner. "Hi Mom! I'm home!"
Her mother smiled up at her and pulled her daugther into a hug. "Hello, Kagome! It has been such a long time! How have you been? Nothing serious, I hope?"
Her family knew about the new trouble the Inutachi was facing. And ever since, they've been rather worried about her. Was it always going to be like this? It seemed that every time they defeated someone, another villain would appear.
Kagome hugged her mother back. "I'm fine, really. But I won't be staying here too long, though." She looked around the room and asked, "Where's grandpa?"
Her mom shrugged. "Oh, he's probably somewhere in the storage room again." Then, chaging the subject, she asked, "How is your new friend? The one you told me about last time?"
Kagome suddenly felt a very heavy lump in her throat. She muttered out nervously, "Well... um... Things haven't bing going quite well..." Her mother urged her to continue with a look, and she said, "She's... been captured..."
Her mother gasped. "Oh, no. Is she going to be okay?"
Her daughter gave her a reassuring smile. "She'll be fine. Hikari is strong, and she can deal with anything." "I hope."
Mom nodded. "Well, alright then..."
"I have to start getting ready, so I'll be in my room if you need me."
Kagome started walking up the stairs, until she heard her mother calling her, "Oh, and Kagome!"
"Yes?"
"You know that you're going to have to go to school tomorow, right?"
She inwardly sighed. "Yeah, I know!"
In the feudal era, the Inutachi, along with Kaede, were discussing their plans. They all gathered in Kaede's hut and asked the old priestess what they should do as soon as their miko friend arrived.
"It is simple," she answered. "We do as Hikari told ye and wait for a week until we start searching for her. But it will take a while before we find her, so I suggest ye continue your journey and keep a look out for any sign of her. "
"It sounds pretty easy, but it's more complicated then it looks," said Miroku. "Hikari is now with the Band of Seven, we can't forget that. And taking her back isn't going to be a piece of cake."
Kohaku nodded. "In that case, we'll have to train harder. And think about strategy. The Band of Seven are six now, but they still have the upper hand. After all, they're stronger than before. Even if I was able to get Kyoukotsu's chest real quick, I got him from behind. We can't face them head on."
"I'll just use Meido Zangetsuha on them," Inuyasha boasted. "It won't take any longer than snaping a branch in half."
"But we can't do that!" Sango exclaimed.
They all turned to stare at her. "Why not?" the half demon asked.
Sango blushed. She couldn't tell them, could she? She only protested because she thought that killing the Shichinintai, especially Bankotsu, right before Hikari's very eyes would make her suffer. When Hikari told her everything about the relationship between her and the young mercenary, she almost looked... dreamy. Happy.
And in love.
There is no way that Sango was ever going to let Hikari loose the one person she ever fell in love with. Back when they were young, the young boys always tried to impress her. And none of them seemed to interest her the least bit.
And now, Hikari finally found someone she might spend her life with. Even though Bankotsu is a, cold, bloodthisty, and maybe heartless mercenary, she still loved him. Hikari has already lost enough people she loved six years ago. Sango will not allow anyone else she loved to die.
Kaede seemed to have read her mind, and said, "Meido Zangetsuha will send everyone around ye to the other world. If ye cannot control this power, Inuyasha, others shall be sucked in as well. We cannot allow anyone to die by a simple accient."
Sango smiled gratefully at the priestess, and the old woman smiled back.
The half demon snorted. "Feh. Fine. But whether we kill the Band of Seven or not we're still going to have to get Hikari back. We won't be able to contine our search any faster without her."
Miroku nodded. "Our first goal is to get her back. How about this? When we finally meet the Band of Seven, we battle. Everyone will fight, but one of us will be kept behind. Since everyone's busy fighthing, that one person can go searching for Hikari, since she's obviouslly going to be hidden somwhere. Then, when Hikari is free, we flee."
"We flee," Inuyasha said, "But not without taking a few lives first."
"Okay, now youu're just thinking stupid," Shippou mumbled loud enough for everyone to hear. "We can't just think about killing all the time. This is a rescue misson, remember?"
Inuyasha wacked him on his head to shut him up. "OW! What did I say wrong? I was just telling the truth!"
He didn't want too admit it, but the lttle fox demon was right. He wasn't thinking properly. He shouldn't think about killing his enemies immediatly. Their top goal is to fid out who resurrected them. What he just said right now... Wasnt that what a mercenary would have said?
He shook that idea out of his mind. No. He wasn't like Bankotsu or ay of the Shichinintai. He was better than them. Or was he...?
"I agree with Miroku's plan," said Sango. "But someone's obviously going to be guarding Hikari. We all have to get ready then."
*O*~*O*~*O*
"I've just noticed something," Jakotsu whispered. "The girl looks a lot better than from yesterday."
Sikotsu snorted. "Ya think?"
Today, Hikari wasn't traveling on Gikotsu's metal body. She had permission to walk ahead of the group. As long as Bankotsu stayed next to her when she walked. She was able to convince their leader to let her walk. She said that she was tired of not having to move, and that she was poitive that her legs were going to fall off if she didn't start moving again.
Everyone knew that she was exagerating, but just to make her shut up, they were going to let her do what she wanted just this once.
So there they were, looking at their leader walking next to a woman.
"It may be because we've let her do what she wanted for once," said Renkotsu. "She's always been arguing about not having enough freedom."
"What are you three mumbling about back there?"
They all flinched at their leader's voice. "Nothing!"
Bankotsu narrowed his eyes at them, and shrugged. Everyone started walking again. His brothers sighed in relief. For some reason, Bankotsu seemed more... protective of the girl than before. He would get suspicious of anything his brothers did.
"Does anyone know why he's acting that way?" Mukotsu asked a little after their leader turned his back to them.
"Maybe he just wants to protect the girl because he thinks that we'll hurt her...?" Suikostu guessed.
"Gersh!" Ginkotsu agreed.
"But why would he want to protect her?" Jakotsu wondered. "He said that she's strong, so she can take care of herself."
Renkotsu shrugged. "Maybe it's because he lied to us. Maybe she's just really weak."
Jakotsu was about to protest, saying that there was no way that Bankotsu would ever lie to his brothers, but the ground started trembling. It rumbled and rumbled under their feet, and made some of them lost the men balance and feel off Ginkotsu.
A few seconds later, everything stopped. Everyone's eyes were wide. "What... was that?"
"Me? Weak?"
The men looked up to see Hikari facing them, a hand resting on her chest as if she was insulted. She and Bankotsu seemed to be completly calm and uneffected from the earthquake. And then, Renkotsu understood. He growled. "Of course. She has the power to make the ground shake under our feet."
"Now what makes you think that I'm weak?'' She kept her tone controlled. These men are not getting out of this so easily.
Nobody answered. Bankotsu sighed. Oh well, he might as well watch where this is going.
Hikari continued questionning them. "Well?"
And they still didn't say anything. What could they say? 'Oh, just because we've never seen you in action, and the fact that you're a girl makes it pretty obvious that you're weak'? Ehehe... No. They don't want to see her angry again.
She already guessed their answer, even without looking into their minds. "Fine, then. I'm guessing that you want to see me fight?"
The men's eyes widened. Even Bankotsu seemed a little shocked.
Hikari waited for them to say something. If they wanted to see her in action, she might as well give them what they wanted. Anything to prove that she was anything but weak. "And besides," she said to herself. "A little sparring might lighten up my mood. Well, 'sparring', unless they try to kill me."
The men didn't say anything, but their minds gave them away. They were waiting for a fight. Waiting for a chance to finally see her battle. Waiting to see if Bankotsu really was telling them the truth. And all this waiting was almost unbearable.
The L. Healer grinned and started unsheathing her water blade. "Tell you what. We'll do two rounds. In the first round, you'll all attack me at once, and I'll only stay on the defensive side. In the second one, I'll go against all of you one on one. How does that sound?"
The members of the Shichinintai stared at each other. They weren't thinking of turning the offer down, but they wondered if this girl can take all of their attacks. Would she even live? Their eyes were filled with doubt, and Hikari could clearly see it.
So just to add a little bit more spice to the situation, she said ironically, "Oh, come on. Don't tell me that the men of the great Band of Seven are scared of a weak little girl?"
They all stiffened.
Jakotsu was the first to react. His sword was already out, and his Jakotsutou shot out at her. "Wretch! How dare you!"
Hikari blocked the attack just in time. Her two swords were out, and she just had enough time to block his blades. She flinched slightly when his sword came in contact with hers. "He's gotten stronger, alright. And little bit faster too. If I want to run away from him, I'll just have to be faster."
She jumped back, and almost immediatly, a canon was thrown at her feet. Her eyes widened, and she jumped even further. Another one came at her, and after jumping out of the way a few more times, a giant cloud of smoke was surrounding her. "Damn... I can't see anything..." She started rubbing her eyes. "And my vision's getting blurry... ? !"
She closed her eyes shut and put her all senses wide alert. "Clever," she thought. "Hiding Mukotsu's poison in all this smoke so that I can't see the difference between the two. Smart. Too bad for them that I can still fight even without my sight."
It was quiet. All she could hear was the small popping sound of the little fire sparks. She got into a defensive stance, placed her fire blade in front of her body, and placed her water blade behind her. Hikari could feel that the men were keeping their distances. They wanted to make a surprise attack.
And suddenly, out of nowhere, Suikotsu's claws came down on her.
With her eyes kept closed, she blocked his claws with her fire blade and stayed alert at her surroundings. "If he's here, then that must mean that another one must be..."
She didn't get to finish. Suikotsu had the upper hand when it came to strength. Hikari let go and jumped back, only to be slashed lightly across her cheek by one of Ginkotsu's weapons. She clenched her teeth. So they were coming at her from all sides.
"They aren't going easy one me," she thought. "Well, that's to be expected. Especially after what I said to them. Since I was the one who challenged them, they know that they can't be blamed if I die."
The smoke was lifted slightly, but it still wasn't enough for Hikari to open her eyes yet. She may be able to sense auras of living things, but not poison. She wasn't sure if it was safe yet. Who knows, maybe there was some sort of other poison out there.
Hikari got her answer.
The air suddenly started suffocating her.
One little gasp was able to suck out half of the air from her lungs. She started coughing violently. She couldn't stay there any longer. If she did, then she might as well...
No. She wouldn't let that happen.
She let her senses go wide around her. Mukotsu's aura was right up ahead of her. And then, she sensed for anything that was behind her. Jakotsu was a standing a little aside from where she wanted to go, but she guessed that it will have to do.
She ran as fast as she could to Jakotsu without inhaling a single breath. She had to get as far away she possibly could from Mukotsu if she wanted to survive out of this poison. As she ran, she saw a little flicker of light getting brighter and brighter.
Her way out.
As soon as she felt the dark smoke envelopping her disappear, she took a deep breath of air, hoping that it wasn't poisoned as well. Her eyes burst open in shock.
Thank Buddah that it wasn't.
Jakotsu gasped when he saw her burst out of the dark cloud. And he thought that the next move would be from him. "How... How did you..."
Hikari jumped back and held out her two blades in front of her, readying for any attack. She took in quick deep breaths and her eyes sight was still blurry from seeing the sunlight all in one shot. This was a perfect chance to attack her. But suprisingly, Jakotsu didn't do anything. He may have not, but Renkotsu surely did.
His fire threads came from behind her and caught her by surprise.
She yelped as the threads pulled her arms back. She couldn't move her arms at all. And now, Jakotsu could fire at her chest without a chance of missing. And her own weapons were useless. She cursed under her breath. "Oh, he's good. Getting me from behind to make my blades useless. Clever."
She may not have been able to see Renkotsu, but she heard his voice from behind, "Jakotsu! Get her!"
Jakotsu snapped out of it and blinked. "Oh, right!"
The cross dresser lifted his sword up and got ready. Hikari smirked. "They may have me right where they want me... However..."
Just as the snake-like sword came down, and just as it was about to hit her, a giant wall of earth rose up from the ground to protect her. Jakotsutou clashed against the earth and went back to its wielder.
Hikari grinned at the two men's shocked faces. Renkotsu was shocked enough to let his grip loosen on the threads. "Of course... She can control ther earth even without placing her hands on the ground... she can easily control it as long as she had contact with it... Her feet were still on the ground..."
Hikari saw her chance to escape, and she quickly pulled her arms to her chest to get rid of the metal fire and broke free.
"I can't go back into the smoke," she told herself. "And there must be someone waiting for me up ahead. So the only place I can go is..."
She decided to chose her timing carefully. And now was the perfect time to get out of there. She charged at Jakotsu head on. His eyes widened and he brought his sword in front in case she attacked. But she didn't.
She ran straight past him and didn't even bother casting a second glance at him.
He stared at her from over his shoulder and stood there. It took him a while before whatever happened finally got into his head. And when it did he felt insulted. And pissed. "HEY! Go on and ignore me, why don't you! You foul, disguting, wretched..."
Hikari giggled softly. This was the best fun she's had in really long time. Sparring always was her favorite thing to do. The only problem was that she never found anyone strong enough to battle with. Other than Bankotsu, of course.
She stopped on her tracks and turned around to face Jakotsu again, but only this time, someone else was there. She was going to have to deal with Suikotsu now. When she searched for anyone else nearby, she could sense Ginkotsu's aura getting close.
"Two against one again, huh?"
Hikari was ready. Suikotsu charged at her and was able to make her take a few steps back. If she went any further, she'd fall straight into Ginkotsu's hands... er... canons, most likely. She would't be able to face a huge tank head on.
Suikotsu kept on pushing her back, and she knew that she had to stand her ground. It took her all she had to stop her feet from going any further. She quickly glanced over her shoulder, and found something sparkling once... twice...
Her eyes widened.
Before the light could blink a third time, she jumped out of Suikotsu's way. She closed her eyes and hear a loud 'BOOM' from behind her. She felt little sparks of fire brushing her skin and flinched slightly as they touched the wound on her cheek.
She didn't know if Suikotsu was able to get away from the attack fast enough, but she didn't care. When she opened her eyes again, she saw some sort of gas starting to form around her.
"Shit, not again!"
She jumped as far as she could and looked around. Good. No smoke here. And nobody here either. They were all into hiding again. "They know how to work together, that's for sure. I just hope that I can keep this up."
She saw a shadow slowly making its way towards her. She braced herself for another attack.
A few moments later, Bankotsu appeared. His Banryuu rested on his shoulder, as usual. Hikari stood firm. "Great. I've already lost a pretty big amount of energy fighting the others. Now I have to go aginst him."
Bankotsu continued walking towards her, but then, stopped. He sighed. "Alright, I think that's enough for one day. We've stopped for a break, now let's get moving again."
Hikari blinked in surprise. Was this a trap? No... He didn't look like he as joking... And yet he was the one person who didn't attack her...
She shrugged the confusion away and placed her swords back in their sheathes. She could hear the rest of the members of the Band of Seven emerging from their hiding spots. Most of them were grumbling about how they weren't satisfied.
Bankotsu hear them and said, "Hey! I don't want to hear any complaining. We're going whether you like it or not."
"Oh, but come on, Bankotsu!" Jakotsu whinned. "We didn't have much fun! We were supposed to go one on one with her after this round, remember?"
"That's right," Renkotsu added. "She said it herself. She was on the defensive side. We haven't seen her attacking us yet."
Hikari was surprised that they even took her suggestion seriously. They all looked like they were looking forward to this moment. Huh. Must be because she teased them a little too much.
"We're moving," the leader said in a tone that clearly said 'Don't say anything about it or you'll piss me off and I'll kill you'.
Jakotsu sighed in defeat. He wanted to see what this girl really was and what Bankotsu saw in her. Oh, well. Perhaps some other time. The rest of his brothers were thinking the same thing as well, but they just didn't show it.
Hikari felt their disappointment and giggled softly enough so that no one could hear it. Their auras almost felt childish now. She didn't want to admit it, but she wanted to continued this too. And right now. "There's only one thing I can do, then..."
She turned to the leader, eyes blinking. "Oh, come on, Bankotsu, why ruin all the fun?"
Bankotsu blinked. "What?"
"I said so myself that I'd go against them. I don't want to go back on my word."
"We need to keep moving if we want to find who-"
"And that person can wait," Hikari interrupted. "Besides, I think that resting a little will do everyone some good, don't you think?"
Oh, great. Now she was trying to go against him. And she was winning. But he wasn't about to go down without a fight. "We have enough time to rest at night. Right now, we have to-"
Hikari pouted and turned her back to him. She said in a childish tone, "Pff... You're no fun anymore."
Bankotsu was about to burst. Why that little... He was just about to yell at her again, but decided against it. Keep calm... keep calm... Okay, that's better. He should have known better than to try to argue with Hikari. She would always win.
He sighed. "Fine. But we'll rest for a while first. That cut on your cheek is going to need a little bit of time to cicatrize. Then, you can do what you want."
Hikari touched the wound on her cheek, and felt a tiny drop of blood dripping down. She smiled. "Just a little scratch. This is nothing. It won't take long to get better. At least the very least five minutes."
"It still think that you should try covering it or whatever you healers do."
She rolled her eyes. "Alright, alright. I'll see what I can do for this."
*O*~*O*~*O*
"Hey! Kagome!"
Eri, Yuka, and Ayumi greeted their friend as she entered the classroom.
Kagome smiled. "Hi. What's up?"
"We should be the ones asking you that," said Yuka. "How are you feeling from that psosiarisis?"
"Eh? Psosia-what?"
"She means 'psoriasis'," Ayumi corrected. "You know, that skin disease? I heard that it was really contagious and that it could have even caused skin cancer. Or even death!"
"We were so worried about you!" Eri exclaimed. "You were gone for nearly a month! Well, then again, you were always in these type of situations. And no matter what, you always survived."
Kagome had a drop of sweat on her head. "Oh... well... I guess that it took longer for me to get better than I thought..." "Seriously, Grandpa, couldn't you just get something that might not make them panic?"
"At least you're here again," Yuka smiled. "And just in time too."
The miko froze. "Something tells me that you're going to tell me something I won't like."
Eri smiled. "A new science test tomorow."
Kagome could have fallen to her knees and yelled 'NOOO!' to the sky, but of course, she was raised better than that. Her head slopped down. "Great. Why does it feel like everytime I come back there's just something waiting for me?"
"Aw, cheer up!" Ayumi placed her hand on her friend's soulder. "We'll study all together tonight at your house. That way, you won't be alone on learning some things."
Kagome looked up at her friends, eyes filled with hope. "You'd do that for me?"
The three girls all smiled. "Sure we would! What are friends for?"
She froze. Something wasn't right. Their smiles... they were smiling too much... a little too much... oh no... "Let me guess... You're going to say 'on one condition', right?"
"Yup!"
She sighed. "What do you want me to do?"
"We can study together... as long as you tell us a few things about Mr. Possesive."
"Alright, fine." Her studies depended on this. A little bit of information wouldn't hurt, right?
The bell rang.
Quickly, Yuka said, "Kagome, so it's at your place, five o'clock, okay?"
Kagome smiled. "Sure, that's fine."
Finally! I feel so much better after writing this :)
So you have it, Chapter 10. Hope you liked it (translation: Review plz~!)
~FoxRain7~