Light Within the Darkness
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or Yu Yu Hakusho... though a girl can dream can't she?
Chapter Twenty: Powerless
Kagome scowled at her younger brother as he laughed at her expense. Shiori had been nice enough to make chocolate pancakes for breakfast and the brat had taken a huge bite out of each of her pancakes. She could sense the amusement radiating from Kurama as well, who sat beside her attempting to hold in his chuckle.
"And to think, I was going to take you to the arcade this weekend." She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest as she stared down at her half eaten pancakes.
The laughter immediately stopped and a pout pulled at his lips. " You know I was only joking Kagome! You can have mine!"
She shook her head "Too late, I'm not hungry anymore. And now YOU have to take ME to the arcade to make up for ruining my breakfast." She smirked.
Kurama rolled his eyes. "Are you hustling our little brother Kagome?"
The miko looked appalled by his accusation "I would never!" she faked, nearly breaking out into laughter at the glare Kokoda was attempting to scare her with. "If you're going to try to look intimidating, you're going to have to try harder than that."
He huffed. "Not all of us can look naturally terrifying like you."
"You little brat, what did you just say!?"
Shiori laughed as she took their breakfast plates and replaced them with bags of lunch. "Alright you three, if you don't leave soon, you'll be late for school."
Kokoda stuck his tongue out at Kagome before darting out the door, his laughter bounding off the walls of the hallway as he made a run for it. Kurama smiled his thank to his mother as he took his lunch and made his way toward the front door.
As Kagome made to follow, Shiori gently touched her arm to gain her attention. "I just wanted to thank you Kagome… for giving your father another chance." She smiled warmly.
The miko smiled softly at the woman and rested her hand over her's. "It was a long time ago, it's time to forgive and try to move on. It took me some time and thought to realize I was holding a grudge. But he's my father, so he deserves another chance. He has seemed to change… and you all are everything I have left."
Shiori pulled her into a hug. "We will always be here for you dear…"
Kagome smiled and nodded. "I know…"
"Well you better get going, I'm sure Suichhi is waiting for you." she smiled, clearly holding back tears.
Nodding, she leaned up to kiss the woman on the cheek before hurrying off to join the avatar outside.
"What took you?" he questioned, immediately taking note of the change in her aura. She seemed... happier, as if another weight had been lifted from her shoulders.
She shrugged. "Just small talk with my step mother."
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Kagome leaned to her left, resting her head on Yusuke's shoulder and closed her eyes with a huff. His arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer as he shoveled another bite of his sandwich into his mouth. "Tired?"
She shrugged. "I don't like waiting." She murmured.
Kurama's gaze fell on her as he silently ate his lunch as well.
"You guys can't make him attack, you have no other choice but to wait him out."
"Just feel like we're sitting ducks."
"It's a better move to wait, fight on your turf. If you go to him, you'll be at a disadvantage."
"Never thought I'd see the day Yusuke would explain tactics to someone." Kuwabara chuckled.
"Shut up ugly."
Kurama chuckled as well, hoping to lighten the mood. "He has a point Yusuke. You are more the one to punch first and ask questions later"
He snorted "Well this is different."
"You sound just like Inuyasha." She laughed softly.
Classes seemed to drag by and after what felt like days, Kagome was finally exiting the building. Leaning back against a nearby tree to wait for the boys, she watched the other students go about their business. Groups of girls gathered in the courtyard to whisper about the latest gossip, boys strolled together to admire the opposite gender. She contemplated what it would be like to have a normal life again... and if she ever would. The thought quickly became unappealing as she thought of how bored she would probably get. Sure, she'd love to get married and start a family but in the meantime, how boring would life be once the journey with the Shikon was complete? Would she still be able to travel to the past to visit her friends? Would Koenma let her join Yusuke and the others on missions now and then? She was pulled from her thoughts when she caught sight of Yusuke exiting the main doors, Kurama and Kuwabara trailing behind him. Smiling toward them, she kissed the detective softly when he was within reach.
"So what's the plan for today? Is Hiei busy?"
"Unfortunately Hiei is on a mission in Makai. And Kagome I believe you should take a few days to relax. You don't want to be completely worn out when Koenma calls." Kurama suggested.
She nodded in agreement. "Alright. You're house then? I'm actually pretty tired..." she admitted as she focused on Yusuke.
He smiled down at her. "Sure, you can take a nap while I play a game. You comin Kurama?"
He nodded, "Sure."
"Me too!" Kuwabara grinned before the four began toward the detective's house. Before long, Kagome was curled up against Yusuke's side wrapped in a blanket while he booted up the game. They turned the volume down since Kagome was going to be sleeping and Kurama planned to do homework. Kagome drifted off to sleep in the comfort of her love's arms, glad to have these special moments with him before the final battle commenced.
A loud ring pulled her from her sleep and Yusuke reached into his pocket with a sigh. Flipping the communicator open, he glared at the toddler. "What do you want now Toddler?"
"Is Kagome with you?"
He tilted the screen so he could see the miko that was quickly awakening. She felt her heart drop into her stomach at the serious expression on the junior ruler's face. "It's time. He launched a full scale attack on your camp."
Before anyone could say a word to the miko, she flipped the blanket off her and started reaching for her necklace. Yusuke's hand shot out to grab hers before she could disappear. "You better not be leaving without giving me a kiss first." He glared down at her. No way was he going to let her leave for this final battle without at least a kiss. It could be their last…
She smiled up at him and kissed him with all the passion and love she felt. Pulling away from him, she hugged Kuwabara before wrapping her arms around the avatar as well. "I'll fight to survive... I will come back." she murmured before distancing herself from him and activating her necklace. Upon her arrive to the past, she was immediately engaged in battle. Hundreds of demons could be seen flooding from the dense trees surrounding their base camp. She hurried to regroup with the others, finding them fending off the demons fairly well. Kouga and his wolves were doing their best to keep any demons from flanking them. Ducking under a sharp pair of claws aimed for her throat, the miko sped through the throngs of battling demons until she reached Sango, Miroku and Kirara.
"Kagome!" Sango sighed in relief. "They came so suddenly, we're not sure how but Naraku was able to conceal their scents so Inuyasha couldn't even detect the danger until they were nearly on top of us."
"Where is Inuyasha?" she asked quickly as the slayer tossed her a short katana. Standing with their backs to each other so they could keep from being flanked, the miko tried her best to scan the area as she fought off the lower demons charging straight for them. She could hear Kirara making her rounds from above, tearing apart any demon that tried to attack from the skies.
"He ran off to fight Naraku but was deterred by Hakudoshi. Kouga is battling Kagura as we speak." Miroku answered, using his staff to knock away a toad demon's tongue that had been aimed for Sango. "We don't know where Naraku is hiding but we have to take care of the army first."
"What happened to the traps we set?" the miko grunted as she sliced through a rat demon. She held back her purification purposefully, knowing she would need her strength later when the real battles began.
"The traps cut the army nearly in half, if it hadn't been for all our preparations, there would be far more demons..." Sango stated. Lifting her Hirakotsu above her head, she let it fly and watched in satisfaction as it took down dozens of demons before returning to her. "Kagome can you feel Naraku's shards? I don't want him sneaking up on us while we're distracted with his underlings."
Frantically scanning the area around her while Miroku used his wind tunnel in short spurts to cover her while she was searching, she scowled in frustration. There was no sign of any shards nearby. Closing her eyes and focusing harder, she caught a very weak signal coming from the south end of their camp. "I feel something just south of here but I'm not sure if it's Naraku."
"Kirara! Find where Inuyasha is!" Sango ordered, smiling her thanks when the neko took off into the distance. Just as Sango turned her attention back to the attacking demons, they heard a loud roar, pulling their gazes back toward where the neko headed. They watched in horror as the large feline fell from the sky and landed hard on the blood soaked ground. Kagura appeared from the dozens of demons and slowly approached the downed neko, her cruel gaze locked on Sango's terrified brown eyes. Before Miroku could stop her, Sango broke into a sprint to the neko's aid, quickly followed by the monk and miko.
"I have a barrier at our backs! Just focus ahead!" Kagome yelled over the deafening sounds of battle around them, making sure her barrier behind them was strong enough to keep anything from attacking them while they rushed to Sango and Kirara. They tried to keep up with the slayer but she wasn't even fighting as she went, she was dodging around the attacking demons in her effort to reach Kirara in time, leaving Kagome and Miroku to fight off the demons she left behind. "Sango!"
The slayer couldn't hear them, her attention was completely focused on her companion that she feared she wouldn't reach fast enough. Tears brimmed her eyes as she watched the wind demoness lift her fan. A scream ripped from her throat as the demon released the attack and it tore the neko to pieces. Instead of her pace slowing from witnessing her long time companion's death, the slayer sped up as rage flooded through her. Without thinking, she tackled the wind demoness to the ground and pounded her fist into her face. "YOU BITCH!" she cried as the slayer relentlessly delivered one punch after another until Kagura was finally able to kick the slayer off of her. Pulling her katana from it's sheath, Sango charged her full speed just as Kagome and Miroku reached Kirara... or what was left of her. Kagome held back her tears as she realized she couldn't heal the neko.
"Kagome, we have to stop Sango!" Miroku demanded as he continued to fend off the horde of attacking demons. They were lucky that majority of the army were weak useless demons but when they attacked in groups as they were now, it made it a bit more complicated. One wrong move and they could easily be bombarded.
Just as the miko was going to yell to Sango in an attempt to pull her from rage that now consumed her, she spotted a tentacle darting straight for the slayer's unprotected flank. Panicking, Kagome threw a barrier up just in time to save her friend. A grunt was heard to her left and Kagome glanced toward Miroku. "NO!" Another tentacle was punctured straight through the monk's stomach. She'd been so focused on Sango that she hadn't noticed the second attack aimed at Miroku. Acting fast, she severed the limb and caught Miroku as he began to crumble to the ground. Erecting a full barrier around them, she slowly lowered him to the ground as her tears from earlier came back with a vengeance. "No, no, no, no... Miroku you have to stay awake! I can heal you!" she cried. "SANGO, MIROKU IS HURT!" She screamed, hoping her voice would reach the enraged slayer.
Sango felt her blood run cold when Kagome's words reverberated through her entire being. Miroku... was hurt... Pulling her attention from her fight with Kagura, she spotted Kagome and Miroku encased in a barrier not far away. Dozens of demons were attaching her shimmering pink barrier and it was clear by the pain etched on the miko's face that the constant attacks were effecting her. She could see the miko trying to heal Miroku. "You shouldn't turn your back on a fight you fool!" Hearing Kagura's approach, she turned sharply and thrust her katana forward. Satisfaction flood through her as she felt the end of her blade puncture through the wind demoness's throat. With a flick of her wrist, her enemy's head rolled to the ground. "You shouldn't have taken Kirara from me." she sneered before rushing toward Kagome and Miroku. Taking it upon herself to rid of the demons that were attacking Kagome's barrier, she prayed the miko could heal such a severe wound.
Kagome pushed all the energy she could into the monk as blood continued to pour from his wound. Tears blinded her vision as a sob broke from her chest. In order to heal the wound, she needed to remove the tentacle that punctured his stomach but now that it wasn't lodging everything else in place, his life blood was flowing freely. Every second that passed Kagome knew Miroku was drifting farther and farther away from her. She could sense death's grip on his and knew there was nothing she could do but slow the process.
"Let me go Kagome..."
She glanced up to see the monk staring at her with a soft smile, blood trailing from his lips. She shook her head vigorously. "I can't let you die Miroku... I CAN'T." she sobbed, pushing even more of her energy into his wound.
"There's no coming back from this... Let me go... You need to conserve your energy. You need to defeat Naraku" he murmured, coughing up more blood. She shook her head stubbornly. He reached up to grab her wrist and gently pulled it away from his wound. "Please Kagome... keep Sango safe for me."
"No Miroku please... You have to hang on. Don't close your eyes!" she cried as she slapped his cheek lightly in an attempt o keep him conscious. She knew the moment he went to sleep, he wouldn't awaken. "Miroku open your eyes please. You can't leave us like this... You can't leave Sango like this!"
She received no response which caused her to panic further. Reaching for his pulse, she pounded her fist into the ground. He was gone... and it was her fault. She should have paid better attention! Pushing herself to her feet, she picked up the katana that she'd dropped when she hurried to Miroku's aid. Clenching the hilt so tightly that her knuckles turned white, she pulled away her barrier and charged into battle right along side Sango. Unable to control her rage, her miko powers began to leak from her, engulfing not only her body but her weapon as well. Fueled by their anger and loss of their companions, the women fought until not a single demon remained and the ground was littered with the bodies of their enemies. Breathing heavily, they glanced at each other and nodded before searching the area to see if they could find any traces of their other comrades. Members of the wolf tribe lay scattered among the bodies of their enemies and they assumed Kouga was also gone... seeing as he'd been the one fighting Kagura before she took Kirara's life. There wasn't any sign of Inuyasha or the sounds of battle in the distance, which brewed further worry in their guts.
"I am impressed. I never imagined that the last two standing would be the human women. Although I will admit that you, Kagome, have always been more a threat to me than anyone else."
At the sound of his voice, both women turned sharply to see Naraku himself exiting from the dense forest that surrounded their camp. Sensing Sango's rage returning, the miko grabbed her arm quickly before she could charge blindly. "Don't Sango."
"This coward attacked from the sidelines Kagome, he couldn't even face us like a man. He killed Miroku." she snarled.
"I know, but charging him without a plan will just get us killed. And Miroku and Kirara's deaths would be in vain. We have to wait for Inuyasha to get here and help." She muttered, her gaze focused completely on their long time enemy.
He chuckled, having easily heard their small talk. "If you think backup is coming, you are in for a surprise my dear."
"Inuyasha will come for us. You will never win Naraku." Kagome snapped, still keeping a firm grip on the slayer's arm.
"Inuyasha? Oh you mean this hanyou?"
Kagome fell to her knees as Hakudoshi stepped out from behind Naraku, Inuyasha's limp body hanging from his katana. Pulling his blade from the hanyou's body, they watched in horror as the inu hit the ground with a loud thump. A soft groan escaped him as he tried to push himself to his feet but was stopped when Naraku dropped his foot onto Inuyasha's back, pinning him to the ground with his weight. "He put up a good fight, but he was no match for me." the spider smirked cruelly. Now it was Sango's turn to hold Kagome back, grabbing the back of her shirt to keep the miko from charging forward.
"It's over, there is nothing you can do. Hand over your shards and I might consider letting one of you live."
Kagome allowed her powers to flow from her body viciously as anger burned through her veins. "Never."
Naraku sighed and shrugged as he glanced toward his underling. "I offer mercy and this is what I get in return. Pity."
Glancing toward each other, the two women formulated a plan of action within moments but before they could put it into action another surprise attack caught them off guard. They had foolishly assumed that Naraku and Hakudoshi were the last of Naraku's pawns. Sango gasped in shock when pain burst through her back. Her eyes wide, she glanced toward Kagome in confusion, unable to comprehend what was causing her such pain. Kagome cried out as the slayer fell to her knees, an arrow protruding from her back. Turning to where the arrow seemed to have come from, the miko watched in horror as Kikyo notched another and swiftly released it. As if it were in slow motion, Kagome watched the arrow slowly fly directly for her. She was frozen where she stood. What could she do anyway? There was no way she could defeat Naraku, Hakudoshi and Kikyo all by herself. Her eyes slowly closed as tears streamed down her cheeks. 'I'm sorry Yusuke...'
Kagome woke with a start, gasping for breath as she was flung violently into the waking world.
"Whoa babe! Calm down!" she heard Yusuke beside her and her wild gaze turned to him. Glancing around herself, she realized she was still in his living room. Kuwabara was seated on her opposite side and seemed to have been playing games with Yusuke before she woke. Kurama had leapt from his seat at the dining table and was quickly making his way toward her. Was it a nightmare? Quickly forcing herself to calm, she buried her face into Yusuke's shirt.
"What happened?" he murmured, brushing his fingers through her hair in an attempt to calm her further.
"It was just a nightmare..."
"What about?" Kurama questioned, now standing beside the couple.
"The battle... everyone died and I... was about to as well." she shivered. "But it was just a dream... I'm fine now."
Yusuke held her tight as he pulled her fully into his lap. He glanced up at Kurama, worry clear in his eyes as he tried to calm her shaking.
"I will make her some tea." Kurama murmured as he quickly disappeared into the kitchen.
Kagome took deep slow breaths as she tried to clear her head. It felt so real... was it really a dream? Or perhaps a vision of what was to come? Another shiver shook through her as she felt Yusuke's arms tighten around her. No, they were not going to lose... they couldn't, the future depended on their success... the people she cared about depended on them. Still riled up, she pulled away from her boyfriend and stood. Glancing down at him, she couldn't help the warmth that crept through her heart at the genuine worry in his eyes as he watched her. "I'm fine. I promise. But I think i need to go back. Just in case this wasn't just a dream, I have to make sure it doesn't happen." she murmured.
The detective stood and pulled her into his arms. "Alright but don't be long, I want you in my arms tonight." he muttered softly before pulling away and kissing her.
"Tell Kurama to I'll be needing that tea when I get back." she smiled halfheartedly before reaching for her necklace. He nodded and then she vanished before his eyes.
Once she arrived in the feudal era, she quickly informed her friends of the nightmare she'd had, explaining it to them in vivid detail so they could change their guard plans accordingly. She wasn't sure if her nightmare would actually become reality but they weren't willing to risk anything. Instead of keeping the wolves patrolling close to the camp ground, Kouga pushed them several miles further so they would know the moment something went array. With his connection with the pack, the wolf prince would know the moment once of his members was engaged in battle and would be able to warn the rest of the group. Kagome made it clear to Inuyasha that he was not to leave them behind under any circumstance, because they were stronger together and could watch each other's flanks. Deciding to make a quick round of the area to be sure there wasn't anymore they could do to defend the area, Kagome and Sango left the camp just as the sun was falling behind the mountains. Flashlights in hand, both women scanned the area to be sure that every side of the camp was covered.
Sango placed a comforting hand on the miko's shoulder as they began making their way back to camp. "Don't worry Kagome, we are well prepared. Even in your dream you said our traps helped minimize the army by nearly half. We just have to be prepared for when the come, not be caught by surprise, and cannot allow ourselves to be separated. The easiest way to win a war is to divide and conquer. Inuyasha now knows not to venture far from the group."
The miko nodded. "It was just startling... it felt so real."
"I'm sorry you had to experience that. It must have been terrifying."
"That's an understatement," she snorted. "I felt powerless... just watching everyone I care about dropping like flies around me. I think I even scared Yusuke when I woke so suddenly"
"Shh." The miko felt her muscles freeze when her slayer companion's demeanor suddenly changed. They both turned off their flashlights and scanned the area the best their could with their human vision, their full attention on their surroundings. "I thought I heard something." Sango murmured, her hand slowly reaching down to rest on her katana at her hip. Kagome pulled her bow from her back and reached for an arrow. But before the arrow was removed from the quiver, her vision went black and the last thing she recalled was Sango screaming her name.
A/N:
Hello everyone! So sorry it's been a long time since i updated! Lots of things going on in RL right now; got married, went on a long honeymoon traveling the world, bought a house. But now that things are settling down in our new home, I finally had the chance to get back to my fics! So I'm hoping to have the next chapter up fairly quick, sorry for the fake out... and cliff hanger lol! Hope you all enjoyed and thank you so much for all your reviews and continued support! Until next time :)
~*Icyfire*~
Next Chapter: Chapter 21 - Trump Card