Author's Note: I do not own Inuyasha or anything affiliated with it. The rights to it belong solely to their respective owners.
Notice: Hey! Sorry it took me so long to update; my computer crashed and I need to take it to the shop. I posted this using a computer of my friend's, and until it get's fixed I have access to only it and the student computer labs. But I will work even harder, and so, here are the fruits of my labor! (But first, the replies.)
The Queen of Water: Thanks.
PrincessAnime08: Well, here it is.
Gry17: She won;t have much of one, although she like many others will recognize what kind of demon Yume is.
MeekinPink: I've actually read and followed it, as you've probably seen. I eagerly await the next chapter.
Hailey3781: Actually, the one Yume will fall in love with will be Sesshomaru; sorry. But I will try not to leave cliffhangers (meaning I will only do them rarely) so you have little to worry about.
Elfen Children: Huh. I never really saw myself as a cruel person, although I guess leaving a cliffhanger does indeed get me points in that regard. Either way, here's the next chapter you eagerly waited for!
HungryLioness: Glad to hear that you do.
And last, Akita91: I did always think that Inuyasha drew the short straw in that regard. But with my new OC I have ideas brewing, and it might even become more complicated!
And so, here we go!
Ch.21 Kikyo
The morning after Kagome had revealed her suspicions to me, I flew by the group and kept a close watched on Inuyasha. If he really had been in love with Kikyo, he was doing I could job hiding it; his expression may as well have been cast from stone. "I have a dreadful feeling about this," Kaede said. Inuyasha scoffed. "Well, it's too late now? If you didn't want Kikyo's ashes stolen, why didn't you cast cast them into a river? You stayed sentimental and kept them, and now see what happens!" he said. Kaede looked back him solemnly. "Inuyasha... ye truly do not know the purpose of a grave, do ye?" she asked. He looked at her. "No. Why should I?" he replied bluntly.
"Because it is not simply a place to bury a body or ashes. It is also meant for those who are left behind," she answered. I frowned. "Ones left behind? What do you mean, Kaede?" I asked. "I will tell ye, Yume," she said, and she looked forward, tilting her head back and closing her eye. "My sister was born a priestess. She used her powers for the good and sake of the village, battling famine and illness countless times. Her actions gave courage to those around her. Even after her death, the villagers were resolved to live. But man is weak. Danger and uncertainty can weaken that resolve and their hearts. Kikyo's gravesite was a place of reassurance. A place where the hearts of the villagers could find peace," she told us.
I nodded at Kaede, but throughout the whole time I kept my eye on Inuyasha. His expression was one of the strangest that I had ever seen- a mixture of anger, sadness and... affection. So Inuyasha really did love Kikyo. But despite that, she had bound him to a tree fifty years ago. Kagome arrived at that conclusion at the same time I did, and she stopped and looked at Inuyasha. She didn't return his feelings. Inuyasha looked back at Kagome, and caught her expression of sympathy. He frowned, and leaped off of Kaede's horse and onto the basket of her bike. "Hey, what's with the sympathetic look? It's a bad thing when you can give a half-demon the creeps," he remarked.
Kagome blinked, before smiling gleefully. "Oh, nothing to worry about! I was just thinking about something stupid!" she said happily. His eyes narrowed. "Stupid how?" he asked. "Well..." she began, but then she suddenly sped forward, moving at breakneck speed. "What the-?! Hey! What were you thinking?!" he demanded, having fallen when she took off but managing to get on the end. "Forget it!" she yelled, but he held on. I shook my head and flew to catch up, while Kaede spurred her horse. "Do you have any idea what they're arguing about. Mom?" Shippo asked, looking down at them from my shoulder. I shook my head. "Not a clue," I said, thinking that I would tell him when he was older.
Later that day we were getting nearer to Urasue, and that involved walking through a forest. Hat wouldn't have been a problem, except that it was completely devoid of wildlife, and in their place was countless statues. "What are these things?" Shippo asked, their appearance making him nervous. "They looks like dolls made of earth," Kagome commented. I shrugged, having been forced to walk since we were in a forest. "Maybe," I said. On the other side of the forest was a huge chasm with a single rickety bridge, which swung slightly in the wind. "Well, there it is," Inuyasha said, Kagome's eyes grew wide. "We have to cross this?!" she said.
"What's the problem?" I said, folding my wing against my back and walking onto the bridge. It creaked as my weight was added to it, but held firmly. Kagome and the others had managed to make it halfway across, Inuyasha a little ahead. "This is crazy!" Kagome exclaimed, and I looked back at her. "You don;t have to come, you know. You can stay here and watch Shippo until Inuyasha and I come back," I said, knowing that would spur her into moving. "Are you kidding?! And be left in the middle of this bridge?" she demanded. "Then get in gear!" Inuyasha said, walking forward. Shippo ran on ahead, but stopped. "There's more dolls up ahead!" he said, and we looked. Indeed, an entire cluster of statues were in front of us, barring the path.
But the suddenly the dolls cracked and shattered, revealing statue of samurai warriors. They all began to move forward slowly, their movements lifeless and robotic. "What are these things?" Shippo said, running back to stand next to me. "Looks like the old demon has some soldiers!" Inuyasha said, moving into a fighting stance. "Soldiers? But then... Oh no!" Kagome said, and looked back. Behind us were ranks of soldiers. "Inuyasha! Behind us!" she said, Inuyasha smirked. "Hang on tight, ladies. This swinging bridge is about to live up to its name," he warned. Despite the situation I smiled; maybe Inuyasha was rubbing off on me, but I found myself actually enjoying the idea of a fight.
I moved into a stance as well, and my hands burst into flame. "Then let's go!" I said, and Inuyasha nodded. Together, we both launched forward. "Iron Reveal Soul Stealer!" Inuyasha called, slashing his claws and destroying one of the soldiers. I flapped my wings and rose into the air, flying above the soldiers. "Fire Darts!" I called, slashing my arm in an X and sending down a rain of the move's namesake. Whenever they landed on a soldier they exploded, destroying their heads and causing them to topple over. Their insides were hallow, and Inuyasha said "these guys really are made of mud!" Shippo jumped in front of the soldiers in the back and called "Foxfire!" sending out a wave of green flames.
Sadly, the move did little more than cover the soldiers with streaks of soot, but when they approached Kaede knocked them back with her bow. I grunted and created a Pyro Bomb, throwing it into the middle of the soldiers. It promptly exploded and destroyed a large number of them, and I switched to blasting the others with lightning. But then I heard a cackling overhead, and looked at see an old woman who could only Urasue fly down and lash at the bridge with a massive scythe. The bridge was slashed in two in the middle, and Kagome called "Inuyasha!" as she and the others hung on. Just as the bridge fell I jumped into the air, flying above before diving down towards her.
Urasue got there first though, and grabbed Kagome. "Kagome!" we all called, and the others fell into the valley. "Kaede! Shippo!" Kagome and I called, and Kagome struggled to break free. "Let me go!" she said, but Urasue held her scythe against her neck. "If I do, you'll die, And now that I've found Kikyo's reincarnated soul, I'll never release you. I have plans for you, my dear girl. Plans to bring back Kikyo," she said. My eyes grew wide, as did Kagome's. "Bring back Kikyo?" she repeated. I shook my head and flew faster, conjuring a fireball in one hand. "Let her go!" I called, and I threw it. But Urasue saw it coming and dodging, spinning around and flying towards me.
"Wretched girl! Stay out of my way!" she said, and before I could dodge she swung her scythe and slashed my wing. I screamed, but not just in pain. Almost immediately after she slashed my wing I faltered, losing altitude and spiraling downwards. "Yume!" Kagome called, but there was nothing she could do. Urasue laughed evilly as she flew away, heading back to her kiln.
As I continued to fall downwards into the valley, I trained in vain to flap my injured wing. But my attempt caused it to feel like it feeling like it had just been cut anew, and eventually I gave up. Beneath me I saw a puff of smoke, and a giant leaf appeared, Shippo and Kaede sitting atop it. "Shippo! Kaede!" I called, and they both looked up. "Mom!" Shippo called, and he steered the leaf to where I could land on it. I tried using my good wing to slow my descent, and it worked a little. I still landed on the leaf harder than I meant to, but it didn't tip it over. "You're hurt!" Shippo said, looking at my wing. I looked back at it, and I saw that although I wouldn't be able to see the blood against the deep red color of my feathers, the way they were clumped together made it obvious.
For one of the few times in my life, I really felt like swearing. And so I did. "That fucking bitch! She injured my wing!" I said, trying to send a wave of healing energy at it but the pain was interfering with my concentration. "Hold still, Yume. I may be able to bandage it," Kaede said, pulling a roll of bandage from her sleeve and motioning for me to lay back. "is there anything I can do?" Shippo asked, looking at me. I smiled; he was so worried about my well-being that he was willing to do anything to help. Again, I felt the affection I had for my adoptive son well up within me. "Perhaps you could hold my hand? I have a feeling this will hurt," I said. Shippo nodded and held my hand in both of his, while I closed my eyes.
The rest of our descent passed in silence, the leaf having slowed to a less dangerous speed. Occasionally I hissed in pain or winced, at which time Shippo tightened his grip on my hand. By the time we reached the bottom my wing was fully wrapped up, and we landed on the ground. I could have sworn I heard a cry of pain, but I ignored it in my relief to be able to move my wing and not feel a stab of pain. Not that I would be doing any flying, much to my unhappiness. "I wonder if Inuyasha's alright," Shippo said. "Inuyasha is strong. He will not be defeated so easily," Kaede said. I nodded and sent my sense outwards, trying to find his aura. I sensed him, but he was... beneath us?
Just then his pulled himself out from beneath the leaf, glaring at us. "You guys..." he said, unhappy about having been landed on. "Ah, speak of the devil," Kaede commented. Shippo jumped off and the leaf returned to regular size on a puff of smoke, and we all stood. There was a shuffling of feet and more clay soldiers appeared around the corner. "So, you haven't had enough?" Inuyasha said, drawing Tetsuaiga. I groaned at having to fight injured, but I conjured a pair of lightning orbs nonetheless. "Time to fight!" I said, and I threw the orbs at the time Inuyasha swung forward. A while later we had defeated them all, and we told Inuyasha what Urasue had done.
"What?! Kagome's been kidnapped?" he said, his eyes registering his shock. Shippo nodded sadly. "Yeah, that old woman took her as we were falling," he said. "And cut my wing," I added bitterly. "But why?" Inuyasha said. While we talked Kaede was walking amongst the remains of the clay soldiers, examining them. When she did orbs of light appeared from them, floating serenely into the sky above. "Souls..." Kaede said. "Hey Kaede! What's going on?" Inuyasha said, looking at the orbs as they rose out of sight. "Humans souls were placed within these puppets so as to make them move. Not only that..." she said, picking up a handful of the remains. "Bones have been baked into the soil," she said.
I frowned. "Bones?" I repeated. "She uses people's remains..." Kaede said, her one eye growing twice as large. She tried to climb up a cliff, but winced as her injured shoulder was strained. Instantly I was there, holding her arm. "Don't overdo things, Kaede. We'll go get Kikyo's remains ourselves," I said. "We haven't that much time, I fear," she said, standing and walking forward before looking back at us. "We may very well soon be coming face-to-face with my sister," she told us. Inuyasha gasped. "What?" he said. "If Urasue manages to use her magic to revive my sister, we will be up against a formidable foe," she said. "Wait a minute? How could Urasue revive Kikyo?" I said.
"Urasue's magic revolves around using human remains to create artificial bodies, and then giving them life with human souls. And now she possesses both my sister's ashes and Kagome, who had Kikyo's reincarnated soul," Kaede explained. Then she winced as she tried to climb again, and Inuyasha got down on one knee. "In that case, we'd better hurry then. Get on, everyone," he said. Kaede nodded her thanks and climbed onto his back, while I got on the other side and Shippo jumped onto my shoulder. Instantly Inuyasha leaped into the air, our combined weight only slowing him by the slightest amount. Eventually we got back up the valley and towards the mountains, where I could sense Urasue's aura.
Kaede winced as we kept going, and Shippo said "Hey, Inuyasha! Can't you go a little slower?" Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "Fast, slow, which do you want?" "I beg of ye to proceed quickly. Fly like the devil is at your heels!" Kaede. He nodded and leaped up, and I began to wonder what would happen when we reached the top. Would we make it in time to save Kagome? Would we be too late? And if we were, what would Kikyo look like? All I had ever heard were stories of what she had done, not her appearance.
With Inuyasha carrying us we only reached there in a matter of minutes, but once he let us off and we ran forward, we saw that even a few minutes had been too late. Kagome was sitting inside of tub filled with green water and herbs, and she was surrounded by a white sphere of crackling energy. Urasue was watching intently, and sitting by the side was... a woman. She was wearing a kimono like mine, only while the kimono was still white the hakama pants were red, like that of a priestess. Then it clicked, and I gasped just Inuyasha said one word. One name.
"Kikyo."
The moment Inuyasha said that Kagome's eyes snapped wide, and the sphere of energy around her exploded. Streamers of light flew from her body and rose into the air, before shooting down and hitting Kikyo. They entered her body with such force she flew into the air, and I covered my eyes to avoid being blinded. When it dimmed I looked to see Kikyo slowly floating to the ground, her body glowing as she reached with her hands to touch her face. Kikyo looked to be about eighteen, and her skin was a flawless alabaster. Her hair was tied back with a band except for some that reached her eyebrows, and was a rich black in color.
"Kagome!" Inuyasha called, and Urasue cackled. "The moment you said Kikyo's name, that girl's heart skipped a beat, and Kikyo's soul sprang forth. "Kagome!" Shippo said, running to the tub where she was laying. I followed, and I saw that although Kagome's eyes were wide open they held none of her former life to it. Her soul truly was gone. "Kagome! Wake up!" Shippo urged her. "That girl is just an empty shell. I use her bones as broth for dinner later," Urasue said. "You used my sister's ashes to revive her," Kaede said, aghast. Urasue smiled. "Exactly! I used my powers to turn Kikyo's remains into flesh and blood. You could say I am her birth mother," she said, spreading her arms.
Kikyo slowly shuffled forward, and Urasue said "Kikyo will anything that I ask of her. Now, use your powers to rid us of these bothersome-" But then Kikyo placed her hands on the demon's shoulders, and suddenly a current of purple-pink lightning shot from her hands, shocking Urasue. She fell back and spun around, yelling in pain and bursting into flames before falling to the ground. Without looking up, she said "Inuyasha... why are you still alive? I used my arrow, and bound you to the sacred tree." Inuyasha tried acting like usual self, saying "Heh, sorry about that! It took me fifty years to escape, but I'm fine as you can see!"
There was silence, one that I didn't dare break, and Kikyo looked. Her eyes were brown and, at that moment, filled with hatred. "You're despicable. I despise every part of your being," she said hatefully, and started forward. As she did that though, a burst of red light appeared from her right shoulder, and she winced in pain. She held a hand to it, and Inuyasha said "What's going on?" The glow disappeared, and in its place the cloth was wet with blood. She looked at her hand, which was also covered in it, and looked Inuyasha with eyes filled with hurt, grief and betrayal. "Why did you betray me, Inuyasha?!" she called.
For the first time since I had known him, Inuyasha looked completely confused. "Wh-What's going on? Where that blood coming from?" he said. "Inuyasha, is that not the fateful wound ye inflicted on Kikyo?" Kaede said. "Whoa, wait a minute! That I inflicted?" he said, looking at her like she was insane. "Yes! That is how she died!" the aged priestess replied. Inuyasha looked back between her and Kikyo. "But I... I don't remember ever harming Kikyo!" he protested. "Are ye sure? Think hard. If it wasn't you, then who slew my sister?" Kaede said, looking at Kikyo. Kikyo chuckled humorlessly. "I never expected to hear you say such excuses. Stop, Inuyasha. It's unbecoming," she said.
Then she said something that went against everything I had learned her. "Don't you remember, Inuyasha? You told me you wished to become human." My jaw dropped, and for a few seconds my mind went blank. Then it restarted, and I looked at Inuyasha. "Is that true?" I asked. Kikyo noticed that I was standing there, and said "Who are you?" I froze, looking at Kikyo with both a regular and irregular sight. She was a human indeed, and she possessed the same bright pink aura as Kagome. The difference was the emotion and power contained within. Where Kagome's aura had a small amount of rising potential and usually filled with bright and volatile emotion., Kikyo's was overflowing with spiritual power, and possessed sadness, betrayal, wisdom and, above all, rage.
"I see. You are one of the lost Phoenix Demon Tribe," Kikyo remarked. I froze, but rather than deny it what came out of my mouth was "How did you know?" "All of your tribe had similar traits: flaming red hair, orange eyes and a pair of wings," she said, her lip curling in displeasure. Before I could make any comment, she turned back to Inuyasha. "You said you wanted to become human. That is why I brought the Jewel to you that day," she said. I froze, wanting to hear this, and Kikyo began to tell her story.
Another chapter bites the dust, and come next chapter is the appearance of my new OC, so stay tuned!
Please review! If you flame me Liam Neeson will look for you, he will find you, and he will kill you. (I'm just kidding... or am I?)