Hey everyone! Wow, its been three years since this story was posted… wow… I don't update a whole lot, do I? Yeah, sorry about that. Anyways, school is boring. Just had my birthday, and I got this EPIC art studio for my computer, and I'm still tryin ta figure it out, but I'm hoping it'll work. Anyways, on with the story! SPOILERS TOO, IF YOU HAVEN'T READ, AND OR WATCHED Inuyasha THE FINAL ACT! Well, the manga's all one thing, but you get the idea.
Chapter 21-
San walked out of the trees, to find that part of the forest was missing.
"Sesshomaru, have you been practicing your Meido again?" she asked him. They'd recently gone to Totosai, and old friend of Sesshy's father, and Sesshy had learned a new power.
He made no response, and slid his sword back into its sheath.
'He's not satisfied with his progress,' the demon within her said, as he examined Sesshomaru through her eyes.
''You can tell?" she thought back.
'Yeah. I used to be like that once; always wanting to be better, to make myself as powerful as I could, and then some...'
San didn't respond as she looked at Sesshomaru. She often found that she forgot that he was a demon, or rather, that she didn't really mind anymore. Demons had killed her father, and she'd always hated them since. But now…
"Let's go," Sesshomaru said, turning to leave.
Rin, Jaken and Ah-Un quickly followed. San ran to catch up after grabbing her bag and tripped, grabbing onto Sesshomaru's left sleeve for balance. He looked down at her, his eyes a bit wide, with either surprise or anger, she couldn't tell. San quickly let go.
"Sorry..!"
He said nothing and just kept walking.
That was another thing that she often forgot; he only had one arm.
They walked in silence for quite a while, when something white floating through the forest caught San's eye.
'It must be that priestess, Kikyo,' the voice said to her. 'She had Soul Collectors.'
San started walking after them.
"Where are you going?" Rin asked.
"Oh, I just wanted to see something. I'll catch up with you," she said, smiling and waving as she disappeared into the forest after the Soul Collectors.
'Why are we following them?' her voice asked.
''Because I want to ask Kikyo something."
'What…oh! You know you can ask me about that. I was there.'
''I'd rather ask Kikyo, thank you,' she said to him.
'Duck,' he said.
"What—?" She'd barely had a chance to reply as a scythe-chain flew right past her head as she managed to dodge it.
San looked up to see a young boy who appeared to be a demon-slayer, standing next to the priestess.
"No, Kohaku," Kikyo said. "This girl is no threat."
The boy dropped his defensive stance. "Oh, sorry," he apologized. He'd sensed her strange presence and thought she was a demon running through the woods after them.
"Lady Kikyo, I wanted to ask you something," San said.
"And that would be..?"
"Were you the one who sealed this demon within me?" she asked.
'That explains her strange presence,' Kohaku thought.
Kikyo's sad eyes showed pity. "Yes, and I am sorry for that. There was no other choice."
San shook her head. "I don't hold any sort of grudge against you. I just wanted to know… how it happened—why it happened."
"When you were born, just over fifty years ago, a demon threatened to destroy our village. A wolf demon."
'Pft, the wolf demon,' he said.
"Even with Inuyasha's help, I couldn't destroy him, so I sealed him inside of you, just moments after you were born. The only choice I had. And for that I am sorry," Kikyo said.
"Do…do you know how to get it out?" San asked hopefully.
'"It?' I've never been so insulted!' he said, overly dramatic.
"Shhh..!" San hissed back at him.
Kikyo shook her head sadly. "The only way…is if your heart were to be pierced. In other words... You would have to die."
San's heart stopped, and all of her hopes to be freed were crushed.
"Again, I apologize. Now, we must be going," Kikyo said, walking down the path, leaning heavily upon her bow. Kohaku glanced back at San, before following the priestess.
After a long moment of silence, the demon spoke.
'Aw, you don't like me?' he said, trying to lighten the mood.
''You don't want to be released from me? I'd think you'd want to be free," she thought to him.
'Eh, if the only way for me to be released is for you to die, I wont force it. I've kinda grown attached to ya.' If he'd had a physical body, he would have given her a noogie.
San started walking back, then stopped. "I just realized something."
'What?'
"You've never told me your name."
She could just feel the malevolent smile that creeped onto his expression.
'That, my dear girl, is a secret.'
San didn't push the subject any further, and headed back to Sesshomaru, Rin, Jaken and Ah-Un.
The next day, San had taken a nap and woken to find that Sesshomaru had taken everyone else and left her.
"Sesshomaru you ass!" she yelled. She looked down to see the pattern of Ah-Un scraping his tail on the ground. She sighed, and began to follow it.
They weren't that far ahead when she found them.
"Sesshy you are such a jerk!" she yelled at him. she looked down to see Kohaku laying on the ground, being bitten by several snakes. Sesshomaru stopped her from reaching out to help him. He killed the snakes with his poison claws, and they took him to a nearby meadow.
Kohaku eventually woke up, but was still woozy from the poison. He tried to go back to Kikyo, but Sesshomaru said she was already gone.
San stared at the blood red sunset. "Kikyo…is dead?" Even though she hadn't known the priestess very well, she still felt a great loss. She wiped away the tears that had escaped from her eyes.
'It's almost time, isn't it?' he asked her.
San didn't respond to the demon, and her eyes found their way to Sesshomaru, and her tears doubled.
"Sesshomaru, where are we going?" San complained. They'd been walking forever, and Sesshy-kins seemed to be looking for something.
As usual, he didn't reply.
Something howled from up above them. San looked up to see a giant dog flying through the sky. She looked over at Sesshomaru, his eyes blood red, as he began to change. Soon he was also a giant dog, and joined the other K9 who was flying in the sky.
Jaken, Kohaku, and Rin flew off on Ah-Un to go after Sesshomaru, San was still in shock from seeing him transform, which had really hit home how in-human he actually was.
'If you don't snap to, you're going to loose 'em.'
"Oh, right…!" San began to run after them.
She came up to the base of a huge-ass set of stairs, and saw Sesshomaru land at the top.
"Oh, you've GOT to be kidding me…" she said exasperated. "Right about now I really wish I could fly!" taking a deep breath, she began to climb the mass amount of steps.
She finally made it to the top, in less time than she'd thought, but her breath still escaped her, as she fell on the top step and just laid there.
"I…hate….stairs…"
She pulled herself up, and saw Jaken, but no sign of Sesshomaru, Rin, or Kohaku.
"What's this? Another human pet of my son's? Tell me girl, is Sesshomaru at least going to eat you?" a female voice said.
San looked up to see a beautiful demon woman, with long silver hair and a crescent moon on her forehead that matched Sesshomaru's. The demon inside of her growled in response to the woman's presence.
"Who…?"
The woman shrugged her shoulders to adjust her fluff. "You don't see the resemblance? I'm Sesshomaru's mother."
"…"
Now that she mentioned it, it was incredibly obvious; the same silver hair, the same markings…the same smart-ass attitude they seemed to share. Sesshomaru's was just less verbal.
The woman glanced down at the necklace she held in her hand. "Oh, looks like my precious boy is running into trouble!" she said, overly dramatic, throwing her hand over her forehead, as if about to faint.
"You're the one who sent him there…" Jaken muttered.
"Jaken," San said, "Where are Sesshomaru and the kids?"
"A demon came and took Rin and the boy into the underworld, and Lord Sesshomaru went after them," the toad said.
A pang of fear ran through San's body. "What?"
Sesshomaru's mother looked into her necklace gain. "Oh, looks like the girl is dead."
San completely froze. "No…" "She can't be dead, not yet! I thought I still had time..!"
"Well," she looked up at San with an evil look. "I can't have my precious son walking around with an incomplete set. So I'll just have to rid him of the extra." She stood up and began walking towards San, her eyes full of blood-lust.
Jaken jumped in front of San, who'd fallen to her knees in shock. "I-I wont let you..!" The demon simply pushed him out of the way. San made no attempt to move, her mind still panicked.
'Oh for the love of god…'
Just as Sesshomaru's mother went to kill the girl, San's hand shot up and grabbed the demon's hand, with lightning fast speed.
"Lets have none of that," the voice that came from the girl's body did not match. When she looked up, on of her eyes was wide, and had turned from its normal grayish color, to deep crimson.
The woman gasped and pulled her hand away. "You…"
"Oh so you do remember me!"
"How could one forget a pervert such as you? Especially with that repugnant eye of yours." she said, putting her sleeve over her nose as if she had smelled something foul.
"This," the girl pointed to her red left eye, "is a blessing. And why would you call me a pervert, hmm?"
The white haired demon laughed. "You've always been a pervert. So infatuated with me that you would attempt to spy on me at any moment you could."
"True, but now you are old; time has not been kind to you. Look at those wrinkles!"
Her eyebrow twitched with irritation. "How dare you!" she raised her hand again, her finger-tips glowing.
The demon who now controlled San, raised a finger. "Now, now, no need to get angry. Plus, I cant very well have you damaging this body here," he gestured t to the girls torso. "She is, in fact, my temporary home."
"Oh, yes that's right..!" she said in amusement. "You were sealed away. That also explains your appearance. HA! Serves you right." She went and sat back down. "Very well, instead of relieving you of your prison, I shall let you suffer." She went back to observing her necklace.
Jaken stared at the two, in complete shock. "What in the world is going on? Is the girl possessed?"
Just then a path to the underworld opened up, and Sesshomaru stepped through holding Rin, and followed by Kohaku.
Suddenly San's eye faded back to its normal color, and she ran to Rin's side as Sesshomaru put her down.
"The girl must have over powered him…" Sesshomaru's mother thought.
"Rin! Rin, please wake up!" She pleaded, as tears began to flow down her cheeks. She jumped up and clutched the sides of her head. "No, no! I thought I had more time!" she cried.
Sesshomaru stared stony faced at her. She hadn't gotten this hysterical when her brother died…
San was so wrought with terror and sadness she was completely oblivious to what Sesshomaru's mother was saying or doing. Until she heard Rin's voice.
"Lord Sesshomaru…?"
San spun around to see Rin's eyes opened sleepily, and Sesshomaru touching the side of her face gingerly.
Her knees gave out with the relief. "Thank god…"
Rin looked over at her. "Lady San why are you crying?" The small girl stood up shakily, and hobbled over to San, and was surprised when she wrapped her arms around her.
"Rin, I'm so glad you're safe…" she said. Rin smiled and returned the embrace.