Several Days Ago...
In her unbeating heart she wanted to retract all the bad things she had ever done. If she was truly honest with herself, they were never a reflection of Inuyasha. Only that of her inner demons. Despite him bending over backwards to please her, she could only see what he did not do. Was limited by her preconceived notions of what he was at his core instead of seeing past his outward appearance to the man within. But perhaps there was still time to make amends. To provide him protection. Maybe even salvation from the latest curse he had fallen victim to.
Or she was about to make things exponentially worse. There was also that possibility. Still she truly doubted a brother would kill another brother. True, her knowledge of the man was extremely limited but given that he played the part of father to a young human child, there must be some good in him.
"Sesshomaru, is it true you are in possession of a sword that can bring the dead back to life?" Kikyo asked calmly as she eyed the swords tied to his sash.
"Jakken, go ahead with Rin and Ah-Un," the stoic daiyoukai ordered as he turned to face the undead woman. The little kappa quickly complied like the subservient fool he was as the little girl waved her farewell. Strange how some unrelated child could remind someone so strongly of a certain reincarnation.
"You were the one who bound Inuyasha to a tree, are you not?" Sesshomaru asked quietly - his tone and behavior terrifyingly relaxed. Never had she seen him act anything other than stoic and calculated. Now he seemed almost comfortable in her presence which served both as a giant red flag and a green light.
"This is true. In life, I bound Inuyasha to the Tree or Ages," Kikyo replied honestly as she tried not to react to this utterly disturbing behavior.
"This Sesshomaru discovered his imprisonment shortly after it occurred," the daiyoukai continued - his tone cold but his face casual somehow, "Our lands were threatened."
This was shocking to say the least. She had always assumed the only possessions to his name were his robe and his mother's lip paint. If Inuyasha held land and presumably a title...
Was he truly of noble blood? He had never said anything that would have made her assume as such. His mother had been mentioned in passing only and his father...well that had gone unsaid what his father must have been. Never did he give any indication that he came from royal blood on either side. Yes, she knew enough to know that there was something akin to royalty in the youkai culture but that Inuyasha, who was almost primitive, came from such a life seemed so utterly foreign that...
"I never realized Inuyasha..."
"The half-breed is entitled to nothing."
So it was heritage that robbed him from such a life. The fact that his mother had been reduced to a demon's whore. Used and discarded along with the bastard offspring she had bore. It was no wonder he never mentioned his father. Why he was so willing to become human. His demon brothers had cast him aside as the offspring of a human mistress barely beneath their notice.
And she'd just approached the one person who probably wanted the stain on a royal demonic line dead more vehemently than Naraku could ever begin to dream.
"Ah."
Oh mistakes had been made here. So many mistakes.
"It does as you say," Sesshomaru continued tonelessly, "Are you here to tell me that you have managed to kill the half-breed a second time and need him revived?"
"No. I simply...my question is merely hypothetical. Would the sword work on partial pieces? An arm for example," Kikyo evaded the quesion quietly, "Or does it heal?"
"He is injured then," the daiyoukai concluded as he narrowed his eyes and appraised the undead woman, "Is he truly so desperate to be healed that he sent you to beg?"
"Inuyasha does not know I am here," Kikyo replied defensively as she tried a different angle, "As you know, Naraku plans on eliminating him and has informed myself as well as you that Inuyasha is gravely wounded. That he is no longer a threat. I come to offer an opportunity to foil Naraku's plot."
"Continue."
Breathing a sigh of relief that perhaps this angle would lead to the desired result, Kikyo forged ahead, "In the forest at the base of Mount Kita you will find an arm belonging to Inuyasha. With your sword, you could easily reattach that arm, could you not?"
The longer he stared at her the more Kikyo regretted coming here at all. In fact, the unquantifiable amount of regret that flooded through her very soul nearly took the undead miko to her knees. It seemed in this life mistake after mistake was made. Always making things worse rather than better. Perhaps that was the nature of the beast. Good intentions marred by inherent evil sewn with intent and purpose in every fiber of this unnatural body. Even now when she had truly turned over a new leaf, she still caused destruction wherever she went.
"I have no interest in doing so," Sesshomaru replied in a very bored tone, "Whether the half-breed lives or dies is not my concern."
"So you would permit Naraku to kill him then," Kikyo emphasized purposefully as she grasped at straws, "To take the sword that..."
"Naraku shall not be permitted to kill him," Sesshomaru cut her off coldly, "The only one to kill Inuyasha shall be this Sesshomaru but to kill him in the state you described is beneath me."
Yeah...mistakes had been made here. Big mistakes. Huge. Oh sure, heal him but only if you can kill him in a fair fight afterwards.
"If that is the case, then protect him until such time as he can be healed," Kikyo continued as she forced herself to remain calm, "But know this Sesshomaru. If you seek to kill Inuyasha once that has been accomplished, I will do everything in my power to stop you."
With the subtlest of nods, Sesshomaru turned and walked away without another word. Kikyo, however, began quickly formulating a way to undo or at least mitigate this latest hell she had unfurled. She would need to stay at the village. Quite possibly permanently which would require ingratiating herself with Inuyasha's friends. Perhaps...
xoxxoxoxoxxoxoxxoxo
Present Day...
Whatever Kagome was expecting when she returned it wasn't for Sango and Miroku to be waiting for her. It wasn't to have a nearly feral Shippo launch at her - whining, snarling and screaming. It wasn't to stare at the pile of what looked like ash or the bow laying next to it.
"Did Kikyo's piece of soul return to you?" Miroku asked in a strained voice and the full reality of the situation crashed down on her.
"She took him, didn't she?" Kagome breathed shakily as she continued to stare at the small pile growing smaller with each slight breeze.
"We're not sure," Sango replied in a numb tone, "We've discussed it and we don't think she would have left her weapon behind. This..."
"I would've felt her soul return," Kagome cut her off angrily, "I would've felt it. It would've come back not shot off into the sky or something. She's still alive. She must've taken him!"
'Non-pack member male took Alpha. Took Alpha,' Shippo whined was he yanked on her shirt with all his might, 'Must go. Track scent. Track scent. Mountains.'
"Koga," Kagome hissed as all the air in her lungs left in one fell swoop, "That...that asshole!"
"Wait, how did you come to that conclusion?" Miroku asked in a tired tone, "Merely because Inuyasha is missing and Koga considers..."
"Shippo said a male took Inuyasha. A non-pack member," Kagome huffed as she set down the squirming snarling kit who looked slightly exasperated, "Who else would it be?"
"Naraku. Sesshomaru. Any number of beings," Miroku opined wearily, "I seriously doubt Koga, of all people, would have..."
"Naraku has more flare and Sesshomaru would've just left his corpse behind," Kagome clipped back as she dropped her backpack and marched towards Sango who looked like she was having doubts herself, "Take me to Koga's den. Now."
"We don't know..."
"Shippo literally can't talk," the miko hissed as grief and terror coursed through his veins, "But what he could communicate was a male and mountains. Who else is male and lives in mountains?"
"It might have been a direction," Sango argued weakly, "And Kikyo is equally likely to have taken him."
"You guys look for her and let me handle Koga then," Kagome snapped angrily, "Now take me to that mangy wolf."
'Wrong. Wrong,' Shippo whined as he looked to the others to back up what they didn't understand, 'Non-pack male. Non-pack male.'
"I know Shippo. I know they're wrong," Kagome comforted as she climbed atop Kilala and Shippo gripped his hair tightly and shook his head.
'No. No. No. No. Non-pack member male. Name...name...' the poor kit struggled to explain which male had taken his alpha. Sango joined them both after instructing Miroku to begin the search for Kikyo.
"Stupid," he finally growled as he crawled up and gripped Kagome's shirt. Shaking her roughly, he continued to whine even after they took off.
'Pup knows scent. Knows. Brother,' Shippo whined desperately as an explanation occurred to him, 'Non-pack male alpha brother. Brother.'
'Word not known,' Kagome yipped softly as she stroked his orange hair, 'Will find alpha with non-pack male. Pup no worry.'
"Idiot," Shippo huffed as he realized nothing he said would make her realize how wrong she was. All he could do was hope this would be a short trip and then they could get on the right track.
Or he could just jump and follow the trail himself. That could also work but he didn't fancy running into a daiyoukai when he was only a little pup. Strong he might be but he was still just a kid.