"My sister should be coming to visit today," Kikyo pondered aloud as she and Inuyasha walked through the brilliant green pasture around the village.
"Kaede?" he questioned, feeling unsure as he often did with the priestess, but too proud to show it. He didn't want her to think of him in any bad light, lest she betray him for it like every other he'd known.
"No, I have another named Kagome. She spends most of her time in a village a little ways away from here, but she comes to see us every now and then," Kikyo explained, smiling a little at the thought of her younger sister.
"Why does she live there and not with you two?" the half-demon asked, feeling intrigued by such a mysterious figure who could conjure Kikyo's happiness with just a thought.
"Well, Kagome is a very odd girl. Most people criticize her as a priestess, though she has much more spiritual power than she lets on," the raven-haired beauty explained, Inuyasha hanging on to her every word as he always did. "She spends most of her time collecting herb medicines and treating villagers with a half-demon named Jinenji. But she also spends a lot of time with wolf demons and fox demons... and well, most demons."
Kikyo looked down, shaking her head and sighing. She never understood her younger sister fully. The youth gravitated toward danger like a magnet, and yet, she always seemed so carefree. Her sister had found herself at home with demons, whilst Kikyo was doomed to kill one after another in defense of the Sacred Jewel.
"That village she resides in now has become more tolerant of such practices, but ours remains the same. The people see her as tainted, an impure priestess. She sought a place of her own, somewhere she'd be accepted, and she has found it."
Inuyasha thought over her words. A girl who befriended demons, a priestess nonetheless? The boy thought it was a strange notion himself, and he was part demon. But the words Kikyo had used to describe her sibling's plight, of searching for a place to belong, resounded in his mind. It was something he too searched for, until he finally decided the only place he had was with himself.
Suddenly, a small voice was calling to the pair across the expanse. It was young Kaede, tugging along an older girl behind her. This teenager looked almost identical to Kikyo, in fact, with her black hair and beautiful features. She donned the same white and red cloth. And yet, she held herself with a bubbling glee that Inuyasha had never seen in Kikyo.
"Big sister!" she squealed, wrapping her arms tightly around her sibling and smiling in pure joy.
"Okay, okay," the older priestess insisted, pulling the girl off of her and straightening herself. "It's good to see you, Kagome."
"I'm so glad to be back - it's been a long time," Kagome replied, shifting her gaze to the white-haired boy who stood beside her sister.
"This is Inuyasha," Kikyo promptly introduced, internally praying Kagome would be polite. She had a bit of a temper, and the elder girl knew Inuyasha did as well (whether or not he dared to show it in her presence). "He is a friend of mine."
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Inuyasha," the girl replied, giving him a smile that he did not return.
He stared at her from under his bangs, wondering what to say. He contemplated that it was perhaps the first time anyone had ever said such a phrase to him. Was she making fun of him in front of Kikyo? A laugh for her and the little brat, Kaede, to have later?
"Yeah, yeah," he huffed finally, crossing his arms.
"Well, you could be a little nicer," Kagome automatically scolded, placing her own hands on her hips.
"Nicer?" he scoffed, taking a step forward before he was suddenly reminded of the lady in his presence. He stood down, silent as Kikyo quickly distracted the younger girl with empty chatter about their lives.
He found that though Kagome looked so alike to Kikyo, the two couldn't be more different. They both seemed to be kind, to an extent, but that was where the similarity ended. Kikyo was mature and resilient, calm and wise. But Kagome was young and outgoing, adventurous and bubbly.
"I don't know what to do about him," Kagome was saying, describing the unrequited love some demon had for her. "I don't want to hurt his feelings."
"A demon can't be with a human, Kagome," Kikyo scolded, placing a hand on her shoulder. "It will end in heartbreak eventually. Just tell him the truth now, before his heart falls for you any harder."
Inuyasha stiffened at the words, wondering if that was really how she felt. Was that how she saw their relationship? Or was it different, as he was partially human?
"Well, I don't know about that," the younger contested, interrupting Inuyasha's thoughts. A small grin crossed her face as she recalled a memory. "Jinenji's mom always seems so happy when she talks about his dad. I think they were really in love.
"But you're right about Koga. I am not in love with him, so I'm going to give it to him straight," Kagome concluded, smacking her hands together with a determination rising in her eyes.
"Here's your chance, big sis," Kaede exclaimed with a grin as a sudden cloud of energy whooshed their way.
A wolf demon appeared, clad in fur with jet black hair and brilliant blue eyes. Inuyasha heard Kagome let out a tiny squeak of surprise at the sight - and perhaps a little bit of dread. The half demon loathed the scent of him instantly, restlessly returning to Kikyo's side. He'd been high in a tree whilst the girls talked, but he knew he would feel uneasy unless he was by her side to protect her.
"Hey, Kagome," the wolf demon greeted the younger priestess, immediately gripping both of her hands in his own. "Sup, Kikyo, Kaede? What're you guys doing with a mutt?"
"Hey, who're you calling a mutt?" Inuyasha sneered, ready to rip his claws into that wolf... as soon as Kikyo was out of sight, of course.
"Sorry I've been gone so long, you know those lousy wolves," Koga was already continuing with Kagome, ignoring Inuyasha altogether.
"Oh, it's alright... how'd you know I was here anyway?" she replied, blushing at the amount of attention he was giving her in front of her sisters.
"Well, your scent's hard to ignore, Kagome," the wolf chuckled, a handsome fanged smile flashing across his face. "It's as sweet as the honey of a bee, the nectar of a bloomed flower, the drops of -"
"Keh," Inuyasha muttered under his breath, wondering how the hell that wolf could say such bold things to that little girl.
"What, you got something to say, pup?" Kota growled, shifting his gaze to the white-haired boy.
"I just don't think you should give her such flattery," Inuyasha retorted, holding his fists in anger at his sides.
His claws dug into the calloused skin of his hands, stinging the flesh with sharp pain. He hated everything about this wolf, from his scent to the cockiness that literally wafted off him. The demon only proved to remind Inuyasha of every other he'd ever faced, everyone who always assumed he was nothing. Nothing and worthless, just because he was a mixed breed.
That was, except for his mother... and Kikyo.
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" an enraged, ridiculously threatening voice abruptly exclaimed. "I smell better than you, that's for sure!"
Inuyasha turned his attentions on the small girl, the one who was now glaring at him with such intense fury. He was finding it increasingly hard to believe this to be the one Kikyo had described. His companion had painted her sister to be so compassionate and understanding of demons, and yet, from the moment he'd met her, she'd been a ball of fire. Maybe she could be both - Inuyasha wasn't sure.
"Calm your anger, sister. Inuyasha simply has an age old disdain for wolves - he didn't intend on insulting you," Kikyo then spoke, her words cutting right through all the things the half demon had been prepared to growl.
After that day, Kagome found herself visiting her siblings more and more. She wasn't sure why; she wasn't homesick after living with Jinenji and his mother these past few years. Nevertheless, in the deepest parts of herself, maybe she did know. Maybe it had something to do with that boy with the same temper as her. He followed Kikyo around with such loyalty and respect, but the moment she was out of sight...
They bickered constantly, but every time she saw him, there was something new to him. A funny side, a gentle one, a strength and selflessness that Kagome knew would only grow with time. She was happy he was able to find company with her oldest mentor. And something inside of her longed to see him, just once more - that was what she told herself each time. She knew he and Kikyo were in love - she wasn't a fool. However, maybe being friends with the half demon was enough for Kagome.
The older priestess herself wondered why her younger sibling's visits were drawing closer and closer together. She pondered if perhaps the girl was growing tired of lonesome life with Jineji. If she had begun to find the reclusive and harboring work with his herb farm unappealing. If she'd begun to turn away from all of her previous relationships with demons in search of a familial bond with her sisters.
Whatever the reasoning for it, the youth had grown much closer to Kikyo, Kaede, and even Inuyasha over the passing months. Perhaps that was the reason she was most shocked with what was coming. She was traveling to her home village early one morning when she first got wind of the destruction that awaited.
Homes were in crumbles, smoke blazed through the sky like a lost signal of hope, villagers sobbed left and right. Kagome rushed up to the first person she saw, an elderly lady whose hands were visibly shaking. She sat crumbled on the ground, head bowed as small tears tracked dirt down her cheeks.
"Are you alright? What happened?" the priestess asked urgently, kneeling down in front of the old woman.
"I am unharmed - it was Inuyasha - he has betrayed our sacred protector, Kikyo," she whispered, looking up into the blue eyes that stared back at her in surprise. "Kikyo...? Is it you?"
"Inuyasha would not have betrayed my sister," she instantly answered, ignoring the confusion, and glancing back around at the chaos that surrounded them.
Without a second more to waste, she stood and looked around for her sisters. The young priestess handed out herbal remedies that she always carried for the small injuries that the villagers had - none of them were in any critical condition, but they were all frightened. They wearily pointed her to the edges of the neighboring forest, stating that that was where Inuyasha had been fleeing to moments before. By their telling of it, Kikyo had been pursuing him, fatally injured.
She rushed through the rest of the battered huts and shaken villagers, hurrying down the steps of her childhood to finally get a glimpse of her older sister. The girl's black hair was splayed across her back in its usual ribbon; through its dark waves, Kagome saw the shadows of blood spilling over her pure white shirt. The priestess's form was visibly vibrating from the pain that wracked through her body.
"Kikyo!" Kagome screamed, scrambling through the small group that circled around the maiden and falling to her sister's side. "Are you alright? What's going on?"
"Inuyasha... has betrayed me," Kikyo whispered, clutching the ethereal glow of the Sacred Jewel to her chest. "You must protect the jewel, now, sister. Please... do not let it fall into the hands of evil."
"No, Kikyo, I can't. Use it, use it right now and heal yourself," Kagome urged, tears welling into her eyes as she glanced at a sobbing Kaede.
"Kagome, I cannot..." she murmured, gasping as a shock of agony flew through her. "Why is it, it was all for this jewel..."
The injured woman lost her grip on reality and life itself in that moment. She fell to the ground, barely caught by a whimpering Kagome as her chest stilled and her breaths grew faint. She looked like a painting of beauty and indescribable pain, all mixed into a selfless life. All that she had strived for and lengths she had gone, to protect her sisters, her people... and yet, she'd failed to protect herself.
I should have been there... I should have stopped this...
Kagome's tears had yet to dry when she noticed a flash of white. Her eyes moved up to find Inuyasha, an arrow pinning him to an age old tree. The Sacred Tree. A tree that had been there all her life, just like Kikyo... who'd been killed, by this half-demon? The one who'd played childish games with her and her kid sister? The one who'd made countless remarks of respect and love for Kikyo?
Could it have been true?
"Inuyasha!" Kagome cried, in anger or sorrow, she didn't know. She gently laid Kikyo to the stone floor, grief staining her soul as she marched in front of the sleeping boy.
She stared at him, knowing all too well he wasn't dead. No, Kikyo couldn't even slay him, even as she truly believed that he'd tried to kill her. She loved him too much. He was, instead, under her binding, destined to spend the rest of eternity in this forest. Never to open his golden eyes again, to speak, to even laugh.
"Sister Kagome, what are you doing?" the girl heard Kaede's small voice ask from somewhere behind her, full of sniffles and a brokenness Kagome understood all too well.
"She is the impure priestess - perhaps she intends to lift the spell from Inuyasha and aid in his intents on destroying us," a man whispered then, and more mutters of fear circled about.
"She is the lover of a wolf tribe..."
"The sister of Kikyo, she used to play with fox demons in the fields..."
"That is her - she befriended that half-demon as well - probably aided in Kikyo's demise - we must do something..."
"Enough!" she shouted, turning to face the small crowd that stared at her with mistrust and growing hatred. "I am not a tainted priestess; I would never harm my sister, Kikyo. I intend on waking this half-demon and finding the truth of what has happened to my sister - I will not release him to do his bidding of slaughtering. I am the priestess Kikyo has entrusted the Sacred Jewel to, to become its new protector, and I will protect all of you as well."
The men and women were all silent as Kagome turned once more to face the bound boy. She willed for his mind to awaken, to recall and remember himself. To recall and remember her beloved sister, to understand what he'd done. All the pain and fear and panic he'd driven through the hearts of so many...
In an instant, golden eyes were staring into her baby blues.
"Kagome?" he questioned, dazed for a moment it seemed. "Oh, I'm sure you're here to finish up big sister's work, huh?"
"Inuyasha - how could you - " she tried to grind out, feeling new waves of anger rush into her body upon his apathetic tone.
"You're the one who taught her to do this, right? She was following your lead," he remarked, a fiery rage building in his own gaze.
"What does that mean?" she asked, more tears welling in her eyes as her frustration neared its brim.
"That's why you hang around all these damn demons - you don't give a shit about them. You just want them to trust you, to fucking care about you, then cut them open," Inuyasha growled, his claws digging into the bark behind him.
"Why would I do that?" she exclaimed at his words, nails digging into her own palms. "Inuyasha, you're the one who's done this - not me or Kikyo - stop -"
"Oh, I did this? Keh, that sounds about right. I'm a half-demon - it's always, always my fault -"
"It is your fault! Look at my sister, do you see her? She's dead - she is gone - the person who raised me is gone because of you!" she screamed, shoving his chest in anger as he stared silently at the crumbled body behind Kagome. "Do you understand that? She will never be here again, because you betrayed her and me and Kaede - all of us - for some jewel!"
There was silence, a soft blanket that had Kagome taking a step away from the dog demon. She stared at him, at his gaze that was suddenly locked on the ground. His eyebrows were furrowed - something clearly troubled him.
"I didn't do that..." he spat out, though his tone was notably quieter.
"What do you mean, you didn't do that?"
"I said, I didn't do that," Inuyasha growled, looking into Kagome's eyes this time. And it was there she saw it - raw, unescapable pain, swimming in his eyes like a sea you might drown in. The next second, it was gone, and he was glaring, angry, weightless. "Just fucking kill me already, Kagome."
It was several moments before the priestess could speak. Her heart still felt shattered, her mind was in a collapsed debris, and her body felt bruised and broken. Her head was still trying to understand how her sister could be dead. But she'd decided one thing, one thing was clear.
"I believe you," she stated in the drifting air of the morning that had only brought despair, finding Inuyasha's shock as fresh as her own.
A single hand reached up to grip the arrow that had embedded itself into the white-haired boy's chest, the arrow that had been there no more than an hour. And with a whisper of will in her heart, Kagome had purified her sister's sorrowful energy. Inuyasha was no longer bound. She heard furious shouts of betrayal from the men behind them; she knew they would hate her.
But even so, Inuyasha hadn't done this. Kagome knew it in her heart that he could never have hurt her sister... that he wouldn't have hurt her. He was so kind, so much more than what anyone else saw in him. It was because she was the same that she understood. All of the people who were ready to maim her were ready to do so before she'd even moved an inch... all because she was different.
"Inuyasha, I believe in you, so please, believe in me," Kagome spoke softly, growing anxious at the anger she could tangibly feel on her back. "Kikyo would not have betrayed you if she didn't truly believe you to be the one who wounded her - it must have been someone else."
"You think so?" he muttered back, eyes locked on the villagers behind them.
"We need to find out what really happened," Kagome concluded, turning to look at her sister. Another prickling feeling of dread and melancholy rushed over her, seeing Kikyo in blood and Kaede gripping her lifeless body in fear.
"We will, no matter what."
AN: Thank you for the kind reviews on my first chapter, I really appreciate it so much! I hope you enjoyed this one too, I thought it would be interesting to see what it would be like if Kagome was Kikyo's sister. Much love to you all, have a good day!