AN:
Enjoy!?
-Ele
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Disclaimer: Not mine! Just playing with their concepts… Many thanks to the creator for allowing it.
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Posted: 4.15.2021
Edited: Unedited
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Redux
Chapter Two
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Kagome sucked in a sharp breath as Kaede pressed a damp cloth into the torn flesh on her left side.
"The wound is nearly clean, now. The bleeding has stopped and then I shall wrap it with a fresh poultice. Bear with it, child."
"Sorry. It just stings a little." Kagome sent her a strained smile. "Thank you, Kaede."
Kaede hummed in acknowledgement, practiced hands making quick work of caring for the wounds from Mistress Centipede's jaws. She had talked with Kagome as they made their way back to the village, explaining that the youkai that had pulled her down the well and attacked them was called Mistress Centipede- that the village had fought her off more than a year ago and thrown her remains to the bottom of the old well.
The village apparently called it 'The Bone-Eater's Well' on account of it somehow swallowing up any youkai remains that were thrown into it. They had been using it for that purpose for longer than Kaede had been alive.
"So…" Kagome tugged her ripped top down as Kaede finished wrapping her wounds. "You're all rebuilding everything that Mistress Centipede broke. What a pain…"
"Pain?" Kaede dusted her hands off and followed Kagome's gaze through her open doorway, watching the village men carry away debris and bring in new materials to rebuild the fallen homes and storage houses that had been damaged. "I suppose there is pain in it. There is much more pain to come, though. Much worse."
"Worse?"
"Ah, yes. Now that the sacred Shikon-no-Tama is among us once again, far worse than Mistress Centipede with come, searching to claim it."
Kagome's gaze dropped to the warm, shining, deceptive little ball sitting nestled in the green cloth of her skirt, nestled between her thighs.
"Worse than her…?" The words were whispered. Her fingers trailed over the jewel's surface as she thought about it. Even though the sun had risen, the experience was only a few hours past- fresh in her mind and the idea that worse youkai were on their way brought back every ounce of fear that had been coursing through her system.
"I'm afraid so. Youkai will not be the only evils who will come seeking its power. There are humans with evil in their hearts. Some who hold even more malice and hate than some youkai."
Kagome's eyes found the expanse of red cloth on the other side of Kaede's modestly small minka style house. Inuyasha had followed them back to the village and sprawled himself out across Kaede's floor, grumbling the whole time. He faced the wall and had made no move to interact with them since he had recovered from his newfound subjugation.
"Such humans and youkai seek the jewel because its power is the only way to make real their petty, grasping ambitions."
"That's horrible."
"Yes, child, but nonetheless real." Kaede's one good eye roamed over Inuyasha's surly form. "Of course, there are also some who seek the jewel's power out of a misguided belief of one sort or another." A snort and the rapid tapping of claws on wood followed her words. "It could be argued that those who seek the jewel for what they believe are good intentions could be the most dangerous foes of all."
Leaning forward on her palms and glaring at the back of Inuyasha's head, Kagome thought about what she had been told.
"Why do you want it, anyway? You seem plenty strong- it's not like you need it."
"Ah. Inuyasha is but a hanyou. He has sought the jewel in order to become fully youkai for many years. Fear not, the rosary he now wears will deny him the ability to hold the jewel for as long as you will it so."
Kagome opened her mouth to ask more about the rosary just as Inuyasha sprung to his feet, immediately dropping down into a crouch and slamming a fist through the raised platform of wood in the small house.
"You know what?" The look he pinned on Kaede was fierce; angry and demanding. "I'm getting tired of some old hag I just met talk like she knows me." The words were strung into a statement, but spoken with a tone that made it clear how much he was expecting an explanation.
The smile confused both Inuyasha and Kagome, briefly, and when she spoke, Kaede's voice was sharp and her words succinct.
"So, you don't remember me after all. I thought as much. I am sister to Kikyo, she who bound you to the tree." She didn't look at either of them as she spoke, not caring to see their reactions to her words. She simply lifted herself from the floor, taking the bowl of bloodied water, soiled cloths, and jar of herb paste with her as she turned away and went about tidying up the space she had sat to tend to Kagome.
"Heh. So you're the brat, huh?" He laughed darly and moved to stand by the doorway, crossing him arms and watching the busy villagers pass y with their burdens as they continued to work at rebuilding the village. "If you're this old, Kikyo must be pushing a hundred."
Kagome's head twisted to and fro, bouncing between the two as they spoke.
"I was a mere twelve years when you were sealed to Goshinboku, Inuyasha. Fifty more have passed since that day, though my sister lived to see not another day."
The stiffness in his shoulders did not match his careless tone or his insensitive words as he replied.
"Oh gee, Sorry to hear it. Not that I care or nothing. One less thing for me to worry about."
The sound of logs being tossed into the irori filled the tense air for long minutes. Neither of them spoke and Kagome bit her lip, not knowing how to, or even if she should, break the silence. Just as it was becoming unbearable and Kagome was contemplating the dangers of trying to pass Inuyasha at the doorway and flee the space, Kaede spoke again.
"I would not be so quick to dismiss Kikyo, Inuyasha. It is my belief that Kagome is the reincarnation of my dear sister."
Maybe she should have been shocked, but the potential that she might be this mysterious 'Kikyo', reincarnated, just passed over Kagome with very little in the way of emotional response. She was running on no sleep, her body ached, and her mind was crowded enough with new revelations.
Inuyasha had a fairly profound reaction, though. His white knuckled grip on the doorframe caused the wood to splinter partially under his hand. He huffed and finally left the house, but the mark remained in evidence to how badly he had taken the idea.
Though she had no want or intention to seek him out, she still felt a pang of sympathy for him. Whatever the reasons, there was obviously some complicated history surrounding him and Kaede's departed sister.
His reactions seemed off for someone who only claimed to hold anger and resentment for the past relationship. There had to be more to it than just him trying to take the jewel fifty years ago and then being sealed to the tree for his efforts.
"I… I think I'm going to go for a walk, too. It's all a lot to take in, you know." She smiled at the old woman in apology. "Besides, I might just fall asleep on your floor if I don't get up and do something for a few minutes."
Kaede nodded and bent to lift a large woven basket that overflowed with fresh wild herbs.
"Aye. Some fresh air might do you well. I need to hang these in the storage to dry, anyway."
Kagome stepped through the doorway and aside to let her pass.
"Just seek me out when you wish."
"Alright…"
The walk through and around the village was less relaxing and more a test of her already thin patience. Whispers followed her, villagers talking about her as she past- trading some comments comparing her to Kikyo and other comments about her speech patterns or clothing. They called her 'otherworldly' or strange, unusual, or said that it was obvious that she didn't belong somehow.
Some of them even approached her, calling her by the dead woman's name instead of her own, thanking her for returning to them from death and giving her offerings of food or prayers. She plastered a fake smile onto her face and did her best to hurry away from them without outright running and offending the village.
She eventually stumbled upon Inuyasha, perched high in the branches of a tree. She barely gave it a thought before she dug a fruit from one of the satchels that had been forced on her, tossing it up at him to get his attention. He caught it easily, without looking her way.
"Hey, Inuyasha. What are you doing up there?"
He didn't answer her question, instead choosing to point at the bags draped around her.
"Oh. The villagers gave it to me." She made her way to the base of the tree, unloading them all from her shoulders. "How about you come down and help me eat some of it?"
"You just don't get it, do you?" When his feet touched down beside her, his face was rudely shoved into her own. "I'm only here for the jewel. Not interested in making friends."
Kagome just blew a puff of air into his face, making him draw it out of her personal space, and plopped herself down on the grass, stretching out her sore legs. She took a bite out of a pear, hiding a smile behind the fruit when Inuyasha sat beside her, regardless of his harsh words.
"Look. I don't know why you don't like me anyway. No, it's not even me you don't like. It's this Kikyo person." Air puffed up her cheeks as she barreled ahead. "Can't we try to get along? At least be civil!?"
His response was to get up and walk away from her, taking a few pears and a hefty daikon with him as he left her there on the little hilltop.
She stayed there by herself for most of the day, content to be away from the villagers who made her awkward, with the quiet and the gentle breeze surrounding her. When midday came and went, she snacked on more fruit, but she took the peaceful time to think over everything that had happened.
She came to terms with it as much as she could manage, the whole of the situation still making her feel shaky, uncertain, and afraid, but when streaks of color lit up the sky as the sun began to sink into slumber, she set off back toward Kaede's minka on the outskirts- carrying her offerings with her.
Kaede had laid her out a bedroll, borrowed from someone in the village, and they spoke softly of the old well and her trip from the other side of it as they readied themselves for sleep.
"We can go to the old well in the light of day, tomorrow, child. Try to rest for now. You've been through a great deal."
"Okay. It's just… I've been here two days now. This will be a second night away from my home. My family must be so worried…"
Try as she might to fight sleep, the exhaustion had her closing her eyes and drifting off easily.
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