Update (May 2020): Chapter updated and lengthened!
Chapter 14: Grave-robbing Memory and the Anguished Romance
Another night in Senogku Edo has come, and the moon shines brightly through cloudy skies across the grounds of Goshinboku Village...
Of course, any peace occurring down below, would soon be broken by an intruder.
(Shoooooommmm...)
A source of demonic blue fire and smoke comes barreling through the atmosphere, shooting across the river and cutting through two twin slabs of wood.
(Slice...crash)
"Hm?"
Kaede hears the trees fall, and immediately heads out to see the trouble...
Zooming atop the red torri at the foot of a set of stairs, the strange source of flames stops, and is revealed as a demon of sorts. Their appearance is akin to that of a homely old woman wearing an odd assortment of robes (the primary colours being light pink, dark red and cerulean), a matching headband with a black feather on her left side, sweeping long gray hair, and large eyes with red irises...
By this time, the aging priestess had caught up with said demon, and readies her bow.
(...Twok)
However, the stone tip of the arrow would not make contact, for the demon would use her scythe to cut it in half! As the latter lets out a cackle, Kaede attempts to inquire an identity.
"Who are ye?!"
Some of the men from the village came to her aid having heard the commotion, weapons at ready...But the demon woman just leaps away to the top of the stairs, forcing the humans to make chase. When they reach the top, they find the demon crouching around a stone monument with a single sotoba and a few azalea flowers growing near.
"I am certain this is it. At last, I have found her resting site."
The demon grabs a handful of dirt to examine.
"Just enough moisture, and the soil is perfect..."
Kaede aims her bow at the demon once again.
"Intruder, what business do ye have here? Identify thyself! Answer at once!"
"Silence, fools! My only business lies with this grave site! Once I have these ashes in my possession, I shall leave this miserable village."
The priestess mentally deduces,
She must be after Kikyō's remains.
The men ready their weapons with her as she calls out her final warning.
"Leave our village at once, or we shall have no course but to strike!"
"Persistent wretch...You'd have done well not to cross my path!"
The ogre woman then positions her scythe over her shoulder, and uses her fingernails to scratch against the surface of the blade.
(Scrrrrreeeeeeeeeeccccch...)
The men cry out in pain from the noise, and Keade steps back a bit before firing another arrow...But once again, the evil entity cuts the opposing ammunition in half, and readies herself for another attack.
"Now you shall pay for your meddling!"
(...SLICE, boom)
The demon sends a torrent of cuts through the ground, uprooting the earth and ripping apart the entire shrine for the dead, sending the villager men backwards from impact!
Kaede is hit by one of the cuts, much to the worry of one male.
"Are you injured?"
Both are then sent back further by the aftermath of the attack...The demon floats down towards the crater that was once a resting place, and shoots her hand into the earth to remove a small urn from deeper within.
"No! Take not my sister's ashes! Rrgh!"
Kaede cringes from her injury, before calling out fiercely,
"I am the Priestess Kaede. I shall not allow ye to take those remains!"
The ogress just chuckles and replies in a jeer,
"Your threats fall on deaf ears...These remains now belong to me, the demon Urasue!"
And before anyone could stop her, Urasue vanishes in a spiral of fire and smoke, laughing maniacally...
Inuyasha's POV
It's been a couple days since that crap situation with the Spider Heads, and my, friends and I have since left Kaede's territory on a path that would likely take us out of Musashi Province. Myōga had chosen to take his leave for a time, which didn't really matter much to me. That flea always disappears at the most random times and returns when I least expect him to...
Anyway, the three of us have stopped in a small clearing near the forest path to rest for the night...but while the kid and Coraline were able to nod off easy enough...I was not so lucky.
(Flash)
...Huh? Where is...Hang on. Am I in the forest behind Kaede's village...?
"...Inuyasha!"
Uh! That, voice...
(Twok, TOK)
"Aagh!"
No!...I'm struck!...Who has done this to me?
...A woman...Is it Coraline? No, it isn't her...It's Kikyō!
The miko whose spell pinned me to a tree!
(Flash)
"Ah!"
I jolt awake, sitting upright atop the tree branch I chose to lay in...Breathing heavily, I look down at my palm and remark,
"It was a dream..."
I feel myself frown in distaste at what my imagination forced me to remember.
"I could've done without those nasty memories...Hm..."
I look down where Coraline is, she sleeping by the fire that's slowly losing fuel, her body tucked under a blanket she brought with her and using her satchel as a pillow. Shippō meanwhile is snoozing with his small body propped against her backpack...I hop down below, and find myself staring at this strange human girl as my mind flashes back to Kikyō, before refocusing on the young woman with me.
It's strange...Coraline looks nothing at all like Kikyō...and yet, she's supposed to be the reincarnation of her.
Is that why I confused them both?
I guess she must've felt my stare somehow, because the next thing I knew, the girl started stirring awake.
"Mm...mm?"
Her eyes flutter open, and she looks up at me instantly.
"Inu-yasha...?"
I watch her slowly sit up with a yawn before asking me,
"What are you doin' up? I thought you would'a been asleep by now...Is there, somethin' you need to talk about?"
I was a bit surprised she could easily decipher something was bothering me...But even so, I don't feel comfortable with sharing too much of my troubles with the girl, for while we are gradually getting used to eachother's company, my old distrust continues to block me from opening up. With that in mind, I avoid her eyes and mutter,
"I'm wrong...You're nothing like her..."
"Hm? Like who?...Inuyasha, what's wrong?"
"Forget it. It's not important..."
I hear her sigh a little, clearly not believing my word...but rather than demand an answer, she chooses to be sympathetic.
"Look, I dunno what jus' happened now, but...if you do want to talk abou' it, I'm here."
I could only stare at Coraline, having no idea how to respond...
Luckily, she changes our focus when she suddenly darts her eyes upward.
"Huh?"
I follow her gaze, and see something floating through the air past the glow of the moon...
"What is that?"
"Not, sure...A demon, maybe?"
I narrow my eyes, smelling something off:
I'm picking up the scent of fresh blood...
Wait! I recognize that scent! It's-
Time Skip, No POV
Come the next day, we find Inuyasha leading Coraline and Shippō in a jogged reverse for Goshinboku Village after traveling for another set of days to try and find leads to where the rest of the Shikon-no-Tama shards may be.
Today, the redhead chose to wear a white tank top, a red/black/white checkered flannel shirt (cropped style), olive green jeans and her black combat boots. She also wore her hair down, and her new combat knife is seen strapped to her thigh...
"Come on, Inuyasha, a hint would be helpful! What's with the sudden urge t' head back to the village?"
Shippō lazily chimes after his fellow redhead from atop her army surplus bag,
"What's the rush? Huaaah..."
The half-demon doesn't answer, and only increases his speed slightly while his fellow teen switches from a fast jog to a steady run to keep up...Zooming ahead to the village and down near the tall staircase, Kaede comes out from her hut with a new sling for her right arm, and a bandage over her forehead. A nameless younger woman follows behind her, trying to coax the priestess back inside to rest.
"Lady Kaede, you mustn't move as of yet."
"Pay no mind. These are but flesh wounds."
"...Kaede!"
They both look up and see Coraline running up towards them.
"You're back."
The redhead slows into a stop, breathing a bit heavily from her run before noticing the shrine maiden's injuries.
"What the-Kaede, what happened to you?!"
Inuyasha arrives, leaping down beside the teenage girl before rising to a stand, and remarking with a frown,
"What, you're still alive?"
They're all soon making their way up the stairs, with the young man adding in a blunt tone after hearing the miko's story,
"Trust a stubborn old goat like you to refuse to give injuries time to heal..."
"This is nothing. So you picked up the scent of my blood as the specter passed, did you?"
"Don't change the subject on me; just swallow your pride and take it easy!"
Coraline looks back at Inuyasha as she helps Kaede see her way up the steps, summarizing,
"I see now: he came because he picked up the scent of yo'r blood, and was worried about you."
When they reach the top, the two pairs of humans and demons would be standing in front of the crater left by Urasue the night before...
"Whoa...What in the world happened here?"
Kaede explains with a heavy tone,
"The specter...she desecrated my sister's grave site."
"So, this was Kikyō's tomb?"
She nods at Coraline.
"Yes, and I was virtually powerless to stop the assault."
"...How awful. As if Sesshōmaru's desecration of his own father's tomb and th' memory of Inuyasha's mother wasn' bad enough...now this."
Inuyasha glances briefly at Coraline with some surprise for the serious compassion in her tone...recalling a moment just before they left the demon tomb in question.
(Flash)
Shortly after Myōga is punished for leaving so abruptly despite his reasons and before the teens boarded the skeletal birds...Coraline suddenly wanders in front of the sharp-toothed jaws of the once proud dog demon general, and softly drops to her knees while forming a fist to press sideways in her right palm.
"...Maith dúinn, Demon mór, le cur isteach ar do chuid. Guím pionós ar an díshealbhú, agus ní féidir liom ach guí go bhfuil tú sásta go n-iompróidh do mhac is óige oidhreacht do chuid fang millteach...cé go bhfuil do is sine a fhoghlaim óna éagóir gníomhartha...Go bhfaighidh tú dídean sa saol eile."
While the two demons observing her prayer couldn't understand what she said (given that she chose to use her other native tongue), they did understand her actions were to seek forgiveness and peace.
"Remarkable. In all my years alive, I have never seen a human act so, respectful towards a demon's grave..."
(Flash)
Can't say I have anymore than that flea has...which makes this girl all the more weird.
He tunes back into reality as Kaede says to the redhead,
"Aye, child, and yet the situation worsens still. My sister had unusually strong powers, even for a priestess as she was. Her remains have fallen into the hands of evil. Who knows to what end Kikyō's powers will be exploited."
Having to listen to what he discerned as old drivel about the woman from his past made something within Inuyasha's heart burn, and he turns to head for the stairs, which doesn't go unnoticed by the women. The aging miko tries to call him back, but he only stops long enough to state bitterly,
"You're on your own. (Turns with a glare) Apparently, you've forgotten that Kikyō betrayed me. I am not so lucky: I can still remember the pain from the arrow she used to pierce my chest."
Realizing that she agitated the pain of old wounds, Kaede looks down and replies,
"Forgive me..."
The half-demon continues his walk, while Coraline couldn't help but sadly go into thought about his situation.
An unfortunate event happ'ned fifty years ago...an' yet for Inuyasha, the memory feels like only yest'rday...
If I recall correctly based on wha' I know from he and Kaede, Inuyasha sought th' Shikon-no-Tama back then as a way to become a full-fledged demon...Only he wasn' successful.
Though he managed t' get the jewel, the young priestess Kikyō was able to take 'im down with a single arrow, pinning him to the Goshinboku Tree and sealin' him in a comatose spell that would last fo' half a century...
Of course, every action does come with consequence, and unfortunately, Kikyō would lose her life shortly aft'rward from an unknown wound...
A terrible end indeed, fo' both of 'em.
...
A little while later, we find Inuyasha sitting at the base of a an oak sitting atop a hill within the village near the river, as his thoughts drift over current affairs.
The demon Urasue...she stole more than Kikyō's ashes.
I also smelled the strong scent of fresh soil as she passed, soil from the grave site.
What could she be scheming...?
"...Hm?"
He senses someone approaching, and looks up to see Coraline coming his way, a faint smile on her face.
"There you are...Come on, let's get goin'."
"Humph...Where to?"
A sigh escapes the girl's lips before she sits on the fallen log beside the upright bark, before addressing her fellow teen in a gentle but serious tone.
"Look, Inuyasha...I understand tha' things for you regarding Kikyō aren't a' the best of interests...but, surely you feel a bit sorry for her? Her grave was violated, something that even I wouldn' wish on me wors' enemy...I know that she betrayed you, but the reality is tha' it happened almost half a century ago. The wound may still feel fresh, but even you should know tha' sometimes you have to let go at leas' some of the old anger so you can move forward..."
The half-demon only grunts quietly, before looking away from her completely...Coraline could sense a disquiet in his demeanor, and frowns, before moving off the log to grab him by the shoulders and force him to look her way.
"H-Hey! What're you-"
"Care to explain why you've been doin' everything to avoid my eyes since yest'rday?"
Inuyasha makes a sound of momentary confusion, before looking away from her again and muttering stubbornly,
"...You're obviously imagining things..."
"Wait a second...Don't tell me this is abou' me bein' Kikyō's supposed reincarnation! Is that seriously why you can't look at me? I can't believe you!"
The boy turns back to stare at the girl for a few seconds...before suddenly grabbing her left hand causing her to remove her right in shock.
"Uh!...Inuyasha...?!"
"It's not-!...Hauh...It's not like that..."
To say Coraline was bewildered by Inuyasha's new behaviour would be an understatement. A delicate blush dusts her cheeks as she notices his expression shift to reflect a longing previously subdued.
W-Wha'...What is he doing...?
The half-demon slowly leans in closer to the human's face...and worried about his intentions, the latter sputters out with a few arm waves,
"Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa, back the truck up!"
She then shoves the unsuspecting Inuyasha away from her, causing him to tumble down part of the hill with a yelp...Coraline's blush grows as she thought frantically,
Okay, I would be lyin' if I said I wasn't, afraid...
What just happened? Did he, seriously jus' try to kiss me?!
She'd be interrupted out of her panic when the source comes sprinting back up the grass, and pants a little before shouting irritably,
"Can we lose some of the violence?!"
"I'll lose i' as soon as you stop actin' so weird!"
"You're the one who's being the lunatic!"
...Before they could argue any further, both teens turn to see Kaede coming towards them, horse in hand.
"Kaede."
"I have reconsidered: I too am a priestess. I shall recover my sister's ashes on my own strength...Inuyasha, do me the kindness of telling me which way the witch Urasue was last traveling."
The half-demon scoffs,
"You tryin' to get yourself killed?"
The redhead scolds,
"Don't be so harsh," but the shrine maiden was undeterred.
"I'm going. I shall deal with the consequences when I arrive."
Coraline steps closer to the other woman and tries to persuade otherwise.
"But Kaede, you're in no condition t' go..."
"You're wastin' your breath trying to stop her. She's a stubborn as an ox; you'll never talk her out of it."
The half-demon's seemingly uncaring tone in such a judgment would then be contradicted as he steps over to grab the reins of the mare.
"Come on, let's move it along, granny...We'll lay Kikyō's remains to rest again."
As the women watch him lead the animal back down the stretch, Kaede says with a grateful smile,
"Inuyasha...thank you."
But the young lady with long red hair felt her sky/cerulean irises narrow, feeling some sort of ulterior if reluctant reason for the boy's reconsideration.
"Somethin' tells me Shippō and I better come as well..."
"Coraline..."
She takes a few steps forward, and watches Inuyasha go while this thought went through her head.
...It wasn't me he was lookin' at just now...
Conclusions would continue to be drawn as the new group of four start their mission in hunting down the ogress witch Urasue. The redhead may have been looking ahead from her position beside the mare carrying the miko, but rather than distracted by the sights like the fox demon on her backpack, she found herself drifting back to what the dog demon bounding ahead was about to do earlier.
He was lookin' through me, or rather, used me frame for his imagination...to rememb'a Kikyō...
They would soon stop to rest for the night by a set of rocky cliffs, with Coraline propping herself against the stone wall as Kaede fell asleep wrapped in the redhead's blanket, Shippō sleeping against her...
"Kaede has fallen asleep."
Inuyasha grunts from across the fire,
"Let's get some sleep ourselves. We've got a big battle waiting tomorrow."
"That quick, huh?"
"I can smell the remains; they're not far off."
"...I see..."
The redhead found herself without words, watching the other teen lean forward slightly as his hazel-gold irises are covered by sleepy eyelids...The sight alone brought the girl back to the moment she first laid eyes on the half-demon.
Hm, he fell asleep...I remember that's how I found 'im durin' my first excursion to this era.
It may have been a spell, but still, his spirit was sleepin' for a long time...He seemed so peaceful...and yet, the circumstances were so heinous.
She casts her eyes to the stars in the sky as she contemplates,
One would think tha' reason alone would mean he hated Kikyō...
But earlier today...the way he gazed a' me as he held my hand...I saw no hatr'd in his eyes...
A shaky hand clutches her chest.
Damn, my heart's still racin'...and it feels so wrong, because...
Because now I know, Inuyasha, once felt the opposite for tha' priestess.
Time Skip
Come the next morning, Shippō would wake himself with some mountain water as everyone prepares to start their trek again...
"We must retrieve Kikyō's remains quickly, lest Urasue uses them to some evil end. I fear trouble lies in the path ahead, dreadful trouble."
Inuyasha replies to Kaede with some blunt sarcasm,
"Oh gooood, that's just what we need to hear. If you were so worried about her remains, why didn't you scatter 'em in the river in the first place? We wouldn't be in this predicament if it hadn't been for your sentimentality."
"Mmrh, Inuyasha, have ye no regard for man's grave sites and tombstones?...A grave is not simply just a place for man to bury a body or ashes. It is also a place of refuge, a shelter for those hearts of the loved ones left behind."
"The loved ones left behind?"
"My sister was born a priestess. She used her powers for the good of the villagers. She warded specters and demons away from the village, and battled sickness and famine countless times...Ever since her demise, her spirit continues to encourage them to overcome their obstacles and have the strength to carry on...But people are weak, and hearts are easily suede by the winds of danger and uncertainty. Her grave was a place of reassurance, a haven to encourage the villagers to brace themselves against the storms of life."
Coraline trails behind the others, taking in Kaede's description of her sister, her thought focus drifting between that young woman and the young man connected.
It sounds t' me like Kikyō was treated in a way similar to a goddess, even after she passed...
But did she really appreciate such'a position?
...If I were her, I would've been put off by bein' seen as something beyond hum'n...
And Inuyasha...he looks th' same as yesterday...He must be thinking of the woman.
...It's clear t' me now: he was in love with her...and yet, Kikyō shot 'm, and trapped him under a spell that lasted fifty years...
The redhead stops walking, and looks at the teenage half-demon sadly.
...Oh Inuyasha...
He feels her stare, and turns around from atop the horse.
"Hm?"
She never returned your feelings...did she?
"Grrh...!"
She didn't return your love. She didn't love you back...
"Huh?"
Seeing the tears that were starting to form in those two-toned blue irises, Inuyasha had enough.
"What're you gawking at?!"
He leaps over in front of her, sporting a frown with his arms crossed.
"That's pretty bad, when you can give a half-demon the creeps."
"Um..."
"What's with the sympathetic looks you're giving me?"
Coraline smiles faintly and turns from his face, replying a touch pathetically,
"Oh, it was nothin'. I was just thinkin' about something silly..."
"Hm...Silly like what?"
"Nothing, really. Just forget about it."
"Answer me!"
Feeling pressured by his persistence on the subject, the girl tries jogging off to catch up with Kaede...But Inuyasha easily jogs in step with her, shouting authoritatively,
"Coraline, I want some answers now!"
"Look, just drop i', alrigh'?! It's not important!"
...
...
We now catch up with Urasue deep within the mistier parts of the coming mountains, as she heads back to her hideout within the towering rocks. She uses her scythe to cut away the boulder blocking the entrance, revealing a clay sarcophagus currently being baked.
"Now then...let's see what magic my demon cure has brought to the mixture of ashes and grave site soil..."
She walks forward to the sarcophagus, and remarks with a smile,
"Ah, yes. This could be my finest creation yet. Now..."
Urasue then takes the herb stalk kept in her headband behind the feather, transferring some of her power into to make it glow, before tossing it onto the clay structure.
(Sheen...)
The flames die away, leaving only the sarcophagus and herb, before the ogress brings her blade down on the head.
"Arise!"
(Swipe, ting...crick...crack)
The sarcophagus begins to erode, and a hand reaches out from inside, grasping the herb...
"Arise, Kikyō! Come to me!"
(...CRACK)
It then smashes open, and rising out if the shattered pieces...is a newly resurrected Kikyō!
Though obviously lacking her past garments, she was nonetheless as beautiful as she was fifty years ago. Her complexion is a pearl-like ivory, complimenting her slim yet curved figure, long black hair cut in the Hime style with longer side-locks, and deep nut brown irises...
"Kikyō, The Great Priestess...You foiled many in attempt by demons and monsters to take possession of the Sacred Jewel of the Four Souls...They say that even if a demon should possess just one shard of the broken jewel, their powers would at least double in strength...I need them. I must have every fragment of the jewel myself. Go forth, and destroy every demon in search of the jewel fragments. Burn them alive! I have brought you back, so you shall serve my every wish. Now go, and retrieve the jewel shards!"
(Pow)
Urasue sends a torrent of rejuvenating energy at Kikyō, causing her bare body to rise up, before floating back down...
But when she touches the ground, the miko suddenly falls on her side.
"...Impossible...! I do not understand!"
The ogress steps over to grasp her creation by their hair, and notices the problem.
"Hmm...The body has revived, but the soul has not returned! My unparalleled magic could not have failed to bring back the soul...Wait: this could only have happened if the soul was already reincarnated into another body!"
Urasue growls in frustration, tossing aside the apparent empty shell as she laments in anger,
"I have no use for this body of Kikyō's unless it has a soul!...All this time and magic wasted! Wasted on a useless shell of a human! Now how will I retrieve the jewels shards? How?!"
...
...
Returning to Inuyasha and company, the group was closing in on the ogress and her hideout...The next length of their path through the greenery includes a number of clay sarcophagus's similar to the one used for Kikyō's ashes only moments ago...
"What are these? Pottery mummies?"
Shippō throws in his own guess after Coraline.
"Clay statues, maybe? Urrh, they're giving me the willies..."
Their focus would soon lock onto the distant mountain where the witch's hideout was, noticing a stream of smoke billowing steadily from the mouth of the cave.
"Something tells me that's the place..."
Just ahead of their current vantage is an old rope bridge overlooking a very deep gorge.
"Fantastic...A rickety old bridge..."
Coraline takes a step onto the structure, cringing from the rattling of the chains around the time Kaede follows behind her.
"Hauh, hoh-kay, just don't look down..."
Inuyasha looks back her way, he closer to the middle of the bridge.
"Stay here if you're that scared. I'll go on my own and get the remains back, okay?"
"No, I'm fine. Just, need ta focus in front of me, is all."
"Alright, then step it up a bit."
Meanwhile, Shippō bounds a little further than the rest...only to stop because of a strange roadblock.
"H-Huh?...How'd those get here?"
(Cri-CRACK)
The clay sarcophagus's smash open, revealing several soldiers made from the same material!
"Owaaah! We've got trouble!"
Inuyasha deduces,
"Must be some of Urasue's soldiers," and Coraline felt her eyes narrow.
"Figures that crossin' the bridge to 'er hideout wouldn't be easy...Oh crap, that means...!"
She and Kaede turn around, and see several more soldiers coming towards them on the other side of the bridge!
"Inuyasha, they're closin' in from both sides!...Any suggestions?"
"Hang on tight, ladies; this bridge is about to live up to its name! (...Leap) Iron Reaver Soul Stealer!"
The half-demon swipes his claws through one of the soldiers, slightly surprised that they were indeed not of human flesh.
These guys really are made of mud...
"Fox Fire!"
The fox demon sends his illusionary fire at a couple, distracting them long enough for Kaede to use her bow to knock them aside...
"Wish all my enemies were this, (swipe) weak! Rgh, too bad, there's so many of 'em!"
Coraline briefly glances Inuyasha's way...then looks back at the other soldiers.
...This army will take more than one set o' strong arms to take down.
"Alright. Time t' step up."
She moves in front of the aging priestess.
"Kaede, I got these next ones!"
"What?"
The redhead then reaches to her thigh, grabbing the handle of her combat knife.
"Good time as any t' test my new knife."
And hopefully, it doesn't break...
She smoothly draws out the blade...and lunges forward.
"Hah!"
(Stab, crack)
In a sprout of luck, the blade goes through the clay soldier's chest and does not break! Taken off-guard, it's shoved away into pieces by their assailant...
"You want some o' this?!"
Coraline continues her attacks, stabbing and shoving the clay soldiers, much to Kaede and Shippō's shock.
"Oh my..."
"Wow, she's doing it!"
Having heard the exclaims over the chaos, Inuyasha glances back briefly, only to completely whirl around in shock when he sees his fellow teenager fighting the soldiers.
"C-Coraline?! Hey! What're you doing?!"
She smashes her fist holding her combat knife through another enemy before replying,
"What does it, (shove) look like?! I'm helpin', taking the initi'tive! (Smirk) Besides, isn' it 'bout time I step up and fight?"
"...Coraline...Keh."
Inuyasha smirks a bit at her determination, before focusing back on his side of the battle.
"Alright, then try an' keep up! Hrrrah!"
(Smash)
...
Returning to Urasue, her ears pick on the commotion going on a little ways from her hideout.
"What can all that ruckus be outside? I'll go see for myself, and work off some frustration..."
...But when she goes to retrieve her herb from the hand of Kikyō's body...
"Rrrgh...Release it! This herb belongs to me!"
The dead miko's hand holds grip, while the head...turns to the outside...
"She's moved on her own...Wait!"
Back out on the bridge, Coraline stabs yet another two soldiers, pushing them back hard enough so they'd smash into each other, and steps back a bit with a heavy breath.
Hah, hah, how much longer will these husks of clay persist?
Unbeknownst to her and the others, Urasue was flying overhead to the bridge...
"That must be Kikyō's reincarnation...How odd: she does not share the other's appearance, yet the body was focused in her direction...I also sense, a strangeness in her soul, like something more than one...Whatever the case, she must me the reincarnated soul of the priestess."
Oblivious to the coming threat, the teens keep up the pressure on the clay soldiers...
"Hey, Coraline! How are ya, (swipe) even striking these clay pots, (smash) with your knife? Wouldn't the blade have broke by now?"
"(Stab) Couldn't tell ya, if I wanted to! Hrah, (kick, clacsh) but I migh' ask Shuji about it, next time I'm, (Stab, shove) back in my world!"
Inuyasha nods, swiping down more of the soldiers, before sensing something off.
"Hm?"
He looks up, and sees the approaching ogress.
It's her!
"Hrrrraaaaaaah!"
(SLICE)
But before he could act, the enemy cuts through the bridge with her scythe!
"Aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!"
Everyone begins to fall downward into the gorge, and Urasue makes her move, snatching up Coraline into one of her arms and leaving the other three souls to their fate...
"No! Kaede! Shippō! Inuyasha! (Grit) Release me, you grave-robber witch!"
The practitioner of necromancy directs the blade of her scythe under the redhead's neck, causing her to freeze in her struggles.
"Prefer to fall to your death, young maiden? After all my hard work trying to revive that corpse, I won't easily give up its reincarnated soul. I have plans in store for you...plans to bring back Kikyō."
Did she say...bring back Kikyō?...Oh, this isn' good at'all...!
Here's the rough translation of the Irish my OC used in the flashback:
...Maith dúinn, Demon mór, le cur isteach ar do chuid. Guím pionós ar an díshealbhú, agus ní féidir liom ach guí go bhfuil tú sásta go n-iompróidh do mhac is óige oidhreacht do chuid fang millteach...cé go bhfuil do is sine a fhoghlaim óna éagóir gníomhartha...Go bhfaighidh tú dídean sa saol eile.
...Forgive us, great demon, for disturbing your rest. I wish penitence for the desecration, and I can only pray that you are happy that your youngest son will carry the legacy of your destructive fang...while your oldest is learning from his wrong actions...May you find refuge in the afterlife.