Chapter 118: The First Time Inuyasha Sheds Tears
Dark cerulean with sparkling whites and palest yellows dominate the skies during another night in Sengoku Japan, and panning downward over the village with the recently tarnished shrine for the Shichinintai (or Band of Seven), we find a more neutral soul denied (or rather, denying) access to the next life examining the broken stone and wood, with the villagers standing a few feet behind her.
"The Tomb of the Seven is where the mercenaries known as the Shichinintai, or Band of Seven, were buried. Recently, this accursed monument was split in two..."
A younger adult male speaks next:
"But that is not all, priestess: The bones of the seven mercenaries all inexplicably disappeared."
And a third adds,
"We're worried that it's some kind of curse and that they have returned."
But while the grownups of this village were fearing the rise of past evildoers, the children in their huts seemed content with themselves, even singing, more than likely innocent to the dangers hanging in the air...
...Kikyō observes the spot for a moment longer, before turning to reply,
"Yes, I understand. I shall purify the site."
The men form grateful smiles to the woman of the hour:
"Ooh, that would be such a service to us, priestess."
"How can we ever thank you?"
"What a great relief..."
...Still, their hope did nothing to stop the uncertainly and judged thoughts within the specter priestess.
Useless, but it will put their minds at ease. I don't detect the presence of evil here anymore...
In fact, the air here is unusually clean and clear...
She turns her brown irises upward to the distant mountain:
Is it be because of Mount Hakurei?...Mount Hakurei, the spiritual mountain that purges the sins of all evildoers.
Kikyō reaches into her robes, and pulls out the severed topknot of the bandit thief once known as Rasetsu no Kansuke, recalling his dying words.
"I've heard of a place, where even villains like me can find salvation...Take this lock of hair and bury it so that I might be saved."
...Her hand encloses around the gray hairs tightly.
Please, forgive me, Kansuke, but I will not be able to fulfill your wish.
To Live is to Die...To Die is to Live.
As those thoughts caress the mind of the black-haired woman wandering the earth to eventually reach her final goal before joining the afterlife, we turn back now to deep within the thick green of the forest abaft the burning Buddha temple, where our main travel group has been reduced to only four conscious, while the others...the others are balancing dangerously on the teeter-totter of Life and Death, courtesy of the merciless Band of Seven.
Poor Shippo had reduced himself to wailing sobs after informing the arriving Inuyasha that Coraline, Besa, Miroku and Sango had ceased breathing thanks to the combined efforts of the lingering poison gas and some smoke inhalation (though in the redheaded teen's case, her health had been compromised by more spiritual problems rather than chemical), while Freeman had his endurance cut short courtesy of his injuries received from his squabble against Jakotsu, and a final push from a new burn inflicted by embers of the fire after bravely scrambling to evacuate his fallen comrades.
...The dog demon felt his body go rigid from the younger fox's words, shock spreading through his bloodstream at the mere thought that his return to assist had all been in vain...His wide amber irises then lock onto Coraline's form, before slowly moving over to kneel in front of her ash-dusted body, carefully lifting her into his trembling arms.
"...Coraline...!"
He hugs her to him tight, his voice catching:
"This, can't be, happening...! (Shakes her slightly) Come on, Coraline, open your eyes!...Say something, Coraline!"
The young woman does not respond, only increasing the young man's fears for the worst, as well as add fuel to the fire that was his inner demonic persona.
(Pulse...)
My...intended...!
Thankfully, Myoga senses the rise of developed instinctual anger, and immediately cuts into Inuyasha's thoughts before all hell could break loose.
"Master Inuyasha, please, you must hold strong against your inner demon!"
"M-Myoga..."
"The situation could have been alot worse if we were still back in the temple, you must remember that. If Freeman had not taken charge like he did and led us in an evacuation effort to out here with Lumos's guidance, we would've been trapped within the fire."
The dog demon turns his eyes to glance over the sideways-laying form of said dark-skinned teen, catching the signs of jagged breathing and the slightest of muscle jerks, suggesting that he at least, might still be clinging to life.
...Even so, Inuyasha's mixed anguish and anger would not drop.
"...How could either, be worse than the other...?"
"Master?"
The dog demon sets Coraline back onto the grass, and stood up with his eyes shadowed by his bangs...before suddenly yanking out his Tessaiga to thrust forward with a yell!
(SLASH)
The infamous Wind Scar takes out a good portion of the forest due west, leaving behind chipped stumps and fragments of the tree trunks that did not evaporate from the power to rain down on the newly bare, scarred ground...
"DAMN IT!"
(TOK)
The sword's blade is planted hard into the ground, as its wielder falls to one knee, helpless to the tide of emotions crashing upon him in wake of this frightening turn.
I should've known Renkotsu would pull something like this...
If only I had defeated Ginkotsu sooner...!
Once that part of his head cooled some, he then turns to solemnly address the tearing fox demon.
"...Don't cry, Shippo. You did your best."
"B-But it wasn't enough! A-And if they a-all die, I-I'll never be able to forgive myself! I-It's my fault: If only I hadn't brought them to this temple...!"
"Just quit it! You're not to blame for anything! It's all my fault...!"
"Y-You're just saying that, l-like when Freeman, k-kept trying to push me even when h-he got hurt! It's all my fault and you know it!"
This time, it took the combined efforts of the Will O' Wisp's scolding moans from his place over Coraline's chest and Myoga's exclaims to snap both demons out of it.
"Hey, hey, enough already! Crying isn't gonna solve anything! We must take everyone to a safer and more open area."
...Noticing that the young fox demon was experiencing futile struggles in trying to tug at Sango's arm, Inuyasha rose to his feet to take over.
"It's okay, Shippo. I'll do it."
"I...Inuyasha..."
...At the same time, Kōga was still making his way to the temple complex using his jewel-enhanced demon speed, slowing to pause a moment while thinking frantically,
Coraline...please, be alive.
His comrades Hakkaku and Ginta weren't too far behind, if becoming a little out of breath.
"Please wait up, Kōga!"
"Yes! Though my worries for my mate are high, are you even sure you know where he and Coraline are?"
The blue-eyed wolf demon calls back,
"Of course I am! She and he are very close!"
Grh, she's close alright, but what if that mutt couldn't protect Coraline...or worse, failed to protect Ginta's mate?
It was just as the other wolf demons and regular canines caught up, Kōga would twist into a new whirlwind again to speed off, causing them to groan slightly with bated breaths...However, Ginta quickly recovered his resolve when he reminds himself,
I've gotta keep it together, for Freeman's sake!...Please, Freeman, be alive when I find you...!
...Unbeknownst to them, Kohaku was watching from above on a thick beech tree branch, his mind also dwelling on a face whose life was being tested.
"I see...Apparently, that girl died."
An image of the slayer and her twin-tailed companion crosses his imagination...which causes a stream of water to fall from his eye, much to his confusion.
"...What is this? Why do I shed these tears?...I do not feel any sadness."
We move now to the middle of a more barren clearing in the forest, where our injured and sick had been moved by Inuyasha, he not uttering a word other than cursing under his breath with a catch in his voice when he picked up Coraline again...
Shippo was sitting beside his fellow redhead currently, his crying dropping some in volume but not in strength, while Kilala sat near her demon slaying partner with a somewhat solemn expression, and Lumos continued his vigil over Coraline's chest, his orbed body now softly throbbing between an ice blue and that dark blue...
"Hey, Shippo, let me ask you again."
"(Sniff) Mm?"
The addressed looks to meet Myoga's eyes as he stood near the Will O' Wisp.
"Are you positive that they swallowed the antidote?"
"Uh, they did...I'm sure of it. It was a special antidote that Jinenji gave me. (Looks down tearfully) Doesn't matter...It didn't have any effect, and while Coraline, strangely has little of the poison in her anymore...something else made her terribly weak."
"Hm, I see...Hey, Shippo, do you know where Master Inuyasha went?"
He shakes his head, causing the flea demon to think aloud with worry,
"Oooh, I hope he isn't doing anything rash..."
Though considering that his chosen mate's life is currently on the brink...I cannot blame him entirely if his rage does cloud some of his better judgement.
"Mm...M-Mrh, Sh-Sh-Ship-po...My-o-ga..."
Both demons suddenly dart their heads up, and look over to see Freeman, who was set on his side like before to not aggravate the burn mark on his back, was very slowly blinking awake!
"Uh! Freeman!" "Freeman, my boy, you're alive!"
"Gh, y-yeah, barely...Wh, What, happened...?"
We leave this area just as Shippo and Myoga begin filling in the gaps to the young man's memory, and catch up to deep in the forest near some thick trunks of pine where Inuyasha had took off to, in order to release his pain and anger out on something that wasn't an ally.
"Rrrrrrrah!"
(SLICE...Crash)
Another log goes timbering to the ground, hardly doing anything for the poor dog demon who felt ready to commit murder at a serial level!
"Come on out, you filthy bastards! I'm right here waitin' for ya, so if you wanna fight, then come out! Jakotsu, Renkotsu and whoever else I haven't killed yet! I am gonna finish every last one of you!...Damn it! I said quit hiding and come out and fight!"
...To no one's surprise, none of the Shichinintai make an appearance, leaving Inuyasha to snarl out another curse, his body shaking with a rage that could not be quelled in a mere finger snap...
(Pulse...pulse...)
What made this particular personal battle all the more challenging...was his inner demon threatening to surface in retaliation to the attempt on his intended's life, the jagged purple stripes throbbing in and out on the surface of his face, his claws lengthening and retracting, and his irises shifting from amber to aqua blue and back again...
So where had those named brothers of the Band of Seven vanished to?
Well, while the location itself is classified, it would appear they had made their way to an workshop set deep under the earth, where Renkotsu could have access to inner core temperatures for his metal craftsmanship. Jakotsu, whom was sitting on a wooden plank mat a distance away from his busy brother, suddenly asks,
"Sooo, Renkotsu: Is Inuyasha still alive?"
"...Yes. Rest assured."
The feminine male lets out a sigh of relief:
"Ooh, that's good. I was thinking about that tasty little morsel Inuyasha the whole time I was fighting Kōga and that buddy of his. To be perfectly honest, it was a little distracting, especially when I found out that sweet stud Freeman's taken by that other wolf demon. Ugh, so unfair..."
Taking a sip of an unidentified liquid from a gourd, Renkotsu blows some fire into the smouldering contents of the pot he was standing in front of, before replying with a slight smirk,
"So, you let Kōga get away, did you? Shame on you, Jakotsu."
"Sorry, couldn't be helped; the guy ran super fast. You should've seen it."
The other zombie hmphs, before turning attention back to the molten metal just as it reaches its boiled peak.
"Excellent..."
He turns his eyes above him...where the torso/head of Ginkotsu was hanging off a few chains...!
"Geeeesh..."
"Just wait, Ginkotsu: You're about to be reborn."
"Gesh..."
"Oh yes, and I shall see to it that you are much, much stronger."
Pulling a handle, Renkotsu directs the molten metal to be poured into a few molds, foreshadowing the coming new body for the cyborg zombie...Jakotsu yawns and says to himself,
"This is all so tedious. I wonder what Inuyasha's doing?"
Time Skip, Inuyasha's POV
Morning had finally come to light up the grounds around this place, but I haven't returned to the area where I...moved my friends and loved one. I just...I couldn't face their nearly-lifeless appearances right now, not while anguish still boiled in my blood.
I'm now squatting by a new waterfall that spilled into a small lake I had found during my thrashings, punching the rock of the boulder with a growled curse, pissed with myself over everything that had happened these last few days.
I messed up. If only I had realized sooner just who Renkotsu was...
(Whack)
Damn...!
What's worse...is that my inner demon ego, whose voice had remained unheard not counting the times I fell under its control, had somehow slipped through the bars and has been echoing through my skull for a few hours now (And in a surprisingly more intelligent manner than I initially believed possible).
What kind of a demon are you not smelling the enemy sooner?!
(Whack)
Damn...!
Damn is right, you half-and-half moron! Your incompetence allowed our pack members to get hurt!
(Whack)
Damn!
You just better pray to Kami that our mate-to-be doesn't die, 'cause if I catch wind that she's dead...I'll be shoving you back here to watch as a real man takes charge! Better yet, let me out now and I'll track those corpses down to rip them apart, piece, by, piece...!
(WHACK)
"SHUT, UP!"
"Descending into madness, Inuyasha...or are you continuing to allow your inner demon to bully you?"
I froze, recognizing the voice of my so-called half-kin...before grumbling to the source supposingly behind me,
"...Get lost. I've already got someone, something berating me, so I'm definitely in no mood to talk to you."
"So, only now you realize how weak you are?"
"...Shut up!"
He does no such thing:
"After all, you are only a half-demon. You can barely take care of yourself, and yet you wield the Tessaiga, a sword that was forged to protect others. Your friends, that human lover of yours, never stood a chance. Even your more primitive half knows it."
Growling, I reply in kind,
"Then maybe I should kill you, Sesshomaru, and take your Tenseiga. Then I can resurrect Coraline and the others."
Hey, we don't even know if they're really dead yet. Don't make drastic decisions; that's my job! Besides, do you even know how to wield a blade like that?
Quiet, you!
I cut back to reality as my older half-brother scoffs and says,
"As if you could ever master my Tenseiga."
Gripping the hilt of my Tessaiga with a growl, I call back,
"Well we won't know unless I, (whirl, thrust) try!"
(SLASH)
...The energies die away, but I sense no signs of the attack connecting with anything, so Sesshomaru either fled before...or wasn't even here to begin with.
"He's gone..."
Or maybe he wasn't even here...Am I, starting to see things now?
No POV
"Hellooooo? Uh, he's not here!"
We move to a different cleared area of the northeastern forests near the newly-destroyed temple complex, where Rin, Jaken and A-Un stood as they tried to search for their Lord after he mysteriously took off several hours ago...That was when the youngest spots him:
"Look! Here comes Lord Sesshomaru now!"
He walks out from the thicker part of the greenery, and the imp asks,
"Lord Sesshomaru, where have you been?"
"...I found him."
The dog demon's two wards make sounds of confusion, which cause him to repeat his answer more clearly and slowly, before Jaken inquires more details.
"Found who?"
"...That little troublemaker."
"Little troublemaker? Hm, little troublemaker...Oh! You mean that boy who is with Naraku!"
Rin puts a name to the face in question:
"You mean, Kohaku?"
The conversation sort-of dies off after that, as evident by Sesshomaru merely walking off without another word, leaving Jaken to rush after him.
"Please wait, Lord Sesshomaru!"
Meanwhile, Rin's worries for the young demon slayer grew again.
Is Lord Sesshomaru going to kill Kohaku?
...We turn back now to the grassy clearing where our main group was, just as Inuyasha finally returns from his abrupt disappearance, his rage finally deflated from that dangerous high to the point where the echoes of his demon ego couldn't be heard inside his subconscious anymore.
"...Inuyasha."
He looks up, and saw Freeman sitting up by his twin, now occupying a new gauze taped onto his back for his salved burn, a grim smile on his face.
"Uh!...You're alive."
"Yeah...I am, yet, I'm not."
The dark-skinned teen turns his eyes back on Besa, reaching out to grip the other's hand tight while whispering,
"...Not while my brother-...I'm, I'm sorry. I should've moved faster."
"Don't you start that too."
Freeman darts his misty eyes back up at Inuyasha, who glances at him, then peers over at the teary Shippo, before muttering in a tone that wasn't any less dead than the former's sounded,
"You only did what you were able to...The fact that you're still living, says something."
"Inuyasha..."
"Both of you shouldn't be crying...Men don't show their tears, ever."
The young fox demon wipes under his green irises and chokes,
"O-Okay. I'll try..."
But even as the dog demon said that, Freeman could tell that his friend was fighting his own urge to cry as he sat in front of Coraline's body again.
Mph, poor guy...He's hurting something bad, but refuses to let it all go in one shot.
Inuyasha lifts the redheaded girl into his shaking arms, forcing Lumos to move from his place over her chest, hugging her tight again and tucking her head onto his shoulder while planting a heartbroken kiss to her cheek.
Coraline...f-forgive me. Please, forgive me.
If...If I hadn't failed you...Y-You'd still be here right now...!
...A lone and very small tear falls from his right eye, which drips onto Coraline's skin...before a very weak groan emanates from her chapped lips!
"I...Inu..yasha..."
Amber irises snap open:
"Uh!"
"Inu-yasha...Are, you alright?"
"...Coraline?"
He pulls back some so he could look at the girl properly, as she slowly blinks her two-toned blue irises open, forming a tiny smile as she hears the excited chirps of her creature partner circling around her and Inuyasha. Focusing on her boyfriend, her eyes soften as she mutters weakly,
"S-Sorry, I took so long, to wake..."
"...But...you were-!"
"That's to be expected: Though I didn't have to suck out as much of her blood since most of her poison dosage had mysteriously evaporated, her physical health was just as weakened as the rest."
Turning their eyes to the left of Coraline, she and Inuyasha spot an enlarged and sweaty Myoga sucking from the neck of Miroku, likely having already done so to Sango and Besa as well.
"Whoah, I gotta tell ya, even for me, this poison packs quite a wallop."
"You're, telling me...that you..."
In accordance to the dog demon's bated conclusion, the monk slowly regains his consciousness...though wasn't completely in tune with the real world quite yet, as evident by the hand that rubbed Myoga's head.
"Mm, so, you'll bear my child, then?"
"I should've let this one die..."
The enlarged flea demon brushes the hand away before rolling over to bump into Besa's body, as he slowly blinked awake.
"Uh...Urh...Where...?"
Freeman's face erupts a huge smile of relief:
"Besa...!"
"F-Free-man?"
"Are you okay?"
"I...I think so. (Glances left) Oh...Myoga, hi."
"Hello to you too, young man."
At the same time, Shippo scampered over to greet the waking Miroku:
"Miroku...!"
"Uh...was it, all just a dream? (Pout) How disappointing."
Forming a deadpan, the fox demon mutters,
"Should've known you'd be dreaming about women..."
He then turns to the sound of Kilala's excited mews, to see that Sango was awake too!
"Uh! Sango...! Are you okay?"
Smiling weakly, she mutters,
"Uh...Uh-huh."
Watching everyone, Coraline smiles and whispers,
"So...we all made it after all...Guess Fate decided to give us a freebee."
"There be no freebee about it, chile: Tis destiny for ye all to remain among the living."
Stiffening slightly in surprise from the sound of her ancestor's voice in her head, the redhead then nods in agreement with a stronger smile...Myoga then chimes in,
"I was only able to revive you because the poison had not gone completely through your bodies. Had I been any later, it would've been too late."
"Well, I gotta hand it to you, Myoga: I guess you can be useful every once in a while."
The flea demon does not take too kindly to how the fox demon phrased that 'compliment'.
"Doooh, you insolent little whippersnapper, how dare you speak to me like that!"
Turning her eyes back to the one holding her up, Coraline then mutters with a sad frown,
"I'm, s-sorry again, for making you worry..."
"Stop it! Don't apologize..."
Knowing what action he was really fighting against, the young woman fights against her weakened state to pull herself a little and properly wrap her arms around Inuyasha again, tugging his head towards her shoulder, much to his confusion.
"H-Huh?"
"Shield your eyes with my shoulder...Let them out in one go, and allow your fears to fall with them...my, intended."
The dog demon froze upon hearing that one whispered address:
Did...Did she, call me...
...Gritting his teeth, Inuyasha heeds Coraline's request and allows himself to let go, burying his face into the sleeve of her red t-shirt to very silently release the salt water from the corners of his eyes, his body trembling from the emotional weight beginning its quaking tumble into powdered rubble. Everyone else watched with shock, their voices caught in their throat and not daring to break the needed silence in this moment, while Coraline just held her lover close with a watery smile of her own, pecking a few butterfly kisses to the silver hair while whispering sweet, comforting words to calm the other's spirit.
I'm right here, Inuyasha...I'm right here.
Kikyō's POV
...Pure has become Impure. Impure, has now become Pure.
Good, has become Evil. Evil, has become Good.
For one to live, is to die. For one to die, is to live.
These were the paradoxes that echoed through my mind, as I wandered the forest distant to the foot of Mount Hakurei with my Soul-collecting allies...
Perhaps it's the power of Mount Hakurei to purge, but in its surrounding areas, there's absolutely no miasma.
...Suddenly, one of the Shinidamachū disintegrates away, which only fuels this growing suspicion in my veins.
It is almost too pure...
I look back at the several other neutral-spirited demons who followed me.
It must be painful for you to be here, as it is for I...
"...Mph..."
Feeling that familiar sting I had felt a little while ago, I look down to see the fair skin of my hand once again forming that red, burn-like mark.
Hm...Though I sense no signs of one, I almost wonder if my new flesh may carry an incredibly faint trace of, that demon from beyond this world?
"...Huh. Now wouldn't that make my hold to existence more ironic."
Erasing my bitter smile, I look up to the distant mountain where I wished to close in on but couldn't at present.
Is it impossible for me to get any closer to Mount Hakurei?
For now, I decide to turn around and back myself from this nearly too pure atmosphere...
I would soon find myself nearing a village built at the base of the holy mountain, when I stopped at the familiar pulse of a conflicting-morale power.
I sense the presence of a jewel shard...
Continuing my walk, I approach the first hut closest to my proximity, only to find what appears to be a young male physician tending to an elder woman's injured hand, with a few children crowding near him.
"This should do."
"Alright..."
"Come again in three days and I'll apply more ointment."
"(Bow) Thank you so much, doctor."
Doctor?...That man...he has a jewel shard in his neck...Yet, it is...
I snap out of my thoughts when the little boy carrying an infant calls to the woman,
"Take care!"
"You too, Chiyo."
He, Chiyo, then notices my presence, and rushes to greet me in all his innocence.
"Hm? Oh my...Such a beautiful priestess...!"
Flattered though I was, I had to remain focused on this new development, so I knelt down to his level to gently ask,
"Who is that man?"
"Oh? That man's name is Doctor Suikotsu."
"A doctor?"
How odd...
"Ah, Chiyo. Do we have a visitor?"
Getting up, I walk over to greet the supposed healer, seeing that his appearance was of a gentle, handsome young man wearing blue robes with a tan brown overvest.
"...Hello there. You are the man called Suikotsu?"
"Yes...and you are...?"
"(Bow) My name is Kikyō."
Just then, a few of the children rush out to playfully flop onto this man's lap, who only laughs and smiles at them, making myself all the more confused if it was an act...or something else.
Whether he be demon or a human, if one with a wicked heart implants a jewel shard in his body, the shard will become completely defiled.
...However, this man's shard is not tarnished at all...The curious thing is...this man has already died.
Coraline's POV
Once we rested long enough to gain enough strength to sit up, our group slowly moved towards a nearby river to drink up some cool water before we would be given some sort of concoction that would relieve us further...
Inuyasha hadn't let me go until we reached the foot of the river, before he immediately began foraging in some bushes for...well, whatever was suppose to be going into this medicine.
I kind-a want to go back to laying in his arms right now...
"Though I am mondo-glad we're all still alive, it still sucks the big one that those freaks got away with our jewel shards..."
Freeman, who was sitting between Besa and our satchels and weapons (apparently, Inuyasha had circled back to the ruined temple to get all our things back after taking us to the clearing near here last night), replies with a shrug,
"Just one of the crappy prices to pay for living another day, sis. Besides, it's not like we can't get them back."
Inuyasha replies over his shoulder,
"He's right, Coraline. We can always get them back later."
He then turns around fully to lightly toss me a clear water bottle of some red liquid.
"But here. Drink this."
He does the same for the other three people among us that got weakened from Mukotsu's poison.
"Miroku, Sango, Besa, you too." I ask,
"Uhm, what exactly is this-Actually, do I wanna know what's in it?"
Myoga calls from Inuyasha's shoulder,
"Just drink it, come on! It's my special potion! I sucked out a large amount of blood from your four along with the poison. Now if you drink this potion, it'll increase your body's blood content and make you healthy."
Though reluctant, we heed the flea demon's advisory, starting with Sango who took a big gulp of the concoction with a grimace.
"(Cough) Maybe so, if it doesn't kill us first...!"
Miroku gulps down a good amount of his portion next, also wincing from the taste, before replying,
"Just grin and bear it, Sango, 'cause the longer we take to recover, the longer we're vulnerable to our enemies."
Miroku's right: We're not in the position to have a good, long rest.
We must recover as fast as we can...
I take a swig of the potion next, making a face from the flavour:
Urgh, even with the bitter aftertaste that comes with it...
It was then that the Shippo, Kilala and Lumos return to us after being sent on a mission to find more items for Myoga's special revitalization potion.
"Hey, Myoga: We brought you some more ingredients!"
"Excellent, well done, Shippo!"
The burlap sack is dumped open, revealing several snakes, centipedes, mushrooms and even a few unidentified hairy plants!
"...Uh, is that, really what you used for this potion, Myoga?"
Hopping onto the pile, he replies to me,
"Yes! I combined the blood of this poisonous snakes with this rare fungi inside my body, regurgitate it all and voila, my special potion! Now...watch and learn."
Shielding my eyes upon his pincer entering the first snake, I mutter,
"Um, I'd rather not, thank you..."
Dear lord, the things we gotta do to live...
Ignoring the sound of Myoga, erm, swishing the ingredients around and spitting them out to refill one of the water bottles, I wait until Shippo cheerily calls out,
"Here you go, guys," before removing my hand from my eyes with a forced smile.
"Gee, thanks..."
Sango and Miroku weren't feeling anymore positive than I was:
"I think I'm starting to feel more sick..."
"There are some secrets better left unknown..."
Besa, meanwhile, chose to use a form of jealousy to cope with the taste of this medicine.
"Hey, how come, (cough) Freeman doesn't have to down this stuff? Didn't he lose blood from his injuries?"
My other brother responds with a knowing smirk,
"Tch, yeah, but not even close to how much you and other three did, bro. My cuts were already beginning to clod sometime last night and my bandages prevented any unnecessary bleed-out. Ergo, I have immunity from Myoga's potion."
I grumble with a smirk-glare,
"Lucky bastard," which he'd reply with a bark of a laugh,
"Love you too, sis...and as far as I'm concerned, we're all lucky bastards to be breathin'."
He then turns to pull something out of his satchel:
"Of course, it's situations like these that are why I started carrying this in my bag..."
Pulling his hand out, I see that it was carrying...a bottle of rum!
When'd he add that to his arsenal?!
Besa was wondering the same:
"What the-Since when do you have alcohol, Freeman?!"
"Since about several weeks ago when I pawned this off of one of Shuji's older brothers in exchange for keeping quiet about his secret poker excursions."
...Yeah, not even gonna ask.
Freeman then grabs out four shot glasses and pours out some of the rum, dark brown in colour but with a rose tint.
"This is a fairly good dark rum called Black Sugar Rose. Think it's imported from somewhere in the Caribbean...It has a strong after-bite from the cane sugar, but hey..."
He holds two of the shot glasses towards us with a smile:
"Better that than whatever the hell you guys are tastin' now. (Glances sideways to Myoga) Uh, it is okay for them to have alcohol, right?"
The flea demon hms...before giving an approval nod, much to our relief.
"As long as they don't have anymore than that tiny glass and finish their next dosage of the potion first, then yes."
Oh thank the stars!
Sango, Miroku and Besa let out their own happy sighs, before all four of us quickly down the second round of potion, then take the offered rum from Freeman with a grateful chorus of 'thank you' to shoot straight afterward.
(Collective gulp)
"Whoa!"
"My Buddha, that's strong!"
"Whoo! Auh...good call on this stuff, brother. I can't even taste the potion now...!"
"(Cough) Yep, definitely needed that."
And thank you to whoever made Black Sugar Rose...
Freeman just waves at us with a modest smile while Shippo eyeballed us strangely, Myoga shakes his head with an older gentleman's mumbling ("Honestly, kids these days..."), and Inuyasha quietly sniggered at us for our lack of grit to the potion...which quickly became replaced with a frowned expression when his ears pick on something.
...That something, would be noneother than Kōga speeding in with his whirlwind!
Uh! How-When-?!
"Coraline!"
"Kōga...!"
He kneels down to my level with an arm over his knee while meeting my blue eyes with his, looking real worried.
"Are you okay? I came as fast as I could!"
"Uh, well..."
"Kō-ga..."
We then directed our attention below us, and saw that he was...standing on Inuyasha's back.
Oooh dear...
Kōga's response was more nonchalant:
"Oh, hey mutt. You're still alive too?"
"I'll kill ya!"
My boyfriend then darts up to try and claw at the wolf demon, much to the other's annoyance.
"Hey!"
"How dare you!"
Clearing my throat, I cut in to direct away from any possible fighting:
"So how come you're in these parts, Kōga?"
He lands down beside my brothers and replies,
"I was pursuing Naraku and a guy with a strange, snake-like sword appeared."
Snake-like sword? (Widens eyes) Oh crap, Jakotsu!
Sango and Miroku make the conclusion aloud:
"That sounds alot like..."
"Jakotsu."
Placing a hand on Freeman's shoulder, Kōga further explains while glancing at me,
"The rather odd fellow preceded to tell me that you were dead, and Ginta's mate was seriously injured..."
My said brother gasps and whispers Ginta's name with a longed and concerned expression, while I reply with a soft smile,
"I see: You were worried for a friend and for your comrade's lover."
"Of course! As Ginta's mate, Freeman's considered an honourary member of our pack!"
That took us all by surprise, and Kōga adds while looking down in serious thought,
"To lose him after all this time now...would mean, losing another extension of our kin...And I don't even wanna think about what could happen if Ginta went into an anguished rage to avenge his lover's life..."
Kōga...
Freeman asks a bit quietly,
"Would it, really get that bad?"
"That bad and beyond, my friend: Killing off the mate of any demon's pretty much the definition of setting off a cataclysmic explosion."
Kōga suddenly darts glaring eyes on Inuyasha, but this type of anger wasn't so much fueled by his childish rivalry with my lover, but more so a teachable kind.
"You would know that kind of pain, wouldn't you, Inuyasha?"
"Huh?"
"I can smell it on you, mutt: That more demon half of you was likely yelling at you for not doing your absolute damnedest to protect Coraline. I dunno how it works exactly for half-demons like you...but still..."
He steps up so he and Inuyasha were but a foot from another before he shouts,
"If it were me, and, Coraline was Ayame, I would never allow danger to creep that close to her! You got that?!"
Uh!...Did he say...
Does that mean...he's admitted to liking Ayame like that...?
Inuyasha didn't really catch onto what I did, instead growling incredulously at the wolf demon.
"Grrrh, why you...!"
The latter in turn scoffs with his arms folded, prompting Myoga and Shippo to rush to the former's defense.
"Master Inuyasha!"
"That's it; time to teach this guy a lesson he won't forget!"
"Yeah! Yeah!"
"...That's not fair, Kōga."
Eyes turn to me in surprise for my response, and I push myself to my feet with a wobble while adding on,
"Circumstances, were beyond all our control. It couldn't be helped that most of us would get handicapped...Inuyasha did what he had to do, to prevent everything from getting worse. (Smile) And the thought of not waking to him again, was what kept me rooted to my body."
"Coraline..."
I turned to said subject with that smile still on my face, before inching closer for another hug...He quickly returned it, and whispered,
"It's nice of you to think that way...but still, I promise I won't let you get into a fix like that again."
"I know..."
"...Freeman!"
We pull apart to the sound of a familiar male calling out for one of my brothers from a distance.
Is that...Ginta?
Kōga's response confirmed it:
"'bout time those two caught up."
Ginta and Hakkaku would then appear a few seconds later with that group of brown-furred canines, bending down to catch their breath, with the former recovering first while gasping at the sight that was my brother.
"...Freeman..."
"Ginta..."
...A moment of silence passes, before the wolf demon grits his teeth with misty eyes and rushes over to wrap his arms around Freeman!
"Oh thank Kami...You're alive...!"
"G-Ginta!"
"I, (sniff) I-I was so scared, that the zombie bastard, was speaking the truth...! Th-That you were hurt, beyond help! But...But you're okay...You're okay..."
Oh wow, he's more an emotional wreck than Inuyasha was a while ago...
Freeman could only stare down at his crying boyfriend in awe for a few minutes...before smiling sadly with his own tears and pulls the other male closer to him, ignoring some possible throbbing from his injuries. We all watched with respectful silence, myself leaning into my own boyfriend's chest with a smile of understanding, he wrapping his arms around my waist and torso with a quiet hum of thought.
Because he and Ginta share a commonality: The feeling...to protect someone precious to them.
Kikyō's POV
Though I was highly suspicious of this man Suikotsu and his shard's purity, I made sure to be careful in not letting it show in my expressions during the time I spent in learning what I could about his intents as a Doctor, especially his reasons related to these children he allows to live in his home...
"These children lost their parents to famine and disease...And since then, I've been taking care of them."
His smile is genuine as he reaches down to tuck another young child beneath a blanket.
"They're sleeping so soundly..."
My eyes fixate on the glow in his neck again:
This man...No malicious intentions...
How can this be, considering the bad karma the Shikon-no-Tama has been bringing for years?
"...Hm? What is it?"
"Uh! Mm...Nothing."
"Help! Doctor Suikotsu! Please, we need your help!"
We turn our heads to the doorway, and Suikotsu stands to answer the cries for assistance, sliding open the door.
"What happened to him?"
"He fell and badly injured his leg on a sickle."
"It hurts...! It hurts so bad...!"
I peer out to see that the villager's friend had a rather nasty cut on his lower leg.
Oh dear, that looks painful indeed...and will require another set of hands, I think.
"...Doctor Suikotsu?"
He turns to me, and I ask,
"Is there anything I can do to help you?"
"Uhm, thank you, Lady Kikyō. I'd appreciate it..."
I notice that his skin seemed to take on a new...sickened colour, like his courage as a physician had suddenly dropped.
"What's the matter? You look so pale."
"I-It's nothing. I'm just, not feeling well."
Hm...
Moving the injured man inside, I and his companion would then be holding him as Suikotsu prepares some medicine salve on a strip of cloth...
"What a relief. The wound is not as deep as I feared..."
"It, hurts...! It, hurrrts...!"
Oddly enough, our patient would not be perspiring as much compared to the one treating him.
"Doctor Suikotsu...you seem tired."
He pauses to wipe away from sweat on the back of his hand, looking more peaky than before...
"...Shall I, take over?"
"Oh thank you. Please do."
Once I had finished the rest of the treatment of the injury, I would then wander out of the hut to find the physician and Chiyo feeding a flock of birds, the former looking better than he did before.
"Doctor Suikotsu? The two men just left."
He looks down with a shamed expression:
"I'm so embarrassed..."
"Don't be."
Chiyo then explains with a smile,
"Doctor Suikotsu doesn't like the sight of blood much."
Ah, I see. Not an uncommon problem. Even I had similar anxieties during my early years as a priestess...
Holding a hand to his face, Suikotsu mutters,
"Haaah, and I call myself a physician...The very moment I see blood, my whole body starts to shake uncontrollably."
"...Have you been a doctor in this village your whole life?"
"(Stands) No, I was born in the Eastern Region. For a long time, I traveled to look after the sick and injured...Finally, I settled here. It's poor, but, because it's in the cold north, the war hasn't reached us yet, and, it is peaceful..."
...Suddenly, the man looks at the palm of his hand, and tenses considerably from something he sees on his skin, before rushing over to the well.
"What's the matter?...Doctor Suikotsu?"
"My hands..."
"Huh?"
"My, my hands...!"
I fell Chiyo's presence move to stand near mine, and we watch the physician begin a rather panicked cleansing of his hands.
"B-Blood...I must wash my hands...I must wash...I must wash..."
"But there is no blood on your hands, Doctor."
Once again, it would be Chiyo who offers an explanation to the man's actions.
"Doctor Suikotsu gets like that sometimes. When it's really bad, he'll keep washing his hands for an hour or more."
I continue to watch Suikotsu's fruitless efforts to rid what I'm understanding to be an illusion of his own make.
"The blood...The blood...! It won't come off...I can't wash this blood from my hands...!"
Hm...Could he have experienced some terrible tragedy in his past and is repressing the thought?
...Or is it, something more baffling...and sinister?