Hey all! So, just a little heads up for this chapter.
There will be a some discrete sexual imagery come a certain character's POV switch. Given that this is T-Rated, I obviously can't go too far, but it's far enough that you'll get the context pretty easily. If that's not something you're into, just skip the scene.
Everyone copacetic? Cool. Read away ;)
Chapter 137: Bittersweet Pleasure & an Aura Reader's Insanity
Nighttime...The time of day when all the regions are at their most vulnerable.
Darkness enshrouds the land, creating an environment very few are brave enough to travel across, whether out of an age-old respect of the serene tranquility forged by the stars and moon...or out of fear from what could be awaiting to attack them from the shadows...
For the case of the travelers sitting around a campfire under the cover of some nearby trees away from the crevice poison river left behind by their greatest enemy, tonight's darkness settles in to toy with their minds, finally having time to properly discuss recent events in detail without worry of being attacked, even if it's just for the one night.
"...Man...between what happened in Mount Hakurei and the sudden appearance of that Clayton character, it's lucky we even get one night's rest."
Besa - now wearing a simple black t-shirt, a green vest, dark blue loose-fit jeans and his monochrome high-tops (semi-matching his brother who went with a black tank top and nothing else for his torso) - nods in agreement with his brother.
"It does seem that Naraku hardly gives us any time to recuperate, but, such is the mindset of a madman..."
Kōga, who along with his two best friends decided to stick around for a little longer with the main group, cuts in with his own opinion.
"I just can't believe he went to all this trouble with that holy barrier, just to kill one woman."
"Lady Kikyō was no ordinary woman."
Eyes fall on Miroku's form as he elaborates,
"It is as Rosiagnes correctly accused his demon puppet: Naraku feared Kikyō's spiritual powers."
Coraline - now dressed in a green camouflage tank top that shows off her midriff underneath a tied-up button shirt of deep red, loose-fit acid blue jeans and her brown hikers - stares into the campfire while muttering sadly,
"So he sought to rid himself of his human heart, Onigumo's heart, that still cared enough to never truly mean her complete harm."
She leans back a bit to rest her head on Inuyasha's shoulder, he having stuck to her side like glue for the past several hours since she arose back in her body. Hugging her closer to him now, the dog demon chose to keep silent as the conversation continues, the role of speaker passing to the bodysuit-dressed Sango who sat against a tree with her signature weapon.
"This greatly bothered him...Naraku tried to cut his human heart once before, I seem to recall."
"That was when he created Muso, a being who possessed the heart and memories of the bandit Onigumo."
Freeman scoffs with a bitter smile as he grabs his mate Ginta's hand to hold,
"And boy did that backfire on them both: Naraku was forced to reclaim an organ he doesn't want because he did too early a surgery...and Muso, well..."
His sister finishes for him, recalling the moment in question from her own perspective.
"He was mercilessly reabsorbed into the demon..."
(Flash)
"Stop! Let me see Kikyō! I must see Kikyō! (Looks at Coraline) P-Please, girl: help me! You have her within you! Help me reach Kikyō!"
...I'm sorry, Onigumo.
(Pulse)
"Huh?"
...Was that...No. Not my soul...It was...the light half of Kikyō.
...Is she just as saddened by this turn for him as I am?
"Kikyō...! Kikyō...! Kikyōōōōō...!"
"Hehnhnhn, such bitterness...Such festering greed..."
(Flash)
"...But after all this time since then...he was able to fulfill his despicable goal...Uh! That would mean...!"
The young monk dressed in purple garments nods and answers with the demon slayer,
"Yes. Those numerous clumps of flesh that we saw deep within Mount Hakurei..."
"He's trying to create a body in which he can seal his human heart, and then cast that body away. I see."
Ginta and Hakkaku cringe with freaked-out expressions as the second exclaims,
"That is beyond creepy, even for Naraku!"
Eyeing the more sorrow-filled expressions of Coraline and Inuyasha, the young leader of the Eastern Wolf Demon Tribe watches himself on his next choice of words.
"So now that bastard thinks he has the freedom to do anything he wants to now that, he opted off one person?"
Besa argues,
"Well he did kind-of prove that logic with the appearance of Clayton...Though really, if you think about it...maybe Rosiagnes was right about something else."
He turns his brown-ringed dark green irises to the redheaded woman of the bunch.
"Maybe our enemy's strength has increased...but so has his paranoia. While it is unfortunate that Kikyō's, gone, let's not forget that she wasn't the only woman with great spiritual power on his tail."
"So...what you're sayin' is that Naraku, wanted to take out Coraline before she can pick up where the priestess left off?"
Everyone felt a wave of realization hit, and Inuyasha feels a growl bubble in the back of his throat as he pulls his intended mate even closer to him.
That, bastard. He already killed a good friend of mine, and now he wants to slaughter my mate?!
Nothin' doin'; I'll never let him get so much as one claw on her!
"I-Inuyasha?"
"Hm?"
Snapping out of his thoughts to the sound of said girl's voice, he looks down to see her two-tone blue irises staring at him with some worry.
"Um, can we maybe, shift our position? Your grip's starting to cut the circulation off in my arm."
"Uh...oh, sorry."
Releasing her, Coraline moves so she's sitting sideways in his lap, hugging his torso gently while resting her head against his chest...Knowing where the earlier grip was stemming from, she then whispers soothingly,
"I'm right here, Inuyasha...Here against your heart, see?"
The dog demon could only stare down at the young woman in light amazement for somehow detecting his fears...before letting out a sigh and wrapping his right arm around her body, leaning down so his lips were brushing against the top of her head...
Watching their actions for a moment, Freeman shoots his brother and Kōga a glaring smile while scolding,
"Nice going, guys; now you got the lovebirds on edge."
The recipients look away with somewhat guilty expressions, Besa's being more embarrassed while the wolf demon wore a mask of pride, before the deliverer goes on.
"And if what happened earlier today was a sign that demon's getting scared, he should be...but not just of Cora."
The young man with dark espresso skin turns his vision to lock with another set of green belonging to Shippo.
"He should be shaking at the prospect of all of us comin' after his sorry ass. Right, little dude?"
The fox demon gapes slightly...before forming a little determined smirk once he saw where the other was going.
"Right! Naraku should be afraid, because no matter what he throws at us, we'll just come back for more stronger than ever! (Sad smile) And, if not for us, we do it for the people whose lives have been lost...We don't let their sacrifices be in vain..."
Everyone in the circle thinks about the tally of souls taken off the face of this earth because of that damnable demon...and really, because of the Shikon-no-Tama's cold and unforgiving reputation...
Multiple beings from different walks of life who sought one of the precious jewel shard pieces...and the lives caught between who want little or nothing to do with this seemingly everlasting war...
The mass amount of Wolf Demons from Kōga's tribe...
Shippo's parents...
Miroku's father...
Sango's entire clan, save her wayward brother, Kohaku...
And now, Kikyō.
The moment of silence breaks with a few expels of breath, a mix of gloomy upturns of mouth and frowns of dulled agony fixed onto their faces, yet nodding in comprehension with the young fox demon's ideal.
"...You know what moments like this call for?"
Reaching into his dusty brown satchel, Freeman pulls out that bottle of Black Sugar Rose Rum.
"A stiff drink."
Smirking a little, Coraline reaches half a foot in front of her and Inuyasha to pull out another bottle from her own bag.
"I'm all for that plan, and let's add a splash of the Irish to that Caribbean while we're at it."
"You still have some of that Locke's Moor Whiskey, sis?"
"I know; I'm just as shocked as you are..."
Rolling his eyes a little, Besa moves to assist his siblings with their plan by grabbing out some cheap shot glasses from his satchel and his brother's, enough for the almost full dozen here. The rest could only watch with bewilderment as the three modern-day teens began pouring the alcohol, before Sango finally coughs out,
"Are, you guys serious...?"
"As serious as a scribe, Sango my friend. Sometimes, ya gotta find a way to take the edge off."
Grabbing two of the shot glasses at ready to serve, Freeman chides,
"And what better way than by sharing a round of good rum and whiskey with good people? Won't be permanent, but, you know..."
He hands the liquid-filled objects to Ginta and Hakkaku, while Besa passes another two for Kōga and Miroku...Soon, everyone's holding their own glass of alcohol, including a reluctant Shippo (his watered down to be cautious).
"U-Uhm, are you guys sure it's okay for me to have this?"
He was looking at Coraline in particular, and she sighs with a minuscule smile before replying,
"Well normally, I wouldn't encourage pushing the boundary of underage drinking...but, it's just for the one night. You can have that if you want to, Shippo."
"Hah! Really?"
She almost giggles at the eager smile on the fox child's face.
"Mhm, but just the one shot, okay?"
"Got it."
Staring down at his own glass of the whiskey, Inuyasha mentally muses with a dismal sort of gruff,
Hm...somehow, I doubt one glass of this stuff can really take away the pain...Won't hurt to try, though.
"Say, Cor?"
He snaps back to reality at the sound of his intended's brother's voice, the girl replying,
"Yeah?"
"...Wasn't there somethin' your dad and his friends used to do over a round of whiskey, a, prayer or whatever?"
Coraline forms a confused expression...before breathing out a chuckle when she remembers,
"Oh that. You mean the drinking prayer?"
"That's the one!"
"Hm...Yeah, I sort-of recall it. It was some strange tradition he and his best buddy Roth started when they were teenagers, supposingly born out of another old ritual the Crofts used to practice...They always did it during a time when they felt their lowest, and wanted to look towards something better than what life was offering in the present..."
Everyone hms at the sentimental description, before Miroku asks,
"...Do you remember how it went?"
Looking the monk in his blue irises with her own with mild surprise, the redhead deduces where he was going with the question. Smiling a bit, she replies softly,
"Not in full...but, I can improvise."
Clearing her throat, Coraline holds her shot glass of both alcohols into the air, the mix glowing a dark amber in the firelight.
"A call to hearts is made this hour, to say a prayer for the future...We drink for Kikyō, the one who helped carve the road ahead before joining others in watching our progress...We drink for the lives lost before her in this waging war, whose futures will lie in wait for their next life...We drink for the ones still alive, sitting with us, or elsewhere, thankful that none of us are alone in walking down the arduous path to the next day...And finally, we drink with the hope of one day slaying the evil one responsible for the hardships we must continue to face, his eventual end marking a brighter tomorrow."
She pulls the glass back as she concludes,
"So be this prayer. Amen."
Everyone chides an echo of 'amen', before they all down their respected glasses...Some form a few bristled expressions from the aftertaste, while others held fast to the strong flavours. Looking at the bottom of his offered glass, Kōga comments,
"Huh. Never tasted spirits like this before...It's amazing what humans will come up with for a new way to get drunk."
Laughing at such a remark, Freeman replies,
"Comin' from you, dude, we'll take that as a compliment...So, are you guys, staying here with us for the night at least...?"
Knowing that the young man was more so referring to Ginta rather than he and Hakkaku, the blue-eyed wolf demon leader smiles at him knowingly and breathes out in a mock sigh,
"Yeah, I guess so, (looks at Inuyasha) that is if muttface doesn't have any objections to it."
Smirk-glaring at the other demon, the young man with long silver hair grunts back,
"Tch, whatever, wolf, as long as you're not sleeping so close to me and my girl."
"Ha! Do I look that dumb to you or something?"
Coraline smartly quirks back,
"Don't ask questions you don't want an answer to."
"'ey!"
A collective laugh rings from around the campfire, its occupants soaking in this small moment of good feeling while they could...
Eventually, they all begin nodding off to get some form of sleep. Sango and Shippo chose to cloister together against Kilala's larger form, she resting near a bush, and Miroku slept sitting up nearby the twin-tail cat demon's head. Across from them, Freeman and Ginta slept in eachother's arms with the former's head on the latter's chest, while Besa and Hakkaku quietly snored in their own solo positions close by, on his stomach and sideways respectively. Resting with his back against a tall trunk near his wolf demon buddies and the human twins was Kōga, who subconsciously kept his ears active for any suspicious noises that would dare approach the camp tonight...
So where does that leave Coraline and Inuyasha?
...Following the path of the little Will O' Wisp away from the fire, we spot the young couple sitting together on a tall knoll overlooking the landscape on this moonlit night, both souls feeling too restless for sleep.
"...If only she could've waited for us."
"Hm?"
"Kikyō...She could've waited until we got to her, instead of taking Naraku on alone."
Inuyasha clenches a fist in an anguished sort of anger.
"She...Even after receiving the rest of her soul...she didn't believe in us, and that's why she died."
Coraline leans her head on his arm, forcing her fingers to lace with his and break the fist.
"No...I don't think the problem was belief, at least not the way you're thinking."
"Huh?"
Watching the stars twinkle up in the sky, she explains,
"As much as she changed back to a close reflection of who she once was...the sad truth is, Kikyō's ego didn't completely deflate...She was still convinced that the main fight could be fought by her own two hands."
Smiling sadly, the redhead adds,
"It wasn't that she didn't believe in her allies, but that she believed in her own strength more...A strength that for some reason, just wasn't enough to overcome Naraku."
"Hm...And now we're back to square one, minus one more friend."
"Yeah...I'm, sorry that I can't say where her, body might be if it survived the river of miasma...but Rosiagnes gave me no clues before she dove back into my soul...And maybe for now, it's for the best."
Stiffening up considerably, the dog demon pulls back so that he and Coraline had to face eachother sideways, his expression set in a grieving disbelief.
"How can you say something like that so calmly?!"
"By looking at the bigger picture of danger we're still all technically in. Need I remind you of what happened earlier today?"
"...You know about Clayton?"
"Mhm. Most of the memory's in flashes, but I definitely recall the end when one of Naraku's demon puppets showed up."
A frown curves onto the young woman's lip.
"And if that on top of my ancestor's enemy's revival isn't a clear indication that Naraku could be watching from wherever he's hiding this time, what else is there to look at?...If he's indeed able to spy on our activities...then not looking for Kikyō may be safer than risking Naraku getting his claws on her body and-mph!...Doing god who knows what sort of further desecration to her spirit that he already hasn't..."
"Uh..."
Inuyasha allows his intended's words to sink into his own mind for a moment...before realizing the logic in them.
...She's right. In the long haul, the less we know, the less our enemy knows, and the better advantage...
Still, not knowing the full details of Kikyō's fate...it hurts.
"...But it was worse without you."
"Huh?"
Coraline looks at her boyfriend confusingly, not understanding the full context of his thoughts...He turns his head to meet her blue eyes with his amber, a more serious expression on his face.
"Having to face that grief on my own, without having you beside me...was worse than the grief I'm feeling right now...It felt like, I lost both that friend, and my lover, that I was slowly losing everyone."
"Inuyasha..."
(Tug)
"Oh!"
The redhead's then pulled to sit sideways in the silver-haired dog demon's lap, the latter wrapping his arms around her body tightly, hugging her in a way that she was almost swallowed into his red kimono...
"Accepting, that Kikyō's gone, is already hard...but it would be impossible to grip the idea of losing you. H-gh, I...I can't lose you, Coraline; I just, can't!"
"...Inuyasha..."
To hear him on the brink of breaking down was heart-wrenching for the girl, and a few tears well up in her own eyes before she clasped her arms around him, burying her face between his shoulder and chest.
"...You won't lose me. You won't, b-because, I don't wanna lose you. (Sniff) I...I love you too much to let you go, Inuyasha. So much...!"
She feels a calloused, clawed hand pet her hair, and the owner nuzzles her neck while whispering,
"I love you too, Coraline, and I refuse to let anyone or anything take you away from me...The road may get harder from here, but when has that ever stopped either of us?"
Inuyasha gently moves back and places a finger under his intended's chin to guide her to look at him.
"No matter what life may throw at us, at the end of the day, you belong with me, and I belong with you...We have eachother's hearts, (small smirk) and I for one, don't plan on giving yours back."
A small giggle escapes Coraline's mouth, before she leans in close so that there was but a centimeter's distance between their lips.
"I should hope so...because I'm keeping your heart forever."
"Good to hear."
On that note, the young couple seals the deal, pressing their lips together for a deep, tantalizing kiss.
Coraline's POV
God, kissing him gets more addicting with each one...So, addicting...
Suddenly, it felt like the sad atmosphere was slipping away...I suppose it's true that grieving with good people is better than grieving alone, and that we all have our own methods...For Inuyasha and I, ours was to get lost in eachother, searching for a pleasure that could etch away the pain for even just a little while. Every kiss, every touch; it healed some of the deeper emotional wounds...
What I didn't expect, was just how lost in eachother we'd get, to the point where our relationship's dynamic would change forever after tonight.
It started out innocently enough, lots of lip-lock and my fingers combing through his hair while he focused on holding me to him...But then, one of his hands began to descend, from back, to lower back...before finally settling on my bottom. A squeak escapes me, allowing his tongue access into my mouth, changing that sound into a moan which he returns with a rumbling growl of pleasure.
I didn't think too much of it at first, dismissing it as just a moment of boldness...But then, Inuyasha breaks our latest deep kiss, and descends onto my neck, leaving a few butterfly kisses and licks, which made my breath shorter and deeper...
"C-Coraline..."
"Y...Yes?"
"...I don't think, I can hold back anymore. I need you...I need to, make you mine."
Make me hi-...Oh, my...He wants to-!
"I-I understand, if you're not comfortable with going, a-all the way...But at least, let me mark you."
Inuyasha...I...
Maybe this was my hormones talking...or perhaps I wanted to escape grief in the deepest way possible...But mostly, I thought,
...I need him. I want him. All of him!
"...Do more than mark me."
"Huh?"
"I want you, Inuyasha...I need all of you, more than just your mark. I want...I want to mark you, and, feel you. Feel us as one...!"
I felt his breath hitch against the skin of my neck, before he asks uncertainly,
"A-Are you sure?...Because once we go that far, there's no going back."
"...I know...but I never want to go back. Not from you...the one I love more than anyone else in this world."
Craning my neck a bit so he could see it better, I whisper,
"...I'm ready to become your mate, Inuyasha."
There's a pause...before I felt him drop fast against my skin again, nipping and licking my neck, then sink his fangs into my flesh. There was a sting, followed by a wave of pleasure never felt before, stronger, wilder, beautiful.
"Oooh...!"
So...So good. So-!
Something in my own basic instincts was set off, and as soon as his mouth left my neck, I performed a similar act on his, making him cry out in pleasure and my heart croon happily in hearing that sound from him...
It all became a bit of a blur after that, other than the sight and sounds of clothes being taken off, almost ripped away our bodies...His strong hands caressing and squeezing my exposed body...Our moans filling the air around us as we finally...finally gave ourselves to eachother in the most intimate and physical of ways...
If I could summarize it one sentence...that night, was euphoria born from tragedy.
Time Skip, Inuyasha's POV
My god...That was, the most wonderful night I ever spent.
I awoke in the early morning, without clothes and in the arms of my equally bare inte-no...with my beautiful mate cuddling into my chest, the two of us having slept on my robes the rest of the night after we...well, I don't think I really need to say what we did, do I?
Words can't even begin to describe how, amazing it felt going all the way with this woman, seeing her flushed face writhing in as much pleasure as I felt it riddle my body. For one fleeting moment, I thought that my demon ego would take control...but no. What happened last night, was all me, and all her, just the two of us, like it used to be since the early days of our adventures.
And I wouldn't trade those days for anything...We've come so far, and beyond that.
Smiling, I brush my claws through her long locks of red hair, glancing at the mating mark on her neck, it no longer a bite, but reformed as the kanji for 'Inu' within a dog fang, something that humans will seldom see but demons will certainly detect.
And now...she's all mine, forever. This special mark will tell other demon males to back off.
Recalling the similar mark she made on my own neck (which will more or less take the same shape), I almost chuckle a bit at how into the action she got.
She may be a human, but she sure isn't like those other girls in this era...She knows how to keep up.
"Mm...mm-m, Inuyasha..."
Ahp, speaking of.
I feel her shift against my torso, before opening those mesmerizing blue eyes to stare at me with a sleepy smile.
"Mm, good morning."
"Heh, good? I think great morning would be a better greeting."
I softly brush my knuckles against her cheek.
"How're you feelin'?"
"Hauuh, tired mostly, and a little sore...but I guess that's to be expected...How 'bout you?"
"Same...You, were, incredible last night."
She blushes and giggles out,
"So were you...I, admit, I've fantasized about that moment, but, they pale in comparison to the pleasure you made me feel."
She leans in to steal a kiss, which I returned.
"You made me see heaven."
Heaven, huh?...Who would've thought?
We spent a couple more minutes just lazing in eachother's company, before we realized that everyone else would eventually come looking for us. So reluctantly, we get up and redress in our clothes, then help eachother look at least a tiny bit presentable. Yeah, not something I usually worry about, but I want our experience to remain as discreetly noticeable as possible for as long as I can allow it, even though the demons of our group will easily catch wind with their own sense of smells...
Soon, we're walking back to camp, hand in hand and glowing with happiness and love, a duo of emotions I didn't think I'd feel in this lifetime...The first thing I'd notice is the smell of breakfast cooking, in the form of roast rabbit, bird and boiled rice.
Eh, a bit simplistic, but as long as it fills.
The ones doing the cooking this round would be Sango and Besa, with the little tyke helping out when he could. The wolf and one of his buddies were standing by, talking with Miroku, which left Kilala and Lumos playing around with eachother...
"Hey there, you two. Nice of you to join us."
I nod over at Besa while Coraline actually voiced a greeting.
"Morning, brother, Sango. (Turns right) And morning to you three as well."
They wave back just as Shippo comes bounding over to us and hops onto my shoulder, a small beam of a smile on his face.
"Morning!"
Wincing silently from how loud he was against my ears, I then smirk slightly and ruffle his hair while greeting back,
"Yeah, mornin' to you too, squirt."
Coraline gives me a peck before moving down to her knees and prep a bowl for each of us...just as Shippo suddenly asks me a question I'd never thought to hear from him, and he actually kept his voice down too.
"Say, Inuyasha..."
"Hm?"
"(Sniff-sniff) Not saying this to insult you or whatever, but...you smell a bit different today."
I wasn't too nervous, but it surprised me that he of all demons here would be the first to notice a slight change.
"...Do I?"
"Yeah...and, Coraline's scent's a bit different too. It's like...you both have a little of eachother..."
Hm, he's grown sharper after all this time...Maybe, it wouldn't hurt to at least give him a hint.
"Keh, and your nose isn't lyin', kid...I won't go into details 'cause you're still young, but...let's just say Coraline's no longer just my intended mate."
I give him a minute to think...before it dawns on him.
"Hah! Y-You mean...!"
I chuckle a little at his eager smile and nod, causing him to cheer quietly,
"That's amazing; I'm so happy for you!...You two are mates now...No wonder you look so happy this morning."
The tiniest of smirks curves onto the kid's lips.
"You finally got it with her."
Auh!...Okay, this kid needs to stop hanging around the monk. He's learned way too much too fast.
I hiss at him with a smirk-glare,
"Watch your mouth; that's not something you should be saying at your age."
"Hey, I am getting older, aren't I? Wiser?"
"Whatever, just be careful the girls don't hear you."
"Sure, sure..."
Sango's voice cuts into our little private conversation.
"Hey, are you two gonna sit down and eat or what?"
We do, I dropping down beside Coraline so she can pass me a bowl, and Shippo settling beside Kilala just as the others come over to eat...That's when I notice there were two more people that have yet to join the campfire.
"Hey. Where's Freeman and Ginta?"
Swallowing some of his meal, Besa replies,
"I thought I saw them go a bit further into the forest while they, Kōga, Hakkaku and I were hunting for meat earlier...Strange they haven't come back yet..."
Hakkaku cuts in with his own observation.
"They did seem a little distracted, almost like they weren't focused on food at all..."
"...Hah, hah, hey, guys!"
Ah, there they are.
We spot them two jogging out from the cover of the trees and brush...and looking a little disheveled, or at least that's what I saw.
...Hm~, looks like my mate and I weren't the only ones who got some 'action' in these last several hours.
A knowing smirk curves onto my lips as the wolf says to them,
"About time you two show up! What kept you?"
Straightening up, both human and wolf demon would look honestly sheepish and reluctant to answer the question.
"Uhh..." "Well..."
...And it seems that Kōga isn't as completely ignorant as I usually believe him to be, for one glance over their forms told him what I had already guessed happened.
"Gh-uh! (...Shakes head) On second thought, I don't wanna know."
They take that as the message to sit down and grab their own portions of food, and as Freeman settles, he's nudged by his brother who gives him a downright devilish smile and mutters,
"Sheesh, can't keep your hands off eachother, can ya, brother?"
"Shut up!"
I let out a loud laugh along with the other men while the girls sigh exasperatingly...Once we're done eating, we pack up and get ready to hit the road again, parting ways with the wolf and his two-man crew at a fork in the path...
"You sure you guys wanna go your own way and not keep going with us?"
He replies to Coraline with a shrug,
"It's probably for the best. There's no telling which way exactly that bastard's gone this time, so splitting up in as many directions as possible may be the better option."
Ginta nods and piles onto the logic by saying,
"Most of the bad aura's gone South from what I can smell...Haah, first North, now South?"
Hakkaku facepalms and complains,
"At the rate this is goin', we'll end up at the edge of the world before that evil creep decides to stay in one spot."
Their leader argues back,
"If that's what it takes, that's what it takes, so don't start bellyaching...Now come on, let's get a move on."
He then locks eyes with me and says in a tone between serious and casual,
"...You take care of yourself and your pack, 'kay, mutt?"
"Uh...(nod) you too, wolf."
He definitely senses the change between me and Coraline...
Once everyone else says their goodbyes, including a long lip-lock between those die-hard lovers Freeman and Ginta (making me roll my eyes), the wolves head their own way while we decide to start our next length of the journey by checking in on Shintarō's village first since they were closest...
What we'd come across is several huts reduced to piles of damaged lumber laying by the body of water surrounding Hijiri Island.
Damn...
"This area's been affected too."
Freeman says to Miroku with his own frown,
"Shouldn't be too much of a surprise. Most of the demons I saw leaving Hakurei were heading this direction."
Shippo mutters with a bit of worry,
"I wonder if Shintarō and the others are okay..."
...Suddenly, the little twin-tail jumps from Sango's arms and began running ahead of us, along with that little sentient orb.
"Uh! Kilala!" "Lumos!"
...
Running after them into the heart of the village, we'd discover that the young headman, his sisters and most of the villagers had made it out alive, and were currently distributing their own meals.
"Here you go, enjoy."
Huh...so they made it at least.
Coraline calls for Shintarō, and he looks up from Kilala to spot the rest of our arriving forms.
"Miroku, Coraline, all of you!"
"You came back!"
The monk greets the four siblings with his own relived smile.
"You're all looking well, if I may say so."
We stay for a little while before moving onto the next nearby village, the one that, Kikyō temporarily stayed in with those kids, having been hit similarly by the demons that escaped Mount Hakurei, but were otherwise okay...
It just kept going like that for another two days, our group steadily moving away from the destroyed mountain to continue our search for the one responsible...Eventually, we come across a more recent attack on a village by Naraku's demons.
"That aura..."
Cursing, I pull Coraline onto my back so that we'd jump ahead of the others down to the village to see if there were any survivors...Unfortunately, no one would be found alive this round, the village now a ghost town riddled with corpses.
Sango comments on how horrible the sight was, and Miroku notes,
"This is the third village," while I observe,
"I'm only catching the scent of weaker demons..."
Besa mutters,
"Then this was definitely the work of the beasts that made a break from the mountain when the sacred barrier was cancelled out...They no longer had anything to hold them back, not even their master."
Damn, this is awful! I thought that we made progress forcing Naraku out of hiding, but this is even worse than before!
...On top of that, Kikyō was killed, and I almost lost my mate because that bastard resurrected her ancestor's enemy.
Nudging me out of my thoughts, Coraline guides me into helping everyone else prepare graves for the lives lost here...
Sunset comes as I finish digging out one more grave, and I think to myself with a very bitter smile,
Looks like we're back in that 'good Samaritan period' again...
Climbing out of the hole, that's when I notice a new stranger had arrived, in the form of a priest much older than the one in my pack.
"Excuse me...It would seem there's been a tragedy. Please, allow me to help."
Though a little suspicious, we decide to accept the invitation of assistance...while learning about where he had just come from. Soon, we're listening to his tale by the side of an abandoned hut.
"So you came from the area of Mount Hakurei?"
Nodding to Miroku, the old priest replies,
"Yes, I've been on a pilgrimage, traveling around these lands. I heard that the scared Mount Hakurei had collapsed and that an evil aura was spreading South."
"I see..."
I continue to stare at the stranger...feeling something off, which got stronger when he suddenly says,
"Oddly enough...it's exactly as that priestess said."
My mate stiffens under the hold of one of my arms in time with my own body, both of us feeling a trigger from the title.
Priestess...?
"It was two days ago: an injured priestess washed up on the riverbank near a village on the other side of the mountains. She mumbled about being wounded by Naraku, then she said something about having to chase after this Naraku."
...That does sound like it could be Kikyō...and yet, Rosiagnes said...
(Flash)
"...Unfortunately, even I did not have the strength to still the fatal wounds dealt by Nau'raku...The devil, was successful in getting what he wished for."
(Flash)
"However, I shan't allow he'im to get away with complete annihilation of the priestess...I am not fully certain if me spell worked, but...there is a chance her body may not have perished in the poison."
"Are you saying that...her, corpse, could be out there somewhere?"
"Aye. Not definitely, but could be...and before any of ye ask, no, I would not know where to start searchin'."
(Flash)
Bearing that woman's words in mind...it suddenly made the priest's words less trustworthy, even when he said rather convincingly,
"However, her injuries were so serious...she may have already died from them."
...That's when it really hits me, why I felt something foreboding in a familiar way from this monk.
Because...Renkotsu did the same thing at that temple, swaying us into a false sense of security on top of a wild goose chase...and it-
I look down at Coraline, tightening my arm around her.
It almost cost me the the lives of my friends, and the woman whose heart means more to me than anyone's in the world.
She seem to sense something of similar suspicion I did, if not more, yet replies smoothly with a gentle smile,
"We see...Thank you, for this information, monk. We must be on our way, however."
"Oh?"
Nodding, she leads us away from the stranger and out of the village...
"That man beats with no aura."
We all look to Coraline in surprise from her remark, and her brother Freeman asks,
"You sure?"
"Yes. That's why I wanted to get out of there...What he said...I don't trust it, or him. Something's not right."
Hm...Maybe we're alot closer to the bastard's new trail then we thought.
Time Skip, No POV
The next morning after sleeping in a clearing near the massacred village, Inuyasha and company would set out again on this path heading to the South, an air of unease still hanging over their heads from their encounter yesterday evening...
That feeling would soon switch to alertness, when their ears pick up on the sound of horses approaching from behind them.
"Huh?"
Stopping, they turn to see an official and his men coming towards them.
"Hold it right there, all of you! You look suspicious!"
Coraline raises a somewhat incredulous brow.
"Suspicious? What, does he believe we're highwaymen or something?"
Besa suggests in a gesture towards himself, her and Freeman,
"He could be referring to our outfits since we're, you know, technically foreign to this era."
The other twin with cropped coarse black hair shakes his head and mutters,
"I dunno, bro, it's been a while since anyone made that comment..."
Frowning with a glare, Inuyasha grumbles,
"Well whatever's going on, I don't like the looks of this guy."
The official stops his horse in front of the group of humans and demons, before saying with a narrowed look,
"There have been many strange happenings in this vicinity lately, so we have been ordered to detain all suspicious-looking travelers. Now come!"
The dog demon growls at the man's tone, and Coraline takes his hand while chiding,
"Easy, love; don't get too riled up..."
She then quietly asks everyone as a whole,
"Well, whaddo you all think? Should we go with them peacefully or make a break for it?"
Miroku ponders,
"Between what's occurring now and the stranger we met yesterday...perhaps it wouldn't hurt to play along and find out what's shifted besides the scattered demon activity. Does that sound agreeable?"
Everyone nods uncertainly, even the dog demon who mutters with a scoff,
"Teh, besides, they're just humans. Worse goes to worst, we'll just knock 'em out and run."
The official did not appreciate the verbal secrecy.
"What are you talking about over there? Get the rope and tie them up!"
On that order, the servants surround the group with their bō staffs held at ready. Shippo jumps into Freeman's arms with a scared whimper while the latter holds him and reassures,
"Don't worry, little dude; it's gonna be alright. It's all part of the plan."
"I-If you say so..."
...
The scene shifts to the inside of a mansion where the official came from, just as another bound man is being forced into a kneel before a feminine silhouette hidden behind the entrance screen doors.
"Please have mercy! I've done nothing wrong! I have all the proper travel documents in my pocket!"
Unfortunately, whoever this lady of the manor was, her heart was not of the kind variety.
"Kill him."
"Yes, milady."
A samurai attendant unsheathes his katana, and despite the frightened sounds from the victim...
(Slash)
They would fall to the cold cruel order, much to the horror of the other people who were dragged here under questionable charges. Among this mix of villagers and travelers trapped in the courtyard...was our own main group, bound with rope by their wrists and torsos, Kilala being tied to Sango in a leash-like manner, while Lumos was lucky enough to hide in Coraline's satchel. The demon slayer mutters with a bitter glare,
"That wasn't much of a hearing, was it?"
The twins shake their heads with frowns of their own, while their sister turns to duck her face towards her mate's chest with a grimace.
"Madness...!"
Though Inuyasha wasn't able to hold her comfortingly, he substitutes by kissing the top of her head, then glaring ahead at the figure behind closed doors.
Of all the cruel-!
Miroku's voiced opinion wasn't too far off.
"I must say, this is very disquieting..."
Shippo scrambles as best he could behind the monk's legs, whimpering,
"I wanna get outta here...!"
Suddenly, the lady of the house points towards Coraline's direction while saying,
"She's here."
Quickly deducing what his mistress meant, the official goes over to the group and seizes the redhead while directing some guards to keep the others back.
"Ah!"
"Coraline!"
The dog demon felt his protective instincts kick into overdrive.
"Grrrh, let her go!"
Ignoring the angry silver-haired man, the official says to Coraline,
"Come with us immediately, girl. My Lady Okugata commands it."
She thinks to herself on edge,
What? Just me?...Now I'm convinced something's wrong.
It would only get worse when said lady commands,
"I have no use for the others...Kill them."
On that note, the rest of the prisoners are quickly surrounded by the guards, while Coraline is forcibly dragged away, despite her struggles and protests.
"No! Rgh, guys, Sango...Inuyasha!"
Said dog demon cries out her name and readies to charge after her, only to be knocked back by two of the guards.
"Stay where you are, demon!"
"You will not interfere!"
"Grrr, why you...!"
No...Coraline...!
...
Leaving him and the others, we catch up with the redheaded woman as she's unceremoniously shoved into Lady Okugata's quarters.
"Agh! Hey!"
She readies to stand up and chase after the official in a fury...but stops when she picks up on an unsettling aura.
"Huh...?"
That, energy...like that of a demon.
Slowly turning around, she spots Lady Okugata sitting none too far away with what appears to be an infant in her arms...A magenta/purple glow begins to cloud her body as she speaks to her captive.
"Now that Kikyō is dead, it seems that you're the only one left who can sense the jewel shards."
"Uh...Hmph, (glare) and how do you know of her and the Shikon-no-Tama?"
Coraline then senses a presence to her left...and looks to see,
"...The priest from last evening...?"
...
They suddenly fall forward in a dead limp, and a foam oozes from underneath his hat, confirming the young woman's worries about their character.
Auh, I knew it! He's already dead!
...And there's only one person I know capable of making a corpse appear alive without a soul...
Sucking in a deep breath, she calls out strongly but calmly,
"Come out from the shadows, Kagura."
...Said wind demon incarnation does, holding up her fan with an utterly annoyed expression.
"Honestly, I've had it. That bastard makes me look after this stupid infant."
She then smirk-glares at the human a few feet before her.
"So you knew of my Dance of the Dead, did you? Aren't we getting clever by the day."
"Hard to forget that particular parlor trick of yours...Now what's the meaning of this, sorceress?"
"No one will come to save you."
Coraline darts her head back at Lady Okugata, who adds,
"Your dear friends and lover will be killed by the castle soldiers."
Unsettling though that prediction was, the former was more pressed by the...new octave.
"...Wait a minute...That voice is too young..."
Which means she's not the one speaking now, (glance) but rather...!
She fixates on the infant in the woman's arms, and getting a closer look...we see them to be the strange purple-haired baby that Kagura had taken from Mount Hakurei only a few days ago!
"Inuyasha will not come."
He turns so his pupil-absent lilac eyes met two-tone blue.
"He will be the first to die in an attempt to rescue you."
Gritting her teeth, Coraline realizes,
This must be Naraku's latest incarnation. He has that similar aura...and yet, why does it have a more human quality to it?
"...Who are you, and what do you want from me?"
"I am called Akago, and I already told you: you are the only one left who can sense the Shikon-no-Tama shards...I have need of your eyes."
"My...eyes?"
Lady Okugata slowly rises like a stiff marionette, and begins to slowly approach the bound redhead with Akago in her arms. Coraline flinches back with a defensive glare, silently pleading for her lover...
He meanwhile, was prepping for a fight coming with the guards outside as some unsheathe their blades.
"Now reside yourself to death!"
Inuyasha shares a look with his comrades, who nod back firmly with their own expressions of battle.
Wait for it...
The guards charge, and Sango makes the first move, rushing forth and freeing herself with her hidden wrist blades before blocking one man's sword!
(Clang)
"Whah?! A hidden weapon?!"
They begin their own fight, drawing the other armed guards to try and attack her as well.
"That damnable wench; how dare she!"
"She's not the one you should be worryin' about, bub!"
"Huh?"
(Slash-rrrip)
Inuyasha breaks his bindings with just his sheer strength and the tips of his claws, a smirk on his face all the while.
"Don't you know it takes more than some measly rope to keep me down?"
He then runs forward and kicks two of the sword-wielders to the ground, just as Sango finishes disarming the first one, their sword landing blade-first in the dirt...
"Don't let those two get away!"
The slayer hurries to free Miroku with her weapon.
"There you go."
"Thank you, Sango."
Inuyasha does similarly with his claws to free the twins, Shippo and Kilala with just a few swipes.
"Hah!"
(Slash-slash, slash)
"Thanks, man." "Thanks, Inuyasha!"
"No sweat. Now get ready, 'cause here they come!"
Soon, fights were breaking out all over the place, including Miroku snatching the staff of one servant to use for his own devices, socking the latter in the stomach with one end to put them out of commission for a time...Sango would move her focus on getting her Hiraikotsu and the monk's true staff back, taking down less than half a dozen guards with her wrist blade before slinging up the more familiar weapons over her shoulder...However, three more guards stood in her way...
"Grh, I'm taking these back...!"
Over by the rest of the captured villagers and travelers, Freeman works to knock out two more servants with a stolen staff while his brother finishes helping untie the helpless crowd.
"As soon as you see an opening, run for it."
"R-Right!...Let's go!"
They begin a retreat for the gate, but wouldn't get too far before some more guards block their way!
"Hold it; you're not going anywhere!"
"Fox Magic, Wailing Mushrooms!"
(Poof)
A wave of those said illusionary fungi pop to life, crashing like a wave against the soldiers that were blocking the exit out.
"Gah-aaah!" "What are these?!"
The one responsible for the trick lands back on the ground smoothly with a smug smile, before turning to shout at the villagers,
"Now's your chance; hurry!"
They don't hesitate, heeding the fox demon's word and dashing for the front gate just as Sango takes down the guards blocking her.
"Outta the way!"
(Whack)
"Gauh!" "Uh!"
Besa lends a hand, motivated to get his and Freeman's weapons back.
"Take, this!"
(Whack)
"Ugh!" "Urh!"
They all go down with one club swing from Hiraikotsu and a 'borrowed' bō, and the slayer runs over back to Miroku's side to hand him his staff just as the cornrow-haired teen comes back with his sickles and his brother's long hammer.
"Here, bro."
"Thanks; I was startin' to feel naked without this thing."
Moving so they were standing back-to-back and properly prepped for a brawl, Sango comments to the other three men,
"Well these guys aren't any real challenge..."
Miroku argues,
"Yes...but we mustn't forget: these guys are following orders from someone higher up...We can hardly start killing them, and besides, we're outnumbered."
Besa adds,
"Not to mention they're only human...Thank goodness those other poor people escaped."
"Yeah, well there's only one person I'm concerned with right now!"
Eyes fall on Inuyasha's form just as he punches out another guard, his face contorted with anger and worry.
"They took Coraline, my girl, and I swear if I don't find out where she's being held in this damn mansion, someone here's gonna pay!"
On that note, he charges towards the front doors of the luxury estate.
"I'm coming, Coraline!"
His companions call for him to slow down, but their protests fall on deaf ears, further blocked by the outcries of the hostile guards...
Turning back inside the room of Lady Okugata, the infant incarnation known as Akago chuckles before saying to his captive,
"Coraline, I will make good use of your eyes...Kagura, I want you to untie her ropes now."
"Are you sure?"
Though even in asking that question, the wind incarnation follows the order, sending a small wind blade to cut the bindings around the redhead.
(Snap)
"Rh!"
She winces from the impact...before focusing back on the puppet ruler now kneeling in front of her, and preparing to hold Akago towards her!
Crap!
Coraline tries to back away, but is held down fast by Kagura.
"Let, go...!...Ah!"
Lady Okugata holds the strange demon-like infant towards the human, who grinds her teeth at the sight of those tiny hands reaching near her eyes.
"Mph! Stop that!"
"Why? What're you afraid of? Do you think that I'll take your eyes and perhaps eat you?"
"Hardly...I'm just done with the creepy banter. It gets really annoying after one too many times."
(Shove)
"Ah!"
Coraline's suddenly pushed forward by the wind sorceress, and Akago takes the advantage by embracing her upper chest, laying his head where her heart lies...Closing his eyes, he seemingly listens for the heartbeat...but really, he was looking for something much more.
...Uh! This girl's soul...The light, the darkness...I've never heard of such a deep intertwine...!
No black and white...just, gray. How can this be?
Good or bad, the light and darkness of a humans is never usually this deeply knit together...
But wait...there is dominance in the shadows...Grief...Guilt...And my...such a killer's instinct.
Meanwhile, said recipient of this invasive search began to feel a sharp pain writhe through her bones.
"Rgh-gh...A-nh...!"
What, is this?...I-It's as if he's trying to pry me apart, looking for...for what...?
...Arh!
(Flash)
We turn within the depths of her soul, to see an image of Kikyō being stabbed by Naraku's hands, falling over the side of the poisonous river...
Kikyō...My, Soul Sister...Why? Why did I have to lose you?!...Why couldn't I have done more for you?!
(Flash)
Then came the chortling image of the strange demon that helped her separate her own soul from the priestess, which would compromise the trust between her and her companions.
"It's funny how dumb you all are, not seeing this sooner! Then again, she did do a good job hiding our deal, going behind your backs to gather the items needed to pay me."
To recall the expression of betrayal on Inuyasha's face was especially hard for the girl.
"Why did you do this? Why?"
"...I...I-I..."
I still can't fully forgive myself for going behind their backs, his back...But, I did it, to protect you, Inuyasha...
Yet how can I protect him, if I can't even protect myself?
(Flash)
Her memory goes back further, back to her early days before she came to Tokyo, and was struggling to survive. One major test to her resolve, would be in the French backwoods with those wild wolves, led by their rabid leader who was - in a twist of fate - killed by the scrappy eleven year-old girl with only a sharp rock.
Even before I began to have episodes of losing it to my powers, I was still capable of going crazy to stay alive.
...Yet this day seems more innocent, compared to what would happen in...in India.
(Flash)
That frightening scene in the tiny populace located past the Village of Lambasingi returns, the screams of its people and the roar of the flames creating a terrible symphony of chaos. We fast-forward through the younger Coraline's own capture by Trinity soldiers, then her attempt to run when those other villagers tried to riot against these monsters in human clothing...Then came the defining moment, when she kills the one soldier with their gun in a battle of strength and wills, triggering a murderous rampage by the young soul just to get away from the violence, involuntarily adding to it.
How...How could I have done that? How can I still live with the fact that I senselessly killed these men?
They were horrible in their own right, yes...but why me? Why did I become their insane Angel of Death?!
(Flash)
Finally, came the day where she lost control of her energies, and allowed herself to become swallowed by the more rage-fueled side of her soul in order to savagely kill Shichinintai member, Mukotsu. Seeing the more crazed version of herself, glowing eyes and all, remembering that banshee-like howl which emitted from her lips upon lunging at the poison-user...it frightened Coraline to say the least.
No, no stop! Not this again! Please!...Please don't make me see this, this beastly version of myself!
(Flash)
"I have it...!"
...The air begins to thicken with the dark aura of Akago, as he fixes to take hold of his captive's spirit.
"I have a hold of your darkness, Coraline. You can't get away from me now."
Lady Okugata collapses, her purposes no longer required, not while another, despite her weak struggles...begins to stiffly embrace the demonic child.
"Now hold me tightly. Let our souls unite and become my eyes."
(...Pulse...pulse...)
What Akago didn't realize however, was that stimulating that darker part of Coraline's spirit may not have been wise, as evident by the clouding, feverish glow of dark arctic blue over her sought out irises.
"Nnh...Hh-h!"
N-No!...Inu-yasha...Inuyasha, h-help, meee...!