Chapter Five ~ Secrets Revealed
The next three days proved a little nerve-wracking for Kara. Hostile youkai on the northern border had drawn the brothers away almost immediately after Kara's arrival, so her dilemma was still unsolved. Waiting for their return was pure torture. Even though she knew that no harm would befall her within the castle walls, Kara still worried about what was happening elsewhere. She was sure that there were demons prowling about, having been alerted of the Shikon no Tama's disappearance.
Standing on the balcony watching the sun set once again, Kara wondered for the umpteenth time, why youaki were once again after the Jewel. They had left it alone for a hundred years and now they yearned for it once more. Something wasn't right. Somewhere out there lurked a greater evil; one which wanted the Jewel for its dark purposes. She was more than sure of it.
Something brushed against Kara's ankles, causing her to jump. Realizing it was only Kita, she calmed down. She picked the little demon up.
"You know Kita, I really need to stop worrying so much. Sesshoumaru will be back in a few days and we can figure out what to do about this whole mess. There's probably nothing to worry about anyways."
Kara was saying this more to comfort herself than to inform Kita.
'Yeah, right. Who am I fooling? Of course there's something going on. Demons have left that damned jewel alone for a century, knowing that if they try to steal it, they will have to deal with Sesshoumaru. Why would they go against orders and risk their lives now? It doesn't make any sense at all.'
The cat understood anyway. She mewed knowingly and hopped out of Kara's' grasp. Swishing her tails, she trod nimbly off the balcony and back into Kara's' room, where she curled up in front of the fireplace.
Kara sighed. She knew the cat only tolerated her companionship. 'Cats and dogs just don't mix I guess. I might as well go check on Neka and make sure she isn't tormenting Kiro and Shippo. That's probably why Kita is here. Neka is a sweet girl, but nonetheless, any demon can only take so much human before they crack.'
With that thought, Kara quickened her pace. Shippo would probably be all right, but Kiro wasn't known for his baby-sitting skills. She opened the door to Neka's room and let out a sigh of relief. Shippo and Neka were asleep on the large four-poster bed. She looked around, trying to find Kiro. The soft thump of a wagging tail soon drew her attention. Looking over, she saw him watching her, his placid yellow eyes reflecting the firelight. He had sensed her urgency and was wondering what was the matter. "Never mind Kiro," she said quietly.
With a last glance at Neka, Kara shut the door and went back to her own room. Falling into bed, her eyes came to rest on the soft turquoise glow coming from where Reiya's sword rested, leaning against the deep mahogany wardrobe. 'I wonder what the secret behind that sword is. It seems too intricately made to have been forged for the likes of Reiya or her mother. It looked like there was something written on the blade too. I'll check it out in the morning.'
* * *
The brothers had returned sometime during the night. InuYasha, who still seemed to be in a foul mood from the other night, had taken to slinking around the halls trying to avoid Kara. To add to the hilarity of the situation, Neka kept following him around, annoying the hell out of him and laughing when he would suddenly turn around, growling menacingly. Shippo and Kiro watched over her protectively but didn't join in. Shippo had long since given up harassing InuYasha. Kiro had always kept his distance, knowing that the hanyou would pound him into the ground if he ever pulled any of the antics that Neka was pulling now. She was trying to get him to let her examine his doggish ears. 'Stupid human. She's going to get hurt trying that,' Kiro thought.
He got up and walked from the room. 'Might as well go and find my mistress. She seems to be the only one around here that can control that human.' He heard voices coming from the library. Poking his head in, he saw Kara and Sesshoumaru in deep conversation. It didn't take long to figure out that they were talking about Neka, the Shikon no Tama, and the strange sword.
"We have to protect her. I won't just stand back and let this get out of control, " Kara was saying rather frantically.
"The Shikon no Tama is none of our concern anymore. Why do you care about it so much all of a sudden? You couldn't care less about it when Naraku desired it."
"Well, people change. There's something different about it this time. I can feel it. And it would be in your best interests to do something, seeing as Neka just so happens to be the grand-daughter of Rin."
"Why do you think I care about that?"
"Because I know you loved that little girl like a daughter. Why else would you keep her around? If you truly hated her, you would have never revived her, much less kept her around."
Sesshoumaru growled, knowing that he had just lost the whole not caring thing. Kara continued.
"Furthermore, I think that we should look into what's happening because I believe there is a connection between the Shikon no Tama and the sword I took from Reiya. The gem in the hilt and the Shikon Jewel are very similar."
"I don't believe I've seen this sword you speak of."
"My apologies. Kiro, if you would be so kind as to retrieve the sword. It's leaning against the wardrobe in my room."
Kiro ambled out of the room, coming back a few moments later with the sword held carefully in his jaws. He angled it through the still partially closed doors and went over to Kara. She took the sword, shivering as she felt the aura around the hilt. It would take a while until it was completely purified, seeing as it had been in Reiya's hands for an unknown amount of time; and her mothers before her.
Kara switched her grip from the hilt to the sheath and tilted it towards Sesshoumaru. He gripped the hilt tightly without flinching at the aura. 'Sometimes I curse these damn miko powers of mine. How I, a full- blooded dog-demon, ended up with them, only the gods know. That jewel must be pretty messed-up if it creeps me out that much,' Kara thought as she watched her half-brother examine the sword.
The silence ended abruptly as Neka suddenly burst through the door, looking truly terrified. She was followed closely by a very enraged InuYasha. The young human hid behind Kara, clutching at the teal leather of her kimono for all she was worth.
Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes. "I don't even want to know. Now get out of here before I lose my temper."
The threat worked. InuYasha backed away sullenly, but quickly, eager to get away from the youkai lords' icy glare.
Neka relaxed as soon as the hanyou disappeared from view. She went and sat next to Kiro.
Ignoring Neka completely, Sesshoumaru turned to Kara, sheathing the sword and setting it on a low table. "That sword was once forged for InuYasha. It was supposed to be a mean of replacing the Tetsusaiga and protecting the jewel known as the Jewel Of Two Worlds."
The next three days proved a little nerve-wracking for Kara. Hostile youkai on the northern border had drawn the brothers away almost immediately after Kara's arrival, so her dilemma was still unsolved. Waiting for their return was pure torture. Even though she knew that no harm would befall her within the castle walls, Kara still worried about what was happening elsewhere. She was sure that there were demons prowling about, having been alerted of the Shikon no Tama's disappearance.
Standing on the balcony watching the sun set once again, Kara wondered for the umpteenth time, why youaki were once again after the Jewel. They had left it alone for a hundred years and now they yearned for it once more. Something wasn't right. Somewhere out there lurked a greater evil; one which wanted the Jewel for its dark purposes. She was more than sure of it.
Something brushed against Kara's ankles, causing her to jump. Realizing it was only Kita, she calmed down. She picked the little demon up.
"You know Kita, I really need to stop worrying so much. Sesshoumaru will be back in a few days and we can figure out what to do about this whole mess. There's probably nothing to worry about anyways."
Kara was saying this more to comfort herself than to inform Kita.
'Yeah, right. Who am I fooling? Of course there's something going on. Demons have left that damned jewel alone for a century, knowing that if they try to steal it, they will have to deal with Sesshoumaru. Why would they go against orders and risk their lives now? It doesn't make any sense at all.'
The cat understood anyway. She mewed knowingly and hopped out of Kara's' grasp. Swishing her tails, she trod nimbly off the balcony and back into Kara's' room, where she curled up in front of the fireplace.
Kara sighed. She knew the cat only tolerated her companionship. 'Cats and dogs just don't mix I guess. I might as well go check on Neka and make sure she isn't tormenting Kiro and Shippo. That's probably why Kita is here. Neka is a sweet girl, but nonetheless, any demon can only take so much human before they crack.'
With that thought, Kara quickened her pace. Shippo would probably be all right, but Kiro wasn't known for his baby-sitting skills. She opened the door to Neka's room and let out a sigh of relief. Shippo and Neka were asleep on the large four-poster bed. She looked around, trying to find Kiro. The soft thump of a wagging tail soon drew her attention. Looking over, she saw him watching her, his placid yellow eyes reflecting the firelight. He had sensed her urgency and was wondering what was the matter. "Never mind Kiro," she said quietly.
With a last glance at Neka, Kara shut the door and went back to her own room. Falling into bed, her eyes came to rest on the soft turquoise glow coming from where Reiya's sword rested, leaning against the deep mahogany wardrobe. 'I wonder what the secret behind that sword is. It seems too intricately made to have been forged for the likes of Reiya or her mother. It looked like there was something written on the blade too. I'll check it out in the morning.'
* * *
The brothers had returned sometime during the night. InuYasha, who still seemed to be in a foul mood from the other night, had taken to slinking around the halls trying to avoid Kara. To add to the hilarity of the situation, Neka kept following him around, annoying the hell out of him and laughing when he would suddenly turn around, growling menacingly. Shippo and Kiro watched over her protectively but didn't join in. Shippo had long since given up harassing InuYasha. Kiro had always kept his distance, knowing that the hanyou would pound him into the ground if he ever pulled any of the antics that Neka was pulling now. She was trying to get him to let her examine his doggish ears. 'Stupid human. She's going to get hurt trying that,' Kiro thought.
He got up and walked from the room. 'Might as well go and find my mistress. She seems to be the only one around here that can control that human.' He heard voices coming from the library. Poking his head in, he saw Kara and Sesshoumaru in deep conversation. It didn't take long to figure out that they were talking about Neka, the Shikon no Tama, and the strange sword.
"We have to protect her. I won't just stand back and let this get out of control, " Kara was saying rather frantically.
"The Shikon no Tama is none of our concern anymore. Why do you care about it so much all of a sudden? You couldn't care less about it when Naraku desired it."
"Well, people change. There's something different about it this time. I can feel it. And it would be in your best interests to do something, seeing as Neka just so happens to be the grand-daughter of Rin."
"Why do you think I care about that?"
"Because I know you loved that little girl like a daughter. Why else would you keep her around? If you truly hated her, you would have never revived her, much less kept her around."
Sesshoumaru growled, knowing that he had just lost the whole not caring thing. Kara continued.
"Furthermore, I think that we should look into what's happening because I believe there is a connection between the Shikon no Tama and the sword I took from Reiya. The gem in the hilt and the Shikon Jewel are very similar."
"I don't believe I've seen this sword you speak of."
"My apologies. Kiro, if you would be so kind as to retrieve the sword. It's leaning against the wardrobe in my room."
Kiro ambled out of the room, coming back a few moments later with the sword held carefully in his jaws. He angled it through the still partially closed doors and went over to Kara. She took the sword, shivering as she felt the aura around the hilt. It would take a while until it was completely purified, seeing as it had been in Reiya's hands for an unknown amount of time; and her mothers before her.
Kara switched her grip from the hilt to the sheath and tilted it towards Sesshoumaru. He gripped the hilt tightly without flinching at the aura. 'Sometimes I curse these damn miko powers of mine. How I, a full- blooded dog-demon, ended up with them, only the gods know. That jewel must be pretty messed-up if it creeps me out that much,' Kara thought as she watched her half-brother examine the sword.
The silence ended abruptly as Neka suddenly burst through the door, looking truly terrified. She was followed closely by a very enraged InuYasha. The young human hid behind Kara, clutching at the teal leather of her kimono for all she was worth.
Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes. "I don't even want to know. Now get out of here before I lose my temper."
The threat worked. InuYasha backed away sullenly, but quickly, eager to get away from the youkai lords' icy glare.
Neka relaxed as soon as the hanyou disappeared from view. She went and sat next to Kiro.
Ignoring Neka completely, Sesshoumaru turned to Kara, sheathing the sword and setting it on a low table. "That sword was once forged for InuYasha. It was supposed to be a mean of replacing the Tetsusaiga and protecting the jewel known as the Jewel Of Two Worlds."