(Inuyasha and co does not belong to me, I just like to write about them. This is mainly a Sesshoumaru/Kagome fic, C & C welcome. Let's hope I can keep this going! Oh and the ~ sign means those are thoughts. Forgive the Japanese, please!)
Kanashimi no Hate ni - End To Sorrow - Eight
Of Youkai and Human Matters
Kagome sighed contentedly as she felt all the grime and blood wash away. The water in this small stream was actually warm and not bone-chillingly cold which was nice indeed.
~Now if only I had soap - and shampoo!~ Kagome thought. This made her think of her own time and just how would she get back now? The only entry point she knew of was the well at Kaede's village. She bit her lip at the thought of it. Would she ever get back home now? Sesshoumaru might not let her go at all - shoot, he might not even let her live!
She plunged into the water once more perhaps to drown out those troubling thoughts, and emerged once again near the bank. It was then she spotted some familar plants - plants that Kaede had told her they used for soap in her village.
"I can wash my hair!" Kagome exclaimed aloud. Funny how the little things could make one so happy..
*****
Sesshoumaru was perched on the highest tree in the forest that overlooked the stream below. His face was impassive, and if one looked closely, he almost looked bored. But in fact, he was intently watching the woman - Kagome. She had changed in many ways - physically and mentally - it seemed to him. Her scent was still that oddly pleasing scent of magic with just a hint of youkai. Her human scent was overall pleasing - much like Rin's but - different.
The dog-demon lord frowned. He had been around Rin for too long, had been too lax if he was even thinking about a human female's scent.
Still - there was something different about her - always had been. It seemed as if she had built a wall around herself - hence the control he had seen. Yet, she did not hesitate to protect those worthless people. She was a woman of contrasts and mystery - just as Rin was a mystery to him. She had not been afraid of him, and in fact had been willing to sacrifice the human girl at the village rather than give in to someone she did not trust.
Smart little hanyou...he mused.
He watched her squeal in delight at the soapweeds that lined the bank. Why humans set such a store by such trivialities was beyond him, but at least she knew to be clean. Rin was that way too.
Sesshoumaru's keen eyes took in the curve of her shoulder and the sleek curve of her arm as she reached up to soap her long hair. Her head was dipped down and her eyes were closed. It was as if she were some statue, so still was she. The demon-lord found himself simply staring at the sight.
*****
Jaken fumed. That his lord Sesshoumaru-sama had wanted to stop here at this stream he had no problem with. That he left the human woman alive he did. And ordering him to procure clothing for her! Aieee! What was his lord coming to when he started being kind to humans!! His questioning had earned Jaken his usual slap - slap meaning that he was tossed a few miles away. A small fire of resentment burned in Jaken - something that had not been there before.
~Your resentment of the humans is plain, Jaken-sama..~ a small voice seemed to whisper in his ear - no in his mind.
"Yes, yes..it IS!" Jaken trodged back to where he knew Sesshoumaru-sama would still be - he hoped.
~You, who are so obedient and faithful, treated in this manner..~ The voice whispered again.
"Yes, I, Jaken have been most faithful and obedient to the great Sesshoumaru-sama!"
~And yet he puts that little girl - that little scrap of nothing over you, a youkai!~
"That is true! That is true! And now he has this Kagome-woman!" Jaken sneered.
~He's becoming weak! The affliction of his father run through his veins! Weakness for human females..~ Jaken nodded at the voice in his head but then stopped.
"Sesshoumaru-sama? No!" Jaken's eyes were wide.
~It's the truth. You know this and only you can stop it. ~
"Who - who are you?" Jaken felt doubt and fear creep through him. That voice - there was something about it.
~The shards...~
"Eh?" Jaken took the two shards out of his pocket. They glowed with a dark light.
~I am within the shards - and within my youkai. Scattered to the four winds we were because of the miko's treachery...my Kikyou..~
"Bah!" Jaken spat. What utter nonsense!
~Gather the shards, Jaken-sama - for me, for you, for the great Sesshoumaru-sama..~
Jaken blinked. Perhaps this would be a good thing.
"H - how..?" Jaken asked.
~The miko - the hanyou-miko..Kikyou's incarnation..she can find them for you.~
"Her?" Jaken stiffened. "I have to put up with another human?"
~Only for a time...she is valuable, this Kikyou-who-is-and-who-is-not..she has returned to me..~
"Feh..who cares about that." Jaken put the shards back into his pocket.
~Beware, Jaken-sama. The woman knows you have two shards. She will sense them and then your master may take them away, not caring what their true power is. After all, he needs none, the great Sesshoumaru-sama..~
"Awk! Jaken will be punished, aieee!" Jaken felt a thread of fear run though him.
~Not if you hide them properly..look..look to the grass behind you..~
Jaken turned around and looked. On the ground next to a bush he saw what had to be a scrap of material. He went over and picked it up. It was a small drawstring pouch made up of -
"Baboon skin?" The small skin pouch was a flawless white with a long drawstring around it. Still Jaken handled it with a measure of distaste, since baboons reminded him of monkeys, and monkeys reminded him of humans, and well he hated humans.
~Not just any baboon skin, Jaken-sama. It will protect the shards you carry from her senses. ~
"Hm, I have seen stranger things than this.~ Jaken placed his two shards in the small pouch and secured it.
~Wear it near you, Jaken-sama. Keep it close for you don't want the power to assist your lord and master to get away from you. Many youkai will want your power.~
"You're right!" Jaken brightened considerably. "Many youkai are jealous of Jaken because he serves the great Sesshoumaru-sama!"
~Hai, and with good reason, Jaken-sama..~ The voice seemed to fade just a bit in Jaken's head. ~Until we meet again..~
"Hai.." Jaken said aloud and then shook his head. It had been good to get away from any human presence! His idea of finding this bag to place his precious shards in was brilliant! Jaken straightened himself up and headed back to where Sesshoumaru-sama would be.
****
Kaede examined Miroku's hand - even though he put up quite a struggle. The hole in his hand was still quite small - a fact that was puzzling to everyone gathered in Kaede's hut.
"Mirouku, when Naraku cursed your grandfather with the Air Void - did the wound in his hand appear all at once or gradually?" Kaede asked as she examined his hand. The small amount of wind that went through it stirred the fire that was in the center of the room.
"All at once, according to my father.." Miroku frowned, his eyes angry.
"Then this is quite odd.." Kaede frowned. "This is but a tiny hole, although it will probably regain it's original size, if my guess is right."
"You mean Naraku IS alive?" Shippo asked.
Sango's expression was dark as she thought of her brother Kohaku and how Naraku's machinations had killed her family.
Kaede sighed. "I don't know but this must be a sign of portent. When Kikyou-onee-sama split the Shikon no Tama, she also split Naruku into pieces."
Miroku nodded. "He was made up of youkai - that would make sense. Perhaps his closeness to the Shikon - the fact that he had corrupted it with his evil made him a part of the Shikon and still a part of all those youkai."
Kaede nodded. "With the Shikon gathered to the winds, those youkai, being a part of Naraku, would perhaps search for the shards intently."
Sango's eyes widened. "And then once Naraku's youkai have the shards.."
"They will reform Naraku.." Miroku jerked his hand away from Kaede's grasp, got up and left the room.
"Poor Miroku.." Shippo shook his head and then spat. "That Kikyou! She's the cause of this!"
"Do not blame my onee-sama, Shippo. She thought that she was destroying Naraku and the Shikon no Tama with her purifying arrow." Kaede looked sad.
"But it didn't purify did it, Kaede?" Sango asked.
"No." Kaede hung her head. "Kikyou may have meant well, but those souls within her - souls that she had trapped to keep her here in the plain of the living. Such an act corrupted her as did her old hate."
"But Inuyasha! Why - ?" Shippo looked hurt.
"I don't know, Shippo. Perhaps a part of Inuyasha felt such guilt over Kikyou's death so many years ago that he had to uphold his vow to protect her - even in hell." Kaede stared into the fire as if she could perhaps see her sister in them.
"He hurt Kagome!" Shippo said. "And Kikyou made her fall into the well into her own world where she couldn't return!"
"Onigumo's evil..." Kaede sighed. "Would that he had burned into ashes long ago."
Miroku came back into the room, adjusting the familar glove that had covered his palm. He wrapped the prayer beads around it expertly. Sango could tell that he was none too happy with it.
"This time Naraku will truly be defeated - if it is the last thing I do." Miroku said grimly.
"Don't say that!" Sango exclaimed as she leapt up. This caused Miroku to smile at Sango.
"Why, Sango, you are concerned - for me?" Miroku said softly, his hand grasping Sango's.
"I - I - aaaiiiieeeee! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!!" Sango jerked away from where the lecherous monk had his hand on her rear end.
"Some things never change." Shippo shook his head.
Kaede cleared her throat covering up a laugh.
Suddenly a villager came running into Kaede's hut.
"Kaede-sama! Forgive me but there is a youkai - aeeeee!!"
"KIKYOU!!! KIKYOU!!!" A screeching voice came out of nowhere. They barely had time to scramble before the hut crashed down on top of them..
Kanashimi no Hate ni - End To Sorrow - Eight
Of Youkai and Human Matters
Kagome sighed contentedly as she felt all the grime and blood wash away. The water in this small stream was actually warm and not bone-chillingly cold which was nice indeed.
~Now if only I had soap - and shampoo!~ Kagome thought. This made her think of her own time and just how would she get back now? The only entry point she knew of was the well at Kaede's village. She bit her lip at the thought of it. Would she ever get back home now? Sesshoumaru might not let her go at all - shoot, he might not even let her live!
She plunged into the water once more perhaps to drown out those troubling thoughts, and emerged once again near the bank. It was then she spotted some familar plants - plants that Kaede had told her they used for soap in her village.
"I can wash my hair!" Kagome exclaimed aloud. Funny how the little things could make one so happy..
*****
Sesshoumaru was perched on the highest tree in the forest that overlooked the stream below. His face was impassive, and if one looked closely, he almost looked bored. But in fact, he was intently watching the woman - Kagome. She had changed in many ways - physically and mentally - it seemed to him. Her scent was still that oddly pleasing scent of magic with just a hint of youkai. Her human scent was overall pleasing - much like Rin's but - different.
The dog-demon lord frowned. He had been around Rin for too long, had been too lax if he was even thinking about a human female's scent.
Still - there was something different about her - always had been. It seemed as if she had built a wall around herself - hence the control he had seen. Yet, she did not hesitate to protect those worthless people. She was a woman of contrasts and mystery - just as Rin was a mystery to him. She had not been afraid of him, and in fact had been willing to sacrifice the human girl at the village rather than give in to someone she did not trust.
Smart little hanyou...he mused.
He watched her squeal in delight at the soapweeds that lined the bank. Why humans set such a store by such trivialities was beyond him, but at least she knew to be clean. Rin was that way too.
Sesshoumaru's keen eyes took in the curve of her shoulder and the sleek curve of her arm as she reached up to soap her long hair. Her head was dipped down and her eyes were closed. It was as if she were some statue, so still was she. The demon-lord found himself simply staring at the sight.
*****
Jaken fumed. That his lord Sesshoumaru-sama had wanted to stop here at this stream he had no problem with. That he left the human woman alive he did. And ordering him to procure clothing for her! Aieee! What was his lord coming to when he started being kind to humans!! His questioning had earned Jaken his usual slap - slap meaning that he was tossed a few miles away. A small fire of resentment burned in Jaken - something that had not been there before.
~Your resentment of the humans is plain, Jaken-sama..~ a small voice seemed to whisper in his ear - no in his mind.
"Yes, yes..it IS!" Jaken trodged back to where he knew Sesshoumaru-sama would still be - he hoped.
~You, who are so obedient and faithful, treated in this manner..~ The voice whispered again.
"Yes, I, Jaken have been most faithful and obedient to the great Sesshoumaru-sama!"
~And yet he puts that little girl - that little scrap of nothing over you, a youkai!~
"That is true! That is true! And now he has this Kagome-woman!" Jaken sneered.
~He's becoming weak! The affliction of his father run through his veins! Weakness for human females..~ Jaken nodded at the voice in his head but then stopped.
"Sesshoumaru-sama? No!" Jaken's eyes were wide.
~It's the truth. You know this and only you can stop it. ~
"Who - who are you?" Jaken felt doubt and fear creep through him. That voice - there was something about it.
~The shards...~
"Eh?" Jaken took the two shards out of his pocket. They glowed with a dark light.
~I am within the shards - and within my youkai. Scattered to the four winds we were because of the miko's treachery...my Kikyou..~
"Bah!" Jaken spat. What utter nonsense!
~Gather the shards, Jaken-sama - for me, for you, for the great Sesshoumaru-sama..~
Jaken blinked. Perhaps this would be a good thing.
"H - how..?" Jaken asked.
~The miko - the hanyou-miko..Kikyou's incarnation..she can find them for you.~
"Her?" Jaken stiffened. "I have to put up with another human?"
~Only for a time...she is valuable, this Kikyou-who-is-and-who-is-not..she has returned to me..~
"Feh..who cares about that." Jaken put the shards back into his pocket.
~Beware, Jaken-sama. The woman knows you have two shards. She will sense them and then your master may take them away, not caring what their true power is. After all, he needs none, the great Sesshoumaru-sama..~
"Awk! Jaken will be punished, aieee!" Jaken felt a thread of fear run though him.
~Not if you hide them properly..look..look to the grass behind you..~
Jaken turned around and looked. On the ground next to a bush he saw what had to be a scrap of material. He went over and picked it up. It was a small drawstring pouch made up of -
"Baboon skin?" The small skin pouch was a flawless white with a long drawstring around it. Still Jaken handled it with a measure of distaste, since baboons reminded him of monkeys, and monkeys reminded him of humans, and well he hated humans.
~Not just any baboon skin, Jaken-sama. It will protect the shards you carry from her senses. ~
"Hm, I have seen stranger things than this.~ Jaken placed his two shards in the small pouch and secured it.
~Wear it near you, Jaken-sama. Keep it close for you don't want the power to assist your lord and master to get away from you. Many youkai will want your power.~
"You're right!" Jaken brightened considerably. "Many youkai are jealous of Jaken because he serves the great Sesshoumaru-sama!"
~Hai, and with good reason, Jaken-sama..~ The voice seemed to fade just a bit in Jaken's head. ~Until we meet again..~
"Hai.." Jaken said aloud and then shook his head. It had been good to get away from any human presence! His idea of finding this bag to place his precious shards in was brilliant! Jaken straightened himself up and headed back to where Sesshoumaru-sama would be.
****
Kaede examined Miroku's hand - even though he put up quite a struggle. The hole in his hand was still quite small - a fact that was puzzling to everyone gathered in Kaede's hut.
"Mirouku, when Naraku cursed your grandfather with the Air Void - did the wound in his hand appear all at once or gradually?" Kaede asked as she examined his hand. The small amount of wind that went through it stirred the fire that was in the center of the room.
"All at once, according to my father.." Miroku frowned, his eyes angry.
"Then this is quite odd.." Kaede frowned. "This is but a tiny hole, although it will probably regain it's original size, if my guess is right."
"You mean Naraku IS alive?" Shippo asked.
Sango's expression was dark as she thought of her brother Kohaku and how Naraku's machinations had killed her family.
Kaede sighed. "I don't know but this must be a sign of portent. When Kikyou-onee-sama split the Shikon no Tama, she also split Naruku into pieces."
Miroku nodded. "He was made up of youkai - that would make sense. Perhaps his closeness to the Shikon - the fact that he had corrupted it with his evil made him a part of the Shikon and still a part of all those youkai."
Kaede nodded. "With the Shikon gathered to the winds, those youkai, being a part of Naraku, would perhaps search for the shards intently."
Sango's eyes widened. "And then once Naraku's youkai have the shards.."
"They will reform Naraku.." Miroku jerked his hand away from Kaede's grasp, got up and left the room.
"Poor Miroku.." Shippo shook his head and then spat. "That Kikyou! She's the cause of this!"
"Do not blame my onee-sama, Shippo. She thought that she was destroying Naraku and the Shikon no Tama with her purifying arrow." Kaede looked sad.
"But it didn't purify did it, Kaede?" Sango asked.
"No." Kaede hung her head. "Kikyou may have meant well, but those souls within her - souls that she had trapped to keep her here in the plain of the living. Such an act corrupted her as did her old hate."
"But Inuyasha! Why - ?" Shippo looked hurt.
"I don't know, Shippo. Perhaps a part of Inuyasha felt such guilt over Kikyou's death so many years ago that he had to uphold his vow to protect her - even in hell." Kaede stared into the fire as if she could perhaps see her sister in them.
"He hurt Kagome!" Shippo said. "And Kikyou made her fall into the well into her own world where she couldn't return!"
"Onigumo's evil..." Kaede sighed. "Would that he had burned into ashes long ago."
Miroku came back into the room, adjusting the familar glove that had covered his palm. He wrapped the prayer beads around it expertly. Sango could tell that he was none too happy with it.
"This time Naraku will truly be defeated - if it is the last thing I do." Miroku said grimly.
"Don't say that!" Sango exclaimed as she leapt up. This caused Miroku to smile at Sango.
"Why, Sango, you are concerned - for me?" Miroku said softly, his hand grasping Sango's.
"I - I - aaaiiiieeeee! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!!" Sango jerked away from where the lecherous monk had his hand on her rear end.
"Some things never change." Shippo shook his head.
Kaede cleared her throat covering up a laugh.
Suddenly a villager came running into Kaede's hut.
"Kaede-sama! Forgive me but there is a youkai - aeeeee!!"
"KIKYOU!!! KIKYOU!!!" A screeching voice came out of nowhere. They barely had time to scramble before the hut crashed down on top of them..
