Changing Wyrds
Chapter 2: When You Need a Friend
Inuyasha leapt ahead of the others, his ears so far forward on his head that Kagome was sure they would fall off. She ran to catch up, and he scooped her onto his back, never pausing. Miroku ran behind them.
God, let us be there on time, Kagome prayed. Branches rushed past them and pebbles tumbled underfoot, and still the scream went on. Then, when it was so close that it seemed to have found its way into the depths of her mind, it was silenced. It didn't die out or trail away into nothing. It was extinguished, instantaneously, like someone had flicked a switch and turned it off. Kagome realized that she wasn't breathing, and neither was Inuyasha. He had stopped as dead as the sound.
"I-inuyasha," she whispered. He flicked his ears back towards her. "We should keep going, ne?" He nodded, and they went forward again.
If he hadn't been there to spot it, Kagome would never have seen the den's entrance. It was covered by grass and brush, and the moon shone away from it. He stepped towards it on soundless feet. She listened with all her might for any sound from the cave, fighting to see in the almost pitch black.
There was laughter coming from within. Evil laughter. Cruel laughter. As they reached it, a voice said, "Oh dear. It seems he isn't strong enough to take me on after all." Inuyasha bared his sharp teeth, and before Kagome could stop him, burst into the cave.
A dark eyed inu-youkai turned sharply.
"Well, that's not what I wanted at all," he said. "I just wanted the kitsune to tell me about you, not for you to actually show up." The intruders looked into the corner the youkai had indicated, and Kagome gasped.
"Shippou-chan!" she cried. The kitsune was pale and bloody. His jaws were clamped firmly together, and he was looking at her with an odd mix of relief and horror. Kagome slid off Inuyasha's back, and rushed towards him. As she neared him, the inu-youkai raised his claws.
"Kagome!" shouted Inuyasha, drawing Tetsusaiga. He forced it between claws and girl just in time. The other demon had to look up to meet his eye.
"Kagome-sama! Inuyasha!" Miroku appeared in the doorway. "Is Shippou all right?"
"I'm fine," replied the one in question.
"Save it!" ordered Inuyasha. "Get out, now!" Hashiaku's claws swiped at him and he leaped backwards. Kagome nodded, carrying the wounded Shippou as she fled.
Hashiaku pulled a small knife from his boot and flung it after her. Inuyasha knocked it out of the air, striking at his opponant with reckless anger. A thin line of blood formed across Hashiaku's chest. He smiled smugly.
"You can't hurt me," he said, and lashed out at Inuyasha with all ten claws. The hanyou ducked, swept his sword upwards. Hashiaku smiled through his grimace. His arm bled freely through a deep cut.
"Go ahead! Kill me! Your enemy will still live!" he cried mirthfully. Inuyasha growled and, swinging Tetsusaiga, backed him against a wall. Hashiaku leaned his weight against it; the flying blade had done its job well, and blood leaked from his side, soaking his sleevless shirt.
Then, completely unexpectedly, Inuyasha struck the younger youkai full across the face, and then in the gut, so hard that Hashiaku fell to the ground. Inuyasha pulled him up, holding the point of his sword at an angle against the enemy's lowest ribs.
"I think this will teach him," Hashiaku said to himself. A shudder went through his body. He blinked, looking first down at the sword and then up at Inuyasha. Inuyasha's anger was apparent. The youkai paled.
"What...what do you want? What did he do?" he said in a husky and childish whisper that was completely unlike anything else he had said.
"Don't play games, you bastard. You were killing Shippou." Dark eyes filled with confusion.
"What do you mean? That kitsune? I-" Inuyasha growled, bringing the sword an inch from breaking the skin. The captive cringed, gasping.
"No, don't kill me! I haven't done anything! Please!" he begged.
"What? So torturing a little kitsune is nothing?!" The fury in his voice was thick and dangerous.
"I didn't do it!" Inuyasha hit him, and he flinched in pain and fear.
"If you didn't, who did?" The small youkai shook as he answered.
"Hashiaku." He winced away from the blow that was sure to come. It didn't. A girl had laid her hand on Inuyasha's arm, holding him back with a simple touch.
"If you aren't Hashiaku, who are you?"
"My name is Kureru." Inuyasha leaned towards him with a snarl.
"So what happened to Hashiaku, hm?"
"Inuyasha! Stop scaring him! Although I would like to know," she added, looking at Kureru. He swallowed hard. His heart was pounding in his ears. It did every time. Usually he wasn't hurt so badly, though.
"He wasn't...really here. It was body control."
"Oh, really? Isn't that convenient?" The girl shot the hanyou a look that shut him up immediatly.
"I know how it sounds, but that's his power. Once you owe him something, you're his slave, and he can take you over. He can...can do whatever he needs to without putting himself at risk, and when he's done he just throws you aside. For a while, anyway." Kagome frowned.
"You mean he's done this to you before?" Kureru laughed bitterly, wincing at the pain it caused.
"Not before. More than I can remember. He decided kids might be nice, I guess, because he saved my life when I was little, and it's been his ever since." Inuyasha finally pulled his sword away.
"Was it you that screamed? Trying to get out?" he demanded. Kureru nodded weakly.
"Then we owe you our-" Kagome began.
"Don't!" he commanded, startled. She looked at him in surprise. "I d- don't know how much control he has. He could own you too...if you say that."
"But you can tell us about him?" Inuyasha said disbelievingly.
"No," Kureru replied almost inaudibly. "I can't. He wanted...wanted you to know...about...him." He choked back a whimper and fell to the earth.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Don't look so surprised, Inuyasha. You beat him pretty badly." Miroku eyed the prone youkai with mild interest. He looked younger than Inuyasha, especially asleep. And wounded. Kagome had given temporary care to his wounds and Shippou's, but they planned to go to Kaede's village next for better treatments.
"But he's a youkai! He shouldn't be this weak. It's pathetic." Inuyasha crossed his arms defiantly, daring anyone to argue. No one did.
"Shippou, how are you doing?" Kagome changed the subject. The kit peered at Kureru warily.
"I'm okay," he said. "But I don't like this guy, possessed or not. Just don't make us try to get along."
Kagome raised her eyebrow in near amusement.
"I wouldn't dream of it," promised Miroku.
_______________________________________________________
Author's notes: Sorry, no cliffhanger this time. That sort of annoys me, since I like cliffhangers an' all.^^ Oh, well. I don't really know exactly what's going to happen next. I'd be shocked if figured it out and wrote the whole thing in a day. @_@
Chapter 2: When You Need a Friend
Inuyasha leapt ahead of the others, his ears so far forward on his head that Kagome was sure they would fall off. She ran to catch up, and he scooped her onto his back, never pausing. Miroku ran behind them.
God, let us be there on time, Kagome prayed. Branches rushed past them and pebbles tumbled underfoot, and still the scream went on. Then, when it was so close that it seemed to have found its way into the depths of her mind, it was silenced. It didn't die out or trail away into nothing. It was extinguished, instantaneously, like someone had flicked a switch and turned it off. Kagome realized that she wasn't breathing, and neither was Inuyasha. He had stopped as dead as the sound.
"I-inuyasha," she whispered. He flicked his ears back towards her. "We should keep going, ne?" He nodded, and they went forward again.
If he hadn't been there to spot it, Kagome would never have seen the den's entrance. It was covered by grass and brush, and the moon shone away from it. He stepped towards it on soundless feet. She listened with all her might for any sound from the cave, fighting to see in the almost pitch black.
There was laughter coming from within. Evil laughter. Cruel laughter. As they reached it, a voice said, "Oh dear. It seems he isn't strong enough to take me on after all." Inuyasha bared his sharp teeth, and before Kagome could stop him, burst into the cave.
A dark eyed inu-youkai turned sharply.
"Well, that's not what I wanted at all," he said. "I just wanted the kitsune to tell me about you, not for you to actually show up." The intruders looked into the corner the youkai had indicated, and Kagome gasped.
"Shippou-chan!" she cried. The kitsune was pale and bloody. His jaws were clamped firmly together, and he was looking at her with an odd mix of relief and horror. Kagome slid off Inuyasha's back, and rushed towards him. As she neared him, the inu-youkai raised his claws.
"Kagome!" shouted Inuyasha, drawing Tetsusaiga. He forced it between claws and girl just in time. The other demon had to look up to meet his eye.
"Kagome-sama! Inuyasha!" Miroku appeared in the doorway. "Is Shippou all right?"
"I'm fine," replied the one in question.
"Save it!" ordered Inuyasha. "Get out, now!" Hashiaku's claws swiped at him and he leaped backwards. Kagome nodded, carrying the wounded Shippou as she fled.
Hashiaku pulled a small knife from his boot and flung it after her. Inuyasha knocked it out of the air, striking at his opponant with reckless anger. A thin line of blood formed across Hashiaku's chest. He smiled smugly.
"You can't hurt me," he said, and lashed out at Inuyasha with all ten claws. The hanyou ducked, swept his sword upwards. Hashiaku smiled through his grimace. His arm bled freely through a deep cut.
"Go ahead! Kill me! Your enemy will still live!" he cried mirthfully. Inuyasha growled and, swinging Tetsusaiga, backed him against a wall. Hashiaku leaned his weight against it; the flying blade had done its job well, and blood leaked from his side, soaking his sleevless shirt.
Then, completely unexpectedly, Inuyasha struck the younger youkai full across the face, and then in the gut, so hard that Hashiaku fell to the ground. Inuyasha pulled him up, holding the point of his sword at an angle against the enemy's lowest ribs.
"I think this will teach him," Hashiaku said to himself. A shudder went through his body. He blinked, looking first down at the sword and then up at Inuyasha. Inuyasha's anger was apparent. The youkai paled.
"What...what do you want? What did he do?" he said in a husky and childish whisper that was completely unlike anything else he had said.
"Don't play games, you bastard. You were killing Shippou." Dark eyes filled with confusion.
"What do you mean? That kitsune? I-" Inuyasha growled, bringing the sword an inch from breaking the skin. The captive cringed, gasping.
"No, don't kill me! I haven't done anything! Please!" he begged.
"What? So torturing a little kitsune is nothing?!" The fury in his voice was thick and dangerous.
"I didn't do it!" Inuyasha hit him, and he flinched in pain and fear.
"If you didn't, who did?" The small youkai shook as he answered.
"Hashiaku." He winced away from the blow that was sure to come. It didn't. A girl had laid her hand on Inuyasha's arm, holding him back with a simple touch.
"If you aren't Hashiaku, who are you?"
"My name is Kureru." Inuyasha leaned towards him with a snarl.
"So what happened to Hashiaku, hm?"
"Inuyasha! Stop scaring him! Although I would like to know," she added, looking at Kureru. He swallowed hard. His heart was pounding in his ears. It did every time. Usually he wasn't hurt so badly, though.
"He wasn't...really here. It was body control."
"Oh, really? Isn't that convenient?" The girl shot the hanyou a look that shut him up immediatly.
"I know how it sounds, but that's his power. Once you owe him something, you're his slave, and he can take you over. He can...can do whatever he needs to without putting himself at risk, and when he's done he just throws you aside. For a while, anyway." Kagome frowned.
"You mean he's done this to you before?" Kureru laughed bitterly, wincing at the pain it caused.
"Not before. More than I can remember. He decided kids might be nice, I guess, because he saved my life when I was little, and it's been his ever since." Inuyasha finally pulled his sword away.
"Was it you that screamed? Trying to get out?" he demanded. Kureru nodded weakly.
"Then we owe you our-" Kagome began.
"Don't!" he commanded, startled. She looked at him in surprise. "I d- don't know how much control he has. He could own you too...if you say that."
"But you can tell us about him?" Inuyasha said disbelievingly.
"No," Kureru replied almost inaudibly. "I can't. He wanted...wanted you to know...about...him." He choked back a whimper and fell to the earth.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Don't look so surprised, Inuyasha. You beat him pretty badly." Miroku eyed the prone youkai with mild interest. He looked younger than Inuyasha, especially asleep. And wounded. Kagome had given temporary care to his wounds and Shippou's, but they planned to go to Kaede's village next for better treatments.
"But he's a youkai! He shouldn't be this weak. It's pathetic." Inuyasha crossed his arms defiantly, daring anyone to argue. No one did.
"Shippou, how are you doing?" Kagome changed the subject. The kit peered at Kureru warily.
"I'm okay," he said. "But I don't like this guy, possessed or not. Just don't make us try to get along."
Kagome raised her eyebrow in near amusement.
"I wouldn't dream of it," promised Miroku.
_______________________________________________________
Author's notes: Sorry, no cliffhanger this time. That sort of annoys me, since I like cliffhangers an' all.^^ Oh, well. I don't really know exactly what's going to happen next. I'd be shocked if figured it out and wrote the whole thing in a day. @_@