Title: The End...Or the Beginning
Author: Raven-Web Mistress of the Incarnate
Rating: R
Summary: The last of a proud line of rulers is forced into suspended animation in order to preserve her family line, will she be released?
Disclaimer: I own nothing
Authors Note: This story was under the title "An Ending and a Beginning", my cousin posted the first chapter in my absence and royally screwed up the name, but now I'm posting under its true title sorry for the confusion.
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1421 New Age Time
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.
//Dream Sequence//
"You are the last Higurashi, you must survive, you must protect the jewel." Yuka pleaded with Kagome, though her mouth was not moving as she faced Narakus cloaked form.
Kagome barely felt the scream wrench itself from her throat as she watched Yuka tumble to the metal floor, drained of her life force. Drained of her soul.
Kagome tried to focus on that power within herself, that great force that dwelled somewhere beneath the surface of her mind. She had to channel it to the stone, the stone was the only thing that could set things right.
She felt the light course from the stone and through her body, she felt it invade her blood and twist around her soul; but it didn't hurt. It almost felt like a grand amount of adrenaline running through her veins, only more powerful and oh so much more dangerous. It was almost enough to make her feel giddy from the sensation.
Her vision began to cloud over with a purple haze as the power began to rise to its climax, that grand force was building more and more with each second. Yet the eruption refused to happen, it almost felt as though it were physically being blocked. Everything began to pulse and hurt.
The build up of power and magic was incinerating her from the inside out; she released a strangled sob as she lifted her head and looked the haze of color and to the demon lord before her. He was grinning at her, evilly. He was the on blocking the release, he was the one causing her pain.
Her eyes screwed shut and with and almost choked whimper she began to whisper the same words over and over again "Somebody, help me, please whoever you are, help me, help me, help me, help me. HELP!"
//End Dream//
~
The scream caused all movement in the fortress to come to a screeching halt as it echoed and ricocheted off walls and through corridors. The sound had reached Inuyashas ears before anyone else's, he had heard her open her mouth and he had heard the sharp breath she sucked in before she expelled the high pitched noise. He had dropped his book on to the floor in the hospital wings main hall and begun running, he knew who was screaming; even if no one else did. He could feel her pain pulsing from her; he could even smell her fear as it saturated the air.
He passed doctors and nurses, practically pushing them from his path. He pulled the door open with enough force to tear it from its hinges, he only walked two steps into the room before he stopped and took in the complete situation.
Lying against the stark white cotton sheets was the mysterious girl. Her hair had spread out on the pillow, giving her a soft, black halo. Her breathing was ragged and shallow, her body was trembling and her hands held the sheets beneath her with a white-knuckled grip. But, he only paid so much attention to those details, the thing that had captured his attention was the faint pulsing, purple glow that seemed to surround and seep into her body.
Narrowing his eyes he shut door and continued into the room, his steps were slow and cautious as he approached the border of the haze. As he passed through the border of odd light he felt all of the small hairs on his body stand on end and quiver, his skin tingled and he felt as though thousands of minutely small needles were tapping his skin at once. He was almost awe- struck as he felt his already enhanced senses and powers become slightly amplified.
The entrancing sensations were interrupted when the girl began to whisper the same two words repeatedly, her brow furrowed in frustration and the scent of her fear growing stronger with each word that passed over her coral colored lips, "Help me."
The whimpered words snapped him back to reality; he allowed his mind to graze over her body, giving his powers access to the source of the strange purple energy. It wasn't long before his mind came to a halt at the center of her chest; the source was located just above her heart.
Reaching down he gingerly allowed his nail to slice the neck of her riding dress, making a split down to her bosom. The jewel, no longer being pressed down by the heavy fabric, immediately began to hover above the girl, looking as though the only thing holding it down was the thick, jeweled chain.
Inuyasha expelled a breath he hadn't known he was holding, "It can't be." the words seemed to drift on the air and linger there as he stared, entranced by the small glowing stone.
Slowly he reached a clawed hand out to grasp the powerful Shikon no Tama. The tips of his fingers made contact with the jewel and the energy seemed to quickly pull back into the stone and the girl. A gasp sounded and a small, pale hand flew up and clutched at the hand covering her precious charge.
Inuyasha quickly flicked his gaze to her own as she sat up, not removing her hand from his own. Her eyes are more purple now, he absently thought as she stared at him with an intriged gaze. She slowly slipped her hand from his own, and if he was not mistaken blushed. He quickly released the jewel, but continued to look into her eyes, hoping for to discover all of the answers to the mystery that was her somewhere deep in her eyes.
"Where am I?" her soft, almost sultry voice cut through the silence in the room, effectively breaking the spell she had unknowingly cast upon him. He looked at her intently for a moment, all traces of distress and her nightmare gone, perhaps she didn't remember.
Shaking his head and clearing his throat he answered "You're in the Hospital Wing of the Higurashi Fortress, the year is 1421 New Age Time."
"New Age Time?" she asked quickly, her brow furrowing in confusion as she cocked her head to the side and waited for him to explain.
"New Age Started after the final battle with Naraku in 4395." he replied as he turned and grabbed a stiff chair and drug it over to her bedside.
Kagome barely noticed him as he settled himself into the chair, her mind swirled with thoughts of her family, all of which died in the so called 'final battle', her protectors which had valiantly given their lives for her own and the man that had caused it all. A single tear escaped her eye and trickled down her cheek only to land on the Shikon no Tama.
The jewel reacted to the tear strangely though; it flashed brightly with color, but quickly settled back to its normal shade of light purple/pink. Inuyasha stared at it all the while, and then he quickly looked at the girl and whispered, "Who are you?"
Kagome repressed the tears stinging her eyes and sucked in an unsteady breath, "I am First Daughter of the House of Higurashi, Hime over my fathers' people, Kagome." Her voice droned out the words, it was something she must have been to saying because the bored air she had as the words escaped her mouth. Her mouth quirked a bit as she looked at him and said "And you're, if I wasn't dreaming, Inuyasha."
He smiled despite himself, and nodded. For several moments that sat in a comfortable silence, each lost in their own thoughts, the moment wasn't meant to last forever though and Inuyasha needed his questions answered and so, with a heavy sigh he asked "Why were you in that, that thing?"
"That was a S.A.C, or Suspended Animation Chamber. I was caught in the battle with Naraku, my Grandfather, brother and parents were fighting as well. As the battle continued they were cut down." she paused quickly before she pressed on with her story, the pain still fresh on her heart, "My bodyguard, Hojou, was killed in the fray and I was forced from the battle and into the chamber; it wasn't really to save my life, but more to preserve the family line and to make sure the jewel remained in good hands." she finished bitterly, her eyes downcast when she mentioned the preservation of her family line. She turned gaze back up to his and whispered "Everything is different now, isn't it?"
"We have few records of things from your time, but other than weaponry nothing has really changed. Naraku was almost completely destroyed in that last battle, now we're left fighting the so called 'minions' that his soul gathers." Inuyasha said as nonchalantly as could, hoping his attitude toward Naraku would help her to be as unafraid of the bodiless bastard as possible.
"I know what happened to him, I did it, but you should never underestimate him. Although he is bodiless he is still powerful. I wish I had been awakened earlier, so that I may have been able to completely set things right sooner." she whispered hoarsely, directing her gaze away from the hanyous.
His gaze pierced through her, almost painfully so, she felt the scrutiny in his eyes before he asked in a suspicious tone "You made Naraku what he is?"
"When I was in the chamber, just after Yuka had started the S.A sequence, Naraku broke through the doors. I was already going into the suspended animation when he killed Yuka, I couldn't get my wits about myself quickly enough to save her." she admitted sullenly, "I had always been told that I was powerful, more so than any of the elders on our council. I had even demonstrated my powers on a few occasions, but I'd never channeled my power into such a strong current; I bonded my power with the jewel and created a stronger energy, but with the vapors invading my mind and making everything hazy I knew I wouldn't be able to execute the power completely. I only managed to destroy his body and his followers." she whispered "His soul escaped because of me."
Inuyasha stared at her for several minutes; he could feel the negative emotions flowing from her, she was angry and ashamed with herself. After many moments of heavy silence he cleared his throat and spoke quietly, "It wasn't your fault, ya know." he had wanted to use words that would sooth her and inwardly cursed himself for not being able to use smooth words like Miroku so often did.
She didn't seem to be effected by his lack of comforting words. She looked at him with large, innocent eyes and with a deep sigh began to speak, "I just feel like I could have prevented the world from becoming this way. If I had accomplished what I should have been able to do you and that other young man wouldn't be fighting in this, this, this army, this 'Final Line of Defense.' These future generations wouldn't be in place you are if I had killed him when I had the chance." she finished with a choked sob; she laid her head in her hands as her body became racked with dry sobs. Inuyasha hated to see women cry.
Leaning forward in his chair and awkwardly placed what he hoped would be a comforting hand on her hair, he attempted a slight 'shushing' noise before he spoke in as gentle a tone as he could manage "You did the best you could, now you just stand back and I'll protect you." the last words slipped from his mouth before he could stop them and he mentally kicked himself.
But those few words seemed to calm her and soon the crying stopped, she lifted her head and blinked those strangely colored eyes at him. "Thank you." her voice was barely above a whisper, but the look she gave him, that look of complete trust was all the thanks he needed.
They sat there like that for several moments, trying to decipher each other. But the moment was shatter as Miroku opened the door and with a wide grin stated "Inuyasha, you dog."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you for reading so far, I realize this chapter was somewhat uneventful, but I feel it showed the subtle development of a relationship between our two main characters. I'm not particularly sure if I'm going to bring Sango into the story or not, I most likely will, seeing as I can't stand for one of my main characters to find love and leave another in the lurch. Any suggestions or comments are welcome; I'll try to reply to the best of my ability.
Raven
Crispy Muffin: Shirosenshi roughly translates to White Warrior or White Solider. Thanks for reading, the 'Sweet Mother that was good' comment made my day a lot brighter than it was!!
Author: Raven-Web Mistress of the Incarnate
Rating: R
Summary: The last of a proud line of rulers is forced into suspended animation in order to preserve her family line, will she be released?
Disclaimer: I own nothing
Authors Note: This story was under the title "An Ending and a Beginning", my cousin posted the first chapter in my absence and royally screwed up the name, but now I'm posting under its true title sorry for the confusion.
.
.
. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1421 New Age Time
.
.
//Dream Sequence//
"You are the last Higurashi, you must survive, you must protect the jewel." Yuka pleaded with Kagome, though her mouth was not moving as she faced Narakus cloaked form.
Kagome barely felt the scream wrench itself from her throat as she watched Yuka tumble to the metal floor, drained of her life force. Drained of her soul.
Kagome tried to focus on that power within herself, that great force that dwelled somewhere beneath the surface of her mind. She had to channel it to the stone, the stone was the only thing that could set things right.
She felt the light course from the stone and through her body, she felt it invade her blood and twist around her soul; but it didn't hurt. It almost felt like a grand amount of adrenaline running through her veins, only more powerful and oh so much more dangerous. It was almost enough to make her feel giddy from the sensation.
Her vision began to cloud over with a purple haze as the power began to rise to its climax, that grand force was building more and more with each second. Yet the eruption refused to happen, it almost felt as though it were physically being blocked. Everything began to pulse and hurt.
The build up of power and magic was incinerating her from the inside out; she released a strangled sob as she lifted her head and looked the haze of color and to the demon lord before her. He was grinning at her, evilly. He was the on blocking the release, he was the one causing her pain.
Her eyes screwed shut and with and almost choked whimper she began to whisper the same words over and over again "Somebody, help me, please whoever you are, help me, help me, help me, help me. HELP!"
//End Dream//
~
The scream caused all movement in the fortress to come to a screeching halt as it echoed and ricocheted off walls and through corridors. The sound had reached Inuyashas ears before anyone else's, he had heard her open her mouth and he had heard the sharp breath she sucked in before she expelled the high pitched noise. He had dropped his book on to the floor in the hospital wings main hall and begun running, he knew who was screaming; even if no one else did. He could feel her pain pulsing from her; he could even smell her fear as it saturated the air.
He passed doctors and nurses, practically pushing them from his path. He pulled the door open with enough force to tear it from its hinges, he only walked two steps into the room before he stopped and took in the complete situation.
Lying against the stark white cotton sheets was the mysterious girl. Her hair had spread out on the pillow, giving her a soft, black halo. Her breathing was ragged and shallow, her body was trembling and her hands held the sheets beneath her with a white-knuckled grip. But, he only paid so much attention to those details, the thing that had captured his attention was the faint pulsing, purple glow that seemed to surround and seep into her body.
Narrowing his eyes he shut door and continued into the room, his steps were slow and cautious as he approached the border of the haze. As he passed through the border of odd light he felt all of the small hairs on his body stand on end and quiver, his skin tingled and he felt as though thousands of minutely small needles were tapping his skin at once. He was almost awe- struck as he felt his already enhanced senses and powers become slightly amplified.
The entrancing sensations were interrupted when the girl began to whisper the same two words repeatedly, her brow furrowed in frustration and the scent of her fear growing stronger with each word that passed over her coral colored lips, "Help me."
The whimpered words snapped him back to reality; he allowed his mind to graze over her body, giving his powers access to the source of the strange purple energy. It wasn't long before his mind came to a halt at the center of her chest; the source was located just above her heart.
Reaching down he gingerly allowed his nail to slice the neck of her riding dress, making a split down to her bosom. The jewel, no longer being pressed down by the heavy fabric, immediately began to hover above the girl, looking as though the only thing holding it down was the thick, jeweled chain.
Inuyasha expelled a breath he hadn't known he was holding, "It can't be." the words seemed to drift on the air and linger there as he stared, entranced by the small glowing stone.
Slowly he reached a clawed hand out to grasp the powerful Shikon no Tama. The tips of his fingers made contact with the jewel and the energy seemed to quickly pull back into the stone and the girl. A gasp sounded and a small, pale hand flew up and clutched at the hand covering her precious charge.
Inuyasha quickly flicked his gaze to her own as she sat up, not removing her hand from his own. Her eyes are more purple now, he absently thought as she stared at him with an intriged gaze. She slowly slipped her hand from his own, and if he was not mistaken blushed. He quickly released the jewel, but continued to look into her eyes, hoping for to discover all of the answers to the mystery that was her somewhere deep in her eyes.
"Where am I?" her soft, almost sultry voice cut through the silence in the room, effectively breaking the spell she had unknowingly cast upon him. He looked at her intently for a moment, all traces of distress and her nightmare gone, perhaps she didn't remember.
Shaking his head and clearing his throat he answered "You're in the Hospital Wing of the Higurashi Fortress, the year is 1421 New Age Time."
"New Age Time?" she asked quickly, her brow furrowing in confusion as she cocked her head to the side and waited for him to explain.
"New Age Started after the final battle with Naraku in 4395." he replied as he turned and grabbed a stiff chair and drug it over to her bedside.
Kagome barely noticed him as he settled himself into the chair, her mind swirled with thoughts of her family, all of which died in the so called 'final battle', her protectors which had valiantly given their lives for her own and the man that had caused it all. A single tear escaped her eye and trickled down her cheek only to land on the Shikon no Tama.
The jewel reacted to the tear strangely though; it flashed brightly with color, but quickly settled back to its normal shade of light purple/pink. Inuyasha stared at it all the while, and then he quickly looked at the girl and whispered, "Who are you?"
Kagome repressed the tears stinging her eyes and sucked in an unsteady breath, "I am First Daughter of the House of Higurashi, Hime over my fathers' people, Kagome." Her voice droned out the words, it was something she must have been to saying because the bored air she had as the words escaped her mouth. Her mouth quirked a bit as she looked at him and said "And you're, if I wasn't dreaming, Inuyasha."
He smiled despite himself, and nodded. For several moments that sat in a comfortable silence, each lost in their own thoughts, the moment wasn't meant to last forever though and Inuyasha needed his questions answered and so, with a heavy sigh he asked "Why were you in that, that thing?"
"That was a S.A.C, or Suspended Animation Chamber. I was caught in the battle with Naraku, my Grandfather, brother and parents were fighting as well. As the battle continued they were cut down." she paused quickly before she pressed on with her story, the pain still fresh on her heart, "My bodyguard, Hojou, was killed in the fray and I was forced from the battle and into the chamber; it wasn't really to save my life, but more to preserve the family line and to make sure the jewel remained in good hands." she finished bitterly, her eyes downcast when she mentioned the preservation of her family line. She turned gaze back up to his and whispered "Everything is different now, isn't it?"
"We have few records of things from your time, but other than weaponry nothing has really changed. Naraku was almost completely destroyed in that last battle, now we're left fighting the so called 'minions' that his soul gathers." Inuyasha said as nonchalantly as could, hoping his attitude toward Naraku would help her to be as unafraid of the bodiless bastard as possible.
"I know what happened to him, I did it, but you should never underestimate him. Although he is bodiless he is still powerful. I wish I had been awakened earlier, so that I may have been able to completely set things right sooner." she whispered hoarsely, directing her gaze away from the hanyous.
His gaze pierced through her, almost painfully so, she felt the scrutiny in his eyes before he asked in a suspicious tone "You made Naraku what he is?"
"When I was in the chamber, just after Yuka had started the S.A sequence, Naraku broke through the doors. I was already going into the suspended animation when he killed Yuka, I couldn't get my wits about myself quickly enough to save her." she admitted sullenly, "I had always been told that I was powerful, more so than any of the elders on our council. I had even demonstrated my powers on a few occasions, but I'd never channeled my power into such a strong current; I bonded my power with the jewel and created a stronger energy, but with the vapors invading my mind and making everything hazy I knew I wouldn't be able to execute the power completely. I only managed to destroy his body and his followers." she whispered "His soul escaped because of me."
Inuyasha stared at her for several minutes; he could feel the negative emotions flowing from her, she was angry and ashamed with herself. After many moments of heavy silence he cleared his throat and spoke quietly, "It wasn't your fault, ya know." he had wanted to use words that would sooth her and inwardly cursed himself for not being able to use smooth words like Miroku so often did.
She didn't seem to be effected by his lack of comforting words. She looked at him with large, innocent eyes and with a deep sigh began to speak, "I just feel like I could have prevented the world from becoming this way. If I had accomplished what I should have been able to do you and that other young man wouldn't be fighting in this, this, this army, this 'Final Line of Defense.' These future generations wouldn't be in place you are if I had killed him when I had the chance." she finished with a choked sob; she laid her head in her hands as her body became racked with dry sobs. Inuyasha hated to see women cry.
Leaning forward in his chair and awkwardly placed what he hoped would be a comforting hand on her hair, he attempted a slight 'shushing' noise before he spoke in as gentle a tone as he could manage "You did the best you could, now you just stand back and I'll protect you." the last words slipped from his mouth before he could stop them and he mentally kicked himself.
But those few words seemed to calm her and soon the crying stopped, she lifted her head and blinked those strangely colored eyes at him. "Thank you." her voice was barely above a whisper, but the look she gave him, that look of complete trust was all the thanks he needed.
They sat there like that for several moments, trying to decipher each other. But the moment was shatter as Miroku opened the door and with a wide grin stated "Inuyasha, you dog."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you for reading so far, I realize this chapter was somewhat uneventful, but I feel it showed the subtle development of a relationship between our two main characters. I'm not particularly sure if I'm going to bring Sango into the story or not, I most likely will, seeing as I can't stand for one of my main characters to find love and leave another in the lurch. Any suggestions or comments are welcome; I'll try to reply to the best of my ability.
Raven
Crispy Muffin: Shirosenshi roughly translates to White Warrior or White Solider. Thanks for reading, the 'Sweet Mother that was good' comment made my day a lot brighter than it was!!