"I hate this," Kagome hissed, spinning away from the yourouzoku. Spinning away from the warbled screams and choked grunts of their dying victim. "They're on her like a pack of scavengers. I can't believe we're just letting it happen!"
Inuyasha reflexively wrapped his arms around her, shielding her from the gruesome spectacle. "That Kagura is a fool," he grated in a decibel too low for the swarming wolf youkai to hear. She knew he was angry that they had to participate in this ghastly event. He hadn't come willingly, but at least he'd come. "Why anyone would do all this for that annoying, big-headed, loud-mouthed idiot is beyond me."
Had the mood been lighter, Kagome would have commented on the irony of that statement. A dull guttural exhale wheezed through the air, and Inuyasha flinched.
"Hey," he rasped, nudging Kagome, "I…I think she's dead now."
Dead. Kagome's eyes began to leak uncontrollably. If Tensaiga refused to work for Sango or Inuyasha, then-
"Kagome," Sango whispered. "Are there…more?"
She cringed internally, steeling herself to execute her role in all this. Absorbing the Shikon no Tama left her with the uncanny ability to see auras, and with her fists still curled tightly in her boyfriend's shirt, Kagome turned around.
The yourouzoku had stopped moving, staggered randomly with their attention on the now lifeless - Agh, don't look at her, Kagome… - lifeless lump in their midst. Even the grays of the heavy downpour weren't enough to mute out the vibrant crimson of the blood that was splattered on the widows' pelts, dripping from their claws. She watched as the red haze of ire dissipated amongst the crowd, as shoulders hunched, and grimaces eased.
A few of the children - Kagome still couldn't believe the children had to be a part of all this - were hiding behind their mothers' legs...some muffling quiet sobs, while others donned horrified expressions too old for their faces. The adults' emotions weren't as apparent, but it didn't take a magnifying glass to see their distaste, and unease. It's not like Kagura had been attacking them to begin with...
Her address to the wolf youkai before the killing began had sent chills down Kagome's spine. The Wind User's words had been solid, her willingness to atone for the wrongs she'd committed, sincere. She declared without wavering that they could obtain their vengeance without condition or delay. It was obvious that this person before them was not the same one who had massacred their men. Inuyasha said that even her scent had changed.
But despite it all, "There," Kagome pointed out. "A dozen or so in the back. And over there. Beyond the crowds. They still hate. Seeing her death wasn't enough. They want it again."
"You got your words ready?" Inuyasha asked. "To explain to them that they have another shot at purging their hearts of revenge?"
Kagome nodded reluctantly, and then looked over to Sango, who had just pushed herself off of Kirara, Tensaiga in hand. The taiji took a step forward, and wavered.
"Sango-chan…"
Sango held her hand up to wave her off, and Kagome noticed how bad her fingers were trembling. As a matter of fact, the slayer didn't look well at all. Her face was white. No. Not white. Green.
"Hey, Sango," Inuyasha said, stabilizing her. "What. Are you nervous? Did you get a chance to practice with Tensaiga before you came?"
"Practice!?" she glared at him, uncharacteristically moody. "There was no time for that! How long do you think it'll take Sesshoumaru to realize it's missing? He's probably on his way right now to take it back, and scorch my ears with angry words."
A tense moment of silence passed, then Inuyasha snorted. "I'm just amazed you managed to steal it to begin with. First to get him to take the stupid thing off, and then to just walk away with it… What – did you knock him out or something??" he asked.
Sango's eyes widened, and she averted her gaze – but not before Kagome caught a furious blush tinge her cheeks. "Some…something like that…"
Kagome's mouth opened in a small 'O', sharing in her friend's modest embarrassment. There was certainly one way to get her husband's belt off, and wear him out enough to slip away unnoticed with his sword.
Oh, the advantages of being married…
"Hn? What do you mean… Oh, hell," Inuyasha grimaced, a little slower on the uptake. "Nevermind. I don't want to know."
"Well, then…" the taiji took a deep breath and made her way down into the den, looking about as comfortable wielding the sword as she would a severed head. The wolf youkai, now that their nemesis was dead before them, turned their attention to their visitors' presence.
"So why is it that you're here?" Ginta asked, more somber than Kagome had ever seen him. "Was it to bring us our enemy?"
"The Wind User brought herself," Sango snapped. "You know that." They backed up eyeing her suspiciously, as she raised the sword above her head. There was a definite hesitation. Uncertainty clear on her features, as she eyed the fleshy clumps that used to be Kagura. She swooped down. Kagome and Inuyahsa waited.
Nothing.
Cursing, Sango lifted the great Tensaiga again. Kagome uttered two words like a mantra over and over…
Please work, please work, please work…
But instead of swiping the blade, Sango accidentally dropped it. To all of their surprise, the woman fell to her knees, dropped her head between her shoulders and vomited.
Right next to Kagura's corpse.
Inuyasha choked, Kagome cried out, and both were at her side in seconds with some very confused onlookers. Kagome dropped down and eased her hand on Sango's shoulders. "Sango-chan… You're ill…"
"I…" she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, deep breaths arching her back. "I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me-"
"Keh. Give me this," Inuyasha cut off, picking up Tensaiga with his usual arrogant flare. "It can't possibly be that difficult." He stood over the corpse, and braced the sword in front of him like a samurai. His eyes narrowed and studied the body, and the air around it. Several seconds passed.
Murmurings started to rumble through Kouga's tribe, which only served to aggravate Inuyasha more. He snarled at them. "Shut up! We'll explain it all in a sec!" Whether it was out of frustration, or to prove a point, he hauled off and swiped at the air above Kagura. They waited.
Again, nothing.
Kagome's chest tightened.
He swiped again, and again, and again. "Stupid weak sword is brokennnnnngh!" Lightning quick, a flash of browns and whites streaked before them, hitting Inuyasha in the ribs. With a cry, the hanyou was catapulted back into the yourouzoku, knocking them down like pins in a bowling alley. But standing where he had been, having arrived so fast that none of them had caught his approach, was…
"Sess…Sesshoumaru!" Kagome squeaked.
Foul curses accompanied her from Inuyasha who was picking himself up in the distance, hopping mad. "What the---! What the hell was that for! It wasn't MY idea!" he shouted.
The great demon lord didn't even spare him an explanation, and both women found themselves scooting back when he jerked his head their direction.
Kagome cowered. Oi, he looks pissed…
"Shit," Sango breathed, and glanced defeat at her friend, before she met her husband's irate gaze.
"I said no." His deep voice danced with clipped words, his golden orbs on fire through slitted lids. He was terrifying. Kagome and Sango both jumped as he reached down and picked up Tensaiga in a white-knuckled fist. "I said no, and yet you not only defied me," his pitch rising, "You beguiled me!"
Sango flinched. As a matter of fact, his presence was so intimidating that even the wolf youkai stumbled back. "You don't understand-" Sango began.
"You know nothing of my sword," he seethed, swiping at the air. "You trick me. Steal it from me. You try to wield it, and cheapen Tensaiga's abilities by using it for—"
"But it's not cheapening it--"
"And to subject yourself to such savagery," he glanced pointedly at the bone-littered wolf den, Kagura's corpse, and then at the puddle of puke as though expecting it to be there, "in your condition, no less. We're leaving. Now."
Sango frowned. "My…my condition?"
His lips thinned, and she reflexively scuttled back as he stepped towards her. But apparently Sesshoumaru was in no mood to play cat and mouse. Kagome was knocked aside as a long arm reached out and hooked around Sango's waist, reeling her in until she 'umphed' against his chest.
But the taiji wouldn't let it go. "You said condition. What condition?"
For a moment, Kagome could have sworn he looked uncomfortable – something only confirmed by the fact that he tried to brush over it by trying to leave. Inuyasha appeared at her side, then…still peeved, but more interested in the interaction between the husband and wife.
After three steps, Sango pegged Sesshoumaru with a glare worthy of his own. "Sesshoumaru!" she snapped. "You think I can't tell when you're hiding something from me!?"
He tried to move on, but she hooked her leg around his knee, causing him to come to an abrupt stop. The mighty demon lord growled and glanced at her in aggravation.
"If something's wrong with me, then I think I have a right to know!" she yelled, and Kagome sensed a small fear beneath Sango's frustration. Could she be terminally ill? She had been acting rather sickly…
"Nothing is wrong with you," he answered.
"You're lying."
"You're pregnant."
"And I—" she stopped. Jaw dropped. Blinked several times. "What?"
Thinking the discussion was over, Sesshoumaru tried to carry her off, but Sango was far from finished. She grabbed long, wet locks of his radiant hair in both fists, and tugged until he grunted discomfort. When she finally found her voice, it wasn't pretty.
"WHAT!?"
He said nothing. Didn't even look at her, which was a sure sign he knew he was in trouble.
"And how long have you known this!?" Sango screeched.
"Sixteen and a half days."
"Six…sixteen and a half--!?" words were lost as she began to stutter, the pale hue to her face giving way to a fierce red. Kagome thought it was great news, but she'd heard all about the emotional dynamics of a pregnant woman. And Sango was rapidly going from shocked to belligerent. "And you weren't going to tell me!?"
Pause. "You would have figured it out, eventually."
"Wrong answer," Inuyasha whispered in Kagome's ear. "Look how quickly he forgot about Tensaiga when he realized he stuck his foot in his mouth—" Kagome shushed him.
Sango would have reeled, had her feet been grounded. "What! Is your human cow not important enough to share this news with!?"
Even Sesshoumaru seemed taken aback by her abrupt anger. "There's no reason for you to be so upset—"
"I'm only the MOTHER, you know!!"
Inuyasha started to snigger. "hehehee… He is so bust-ed—"
Kagome elbowed him.
Sango shook her fist. "I'M in charge of its life, and here I am endangering our child by lifting heavy things, subjecting myself to stress, and," she smacked her hand to her forehead, "drinking tea! I've been drinking tea all this time! GAH! Did you know that tea is bad for a babe in the womb!? Kagome told me it starves the fetus of nutrients!"
Sango fell into a coughing fit, and despite his aggravation, Sesshoumaru dropped his sword to brace her with his other hand. "You had no right being here, to begin with. Calm down. Stop getting so worked up over this—"
"No right?" In between coughs, she hooked her hand in the neckline of his shirt, and yanked him down until their faces were inches apart. "Sesshoumaru," the taiji was trembling, her temperament no doubt enhanced by the mood swings of the first trimester, "Get your mighty ass over there and resurrect that woman THIS instant, or so help me I'll stay HERE for the remaining eight months and deliver our baby in a pile of bones and excrement!!"
He blinked widely. His lips moved over unvoiced objections. The tables actually flipped, they turned so fast. Perhaps it was the visuals. Or maybe the daggers in her eyes. But after several moments, a red-faced Sango succeeded in glaring the powerful demon lord into submission. With a growl, Sesshoumaru set her down forcefully, picked up Tensaiga with a curse that even made Inuyasha choke, and marched over to Kagura's corpse.
Kagura clawed at the dirt as her spirit reentered her body for the second time that day. Crimson eyes fluttered open to see the dog demon's familiar back as he shuffled away from her, sheathing his amazing sword. She half-wished he'd never shown up.
Having a regenerated body didn't purge the memories. She had already begun twitching from the debilitating flashbacks of her last death, and curled into herself for several moments, until they subsided. Kagura wasn't sure how many more times she could do this. Kouga had been right. Being ripped apart by the nasty claws of angry widows was a terrible way to die.
Taking several deep breaths she forced herself up on shaky limbs. There was no hiding it from them now. The trauma these deaths were causing her psyche were taking their toll. Her bravery had waned. She was a trembling, pathetic mess, and two seconds away from begging them to spare her life.
Either that, or killing them all in self defense. Sure she had no weapon. No means of escape… But self-sacrifice went against every thread of her being, and if they came at her again… After she'd already given her life, twice…
"Kagura…"
It was the miko's voice. Kagome. That foreign, strange attire appeared in her peripheral vision. The girl walked over and crouched down, resting a warm hand on her back. Kagura was almost afraid to meet her gaze. The kid was probably going to try and talk her out of it. She was more than a little ashamed of the catch in her voice. "Still…more?"
Kagome's fingers tightened. "No, Kagura. There's no more."
The Elemental. No more? With her heart in her throat, she sat up and apprehensively stared at the hundreds of wolf youkai standing around her. Many still had her blood dripping from their claws, and splattered on their pelts. Her elbows began to shake again at the memories, but soon quieted when she saw their faces. Faces more pained than hateful.
Could...could it be over?
"Wind User."
Kagura turned her head to see a striking female shoulder her way through the crowd to approach them. Her eyes were violet. Her hair was wild, framing a pretty, angular face. She walked with authority, and Kagura knew without being told that she'd been married to one of the leaders.
Two young boys tagged along beside her, both eyeing Kagura and her friends with unmasked wonderment. The female rested her hands on their small shoulders out of what seemed to be reflex, and looked down at their once-sworn enemy.
"I think enough blood has been spilt today."
All was quiet. The rest of the tribe sustained her words with their silent agreement. The unspoken pardon caused Kagura's eyes to sting. She scrunched her lids shut and bowed her head so that they could not see the abrupt emotion in her face. Whether it was immense relief that she didn't have to suffer through another death, or joy that there might yet be a chance for her and Kouga, she wasn't sure.
Perhaps it was both.
The female turned to go.
"Wait," Kagura said, standing to her feet. Her legs were still shaky, and she leaned heavily on Kagome who looked at her with concern. There were two events that needed to happen today, her sacrifice just being the first. "Your people are still endangered."
The female quirked a brow in question.
"And they will be for years to come…"
Kagura held the woman's gaze, feeling a bit like her old self. She pushed away from Kagome. "Your land is coveted by powerful enemies. I can walk away from here, today, and the great yourouzoku might find themselves all…dead…a month from now from another attack."
The female flinched at the suggestion, but did not deny it. "What are you getting at?"
"How important are your people's lives to you?" Kagura asked. "How much do you want to stay in your homes? To flourish again?"
The female's guard was back up, and she glared. Her voice had dropped dangerously low. "You mock me with your questions. You should know that words cannot describe these desires."
Kagura made a fist, and took a step forward. "Then hear me out," she began, her nerves fluttering all the way up into her throat. Low murmurs coursed through the tribe. This was the moment. It all depended on how she proposed it. "I want an exchange from you."
The rustling through the tribe crescendoed. Kagura continued before she lost her nerve.
"I would stand by your tribe in the years to come. Not as friend. Nor protector. But as an ally in fortifying your defenses, and preserving your lives. Putting the wolf youkai back at the top of the tribal hierarchy, where they belong."
Several emotions battled for control of the female's face, right then. Her gaze dropped to her two sons clinging to her legs. She wasn't the only one taken aback by Kagura's offer. Stunned sounds ricocheted throughout the onlookers.
But their reluctance was nearly palpable. Damn their pride… "Think about it," Kagura added. "Your young ones would be safe. They could grow to adulthood. You could carry and bear children without the worries of having them snatched from you by hordes of hungry weasels…"
"You said an exchange," the female responded, not so quick to make any deal with Naraku's secondborn. "What are you asking of us in return?"
This was it. Had Kagura offered her help without condition, then their honor would have prevented them from accepting it. But to make a fair exchange - allowing them to contribute to their own protection… That's what all this hinged on. So naturally what she asked for in return had to be big enough to be plausible. And it just so happened to be the one thing she wanted all along.
"Well?"
"Your prince," Kagura answered without further hesitation, straightening her spine and raising her voice. This part of the deal was not negotiable.
"I want your prince."
He'd escaped her hordes sooner than she'd expected. Kagura had been sitting on Kouga's straw bedding, trying desperately to cope with her own deaths, and contemplating the absolute necessity for a door, when an air current arrived with his vibe on the wind.
Already!?
She stood to her feet, and dusted the straw off her borrowed attire. Nervous hands straightened a soft pelt skirt, and refastened a fur wrap that clung snugly to her breasts. It wasn't as classy as she was accustomed to, but it beat being naked. And the kimono she'd arrived in was now just a heap of bloody rags.
A heap of bloody rags that was still sitting in the center of the wolves' den. The wolves' empty den, thanks to Kagome's ability to coerce the tribe to vacate for a few hours. Apparently Kouga's hatred for her had been legendary. After the unanimous decision had been made to let the "exchange" be Kouga's call, since he was the one that would ultimately pay for it, no one questioned whether or not she'd need some private time to talk him into it.
To them, it was a given.
Two of his buddies had even laughed out loud when they heard her request, saying something about how Kouga would rather crawl up a dung demon's ass than be locked into a marriage with Kagura.
Had she not just finished getting violently killed twice in a row, she might have laughed right along with them. Perhaps fate was on their side after all-
Heavy breathing. Coming from the entrance. Kagura froze, excited, nervous, and fearful all at once. He's here...
Before he entered, she half-hoped that his tribe had intercepted him on the way up, letting him know what had transpired. But when the prince burst into the den, she quickly realized he must have rushed right past them.
He staggered in on shaky limbs, his vibrant eyes searching, and frantic. Cuts and sores covered him, giving her the impression that he'd been running through trees instead of taking the time to go around them. The boy even still had the black eye from when she'd backhanded him into her minions, which meant that his spirit was so traumatized, his body couldn't heal itself.
Her throat constricted. Oh, Kouga…
He didn't see her, his attention immediately drawn to the blood on the floor. On the rock walls. On the closest trees. It was everywhere. And it was hers.
He gasped, scrunched his eyes shut, took two steps, and fell to all fours. Those broad, strong shoulders began to shake, and he hunched over himself until his head was nestled in the nook of his arm. A white-knuckled fist started pounding the earth, and his voice echoed up to where she was standing in a form she'd never heard it in, before. Throaty, wordless pants that almost seemed melodic…
It took her a moment to recognize it as weeping.
Kami…he thinks I'm dead… "Kouga…"
He didn't hear her. She shook the rigidity from her limbs and quickly climbed down to the ground level, her soft feet scuffing the rocks as she ran up to him. She would have fallen on him, but he had to see her. Whole. And alive. "Kouga!"
He stiffened. She held her breath as his chin slowly lifted, seeing bare legs, fur pelts. The attire of his people, and not the silken, full-lengthed kimono she usually wore. His expression twisted, no doubt questioning his own sanity if he was hearing her voice from what was obviously a woman of his tribe.
"Look at me!" she hissed.
Her command tilted his head back enough, and when he saw, he transformed. Choked surprise. Flushed, wet cheeks stretched as his jaw dropped. Glistening, sapphire eyes looked her from head to toe, his brow lifting in the center, as though not daring to believe...
"It worked, Kouga," she started to ramble, "Listen. I know I scared you. Forgive me. I didn't want to do it that way, but you wouldn't let me try. And I had to try! Do you understand that? And your people - they're at peace, knowing they've avenged their dead. What's more, we can evennnumph!"
He'd tackled her. Sat up, lunged off his knees, and wrapped both of those long, strong arms around her waist, burying his face in her belly. His words came out in a hiccupping cadence. "I th-thought that…that they had... That you were..."
"It's okay." Her eyes watered as she leaned over him and cradled his head in her arms. It was both wonderful and excruciating to hold him like this. He was still shaking, those bittersweet, undignified whimpers muffled warmly against her skin. She pressed her lips against his crown, and ran her nails through his obsidian hair. "I'm fine, Kouga. Everything is going to be fine…"
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Leave a Review
