Whoa…I'm impressed and very grateful for the number of reviews on chapter 12, 16 at last count with probably more still to come…wow, didn't think I'd get that many on this chapter (and the vast majority want to see two people killed: Kikyo (can't say as I blame you for that; I'm not sure if the original Kikyo was any kinder than the current ash-and-clay Kikyo, but in any event she seemed like a jerk and seemed to manipulate Inuyasha rather than love her) and me (heh, can't say as I blame you about that one either; but I'd prefer to see Kikyo killed 0^_^) for leaving another cliffhanger.
Well, three people responded to my question as to what Kikyo's soul-grabber things were called, and I know I said I'd do a request for the first one, but I've decided that I'll do all of your requests (if you have any ^_^). Thanks to Diablo, Amaya Shinkuyoake, and Inuyasha ((hee hee…it sounds funny to thank Inuyasha himself…)) for responding to my call for aid; and also, although I'm not exactly sure about this (it's hard to translate Japanese words into English without seeing the Kanji characters, because each Kanji has separate meanings; example: the verb 'kiru' can mean both 'to wear clothing' and 'to cut'; the only way to tell the difference would be to read the kanji ((you could read it in context, but it's easier merely reading the kanji)); but I think part of the Shinidamachuu is death and insect; I'll have to ask my Japanese teacher about that…
Finally, to Sauratos: if you think me winking at you in good humor is bad, never hang around with my friends…they enjoy being perverts and messing around with people, heh heh heh….
Quick vocab: Shi ne is actually one word (Shine), but I didn't want people reading it and thinking that I'd put something like "to shine" into my story; Shine is a command, except that it's pretty rude. It translates as, "DIE!" in Japanese.
Omae: Harsh word for 'You' in Japanese; used with your enemies/people you don't like.
I don't own Inuyasha, but I would be content with owning the Tetsuaiga…THEN I could own Inuyasha! ^_^
Chapter 13
Kikyo's lips pressed into Inuyasha's, cold as ice; so thin, so bland, 'So passionless…' Inuyasha realized as he purposely kept his hands limp at his sides, Kikyo drawing away from him, a small smile on her face as she asked,
"Well?"
Inuyasha's eyes—eyes that could be as hard as stone, yet as soft as a newborn's touch—hardened once more as war began inside him; heart cried for him to accept Kikyo once more, giving no heed to Kagome; head cried for him to do away with her, to remember Kagome, to remember what Kikyo had done to him, and to remember what Kagome had done for him…
With a deep breath of resolution, Inuyasha began; voice as cold as the wind, yet hard as cut diamond even as he fought every word coming out.
"You don't love me, Kikyo," he whispered as her taste, ashes and dust, lingered upon his lips. "You've never loved me, and I've never loved you."
The words came quickly, fluidly without interruption, but every fiber of Inuyasha's heart rebelled at these; crying at him that he was dooming his love for her, she still loved him; it yelled that he could still love her; it screamed that there was still a chance—but for once, Inuyasha's head saw things clearer than his heart.
"W…what!?" Kikyo gasped, starting as though she had been visibly slapped.
"You…I…we may have thought we loved each other, Kikyo; hell, we may have for a short time, but it wasn't to last. You were too cold, too bound by your years in training as a miko, to ever be fully open and innocent…you always kept things to yourself, hid from me, and never allowed me to see the real you," he breathed in a heated voice, growing more and more forceful as veils fell from lies spun as finely as spider-web; berating himself for never being able to see them before, Inuyasha continued. "You never really cared for me, did you? In all our time together, I've never seen you show one ounce of emotion, of compassion, towards anyone else: you voice it, but you never speak it."
Kikyo stood, shock being replaced by realization; realization giving way to truth; truth giving way to blind fury as she spat back,
"And you've found these in my reincarnation? Someone who, need I remind you, is nothing more than a part of me!?!?"
"She's more than just a part of you, Kikyo," Inuyasha grated out, an aura of fury growing, nearly visibly, around him. "She's more innocent…more pure…more compassionate; she may be your reincarnation, but she's NOTHING like you."
"So you're forsaking me for her, is that it?" She growled out, eyes flashing over to where the sleeping girl lay; blissfully unaware, locked inside her dreams even as Inuyasha and Kikyo were now painfully aware of every emotion spearing them in their hearts. "I would have given you love; purity; HUMANITY!" She cried, silencing the creatures of the night as her own fury began to grow palpable.
"Humanity? HUMANITY!? That's always what it was, wasn't it!?" He cried, voice gaining in power and force as fury seeped its way into his heart. "I wasn't good enough for you as a hanyou, was I? I was nothing more than a filthy half-blood whose evil demon half had to be exorcised; you never even gave a thought that maybe I wanted to become a full demon—hell, maybe I even liked the way I was before!"
"You know full well that you don't like the way you are, Inuyasha: that's why you seek the Shikon no Tama now, ne?" She grinned icily.
"Maybe I didn't, but guess what: Kagome doesn't care, she only wants me to be happy. She's risked her life for me before, put her own pure heart on the line to save me—nothing more than a filthy hanyou. Would you ever do that, Kikyo?" He snapped, calm demeanor gone altogether from him.
Kikyo stood there, clenching her bow in rage as her eyes sped back and forth between Inuyasha and Kagome; anger radiating from her like heat from a furnace as she struggled to find words for her inexpressible emotions; Inuyasha, meanwhile, turned and began walking back to the campsite, but before he was completely out of earshot, he whispered,
"Good-bye, Kikyo; but know this: I won't raise a hand against you, even if you come after me: but if you try to hurt Kagome, if you injure her, even in the slightest, I swear that you will pay dearly," sounding almost exactly like Sesshoumaru as the short distance betwixt the two and the camp began to swallow up Inuyasha.
For Kikyo, that was the final straw; had she been logical, she would have thought better of it and merely left, content with her life. A woman scorned, however, can have dire consequences, as she was soon to prove; for as Inuyasha turned and began waking back towards his camp, Kikyo let out a shriek that shook the heavens as she notched an arrow, bursting into a pinkish purple blaze of flames as she leveled it at Kagome.
"SHI NE, KAGOME!" She cried, no tears falling from her eyes or heart as she let the arrow fly towards the girls sleeping form…
…but a sharp ring of metal upon metal sounded through the clearing as the transformed Tetsuaiga, its transformation wavering for a second before springing back to its solid form, blocked the hate-fueled soul arrow from its intended target.
'Just as I saved Kikyo from Onigumo's partner…' Inuyasha realized; dwelling upon this for but a second, he whipped around to see Kikyo standing there, rage suffusing her every pore as she screamed out,
"OMAE!!!!"
"I warned you, Kikyo," he snarled in a calm voice that would have made any demon proud as the Tetsuaiga pulsed in his hand. "I warned you to not harm Kagome, and instead you try to kill her; I'm giving you a final chance, Kikyo. I'd strongly advise you to take it."
"I. DON'T. CARE!!!" Kikyo roared, loosing another arrow, once more aimed at Kagome, but this was too much for Kikyo. Hatred—a blinding, unholy hatred that had long lain dormant—flared inside Inuyasha once more as Kikyo's rage prompted her to kill; condemning her to hell even as the pure arrow flew to slay the pure girl.
Without a word, anger flaring in an almost visible aura around him, Inuyasha raised his sword with blinding speed; with the same speed, he brought it down, no more than a silver crescent slicing through the air with a hissing noise as it once more blocked the Soul Arrow.
But he was not content merely with this; even as the Tetsuaiga's transformation waned, Inuyasha roared, "KAZE NO KIZU!!!!!!!". Bright yellow energy barked forth from the sword, roaring as it slammed into the ground; huge gashes sprang up in the earth as the energy slammed into Kikyo, rending her limb from limb; her cry of, "INUYASHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!" was masked by Inuyasha's sole, solemn words as he began walking back towards sanctity; warmth; and love.
"May you at last find peace in Hell, Kikyo…," he whispered, feeling as if a burden had been lifted off his shoulders, only to be impressed upon his heart.
His words, however, did not fall merely upon a deaf forest: Kagome was awake.
Well, there it is; I was going to have Kikyo die regardless, and I was leaning heavily towards her dying in this chapter; your reviews cemented it, however. And speaking of reviews…WOW! Almost 20 reviews on one chapter; that's just amazing to me…thanks to all who reviewed! It really makes me feel good that people enjoy this story, and I try to give back to those people by updating every day; someday I'll have to break this daily updating streak (coughduringfinalscough), but hopefully this won't happen for a while: I enjoy writing, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it.
Well, I've got to start doing my history homework (gah, poetry analysis…), so here's where I sign off till tomorrow. Jaa, mata ne!