Okay, I'm back…sorry about last night, but I was completely dead (to give you an idea: I skated in San Francisco all day today, literally about 10 miles or so, in addition to pissing off security guards and busting out on stuff…lol, security guards are fun to mess with ^_^, and I'm less dead than I was last night), and, in addition to that, my writing ability completely crapped out. Oh well, you probably don't want to be reading this; so, without further delay, here's some review responses, then the story!
MV: I wouldn't do a lemon if I couldn't make it in-character, and it'll be hard to make it in-character but I'll manage: I've read stories before (Starlight and Shadows, for instance) that had a lemon in it but still managed to make it fit perfectly in character ^_^.
Lunthra: If you seriously hate him, sorry, but Jaken was brought back to life; I didn't forget, but I just couldn't think up a good way to write it in without making it worse, so I bypassed it. Sorry bout the confusion, everyone! I like Jaken, he's pretty cool, just kind of underrated…and by the way, there's no way would I have Sesshoumaru die, he's too cool for that; plus, how could the Great Lord Sesshoumaru fall to a pitiful hanyou (well, he's hanyou in a way) like Naraku?
Amanda: My dad says I should be a writer for a career, but I won't make it my primary occupation; it's hard to make a living at it, and I'd have to write for money and on a deadline for a company (it's different than a self-imposed deadline, so don't get me wrong), so that would kind of take the purity of writing away from me. That being said, I probably will write my whole life…it's too much fun to not ^_^ (I'm seriously looking forward to becoming fluent in Japanese so I'll be able to write in two languages…heh). Oh well, no worries about the future as of yet…except for writing more of my story for you guys to enjoy ^_^.
Smileygirl322: Well, apparently more people want a lemon than don't; and also, a lemon will be sort of integral to the end of my story (shhh! Don't tell anybody I told you that! ::looks at all other readers:: ::smacks self in head), so whether or not I write about it, it will take place in the story (I just thought you guys might want to read about it ^_^ ::perverted grin:: ::gets hit by Hiraikotsu::). Sorry to all who don't like it, but hey: this is a free country, so if you don't want to read it you don't have to; and I promise I will try to make it as painless on those who don't want it as possible ^_^.
Hikaru: Lol, I didn't mean anything by the comment I made; I just meant to say that I won't forget your name because I have someone in my class named that ^_^. I'll try to check out those two anime, they sound pretty good…personally, I'm downloading and watching RahXephon now: the first episode is a little confusing, but it kicks mucho ass, and I'm downloading and watching the third and fourth ones as we speak (I haven't had time to watch the 2nd yet…dang).
Kagome: Yes, thank you for going to kill Hojo…he's either hell bent on getting Kagome to be his girlfriend, dense as hell, or both. Here, you can borrow my sword: it'll be more fun that way!
Youkai Chick Supreme: Well, I just didn't think so many people would read/review my story; I mean, look at stories like Family Reunions and TransPossessing: I love that fic, it's long, good storyline, but not that many people have reviewed it. I didn't think it would be that long because it was originally going to be shorter, because a) I didn't think I could think of so many ideas and b) I didn't think response would be great enough to warrant me continuing it…like I've said before: I proved myself wrong on both of these points (well, I proved myself wrong on the first one; you all proved me wrong on the second one ^_^). In response to your thing about the murderer: if the murderer was in the village, it would be all bad because Inuyasha would go insane with rage and pretty much embody the villager's ideas of what youkai/hanyou are like…lol.
PS: Warning, there may not be an update Tuesday…there probably will be, I don't have school, but if I don't/can't get it done before I have the surgery (it's no big deal; I'm just getting a cyst removed, but the anesthetic doesn't like me…last time I had a surgery, wisdom teeth removed, I was throwing up for about eight hours afterwards); I'll do my best, though: I don't like having no update on two nights in one week!
Well, I don't own Inuyasha (and all of you should know that, why must you keep making me say it!?!?? WHY!? :P) so on with the story!
Chapter Thirty
"Hello?" A female voice, tentative, broke the short silence as the flap covering the door to the hut was shoed aside by the elder's daughter. "I…," she started, trying to compose herself in the face of the violent hanyou that now sat impassively in front of her. "I'm here to tell you what you want to know, but please: after I tell you, please…leave our village, we don't want any trouble with you.
"Just tell me," Inuyasha snapped, emotion gone as he once more invoked his fearsome, violent side. "Then I'll decide whether or not we'll leave."
Visibly shaken, the young girl tried to compose herself, and began shakily.
"This is…this is all that I know," she started, and began telling a tale that Inuyasha had waited sixty-five years to hear.
Silence filled the hut for a brief moment before she began, voice quaking with fear, "Well, as you know Hanyou-Sama, sixty-five years ago we were beset by invaders from the east; a huge band of them, no less than three hundred strong." She paused, looking at Inuyasha for permission to go on, until he growled,
"I know that. Continue."
"Well, they ransacked our village, seemingly without reason: we were, and still are, a poor people; we had no valuable trinkets, food, or wine they might be after, but they beset their siege upon us regardless. It lasted three days, burning, killing the women, raping those they could capture…they drove all they did not kill from the village and claimed the town as their own." She took a deep breath, still keeping her eyes averted to the ground as she continued in her shivery voice. "My father—the village elder—rallied all the men we had remaining, less than one hundred strong; seeing this was not enough, he also rallied all the women left alive and able to fight…with this force, no more than 200, we fought."
Kagome, surprise in her eyes, thought to herself,
'They went into battle with only 200 soldiers, outnumbering them three to two? With half of them farming women with no experience of fighting before?'
"We endured massive casualties…half of the women were either killed or wounded, a full two thirds of the men were killed, and none escaped without serious injuries, but we won." A brief glimmer of triumph passed through the girl's eyes as she wove her tale. "My father, for being only a poor farmer, was a great strategist…he led our force of two hundred into victory against stronger, more ruthless opponents, but still, not a day goes by that we do not think of the losses we endured…"
Inuyasha, slightly impressed by the elder's military strategies, nonetheless snapped, "I want to know about my mother, not about the battle."
The girl paled in fear, then hastily continued.
"We took no prisoners, save two: the leader of the mercenaries, and his son; his son was no more than a teenager by that time, but he had been well initiated into the ways of thievery, pillaging, and murder by that time. We created a temporary jail for them—the hut that we now reside in—already named the House of the Forbidden, both for the prisoners it contained, and…"
"And because of the woman and hanyou that resided there, am I correct?" Inuyasha stated bluntly.
Blushing softly in apology, she nodded, and said, "I think it was horrifying the way they continue to treat hanyou, Hanyou-Sama."
"I didn't ask for pity."
She nodded, averting eyes to the ground once more.
"That night, your mother was assigned to guard the prisoners; it would have been a man's job, but the men were severely wounded from their battles. The women were not much better off, however, but they were still able to move around…in any event, your mother was given the duty to guard the two prisoners before their execution…but…"
"But what?"
"They broke out of their prison and overpowered her," she whispered, genuine sorrow piercing her voice. "Before they left the village, the son executed her in the town square…he stabbed her through the forehead, driving the sword in slowly, and urinated on her corpse's face (a/n: It's a big insult anywhere, but urinating on someone in ancient Japan was one of the biggest dishonors anybody could have, except for a samurai having his blades broken)…" she trailed off, hurt in her voice as Inuyasha tried to comprehend this; rage struggling to burst through the dam in his chest as he tried to keep himself under control.
"Who did it?" He choked out in a deathly whisper; cool, collected image gone.
"The son," she said, as if he hadn't heard. "His name is never spoken in our village…that's why my father did not wish to tell you."
The rage that had threatened to overwhelm Inuyasha broke through the proverbial dam as he swept up the woman, slamming her into the wall as he snarled,
"WHO!?"
"His name was…," she sputtered, inhibition fighting strong as the acidic tang of the name would not allow her to speak it. "His name was…"
"WHO!?" Inuyasha repeated, trying in vain to keep his rage under control as he shook the girl violently.
"Onigumo," she whispered, turning her head violently to the side as she closed her eyes; forbidden name spoken.
Shock numbed Inuyasha: eyes went wide, liquid gold centers blooming wide with surprise; speech strangled as it struggled to get past the rock-hard lump in his throat. Emotion choked his chest, strangled his heart, until he felt like he was going to black out any second…grip on the girl's neck released, slumping her to the ground as Kagome rushed to comfort her, whispering,
"It's alright…don't worry…but I would definitely get out of here if I were you," she said urgently, ushering the girl towards the exit of the tent. "Don't worry…I promise we won't bother you anymore, just it would be…prudent…to leave, Ms???"
"My name is Seiko," she said as she exited the tent, turning as she bowed low to Kagome.
"Sayonara, Seiko-sama," Kagome whispered, as she turned around to face a silent Inuyasha, frozen in the position he had been when he released the girl, minus his arm, which had dropped limply to his side.
"Inuyasha?" Kagome whispered tentatively, stepping gently over to his side and placing her hand on his arm. "Are you…"
"How could I not know?" Inuyasha whispered softly, silver mane hooding his eyes, casting them in shadow, as his ears flattened against his head. "HOW COULD I NOT KNOW!?"
"Inuyasha, don't do this to yourself! It wasn't…"
But he was gone, lost in the throes of passionate rage; anger, hate, self-loathing, desperation, a life devoid of emotion…all culminated in this one moment, this one realization, as he drove his fist into the side of the house, deaf to all save the call of his anger—not even Kagome could save him now.
"He's taken everything from me now: he took Kikyo, turned her on me, made her seal me, and then killed her...he toyed with my heart, my emotions, made my life so hard…and now I find out he's killed my mother! He's taken everything away from me!" He roared, slamming another angry fist into the wall; memories of pain, loss, and suffering dredging themselves up, playing as clearly as day in his tormented mind…
His mother's eyes, filled with pain and anguish as she yelled at him to leave; body being dragged away by Onigumo…
Hate and fear filling him to the brim as he realized he was homeless now, cold hearts of the villagers matching the cold stones they hurled at him, driving away from the only place he had ever known; away from the only person he had other loved…
The face of Naraku, laughing in sadistic glee as he pieced together the Shikon no Tama, shining black as his malice and hate corrupted and tainted it; made only the worse by the hate and anger that flowed from his heart now, staining it a darker black…
"Inuyasha!" Kagome shouted, shaking him violently as she stared into his eyes, glassed over as pain-suffused memories welled up inside his mind; tainting his heart, blackening his soul even as she watched. "INUYASHA!"
…and the eyes of Kagome, azure blue, soothing his tortured heart; quelling the flames of hate and pain in his soul, giving him back to himself; eyes that had no bottom, filled with loe, caring, and warmth—just as her heart was.
But even she could not help heal this wound; even the one he cared so deeply for could not prevent the scar that this new revelation was leaving on the tattered remnants of his soul, and for that he was grateful—he wanted it to burn, wanted it to hurt. He wanted it to be a constant reminder of the hate he still held for Naraku; a fuel that would constantly drive him, never letting him forget his past losses at his foe's hands; never letting him lose the memories of humiliations he'd suffered.
And only one word pounded itself in his skull as he stalked out of the cabin, whispering, "Don't worry, I'll be fine," to Kagome; one word festered in his mind as he flexed his claws, wanting desperately to use them; wanting to rend flesh from limb, desiring nothing but the piquant sensation of the kill. Only one word burned in his mind.
'Naraku.'
Ah, poor, poor Inuyasha…seems like Naraku just likes being a bitch and breaking his life apart, doesn't it? Well, I hope you all liked this chapter, and I hope that I managed to inject a sense of realism into it…even if you truly love somebody, as I'm sure Inuyasha does Kagome (and Kagome does Inuyasha), even they can't protect you from every emotional wound you'll have inflicted on you; I realized I'd kind of been neglecting that in my story…gomen ne! (PS: I'm kind of a perfectionist, so just ignore stuff like this, lol)
Oh well, enough deep thought…thanks for everyone reviewing, and guess what: I'll most likely be hitting 400 reviews and 50,000 words on the same day! (I technically have 50,000 words now, according to Microsoft Word ((Fanfiction.net says I have 47,361 on my story, and this chapter's over 2,639 words…stupid word-cutter off thingie…I may have 50,000 tonight, but I seriously doubt it!) Of course, that's assuming I get the average of 15 reviews per day that I've been getting for the past few chapters, and please review if you'd be so kind ^_^.
On my final note for tonight, here's the current poll results for the lemon chapter:
Yes: Seventeen
No: Six
Neutral: Four
It looks like I'm going to be typing one, unless there's a sudden rush of people who don't want it…you don't have to post it in your review, if you want you can e-mail it to me at Azevedojsh@aol.com; either way, though, it looks like I'll be writing a sex scene ^_^. For those who don't want to read it, however, don't worry: it will be posted under a different name (something along the lines of Hanyou no Kon Lemon Scene…very original, I know ^_^), and I'll post a link to it in this fic, but you don't have to read it if you don't want to…most of the people that have responded will, however, so I hope you enjoy it!
Well, that's all for tonight…Suugaku no shukudai o shinakereba narimasen kedo, denakereba narimasen yo! Jaa, mata ne!