Begin Just the Dirt and Tears *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Inuyasha quietly shifted through his old bowl of Raman. It was four days old, and only contained some dried up noodles, but it didn't matter to him. Right now, it was the only thing he had that could remind him of Kagome. . . of her sweet scent that he hadn't been able to get off his mind.
The day she left he had taken off away from the nosey monk and exterminator. Shippo had tried in vain to follow him, but Inuyasha was quick in making a near 100-mile distance between him and all the people who might see his tears. But now that he was alone, he began to wonder if it was the best thing that he had left. If he was still with them, they may have been able to get him to go back through the well. Maybe they all could have at least tried to make it through there to get to her, all of them together. All he wanted to do was to touch her one last time. If he could just have that, than nothing else would matter. And maybe if he just had that one last chance, he'd tell her what he had been feeling all this time. But it was too late to think of 'what if s' now.
Slowly he pulled himself up off of the tree limb, groaning as he did. Ever since she left it felt like he had this huge weight on his heart. It almost made it painful to move. As if something had squeezed the life out of him. He looked down at his belly and rubbed it gently. How long had it been since he had eaten? A week? Two? He reached over and grabbed the small bowl of Raman. Gently licking his index finger, he rubbed it around the inside edge of the bowl. Bringing his finger back up to his mouth, he sniffed it for a moment, then closed his eyes and licked off the taste. In his mind, he could see Kagome's sweet smile. The one she always gave him when he licked his bowl clean. It was something he couldn't ever forget.
'Perhaps this is all my fault' Inuyasha thought to himself as he lowered his finger from his mouth. 'I shouldn't have driven her away like I did.' He shook his head slowly and lowered it to look at the red cloth covering his trembling skin. 'I swear Kagome; I didn't know things would be like this. Kagome. . . I miss you so much. . .' Silently a tear fell free from his eye. Inuyasha quickly reached up and wiped it away from his face.
"I've had enough." He grumbled to himself as a low growl began to form in his throat. "I've had enough of this life and of this world and of this shitty smelling dirt!" Angrily he drew the Tetsusaiga from his side and aimed it towards a nearby village. "And it's all your fault!!" He yelled, causing the birds from nearby to fly out of the trees. "It's your damn fault!!!!!!" Quickly he began to leap through the forest. Anger flared in his golden eyes that he had never felt before. And suddenly, he felt nothing.
* * * * *
The small village of Seemeku had been resting peacefully for the night. The evening guards were standing out around a small fire, over looking the quiet town that lay before them. It really was a small village, containing only thirty or forty straw huts, along with several dirt roads that twisted in between and around each hut. A few small children ran along the road in a rush. Their brown and dirt-stained clothing blew in the wind, as they smiled and laughed, dashing around a lazy horse and carriage that was creeping it's way up the road. The guards laughed as they heard the old owner of the carriage cry out a few profanities to the troublesome youths.
"That's pry my Tenta." Scoffed one of the guards as he pointed his spear toward the road. "He's always getting himself into trouble." The other guards nodded in agreement, grinning tiredly.
"You better yell at him to get home soon." Said another guard as he stood from the cross-legged position he was sitting in. "You know it's dangerous to be out at night, especially now, with all the stories." The men all looked up at the burly character and again nodded in agreement.
"You know those are only stories." Tenta's father said, lowering his spear. "Besides, Tenta's heading home. And if anything does come to this village, you know we're here to protect it, Muuri." Slowly the old guard settled back on the ground, the grin he once wore no longer to be seen.
"I don't know." Muuri paced over towards his comrade. "Maybe they are just stories. But then how can you explain all the slaughtered villages?" Some of the others made a quick grunt and turned away from Muuri. It wasn't a thought anyone wanted going through their heads, especially with families to protect. "I mean, Sana," Muuri gestured towards Tenta's father, "you've seen this carnage, haven't you? Innocent women and children being torn to shreds. And no one can seem to explain how it happens or why. They simply say there's a flash of gold, and it's all over!" Muuri's voice rose and became shaky as he remembered the few slaughtered villages he, himself had seen.
"No Muuri, you know those are just stories. Tenta will be safe. . ." Sana trailed off as he looked back towards the still resting village.
"A flash of gold?" Another guard asked hesitantly. "I hear it is a magnificent demon that only comes in the night. Now that all the jewel shards are collected, they say he is seeking his revenge on the one who took the jewel from this world." The guard's eyes grew wide, as if he was telling a ghost story. "They say he never sleeps or eat. And if you see him crying in the woods, he will fly in a jealous rage up towards the tree tops screaming a woman's name!" The man was now standing, his eyes looking wildly out towards the woods.
"Sit down, you know that's not how it is." A younger guard with jet-black hair pointed to the now standing guard. "You know they say he howls like a wolf if you see him in the woods." The men all muttered to themselves at the debate that was now approaching. "They say he wears a loin-cloth of animal's fur and has long black hair!"
"That's not true!" The standing guard said, diverting his eyes towards the younger guard. "He wears a cloak of red, and has long silver hair with short pointed dog ears!" The men began muttering louder, chanting for the other two guards to fight. The younger guard stood up and removed a small knife from his side pocket, flipping it in between his fingers as if to scare away the other guard. Suddenly, a loud screech erupted from the woods.
"What the hell?" Asked Muuri in a small whisper. The men quickly stood, their attention turned towards the sound as they watched the woods. The trees began to shake violently, as if being pushed by a giant heard of demons. "What is that?" Muuri stepped closer to the edge of the cliff causing a few pebbles to slide down the tall overlook. He watched the path of destruction being made through the trees, as did the other men. "Do you hear that?" Muuri questioned as Sana stepped up beside him.
"It sounds like the devil's cry!" Yelled one of the guards as he began backing away from the group. "It's the demon, I tell you!! It's the stories!!" His eyes grew wide in terror as he turned and ran from the other men, and from the approaching danger. The other men quickly began to panic, rushing around each other in search of something to protect them. A long howl grew from the woods, as the men watched something jump up, something that looked human yet sounded much more dangerous. The wind became fierce, circling the men in a cloud of dust. The guards began screaming as something ripped through their bodies. The sound of bodies falling to the ground could be heard as the dust soon moved from the cliff and made it's way towards to village. A large rumble was heard, and in what seemed like a mere second, the entire village of Seemeku laid in ruins. Fire scorched every hut, as women and children could be seen scattered along the roads, their bodies tattered and broken. Blood sprayed the once beautifully golden cornfields, tinting everything with a deep red of despair.
Tenta, who had been traveling away from the village to pick some mushrooms, turned just in time to see his family's hut destroyed. The boy's eyes filled with tears, as he slowly backed away from the carnage. Suddenly, a low growl began to seep from the woods behind him. Tenta's body trembled as he slowly turned his head to see a large figure standing behind him. Screams began to envelop in his throat, but were unable to escape, allowing only whimpers to come from his lips. The figure drew closer to the boy.
"D. . . ddad?" Tenta asked, fear etched all over his face. The figure laughed maliciously, causing the boy to jump a bit. Tears filled his eyes and began streaming down his dirt-covered face.
"I'm not your father, you stupid boy." The figure sniffed the air around Tenta, inducing more fear into the small child. "You smell disgusting." The shadow spat. At that moment, a large boomerang flew through the air, cutting the trees in half. Tenta fell back and watched the boomerang fly back to it's owner. The young woman caught the flying weapon and pulled it back above her head. Her body was covered in a tight suit, and a type of mask that Tenta had never seen before covered her face. Tenta drew back, not knowing whether to fear this woman or run to her.
"Stay away from him!" Yelled the women. She threw the boomerang again, this time aiming it at the figure. The figure laughed as it carelessly jumped away from the weapon, allowing only his shadow to be hit. A voice echoed in the woods.
"Ah Sango, would it please you if I died?" The voice scoffed. Tenta searched for where the voice was coming from, but wasn't able to follow the figure's quick leaps from tree to tree. His attention averted towards Sango, pleading at her with his eyes to save him. Sango nodded at the boy, turning back towards the creature.
"It would give me such pleasure." She mused, waiting for the figure to appear before making her next attack.
"I got what I came for." The figure said in a sarcastic voice. "I have no need for you or for that horrible smelling boy." The wind grew loud and violent, and within seconds, the figure was gone. Sango shook her head and drooped her shoulder, allowing the boomerang to crash into the ground. Her breathing became heavy as she did.
"I shouldn't have to do this." She muttered to herself. Her body began to tremble, as if it were cold. "I don't want to kill you. . ." Her voice trailed off as her breathing regulated once again. Tenta looked towards the woman. Quickly he stood up and raced to her, wrapping his small arms around her waist. Sango's eyes widened for a moment before she wrapped her own arms around the boy. "Shh." She said quietly. "He's gone." She rubbed the boy's back as he began to cry harder into her stomach. "I know what it's like to lose your family." She said in a warm voice. "Things will be ok." Tenta took his head away from her and looked up at her.
"What. . . what was that?" He asked in a frightened voice. Sango frowned, looking out at the destroyed village. Slowly she removed her mask and looked back towards Tenta. She smiled slightly, trying her best to calm the small boy down.
"It was. . ." Her voice trailed off for a moment as the smile left her face. She pulled Tenta closer to her. "It was just a bad dream."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* End Just the Dirt and Tears
Well; I hope you all liked it!!! I know it may seem sort of confusing now, but it'll make sense in the later chapters. Anyway, I need another 7 reviews before I can post the next chapter. Good and bad, I need all the crit I can get!!
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