Ok wow.. I wasn't expecting to take so long in updating.. Sorry!! I have plenty of excuses.. but I'll only say that I hate school. Junior year sucks. IB is the biggest mistake of my life. On with the story.
*disclaimer* Mine. All mine. . . please? Just a little? No, alright. Inuyasha isn't mine.
Out of the Waves
Chapter Six: Return
It has been quiet for a long time now— the world outside has been so peaceful. There was that disturbance several years back caused by *him* no doubt. Ha. I bet he's nervous now, knowing that the two destined to destroy him have come together. Those two… I'm sure I wasn't mistaken in entrusting my powers with the girl, and the boy… I really should congratulate myself more often on pairing them together. Ah, Naraku, thinking I was gone, as if I would give up so easily. If only you knew I'm not as contained as you like to believe. Of course, I won't let out the secret unless I'm needed… maybe the time of our awakening is closer than I had even hoped..
* * *
Kagura forced herself to keep the cocky grin on her face. Naraku was really going to get it when she got back. She knew he was underestimating the hanyou and that girl. She'd have to make sure they never caught onto her fear. Let them think she thought they weren't even a challenge.
"Ah, Inuyasha, I see you've found some new friends. I didn't think that was your style." Kagura noticed Inuyasha looked a little fried, and judging from the slightly guilty look on the girl's face, she probably had something to do with it. It was the girl that really worried her. Destroying the girl before the girl discovered that she could destroy her would be ideal… and also easier said than done…
Inuyasha glared up at Kagura. He really wasn't in the mood for this. Getting shocked by Kagome so early in the morning wasn't the best way to start the day. Note to self: let Kagome sleep in.
He leapt up into the air, his claws just barely scratching Kagura, as she jumped back, her surprise showing only a second before her face slid back into her confident grin.
"Eager to start I see." Kagura pulled out her fan and the winds began to swirl ferociously around Inuyasha, the dust stinging his eyes. If she thought a little breeze was going to stop him, she was mistaken. Inuyasha jumped back at Kagura, compensating for the forces of the wind, and attacked with a series of punches and slashes, but none made contact.
Kagura began to laugh. "I've had more trouble controlling a leaf with my breeze, Inu-chan. Really, I expected more of a challenge." Suddenly a blur of motion knocked the fan out of Kagura's hand, and she gasped in shock. She turned her glare to the group of people behind Inuyasha. She recognized the guardian of the temple of Arysis, Sango, standing there, boomerang in hand and a look of pure hatred in her eyes.
The lower youkai were supposed to take care of her. Couldn't they do anything right? Kagura scowled in annoyance.
"Bothersome wench… Fuujin no mai." She muttered, sweeping her fan as the razor-edged crescents descended on the group. "Now, Inuyasha, let's continue without further distractions."
Kagome watched as Inuyasha and Kagura engaged in battle, frustrated that she was, yet again, stuck on the sidelines. She had stopped Kagura's attack with a simple barrier spell she had learned in Alereal, but she couldn't always control her powers above water, and even at home she wasn't spectacularly powerful. Her mother had always told her that the power was there, and occasionally Kagome could pull something extraordinary out of nowhere, like killing all those youkai when she had first emerged from the water, but the most she knew she could do was move objects, and stop them, and a few attacks that she doubted would do any good.
Inuyasha was holding his own against Kagura, but her wind blades were leaving nasty gashes wherever his skin wasn't covered by his red haori and she currently had him caught in a tornado, which was adding to the hanyou's irritation. Kagome bit her lip. Muttering a few words, she raised her hands. She might as well try something to help him out.
The spell was one meant to control the currents of the water, but apparently it had a different affect on land. Kagura's tornado stopped at once, dropping a disgruntled Inuyasha ungraciously to the ground as all the razor edged blades flew towards Kagura, who only managed to dodge a few of them. She turned towards Kagome, a fine line of red appearing across her cheek. She could sense the power in the girl, un-harnessed, wild and stronger than any other force she knew. Was the girl beginning to discover her powers?
Kagome, meanwhile, was trying to keep her face stoic. OK, so her spell had worked, not as she had planned, but at least it had done something. Now she had a very angry demon intent on killing her and her newfound friends for reasons that she was still shaky on. Her fear dissipated and became more of a feeling of annoyance. She had only been on land for what was it, three day's now? As if things weren't already hard enough, having no idea if the world from which she came was even still there. Plus she was stuck with an irritable, secretive hanyou. What a life. When she said she wanted to explore what was outside of the barrier, she meant gradually. At her leisure. Not having it all thrown at her at once.
Kagura walked towards Kagome, a slight sneer on her face. "So you are the girl from the prophecies? Looks like I've been over estimating you, Kagome. Needing the help of that pathetic hanyou. Really, you're fighting for the wrong side. You haven't been here long, there's still time to join Naraku, fight for the side that's going to win." Kagura looked over at Inuyasha who had recovered from her attack. "Betraying Inuyasha won't be so bad, he's used to it, aren't you Inu-chan?"
Kagome looked at Kagura with distaste. "You disgust me." She was sick of this. Ever since she left the ocean, she could feel her powers more. It was chaos within her body, every second the power grew, fighting to burst out. Without the water pressing down on her, she felt light, as if she had been freed from lifelong constraints. She could almost hear Inuyasha bristle with anger at Kagura's jibes. Who had betrayed him in the past? Whatever. I have been put through way too much in the past three days to have to put up with snobby demons wasting my time. I want more sleep, more food, more answers, dammit, and Kagura is in my way.
It was time to release some of that energy pushing at her. A pearly light began to glow from her hands as Kagura came closer. As the light grew brighter, Kagome could feel the energy within her coursing out, faster, faster, out of control. The light exploded in the direction of Kagura, blindingly white, endless and pure.
Inuyasha stood with Miroku and Sango, identically expressions of shock on all of their faces.
"Man, we totally lucked out getting her on our side." Miroku whispered to Inuyasha.
The light wavered and they could see Kagome fighting to control it. Finally she sucked it back inside of her, forcing it back into the confines of her body, and dropped to her knees.
"Go Kagura. Leave us now. Next time I will not be so kind."
Kagura, her clothes torn and hardly conscious, wearily summoned her feather, and flew away, not eager to face the wrath of Naraku.
Sango rushed to where Kagome had fallen, concern showing in her face. "Kagome, are you alright?"
Looking up at Sango from the ground, Kagome tried to smile and nodded, before slumping forward, unconscious.
*
When she woke up, she was riding on Inuyasha's back, going faster than she had ever imagined. Above them was Sango and Miroku on Kiara.
"Inuyasha, where are we?" Kagome asked sleepily. Inuyasha glanced back at her, surprised that she had woken up.
"We're almost back to Esliad, five more minutes maybe."
"Mhmm." Kagome murmured, before falling asleep again.
Inuyasha glanced back at her again. He had been impressed with the amount of power she had shown against Kagura. But the prophecy that Kagura had mentioned… what was it? Kagura had masked it well, but Inuyasha could smell the fear she had of Kagome, and he bet it had something to do with that prophecy.
For now though, he had to get Kagome back to Esliad. Answers could be found later.
*
King Kyoto took his wife's hand and led her into the empty thrown room. Adriana had placed a protective spell around the interior of the city, and he could see the youkai just outside the force field, waiting for them to weaken, destroying everything they could. He said a silent prayer for the people who had not made it to the city in time for the spell to start, now stuck outside, the remains of the Shikon's energy running out since the youkai had taken it. Thank god Adriana had had the sense to give Kagome the shard of Titania before Naraku could get the complete Shikon.
Adriana placed a comforting hand on Kyoto's shoulder. "Don't worry darling. Have faith in our daughter. We've always known this day would come and take Kagome from us. She was never ours to have. She is fulfilling her destiny. And we have to fulfill ours, here, protection our people. Kagome will prevail."
Kyoto looked wearily at his wife. His beautiful wife, with power and compassion beyond even his own. Without her Alereal would be completely destroyed. She had complete faith in Kagome, so sure that their daughter would be safe. Kyoto sighed. Adriana was right. Kagome did not belong to the Oceanic kingdom, even before the attack he had seen how though she loved it, it had become an aquatic prison to her. One that she longed to leave, but loved too much to do so. His mind flashed back to the day, 13 years ago, when they had found the girl they would raise to be the princess of the world that was not hers.
The legendary shard of Titania, lost so many years ago when Naraku attacked Oceania, the one ever-elusive shard. King Kyoto and Queen Adriana, and their small force of men had arrived at the eerie ruins of Titania. Adriana assured them that the shard was there, hidden from others, cloaking its power from the evil forces that sought to control it.
The party split up, wandering about the ruins in a reverent silence, then beginning to search for the lost soul. Kyoto and Adriana walked together towards the remains of the temple of Titaniar, hardly speaking, Adriana trying to pinpoint where the shard was.
Above them Kyoto noticed a small form, sinking towards the ocean floor and he called Adriana's attention to the listless form.
They watched as the body moved closer to them, until it was close enough to see that it was a little girl, her long black hair floating with the currents of the ocean.
"She comes from the surface," Adriana whispered, her voice breaking the silence that had fallen upon them. Kyoto did not miss the note of sadness in Adriana's voice as she looked at the pitiable figure.
The little girl's body landed lightly on the ocean floor at the steps of the temple. Kyoto took a step towards the girl when suddenly, a bright light enveloped her, lifting her body off the sand and wrapping her in a cocoon of light.
Kyoto looked back at his wife in question and saw a look of understanding on her face. He turned back to the little girl and watched as the light began to work its way around her, the whiteness separating into tiny strings of different colored light weaving themselves all around the little girl.
For a second he thought he heard voices, lyrical, almost singing, and he was struck with the thought that it was those lights that were singing, laughing, working on that little girl. With a bright flash, the voices disappeared, and the little girl floated down again, her feet landing softly on the sand. Kyoto gasped. The long ebony hair had been changed to a glowing silvery white, like a reflection of the lights that had just surrounded her.
The eyes of the child snapped opened and Kyoto gasped again. Her eyes were piercing green, with an ethereal light of their own and in them tears glistened, threatening to spill over..
Adriana walked past him, a slight smile on her face and Kyoto wondered at the wisdom of his wife.
Crouching down, Adriana spoke to the child. "Come here, darling, I've been waiting for you." The girl took a cautious step towards Adriana, and then stopped to look at something in her hand, as if shocked that it was there. She stared at it a moment and a cloud covered the clear green eyes before she looked back at Adriana and smiled, closing the distance between the two.
"What's your name, sweetheart?" Adriana asked.
"Kagome." The girl replied with a small smile. She took Adriana's hand and in it placed a small shard.
"Thank you Kagome, you've been a great help to us." Adriana took Kagome's hand and turned to Kyoto. "Call the men in, dear, we've found what we came here for."
Kyoto obeyed, millions of questions pounding in his mind, but knowing that Adriana would explain it all to him later, and once again he marveled at the phenomenon that was his wife.
After that incident at Titania, Kagome had been adopted as Kyoto and Adriana's daughter. She had no recollection of any life outside of the one she lived under the sea, and they never spoke of how they had found her dead, and how the shard of Titania had somehow saved her. In retrospect, perhaps he should have spent more time deciphering the enigma that was his new daughter, but instead he loved her as her own, so much that he nearly forgot she was not his. In retrospect, maybe all of this could have been avoided.
"Hindsight is twenty-twenty, darling." Adriana said, as if reading his mind.
Kyoto nodded, and the two walked back out into the large ball room, filled with refugees of the destroyed city. They had plenty of work to do here. Kagome could take care of herself.
*
Kagome groaned. She was back in her bed at Esliad, her light on dim, her body aching. I feel like I just got buried under a pile of bricks, she thought, sitting up in bed. Her stomach growled and she looked at the clock by her bed. The cafeteria had probably stopped serving food ages ago. Her stomach growled again.
"Alright, alright already!" she muttered, swinging her legs out of her bed. Since when did her stomach get so impatient?
She was wearing a pair of loose pajamas with the sign of Esliad embroidered on them and she wondered vaguely how she had gotten into them. She padded across her room in bare feet and slipped out the door and headed in the direction of the cafeteria. She paused for a minute outside of room 117, wondering if she could wake Inuyasha up and convince him to come down and eat with her, but she figured that would just make him more irritable than usual.
Walking into the cafeteria, Kagome was relieved to see that she was not the only one awake. She wandered over to the snack machine and tapped on it, wondering how Inuyasha had managed to make that chocolate come out of it.
"Are you new here?" a kind voice asked, and Kagome turned to see a handsome young man standing behind her smiling. She gave a weak smile in return and nodded.
"More than you know." She would have chuckled but her stomach was threatening to revolt if she didn't get some food in it faster.
"Well, here, let me buy you some food. I'm Hojo."
"Kagome," she replied. "Nice to meet you."
Hojo walked over to a machine in the wall, put in some money and typed in a few things.
"I hope you like chicken," he said smiling.
"I love it." Kagome said, deciding it was unnecessary to mention that she had never even heard of chicken, let alone eaten it and liked it.
Hojo handed Kagome her food and lead her over to a table.
"So where are you from? Why did you join the Resistance?" Hojo asked, eager to learn more about her.
Kagome looked up from her meal, which she was devouring hungrily. "Alereal."
He gave her a questioning look. "Alereal? I've never heard of it." But he was interrupted by shouting in the courider.
"You pervert! Stop following me around!" An angry Sango stormed into the cafeteria, a freshly slapped Miroku close behind. Sango's face lit up when she saw Kagome.
"Kagome! How are you? You've been asleep for hours!" Sango and Miroku sat down at the table, disregarding Hojo completely.
"Yea, well I have no idea where all that power came from and it wore me out." Kagome replied brightly. "So what's going on? Where's Inuyasha? Oh, by the way, this is Hojo. Hojo, this is Sango, and Miroku, though you might have met him already, I don't know." Hojo smiled and nodded at them.
"Inuyasha is talking with Hakori, probably discussing what we'll be doing next." Miroku replied, "He should be done right about now, want to go get him?"
Kagome nodded and they stood up. She turned to Hojo.
"Thank you so much for the food. Maybe I'll see you later."
Sango waved at him and then the three walked out of the cafeteria. They walked to the main room where Hakori conducted business just as Inuyasha walked out, a thoughtful look on his face.
"What's going on Inuyasha?" Miroku called, getting his attention. "What's the master plan?"
"Hakori was glad that we found the Guardian of Arysis safe, and with the soul of Arysis still in her control, but he is anxious to obtain the other shards before Naraku can get them. The more shards he has, the more uneven the scores become between us. He's planning on going to Oceania to see if we can gain the Shikon, but first he wants us to travel to Tanli to bring that Guardian and the shard back here." Inuyasha filled them in as the walked back towards their rooms.
"What about me?" Sango asked. "What am I supposed to do?" Though she had already decided. There was no way she would wait at Esliad while Kagome, Miroku and Inuyasha gathered the shards. Especially when Naraku had Kohaku.
"Hakori was unsure, but he decided that having you travel with us would be a good idea, though he is nervous about the idea of letting the soul of Arysis travel so near to danger." Inuyasha replied.
"So when do we leave?" Kagome asked quietly.
Inuyasha looked at her, not missing the distress in her eyes. She was worried about Alereal, and he could tell she wanted to go straight there to check on her people, not travel about on land while Alereal had to fight without her.
"We'll stay here tomorrow and prepare. Tanli is farther away than Arysis, and from there we might be going straight to the other temples, depending on how things go. We'll leave early the next day." Kagome nodded, a determined look coming over her face, and Inuyasha was relieved. This was a powerful girl he had stumbled upon, and her distress was discomforting.
The group reached the dormitories, and Miroku turned into his room beside Inuyasha's, after offering half of his bed to Sango, who had given him a slight slap and then stalked off down the hallway with Kagome.
Inuyasha entered his room and closed the door behind him. He walked to his bed and flopped down, exhausted. He wanted more than anything to defeat Naraku, had dreamed about destroying him for as long as he could remember. His need for revenge was intensified by the betrayal that cut into him, his memory a constant reminder of his weakness and his failures.
Inuyasha turned off the light and fell asleep in his clothes, too tired to get ready for bed, knowing that his dreams would be plagued by memories he always tried so hard to forget.
----
o.O this seems like such a long chapter! I said before that I like long chapters, so I'll have to see how this long this will be once its translated to FF.net format.. hopefully long! I used my entire snow day to work on OoTW, and now I have none of my homework done for tomorrow. -_-.. oh well. If you guys review, it will all be worth it! And now, rather than start the home work that I've been putting off, I'm going to rearrange my outline for the next couple of chapters. I want to develop Inuyasha a little more; so far its been mainly about Kagome, so I have to work that in there. Until next time!
~reina