Disclaimer: As if none of you already knew, Inuyasha is not mine. But what
you don't know is that Miroku is! Haaahahahaha! wakes up Darn and for a
minute there I thought it was real. .
And, well, sorry I didn't put in that and other things in the first chappy, but I was a bit pressed for time. I'll try to edit it when there's more of that. (Never. XP) I would enjoy a little R&R, but please don't flame me. This is my first fic...I would be crushed. : P
Chapter 2: The First String is Dropped Rin sat next to Shippo on a tree branch at the edge of the forest. Both were oblivious of the destruction that had occurred on the hilltop. Rin was happy to have found a new playmate, and was grinning ear to ear. Shippo was in a more serious mood. How did Rin know about Sesshomaru? How could she have traveled with him? Sesshomaru thought of all humans as incapable weaklings. And yet he cared for this scrawny little girl? Oh well. It didn't matter. She obviously wasn't dangerous. Just a bit ditsy.
Suddenly Rin jumped off the tree branch. "Master Sesshomaru calls Rin," she told Shippo. "Come come! You must meet him!" she insisted, pulling on Shippo's sleeve happily. Shippo had not told her of his allegiance to Inuyasha. Now he became apprehensive. "No," he told her. Rin frowned. "What's the matter? Don't you want to meet Sesshomaru-sama? He will take care of us, and we will travel with him forever and ever!" "No," Shippo told Rin, a little more firmly this time. Rin stared at him. "Don't you want Sesshomaru-sama to protect you? I'm sure he'll let you stay with us if I ask him to!" Shippo thought a moment. Then, quick as lightning, he pulled her hands from his sleeve and darted away.
"How rude!" Rin said to herself. She knew she should follow Sesshomaru's call, and yet...she felt as if something was pulling her to the little kitsune instead. She was curious why he did not want Sesshomaru to protect him as he protected her. So she followed Shippo. He led her, unknowingly, to the same hill they had started out on. She heard him call out to someone.
"Kagome? Are you there? Hello? Is anybody up there?" Shippo shouted. "Inuyasha? Kagome? Sango? Miroku? Anybody?"
Shippo wondered why no one was answering. Then his little fox ears twitched as he heard a small voice call out to him. "Shippo? Is that you?"
Shippo just about fell over with happiness. He ran up and onto the top of the hill, then stopped and stared. So much blood...all over...he glanced at where the voice had come from, and cried out as he saw Kagome lying there in a pool of blood. Both her legs were bent at odd and grotesque angles, and her clothes were stained red. He ran to her, ignoring the blood. "Kagome..." Her eyes were dull and lifeless, her face and body encrusted with blood. She managed a small smile for Shippo.
"Kagome...what happened? Where are the others?" Shippo asked fearfully. He felt like he was staring at a corpse. Kagome nodded towards the other side of the bushes. Shippo was afraid to peek over at what lay there, but he racked up his courage and looked. There lay Miroku and Sango. Shippo couldn't tell if they were dead or not. Suddenly Miroku's eyes opened. "Sango...live...please..." was all the monk could say.
Shippo couldn't stand it anymore. He began to bawl like a baby, his mournful wails echoing over the nearby hills and forests. Miroku looked up at him, and his expression changed to one of pity. No child should have to see such things. He reached his hand up painfully and patted the top of Shippo's head. Shippo's wails eventually became less and less lengthy, and eventually became the sniffles that come when there are no tears left in your body to cry.
"Shippo...you must be brave now," Miroku told the kitsune. "You must go alone to get help for us all." Shippo's crying ceased, and he nodded, wiping away the last of his tears from his face. "Where...where is Inuyasha?" he asked. Miroku frowned. "I do not know. But go, now. Go to the nearest village and get help. Hurry Shippo." He laid his head over her heart and listened. "She will not last much longer."
Shippo nodded grimly, and then took off running like he had never run before. He had no idea where the nearest village might be, but he knew that if he kept running, he would find someone eventually.
Nearby, at the edge of the hilltop, Rin was crying silently. She did not know these people, but they were friends of Shippo's and they were badly hurt. She knew what she had to do. She took off running through the forest, running towards Sesshomaru's call.
Sesshomaru was becoming annoyed. Why weren't Rin and Jaken coming? They never took this long to answer his call.
Earlier he had painstakingly washed his garments and his flesh of the blood from the battle. Rin wouldn't suspect a thing. She never did.
Just one thing remained unclear to Sesshomaru; why had he cried over his brother's death? Such a thing was unheard of. He never showed his emotions, if ever he felt any. So why? He did not know.
Sesshomaru was interrupted from this train of thought by a figure running towards him. He recognized it as Jaken. The lesser demon's face was full of anxiety. Sesshomaru glared down at the flustered minion and waited for an explanation of why Rin was not with him. The explanation came in short spurts, seeing as how Jaken had been running.
"Master Sesshomaru...I can explain...she tricked me...searched and searched...couldn't find her anywhere...please don't be angry!"
Sesshomaru bored holes into Jaken with his glare. "So," he replied with no emotion, "You lost her." "Well master Sesshomaru, if you want to know what I think of the situation, I'd think of it more as she lost me! I couldn't find her anywhere! She obviously—"
The demon's excuses were cut short by the appearance of a small figure approaching them. It was Rin. Sesshomaru showed no emotion at this besides raising an eyebrow at Jaken. Jaken stared, dumbfounded. Rin ran to them, a worried expression on her face.
"Rin. We must go now," Sesshomaru told the girl in his usual icy manner. "No!" Rin said. "Sesshomaru-sama, Rin saw something on the hill! Lots of blood, and people! There was a battle, and they were hurt. We must go and help them!"
Sesshomaru glared harder at Jaken, who now cowered under his robes, shaking. "That is none of our concern Rin," Sesshomaru told her. "We must continue in our travels as soon as possible." Rin stared up at him. "Sesshomaru-sama...you will not help them? Why?" Sesshomaru didn't know what to say. Then, suddenly, another string was dropped. Sesshomaru blinked, and stepped back, shocked by what he was feeling...was it shame...guilt...honor...why did he care about this little human girl's feelings? Why did he care about what she thought of him? Sesshomaru sighed. "Take ah-un and retrieve them. If it means that much to you." Rin stared at Sesshomaru's face. Something lay there in his eyes...something she'd never seen in them before...
The string was pulled again, rather clumsily, and followed by cursing from the puppeteer. The emotion erased itself from Sesshomaru's face and the look he gave Rin was that of an indulging statue. "Go Rin. Bring the people back from the hill. Be quick about it, before I change my mind." Rin's eyes welled up with tears of joy. "Sesshomaru-sama...thank you," Rin whispered, then happily lead ah-un to the hill.
Sesshomaru did not understand what was happening to him. His emotions were awakening. He was beginning to feel. This was not a good sign. Emotions were a weakness that humans had. Things like love, peace, and joy were things that played with the mind, and softened the soul. The only emotions Sesshomaru had were the ones he could harness and use for his own purposes, like hate, spite, and vengeance. They hardened him, made him into a warrior. Sesshomaru turned away from the direction Rin had started off in. He went to sit beneath a tree and ponder this symptom and how to rid himself of it.
Shippo ran and ran, but could not find a village or town. He was beginning to tire. Suddenly he sensed that something or someone was behind him. He turned frantically, but saw no one. He felt something run past him in the darkness of the deep forest. He spun around to see what it was. Still he could see nothing. He was just about to take off running again when he felt an icy coldness pierce his neck. He had just enough strength of will to turn and catch sight of a figure in a white baboon pelt staring at him before he lost his consciousness and everything went black.
Naraku chuckled as he watched the fox demon's eyes glaze over then clear, as one's eyes always did when pierced with one of the contaminated shards. Naraku knew this little demon was no use to him as far as fighting went. But that didn't matter now did it? Naraku chuckled evilly.
Kukukukuku...they'll never know what hit them...
Rin gently handled the limp bodies of Inuyasha and the rest of the group as ah-un nudged them onto its back. She hoped they were alive. But where was the kitsune? She looked over the horizon, hoping to catch a glimpse of Shippo running over the hills. But she did not see him anywhere. She sighed, and led ah-un to where Sesshomaru was waiting.
"What news do you bring Urasuea?" "The lord Sesshomaru has taken Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, and the girl from the well into his care at the girl's request." "And the kitsune?" "...is under the control of Naraku." "Ah, very good, very good. It is too bad that the strings fell from my hands and that my original plan could not be carried out. I had to take a tug at Naraku to make that one turn out alright." The hag wiped her forehead with one of her many arms. "I've had to infuse myself with demons in order to keep hold of them all. But there is something that is troubling me..." "What is it master?" the minion asked, curious to see what could be troubling the most powerful witch in all of feudal Japan. "That brat from the well...I cannot control her like I can the others. There is some magic around her that protects her from my hold, much like the magic that surrounds Kaede, the sister of Kikyo. But even Kaede is partly under my influence. I'm not letting her destroy that clay golem like she would if I did not control her inner wisdom."
Urasuea pondered this. It was quite a serious issue indeed. Her mistress would not stress over it if it was not. She decided that she would disguise herself and watch the girl to see if she could find the source of her power. The nameless witch read these thoughts, and replied, "Go Urasuea, and carry out your plan. I will be watching."
And so the minion witch left to obey her mistress's bidding.
Sesshomaru sat in the grass, waiting for Rin to return. Why did he keep doing these things? He did not care for that weakling half-brother of his! So why did that tear fall? Why did he send Rin to save them?
That led the great demon to another question; what had led him to committing the near-slaughter on the hilltop in the first place? He did not remember doing it, yet his hands and the Toukijin were coated with their blood.
Sesshomaru did not like this thing that had begun to happen to him so often now. He felt like a mere puppet being pulled back and forth between opposing forces, as if he had no will of his own. He didn't know what to do with Inuyasha and his comrades when Rin brought them back. He shuddered at the thought of having to—to care for their wounds with his own hands. Then a thought hit him—the Tetsusaiga! Inuyasha would have it with him, as always. The corners of Sesshomaru's lips curved slightly upwards in a rarely-seen smile as he thought of the opportunity this presented to him. He settled himself against a tree trunk, anticipating Rin's return.
Rin and ah-un plodded along on their way to Sesshomaru. Normally they would've been going much faster, but the burden of four people was a lot to carry, even for ah-un. All the while Rin scanned the horizon for Shippo. Where had he gone?
Suddenly Rin heard a rustling noise behind her. She spun around to see what it was. She gasped with delight. It was Shippo, the little kitsune from the forest! Rin ran to him. "Konichiwa! Where did you go Shippo? Rin wants to know!"
Shippo didn't answer. Instead he tackled Rin with a strength that was not his own and pushed her onto the ground. Rin laughed. "Shippo! This is not the time to play! Rin must get these nice people back to master Sesshomaru!" But Shippo would not budge. He struggled to pin her down as she struggled to get up. "Shippo," Rin told him, a hint of panic in her voice, "Get off. Stop it Shippo, that hurts!" Rin finally managed to push the kitsune off of her and got to her feet. She backed away from him, afraid.
"Shippo...what's wrong? Aren't you friends with Rin anymore?" Rin asked in a small weak voice. Shippo's eyes darkened. He answered her in a monotone voice; "Hand over the reigns of that creature you lead." Rin smiled brightly again, not realizing the trouble she was in. "You mean ah-un? No, Rin is sorry, but Rin must lead ah-un back to Sesshomaru-sama. You can come with us though!" Shippo responded in a frozen tone, "Hand over ah-un now." Rin frowned. "No," she told him, and turned to take ah-un's reins.
Suddenly and without warning, Shippo drew a knife from inside his sleeve. Rin heard him rush up behind her and turned to speak to him. "Shippo-"
Her sentence was cut short as the knife's blade pierced her gut. Rin's face contorted in a look of pain and agony as the knife was drawn from her stomach. She fell to the ground, confused. Why? Why was this happening... again? Then her eyes glazed over, and a look of peace crossed the small girl's face as she died.
A figure approached Shippo and ah-un. Ah-un became uneasy as it approached and bolted towards where Sesshomaru was. Quick as lightning the figure caught up with ah-un and pierced the dragon's neck with a shard of the Shikon jewel. Ah-un went limp, then rose from the ground at the figure's command. The figure laughed to itself.
"Kukukukuku. Now I have taken all that is precious to Sesshomaru away from him. Things are going just as I planned."
"No," a voice chuckled inside the mountain. "Things are going just as I planned."
Naraku led Ah-un away to one of his illusionary castles. He could not risk taking him to his real castle. Sesshomaru would be angry indeed at this thing Naraku had done. But there was one more thing Naraku had to do before his plan was complete. He commanded Ah-un to lay the bodies down. He checked the pulses. All were alive, but barely. Even Inuyasha was faring poorly, and he with his demon blood...
Naraku scoffed. This was no issue for him. He had what he wanted now. Well...half of what he wanted. The only thing left, was to get the Tensaiga, and Naraku knew just how to go about that. He called the little fox demon to him. The puppet appeared before him. Naraku instructed him on what to, and then settled back to watch his plan be carried out.
Sesshomaru was growing impatient. What was taking Rin so long? He decided to go and see what was taking her so long. Sesshomaru got up out of his seat in the grass, and began walking leisurely down the hill. When he came to the bottom of the hill, his nostrils twitched. He smelled the scent of fresh blood. But whose blood...he felt as if he had smelled that same blood scent before...
Then it hit him. Rin! Sesshomaru took off like lightening to where the smell was coming from. He arrived at the spot in the forest where the small girl lay. He saw the blank expression in the glazed-over eyes, and the blood around a small wound in her gut. He knew this sight...Rin was dead. Sesshomaru did not show any expression about this. His hand gripped the hilt of the Tensaiga, about to draw it and use its power.
Suddenly, a figure leapt out of the forest and knocked Sesshomaru's hand from the sword. It turned to face him. Sesshomaru smirked. "Ah...Inuyasha. I did not expect you to recover so quickly. What are you here for? Surely not to challenge me."
Then Sesshomaru sniffed the air around this figure. This was not Inuyasha...this scent was much weaker than his, yet he had smelled it before...
Jaken jumped in front of him. "You will leave my master alone if you value your life!" the toad-like creature crowed. The figure threw a knife at Jaken, and immediately the creature died. Sesshomaru rolled his eyes. Pathetic excuse for a demon. He would revive him later using his sword.
The figure gave a demonic grin, and attacked Sesshomaru's hand once again. Sesshomaru jumped quickly away in a flash. But the figure was there, before he had landed! Sesshomaru tried again, but the figure was still too quick! Then the thing transformed again, into a little girl...Rin! Sesshomaru was mildly amused by this. What was this thing trying to do? Sesshomaru would slay it with one strike of his whip.
He pulled the weapon back, ready to destroy the fiend. But then it did something unexpected. It ran to Sesshomaru and hugged his robe, just like Rin had. The scent of Rin overpowered him suddenly, and his hand stopped before he could deal the blow. What was going on? Sesshomaru's hand fell, the weapon in it useless. He was being pulled into an illusion of fear...fear that he might feel love, compassion, anything at all besides hate and cruelty. He looked at the little figure at his feet. He didn't know what to say. He couldn't move, was paralyzed.
And then the puppet smirked. It used a knife in its pocket to cut Sesshomaru's sword from him. Sesshomaru was trapped, and couldn't do anything. He was left there, staring into the darkness of a cold future, all he treasured taken from him.
Kagome's eyes slowly fluttered open. She was confused at first...where was she? Why did she smell blood? Then she felt the pain of her wounds, and a gasp escaped from her throat. She stifled it with her sleeve. She tried to look around, but her vision was blurred from the red-hot sensations in her upper body. Blood still oozed from the gash in her stomach. She could not move her legs...couldn't feel them at all through the rest of the pain. She spotted her companions lying next to her in dirty furs. She gasped at how bad they looked. She realized that she herself was probably a mess as well.
It took her a moment to realize that Inuyasha was not there. Maybe he had gotten away...maybe he was going to save them...
These were Kagome's last thoughts before she drifted back into a deep state of unconsciousness.
Shippo returned to his master, clutching the heavy sword in his small fists. He had done the unimaginable; robbed Sesshomaru of all that was prized to him. His sword...the only human he had ever loved...all of it, gone. But Shippo had no idea, no idea what he had done, and what he would do now. Of course not; that was the power of the shard...to deceive. To control. And that was exactly what Naraku did. He deceived, and he controlled. So, naturally, the shards were perfect for his purposes. He had almost all of them now, having captured this girl Kagome. She intrigued him somehow. And he knew why.
Naraku frowned. 'This human heart of mine lusts for this girl as it does for her pre-descessor, Kikyo. Well, no matter. I will kill them both, in time. However, this girl can, I sense, see the shards of the Shikon no Tama. I could put this to good use as I have done with Kikyo in the past. Yes, that would be the most sensible thing. But...I need to control her.'
Naraku took a shard from the nearly-completed jewel and made a move as to stick it into Kagome's shoulder. Suddenly, the girl rolled on her back and mumbled, "I see the shard Naraku. There is no need to put it into me. Let my friends go and I will help you find the shards of the Shikon no Tama. Naraku was surprised by this. The girl's eyes were half-closed...she was doing all this in her subconscious, perhaps? Maybe she was even more powerful than she revealed. He decided to respect the wishes of this miko. Her friends were no longer anything to him anyway. He would just leave them on a roadside to die.
"Agreed," he said to the half-asleep Kagome, reinserting the shard into the jewel. He took the bodies on the furs over to the two-headed dragon, and put them on its back. Then he took the shard from the dragon and it bolted away, into the faraway horizon.
Sango awoke from what she thought had been a deep deep sleep. She...could not remember where she was...who she was...
Then she spied a man lying on her breast. Such a familiar man...who was he? He had an odd string of beads around his right hand...
And then she remembered. Miroku...the fight...or should she call it a slaughter? The world was going by awfully fast. They were on a beast of some kind. Kirara? No...this was not Kirara. Where was Kirara?
Inuyasha was lying on another part of the beast. He...was not awake. He was barely alive. Sango lifted her hands. Her clothes were torn, and stiff with dried blood, and the pain that came from just lifting her hand made her cry out in despair. But her hand did reach...Miroku's head. She stroked his hair...he had been beside her for the whole battle hadn't he? Suddenly his head moved!
"Sango...don't die..." the houshi mumbled, his eyes coming open. "I'm...not dead," Sango told him, her breathing heavy. "I...I couldn't protect you Sango. Inuyasha is right. I am truly the most pathetic member of our group. I'm sorry..." He trailed off as Sango caressed his face. "You did your best houshi-sama. You did your best...Miroku." With that, they both slipped back into the oblivion of blackness that awaited them.
Sesshomaru was leaning up against a tree, wondering. What should he do? He had no healing sword...no servant...no...Rin. Her corpse lay on the other side of the hilltop. Another hilltop...so many here. So many histories about them. Sesshomaru had...nothing to live for. His brother was dead now. His servant, and the only human he had ever loved-
Sesshomaru's head jerked up, contempt in his eyes. 'No...she was my property. That was all. Property. I could never feel love for a human...even one so wonderful as Rin.' He shook his head again. 'Dammit! What is happening to me? I—'
Suddenly a great coughing came from under the mountain. Urasuea rushed to her master's side. "Dammit..."the old hag grunted. "I am becoming too weak to hold this youkai's strings any longer! Now will be the time to see how my most controlled puppet works...without strings." With this, the most old and powerful witch in history, the one who controlled all things, let Sesshomaru's strings go.
Yay! Please R&R so I can feel special!!!
And, well, sorry I didn't put in that and other things in the first chappy, but I was a bit pressed for time. I'll try to edit it when there's more of that. (Never. XP) I would enjoy a little R&R, but please don't flame me. This is my first fic...I would be crushed. : P
Chapter 2: The First String is Dropped Rin sat next to Shippo on a tree branch at the edge of the forest. Both were oblivious of the destruction that had occurred on the hilltop. Rin was happy to have found a new playmate, and was grinning ear to ear. Shippo was in a more serious mood. How did Rin know about Sesshomaru? How could she have traveled with him? Sesshomaru thought of all humans as incapable weaklings. And yet he cared for this scrawny little girl? Oh well. It didn't matter. She obviously wasn't dangerous. Just a bit ditsy.
Suddenly Rin jumped off the tree branch. "Master Sesshomaru calls Rin," she told Shippo. "Come come! You must meet him!" she insisted, pulling on Shippo's sleeve happily. Shippo had not told her of his allegiance to Inuyasha. Now he became apprehensive. "No," he told her. Rin frowned. "What's the matter? Don't you want to meet Sesshomaru-sama? He will take care of us, and we will travel with him forever and ever!" "No," Shippo told Rin, a little more firmly this time. Rin stared at him. "Don't you want Sesshomaru-sama to protect you? I'm sure he'll let you stay with us if I ask him to!" Shippo thought a moment. Then, quick as lightning, he pulled her hands from his sleeve and darted away.
"How rude!" Rin said to herself. She knew she should follow Sesshomaru's call, and yet...she felt as if something was pulling her to the little kitsune instead. She was curious why he did not want Sesshomaru to protect him as he protected her. So she followed Shippo. He led her, unknowingly, to the same hill they had started out on. She heard him call out to someone.
"Kagome? Are you there? Hello? Is anybody up there?" Shippo shouted. "Inuyasha? Kagome? Sango? Miroku? Anybody?"
Shippo wondered why no one was answering. Then his little fox ears twitched as he heard a small voice call out to him. "Shippo? Is that you?"
Shippo just about fell over with happiness. He ran up and onto the top of the hill, then stopped and stared. So much blood...all over...he glanced at where the voice had come from, and cried out as he saw Kagome lying there in a pool of blood. Both her legs were bent at odd and grotesque angles, and her clothes were stained red. He ran to her, ignoring the blood. "Kagome..." Her eyes were dull and lifeless, her face and body encrusted with blood. She managed a small smile for Shippo.
"Kagome...what happened? Where are the others?" Shippo asked fearfully. He felt like he was staring at a corpse. Kagome nodded towards the other side of the bushes. Shippo was afraid to peek over at what lay there, but he racked up his courage and looked. There lay Miroku and Sango. Shippo couldn't tell if they were dead or not. Suddenly Miroku's eyes opened. "Sango...live...please..." was all the monk could say.
Shippo couldn't stand it anymore. He began to bawl like a baby, his mournful wails echoing over the nearby hills and forests. Miroku looked up at him, and his expression changed to one of pity. No child should have to see such things. He reached his hand up painfully and patted the top of Shippo's head. Shippo's wails eventually became less and less lengthy, and eventually became the sniffles that come when there are no tears left in your body to cry.
"Shippo...you must be brave now," Miroku told the kitsune. "You must go alone to get help for us all." Shippo's crying ceased, and he nodded, wiping away the last of his tears from his face. "Where...where is Inuyasha?" he asked. Miroku frowned. "I do not know. But go, now. Go to the nearest village and get help. Hurry Shippo." He laid his head over her heart and listened. "She will not last much longer."
Shippo nodded grimly, and then took off running like he had never run before. He had no idea where the nearest village might be, but he knew that if he kept running, he would find someone eventually.
Nearby, at the edge of the hilltop, Rin was crying silently. She did not know these people, but they were friends of Shippo's and they were badly hurt. She knew what she had to do. She took off running through the forest, running towards Sesshomaru's call.
Sesshomaru was becoming annoyed. Why weren't Rin and Jaken coming? They never took this long to answer his call.
Earlier he had painstakingly washed his garments and his flesh of the blood from the battle. Rin wouldn't suspect a thing. She never did.
Just one thing remained unclear to Sesshomaru; why had he cried over his brother's death? Such a thing was unheard of. He never showed his emotions, if ever he felt any. So why? He did not know.
Sesshomaru was interrupted from this train of thought by a figure running towards him. He recognized it as Jaken. The lesser demon's face was full of anxiety. Sesshomaru glared down at the flustered minion and waited for an explanation of why Rin was not with him. The explanation came in short spurts, seeing as how Jaken had been running.
"Master Sesshomaru...I can explain...she tricked me...searched and searched...couldn't find her anywhere...please don't be angry!"
Sesshomaru bored holes into Jaken with his glare. "So," he replied with no emotion, "You lost her." "Well master Sesshomaru, if you want to know what I think of the situation, I'd think of it more as she lost me! I couldn't find her anywhere! She obviously—"
The demon's excuses were cut short by the appearance of a small figure approaching them. It was Rin. Sesshomaru showed no emotion at this besides raising an eyebrow at Jaken. Jaken stared, dumbfounded. Rin ran to them, a worried expression on her face.
"Rin. We must go now," Sesshomaru told the girl in his usual icy manner. "No!" Rin said. "Sesshomaru-sama, Rin saw something on the hill! Lots of blood, and people! There was a battle, and they were hurt. We must go and help them!"
Sesshomaru glared harder at Jaken, who now cowered under his robes, shaking. "That is none of our concern Rin," Sesshomaru told her. "We must continue in our travels as soon as possible." Rin stared up at him. "Sesshomaru-sama...you will not help them? Why?" Sesshomaru didn't know what to say. Then, suddenly, another string was dropped. Sesshomaru blinked, and stepped back, shocked by what he was feeling...was it shame...guilt...honor...why did he care about this little human girl's feelings? Why did he care about what she thought of him? Sesshomaru sighed. "Take ah-un and retrieve them. If it means that much to you." Rin stared at Sesshomaru's face. Something lay there in his eyes...something she'd never seen in them before...
The string was pulled again, rather clumsily, and followed by cursing from the puppeteer. The emotion erased itself from Sesshomaru's face and the look he gave Rin was that of an indulging statue. "Go Rin. Bring the people back from the hill. Be quick about it, before I change my mind." Rin's eyes welled up with tears of joy. "Sesshomaru-sama...thank you," Rin whispered, then happily lead ah-un to the hill.
Sesshomaru did not understand what was happening to him. His emotions were awakening. He was beginning to feel. This was not a good sign. Emotions were a weakness that humans had. Things like love, peace, and joy were things that played with the mind, and softened the soul. The only emotions Sesshomaru had were the ones he could harness and use for his own purposes, like hate, spite, and vengeance. They hardened him, made him into a warrior. Sesshomaru turned away from the direction Rin had started off in. He went to sit beneath a tree and ponder this symptom and how to rid himself of it.
Shippo ran and ran, but could not find a village or town. He was beginning to tire. Suddenly he sensed that something or someone was behind him. He turned frantically, but saw no one. He felt something run past him in the darkness of the deep forest. He spun around to see what it was. Still he could see nothing. He was just about to take off running again when he felt an icy coldness pierce his neck. He had just enough strength of will to turn and catch sight of a figure in a white baboon pelt staring at him before he lost his consciousness and everything went black.
Naraku chuckled as he watched the fox demon's eyes glaze over then clear, as one's eyes always did when pierced with one of the contaminated shards. Naraku knew this little demon was no use to him as far as fighting went. But that didn't matter now did it? Naraku chuckled evilly.
Kukukukuku...they'll never know what hit them...
Rin gently handled the limp bodies of Inuyasha and the rest of the group as ah-un nudged them onto its back. She hoped they were alive. But where was the kitsune? She looked over the horizon, hoping to catch a glimpse of Shippo running over the hills. But she did not see him anywhere. She sighed, and led ah-un to where Sesshomaru was waiting.
"What news do you bring Urasuea?" "The lord Sesshomaru has taken Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, and the girl from the well into his care at the girl's request." "And the kitsune?" "...is under the control of Naraku." "Ah, very good, very good. It is too bad that the strings fell from my hands and that my original plan could not be carried out. I had to take a tug at Naraku to make that one turn out alright." The hag wiped her forehead with one of her many arms. "I've had to infuse myself with demons in order to keep hold of them all. But there is something that is troubling me..." "What is it master?" the minion asked, curious to see what could be troubling the most powerful witch in all of feudal Japan. "That brat from the well...I cannot control her like I can the others. There is some magic around her that protects her from my hold, much like the magic that surrounds Kaede, the sister of Kikyo. But even Kaede is partly under my influence. I'm not letting her destroy that clay golem like she would if I did not control her inner wisdom."
Urasuea pondered this. It was quite a serious issue indeed. Her mistress would not stress over it if it was not. She decided that she would disguise herself and watch the girl to see if she could find the source of her power. The nameless witch read these thoughts, and replied, "Go Urasuea, and carry out your plan. I will be watching."
And so the minion witch left to obey her mistress's bidding.
Sesshomaru sat in the grass, waiting for Rin to return. Why did he keep doing these things? He did not care for that weakling half-brother of his! So why did that tear fall? Why did he send Rin to save them?
That led the great demon to another question; what had led him to committing the near-slaughter on the hilltop in the first place? He did not remember doing it, yet his hands and the Toukijin were coated with their blood.
Sesshomaru did not like this thing that had begun to happen to him so often now. He felt like a mere puppet being pulled back and forth between opposing forces, as if he had no will of his own. He didn't know what to do with Inuyasha and his comrades when Rin brought them back. He shuddered at the thought of having to—to care for their wounds with his own hands. Then a thought hit him—the Tetsusaiga! Inuyasha would have it with him, as always. The corners of Sesshomaru's lips curved slightly upwards in a rarely-seen smile as he thought of the opportunity this presented to him. He settled himself against a tree trunk, anticipating Rin's return.
Rin and ah-un plodded along on their way to Sesshomaru. Normally they would've been going much faster, but the burden of four people was a lot to carry, even for ah-un. All the while Rin scanned the horizon for Shippo. Where had he gone?
Suddenly Rin heard a rustling noise behind her. She spun around to see what it was. She gasped with delight. It was Shippo, the little kitsune from the forest! Rin ran to him. "Konichiwa! Where did you go Shippo? Rin wants to know!"
Shippo didn't answer. Instead he tackled Rin with a strength that was not his own and pushed her onto the ground. Rin laughed. "Shippo! This is not the time to play! Rin must get these nice people back to master Sesshomaru!" But Shippo would not budge. He struggled to pin her down as she struggled to get up. "Shippo," Rin told him, a hint of panic in her voice, "Get off. Stop it Shippo, that hurts!" Rin finally managed to push the kitsune off of her and got to her feet. She backed away from him, afraid.
"Shippo...what's wrong? Aren't you friends with Rin anymore?" Rin asked in a small weak voice. Shippo's eyes darkened. He answered her in a monotone voice; "Hand over the reigns of that creature you lead." Rin smiled brightly again, not realizing the trouble she was in. "You mean ah-un? No, Rin is sorry, but Rin must lead ah-un back to Sesshomaru-sama. You can come with us though!" Shippo responded in a frozen tone, "Hand over ah-un now." Rin frowned. "No," she told him, and turned to take ah-un's reins.
Suddenly and without warning, Shippo drew a knife from inside his sleeve. Rin heard him rush up behind her and turned to speak to him. "Shippo-"
Her sentence was cut short as the knife's blade pierced her gut. Rin's face contorted in a look of pain and agony as the knife was drawn from her stomach. She fell to the ground, confused. Why? Why was this happening... again? Then her eyes glazed over, and a look of peace crossed the small girl's face as she died.
A figure approached Shippo and ah-un. Ah-un became uneasy as it approached and bolted towards where Sesshomaru was. Quick as lightning the figure caught up with ah-un and pierced the dragon's neck with a shard of the Shikon jewel. Ah-un went limp, then rose from the ground at the figure's command. The figure laughed to itself.
"Kukukukuku. Now I have taken all that is precious to Sesshomaru away from him. Things are going just as I planned."
"No," a voice chuckled inside the mountain. "Things are going just as I planned."
Naraku led Ah-un away to one of his illusionary castles. He could not risk taking him to his real castle. Sesshomaru would be angry indeed at this thing Naraku had done. But there was one more thing Naraku had to do before his plan was complete. He commanded Ah-un to lay the bodies down. He checked the pulses. All were alive, but barely. Even Inuyasha was faring poorly, and he with his demon blood...
Naraku scoffed. This was no issue for him. He had what he wanted now. Well...half of what he wanted. The only thing left, was to get the Tensaiga, and Naraku knew just how to go about that. He called the little fox demon to him. The puppet appeared before him. Naraku instructed him on what to, and then settled back to watch his plan be carried out.
Sesshomaru was growing impatient. What was taking Rin so long? He decided to go and see what was taking her so long. Sesshomaru got up out of his seat in the grass, and began walking leisurely down the hill. When he came to the bottom of the hill, his nostrils twitched. He smelled the scent of fresh blood. But whose blood...he felt as if he had smelled that same blood scent before...
Then it hit him. Rin! Sesshomaru took off like lightening to where the smell was coming from. He arrived at the spot in the forest where the small girl lay. He saw the blank expression in the glazed-over eyes, and the blood around a small wound in her gut. He knew this sight...Rin was dead. Sesshomaru did not show any expression about this. His hand gripped the hilt of the Tensaiga, about to draw it and use its power.
Suddenly, a figure leapt out of the forest and knocked Sesshomaru's hand from the sword. It turned to face him. Sesshomaru smirked. "Ah...Inuyasha. I did not expect you to recover so quickly. What are you here for? Surely not to challenge me."
Then Sesshomaru sniffed the air around this figure. This was not Inuyasha...this scent was much weaker than his, yet he had smelled it before...
Jaken jumped in front of him. "You will leave my master alone if you value your life!" the toad-like creature crowed. The figure threw a knife at Jaken, and immediately the creature died. Sesshomaru rolled his eyes. Pathetic excuse for a demon. He would revive him later using his sword.
The figure gave a demonic grin, and attacked Sesshomaru's hand once again. Sesshomaru jumped quickly away in a flash. But the figure was there, before he had landed! Sesshomaru tried again, but the figure was still too quick! Then the thing transformed again, into a little girl...Rin! Sesshomaru was mildly amused by this. What was this thing trying to do? Sesshomaru would slay it with one strike of his whip.
He pulled the weapon back, ready to destroy the fiend. But then it did something unexpected. It ran to Sesshomaru and hugged his robe, just like Rin had. The scent of Rin overpowered him suddenly, and his hand stopped before he could deal the blow. What was going on? Sesshomaru's hand fell, the weapon in it useless. He was being pulled into an illusion of fear...fear that he might feel love, compassion, anything at all besides hate and cruelty. He looked at the little figure at his feet. He didn't know what to say. He couldn't move, was paralyzed.
And then the puppet smirked. It used a knife in its pocket to cut Sesshomaru's sword from him. Sesshomaru was trapped, and couldn't do anything. He was left there, staring into the darkness of a cold future, all he treasured taken from him.
Kagome's eyes slowly fluttered open. She was confused at first...where was she? Why did she smell blood? Then she felt the pain of her wounds, and a gasp escaped from her throat. She stifled it with her sleeve. She tried to look around, but her vision was blurred from the red-hot sensations in her upper body. Blood still oozed from the gash in her stomach. She could not move her legs...couldn't feel them at all through the rest of the pain. She spotted her companions lying next to her in dirty furs. She gasped at how bad they looked. She realized that she herself was probably a mess as well.
It took her a moment to realize that Inuyasha was not there. Maybe he had gotten away...maybe he was going to save them...
These were Kagome's last thoughts before she drifted back into a deep state of unconsciousness.
Shippo returned to his master, clutching the heavy sword in his small fists. He had done the unimaginable; robbed Sesshomaru of all that was prized to him. His sword...the only human he had ever loved...all of it, gone. But Shippo had no idea, no idea what he had done, and what he would do now. Of course not; that was the power of the shard...to deceive. To control. And that was exactly what Naraku did. He deceived, and he controlled. So, naturally, the shards were perfect for his purposes. He had almost all of them now, having captured this girl Kagome. She intrigued him somehow. And he knew why.
Naraku frowned. 'This human heart of mine lusts for this girl as it does for her pre-descessor, Kikyo. Well, no matter. I will kill them both, in time. However, this girl can, I sense, see the shards of the Shikon no Tama. I could put this to good use as I have done with Kikyo in the past. Yes, that would be the most sensible thing. But...I need to control her.'
Naraku took a shard from the nearly-completed jewel and made a move as to stick it into Kagome's shoulder. Suddenly, the girl rolled on her back and mumbled, "I see the shard Naraku. There is no need to put it into me. Let my friends go and I will help you find the shards of the Shikon no Tama. Naraku was surprised by this. The girl's eyes were half-closed...she was doing all this in her subconscious, perhaps? Maybe she was even more powerful than she revealed. He decided to respect the wishes of this miko. Her friends were no longer anything to him anyway. He would just leave them on a roadside to die.
"Agreed," he said to the half-asleep Kagome, reinserting the shard into the jewel. He took the bodies on the furs over to the two-headed dragon, and put them on its back. Then he took the shard from the dragon and it bolted away, into the faraway horizon.
Sango awoke from what she thought had been a deep deep sleep. She...could not remember where she was...who she was...
Then she spied a man lying on her breast. Such a familiar man...who was he? He had an odd string of beads around his right hand...
And then she remembered. Miroku...the fight...or should she call it a slaughter? The world was going by awfully fast. They were on a beast of some kind. Kirara? No...this was not Kirara. Where was Kirara?
Inuyasha was lying on another part of the beast. He...was not awake. He was barely alive. Sango lifted her hands. Her clothes were torn, and stiff with dried blood, and the pain that came from just lifting her hand made her cry out in despair. But her hand did reach...Miroku's head. She stroked his hair...he had been beside her for the whole battle hadn't he? Suddenly his head moved!
"Sango...don't die..." the houshi mumbled, his eyes coming open. "I'm...not dead," Sango told him, her breathing heavy. "I...I couldn't protect you Sango. Inuyasha is right. I am truly the most pathetic member of our group. I'm sorry..." He trailed off as Sango caressed his face. "You did your best houshi-sama. You did your best...Miroku." With that, they both slipped back into the oblivion of blackness that awaited them.
Sesshomaru was leaning up against a tree, wondering. What should he do? He had no healing sword...no servant...no...Rin. Her corpse lay on the other side of the hilltop. Another hilltop...so many here. So many histories about them. Sesshomaru had...nothing to live for. His brother was dead now. His servant, and the only human he had ever loved-
Sesshomaru's head jerked up, contempt in his eyes. 'No...she was my property. That was all. Property. I could never feel love for a human...even one so wonderful as Rin.' He shook his head again. 'Dammit! What is happening to me? I—'
Suddenly a great coughing came from under the mountain. Urasuea rushed to her master's side. "Dammit..."the old hag grunted. "I am becoming too weak to hold this youkai's strings any longer! Now will be the time to see how my most controlled puppet works...without strings." With this, the most old and powerful witch in history, the one who controlled all things, let Sesshomaru's strings go.
Yay! Please R&R so I can feel special!!!