Author's note: Ah, yummy reviews. Thanks to inulover4ever101, kit20, Cassadie, Neptune Princess, Inu-kami, G-girl, Jezunya, and Dreamer Wolf for giving me the inspiration to post the next chap.
As of next Saturday, my weekends are toast, so write me lots of reviews to get my butt writing during the week…or I'll forget. I'm weird that way.
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, duh. ^_^
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Inuyasha gritted his teeth as they approached the castle. Damn him! I'm so sick of all these traps and games, Naraku! I'll kill him if it's the last thing I do!! His stomach flipped over. And if he's hurt Kagome…
He closed his eyes and tried not to picture that prospect. I can't lose her now, not when everything's finally clear.
Growling, Kirara landed in the courtyard next to a pile of tremendous bones.
"Well, I suppose we know what's happened to the other Kiori." Miroku started to lift a hand in prayer, then hesitated. "I wonder. Do you pray for a lost soul if there are two of them?"
Inuyasha jumped off Kirara and ran inside. "Right now, I could care less!" I can smell Kagome's scent. She's not far!
Inuyasha ground to a halt as he entered the next room. Someone stood before him, head down. Smirking, Inuyasha stepped into a slight crouch.
"What, are you Naraku's guard? I'd suggest you move, before you get hurt."
At that, the person lifted his head. Inuyasha gasped.
"I…Ishiyana? What the hell are you doing?"
Ishiyana's eyes burned with hatred. "I'm here…to slay you, Inuyasha."
"Huh?"
With that, Ishiyana pulled out a long sword. "It's time to finish this!" He raced forward. "You'll never make her unhappy again!!"
Startled, Inuyasha barely got the Tetsusaiga up in time to block. "What the hell are you talking about?"
Ishiyana gave no answer. Instead, he began attacking furiously. Blow after blow struck the Tetsusaiga, the force nearly pushing Inuyasha back. What is this all about? What could make him…Naraku. Dammit.
"Listen, you idiot, I don't know what Naraku told you, but it's all lies! Snap out of it!"
Ishiyana stopped for a second. Did I get through to him?
With a smirk, Ishiyana jumped and did a twisting flip over Inuyasha, landing behind the hanyou. Scowling, Inuyasha jumped out of the way, but the back of his shirt was caught by Ishiyana's swing. Dammit. He nearly got me with that one.
He spun about and parried Ishiyana's next attack. Ishiyana scowled and pushed his sword against Tetsusaiga, locking the two swords together. Surprisingly, Ishiyana actually started pushing the swords towards Inuyasha.
Why the heck is he so strong? He's only a human! With a grunt, Inuyasha pushed the swords away from him and swung, hitting Ishiyana with the flat side of his sword. The boy staggered back against the wall. Immediately, Inuyasha ran forward and grabbed the boy's shoulders, pinning him against the wall.
"Will you snap out of it?? I'm not your enemy…well, at least not right now."
Ishiyana struggled violently, nearly tossing Inuyasha off.
"A jewel shard. I'll bet he planted one in you. Where is it??"
Ishiyana stilled again, looking Inuyasha in the eye. Momentarily, his eyes darted to one of his shoulders, but before Inuyasha could react, Ishiyana kneed him in the stomach.
Inuyasha doubled over, less because he'd been hurt than because the wind had been knocked out of him. Scowling, he looked up—
And a fist was planted in his face.
Grunting, Inuyasha fell back. Damn! He twisted as Ishiyana nearly sliced his arm off, grabbed the other boy's arm, and threw him to the floor. Immediately, Inuyasha fell on him, using his momentum to deliver a stronger punch to the boy's face. If I could just knock him out…
Ishiyana twisted his head just enough to the side for Inuyasha's punch to go through the floor. The boy growled and slammed the heel of his hand against Inuyasha's chin.
Eyes crossing, Inuyasha snarled. "Dammit, I've had enough of this!" He pinned the boy's shoulders to the floor. "Listen to me, you moron! I didn't do whatever Naraku told you I did, ok?! Now stop fighting me!"
A bit of the old glimmer returned to Ishiyana's eyes. Is…is that true? Did Naraku lie? He frowned. I can't remember…I can't remember the truth!
Suddenly, Ishiyana heard a dark voice in his head. You see? The hanyou is trying to trick you into trusting him. Your loyalty is not to him, it's to that poor girl he hurts every moment he's alive. Ishiyana's eyes narrowed. Destroy him, and she'll be happy…and she'll be yours.
At that, Ishiyana gasped. "She'll…what?" His face started to turn red.
Utterly confused, Inuyasha shook Ishiyana's shoulders. "What are you talking about? Who the hell are you talking to??"
Get rid of him, and everything that matters will be safe. You won't have to worry about not existing. Ishiyana's eyes widened. How did it know about that? He must die…so that you will live!
Ishiyana snapped.
"Huh-rahhh!!"
Throwing the hanyou off, Ishiyana yanked out a dagger from his belt. Do it. Do it! DESTROY HIM!!
Ishiyana ran forward…
And plunged the dagger into Inuyasha's chest.
Eyes wide, Inuyasha staggered back. "Wh…what the hell?" Thank the gods he missed my heart! As blood pooled on his shirt, he sank to one knee and yanked the dagger out of his chest.
Slowly, Ishiyana walked over to him and positioned his sword over Inuyasha's neck. A shadow passed over his face, and the emotion drained out of his voice.
"Now, Inuyasha. Die."
Inuyasha felt strangely weakened. Dammit, was that dagger poisoned?? He looked up at Ishiyana. I can still beat him, but how can I do it without killing him??
With a scowl, Inuyasha cursed his merciful side. I'll have to get through to him.
As Ishiyana raised his sword, Inuyasha snapped at him. "Baka. Did you forget what you told me??"
Ishiyana paused, forehead wrinkling.
"When you told me all that bullshit about my future. Do you remember what you said?"
Ishiyana frowned, obviously trying to remember. The memory was hovering so close…but what could he have said that would…?
"I wouldn't have the heart to kill you, Inuyasha."
The sword clattered to the ground. Eyes wide, Ishiyana stared at his double. If I said that, then what Naraku said couldn't be true!
"Not unless I was provoked."
Inuyasha tried not to smirk at the thunder-struck look on the boy's face. Got him. "You know that I haven't done anything that bad between then and now. So why the hell are you fighting me??"
Ishiyana sank to his knees and stared at the floor. His mind was reeling with subdued memories fighting to come to light and dark words suppressing them. Wincing, he placed his hands over his ears.
"Just stop…just shut up!!"
Warily, Inuyasha stood and touched Ishiyana on the shoulder. He's hearing things again.
Ishiyana looked up at Inuyasha, trying to figure out what was going on. Can I trust him? Maybe…maybe I should…
"Feh. Pathetic. Your reincarnation is a sore disappointment, Inuyasha."
Inuyasha's ears perked up. He looked around. "Naraku?? Show yourself!!"
A dark shape moved in the shadows. "I told you to kill him, boy. Now do it!"
At his words, a second jewel shard flew through the air and embedded itself in Ishiyana's other shoulder. Yelling, Ishiyana hurled Inuyasha away from him and grabbed both shoulders in pain.
"So that's where he put them!"
Ishiyana looked at him with pure hatred in his eyes and launched himself at Inuyasha with an inhuman roar. Fury gave him the power to knock the Tetsusaiga out of Inuyasha's hands. Bringing his sword down, Ishiyana managed to stab him in the shoulder.
Inuyasha winced in pain, but his claws flashed up and out.
"Exorcizing Claws of Steel!"
"Yaah!"
Inuyasha caught Ishiyana's shoulder with his claws. Torn from his body, one jewel shard glimmered as it fell to the ground. Inuyasha turned his force backwards and caught Ishiyana's head with his elbow, knocking the boy to his knees. Coming up from behind him, Inuyasha cut the jewel out of his other shoulder.
Ishiyana slumped on the floor, holding both bleeding shoulders. Breathing heavily, Inuyasha grabbed the Tetsusaiga and turned to his reincarnation.
"Well? You back to normal yet?"
Ishiyana made no response for a long moment, then, suddenly, his head snapped up.
"Oh gods, Kagome!! Kagome's in the other room, and he's got her under a spell!"
Leaping to his feet, Ishiyana raced for the hallway, Inuyasha close on his heels. Didn't take him long to recover. Frowning, Inuyasha took in the boy's bleeding shoulders. He'd tried to miss as much as he could, but it kind of looked like he'd taken out a bit more than he'd intended.
Grudgingly, Inuyasha queried on the boy's state. "You're ok, right? Your arms are covered in blood."
Ishiyana didn't even pause. "I'll be fine. Kagome's more important." Now he slowed. "Inuyasha…Naraku found out about the well."
"WHAT??"
Ishiyana winced. "I'm sorry. He put me under a spell, but when I couldn't tell him everything, he sent me after you and promised to get the rest…out of Kagome."
Inuyasha stilled. If he's hurt Kagome, I'll…!! Growling, Inuyasha raced through the corridor and kicked out the sliding door between him and Kagome's scent.
She hovered on her back in the middle of the room, arms dangling and eyes closed.
"Kagome!!" Panicking, Inuyasha burst into the room and reached for her, but he slid to a stop as she slowly flipped upright. A bow and quiver of arrows drifted to her side and, eyes still closed, she aimed at him.
"Kagome, don't!" Inuyasha pulled his sword up in time to fend off the arrow. Though it too sparkled with a miko light, it was incredibly weak.
"Inuyasha, she's still unconscious! You have to wake her up!"
Inuyasha took one look at the boy and ran for Kagome. He tried to ignore the second arrow as she notched it and aimed at him. I have to get to her before she shoots me!
A bead of sweat ran down the side of his face as she prepared to let fly…
"Hey! Kagome! Over here!"
Silently, she turned to face Ishiyana, who was waving his arms around. Mouth parting, she let her second arrow fly straight at him. Ishiyana threw himself to the floor just in time, the arrow decimating the wall behind him.
Thanks. Inuyasha reached Kagome and wrapped his arms tight around her. The bow and arrows clattered to the ground.
"Kagome! Wake up!"
Suddenly, her weight reappeared and she sank into his arms. She moaned softly.
"I…Inuyasha?"
He tightened his arms and buried his face in her hair. Thank the gods she's all right.
"I'm here, Kagome. It's all right."
After a moment, her arms came up around him and hugged him tight. She started shaking.
"I just had the worst nightmare…you were hurt, and the only way to save you was to go home and get—"
"Wait! Go home?" He pulled her away just enough to peer into her face. "You mean, through the well?"
She brushed at her tear-streaked face. "Well, yeah. That's the only way home, isn't it?"
Inuyasha had a baaaaaaad feeling about this.
"So, Inuyasha. Your little secret is out."
Growling, Inuyasha turned to see Naraku in the shadows. "You! I'm tired of all these schemes and tricks!" Gently, he pushed Kagome away and picked up Tetsusaiga. "This ends now!"
Naraku smirked. "Indeed? So sorry to disappoint you, but there's a whole realm out there for me to see. I'm afraid our duel will have to wait."
He started to fade out. "In the meantime, you can deal with my little puppet."
A doll rolled into the middle of the floor, straightened, and shone with blue light. Two seconds later, they had a gigantic, wriggling Naraku on their hands.
At that moment, Sango, Miroku, Shippo and Kirara burst into the room.
"Guys!" Kagome balled both fists and pressed them to her chest. "Naraku knows about the well. He's already headed there!" Tears started streaming down her face. "My family's back there! He'll k-kill them!"
Sango scowled and readied Hiraikotsu. "Not if I can help it. Hyah!!" The boomerang sliced through the air, chopping off some of the tentacles towards the puppet's center. Immediately, the tentacles reshaped.
All of them started fighting the puppet, arrows flying, the boomerang circling, the Tetsusaiga flashing, and Miroku's staff slashing. Inuyasha waited for a clear shot and was just about to cut the puppet apart when he was distracted by a malevolent voice.
"Mind if I join in?"
The group spun about to see Kiori standing in the doorway. Once again in his damaged man form, Kiori scowled and took a short hopping step towards the Naraku puppet.
"Even if that thing isn't him, I want to take it out!"
"Huh?" Inuyasha landed, staring at the man. "You know, I really don't get you."
Sango agreed. "You've got some serious issues here. You said you wanted to kill Inuyasha for pretty much no reason, and you want to kill Naraku because he killed your family. Why waste time on a puppet?"
Eyes glinting, Kiori ignored them. Enveloping in green light, he stretched higher and higher, then burst the bubble as a…
Slug?
Kiori had no head and no appendages whatsoever. His body looked more like a long, silver string of fluid than anything else.
With a low-pitched hum, Kiori drew back his tapered…top, and impaled it in the heart of Naraku's puppet. The puppet wriggled for a moment, then fell slack and disintegrated. The doll at the center fell to the ground and fell apart.
After a moment, Kiori returned to his human form and sat heavily. He glowered at the ground.
Inuyasha crossed his arms impatiently. "Look, I don't know what your deal is, but we have to get to that well before Naraku gets through it." He turned to face the tiny Kirara. "You can get us there the fastest, Kirara. Transform, would you?"
Instead, Kirara walked up to Kiori, who shrank away. She blinked her red eyes up at him.
"Pyu?"
Kiori actually looked nervous. "H-hey, get away from me. Get away!"
Watching this, Ishiyana wandered over. "You know, one thing's been bothering me about you. You keep saying 'Trickster' this and 'Trickster' that. What the heck does that mean?"
Shippo looked at him. "Well, it probably means that most of his transformations are illusion, like mine." Shippo took in Kiori's damaged state. "But it looks like he's not very good at it."
Kiori scowled, shifting further away from Kirara.
Miroku nodded. "Makes sense. Then what are you, Kiori?"
Kiori looked like he'd rather eat mud than answer, but when Kirara made to jump on him, he skittered away. Kagome cocked her head to the side, momentarily forgetting about the well. You know, he kinda looks like Inuyasha did when I leaned my head on his shoulder.
Face pale, he relented. "All right, fine, I'll show you, but you have to keep her away from me!"
Sango picked up Kirara. Sighing, Kiori glowed with a green light again, but this time he shrank…and shrank…and shrank…
And came out a…kitten?
Kagome clapped her hands. "Oh my gosh! He's so cuuuuuuute!!"
As a matter of fact, Kiori looked almost exactly like Kirara, except that his body was black and he had a little tuft of red fur atop his head.
Inuyasha crossed his arms and smirked. "Huh. No wonder he has issues."
Kirara jumped down from Sango's arms and inspected Kiori, who froze.
"Pyu?" She sniffed at him. "Pyu!"
Sango smiled. "You know…I think she likes him!"
Suddenly, Ishiyana shook his head. "Wait a minute. What the hell are we doing?? Kagome's family is in danger!"
"Kirara!"
"V-ROWRRR!!"
The group proceeded to climb onto her back, but Miroku frowned.
"With all our weight, I'm not sure Kirara can get there fast enough!"
I…I can take some of you.
They all stilled as tiny Kiori burst into green flames and mimicked Kirara's transformation.
They stared. "That…that would certainly do the trick," Miroku murmured softly.
Immediately, Ishiyana piled off Kirara and clambered onto Kiori's back. "We don't have time to debate this. Come on!"
After a moment's hesitation, Kagome followed suit, sitting behind Ishiyana. Inuyasha scowled. No way she's getting away with that. Growling, he clambered on behind Kagome.
"Someone has to make sure that this cretin doesn't turn on us," he muttered.
Sango smiled softly. "Somehow, I don't think he will."
If a cat demon could blush, Kiori did.
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Naraku stood before the Bone-Eater's Well, cloaked again in his baboon pelt. Amazing. To think that all this time, I could have been wreaking havoc on an entirely different realm! He held up the nearly completed Shikon shard. And all I need to get through is this. Just think of all the malice it can absorb in another era!
Smirking, Naraku leaned forward and prepared to jump through…
"Ho! Get thee gone, Naraku!"
Naraku shifted as an arrow sliced the air before him. Eyes narrowed, he turned to face the withered old crone.
"Ah, Kaede. How nice to see you again." Naraku smiled. "I'm surprised you have not passed away yet. These times must be hard on you." He chuckled darkly.
Kaede readied another arrow. "I know not how ye came to find this place, but I shall not allow thee to pass!"
"Is that so?" In a flash, Naraku stood before Kaede. "I'm afraid I have no time for such trivialities." He raised a hand. "Farewell, Kaede."