Chapter 11 revised (2.7.04)^-^
Disclaimer: ::huggles her website:: I own this~~~ See, there's a little passage on it that says "all rights reserved"!!! "copyright ME 2003!!!" ......What...? ..........Oh, Inuyasha? I don't own that.
^-^ Here's chapter eleven.
____________________________
To Be With You Tomorrow
Part Four :: The Byouma
Chapter Eleven :: Kitsuko
Tama snarled. "Dammit, Torou....! You fucking bastard!!"
He smirked. "Were you pleased with the results of my mukade-byous' work? I was! My grandmother Uramiko told me how well Inuyasha took to their poison~ it pleases an artist so much, to see another enjoy his work so much."
"YOU BASTARD!" Tama leapt up and slashed at Torou, and the boy leapt off his oni. "Ah-ah!" he reprimanded, "That's not very nice!" He floated to the earth lightly, and rushed Tama, who stumbled back, surprised by his speed. *Fast little bastard~*
She spun to block his hand, and then swung her leg, catching the back of his head. Torou snarled in response, and swiped at the hanyou girl with his left hand. Tama yelped, barely able to dodge. Torou did catch the side of her hi-nezumi kimono though, and the red rat hair sizzled. She grit her teeth. *Poison claws, huh? Sorta like Ani-ue... AND ME~!*
"Dokka Tessou~!" Tama punched through Torou and the boy gasped, and Tama ripped her hand back out, but not before Torou grabbed her hands and dug his claws in. Tama growled, ignoring the pain, and brought her knee up sharply, clipping Torou's chin. His head snapped back and Tama pulled away, clutching her injured arm.
Sango went to her, "Tama-chan, your poison didn't affect him at all!" Torou snorted with laughter. "Damn straight it didn't... After all I'm a full youkai, and she's just a hanyou."
Tama snarled.
After a moment, she stood to her full height, her head high, her voice angry but vaguely proud. "I may be nothing but a fucking hanyou, but I AM the daughter of the Lord of the Western lands, Inutaisho-sama! Even if I only have half his blood.." She charged Torou again, "IT'LL STILL BE ENOUGH TO WASTE YOU!!!"
~*~
Inuyasha struggled to his hands and knees. Carefully he felt around for Kagome, not able to see her or hear her. But he still had his nose. He caught her scent of honey and plumeria, and went that direction, getting to his feet with a great effort. He made his way wearily and painfully, his body still hurting greatly.
He felt faint suddenly and swayed, his knees buckling without much of a fight. Another coughing fit racked his body and Inuyasha leaned heavily against a tree. The coppery scent of his blood wafted under his nose and he spat, despising the taste of it in his mouth. He clenched a fist, digging his claws into the tree bark.
"Dammit," he mumbled, "I'm gonna fucking die now, aren't I....?" Angrily he stared up blankly at the sky. "Can't you give me a goddamned break!!?!! I'm trying as hard as I fucking can!!!!"
He sank into despair, huddling into a ball, wishing it would just end. He didn't care how; he just wanted the pain to stop, and he hated feeling that way. *Goddamn it all... Goddamn it!*
Suddenly he smelled something else, someONE else. He felt a soft hand touched his face, and the hand wiped the wetness that it found there away. Inuyasha sniffled, and was thankful for a moment he couldn't hear how pathetic he sounded, or see the person's pitying face.
The woman's pitying face. It was a woman who was with him. She smelled of lilac and the mountain air that was surrounding the ill hanyou. And then she hugged his shoulders, and Inuyasha gasped. She was so warm, so soft; he could feel the determination, the faith, the pure strength emanating off her. Even without words he understood her.
Don't give up.
Inuyasha felt warm everywhere, and the pain started to fade. He sighed softly, welcoming the reprieve from the agony he had suffered presently for three days. And then he HEARD something. He hadn't heard anything for an entire day.
"Are you alright now? You're feeling a bit better?" asked the soft voice of a young woman. He opened his eyes, but still saw nothing except black. "I can hear again, but... I still can't see."
She sounded disappointed. "I see. You are worse off than I first thought. Well, I have herbs in my home that will heal your sight; let me take you to my house."
Inuyasha gasped suddenly, realizing who this woman was. "You're Kitsuko, aren't you?! The mountain witch who can heal youkai?!"
"Yes, I am." A soft chuckle. She didn't SOUND like a witch. She sounded more like... "Kagome! Where is she??!!" Inuyasha panicked. Kitsuko, the witch, held him down firmly. "Don't move. There was a girl who was with you?"
Inuyasha nodded. "Yes, and my friends... Miroku, and my sister and Sango..."
"Sango?!!" Kitsuko sounded pleased. "Little Sango-chan?? Oh, she's come to see me, has she? Well, I heard some trouble a little ways away. You stay here, I will return to get you."
"Wait, I~!"
But she was gone as quickly as she had come. Inuyasha stood. "Fuck staying here, I gotta find Kagome."
~*~
Further into the forest, Torou was continuing his assault on Sango, Tama and Miroku. Miroku threw an o-fuda, and it landed on Torou's arm. It began to sizzle, and Torou winced. "Damned houshi~!"
He flashed out a hand, and jaki flashed around his hand before shooting directly for Miroku. The houshi lifted up a barrier, and Torou grinned. "You're more resourceful than I thought."
"Miroku-sama, are you alright?!" Sango called and Miroku called out an affirmative before blocking another attack from Torou.
Tanpopo, Myouga and Shippou were huddled under a tree nearby, watching the battle in safety. "Dammit... this is what happens when you get tied up with worthless dirt like hanyous and humans." Tanpopo snarled, and Shippou glared at her. "Hey you, Inuyasha's sick because he saved me and YOU too!! If you didn't feel bad about it, why would you have followed us for three days!?!"
Tanpopo blushed and her bottom lip shook as she attempted to cover that up. "I DON'T feel bad! That damned hanyou should've minded his own business!!"
CRASH~! The ground shook beneath them and Tanpopo squealed, latching onto Shippou. "Shippou, save me!!"
"Save YOU?? I was gonna ask you the same thing!!" the other fox kit yelped, clutching Tanpopo as tightly as she was on him.
Tama growled angrily. "Dammit! If we don't get Inuyasha to Kitsuko's he's going to die...!!" Torou smirked bitterly. "Life's not fair, is it? I was born a worthless, underappreciated grandson of Uramiko, and you were born a worthless, underappreciated hanyou."
"DON'T COMPARE ME TO YOU, YOU LOWLIFE BASTARD!!" Tama charged again, only to be knocked back again. Torou raised his hand over his head, and a huge ball of jaki swelled over him. Sango caught her breath. "Damn, with something that size, we can't block~!"
"Dammit!" Tama growled, and Torou threw it. They cringed, waiting for the impact-- that didn't come.
Tama opened one eye and saw a young woman, a little older than herself, standing with her hands raised. She had long black hair, cut like Sango's, but pulled back like Kikyou's had been, tied off at three points. She was wearing a dark blue cotton kimono with a pink flower print, and a simple white haori over it. She was also barefoot.
Also, something rather obvious-- her ears were pointed. She was a youkai.
Torou snarled. "Wench, you'll regret that!!"
"I think not, little boy..." the woman said, gesturing to Torou's side, and he gasped. His left arm and shoulder were GONE. The oni he'd brought with him had been dusted completely. The woman had reflected it and HE had taken the hit.
The witch-girl grinned. "Go home and tell your grandmother Uramiko that I will NOT have you on my mountain again!! That bitch doesn't understand, I don't work for anyone!!"
"Bitch, you'll pay! When I return...!" And Torou vanished into thin air.
The group stared for a long moment and when they finally spoke, it was Sango, her face twisted into a happy grin. "Kitsuko-san!!"
Tama and Miroku gawped. "That's..."
"Kitsuko?" Miroku asked, and Sango nodded. Tama put a hand to her forehead. *And here I was expecting some old babaa whose eyes were lost under the folds of skin...*
Miroku was by Kitsuko in a second, and he grinned down at her. "Hey there, miss," he said, fondling the witch's ass, and Kitsuko raised an eyebrow. "Ahem. Houshi-sama, you can move your hand, or you can lose it."
Miroku snatched his hand away, only to be knocked in the head by Sango's Hiraikotsu. "Miroku-sama~!" she chided, and the houshi rubbed his head, laughing nervously. "Sorry, it was just a reflex..."
Sango quickly turned from admonishing her sukebe boyfriend to hug the woman. "Kitsuko-san, I'm so glad to see you! It's been so long!" Kitsuko smiled. "It has. How long has it been since I've seen you? I think Kohaku-kun was only... a few months old? You were about six, were you not? I don't think you let go of Kirara the entire time you were here last."
Sango smiled, despite the reference to her missing brother. "No, I didn't." She snapped to suddenly at the mention of her cat, and gasped. "Aah! Kirara, Kagome-chan and Inuyasha!"
"Inuyasha? The ill hanyou?" Kitsuko asked, and they nodded. The witch smiled. "He is fine. He is still in danger, as I was not able to heal him completely... but he is not on the verge of death as he was when I found him." She glanced at Tama. "Now that I think about it, you are the exact image of him. You must be his sister. And then Sango-chan whom he mentioned, and Miroku, I believe, is the houshi?"
Tama and Miroku stared, and the houshi muttered through the corner of his mouth at Tama, "Remarkable intuition..."
"Yeah..."
Sango only nodded. "Yes." Kitsuko sighed. "Kagome is the girl who was with him then?"
"Yes."
"I see. Well, she was not with him when I found him, so I believe we should split up and search for him, ne?"
They all exchanged glances. "Kagome-chan is missing?"
~*~
Kagome opened her eyes and sat up slowly. She looked around. She was in the forest, and Kirara lay next to her, in her small form. Everything was quiet, save some birds chirping.
"Where... am I?"
"You're in Kitsuko Forest." replied a dangerously familiar voice and Kagome spun. Kikyou stood behind her. Kagome cringed away. "Ki.. Kikyou..."
The dead miko looked the same as she ever had, except her eyes. They were as blood. And the haori she wore over her yukata was black, with a gold dragon embroidered over the front. Her hakama wasn't red anymore, but dark blue, and she wore a rosary of blood red beads. Kikyou's quiver and bow were slung, and she had the same cold, evil look she had the other day when they saw her come over the horizon.
Kagome stood, staggering back. She hit a tree and froze, and Kikyou raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry, I'm not going to kill you-- yet. Uramiko-sama asked me not to do anything but watch today, and it seems Torou is as worthless as you lot."
Kagome sighed with relief, and then raised her eyes to the other miko. "You really do work for her now, huh? ......You have no idea how much that hurts Inuyasha, do you? ......how much it hurts him that you don't know him anymore."
Kikyou was silent for a moment. When she spoke, she said with a snarl, "I have no memory of my life before Uramiko-sama found me in the ravine. I care not what happened before, but some part of me must, because I feel compelled to ask questions."
She glared at Kagome. "You, some worthless human miko, canceled out my power when I fired my arrow. I do not know why, but for some reason, it makes me want to believe whatever you will say. So answer me this." She paused and looked at Kagome with an almost sad look. "...why do I feel drawn to Inuyasha?"
Kagome lowered her eyes, knowing she must tell Kikyou the truth. "You..." Kagome bit her lip. "You were in love with each other, fifty years ago. But a demon named Naraku... pit you against each other, and after a huge misunderstanding, you pinned Inuyasha against a tree in your home village, and you died believing that the wound that resulted in your death was caused by Inuyasha."
"'Pinned him'?"
"Yes, with your sacred miko power."
"Nonsense!" Kikyou yelled, "I'm a demon, not a--"
"You aren't a demon, Kikyou, you were a human miko!" Kagome interrupted, "You were born in a village in Musashi, and you were the miko who was given the Shikon no Tama to purify! But you fell in love with Inuyasha, and you died! You died hating him, so when you returned from death, your one goal... was to kill him."
Kikyou stopped, her eyes going wide. Kagome looked at her. "I don't know if the reason you are drawn to him is because you're trying to remember your love for him... or your hate. But everything I said was the truth!! I swear it."
Kikyou turned, facing away from Kagome, and then asked softly, "Then..... if I am a miko... then Uramiko, everything she said to me is a lie..." She turned. "She told me that I was a demon and you were a miko, and that was how you could cancel out my powers. But if I am a miko, and YOU are a miko... then the arrow's purifying power would not have injured you, but the arrow would have. So the question still remains... how were you able to cancel out my power?"
"Because..." Kagome lowered her head. "I am you."
Kikyou looked taken aback, but before she or Kagome could say anything else, they heard a rustling through the trees to the right. "Kagome~!! Kikyou~!"
Both turned, and saw Inuyasha running towards them. Kagome's heart leapt to her throat. *Inuyasha!*
Kikyou snarled, and lifted a hand. Instantly, several Shinidamachuu appeared, and swirled around her to float her away as usual. Inuyasha couldn't see this, but he could smell her scent drifting away. "Kikyou, dammit!"
She was gone, but Inuyasha didn't worry too much; she would return. He turned in Kagome's direction, his hands a little ways away from his body as he blindly searched through the air for Kagome. By his gestures and the blankness of his eyes, Kagome could tell he still couldn't see and went to him.
His fingers brushed across the fabric of her shirt and he snatched her to him, holding her tightly. Kagome could feel the relief flowing through him, and hugged him back with a sigh. She was glad to see him okay too.
"Kagome! Are you alright? She didn't hurt you?" he asked worriedly and she shook her head. "No, I'm fine.. I was worried about you.. Are you still in pain? Doesn't it hurt?"
"No, I'm okay," he said softly.
"Well, I figured you'd run off to find her. You don't mind too well, do you boy?" asked a different voice. They turned and Inuyasha sniffed. The scent of lilac and mountain air tickled his nose and he smiled sheepishly. "Kitsuko?"
Kagome gawped at the pretty young woman who stood before them. She was barely older than Kagome herself. "Kitsuko??"
Inuyasha grunted in pain suddenly and Kagome gasped. "Inuyasha?!" He keeled over, and Kagome was kneeling by him when she noticed his hands. "You.. your claws are gone."
Kitsuko's smile faded. "His body is transforming, hm? And while he has not yet healed," She looked at Tama, whose hair was darkening to black, and then back at Inuyasha, who was the same. Then she looked up at the sun. Or, where it used to be. A veil of darkness was beginning to cover the sky and a few stars had appeared.
"The sun has set on the night of the new moon, hm? Figures that it would be your day of weakness. Hanyou are always like that." She smiled again to show she meant no insult and then pointed a finger towards the mountain. "We should hurry to my home. You all may rest there while I care for Inuyasha."
"Will Inuyasha be alright?" Sango asked as she and Kagome helped Inuyasha to Kirara. Kitsuko tilted her head.
"I don't know."
~*~ To be continued ~*~
a/n :: ^-^
Okay~! Ja ne~
~*~ V^-^V ~*~
Tessen
Disclaimer: ::huggles her website:: I own this~~~ See, there's a little passage on it that says "all rights reserved"!!! "copyright ME 2003!!!" ......What...? ..........Oh, Inuyasha? I don't own that.
^-^ Here's chapter eleven.
____________________________
To Be With You Tomorrow
Part Four :: The Byouma
Chapter Eleven :: Kitsuko
Tama snarled. "Dammit, Torou....! You fucking bastard!!"
He smirked. "Were you pleased with the results of my mukade-byous' work? I was! My grandmother Uramiko told me how well Inuyasha took to their poison~ it pleases an artist so much, to see another enjoy his work so much."
"YOU BASTARD!" Tama leapt up and slashed at Torou, and the boy leapt off his oni. "Ah-ah!" he reprimanded, "That's not very nice!" He floated to the earth lightly, and rushed Tama, who stumbled back, surprised by his speed. *Fast little bastard~*
She spun to block his hand, and then swung her leg, catching the back of his head. Torou snarled in response, and swiped at the hanyou girl with his left hand. Tama yelped, barely able to dodge. Torou did catch the side of her hi-nezumi kimono though, and the red rat hair sizzled. She grit her teeth. *Poison claws, huh? Sorta like Ani-ue... AND ME~!*
"Dokka Tessou~!" Tama punched through Torou and the boy gasped, and Tama ripped her hand back out, but not before Torou grabbed her hands and dug his claws in. Tama growled, ignoring the pain, and brought her knee up sharply, clipping Torou's chin. His head snapped back and Tama pulled away, clutching her injured arm.
Sango went to her, "Tama-chan, your poison didn't affect him at all!" Torou snorted with laughter. "Damn straight it didn't... After all I'm a full youkai, and she's just a hanyou."
Tama snarled.
After a moment, she stood to her full height, her head high, her voice angry but vaguely proud. "I may be nothing but a fucking hanyou, but I AM the daughter of the Lord of the Western lands, Inutaisho-sama! Even if I only have half his blood.." She charged Torou again, "IT'LL STILL BE ENOUGH TO WASTE YOU!!!"
~*~
Inuyasha struggled to his hands and knees. Carefully he felt around for Kagome, not able to see her or hear her. But he still had his nose. He caught her scent of honey and plumeria, and went that direction, getting to his feet with a great effort. He made his way wearily and painfully, his body still hurting greatly.
He felt faint suddenly and swayed, his knees buckling without much of a fight. Another coughing fit racked his body and Inuyasha leaned heavily against a tree. The coppery scent of his blood wafted under his nose and he spat, despising the taste of it in his mouth. He clenched a fist, digging his claws into the tree bark.
"Dammit," he mumbled, "I'm gonna fucking die now, aren't I....?" Angrily he stared up blankly at the sky. "Can't you give me a goddamned break!!?!! I'm trying as hard as I fucking can!!!!"
He sank into despair, huddling into a ball, wishing it would just end. He didn't care how; he just wanted the pain to stop, and he hated feeling that way. *Goddamn it all... Goddamn it!*
Suddenly he smelled something else, someONE else. He felt a soft hand touched his face, and the hand wiped the wetness that it found there away. Inuyasha sniffled, and was thankful for a moment he couldn't hear how pathetic he sounded, or see the person's pitying face.
The woman's pitying face. It was a woman who was with him. She smelled of lilac and the mountain air that was surrounding the ill hanyou. And then she hugged his shoulders, and Inuyasha gasped. She was so warm, so soft; he could feel the determination, the faith, the pure strength emanating off her. Even without words he understood her.
Don't give up.
Inuyasha felt warm everywhere, and the pain started to fade. He sighed softly, welcoming the reprieve from the agony he had suffered presently for three days. And then he HEARD something. He hadn't heard anything for an entire day.
"Are you alright now? You're feeling a bit better?" asked the soft voice of a young woman. He opened his eyes, but still saw nothing except black. "I can hear again, but... I still can't see."
She sounded disappointed. "I see. You are worse off than I first thought. Well, I have herbs in my home that will heal your sight; let me take you to my house."
Inuyasha gasped suddenly, realizing who this woman was. "You're Kitsuko, aren't you?! The mountain witch who can heal youkai?!"
"Yes, I am." A soft chuckle. She didn't SOUND like a witch. She sounded more like... "Kagome! Where is she??!!" Inuyasha panicked. Kitsuko, the witch, held him down firmly. "Don't move. There was a girl who was with you?"
Inuyasha nodded. "Yes, and my friends... Miroku, and my sister and Sango..."
"Sango?!!" Kitsuko sounded pleased. "Little Sango-chan?? Oh, she's come to see me, has she? Well, I heard some trouble a little ways away. You stay here, I will return to get you."
"Wait, I~!"
But she was gone as quickly as she had come. Inuyasha stood. "Fuck staying here, I gotta find Kagome."
~*~
Further into the forest, Torou was continuing his assault on Sango, Tama and Miroku. Miroku threw an o-fuda, and it landed on Torou's arm. It began to sizzle, and Torou winced. "Damned houshi~!"
He flashed out a hand, and jaki flashed around his hand before shooting directly for Miroku. The houshi lifted up a barrier, and Torou grinned. "You're more resourceful than I thought."
"Miroku-sama, are you alright?!" Sango called and Miroku called out an affirmative before blocking another attack from Torou.
Tanpopo, Myouga and Shippou were huddled under a tree nearby, watching the battle in safety. "Dammit... this is what happens when you get tied up with worthless dirt like hanyous and humans." Tanpopo snarled, and Shippou glared at her. "Hey you, Inuyasha's sick because he saved me and YOU too!! If you didn't feel bad about it, why would you have followed us for three days!?!"
Tanpopo blushed and her bottom lip shook as she attempted to cover that up. "I DON'T feel bad! That damned hanyou should've minded his own business!!"
CRASH~! The ground shook beneath them and Tanpopo squealed, latching onto Shippou. "Shippou, save me!!"
"Save YOU?? I was gonna ask you the same thing!!" the other fox kit yelped, clutching Tanpopo as tightly as she was on him.
Tama growled angrily. "Dammit! If we don't get Inuyasha to Kitsuko's he's going to die...!!" Torou smirked bitterly. "Life's not fair, is it? I was born a worthless, underappreciated grandson of Uramiko, and you were born a worthless, underappreciated hanyou."
"DON'T COMPARE ME TO YOU, YOU LOWLIFE BASTARD!!" Tama charged again, only to be knocked back again. Torou raised his hand over his head, and a huge ball of jaki swelled over him. Sango caught her breath. "Damn, with something that size, we can't block~!"
"Dammit!" Tama growled, and Torou threw it. They cringed, waiting for the impact-- that didn't come.
Tama opened one eye and saw a young woman, a little older than herself, standing with her hands raised. She had long black hair, cut like Sango's, but pulled back like Kikyou's had been, tied off at three points. She was wearing a dark blue cotton kimono with a pink flower print, and a simple white haori over it. She was also barefoot.
Also, something rather obvious-- her ears were pointed. She was a youkai.
Torou snarled. "Wench, you'll regret that!!"
"I think not, little boy..." the woman said, gesturing to Torou's side, and he gasped. His left arm and shoulder were GONE. The oni he'd brought with him had been dusted completely. The woman had reflected it and HE had taken the hit.
The witch-girl grinned. "Go home and tell your grandmother Uramiko that I will NOT have you on my mountain again!! That bitch doesn't understand, I don't work for anyone!!"
"Bitch, you'll pay! When I return...!" And Torou vanished into thin air.
The group stared for a long moment and when they finally spoke, it was Sango, her face twisted into a happy grin. "Kitsuko-san!!"
Tama and Miroku gawped. "That's..."
"Kitsuko?" Miroku asked, and Sango nodded. Tama put a hand to her forehead. *And here I was expecting some old babaa whose eyes were lost under the folds of skin...*
Miroku was by Kitsuko in a second, and he grinned down at her. "Hey there, miss," he said, fondling the witch's ass, and Kitsuko raised an eyebrow. "Ahem. Houshi-sama, you can move your hand, or you can lose it."
Miroku snatched his hand away, only to be knocked in the head by Sango's Hiraikotsu. "Miroku-sama~!" she chided, and the houshi rubbed his head, laughing nervously. "Sorry, it was just a reflex..."
Sango quickly turned from admonishing her sukebe boyfriend to hug the woman. "Kitsuko-san, I'm so glad to see you! It's been so long!" Kitsuko smiled. "It has. How long has it been since I've seen you? I think Kohaku-kun was only... a few months old? You were about six, were you not? I don't think you let go of Kirara the entire time you were here last."
Sango smiled, despite the reference to her missing brother. "No, I didn't." She snapped to suddenly at the mention of her cat, and gasped. "Aah! Kirara, Kagome-chan and Inuyasha!"
"Inuyasha? The ill hanyou?" Kitsuko asked, and they nodded. The witch smiled. "He is fine. He is still in danger, as I was not able to heal him completely... but he is not on the verge of death as he was when I found him." She glanced at Tama. "Now that I think about it, you are the exact image of him. You must be his sister. And then Sango-chan whom he mentioned, and Miroku, I believe, is the houshi?"
Tama and Miroku stared, and the houshi muttered through the corner of his mouth at Tama, "Remarkable intuition..."
"Yeah..."
Sango only nodded. "Yes." Kitsuko sighed. "Kagome is the girl who was with him then?"
"Yes."
"I see. Well, she was not with him when I found him, so I believe we should split up and search for him, ne?"
They all exchanged glances. "Kagome-chan is missing?"
~*~
Kagome opened her eyes and sat up slowly. She looked around. She was in the forest, and Kirara lay next to her, in her small form. Everything was quiet, save some birds chirping.
"Where... am I?"
"You're in Kitsuko Forest." replied a dangerously familiar voice and Kagome spun. Kikyou stood behind her. Kagome cringed away. "Ki.. Kikyou..."
The dead miko looked the same as she ever had, except her eyes. They were as blood. And the haori she wore over her yukata was black, with a gold dragon embroidered over the front. Her hakama wasn't red anymore, but dark blue, and she wore a rosary of blood red beads. Kikyou's quiver and bow were slung, and she had the same cold, evil look she had the other day when they saw her come over the horizon.
Kagome stood, staggering back. She hit a tree and froze, and Kikyou raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry, I'm not going to kill you-- yet. Uramiko-sama asked me not to do anything but watch today, and it seems Torou is as worthless as you lot."
Kagome sighed with relief, and then raised her eyes to the other miko. "You really do work for her now, huh? ......You have no idea how much that hurts Inuyasha, do you? ......how much it hurts him that you don't know him anymore."
Kikyou was silent for a moment. When she spoke, she said with a snarl, "I have no memory of my life before Uramiko-sama found me in the ravine. I care not what happened before, but some part of me must, because I feel compelled to ask questions."
She glared at Kagome. "You, some worthless human miko, canceled out my power when I fired my arrow. I do not know why, but for some reason, it makes me want to believe whatever you will say. So answer me this." She paused and looked at Kagome with an almost sad look. "...why do I feel drawn to Inuyasha?"
Kagome lowered her eyes, knowing she must tell Kikyou the truth. "You..." Kagome bit her lip. "You were in love with each other, fifty years ago. But a demon named Naraku... pit you against each other, and after a huge misunderstanding, you pinned Inuyasha against a tree in your home village, and you died believing that the wound that resulted in your death was caused by Inuyasha."
"'Pinned him'?"
"Yes, with your sacred miko power."
"Nonsense!" Kikyou yelled, "I'm a demon, not a--"
"You aren't a demon, Kikyou, you were a human miko!" Kagome interrupted, "You were born in a village in Musashi, and you were the miko who was given the Shikon no Tama to purify! But you fell in love with Inuyasha, and you died! You died hating him, so when you returned from death, your one goal... was to kill him."
Kikyou stopped, her eyes going wide. Kagome looked at her. "I don't know if the reason you are drawn to him is because you're trying to remember your love for him... or your hate. But everything I said was the truth!! I swear it."
Kikyou turned, facing away from Kagome, and then asked softly, "Then..... if I am a miko... then Uramiko, everything she said to me is a lie..." She turned. "She told me that I was a demon and you were a miko, and that was how you could cancel out my powers. But if I am a miko, and YOU are a miko... then the arrow's purifying power would not have injured you, but the arrow would have. So the question still remains... how were you able to cancel out my power?"
"Because..." Kagome lowered her head. "I am you."
Kikyou looked taken aback, but before she or Kagome could say anything else, they heard a rustling through the trees to the right. "Kagome~!! Kikyou~!"
Both turned, and saw Inuyasha running towards them. Kagome's heart leapt to her throat. *Inuyasha!*
Kikyou snarled, and lifted a hand. Instantly, several Shinidamachuu appeared, and swirled around her to float her away as usual. Inuyasha couldn't see this, but he could smell her scent drifting away. "Kikyou, dammit!"
She was gone, but Inuyasha didn't worry too much; she would return. He turned in Kagome's direction, his hands a little ways away from his body as he blindly searched through the air for Kagome. By his gestures and the blankness of his eyes, Kagome could tell he still couldn't see and went to him.
His fingers brushed across the fabric of her shirt and he snatched her to him, holding her tightly. Kagome could feel the relief flowing through him, and hugged him back with a sigh. She was glad to see him okay too.
"Kagome! Are you alright? She didn't hurt you?" he asked worriedly and she shook her head. "No, I'm fine.. I was worried about you.. Are you still in pain? Doesn't it hurt?"
"No, I'm okay," he said softly.
"Well, I figured you'd run off to find her. You don't mind too well, do you boy?" asked a different voice. They turned and Inuyasha sniffed. The scent of lilac and mountain air tickled his nose and he smiled sheepishly. "Kitsuko?"
Kagome gawped at the pretty young woman who stood before them. She was barely older than Kagome herself. "Kitsuko??"
Inuyasha grunted in pain suddenly and Kagome gasped. "Inuyasha?!" He keeled over, and Kagome was kneeling by him when she noticed his hands. "You.. your claws are gone."
Kitsuko's smile faded. "His body is transforming, hm? And while he has not yet healed," She looked at Tama, whose hair was darkening to black, and then back at Inuyasha, who was the same. Then she looked up at the sun. Or, where it used to be. A veil of darkness was beginning to cover the sky and a few stars had appeared.
"The sun has set on the night of the new moon, hm? Figures that it would be your day of weakness. Hanyou are always like that." She smiled again to show she meant no insult and then pointed a finger towards the mountain. "We should hurry to my home. You all may rest there while I care for Inuyasha."
"Will Inuyasha be alright?" Sango asked as she and Kagome helped Inuyasha to Kirara. Kitsuko tilted her head.
"I don't know."
~*~ To be continued ~*~
a/n :: ^-^
Okay~! Ja ne~
~*~ V^-^V ~*~
Tessen