The Demon Bride
By Crystal Arrow
Chapter 8: The Attack
Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or the other characters from that story; they belong to someone else who actually has talent.
At four years old, little Michera was indisputably the most adorable pup the lord of the Western Lands had. She was brave, witty and strong much like Inuyasha, yet still fair fast and smart like her half brother Sesshoumaru. With wild silver tinted black hair, cute gray ears and scraggly tail, she easily captured the hearts of any yokai, whether it despised humans and hanyous or not.
It was another day in the lives of the three dog demon pups. As usual, with Inuyasha, approaching ten years old, and Sesshoumaru, approaching twenty, the two elder pups were arguing over their beloved little sister.
"She's my sister!" Inuyasha yelled.
"Yeah right, brat, like she would want to be your sister, she's my sister, and she loves me more!" Sesshoumaru shot back coolly.
Inuyasha was boiling with rage, "She's half demon, like me, so she's my sister whether you agree or not!"
"Sure, whatever you say runt, like that makes her your sister." the elder brother answered.
Little Michera watched both sides carry on for several minutes curiously. Finally growing bored with it, she said softly, "I'm bored, if you don't mind, I'm going to go play." With that, she skipped away, leaving the two brothers arguing. They carried on as such for several more minutes until they finally realized that Michera had taken leave. With one final glare, they set out as a team to locate the lost sibling before their mother found out they had let her out of their sight again. The arguments were regular occurrences, happening at least several times a day. One wouldn't worry unless they didn't argue.
Michera had been watching them from her perch in a tree, but she had fallen asleep. Therefore when she felt Inuyasha grab her from behind, she awoke in fear and fell from the tree straight into Sesshoumaru's arms. This was another normal day the three siblings, playing hide and seek, tag and arguing. But today would end differently, very much so. Today was the end of their lives together, and the beginning of a legacy to last for decades, that of the Demon's Bride, the key to power.
The dog demon lord of the west ran for the first time in his life. He had hoped this day wouldn't come, but it had. The witch that cursed his family had sent a wolf yokai, the most powerful he had ever seen, to kill off his family and take his daughter. Blood flowed freely from the demon lords vicious wounds all over his body. He could sense the wolf behind him, but gaining fast. He had to warn his family before it was too late!
Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha returned home from play after noon. Michera was napping in Sesshoumaru's arms as them entered the furnished cave which the dog demon family used as a summer home. From what looked like a plain whole in the wall of a cliff sprouted a finished interior that branched a mile inwards. The first room was open to the outdoors. Within it was their mother, where she sat peacefully on the ground sewing a new kimono for Michera. Inuyasha plopped down beside his mother, the oversized fire rat coat she had made for him pooling around him. As Sesshoumaru placed Michera in a corner mat to continue her nap, their mother showed Inuyasha the kimono she was sewing. The cloth was woven from fine silk like green fire rat fur. It was sized for a woman near her own size, meant to be for Michera when she grew up much like Inuyasha's oversized red one, yet designed for combat and activeness with feminine grace.
All was peaceful within the cool cave as the mother sewed and the sons fought (really, what did you expect?), until near the speed of light, the demon lord raced into the cave. He was worn and bloodied, his clothing torn and ragged. He panted only momentarily to regain his breath before shouting out, "Hurry and leave. Danger is approaching. I want all of you to leave this place, but stay away from the palace. Take nothing. I SAID LEAVE NOW!"
Shocked out of their senses, they stood before him. Only when Sesshoumaru retrieved Michera from the corner and made for the exit did Inuyasha and his mother react. The lady dropped her sewing immediately and took Inuyasha's hand in her own. After one brief kiss farewell to her mate, she left without question, fully understanding what was going on. It would have been a silent farewell had Michera not woken up. She saw her father's retreating figure in the distance and called out to him from where she struggled in Sesshoumaru's arms, but all in vain. He continued to run at his stepmother's side, paying no heed to her cries. Michera knew trouble was about, as did they all, but nothing prepared her for her destiny of what was to come. It was the beginning of the end of her life, and nothing could stop that.
Blood dripped from the demon lord's robes, creating a puddle of it around him where he stood. He awaited anxiously for the coming of his enemies, his energy barely staying within his grasp. In the distance he could here the retreating foot steps of his mate and pups, all of whom he would never see again. Then, with the rustling of the underbrush around the cave, the demon wolf, fully transformed into a giant black wolf, emerged before him. The wolf was strong, obviously from a territory outside of Japan with a league of strength all it's own.
With a feral growl, the demon lord transformed himself into a giant white dog. The blood still flowed from open wounds and the weariness was obvious despite the demon lord's proud defensive stance before his home. The wind was near nothing, everything was completely still, yet more and more smaller wolves, the pack of the black wolf, were appearing out of the underbrush until finally he was completely surrounded. The only new arrival as the dog and wolf faced off was an old witch from far to the north. Her clothes were near nothing but rags tied together around her body and her skin matched that of a toad's full of blotches and warts. The witch cackled evilly as she pointed her clawed finger at the demon lord below her, "Now I shall have my revenge!! Kill him and all of his pups, leave none of his blood alive!!"
"NO!!!" the demon lord roared as the wolves that had surrounded him left on the trail of his mate and pups. "Teruhi, don't you dare do this!"
"And who's to stop me? You?" Teruhi cackled at the thought, then stopped abruptly. With a glare, she ordered the black wolf to kill the demon lord, and as though the wolf were being controlled by the witch, Teruhi, he attacked.
Sesshoumaru tried desperately to make his step mother run faster, but to no avail. Inuyasha and her were left behind no matter how hard he tried to make them go faster, and it didn't help that Inuyasha refused to leave his mother out of his sight. At the rate they were going, they would be caught, and guess what, they were.
Racing from behind, the wolves quickly gained ground in the race to kill the demon lord's mate and blood. Michera could only watch in horror from her place in Sesshoumaru's arms as her mother threw Inuyasha away from her and turned to face the approaching demons. Before she could even scream, Sesshoumaru had killed dozens of wolves that approached him and Inuyasha. Several minutes later, the wolves had retreated into the surrounding underbrush where they waited to attack again.
Their mother lay dying on the ground, mortally wounded by the attack. Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha and Michera kneeled around her as she gave her final orders. "Sesshoumaru, take your siblings to safety, leave me, and let them survive."
"No! I won't leave you Mama!!" Inuyasha cried.
"Inuyasha, you must go! Sesshoumaru, take him, please!"
Silent and obedient, Sesshoumaru got up and began to walk away. "Inuyasha, Michera let's go." he ordered.
"NO!!! Mama we won't leave you!" Inuyasha cried as he tried to lift his mother. "Sesshoumaru you coward, help me!"
"My babies, I love you, but you must survive, LEAVE ME!" their mother choked out around the blood in her throat. She glanced up at Sesshoumaru pleadingly. He understood, before Inuyasha could react, Sesshoumaru had knocked him unconscious and swung him on his shoulder. The lady struggled to lift her bloodied hand to Michera's face. "My …baby, …run……" With that the lady of the west fell limp into the darkness of death, her hand falling from her daughter's face leaving a red blood stain upon her pale white cheeks.
Michera had been completely silent, no tears, no crying. Sesshoumaru took her hand and began to lead her away. They had covered several meters when Michera's emotions finally kicked into gear. She slipped her hand from her elder brother's grasp and ran with all her might back to the cave. "DADDY!!" she cried. She ran, and Sesshoumaru followed, but then Sesshoumaru stopped. Before him was a barrier, a lock around the summer cave his father placed to keep his children from returning when they fled in such an occasion as now. Sesshoumaru could no longer enter, nor Michera exit, she was gone. As her small figure faded into the distance, a single tear, the first and last for years to come, rolled down his cheek as he turned and stalked away, never to see his beloved sister again.
Author's note:
Sorry this chapter took so long to post, I've been really busy, since I'm such a genius, I just had to take all of the hard classes. Sigh… Oh well, I'm finally getting into the swing of school again, so the chapters should come at least one a week now.
~Crystal Arrow
