Title: Another's Name, But My Heart
By Lady of the Ink
Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, but you knew that. I hope. But I do own this plot and all the twists that it takes.
General Reminder: All references to Kikyo mean Kagome unless that section is in Kaede, Kagome, or the real Kikyo's POV.
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Chapter Thirteen
Ready To Run.
The marketplace was overflowing with people buying and selling any number of wares. Booths for cloth, food, metal works, and pottery sat side by side, their venders waging a battle with shouting voices and enticing displays. With so much going on in all directions, it was easy to miss the less exciting things. Though dozens upon dozens of shoppers made their way down the crowded street, few even noticed the two figures standing in the shadows of a building."Is it done?" The feminine voice was low-pitched in deference to the stream of humanity a scant foot away, but still managed to exude superiority and vague disdain.
"It is," came the reply, its speaker lounging comfortably against the wall, body still but eyes ever watchful. "Everything went according to plan. The demon slayer found the clues, just as she was meant to."
"She did not question that they belonged to him?"
"Of course she did. She would not be as dangerous a warrior as she is if she accepted all things to be what they appeared to be at first glance. But when she had the word of a witness to confirm her guess, there was no room left for further doubt." His voice changed from one sentence to the next, becoming slightly higher and cracked with age. "The awful dog demon who had boasted of his victory over a great demon exterminator and spoke of plans for further conquests could be no other than Inuyasha."
Kikyo laughed. "Excellent work. Sango is sure to be on her way to him even now. The blood of her brother shall accomplish nicely what money could not."
"Yes . . .the boy. He barely put up a fight. It was no wonder she always left him behind when it was time for her to go hunting."
"So what did you do with his body?" The question was uttered in an offhand manner, proving its speaker cared little for the answer.
"Oh, I took care of it." The man's chuckle was filled with such evil that the flow of market goers unconsciously gave him wider berth. "Trust me when I say it was put to the best use possible."
Kikyo shrugged, not bothering to wonder what he meant by his statement. Although it was useful for her to ally herself with him for the moment as they worked toward the same goal, it didn't make them equals. She was and always would be above him and all others of his kind. Once she regained her proper place, she would see to it that she never had to deal with another one again.
"Since that's all the business we have for the moment," she stated coldly, shifting her body out of the shadows, "I'll be going now. I'll contact you when it's time for the next stage." Kikyo pulled the edges of her plain cloak together, using the high collar to shield her face. Not for anything would she risk anyone recognizing her in such common apparel. It was bad enough that she was forced to subject herself to the vulgarity of such a low setting for the sake of secrecy; any further insults to her dignity and standing would simply be too much.
Without another word to her partner in crime, she let herself merge with the ocean of bodies heading away from the center of town. She didn't really care for the man, him being what he was, but she had wanted the best, and from all accounts, that's exactly what she had gotten. Word had it that for a price, there was no one better at accomplishing what needed to be done than Naraku.
x
Inuyasha was off and running the instant that Shippo's words penetrated his brain. He shouted terse instructions at Miroku as he went, hoping that the priest would remember his duty, both as a man of the cloth and as someone whose wage was paid for by him, and obey without question. Shippo, exhausted from his run, continued trying to catch his breath.
Trees sped by in a green blur as he dodged over and around them at an amazing speed. His full attention was locked on the ribbon of scent that Shippo had left behind.
Well, almost his full attention.
A small part of him insisted on seeking Kikyo's scent amongst all the others. That same part replayed everything he had ever noticed about her, from the slight curl at the end of her hair to the way she chewed on her lower lip when she was worried or afraid. But the worst images out of all the ones flitting through his mind were the ones that involved what he might find when he reached her. Inuyasha had been in his share of battles over the years, so he knew first hand the long list of things that could be done to a weaker victim.
Was she scared? Crying? Hurt? Or something even worse? Pure rage shot through Inuyasha as he thought about anyone laying a hand on Kikyo. When he got a hold of them, he was going to rip them to pieces, one limb at a time. His rage at the thought of someone hurting Kikyo and the anticipation of making them regret it to their dying breaths allowed him to run even faster.
He was moving so quickly that he hit the end of Shippo's trail and almost kept going. Coming to a sliding stop in the thick underbrush, he began surveying the area through keen eyesight made even more so through something that felt almost like . . .fear.
Even then, he heard her before he saw her. The sound of her voice drifted to his ears, causing the appendages to swivel toward it. He had to focus to make out her words, made soft by tone rather than distance.
"You're going to be okay . . .just hold on . . .everything will be alright. I promise."
Inuyasha soon found her on her knees beside an unmoving pile of something. His eyes immediately zeroed in on the blood staining her hands and the front of her dress. Following the trail of crimson liquid, he noticed a large tear in the skirt of her gown. Anger flared anew and he cracked his knuckles, ready and looking for a fight.
"He's hurt really badly, Inuyasha."
The tearful quality to Kikyo's voice affected him so much that it took a moment for her words to fully register. When they did, his eyes flew first to her face, then to the ground beside her. What he had dismissed as a pile of rags or underbrush turned out to be a young human boy, not many years younger than Kikyo herself.
One glance was all it took to see that he was the source of the blood, not Kikyo. A wave of relief so intense that it weakened his knees rushed through him. Covering his reaction by kneeling at her side, Inuyasha took a closer look at the boy. His wounds were many and serious, affecting almost his entire body. A few of them had been bandaged roughly with a familiar looking cloth - 'The tear in her dress,' he thought- while still others continued to bleed freely.
It was instantly clear to Inuyasha that without immediate medical attention, the boy would surely die. As he watched Kikyo smooth back a strand of bloody hair from his face, he knew he couldn't let that happen. While he was used to such things from a life lived less than peacefully at times, she was not. He could tell from her subtle actions that she felt a bond with the victim, though exactly what kind he couldn't guess. It was obvious that, despite the fact that she didn't know him, if the boy didn't pull through, she would be devastated.
With a resigned sigh, Inuyasha scooped the battered body carefully into his arms, ignoring Kikyo's startled gasp. It wasn't a good sign that the boy made no sound as he did so; it showed that he was beyond feeling the pain that such an action must surely have caused.
"We'll have to hurry if he's going to make it." Pausing only long enough to make sure that she'd heard him, Inuyasha turned to head back the way he had come. While his eyes were trained straight ahead, his ears were straining to make out Kikyo's movements behind him.
She remained still for the space of three heartbeats after his announcement and then climbed to her feet. There was a rustling noise followed by the pattering sound of slippers on the fallen leaves that covered the forest floor. As Kikyo caught up to him, he saw the cause of the rustling in the picnic basket swinging from her arm. He guessed she must have dropped it when she and Shippo stumbled onto the boy. The fact that she had remembered to retrieve it showed him that she was calmer than he had given her credit for. He felt almost proud that she was handling the situation so well, without collapsing into a sobbing and useless heap.
"What do you think happened to him?" she asked, her voice a bit breathless from the ordeal and the effort of keeping up with his long strides. "Did someone attack him? Was there a fight?"
Inuyasha shrugged, not wanting to trouble her with the truth of what he had noticed. There was no sign of a struggle in the area the boy had fallen. While that in itself meant little more than that the actual fight had occurred elsewhere, the complete lack of a blood trail leading to the spot told a darker tale.
The boy had been attacked somewhere else by someone much stronger than himself. The large number of wounds on his arms made it clear he had spent most of the fight trying to defend himself rather than attacking. His opponent had apparently done most of the damage once the boy was unconscious, an underhanded act that went against everything Inuyasha had been taught about fairness even in battle. Then that person had deliberately moved him to the secluded wood where few humans dared to venture. It was pure chance that Shippo and Kikyo had come upon him, something he'd bet hadn't been in the plan.
The boy had been left to die.
"K-Kikyo!" The voice came from nearby, drawing Inuyasha's attention away from his thoughts. He was surprised to notice that they had made it back to the castle while he had been lost in his conclusions. They were almost to the courtyard now, and he was relieved to note that Miroku had actually followed his instructions.
Kaede stood at his side; it had been her voice calling out as they approached. She held a small basket in her hands. Judging by the quiet clank of glass bottles and the strips of linen hanging over the edges, he guessed it contained medical supplies.
"Kaede, he needs help right away." Kikyo's voice clearly told of her continued anxiety. It was pitched slightly higher than usual and had a fine tremble running through it. Her eyes remained locked on the injured boy's face and so she missed the intense look of relief that flooded across her aunt's face, but Inuyasha didn't. He knew that she must have been thinking the same thing that he had upon first hearing Shippo's cries, felt the same spurt of worry that he had. It was the same reaction anyone would have when danger got too close to some they . . .
He took a mental leap away from that thought, unwilling to look at it too closely. Instead he concentrated on the boy in his arms, forming a list of things that would have to be done. Kikyo and Kaede could handle his physical well being, tending to his wounds and anything else that he might need. He was sure they would see to it that someone remained by his side, and thus would be there to hear anything he might say that could be a clue to his identity.
He, on the other hand, planned to follow a different path: the one leading up to the forest. Whoever had dumped the kid had been careful about not leaving evidence behind. But even so, Inuyasha wanted to see if there might be something his demon senses could pick up on. He was hoping that a thorough search would turn up some hint about who the boy was or why he had been attacked and left there.
The actions were too planned, too methodical to simply be a coincidence. They had wanted the boy to be in that spot enough to move him there after he was already gravely injured, and Inuyasha was determined to find what reason they had for doing so.