The Princess and the Pauperess
Chapter 9
Aide
Kikyou was sitting with Kouga by the stream's edge, counting their earnings for the day. She was really a very inept pickpocket, and was only redeemed by Kouga's patient guidance and occasional loan.
"Hey! Kagome!" a voice called suddenly. Instinctively, Kikyou looked up and scanned the area, her eyes resting on two small, boy-like figures in the distance.
"Who are they?" she asked Kouga, who furrowed his eyebrows trying to get a better look at the two.
"Looks like Souta and Shippou," he answered, pointing to each respectively. "They probably want more of Kagome's loving guidance. She was helping them learn to pickpocket, you know."
"Oh. Wait…Souta? I thought he died."
"Not Souta Kagome's brother, he did die. Souta Shippou's brother. It really used to bother Kagome that Shippou's brother had the same name, but now it doesn't seem to faze her."
"Oh. I wonder what it would be like for a family member to die…"
"No one in your family's ever died?"
"My mother, but she died giving birth to me, so I never knew her." Kouga nodded in understanding.
"Hey, Kag!" one of the boys called out. They were much closer now; close enough that she could see that one of the boys had a very distinguishing orange-red mop of hair, and the other had more auburn tresses pulled back in a neat ponytail.
"Oh my god, Kouga!" Kikyou exclaimed, grabbing onto his shirt in desperation. "I can't teach them how to pickpocket!" Kouga smirked.
"That would be highly amusing if you tried…"
"I can't. Why don't we tell them that I don't feel well?"
"Or I could teach them," he offered. The boys stopped a few feet away, panting for oxygen. Shippou managed to catch his breath first, and stepped toward Kikyou, shoving a folded piece of paper into her face.
"Here. The mean man said to give it to you," the boy said simply. Kikyou took the rich parchment and smelled of it. It smelled like home.
"Thank you," she said. As an afterthought she added, "And what did this mean man look like?"
"Well…" Shippou started, tapping his finger to his chin thoughtfully.
"He was tall," Souta chimed in.
"Yeah. And he had really long, girly black hair."
"Yep. And really weird golden eyes."
"And he called us brats and said to 'fucking give this to Kagome.'"
"Hey, I think that's enough," Kouga told them. The two fell silent, and all three males seemed to be waiting for something.
"What?" Kikyou asked.
"Aren't you gonna open it?" Shippou asked. Kikyou smiled.
"Alright." She carefully pried the unmistakable wax seal open and unfolded the paper.
Dear "Kagome":
Are you out of your fucking mind?! What the hell could have possessed you to
trade places with the most annoying person alive? The least you could have done
would have been to tell me first, so that stupid wench didn't have to break it
to me. Why the hell did you abandon your sick father and me for a month? How
many days has it been? Nine, ten, I don't know, it feels like
years. I want you to write me back. I'll have the new messenger meet you
on that road, okay? And don't you dare tell me to watch my fucking language
when you write. God, you are such an idiot.
Pissed off,
Inuyasha
Kikyou blinked. Well, that was…less than expected. And her father was sick? He had been in perfect health when she'd left. What was that about a new messenger? Inuyasha wasn't being overly rude to Kagome, was he?
"What did it say?" Shippou asked, hopping up and down in excitement. Kikyou looked to Kouga, who looked back.
"Who's it from?" he asked. She stared into his eyes for the longest time, willing herself to speak, to lie, to tell the truth, she didn't know.
"It's…it's from Kikyou, she says everything's going well," she said.
"Who's Kikyou?" Souta asked.
"Just an old friend," Kikyou answered. She shot Kouga an 'I'll explain later' look.
"Yeah," was all he said.
. . . . .
A servant rushed past Kagome, a large towel in his hands.
"What's going on?" she asked, bewildered. That was the third servant in two minutes.
"The king poured wine in his drawers," the servant answered before disappearing around a corner.
"Oh…" she blinked, then lifted her slip to sprint after the man. There was nothing better to do. She'd completely lost him, so for a while she was lost, but soon enough it was just a matter of following the commotion. She stepped through the open door of the king's room, transfixed by the liquid now staining his chest of drawers and the floor. She glanced toward the bed, and there he was, staring as if he were lost. She took a tentative step farther into the room, unsure of what to do. But she had to do something.
"Lady Kikyou, you need to leave," ordered a gruff voice. She glanced to the right of the king, and there was Inuyasha, kneeling, looking very tender toward the king, yet still vicious toward her.
"'Kikyou'?" the king scoffed. "That is not my Kikyou." Kagome cringed.
"Of course she's not, your majesty," Inuyasha said. "Why don't you lie down now?" He coaxed the man under his blankets and propped him up slightly with his pillows. "There. I have business to attend to, your majesty." Inuyasha bowed to the king and swiftly ushered Kagome from the room.
"What do you think you're doing, butting into business that doesn't concern you?" he snarled in her ear as they made their quick way down the hall. Once they were safely in a more secluded area of the castle, he gripped her arms painfully and pinned her to the wall.
"Ow!" she protested, and tried to squirm, but it was no good.
"You listen to me," he started, gripping her arms even tighter.
"Stop it!" she vociferated. "You're hurting me!" He shoved a hand over her mouth to silence her, inevitably freeing one of her arms. She took the opportunity, and her hand shot up, popping him in the nose. He backed off enough for her to push away. Once she was free, she reeled back and slapped him hard. So hard that spots of blood appeared on his cheek. He stared at her, stunned for a second.
"I thought I would escape abusive pigs here. I guess I was wrong," she told him, turning on her heel and stalking off. "Oh, yes." She stopped and faced him once more. "Don't you ever touch me again."
"Why don't you just go home, you violent cow?!" Inuyasha called after her. She smirked, though he couldn't see, and flipped him a birdie over her shoulder nonchalantly. "I'll have my revenge!" he yelled as she rounded the corner. Oh, yeah right. What kind of revenge could he possibly exact?
. . . . .
Kikyou frowned as she folded her letters. She'd written Inuyasha back per request, and also written Kagome. She really hoped the girl could read. She carefully tucked both away in her dress and slipped into the "shoes," preparing to leave the house. She'd assumed that when Inuyasha had told her to meet the new messenger, he'd meant that evening.
"Where you goin'?" Kagome's father asked as he lumbered toward her from the bedroom. Kikyou stiffened. He'd been asleep.
"Um…I was just going out for another run, that's all," she tried, a smile twitching her lips briefly. "Didn't get much the last time around."
"I know what yer really doin'," he informed her, stepping closer. She stepped back.
"W-what?" she replied. She was afraid to stay, but as she looked back at the door, she was afraid to run.
"You've been sav'n up. Steal'n fer yerself," he told her.
"What? No…" Kagome hadn't told her anything about that. Was it true?
"You ungrateful bitch!" he yelled as he launched himself at her. She dodged, and, by some freak chance, he caught the front of her dress. He picked her up by her collar, giving her a little shake. "I'm gonna teach you a lesson," he decided as he pulled his fist back. Kikyou knew he would aim for her head. She closed her eyes. The man laughed. "Closin' yer eyes won't help, K'gome." She cracked one eye open, her vision immediately landing on his cold smirk. "One…" he counted. Oh god… "Two…" Kouga… "Three!" Kikyou screamed, and a hideous cracking sound filled her ears. Suddenly, she was dropped to the floor, gasping for air. Someone howled, in pain she was sure, causing her eyes to snap open. Kagome's father knelt on one knee, trying to cradle an obviously broken arm, and Kouga stood over him, fiery hot anger crackling about his form.
"Kouga," she whispered. He turned to her, his anger not dissipating in the slightest. It frightened her slightly.
"I'm going to kill him," he told her. Kagome's father whimpered as Kouga gripped his head.
"Kouga, No!" Kikyou cried, trying to rise to her feet. She scrambled toward him, but the bloodlust was insatiable. Before she could gasp, a gurgling crunch resounded. "Oh my god…" she gasped out. The body slopped to the ground. "You…what did…" Kouga stared unblinkingly at his hands.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Whoa! What a weird chapter. It was a little darker than usual. I think that's due in part to how I felt while writing it, but this turn of events had to come sometime…More humor next chapter, I promise! The whole of Kagome's part was written while still under the influence of anesthetics, so that's why it's weird and disjointed. I thought about rewriting it, but then I decided that since it gets the point across, it's not really worth it. So…my face is currently so swollen that I greatly resemble a chipmunk, and I've been licking at this strawberry jello snack-pack for about an hour now. Basically, I feel like shit, since I have a cold, and there are large, gaping wounds in my mouth.
Dedications!
M 'n' Ms (times 2!): I like this new penname! I'm glad you liked chapter 7, and I'm sorry about not being able to do the absent-minded Naraku! Maybe next fic. ^_~ Yes, the "confrontation" did fall very flat. I didn't realize until after you'd pointed it out and I reread it. Perhaps I'll rewrite it, I don't know. You see, it actually kind of works, because Sango's probably been wanting someone to accept her despite everything for a long time, and…Yeah, it still fell flat. ^__^ Teehee…Thanks for your awesome honest reviews! They help me out so much!
LewdaKris: Yay! Thank you for all the compliments *blush*. And Sango's little story is so sad! I'm glad you like this story, and I hope it continues to be interesting.
hehe (times 2!): I'm glad that you liked the last chapter, and your original review for chapter 8 appeared after you wrote the second. Weird…Anyway, I have not read "Big Buttocks," but if you say it's good, then I'll definitely give it a try! Thank you for complimenting my Naraku portrayal! I've never done his character before, let alone like this.
Pori-Pori: Yeah, the traditional Kikyou character is a ditzy slut bitch, but I really think that's changing! Thank you for the wonderful review! *looks around* Inu/Kag, Kik/Kou, Mir/San forever! *waves flag* It's not like I just gave away my pairing tendencies or anthing…-_-;
Shelby37: Hey! I'm glad you like this story! I don't think I ever clearly stated who Inuyasha is aiding, or what his aide duties are, but I will soon!
Meisah: Yes, that would be funny if he were Kagome's aide! Teehee! And thank you for understanding about the unpleasantries that keep us authors from updating at maximum speed!
Miko Ariko-901: Yes, it was confusing. For more than one reason, unfortunately…I messed up on the wording in one of the sentences. When Kagome says "Wait…you're blackmailing me to marry your cousin off to someone you think is smart?" 'cousin' should be 'twin'. I hope that helps with the confusion a little.
Kats02980416: Yes, I will definitely explain Inuyasha's position soon! Probably in the next couple of chapters. Thanks for your review!
WOW! I got so many reviews! *swoons* Thank you all for reading!