Author-chan's notes: MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! Here's chapter nine!!!! Enjoy!
*Disclaimer- *Director appears dressed up like Santa*
Director- *grumbling* Tell me why I have to wear this stupid thing again.
Author-chan- *starry eyes* Because you look so kawaii!
Director- *vein popping out from his forehead* "Kawaii"? What does that mean? Are you insulting me?!
Author-chan- *muttering under her breath* Remind me to get you a new Japanese/English Dictionary.
Director- *glaring* Well?! What does it mean?!
Author-chan- *rolling her eyes* Never mind. Now do the disclaimer Santa!
Director- *grumbling* Author-chan does not own Inuyasha or any other anime. She does however own any original characters that are in her stories and the plot.
Author-chan- *pats Director's head* Good Director-chan!
Director- You know, you didn't bring in any anime character today.
Author-chan- You're right! I better do that!
Director- *eyes widening in fear* NO!!!!
Author-chan- *smiling sweetly* Alright, Director. For Christmas you can have the day off. You won't be tortured today.
Director- *sighs in relief*
Author-chan- But that means I get to bring in two or maybe even three anime characters next time! Muhahahahahahaha!!!!
Director- NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A Clean Slate
(Chapter Nine: Masato and Kumo)
Back inside the hut with Aki and Kimiko
"I'm going to go after Shiro-chan, alright Kimi-chan?" Aki said, standing up.
"But Shiro wants some time alone!" Kimiko protested.
"Well he can have some time alone here in the hut with us," Aki said, walking to the door, "He's going to get into trouble."
"You worry too much," Kimiko sighed.
"I'm an old man. I'm supposed to worry," Aki grumbled.
"You're only sixteen!" Kimiko cried.
"So? I'm still an old man," Aki said stubbornly.
***
In the village with Inuyasha/Shiro
"Feh! Aki worries so much about me, you'd think he was my mother!" Inuyasha thought to himself, "I mean we've only known each other for a week! Sheesh! And how did Aki find me anyway. He kind of skimmed over that part; he just said he saved me from some guy trying to kill me. Why would anyone want to kill me? I'm just a kid. A kid with no memories."
Shiro sighed to himself. He wondered who he really was. The poor boy was so lost in thought that he didn't notice the group of boys in front of him, until he crashed into them.
"Hey! Watch where you're going, pipsqueak!" the boy he crashed into yelled. Inuyasha glared at him. All of the boys were older then him. They ranged from the ages of eight to sixteen. The boy he had crashed into was about Aki's age. This boy was taller than Aki by a couple inches. He had dark brown eyes and strait black hair that fell to his shoulders. The teenaged boy used a strip of leather as a headband to hold back his wild mane of hair (of course, it didn't do much).
"Who ya calling a pipsqueak?!" Shiro growled.
"Oh! You seemed to have gotten the little sprout all fired up, Masato," a ten year old boy of the group piped up.
"Stop calling me little!" Inuyasha growled, "I'm old enough and big enough to look after myself!"
"Whatever kid," Masato, the boy who Inuyasha ran into, said, "You look like you could be fish bait!" Inuyasha/Shiro gave them his famous growl. The boys laughed.
"Hahahahahahaha!!! He sounds like my dog!" a twelve-year-old boy commented.
"Yeah, I think he wants to be a puppy dog!" another boy giggled.
"Well, if he wants to be a dog, then he can get thrashed like one," Masato said, with a wicked grin. Shiro glared at him.
"Bring it on!" Inuyasha yelled, "I can beat you!" The boys laughed some more.
"He's a really funny guy, eh, Masato?" one boy said. Masato nodded.
"Yeah, he's a funny guy who is about to get his face rearranged," Masato smirked. Shiro, hating to be ignored like this, took action. He kicked Masato in the shin as hard as he could. Masato swore like a trooper.
"Why you little brat!" Masato yelled, he face contorted with rage and pain, "I'll kill you!"
"Whatever," Inuyasha muttered, rolling his eyes. Masato glared at the five-year-old.
"Prepare to die, pipsqueak!" Masato yelled, lunging at Shiro. But before Masato could even touch him, Shiro had disappeared.
"What the?!" Masato cried, when he crashed on the ground. The teenager looked up. Dangling in the air was his prey. Aki had come in the nick of time to rescue the little boy again. The magician sighed as he held Shiro by the scruff of his neck.
"Don't you ever stay out of trouble, Shiro-chan?" Aki asked. Shiro/Inuyasha glared at his rescuer.
"Do you ever stop mothering me, Aki?" Inuyasha growled, "Now put me down! I feel like a pup in that's being carried around by his mother!"
"Well, we can fix that," Aki muttered. Then he hoisted Shiro over his shoulder, and carried the boy like a sack of rice. Inuyasha growled.
"You know this pipsqueak, Aki?" Masato sneered, standing up. Aki turned to Masato.
"Yes, I do," the magician answered calmly. Masato glared at Aki. Masato and Aki had never gotten along. Masato was in love with Miho, and so was Aki. And that made the two rivals.
"I should have know that a freak like you would keep company with a brat like him!" Masato snarled, glaring at the two.
"Who ya calling a brat, brat?!" Shiro yelled, struggling to get out of Aki's grasp, "Now put me down, Aki!!! I'm gonna chop this guy up like liver!" Aki sighed.
"We're going home, Shiro-chan," Aki said, "And you are going to take a nap. You're a bit cranky today."
"I'm not a baby!!!" Inuyasha snarled, still struggling to get away from his captor. Aki turned to Masato.
"I'm very sorry that Shiro-chan bothered you, Masato-san," Aki said politely to his rival, "I hope he didn't give you too much trouble."
"Ha! That's a laugh, Aki!" Masato sneered, "That little brat over your shoulder is a menace. He should be locked up."
"Well, if I have to be locked up, then so do you!" Shiro yelled. Masato glared at the little boy.
"So how are you related to this brat, freak?" Masato asked Aki. Aki paused for a moment.
"He's my brother." And then, everything froze.
***
In the forest with Miho and the spider youkai
Miho was ready to vomit. The spider youkai that had captured her, now had tied her to a tree using its webbing. Miho hated the way the webbing felt. It was wet, sticky, and it smelled horrible. But that wasn't what was making her sick. It was the spider youkai itself. It looked like a giant spider web made out of flesh, with hands at the ends, and a head in the middle. Every time Miho looked at it, she began to get a little green at the gills.
"What is the matter, mortal?" the youkai hissed, "Thou looks a little rotten."
"Let me go," Miho moaned, "Please, let me go."
"Not until I get my revenge!," the spider growled, "For now, thou shall stay with me!"
"What do you want with Shiro-chan?" Miho asked quietly, "He didn't do anything to you."
"It is true that one did nothing to me," the demon admitted, "But he gave my brother no mercy! And for that, he shall pay with his life!"
"I don't understand what you mean!" Miho wailed, "Shiro-chan is too young, too small, and too weak to have done anything to a youkai! He is innocent, I tell you! Innocent!"
"Lies!!! He is no more a child then I am!" the spider youkai yelled, bringing its gruesome face close to Miho's. The girl turned her head away from the sight and closed her eyes tight.
"Please let this be a dream, please let this be a dream, please let this be a dream, please let this be a dream," Miho whispered over and over again, hoping that some god would hear her plea. The youkai chuckled.
"Well, my dear, I believe it is time for stage two of my plan," the youkai whispered in her ear. Miho closed her eyes even tighter.
"Don't hurt Shiro-chan," Miho pleaded, tears forming around her eyes. The youkai laughed again.
"Thou do know that pitiful crying does not do anything," the youkai commented, "Now sit still. I have a mind to do something I have waited ages to do." Miho cringed as the demon's hot breath came closer to her face.
'It's going to eat me!' Miho wailed in her mind, her eyes still clamped shut. But to her surprise, a hand gently turned her head slightly, and warm lips gave her a passionate kiss. Miho felt a spark go threw her body. Time stood still as the young woman was caught up in a magical moment that she could not understand. When the kiss ended, Miho opened her eyes to see not a horrifying monster, but a handsome young man with ruby eyes looking down at her. The man, like her, looked (and felt) a bit dazed, as they had both experienced a strange power lancing through them that neither could see. The man recovered first. He smirked at the slowly recovering Miho.
"Thou look surprised," the man said in the spider demon's voice, "Did thou not know that some youkai can take human form?" Miho simply gaped in horror at him. The young man licked his lips and smiled at her.
"My elder brother was right," the disguised youkai marveled, "Human kisses do taste sweeter than their blood. My name is Kumo. You have my permission to use it, my pet."
"I am not your pet," Miho said icily.
"I shall return shortly," Kumo announced. The youkai then turned away, and left Miho alone in the clearing. The girl shuttered. She was too busy worrying about what Kumo was going to do to her that she didn't notice the shadowy figure watching her. The hidden person threw some invisible powder at Miho, then disappeared.
***
Back in the village with Aki, Inuyasha/Shiro, Masato, and Masato's crew
'B-brother?!' Shiro thought to himself, 'Is Aki telling the truth? Am I his brother? It all makes sense now! Why Aki was so protective over me, why Kimiko was so nice to me, and why Miho was so gentle! But why didn't they tell me? Why didn't Kimiko or Aki just come right out and say that I was their brother? It doesn't make sense!
'Of course it doesn't make sense!' another voice growled.
'Who said that?' Shiro asked.
'Me,' the voice answered.
'Who are you, and how are you in my head?' Shiro asked.
'I'm you, remember?' the voice muttered, 'But then again, you wouldn't remember our talks in the dreamscape 'cause of that stupid piece of jewelry!!!'
'Huh?' Shiro blinked.
'Never mind,' the voice grumbled as it started to fade into nothingness, 'Just listen to Aki.' Then the voice disappeared.
"So this brat is your brother, eh Aki?" Masato sneered.
"Yes," Aki said confidently.
"If he's your brother, then why haven't we seen him until now?" Masato asked.
"B-because, um," Aki began to stutter.
"Hey! There's someone approaching the village!" one of Masato's crew called, interrupting Aki. Everyone turned to see a man running towards the village. He stopped running when he reached the group of boys. Placing his hands on his knees, the stranger bent down slightly to take a breather.
"What brings you here, stranger?" Aki asked politely.
"Youkai…kidnapped…young woman…must save," the man panted, not looking up. The village boys looked at each other.
"How do you know this?" Masato asked.
"Saw it," the man replied shortly.
"Can you describe the woman? Or the youkai?" one of Masato's crew asked.
"The woman was about sixteen years of age," the man began after he caught his breath, "She had long black hair that fell to her waist, full red lips, and beautiful dark blue eyes. She was also wearing a blue kimono with a white cherry blossom pattern on it."
"A blue kimono with white cherry blossoms?!" Aki cried, "The only person I know who has a kimono like that is –"
"Miho-san!" Masato finished for him.
"What did this youkai look like?" Aki demanded of the stranger, his eyes hard.
"It was a spider youkai," the stranger said with a shiver, "It was a monstrous thing; it looked like a giant web made of flesh! I'll never forget that sight!"
"You should rest, stranger," Aki suggested gently, "My brother will take you to our hut."
"But Aki! I want to help you save Miho!" Shiro protested. Aki sighed and put the boy down on the ground. The magician knelt down to look Inuyasha strait in the eye.
"It's too dangerous for you," Aki explained, "Let us older men do the work."
"Feh!" Shiro snorted, "You turn into a babbling idiot whenever you see Miho! You can't fight a youkai in that condition! And if my guess is right, this baka over here does the same thing." Shiro gestured to Masato. Masato blushed slightly, letting Inuyasha know that he guessed correctly.
"Listen, kid, for once that freak Aki is right," Masato said, "You're too little to go against a youkai. Go home!" Shiro stuck his tongue out at the older boy.
"Feh!" Inuyasha snarled.
"Alright now, go take our guest to the hut," Aki said, pushing Inuyasha along.
"That's quite alright," the stranger said, "I need to be heading back towards my own village anyway. But thank you for the hospitality."
"No problem, stranger," Aki said, "But still, you should rest before you leave. I insist that you let my brother take you to our home."
"Thank you," the stranger said again.
"Now, little one, you have to go take this man back home. When you get to our hut, tell Kimi-chan to lock the door, and don't let anyone in unless you hear me knock three times, understood?" Aki said.
"But!" Shiro protested.
"No buts!" Aki snapped, "Now do what I told you to do!"
"Feh!" Inuyasha/Shiro huffed. Pulling on the stranger's sleeve, Inuyasha led him to the hut.
"Now, shall we all go demon hunting?" Masato asked with a smirk.
"Yeah!" all the men cried out.
Author-chan's notes: As you all probably guessed, Kumo is the brother of the spider demon who pretended to be a priest. The spider demon/priest came into the Inuyasha story when we first get to see Inu-chan turn into a full human during the new moon. And obviously, Kumo is not happy about having a dead spider for a brother, and he wants some revenge.
Oh, don't forget the shadow person from earlier. He/she/it is going to show up again most likely.
