I present chapter sixteen. I hope you all like it. K here I go for answering reviews. Kyostyle: I don't know, maybe you spilled your drink? Froggiesrcool: there is a little Yoda in there I suppose. But as I mentioned before its mostly mad eye moody and the fates from the Disney version of Hercules, and no I do not have a beta reader though I wish I did sometimes. As for bigger parts for Rin and Sango… well for Rin I have a larger part planned for her in the sequel to this story. Sango however is a bit of a struggle for me to write for some reason so I have as much of her as I can unfortunately. It's kind of sad really, I like Sango, she's cool. Finally to all the people who reviewed I give a huge thank you. You guy's are why I can keep up this pace of nearly daily updates so keep them coming. So without further ado on with the story!
Disclaimer: …yah
"What do you mean 'what am I doing here?'" said Kouga, "I said I would come back eventually".
"Oh" said Kagome sounding bored, "right. I remember now. You ran off to see if you could find anything to help".
"Looks like too little too late" muttered Kouga, "and on top of that I come back to find you clinging to the mutt".
"Huh?" said Kagome looking dumbfounded. She looked around and realized she was still clinging to Inu-Yasha who, by this point, was looking more then a little embarrassed. "Oh" she said finally letting go, "right".
"So" said Kagome directing her gaze toward Kouga again, "what did you find?"
"Not much" admitted Kouga, "just some thing about a demon returning. I'm more concerned about you though".
"Me?" said Kagome, "wasn't this whole thing already about me?"
"That isn't what I meant Kagome" said Kouga taking her hands in hers, "I'm concerned about you".
"I'm fine" said Kagome her tone going icy.
Inu-Yasha noticed the shift in Kagome's mood but it was totally lost on Kouga. "Are you sure?" he asked, "You are my woman Kagome. You should tell me if anything is wrong".
As soon as Kouga finished saying this he found himself up in the air with Kagome's hand wrapped around his neck. "I am not your woman" she snarled.
"Kagome" shouted everyone except Ginta and Hakkaku who where too shocked to even move. Inu-Yasha and Miroku grabbed hold of the girl trying to pry her away from Kouga. Normally the would demon would have been fast enough to dodge away from Kagome but he had been so surprised that his gentle Kagome would do such a thing he hadn't had time to dodge. Now Kouga's face was glowing beat red as he tried to pry Kagome's fingers away from his neck.
"Kagome" said Inu-Yasha trying to talk some sense into the girl, "don't get me wrong. I would love to see wolf boy have his ass handed to him on a platter but this is going too far". Inu-Yasha laid a hand on Kagome's arm and looked into her eyes. "Put him down" he said.
The fire died from Kagome's eyes and she slowly lowered Kouga to the ground and released him. Without so much as a word she spun on her heels and stalked off into the forest.
After Kagome was gone Ginta and Hakkaku Dashed up to Kouga. "Are you alright?" they asked.
"I think so" muttered Kouga frowning. He rubbed his sore neck in an attempt to soothe the hideous bruise that was forming.
"I don't get it" said Hakkaku, "why would Kagome react like that?"
"You surprised?" snorted Inu-Yasha, "it was only a matter of time before your pigheadedness got on her last nerve".
"Can it mutt" snapped Kouga hopping to his feet and glaring at Inu-Yasha.
"Make me" snarled Inu-Yasha glaring back.
Miroku stepped in between the two in an attempt to diffuse the situation. Some might think it would be dangerous but truth be told it really wasn't. Inu-Yasha would never attack him and he had always got along fairly well with Kouga. "Calm down you two" he said, "fighting right now won't solve anything".
Inu-Yasha gave out a grouchy sounding "keh" before hopping up into a tree and staring at the sky.
Miroku turned to Kouga then. "Perhaps you should know what has happened". When everyone was settled back down they began to explain everything that had happened to Kouga and his companions.
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Brainless wolf thought Kagome. She paused next to a smaller tree and swatted it venting some of her frustration on it. the tree toppled over with a satisfying crash. He didn't deserve that said another voice he's always been kind to me. Kagome paused again feeling a bit guilty.
He had to clue in eventually thought Kagome but I suppose I was a little harsh. Kagome shook her head in frustration. Her head was so mixed up it was a miracle she knew up from down. It was like her mind had been reprogrammed and she couldn't think straight. Because of what she had been all her human emotions and feelings and thoughts where intact. But now a new, almost instinctive yet frighteningly logical, mind of a demon had been added in as well. It was like the kind of mind a wild animal would have if it was as smart as a human. Or was it?
For all their arrogance the demon mind was almost primitive compared to that of a human. Driven by a more sophisticated form of instinct there seemed to be no true depth. All the same emotions were there, the same feelings, but the capacity for profound knowledge wasn't. The demon didn't care about the secrets of the universe, it didn't want to strive to improve itself, it was just content to exist, not wanting to ever learn more then it absolutely needed to.
True the personality of a demon might change this quite a bit but when it came down to it all it really cared about was power. The vast majority believed themselves superior for no other reason then that they were stronger then humans and as such did not strive to better themselves, to find new and better ways of doing things. It was probably why, in the future, there were so few, if any, left.
For all the power the demon lords held, for all their terrible might, in the end they stubbornly refused to acknowledge the world could change. Believing instead they could control it.
Kagome had no idea where this revelation came from but in the back of her mind she could sense Kenda agreeing with her. In the end he had realized the same thing. It was one of the reasons he sought to redeem himself. He didn't want to be one of those who went into oblivion without at least trying to see the world for what it could be instead of only for what it is.
For all their arrogance most demons could not truly appreciate what the world could offer them. They strove for nothing but power and control their whole lives. It was a cruel irony because it made them prisoners of their own fate, coasting along the river of life, destroying what they can't understand and accepting fate instead of rising to meet it like humans could.
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Kouga sat there considering what he had just heard. It was all very disturbing to him. From the sounds of it the Kagome everyone had known was on the verge of ceasing to exist entirely and it shook him to the core. Inu-Yasha had long since gone to look for Kagome at this point.
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"What are you searching for lord Sesshoumaru?" asked Jaken.
"Information on this Kenda person" said Sesshoumaru. Tensaiga had led him to the ruins of an ancient castle and they where currently picking through the remains of what looked to be a library. Sesshoumaru tossed a bit of rubble to the side and found a worn out book sitting there. He picked it up and examined it. it was very corroded and most of the pages crumbled when he picked it up but from what he could gather it was a book outlining various magical rituals and incantations. "Interesting" he muttered setting the book back down.
"Lord Sesshoumaru look at this" piped up Rin. She came running over holding what looked to be a journal. Sesshoumaru took the book and flipped through it. It was in much better condition then the other one but was still pretty beat up. From what he could tell though it was exactly what he had came here for. It was one of Kenda's personal journals.
"Good work Rin" said Sesshoumaru, "are there any more of these?"
Rin nodded enthusiastically. "A whole pile of them" she chirped leading Sesshoumaru and Jaken to where she had found them.
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Inu-Yasha ran through the forest following Kagome's scent. I should never have let her leave like that he thought mentally kicking himself. There was no telling what Kagome might do in her current state. He had smelled her confusion when she had left.
It was then a new scent caught Inu-Yasha's attention. It had a metallic tang to it and he recognized it instantly as human blood. It was coming from the same direction Kagome had gone. "Oh no" whispered Inu-Yasha before taking off again at full tilt hoping he wasn't too late.
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Kagome clutched at her head. "Get out" she snarled out loud. A voice was whispering to her from inside her head. It had begun a short while ago and had grown more persistent, calling her somewhere like a siren song.
Kagome stumbled out of the forest and spotted a village. Maybe they could help me she thought. Upon seeing her though the villagers ran into their houses. "Wait" she said, "I don't want to hurt you. I need help".
"Yah right demon" said one of the village guards brandishing a pole arm, "leave here now".
Kagome glared at the man causing him to take a step back. This was obviously one of the richer villages because several other guards had begun to surround her. "I don't want any trouble" said Kagome, "I just need some help".
"We don't give aid to demons" said one of the other guards, "get out of here, you aren't welcome". They were trying to put on a tough act but failing miserably. Kagome could smell the fear on them.
Kill them whispered the voice in Kagome's head.
No Kagome thought grabbing her head again, I refuse to do such a thing. They haven't done anything to me.
"Hey" said one of the guards growing bolder upon seeing how confused the girl clearly was, "we said get out". Kagome ignored him, she was to busy trying to suppress the ever growing voice. "Hey" said the guard raising his sword into attack position, "I said get".
You see how they threaten you? Said the voice, they don't deserve to live. Strike them down.
Kagome was fighting a loosing battle and she knew it. one more chance she thought standing up tall and letting her hands fall to her sides, if they threaten me again… Kagome let the thought hang there.
"Please," said Kagome mustering as much calm as she could, "I need your help".
"We told you to leave demon" snarled the guard she had first met bringing his pole arm up, "you have had more then enough warning". With that he swung his weapon at Kagome.
Fool. With that attack the call in Kagome's mind grew almost deafening as the last of her human mind slipped out of her grasp. The man screamed.
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Inu-Yasha skidded to a stop at the edge of the village. A scene that was worse then the dream he had had lay before him. Everyone was slaughtered. Their body's littered the streets in heaps and the stench of death was almost tangible. Some of the buildings where on fire from lamps falling and smashing, and in the middle stood Kagome, covered in blood.
"Kagome" whispered Inu-Yasha approaching the demoness slowly, "what have you done?"
"Inu-Yasha" purred Kagome taking a step closer, the two where standing face to face now and Inu-Yasha got a good look at Kagome. The humanity was gone from her eyes, nothing of the old Kagome was left.
"What happened to you?" whispered Inu-Yasha, "the Kagome I knew would never do this".
"Whatever do you mean Inu-Yasha?" said Kagome wrapping her arms around Inu-Yasha's neck.
"This isn't you" said Inu-Yasha, "how could you".
Kagome laughed, it was a laugh that chilled Inu-Yasha to the bone. "Come now Inu-Yasha" she said, "that side of me is gone, and for the best it seems. The old me was weak".
"I don't believe that" said Inu-Yasha.
"Which part?" asked Kagome.
"Both" he said, "the Kagome I knew is in there somewhere, and she is anything but weak".
"Whatever" said Kagome. She did something then that shocked Inu-Yasha. She leaned forward and kissed him. After drawing back she whispered in his ear. "I am leaving Inu-Yasha, come with me".
Inu-Yasha threw the girl off and backed away. "No" he said, "you're going to come back to the others with me".
"Sorry Inu-Yasha" said Kagome turning to leave. Before she did though she turned and said "don't worry Inu-Yasha. we will see each other again. I'm sure you will come around eventually". With that Kagome left leaving Inu-Yasha standing with a broken heart in a field of blood and fire.
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"Interesting" said Kenda as he examined the place that represented Kagome's essence. The uncorrupted portions had not changed or disappeared like one might be inclined to think. Instead they were now the pieces confined in barriers. "Very interesting" he said again, "maybe there is still a chance".
Author's notes
I hope the end of this chapter doesn't drive you all too crazy. I can't wait to get started on the next one. Oh and just out of curiosity what do you all think of Kenda? If you like him I just might write a story about him after I finish this one. It would be a prequel to this one obviously. Well Ciao!
