Silver's Shadow Tamer-You are absolutely, positively, 100, completely and utterly right. Well, maybe not that right…. I did kind of cheat you guys out on the battle scene, but, as several others have mentioned, drawn out battle scenes can kill a good fic, especially when you're not good at writing them… and I'm not. So I skipped over it to save my (and the fic's) dignity. Or what's left of it.
Sanji: Yeah. Tailzy's a horrible Godmoder.
Tailz: SILENCE! :Zaps him off to Venezuela:
Moogle:-Silly rabbit! You know that I never tire of your reviews, and they never ever annoy me. I love and adore each and every one of them. (And I will be reading the updates to A Demon Within as soon as I get the chance. I may have to read it from the beginning, though-it's been a pretty long time.)
Sanji: Not long enough, though. :Shudders: I'm still going through therapy from the last time we met…
Tailz: Who's the Godmoder again? You just cross-country teleported!
Sanji: Godmoder? Feh. I just caught a plane.
Tailz: Whatever….
Sango's words had pretty much summed up everyone's thoughts. They all stared, openmouthed, at the scene spread out before them.
It was a massacre. There were bodies flung out upon the grass in every direction. Adults, children…even stray dogs lay limply upon the streets. Most of them were facedown with blood cascading down their backs as if they'd been hit from behind while fleeing, but some were face up. Their eyes were wide, their mouths clenched shut with the hardening jaw muscles of the dead. The place stank of death and blood. Kagome covered her eyes and backed slowly into Miroku. He quickly put his hands on her shoulders to steady her.
They all stood, frozen in place, until a crashing sound from within one of the huts snapped them back into attention. Everyone with a weapon quickly readied it, Inuyasha still at the head of the group. As they watched, a tall, lean figure strutted from the hut with a 'humph'.
"What are you staring at, dog breath?" Kouga had lost none of his cockiness at the sight of the dead villagers. "What's the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost or something."
"Idiot," Inuyasha snapped. "Don't be stupid. Whoever did this is probably still hanging around."
"What concerns me," Miroku said gravely, "is that neither of you picked up on the scent of all this blood. These villagers have lain dead for a good while. Whatever killed them was quick and quiet."
Kouga was silent for a moment, his eyes glazed in thought. Yes, he seemed to realize, that was true. Why, when both his and Inuyasha's senses of smell were so superior to humans, had they not been able to smell all the putrid death that lurked around this place? This thought had already occurred to Inuyasha, though, and suddenly his head shot up with understanding.
"Shippo," Inuyasha said, whirling around.
"Huh?" Shippo squeaked. "Me? You think I did this?"
"That's crazy, Inuyasha," Kagome mumbled shakily. Inuyasha's gaze shot up at her voice.
"No…. it isn't. In the battle, back at the clearing. Shippo bit me, and Kouga too. I knew it felt weird…. Do you think that that has something to do with it?"
"With….what?" Sango asked.
"With us not noticing the smell of this stuff. It's everywhere."
"That's crazy," Kagome repeated. "Shippo-chan doesn't have a venomous bite. You know that."
Inuyasha's face was expressionless. "I wouldn't put it past Naraku to feed him some weird potion before attacking us." Even Kagome couldn't argue with that.
Everyone fell silent. "It is possible," Miroku said eventually. "Here, show Lady Kagome the wound."
Inuyasha lowered his sword point into the earth and yanked up his left sleeve. About halfway up his arm, a half-healed slash mark could be seen. It was an angry red, and Kagome, with her limited medical knowledge, suspected infection, or something like it, anyway. "Inuyasha," she said hoarsely, "you need to take care of gashes that large! Why didn't you have me look at this earlier?"
"Oh," said the half-demon sarcastically, "of course, silly me. When was I supposed to, wench, when you were unconscious or when you were running off with the wimpy wolf?"
"Who're you calling wimpy!" Kouga shouted.
"All right, children, that's enou-" Another crash silenced Sango's sentence effectively, and once again movement among the party ceased. Inuyasha flinched suddenly and threw the Tetsusaiga up before his face just as a blade of wind came flying at his face. Fifty-something more followed the first, and if it were not for Inuyasha and Sango's quick reflexes, they all would've been dead. Nonetheless, when the attack finally stopped, Inuyasha sported a cut shoulder and Miroku a slashed cheek. Kagome and Shippo blinked worriedly from behind the arm that the houshi had stretched out to protect them.
There was only one enemy with that attack and not one gasp of surprise as Kagura emerged from yet another one of the houses, her fan drawn in a sultry sort of position. "Well, well, well," she chuckled, "if it isn't my favorite boys-Kouga and Inuyasha. And their little fan club as well. What are you doing so far east?"
"Kagura," Inuyasha spat. "You killed all these people, didn't you?"
"Who, me?" the demoness asked innocently. "Why, Inuyasha, you give me too much credit. I didn't do everything myself."
Four pairs of shoulders stiffened, and everyone knew that was coming. Kagome clenched her eyes closed, but she could not block out Sango's deadly calm voice: "Where is my brother? What have you done to him?"
Kagura smiled her vampriss smile. "Kohaku? No, wrong again. One more guess."
No one answered. Inuyasha bared his teeth threateningly, and his voice was little more than a hiss as he spat, "Kagura, let Kirara go."
"Ah! Finally, you got it. I was beginning to wonder."
"Let her go," Inuyasha repeated, this time more forcefully.
"Well….all right, if you insist." Kagura snapped her fan closed and flung out her arm, leaning leisurely against the doorway of the hut. "Come on out, Kirara. Your dinner is calling."
Abruptly, a wall of a nearby shack seemed to explode. The building collapsed upon itself in a shower of dust, and suddenly Kirara was visible. Transformed, she stood her full height, fur bristled and wet fangs bared in an angry growl. Her red eyes moved unseeingly over her friends, not recognizing them, not pausing to consider mercy. Sango's hands shook upon Hiraikotsu. Blood was apparent on the fire cat's paws and her muzzle.
"Kirara," croaked the demon slayer. "Not-not you too."
Kirara leapt forward with all the intensity of a bloodthirsty opponent, snapping her jaws at everyone close. Kouga met her wrath first-he swore as she caught him off guard and ripped a fang across his wrist in passing. Inuyasha came next: he caught her teeth in a lock with the Tetsusaiga and held her at bay, his arms shaking with the effort. He slid backwards an inch or two, despite the fact that his heels dragged stubbornly through the soil. "Kirara!" he yelled. "Snap out of it! Sango-run! Hurry!"
But Sango did not run. She stood, trembling, and shouted out in a voice that sounded much stronger than she looked, "Move out of the way, Inuyasha."
"What?" he called back incredulously.
"I said MOVE!" She raised Hiraikotsu, and its surface flashed in the late afternoon sun.
Inuyasha cast a blank look in her direction, then turned back to Kirara and threw her backwards with all his strength. He ducked just in time to avoid being dismembered by Sango's boomerang as it flew forward, knocking Kirara down again just as she climbed back to her feet. Sango's aim was always true; it had made its mark. Kirara dropped to one knee on her left front paw, screaming in agony as the boomerang returned to its owner's hand. It was obvious that Sango had not meant to kill her demonic friend-nevertheless, Kirara's balance was shaky as she stood again.
"Kirara," Sango called again, her voice soft. She dropped Hiraikotsu and took a step forward. The fire cat growled.
"Sango," Miroku called warningly. But she didn't look back.
"Kirara," Sango murmured in tones of deepest calm, "I know you're in there. You'd never hurt anyone. Stop this."
"What are you doing?" Inuyasha yelled. "Don't be stupid!" She ignored him too.
With every step she took closer, Sango's voice became softer. "Kirara…don't let them control you. Please…." Don't be like Kohaku, she thought desperately. I can't stand another Kohaku in my life. She reached out a shaky hand, reaching for Kirara's muzzle-
And was met with snapping fangs. Inuyasha lurched to attention with Tetsusaiga in hand; Miroku held his staff at the ready, and Shippo wailed, "Sango!" But the demon slayer didn't move. She sat there, with her wrist in Kirara's teeth, whispering something so softly that no one else could hear it. Kirara didn't move, just stared up into her mistress's clouded face; her face revealed nothing, but her crimson eyes flickered in confusion.
"Kirara…" Sango said, and the cat released her arm.
Was it over? The group held their breath; Inuyasha's sword did not droop from its place in the air. Then, as suddenly as she had appeared, Kirara turned tail and dashed off into the forest.
"No! Kirara!" With a stumbling clumsiness, Sango reeled forward, holding her injured arm out as if to grab the cat demon and pull her back. Inuyasha caught her quickly by the forearms, holding her back despite her struggling.
"Well…I guess this is goodbye for now," Kagura said, with a farewell flick of her fan-Kouga shouted, "Look out!"-but it was too late to do anything; the blades of wind caught the tree over their heads. Inuyasha watched in horror as the old creature snapped right in two and crashed down upon his friends' heads. They never saw it coming, and they didn't have time to move out of the way.
"Kagome!"
Inuyasha and Kouga hurried forward. They glanced up briefly and wordlessly, meeting eyes, and then each of them seized an end of the log, and with an almighty heave, they threw it aside.
Sango was at the site first. She knelt and, hesitating a moment, gripped Miroku's arm and rolled him away from the others. He had apparently tried in vain to push Kagome and Shippo away from the danger, but, having been unsuccessful, had thrown himself over them instead. Shippo lay, protected, in the hollow of Kagome's limp arms; the schoolgirl herself remained unmoving.
"Houshi-sama," Sango cried. "Miroku… say something."
The monk coughed quietly. "It's all right, Sango," he said with a small smile. "Just a bruise or two."
"A bruise or two my ass," Kouga scoffed. Inuyasha bent forward and carefully pulled Kagome into a sitting position.
"Are you okay?" he asked. Kagome blinked slowly.
"Yeah…" she mumbled.
Kouga sobered up quickly. "Does anything hurt, Kagome?" he asked.
"No, nothing." She forced a smile that was too bright to be real. Inuyasha opened his mouth.
Shippo shook his head hurriedly from side-to-side. "My tail hurts," he complained. "Owwww…."
"Well, can you move it?" Kagome asked. She wasn't sure. Could Shippo's tail move to begin with?
"Yes," the kitsune answered. "See?" he turned around and twitched his little red fluff ball of a tail with a grimace. Kagome smiled.
"It's a miracle that that didn't do more damage," Miroku commented, leaning against Sango for support as he rose slowly to his feet. He then proceeded to lean against his staff as he surveyed the tree's great splintered edge. "We were lucky that the tree was already dying. If it had been heavier…"
"We get the point," Inuyasha said shortly. He took Kagome's hands and pulled her gently to her feet. "Can you stand?" he asked, hands still on her forearms. Everyone's attention turned to her.
"Um…yes," Kagome said. "D-don't worry about it! No trouble." She bent her leg gingerly and nodded. "Now… let's get back to camp, huh?"
"I guess we'll have to return in the morning to care for the dead," Miroku said quietly. "It's getting late…and everyone is tired."
There was a murmur of agreement. They all walked forward, some a little more slowly than others, leaning against one another for support. Inuyasha hung back for a second, glancing around the village suspiciously. A few feet ahead, he heard Kouga's sleek-sounding wheedling, "Do you want me to carry you, Kagome?"
"No, Kouga-kun," Kagome's voice said patiently. "We've been through this. You're married."
"Only practically…" The wolf-demon sounded sullen. Kagome laughed, and Inuyasha turned around to follow them. He still had humans to look after. There wasn't time to be staring into the darkness.
Back at camp, an inviting fire had been lit. The entire group was sitting around it, excluding Shippo, who was inside the cabin sleeping. A pleasant sort of conversation had broken out among them-Sango inquired politely about the wellbeing of Kouga's tribe, and he replied, sort of aloofly, that they were fine. He had been sullen since leaving the village, and everyone had a pretty good idea of why. Kagome moved around the circlet silently, avoiding everyone's eyes and tending to their wounds.
"Here, Sango-chan," she said, eyes down. "This might hurt a little. It's antiseptic-it'll clean your injury."
"I'm sure it's not that bad," Sango proclaimed bravely, holding out her arm. She flinched only a little when Kagome dabbed at her wrist with the damp towel. Within seconds the blood had vanished completely beneath neat white gauze binding, and Sango's shoulders relaxed visibly. "Oh," she said with a smile, "that wasn't so bad."
"Okay, Miroku. Your turn."
"There's nothing for you to bind, I'm afraid, Kagome-sama." He lowered his voice. "I'm much more worried about your condition. What's troubling you so terribly?"
Kagome leaned back on her heels and stared at the ground, carefully feeling for each of the bones in the arm that had protected her. "Nothing," she said. He raised an eyebrow at her. "Nothing broken. How about your ribs? Does anything hurt when you move?"
"I'm sore, yes, but that's only to be expected. Please, why don't you let someone else worry about you for a change. Are you all right?"
"Everyone's worried about me more than enough." Kagome's bangs cast long, mysterious shadows upon her face. "I've been nothing but trouble. Just another burden to worry about."
"That's not true at all." Miroku's eyes glistened. "Is that what this is all about? That you think you're a burden. I see. Kagome-sama-" His tone suggested the approaching of yet another wise, fatherly lecture, but before he could say anything Kagome rose.
"If you're sure you're okay…" She moved next to Inuyasha, kneeling before him, head still bowed like a guilty servant girl. "Okay, Inuyasha. Let's see that bite of yours."
The half-demon opened his mouth to protest, but for the third time in however many hours he closed it against the words he had intended and obeyed, pulling his sleeve up to his shoulder. Kagome grimaced and closed her eyes for a moment, looking faint; but then the moment had passed, and she went to work determinedly, explaining as she went along each step of cleansing the bite. When at last she had finished and he, too, sported a tidy layer of gauze, the case snapped shut, discouraging any questions, and she moved along to Kouga, repeating the process again. Inuyasha watched her in surprise. Where had this sudden grimness come from?
"It's your turn, Kouga-kun." Kouga smirked and unbuttoned his shirt with pleasure, revealing a sharp puncture. He began with another witty line, but Kagome ignored him, delivering medical care with religious determination. Immediately afterwards, she excused herself and left for the cabin.
Inuyasha blinked and looked away. Was it just him, or was there sadness in her voice?
Tailz: Hmmm…. It's a little longer, but we're still not back up to my usual. I'm working on it, folks-not writing all this time has gotten me lazy! Oh no!
Sanji: :Tweaks her ear: You've got no one to blame but yourself.
Tailz: :Scowls: Moogle, would you care to do the honors?
Moogle: Why…yes! :Swings the ladle over her head, then brings it to a screeching halt over Sanji's and raps him gently:
Tailz: OO
Sanji: OO
Moogle: Er… I'm sorry! I just can't beat your creation, Tailz! He's too cute! :Runs off to beat the Angry Mob instead:
Sanji: Phew!
Tailz: Well… I certainly have no problem beating my creation! :Grabs her mallet and turns off the lights so that the fic can remain PG:
Sanji: OWW! OWWWWW! AAAHH-hey, wait a minute. That's the blow up mallet that I won for you at the fair!
Tailz: …. Hmmm…. Oops….
:KABONK:
Sanji: ….But that wasn't…. :Flop:
Tailz: B! Why'd you do that?
BMW: Because that Angry Mob paid me ten dollars? And another fifty if I do this….
Tailz: AHHH! NO, DON-
:KABONK:
:Also, super-big thank yous and kisses to Inucrazy, who proofread my ficcy so that you guys can't gripe at me for errors! Thank you, babe:
