Disclaimer: Inuyasha and co. don't belong to me.
AN: For those wondering if I've seen the Disney movie, "Pirates of the Caribbean", I haven't. But I really want to! I wanted to write this a long time ago, but after all these pirate movies came out I just felt so inspired! Well, hope you guys enjoy this chapter. And my kitty cat disappeared for two weeks...I miss him.
Pirate Pash
Chapter 2 - Surrogate Woman
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Her vision was a blurry mess, and Kagome found it practically impossible to see from the position she was in. Slouched over facing the floor with two sets of hands grabbing her arms and pulling her along, her feet hanging on the floor. A sharp tang of pain suddenly jabbed at her head and neck, and all of sudden she remembered everything clearly.
'That's right...I was captured by pirates. I was hoping it had only been a nightmare...guess I was wrong. What time is it anyways? Am I being taken away to die?' Surprisingly enough, Kagome didn't quite fear death at the moment. After all, it was probably only going to sting for a second or so, depending on how she died, and then everything would become all black and she'd dream on forever. Or maybe...she would come back as a butterfly, or even a ghost!
Either way, she had partially lost her will to live, and the only thing that popped into her head was Souta's face. How was he going to feel now if his sister died as well? He couldn't work to support himself, let alone stand up straight.
During her thoughts, Kagome felt an unfamiliar hand innocently take its place on her behind. Before she could react to it...
"Miroku!" She heard this 'Miroku' guy get slapped as he grudgingly removed his hand, and from the voice of the person who just yelled, it was a girl. "How dare you grope an unconscious girl?!"
"I swear, Sango! I just saw a bug resting there, and I thought I could help the damsel by removing it." He replied with the tone of a five- year-old.
"You...you pervert!" Sango shouted, and Kagome felt the grip on her arm get tighter with rage. "There WAS no bug, moron! You just wanted to grope her!"
"Sango..." His voice lightened as if he was shocked to hear the news. "I can't believe you would say such thing about me! I am, after all, an ex-monk."
"...Who is now a pirate." Sango smugly added for him.
Kagome could then feel a pair of eyes digging into her back. "...Poor girl, did you see how rough Inuyasha was with her? And now she's going to die, for no reason at all." When those words escaped his mouth, Kagome felt as if somebody had socked her in the face. She was suddenly terrified of that fact, and she didn't want to die...and she was a good girl! She never stole, never cheated, never did anything wrong...and here she was being sentenced to death. Unable to hold back the fright, Kagome started sniffling quietly, her body ragged from the sobs.
"Hey, stop changing the subject!" Sango yelled when she felt the body they were holding start to shake. "...she's awake."
Miroku swooped his head down below hers to catch a quick glimpse of her face. "And crying."
"Please...please..." Kagome whispered while staring at the floor, not caring at all now who saw or heard her crying. These two people seemed kind enough, so maybe they would reconsider what Inuyasha said. "I - I don't want to die, please...help me."
The two above her remained silent for a while as they continued carrying her along. Then she heard Sango speak faintly, and apologetically. "I'm so sorry, but we can't help you..."
"Miss...it is not of our intention to kill you, but of our Captain. Even if we were to ask him, we would only be shouted at. And if we let you go now, as much as we'd like to, he'd have our heads for it." Miroku explained wearily as they descended down a set of stairs. Kagome felt her legs run over each step with a jolt as she held back more tears. They were entering a dark hallway now, with faint light shining from the candles on the walls.
"But I...I didn't do anything wrong...did I?" She said in a throaty voice because of her tears, "I was just getting medicine for my brother..."
"Please don't cry again, fair lady. As long as Sango and I have been here, Inuyasha hasn't killed a single woman. Maybe he'll lighten up later and agree to let you go..." He reassured her calmly, but couldn't help but contradict himself in his head. 'but then again...she's the first woman prisoner they've ever brought on board.'
Though that helped her relax the tiniest bit, Kagome was about to ask another question when they stopped before a box metal room, with hay covering the grey floors and steel bars lining down to prevent escape. There was a small bin in the corner too for...oh no...
"Oh god, PLEASE don't put me in there, I beg of you!" She suddenly jumped up and started spacing as far a distance between herself and the cell as possible. "It's dark, and dirty, and...disgusting!"
"I'm so sorry..." Sango said again this time with her eyes slightly watery, grabbing a hold of Kagome's cold hand and squeezing it.
"May you be blessed." Was all Miroku said as he pushed her into the dark room, ignoring her kicks and shouts of protest. "Have a good night's sleep." He slammed the door hesitantly and turned the key in its place. That sound made Kagome cringe inside.
'HAVE A GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP? You mean have a good LAST night's sleep!' Kagome would've screamed that madly at him if they already hadn't disappeared in the dim light of the hallway...
So doing the only thing possible in an isolated room, Kagome nestled down as far away from the bin as possible, and tried to find something interesting to focus on, like a piece of hay. It was weird though, because just two days ago she was sleeping in her own comfortable bed, unknowing that that was one of her last days. "This sucks..." Kagome grumbled to herself trying to be funny, but only ended up bawling like a sick cat. She cried away all of her frustrations for what she thought felt like an hour, before giving in to her body's demand and falling into a deep sleep.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Upstairs, in the private bedroom right above the jail, Inuyasha laid in bed, not able to fall asleep because of that damned woman's crying. It was hardly unusual for him to hear screaming and crying all night, since he was unlucky enough to be the one stuck with the room above the jail. But all those hussies were men, and for all he cared, men didn't cry. Not in public, not alone, ever.
When she finally shut the hell up after sobbing and sobbing for hours on end, he rolled to his side hurriedly and mumbled to himself, "Finally!" But no matter just how hard he tried, he could not fall asleep. Angrily, Inuyasha tossed and turned in bed, growling. This insomnia was enough to turn his hair white...
'Why can't I fucking fall asleep?' He kicked off his blankets harshly. 'And why can't I stop thinking about her? She's going to die for all I care!'
But his body didn't react quite the same as his mind did. He jumped out of bed in a huff and dressed into his normal clothing. Even he had to admit. He couldn't bring himself to do it. Yet. First he had to squeeze a little information out of her.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Kagome awoke to a loud "Bang!'" in the hallway, followed by a rude profanity as she scrambled over to the bars to get a clearer look. She couldn't see a thing in the darkness, which meant the candles on the walls had somehow blown out.
"Sango? Miroku? Are you there?" She called eagerly, praying that they had changed their minds and had come to release her from this hellhole.
No answer.
"Why would you want to talk to those morons?" The voice in the dark spoke in a sarcastic tone before stepping into the light. "Aren't I good enough for you?"
Kagome stared for a while at the man standing in front of the cell door. It was...it was that evil captain guy! What was he doing down here anyways? When he stepped a little closer, she made a pathetic fist in both hands and warned, "Don't come any closer!!!"
It was sad, really.
"Don't worry, I don't bite." She heard a chuckle before he somehow swung open the door and stepped in, slamming it after him. Obviously he thought she was going to use this opportunity to escape. He was right.
She was cowering in fear, while giving off the impression she wasn't scared at all. He stared at her and scoffed, "You're acting rather oddly, Kikyou. And you cut your hair... Why? Your boyfriend not like it?"
"What? Who?" What the heck was this weirdo talking about?
"Keh. Don't give me that bullshit. Why the hell are you here?" He snapped at her dense remark. "If you think you're crawling your sorry ass back to me, you can fucking forget it!"
Her eyes widened with questions as she remained still. "What? Who's Keekio?"
Inuyasha chuckled and suddenly appeared before her, grabbing her chin in his hands tightly. "So you're playing this amnesia game, huh?" He jabbed a finger at her nose. "You want to know who Kikyou is? She's the hoar that left with another man! YOU!"
A wave of relief washed over her and she smiled gratefully while pushing his finger away. "I'm not Keekio! I'm Kagome Higurashi! You have the wrong girl!"
The look on his face was downright priceless. First, he watched her as if she was bloody insane, then he backed away in horror. "Wha-? But you're...you're Kikyou! Stop fucking kidding!"
"I can assure you I am not this 'Keekio' you are speaking of, but Kagome. I live on an island with my younger brother." She said restlessly, completely relieved that he found out about this before he made her jump the plank.
"But you have to be! You look just like her! Prove you're not Kikyou!" He demanded angrily, grabbing a fistful of his own long hair from the frustration. "PROVE IT!" She was just thankful he wasn't pulling her hair.
"Um..." She just had to prove herself to him, or else... well, the saying, 'everyone has a twin somewhere in this world' was no joke. Kagome glanced down at herself, puzzling what she could pick up. She pointed to herself and said convincingly, "I'm a different size?"
"Nah...you're around the same height, and you could've easily put on the weight in the time you were gone." Inuyasha retorted, ignoring the angry look on her face. "Keh. I'm still not convinced...or are you just making this shit up, Kikyou?"
'How do I prove it to him...it can't be that hard...' Kagome smiled suddenly and pointed at her face. "Look at my face carefully. There is NO way two people can look exactly alike. We must be different somehow. Just look."
"Well, your eyes ARE a little bit further apart than hers, and your nose a tad larger. And your skin not as fair as hers, and..."
"That's enough!" She shouted, glaring him down with daggers. "Is that enough proof we're not the same person?"
He thought this over with precise detail. But all of the above could be because he'd forgotten her face over the distant time they'd been apart. "I'm not sure...I...I got it!" He yelled suddenly when he remembered something.
"What is it?" Kagome asked excitedly, her hands clapping together with joy.
He shuffled towards her with a huge smile on his normally unemotional face. Inuyasha chuckled along the whole while he was doing so, scaring the bloody hell out of her. 'What's he doing?' Immediately, he snagged the two front parts of her blouse with his hands, and to her surprise, tore them open without a second glance.
"Pervert!" He got a well-deserved slap for that. She embarrassingly covered her half-bare chest with her hands.
"BITCH!" Inuyasha could still feel the sting in that slap. He was almost NEVER hit, so this came on as quite a shock. "You little..." Using an old technique, he held her in the air by the neck with his unimaginably strong grip. Kagome had gotten rather used to this neck abusing, so she chose to keep her big mouth shut for once. She shuddered when he harshly brought his mouth to her ear and whispered, "Listen, bitch. NOBODY ever touches me, ever! Let alone hit me! I'll let you off as a warning now, seeing as you're going to die tomorrow anyways!"
'Wha-? Then that means, he never planned to let me go? Then why did I have to prove myself?' She held back a sob in the air, "Then...why did you rip my shirt?" About to add on an insult, smartly she decided to keep it to herself.
"To see this." Surprisingly, Inuyasha swept her hair aside with a soothing stroke, while she held perfectly still the entire time from the weirdness of it all. Oddly, he seemed to take an interest on her collarbone, seeing as he stared at it for a few seconds before dropping her to the floor for the second time that day. "No birthmark. So you're not Kikyou, are you?"
"Apparently not." She mumbled while rubbing her neck. "So I'm innocent it seems...PLEASE Inuyasha sir...please let me go home to my sick brother. He's all alone and - "
"SHUT THE HELL UP!" He demanded cruelly before taking his leave out the door. "You think I'd let you go freely after you fucking slapped me? I'd think not, girl! No prisoners are still alive after they run into us, and I'd like it to keep it that way! See you on the plank tomorrow morning."
And with that, he locked the cell door tightly into place before mysteriously disappearing down the corridor just like Sango and Miroku had.
"I...I wanna go home..." Kagome cried again in the dark, releasing all of her anger into that one sentence, not caring just how much she probably sounded like a child. "And it smells in here..."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Lass! Wake up!"
Kagome heard the deep voice rumble before scattering up from her comfy pile of hay; after all, since it was her last night to sleep she might as well be comfortable. So there she sat, watching the man carefully, inspecting his every motion with the most care.
After the jerk had left last night, she had created a foolproof plan to get out of this place...and as long as Inuyasha wasn't the one bringing her this morning, it was most certainly going to work.
Luckily for her, it was some tall, lanky guy with a few hairs above his lips, and if she wasn't mistaken, he seemed to be blushing a little. "Lady, I'll need you to come with me."
Kagome suddenly screeched a sound of sheer pain, reaching for her thigh and grasping it deadly tight, her teeth biting on to her lower lip. "Owww...my thigh hurts...so much...I think I might have pulled it or something...Ow!" What followed next were a few of her wonderfully perfected sobs and rants. "It hurts so much! Shit! It hurts like hell! It hurts..." She was just whining like a baby now, but if everything went as planned, it would all be worth it.
"Miss, are you alright?" The idiot fumbled with his keys hurriedly, trying to find the correct one of the collection of dozens. He was in such a hurry, actually, that when he finally fitted the right key into the door and swung it open, he actually left it open.
"No, I'm not...my thigh hurts sooo much..." Like hook and sinker that sucker fell for it, running up to her so-called injured leg and taking a closer look, blushing full on when she lifted her skirt slightly for him to get a better glimpse of it. 'I figured...they're so women deprived here.'
"I don't see anything wrong with your leg, miss..."
"Are you sure? Because it hurts so much..." Using this opportunity wisely, she grabbed the bin she had carefully treasured underneath the hay she had been sleeping on, and harshly brought it down on the poor guy's head, making a huge "CRASH" sound as it collided with his skull. He passed out without a word as his limp body slipped down to the filthy floor.
"Sorry 'bout that." She mumbled absently as she slipped out the cell doors and away, still thanking God that it hadn't been Inuyasha or the other two who came to pick her up.
To her benefit, there hadn't been a single person in the hallway or on the stairs up to the main floor of the ship, but that was the problem. Everyone was probably gathered there, especially if she was supposed to jump the plank and into the ocean filled with sharks and who knows what else. She shuddered at the thought.
"Hey, why isn't the girl here yet? I'm getting bored!" She heard someone say on deck with eagerly. It downright scared the hell out of her.
Kagome decided to head the other way quickly, and meanwhile look over the edge and try to find the boat she had arrived in with Hiten and the bearded guy. If she was lucky enough, maybe she could get into the boat and row away. That would definitely be the end of this horrific story...except she'd still have no medicine to show for it. Not to mention she'd owe Myouga tons of money.
But to her luck again, nobody was on the backside of the boat, which made it easy for her to look over the edge while racing at top speed.
Not bothering to look ahead, she full-on smashed into something hard and flew back from the pressure, landing uncomfortably on her behind. "What the -?"
"Where the hell do you think you're going?"
She looked up and would've choked on her own saliva if her mouth hadn't been so dry from the running. She had run smack into Inuyasha's chest, and now he was towering over her with his silhouette figure. "You can always swim later, you know."
Kagome looked up at him sheepishly, suddenly feeling so tiny. "I...I - "
He sighed with annoyance and didn't seem to be making a notion to helping her get back up on her feet. "You didn't think you could actually get away, did you? I could hear your loud footsteps from my room." He smiled, which surprised her. "And the sound of you knocking out that guy."
She was speechless actually. He didn't seem to be angry with her for trying to escape, just somewhat annoyed. "So, if you didn't like that guy, and I knocked him out for you, doesn't that kind of make up for my punishment?"
Kagome noticed he was trying to hold back a snigger. But of course, he didn't want to lose the image he was projecting, so he barked, "Not at all. If I didn't like him don't you think I would've gotten rid of him by now? I don't need some bitch doing my dirty work for me." He paused and stared at her seriously, "He's one of the better guys on this ship, actually. I'm kind of pissed off you did hit him."
She lowered her gaze ever so innocently. "Oh...sorry..."
"I don't really care though. But I DID ask Miroku and Sango to go fetch your lazy ass for him, but they didn't want to do it. Those sons of..." When he looked up, the girl had turned around and ran away at full speed. "Hey! Bitch! Come back here!"
She couldn't stop running. Not now. Not ever. She had to get away from this guy. Though she had to admit, after she proved she wasn't this Keekio girl last night, he was a tad nicer to her than when they first met. If you considered making a girl kill herself 'nicer'.
"Hey! Get the hell back here!" She could hear him hollering from a distance away, which was fantastic. At least she was managing to stay away from him...and now she had to find this boat. "You idiot! Get back here!"
"Wha-?" She glared over her shoulder and saw Inuyasha chasing after her at an unbelievable speed, his hair flinging in the wind. But when her eyesight was unfocused on what was in front of her, somebody or something managed to grab her around the waist forcefully and quickly.
"Gotcha!" The gruff voice behind her said, and Kagome looked down at her waist to see the most hideous hands she had ever seen in her life. "Captain! I got her!"
Inuyasha didn't reply, but instead walked over to them with what appeared to look like a disappointed expression on his face. 'I wonder what he's mad about...' She thought curiously, feeling a tang of disappointment at being caught.
"Good job, Manten." He said with the barest hint of gladness in his voice.
When Kagome whizzed her head around to see this Manten character, she almost fainted at the mere appearance of him. Bald except for three pieces of hair resting on his shiny head, quite obese, and those slits for eyes were practically piercing her. He downright looked like a monster! "Uh..."
"Inuyasha, should I tie her to the mast for the ceremony?" He questioned dubiously, looking incredibly proud of his work.
"Huh?" The captain glanced over nonchalantly, but nodded when his brain sorted out what Manten had just said. "Oh yea. Go ahead."
"What ceremony?" Kagome asked curiously when Manten began carrying her over to the huge wooden pole in the middle of the ship.
"We have a celebration and feast before anyone jumps the plank. It's a festivity around here, but then again, why am I telling you this?" He answered without a second thought before strapping her with rope around the thick support beam.
'They're partying before I die? So much for my hope of dying an old woman in my bed...' She opened her eyes and absorbed the surroundings around her. There must have been everyone on the deck now, sitting down and watching her as they dug into their giant plates of food.
Inuyasha was joining them, plopping down nearby and grabbing a stuffed hen to munch on. For someone who supposedly loved to kill people, he looked pretty pestered.
"You know, you are such a gorgeous girl..." She shuddered nervously at the sick feel of Manten breathing on her face. "Such a waste for Inuyasha to kill you, maybe if you agree to stay with me I can arrange so you don't have to die, what about it?"
"No thanks." It was as simple as that. She would seriously rather die than spend the rest of her life suffering with this ugly man.
"What? You'd rather die?!" His face burned with anger as his crewmates began to laugh under their breath. "You little bitch!" He raised his right hand high up in the air...
Kagome shut her eyes, preparing to take the slap when,
"Owww!"
Opening her eyes, Inuyasha had grabbed the hand Manten was about to use to slap her and twisted it back so that he was moaning in pain. He said seriously, not bothering to loosen his hold, "Don't fucking touch her."
"But Inuyasha..." He whined angrily and finally pulled away from the tight and painful grip. "Why the hell are you helping out this wench?"
"Keh. How the hell should I know?" He replied immediately with a smirk, "But who could blame her for refusing your offer?"
A huge roar of laughter emerged from the amused crowd.
Actually, he had been rather surprised when he heard her brave answer from where he sat. After all, any woman would have rather taken that offer than have to die. She was sure a lot tougher than he gave her credit for.
He stared at the woman still tied on the mast coldly. "Hey, you." Inuyasha pulled out his sharp sword and swiped it in front of her face before professionally sliding it back into his scabbard.
Kagome was waiting for that cut to tear into her body. But it never came. 'Why doesn't it hurt? Didn't he cut me with that sword?' Instead, when she opened her questioning eyes, she discovered that the rope bonding her had dropped to the floor. "I'm free?"
"Nah. It's just time for you to jump the plank."
The reaction of the crowd was unimaginable. Rum bottles were chucked into the air, and everyone was hooting and clapping with excitement. At the same time, people started cheering proudly, "INUYASHA! INUYASHA! INUYASHA!"
For some reason, Inuyasha couldn't feel the same glory he felt every time his crew did that for him. Of course, in order to prevent them from whispering among themselves and rebelling against him, he had to stand tall as the fearless and cruel leader.
Then why did he feel like such an asshole? It may have been because she was a weak woman, and he'd never made any woman jump the plank before. But if it was just ANY woman he was pretty sure he wouldn't be this hesitant to make her jump. After all, anything to keep his crew thinking he was some sort of a hero.
So if that wasn't it, then most likely it was because she resembled Kikyou so much. Kikyou...that name rang in his head like a terrible memory, not wanting to be blocked out.
He had met the woman back in the days when he was a young sailor, struggling like all the others to make their earnings every month. She had been the beautiful piano player who played the piano on the pier every morning, as she was often given money from the sailors because of her starlet looks.
They definitely wouldn't have met under normal circumstances since Inuyasha was one hell of a hardworking 16 year old. His mind was on anything but women at the time, but rather on his career. So when Kikyou expressed an interest in him from watching him each day, she began to take more breaks to walk over to the boats to introduce herself to him.
Boy, had he gotten enough punches from the guys for that.
He couldn't even remember how she did it, but in some mysterious way the gorgeous piano player had managed to get him to fall in love with her. They'd go on dates on his free days, and occasionally meet up to chat up on good times.
But it was when Kikyou wanted to get married that everything changed dramatically. She wanted him to quit his part-time sailor job and go into something more professional to support the two of them. But he couldn't do it. He loved working on the ocean way too much to throw it all behind.
The week following that, a group of sailors including himself sailed out to do a check-up on a missing boat when their own ship was attacked by a group of pirates. All the soldiers were killed except himself, as he was taken as a slave to clean the boat.
Once he gained more respect with everyone on the boat, he managed to train dead hard and eventually he managed to earn enough respect to join the pirate crew.
But that boat had a terrible captain, always sending men off to die in order to save himself. So secretly one day they all gathered and planned a way to get rid of him, sending Inuyasha as the one to do the dirty work. He killed the guy, of course, and was voted by the crew as the new captain of the boat.
It was a huge honour since it was extremely rare that a slave could somehow work up to becoming a captain, but his strong will showed, and not for one second did he think of giving up. Eventually he even made his ship one of the strongest around.
But the entire time he vowed to himself he'd go back to reunite with Kikyou. As a matter of fact, he was so devoted to seeing her again that he was willing to give all this up to marry her, as much as he loved pirating.
So when he received word his love had eloped with another man and moved out of the city, his heart was shattered into two, and so there he remained, as the captain of the pirate boat he had grown to accept.
That would explain why he didn't want to kill this counterfeit of Kikyou. She was so much stronger than Kikyou was, and for some odd reason he wanted her to stay around, maybe even to have as the Kikyou he wasn't able to keep.
But he couldn't do that. It was a rule embarked upon this ship: No women allowed. They brought bad luck, they distracted from the fighting, and they made the men into flower-smelling hussies. Sango was an exception though.
"Well, captain?" Manten asked impatiently as all eyes were on him while he daydreamed. "Aren't you going to come watch her jump?"
"Huh?" He looked over and spotted the Kikyou look-alike standing at the end of the plank, her pleading and watery eyes begging him to reconsider as she looked at him with fear.
A few men were at the boat end of the wooden plank, holding out their swords dangerously to keep her from running back onto the boat. The others chanted happily while shaking their arms in the air, "JUMP! JUMP! JUMP!"
"Wait." Inuyasha commanded silently to Manten.
"What, captain?"
Before he could order everyone to stop what they were doing, the runt of the boat ran over hurriedly to where the two stood. He sighed annoyingly, "What is it, Shippou?"
"Inuyasha...the sh-ship is under attack!"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
AN: Well, now everyone found out vaguely about Inuyasha and Kikyou's past. What will happen next in the next exciting chapter of "Pirate Pash"? Will Kagome still have to jump the plank? Who's attacking? Why the heck is little Shippou there? Where's Miroku and Sango? Why am I asking all these stupid questions?
Don't forget to leave a review, because that would definitely be encouraging! ^_^
*~Sorena~*
AN: For those wondering if I've seen the Disney movie, "Pirates of the Caribbean", I haven't. But I really want to! I wanted to write this a long time ago, but after all these pirate movies came out I just felt so inspired! Well, hope you guys enjoy this chapter. And my kitty cat disappeared for two weeks...I miss him.
Pirate Pash
Chapter 2 - Surrogate Woman
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Her vision was a blurry mess, and Kagome found it practically impossible to see from the position she was in. Slouched over facing the floor with two sets of hands grabbing her arms and pulling her along, her feet hanging on the floor. A sharp tang of pain suddenly jabbed at her head and neck, and all of sudden she remembered everything clearly.
'That's right...I was captured by pirates. I was hoping it had only been a nightmare...guess I was wrong. What time is it anyways? Am I being taken away to die?' Surprisingly enough, Kagome didn't quite fear death at the moment. After all, it was probably only going to sting for a second or so, depending on how she died, and then everything would become all black and she'd dream on forever. Or maybe...she would come back as a butterfly, or even a ghost!
Either way, she had partially lost her will to live, and the only thing that popped into her head was Souta's face. How was he going to feel now if his sister died as well? He couldn't work to support himself, let alone stand up straight.
During her thoughts, Kagome felt an unfamiliar hand innocently take its place on her behind. Before she could react to it...
"Miroku!" She heard this 'Miroku' guy get slapped as he grudgingly removed his hand, and from the voice of the person who just yelled, it was a girl. "How dare you grope an unconscious girl?!"
"I swear, Sango! I just saw a bug resting there, and I thought I could help the damsel by removing it." He replied with the tone of a five- year-old.
"You...you pervert!" Sango shouted, and Kagome felt the grip on her arm get tighter with rage. "There WAS no bug, moron! You just wanted to grope her!"
"Sango..." His voice lightened as if he was shocked to hear the news. "I can't believe you would say such thing about me! I am, after all, an ex-monk."
"...Who is now a pirate." Sango smugly added for him.
Kagome could then feel a pair of eyes digging into her back. "...Poor girl, did you see how rough Inuyasha was with her? And now she's going to die, for no reason at all." When those words escaped his mouth, Kagome felt as if somebody had socked her in the face. She was suddenly terrified of that fact, and she didn't want to die...and she was a good girl! She never stole, never cheated, never did anything wrong...and here she was being sentenced to death. Unable to hold back the fright, Kagome started sniffling quietly, her body ragged from the sobs.
"Hey, stop changing the subject!" Sango yelled when she felt the body they were holding start to shake. "...she's awake."
Miroku swooped his head down below hers to catch a quick glimpse of her face. "And crying."
"Please...please..." Kagome whispered while staring at the floor, not caring at all now who saw or heard her crying. These two people seemed kind enough, so maybe they would reconsider what Inuyasha said. "I - I don't want to die, please...help me."
The two above her remained silent for a while as they continued carrying her along. Then she heard Sango speak faintly, and apologetically. "I'm so sorry, but we can't help you..."
"Miss...it is not of our intention to kill you, but of our Captain. Even if we were to ask him, we would only be shouted at. And if we let you go now, as much as we'd like to, he'd have our heads for it." Miroku explained wearily as they descended down a set of stairs. Kagome felt her legs run over each step with a jolt as she held back more tears. They were entering a dark hallway now, with faint light shining from the candles on the walls.
"But I...I didn't do anything wrong...did I?" She said in a throaty voice because of her tears, "I was just getting medicine for my brother..."
"Please don't cry again, fair lady. As long as Sango and I have been here, Inuyasha hasn't killed a single woman. Maybe he'll lighten up later and agree to let you go..." He reassured her calmly, but couldn't help but contradict himself in his head. 'but then again...she's the first woman prisoner they've ever brought on board.'
Though that helped her relax the tiniest bit, Kagome was about to ask another question when they stopped before a box metal room, with hay covering the grey floors and steel bars lining down to prevent escape. There was a small bin in the corner too for...oh no...
"Oh god, PLEASE don't put me in there, I beg of you!" She suddenly jumped up and started spacing as far a distance between herself and the cell as possible. "It's dark, and dirty, and...disgusting!"
"I'm so sorry..." Sango said again this time with her eyes slightly watery, grabbing a hold of Kagome's cold hand and squeezing it.
"May you be blessed." Was all Miroku said as he pushed her into the dark room, ignoring her kicks and shouts of protest. "Have a good night's sleep." He slammed the door hesitantly and turned the key in its place. That sound made Kagome cringe inside.
'HAVE A GOOD NIGHT'S SLEEP? You mean have a good LAST night's sleep!' Kagome would've screamed that madly at him if they already hadn't disappeared in the dim light of the hallway...
So doing the only thing possible in an isolated room, Kagome nestled down as far away from the bin as possible, and tried to find something interesting to focus on, like a piece of hay. It was weird though, because just two days ago she was sleeping in her own comfortable bed, unknowing that that was one of her last days. "This sucks..." Kagome grumbled to herself trying to be funny, but only ended up bawling like a sick cat. She cried away all of her frustrations for what she thought felt like an hour, before giving in to her body's demand and falling into a deep sleep.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Upstairs, in the private bedroom right above the jail, Inuyasha laid in bed, not able to fall asleep because of that damned woman's crying. It was hardly unusual for him to hear screaming and crying all night, since he was unlucky enough to be the one stuck with the room above the jail. But all those hussies were men, and for all he cared, men didn't cry. Not in public, not alone, ever.
When she finally shut the hell up after sobbing and sobbing for hours on end, he rolled to his side hurriedly and mumbled to himself, "Finally!" But no matter just how hard he tried, he could not fall asleep. Angrily, Inuyasha tossed and turned in bed, growling. This insomnia was enough to turn his hair white...
'Why can't I fucking fall asleep?' He kicked off his blankets harshly. 'And why can't I stop thinking about her? She's going to die for all I care!'
But his body didn't react quite the same as his mind did. He jumped out of bed in a huff and dressed into his normal clothing. Even he had to admit. He couldn't bring himself to do it. Yet. First he had to squeeze a little information out of her.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Kagome awoke to a loud "Bang!'" in the hallway, followed by a rude profanity as she scrambled over to the bars to get a clearer look. She couldn't see a thing in the darkness, which meant the candles on the walls had somehow blown out.
"Sango? Miroku? Are you there?" She called eagerly, praying that they had changed their minds and had come to release her from this hellhole.
No answer.
"Why would you want to talk to those morons?" The voice in the dark spoke in a sarcastic tone before stepping into the light. "Aren't I good enough for you?"
Kagome stared for a while at the man standing in front of the cell door. It was...it was that evil captain guy! What was he doing down here anyways? When he stepped a little closer, she made a pathetic fist in both hands and warned, "Don't come any closer!!!"
It was sad, really.
"Don't worry, I don't bite." She heard a chuckle before he somehow swung open the door and stepped in, slamming it after him. Obviously he thought she was going to use this opportunity to escape. He was right.
She was cowering in fear, while giving off the impression she wasn't scared at all. He stared at her and scoffed, "You're acting rather oddly, Kikyou. And you cut your hair... Why? Your boyfriend not like it?"
"What? Who?" What the heck was this weirdo talking about?
"Keh. Don't give me that bullshit. Why the hell are you here?" He snapped at her dense remark. "If you think you're crawling your sorry ass back to me, you can fucking forget it!"
Her eyes widened with questions as she remained still. "What? Who's Keekio?"
Inuyasha chuckled and suddenly appeared before her, grabbing her chin in his hands tightly. "So you're playing this amnesia game, huh?" He jabbed a finger at her nose. "You want to know who Kikyou is? She's the hoar that left with another man! YOU!"
A wave of relief washed over her and she smiled gratefully while pushing his finger away. "I'm not Keekio! I'm Kagome Higurashi! You have the wrong girl!"
The look on his face was downright priceless. First, he watched her as if she was bloody insane, then he backed away in horror. "Wha-? But you're...you're Kikyou! Stop fucking kidding!"
"I can assure you I am not this 'Keekio' you are speaking of, but Kagome. I live on an island with my younger brother." She said restlessly, completely relieved that he found out about this before he made her jump the plank.
"But you have to be! You look just like her! Prove you're not Kikyou!" He demanded angrily, grabbing a fistful of his own long hair from the frustration. "PROVE IT!" She was just thankful he wasn't pulling her hair.
"Um..." She just had to prove herself to him, or else... well, the saying, 'everyone has a twin somewhere in this world' was no joke. Kagome glanced down at herself, puzzling what she could pick up. She pointed to herself and said convincingly, "I'm a different size?"
"Nah...you're around the same height, and you could've easily put on the weight in the time you were gone." Inuyasha retorted, ignoring the angry look on her face. "Keh. I'm still not convinced...or are you just making this shit up, Kikyou?"
'How do I prove it to him...it can't be that hard...' Kagome smiled suddenly and pointed at her face. "Look at my face carefully. There is NO way two people can look exactly alike. We must be different somehow. Just look."
"Well, your eyes ARE a little bit further apart than hers, and your nose a tad larger. And your skin not as fair as hers, and..."
"That's enough!" She shouted, glaring him down with daggers. "Is that enough proof we're not the same person?"
He thought this over with precise detail. But all of the above could be because he'd forgotten her face over the distant time they'd been apart. "I'm not sure...I...I got it!" He yelled suddenly when he remembered something.
"What is it?" Kagome asked excitedly, her hands clapping together with joy.
He shuffled towards her with a huge smile on his normally unemotional face. Inuyasha chuckled along the whole while he was doing so, scaring the bloody hell out of her. 'What's he doing?' Immediately, he snagged the two front parts of her blouse with his hands, and to her surprise, tore them open without a second glance.
"Pervert!" He got a well-deserved slap for that. She embarrassingly covered her half-bare chest with her hands.
"BITCH!" Inuyasha could still feel the sting in that slap. He was almost NEVER hit, so this came on as quite a shock. "You little..." Using an old technique, he held her in the air by the neck with his unimaginably strong grip. Kagome had gotten rather used to this neck abusing, so she chose to keep her big mouth shut for once. She shuddered when he harshly brought his mouth to her ear and whispered, "Listen, bitch. NOBODY ever touches me, ever! Let alone hit me! I'll let you off as a warning now, seeing as you're going to die tomorrow anyways!"
'Wha-? Then that means, he never planned to let me go? Then why did I have to prove myself?' She held back a sob in the air, "Then...why did you rip my shirt?" About to add on an insult, smartly she decided to keep it to herself.
"To see this." Surprisingly, Inuyasha swept her hair aside with a soothing stroke, while she held perfectly still the entire time from the weirdness of it all. Oddly, he seemed to take an interest on her collarbone, seeing as he stared at it for a few seconds before dropping her to the floor for the second time that day. "No birthmark. So you're not Kikyou, are you?"
"Apparently not." She mumbled while rubbing her neck. "So I'm innocent it seems...PLEASE Inuyasha sir...please let me go home to my sick brother. He's all alone and - "
"SHUT THE HELL UP!" He demanded cruelly before taking his leave out the door. "You think I'd let you go freely after you fucking slapped me? I'd think not, girl! No prisoners are still alive after they run into us, and I'd like it to keep it that way! See you on the plank tomorrow morning."
And with that, he locked the cell door tightly into place before mysteriously disappearing down the corridor just like Sango and Miroku had.
"I...I wanna go home..." Kagome cried again in the dark, releasing all of her anger into that one sentence, not caring just how much she probably sounded like a child. "And it smells in here..."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Lass! Wake up!"
Kagome heard the deep voice rumble before scattering up from her comfy pile of hay; after all, since it was her last night to sleep she might as well be comfortable. So there she sat, watching the man carefully, inspecting his every motion with the most care.
After the jerk had left last night, she had created a foolproof plan to get out of this place...and as long as Inuyasha wasn't the one bringing her this morning, it was most certainly going to work.
Luckily for her, it was some tall, lanky guy with a few hairs above his lips, and if she wasn't mistaken, he seemed to be blushing a little. "Lady, I'll need you to come with me."
Kagome suddenly screeched a sound of sheer pain, reaching for her thigh and grasping it deadly tight, her teeth biting on to her lower lip. "Owww...my thigh hurts...so much...I think I might have pulled it or something...Ow!" What followed next were a few of her wonderfully perfected sobs and rants. "It hurts so much! Shit! It hurts like hell! It hurts..." She was just whining like a baby now, but if everything went as planned, it would all be worth it.
"Miss, are you alright?" The idiot fumbled with his keys hurriedly, trying to find the correct one of the collection of dozens. He was in such a hurry, actually, that when he finally fitted the right key into the door and swung it open, he actually left it open.
"No, I'm not...my thigh hurts sooo much..." Like hook and sinker that sucker fell for it, running up to her so-called injured leg and taking a closer look, blushing full on when she lifted her skirt slightly for him to get a better glimpse of it. 'I figured...they're so women deprived here.'
"I don't see anything wrong with your leg, miss..."
"Are you sure? Because it hurts so much..." Using this opportunity wisely, she grabbed the bin she had carefully treasured underneath the hay she had been sleeping on, and harshly brought it down on the poor guy's head, making a huge "CRASH" sound as it collided with his skull. He passed out without a word as his limp body slipped down to the filthy floor.
"Sorry 'bout that." She mumbled absently as she slipped out the cell doors and away, still thanking God that it hadn't been Inuyasha or the other two who came to pick her up.
To her benefit, there hadn't been a single person in the hallway or on the stairs up to the main floor of the ship, but that was the problem. Everyone was probably gathered there, especially if she was supposed to jump the plank and into the ocean filled with sharks and who knows what else. She shuddered at the thought.
"Hey, why isn't the girl here yet? I'm getting bored!" She heard someone say on deck with eagerly. It downright scared the hell out of her.
Kagome decided to head the other way quickly, and meanwhile look over the edge and try to find the boat she had arrived in with Hiten and the bearded guy. If she was lucky enough, maybe she could get into the boat and row away. That would definitely be the end of this horrific story...except she'd still have no medicine to show for it. Not to mention she'd owe Myouga tons of money.
But to her luck again, nobody was on the backside of the boat, which made it easy for her to look over the edge while racing at top speed.
Not bothering to look ahead, she full-on smashed into something hard and flew back from the pressure, landing uncomfortably on her behind. "What the -?"
"Where the hell do you think you're going?"
She looked up and would've choked on her own saliva if her mouth hadn't been so dry from the running. She had run smack into Inuyasha's chest, and now he was towering over her with his silhouette figure. "You can always swim later, you know."
Kagome looked up at him sheepishly, suddenly feeling so tiny. "I...I - "
He sighed with annoyance and didn't seem to be making a notion to helping her get back up on her feet. "You didn't think you could actually get away, did you? I could hear your loud footsteps from my room." He smiled, which surprised her. "And the sound of you knocking out that guy."
She was speechless actually. He didn't seem to be angry with her for trying to escape, just somewhat annoyed. "So, if you didn't like that guy, and I knocked him out for you, doesn't that kind of make up for my punishment?"
Kagome noticed he was trying to hold back a snigger. But of course, he didn't want to lose the image he was projecting, so he barked, "Not at all. If I didn't like him don't you think I would've gotten rid of him by now? I don't need some bitch doing my dirty work for me." He paused and stared at her seriously, "He's one of the better guys on this ship, actually. I'm kind of pissed off you did hit him."
She lowered her gaze ever so innocently. "Oh...sorry..."
"I don't really care though. But I DID ask Miroku and Sango to go fetch your lazy ass for him, but they didn't want to do it. Those sons of..." When he looked up, the girl had turned around and ran away at full speed. "Hey! Bitch! Come back here!"
She couldn't stop running. Not now. Not ever. She had to get away from this guy. Though she had to admit, after she proved she wasn't this Keekio girl last night, he was a tad nicer to her than when they first met. If you considered making a girl kill herself 'nicer'.
"Hey! Get the hell back here!" She could hear him hollering from a distance away, which was fantastic. At least she was managing to stay away from him...and now she had to find this boat. "You idiot! Get back here!"
"Wha-?" She glared over her shoulder and saw Inuyasha chasing after her at an unbelievable speed, his hair flinging in the wind. But when her eyesight was unfocused on what was in front of her, somebody or something managed to grab her around the waist forcefully and quickly.
"Gotcha!" The gruff voice behind her said, and Kagome looked down at her waist to see the most hideous hands she had ever seen in her life. "Captain! I got her!"
Inuyasha didn't reply, but instead walked over to them with what appeared to look like a disappointed expression on his face. 'I wonder what he's mad about...' She thought curiously, feeling a tang of disappointment at being caught.
"Good job, Manten." He said with the barest hint of gladness in his voice.
When Kagome whizzed her head around to see this Manten character, she almost fainted at the mere appearance of him. Bald except for three pieces of hair resting on his shiny head, quite obese, and those slits for eyes were practically piercing her. He downright looked like a monster! "Uh..."
"Inuyasha, should I tie her to the mast for the ceremony?" He questioned dubiously, looking incredibly proud of his work.
"Huh?" The captain glanced over nonchalantly, but nodded when his brain sorted out what Manten had just said. "Oh yea. Go ahead."
"What ceremony?" Kagome asked curiously when Manten began carrying her over to the huge wooden pole in the middle of the ship.
"We have a celebration and feast before anyone jumps the plank. It's a festivity around here, but then again, why am I telling you this?" He answered without a second thought before strapping her with rope around the thick support beam.
'They're partying before I die? So much for my hope of dying an old woman in my bed...' She opened her eyes and absorbed the surroundings around her. There must have been everyone on the deck now, sitting down and watching her as they dug into their giant plates of food.
Inuyasha was joining them, plopping down nearby and grabbing a stuffed hen to munch on. For someone who supposedly loved to kill people, he looked pretty pestered.
"You know, you are such a gorgeous girl..." She shuddered nervously at the sick feel of Manten breathing on her face. "Such a waste for Inuyasha to kill you, maybe if you agree to stay with me I can arrange so you don't have to die, what about it?"
"No thanks." It was as simple as that. She would seriously rather die than spend the rest of her life suffering with this ugly man.
"What? You'd rather die?!" His face burned with anger as his crewmates began to laugh under their breath. "You little bitch!" He raised his right hand high up in the air...
Kagome shut her eyes, preparing to take the slap when,
"Owww!"
Opening her eyes, Inuyasha had grabbed the hand Manten was about to use to slap her and twisted it back so that he was moaning in pain. He said seriously, not bothering to loosen his hold, "Don't fucking touch her."
"But Inuyasha..." He whined angrily and finally pulled away from the tight and painful grip. "Why the hell are you helping out this wench?"
"Keh. How the hell should I know?" He replied immediately with a smirk, "But who could blame her for refusing your offer?"
A huge roar of laughter emerged from the amused crowd.
Actually, he had been rather surprised when he heard her brave answer from where he sat. After all, any woman would have rather taken that offer than have to die. She was sure a lot tougher than he gave her credit for.
He stared at the woman still tied on the mast coldly. "Hey, you." Inuyasha pulled out his sharp sword and swiped it in front of her face before professionally sliding it back into his scabbard.
Kagome was waiting for that cut to tear into her body. But it never came. 'Why doesn't it hurt? Didn't he cut me with that sword?' Instead, when she opened her questioning eyes, she discovered that the rope bonding her had dropped to the floor. "I'm free?"
"Nah. It's just time for you to jump the plank."
The reaction of the crowd was unimaginable. Rum bottles were chucked into the air, and everyone was hooting and clapping with excitement. At the same time, people started cheering proudly, "INUYASHA! INUYASHA! INUYASHA!"
For some reason, Inuyasha couldn't feel the same glory he felt every time his crew did that for him. Of course, in order to prevent them from whispering among themselves and rebelling against him, he had to stand tall as the fearless and cruel leader.
Then why did he feel like such an asshole? It may have been because she was a weak woman, and he'd never made any woman jump the plank before. But if it was just ANY woman he was pretty sure he wouldn't be this hesitant to make her jump. After all, anything to keep his crew thinking he was some sort of a hero.
So if that wasn't it, then most likely it was because she resembled Kikyou so much. Kikyou...that name rang in his head like a terrible memory, not wanting to be blocked out.
He had met the woman back in the days when he was a young sailor, struggling like all the others to make their earnings every month. She had been the beautiful piano player who played the piano on the pier every morning, as she was often given money from the sailors because of her starlet looks.
They definitely wouldn't have met under normal circumstances since Inuyasha was one hell of a hardworking 16 year old. His mind was on anything but women at the time, but rather on his career. So when Kikyou expressed an interest in him from watching him each day, she began to take more breaks to walk over to the boats to introduce herself to him.
Boy, had he gotten enough punches from the guys for that.
He couldn't even remember how she did it, but in some mysterious way the gorgeous piano player had managed to get him to fall in love with her. They'd go on dates on his free days, and occasionally meet up to chat up on good times.
But it was when Kikyou wanted to get married that everything changed dramatically. She wanted him to quit his part-time sailor job and go into something more professional to support the two of them. But he couldn't do it. He loved working on the ocean way too much to throw it all behind.
The week following that, a group of sailors including himself sailed out to do a check-up on a missing boat when their own ship was attacked by a group of pirates. All the soldiers were killed except himself, as he was taken as a slave to clean the boat.
Once he gained more respect with everyone on the boat, he managed to train dead hard and eventually he managed to earn enough respect to join the pirate crew.
But that boat had a terrible captain, always sending men off to die in order to save himself. So secretly one day they all gathered and planned a way to get rid of him, sending Inuyasha as the one to do the dirty work. He killed the guy, of course, and was voted by the crew as the new captain of the boat.
It was a huge honour since it was extremely rare that a slave could somehow work up to becoming a captain, but his strong will showed, and not for one second did he think of giving up. Eventually he even made his ship one of the strongest around.
But the entire time he vowed to himself he'd go back to reunite with Kikyou. As a matter of fact, he was so devoted to seeing her again that he was willing to give all this up to marry her, as much as he loved pirating.
So when he received word his love had eloped with another man and moved out of the city, his heart was shattered into two, and so there he remained, as the captain of the pirate boat he had grown to accept.
That would explain why he didn't want to kill this counterfeit of Kikyou. She was so much stronger than Kikyou was, and for some odd reason he wanted her to stay around, maybe even to have as the Kikyou he wasn't able to keep.
But he couldn't do that. It was a rule embarked upon this ship: No women allowed. They brought bad luck, they distracted from the fighting, and they made the men into flower-smelling hussies. Sango was an exception though.
"Well, captain?" Manten asked impatiently as all eyes were on him while he daydreamed. "Aren't you going to come watch her jump?"
"Huh?" He looked over and spotted the Kikyou look-alike standing at the end of the plank, her pleading and watery eyes begging him to reconsider as she looked at him with fear.
A few men were at the boat end of the wooden plank, holding out their swords dangerously to keep her from running back onto the boat. The others chanted happily while shaking their arms in the air, "JUMP! JUMP! JUMP!"
"Wait." Inuyasha commanded silently to Manten.
"What, captain?"
Before he could order everyone to stop what they were doing, the runt of the boat ran over hurriedly to where the two stood. He sighed annoyingly, "What is it, Shippou?"
"Inuyasha...the sh-ship is under attack!"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
AN: Well, now everyone found out vaguely about Inuyasha and Kikyou's past. What will happen next in the next exciting chapter of "Pirate Pash"? Will Kagome still have to jump the plank? Who's attacking? Why the heck is little Shippou there? Where's Miroku and Sango? Why am I asking all these stupid questions?
Don't forget to leave a review, because that would definitely be encouraging! ^_^
*~Sorena~*
