-Silver-
-Disclaimer- shakes head Heh.. don't own.
-
4 - Trust
-
He blended in with the shadows, darting past the patches of light from the half-full moon and bright stars. The clouds moved in ominously, covering and blotting out stars. His amber orbs fixed on his destination. He caught the stench of death and the fresh scent of tears. He knew he had to be quick about it. Sneaking to the door, he slid it open and stepped through. His eyes widened at who and what he saw before him. His little brother was kneeling down before a small rise where the body of the slayer lay, seeming so innocent that it looked as though she were only asleep. Candles were lit on both sides, providing flickering and dancing light and shadows, casting both over the gloominess of the room. The hanyou stood and turned, his hate-filled gaze landing on his older sibling. However, there was much more than hatred in those glistening amber eyes.
"I knew you'd be here." His voice was quiet and haunted. His eyes narrowed. "Why?"
"Simple answer, brother." Sesshoumaru glared at him. "One in which I will not give to you."
"What is it with you, huh!? You know that bringing her back will change nothing! She will despise you for what you did!"
"You think I don't know that!?" Inuyasha let out a snarl as soon as the older youkai moved forward. "Let me pass."
"No way in hell! I know what you'll do!" The hanyou finally let his anger take hold of him. "You'll wind up killin' her again!"
"Letting anger speak for you will accomplish nothing." Sesshoumaru drew out Tenseiga. "I am here to revive her and then I will take my leave of you. I do not wish for you to continue coming after me relentlessly just to avenge her. I wish to kill you with honor and in a battle to the death." He spoke as though Inuyasha were only an immature child. He took another step forward and held up his gleaming katana. "Step aside."
"As long as you promise not to bother her anymore. You have to promise not to speak to or confront her." The hanyou's voice grew colder after each word. Sesshoumaru said nothing but looked to Sango, narrowing his eyes to see the demons. He pushed his brother out of the way and swung the blade.
"As I said before, I will take my leave." He walked out of the shed, disappearing back into the shadows.
-
The voices.. She could feel a strange, otherworldly warmth when she reached out. She was floating.. or so it seemed. She had felt like this for a while now. The voices were going away now. She held her hand out but the warmth faded. She felt pain. Excruciating pain.
"Sango, wake up." She opened her eyes to see concerned amber orbs staring right into her face. She stared, not completely understanding anything. "How are you feeling? Are you okay?"
"My stomach.." She choked out, heaving air. She began to cough dryly.
"Right.." He ran out and came back a moment later with a canteen. He tilted her head back just a little and tipped the canteen. She drank it willingly, wanting to stop the dry heaving and coughing. He took it away, knowing that too much wasn't good. "Better?" She nodded. "Okay, do you remember who I am?" She stared at him blankly. She was still delirious. The wound was made by Tokijin.. the poison of her mind vanished just before she was killed. Then recognition filled her eyes.
"Inuyasha?" She smiled. "What happened? I remember.. only seeing Sesshoumaru run Tokijin through my stomach." Her face paled.
"I don't think we should talk about that." His voice was cold, emotionless. "I know who will be happy to see you back alive."
"K-Kagome and Miroku?" She asked, hopefully.
"Yeah." He whispered. "How long are you gonna stay with us?" She looked away from him, not really willing to answer.
"I-I want to travel alone again. How is Kirara taking it?"
"Not well. She has been moping around, acting as though the world was ending, dragging her tails everywhere." Sango winced with pain at visualizing the words he had said. "Miroku's been a basketcase ever since. I swear it's like he's not alive. He acts like a zombie."
"Please, Inuyasha, don't say anything else." She then let herself slip into a dark, dreamless sleep.
-
Her awakening was something she never expected. Someone was standing over her. She could feel their power flow through her, healing her. She could only guess that it was Kagome. The young miko must have learned to heal.
"I'm finished, guys. I don't know how long it will be before she wakes up, though." Kagome looked over at them with eagerness shining in her deep brown eyes. "For Sesshoumaru to come and heal her like that.. I think he didn't want to say that he actually cared for her. I remember the raw horror in his eyes when she had died on Tokijin. He didn't want to do it, Inuyasha. That childish grudge of yours will need to go away before you realize that he didn't want to. Miroku, you must remember the hesitation."
"I do." As much as the monk hated to admit it, he knew she was right. Sesshoumaru did not want to kill Sango. "Maybe it was the guilt he felt.. but.."
"That wasn't it!" Kagome cried, standing up and scowling. "I think he has feelings for her but he won't admit it! How many times do you believe that he had watched her before he talked to her? She went through his territory, unhindered by him. He must have known she was there!"
"Kagome, you're walking into something you don't understand!" Inuyasha shouted. "He doesn't care for anyone!"
"What about that human girl, Rin, that follows him around?" Kagome retaliated. "He would not have her around him if he couldn't stand humans!"
"Enough." Miroku's calm voice cut through their tyraid of screams. "We will never know, anyway. He had told you, Inuyasha, that he was taking his leave of us."
"Yeah." Granted, had Sango been better, she would have stormed outside and pounded her fists into the ground. She listened to their conversation in pained silence, somehow managing to keep a straight face. Was what Kagome had said true? About him caring for her? No. Sesshoumaru was a very complex and confusing puzzle. She would get no where without answers. He was perplexing. She had been sick and weak and he had provided all that she had needed. He had bandaged her wounds. He had held her when she was scared. He had killed her. That not only wounded her physically but emotionally, as well. She had the time but she didn't have the heart. She could not think of it without feeling betrayed, hurt.
-
Sesshoumaru had kept to his word. He had left as soon as he heard her speak. He did not know how or why he had grown so fond of a human so quickly. Maybe it was the longing to accept humans that now existed, thanks to Rin.
"Lord Sesshoumaru!" The little girl ran forward but stopped as soon as she saw him. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, Rin." He sat down, feeling a small, irritating form of seperation anxiety. Perhaps he had gotten used to having her so close to him that he missed her presence. Subconsciously, he closed his eyes and imagined her face as he had seen her when she was humming that small song to herself. "Rin, come here." She walked cautiously over to him and stood before him. "What do you think of that woman I showed you before?"
"You mean the one with the big weapons and little kitty?" He nodded, gazing at her with narrowed eyes. "She was a pretty lady. She seemed really nice."
"Would you have liked for her to care for you?"
"Lord Sesshoumaru, I like being with you." She blinked. "Why would I wish for her to care for me?"
"Answer my question, human." He looked away from her after he had used that harsh tone.
"Yes." She admitted softly. The great dog youkai had no idea what to do. Human needs were not his specialty. Her eyes showed some amount of sadness and he briefly wished that he had not brought it up. Jaken remained silent, knowing well that if he opened his mouth, he would die.
"Leave me." She nodded and turned around, walking back towards the fire that was going. He closed his eyes. That had been his plan for the taiji-ya. To take care of Rin. But he had to be true to his word. He would stay away from her. It was her decision, though, if she came looking for him. But he knew that wouldn't happen. "The betrayal.."
-
Sango sat up when she was sure that they were gone. She kept up an emotionless mask and tried her hardest not to think about anything. Either way, she knew her thoughts would return to the youkai who had killed her. And yet, had he not brought her back? Why? She wished to know the reason. The real reason that only he could give.
"Shit." She cursed, wrapping her arms around herself as she rocked back and forth. She was losing her grasp on reality. She had been in a sort of fantasy world.. a different realm. She had been warm and happy and had not thought about Sesshoumaru's betrayal. "Dammit." She could not believe that she was finding herself being pulled between a being with split personalities. She was in danger of being pulled in half. Curses flew through her mind and she found herself voicing them as they came. How had she come to be so weak, so dependant on a full-blooded youkai with no feelings? She shook her head. That was what he wanted everyone to think. He did have feelings. Even Naraku had feelings. He had acted out of hate and lust for Kikyou. He had acted and was so brash that he let nothing interfere. "So much like everyone.." It was a hard thing to admit but when it was thought about, didn't everyone tend to reach their goals if they tried?
"Sango!" Miroku's voice broke through her thoughts and she looked up, startled. He seemed to have a reserved look, almost as though he were afraid of her.
"Houshi-sama.." She looked away from him, afraid that he could see what she had been thinking about if he saw her. She continued to rock herself, remaining in silence and on the verge of reality. This couldn't be a dream. The pain of betrayal was too strong and there was a ghostly pain in her stomach that Kagome could not heal.
"You are thinking of him." It was a blunt statement. He almost acted as if it were natural to speak outright and have a long conversation with her. She didn't bless him with an answer but he knew that her silence meant that it was, indeed, what she had been thinking about. "Are you planning anything, as of late?"
"I have had a while to ponder things but.." She bit her lip then shook her head. "Most of my questions are still unanswered. I need more time to think them over."
"I also bet that you wish to piece it together when it has all been completely answered. You know that the only way is to ask." She wasted no time in glaring at him.
"I will answer what I can and piece in the rest, if it fits."
"So, you do not plan on asking him whether or not he wished to kill you?" She stared at him. He was making a point of being correct. She did wish to know if what Kagome had said was true. She also wished to know if Sesshoumaru had brought her back because he, himself, wished to. She knew, though, that neither Inuyasha or the others would run to him and plead for him to bring her back. She knew so from spending time watching and analyzing their attitudes. But she didn't know why Miroku was being so blunt.
"Yes, I do wish to know but I will not go there just for one question." She answered. Her hesitation was obvious while she toyed with what she had said. "I need more than one reason to go and see the one to slay me."
"Sango, though I hate to admit it, Sesshoumaru did the only thing he could. Your sickness was the effect of a demon soul that took your body as its own. He had knocked you unconscious, why I do not know, and the demon took that as the time to make its move. It was controlling you and Sesshoumaru saw only one solution at the time. He may have thought to revive you." She stared at him and considered this new information. She now knew what had happened when she was speaking with the Youkai Lord.
"But.." She didn't know whether or not to trust in Sesshoumaru, but she knew she had to find out.
-
Sorry to leave you hanging there! .. Hmm. Sango seems to have analyzed the situation and a lot of other things. How will she react? Will she ever forgive Sesshoumaru?
-Disclaimer- shakes head Heh.. don't own.
-
4 - Trust
-
He blended in with the shadows, darting past the patches of light from the half-full moon and bright stars. The clouds moved in ominously, covering and blotting out stars. His amber orbs fixed on his destination. He caught the stench of death and the fresh scent of tears. He knew he had to be quick about it. Sneaking to the door, he slid it open and stepped through. His eyes widened at who and what he saw before him. His little brother was kneeling down before a small rise where the body of the slayer lay, seeming so innocent that it looked as though she were only asleep. Candles were lit on both sides, providing flickering and dancing light and shadows, casting both over the gloominess of the room. The hanyou stood and turned, his hate-filled gaze landing on his older sibling. However, there was much more than hatred in those glistening amber eyes.
"I knew you'd be here." His voice was quiet and haunted. His eyes narrowed. "Why?"
"Simple answer, brother." Sesshoumaru glared at him. "One in which I will not give to you."
"What is it with you, huh!? You know that bringing her back will change nothing! She will despise you for what you did!"
"You think I don't know that!?" Inuyasha let out a snarl as soon as the older youkai moved forward. "Let me pass."
"No way in hell! I know what you'll do!" The hanyou finally let his anger take hold of him. "You'll wind up killin' her again!"
"Letting anger speak for you will accomplish nothing." Sesshoumaru drew out Tenseiga. "I am here to revive her and then I will take my leave of you. I do not wish for you to continue coming after me relentlessly just to avenge her. I wish to kill you with honor and in a battle to the death." He spoke as though Inuyasha were only an immature child. He took another step forward and held up his gleaming katana. "Step aside."
"As long as you promise not to bother her anymore. You have to promise not to speak to or confront her." The hanyou's voice grew colder after each word. Sesshoumaru said nothing but looked to Sango, narrowing his eyes to see the demons. He pushed his brother out of the way and swung the blade.
"As I said before, I will take my leave." He walked out of the shed, disappearing back into the shadows.
-
The voices.. She could feel a strange, otherworldly warmth when she reached out. She was floating.. or so it seemed. She had felt like this for a while now. The voices were going away now. She held her hand out but the warmth faded. She felt pain. Excruciating pain.
"Sango, wake up." She opened her eyes to see concerned amber orbs staring right into her face. She stared, not completely understanding anything. "How are you feeling? Are you okay?"
"My stomach.." She choked out, heaving air. She began to cough dryly.
"Right.." He ran out and came back a moment later with a canteen. He tilted her head back just a little and tipped the canteen. She drank it willingly, wanting to stop the dry heaving and coughing. He took it away, knowing that too much wasn't good. "Better?" She nodded. "Okay, do you remember who I am?" She stared at him blankly. She was still delirious. The wound was made by Tokijin.. the poison of her mind vanished just before she was killed. Then recognition filled her eyes.
"Inuyasha?" She smiled. "What happened? I remember.. only seeing Sesshoumaru run Tokijin through my stomach." Her face paled.
"I don't think we should talk about that." His voice was cold, emotionless. "I know who will be happy to see you back alive."
"K-Kagome and Miroku?" She asked, hopefully.
"Yeah." He whispered. "How long are you gonna stay with us?" She looked away from him, not really willing to answer.
"I-I want to travel alone again. How is Kirara taking it?"
"Not well. She has been moping around, acting as though the world was ending, dragging her tails everywhere." Sango winced with pain at visualizing the words he had said. "Miroku's been a basketcase ever since. I swear it's like he's not alive. He acts like a zombie."
"Please, Inuyasha, don't say anything else." She then let herself slip into a dark, dreamless sleep.
-
Her awakening was something she never expected. Someone was standing over her. She could feel their power flow through her, healing her. She could only guess that it was Kagome. The young miko must have learned to heal.
"I'm finished, guys. I don't know how long it will be before she wakes up, though." Kagome looked over at them with eagerness shining in her deep brown eyes. "For Sesshoumaru to come and heal her like that.. I think he didn't want to say that he actually cared for her. I remember the raw horror in his eyes when she had died on Tokijin. He didn't want to do it, Inuyasha. That childish grudge of yours will need to go away before you realize that he didn't want to. Miroku, you must remember the hesitation."
"I do." As much as the monk hated to admit it, he knew she was right. Sesshoumaru did not want to kill Sango. "Maybe it was the guilt he felt.. but.."
"That wasn't it!" Kagome cried, standing up and scowling. "I think he has feelings for her but he won't admit it! How many times do you believe that he had watched her before he talked to her? She went through his territory, unhindered by him. He must have known she was there!"
"Kagome, you're walking into something you don't understand!" Inuyasha shouted. "He doesn't care for anyone!"
"What about that human girl, Rin, that follows him around?" Kagome retaliated. "He would not have her around him if he couldn't stand humans!"
"Enough." Miroku's calm voice cut through their tyraid of screams. "We will never know, anyway. He had told you, Inuyasha, that he was taking his leave of us."
"Yeah." Granted, had Sango been better, she would have stormed outside and pounded her fists into the ground. She listened to their conversation in pained silence, somehow managing to keep a straight face. Was what Kagome had said true? About him caring for her? No. Sesshoumaru was a very complex and confusing puzzle. She would get no where without answers. He was perplexing. She had been sick and weak and he had provided all that she had needed. He had bandaged her wounds. He had held her when she was scared. He had killed her. That not only wounded her physically but emotionally, as well. She had the time but she didn't have the heart. She could not think of it without feeling betrayed, hurt.
-
Sesshoumaru had kept to his word. He had left as soon as he heard her speak. He did not know how or why he had grown so fond of a human so quickly. Maybe it was the longing to accept humans that now existed, thanks to Rin.
"Lord Sesshoumaru!" The little girl ran forward but stopped as soon as she saw him. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, Rin." He sat down, feeling a small, irritating form of seperation anxiety. Perhaps he had gotten used to having her so close to him that he missed her presence. Subconsciously, he closed his eyes and imagined her face as he had seen her when she was humming that small song to herself. "Rin, come here." She walked cautiously over to him and stood before him. "What do you think of that woman I showed you before?"
"You mean the one with the big weapons and little kitty?" He nodded, gazing at her with narrowed eyes. "She was a pretty lady. She seemed really nice."
"Would you have liked for her to care for you?"
"Lord Sesshoumaru, I like being with you." She blinked. "Why would I wish for her to care for me?"
"Answer my question, human." He looked away from her after he had used that harsh tone.
"Yes." She admitted softly. The great dog youkai had no idea what to do. Human needs were not his specialty. Her eyes showed some amount of sadness and he briefly wished that he had not brought it up. Jaken remained silent, knowing well that if he opened his mouth, he would die.
"Leave me." She nodded and turned around, walking back towards the fire that was going. He closed his eyes. That had been his plan for the taiji-ya. To take care of Rin. But he had to be true to his word. He would stay away from her. It was her decision, though, if she came looking for him. But he knew that wouldn't happen. "The betrayal.."
-
Sango sat up when she was sure that they were gone. She kept up an emotionless mask and tried her hardest not to think about anything. Either way, she knew her thoughts would return to the youkai who had killed her. And yet, had he not brought her back? Why? She wished to know the reason. The real reason that only he could give.
"Shit." She cursed, wrapping her arms around herself as she rocked back and forth. She was losing her grasp on reality. She had been in a sort of fantasy world.. a different realm. She had been warm and happy and had not thought about Sesshoumaru's betrayal. "Dammit." She could not believe that she was finding herself being pulled between a being with split personalities. She was in danger of being pulled in half. Curses flew through her mind and she found herself voicing them as they came. How had she come to be so weak, so dependant on a full-blooded youkai with no feelings? She shook her head. That was what he wanted everyone to think. He did have feelings. Even Naraku had feelings. He had acted out of hate and lust for Kikyou. He had acted and was so brash that he let nothing interfere. "So much like everyone.." It was a hard thing to admit but when it was thought about, didn't everyone tend to reach their goals if they tried?
"Sango!" Miroku's voice broke through her thoughts and she looked up, startled. He seemed to have a reserved look, almost as though he were afraid of her.
"Houshi-sama.." She looked away from him, afraid that he could see what she had been thinking about if he saw her. She continued to rock herself, remaining in silence and on the verge of reality. This couldn't be a dream. The pain of betrayal was too strong and there was a ghostly pain in her stomach that Kagome could not heal.
"You are thinking of him." It was a blunt statement. He almost acted as if it were natural to speak outright and have a long conversation with her. She didn't bless him with an answer but he knew that her silence meant that it was, indeed, what she had been thinking about. "Are you planning anything, as of late?"
"I have had a while to ponder things but.." She bit her lip then shook her head. "Most of my questions are still unanswered. I need more time to think them over."
"I also bet that you wish to piece it together when it has all been completely answered. You know that the only way is to ask." She wasted no time in glaring at him.
"I will answer what I can and piece in the rest, if it fits."
"So, you do not plan on asking him whether or not he wished to kill you?" She stared at him. He was making a point of being correct. She did wish to know if what Kagome had said was true. She also wished to know if Sesshoumaru had brought her back because he, himself, wished to. She knew, though, that neither Inuyasha or the others would run to him and plead for him to bring her back. She knew so from spending time watching and analyzing their attitudes. But she didn't know why Miroku was being so blunt.
"Yes, I do wish to know but I will not go there just for one question." She answered. Her hesitation was obvious while she toyed with what she had said. "I need more than one reason to go and see the one to slay me."
"Sango, though I hate to admit it, Sesshoumaru did the only thing he could. Your sickness was the effect of a demon soul that took your body as its own. He had knocked you unconscious, why I do not know, and the demon took that as the time to make its move. It was controlling you and Sesshoumaru saw only one solution at the time. He may have thought to revive you." She stared at him and considered this new information. She now knew what had happened when she was speaking with the Youkai Lord.
"But.." She didn't know whether or not to trust in Sesshoumaru, but she knew she had to find out.
-
Sorry to leave you hanging there! .. Hmm. Sango seems to have analyzed the situation and a lot of other things. How will she react? Will she ever forgive Sesshoumaru?