When Opposites Meet
Rain started into the forest, thirsty, looking for the river described to him by Kagome. He had been walking for about five minutes, wondering just where this river was supposed to be, when he heard the most beautiful voice, singing about the rain. It was an old song, a child's song, one Rain had learned once himself. But he had never heard it sung like this. New lines had been added to the simple harvest song. There was some humming, and in the pauses, it seemed to him that he could actually hear the small pitter patter of a gentle summers rain. He forgot his thirst, and set out to find the source of the music.
Ankha kneeled by the stream, listening to the water flow over the stones. She loved this sound, so natural, so free. In the distant mist of memory , a simple child's song came forth. Soon, she was singing it, adding twists that matched the melody of the river. Behind her, she heard a twig snap. Swiftly, she rose, ready to do battle. Or so she thought.
"Please, don't stop sing . . . " More beautiful eyes he had never seen. They were the color of the sun on a beautiful day, and so deep...
He stood in shadow, so she couldn't see him that well, except for his eyes. His eyes were the same shade of blue as the river, light near the edges, growing deeper and darker as they neared the pupil. She was held captive as she delved farther and farther into them...
A crashing noise came from the right, from the direction of camp. Ankha broke eye contact, startled at the sound. As she turned her head, her hair moved from her face, revealing the red marks that defined her as an assassin. And what's more, a demon assassin. Rain gasped.
"No!" He said, horrified. It couldn't be! It just couldn't!
Shippo came tumbling out of the bushes yelling.
"Ankha! Ankha! Inuyasha's after me! He's trying to hit me and I didn't even do anything!" He jumped into her lap, knowing that there was safety there. At least, for him. He couldn't wait to see what Ankha would do to Inuyasha this time! Last time, she had made him believe he was a rooster. It was only funny until she made him 'fly' out of a tree. Then it was hilarious! (Have you ever seen a half dog demon try to fly out of a thirty foot tree? I must recommend it, it's quite a sight!)
Rain shook his head, denying the plain truth. This was her. This was the demon he had been sent to kill. Ankhale Suneye, The Black Lullaby.
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Ankha petted Shippo's head, calming him, then remembered their audience. She looked up, into that face, but the light had changed. She could see the four slashes of blue. 'A Bounty Hunter.' She thought, and felt betrayed somehow, let down. But she got no more than a glance at him before Inuyasha himself, as promised, came through the same way Shippo had. Only Inuyasha landed on his face, not his feet. He lay there for a moment, twitching. Well, he did until he heard Shippo's high pitched giggle of glee. Inuyasha looked up at the three, and tried to yell a very bad word at Shippo, but it was slightly hard for him to do that with a mouthful of dirt.
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Inuyasha - "Hey, how come I have to be the idiot that everyone laughs at?"
W.W.- "Because I'm the narrator, and I said so."
Rain - "But why a rooster?" (Mumbles) "I wish I could have seen that."
W.W.- "Can you think of anything else?"
Rain - "Well, you could go with the extremely original idea of a giant purple dinosaur."
W.W.- "Hmm..."
Inuyasha - (sweat bead) "This isn't looking to good! Please, somebody, talk some sense into her! NO PURPLE DINOSAURS!"
Rain - "Well, she could"
Inuyasha - "Anybody but you, Rain."
W.W.- "Shut up, you two! This is B.B. and my story, we'll tell it as we please! And Inuyasha, if I say you have to walk around in boxers with mouse ears on your head, singing 'Yankee Doodle', you will!"
Inuyasha - "HELP!"
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W.W.- "Hmm..."
B.B.- "Hmm... What?"
W.W.- "Actually, the boxers idea sounds pretty good."
B.B.- "Hmm..." (Look at each other, have a good evil laugh)
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Ankha smiled at Shippo's laughter.
"Inuyasha, I swear," She said. "You have to be more human than demon to be so clumsy!"
Inuyasha growled. "Give me that little monster! He's been driving me mad with his questions! 'Why is the sky blue?'" Inuyasha mimicked in a high voice. "'Why are there clouds?' 'What are they made out of?' 'Why is the grass green?' He just won't stop!" Ankha turned to Shippo. She winked so only Shippo could see it, telling him to play along.
"Shippo, is this true? Are you trying to drive him mad?"
Inuyasha looked smug. The twerp was finally going to get what he deserved!
Shamefacedly, Shippo lowered his head, effectively hiding the glitter in his eye. "Yes, Ankha."
"Good Boy!" Ankha tossed him up in the air. Inuyasha's jaw dropped to the ground and he fell over with a thunk.
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Inuyasha - "And why am I always falling?"
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He jumped up immediately and shouted "'Good Boy!' How could you say that? How is driving me insane good?"
Shippo looked up innocently. "Well, if this is how you are sane, insane can't be that much worse, can it? You don't have much farther to go."
Inuyasha screamed and charged at the too innocent Shippo. Ankha stood and pushed the foxling behind her. She lengthened her pointer claw to about five inches in length and pointed it at Inuyasha.
"I'd stop if I were you." She said in a quiet, deadly voice. "If you don't, you'll be
fighting me with a hole in your chest."
Immediately, he stopped. Ankha's keen ears picked up a slight sound to her left. The very soft but very distinctive sound of a sword being pulled from it's sheath. Inuyasha heard also. He looked and straightened. Rain had pulled his sword from it's sheath on his back.
"Hello, Shadow-Knife, or whatever your name is - Rain, that's it - What are you doing here? I thought you were still talking with Kagome." He noticed the sword. "What's up?"
Rain ignored Inuyasha. "Are you the Black Lullaby?" She stared at him, shields in her eyes, glaring him down.
"I've never been anyone else. Who are you, Bounty Hunter?" She spat out the last two words. Not giving him time to answer, she turned to Inuyasha. "You know this man?"
"Yeah, sort of. He's a friend of Kagome's, in a way. He's staying with us for a while. Says he's looking for somebody, but won't say who."
"Who?" She asked, already knowing the answer.
"You." Rain replied. "My name is Ligerrain Melhas, the Shadow Blade."
"Blah, blah, blah. Overly dramatic you are. Are you here to fight? You'll lose." She turned, yet again cutting him off. "Inuyasha, take Shippo back to camp. I don't want this idiot accidentally hurting him." Shippo spoke up.
"I don't want to be alone with him!"
"Don't worry, you'll be fine." She sang a little and Inuyasha's eyes glazed over. "I suggest you run when you're within sight of camp. He'll be back to himself at that point." Shippo smiled. Ankha smiled back, completely revealing her white fangs. "Run along now, Shippo. This shouldn't take too long."
Shocked, Rain looked at her. "Are you so confident? Or stupid?"
She looked at him contemptuously. "Let's just say this, Bounty Hunter." She stopped to put up her hair to keep it out of her way. Once it was safely tucked into a ponytail, she continued. "Everything you've heard about my fighting skill, everything, is true, maybe a bit understated. And you really think you can beat me?" She came closer.
He stood his ground. "Yes."
Ankha grinned a very cat-caught-the-canary-grin. "Fight me then, and feel your defeat!" She lengthened all her claws, this time only extending them to three inches or so in length. It shouldn't take too much to beat this guy, amazing blue eyes or not.
Swiftly, faster than he could block, she attacked him. All along his bounty hunter marks, she cut him. He only felt it when she returned to her original spot.
"Do you still think you can beat me?" Inside she said, 'Why didn't I kill him? I could have. But I only marked him. Why?'
"Yes." 'Why did she only mark me? As a warning?' Yes, that must be it. He had a surprise for her, though. He didn't need a warning. He would win.
"Barricade!" He yelled, and outlined a box around the cat demon. She stared at him like he had gone crazy.
"Why are you waving your hands around and shouting? You should be praying for your life." She tried attacking again, but found she couldn't! Claws out, she had run at him, but was rebounded by an unseen force. She staggered a little, but did not fall. Curiously, she scratched at the thing holding her. She tapped it, banged on the roof of it, and found its bottom under a thin layer of dirt. 'Ah.' She thought. 'A box.'
Rain laughed. "Beat that, you–"
She interrupted him. "Can you hear me?"
Startled, he answered without thinking. "Yes."
"Short answer person, huh?" She muttered, to keep him confused. "Do you think this puny box will keep you from losing?" She saw the expression on his face. "Don't answer. It'll just be another yes. Don't you ever get tired of hearing yourself say that? I've only known you maybe ten minutes, and already I'm tired of it." 'It's good thing he can hear me through this stupid box' she thought. 'Since I can't use a physical attack, I'll just use my alternative.' She started to sing.
"Oh . . . no . . . " Already, he was becoming drowsy. His box became weaker and weaker until Ankha could step through easily. She shook her head at him. "Next time, Hunter, learn your Bounty before you try to kill it, and never go after one higher ranked than you." The last thing he saw was the amber eyes of Ankhale, and then, the blackness came.
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Disclaimer: Ok, I don't own anybody in this story with the exceptions of Ankhale and Ligerrain. They I own. Everyone else, well, yeah. OK.
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Rain - "Or he could be a giant yellow bird..."
Inuyasha - "NO!"
W.W.- "Yeah, we already used the bird thing. Remember the rooster?"
Rain - "Oh, yeah. Hmm. A monkey?"
Kagome - "Yes! A monkey!"
Inuyasha - "Why am I getting picked on?"
Rain - "Because."
W.W.- "Because."
B.B.- "Because."
Kagome - "Because."
Sessho - "Because."
Ankha - "Because."
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B.B - "You should pick on someone else soon. It is kind of mean."
W.W. - (whining) "But he's perfect to pick on."
B.B.- "What about Rain?"
W.W.- "Hmm . . . " (looks at B.B.) " Did you notice that we 'Hmm' a lot?"
B.B.- "Hmm..."
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W.W.- "Boxers..." (Sigh)
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It had been noon at the time of the fight. When Rain woke up, it was early evening. Still groggy, he stumbled to camp, following the smell of food. 'Ramen.' He thought. He walked into the camp, and saw Kagome making food, with Inuyasha nearby, impatiently waiting for food. Shippo would poke him and run a bit away, knowing Inuyasha would not stray far from the food. Ankha was nowhere to be seen. Rain was curious as to where she was, but he was much more hungry than curious. He sat next to Inuyasha. Shippo came and talked at him.
"She beat you, huh?" Stiffly, Rain nodded. "Yep, just like she said she would. She doesn't lie, you know. After she beat you, she came back and answered all my questions. The sky is blue because it's full of water for rain. Clouds transport the rain from the sky to where it falls. They're made of fuzz. The grass is green because at night, little men come and paint it that way. Tonight, she said she'll stay up with me so we can catch one of them..." He went on and on and on.
Eventually, Rain just tuned him out, but not after hearing more. Paint? She had also told him the sun was a hollow hunk of gold lit by a huge fire inside of it. Gold in the earth happens when a bit of the sun falls off. The moon was a pearl lit by star fire. The little ball of fox believed it all!
Ankha watched Rain scan the area again. The fool. He never looked up. Not once. Just like he didn't think of sound reaching through the box. He turned to talk to Inuyasha, ignoring Shippo, who chattered on.
"Inuyasha, where is the cat demon? You seemed to know her."
"She's traveling with us." Briefly, Inuyasha took his attention from the food. "She has been for a while."
"And you don't take the bounty for her?"
"No. Kagome and the cat have sort of become friends."
"Sort of?"
"You're starting to remind me of the brat, Rain. All the questions."
"But they're valid questions." Inuyasha blinked a moment. Then he sighed and answered.
"They're only sort of friends because Ankha doesn't really talk to anyone. She goes off on her own a lot. The only one she hasn't fought with or made a fool out of is the kid."
"What's this about your group being smaller?"
"After Sango sprained her ankle during the mob chase, Miroku and her stayed behind at the
village to let it heal in comfort. They'll be back soon, and as soon as they catch up, we'll leave."
"And the Dark Fox?"
"She left a long time ago, with her mate, Kurama. As soon as she saw Loeyla didn't need her anymore, she left."
"What do you know about the cat-demon?"
"She's a mean ass bitch." Startled, Rain looked away from Shippo, who had been trying to climb a tree. Since he looked away, he didn't see the hand that reached down and grabbed the foxling.
"What do you mean?"
"That woman's evil, man. She beat you, me, everybody. And she has a thing for making me look like an idiot."
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Inuyasha - "Well, she does!"
Ankha - (sweet voice) "Only because you're so good at it."
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"Ah." Said Rain, wisely deciding not to go on.
"JERONIMO!" A ball of fur landed-SMACK!- on Rain's head.
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Rain - "ME!"
W.W. - "Yes, you. I decided to give Inuyasha a break."
Inuyasha - "Yes!"
B.B.- "You should be thanking her, not jumping around like someone put a ice cube down your shorts." (Inuyasha sits down, red faced.)
Inuyasha - "Thanks." (Mumble)
W.W.- "What's that?"
Inuyasha - "Nothing..."
W.W. - "Hmm..."
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Ankha nearly fell out of the tree with laughter. Rain lay flat out on the ground, little stars dancing around his head. The whole camp was stunned, excepting Shippo, who was laughing just as hard as Ankha. Still laughing, she jumped out of her tree and scooped up Shippo, tossing him high into the air.
The camp was stunned yet again at the sight of the cat demon laughing. They had never seen her do more than smile, or chuckle slightly. Never laugh. But here she was, laughing with all her being. It was an infectious laugh, inviting all who heard to join in. And all those in the camp did.
Rain came to with laughter all around him. It was pleasant until he remembered that all the laughter was at him. He got up as fast as his spinning head would allow him. He saw Ankha tossing Shippo around, and knew who had given him the painful lump his hand found on his head.
"What was that for!" He yelled.
Catching her breath, Ankha said, "We're practicing to catch little men. You were the perfect target. Very unsuspecting."
"I can't believe you did that!"
"Why not?" She asked, puzzled. "You don't know me well enough to have an opinion of what is in or out of character for me."
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W.W.- "Boxers..."
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"That's just it! I'm a stranger and you treat me like that!"
"Pph. You think that's bad? You should've seen what I did to these people. Man, you really need to relax a little." She said. Then she smelled something. "Food's done!" Inuyasha raced over to the pot, his immensely huge bowl in hand. Everyone followed, and Kagome dished out the food.. Slowly, Rain left off his glaring and went to eat.
Ankha didn't really feel like raman, a feeling that intensified as she saw Inuyasha start to eat. She headed off back to the river to get something better.
Shippo watched her go away. 'Something's wrong.' He thought. 'She always says goodbye
before she leaves. She always tells me where she's going so that I can find her if I need her.
Kagome also noticed the cat leaving, but it wasn't unusual for Ankha to go off on her own. If there was a chance for something fresh, she'd take it. Cooked, of course. So she merely put more wood on the fire to keep it hot enough.
It was nearly dark when Ankha came back. She had had her own fire in the woods to cook the fish she had caught. But she had promised Shippo to stay up with him to catch a little man, so she resisted the call of the forest and went back to camp to sleep. She scanned the trees, and quickly found the easiest one to sleep on. She didn't like to sleep on the ground every night, and tonight, she felt like the tree. Shippo bunked underneath the branches, and both settled down to wait.
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Rain - "Actually, now I'm kind of tired." (Yawns)
Everybody else -"Me, too." (Yawns)
W.W.- "Wake me up for the next chapter."
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