Chapter 8

"I feel as though we owe her….I mean….she did save Kohaku even after we offended her." Kagome said "Mmm-hmmm" Sango agreed "Are you positive that you want her to stay Sango"
"Yes. I'm positive"
A while later in the black of the night the group approached Kaede's hut where Inuyasha had picked up the scent of Sayuri and Kohaku. They soon entered to find Kaede tending to Kohaku and an exhausted Sayuri passed out on the floor. Sango had noticed that Kaede had already tended to her because she could see the bandages on her hand.
Kaede turned to Sango," He should be fine, hopefully. He is a strong boy. Ye are lucky to have had someone as kind as Sayuri"
"Kind?" Shippo asked, "she plunged her hand into his chest…that doesn't seem very kind to me"
"Ye do no know the true Sayuri," Kaede looked at Sayuri's bandaged hand," She ignored her own pain and discomfort to help Kohaku. Not many would do that. She also stayed awake all these hours with me. She did not sleep until just recently when she fainted from exhaustion. I'm afraid she hasn't been sleeping very well…." Kaede paused thinking about something and began speaking again," if not for her then Kohaku would surely be with the dead." Shippo began to fall asleep sitting up and the rest of them were yawning frequently. Keade suggested that they al get some rest and Sango protested "I appreciate your concern Keade but his is my little brother after all and I think I should stay awake to help him"
Kaede agreed but insisted the others get some sleep. Kagome tried as hard as she could to keep her eyes open but she fell asleep shortly after Keade asked for some more water and bandages.
Hours later, Sango was till tending to her brother's wound when she began to fall into a deep sense of thought.
"As long as I stay wake, by his side, Kohaku will stay alive," she looked at Sayuri who was sleeping with a pained expression on her face. She stated to stir and turn in her sleep.
"Thanks to Sayuri my little brother is no longer under Naraku's control. He may still die but I at least he would die free. Thanks to her I will know that when my brother dies, if it should be tonight or even in the years to come, that he would die in peace, free from evil's grasp. I just don't know how or why she did it"
As Sango's thought began to fade, Sayuri's stirring became worse. She was suddenly thrashing in her sleeping spot. She bolted upright, grabbed her chest and started to suffocate. She was rapidly gasping for breath, clutching at her throat and trying to scream for help. She reached out tin front of her as if someone were there that could help her. Sango looked at her eyes. This time they were a dull Grey but were filled with fear, not pain and embarrassment as they were before and they were glazed over, as if she was in a completely different world with no contact to real one.
"Sayuri! What's wrong?" INUYASHA!" Sango screamed to get his help. He awoke but just stood there watching. Sango's screaming had woken Kagome and Miroku as well. Kagome noticed what was wrong and ran to Sayuri's side.
"INUYASHA! Why are you just standing there?" Miroku questioned "Nothing you do will help. You cant make it stop or go away!" he replied Minutes passed with nothing but the sound of Sayuri gasping for air until Inuyasha finally screamed.
"STOP! YOU KNOW IT'S NOT REAL SO STOP"
He still seemed nonchalant about it. It seemed to Kagome that he was yelling at Sayuri like a father who yells at a child who misbehaved. Before she could say anything about it Sayuri breathed again. Immediately Sayuri looked around and noticed that they were all staring because they had all seen what happened. She stood up and raced out of the hut. Kagome and Sango ran out after her but Sayuri just kept running and she wouldn't stop. She was so fast, Kagome noticed, really fast. She couldn't understand why Sayuri was so ashamed and why she couldn't breathe.