Disclaimer: I own a lot of Inuyasha keychains now, but as to owning Inuyasha… nope.
Claimer: Introducing yet another tragic character. I hope you guys like. (Yes, I swear, I will get back to Sango… and Inuyasha… and Kagome… and Miroku! But you have to review before I do that! So there!)
Delicate strings of pearls hung from the lobes of each of her dainty ears; her short ebony locks were bundled away tightly into a bun at the top of her head, though heavy strands adorned her forehead. Her lips were painted a bright red, and her eyes – thanks to those wonderful things called contact lenses – were a matching shade of ruby, unsettling to all who saw them. She often shaded her eyes from others with her bangs, waiting until the most effective moment to reveal her frightening gaze.
Beneath a black, skin-clinging mesh shirt she wore an even more skin-clinging black tank top adorned with a giant red anarchy circle on the chest. Her baggy red, white, and black plaid slacks, were frayed away at around the calves, revealing the shiny-black lace up boots beneath. To finish off her attire, chains were hung randomly from the cargo-style pockets of her pants, giving an overall appearance that was – well –
Intimidating. Yes; that was the word. She looked very intimidating, even without the gun tucked at the small of her back being visible.
Kagura liked to think of herself as a punk – powerful, determined, and fierce; indifferent to the world, spiteful to her enemies, and snide with her allies. Those who had the misfortune of making her acquaintance feared her, and even those who knew nothing about her still managed to realize that this was one woman not to be crossed.
Ah, yes – Kagura was a force to be reckoned with.
The corners of her lips twitched into the tiniest of self-satisfied smirks as she nimbly twirled her fan around idle fingertips. 'I could make it on my own. No one would mess with me now,' she mused wistfully. 'And if they did – I'd just have to show them how un-helpless I am…' She didn't have to live a life of luxury – maybe she could even find a legit job somewhere. Though relatively uneducated, she was sure she could be happy, even living in poverty; hell, she had come from poverty! So long as she was free, she couldn't imagine being anything but happy…
'I am nothing. He tells me that all the time. Perhaps he wouldn't even look for me?' A faint glimmer of hope twitched in the young woman's yearning heart. Perhaps things weren't hopeless afterall? Perhaps she did have a future – a future of her own design – a future of her own choosing. For a few moments, Kagura allowed herself to dream. She dreamt of a small apartment, a small shack – hell, a small box, even – she dreamt of a place to call her own; a place where she could sit and not have to worry about intrusions or beatings; a place that would be wholly hers. She thought about having a regular 8-5 job, doing some trivial task. She thought of interacting with regular human beings – of maybe (dare she dream?) actually being appreciated, or cared for – or perhaps even cherished, just for being Kagura.
Her silent musings were brought to a rudely abrupt ending at the sound of her door crashing open; she winced as the steel door rammed into the wall that opposed it from continuing its rotational path, undoubtedly leaving a dent. Good thing she hadn't been standing near it, or it would have been her sporting the injury – her master had probably slammed the door open deliberately in hopes of just that…
Kagura leapt to her feet, and her ruby-red eyes widening of their own accord at the sight of an irritated Naraku. "Where is Kanna?" the man snapped, his mahogany eyes flashing in impatience, as if he had expected the other girl to simply materialize out of thin air the moment he spoke her name.
Well, seeing as everyone in his service was meant to live just to serve his every whim, he probably expected just that to happen.
Seething anger swelled within the young woman's chest, her eyes glittering with dangerous defiance. "Probably exactly where you left her!" Kagura dared to snap irritably, her voice laced with antagonism. "Isn't that where she always is?"
Though the words she spoke were most certainly the truth, the way she spoke them was entirely inappropriate. She knew that; years and years of being beaten or tortured for her insolence had instilled that much in her – and yet today, spurred on by her own inner musings, the woman refused to swallow her pride.
'I am not like Kanna – I will not sit placated while you jerk my chain!'
One mahogany eye slid to her, annoyance flashing dully behind the orb. Though Kagura raised her chin bravely in further insolence, she couldn't help but to blanch slightly in anticipation of the beating to come. In spite of herself, she stood tall, waiting for him to react as he always did when she showed any spirit…
'You don't own me – and you won't ever break me!' she snarled mentally at her master. 'I will be free of you someday!' Her traitorous body betrayed her resolute heart and mind as it trembled very slightly beneath his glare; even so, she would not allow herself to stand down.
To her surprise, he did not descend upon her; instead, he spun on one heel and excited her room, snapping, "I haven't time for your games, you worthless cur! Come!"
His tone was much more degrading than any thrashing could have been; he spoke to her as if she were a dog. He commanded her as if she were a mindless pet. And even more degrading, she found herself ducking her head and following him, her feet leading her complacently behind him.
'Someday, one of the countless people you have wronged will get you, and then, I will dance on your grave!' she vowed silently, willing her angry gaze to shrivel his black little heart.
Perhaps even more infuriating than the way he ordered her to follow was the way he didn't even look back to see if she was doing so. So confident was he in her servitude that he didn't even find it necessary to check – he didn't even doubt for a moment that she would do exactly as he said.
Oh, how she loathed that smug bastard!
"Ah, Kanna! There you are! It seems your sister was right – exactly where I left you!" The irritation was gone from Naraku's voice; now, he seemed mildly pleased to have found his other servant.
Kagura's skin rippled in a slight shudder at the word 'sister'. Though she had been too young when she had first come under the servitude of Naraku to really remember anything before, she extremely doubted that Kanna was really her sister. For one thing, the two looked nothing alike – Kagura was a tall young woman with raven-black tresses; Kanna, though younger by several years, was still disproportionately shorter, with a full head of platinum blonde hair that was more silver than gold; the girl further accentuated her pale coloration by only wearing white, which washed her out so much that she looked like an apparition. Her eyes were black and unreadable, and her face never seemed to display any emotion.
Moreover, their personalities could not be more un-alike. If Kagura was fiery, tempered, and insolent, Kanna was – well – Kanna was nothing. The younger girl never even spoke to Kagura, even when the latter went out of her way to entertain a dialog with her. Instead, Kanna would simply sit there and return that blank, expressionless stare. The wraith-like girl seemed to take everything in and yet let nothing escape; she did nothing except what Naraku asked of her.
And for that, Kagura had grown to despise the girl throughout the years. While Kagura was a caged tiger, an unhappy prisoner and forced pawn in Naraku's game, Kanna seemed to be a willing, if indifferent, housecat and pet of the crime boss. She did as she was told, and she didn't seem to care. Kagura despised her content apathy, if only because she couldn't bring herself to share it.
"Yes, my lord," Kanna replied to Naraku, her voice as devoid of life as her face. The young girl's dull coloration was, as usual, further washed-out from the monitor light of the laptop situated in her lap. The girl stared into the screen, though Kagura didn't have to look at it to know that there was currently nothing there. Naraku hadn't asked her to do anything yet, after all – and Kanna did nothing unless told to.
'It's as if she isn't even alive,' Kagura shuddered. She might not be free, but neither was she dead.
"Kanna – Onigumo stole the Shikon Jewel last night, and then met his early death shortly thereafter." Kagura's crimson eyes widened in shock – Onigumo, Naraku's own son, had betrayed him? And now, he spoke of his own son's death as if it were of absolutely no consequence?
'His own flesh and blood – if he doesn't even care if his own flesh and blood dies…' She didn't need to finish that thought. She had already known that she was an insect to him – yet somehow, this new development shook her. If Onigumo, who had had so many funds and contacts, couldn't get away…
"I need you to find where the Jewel is, and I need you to find out who took it from him," finished Naraku. Kanna's little fingers were already nimbly flying over the keyboard in her lap, presumably already on the trail like the bloodhound she was. No information was out of reach of the apparently unsurpassed hacker. "I want you to find out everything about the person who took it from him."
Kagura, however, was paying the younger girl no heed. 'Wait – find who took it?' Her breath caught in her throat as the implications of those words hit her. 'Naraku wasn't the one who found Onigumo. Naraku wasn't the one who killed him.'
If only for a few brief hours, Onigumo had been free! Who knows why he died; who cared? He had assured his own eventual demise by taking the Shikon Jewel. He must have known it was precious to Naraku – perhaps if he hadn't taken so large a risk, perhaps he might have been free. And if he could be free…
If Onigumo, Naraku's own son and 'heir', could have thought he could escape Naraku – then perhaps her dreams of freedom weren't so far-fetched after all; she, who was nothing – she who was an insect – perhaps she, too, could satisfy her rebellious soul…
Once again, Kagura was startled out of her reverie, but this time it wasn't from the crash of a door against a wall, but rather from an uncomfortable silence. Guarded mahogany eyes were coldly regarding her; Naraku's face was darkly thoughtful as he stared at her, and for one irrationally horrified moment the henchman was sure that he could hear her traitorous thoughts. "W – what?" the punk snapped, trying to sound challenging but only succeeded in sounding uncertain. The silence stretched for several more unbearable moments before her master finally spoke.
"Naturally you're going to have to do your part as well, Kagura," Naraku replied silkily. Though her eyes narrowed, she made no move to leave as her master started to explain exactly what he was planning…
Ok… please review! I need critiques on my writing and the storyline… And I'd be inspired knowing I have a few readers… Yup… that'd be great!