Chapter Four: Scars
By Ddoskocil
-------------------------------------------
This chapter is a little flashback heavy, but it serves a point. Hope you enjoy.
Flashback
Six-year old Inu-Yasha clung to his red ball as his sister led him to his mother's bedside. He barely stood chest level with the big bed his mother lay in. Tears began to flow freely down his face as he watched her struggle to hang on to life.
"Mama," he whispered. She titled her head to the side and opened her eyes. Kan-Tama noted how tired she looked. She knelt next to Inu-Yasha and put her arms around him.
"Maybe we should come back later, Izayoi," she told his mother as she hugged Inu-Yasha.
"No," the woman whispered. "I want to tell him"
"Do not strain yourself," Kan-Tama warned. But the human did not heed her. Instead she struggled to sit up. The demon carefully propped her up when it became apparent that Izayoi was determined to sit.
"My son." Kan-Tama lifted Inu-Yasha on to the bed, where he crawled on to his mother's lap. He held his ball up at her and she smiled as she took it.
"Kan-Tama plays with me every day, Mama. She says I'm getting really strong," Inu-Yasha said proudly. His mother smiled faintly. "What's wrong, Mama?"
"Inu-Yasha, my dear little boy. I love you so much. But Mama is leaving, Inu-Yasha, and I'm not coming back." She looked to the ceiling. "I'm going to be with your father."
Inu-Yasha started to cry softly. "Can't I come with you?" he asked.
"No, my dear. You must live on. You have so much life left. But I'll be waiting for you, and I'll always be watching you. And I'll always love you." She started to cough as she strength drained. She lay back down on the bed, still holding Inu-Yasha. She began to hum softly in his ear as she held him, but the humming soon became faint then stopped altogether.
Inu-Yasha opened his eyes and turned to his mother. "Mama.
Mama?" he asked as he gently shook her, but she did not move.
The child began to sob as he continued to shake his deceased mother.
Strong arms gathered him off the bed. He clung to his sister and
buried his head into her shoulder. Wet tears soaked her kimono
as he cried uncontrollable tears. Kan-Tama held him tight, letting
her own tears fall down her face.
Inu-Yasha's red ball rolled to the floor as the siblings left
the room, Kan-Tama softly shutting the door behind her.
End Flashback
"That's so sad," Kagome wailed as she wiped a tear from her eyes. "How did Inu-Yasha take it?'
"He cried for days, holding that little ball his mother gave him. He would barely leave the shrine. One day, some woman called him a monster and I said something back to her. Inu-Yasha thought I was speaking about him. I am not sure if he ever really cried again after that day." Again there was silence, but it did not last long.
"Kan-Tama, you are very different from your brothers. Inu-Yasha is such a hothead, always pulling Tetsusaiga first instead of trying to figure it out. And Sesshö-Maru is so cold. All he thinks about it getting the Tetsusaiga from Inu-Yasha or how to kill Inu-Yasha.
"But, you. You're so different from them," Kagome observed as she pulled her knees to her chest. "You really care for Inu-Yasha, and I bet you care for Sesshö-Maru, too. And you've taken care of Inu-Yasha since his mother died.
"Your different from most demons I've met, too, although Koga wasn't so bad once I got to know him. But even he wanted the jewel shards to increase his power. You don't seem to crave power at all." Kagome looked at the demon, but Kan-Tama could not meet the young girl's chocolate gaze.
"You are sweet, Kagome, but do not judge me so lightly. No one is without Sin," Kan-Tama replied, her mind no longer on Izayoi or Inu-Yasha, but on a different time and place.
Flashback
"You're no better than that half-breed mother of yours," Sesshö-Maru growled at Kan-Tama.
"I am not a half-breed," Kan-Tama yelled back, the hackles on her neck rising as she bared her fangs to him.
"You're nothing but a sympathetic human-lover."
Sesshö-Maru turned around, ignoring his sister's growl. He
never saw her eyes turned blood red, but he did not need to. He
could smell the change in her blood. When he did turn around,
a dog demon stood in Kan-Tama's place. She took a snapped at Sesshö-Maru,
but he nimbly dodged the attack.
And then she was gone.
She tore through the forest, running in a blind rage when she stumbled across the village. Without thinking, she leaped into the center of the small village and began tearing humans from their homes. She devoured them; she killed them; she let no one escape her wraith.
When her rage subsided some and she could think, she looked around at the devastation she had caused. Her body began to take a more human form as she realized what she had done and guilt over took her.
"Kan-Tama," she heard someone whisper. She looked behind her to see her mother's broken body lying beside a collapsed hut. Kan-Tama ran to her, tears flowing down her cheeks.
"Mother, oh, Mother," she cried when she knelt beside her mother. Something was wrong, horribly wrong. There was so much blood, although it was not demon blood. It smelled like human blood, but it still smelled like her mother.
"Mother, what happen? Why are you covered in human blood?' Kan-Tama asked as she calmed down. If it was human blood, it couldn't be her mother's. Her mother was a demon, like she was. It wasn't her mother's blood, Kan-Tama kept telling herself. She had to keep telling herself that, even though she knew the truth: her mother was only human on one day a month. Today was that day.
Her mother never answered. Her body was limp and turning cold. Kan-Tama gathered the limp body into her arms and began to cry. She did not hear Sesshö-Maru come up behind her.
"Well," he said, startling her, "it appears that I was wrong." He looked around at the destruction. "Perhaps you could be a demon after all." Then he was gone, leaving her with her grief.
End Flashback
Kagome watched Kan-Tama as the demon's memories over came her.
She saw the tears well in the demon's emerald eyes and was surprised.
The only other demon she had seen cry was Inu-Yasha.
"You really aren't a full demon, huh? Are you like Inu-Yasha?"
Kagome asked quietly, startling Kan-Tama from her thoughts.
"Like Inu-Yasha?" she asked, slightly confused. "Half-demon?" Kagome nodded. "No, I am not half-demon. But...my...my mother was a...half-demon," she choked out, the memory of her mother's death still fresh in her mind.
"Oh," was all Kagome answered. Kan-Tama sighed and looked toward the horizon. "Goodness, what was I thinking. It's nearly sunset. I am sure Inu-Yasha is pacing with worry." Kan-Tama stood in one graceful movement. Kagome was a bit less graceful to rise, but she did rise to her feet beside Kan-Tama.
"Inu-Yasha won't be worried about me," Kagome sighed miserably as she followed Kan-Tama out of the family shrine and back down the path. Kan-Tama stopped and looked over her shoulder at the young girl.
"Hm," was all she said before continuing down the path. Kagome frowned but followed.