Love Unraveled
...OOO...
She... she would choose that dog over me?
Naraku was livid with indignation at the thought. How? How did that emotionally constipated unfeeling bastard gain the one thing he himself so wholly coveted and strove for?
It was not right. He deserved Kikyo- not Inuyasha and certainly not Sesshomaru.
So how was it that she loves him and not me?
He let out a low menacing snarl. It was intolerable... but maybe, just maybe, he could use it to his own advantage.
A slow devious smile tugged at his lips as a new plan unraveled in his scheming mind.
Yes... maybe this wasn't so bad after all...
...ooo...
Kikyo stood on the small rise, the strong, steady breeze billowing through the folds of her clothing and whipping past her hair. Aiko's grave marker protruded from the ground in front of her, hung with a wreath of the flowers she had tended to in life. The blinding sun was already high and climbing higher in the cloudless sky signaling the oncoming noon. They would leave soon, but she wanted these last few moments to say good-bye.
Kikyo knew- it was her fault the priestess had died. If she had only discovered the plot earlier, if she had never come, if she had never... the line of guilt traced its way back to the very beginning when she first allowed herself to feel all the emotions that led her to shoot that spellbound arrow. A moment of weakness that reverberated through time and continued to haunt her, to make her pay. An echo that refused to fade.
That illusion of Inuyasha was right. It was her fault- her fault that they all suffered now. It was the penance inflicted upon not only herself, but all those that she cared for and even all those that they loved- like a never ending ripple in which she was the epicenter. All because she had succumbed to that selfish desire called 'love'.
She swivelled to see Sesshomaru as he came to stand behind her. They didn't speak- they didn't need to. Their eyes said everything. It was time to go. He turned, and she followed.
Where to now? she wondered. Would they part? There was little reason for them not to...
'Will you stay with me?'
'I'll stay.'
She had asked and he had answered. But that was only a dream- a dream the other need never know about.
So she didn't repeat the request, and he did not reaffirm his promise as they left the valley and returned to the highway. Instead he merely continued to lead and she wordlessly followed, because if they did not speak then they did not have to separate.
It was Inuyasha who broke that mutual accord and forced them to decide.
...ooo...
He caught her scent in the wind and followed it, and there she was trailing behind Sesshomaru. Right away he knew that the situation did not bode well.
Kagome dismounted as they landed on the highway and waited for Sesshomaru and Kikyo to come closer.
They stopped, and for a moment no one moved or spoke- they simply stared at one another.
"Well?" Inuyasha finally inquired stepping up to Kikyo. "How'd it go?"
She didn't know how to answer.
In the end it was Sesshomaru who filled in the ensuing silence. Turning his face to the destination of the sun, he said, "I have a castle not too far from here. It's empty, but we can use it for the night."
Inuyasha understood but hesitated, glancing first at Kikyo and then Kagome. How was he going to do this? he wondered, but Sesshomaru decided for him by offering his arm to the elder girl who accepted it without qualm.
Turning to her, Inuyasha once again motioned for Kagome to climb on, and when she did, both brothers took off- Sesshomaru gliding low above the trees and Inuyasha bounding after him.
Kagome braced herself against Inuyasha, but all the while she kept her sight fixated to the two figures just ahead of them.
She couldn't believe it... The way his arm encased her firmly but carefully, the way her arms draped over his shoulders in return...
Even if Kagome was not the most perceptive person alive (and she never claimed to be) she had seen enough movies and read enough books to interpret the signs when she saw them...
But it did nothing to lessen her surprise.
Had they... fallen in love? It was an incredulous revelation and she was too amazed to even wonder if she should be happy or hopeful. Never in any of the scenarios she had envisioned would happen between herself, Inuyasha, and Kikyo, did she ever imagine this- that somehow their situation could get even more complicated.
Whatever significance there was in the actions of his brother and Kikyo towards one another, however, it was completely lost to Inuyasha. Of course he couldn't help but dislike the fact that she was so close to him, but it was done only out of necessity. It was not as if they enjoyed it either. No matter how abnormal her circumstance, Kikyo was still human after all, and Sesshomaru detested humans like a plague. And there was no way she could ever fall for a guy as stuck up, apathetic, and emotionally distant as he was... It was simply impossible.
But Inuyasha had to block out the fact that, in all honesty, he himself had been exactly that way when Kikyo had fallen in love with him...
...ooo...
"Kagura!"
Naraku's voice shot through her like an angry wave, and she had to fight to regain control of the feather as it careened precariously in the air.
"What the hell do you want?" she asked sullenly when her flight steadied, not caring that he sounded more outraged that usual.
"Your damn demon lord failed you," he smoldered. "Kikyo is still alive."
Kagura's eyes widened.
"Sesshomaru? How did you...?" and realization struck her- he had put Kanna up to it. Once again she had been played like a pawn.
So he didn't really want to take her power? she thought, trying to discern his true motives. He really wants the priestess dead? Or was her death a part of his plan to resurrect himself? What the hell does he really plan to accomplish?
Though she would never know it, Naraku's plan for Kagura to persuade Sesshomaru to kill Kikyo had not only failed- it had backfired miserably. He had never intended Kikyo's death- it had been nothing more than a scheme to separate the two- but he had never foreseen that Sesshomaru would leave her so abruptly and that it was his rouse of attempting to steal her spiritual powers that would bring him back to her. It was a horrible error.
Nevertheless Naraku moved forward. He did not dwell on his mistakes but salvaged whatever he could from them and used it to further the whole plot.
And that was exactly what he was doing now.
He wouldn't have to bother with Inuyasha after all- his brother would do just fine. Better even. Yes, everything would still work out...
"Would you really like to know what it is I desire, dear Kagura?" he baited enticingly.
But she didn't respond knowing that whatever he said could not be trusted to be the truth.
So he continued, "It's quite simple, really. All I want is my beloved Kikyo."
Was he serious?
Kagura sneered, "She'd never take you. That woman hates you to no end."
"Only because," he argued, "she can't see how much I've cared for her all this time- how much I continue to love her."
When it came to quick and witty remarks, Kagura had never been lacking, but this time even she was at a complete loss for words.
Cared for her? Was this bastard serious? She had never been too fond of the woman but even Kagura had to concede that out of all those who hated Naraku (and there were many- herself included) the priestess was probably the one who had the most right. Naraku's skewed view of reality never could cease to amaze her.
"So what do you want from me?" she sulked in return, suddenly remembering her fading sister. "Why don't you have your obedient little slave do your dirty work? Get one more use out of her before she dies?"
"Kanna is beyond me now," he dismissed briskly. "Besides, she could never get as close to our dear Sesshomaru as you can, Kagura."
"Sesshomaru? What does he have to do with anything?"
"I need him to kill her for me," he stated factually.
"And how do you intend to do that?" she retorted sarcastically. "Prance up to him and say, 'Excuse me, I know you hate my guts but if you wouldn't mind doing me a favor...'"
Ignoring her acid remark, he answered, "That's where you come in- I need you to implant him with the spider I will give you.
"So how exactly will killing your 'beloved' win you her love?" Kagura was more than justified in her skepticism.
"Leave the details to me," he told her.
"And afterwards?" she inquired with apprehension.
"Oh, don't fret yourself over your precious dog demon," he cooed reassuringly. "As soon as he has served my purpose, I'll return him to you along with your freedom. Once," he emphasized, "I have my Kikyo."
But Kagura was still uneasy.
"How do I know you'll keep your promise?"
"What choice do you have?"
The stinging truth caused her to grimace and resignedly she inquired, "Where do I find the spider?"
...OOO...