A TALE FROM THE PAST
by Kittymui
CHAPTER XVII
"Wake up, you sleepyhead!"
Bankotsu rolled to lie on his back and placed an arm over his eyes. "Let me sleep some more..." he grunted.
"No way! You've slept quite enough! It'll be afternoon soon and you promised to help me!"
He was quite surprised when something heavy landed on top of him. The scent of spring rain that suddenly rushed up to his nose told him that it was Kagome.
"Get up! Get up! Get up!" she ordered as she shook his shoulders.
"All right! All right!" he surrendered. "If you would please get off of me before I'm completely squashed."
With a satisfied 'hmph' , the girl got off of his chest. "I'll go prepare something to eat. You should go wash your face okay?"
Bankotsu sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Got it," he yawned.
.-.-.-.
After a simple meal, both of them went outside.
"Are you sure about this? You have only recently recovered from your injuries," he asked as he heard her pick up her newly acquired bow.
"Yes," was her determined reply. "Now stop worrying about me and tell me what I should do first."
Bankotsu walked closer to her. "The most basic thing to do for you right now is to learn how to draw your bow," he explained.
"How?"
"Euhm...do you mind showing me where your hands are?"
"Sure!" she replied and pulled him closer until his chest and her back touched. From a distance, it looked as though he was embracing her from behind.
Bankotsu blushed slightly at the sudden contact, but shook it off again. "Hold your bow like this," he said while guiding her hand that was holding the grip of the wooden bow. "If you're drawing and arrow, you should hold the string at its center."
"Try pulling it as if you're drawing an arrow."
"Okay," she nodded and did as she was told. With his hand still on hers to follow her movements, she pulled at the string and released it.
"How was that?"
"You're not pulling it back far enough," he told her and guided her hand to the string once again. "You should pull it as far back as your face. Like this." With his index- and forefinger he pulled back the string until their hands were near her ear. "See?"
As he showed her, he couldn't help but think how perfectly she fitted inside his quasi-embrace. If only he could hold her like this for real and not just during training.
"Bankotsu...?"
Her voice made him snap out of it. "What...? Oh...sorry," he apologized and let go of both her hands. "You can practice drawing the string. I'll be right behind you."
"Okay."
Bankotsu took a step backwards and took a deep breath. 'Pfew...' he puffed inwardly as he slightly pulled at the collar of his shirt. 'Is it just me or has it become warmer by the minute?'
The sound of the reciprocating string and Kagome's scent that lingered around him reminded him of the day he carried her back to the house. Even today, he could still feel her body close to him.
Back then, he remembered the taijiya rushing towards the girl in his arms and holding her tightly as if she could slip away through her arms any moment. Without any apologies, she scolded Kagome for her irrational behavior and at the same time also begged her never to scare her like that again, but Bankotsu knew she was just being worried.
Ultimately, thanks to Kagome's persuasiveness, he was allowed to stay until he completely recovered. Nothing was said about forgiving and forgetting what he had done to Kagome, and Sango was still openly showing how negatively she thought about him, but he didn't mind. Being able to stay with Kagome was all that mattered to him.
The Spring season had already taken a step back and made way for Summer and according to Kagome, everyday would be a sunny day until Autumn arrives. With a sigh he raised his face up to the sky and closed his eyes. A small smile formed on his lips as he recalled asking the girl about the change of season some time ago. He was astounded when she replied not having noticed the arrival of the warm season until he mentioned it. After experiencing the same routine each year for so long, it was not unusual to lose the track of time sometimes.
However, to someone who had been living in the Northern Lands before like himself, there was no way he could've missed it. Back then, preparing yourself for the next season was a crucial task if you strived to survive, especially when it involves the Winter season. That's why a slight increase or decrease of the overall temperature wouldn't pass him by unnoticed. It was funny...while he prayed for the rain to stop back in the North, he hoped for more rainy days here.
His train of thoughts ended when he sensed a small draft coming from the front.
"Hm? Tired?" he asked, knowing it was Kagome.
"Y-yeah," she huffed in reply. "I never thought drawing a bow could be so exhausting."
Bankotsu chuckled. "Wait until you actually have to aim and steady an arrow at the same time."
"You can't scare me off with that," she argued. "You know what? I think I want to learn with real arrow right now."
"I know you're eager to learn and master archery, but that's impossible in one day. It takes experience and time," he told her. "Not to mention you could easily damage the arrows your sister bought for you that way. You wouldn't want that, would you?"
"All right, you win," she gave in.
"Good. Now that you're tired, shall we call it a day?"
"Are you going to train?"
He nodded. "Are you coming with me this time?"
"I don't know...the last time I went to watch you almost got me killed."
A flash of guilt shot through Bankotsu's heart as he heard that and he dropped his face. "That was because I didn-"
"I know I know! I was just joking!" she cut him off with a laugh.
"Kagome, nearly losing your life isn't something you can laugh about! I really didn't know you were there. I-"
This time, he was interrupted by her fingers on his lips. The astonishment faded away as he realized how soft they were and he fought the urge to lean onto them and kiss them.
"I'm sorry...I shouldn't have said that," she apologized with a soft voice. "But I want you to know that not a single inch of my heart blames you or thinks you're responsible. It was just an accident."
Bankotsu took her hand in his and squeezed it gently. "I swear, I will never let something like that happen again," he said with a serious face. "As long as I'm here, I won't let you get hurt."
"I believe in you," she smiled warmly. "That's why I'll go with you this time, but let me prepare myself first okay?"
While she ran into the house, Bankotsu went to get his halberd, which was resting against one of the thick trees nearby. "Kirara, you'll be coming as well, right?" he called out. The fire cat jumped out of nowhere to land onto his shoulder and let out a 'mew'.
At the same time, Kagome returned to his side. "Ready!"
"Let's go then," he said and together, they left for the usual training area.
.-.-.-.
While they were walking, Kagome gazed at her hand and shifted her eyes to peek at Bankotsu. Redness flushed her cheeks as she thought how warm his hand was when it was wrapped around hers.
Just like earlier, a strange sensation began to rise in her chest and her heart started to beat faster than usual. 'What is this feeling...?' she wondered nervously, placing her hand on her chest. It wasn't the first time that he made her feel strange, but back then, she though she was just being nervous and didn't pay it any attention. What she felt now, however, was much stronger and more intense. So strong that she knew it wasn't mere nervousness, and so intense that it felt rather...nice.
It was different than being held by her parents or Sesshoumaru, but she wasn't sure in what way. What she did know was she wanted to be held by him at any time of the day, listening to his calm heartbeat.
She let out an inaudible sigh. 'Stop daydreaming Kagome...you don't even know how he feels towards you...' she told herself inwardly and concentrated on the road. 'It could be that he only thinks of you as his baby sister. Maybe he's just being nice because you saved his life, no more, no less.'
'True...' she thought and smiled sadly. 'I guess I'll just enjoy his company for as long as it lasts.'
She couldn't possibly hope for him to stay blind forever. Not only would it be too unfair to the assassin, it would also be too immoral to even have such a thought.
.-. later .-.
Upon arrival, Kagome was quite surprised at the sight of the clearing. The once open and flat field, was now filled with rocks of different sizes. The creek had found itself a new detour around the boulders that were blocking its way and the brown muddy earth was carpeted with fresh green lawn.
The catastrophe had clearly caused a metamorphosis, but strangely enough, the landscape didn't look any less natural than before.
"You can sit down on a rock near the border." Bankotsu's voice cut off her thoughts.
She nodded in reply and plucked Kirara from his shoulder. "But won't those rocks obscure your movements?" she asked him worriedly as she sat down.
"Quite the contrary," he replied casually. "The more obstacles, the better the exercise."
With that, he jumped into the air and landed on top of a rock at the center of the open area.
Kagome's eyes followed him as he leaped from one rocky surface to another faultlessly and put Kirara to sit next to her. She pulled her journal and some writing tools from her sleeve and started flipping to a clear page.
As she placed the carbon on the paper surface, an artistic idea suddenly popped up and she shifted her attention to the training assassin. As soon as she caught one of the best poses, she quickly began to sketch down the primary lines before the image faded away from her mind. Keeping the location of the source of light in mind, she carefully added some depth to the drawing and then, she began to fill in the small details.
When she was finished, she straightened up and cast a downward gaze at her work.
It was a grayscale image of Bankotsu on a boulder, single-handedly holding Banryuu beside him with its blade pointing straight at something before him. By his slightly bowed position, the assassin looked as if he was ready to lunge forward at an invisible opponent. Although it would be followed by an offensive movement, there was nothing but calmness written on his face. An unknown breeze had lifted some of his short bangs and his long thin braid into the air behind his back. Also, instead of the simple white outfit he was wearing at the moment, she made him wear his original attire and armor in the drawing. On the background, there was the broken mountain and the creek, drawn much smaller than Bankotsu to illustrate the distance.
'Perfect!' she complimented herself.
Suddenly, she noticed the quietness around her and looked up from her artwork. 'Huh? Where did he go...?' she thought puzzled when the assassin was nowhere to be found in the clearing.
"What are you drawing?" A voice asked from right next to her ear.
Kagome almost jumped up of shock and turned to look aside, only to find Bankotsu standing right behind her with his face lowered to look over her shoulder. She blushed when she realized that his face only a breath away from hers and quickly averted her gaze. "I...I-I was just..." she stammered, trying to come up with a credible answer. "...drawing the nature..."
"Really?"
"Y-yes." Kagome blushed deeper shades of red when the assassin lowered his face even more, as if he was checking if she had told the truth.
"Hmm, too bad I can't see it. I'm sure your drawing skill would amaze me just like your cooking and mending did," he pouted and straightened up.
"Thank you," Kagome smiled awkwardly and stood up as well. "I think it's time for us to head back, since Sango will be returning soon."
"All right," he agreed and placed his halberd on one of his shoulders. "I'd like to call it a day for myself as well."
.-. later that night .-.
"That's strange..." Kagome mumbled to herself as she finished drying the dishes.
Bankotsu stopped playing with Kirara and turned to her. "What is it?"
"Sango...she's late," she responded. Normally, they'd wait for her before having dinner, but after waiting a while Kagome decided that they should eat first and save a portion for her when she comes back.
Several hours have passed since then and something was telling her that it wasn't just another late night.
"You want to search for her?" Bankotsu asked, noticing the worry in her voice.
"Yes, but how? We don't know where she is right now," Kagome reasoned aloud, but as soon as she said that she darted her eyes to Kirara. "No wait! Kirara can help us. She knows Sango's scent, so she'll be able to sniff her out and lead us to her."
Bankotsu stood up and raised a brow. "Wait a minute...'us'? You're not planning to come along, do you?"
"Of course I am!" she said determinedly. "Don't worry about me, I'll be bringing my bow and arrows so I can defend myself. I might even learn more from real action than just practicing!"
He scowled and raised his voice a bit. "Kagome! This isn't a game! This is serious! It could be dangerous!"
"I know that!" she cried, which startled the assassin. Her voice trembled as she continued. "I know that...that's why I want to go too...I'm worried about Sango..."
Bankotsu sighed. 'There's no time for arguing right now...' he decided inwardly. "Look, you can come along, but I want you to promise me that you'll go back with Kirara when it gets dangerous."
"B-but..."
"Promise me Kagome," he repeated. "With your current level, you won't be able to defend yourself properly. You might even get hurt and I don't want that."
There was a short silence, but eventually Kagome nodded. "I promise," she said.
"Good. Let's prepare ourselves first," Bankotsu suggested.
He quickly slipped into his clothes and armor and equipped the arm and leg protectors that the taijiya had bought for him under Kagome's orders. As he grabbed the hilt of his halberd, he prayed inwardly that he wouldn't have to use it. With Kirara right behind him, he exited the house and waited for Kagome outside.
Before she went outside, Kagome attached the quiver with arrows to her back and carried the bow around one of her shoulders. Despite the promise, she was determined not to get into Bankotsu's way when retreat is out of question.
When she arrived outside, Kirara had already transformed with Bankotsu sitting on her back. After she mounted right behind him, they entered the forest to search for Sango.
.-.-.-.
They were flying calmly through the shadows of the trees at first until Kirara suddenly started to growl and increased her speed towards a particular direction.
"What's wrong Kirara? Have you found her?" Bankotsu asked.
The fire cat growled in reply.
Judging from the anger in her growl, he knew she had no intention of stopping and grabbed her fur to get her attention. "Stop Kirara! Stop!" he ordered.
The demon growled in protest but eventually lowered her pace and landed on the ground.
Bankotsu dismounted the creature and petted the spot on her back that he had been pulling so roughly. "I'm sorry. I know you want to rescue your mistress but can you take Kagome home first? Leave Sango to me, okay?"
"But Bankotsu! I want to help too!" Kagome protested.
He turned to her and frowned. "You promised, Kagome. I won't allow you to stay here," he stated. "Now go!"
Not giving her a chance to dismount as well, he softly ordered Kirara to fly higher on the way back.
He tightened his grip on Banryuu's hilt as he watched them disappear into the night and then he started dashing into the opposite direction. 'Don't worry Kagome...I will bring Sango back to you...alive...' he promised inwardly.
Miraculously, he managed to avoid the trees while running. It was as though the forest was helping him and guiding him to his destination safely.
Bankotsu became alarmed when a cracking sound echoed through the trees from the direction he was running into. Without a moment to waste, he quickened his pace and hoped inside that he would make it in time.
.-.
"Give it up, you're no match for me."
"A-all those villagers you killed...I must...avenge them..."
Bankotsu immediately stopped running and went into stealth mode when he caught some voices. 'That's Sango's voice...she sounds injured...' he concluded and tried to pinpoint their exact location by their voices.
"Don't be so conceited. What can a human girl like you accomplish?" the demon snarled. "Besides, I've been locked up in that mountain for far too long, can you even blame me for being hungry after all those years?"
"Feeding yourself with defenseless humans huh? You're not only pathetic...but also weak..."
"Mind your tongue woman! What I decide to have for lunch is none of your business!"
Bankotsu widened his eyes. 'Mountain...? No...it couldn't be...'
"But don't fret, I'll be having a taijiya for dinner, how's that for a compensation?"
"Urgh...you disgust me..."
"And you look tastier when you're angry. Too bad you can't run right now, because I'm used to chasing my prey around before eating them. Oh well, I'll just devour you with as much pleasure as I had this afternoon."
Noticing the danger Sango was in, Bankotsu approached them quietly while readying his weapon. He swiftly jumped into the air and launched himself towards where the demon should be standing with his halberd raised.
When he landed on the grass without hitting something, he knew the enemy had jumped away and he turned to where another landing sounded.
"Ha! You missed!"
"You! What are you doing here!"
The second voice belonged to the dumbfounded taijiya.
Bankotsu straightened up and readied Banryuu again. "Isn't it obvious? I'm here to prevent you from being someone's dinner," he replied flatly.
"I don't need your protection! Where's Kagome?" she argued.
"She's back at the house. Kirara's with her, don't worry," he reassured her.
Suddenly the demon began to laugh. "Today's really my lucky day! I think my dinner just multiplied by four."
The assassin shot him a death-glare. "Don't bet on it," he snarled angrily. "As long as there's life in this body, you won't be able to lay a claw on Kagome!"
"Ooooh, I'm scared!" the demon mocked. "On second thought, I think I'll torture that Kagome first."
This definitely hit a nerve, but Bankotsu decided to suppress his anger for a little while longer and spun his head aside to Sango. "Mind filling me in about the situation first?"
The taijiya groaned. "So much for protecting me when you can't even see our enemy."
"Stop complaining and start explaining if you don't want to die woman!" he snapped.
"We're facing a very ugly lizard demon here with a very good appetite. Apparently he was locked inside a mountain before, but now that a moron has freed him, he's been responsible for the disappearance of many travelers and villagers. A village I passed on my way back this evening desperately asked for my help, so I decided to lend a hand. Shortly after that, I found the creature, but we've been fighting ever since," she told him. "Until a couple of minutes ago, the bastard managed to get me pinned and then...you arrived."
"Okay...now tell me something I need to know..." he responded impatiently.
"If you're talking about the lizard, he's slightly taller than you are. His primary weapon is a large two-handed blade and-"
The abrupt interruption caught his attention and Bankotsu knew something was amiss. In the next second, he caught a sudden movement towards the taijiya and he quickly jumped in between with his halberd.
CLASH
"Nice try lizard, but your opponent is me!" he spat as he pushed back the demon with ease and turned to Sango again. "Who told you to stop! Keep talking!"
"Watch out for his tail!" she warned.
At that moment, something suddenly hit Bankotsu from the side and sent him crashing towards a tree.
"Arck!" he cried out in pain and fell onto the grass with a thud. "Got that...thanks...anything more...?" he grunted as he felt a trail of warm liquid traveling from the corner of his lips to his chin.
"He's got a tough skin, but he also carries two old scars on his body. I'm pretty sure those are his weak spots."
"Wench! I'll kill you before you can utter another word!" the demon hissed.
His ears twitched at another swift movement towards a known target and he dashed forward to block the path.
CLASH
"Damn it...are you deaf or something? I thought I already told you who your opponent was," he complained. "And why are you so angry? The woman is right about your scars...isn't she?"
The lizard grinned. "Heh! What if she is?" he chuckled. "As if you would be able to reopen them with your halberd."
This time Bankotsu grinned. "Thanks for telling me what to do."
"Your arrogance will be your death!"
"You can't win me with mere strength, demon," Bankotsu chuckled and pushed the lizard back for the second time.
"Then let's try this shall we!"
Bankotsu was caught off guard when his eyes suddenly began to sting. "You cunning bastard!" he cried as he rubbed his eyes. The enemy was cunning enough to use sand to gain the upperhand in the battle.
CLASH
"What the! How!"
Bankotsu smirked. "Since I'm already blind, my other senses are sharper than any other human," he told the demon as he blinked the last bit of dirt out of his eyes and turned to Sango. "I'm tired of all this pushing Sango! Tell me the exact locations of his scars!"
"One of the scars is located at the spot where his tail and his body connects and the other one is at his left shoulder!" she yelled in reply.
"All right!" he smiled and pushed back the lizard with all his might. The 'thump' that followed told him that the demon had fallen to the ground and he quickly jumped forward to stand on top of the thick tail. "I'll be taking your tail now."
In a split second, he raised Banryuu into the air and thrust it into the junction that Sango told him about.
"AAAARRGHHHH!" the lizard cried and recoiled in pain.
Bankotsu backed away and created some distance between him and his opponent.
After some twisting and turning on the grass, the demon finally calmed down. "GRRRRR..." he grumbled and slowly pushed himself back to his feet.
Like a mad animal, he lunged forward with his blade first. "DIE!" he cried.
From the infrequent footsteps, Bankotsu knew the lizard had lost his balance because of the missing tail and easily dodged the incoming attack. However, since the demon had become berserk of the pain, he reminded himself to avoid being directly hit. From experience, he knew the attacks of a berserk animal would be twice as aggressive and a demon wouldn't be an exception.
When the growl suddenly turned into an evil chuckle, Bankotsu tightened his grip on Banryuu. "What's so funny?" he asked, not letting his guard down.
"Hehehehehe, you are smart...and strong...I'm sure your friend there behind you is smart as well," he complimented. "But someone here is obviously too stupid to believe that a puny little arrow will be able to defeat me."
'Arrow...?' Bankotsu frowned but when he caught the sound of a tensing string nearby, he widened his eyes. "Kagome! Stop! Run away!" he yelled. Inside, he prayed he was wrong, but the voice that replied took all the hope away.
"Bankotsu! Take Sango and go! I'll distract him!"
He turned back to the lizard as he spoke. "It's time for you to pay the price for taking my tail..." And he dashed into the direction of Kagome's voice.
"Oh no, you don't!" he cried and ran after him. With his halberd, he slashed at the demon and tried to stop him. "Run away Kagome! Now!" he yelled at the same time.
The sound of an arrow sliced through the air and was shortly followed by a painful cry of the lizard.
There was no doubt that the arrow had successfully hit the scar on the lizard's left shoulder. This surprised Bankotsu very much, but unfortunately he had no time to react, since the demon was still running towards Kagome with full speed.
Not being able to come up with a better solution, he threw his halberd with all his might at the lizard.
Having an open wound at his back, the demon was easily pierced by Banryuu's sharp blade and he collapsed to the floor with a loud thump.
Bankotsu wanted to let out a relieved sigh, but then he heard something very alarming.
"I...I-I'll take...your girl...with me..." the lizard groaned and with the last bit of his strength he threw his large blade towards Kagome.
'Shit!' Bankotsu cursed inwardly and quickened his pace instead of slowing down. "Kagome!"
He wrapped his arms around her body and jumped out of the way, but his timing was a bit slow, which allowed the flying weapon to create a gash on his upper arm before they both fell onto the grass.
"Kagome!"
It was Sango who cried.
Bankotsu slowly pushed himself up from the grass. "K-Kagome?" he called as he placed a finger below her nose. His body relaxed again when he realized that the girl had only fainted.
'Thank goodness...' he thought relieved.
.-.-.-.
"Why didn't you finish him off right after you took his tail?"
The question came from Sango, who was riding on Kirara's back. They were walking next to Bankotsu, who was carrying the fainted Kagome in his arms and his large halberd on his back.
"I knew the pain would drive him mad. I wanted him to suffer for all the people he killed," he said without emotion. "I'm sure his victims were experiencing the same madness and agony when he toyed with them."
"Heh! I wonder what kind of death you'll have to experience when you're atoning for your sins," she retorted.
"Shut up!" he snapped back. "I didn't save you to listen to your preaching."
"If you can't stand my complaining, why don't you just leave me behind?" she spat. "Why did you even bother saving me in the first place!"
"Because this is something I started, so I should be the one finishing it."
"What do you mean?"
Bankotsu turned to her. "The moron who wrecked the mountain and set this demon free..." he explained. "...was me."
"What! You?"
"Yes," he nodded. "The mountain I blew up on that stormy day was most likely the one where the lizard was sealed in."
"So you were responsible for all this mess? All these...victims!"
Bankotsu dropped his face a little, realizing that he was the ultimate cause for the deaths of all those villagers and travelers.
'I'm sorry...' Were the words he had wanted to utter, but he knew more than anybody else that they don't hold any meaning when they came from an assassin's lips.
At that moment, he felt Kagome snuggling closer to him, and somehow it created a wave of comfort that eased his mind. Now that he thought about it, even someone like Sango, who despised him the most, managed to suppress her hatred and bandage his injured arm a moment ago. Could something trivial like that be the beginning of his atonement?
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
I'm sorry for taking so long to update. My internet was down for some time and internship is taking up most of my time during the weekdays. I hope it was worth the wait. I'll try to update a bit sooner next time!
Greets,
Kittymui
.-.-.-.
'Italic': thoughts
"...": spoken words
.-.-.-.-.: time gap
-CAPSLOCKED WORDS-: noises
.-.-.-.
Next chapter: Chapter XVIII
.-.-.
Yay! Sango is beginning to forgive Bankotsu! Our two main characters are starting to accept their feelings for each other! We'll be seeing more of that in the next chapter! Be sure to read it okay?
.-.-.
Vocabulary:
taijiya: exterminator
.-.-.-.
REPLIES ON REVIEWS:
Sirayme: Glad you enjoyed it :)! I don't really expect readers to review every chapter, so it's okay!
Skitzoflame: Thanks!
Wake-Robin: Thank you! I'm happy to hear you liked it! Hahaha, well that's an interesting question, I guess I'll just let you readers decided whether she had said it aloud or they shared the same thought :).
sessywuver: Thanks! We will be going back to the future eventually (i.e. back to the present Bankotsu), but not now...I think it will take another 5 chapters or so.
darkenedmoonlightflame: I'm glad you liked the previous chapter, I had fun writing it :) (though it took me some time). Hahahaha I'll have to agree with you that I'm more a drama person than comedy person, maybe it's in my character, can't really explain why :). Sometimes I even wonder if I'm not overdoing it with the characters' personalities, what do you think?
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BelleDayNight: Thank you very much :)! I enjoyed writing it hehehe. Hahaha, I guess you don't have to worry about them falling in love in the past (especially after this chapter). As for the current time line...just wait and see ne?
sesshomaruobsessed: Happy to hear you loved it! I think this chapter answered one of your questions right? You'll just have to wait until the next chapters answer the other ones :).
Cry fling tail: Love you too :)! Thanks for reviewing!
C4n4di4n-G1r1535: Thanks! Yeah, I agree with you that there should be more Bankotsu/Kagome stories :), but I'm already happy to be able to contribute to that!
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Posted: 23 May 2005
Last Edited: 23 May 2005
Spelling check: YES
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Inuyasha or any characters of it. And I do not own whatever elements of this story that seem familiar and had already been used by other creative individuals before. But... I do own the idea of mixing all of these elements together into a new story!