Disclaimer: Inuyasha and Co. belongs to Rumiko Takahashi.
This is but a fan fiction.
So sorry its been forever since my last update…life happened and I also had a bit of writers' block even though this story is mapped out pretty far in plot. The next update for BTF should not take months! Hopefully you like this chapter, it was hard to get it the way I wanted and I'm still not too happy with it but I didn't want to have you guys wait even longer. So if I have any readers/reviewers left, please please tell me what you think!
Beyond the Fairytale: Chapter 3"So what are you going to do? Will you confront her?" asked the monk. Inuyasha froze. Puzzled by his lack of response, Miroku prodded, "Inuyasha? Hey are you listening to me?" "Shut up monk" growled the hanyou. He sniffed the air and growled again. "Dammit! He's somewhere nearby! We've gotta get to the girls!" And with that he took off bounding from tree branch to tree branch while Miroku tried to catch up riding on Kirara's back.
"Sango! Kagome!" yelled Miroku. Both girls looked up as Inuyasha and Miroku arrived in a rush. Jumping up, Sango placed a hand on her hiraikotsu strapped on her back, "What's going on? Is there trouble?" Inuyasha glanced at Kagome, " Keh! My asshole brother is nearby. I just wanted to make sure you guys weren't missing." Kagome looked puzzled but didn't say anything. 'Why is he looking at me like that? Does he know?' Inuyasha took off again without warning. "Hey Inuyasha where are you going?" asked Kagome. "Keh! He's still out there! I'm gonna go see what the fuck he's doing here" he replied as he bounded away. Sango and Miroku followed riding on Kirara's back. "Kagome? What should we do?" asked Shippou. "Come on! We're going too!" replied Kagome. She ran after them with Shippou clinging to her back.
"Blades of Blood!" His claw stopped its decent at the sound of the battle cry. Jumping out of the way, he slid his sword out of its sheath and prepared to do battle with his insufferable half brother. 'Damn this fool!' thought the taiyoukai as he maneuvered the fight away from where Rin lay on the ground.
"Sesshoumaru you bastard!" said the hanyou. Inuyasha pulled out Tessaiga to counter Sesshoumaru's attack with Toukijin. As the swords clashed, Sesshoumaru growled out, "So hanyou, why is it you have instigated this battle? Are you so eager to end your life?" Inuyasha came down with a mighty swing of Tessaiga only to be countered by his brother's blade again. Pushing away from their locked blades, he leaped back to try another attack. "You're a bastard Sesshoumaru! I don't need more than that to want to kill you!" yelled the irate hanyou.
Narrowing his eyes, Sesshoumaru grunted in response and noticed an opening in Inuyasha's guard. Taking advantage of his superior speed, he landed a brutal blow to his half brother's unprotected thigh. "Damn it!" Inuyasha grunted and took a few steps back as he raised Tessaiga and shifted his weight to bare the pain in his leg. Sesshoumaru merely lifted an eyebrow and smirked. "Are you in pain dear brother?" he said sarcastically, "I can put you out of your misery!" And with that, he charged Inuyasha.
"Hiraikotsu!" The spinning giant bone boomerang caused Sesshoumaru to abandon his attack and leap out of the way. Taking advantage of his brother's momentary distraction, Inuyasha let loose a powerful Kaze no Kizu. The attack missed the taiyoukai by mere inches, his youkai speed obviously aiding his getaway. Sesshoumaru was getting a bit annoyed at this interference. Taking a glance to where he left his ward, he saw Kagome and the monk lifting the little girl and taking her away. 'This must end now.' Turning his attention back to the exterminator woman and his half brother, he dodged the bone boomerang again and knocked it out of the air, then he feinted an attack to the woman to get her out of the way then doubled back to take care of Inuyasha. He feinted another swing of Toukijin and when Inuyasha fell for the trick, he used his tail to smack him sending him flying through a series of trees. With a leap, he crossed the distance to confront the miko and the monk. "Leave her and I'll spare you" he told them as he landed in their path. Surprised, they stopped and hesitantly placed the little girl on the ground. Kagome took a step toward the taiyoukai ignoring the growling meant to intimidate her. "Lord Sesshoumaru…we mean her no harm. But she's really sick and I want to help her." Kagome was proud of the way her voice didn't tremble to show how terrified she was.
'This female is brave; Or a complete fool. Hmph well, she does accompany my moronic brother.' Sesshoumaru glared down at the two humans. Their body language and facial expressions did not reveal the fear he could smell radiating off their persons. 'I did come this way to have the miko cure Rin. Perhaps she can still do so.' "Miko, how could you heal the girl? She is close to death." Raising an eyebrow, "Unless you hold the power to revive the dead?" replied the taiyoukai. Kagome gathered her courage, and looked him in the eye confidently, "Rin is really sick. I don't know if I can cure her illness but I will try my hardest to heal her. I can't let her die without trying to help her. And I won't let you stop me! Remember, I helped you Sesshoumaru, even though you wanted to hurt me." She held his gaze a bit longer then deliberately turned her back to him and knelt down next to Rin to see what she could do to heal the girl. Miroku stood in a defensive stance alternately looking at Sesshoumaru and Kagome. 'Well, he hasn't done anything so far, so maybe he won't kill us afterall. Hmm…so Kagome healed Sesshoumaru? Inuyasha will not be happy to hear that. I guess that's why she kept it to herself.' Placing a hand on the girl's shoulder, he asked, "Kagome-sama, will the girl survive?"
She watched the sun set from her perch on the cliff edge. The fiery oranges, reds, and yellows singing a silent song as the sun sunk below the horizon. "I know you're here. There's no use attempting to hide." From the shadows of the trees emerged Kagura with her fan open to conceal her mouth. Walking closer to the cliff edge, she warily approached the woman who still stood facing the horizon.
"He knows you hold the shards. He wants to know what you're planning." Kagura stated. Kikyou turned to face the wind witch. "Does Naraku really think I will spill all my secrets simply because he demands so?" inquired the miko with disdain. "The jewel belongs to me. I will not interfere in his plans for now but I do have my own agenda."
Kagura's eyes widened at the miko's words. 'What is she up to?' Kikyou began walking away, as she passed by Kagura, she said, "I will call the boy to me soon."
'What the heck does that mean? What boy?' wondered the wind witch as she watched the undead woman disappear into the forest. 'She's creepy.'
Naraku narrowed his eyes in anger. 'That bitch! She will spill more than just secrets if she isn't careful.' Waving his hand negilently in the air, "Leave me Kanna." The small girl silently took her mirror away.
"What the fuck is wrong with you! Get the fuck away from him idiot!" screamed Inuyasha when he saw Kagome and Miroku near his brother. Sesshoumaru didn't seem to be threatening them but you never knew with him. "Damnit! Don't you have any sense at all? Why the hell are you with him again?" Kagome looked up at that with a worried look on her face. 'Again? What does he mean again? Unless…oh no…Inuyasha knows about me healing him doesn't he? Oh crap.' She bit her lip in worry. 'The last thing I need right now is those two fighting!' "Inuyasha! You can yell at me later! I have to try to help Rin and your yelling isn't helping!" she told the hanyou. Inuyasha looked at her then down at the little girl he hadn't noticed before. "Rin? Who?" Coming closer to see the girl better, he stopped suddenly startled at his brothers' menacing growl. Looking at his brother's inscrutable expression, he took another step towards Rin and sure enough another warning growl from his brother. "Hmph. So this is that little girl that follows yer ass all the time huh? She's just a human wench, yet you seem so protective." He smirked and crossed his arms with an air of superiority. "Do you care about this human girl? Hmmm? Looks like yer gettin' soft, Sesshoumaru! Heh!" Sesshoumaru didn't respond to his taunts, instead he turned to Kagome and watched her care for his ward. "Woman, can you heal my ward or not? You appear to be very ineffectual."
"Errr! Sesshoumaru! I don't even know what's wrong with her. As far as I can tell she seems to be suffering from a very high fever and maybe has a cold or the flu because of the congestion in her chest. Can you tell me how long she's been ill and what were her other symptoms?" she asked. She turned to Miroku. "Miroku-sama, will you boil a pot of water? Shippou, please bring me my first aid kit and a blanket from my bag. Sango, will you please start a campfire so Miroku can get that water going?" Kagome undressed the girl and wrapped her in the blanket Shippou brought her. "Thanks Shippou, now would you please bring me some cold water from the river?" The little kitsune nodded his head eagerly, "Sure Kagome-chan!" and he scampered off happy to be able to help his surrogate mother. Miroku and Sango sat near the fire waiting for the water to boil and feeling somewhat unsettled with Sesshoumaru in their midst yet not fighting Inuyasha for once. Inuyasha stood between his brother and Kagome with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.
"About six days." Kagome glanced at the taiyoukai when he said this. A small frown marred her features. "If this were only a cold and she wasn't unconscious, I wouldn't worry too much, but for her to be so bad off, its something much worse." Wiping the little girls' forehead with a cool damp cloth, she tried to think of what to do. 'I wonder if the antibiotics I have will help? She may have the flu…or something like it' she wondered. 'I wish I could take her back to my time and get her a real doctor.' "Hey, Inuyasha?" Said hanyou spared her a look but otherwise didn't reply. "Inuyasha! Do you think we could take her through the well?" Inuyasha scowled at the suggestion and did not like his brother's interest in the girls' question.
"Hell no we can't take her through the well! Only two people can get through, you know that!" replied Inuyasha. Kagome frowned and said, "But that's the thing Inuyasha! We don't really know who can slip through. I bet if we use the jewel shards…eh…nevermind! I'll just try to heal her on my own" she ended hastily. "Feh, yeah maybe you're right, maybe with the shards we could send her through the well, oh wait…that's right, you fucking lost the shards so I guess we can't use that idea huh?" snarled the hanyou. Kagome just kept her back turned and tried to concentrate on Rin and holding back her tears of hurt at the barely hidden vindictiveness in his tone. "Inuyasha. SIT!"
Shippou sat on the hanyou's back and berated him for hurting Kagome yet again. Miroku and Sango were used to the craziness of their friends and ignored the entire drama. Kirara snoozed by the fire. Sesshoumaru only grew more curious of the girls' origins and the mystery of whatever well they kept mentioning. "What are you doing now wench?" he inquired of the miko. At this Kagome hunched her shoulders and growled a bit under her breath. "I am giving Rin something called antibiotics. They are used to help fight off strong illnesses. And DO. NOT. CALL. ME. WENCH! My name is Kagome!" "This Sesshoumaru does not appreciate your tone woman. Do be careful from now on" spat the taiyoukai. Kagome only scowled and turned to face him. 'He's such an arrogant jerk!' "I don't care if you appreciate my tone or not! You should appreciate my help! And do be careful to remember my name, Sesshoumaru-sama. It shouldn't be too difficult for a taiyoukai to remember! KA-GO-ME! Got it?" Her tirade caught her friends' attention. Miroku and Sango came over ready to defend their foolish friend. Inuyasha immediately jumped between Kagome and his brother and pushed her behind him protectively. Sesshoumaru watched all of this with a kind of detached bemusement. "You have spent too much time in the presence of my brother, woman, or are all humans so irritating?" With that the taiyoukai walked a bit away from the group and sat down in the grass. Everyone's face was a picture of shock. 'Did he really just let her get away with that?' was the universal thought. By the time Sesshoumaru sat down, Kagome's anger had run its course and she realized the danger she'd put herself in. 'Oh Shit! I'm gonna be killed! Wait…why didn't he do anything?' Looking over at the sitting taiyoukai, she wondered why he didn't at least threaten her life. 'Never look a gift horse in the mouth, right?' Going back to the little girl, she decided the only thing she could do was to keep the girl comfortable and hydrated while praying the antibiotics worked. 'If Rin doesn't at least regain consciousness by tomorrow, then I would have to make a broth so the girl would get some nutrients not just water. I wish I could do more.'
"Kagome-chan come get some dinner. I made the ramen tonight" called Sango. Kagome sighed as she joined her friends. "Kagome-sama, how is the girl doing?" asked Miroku. "She's pretty much the same, I'll check on her throughout the night to see if her temperature goes down. Hopefully the medicine I gave her will help. I just wish I was a doctor or even just trained enough to know what to do! What if the medicine doesn't work?" she replied somewhat depressed. Miroku was quiet for a moment and then said, "Kagome-sama, have you thought of using your miko powers to heal Rin?"
Kagome stilled for a moment, 'My miko powers?' she thought, 'Can I really use them like that?' "Miroku, how would I do that?" she asked eagerly. The monk looked thoughtful and replied, "Well, its not a common ability even for trained miko. I think its similar to how you use your power to make hamaya only you focus your energy into your hands and fingertips not an arrow and your think of what you want the power to do."
Sango looked at her friend in wonder, "Wow, Kagome, do you think you can do it?" Before Kagome could reply, Inuyasha snorted and said, "nah, she can't even control her powers good so how will she be able to use 'em to heal the kid?" Kagome glared at the hanyou. "I may not be a trained miko, but I want to try it. I'll just have to think about how I pull the power into my arrows and hopefully it'll work." She sounded more confident than she really felt.
The next morning, everyone except Sesshoumaru gathered around Rin and watched as Kagome tried to use her miko energy to heal the girl. 'Okay, all I need to do is focus on letting my power flow through me to my hands and think about healing the girl…I think.' Kagome worried her lip a bit then took a cleansing breath and placed her hands on Rin's body. The little girl was still oblivious to the world but her struggles to draw breath made it hard for Kagome to stay focused on calling forth her power.
Sesshoumaru stood away from the group surrounding Kagome. He was doubtful if the girl could use her power to heal his ward. 'The miko has an amazing amount of untapped power. But I have never witnessed her actually control it to the point of being able to call upon it whenever she wished. The meager amount of energy she uses for her arrows is paltry in comparison to what radiates off of her.' He looked sharply at Kagome, he could feel her power building and not just radiating from her form but pulsing. He raised an eyebrow, and thought, 'well, maybe she will be able to tap into her true power.'
Kagome felt the surging pulses of an extremely powerful energy and almost lost her concentration trying to figure out what it was. 'All this power…its incredible! Is this my miko energy? This feels so different than usual. Its much more….well, its just more! Can I really control this?' Squeezing her eyes shut, she tried to guide the energy to her hands and knew instinctively what to do but was at a loss as to how to do it. 'Its as if something's blocking me. How do I push through?' Opening her eyes as her power receded, she sighed and told the group, "I was almost there…but nothing happened." Miroku looked at his friend in awe, "Kagome-sama, that was amazing! I could actually feel your miko energy. Just try to channel it to the girl. I'm sure you can do it" he said encouragingly. Sango chimed in, "Yeah Kagome-chan! Don't give up. I'm sure you'll get it soon." "Yeah, You can do it Kagome!" added Shippou. Kagome smiled at everyone. "Thanks guys. I'll keep trying." Inuyasha huffed, "You better be careful wench! I don't need you wearing yourself out or getting hurt or somethin'!" he scowled and crossed his arms. Kagome just grinned at his poor attempt at hiding his concern. "I'll be fine Inuyasha."
After five more attempts, even Kagome's morale was lagging. The group had dispersed from around the two to give their friend some space and to not be distractions. Inuyasha decided to keep an eye on her from a nearby tree. 'Why can't I do this?' despaired Kagome, 'I know the power is there but I can't seem to control it.' Just then everyone was startled by the huge gust of wind accompanying the appearance of Jaken atop AhUn.
"Lord Sesshoumaru!" The toady minion ran to his lord and bowed low. "Milord, I have finally caught up to you!" Sesshoumaru merely ignored his servant. "I would have arrived sooner my lord but that infernal beast decided to be difficult and wouldn't obey my commands! Oh the trials I had to get the stupid animal to obey! Hmph! And trying to knock me off, flying in a crazy manner, oh the horror I faced milord!" Glancing up, he noticed that Sesshoumaru wasn't paying attention to his tale of woe. Or maybe he was, his expression never changed really so it was hard to tell. Sighing, the diminutive servant turned to glare at the dragon mount. "Insufferable beast! Much like that human brat." Looking around, he noticed Rin's absence, 'where is the little hellion?' Turning to look behind his lord he took notice of the human wench that followed the hanyou around. It was there he found Rin resting upon the ground. 'Is she not dead then? What does that wench thinks she's doing to Rin!'
'So close, so close, why can't I control it!' Even Kagome began to despair. 'I can't let her die. I have to save her and prove that I'm strong. I'm STRONG.' "Rin you can't die!" All eyes turned to Kagome as even Sango could feel her miko energy surging wildly. Kagome closed her eyes and screamed. Sesshoumaru realized that she had finally accessed her tremendous power but couldn't direct it. A flash of bright light blinded him and he felt himself flying back into a tree with a sickening crack.
Chirp. Chirp. Chirp. 'Damn insufferable birds.' The taiyoukai once again found himself returning to consciousness to the sound of incessant bird chatter. 'And crying?' he wondered to himself. He sat up and made to stand, as he did so, he realized that he hadn't felt so refreshed in a long while, the faint traces of the wounds he receieved a week ago were completely gone as if they had never marred his perfect body. He felt the urge to stretch his arms…a quick look down revealed that he was still missing an arm although the stump did tingle a bit with an itch. The sound of somewhat muffled sobbing took his attention from his self-inspection. There the girl was, crying in her hands above the still body of his ward. 'So, she wasn't able to heal her afterall. Rin is dead.' He thought this without a shred of feeling only a calm matter of fact. 'Rin is dead and Tenseiga is silent.'
She tried to keep her crying under control but she couldn't stop the heaving sobs that shook her very core. 'I thought I would save her! I felt the power! I felt it in my hands, in my entire being! What happened? Why couldn't I do it? Why won't she wake up?' The devastated girl could do nothing but cry her angst, her sadness, her desperation, and her growing self-hatred at her own uselessness. Inuyasha awoke to these heart wenching sobs. He had been knocked from the tree he was lounging in by Kagome's blast but as he jumped up to go to the crying girl, he realized he'd never felt so invigorated before, especially after being knocked out. His leg wound from his skirmish with Sesshoumaru was completely healed also, as if the gash had never been. He pushed these thoughts aside as concern for Kagome overwhelmed him. Standing awkwardly behind her, he wasn't sure what to do. The others hadn't awoken yet so he had to comfort the girl on his own. "Kagome…" he whispered. She hiccupped and tried to stop her tears but only could heave shuddering breaths. Inuyasha placed a hand on her shoulder and turned her to face him. Kagome grabbed onto his shirt and wept, grateful for his proffered strength as he held her.
Sesshoumaru approached Rin's body and ignored the weeping girl in his half-brothers' arms. 'This human will be missed.' Thought the youkai lord with a faint feeling of surprise. He hadn't acknowledged the depth of his attachment to the little girl. Always restrained in the little affection he allowed her, always protecting her under the guise of protecting his property, always telling himself that she was merely an amusement, a trifle thing without real importance and now that her body lies there cold as the ground it rests on, he finally recognizes and acknowledges the feelings he held for the girl. 'I did not wish her to die, yet with all this Sesshoumaru's abilities, could do nothing to prevent her death.' The taiyoukai knelt on the ground and reached out to gather the little body in his arm. His hand pushed a strand of hair off her face and then almost reverently, with the lightest touch stroked her cheek.
Inuyasha stared awestruck at the sight of his brother being so delicate with the dead little girl. 'I never thought the stuck up bastard could be so not bastard-like…' He watched Sesshoumaru pick the little body up in his one arm and turn to leave. Kagome had released Inuyasha's shirt and was pleased to note that he still cradled her to him. She turned to see what he was staring at and also stood dumbstruck at the tenderness with which Sesshoumaru treated Rin. 'I bet there's more to him than anyone realized. Then again, maybe Rin knew.' At the thought of the dead girl, she began to tear up again but this time was able to hold back the noisy sobs and let the tears run silently down her cheeks. Inuyasha smelled the fresh scent of Kagomes' tears and held her a little tighter as he couldn't think of what to say.
"Lord Sesshoumaru!" called the newly awakened Jaken. "Where are you going now Lord Sesshoumaru?" As he ran up to his master, he saw that Rin was in his arm. "What did that wench do to Rin!" As usual Sesshoumaru ignored his servant but something else made him stop in his tracks.
There was no sound, none of the normal background noises of the wilderness, as if no animal wanted its whereabouts known, no leaves gently rustling in the breeze, because there was no wind. Kikyou abruptly stopped walking as she neared the village sitting in a shallow valley near the forest she journeyed through. 'Something's amiss.' Narrowing her eyes she tried to sense what was wrong. 'Is it the village? Or is this feeling coming from the forest?' she wondered. Deciding to continue on to the village she kept her senses alert to the unease permeating the air. As she came upon the crest of the small hill and had a clear view of the village below, she saw and smelled the reason why the forest was so preternaturally quiet and the air so still. 'It was a massacre.' Nothing was left of the village but a few huts still unconsumed by the once wildly burning flames. The stench of decaying and burnt human flesh was stronger the closer she got to the horrific site. 'Youkai did this, its obvious but why did they massacre these people? They had nothing of any value for them to take. There are no more shards to attract violence of this magnitude…Naraku is most likely behind it. But what is the motive behind this massacre? How did this village play into his games?' As she pondered the reasons behind the fate of the dead here she wondered through out the charred remains looking for any residue of the fiend or clue of his intentions. 'Naraku, what is he up to now?'
Kikyou began digging graves for the dead villagers. 'The massacre happened not long ago, my shinidamachu were able to retrieve so many of their souls before they were able to pass on to the other world. I don't know why these people were slaughtered but at least I can use their souls to feed this clay body of mine.' She worked for hours and hours giving the dead their proper burials even as she consumed their souls.
He stopped in his tracks. Ba…..dum, ba…..dum, ba…dum. He was about to put the girls' body to rest but a small sound made him pause. 'Is this truly possible?' he thought. Ba…..dum, ba…..dum, ba…dum, ba…dum, ba..dum. He glanced back at his brothers' wench and saw her still trying to stifle her tears. Badum, badum, badum, badum, The soft sound was irritating and drowning out another sound he couldn't believe he was hearing; if his ears were not superior to the rest of those present, he wouldn't believe what he knew he was hearing. Badumbadumbadumbadumbadumbadumbadum. "Wench! Cease your pathetic tears!" came his reprimand to Kagome. BADUMBADUMBADUM! It wasn't possible but he thought the sound thundered in his ears; this small insistent rhythm making its presence known. Some unfamiliar emotion came upon the taiyoukai and he knew it was caused by the tiny sound thundering in his ears. Looking down at the unmoving bundle in his arms, he whispered one word, "Rin" and watched as if in response to his soft utterance, an eye lid flutter, a small chest rose slowly taking in air, a small mouth open in a yawn as a small fist carelessly rubbed the sleep out of still closed eyes. "Rin." he said again, repeating himself, he noted to is something he rarely ever did.