"You know, Inuyasha…"
"What is it, wench? It's hard to protect you if you keep distracting me."
"If you used this jewel to change into a human… It would be completely purified…"
Inuyasha jumped from his tree branch landed next to Kikyo. Hunched over like a dog, he peered at her with distrust and curiosity. She returned his look with one of calmness. He blushed and looked away. "Explain."
Kikyo smiled and continued. "In the hands of a demon the jewel grants them almost limitless power. In the hands of a human, the jewel will grant your deepest desires and wishes. In the hands of a half demon like your self, it could go either way. If you wished the jewel to purify the demon from your body, it would most likely purify the jewel from existence in the process…"
"Why would I ever use the jewel to become a weakling human?" Inuyasha sneered, turning his head to look out at the village. "If I ever got my hands on that jewel I would use it to become a full fledged demon, no doubt."
Kikyo turned to him, frowning slightly. "My sole purpose in this life is to protect the jewel. Without it, my powers would fade and I could live the rest of my days as a normal woman. I could settle down, get married, and have children…" Kikyo put her hand on Inuyasha's, causing his head to jolt and his face to turn completely red. He slowly faced her.
"And you would do this…with me?" he managed, slowly removing his hand from under hers. "It sounds too easy."
"Please think about it. I shall bring the jewel to this spot tomorrow morning when the villagers begin working in the fields. If you wish to become human, I shall give you the jewel. If you come to steal it… I will be forced… to finally kill you." Kikyo stood and walked toward the village. For once, Inuyasha did not follow her.
Purple eyes bore him into the ground. That face. Her face. Why did this girl resemble Kikyo so much? Before he could move another inch, his attention drew to his neck. Purple prayer beads and polished demon teeth were locking into each other to make a necklace. The utter shock was enough to paralyze him, giving the beads a chance to fully connect.
"Quick, child! A word to subdue him!" Kaede called out to Kiki, whose eyes had gone wide with confusion. "I know you have not spoken since that day but you MUST, Kiki! Subdue him!"
"I… I don't know any words!" Kiki shouted uncertainly, letting her spiritual bow and arrow shimmer out of existence. Her arms fell to her sides. "You never taught me any!"
"What the hell IS this thing?" Inuyasha growled, yanking at the beads. They had come to form a peculiar necklace, which was glowing with blinding white light. The beads let out a high-pitched screech but didn't break. He tried to pull them off over his head with one hand but they shrieked again, and would not come off. He grasped the necklace with both hands and got the same result. "What the HELL!"
"Any word, child! Any word to subdue his soul!" Kaede hurriedly replied. "I'm sorry, Inuyasha. Not all the strength in the world could remove those beads from around your neck."
Inuyasha spun around to see a crowd of villagers had formed behind an old priestess. "Old woman, if you don't take this thing off me, I swear you'll be dead before you can change your mind!"
Kiki panicked, her eyes darting over Inuyasha's form. Robes, bare feet, hair, ears…EARS! Dog-ears! "SIT, BOY!" Kiki screamed, saying the first dog command that came to mind. The beads shrieked again and pulled Inuyasha face flat into the ground.
"The hell!" Inuyasha exclaimed once more, lifting his face from the dirt. He spit some out and then tried to pull the beads off again. They shrieked at him, refusing to be removed. "Old woman get these things off of me NOW!"
"Kiki, if you would please." Kaede said smugly, waving a hand at Inuyasha. Kiki put her hands on her hips and scowled at him.
"SIT, BOY!"
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
"So there'll be men and demons after this thing soon? They'll all be attacking the village and demanding it?" Kiki asked, cradling the gem in her hands. Kaede had performed a spell that locked beads around it, turning it into a necklace. She had the beads entwined in her fingers, jewel perched between two carefully steadied hands. It shimmered tauntingly in the firelight, mesmerizing her for a moment.
She was in Kaede's hut, huddled next to the fire. Shippo snoozed peacefully beside her and Kaede sat across from her. The old woman looked up, surprised at this sudden question. Kiki had been quiet until then.
"Aye, child. That's a powerful item you hold. Inuyasha and other demons, as well as evil men, would just love to get their claws on it."
"Woman, I'm tired of you talking about me like you know me!" Inuyasha growled in annoyance, sitting up. He had been lying on his side against the wall, propped up by one hand. "I don't know you!"
"So you don't remember then, do you Inuyasha? It is just as well. It was a long time ago." Kaede said with a sigh. "Age has not done me any favors. I am Kaede, Kikyo's younger sister. Surely you remember me? I would cart around extra arrows for her when the demon count was high."
"Oh, so you're the runt, eh?" Inuyasha mumbled to himself. Kiki turned towards him, and gave him a heart-stopping glare, but he did not seem to notice.
"Fifty years have passed since then. I have grown old." Kaede sighed in return.
"Fifty years… So, when did Kikyo die? A demon must have gotten past her barrier. She was starting to get weak." He laughed sourly, leaning against the wall again.
Kiki's face twisted in rage. "SIT BOY!" she yelled and Inuyasha hit the ground with a yelp of surprise and pain. "Kikyo died the day she shot you through! You KILLED her! SIT, SIT, SIT, SIT, SIT, SIT, SIT, SIT, SIT, SIT, SIT!"
With multiple screams of pain, Inuyasha obeyed the nonstop commands. Afterwards, he was completely silent. Kiki glared at him, but could not help feeling a little curious at his lack of movement.
"Inu…Yasha?" She asked carefully, leaning towards him.
"It seems you knocked him out with all those, Kiki…" Kaede murmured, trying to hold back chuckles without much success.
Kiki glanced at her, and after seeing her chuckling tried to hold onto her look of anger with about as much success as the old woman. She blushed. "I… Mother?" She asked timidly, looking at her. Kaede twitched, as if not used to being addressed that way.
"Yes, Kiki?" she said, facing her adopted daughter. "Do you have a question?"
"Why are you not as angry with Inuyasha as I am? He killed your sister, didn't he? Why do you look upon him as if he is an old friend and not your deepest enemy?"
Kaede studied Kiki for a long while before answering. She squirmed underneath the old woman's calm gaze. It had been a normal question – anyone in his or her right mind would have asked it. Why be so friendly to your sister's killer?
"It has been fifty years…Since my sister's death…" Kaede began, eyes bearing holes into Kiki. "At first I mourned her death greatly. I pieced together a picture without having all the pieces. I was… ignorant of how suspiciously it all came together. In the end, I found myself in a neutral area, not confident enough in how my sister died to hate Inuyasha. A strong dislike of him, yes… However, I have long dealt with people I strongly dislike. Over fifty years that dislike has melted back into the feeling of acquaintance, the feelings I had when I was but a child. He would protect my sister from harm, following her around like a stray dog. The idea that he had killed her was unbelievable to me... Yet, when I told you the story I felt like it was law. It was the only explanation to everything. You, child, felt no doubt in the story because you had not met Inuyasha. Yet… You hate him with a never shifting passion… It is almost as if…"
Kaede stopped again, her sight drifting off Kiki and to the unconscious Inuyasha. Kiki mused over what Kaede had already said, patiently waiting for the woman to finish. She almost choked on her own saliva when she finally heard the reply.
"You… Are my sister. You are how my sister would have been if she had not died. If she had not passed away that day. You brought the jewel back into existence, you have an odd hate for Inuyasha, a strong belief that he killed Kikyo. You have always loved her, although you never met her. I have often seen you at her grave, tending to it and making sure it stays clean. You stand up for her if you hear anyone put her down… In addition, you have almost limitless spiritual powers… I have come to believe over these years that you are her reincarnation. Now I am positive." Kaede said simply, moving back towards the fire. "You brought back the jewel. That is proof enough."
Eyes wide, Kiki watched the old woman get out a pot and some herbs. She was shifting through a basket of vegetables when she turned back to her. "Kiki, could you fetch some water for stew?"
Slowly and uncertainly, Kiki picked up the pot and headed outside. The wind picked up, whipping the bottoms of her kimono around. She felt familiar chills crawl up her spine, ignoring them as she set off towards the river.
Kikyo's reincarnation. So that's what I am. After all these years, I finally find out who I am…and somewhat of why I am here…
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
"You can't just wander off, wench." Inuyasha sneered at Kiki as she picked up her basket of medicinal herbs. "Not with the jewel."
"Oh? And what am I supposed to do, leave it with you?" She shot back. Kaede was out tending to a girl in the village when a man came to the hut requesting the services of a healer. He would not give details, only said he would wait outside the hut for her to prepare. Without knowing what was wrong, Kiki had to pack all sorts of herbs into her basket.
"Why do you trust that man?" Inuyasha asked suspiciously, peering around the doorframe. The man was pacing, his back turned to the piercing yellow eyes.
"Because I am the miko of this village and I have to trust him. He trusts me." Kiki replied simply, pushing past Inuyasha and tapping the man on the shoulder. He jumped and then turned and bowed. "I'm ready. Lead the way."
The man began to walk toward the village and Kiki followed. Only when they entered the village and she began to notice the strange looks from people she was passing did she realize that something was wrong. She glanced backwards and found that Inuyasha was following her.
"Something wrong?" she snapped at him, turning to face him. He glared at her, refusing to answer. When she turned forward again, she saw that the man was missing. "Sir? Sir?"
"Priestess, this way." The man said, poking his head out from behind a stall. He had turned a corner, on a path going towards the woods. "The wounded is out here."
Kiki stopped, hesitant. In the woods? Is this man from the village? So many people have moved in since I last made rounds to reacquaint myself with the villagers. She turned to look at Inuyasha again but he was gone.
"Miss…? Are you coming?"
"Of course… Lead the way." said Kiki with a smile. She turned back to the man and followed him down the path and into the woods.
After fifteen minutes of walking, they were farther into the forest than Kiki found reasonable. "Sir… Where is the wounded? Much farther?"
"No! Not at all! This way!" the man replied cheerfully. His pace quickened slightly, as if to cover more distance in less time. A normal person would not notice but Kiki was on full alert. She was normally clumsy and unobservant, but when she wanted to be she could pick up the slightest details. It had taken a long time to perfect, part of her training.They soon came upon a small clearing in the trees, sun shining happily upon them. A woman lay with her back facing them, in the shade of a large tree and on a traveling mat. A low fire burned hungrily next to her, a pot of stew resting carefully beside it.
"Oh! Is this the patient?" Kiki exclaimed, springing forward. The man nodded and stepped aside to let her pass. She kneeled next to the girl, placing her basket beside her. "Now m'am... If you could tell me where you're injured…"
No reply. Kiki's encouraging smile lost its glitter, and she began to show worry on her face. "M'am?" No reply again. As she reached forward to brush the woman's hair away from her face, the man behind her cackled.
"You won't get anything out of that one!" He screeched happily. "She's dead! Been dead for a while! He he he!"
Horrified, Kiki turned back towards the man. He had drawn a large cutlass and was licking the tip. Dried blood encrusted the cutting side. Kiki's attention had been drawn from her hand to the man, and it fell onto the woman's face. She was ice cold.
"Aiie!" Kiki yelped, jumping to her feet. She cradled the hand to her chest, eyes wide. Bandits! They're everywhere! They've been closing in on us for some time! I cannot believe this! How did I… How did I miss all of these presences? Moreover, a demonic presence! How could I have possibly not sensed that?
Eyes darting, Kiki searched the trees around her for the demonic miasma she had just sensed. Something had kept her from realizing it sooner; she was not as well trained as she should be.
Kiki was soon surrounded by men, all with knives, daggers, or swords. Some had armor and some only wore a loincloth to cover their privates, but all were battle scarred and disgusting. They were covered in dirt.
"Wench!" Inuyasha's voice rang out. He dropped down in front of her, claws at the ready. His sudden appearance got another shriek out of Kiki – What was wrong with her senses?
"W-what are you doing here! I can take care of a couple bandits! Especially with fire at my disposal!" Kiki snapped, stomping her foot. "Who invited YOU?"
"I'm not worried about you, idiot! It's the jewel! Do you still have the jewel?" Inuyasha barked, not taking his eyes from the bandits that were slowly encircling them.
Kiki puffed out her cheeks in rage. The jewel! The jewel was all he was worried about? Her purple eyes shined with anger, illuminating in a bright violet light.
"Yes I have the jewel! I'm not dense!" she screamed, grabbing it from under her kimono and revealing it for all to see. The bandits' eyes glimmered greedily at the sight of it.
"IDIOT! Don't show it to them!" Inuyasha snapped. Kiki blushed furiously at her stupid mistake, glaring at the bandits. With her purple eyes on them and Inuyasha's presence and claws, some were starting to look uneasy. Was a jewel really worth this much trouble?