The reason Inuyasha was putting Kiki in a mood lately was obvious – at least to her. He was cleverly avoiding her, dodging away from her clouded gaze of happiness and slipping from her inquisitive grasp. It was about time something new happened around the village; something besides a demon after the jewel. This would be something that would provide Kiki with more information on her past.
An innocent villager named Leviticus walked happily along the city gates, skipping and twirling until she reached them. Her head was full of daydreams, most about boys and marriage. As she passed the gate, her sensitive ears picked up the sound of a groan from the other side. Stopping so that her long brown hair swayed gently behind her, the teenage girl pressed an ear against the thick logs.
"Help…" a man woozily called. Levi immediately unlatched it, stroking the dagger on her belt with care. As soon as she saw the owner of the voice, she rushed to his side.
"Monk! Oh, my! Your arm is fatally injured! Oh, poor, sweet monk!" Levi dramatically wept, cradling his head against her bosom. The man had his eyes drowsily open, a large bleeding gash apparent through his purple and black robes. Levi played subconsciously with the small stub of a ponytail he had pulled his black hair into, and admired the decorative glove he had on his left hand. Was this man sent by the gods to ease her aching heart?
Levi turned her head to look back into the village. Sango was walking by, chatting animatedly to the new girl, Kiki. "Sango!" Levi called. "Sango, come-"
While focusing elsewhere, Leviticus hadn't noticed that the monk's right hand had wandered fearlessly to her bottom, stroking it caringly. She dropped his head onto the ground and sprang up. Her face was three shades redder than it had been only seconds before.
"Why… You…!" She managed, pointing an accusing finger at his drowsy, perplexed look and limp body. "How DARE you! When I wasn't paying attention! You could have at least waited until I turned around! I would have giggled at you! Giggled! That was completely rude and UNCALLED FOR!" she screamed, finishing off her rampage with a bang. Sango and Kiki rushed to her, Sango grabbing the arm the hung limply by her side and Kiki resting her hands on the one holding up the accusing finger.
"Um… Levi… Let's get you back inside…" Kiki half-heartedly sighed. With Sango's help she directed the girl towards the door and watched her storm off.
With that obstacle out of the way, Sango turned back to the monk, whose eyes were now mostly open. "Who are you?" She asked gently, crouching down next to him and resting a hand on his uninjured right arm. The monk smiled lightly, letting his eyelid drowse down again.
"My… Name is… Miroku…"
>>>>>>>>>
"AAAIII!" Kiki shrieked, jumping up and swatting off the monk's wandering hand. "Sango, he did it again!"
Miroku's eyes widened trice-fold as Sango grabbed him by the collar and heaved him close to her face. "I warned you that if you did that again you'd die. I'm on the edge here- give me one good reason you shouldn't."
"I'm sorry, ladies! In the presence of such beauties, my hand has a mind of its own." Miroku slyly replied. Sango dropped him with an exaggerated sigh.
"Don't try to sweet talk us! You're just a pervert, is all!" Kiki snapped. She snatched the bucket of water from the ground and turned her heel to the monk, facing the door. "I don't know why we're even bothering to take care of you!"
When Kiki shut the door behind her, she sighed and leaned against the wall. She swayed the bucket between her legs in a sort of slow, soothing rhythm, watching the water intensely as it crawled up the wooden sides. "It's not like you to stand still for so long." Inuyasha chorused from a ways down the hall. She didn't lift her head, only fought back a lump in her throat. "Why the face?"
Kiki wasn't used to his voice being so gentle; she guessed all the hurt she had been feeling the last week was suddenly written all over her face. Kiki flinched unhappily as Inuyasha cradled her chin with a clawed hand, and refused to look up at the half-demon boy.
"Stop it." Kiki croaked weakly at the floor. "Get away!" He obeyed reluctantly, stepping back from her. Kiki could feel something boiling up within her, and frankly, it was frightening. Inuyasha must be causing this.
"There's a reason I've been avoiding you this last week." Inuyasha insisted harshly, clenching his fists. "If you would let me explain, wench…"
The echo of the bucket's soft thud against Inuyasha's head hardly measured up to the wide, surprised expression on his face. Kiki felt a river of tears start down her face, not caring that the water in the bucket had drenched her. Her eyes flickered from purple to red in a quick flash, drawing an even more surprised expression from Inuyasha.
"If you would only allow yourself to put down your emotional shield for one damned moment, you would have noticed what you're doing." She hissed, a frighteningly steady voice for someone crying so fluently "I don't need you upsetting me any more than I already am. Don't call me wench."
Kiki dropped the bucket and ran, fleeing from his wide eyes and confusion. She could feel Kikyo and the demon within her fighting for possession of a greater place in her body. She could feel the weakness of her own soul, and the steady power the sacred jewel was trying to feed to it. Although her body was tainted with evil, the jewel was clean and untainted. Her body was a natural balance of both alliances.
"Kiki!" She heard someone call after her. The confusion in her mind was so blinding that she could not recognize it; only common sense led her to believe it was Inuyasha. "Kiki, what are you doing? What's wrong?"
Something tripped her and she tore at it, digging her fingernails into an innocent tree. She had not even realized she was outside. She could feel claws growing, her demonic soul overpowering everything else. Her eyes were now an intense red color and she could feel fangs growing.
"Ki-" the voice started, but it abruptly stopped, and was followed by a thud. A hand, cold as ice, grasped around her left arm and pried her from the tree. When Kiki spun around to attack its owner a pair of dark violet eyes met her.
Meanwhile, the sliding door to Miroku's room made a large slamming noise as Inuyasha shoved it open. The weak wood splintered dangerously, and the open door revealed Sango and the monk, both surprised. He wasn't angry at Kiki – he was angry at himself. He was angry that he called her wench. He was angry that he did not realize what he was doing to her, and angry that he had upset her before he could explain everything.
Sango stood up from binding Miroku's hands to his sleeping mat and stared at Inuyasha. The monk sighed as if he was a victim, although he had brought it upon himself. Fondling every woman who helped him had led Sango to tie him.
"Kiki. Bad mood." Inuyasha snarled, feeling even worse after saying it. Now it sounded like it was Kiki's fault. He knew it was his.
"Not surprising, considering you've been avoiding her all week…" Inuyasha winced at this comment. "And then there's the monk here, who keeps FONDLING everyone!" Sango shot daggers at Miroku with her eyes.
"He what?" Inuyasha growled protectively, stepping towards the bound man. "He WHAT?"
"It's the hand! It's possessed!" Miroku objected. "I simply cannot control it when around beautiful women!"
"Where is Kiki, anyways?" Sango asked Inuyasha, completely ignoring the insane blabber Miroku was spewing. "You didn't upset her even MORE, did you?"
Inuyasha winced again and then glared at her. "I didn't do anything!" A lie. "She just got mad!" Somewhat truthful, all things considered.
Sango groaned in dismay. "Now I have to get the water myself… And it's starting to sound bad outside. Wind and rain." Inuyasha flinched. Was Kiki so upset that a storm would change its path, and the wind would pick up just to suit her mood? He growled his anger at the floor and then exited the room, leaving just as Miroku fondled Sango again, having somehow broken his bonds.
>>>>>>>>>>>>
The boy was dead. That much Kiki was sure of. The demon before her must have cut him down from behind. He was the one who had worriedly chased after her.
Poor Kohaku. Kiki was certain he had formed a crush on her over the week, and although Inuyasha was avoiding her she still caught him threatening Kohaku once or twice.
"Stay away from my woman." Inuyasha snarled. "I'm warning you for the last time."
The purple eyed demon read Kiki's dismay through her clenching fists. Her demonic powers had kept her face calm and composed, but she was still clenching and unclenching her hands like crazy. The reaction pleased him greatly.
"A friend of yours?" he asked in soft and taunting voice. Kiki turned her head and stared him straight in the eyes. The wind began to thrash her hair around and rain suddenly began pounding on them both.
"Who are you?" Kiki asked with a demonic echo on her voice. Despite her demonic power of keeping an unemotional face, she managed to get in a second or so of bewildered looks.
"I am who you see, am I not?" the demon chuckled. "Or is that not even true…?"
"What…? Why are you here?" Kiki exclaimed. Her voice still echoed, but this time it didn't surprise her.
"Yes, why indeed…." The demon mused. He raised his right hand and examined it thoroughly while Kiki practically choked in surprise.
A clawed hand should have been normal, but this; this was completely different from normal. The hand was practically spectral, amazingly detailed yet completely see-through. He flexed it amusedly, raising his eyebrows at her.
"Ah, now I remember." He chuckled. His features went dark and he pinned Kiki against the tree with his left hand. She had no time to struggle – his right hand went straight into her stomach. The immediate reaction she felt was to throw up, but she managed to hold it back. The pain was excruciating, shooting up and down her body. She could feel him roughly fumbling with some unknown organ or emotional scar, scratching and bruising her insides. Her eyes went wide and turned blood red at these feelings, her demonic soul reacting to the pain.
The demon found what he was looking for. On contact with something within her, the pain got even worse. Red light poured from her eyes and there was a visible red aura around her. "Naraku!" a demonic voice snarled from within her. "How dare you confine me to this heap of a body!"
Lighting struck the space beside them and the demon drew his hand out in glee. He hopped around as Kiki helplessly pointed her finger at the places he was, lightning striking every spot.
"Naraku, you bastard, hold still!" She howled.
"Now, now, Ryoko. It's not so bad." He cackled in reply. "Having your soul gradually sink into the priestesses, and making you stronger than you ever dreamed? Your element powers rubbed off on this girl's soul quite nicely. Or can she just control your soul at her every whim?"
Kiki growled and sent the wind at him, causing him to break apart into a cloud of purple gas. "A sore spot, I presume? Well, my work is done. Have fun, Ryoko."
"Damn you, Naraku! DAMN YOU!" Kiki shrieked. Something thud behind her and she spun around, claws at the ready.
"Kiki, what…?" Inuyasha exclaimed with wide eyes. He had jumped down from the roof. "Your eyes are red!"
"Kiki? Is that this body's name? No, not any more. I am Ryoko! This vessel is mine now!" Kiki laughed insanely, swiping at the air in front of her. A large gust of air threw Inuyasha into the side of the building.
Inuyasha moaned and fell to the ground in a crouching position. "Kiki…" he gasped. "Hang on."
"Fool! She cannot hear you! Neither of them can! I- Augh! Infernal priestess! What are you doing?" Kiki groaned and doubled over, her eyes flashing from red to a ghostly blue. "Me? What are YOU doing up here?" Kiki jumped back in surprise, her voice changing to a more human and womanly form. It was almost as if her body was playing the part of whoever spoke. "Neither of us is supposed to be up here."
Inuyasha eyes went wide with shock. Kikyo? That was Kikyo's voice. How could this be?
"Get out, get out, get out!" Kiki shrieked in her own voice. Her eyes flashed purple, then red, then blue. When Inuyasha managed to stand, the colors were switching so quickly they were mixing together.
"Kiki!" he gasped, stumbling forward. She did not notice - just clutched her head in pain. "Kiki!"
Inuyasha grabbed her, straitening her out and then forcing his lips on hers. Her eyes went wide, pouring with purple light. Kiki fell forward limply and Inuyasha pulled from her, crouching down and cradling her in his arms.
"Inuyasha…" Kiki whispered faintly. "Kohaku is…"
Anger and jealousy flared up within him. What was this about the boy? Why was she bringing him up now? After he had just kissed her; saved her!
"…Dead…"
"Oh… Kiki…" Inuyasha sighed dejectedly. "I'm sorry."
Her whole body shook with a heaving sob. "I'm sorry, too. But sorry won't bring him back."