"Talking"
'Thinking'
StressedShe stood at the entrance to her village and watched as Kouga left her and Shippo. The massive whirlwind vanished leaving her feeling alone. She would miss his company, but she had a feeling this wasn't the last time she would see him. Shippo jumped to the ground and ran into the village, he was still excited about the sickles Tachi gave. Kagome smiled at the memory as he handed Shippo a newer pair of sickles. His eyes were a bit brighter; they told her that those were 'the boy's' sickles. The dirt crunched under her zori as she made her way to Sango and Miroku's hut. She knocked and walked inside when greeted. Miroku was sitting at a low-level table with his eyes closed.
"Welcome back Kagome," Sango happily greeted her. Shippo bounced around Sango and showed her the sickles.
"Yes, I hope your journey was pleasant," Miroku spoke as he offered her a smile.
"It was a worthwhile journey," Kagome voiced as she sat.
"So the journey went well?" Miroku asked her.
"Yes, I will speak at the Youkai council," Kagome calmly said.
"Look at my sickles!" Shippo shouted as he waved the in Miroku's face. Miroku paled a bit and scooted away from Shippo.
"Shippo, don't wave them around," Kagome scolded as he nodded and sat down.
"Where did he get those?" Sango asked.
"Tachi-sama gave them to him and also let him train with the younger children," Kagome happily said.
"They're very skilled with that weapon, it's amazing that you received that training," Sango praised Shippo.
"I can fight now!" Shippo proudly stated with an air of confidence.
"Did Kouga accompany you as well?" Miroku asked a she glanced at her.
"Kouga did come, and has also agreed to speak with me at the youkai council," Kagome informed.
"Their village must have been something to catch Kouga's attention," Sango dryly said.
"I suppose, but they are a society," Kagome mumbled.
"Where's Inuyasha?" Shippo asked.
"He's been sulking somewhere," Sango scoffed as she went back to trying to cook.
"When will be heading back up to Mount Hakurei?" Kagome asked.
"Inuyasha hasn't mentioned traveling the few times we saw him," Sango voiced with a sad smile.
"He has to get over the fact that I'm staying here, we're a team, and we need communication," Kagome firmly said.
"I agree, it is childish for him to act this way," Miroku said as he nodded his head.
"Who's childish?" Inuyasha asked as he walked in the hut.
Miroku gave a sheepish smile and waved his hands in front of him. Miroku noticed the glare and sighed in defeat, he figured he'd have a painful ending this day.
"How nice of you to finally talk to us," Sango dryly said as she glared at him.
"Can it, I'm here now," Inuyasha growled.
"When will we travel to Mount Hakurei?" Kagome interrupted in order to stop any verbal assaults.
"We leave first thing tomorrow morning, I can't wait to pound Bankotsu's ass back into his grave," Inuyasha growled as he walked out.
Kagome snorted and stared down at the table. This was something she knew she would have to face eventually. It was a reality that they would be enemies until he died or stopped working for Naraku. Miroku noticed her wistful look before she stood and left the hut without a word.
"What's wrong with her?" Sango asked Miroku.
"Kagome's in love," Shippo stated as he stole a riceball.
"What?" Miroku and Sango snapped. Shippo shrugged and then grinned.
"When we were at the village she would run of to meet someone in the forest," Shippo informed. He was young, not stupid. He knew that she was going out because a few times he woke up to find her gone.
'I wonder who it is,' Sango thought as she looked to Miroku.
'Lucky guy,' Miroku thought with a grin. Sango noticed the grin and slapped him upside the head.
"Sango…this time my mind was pure!"
"Save it Houshi!"
Kagome sat under the Goshinboku since Inuyasha had left abruptly. She leaned along the root and stared at the sky. They would travel to Mount Hakurei and destroy Naraku and the band of seven. It was an inevitable fate that she had to accept and quickly. Kagome closed her eyes and pondered Bankotsu and what would happen if he survived Naraku. He was technically a resurrected human; he was dead.
'I couldn't have a future with him…even if I wanted to,' Kagome thought.
He couldn't offer her much. That was far from the point since she didn't want much. The main thing was that he couldn't offer her a family. Kagome blushed as she wondered if everything was working properly.
'I could never be with him knowing he was or is dead,' Kagome thought.
Kagome sighed and rolled to her side. Her face touched the bark of the tree and she gazed at the grass. Life for her seemed to be complicated no matter what happened. Kagome rested her hand on her hip and slowly moved it to her stomach.
'If I did go with him…would I want kids?' Kagome wondered.
A soft giggle escaped her as she imagined a mini Bankotsu running around her. She sighed again and rolled to her back so she stared up at the leaves of the Goshinboku. Winter would be coming within the month. A grim smile made its way to her face as she came to a decision.
'Until he is free of Naraku, then there can be no us,' Kagome thought as she closed her eyes.
Bankotsu stared out at Mount Hakurei with an uneasy feeling. He hated it when he got a bad feeling. His eyes drifted to Jakotsu and the feeling grew worse. Jakotsu looked over at with a calm look before he shrugged. Renkotsu crossed his arms and scowled at the Mountain with disdain.
"Do you feel it?" Jakotsu asked. Renkotsu glanced at Jakotsu in curiosity.
"What do ya mean?" Bankotsu asked.
"There's something weird here," Jakotsu softly said.
"It's Naraku, he shouldn't be trusted," Renkotsu voiced.
"Even if he is untrustworthy we owe him this task for our lives," Bankotsu reminded with a frown.
"So…you are willing to fight against that Miko," Jakotsu observed.
"Whatever! Let's get going," Bankotsu shouted as he started to walk ahead at a brisk pace. Jakotsu rubbed his ear trying to clear the sudden lose of hearing. Renkotsu growled and started walking.
"He didn't have to shout…we were standing right there," Jakotsu pointed out.
"Maybe he likes the sound of his voice," Renkotsu bitterly said as Jakotsu gave him an odd look.
'Maybe it has to do with that Miko Inuyasha travels with,' Jakotsu thought.
A smile lit his face and he clapped with glee. He had just figured out why his big brother had been so edgy and nervous. Jakotsu ran over to Bankotsu and threw an arm over his shoulder with a grin. Bankotsu smiled back and raised an eyebrow; he wondered what had his friend so happy. Jakotsu waved his hand as he tried to get the words out.
"I know why you're so tense!" Jakotsu happily sang.
"Maybe it's a fear of your groping him," Renkotsu muttered as Jakotsu stuck his tongue out at the fire user. Jakotsu ran over to Renkotsu leaving Bankotsu confused.
"No! It's because he's in l-o-v-e," Jakotsu spelt for the fire user. Bankotsu blushed and looked away with a scoff.
"I think he can spell," Renkotsu pointed out to Jakotsu.
"Oh who cares? The point is…Bankotsu has been bitten by the love bug!" Jakotsu squealed before his mood fell for a second. "Even if it is a woman."
"And who is this woman?" Renkotsu inquired. This could prove to be a downfall for their reckless leader.
"Why it's that Miko that travels with Inuyasha," Jakotsu blurted. "That means that Inuyasha is mine!"
Jakotsu let loose feminine but evil laughter. He skipped ahead and thought of all the things him and the hanyou could do with the Miko gone.
"Is it true?" Renkotsu asked the leader.
"Even if it is, it is not your concern," Bankotsu pointed out as he they walked into the mountain.
Tomorrow had come to soon in Kagome's opinion. The sun had rose and they had left toward Mount Hakurei. Inuyasha kept giving her concerned looks and Kagome finally growled at him. He looked away with a scoff and ran ahead. Kagome scoffed back and turned her attention to the journey ahead. Kagome sat behind Sango as they flew. Miroku ran alongside Inuyasha as they traveled in silence. Shippo sighed as he sat in Kagome's lap with little thought.
"Kagome, are you feeling well?" Sango asked.
"I'm fine, why do you ask?" Kagome questioned.
"You just seem a bit pale," Sango mentioned with concerned eyes.
"Is that why Inuyasha keeps staring?" Kagome mumbled.
"He's concerned about you. You've been pale and distant," Sango whispered.
"I'm just lost in thought, and I'm pale because I haven't been outside much," Kagome assured.
Sango gave a nod showing Kagome she agreed. Sango then frowned as she urged Kirara to go faster. She didn't believe that Kagome needed the sun. The girl sat outside everyday on the roof. The sun would shine upon her body as she sat there for hours. She just couldn't understand why Kagome would become pale with the sunlight.
Kagome loosened her grip on Kirara and reached up to her heart as they flew through the air.
'What is this feeling of dread?'
Night had fallen and Inuyasha had entered the cave a while ago. Miroku and Sango had long ago entered the cave. Kouga impatiently waited with Kagome and Shippo before she had enough. With a firm command Kouga, Shippo, and her entered the cave. Dread filled her being as she watched as Kouga was absorbed into the cave floor. That's when she realized what was happening.
"It seems like we're inside something," Shippo commented.
Kagome nodded and they traveled deeper inside the cave. Kagome stared up at the massive white mass of skulls on the ceiling. Something moved and it tore open. Relief filled her as she waved to Sango and Miroku. The skulls gave in and they started to fall.
"Catch them Kirara!" Shippo shouted out to Nekomata.
Kagome waited for them to be settled before she sought the Tama. Fear coursed through her veins as she realization dawned on her. Naraku had the almost completed Shikon Tama within his grip. Kagome took off running as the fear increased.
'That means…'
"No," Kagome growled as she stopped and watched as Inuyasha flew past her. He was unconscious and in the grip of Naraku's tentacles being taken up.
"INUYASHA!" Kagome shouted. She took off running into the darkness with Miroku and Sango not to far behind.
'Inuyasha…Kouga…Bankotsu,' Kagome thought with dread.
Dust filled the area as the top of the mountain blew apart. Laughter filled the air as his flexed his new limbs. Everything was going so perfect. His crimson gaze traveled to the unconscious hanyou and wolf. Walking over to Kouga, he pulled the two shards from his legs with a triumphant smirk. His attention turned to Bankotsu his little pawn in the game. It was a shame that he was defeated by the hanyou. Naraku laughed, the leader's defeat was by luck alone. He reached down and removed the shards from the body and Banryuu.
"Naraku!" Kagome shouted as she caught a fleeting glimpse of Bankotsu.
Her eyes softened as bones replaced him. Kagome turned her gaze to him and she snarled. He held up an almost perfect Tama.
"Only one shard," Naraku mumbled.
"You will die today!" Kagome shouted.
"Stealing the hanyou's words, for shame," Naraku mocked.
"You've crossed us one to many times," Kagome growled.
"Is it still about them, or is it about how I killed your undead lover?" Naraku taunted as she pulled her beads out.
"It will be about everything!" Kagome shouted.
Naraku's attention turned elsewhere and he smirked before he vanished. Kagome cursed him and ran over to Inuyasha first. There was chance he was still alive. A watery smile made it to her face when she felt the life within him. Miroku and Sango stopped at the entrance and watched as Kagome ripped at Inuyasha's binds. They looked at each other and went to help Kouga. Kagome growled in frustration and placed her hands upon the tentacles. Light flashed from her body and burned away the prison. Inuyasha fell into her arms and she laid him on the ground.
Kagome glanced over to Kouga and saw that the shards were missing. Sorrow filled her eyes and she blinked the tears away. Today had been a defeat for them and they knew it was only the beginning. Kagome left Inuyasha's side knowing that he was safe. She kneeled beside the bones of Bankotsu and bit her lower lip. Miroku and Sango's gaze were on her and she knew it. She placed her hand upon his kimono and felt the bones that were his corpse. Her Miko ki flared and the bones turned to dust. She gathered the dust into his kimono and tied it so nothing would escape. Kagome placed it beside the pouch that carried her beads and stood up. A twinge of pain stirred in her soul and she released the tears.
"My soul…it's in pain," Kagome whispered as she sensed the tainted Tama by it.
Author's Note:
Let me think...(sighs)...Oh! Bankotsu will be back by chapter 18, it's not that long of a wait until he makes an appearance.
This story will officially be 35 chapters! It's the longest I've ever written, I keep setting a goal to make my fics and chapters longer!
Please leave a review!
I.B.Stoopid The I- You wonder where I get the time to type. Let's see...yes I'm still in school. I'm a full time college student(overload on classes), plus I work part time. When I get an idea for a story I sit down and type it till I run out of things to type. I just sit and type until I think it's a good place to leave off. I finished typing this fic already because I sat down for about two days and inbetween breaks to type, plus I never sleep.I stay up late and get up early. I love typing and it drives me to write, that and I don't like to leave a good story unfinished.Every story needs an ending, whether good or bad.