Oh and to the anonymous person who left me that fantastic flame, hoe incompetent, indeed? Next time you might want to flame the actual story, as it would be a little more worth your time, though not quite as hilarious to me. But I did change the summary, anyway, because it needed it, so I hope it's to your liking.
Chapter 17
There was blood everywhere, and ten-year-old Kaede ran through it without even noticing. Bodies lay strewn in the street and she ignored them. Her right eye throbbed, rendered completely useless by a piece of flying debris caused by the explosion, but she ignored it, as well. She only wanted to be by her sister's side. Kikyo would know what to do. Kikyo would keep her safe.
Panting, she ran until she saw the group of people gathered near the shrine's entrance. Raw panic shot through her. No…no, that wasn't Kikyo kneeling on the ground. That wasn't blood gushing from what looked like claw marks on her shoulder. No…Kikyo couldn't be injured. But Kikyo was strong, she would live.
Crying now, Kaede ran to her fallen sister and pleaded with Kikyo to get up.
"Sister, please, you have to get these wounds treated. I can do it, you've showed me how – "
"Kaede there's no time!" Kikyo interrupted and Kaede stared at her blankly. Kikyo was…giving up? That…that wasn't possible! None of this was happening, soon she'd wake up and it would all be a dream –
But Kikyo was talking again, her voice fading. "Take this, Kaede," she said, handing her the Shikon Jewel. Kaede stared at it, not understanding. She only understood that her sister was dying.
"You must burn it with my body, so that it will never fall into the wrong hands again," Kikyo said. And with that, her eyes closed, and Kaede watched in horror as her sister – her guardian, her only family – slumped to the ground. Kaede screamed.
And when Kaede's eyes flew open, more than fifty years later, the first thing she thought was that the jewel should have stayed destroyed and Kikyo should have remained dead.
It took her a moment to realize where she was and that she was not dead, herself. She was in her cabin, alone, and she was gradually starting to feel a great deal of pain. Groaning, she tried to move, and decided that that was not such a good idea.
As she narrowed down the greatest source of her pain – her left shoulder – she finally remembered what had happened to the village. Her initial feeling of relief that she was alive was immediately replaced by the knowledge that her village was practically destroyed and many of her people killed. For what, she thought bitterly. Jewel shards that were not even in the village.
Kaede pushed aside her anger and made up her mind to concentrate on healing. She would be no good to the remaining villagers if she did not heal.
She briefly wondered how she had survived the poison arrow. She should have died – very few humans, if any, could withstand such a wound. She considered it a great miracle.
Strange, also, that she would dream of Kikyo at a time like this. Perhaps it was her own brush with death that triggered the memory of her sister's own terrible demise, which had haunted Kaede's dreams for several years.
Having spent most of her 60 years as a priestess, Kaede considered herself blessed to have lived as long as she had. Her poor sister had died at such a young age – only 18. Yet Kikyo had been wise beyond her years. Kaede knew that her powers did not come close to matching those of her sister's, but she worked hard nevertheless to protect those she cared about.
She and Kikyo had been orphaned when Kaede was an infant, and Kikyo had raised her until her death. The harshness of a land torn apart by war and destruction left many orphans to fend for themselves, and they did. After Kikyo's death, Kaede lived with the knowledge of all that Kikyo had taught her, and at age thirteen, she left the village to train as a priestess, following in her sister's footsteps.
Life as a priestess was not easy, and Kaede had been plagued by loneliness and solitude, despite the hundreds of people she had helped during her life's journey. There was no husband, no children of her own. There were few close friends. She was respected and admired, yet utterly alone, and she eventually came to understand her sister's suffering, why Kikyo had been drawn to Inuyasha. In him, Kikyo had found a kindred spirit, and in turn he had lifted that burden of loneliness, if only for a time. For awhile, though such a brief while, Kaede remembered that her sister had been truly happy. The smile on her face had no longer been forced, but genuine and peaceful.
Kaede wasn't sure why she had dreamt of Kikyo. For years, she had relived the day her sister died, each night awakened by her own cries. At last the nightmares faded and were less frequent. As part of her life's duty as a priestess, Kaede had vowed to ensure that her sister was allowed to rest in peace.
And she had failed. Perhaps that was why her dreams had resurfaced. Try as she might to avoid it, she often thought of Kikyo, her soul torn and in limbo, to wander the earth until someone took it upon themselves to put her soul to rest.
Kaede had often felt resentment toward Inuyasha for not taking that responsibility, after all he had shared with her, for him to leave her in her current state was cruel in Kaede's eyes. Yet at the same time she realized that he still loved her, despite his obvious love for Kagome. And also, she doubted that even she would be able to bring herself to kill her beloved sister, even if that was not the Kikyo she once knew.
Sighing, Kaede closed her eyes, feeling exhausted and wishing to escape the pain for a little while. Her shoulder throbbed mercilessly, the pain consuming her entire body. After a few moments, she heard the paper door rustle, and she opened her eyes to see a pair of bright green ones staring at her.
"Hello Shippou," she said wearily, but with a small smile.
Those eyes brightened and the little fox demon whooped with joy and began running around in circles, chanting, "Kaede's awake, Kaede's awake!" Finally, he ran outside the cabin, still chanting. Kaede could not help but chuckle.
Shortly after, the paper door rustled again, and Sango entered, followed by Shippou and Miroku.
"Thank goodness," Sango said, smiling with relief. "We're so glad to have you back, Kaede. How are you feeling?"
"Sore and tired, but I'll live. A miracle that is."
"You can thank Kurama for that miracle," Sango said. "He has great skill with plants and herbs."
"Indeed, he must. I shall thank him. Where are he and the other…and what of Inuyasha's group?"
"Kurama and Kuwabara have devoted their time to village repairs," said Miroku. "As for Inuyasha's group – they haven't returned yet. We were talking about going to search for them if they do not return in a few days."
"That sounds like a good idea," Kaede said. "Though I'm sure they will be fine." Miroku and Sango nodded, though they looked doubtful. Kaede also did not quite agree with herself – she had a strange feeling, and hoped it was merely paranoia.
"The villagers have told us what happened here," Miroku said, changing the subject. "They said it was a fox demon tribe that attacked."
"Yes. Silver foxes. Their leader was female."
Miroku nodded. "We believe this particular tribe has been on a rampage, destroying villages and slaughtering innocent people. So far they haven't left any survivors that we know of, except this village. This village was fortunate."
"Yes, though many of the villagers were not" Kaede replied. "We must see to it that those who died are given a proper burial - "
"I have seen to that, Lady Kaede," Miroku said, closing his eyes in reverence.
Kaede smiled a little. "Thank you." There was a moment of uneasy silence before Kaede asked, "Did you find any clues to Naraku's whereabouts?"
"Unfortunately, no," Sango said. "Nor did we locate anymore jewel shards. I'm afraid our journey was slightly fruitless."
"I wouldn't say that," Miroku said. "Every journey has a purpose."
"Quite right," Kaede agreed, her voice weak and fading. Her eyes drooped as she succumbed to her exhaustion. "I am tired. Let me sleep awhile."
They nodded and left her to rest, stepping outside the cabin.
"I am glad she is healing," Sango said solemnly. "I do not want to imagine what would have happened if..."
"Kurama really proved himself, didn't he?" Shippou boasted, looking proud. "And you all didn't trust him. I knew he was a good guy from the start."
Miroku smiled, his eyes thoughtful as he gazed at Sango. "Yes, what Kurama has done for Kaede certainly does merit trust. After all, we had no other choice at the moment, and he could have easily poisoned her. But he didn't."
"So does that mean you trust him now?" Shippou asked.
"I think perhaps he deserves it," Sango replied. "Don't you, Miroku?"
"I suppose so, but..." his voice trailed off and he turned his gaze to the sky, still looking thoughtful. "There's something about him that bothers me."
"What's that?" Sango asked.
"I'm not exactly sure. Perhaps I'm not being fair. Not only did he save Kaede from certain death, he has proven highly reliable in battle. I think he passes, for now."
"Good," Shippou said, beaming.
The demon in question was, in the meantime, throwing himself into rebuilding the village. While he had never bothered with craftsmanship or manual labor, he found himself picking up on it fast, and was actually enjoying it. Already he had mended several roofs, patched siding, reconstructed fences and more, and felt as if he could go on for hours. Which he did, long after nightfall.
As he was perched on the roof of a badly burned house, two men walked by, whispering. Kurama could easily overhear their conversation, though he gave no indication that he could. He heard one ask the other how "that red-haired boy could still see to work in the dark." He smiled to himself and continued working.
He enjoyed the work mainly because he felt partly responsible for what had happened to these poor villagers. After hearing the story of the attack, it had not taken him long to realize who had led the group of fox demons. Had he been able to put a stop to Akita's nonsense before, this never would have happened.
Logic tried to convince the rest of his mind that none of this was his fault, and he supposed that was true. Still, he was nonetheless indirectly involved, and felt the need to make up for his mother's crimes in whatever way he could.
Besides, the work also took his mind off of things, which he was grateful for, as he had way too many things to think about.
And when he finally decided to stop working for the day and head back to Kaede's cabin, his mind once again was flooded with the many issues at hand…one of which was walking toward him on an otherwise empty street. He smiled as he approached her.
"Good evening, Sango."
She returned his smile. "Likewise to you. I was on my way to tell you that dinner is ready. We were wondering when you would stop working – everyone else is waiting on you."
"I'm sorry to keep you all waiting," Kurama apologized. "I suppose I lost track of time."
"Don't apologize. It's very kind of you to lend a hand. There aren't many able-bodied men left in this village."
"That's true," Kurama frowned and looked away.
Sango bit her lip, debating whether or not to ask the question that had been nagging her. "Kurama..."
"Yes?"
She paused. "Was it…her?"
He stared at her sadly for a moment. "Yes."
She nodded and looked down at the ground awkwardly. "Listen, I…I know it must be hard - "
"Don't worry," he assured her. "I will do what needs to be done. She must be stopped."
She looked up to meet his eyes, which seemed to have an unnatural glow in the moonlight. She hadn't meant to make him feel defensive about it, though she imagined he already felt that way.
"I just wanted to let you know that if you need any help –," she continued, but he interrupted her again.
"That won't be necessary. She is my responsibility. I must resolve this alone…" he trailed off when he saw the dejected look on her face and instantly felt guilty. "It's not that I don't appreciate your offer, you see…I just can't expect anyone else to fully understand the situation. It must be handled with care."
"I do understand," she said, and he was startled to see tears in her eyes. "My brother, Kohaku…Naraku controls him through a shard of the Shikon Jewel in his back. He would die if it were removed."
She sighed shakily. "Naraku destroyed everything that I held dear, and now the only family I have left is a threat to me and my friends. I have to kill him…if only to keep him out of Naraku's hands, but..."
Kurama's eyes softened and he offered her a gentle smile. "But you love him, and don't want to lose him."
She nodded, looking down at her feet.
He laid a hand on her shoulder and she looked up at him, once again staring into those deep, deep eyes.
"Don't lose hope," he said softly, and walked away. She stared after him for a few moments, a small smile on her lips, before following him.