Oh my gods.
I stared at the boy sitting across from me, wondering if I was seeing things. I had heard the explanation before, but… this was insane. Inuyasha's dog ears really were gone and his fangs- they were normal canines now. The slits in his eyes had widened into proper pupils, the amber irises now a dark grey. His long silver hair was a black as the night, a pair of human ears poking out from the sides of his head.
If it weren't for the facial structure and the signature red kimono he was wearing I would have thought I was staring at a stranger. It was only after he yelled at me for looking at him too long that I stopped, retreating inside the small shrine were Shippō, Miroku, and Sango were hiding. I cast another quick glance at Inuyasha, finding it so weird that he completely changed appearance, and I ended up stumbling into a conversation.
"-should at least verify the exact location of the castle." Sango said. She turned to see me walk in, before returning her gaze to Miroku. Shippō frowned, looking up.
"We can't take Inuyasha in the state he's in."
"We won't be." She told him. "Miroku and I can go alone. It's faster and more efficient."
Miroku added, completely serious, "And if Inuyasha objects to us leaving him behind we'll have Kagome make him sit." He lowered his head, smiling a little. "Then we can simply knock him out."
Well then. I don't like this conversation.
"Not that method again." Shippō complained, shaking his head. "Irene, do you have any ideas on how to distract Inuyasha?"
"What?" I jumped, startled when the attention was suddenly turned to me. My hand froze over the door, my departure stopped by everyone's eyes on me. "Uh… n-not really? He got really mad at me a second ago, so I'd rather not… yeah. S-Sorry."
Sango gave a small smile, trying to be encouraging, while Miroku nodded his head.
"Kagome using sit it is!"
Wow. Rude. "Would his body even be able to… withstand it now? He's human."
"It never seemed to do too much damage before." Miroku explained before a sly smile crossed his face. "Irene… tell me; what are your opinions on Inuyasha and Kagome? And- please, sit down." He patted the ground beside him. "A lovely lady such as yourself shouldn't have to stand any longer than necessary. Join me."
I stared blank at him, stepped forward, and proceeded to sit down next to Sango. Then, without hesitation, I linked an arm with hers. The woman blinked, surprised by my behavior, but didn't push me away. She actually seemed quite pleased that I refused Miroku's advances. The monk pouted, upset that I didn't sit down next to him.
"Aww~ I was even going to let you sit on my lap! Are you sure you want to sit on the cold hard wood? My lap is much softer-"
"No thanks." I scooted closer to Sango, resting my head on her shoulder. "I get cuddles over here."
Kirara mewed in agreement, curled up in the woman's lap. Shippō laughed. "Talk about rejection! Sorry, Miroku."
Sango patted my hand with her own, not too entirely sure what to make of the situation yet accepting it nonetheless. "Your tricks aren't going to work on her, you pervert. Unlike the other women you flirt with, Irene has standards."
"Yup yup." If I closed my eyes and pretended that we were surrounded in silence, I could almost make myself believe that I was hugging Maria right now. That this wasn't Sango's arm I was holding. For some reason Sango held the touch of an older sister and it… hurt me. It brought back so many memories, but I couldn't get enough. I could pretend that- in this instant- I was back home sitting in the livingroom with Maria. "I don't deal with relationships. Too much drama. Inuyasha and Kagome are cute though… minus the arguing."
"Good girl." Sango patted my head. "Stay away from men. Especially those of the cloth."
The demon slayer sent Miroku a glare, the monk chuckling nervously.
"Yeah. Miroku's a creep." Shippō agreed.
"I feel as though I'm being personally attacked here." Miroku slumped, hanging his head. "Does no one trust me?"
I want to go home. But this… was nice. Cuddling with Sango was very stress relieving. I still wished it was my sister that was here, but I would see her soon. Once we get to the castle… I can save her. Free her from Naraku's grasp. For once I would be the protector. We'll defeat him and go home-together.
Unless, I had to remind myself, she wants to stay.
But I hoped she'd like to go home.
I was rudely jolted from my thoughts when the door slid open, Kagome tossing Inuyasha inside quite forcefully. She held the tetsusaiga in her hands, frowning at her. "The wolf demon tribe has come back again!"
"What!?" Sango's eyes widened. "We can't let them see Inuyasha!"
I was forced to stay inside with Shippō, Inuyasha, and Sango while Miroku followed Kagome outside. I shifted anxiously from foot-to-foot, Inuyasha and Shippō peering out of a hole in the wall to eavesdrop, Sango changing into her demon slayer gear behind us. "What are they saying? What's going on?"
"Kōga and Kagura are fighting each other," Inuyasha explained quietly, glaring at the demons outside, "and apparently Kagura is winning." He tightened his grip on his sword.
"Inuyasha," Shippō hissed, clinging to the half-human's shoulder, "you mustn't show yourself!"
"Hmph. You don't need to worry about that."
Frick. Frick, frick, frick. Is Kōga okay? If he's losing then…
Blood. So much blood. Why is there so much!?
Memories of Inuyasha sprawled out on the ground, bleeding from wounds caused by Kagura's winds, came to mind and I jolted- standing up straight and rubbing my arms fervently to get rid of the cold chills. The black-haired half-human turned his head, frowning at me. "What's wrong with you?"
"K-Kagura will…" Oh gods. I began to pace around the hut, mind going to all the worst case scenarios. "No, no, no, no!"
"Irene, what's wrong?" Sango asked, frowning as she tied together the last few pieces of her armor. I stopped moving, not looking at her as I trembled and shook and moved my hands around anxiously. "Hey-"
"H-He's bleeding. He's bleeding and bleeding and it won't stop a-and she's going to kill him, and-!" My arms wrapped around my stomach, recalling the way Inuyasha's guts nearly spilled out of him. "And... and... and he needs help!" My eyes snapped over to meet Sango's, filled with tears. "We need to help him! I-I can heal him! Let me heal him!"
"There's no way I'm going to help Kōga." Inuyasha barked, "But I'm not gonna let you go and get yourself killed."
"We're going to go check this out, okay?" Sango said, resting her hands on my shoulders to calm me down. "Stay behind me and keep low. Inuyasha-"
The half-human turned, narrowing his eyes. "Sango?" She leveled her gaze.
"Stay here with Kagome. You want to keep your mortal state a secret don't you?"
Inuyasha scoffed, standing up. "You've gotta be kidding!" Shippō yelped and jumped down onto the ground just as Inuyasha kicked the doors open, effectively breaking them. The two demons Kagome and Miroku were talking to stared for a moment before screaming, pointing at Inuyasha in horror. "Hrah!"
Several punches later, the two wolf demons were sporting several bumps and bruises, and- thanks to Inuyasha- they were no longer shouting. Sango held the hiraikotsu over her shoulder, aghast by his behavior. "What are you doing!?" I hid behind the demon slayer, still panicking and very mistrusting of the two strangers.
"Idiot." Shippō scowled.
"Listen, you two," Inuyasha threatened, "if you tell a soul about this I'll kill you both!"
"Got it," Mohawk choked, "we won't."
"Inuyasha!" Kagome scolded. Miroku closed his eyes, tilting his head.
"Well, he shut them up at least…" He opened his eyes, unimpressed by his friend's violent behavior. "Shall we go now?"
The set up was fairly easy. Miroku and the two wolf demons would run, Sango and I would ride on Kirara, and Inuyasha would ride on the back of Kagome's bike whilst she pedaled. Shippō, of course, sat in the basket as always. As we sailed over the forest in the direction Kōga was in I kept my arms wrapped tight around Sango, face buried in her back as I tried my darndest not to cry.
What if we were too late? Was Kōga already dead? How… are the wolf demons going to handle that? Kagome said their names were Hakkaku and Ginta, right? So… would they have to explain to the rest of the tribe that their leader was dead? Ohhh, no, no, no. Please. Be okay. I didn't particularly like him, but I didn't want Kōga to die.
He had so many people who cared about him. Who would be upset if he was gone.
If Kagura killed him…
I inhaled sharply, heart twisting painfully in my chest.
...I won't forgive her.
She and Naraku have already gone too far, harming my new friends. Not only did they bring me and my sister to this world, but they've put so many people through so much suffering. It's horrible. I wanted to think there was a glimmer of good inside of them, but I witnessed firsthand how truly bad they were.
What gave them the right? What made them so desperate to hurt others?
Suddenly I heard it; that conniving, familiar laughter. Before I even knew what was happening Sango was already swinging her hiraikotsu in the air, aiming for Kagura's head. The female demon whirled around, raising her fan up in the air. I watched with big eyes, waiting for it to make contact with her, but then out of nowhere a bunch of skeletons that were on the ground rose up and intercepted the hiraikotsu- taking the hit instead and being torn to pieces.
"Your life has been spared." She told Kōga, plucking a feather out of her hair. All the wounded wolf demon could do was glare as she flew away, and Sango carefully had Kirara lower us closer to the ground. The woman caught the hiraikotsu as it swung back at her, cursing when she saw that Kagura got away.
I wasted no time in sliding off of Kirara's back, both Sango and the cat being rather alarmed when I did so, and I stumbled towards Kōga in as fast a dash as I could go. I arrived just as Hakkaku and Ginta exclaimed something about how Kōga had lost both his sacred jewel shards, falling to my knees and breathing heavily as oxygen intake became limited. Shikigami, please! Please, please, please! There was so much blood. How had he even survived?
"Irene!" Kagome shouted, running over as blue flames danced around my hands. "Don't overdo it! You just recovered from your illness!"
"Leave him alone, you two!" Inuyasha ordered, chasing after. "That wolf is gonna die anyway!"
Kagome wrapped her arms around me, stopping me before I could reach Koga. I tried to pull away, lungs wheezing in response to all the movement, but the girl was determined. "I know you're worried, but so are we! You can't keep hurting yourself like this!"
"I'm f-fine! S'fine!"
"The hell's goin' on!?" Kōga demanded, watching the scene take place. His eyes widened when a blue koi fish appeared out of flames, shooting out of a pentagram on the ground. "Fuck! Kagome, look out-!"
He reached out, forcing himself to stand despite his injuries, and moved to slash the creature thinking it was harmful. Instead, to his shock, the fish swam towards him and avoided his claws, the trail of blue flames licking his face and spreading across his body. Kōga blinked, lowering his hand upon noticing something.
"It doesn't… burn?"
Kagome let out a heavy sigh, resting her chin on my shoulder, and I watched in relief as his more deadly wounds healed. His right arm, which looked ready to fall off at any given moment, pulled itself back together and mended. The big gashes on both his legs healed, flesh stitching itself back together, regenerating. Kōga turned and saw the flames around my hands, and watched as the fish dove back into the pentagram that was at my feet.
"You did this?" He asked, stunned. "Are you some kinda priestess or somethin'?"
"Kōga!" Kagome said, raising her head, "How are you feeling?'
The wolf demon stumbled over, collapsing to his knees and sitting down in front of us. "I'm… better, thanks to whatever that was. Tired, but I can still fight. What did you say your name was? Irene?" Unable to speak at the moment, too busy trying to breathe, I nodded. He grinned. "Thanks. Any friend of Kagome's is a friend of mine. In the meantime…" Kōga turned, glaring at Inuyasha, "hey, muttface! What did you say about me earlier!? You wanna die tonight-!"
Kōga cut himself off, staring and taking in the half-human's appearance.
"Inu… yasha?"
"You're pathetic, Kōga." Inuyasha insulted, grey eyes glaring vegemently at the wolf. "Gettin' all cut up like that by Kagura."
"Look who's talking." Kōga retorted. "You're nothin' but a weak mortal! I heard that…"
Kōga stumbled to his feet. The worst of his wounds were gone, but his body was still exhausted.
"I heard that half-demons fear for their lives. I also heard that when they're in the mortal state, they never appear before an enemy. You're pretty gutsy, you know, daring to come around me when looking like that…"
Kagome grabbed my shoulders, supporting me before I could fall over. "Easy." She told me.
"You're right." Inuyasha continued, hand reaching out to grab the handle of his blade, "So now that you know my secret…" His thumb poked his sword out of its sheathe and Kōga jumped back, raising a fist up in the air.
"You wanna fight!?"
Inuyasha's sword didn't transform. It was the first time I've seen it in its broken down katana form. "It's time to finish you off- here and now!"
The wolf demon moved forward, ready to battle, only to stumble and fall to a knee. His eyes didn't want to stay open. Kagome's eyes widened and she moved, pulling away from me to check on him. "Kōga! Please, be careful! Irene's Shikigami healed your wounds, but your body hasn't recovered yet!"
"Shiki… what?" He asked, looking at her. I fumbled for my rescue inhaler, snatching it out of my pocket and using it. "Eh, doesn't matter. I can still take that mutt on in a fight… besides, your touch has taken away nearly all the pain, Kagome." The nearby wolves howled and panted, nuzzling Kōga worriedly. Inuyasha scowled.
"Leave that half-dead wolf alone!"
Kōga glared at him. "What!?"
"If it doesn't hurt anymore then run on home!" Inuyasha taunted. "You puny little wolf."
Kōga stood, but Hakkaku tried to stop him. The wolf demon leader snapped, "Who are you to talk, standing there all weak and mortal! You're in no place to criticize the shape I'm in!"
"Ha! I'm not like this by choice, idiot!"
"You wanna fight!?"
"You bet; if you're up to it!"
Oh my gods. They're children. The two are literally children. What is this- third grade?
Kagome sighed, looking at them tiredly. "Hello? Don't you think we should take back the jewel shards?"
…
And so the chase began. Sango rode with Kagome, Shippō in the basket, while Koga and I sat on Kirara's back. Inuyasha, Hakkaku, Ginta, and Miroku ran alongside the wolves. Inuyasha glared up at Kōga, who rolled his eyes at him. "Why do you have to come along!?" The half-human demanded. I made a face, wondering why I had to be stuck in the middle of all their arguing. It was like I was back in school, caught between all the stupid bullies and their irritating conversations. Gods, I hated the seating charts.
"Shut up! Those jewel shards belong to me anyway, and I ain't gonna let you have them!"
Miroku ran faster, catching up with Kagome and Sango on the bike. "So Kagura hasn't returned to the castle yet!? We're heading in the opposite direction of it!"
"It doesn't look like it." Kagome said, pedaling faster. "I feel like the jewel shards are moving farther and farther away from it! Inuyasha caught her scent before in the direction of Tsuzumi Village, which leads to the castle, but now…! It's almost as if she's trying to run away from it!"
"That…" My brain tried to process that. "That doesn't make sense. Doesn't she work for Naraku?"
"Is Kagura stealing the shards on her own?" Inuyasha questioned, frowning as he caught up with Miroku.
"It's possible." The monk said. "Don't you think this whole thing is strange, Inuyasha? Even the barrier is gone! Why do you think you and Kōga were able to pick up the scent of the castle? The barrier has weakened! That means Naraku's own powers are weak!"
"Right!" Kagome exclaimed. "Naraku is a half-demon as well!"
"Wait, what?" My eyes went wide. I looked down at them, startled. "I thought you guys said he was a full-fledged demon!"
Sango shook her head. "He used the original body of a human named Onigumo, and gathered the powers of countless demons!"
"So he's a half-demon, just like Inuyasha!" Shippō finished. I made a face, exasperated.
"Why is this so freaking complicated? Next thing I know you guys are gonna say he isn't a spider at all!"
"No, he is." Kagome told me. "But if Inuyasha's loses his powers on the night of the new moon, maybe Naraku has a period of time where he loses his!"
"Which means Naraku has a weakness, too!" Inuyasha declared, even more determined than before. "We can kill him!"
Well, that's encouraging. I thought deeply for a moment before forcing myself to speak up. "W-We can't kill him right away, remember? We have to make sure he tells us where my sister is!"
"Sister?" Kōga asked, looking at me strangely. "What sister?"
I looked back at him, frowning. "The one I came here with. I mean, I'm pretty sure he has her anyway. There's this weird demon with them named Anastasia, and she has her voice! So I think they kidnapped her when we arrived here in Japan and stole it from her."
The wolf demon stared at me for a very long moment, narrowing his eyes. He leaned forward, causing me to be very uncomfortable as sniffed me again. "Hey… Irene, was it? What's your sister's name?"
I tilted my head, wondering what that expression was for. It was as if he was trying to figure something out, pieces of a puzzle clicking together in his mind. "Uh… it's, um, Mari-"
Kōga sat up straight, not hearing me as something caught his attention. "Kagura's here."
Without warning he leapt off of Kirara, dashing up to speak to Kagome. "Thanks for everything, Kagome! I'm going on ahead!"
"Kōga!" She cried. "Wait! Is your leg well enough to run like that!?"
"That damned wolf!" Inuyasha growled. Kōga looked back at us from his spot up ahead.
"My wounds are fine now! Unlike that twerp Inuyasha I'm a real demon!"
Oh, man, the half-human was furious. "What!?"
"See ya!" Kōga shouted, disappearing from view as he ran faster. Inuyasha raised a hand up in the air, leaping up onto Kirara and nearly pushing me off as he climbed in front of me. I yelped, clinging onto the cat demon's fur to stay aboard her back. He pet Kirara's neck, urging her to go faster. The cat demon picked up speed.
"Who the hell are you callin' a twerp!?"
"Sango!" Miroku began, causing the woman to look at him. "Kōga doesn't have his sacred jewel shards anymore; he won't stand a chance!" She nodded.
"We'll follow him! Kirara, let Inuyasha down!"
The cat demon responded in kind by tilting her body to the side. I screamed and grabbed tight onto her fur, clinging for dear life as my legs dangled in the air. Inuyasha wasn't as lucky. He didn't get a grip in time and fell hard onto the ground, face smacking into the dirt. Sango carefully stood up on the bike and waited until Kirara moved closer, the cat straightening herself out, and the woman jumped up- landing on the demon's back. I crawled back up into place, latching onto Sango's waist in fear of falling down.
"Inuyasha, I want you to stay out of sight a little longer! Irene and I will take things from here!"
Wait, frick, I'm coming too? If Kōga can't fight he'll end up in even worse shape, so… maybe a healer is a good thing. Kagome can give first-aid treatment, but the Shikigami I use are a more instantaneous healing. It would be nice if they could revitalize energy though. I took a shaky breath, looking back in time to flinch as Miroku whacked Inuyasha upside the head with his staff.
A buzzing noise could be heard up ahead and I moved my gaze to see what it was, dread pooling in my stomach. High in the sky were several familiar bugs flying by. I recognized them from Kasasagi Town. "S-Saimyōshō! Sango, look!" I pointed at them.
She grit her teeth and encouraged Kirara to move faster. "The poison insects are out! Let's go, Kirara! We gotta catch up!"
The cat demon let out a roar and the flames at her feet grew bigger. Catching sight of the wind sorceress a few minutes later, Sango showed no hesitation in grabbing her Hiraikotsu and throwing it at Kagura- the demon slayer letting out a battle cry as she did so. I ducked my head down and watched as the battle took place, wondering why I let myself be dragged along. I winced as the boomerang hit Kagura hard, knocking her off of her floating feather.
The female demon free-fell through the air for a short second, catching herself rather quickly and doing a flip in the air. Landing gracefully, as though she had just been doing a dance, she looked up. From below us I could see Kōga approach her, insulting her and calling her some rather crass names.
"-yeah?" I heard Kagura say as Kirara moved closer. "And you're relying on help from Inuyasha and his pathetic friends? Without these," She held up two small jewel shards, smirking, "you're too scared to fight alone, aren't you?"
Is she… baiting him? I sat up straighter, knitting my eyebrows and squinting down at her. It definitely seemed like she was trying to-
"Don't even think about interfering!" Kōga yelled at us. "I'll beat Kagura on my own!"
-get him to attack by himself.
Frick. Okay. "Are you stupid!?"
"What was that!?" Sango demanded, disbelieving at the wolf's decision. "You can't be serious!"
"Don't forget!" He snapped, charging at the wind sorceress. "I still have my claws!"
The smirk on Kagura's face broadened and she raised her arm, hand opening the fan. I knew what was going to happen immediately, recognizing the stance she held as she thrust the weapon sideways. "Dance of Blades~!" Several glimmering arcs appeared in the air and flew towards Kōga with incredible speed, perhaps due to her wielding several jewel shards. It took the wolf demon everything he had to stop running and leap to the side, narrowly avoiding one of the blades.
He wasn't even able to blink or take a breath, jumping out of the way again as soon as his feet touched ground. Again and again he dodged her attacks, running out of the way and hopping off the ground into the air with all his strength, until several of the blades hit the ground right behind him and created an explosion that sent him flying. I jolted and shrunk down, grabbing onto Sango and shaking her some.
"H-He's going to get killed! Sango, do something!"
"I…" She hesitated, not wanting to go against his wishes yet desiring to help. "Alright."
Kagura brought her fan back up and twisted her body, bringing her feet forward in a subtle wind dance. "Just die already!" More blades ripped out of her fan towards the wolf demon, who forced himself up off the ground to start running again. The wounds that weren't healed earlier had started bleeding, and some had even become worse from his fall thanks to the explosion. Sango raised her hiraikotsu high and threw it, startling Kagura. "What!?"
The wind sorceress watched as the boomerang intersected her blades, temporarily offering Kōga some protection and allowing him to recover. Kagura swept her fan through the air repeatedly, anger forming on her beautiful face. "I don't have time to bother with the likes of you!" The boomerang curved back through the air, but the blowback from the blades had caused it to crash into one of the nearby cliff sides. Sango ordered Kirara to move down and Sango leapt off of her, dashing over and grabbing her weapon in time to raise it in front of herself- blocking some of the blades and being pushed back against the wall.
"Sango!" I yelped, scared by the way she was being forced down. I clung tight to Kagura and scooted up to where the demon slayer had been sitting previously, only to shout when Kirara suddenly picked up speed and flew angrily towards Kagura. "Wh-Whoa! No, no, no, no, no-! GAAAH!"
We were forced sideways, Kirara spinning through the air with me clinging on for dear life as she expertly avoided the wind blades. I felt something nick my arm and I hissed, but didn't complain as I lowered myself as close to the cat demon as possible. Kōga glared at us and dashed forward, furious at the interference. "I said stay outta this, damn it!"
"You're being stupid!" I cried out, dizzy by the time we regained balance. Kirara let out a roar and Sango ran forward, throwing her hiraikotsu once more. "She baited you and you know it!"
"I can't just stand by and watch you die, Kōga!" Sango shouted, body swinging itself alongside the weapon until she let go of it- allowing it to sail through the air. Kagura jumped up, laughing as it missed, and swung her fan once more. As the blades shot out the boomerang doubled back, narrowly missing the wind sorceress as it returned to Sango who caught it with relative ease. "I know you told us to stay back, but you're too badly wounded!"
"Stop acting like a bratty kid and accept the help!" I screamed, arms around Kirara's neck as the demon charged at Kagura once more, flying around the blades. The cat demon let out a pained roar when one of her legs got cut by the blades, but she didn't stop. Instead she moved faster, sharp teeth aimed for Kagura's throat. Kōga let out a yell as he was sent flying again, body ramming hard against several large rocks. He could barely move at this point. "Oh gods!"
Kagura was so close to us now. Her eyes zeroed in on me and I shrieked, seeing the way she grinned and raised her fan. Red flames flickered to life instantly on my fingers, sparked by my fear, and as Kirara snagged her fangs into Kagura's non-dominant arm the wind sorceress let loose another attack.
And like an idiot I lunged for her fan.
There was a split second of pain, sharp and overwhelming, and warmth. I found my legs wrapping around her hips and my left arm around her shoulder, body tackling the female demon, my right hand shooting out white hot flames that covered the length of her entire limb as my fingers snatched her wrist. There was no salvaging this situation; I had screwed up. I acted on impulse and recklessly grabbed onto her.
But Kirara and I had her pinned and Kagura was currently screaming. "Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry-! Frick, frick, gimme the fan, gimme the fan! Eeek!"
"Why you-!" She cried. Her fan closed in her grasp and Kōga charged with Sango forgoing her Hiraikotsu, unsheathing her wakizashi sword in its stead and running at the struggling sorceress. During this time I had found myself tangling the fingers of my left hand into her hair, the fire spreading to her face. "Get off of me! IT BURNS!"
If she would stop thrashing I could grab the stupid fan and- oof! She had managed to untangle my legs from around her and one of Kagura's knees made contact with my stomach, causing me to wheeze and break out into several hard coughs. I almost let go as a result, vision spotted with black and red, but I held strong.
At least, I tried to. Unfortunately for me I was just a weak mortal, who's only strength was the Shikigami. Kagura had real power behind her and was able to yank her arm away after delivering such a hard blow, and she kicked Kirara in the throat. The demon let go of her arm, mouth covered in Kagura's blood, and reared back on her hind legs as she let out a pained roar.
I was thrown back as a result and the flames dissipated from Kagura's body, and just as Kōga and Sango got close the woman was able to return to her feet and spin- twisting her fan in the air in a hauntingly familiar way. Meanwhile Kirara and I couldn't even move, coughing and hacking, curled on the ground. "You're all infuriating! DIE!"
The wind became stronger and colder, and suddenly there were cyclones swirling about tearing at the ground and heading directly towards everyone. Sango shouted something and I tried to push myself up, but everything hurt so bad. Next thing I knew there were a pair of arms around my waist hoisting me up into the air, the slayer picking me up and running. Kirara had transformed back into her kitten-like state and was letting out little whimpers, and to get to her Sango had to evade the tornadoes.
This was not an easy feat.
Kōga himself was having trouble avoiding him, leaping side to side and cursing Kagura with every breath. With me slung over one shoulder, it was impressive that Sango was even able to move as quickly as she was. She slid out of the way and jumped onto and over a boulder, snatching Kirara up with one hand. Suddenly, and without warning, the winds picked up once more and Sango found her feet being swept out from under- the woman being blown aside by Kagura's winds.
Because of this Kirara and I went flying, and Sango cried out as she crashed into Kōga. Kagura huffed, exhausted, several burns spread along her body and a deep gash in her arm from where Kirara had bit her earlier. It looked like it was barely hanging on. "You… are nothing." She bit out. "If you seriously think you can defeat me, then you have another thing coming!"
For a moment my vision faded to black. The next, I was pushing myself up onto my knees and staring at Kagura- questioning what she gained from this and if she even wanted to work with Naraku or fight us. What was her intentions aside from the jewel shards? What did she gain from killing us?
And where's- "Sango!"
She was sprawled next to Kōga, who looked like he was about to pass out any moment. Several cuts wracked her body, but it didn't stop her from standing and readying her hiraikotsu again. "Kagura… we know we can defeat you. Just admit you're scared already."
"This is…" Kōga wheezed, limbs shaking as he tried to sit up. "...my fight. B-Back off…"
"That's not happening." Sango told him, glaring. "Kagome would be upset if you died. I'm not having that on my conscience. And-! What's that!?" Her head snapped, hearing something above us all. There, in the sky, were dark clouds… and they were parting unnaturally. From them appeared dozens, no, hundreds of demons ready to devour the flesh and blood of anything living. "Naraku… he always sends so many demons!"
She spun on her heel and swung her weapon, aiming high in the sky. I watched in horror as it tore through five, maybe eight of them before doubling back and taking out four more. It returned to Sango shortly after, but it might as well have done nothing. The number of demons were too great.
"Oh gods…" I crawled forward, nearing Kirara and only noticing just then how badly wounded the both of us were. I hadn't even realized how many cuts were covering my body from Kagura's winds- the littlest movement had blood dripping to the ground. I scooped the cat up in my arms and curled into a ball, scared and uncertain of what I should do. "We're gonna die, we're gonna die…"
No. No. Don't think like that. It's fine. Sango is strong.
She's wounded.
We're all bleeding and broken.
What can I do?
I'm so tired- will I even be able to heal everyone?
Don't think.
I have to do it anyway. It's our only chance. Frick, frick, frick. I cuddled Kirara close to my face, pressing her forehead to my cheek. She was burning up. Why did I feel so cold? Kirara, please don't die. I'm so sorry.
O' mighty flowing river, please…
It was so hard remembering the incantation. I wasn't even certain it was having any effect until a bright blue pentagram formed beneath me, flames flickering and dancing around us. It was so bright it illuminated the darkness, catching the attention of Kagura who had previously been shaken by the appearance of so many demons. Even Kōga and Sango, who were preoccupied with their own situations, were temporarily distracted by the sudden light.
...bring with you the sounds of blessings!
I could almost hear the water rushing as the twin koi appeared, diving out of opposite ends of the pentagram and swimming around me. They grew in size substantially, flames like water trailing behind them as they danced. It was mesmerizing watching them work, flame-like droplets dripping from their fins and splashing onto my face.
From my hold Kirara stopped coughing and shivering, her red eyes slowly opening to see what was going. Sango caught her hiraikotsu in time to watch as the fish approached her, the flames spreading across the earth and enveloping her and Kōga's bodies. The wolf demon stumbled to his feet and stared at his arms and legs, the wounds fading away as the flesh grew back. "This is… that technique from before…" He murmured. "How come I feel so relaxed now? I'm in the middle of a battle…"
"Irene's Shikigami…?" Sango asked, amazed as she watched the fish return to me. "It's… beautiful."
I slumped over, eyes starting to drift shut, but the pain was now gone. Kagura was trembling, but whether it was from fear or rage I didn't know. No- that's wrong; I just couldn't tell. She was too far away from my crappy eyesight to see her face properly. Man, I wished I had my glasses. So sleepy…
Kirara wriggled out of my grasp and transformed, running towards Sango who easily jumped and landed onto her back. "Let's go! We have to take care of those demons first! Kōga, I'm entrusting Kagura to you!"
"It's about damn time!" He hissed, cracking his knuckles and breaking out into a run. The wolf demon was worn out beyond belief, but his injuries were gone. Nothing was holding him back now. "Get outta the way, Irene; this is between demons!"
Kagura snapped her head over to look at Kōga, having been too distracted by my Shikigami and the demons Sango were fighting to notice him get closer. His fist rammed into the side of her face, sending her flying back.
"Hrah! Die, witch!"
The shards that had long since fallen to the ground caught Kōga's attention now that the female demon was knocked back and he was close enough to see them. His eyes widened.
"The shards!" Kōga lunged, leaping at them with his hand extended to grab them. Kagura landed and saw this, her eyes alight with fury. "They're mine!" Raising her arm, she thrust her fan violently through the air.
"Dance of the Dragon~!"
Kōga's hand was centimeters away from the jewels when the cyclones appeared, tearing into his flesh and sending him flying into another whirlwind. His scream tore right through the sound of violence, startling even Sango who was caught up in slaying demon after demon. The noise send a cold chill down to my very bones, the dizziness from asthma and bloodloss not enough to stop me from understanding what that scream meant.
He was going to die.
Through the mess I never really noticed the sun rising or what that would mean for us, but Kōga's screams were heartwrenching. The cyclones were tearing him apart and ripping into his flesh, crimson liquid spurting and fur falling away. Kagura laughed and I turned, seeing the manic grin on her face. She was drenched in her own blood, nearly sent into madness from her own pain. The burn on her face was unsightly.
"Die, wolf!" She chanted. "Be shredded by my wind!"
He was thrown into the cyclones mercilessly, the tornadoes damaging him badly. When they finally slowed down and dispersed into wind Kōga collapsed, completely unmoving.
"Certainly a glutton for punishment." She commented, stepping forward with crazed red eyes, swinging her fan side by side as her other arm dangled uselessly at her side. She tilted her head, grinning as her bangs fell into her face. Her voice was sickeningly sweet. "Shall I play with you some more? Surrender and I'll make it painless."
Kōga couldn't move, but he could still see. And his blue eyes were unforgiving, glaring deep into her soul. The wind sorceress laughed.
"I see how it is… hyah!"
She raised her fan, the wind picking up once more as a tornado formed from the cloud above. It headed straight towards Kōga, ready to deliver the final blow and finish him off for good. In all honestly, I wasn't sure who screamed; perhaps both Sango and I did, or maybe someone else entirely. All I know is that the cyclone made contact and the world around me became a complete blur as the tears fell.
He was dead.
Kōga. Kōga was… killed. By Kagura.
She… actually did it.
A-And… he'll never wake up again.
A hand shot up to my mouth as the bile bubbled up my throat, stomach churning grossly, but before I could throw up my eyes caught sight of something red standing where Kōga once was. The black hair was gone now, replaced by something bright and silver, and the wolf demon…
...he was behind Inuyasha, held up by Miroku, complaining about being saved by the half-demon.
"He's alive…?"
Inuyasha flexed his claws and grinned, practically sneering at the wounded wind sorceress. "Kagura. It can't be that much fun killing a half-dead wolf, can it?" He unsheathed his sword, tetsusaiga undergoing its familiar transformation into a great sword. I was never more happy to see the half-demon.
Unfortunately, I was still shook and had vomit literally sitting in my mouth, and I wound up having to turn my head away to throw up. I heard Inuyasha challenging her and Kagura making a sarcastic comment in retort, but I wasn't able to look back until Inuyasha had swung his sword above his head- bringing it down as demonic energy swirled around the blade. Kagura had created more tornadoes, all of which were swirling violently towards Inuyasha.
"Look out!"
Inuyasha wasn't bothered. He brought his blade down hard into the earth and light erupted, several large streaks tearing through the winds and into the earth, heading for Kagura. Kagura was alarmed, the fear that was already in her eyes glimmering with unadulterated terror. "H-How did he cut through my whirlwind!?" The female demon couldn't move, too tired and wounded and scared, only able to watch as the Wind Scar grew closer.
Her demise was impending and she knew it.
Or at least it was, until the demons that were fighting Sango moved in front of Kagura- taking the blast for her and being slain by Inuyasha's attack. Between the blood and guts and chunks of flesh, only the bones of certain demons disintegrated- the rest surrounding the area. Sango stared, awed.
"A-All of Naraku's demons…" She stammered, "at once they just… moved."
"They protected Kagura!" Miroku observed. Inuyasha sheathed his sword and huffed, seeing that Kagura had disappeared. The half-demon clicked his tongue in distaste.
"She escaped again, damn it." Inuyasha growled. He turned his head, looking at Kōga. "Hey, you puny wolf! I hope you learned your lesson! Never interfere in my fight with Naraku-"
He cut himself off, seeing the way the wolf demon was picking up the jewel shards that were left abandoned on the ground. His amber eyes widened and he charged, chasing after Kōga who jumped out of the way. Kagome had already tended to his wounds during Inuyasha's fight with Kagura, so Kōga was sporting several bandages and band-aids.
"Give those here!" Inuyasha demanded. "I beat her, so they're mine!"
"No way!" Kōga retorted. He quickly inserted them back into his legs and stood, glaring. "Remember this, mangy mutt! I've sworn to avenge my comrades' deaths! I'll be the one to take Naraku's head; don't forget it!"
"Wait, Kōga!" Kagome cried, stepping forward. "What you saw last night… I mean, about Inuyasha…"
Kōga huffed and turned away. "Oh, don't worry. I couldn't care less about what shape that dumb dog takes."
And, without any warning, he ran away faster than the eye could see. Shippō blinked. "Uh… does that mean he won't tell?"
"I think we can count on Kōga." Miroku said, walking over with Inuyasha towards him and Kagome. "The problem is Kagura. ...Hey, where are Sango and-"
"Irene!" Sango shouted, she and Kirara flying towards the ground where I was hunched over dazed. She jumped off the cat demon and dashed over, kneeling beside me. "What's wrong!? Are you hurt? Did the Shikigami not heal you?"
Sleepy. Hungry. I don't feel very good. Sango's hands on my arms shook me lightly and I fell over, head hitting lightly against her chest. "Lungs… hurt…" I murmured, eyes struggling to stay open. "Tired…"
"Here." She slid an arm under my knees and the other against my back, lifting me up and carrying me carefully towards Kirara. The cat demon let out a sound that almost sounded like she was worried, kneeling down so Sango could set me on her back easier. "How's that? Just get some rest, alright? I didn't expect you to jump into the battle like that…"
I looked at her through blurry vision, trying to make out of her face. "...was hurt… wanted to… h-help. K-Kagura… scary. Inuyasha… a-almost died… l-last time. Kōga… this time." Needed to stay awake. Have to. Sango moved to pull her hand away, but stopped when she felt my fingers latch tiredly onto hers. "Sister…"
Her eyes widened.
I choked up. "W-Want… my big sister…" Where is she? Why can't I find her? "M-Maria…"
And then my hand lost all strength, body being lulled to sleep by the comforting warm the cat demon gave off.
…
My dreams were pure black, nothing but darkness encasing them. The nightmares weren't even proper; I was trapped in the silence, everything around me wet and sticky with blood. Each step hurt, but I couldn't see what I was walking on. Objects just crunched and cut at my bare feet. It was only when flames lit upon my flesh that I saw where I was and what was surrounding me.
And it wasn't pleasant.
Inuyasha, Kagome, Shippō, Sango… Kōga.
Their dead bodies greeted me face-to-face, skeletons belonging to that of deceased demons beneath my feet. Laughter hit my ears and when I turned it was Kagura who greeted me, the burns along her flesh more gruesome than ever. The arm Kirara had nearly bitten off was completely gone, and the wind sorceress looked completely deranged.
"Well?" She asked, red lips smiling at me as she narrowed her eyes. "Aren't you pleased? You caused this."
What?
A bony hand wrapped around my wrist and I froze, heart nearly beating out of my chest. I was scared to look. I didn't want to see what I did. But still, I found myself turning around to view the skeleton of the person who grabbed me.
Yet before my eyes could land on them and see which one it was…
...a pair of arms wrapped around me and a familiar voice whispered softly in my ears, a pair of warm hands covering my eyes to obstruct my vision. "It's just a bad dream… You did nothing wrong."
And as if a spell had been cast on me my eyes opened in the real world, groggily blinking as my vision adjusted to the light. Fingers ran gently through my hair, comforting and kind. My breath was languid and my body was relaxed; I felt so at ease I questioned if I was even alive at the moment. Slowly raising my head when I felt the fingers stop playing with my hair, I found myself meeting a pair of brown eyes that were looking at me in relief.
"S-Sango?" My voice was raspy. There was a wooden ceiling above us. "Y… You're real, right?"
She nodded her head, smiling. "I'm real. How are you feeling?"
I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, slowly realizing that the reason my pillow was so comfy was because it was her lap. I felt… safe. At this moment, all anxiety and stress that had been eating away at me was gone. I turned my head, feeling as if I could fall back asleep and have only good dreams this time. I yawned and forced myself to open my eyes, blinking and looking up at her. "...Sleepy. What happened?"
She continued to play with my hair, an action that greatly reminded me of my sisters. "After the battle with Kagura you fell asleep. Kagome administered your medicine to help you, and you napped on Kirara's back while we made our way to Tsuzumi Village. I think… it was your Shikigami that caused you to be so exhausted. Your body is so fragile, yet your power… it's too much for you to handle."
"...How long have I been asleep?" I'm so thirsty. Where's some water? Are we in a hut right now? "Did we make it to the village?"
"A little over a day." She answered. "A man was attacked by demons and Inuyasha saved him, so he let us stay in his house as thanks. Do you think you can walk? I'm sure you must be hungry."
"...I probably can, but I really wanna nap again. You're comfy."
Sango blinked. "Oh. Well… thank you, I think."
I sighed and yawned again, louder this time, and stretched out my arms and legs. Then I sat up, leaning over with a huff. Sango re-positioned the way she was sitting and watched me wake up the rest of the way. I licked my teeth, making a face. Toothbrush. Where was one? I dragged myself over to the backpacks, practically burying myself in the giant neon one, and made a happy noise when I saw it, paste, and some jerky.
"Food~!"
I stared at it, then the toothbrush, at the jerky, back to the toothbrush, and sighed. "Health first. I miss cereal."
"Oh!" An older man walked into the hut, surprised to see us. "You've woken up!"
A teal bandanna was wrapped around his head, a blue-and-grey kimono covering his torso with a red vest wrapped around it. Dark hakama covered his legs. My only assumption was that he was the person who Inuyasha saved from demons. He smiled as he approached.
"I was starting to get worried. When they told me you had an illness… I thought you might not wake! But clearly everything is alright." He bowed to me. "My name is Densuke. It's a pleasure to meet you, Priestess."
Um. What? Oh, frick. I was wearing the kimono Kaede lent me. When did that happen? Kagome or Sango must have changed my clothes while I was asleep. "Uh, y-you too… I'm Irene."
His smile broadened. "Lady Irene." Oh gods, that's weird. I don't like that. I mean, it's flattering, but… I feel so awkward. "The rest of your friends have gone out into town to find more information about the castle. Since the landslide the highway's been closed, so there's no way to get to it at the moment."
"O-Oh…" Wait. My eyebrows knit together. "So we can't get to Naraku?"
Sango shook her head, frowning. "Not at the moment. But with any luck the highway will be cleared soon. Want to come with me and ask around once you've finished getting ready?"
Spend time with this awesomely strong lady? Heck yeah. My eyes lit up and I beamed, the excitement showing clearly on my face. "Really? Y-Yeah, just- uh, give me a minute! I'll be quick!"
Something flashed in Sango's expression when she saw me scramble to my feet in an effort to prepare myself. It was almost melancholic. Sad.
Like she was remembering something painful, yet bittersweet all the same.
And as I brushed my teeth using some water from a nearby basin, I found myself wondering what Sango's reason for finding Naraku was.
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