A/ N: Dedicated to the goddess of the winds, Kagura. May she continue to live in our hearts as a happy, carefree soul. Let her breeze through your heart, and let her sacrifice be engraved in our hearts, for eternity.
Wind. As mysterious as the wind, the coolness of it coursing through my heart and soul, soothing it from all external worries and burdens; beckoning me.
She cupped her hands on her wound. The pain was excruciating. It bit through her soul, making feel like she was burning in flames, burning and lashing at her. It felt as though a thousand different needles were pricking through her skin, sinking deep into each capillary and bursting them. She gritted her teeth in agony. A sudden burst of blood emitted from the gory wound, and she was engulfed once more in Naraku's toxic miasma.
"Na...ra...ku……"
She moaned, emphasizing on every syllable of her captor painfully, a sense of hatred rippled through her soul. Her vision started to blur, and the surroundings didn't matter to her anymore. The trees, ground and cherry blossoms rolled into one, one perfectly flawed image. But she didn't care anymore. The sounds and scents were fragrant, intoxicating her soul, but nothing mattered anymore. Her dark blue kimono with a hint of a burst of teal, together with a glimmering satin gold obi was now stained in deep red blood. Her face cringed as the place where her heart originally was burned, eyebrows knitted together tightly, as veins on her forehead started to show. Sweat, tears rolled down her cheeks and she screamed once more, giving vent to her anger, and pain.
"NARAKU!" Blood trailed after each scream, the stillness of the forest was suddenly sliced like a knife with her shrieks.
She worked out haunted images of that abomination holding her heart, squeezing it. A wave of nausea pulsated through her body, making her feel even worse, even more awkward. Warm blood trickling down her nose, blocking out all other smells. Her mind wavered and the sky and the ground seemed to have exchanged places. Her world seemed to tumble down on her, crashing on her.
Involuntarily, she dropped down onto her knees and sobbed and shuddered.
Even till death, he wouldn't let me off…Naraku, that bastard!
All she smelt was blood; all she felt was death's imminent arrival. Her day wasn't sailing very well indeed. In her sub-consciousness, her heart ached, and she moaned softly.
Her heart…was longing…
She pictured him. His back, strong and sleek facing her, a slight breeze ruffling against his hair, making him look more and more like a Greek god, more mysterious and more aloof than ever. His body, muscular and well-toned, tall yet carrying a hint of superiority and noble birth.
Her heart yearned for him, to see him…for the last time.
She felt the repercussions of the attack once more and winced. Her muscle ligaments felt like they were slowly tearing apart from the pain and she grimaced. Finally, she could no longer control that sudden influx of tears that had arisen in her eyes.
Let me see him once more… Just once more…Please!
Tears, hot tears slipped down her almond eyes, rolling down on to the floor…
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Longing, for him; longing, to be…free.
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Free from all of her troubles; free from her captor; free to pursue her infatuation; free to do things she wanted to……
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She smiled at him.
He had come gingerly and soundlessly, but he had come. His face was passive but she understood. He cared for her. Deep inside, his heart was weeping.
How had the Kagura, the crafty Kagura, the intelligent Kagura come to such an end? She smirked and as she did so, she saw his face melt into a slight smile, a slight worry.
She stared at him, the only one she had discovered feelings for recently. How calm and indifferent he seemed. But that's the way life was, wasn't it? Let them know your weaknesses and they will manipulate them, they will exploit them. The world was just a chasing game- cat chasing mouse. Naraku, unfortunately, was the bane of her life.
She smiled at him, he was the only satisfaction she could possibly derive from being trapped under Naraku. She was always longing to meet him, to comprehend that heart of his, and secretly, she wondered if her feelings were mutual or not. But now, she could leave happily, for she knew he cared and she knew she wouldn't be alone anymore. She always wondered how he would be like without that mask of his. Perhaps, cranky and a little mischievous? Or perhaps, just serious but charming all the same way. Perhaps, even a hopeless romantic? She grinned weakly at the thought of this.
She felt another hacking cough rippling through her body, and once more blood was splattered on the floor. He frowned slightly, but stood frozen to his spot, five feet away, against the cherry blossom trees, looking very regal indeed.
She didn't have much time left. She struggled to get up, to walk over, but to no avail, her heart was trapped but her legs were even more so. Numb by the agonizing pain that she had become slightly immune to.
"Naraku…"
She hated that vile creature. Binding her, incarcerating her to a life of gloominess and massacre for so many years, she couldn't stomach that hatred. She couldn't stand the fact that she was deemed helpless against him; she didn't like the way he held control over her. Why was she so useless?
Maniacal laughter once more, overwhelmed her head and soul.
"Kagura, your death is nearing…How does it feel to be poisoned by yours truly? You should have known betrayal is not tolerated among my followers. Your death should set a classic example for those under my wing. Those who come against me will, definitely, definitely come to a sorry ending…" His raspy voice drawled, making her goose bumps appear.
"Naraku, Naraku, you have no faithful followers at all…" She snickered, and coughed once more, with each cough bringing one step closer to death.
He frowned for a moment. "It is no longer of your concern. Die slowly, and suffer in the fires of Hell…Time will be waiting for you then…"
"Hmph…You underestimate me, I'm afraid, Naraku…Your life will be taken sooner or later too…and then you will join me...and you too will have all the time in the world…in Hell…It wouldn't look too nice on you, huh? With that bloated sense of arrogance you possess!"
Another bout of maniacal laughter rang in the air…
"I, Naraku, will not be easy to get rid off…"
It wasn't a question of doubtfulness, but a statement that was confident and powerful. His arrogance, it seemed, was overflowing, but nevertheless, it irked him. It irked him that she still managed to retort back, that little wimp that was dying under his very eyes, from Kanna's mirror. With a chant to his insanely long tentacles, an imaginary, insanely long set of tentacles lunged towards her heart once more, but the feeling was not virtual. It hurt. And it hurt madly. It reminded of the pain that in the middle of her right breast, a certain pumping muscle was not beneath it, but in the hands of a nefarious monster.
"Argghhhhhhh….Naraku, you baka!"
She screamed once more, gripping her heart in agony…She was close to losing consciousness.
Out of the corner of her eyes, she spotted him. Once again, he moved one step closer, and stopped there, but his face was nevertheless worried. Dimly, she saw them arriving, the ones she began to grow closer to and she smiled. She wouldn't die alone. Alone like how she had always been all these years…
"Chichi…I want to be as free as the wind…"
"Why, my precious fairy?"
"Because they have no worries, and they can travel from one end of the world to another! Wouldn't it be great, Chichi?"
"And they have wings, they can fly!" She hopped around like a little bunny, in a field full of sunflowers and Baby's breath, taking in the wonders of the world, and beaming up at her grinning father. She was ravishing, her satin black tresses flowing behind her, her face illuminated with a certain glow.
"And no one can stop you, and you can look at the boundless oceans!" Her eyes suddenly went big at the thought of seeing huge bodies of water. Seas and oceans, to her was simply something that only existed in scrolls and her mind. She had never seen them before. How great was it to see one?! Not great. Fantastic.
Her father laughed merrily, a deep dusky yet warm voice filled the atmosphere. His wrinkles appeared while he was laughing, but it made him more adorable, more endearing to her.
"I am Wind…the Goddess of the Wind!"
She smiled inwardly to herself, at her immature self then. He was still staring at her, worrying about her, but she knew, he wanted to accompany her on her last journey.
Perhaps it was a detachment; her ending was an ending, literally, to her sufferings all these years. She felt her wounds stinging once more, as though millions of ants were crawling through her, as though her soul was splitting carefully apart, was disintegrating. She flashed Inuyasha and Kagome and Sango and Miroku a look of gratitude…
…As she did so, she suddenly remembered about a certain teenage ninja, who had always been her little beacon of hope in these times, how they had helped each other by sheer determination not to be caught backstabbing Naraku…how they had helped each other stay afloat the boat of death…each time…how they had started to care for each other like brother and sister.
"Kohaku, leave!"
"I will personally deal with that bastard Naraku. Leave! You have no need to fall prey to this monster and give in to him!"
"Kagura-chan!"
"Leave, before it is too late. Don't worry, it'll be fine!"
"Your sister needs you! I'll be fine…"
With one last longing look, he turned his back, and ran towards the thick canopy of forests ahead, shouting "Onee-chan", leaving behind a lonely Kagura. But she smiled gently; he reminded her so much of her family, so much of the warmth she experienced beforehand. Silently, he muttered to himself, Arigato Kagura-chan, take care. Don't let Naraku, that baka, get to you, and stay safe, for the love of Kami…
She smiled momentarily, but it was overwhelmed by another bout of cough and blood. She felt her wound stinging at a more intense rate, like huge fires consuming her soul and felt a slight breeze emitting from within. Once more, she flashed him a warm grin, a look of gratitude, of kindness and of…and of…
She didn't know the name of that feeling, all she knew was it warmed the feeling in her not present heart and made her long for him. It made her stomach burn with yearning and passion and made her ears feel hot and uncomfortable. It was a sort of feeling that linked him and her together, a very intimate yet close feeling. But she could not describe it…she could not find the word, the word she had not heard for the past fifteen years of her life, a long-forgotten feeling revived in the deepest of the deepest of her mind.
She knew she had to leave soon, and once more she looked at the surroundings, they were no longer vivid, but the sounds, sights and scents of Mother Earth's most natural and ravishing beauty captivated her. Kohaku, take care, I have faith in you…
It was time…to leave…
She smiled at them, looking at the boundless blue sky, tarnished only by a couple of spotlessly white clouds, and the pink cherry blossoms that dropped off… In her mind, she saw, her father, with his jet-black hair calling for her, extending his hands towards her, and calmly he said, "Let's go, my wind goddess…"
They watched her slowly disintegrating, her soul swarming up like a metallic shimmer in the shape of a butterfly twirling towards the azure blue sky. Slowly, it created a sudden breeze, gentle and warm; yet at the same time beautiful and calm flowing through them. It was her way of saying thanks and a way of expressing her love. Her love for him that was unspoken…
All was left was her blood-stained kimono, flowing gracefully down onto the ground, and the falling of pale pink cherry blossoms that hailed her departure, letting her leave in a glorious manner, for she was free.
Free. Like the wind, she was mysterious and ravishing; yet at the same time, she was carefree and joyful. Silently, she danced around in circles, a beautiful pink shimmer following her everywhere, forming a ravishing rhapsody. A tiny breeze fluttered the leaves, and from afar, one could hear her mellifluous, gentle voice. It was a sound, a tune, a melody that bonded her to him; a Lovers' requiem…Finally she raised her graceful body and curtsied slightly, like a free ballerina, then turning her back, she danced her way back in slight figures of eight…Danced her way back home, where she belonged…
Further and further away from their sight……
"Chichi, I'm seeing the world now, together, with you…"
He looked down, his heart overwhelmed by melancholy as she departed, leaving nothing except her garments and music to remember her by. But he was glad. Despite being dejected, he knew she was happy; she was free; and at long last she can have peace of mind. Once more, he glanced at her soul, nothing more than a little dot in the far horizon.
"Did she…did she leave happily?" His half-breed fool of a brother broke that silence of mourning. He looked pensively at the falling cherry blossoms for a moment. He understood Inuyasha's intentions though, it was the only thing they could do for her.
"She left with a smile on her face…" He murmured silently, not willing to break the silence, the silence that she deserved.
Finally, he looked up into the deep blue skies and added to himself, No, her death was not painful at all…She died happily, and…freely.
Kagura, sayonara, for eternity. May your soul rest in peace. Watashi wa anata.. aishiteru…
Goddess of the wind, forever.
The End (of her story.)
Arigato, for eternity.
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