Chapter Twenty-Nine
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By the way, this is where some of the M rating comes into play...
The next morning we made the decision to stay right where we were. Sango was still too weak to travel, and Kirara wasn't quite herself either after inhaling Naraku's poison miasma. Both the Demon Slayer and her companion laid curled up with one and other inside of the old hut, whilst Shippo, Inuyasha, Myoga, Miroku, and I sat outside discussing what our next steps should be.
"I have heard rumor of a special antidote that can work as a cure against poisons like Naraku's." Myoga states as he sits on Inuyasha's shoulder. I look to him curiously, Inuyasha's amber eyes sharp as well as he turns his head to look at the flea.
"Why would we need an antidote? I basically cured Kirara of the poison with my own powers." I frown slightly, glancing towards the hut where the cat demon still rested. Sure, she wasn't exactly up to perfect health, but she was a far cry from where she would have been now if it hadn't been for my purification.
"I mean no offense to your powers, Yua." Myoga begins gently. "But what if there comes a time where you are unable to use your powers like you had last night? If your powers are drained from battle? Any one of your companions could die from the poison without an antidote as a backup." I blink, having not really thought it through like that before.
'I really am getting too cocky.' I think with a frown, looking down at my own two hands. 'I know I'm a lot more powerful than when I first came here, but I forget that I still have limitations.'
"Myoga is right." Miroku frowns as he looks towards me now too, and I look up to meet his blue eyes. "It's not fair of us to rely solely on you for healing, Yua. Not when your powers might need to be put to better use in the fight against Naraku."
"You need to worry about protecting yourself, not about leaving enough energy in storage to be able to heal us." Inuyasha seconds, my gaze snapping over towards him. His amber eyes are darker, and I swallow thickly knowing exactly what he wasn't saying. We both knew that if Naraku got a hold of me that the demon would do everything in his power to make me create the Jewel for him from my own aura. And I honestly didn't know if I was strong enough, mentally or physically, to take whatever methods of torture Naraku would concoct up in his sick mind. Not only that, but the idea that he would force me to have his child just so he could also use it for it's jewel sent my stomach rolling with nausea.
"So what is this antidote then?" I ask as I force my stomach to settle, turning my gaze down to the flea once more.
"There is supposedly a herb garden not far from here." Myoga begins seriously. "Unfortunately for us there is also said to be a demon that guards it."
"But that's a perfect job for Inuyasha!" Shippo exclaims from beside my hip, gazing up at Inuyasha with a big smile. "After Inuyasha defeats the demon, we can just take what we need!" I lift an eyebrow at this as I gaze down at the little fox demon, his praise a little unusual towards the Alpha. I slowly look towards Inuyasha, having to bite my lower lip to hold back a giggle as I see him sitting there with his chest puffed out slightly.
'That little suck up.' I can't help thinking dryly about Shippo, running my fingers absently through his hair then. 'I don't know what's worse. That Shippo knows Inuyasha enough now to know exactly what to say, or that it's actually working.'
"Well, if it helps Kirara then I'm happy to do it!" Inuyasha proclaims, an air of self importance heavily surrounding him now. I barely refrain from rolling my eyes at that. "She actually helps in battle, unlike Myoga." Inuyasha obviously can't resist the urge to poke at the cowardly flea once again.
Shippo follows right in line, crossing his arms and taking on the exact same self important stance as Inuyasha. "We can actually count on Kirara, unlike some people. Without her strength we could really be in trouble."
Then, as if they were completely in tune, they both nod together with identical smirks on their faces as Myoga has a slight melt down.
'Oh god no, Shippo. One Inuyasha is enough.' I can't help groaning, frowning slightly then as I reach over and gently pinch the little boy's ear. Shippo squeals in surprise more than pain as his eyes snap open and he looks up to me wide eyed.
"That's enough from both of you. Myoga has been a lot of help in other areas." I defend the poor flea, not letting go of Shippo's ear. "You owe him an apology."
"What?!" Shippo exclaims in disbelief, his arms dropping from across his chest and flinging around widely. "He's a coward! He runs when we even talk about fighting!"
"Bravery isn't measured in the amount of fights you are in, and strength isn't measured in the amount of battles that you win." I reply firmly. I hated the fact that the little boy actually thought that way, but I also knew where it was coming from. With being out on the road with us, constantly under threat of other demons and watching Inuyasha defeat one after another, it was clear he has moved from being annoyed at the older half demon to idolizing him. While I would like Shippo to exemplify some of Inuyasha's qualities, like his loyalty, bravery, and kindness, there were others I would rather he not learn.
Like his cockiness and the skewed idea that strength and power meant more than having wits, and that relying on others was a weakness.
"What kind of bullshit is all that?!" Inuyasha exclaims, looking at me with disbelief. "Of course bravery and strength are measured by battles fought and won!" I look towards Inuyasha, narrowing my eyes at him.
"To you it might be, but it doesn't mean that's the right way to look at it either. Nor is it the right thing to be teaching Shippo!" I defend, letting go of the boy's ear before I reflexively pinch it harder in my frustration with the stubborn half demon sitting beside me.
Shippo, meanwhile, is constantly looking between Inuyasha and I with a confused expression on his face.
"So what do you think is more important than strength and bravery?" Inuyasha argues, frowning at me. I can't help the large sigh in exasperation, just barely stopping my head from lolling back towards the sky in frustration.
"I'm not saying that those qualities aren't important!" I argue, frowning. "I'm just trying to teach Shippo that they aren't everything."
"So you'd rather he be more like Myoga then? Running from every battle?"
"Hey!" Myoga cries out indignantly.
"I want him to value what others can bring to the table!" I can tell my voice is starting to rise, so I take a deep breath before continuing. "Myoga might not be a fighter, but he's helped us with his vast knowledge before, just like he is now. People shouldn't be valued on how strong they are or how well they fight." I turn to Shippo at the last bit, giving him a serious look. "I want you to remember that."
"A pack is only as strong as it's weakest member!" Inuyasha's voice is raised now as he frowns at me, before looking down at Shippo. "That is something you should remember." I was about to retaliate to that, absolutely furious with him undermining me like he was in front of Shippo, when a chuckle can be heard across from us. Both Inuyasha and I turn our heads slowly to the source, Miroku gazing at all three of us in amusement.
"You sound like an old married couple." He states simply, causing both Inuyasha and I to look at him wide eyed, mouths dropping slightly. Slowly we look towards one and other, and I can feel a blush heating up on my cheeks. As if seeing my own blush was enough, Inuyasha's cheeks redden as well, and we both look away from one and other once more. I turn my gaze down to my hands now placed on my knees, mentally counting in my head to try and cool the blush down. A few moments of silence pass, before Miroku speaks up once more.
"Yua, how about you and Inuyasha go and check this herb garden out. I'll stay here with Shippo, Kirara, and Sango to watch over them." Miroku offers, and I look up towards the monk, unimpressed.
"Just so you can make a pass at the poor girl without me here to stop you?" I question dryly, and Miroku laughs nervously, scratching at the back of his head.
"Yua! For shame! That never even crossed my mind!" He insists, though the lightness in his voice betrayed his guilt. I sigh heavily, shaking my head before finally being able to look towards Inuyasha once more.
"What do you think?" I ask him, the dog demon's ears twitching as he looks from Miroku to me, his gaze once again serious.
"Can't hurt to take a look."
"It would be faster if you'd just let me carry you." Inuyasha's annoyed voice broke the comfortable silence as we walked together down the road in the direction that Myoga had sent us. The flea had once again decided to duck out with the threat of a another demon in our future.
Of course, that had led to not only more jabs directed at the cowardly flea from Inuyasha, but also pointed looks as if to say 'see, I was right and you were wrong.'
I mean, maybe I read into those looks wrong, but somehow I doubted it.
"It's a nice day and the village isn't that far away. I want to be able to enjoy the scenery, rather than watch it blur by." I comment easily, shrugging my shoulders. "Besides, the walking is helping the soreness from yesterday."
"Soreness?" Inuyasha asks, his voice a little sharper now.
"It's nothing serious." I brush off, and it wasn't. It was just muscle soreness from the battle. "I'm not in pain, it's just uncomfortable."
"Even more of a reason to just get on my back so we can get there, gather the herbs, and get back." Inuyasha replies evenly, crossing his arms and folding his hands into his sleeves. I lift an eyebrow at him.
"Is spending time alone with me really all that disagreeable to you?" I ask dryly, meaning it as a joke.
"I didn't say that." Inuyasha replies, scoffing as he looks up towards the blue clear sky.
"Then quit making it sound like you'd rather be anywhere else." I point out turning my own gaze to the side to look at the pretty wild flowers lining the road. That seems to shut the half-demon up.
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were the one wanting to spend time alone with me." Inuyasha breaks the silence after a few moments, his tone decidedly more cocky than before. I can't resist rolling my eyes as I turn my head forward once more, refusing to look at him and the smug smirk he no doubt had on his face. I knew that he could already hear the pounding of my now racing heart at his accusation. It was embarrassing, but he was right.
"So?" I question, voice cracking slightly as I feel him step decidedly closer to me.
"So why do you want to spend time alone with me?" Inuyasha asks as I continue to look at the tree-line ahead of us, the path obviously going through a small forest. The distant memory of hot lips and hands grabbing at me flashes through my head, our last couple kisses having been very innocent in relation. I swallow thickly, trying to think of any reason other than that for wanting to spend alone time with the cocky half-demon beside me.
"It's nice to feel like old times again, before Shippo and the others came into our little group." I reply evenly, my voice much more steady than my heart. Inuyasha chuckles lowly beside me, before I stiffen and stop dead in my tracks feeling his hot breath blowing over my ear.
"Liar." Was all he had to simply growl into my ear, and I knew my body was giving me away. From my racing heart to the heat that now swamped me at his close proximity, he could no doubt hear and smell exactly what I was thinking of when I wanted alone time with him.
'But just because I want him to kiss me, to hold me, it doesn't mean that I should give in.' I think stubbornly, swallowing thickly. 'I can't make myself the easily accessible one while he still thinks of Kikyo.' I feel the hurt hit deep, thinking of a couple nights ago when he had been talking to Sango.
"How can it be that simple?" Inuyasha asks after a few more minutes of silence, sounding genuinely lost. "If Kohaku looks exactly the same, can you really forget everything and turn your heart against him that easily?" He asks, his voice filled with doubt. My eyes snap open at that, ice flooding through my veins.
'He's thinking about Kikyo.' I realize, pain exploding in my chest.
The memory hardens my resolve as I step away while throwing him an annoyed glance as his amber eyes, now molten with a knee-buckling heat, nearly undid my resolve. "Maybe you were right. We should just hurry up and get this done." I bite out, his face showing surprise as I allow my aura to surround me, levitating just slightly off of the ground. I turn, using my hands to direct my energy behind me and I leave the stunned half-demon in a small dust cloud. I make it just beyond the tree line before something solid collides into me, causing me to loose focus. I can smell Inuyasha's familiar scent surrounding me as he easily swivels around in mid-air with me in his tight hold, landing a ways off of the beaten path in the long grass. He's the one that takes the brunt of hitting the ground on his back, my body cradled to his chest. I lean up, hands braced on his firm chest as my legs fall naturally to either side of his hips, mouth opened in shock.
"Are you insane?!" I shout at him, feeling relieved to see the smirk on his face. Clearly he wasn't hurt. I hit his chest, to which he grunts playfully and grabs that hand by the wrist with his own. I don't have time to reflect on my provocative position over him before he rolls us over and I'm beneath him with one hand still pressed to his chest, the other being pinned down by his own hand against the ground above my head. "What are you doing?" I gasp in shock, looking up at him wide eyed.
It was then that I saw the heat still flickering in his eyes.
"You made me chase you." Inuyasha growls deep in his chest, and as his head lowers towards my own, his hair creates a silver curtain around us both. My heart actually skips a beat as his nose brushes against my own.
"I did what?" I gasp out, confused. What did he mean that I made him chase me? I did no such thing!
"Don't be coy." Inuyasha murmurs lowly as his nose then moves towards my jaw and down my neck, taking a deep breath of my scent there. My legs are trembling now, with nerves or anticipation of his next move, I'm not sure. His free hand moves up to my chin, gripping it gently and tilting my head away from him so he could bury his face against my neck.
His warm tongue touches my pulse point, nearly causing my back to arch right up off of the ground.
'What the hell was that?!' My eyes widen in shock. I have never been that reactive to anyone before. 'Then again, I don't exactly have too much experience with this.'
"I could smell your arousal on you as you left. You wanted me to chase you, to catch you." Inuyasha murmurs lowly against my skin, his open hand moving down to my own pressing against his chest. He grabs it, taking the limp limb and pinning it up above my head with my other arm. He lifts his head from my neck, moving to lean his forehead against my own. "Whether or not you realized it." He adds, his voice gentle as he could see the clear and genuine confusion on my face.
"I-I don't know-" I stutter out weakly, my entire body buzzing and aching all at the same time. As if understanding, Inuyasha gives me the sweetest peck on my forehead.
"Shhh, it's okay." He hushes gently, as if he was calming a startled horse.
Not exactly the analogy I had wanted to come to mind right now, but there it was.
Inuyasha moves, kissing each cheek, then my nose sweetly, before he tilts his head to brush his nose against my own. "I'll help you understand." He promises ever so softly, his voice once again filled with heat before his lips finally claim my own.
And when I say they claimed…I mean they completed dominated my own.
His lips were hot and searching as they sucked and passed over my own with such familiarity that it was alarming. It was like he knew exactly how I liked to be kissed, just the right amount of pressure and need, that sent me into a dizzying longing. This time, however, when he broke the hot kiss, he didn't stop. Instead I felt his lips move down to my jaw on the opposite side this time, his right hand coming down from pinning my own to tilt my head once more so he could run his lips down the skin of my neck. Every now and then his tongue would swirl teasingly against my skin between his lips, and by the third time it happened I had, had enough. My hand that was now released moved and dug into the hair on the back of his head, gripping it firmly and tugging him back up desperately. His groan of surprise at my action was caught by my own lips as I kissed him with equal heat, running my tongue along his bottom lip.
"Fuck." Inuyasha growls against my mouth, and I take the opportunity for what it was, sliding my own tongue in to meet his boldly. Inuyasha shifts at this, his knee coming up between my legs and spreading them ever so gently further. When his knee finally reaches as far as it can go, right to the apex of my thighs, I feel him stiffen above me as he breaks the kiss. Breathing heavily l look up at him, stunned that he had so suddenly pulled away.
"What's wrong?" I can't help asking breathlessly as he looks down at me, a grimace on his face, his swollen lips pulled downwards slightly in a frown. 'Well, that can't be good.' I reflect, chewing on my own swollen lower lip as I gently tug at my left hand still pinned above my head. I send him yet another confused look when he doesn't let me go.
"Where do you think you're going?" Inuyasha growls low in his chest, the huskiness of his voice and the demand in his question sending another wave of heat through me. I blink in surprise, feeling my face flush a little in embarrassment.
"I thought you wanted to stop?" I ask softly, my voice far more meek than I wanted it to be. Inuyasha lifts an eyebrow at this, looking down at me with dry disbelief.
"You think I want to stop?" He asks, a hoarse chuckle passing through his lips. "That's the furthest thing from my mind." I feel ready to explode with the frustration that came with his vague response, confusion still annoyingly present for me. "When your legs opened all the way, I could smell you so strongly…" He wiggles his knee right against the place where all the heat felt like it was pooling and pulsing, and this time I couldn't stop my back from arching against his own body, pressing into him with a soft gasp. My vision even goes a little blurry with the pleasure that rockets through my body before his knee stops it's delicious torture, blinking as his face comes back into focus. I swallow thickly, nervousness and insecurity rearing his ugly head then as I understood exactly what he was saying.
He didn't want to stop, but he was at the point he was unsure he'd be able to stop if we went further.
'But the ache, it's so bad. I can do this, right? I want to feel more, I want to feel him.' I think desperately to myself, even though the nervousness continues to intensify at the thought of him and I actually going through with it. Right here, in the middle of a forest, on the ground…
"You're not ready." Inuyasha dictates to me, as if he could hear my thoughts. I frown at that, bulking slightly.
"How would you know?" I argue, frowning. "You can't tell me what I'm ready or not ready for!"
"Yua…" Inuyasha frowns deeply, moving his knee from between my legs so both his knees rested on the ground on either side of my thighs. He released my left hand then, using it to gently brush some of my hair back from my face. "You're a virgin. I can smell that too."
Okay, where were the Thunder Brothers when you needed them to strike you down?
'We should have kept at least one of them alive for moments like this.' I think with utter humiliation, the only thing I could do was cover my burning face with my hands.
"Hey, there is nothing to be embarrassed about." Inuyasha chuckles, sitting up so he was hovering over my hips, gently grabbing my wrists and pulling them from my face. Luckily the embarrassment at having my virginity and inexperience so blatantly exposed had effectively wiped the heat straight out of my body. I sigh heavily, looking up at Inuyasha then as he gently pulled me from under him to sit in front of him instead. "But your first time shouldn't be in the middle of a forest like this." He waves his hand around, and I'm momentarily stunned by the genuine care in his statement.
He cared about what my first time would be like?
Inuyasha frowns then, guilt clear on his face as he looks down away from me to the side. "And…and it should be with someone who, without any doubts whatsoever, loves you." I felt like I had been stabbed in the chest at that. My hand raising to the front of my top, clutching at the material over my heart tightly.
'I let myself get carried away again. I allowed myself to forget.' I think bitterly, knowing I couldn't be angry at Inuyasha for his honesty. He had been clear all those weeks ago. He cared for me a great deal, but he wasn't sure if he was in love with me, not since the encounter with Kikyo. Even though it hurt like hell to have him say that once again, I knew he wasn't doing it to intentionally hurt me.
It still hurt regardless, however.
"Right." I reply, clearing my throat. Inuyasha's gaze snapped back to me, looking clearly worried. "We-we should get going. Don't want to have to leave Sango in Miroku's perverted hands much longer." I mutter, using the act of standing as an excuse to look away from him.
"Yua, I'm so-"
"Don't." I snap out, much sharper than I had intended. I wanted to sound cool and unaffected, but apparently I was incapable of controlling my emotions, even for my own benefit. "If you apologize for what just happened, it's going to make me feel used." I state honestly, breathing deeply. "And I know you weren't using me just now, or else you would have let it carry on, and I would have given in to you without a second thought." I pause for a moment, daring myself to look over my shoulder at him as he stood now too, his expression unreadable. "I know what I want, Inuyasha. That hasn't changed." I state firmly, Inuyasha's eyes widening slightly. Where this bravery was coming from to be so brutally honest with my feelings for the half-demon, I don't know. Maybe after all our near-death experiences I was realizing that life wasn't a guaranteed thing, and that there was no point in trying to avoid disappointment and being hurt. After all, you miss one hundred percent of the shots you don't take. Without saying anything further I turn back towards the path, Inuyasha soon coming to walk beside me as we made our way through the forest.
The silence was anything but comfortable now.
Hours later Inuyasha breaks the silence to inform me he can smell the village, and it was near. Just as we were about to enter another grove of trees, I can see five figures carrying what looked to be a large board between them. Whatever was on that board was covered, but as they got closer Inuyasha stiffened beside me.
"They're carrying a dead body." He informs me, grimly. I blink in surprise hearing him, before looking back towards the board, the lump indeed now looking like it was a body under the blanket.
"She's the third victim this week." I can hear one of the men speak up, all of them still unaware of our presence.
"I tell you, it's Jinenji!" Another man proclaims angrily.
"Of course it is! Who else would it be but that demon?!" A third angry man responds in agreement. I look towards Inuyasha in question, as he shrugs his shoulders before we move forward to meet the men.
"But what do we do?"
"Yeah? What?"
Inuyasha steps forward slightly in front of me as the men stop in their tracks when they see us approach, looking at both of us with caution. "So what kind of demon is this Jinenji?" Inuyasha asks in a serious voice, clearly surprising the men in front of us. The surprise slowly turns into suspicion.
"Why should we tell you?" One of the men asks lowly.
"You're a demon!" Another points out.
"Yeah, he is but he's not a bad demon." I reply easily as I step out slightly to the side to address the men. They looked at me with suspicion as well as Inuyasha glances at me with annoyance.
"You don't need to be telling them that!" He argues, causing the men to all back away in fear.
"Stop it! You're scaring them." I exclaim back at him, glaring, before turning back towards the men with what I hoped to be a harmless look. "We just want to find a farm that's near your village. Apparently whoever owns it grows herbs that could help a friend of ours." I tell them truthfully, hoping they would believe me. One of the older men looks at me with realization.
"You mean Jinenji's farm?" He asks, and I frown in confusion.
Wasn't Jinenji the very same demon they blamed that woman's death for? How could a demon like that also grow medicinal herbs that help people?
"Jinenji is a huge demon that lives with his Mother on the edge of the village." Another man began to fill in, obviously seeing my look of confusion.
So Jinenji was a half-demon?
"Them plants of his work, sure enough, but lately I…that is to say he-"
"Lately he's got himself a taste for human flesh!" The man to the elderly man's right states with thorough disgust.
"Take us to his farm." Inuyasha fairly well commands, the men all looking at each other with frowns.
"If he thinks he can rid us of that monster, what is the harm of allowing him to?"
So with that, the men allowed us to follow them into the village where the dropped the deceased body of the woman with her family. It was hard to watch the husband as he fell to his knees, shaking with full bodied sobs, his children whimpering on either side of him. The youngest, a infant boy that looked like he had just started walking, waddled over to his Mother and pressed his hands to her still face.
That broke my heart right then and there.
I could feel tears welling in my eyes as Inuyasha's hand came to rest of my shoulder, squeezing it gently before turning me away from the scene to follow the men once they had all given their condolences. We were led to the outskirts of the village, the men bidding us to hide in the long grass behind a large ridge when we came to the farm itself.
Then out stepped Jinenji onto his field in all his ten foot glory.
My eyes widened as I took in his massive form. His skin was an off peach color, almost passable for that of a human's, though it was littered with scars over his arms and legs. He was wearing a very worn yukata, the hems frayed and damaged from long use and little mending. It was clear it was patched together from multiple materials, his frame so massive it couldn't be helped. It was clear that he was muscled from hard work on the farm, the yoke he carried with buckets of water on either side sitting comfortable on his bulky shoulder. Moving my gaze up to his face I see a long snout with a smaller mouth filled with blunt teeth. His eyes are inhumanly large circles that sit to either side of his head at the end of his nose, a brilliant blue in color. His forehead is rather small, sloping back to where a small amount of black hair sat in a ponytail at the back of his head. Human-like ears sat just under the fringe of his hair.
Yes, he was clearly a half-demon.
"That's Jinenji." One of the men behind us whispers the needless introduction. "Big fella, ain't he?"
"He ain't so big." Inuyasha argues, the cockiness returning full force into his voice as he looks over the rocks towards Jinenji.
"Don't go making us promises you can't keep now." The man in the lead of the group frowns, narrowing his eyes at us.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm here for the herb, not for you." Inuyasha replies evenly, standing up and bracing his foot on one of the lower boulders beside us. He turns to look at me then with a frown. "Yua, you stay here." My head tilts slightly, taking aback.
"Uh, why?" I ask suspiciously, watching Inuyasha look a little flustered as a blush tinted at his cheeks. His eyes darted towards the men behind us, and it was then that I put it all together.
'The big show off.' I grumble irritably to myself. After what happened earlier, however, I wasn't really in the mood to argue with him. I wave him off with a sigh.
"Fine, fine." I frown, glancing over his shoulder to what, for all intents and purposes, looked like a gentle giant watering his fields. "Are you sure this is the right demon?" I ask softly, doubt filling me. Inuyasha scoffs.
"You really need to stop being so naive." He mutters lowly, condescension in his voice. I didn't want to admit how much it actually did embarrass me that he thought of me that way. Again, the context from earlier this afternoon burned at the back of my mind.
'How am I ever going to get him to take me seriously if he thinks I'm some sort of naive little girl?' Without another word Inuyasha turns and leaps out from our hiding spot.
"You reckon he's strong enough?" One of the men asks behind me, clearly filled with doubt.
"It don't really matter now, does it? Either way, he won't be our problem no more." Another man answered.
"If we're lucky maybe they'll kill each other." A third speaks up cruelly, my irritation flaring. I snap my head around to glare at them.
"You guys are disgusting." I snarl at them. "Get lost." The youngest of the lot bravely steps forward, looking entirely offended.
"What makes you think a woman like yourself can talk to us men like that?" He demands, puffing his chest out slightly. I refrain from rolling my eyes, extending one of my hands out and allowing my aura to form a small ball of energy.
"Beat it." I mutter, sending the orb directly at the guy's feet. All the men look at me wide eyed before scrambling to be the first to get away. I can't help smirking in amusement, bringing my hand back towards my face with my index finger pointed upwards like a gun, blowing at the tip of it like I was blowing away the smoke from my shot. As soon as their figures disappear I turn back towards the field to watch intently, Inuyasha having just landed in front of the demon.
"What's the matter?!" He asks, his voice carrying over loud enough for me to hear. "Didn't your Mother ever tell you not to eat people smaller than you?" He demands sarcastically, drawing with a powerful grunt Tessaiga. The monster looks down in utter shock at Inuyasha, glancing between him and the sword, before his eyes glow red as he stands up tall. I tense, Inuyasha brandishing the sword at the ready for the demon's attack.
Before Jinenji bursts into tears, calling out 'Ma!' desperately as he turns and races back towards their home. My mouth drops open in disbelief at the scene, Inuyasha clearly just as confused.
"Hey, wait!" Inuyasha protests, chasing after the large, crying demon. I frown, gathering my energy and levitating over the rock and field to catch up with Inuyasha just as the demon reached the threshold of his home.
"Ma! Help!" He cries out, and no sooner than he had, there was an elderly lady with greying hair rushing out to his aid. Despite her obvious age she looked threatening with the surprisingly large pole of wood she carried and brandished threateningly towards us.
"Why you..!" She exclaims, bravely rushing Inuyasha, causing both of us to stop dead in our tracks as he lowers his sword.
"A mountain witch…?" Inuyasha murmurs under his breath in surprise just as the woman stops in front of us.
"Trying to take this land for yourself again, are ya?!" She shouts angrily, before lifting the pole up high and slamming it down with all her strength directly onto Inuyasha's head. It breaks over it, Inuyasha hardly fazed as he continues to look down at the woman, utterly bewildered.
"Uh…" He trails off, clearly unsure of what to say. I honestly couldn't blame him. I wasn't sure what to say either.
"I don't know who put you up to this," the lady breathed heavily, "or what you have been told, but this boy would never eat someone! You got that?!" She firmly defends the demon behind her, clearly intending to stay hidden behind his Mother. I look at him curiously, before looking back towards the woman.
Especially now, this demon certainly didn't seem like a killer.
"It don't matter whether he is half demon or not! He's not capable of harming a fly!" She goes on, before turning to look at her son tenderly as he coward by their front door. He was shaking so badly I was surprised the very ground didn't shake with him, his large hands covering over the top of his head and tears still very apparent in the eye I could see. I swallow thickly, suddenly feeling insanely bad for causing Jinenji such trauma.
"Inuyasha…I think she's right." I murmur softly, reaching out and placing my hand on his arm. "Put Tessaiga away, you're scaring him." I add gently, reach over his body with the hand that had been on his arm and cupping my own over the hand he currently still had holding the sword, gently pushing him to lower it. Inuyasha glances towards me, face surprisingly soft an nods, sheathing Tessaiga once more. I turn back towards the woman, frowning in guilt. "We're deeply sorry for the trouble we caused you and your son. We shouldn't have acted before we knew the truth. The men of the village had told us that your son was dangerous, clearly we were misguided." The woman watches me, skeptical for a moment, before the genuine apology seems to move her and she releases the now broken pole of wood. "I'm Yua, and this here is Inuyasha." I introduce, seeing her shoulders relaxing.
"I am Mine. What brings you to our farm?" She finally asks, light suspicion still in her voice.
"We're seeking some herbs to help combat the poison miasma of demons. We were told we could find the antidote here." I explain, inwardly reflecting of meaning of the woman's name. It meant 'a resolute protector', and she certainly fit the bill. She frowns curiously as she looks between the both of us, before looking towards her son.
"Why don't you come inside? We can discuss more there." She offers, and I'm momentarily surprised by her hospitality. Considering a moment ago she, rightfully so, cracked a large piece of wood over Inuyasha's head.
"Thank you." I bow respectfully, before following her towards her son.
"Come on now, it's all over. Let's go inside." She hums to him soothingly as she places a hand on one of his large knees. Her kind touch seems to do the trick, Jinenji moving his massive frame through the tight doorway. Well, tight for him that was.
Inside the hut is as cramped as could be expected with his large body taking up most of the space. Mine tended to a small fire as we sat opposite to her, Jinenji working diligently with his back still facing us. Clearly he wasn't as confident in our presence as his Mother was. I frown at that, looking from his back towards the older woman now.
"It was Inuyasha, wasn't it?" She asks, her voice raspy. Inuyasha starts slightly, having been looking towards her son as well, clearly lost in thought. He turns to gaze at her curiously, before nodding. "You're half-demon too, though you don't look it." She correctly observes.
"So you can tell, can you?" He mutters, sounding entirely unimpressed at being so easily called out on it. I frown, though I can understand why he feels the need to try and hide his human part, it still bugs me to think he dislikes that part of himself so much.
Especially when I loved every part of him.
"Half-breeds are funny that way. For each one born pretty like you, there's another born what ain't." Mine goes on, and I can't help my eyes widening. Well, she wasn't wrong. Inuyasha was rather handsome, much more than any demon I could think of that we've crossed so far.
Other than his older brother, but there was no way in Hell I'd ever admit that out-loud.
'Then again, when it comes to Inuyasha, you could be biased.' Mayumi quips playfully, appearing for the first time today.
'Shut it.' I bite back playfully.
"He's cute all right." I speak up, Inuyasha looking towards me then with slight shock. "I mean, if dogs are your thing." I smirk at him, and he scoffs, smirking back at me playfully.
"You can understand what it's like for him." Mine speaks up, directing the conversation back towards her son. My attention turns back to her as she slouches slightly. "Being half-demon shouldn't matter, but those villagers…they treat him like he's some kind of monster or something." I frown at that, Mine looking obviously troubled. Clearly she felt terrible for what her son had to go through, like any good Mother would. Her love for a demon led to this life for her son, a life that he hadn't asked for where humans despised him and no doubt demons would treat him like he was beneath them. I couldn't imagine the guilt Mine must feel over that.
'Inuyasha's Mother must have felt the same way, having fallen in love with his Father.' I can't help thinking as I glance at Inuyasha out of the corner of my eye. 'He hardly ever talks about it, but life couldn't have been easy for him either.'
"People have the nasty habit of often judging what they see, rather than giving someone a chance to prove them wrong." I frown deeply, looking towards Jinenji. "I'm so sorry that we did the same thing. I should have known better." I murmur softly to him, watching his eye that I could see widen a little in surprise, before he nods slowly in return to my apology.
'And I really should have. I mean, I know it really can't compare, but how often have I been judged by my looks alone?' I think to myself about my time in my era, and being overweight. People looked at you differently when you got on a bus, always judging whether or not you'd invade their personal space with your size. Others thought you lazy and without any type of self control. Your value in the public's eyes goes down so significantly when you don't meet the standard they believe you should. 'Now I'm judged because I look like someone I'm not.' I frown to myself, thinking about the times where others have mentioned my own powers and looks as a reflection of Mayumi's. 'How could I have fallen into that trap so easily when it came to Jinenji?'
"It's not just the judgement. They constantly make threats on his life, and have even tried to kill him in the past." Mine goes on sadly.
"I'm sorry, Ma." Jinenji's low rumbling voice speaks up for the first time since calling her name in panic, nearly startling me. "If I weren't like this I…" He trails off, but it's clear what he was trying to say.
If he weren't like he was, if he didn't look like he did, he wouldn't be causing her as much trouble.
"Stop that, right now!" She orders sternly. "Don't you apologize for being different!" She closes her eyes for a moment, a serene smile slowly crawling onto her lips. "Your Father, he was different, but that never made no, no mind to me." She states wistfully, clearly going back into her fond memories of said demon. "I'll never forget how I hurt my ankle and couldn't walk. It was your Father who saved me." Her voice is filled with reverence at the mention of her demon lover, and I can't help glancing over towards Inuyasha. Thankfully his attention is surprisingly completely taken by the woman as she recounts her tale.
'Maybe he's wondering about how his own Mother and Father had met and fell in love?' I think to myself tenderly, before turning back towards Mine as she continues.
"The man I saw, he was glowing." She describes as she opens her eyes finally, gently poking at the fire in front of her. "I knew he mustn't be real. No man was that perfect." She goes on, sighing softly. "I loved him anyway. Him and his demon light." I can't help swallowing softly hearing her, the words speaking to me more profoundly than I hoped I was letting on.
Inuyasha sure as hell wasn't perfect, but I loved him anyway too.
I noticed a flush lighting her cheeks as she sighs once more, clearly lost in her thoughts. I was torn between feeling uncomfortable, because clearly she was having a very private moment, and being moved by how deeply she was obviously still in love with the guy.
"Wait, if you're saying that the Father was a demon, then the human parent was you?" Inuyasha asks doubtfully. I frown at him, wondering what his issue was, before remembering.
"A mountain witch…?"
"What did you think I was?" She demands irritably, Inuyasha looking bewildered next to me.
Well, clearly he had been wrong.
"For your friend." Jinenji's low voice rumbles as he twists his body around to hand us a bag filled with the crushed herbs he had been working on. "It's medicine for the friend you said got poison in her." He adds gently, and I smile thankfully as I reach out for him to drop the bag into my hands from his own large one.
"Thank you so much, Jinenji. We really needed this." I murmur gratefully, turning and gently placing the bag inside of my own. "How much do we owe you?" I ask as I turn back to Mine.
"Nothing. It's the least we can do to make up for clubbing Inuyasha over the head earlier." She replies, surprising me. I smile, shaking my head and laughing.
"No, no, no. I should be paying you for that as well." I snark, Inuyasha grumbling beside me as he shifts to gently nudge me with his shoulder in retaliation. I laugh, shoving him back lightly with my hand, before Mine clears her throat in front of us. I look to her, letting my hand drop as she eyes us with a knowing look. I can feel the blush working it's way on my cheeks even as I bring my hands to clasp together in my lap.
"Perhaps you should both leave now, before things get indecent." She comments slyly, causing me to nearly choke on my own spit. "Or I grind your bones to make our bread."
Well, the second option seemed far more likely than the first after what happened earlier today.
Only moments later we found ourselves at the outskirts of Mine and Jinenji's farm, looking back over them as they worked together in the fields. Something deep inside of me pulls hard for us to stay, to try and help and right the wrongs that have been unjustly pushed on both Jinenji and his Mother. Maybe we could talk to the village, convince them that Jinenji was a gentle creature, one with great skills that could benefit all? Maybe, just maybe, Jinenji could have a life free of bullying, of feeling insignificant and victimized. Before I could voice my thoughts, Inuyasha turns away, not looking back as he walks forward with purpose. I blink in surprise at his abrupt exit, turning and following him with a nervous flutter in my stomach.
Something was off with him, I could feel it.
"Inuyasha…" I frown, trying to feel him out. "Shouldn't we stay?" I ask softly then as I walk next to him. He doesn't even bother to look at me, his expression so unreadable that my nerves increase.
"Why?" He asks, his voice not necessarily snappish, but borderline cold. I blink in surprise, stopping in my tracks.
"Why?" I mutter in disbelief. "Because the villagers all think that Jinenji is the one killing all those people. We could go to the village and tell them otherwise." I glance over my shoulder, looking towards the pair in the field still visible behind us, Inuyasha stopping now as well. "He might be half-demon, but that doesn't make him guilty."
"That's exactly what it means when you're different." Inuyasha replies, his voice now filled with barely concealed disgust. "Nobody trusts you, you're always the first to be blames, and it's always, always your fault!" By the end of his tirade his voice had risen to almost a shout, anger now clearly overtaking the disgust from earlier as he lowers his head and continues on silently. Meanwhile, I look at his back as he retreats, my chest aching knowing that he was speaking from experience. I hesitate, before running to catch up to him. Without having to think on it I wrap my arms around him from behind, pressing my face against his back through his silver hair as he stops and stiffens at the contact. I don't remove my arms, and finally his back relaxes against me, his hands even coming to gently rest on my own that are locked around his front.
"I'm so sorry you had to go through that…that you still have to deal with that kind of small mindedness." I whisper as I shift my head, cheek now resting against his back instead of my forehead. My head fell and rose with each even breath he took, and I could even feel the steady beating of his heart under my cheek.
"We should get going, if we want to make it back to everyone before nightfall." Inuyasha murmurs ever so softly after a few more minutes of me holding him. Reluctantly I let him go, chewing softly on my lower lip as he slowly turns to look down at me. His gaze has softened considerably, his body less tense, but his eyes weren't readable to me. The look he was giving felt so familiar, yet I still couldn't tell what he was thinking when he gazed at me like that. Inuyasha reaches forward with his hand, hesitating for a moment, before allowing it to curl under my hair around the back of my neck. He pulls me forward firmly, his forehead coming to rest against my own as he breathes in deeply and closes his eyes.
"I survived most of my life without help, and so will Jinenji. He'll even come out stronger for it." He states softly as he opens his eyes. I frown, but I know he means it in the best way possible. He wasn't helping Jinenji because he didn't want to, he wasn't helping because he honestly thought that was the best way to help him. With that Inuyasha lets me go, though surprisingly he reaches down to take my hand in his own, squeezing it softly. "I know you want to help, Yua, but that isn't the way to do it." He adds, before tugging gently at my hand. "Let's get going." He urges once more, leading the way then.
His hand still gripping onto my own.
"We must kill him before he kills us! It must be tonight!"
I frown, hearing a familiar voice speaking angrily as we walk over the hill on the path that would take us around the village.
'What are they doing?!' Eyes widening in surprise, I take in the large gathering of men, and the various spears and swords piled at their feet. My hand tightens around Inuyasha's with realization.
They were going to go after Jinenji, and this time, they were going to make sure to kill him.
"You can't do that!" I exclaim, letting go of Inuyasha's hand and stepping forward. The men that had been with me before, the ones I had thrown my energy at, stepped back with a terrified look on their faces. "He's innocent!"
"Says who? His Mother? Of course she would defend him! Mine is just as corrupt as Jinenji is for having borne such a creature!" Another man states viciously, my eyes narrowing at his nerve. "She was too much of a coward to do what needed to be done when that monster was born."
What the actual fuck?!
"Interesting." Inuyasha speaks up in a deceivingly calm voice as he comes to stand next to me. "Because to me this looks like it's the other way around."
"What?" One of the men grunted in disbelief hearing him.
"Right now, though, we have more important business. Like catching the real flesh eater." Inuyasha goes on, still looking and sounding calm. I look towards him, warmth filling my chest as I realized he had changed his mind.
We were going to prove Jinenji's innocence.
"What do you mean, real flesh eater? You planning on catching it?" The man asks snidely, some of the others still picking up their weapons despite Inuyasha's proclamation. I frown, knowing without a doubt that the moment we left to go find the real demon, these men would take it upon themselves to attack Jinenji, with or without the proof of his guilt.
"Inuyasha?" I murmur, and he turns to look at me with question. "I'm going to go back to the farm." I decide, grabbing my bow and pulling it off of my shoulder to hold. His gaze grows sharp.
"Not a chance." He mutters lowly to me, reaching out to grab at my bow and take it away. I frown, snapping it back out of his reach.
"Who is going to protect Jinenji and his Mom if they go after them while we're gone looking for the real demon?" I point out with a deep frown.
"Jinenji can step up to the plate. I'm not leaving you alone against these idiots." Inuyasha states harshly. I look up at him with clear exasperation on my face.
"Do you really think I can't handle them?" I ask with a raised eyebrow, extending my left, opened hand outward and allowing my aura to engulf it. The men I had threatened earlier scramble back with nervous cries, the others watching me with shocked expressions. "Seriously?" I ask dryly, glancing from the group of men back to Inuyasha.
"I still don't like this plan." Inuyasha frowns, hesitating for a few moments. "If things go south I don't care what happens to that old woman and her son, you get your ass out of there." I smile brightly at him.
"Noted." I reply, though inwardly I knew even if things got rough I wouldn't up and abandon Mine and Jinenji. I turn back to the men. "You hear that boys? Anything bad happens to me and Inuyasha here will kill all of you to avenge my death." I threaten, wagging my glowing index finger at them.
"I wouldn't go that far." Inuyasha mutters dryly under his breath. I throw him a playfully annoyed look, knowing he didn't mean it.
Well, not entirely that is.
Inuyasha's POV
After leaving Yua at the farm, I set out in the direction the woman's body had been found. I had smelt demon all over her, and I could still catch whiffs of that same smell as I raced through the forest. The scent kept getting stronger and stronger, telling me I was heading in the right direction.
'I have to get to the demon before the men decide to take matters into their own hands.' I think to myself, worry gripping low in my stomach. 'Yua is strong, but she doesn't have what it takes to kill those guys if it came down to it.'
And that much I knew was true.
Yua has helped me kill demons before, evil beings that had killed others before we had happened upon them. She could justify their deaths.
These men, though unjustly, were just trying to protect their own.
'She would still defend Jinenji, even if it resulted in her getting hurt, or killed. She has too big a heart for her own good.' I can't help reflecting, feeling equal parts annoyance and admiration.
"I'm so sorry you had to go through that…that you still have to deal with that kind of small mindedness."
The way she had held me, whispering an apology that she had no business giving, had hit me far harder than I wanted to admit to myself. No one, not even Mayumi, had ever said something so genuine when I had opened up about my past like that. I still can't believe I had allowed myself to go on like I had, leaking my own experience out into the open in relation to what Jinenji was going through now. Usually I was good about locking that part of my life away, not allowing it to be an excuse for how I dealt with things and people now.
Today, however, listening to Mine's and Jinenji's story, had struck a cord in me that hadn't been played since my own Mother had passed.
'Yua…she just took it all in stride.' I reflect, warmth spilling into my chest and causing it to tighten at the same time. 'She showed me compassion, rather than brushing my experiences off. Telling me that it was in the past, that I should move forward.'
Like Kikyo had once told me.
Thinking of Kikyo caused a stab of pain deep in my chest, quickly quelling the pleasant warmth I had felt when thinking of Yua. It hit me hard, the difference in my reactions.
Loving Kikyo had brought me pain.
Yua brought me warmth.
But Kikyo had once brought me that warmth as well, same as my love for Mayumi. I knew Mayumi was outside of my reach, I had come to terms with that months ago. Kikyo, though, Kikyo was still here wandering the earth. I had a chance to save her from an unbearably long existence filled with vengeance and hate.
I couldn't do that and love Yua, that wasn't fair to either women.
'But the way she felt above me…under me…her scent, her lips…' I feel heat rush through me remembering our encounter earlier that day. The pure sexual excitement I had felt chasing her down in the woods, the pride that had filled my chest when she gave those soft sighs at my touch.
The way her body arched and reacted to me when I had pressed my knee directly where I knew she had needed to be touched the most.
'She had been so unbelievably responsive. More open and trusting to my touch than Kikyo had ever been. After the first time I had accidentally scratched her with my claws, she would always flinch away at first.'
I had wanted to dominate Yua in all the ways I could think of, send her screaming into an orgasm that would have rocked her whole body. The male demon instinct in me to claim her had been so strong that I knew I had to stop when I did. It had felt like the hardest thing I had ever had to do at the time, and it had physically hurt to pull away from her.
"But your first time shouldn't be in the middle of a forest like this. And…and it should be with someone who, without any doubts whatsoever, loves you."
The utter devastation on her face at my words, though we both knew I meant well, had nearly blown me away. I know she had tried to best to hide it, but it was plain as day for me to see it in her eyes.
She was in love with me, and I had shattered her world.
Again.
All those stolen kisses and touches, all I was doing was fueling her belief that one day I will love her. That I will choose her.
Meanwhile, I still couldn't be sure myself.
But like the selfish asshole I was, I couldn't be without those stolen moments. I craved them.
I craved her.
'But craving isn't the same as loving. She deserves love, not lust.' And I firmly believed that with all my heart.
Yua's POV
"They did, did they?" Mine replies easily to the threat I told her was being made on her and her son. I blink slightly in surprise at the ease she spoke with. Then again, she might be so used to what she now considered empty threats that she hardly felt alarmed by this one.
"Yeah. So while Inuyasha has gone to find the real killer, I'm going to stay here and protect you and Jinenji incase the men from the village get any ideas." I inform her, Mine chuckling tiredly as she stands from picking the herb under her, tossing it into the basket next to her on the ground.
"Have it your way." She states simply, a small smile on her lips, before grunting as she leans back over. I frown at that, chewing softly on my lower lip, before glancing over towards Jinenji. Maybe he could teach me how to help? I walk over to him, tilting my head curiously as I look down at what his hands were doing. It blew my mind to see such large, clawed, fingers doing such delicate work.
'I wonder how delicate Inuyasha might have been with his fingers?' The thought rushes into my mind before I can stop it. Instead of the blush I thought I would have felt warming my cheeks, instead all I feel is cool disappointment.
"But your first time shouldn't be in the middle of a forest like this. And…and it should be with someone who, without any doubts whatsoever, loves you."
"So, can I help to pull weeds? That's what you and your Mom are doing, right?" I ask lightly, Jinenji not looking up from his task.
"Well, yeah." He answers, sounding a little unsure as he gives me a nervous side glance. I smile kindly at him, before kneeling down at the row closest to me and starting to pull the weeds out around the bases of the herbs. I hear a rustling from beside me, turning and looking to find that Jinenji had shifted away from me. I feel sadness sweep into me at that.
'He doesn't trust me. Why would he though? Why would he trust anybody with the way he's been treated?' I think sadly, turning back to the weeds and quietly starting to pull more out. I glance to him once more, before taking note of the scars again now that I was so much closer to him. 'So many…all from the villagers no doubt.' I frown deeper. 'Did Inuyasha go through the same kind of abuse? If Inuyasha had been without his healing abilities, would he too be littered with scars?' I can't help wondering. "Why don't you and your Mother move away from here?" I ask softly then, trying to make some sort of conversation with Jinenji, to make him easier around me.
"This place is best. My Pa left me this farm." Jinenji explains, and I can't help but understand now. I turn back towards the herb.
Only to see a great big toad looking right back at me.
I'm not sure if it was PTSD from that time with the Toad Lord and his insanely disgusting tongue, but I absolutely freak. I'm frozen in place, a uncharacteristically girly scream ripping from between my lips as the toad lashes it's tongue out to catch a nearby fly. Suddenly Jinenji's hand swoops in, gently grabbing the toad and placing it on his opposite side and away from me. It's only when it's out of sight that I can relax, sighing heavily and slumping forward slightly.
"Thank you!" I groan softly, head actually pounding.
"Why are you frightened of toads?" Jinenji asks, genuinely confused. I sigh heavily, looking up to him.
"It's a long story, but I can tell you if you want to hear it." I reply easily, and the half demon nods in agreement. So I start into the story of Nobunaga, his Princess, and the demon Toad that had taken over the Lord's body. I'm surprised at how intently he was listening, enthralled by the story that takes me the rest of the row to complete. Soon after Jinenji and his Mother invite me back to their home for some tea, and in the late afternoon Jinenji shyly asks me to accompany him to feed the birds. It's so cute the way he asked that I could hardly resist, and so I follow him out to the ridge that ended their property, watching as he tossed seeds into the air for the birds to catch. Soon enough the birds came and started to land on him, obviously familiar with this gentle giant. One even came down to land on my finger, my heart pounding with excitement.
"I've never held a bird before." I gasp out softly, afraid if I spoke too loudly or moved too quickly it would start and leave me.
"He likes you." Jinenji rumbles, a small smile on his face. I can't help laughing softly as I look down at the sweet bird.
"You think?" I murmur, before ever so slowly reaching forward to run my finger down it's back. The bird surprisingly doesn't move, as if used to such attention. "You must spend a lot of time with these little guys."
"They're my friends." Jinenji nods, looking from me back up to the birds above us fondly. I can't help the small, warm smile on my own face.
There was no way that this wonderfully caring half demon beside me was a killer.
Night had fallen much sooner than I had anticipated, and as I stood in the doorway looking out over the field I couldn't help the worry that was gripping me. I raised my hand, creating a ward that would warn me of anyone approaching during the night. Inuyasha included. I was hesitant to create a barrier, not wanting to accidentally lock Inuyasha out.
"Inuyasha should have been back by now." I can't help saying softy to myself, chewing on my lower lip.
"I'm sure that he is fine." Mine's voice replies from behind me, grabbing my elbow and gently pulling me into their home. The flap over the door closes behind me, my sense of foreboding only intensifying even as she sits me down by the fire. "Your demon sounds like he knows what he's doing."
"He's not mine." The words come out far more bitter than I had intended as a blush warms my cheeks. Mine looks at me knowingly, sitting down across from the fire from me. Jinenji is already asleep on his side of the hut, his back rolled to face us.
"You think it's tough for humans to come to grips that they are in love with a demon? Just think how difficult it must be for a demon to understand they love a human." Mine states lightly, stoking the fire. "To go against every instinct you have when finding a strong mate to bear and protect your offspring." I blink at that, having not really thought about it that way before. "Humans like us are weak compared to female demons. Especially when it comes to carrying half-demon children. I myself nearly died during my pregnancy with Jinenji, and again during the birth."
"I-I guess I never thought of it that way." I reply, frowning as I look down at the flames.
"Give him time. He sounds like he has a good head on his shoulders. He'll work it all out in the end." Mine gives me what she must had felt was sage advice, but she also didn't know all the factors involved.
'Or the factor, that being Kikyo.' I think to myself dryly, sighing softly as I lean back against the wall behind me.
Then again, Kikyo was technically as human as me. So what was his pull towards her over me?
Suddenly I felt the electric pulse, stiffening up and sitting straight from the wall.
"They're here." I murmur with a frown, knowing that feeling had been the men passing through my barrier. Mine turns, shaking Jinenji awake, the half-demon shaking with fear when a rock breaks through their window and into the hut. "Stay here." I tell them both, standing with my bow and arrows and walking to the door. I step outside, the flap falling closed behind me. Notching my arrow I draw it back at the ready, aiming it towards the large group of men dimly lit by their torches. "I warned all of you to stay away!"
"We aren't going to rely another another half-demon to kill another! We want to be rid of the threat once and for all!" The elderly man from before proclaims, raising his sword high with his feeble arm. I nearly snort in amusement.
These guys planned on taking Jinenji down?
'Only they'd be able to because Jinenji isn't a fighter.' I frown deeply at that, shaking my head.
"You're not going to take one step closer!" I release the arrow with a little of my energy directly at the men's feet, the front line of them gasping and stumbling back as my aura burst forth on impact. "Consider that your final warning!"
"Move girl!"
"What are you protecting them?!"
"Because they haven't done anything wrong! They aren't who you are after!" I argue back, notching another arrow in threat. This causes some of the men that had been advancing to hesitate and take a step back. "I've spent the day here and they have been nothing but kind! Jinenji is a gentle soul that doesn't deserve half of the crap you put him through!"
"You hear that?! She's as bad as them! Get her too!" One of the more ballsy men shouts angrily.
"Anyone who loves half-demons as much as her must be one! I bet she's guilty too!" Another senselessly argues. Suddenly the men start to throw their torches at the hut. I drop my bow and arrow to the ground, throwing my hands up to create a barrier around their home, the torches extinguishing on contact with my aura and falling uselessly to the ground.
"You've gone too far!" Mine's voice shouts from behind me, having obviously come out when the men had started to yell threats at me. She had no doubt seen them trying to burn her place down, her hoe at the ready to attack. With a might roar she launches forward.
Another roar behind the men vastly outshines her own, stopping her in her tracks.
As the men turn to look, the torches left illuminate a terrifying sight. A demon with a long snake like body hovered above the group of men, it's first victim it it's mouth. The face of the demon was unlike anything I had ever seen. The mouth looked to have dozens of what looked to be feelers of some sort around it, no doubt masking the sharp teeth inside. Large red eyes stared down at us all as the demon rose to it's impressive height, towering over us at least fifty feet tall. Though it didn't possess multiple arms along it's body like a centipede demon typically did, it had arms instead around it's head, wiggling in and out of view in the darkness. Just below the demon were dozens of red eyes, and as they filtered into the light, I was horrified to see they looked like the children of that thing. Another of the men laid lifelessly on the ground before them, his companions quickly backing away with terrified screams as the babies crawled forward to devour him.
I tried my best not to throw up.
The men quickly dispersed, obviously forgetting about their main objective of killing Jineji in light of the real killer's appearance. I push Mine back towards the hut as the hungry babies slowly crawl towards us.
"Quick! Get Jinenji! I'll handle this!" I shout to her.
"You see, there is your flesh eating monster right there!" Mine exclaims towards the running men, before turning towards her home to gather her son. I grab up my bow and arrow, quickly taking a shot. The demon dodges the arrow that should have blown straight through it's head, instead taking out part of it's side. I frown, moving to notch another arrow, before the hair on my arms stands on end.
'Yua! Watch the tail!' Mayumi shouts urgently, and I turn just in time to see it coming down at me. I manage to jump to the side, just barely missing being hit, but the force of the wind when it's tail hits the ground is enough to send me flying sideways. I land roughly on my shoulder, gasping in pain as it popped out of place.
"Yua!" Mine shouts, and I look up just in time to see the tongue emerge from within the demon's mouth, heading straight for me.
'What the fuck is it with demons and disgustingly long tongues?!' I think incoherently, the pain in my shoulder mind-numbing.
'Yua! You've got to move!' Mayumi cries out, trying to snap me out of it as I grip my shoulder in pain.
Then, suddenly, Jinenji's arm is firmly planted in the demon's mouth.
My eyes widen in shock as my mouth drops open, Mine's cry of worry echoing from behind us. I look as best I can over my shoulder towards the demon now standing protectively over me, his face filled with determination.
Jinenji just fought back.
I watched, horrified as the tail of the demon suddenly wraps around his neck, drawing him in closer. It was clear then that the demon intended to devour Jinenji from his arm inwards.
"Hurry, get away!" Jinenji begs, before wincing when the tail of the demon tightens around his neck. "Only you ever treated me like a real person! If I let you die here, I wouldn't even deserve to be considered half-human!" I shake my head, feeling truly moved by his words as my throat closes with emotion.
"I'm not going anywhere, Jinenji!" I shout back to him, using my good arm to gather energy in my palm, facing towards the demon. I aim for the tail, just beyond where it was hooked around Jinenji's throat, shouting as I push the energy forward and directly into that bit of flesh. It breaks Jinenji's neck free from the monster as it cries in pain.
But it doesn't let go of his arm still.
"IRON REAVER SOUL STEALER!" I can't even describe the amount of relief it brought me to hear his voice echoing out over the area. "Yua?! Where are you?!"
"Inuyasha! Over here! Hurry!" I call back urgently, wincing as I hold onto my shoulder once again, the movement of turning and looking for him having jarred it painfully. He turns to me, his eyes furious as he takes in the scene before him. "Please! You need to help Jinenji!"
"Don't you do it!" Mine argues firmly, and I can't help regarding her with shock.
"What?!" I exclaim in disbelief, Inuyasha look equally as bewildered.
"You mustn't help him. Jinenji has to learn to fight for himself." Mine explains, and I'm shock by her making the same argument that Inuyasha had only hours ago.
"Now?!" I cry out in disbelief, Inuyasha leaping over to come and kneel behind me.
"It has to be now." He agrees firmly, his voice soft in my ear. "Heal yourself, Yua. He can do this on his own." I swallow thickly, still unsure. "Trust me. Trust him." Inuyasha presses, and between that and the unbearable pain I'm still in I give in. With a soft cry my shoulder pops back into place as I heal it, Inuyasha helping me to stand once it was done. He looks to the side, and it suddenly gone.
"Don't tell me you're leaving?" Inuyasha had jumped in front of the retreating group of men, his hand in front of him with his claws glinting from the firelight in threat. "And here I thought the fun was just getting started." He quips sarcastically, clearly intending on them watching Jinenji defeat the demon that had really been killing their fellow villagers. I can't help finding enjoyment in their tortured faces, clearly torn between taking Inuyasha on or staying and praying that Jinenji won. "Who's the big coward now?"
"We are, okay?! Just don't hurt us." As one of the men begged Inuyasha, many of them dropped their weapons to the ground.
"You gotta help us! We're begging here!"
"Oh, I get it." Inuyasha states sarcastically. "Whoever is strongest is leader of your pack, huh?" He straights up, looking over the men directly towards Jinenji still struggling with the demon. "Go on Jinenji! Defeat that demon! Show them who's boss!" I blink slightly in shock, before looking back to said half demon.
'Inuyasha is right. They won't respect him or leave him alone if they can't see how strong he is.' I frown slightly. 'I just hope seeing that won't scare them further into thinking he's a danger.'
Suddenly Jinenji's eyes glowed red as he rips what was left of the demon's tail from around his neck viciously. My breath freezes in my chest as I see him wrap his strong arm around the body of the demon, bringing him in and pinning it to him whilst his whole body started to glow blue. It was to the point of nearly being blinding, and for a moment I have to shield my eyes so they could adjust.
Then, with a great yell, Jinenji decapitates the demon like it was nothing.
Pop, like a daisy.
I step back as he goes the extra mile and punches the demon's decapitated head as it drops towards the ground, further breaking it into pieces.
'Yeah, there is definitely no coming back from that.' I think in amazement. As the body of the demon lays still on the ground, Jinenji's blue aura fades, and he's left breathing heavily over his victory. Glancing towards the men, I can see they are just as awestruck as I was.
Inuyasha, however, smirked cockily from where he stood behind the men.
Jinenji turned towards the men then, stomping towards them as they all lowered to the ground and began to grovel for their pathetic lives.
"Well, I guess it's better they learn late than never." Inuyasha mutters, and I can't help but agree with him on this one as I move over to stand next to him.
"We're sorry, we're sorry."
"Please don't hurt us!"
"We'll never bother you again!"
Jinenji leans forward, his fist enclosed as he kneels before the men.
"It's just…lots of you are hurt." His low rumbling voice states, and as I look at his bloodied arm, I can't help thinking of the irony of it all. "This will help you get better faster."
He was hurt.
These men just lost some of their pride was all.
Regardless, he provides them with herbs to help with any wounds they did have from the baby demons before Inuyasha had killed them all.
"All that for nothing." Inuyasha mutters lowly beside me, looking incredibly annoyed. I can't help a small smile, reaching over to pat his back in mock consolation, watching as the men looked over the herbs he had just given him.
"Oh, Ma." Jinenji murmurs as he and his Mother approach one and other. He places a gentle finger ever so softly on the top of her head. "You didn't get hurt, did you?" He asks with concern.
"Oh, Jinenji!" Mine gives him a watery smile, obviously bursting with pride for her son.
Hours later found us standing at the outskirts of their farm once again, after I had tended to Jinenji's arm.
"You should both be on your way. Thank you so much for all your help." Mine gives a genuine and heart-felt smile.
"Are you sure you guys will be okay?" I can't help asking, wondering if the village men would resume their attacks on the poor half demon once the shock of the events from tonight faded.
"We'll be just fine." Mine nods, Jinenji coming to stand beside her, looking down at me with kind blue eyes.
"It's been a pleasure to meet you both." I state honestly, looking between him and his Mother. "I really do wish you all the best."
"As do we for you. I hope our herbs come in handy, and if you ever need more, you know right where to find us." Mine states happily. I turn towards Jinenji, stepping up and reaching out to place my small hand on the back of his own large one. "Thank you, Jinenji. For saving me last night…for everything." I let him know, and I'm surprised when he looks away bashfully.
"You're welcome." He grumbles in the soothingly deep voice, looking back towards me after a moment with a small, shy smile.
"I won't say goodbye, because I have a strong feeling we will be seeing each other again soon." I smile as I back away, waving to them both. "So until then."
"Until then." Mine agrees with a nod, Inuyasha and I finally turning and heading back towards our other companions. I turn to look at Inuyasha, finding that after this little adventure I saw him in a new light.
A new, no less attractive, light.
Well there ya have it :D. I should be getting back to regular updates now so long as I don't run into another hydro outage lol. So same as always, ten reviews and there will be a mid-week update.
We're getting so close to KOGA!
Talk to you guys later!
T.O.T.
