Chapter 9

In the Thick of the Fog

Her breathing was shallow, hyperventilating and unintentionally filling the forest with a white haziness. It was clear that she had overextended herself. Still clinging to a shredded tree trunk, Shinokiri made an attempt to collect her wits about her, but despair had only been displaced by rage.

She withdrew the naginata from her hair. With a rumbling drone, it released into the full scope of its towering form. She dug the blade into the earth and used it as leverage to arise from the ground. She had ceased to inhabit her body at this point. Wildly, she sung at any and everything, felling trees and their limbs irreverently. Such a thunderous sonorous gong could be heard from great distances.

It will end

"Shinokiri-hime!" The yell was so mumbled together that none of the syllables held any accent. 'Cut into four.' Certainly, Shinokiri could not be considered whole.

I will end it

"Shinokiri-hime!"

The demoness' naginata cut through the muddling gloom and halted, abruptly before the neck of a trembling Rin. Brown dilated eyes met red ones.

"Shinokiri-hime?"

In stress, the child fainted. A winded Shinokiri vomited from the narrowness of the moment and from overextension. She dropped to one knee and flung her naginata aside, wiping spittle on her sleeve. Panting, she crawled to the side of the small child, lazily staring at the silly lopsided ponytail dangling at the top of her head.

She caressed her face and tucked stray strands of hair behind Rin's ear. She paid no notice to the defiled landscape of desecrated trees surrounding her; only the movement of her hand sliding downward to the tiny fragile neck of the child. Shinokiri stroked it, pressing her thumb at the sensitive base of the throat eliciting a strangled moan. The growling figure of A-Un stepped forward prompting Shinokiri to release Rin and collapse to her back in surrender. With an aggravated sigh, she found within her a jolt of energy to get back up.

My legs are still useless

Shinokiri bemoaned her state as she labored in flinging the unconscious Rin onto the saddled back of the two-headed dragon. Leaning heavily on the reins, the three made their way back.

In the haar and the snow, Shinokiri found company only in her sorrow. A ghastly open wound marred her midriff…exposed by a tattered hakama. It was not lethally deep. The poison only needed to enter her blood stream, and it had, coursing through her for hours. Her mate had long since left her behind to sweat in convulsion—contorting in agony.

Shinokiri cursed at the sky, at everything, and spat as if to reject the malady within her. She rolled as if being picked up by an external force. It was over at this point. The only thing left was to move forward, she was running behind.

Clutching at the base of her she determinedly swept further into the interior of the land. The first thing she would do is prevent a scar from forming. She searched the air for the desired scent. A battlefield.

Inu no Taisho was long gone, Myoga had acted directly and fastidiously, but the remains of the army he slaughtered still laid strewn about the landscape. With a succinct motion to the largest body she could find. She dashed off, making a note to return to hopefully find Myoga had completed his task.

On her shoulder, the large slain samurai seemed bereft of mass. Perhaps he meant much to many, but now he was a nameless of tool in a singular mission.

It must be as if it never happened…It never happened

Shinokiri reached her destination, quite distractedly, almost passing it. She stood outside of a small crevice in the mountain.

"Majogumo."

Shinokiri called out for the onibaba, plopping the corpse at her feet. The creeping spider slid out from the shadow of the rocks, crawling about and twisting her head to respond to the beckoning. She had the face of a sickly pox-marked old woman, but when one looked at her liver spotted extremities, one could see that there were eight.

"Shi-no-kiri," the old oni stressed every syllable as if to recognize her visitor in each one. "What do you desire?"

"Do not be daft, spider."

Their eyes narrowed at each other.

"Have you brought me an offering?"

"You get to eat the scraps." Shinokiri stood defiant, very matter-of-fact.

"Beware of taking my kindness for granted inu," the spider said with a snort. Hurriedly, the old demon encased the dead body in silk and satiated her hunger…devouring all that she could from it. Satisfied, she dragged the cocoon into her lair and Shinokiri squeezed herself passed the jagged rocks to follow. Finally, reaching a spacious inner chamber, the spider threw the wrapped corpse into a giant empty caldron.

Shinokiri grimaced at the smell of rendering fat that seemed to catch at the back of her throat. Majogomo ladled the globs of partially melted fat with one appendage and siphoned it to a bowl in another, all the while stirring the pot over the fire. Another arm, and another added concoctions of all description in a frenzy. The spider nudged toward the visibly charred flesh of the inu's stomach.

"I never figured you for vanity…is your mate bothered by scars? Does it put a damper on the mood?" The onibaba croaked out a laugh.

Shinokiri stayed in silent impatience, begging to be relieved of the hag's presence. Handing her the potion, the taiyokai barely allowed the save to reach the bottom of the bottle before effectively scrubbing it into her wound. With a glow, the lacerations began to close without blemish.

It never happened

Wordlessly, Shinokiri exited the lair with the intention of making herself once again presentable to the world. "You could thank me, you wretch."

Kagome stared out into the darkening wilderness. From her vantage point, she could see a clearing in the forest spread with clamorous gusto. "What on earth—INUYASHA?! Shouldn't you be searching for them?"

"She's in a mood. I'm not dealing with it."

"What about Rin?"

"Aye," interjected Kaede. "She's out there as well. Think of her."

"Just shut up and relax. It'll be fine."

The hanyou was more perceptive than people gave him credit. It was something about children that always pushed the Shinokiri off of the edge. Not necessarily being around them, but talking about them. That was the trigger.

Maybe she's barren

Whatever was the cause, nothing justified how unpleasant and destructive she'd become.

"Kiri-chan, do you have babies?"

A bright and wide-eyed Inuyasha stared up at her.

"No."

"How come?"

Shinokiri froze in place, turning slowly to the pup with a sneer.

"You disgust me. It's not natural for abominations like you to be born."

It seemed to come from nowhere. Inuyasha reached out for her in confusion only to be shaken off. He'd have to make his way back to his mother in the unfamiliar woods alone.

Inuyasha tried to remember better times. He had to. As trying as she was, she was the only individual besides his mother to show any sort of affection towards him; the once friendless young hanyou.

"Why does my mother cry when no one plays with me?"

"She knows you will have a lonely life."

"Why? Why do they leave when I come near?"

"Fear, Inuyasha."

Shinokiri scooped up the pup in her arms. She cradled him close to her, his forehead to her chin.

"They fear you because you will be more powerful than they could ever imagine. You will surpass them all little one."

"I see them! Kaede-baba! Inuyasha-kun! They're fine!"

Kagome rushed back inside with excited relief.

"They're almost here. I can see them coming."

"I told you it would be fine, stupid."

"Os—"

"Not inside," Kaede warned. By then Inuyasha had already made his escape. Standing outside the hut he and Shinokiri made eye contact as the distance closed.

Inuyasha carried Rin inside in his arms, letting Shinokiri stumble inside behind him. Kagome and Kaede hovered over the child before looking to Shinokiri as she slid down the wall in a clutter to the floor.

"She's too excitable. Worked herself up and passed out."

Inuyasha's gaze shaped itself into a glare.

"You have issues lady."

The colic pup wriggled around in Izayoi's arms. The human looked drained and completely out of her depth.

"He has so much energy…from his father I imagine."

"Hn."

Shinokiri looked at the wailing child with trepidation. She could not recall a moment in which Inu no Taisho had displayed reminiscent behavior.

"There's no making him happy it seems…"

Izayoi said with a tired chuckle. She seemed to be trying to entice conversation. Shinokiri would drop in periodically to ask the same question, "Do you or the little one want for anything?"

Of course, they didn't. Izayoi was preened and pampered princess. The only thing she was starved of was a two-sided interaction. She was shunned in her own palace, and Inuyasha simply could not fill the hole that the lack of companionship had left. She was going mad from loneliness.

"Would you like to give it a go?"

Izayoi already had the pup outstretched before Shinokiri could process the question. The demoness recoiled before she hesitantly took him. Almost immediately he began to coo and stuff her hair in his mouth.

Shinokiri spun his smiling face to her cringing one. She seemed to flinch with each gurgling giggle. It all culminated in him spitting up on her hair.

"Oh, my deepest apologies…I never—"

Shinokiri silenced her with a look. She could not have thrown the child back to his mother quicker. Flinching at the closeness of her own hair, she left in almost a flurry.

As grown as he was now, Inuyasha still looked exactly as he did as a newborn. Shinokiri looked away from him.

"Sh-shinokiri-hime?"

Everyone's attention rested on the stirring child.

"Are you ok Rin?"

Kagome stroked her forehead, "What happened?" Rin ignored this, sitting up to look at Shinokiri.

"You were so upset. I was scared."

Shinokiri sighed. "It's done now Rin. I'm sorry you were frightened." They were all only marginally satisfied by this, but everyone in the hut decided it was best to put the matter to rest. Rin perked up and scuttled across the room to Shinokiri.

"OK!"

She gleefully pulled the demoness into a tight embrace, "I thought you were going to leave."

"Not yet Rin."

They stayed close to each other. The child was unwavering in her sweetness without being jarring. Almost nothing less could force any warmth out of Sesshomaru…almost nothing.

"Shinokiri. You have failed to influence my son entirely." Inu no Taisho looked at the bowing younger demon wearily.

"By now you should, at least, be with child," Sesshomaru's mother added with an irritated clenching and unclenching of her fist.

"He does not wish to impregnate me."

Her two betters both looked to each other and then at her. Shinokiri could feel their eyes boring holes into the back of her skull.

"This is unacceptable. I expected better from you."

Shinokiri took this as her cue to back out of the room carefully.

"Many apologies, my lord, my lady."

She waited until she was out entirely before allowing herself to turn forward. Dejected and low, she shuffled through the hall.

"You've made life difficult for me Sesshomaru-sama."

She didn't have to turn around: she sensed him, smelt him.

"Will you die without my father's favor?" He grabbed her pushing her against the wall. Shinokiri responded by capturing him in a deep and passionate kiss. The two carried on, stroking nose to nose in the interim of their kisses. Shamelessly they fondled each other, moaning amorously.

"They will think I'm defective if they see us this way and nothing to show for it."

"Are you so common as to let that bother you?"

Shinokiri slapped him off of her in annoyance. Sesshomaru smirked at her. In these moments he seemed almost playful.

"Don't touch me anymore."

Sesshomaru drew her back to him, leering at her. "You don't mean that."

"Just because you don't want it, doesn't mean I don't mean it. If I can't give you an heir then there's no use in all of this."

Sesshomaru began to nibble and suck at her neck, and she in kind leaned into it moaning. He breathed in her ear, "You are mine to do with as I please."

Shinokiri looked out to the moon.

When will he return?