Shikuro: A Caribbean Fairy Tale

by Inuma Asahi De

Inuyasha was as bad as pirates came, according to his legend. Kagome was a woman of propriety, destined to marry for her family's honor when all she wanted was to live on the sea. What happens when their eyes meet by chance or perhaps by daring fate?

112. Grey

Blanket Disclaimer: The writer does not own any characters created by Rumiko Takahashi but like everyone else wishes she did. All original characters or concepts are the author Inuma Asahi De's (with the exception of historical figures).

Chapter One Hundred and Twelve

Grey

The small group stood on the deck of the Shikuro, their eyes staring out across the whole of the Pacific. A dark line seemed to be running down the middle of the sea, creating a stark barrier between the safety of their ship and a treacherous storm. Above their heads, the sun shone brightly, glittering down between wisps of white cloud; across the invisible line a league or so away, however, sinister, black clouds loomed. Sheets of rain, so thick they were easily visible from even miles away, poured from them. The rain cascaded into the ocean creating sweeping waves with frothy white heads in its wake. The slamming of the raindrops creating waves, each little hit amplifying the ominous feeling created by the sight of the foamy, twisting sea.

"That's where the compass is pointing." Sango whispered as she wrapped her arms around her body and stared at one giant wave as it grew and grew before rolling downwards, slamming into the sea below. A streak of light followed it striking at the water so as to highlight the raindrops as they surged downwards.

The thunder that always follows lightening strikes boomed over the water making Miroku wince. "Of course it is." He spoke up from beside her, his sarcasm not lost on the group.

"It really seems stereotypical," Eion commented as he leaned against the railing appearing nonchalant even though his heart was filled with bitter turmoil. "Doesn't it?"

Kagome blinked slowly as she took in the divide between them and that menacing world. "Dark," She whispered as if to herself but the group heard her none the less. "And," She gnawed on her lip for a second, her eyes drifting upwards to the contrasting white clouds that rested above their heads. "Light." The word fell from her mouth softly and she felt her stomach turn against its sound. There was something important in this words but she couldn't access what that importance was just yet.

"Now 'hat's steroti'ping, it is." Aengus joked and pointed one clawed finger towards his great-granddaughter while waggling it back and forth good naturedly.

Kagome dropped her head down in response and giggled as the man winked at her playfully. "Yeah—I guess it is." She smiled, the expression only a bit pained, and turned towards Inuyasha.

The dog demon was standing with his arms crossed over his chest and his red and brown flecked golden eyes narrowed. A short distance away from him, separated from the other man by Takeshi, Sesshoumaru stood as well. The slightly smaller demon had his arms dangling at his sides, calm; but, his perfect golden eyes looked far different by comparison. Those eyes were bright with thought. Standing so close to one another, their striking silver hair blowing back slightly in the breeze, they looked very much alike. Both were staring out into the face of possible death with exacting eyes, already calculating exactly what it would take to emerge from the other side alive. Takeshi, who looked quite small between his father and uncle, mirrored their expressions, but even a perfect mimic cannot fake confidence. Just as his dark hair contrasted heavily with the other two demons, his taunt gaze did as well.

"He looks afraid." Kagome thought to herself and licked her lips hastily. "I can't blame him." She turned back to the oncoming storm, watching as lightning sprang out of the clouds creating a flickering, eerie illumination of their underbellies.

"It is odd," Paedar abruptly spoke, drawing everyone's attention towards his, till now, silent form. "That the world is so distinctly separated." He drew his light eyebrows together and a soft growl left his throat. "The jewel—this," His silver eyes flashed with the lighting strikes across the sea. "Is the jewel.

"The jewel?" Takeshi whispered from between the safety of the two dog demons. Despite that safe position, however, he still couldn't stop his voice from sounding very young. Compared to the men he stood between, who had faced death and life countless times, he was very young. "A jewel can do that?" He questioned, his wide golden eyes blinking almost, daresay, innocently.

"This jewel," Kagome responded evenly as her fingers twitched at her sides, aching to grip something for balance. "Can do almost anything."

Inuyasha's ear twisted towards Kagome's words, taking them in so deeply that they sunk all the way to his stomach. A distant memory replayed within his mind and he shifted his weight from one foot to the other in thought. "This all feels," He drew his lips into a thin line and leaned forward over the railing of his ship. Water lapped against the bows of the vessel but he ignored the soft slapping sound as he inhaled carefully. "Like I've experienced it before." He leaned back away from the railing and dropped his hands from his chest. "Miroku," The sudden sound of his son's name made the small group flinch. "Remember that storm," He directed his gaze towards Miroku, looking at the man with imploring irises. "The one I missed in the Caribbean."

Miroku quirked an eyebrow in thought for all of a second before nodding his head sharply. "The one where you had to cut down the mast, right?"

"With your bear claws." Sango added casually, noticing the way his grandfathers collectively raised their eyebrows in amusement. "Can't forget that bit."

Beside his father, Takeshi nearly swallowed his tongue as he blinked up at his uncle. "You cut down a mast with your bear claws?" He whispered amazed, his golden eyes sparkling with admiration.

"A mast on fire." Sango laughed slightly at her addition, studying the boy as his mouth dropped opened revealing baby fangs.

"Stop bragging for me," Inuyasha grumbled but didn't stop the pleased smirk that jumped onto his lips. The look didn't last long, however, as a large clap of thunder coming from the storm made his forehead crinkle with thought. "That storm back then," His nose twitched as he scented the air and his expression darkened. "It smells the same as this one."

Sesshoumaru released a small sound of interest from his throat and scented the air suspiciously. "The air smells—heavy." He spoke purposefully, his eyes tapering as they shifted this way and that, watching.

Paedar tilted his head to the side, closed his eyes, and inhaled as deeply as he could. He mulled the smell over, turning it over again and again in his head. As the oldest demon there, he had a bit of an advantage. He had smelled far more things then both Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru combined. Suddenly, his eyes snapped opened and he lifted his chin up examining the horizon critically. "Metal." He finally spoke, saying the word as if it was dangerous in and of itself. "It smells metallic."

"Yes." Sesshoumaru agreed and squared his shoulders up a bit.

The Captain of the Shikuro scrutinized the sea before him gravely before turning towards his mate, suspicion reigning in his mind. "That storm, we were real close to Port Royal then," He looked down the bridge of his nose towards the top of Kagome's head. "Did it hit Jamaica, itself?"

"Jamaica?" Kagome crossed her arms and scrunched her face up in thought. "Give me a second." She licked her lips and blew upwards at her bangs, forcing them away from her forehead as if that would clear her mind and help her remember. "It's been a while." She thought as she closed her eyes and let her bangs flutter back into place. With her eyes shut, her mind delved into a time period she did not like to think on very often.

"Ma chéri?" Her mother's voice invaded her mind bringing her back into a distant memory that felt so real she was sure she was actually there, back in Jamaica.

The smell of salt hit her nose from the slightly opened window of her mother's dining room and she crunched up her nose to fight off a sneeze caused by the spring air. Her eyes blurred for a second before clearing and she blinked rapidly in amazement as she took in her surroundings, her vivid memories. She was sitting at the long dining table across from her younger brother who was sipping at a soup she couldn't now recall. She glanced down in front of her, at her own place setting, and frowned as she saw her reflection in the murky broth of her own bowl. Long hair cascaded down her shoulders, dipping towards the front of a square cut purple dress that she remembered owning and not entirely hating. A large matching bow pulled some of her dark tresses away from her face. The hairstyle was not proper by any means but was enough to appease her mother.

"Chéri?" Her mother's exasperated voice made her head snap up towards the woman herself who was sitting at the head of the table, across from her father.

"Oui." She replied in French, feeling awkward as she watched the woman shake her head a little bit. Her own dark hair was piled high with two twirling curls framing her suitably painted face. "Just as I remember." Kagome gulped even as her mother's bright blue eyes studied her contemptuously.

"Do you 'ave tea tomorrow?" She asked in English, knowing that Kagome's father across from her, to this day, did not speak French very well. Therefore, it was a common courtesy to say important things in a language he understood well.

"I was planning on it." Kagome responded carefully even as she glanced at her father. She had a feeling that he was going to say something about the conversation.

"Magnifique." The woman nodded sharply as she raised her spoon to her lips and sipped at her soup with deliberate daintiness.

"It might rain." Her father spoke just as Kagome had predicted from his spot on the other side of the table. "If it does, Kagome," He looked towards her eyes her over his own spoon before he took a sip. "You must stay home."

"But Papa!" Kagome protested and shifted forward in her seat. Across from her, Souta groaned but didn't say anything as he leaned back in his chair, waiting for an oncoming power struggle.

"Now, now," Her father shook his head and glimpsed out the window, his grey eyes reflecting what little natural light came from outside. "I don't want you risking your health." He motioned towards the window, Kagome's eyes following his movements. "See—," He spoke calmly, his voice soothing and gentle. "It's starting to drizzle."

She blinked as she looked out the window. Little streaks of rain were hitting the pane every few seconds before sliding down to join their brothers and sisters along the bottom of the glass. Some of them were even accumulating on the edge of the sill threatening to come through the small opening and into the room.

"Mon cher!" Her mother dropped her spoon into her soup, grabbing for her napkin hastily. "Close de vondow, s'il vous plait!" She dabbed at the sides of her mouth delicately more to keep herself from becoming angry than to wipe her face.

"Yes, dear." Her father chuckled as he stood from his chair, the sound of it scrapping the ground drowned out by booming thunder.

Kagome's eyes snapped opened and she gulped, forcing a lump out of her throat. "It was—," The words left her mouth as the she pushed the memory of that last family dinner down and out of her mind. "It was raining."

The small group went silent at Kagome's admission, all of them lost in their collective thoughts. Even though no one would say it out loud just yet, they all knew what Inuyasha had been hinting at. "It was Naraku." The Captain spoke for all of them, his voice taunt as he brought his hands up to cross over his chest once more. "He did it then—."

"And he's doing it now." Paedar finished for him with a long drawn out sigh.

Kagome bit her lip, something within her not liking the phrasing of their words. "No." She countered their logic as she reached out for the railing in front of her grasping it with strong fingers. Her grey eyes swirled with the sight of the storm as she focused on it, seeing it in a way that no one else on the ship ever could. "This isn't Naraku." She closed her eyes and the wind picked up, the storm was gaining strength and growing closer with every second.

"Help me!" The little boy cried as he stared up at her, all his hope bursting from his gaze into her heart.

She squeezed her eyes shut tighter as the sound of his small voice filled up her whole heart. "This is the jewel." She whispered fiercely, even as a bitter wind suddenly kicked up hitting her cheeks harshly. "Naraku is just," She forced her eyes opened searching for something she didn't yet understand. "A pawn."

The group was silent for a moment, soaking up Kagome's words. "A pawn," Paedar's voice was quiet and yet easily heard. "Can still attack."

"Then we should assail first." Sesshoumaru's opinion rang out and cut into Kagome's heart.

She turned quickly, wanting to tell the full fledged dog general that they could not attack Naraku, but Inuyasha's hand on her arm stopped her. Her husband held her upper arm as gently as possible, his fingers barely seeming to connect with her dark jacket sleeve, and yet she didn't pull away. "I will do everything in my power," He spoke firmly but honestly all at once. "To save him Kagome." He took a deep breath and rubbed his thumb over the material of her jacket. "With Zentai in my hand—I know I can at least try."

Not knowing what to say Kagome dropped her head down, her eyes making contact with the ground instantly. In her mind she saw the compass, saw the arrow pointing towards their destination more purposefully than it had ever pointed before. The arrow had not even wavered when she had tilted her wrist or when her hands had shaken from the sight of it. It was as if the compass had known this was it, one more shard to follow and then its usefulness on this earth was mute. "This has to work." She told herself but the doubt growing in her heart was insane. "Why—why do I feel like this is—this is," She bit the inside of her cheek and looked up through her lashes at Inuyasha. He wasn't looking at her, so all she could see was his chin as he held it up high, staring at the building tempest. "Like this is wrong."

"I guess it's time to head into the storm." Sango spoke for all of them as she patted the gun at her side, ready for the fight ahead.

Inuyasha nodded his confirmation and turned his attention towards his brother. "You're with me on Shikuro," His neck turned quickly around, still not looking at Kagome as he spoke. "You too Miroku."

"Takeshi stays with me." Sesshoumaru confirmed causing Inuyasha to glance behind him once more.

"He's your pup." The man shrugged and without another word to his brother continued dividing out orders. "Sango—stay with Kagome on the second vessel." He commanded firmly knowing Sango was more likely to survive if she stayed with Kagome. "I want to get her back to the pups if I can."

"It has a name." Takeshi chimed in but Inuyasha blatantly ignored him as his father sent him a slight, ever so slight, glare. "Gomen nasai." He looked down not wanting to make eye contact with his father's stern expression in the least.

"We'll stay with Kagome as well." Paedar offered quickly before Inuyasha could actually order him to.

For his part, the younger demon frowned debating with himself. Part of him wanted his grandfathers at his side but another part of him wanted Kagome surrounded by as many protectors as possible. "The more people there to keep her out of trouble the better." He licked his lips and glanced down at Kagome wondering if she was listening into his thoughts; she didn't appear to be. "Excellent—well—I guess it's—." His heart sped up a little bit in his chest as the inevitability of what he was about to say struck him fully. "Time." The word dripped from his mouth with an anticlimactic flare. "How long has it been since I started to head to this moment?" He asked himself as he blinked at the distant horizon where fate waited for him. "A year—two—a hundred—four?" Deep down he knew, it had been his whole life and probably even before.

Fate had always been waiting, and now it stood right in front of him.

"Chichiue." Takeshi's voice was loud in the building quiet as he darted forward away from his father's side, a claw pointing deliberately above the railing. "What's that?"

Immediately, swords and guns were drawn and Kagome's hand grabbed for her bow throwing it in front of her so fast that she beat them all. Seven adult fighters, some of the best in the world by far, aimed their weapon of choice out across the water. Of course, Kagome's was really the only one that had the accuracy and the ability to hit whatever distant object was coming towards them. Their eyes scanned the sphere of rain, trying to see what Takeshi was pointing out amongst the downpour. Finally, an isolated speck of white amongst the chaotic darkness entered their collective view and as a group they held their breath. Whatever it was, it was still at least a league or a little more away, but it was moving fast, covering hundreds of feet a second.

Time ticked by, the distant object growing closer and easier to see with each minute that passed. Their heart's beat so strongly in their chest as they waited, that each fighter was sure the person next to them could hear the sound. If anyone could hear the others' heartbeat though, they didn't bother to acknowledge the thumping. All eyes were fixed on the white entity that was now slowly taking shape. It was long; a cylinder of white that looked almost soft even from so far away.

The sound of Sesshoumaru's sudden intake of air made the group jump. "Kagura." He said the name without preamble, the tip of the sword that had sprung into his hands dipping down as he looked across the great expanse towards the wind demon.

"Kagura?" Inuyasha's jaw instantaneously went slack as he stared openly at his brother in disbelief.

"Who's Kagura?" Eion mumbled and looked between his brother and Aengus confused.

"Hell if I know." Aengus responded verbally even as his mate simply shook his head back and forth perplexed.

"Wind demon." Sango supplied roughly as she dropped her gun down in front of her body, her shoulders tensing. "She warned us about Naraku and she knows Sesshoumaru."

Takeshi leaned over the railing as he offhandedly added, "She's my Aunt," much to the wide confusion of everyone who knew the history there.

"Yes." Sesshoumaru confirmed, although who he was confirming was hard to tell. Still, the tightness of his voice drew attention towards his face from everyone and his expression made even his son perplexed. His normally calloused eyes were soften ever so slightly, teeming with what might have been regret, and his mouth was opened as if he wanted to say a million things but didn't know how to form even one word with his vocal cords. The expression lasted only a few, long seconds and then he snapped his jaw shut. His eyes followed the sudden return to decorum becoming bored once more and well controlled. Without even acknowledging everyone else, the demon lord bent his knees slightly and jumped up onto the railing, his sword still drawn in his hands.

"What are you doing?" Miroku jumped forward, his shock wearing off only slightly before his father's.

"Sesshoumaru!" Inuyasha moved to grab his brother's hand but stopped as a cold voice rang in his ears.

"I'm signaling her." Sesshoumaru informed as he drew the sword across his body, a faint glow surrounding the edge of the blade as his body pulsed once strongly. With a deep breath he yanked the sword across his frame sending a sliver of energy out into the world. It flew swiftly just above the water of the ocean, a disk of crackling, red energy that probably could be seen for miles.

"Great," Inuyasha growled and threw his hands up in the air with a curse. "Now everything for twenty leagues knows where we are!"

For his part, Sesshoumaru ignored his brother completely, his sharp golden eyes watching the now dissipating blast of energy. The hot red cylinder faded from existence long before it reached Kagura but it did its job well. The feather adjusted itself, turning in the air towards the Shikuro before speeding up drastically. Sesshoumaru straightened as he stood on the railing, his stony face unreadable to everyone but Kagome below him.

The young Miko stared at the demon lord's back, watching as his shoulders grew taunt and his chin elevated as if to hide something. She could feel the emotions coming off of him in waves and they were just as confusing for her as they must have been for him. Her eyes swam with tears she couldn't control for a moment, regret pilling on top of her heart and then it was gone, replaced by an implausible self control that Sesshoumaru had learned from his father long ago. "It's like he shut his emotions off." She mused as the remnants of his feelings for Kagura barely touched her heart. "At one time," She felt her shoulders slump a little, mimicking what the dog demon was feeling. "You really loved her, didn't you? But not like you love Rin, huh?"

"Miko."

She jumped at the unexpected intrusion of Sesshoumaru's voice in her mind, her whole body tingling with a swift wave of irritation. "Sorry." She apologized out loud not bothering to debate as to how Sesshoumaru had known she was sensing him. "Didn't mean to." She continued on much to the confusion of everyone around her.

Her husband quirked an eyebrow at her and leaned away a little bit, looking her up and down. "Didn't mean to what?"

She laughed awkwardly and, in a move that impersonated Inuyasha almost perfectly, threw a hand behind her head to rub at her neck. "To pry." She shifted her glance towards Sesshoumaru and back to Inuyasha the dog demon picking up on her meaning easily.

He snorted and clicked his tongue clearly amused. "At least he knows how I feel." He quipped even as he trained his vision on the feather that was rapidly closing in on the ship. No more than a few moments and it would reach the riggings of the Shikuro's sails. "Can she land that thing on deck?"

"I sure hope so." Miroku replied warily as he glanced at the ropes and riggings that littered the Shikuro's quarterdeck. If she hit one of them, it would be a pain to repair, especially with a battle threatening their future.

The feather dipped lower in the sky, its speed not even decreasing in the slightest as it made its final approach towards the ship. Sesshoumaru jumped down from his spot on the railing, getting out of the way as it headed towards them. The feather was yanked and pulled this way and that in the increasingly fierce winter winds but stayed on course by some miracle. The demon lord growled slightly under his breath as he actually craned his neck, trying to make out the wind demon who should have been visible by now but he didn't see her at all. "Strange." He thought as worry set into his heart that could not be seen on his face. "She usually sits high enough to see out." His eyebrows knitted together as the feather dipped even lower, revealing an approaching sight he had not expected to see. "She's hurt."

Panic welled up in the small group as Sesshoumaru's observation became all of their concerns. Even the humans in the group could see that the wind demon was slumped upon her feather, clothing that should have covered her whole body ripped to show hints of skin. The demons, on the other hand, could see more and smell more. Blood: they could see the red crimson as it began to penetrate the feather and they could smell the copper as it collected. Regardless of her own lack of demon blood, Kagome jumped into action knowing that a hunched form was hardly ever a good sign.

"Sango?" Kagome directed quickly, watching as the woman ran towards the hallway leading to their cabins without further prompting.

"Got it!" She called over her shoulder as she disappeared into the hallway.

"Make room!" Inuyasha yelled towards the crewmen who had been puttering around behind them throughout the whole conversation, completing small tasks that required no formal commands. His crew scrambled in response to his words, pushing up against the barrels and cannons that lined the deck so there was a spot right in the middle for Kagura to land.

But Kagura didn't land; she crashed.

The feather flew between two ropes that held the mast in place moving far too rapidly to come to a normal stop. Instead, it hit the main mast dead on sending Kagura's body flying up in the air and her feather fluttering down to the ground. In an instant, Sesshoumaru sprang upwards, launching himself into the air just in time to catch Kagura's falling body. He landed crouched low upon the ground, cradling her against himself delicately as her feather caught in the wind beginning to fly away while still at full size. "Takeshi!" He commanded and without needing to add even another word, the boy practically threw himself across the deck, grabbing for the white plume before it could be taken by the wind.

"Wakarimashita!" He told his father of his success but the man didn't bother to respond with praise or otherwise. Puzzled, the boy turned towards his father, his golden eyes blinking as he watched the older man with his Aunt Kagura (at least that was what he had called her). "Okay, that's strange." He told himself and raised his eyebrows high into his hairline as he took in his father's vaguely gentle face. The bored expression was in place as it always was but there was something else there that even at fifteen he recognized. "Chichiue?" He tried to grab his father's attention but it was in vain.

The dog demon lord could only look down at the blood stained and bruised face of his ex-fiancé with scrutinizing eyes. "Kagura?" He said her name firmly, not one ounce of tenderness in his voice but his actions were a direct contradiction. His free clawed hand, the one not supporting her lithe frame, reached out to soothingly touch her cheek holding it delicately as he examined her. "Kagura?" He tried again, patting her cheek softly in order to wake her. She groaned slightly in response and he ran his thumb against a bruise underneath her eye, a fleck of anger forming in his own.

"She's bruised all over." Kagome commented as she dared to approach the demon lord. His eyes turned their wrath upon her but she dismissed the look as she rounded his stooped form. "I can help—like I did with Sango." She told him as she knelt down in front of him, trying to send him a reassuring smile, but he didn't look at her to see it.

"Will your power hurt a demon?" He asked purposefully as he stared at Kagura, watching her breathe.

"No." Kagome shook her head slowly back and forth, the reassuring smile still on her face when Sesshoumaru bothered to look at her for the briefest of seconds.

"Go ahead." He commanded and the miko's smile grew just a bit.

"Be careful." Inuyasha told her as he maintained his distance. "Kagome's one thing—." He felt his muscles tense with apprehension as he glanced over at his son and grandfathers. All of them were watching tensely, their expression angry and perplexed all at the same time. "If any of us approached," He gulped and glanced towards Sesshoumaru once more. "We'd probably get bit—well—," He shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. "That was optimistic; Sesshoumaru probably wouldn't stop with the bite."

Not really minding her husband's worried voice, Kagome reached forward towards Kagura. Sesshoumaru released a small protective growl at her movement but she was not bothered by it in the least. "All bark and no bite—," She told herself, allowing the distraction to jump into her psyche for a second. "Just like his brother." She resisted the urge to chuckle, amused by her own thoughts, and forced herself to focus on the task at hand.

Sango emerged from the hallway at that very moment, a small jug of water in one hand and bandages in the other. Without so much as a single sound, she crossed the deck and fell at Sesshoumaru and Kagome's side. "Water for when she wakes—she'll need it." She told Kagome as Sesshoumaru sent a growl in her direction as well but unlike Kagome she didn't stop the words from leaving her mouth. "Oh, calm down." She chastised and Sesshoumaru growled a little louder in response but she only rolled her eyes. "Men."

Kagome nodded her head in agreement as she rested her fingertips against Kagura's bruised cheek. "Thanks Sango she'll need the water but—." She sent the other girl an apologetic smile and glanced at the gauze. "I think—we'll be able to skip the bandaging." She licked her lips and turned back to her task before Sango could comment. Digging deep inside herself, she pulled the barest amount of energy to the surface, watching as her fingers glowed with it only seconds later.

Carefully, Kagome leaned a little closer to her brother in law not really noticing when the man refrained from growling, his expression taunt as he watched her with mild interest. Her glowing fingers reached out, one hand going towards Kagura's face and the other to her chest. She knitted her eyebrows together as she placed her fingers against Kagura's bruised cheek; the other set landing on a section of the wind demon's exposed chest. It appeared someone had torn her shirt opened at some point. Hands in place, she allowed her eyes to drift closed with concentration, focusing her energy into Kagura's body with the upmost of care.

"My hands' heal so easily." She told herself as she found the broken blood vessels underneath Kagura's skin stitching them together whilst removing the blood so her bruises would fade. "Scary to think they can kill too." A nagging feeling jumped into her mind from the thought, and her eyes opened with an inner realization. "Kill and heal—both demons and humans—I can kill or heal—wait?" Without even realizing it, she stopped pushing energy into Kagura, and her hands fell away. Luckily, her work was already done, and her stunned expression was wholly ignored, drowned out by Kagura's sudden intake of breath.

The wind demon's lungs heaved as she inhaled and soon the sound turned into a full out coughing fit. Sesshoumaru held her as the reverberation of her lungs rattling made the onlookers wince with sympathy. "Daijoubu desu ka?" He asked as the coughing started to subside, replaced by a pained moaned.

"Daijobu." She responded softly as she leaned against him, the warmth of his arms something she only had distant memories of now. "Ano?" She finally opened her eyes, blinking back the blurriness of unconsciousness and forcing her gaze into focus. "Sesshoumaru-sama." She said his name as if she were surprised to even be speaking it.

For his part, Sesshoumaru could only stare in retort as he took in her one blue eye and the other white one with surprise. "Your eyes?" He questioned not sure what he was seeing in the least. "What happened to the shinigami eyes—the red ones?"

"Kaede-sama take them before she died," Kagura told him even as she closed her eyes off to him once more, appearing absolutely exhausted. "And gave Kagura back one of own and one Shinigami."

"I'm confused." Eion spoke from somewhere behind them but no one troubled themselves by responding to his unasked question.

"It's really not too complicated." Miroku offered over an actual explanation but Eion could only look at him baffled.

"Lies." Aengus threw in with a shake of his head.

"And slander." Paedar offered nonchalantly even as Miroku help up his hands above his head in defeat.

The silent Kagome, who sat on her knees before Kagura, blinked as she heard the wisp of their confusion, the sound of it only reinforcing her own. She crinkled her forehead as she turned towards the woman she had just healed processing some great unknown. "My energy—." She lifted her hands up to look at her palms, as if they had the answer, but deep down she knew they didn't. "It killed Manten and the Mongooses; but, it also purified Onaconah's brother who was a demon and healed Kagura just now." A thought jumped in and out of her brain but she couldn't grasp it or its magnitude. "It can heal and hurt demons, both—shouldn't it only be able to do one? Shouldn't my energy," She brought a hand up to her head holding in a headache as she looked at Kagura who was whispering to Sesshomaru. "Hurt demons?" She gripped her hair between her fingers completely baffled. "Demon energy and human energy are different, so they shouldn't mix. Am I just—is that part of being an empath? I can mix them." She closed her eyes and released a soft sound of indignation. "Why do I feel like I'm missing something important?!"

Inuyasha, who was always in tune with every movement Kagome made, saw her as she brought her hand up to her head as if in pain and heard her little groan. "Kagome are you okay?" He asked as he crossed the distance between them no longer worried about Sesshoumaru's possible reaction at all.

Kagura's eyes snapped opened and she shot up pushing Sesshoumaru's arms away from her body as the name blew through her mind. "Kagome-sama!" She gasped and grabbed for Kagome's shoulders , the action making at least two of the men behind her reach for weapons. "Kagome O'lionsigh!" She shook Kagome a bit a she nearly yelled the full name.

"Kagura!" Sesshoumaru protested, his voice quiet but purposeful. Having known the demon lord for centuries, however, Kagura didn't listen. Instead, she pulled herself away from him completely, slipping out of his grip without a care as she continued to shake the young miko.

"Yes." Kagome responded feeling a little nauseous as her neck snapped forwards and backwards.

"Did you get it?" Kagura's words seemed to spring from her mouth, attacking Kagome with their loudness. "The letter." She reiterated as her heart palpitated in her chest with her own anxiety. "Did it make it?"

Kagome's grey eyes widened and the baffled faces of her family made her cringe. "Yes." She confirmed and nodded her head, her earlier thoughts drifting away. "How do you know about the letter?"

"Arigato, Kami-sama." Kagura whispered under her breath before responding to Kagome's question. "Kagura sent it." The wind demon leaned forward, her focus solely on Kagome, the one person who could help her. "Did it help?"

"Yes." Kagome made her voice sound as honest as possible even though she wasn't sure if the letter had really helped at all. "But you—," She hastily tried to change the subject wanting the attention that was about to be placed on her, on Kagura instead. "What happened to you?"

Her eyes darkened and her posture sagged as she pulled her whole body into a tight ball suddenly. Her hands wrapped around her middle protectively and her eyes looked down away from the other woman in front of her. A look of fear crossed her face and Kagome felt the emotion as it ebbed and flowed like a tide intermixing with hate, rage, and horror. "Naraku."

The deck went still at his name, no one speaking a single word as they took in the sight of Kagura once again. The bruises on her face, neck, exposed arms, and chest were healed thanks to Kagome but her clothes had not been mended. Her shirt was torn both on the front and the back, the arms shredded along her sides. The pants she wore were worse for wear as well. Snags in the fabric, which onces might have been small, were now gaping holes. Speaks of blood dotted the material, giant wells of it soaking the front of her shirt and a spot on her leg. She looked as if someone had grabbed her by her hair and dragged her across a field of broken glass. Yet, there was something off about her statement but only those who had smelled Naraku would possibly see it or better yet scent it.

The demon pirate captain narrowed his eyes and scented the air. "Something's not right." He took a step forward, his nose continuing to take in the familiar scent of Kagura mixed with another familiar scent he had almost forgotten. "Naraku's scent," His voice brought Kagura's head back up to look at him her miss-matched eyes still filled with dread. "Isn't on you."

Kagura flinched at the disguised accusation but didn't deny its truth. "He did no-t-t-o," She stuttered her accent coming through as her worry marred her ability to speak. "Do directly."

"Then wh—," His voice died before he could finish the sentence and his eyes widened to the point of nearly taking up his whole face. "I know that scent." His inner voice chimed in as his mind jumped back to over a year before when they had been on the shores of South America selling wares. "Hiten." He said the name but his shock didn't stop there as the unmistakable scent of mates made his hatred for Hiten double into something almost sickening. "You're mated to Hiten!" He yelled, Kagome and Sango's squeaks of shock easily ignored as he watched Kagura scrunch up her face seconds away from refuting his tone. "And he beat the shit out of you!" His words made Sesshoumaru gracefully, albeit quickly, jump to his feet.

"He will pay." The demon lord spoke firmly, nearly forgetting that his very confused son was watching the entire conversation unaware of his father's real past with this woman.

"No!" Kagura jumped to her feet as well, grabbing for Sesshoumaru's arm with an air of familiarity that was not missed by any of the onlookers.

"This is getting really interesting." Eion even commented as he crossed his arms and looked between the wind demon and the dog demon.

Beside him Aengus laughed and nudged the younger man giddily, clearly entertained. "Yer tellin' me." He looked towards his mate and sent the man a smirk. "Feels like we're watchin' a real good play."

"I've never seen a play." Miroku added in his two cents worth as he glanced at his adoptive grandfather.

Eion sent him a cheeky smile and patted him on the shoulder absently. "Blame yer fa—."

"Shh." Paedar shushed him, pretending it was an action done out of principal but Eion knew he really just didn't want to miss a single word of the ongoing 'production.'

"It-to not Hiten-sama fault." Kagura continued to explain, her hand gripping the fabric of Sesshoumaru's haori, tugging at it to make her point. "It's Naraku."

"Wait." Kagome stepped forward, putting her hands up to silence both Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru's rebuttal to her words. "What did Naraku do?"

Kagura glanced at Kagome, pursing her lips as she let her hand drop from Sesshoumaru's sleeve. She stared into the girl's grey eyes, feeling a sudden swell of security as she looked into their depths. They reminded her oddly of Kaede's: old and wise. The only difference was that Kagome's shouldn't have been old and wise. She was young, very young as was apparent just looking at her face but those eyes didn't match. They were ancient. "Naraku," She spoke to those eyes trusting them as she had trusted Kaede before her death. "Controls Hiten-sama—controls all." She noticed how Kagome's astute eyes clouded already understanding what she meant but she clarified anyway. "The whole crew, including Hiten-sama, under Naraku control." She looked away from Kagome, scanning the people around her who she knew and didn't know. Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha, Takeshi, the human man and woman, and the three wolves who attentively studied her now, the smile gone from their faces. "Naraku made an army of them all."

-break-

The weasel demon stood upon the helm's deck of the Thunder, his dark eyes looking out across the water's of the sea. In the distance, by the grace of the shikon jewel within him, he could see the outline of two ships. Without even having to squint he knew that one of those vessels was the ill-fated Shikuro, Captain Inuyasha at her helm and Kagome Dresmont (as he only knew her) at his side. The demon growled low in his throat as the storm all around him began to calm eerily.

"That's all." He told himself as he studied the outline of that ship on the other side of the great divide. "You—you are all that's left." He leaned forward, over the railing, grabbing for it with his dark claws. They pierced the wood upon contact, splinters ripping into his skin that he ignored. "With you dead—nothing—nothing—can get in my way." A sick smile lined his features and he yanked his claws from the wood, turning his attention downwards towards his own ship.

Standing on the deck below, rows and rows of men greeted him. They stood in line, ten by ten, hands behind their back and chins up gazing at him. He swept his visage over them, not bothering to pay too close attention to the face of any one person. It didn't matter anyway. They were cronies at best; that is, all except one. A small grin played over Naraku's face as he turned his attention to the one man not standing in line with the others around him. Hiten, stoned faced and cold eyed, stood just in front of what had once been his crew. His clothes were ripped up from Kagura fighting back and his face was bruised but his afflictions were already healing.

"So still," Naraku spoke quietly not caring in the least if anyone on the ship heard him. It wouldn't matter, even if somewhere in the deepest reaches of their minds they could understand his words, there was nothing physically they could do about the realization. "So obedient," He rolled his shoulders and moved his eyes upwards to look at his target. "I think—it should start now."

A bright flash of lightning split the air followed very shortly by a harsh clap of thunder. Neither disturbed Naraku in the least as he looked at his army. The storm around him had died down tremendously, the rain replaced by a thick atmosphere of hovering vapor. It was almost as if the rain were suspended, hanging and waiting for his orders in thick fog-like clouds. Gingerly, he raised a hand palm down before his face, every man on the deck following it with his eyes. The clouds above his head thickened and darkened, the air became dense with unreleased rain, and the once proud crew of the Shikuro bowed their heads to their tyrant master.

"Dear crew," Naraku addressed them as he smiled his stomach twisting with the pleasure that came from saying these words. "It's time."

Nothing else needed to be said, in a sudden swarm of life every man who served the Thunder jumped into action. Demons standing at complete standstills bent their knees and in an explosion of power jumped twenty feet into the air landing on the booms that rocked from the air currents up above. Their hands moved without their eyes acknowledging either where they were or what they had to accomplishment. Ropes came free; the sails flew loose snapping in the wind as the men worked to set the ship in motion. Below them, on the deck, keen hands awaited the tie downs prepared to put each sail in its place.

"Mr. Hiten." Naraku turned his attention to the one man who hadn't moved at his words.

The demon stood where he had been moments before, his hands balled into fist at his sides. His eyes were staring straight up at Naraku, the deep black somehow just a little bit aware.

"Is it fun?" The weasel demon asked, his voice easy to hear now that the wind had died down at least some and the rain was no longer falling.

Hiten's jaw tightened in response to the words and his brow crinkled but he didn't move. The truth was he couldn't even if he tried.

"I thought it would be." He looked out at his crew as he spoke, not bothering to acknowledge Hiten with his gaze. "I mean, your crew—oh," He shifted his eyes downwards just a second and smirked. "My crew," He corrected himself and rolled his eyes back upwards towards the cloudy sky. "Are completely unaware—probably won't even remember this, if I release them that is." He shook his head, clicked his tongue, and looked down his nose at Hiten condescendingly. "But you—you get to see it all first hand—you will remember all of it."

If Hiten could have spoken, he could have snarled; if he could have moved, he would have ripped out Naraku's throat.

"That's the price Hiten." Naraku dropped all pretenses of niceties as he spoke Hiten's name unadorned. "Don't ever defy me—even when I let you."

The thunder demon wanted to scream, a million words and insults barely contained in his mouth. "You will never win, Naraku." He thought to himself instead, closing his eyes against the sight of Naraku.

The sound of the demon's snap filling the air made his eyes open once more and against his will he felt his weight shift to his toes and his knees bend so as to create a spring. He jumped from his place on the deck up and up above Naraku's head and over. His body turned in the air, his pony tail flying up beside his face as he felt his boots connect with the floor of the Thunder's helm deck. With neither words nor orders, he grabbed hold of the wheel knowing that he had no control over his actions. He was no better than a puppet at carnival. The sound of fabric snapping into place as it caught the wind was his only indication of his vessel's readiness to be steered. The ship lurched as a sudden gale took the sails, nearly ripping them with its own strength.

Naraku laughed at the enthusiasm of the storm, the sound of his voice amongst that strong wind dangerous. "Even the ship is ready for this." He commented and against Hiten's will, he turned their heading towards Shikuro.

-break-

"No." Sango was the first person to speak against Kagura's words her chocolate eyes filled to the brim with horror. She turned to her husband who stood amongst his grandfathers his face mirroring her own. "You—that," Her neck snapped towards the wind enchantress aghast. "It's not right!"

"He can't have an army." Kagome solidified Sango's words before biting the inside of her cheek in dismay.

"But Naraku does." Kagura's voice was apologetic but filled with truth as she turned her attention away from Kagome and towards Sesshoumaru. "Naraku controlling them." Her words wavered and the sound didn't match the woman Sesshoumaru had known long ago. "They—innocent."

Inuyasha snorted at the thought and brought himself up to his full height behind his brother. "There is nothing innocent about that bastard or his crew."

Kagura's eyes flashed at the insult, protective instincts for her mate kicking in immediately. "Hiten-sama not!" The wind whipped at her words but before the conversation could escalate Kagome's voice cut in.

"We have to purify them." She spoke resolutely as she glanced at each member of their ragtag team in turn, making sure to make eye contact to better solidify her point. "They are innocent in this," She emphasized the words as her gaze landed on her husband and stayed. "At the very least," She spoke calmly and directly as she held Inuyasha's gaze, wanting him to know that she wouldn't back down on this. "They are innocent if they are being controlled."

The dog demon opened his mouth, snapped it closed, and raised his hands above his head with irritation. "Okay." He groaned and dropped his hands down as he licked his lips. "I'll give you that—but how do we purify an entire crew!" He motioned towards his grandfathers and Miroku behind him before flicking his wrist towards Sango. "They can't do it." He shoved his hand into his chest and then flung it in her direction. "You and me are the only two who can!"

Kagura's eye lashes fluttered in slight confusion and she looked towards Sesshoumaru. "Inuyasha-sama can purify?"

"Long story." He filled in quietly as he kept his eyes trained on his brother who was trying desperately to deliver his point.

"I know Sesshoumaru sure as hell can't." The man continued on as his hands flew in front of him trying to reiterate his point constantly. "And neither can Takeshi."

"You're right." Kagome nodded her head in agreement as a spark lit up her eyes dangerously. "That's why we're changing the plan." Her voice was a command that made even the random crew members in the background slow down their work to listen. Not very many people defied the Captain so openly but it was becoming a more observable occurrence ever since Kagome had become an unrecognized member of the crew. "I'm coming with you on Shikuro."

Inuyasha's eyes widened and his mouth dropped opened and closed like a fish for several seconds. Sango, who had been standing only a few feet away from the two during the course of the debate, took a deliberate step back. Miroku, who was at a safe distance, motioned to Takeshi (who wasn't) to move over to stand in the protection of the three scalliwag circle. Sesshoumaru took Kagura by the arm and stepped back as well even as the wind demon sent him a confused look. All of them knew this was not going to be a peaceful conversation in the least.

Sure enough, the very first thing Inuyasha was actually able to say was: "Hell no!"

And in response, Kagome countered with a very articulate: "Hell yes!"

Inuyasha snarled and turned away, two steps from simply banging his head against the nearby railing. "I swear!" His control slipped as his stomach gnawed with feelings of dread. "It's like fate will stop at nothing," He whirled around and pointed accusingly, albeit unnecessarily, at his wife. "To put you in the middle of this."

Exasperation covering her entire body, Kagome threw her hands up in the air. "I was born in the middle of it."

Ignoring his own rule about letting his grandchild have some autonomy over his life, Paedar chose at that moment to step forward and mediate. "Okay," He held up his hands to stop the two from strangling each other or, better yet, attack him. "This is an easy fix." He spoke calmly and slowly as he looked at his grandson and his grandson's wife.

The younger demon snorted loudly in reaction to his words and grumbled. "I'd like to see how easily you come up with a solution."

Out of respect for his grandchild and because they were currently in front of Inuyasha's crew, Paedar didn't say anything to prevent the rant. Instead, he waited patiently, counting to ten in his head as he closed his eyes to keep himself from grabbing the boy to shake him. Luckily, Inuyasha took the hint, read his grandfather's body language and snapped his mouth shut deliberately.

"Okay," He breathed in deeply and nodded his head at his grandfather, appreciating the show of respect. "What's your idea?"

"We'll still take two ships." Paedar opened his eyes as he spoke, his body tense but composed nonetheless. "We'll get a bit closer and Kagome," He motioned towards her with gentle flick of his wrist. "Will use her arrows to purify them." He held up his hand before Inuyasha could even form a point of contingency in his head. "If something goes wrong, I will give the order to flee."

Kagome smirked, liking the plan. "Sounds reasonable."

The dog demon pursed his lips as he mulled over his grandfather's suggestion. Deep down he knew it was the closest he was going to get to a true compromise that both him and Kagome would accept. Sighing heavily, his temple aching a bit from how tense he was currently, he gave in but with one amendment. "You're taking Shikuro." There was no room for Kagome to speak as he looked at her firmly. "It's the fastest vessel I've ever known." His explanation was curt and his jaw was set tight, barely opening even to speak. "If will get you the hell out of there as fast as possible." He raised up his chin quickly. "Deal?"

"Deal." The miko agreed easily as her fingers twitched ready to go already.

"How sweet." Aengus' joking voice made everyone on the deck snap their attention towards the good old Irish man. "Don't ya love it when marriage works, yeah?"

"Shut yer mouth." Inuyasha snapped but Aengus only laughed in response. "Miroku, gather the men," He quickly changed his focus from his snide grandfather to his son. "Tell them the change in plan."

"Aye." Miroku turned to leave but froze for just a moment as he felt a wave of nostalgia hit him. Slowly, he turned his head to look at his father taking in the man's odd clothing that didn't seem to match the current situation in the least. Here they were on his father's ship, filled to the brim with privateers, and the man himself was dressed like a Nohon-jin noble or warrior. His haori top, his hakama pants, looked so out of place and yet he was still the same man he had always been. "Aye," He reiterated and caught his father's eyes. The two men looked at each other exchanging a silent thought that only they would ever share with the other. "Captain."

"Quartermaster." Inuyasha nodded once sharply and the younger man smirked, turned on his heel, and began to shout orders left and right. "Sango, you're on helm." Inuyasha gave out his own orders even as Miroku's voice echoed in the background. "You three." He addressed his grandfathers even as Paedar glared at him. "Go with Sango and she'll fill you in."

"Come on boys!" Sango pointed towards the helm with authority that the three men couldn't ignore. "I'll show you the ropes."

"Is that a pun?" Eion asked as he stepped up to his granddaughter-in-law.

"No—," Sango raised an eyebrow in confusion even as she felt Paedar and Aengus step up to her shoulder. "We don't use ropes to steer the ship."

"Personally," Paedar looked down at the top of her head, the height difference between her and the full grown demon very apparent when they stood this close. "I thought you were planning on tying someone up."

The woman tapped her chin with one finger in thought. "Maybe," She patted the man's shoulders and gave him a cheeky wink. "When we're not about to go into battle."

"I'm trying very hard not to get jealous." Aengus joked good-naturedly as the small group began to walk away without acknowledging those who stood behind them in the least.

"That's not what I meant!" Paedar playfully fired back as his mate faked a sound of hurt.

"That's what it sounded like."

Shaking his head back and forth as he tried to erase the fading conversation from his brain, Inuyasha turned his attention to the last group. "Sesshoumaru, Takeshi," He waited for his brother and nephew to acknowledge him before he continued on. "Get on the other ship, I'll be there soon."

"Kagura going with them." The wind demon herself stepped forward as she spoke, her now healed body poised and battle ready.

Inuyasha glanced at her and shrugged completely unhindered. "Works for me."

"Oh!" Takeshi seemed to awake suddenly, the silence that had been sparked by his confusion gone as he turned to his aunt, her now small feather clasped between his thumb and pointer fingers. "Your feather."

"Arigato." She smiled brightly and ruffled his hair before snagging the feather from his grip. "Takeshi-sama grown.

The boy blushed at her words but smiled nevertheless. "Almost a whole head length since the last time I saw you, Obaa-san."

"Sugoi!" Kagura chuckled, her sharp eyes looking over at the second ship. "Ikimasu," She licked her lips, ready to go more than anyone else standing on that ship just then. For everyone else they were marching into a battle that was important and life altering but not to the extent that it was for Kagura. After all, she had someone to save. "Yosh!" The demon woman threw the wind under her feet and launched herself upwards and outwards towards the other ship, which was currently manned by only a few of Inuyasha's crewmen and a select few of Sesshoumaru's personal guard.

The demon lord in general raised an eyebrow a bit amused and started to bend his knees to follow but the sound of his young son's voice stopped him.

"Chichiue?" Takeshi whispered the name as he positioned himself at his father's side, ready to follow should the command arise. His father nodded for him to go ahead and ask his question and he hesitantly obeyed. "What's with you and Kagura-Obaa-san?"

Inuyasha and Kagome both nearly chocked at the child's innocent question but refrained from commenting.

For his part, Sesshoumaru briefly glanced at his child before clearing his throat. "Ask Okaa-san." He provided his clipped reply and sprang up off the deck without offering any further insight into the complicated history.

"Really!" Takeshi groaned in response, his shoulders slumping in impatience before he followed his father with a giant leap of his own.

Inuyasha and Kagome laughed despite themselves as they watched the boy land beside his father on the deck of the other ship. Even though they were at least two hundred feet away, both the demon and the human could tell the child was continuing the interrogation of his father much to Sesshoumaru's ire.

"He's going to get in trouble." Inuyasha told Kagome in a conspiring whisper that made her laugh a bit harder.

She pulled a hand up to her mouth, covering her laughter as her other hand clutched her stomach. "Sesshoumaru," She giggled and leaned towards him as she purposefully glanced left and right as if checking to see who was listening into the harmless banter. "Or Takeshi?"

"Both," Inuyasha confirmed as he motioned towards the parallel vessel bringing to Kagome's attention the young boy that was sidestepping his father, dancing around the stoic demon as he questioned him. "You could not pay me to be over there." He chuckled as Takeshi threw his hands up over his head. Even though they had no idea what had been said, they both knew that the boy wasn't pleased with whatever knew information he had acquired.

"Poor boy." The miko cooed and both of them succumbed briefly to their mirth.

However, mirth was not an emotion that was longed for this world currently. Their laughter died down within moments leaving a space of silence between them. Gradually, both of them felt their heads move on their own, looking for the other person without realizing that they desperately wanted to see them. Gold and grey met and two like thoughts paraded in their brains.

"This might be the last time I see you."

Neither spoke the words out loud, though, it was safer not too. Instead, without having to think and without needing words to express the unneeded thought they leaned into each other one last time. A bear kiss, lips barely brushing one another, and then the separation. Silence, and then a combined thought finally voiced.

"I love you."

"The Thunder," A man yelled from somewhere up above them shattering the simplicity of the moment. "She's comin'!"

They stared into one another's face, neither able to think of anything else they could possibly say. Really, there were no other words. I love you was the only sentiment either needed to convey, and the only thing both needed to hear.

-break-

Naraku watched as the Shikuro and the craft that accompanied it changed direction. "So—they're aware of us now?" He chuckled to himself as he licked his lips with anticipation. "I wondered how long it would take them." He twisted his neck around so he could look at the man behind him who was guiding the Thunder against his very will. "Hiten—," He smiled as the man's black eyes flickered with both hatred and recognition. "Be a dear," The condescending remark made the hair on the back of Hiten's neck stand on end much to Naraku's pleasure. "Adjust our heading."

Unable to open his mouth and released a sordid refusal, Hiten obeyed. His hands turned the wheel, the Thunder shifting in response to his touch. The wind caught the sails easily, taking them towards their target. The two vessels were not under the power of a sail it seemed because the wind was favoring (or better yet) under the control of Naraku's essence. Hiten could see, despite the great distance between them, the sails of the Shikuro and its mate filling with an impossible wind. His eyes narrowed from the sight and he inhaled sharply as his hands directed the ship regardless of his own will.

"Kagura-hime." Her name entered his mind and he felt his hands grip the wheel so tightly he knew it would break. "That's your wind—you made it." He was able to close his eyes even as his heart pounded with anxiety. "And now you're coming back—back to this hell."

"Alright my men!" Naraku called out breaking up Hiten's thoughts completely. "It's time for you to fulfill your only use." He told them all as he leaned his elbows against the railing so nonchalantly that had any of the men been aware, they would have been insulted. "I want a perimeter around this ship," He brought both hands up and clapped them together. "Now!"

Men who had been taming riggings straightened at their post, as Naraku's command rocketed through their bodies. Standing thirty feet or more in the air on giant swaying booms, they simply turned and fell from their station. Their bodies shot towards the ground, demon and (although there were very few aboard) human alike landing with loud crashes that no one reacted to. The bones of delicate humans snapped as they hit the ground and the muscles of equally fragile demons, those breeds that were not meant to make such great leaps, tore and popped as they hit the deck carelessly. Unaffected by the horror of the combined sounds, they made their way towards the edge of the ship in a horde of lifeless bodies. Ankles, legs, and knees that had cracked, dislocated, or broken upon impact trailed behind the bodies of those who had been hurt and were ignored by those who had been left unscathed.

The men made their way to the rails of the Thunder, standing just before it entirely unencumbered. As one they gripped the railing before them, pulling themselves up and over it without an ounce of realization. Fifty, or perhaps even sixty, men threw themselves overboard as they were forced to obey Naraku's command exactly as he desired it to be obeyed. To prevent them from drowning in the turbulent water below, however, the dark magic located deep within the Shikon jewel saved them. It seeped from their bodies, settling underneath their feet to cushion their landing. Each man glowed a deep, dark purple as they stood on the waves, the power granted to Naraku by the evil gemstone keeping them afloat. Their bodies rose and fell with the movement of the water as they waited for their next command, an army surrounding their general.

Standing high up above them on the helm's deck of the Thunder, Naraku surveyed their positioning without even having to see their bodies. He could feel them, an extension of the jewel within themselves. They were completely under his control; he didn't even need to speak unless he felt the desire too. With that in mind, the weasel demon closed his eyes and with a twitching of mirth on the corners of his mouth, projected his next command into their souls.

"Onward."

Despite the sheer improbable nature of their current ability, not one man wore an expression of surprise or personal amazement as they took their first steps upon the water. Every face was tainted with a look that was not dissimilar to death. Their hooded eyes covered up purple infused pupils and their thin relaxed lips, that neither twitched into demented smiles nor frowned, marked the restraint exercised by Naraku. They were no better than dead and yet everyone of them was still somehow alive. The Thunder moved with them as they walked upon the waves, a slow and steady pace that Naraku found deliciously appropriate.

-break-

Standing on a vessel that was not his own, Inuyasha held tight to the helm turning the wheel so as to face the frightful storm head on. At his side, his oldest son held a spyglass to his face fixing it on their current target with his human eyes. It would have been more prudent for Inuyasha to use the spyglass. The combination of his sharper vision and the magnification of the tool would have given them a better idea of what they were heading into; yet, the captain had been adamant about steering. After all, in a world where one cannot control anything anymore, being able to control a vessel makes life a little easier to face.

Miroku inhaled deeply as he lowered the spyglass his lips drawn in a tight line before he spoke. "They're at full sail." He side glanced towards his father who was stiffly holding their current heading. "I can't see canons, which is odd."

"The Thunder should have 'em." The dog demon licked his lips and looked out across the Nihongo vessel's lower deck. Even though it had been made in Nippon, it had a western flare that he was sure Sesshoumaru had taken from the design of his mother and father's ship four hundred years before. "All other Nippon ships aren't meant to be sea bearing—probably because Sesshoumaru imposed a ban on sea trade when he took over the country—he should revoke that." He blinked at his own thoughts and shook his head violently. Now was not the time to think of his brother's politics. Still the thought of his brother alone made his eyes move and before he could stop himself his eyes landed on his brother's form. He was standing right beside his son at the very front of the vessel, his hands motioning outwards as he talked to the boy, no doubt prepping him for the turmoil ahead. "Poor kid."

"The lack of," Miroku interrupted his father's thoughts unaware of his momentary diversion. "Cannons worries me." The man pulled the spyglass back to his face adjusting it as he ran it over the Thunder, the rain making it harder to see.

"Why?" Inuyasha posed the question as he adjusted their heading without any real thought. "Without his cannons threatening us we can hang back—be safer." He spoke without really hearing himself, his mind far too distracted to infer Miroku's implied meaning. Under normal circumstances he would have already worked out exactly what Miroku was implying but, currently, his mind wasn't focused enough to decipher the younger man's words beyond the literal.

"But think about it." Miroku dropped the spyglass once more and turned towards his father worriedly. "Why do you get rid of cannons?"

It was a rhetorical question but Inuyasha felt compelled to answer as his eyes widened just a bit and his heart sank a whole lot more. "Because," He felt a wave of realization suddenly consume him and held back a curse. "You have something a whole lot better."

"And more dangerous." Miroku continued on the thought as his father narrowed his eyes seriously and added to the statement one more time.

"And more powerful." He finished the thought for his son and this time did curse under his breath with frustration. "The question is—," He tightened his grip on the helm and inhaled deeply through his nostrils. "What could he possibly have at his disposal that's better than long range cannons?"

Both men tensed and sent each other identical nervous looks as the question hung in the air between them. There was no telling what Naraku had on board but the fact that he had the Shikon jewel within him dictated it couldn't be good. They already knew he had an army of men they couldn't kill for moral reasons and he had a power within him that was nearly impossible to beat without killing the innocent child he had imprisoned. The odds were not in their favor in the least already, so adding one more thing just made their problems undeniably sickening.

"Naraku seems to have all the advantages," Miroku cleared his throat and brought the spyglass up again, keeping a careful eye out for that unknown weapon. "Don't he?"

"Don't they always?" Inuyasha fired back as he too looked out with squinting eyes trying his best to see whatever it was Naraku had up his sleeve. "What could be better than cannons?" He whispered mainly to himself but that didn't stop Miroku from hearing the words.

"Hell if I know." Miroku replied, his eye sweeping over the bow of the magnified Thunder. The ship looked completely normal, with the exception of an utter lack of men on board. Still, the sails were filled with wind and tied down smartly and the helm was under control by a fuzzy person, maybe two (it was hard to tell). Paranoid, he moved the spyglass lower, away from the helm and towards the sides of the ship, double checking for the lack of cannons he had noted earlier. "Maybe they just haven't brought them out yet."

Inuyasha's ears twitched on his head and he felt his sunken heart rise a little bit optimistically. "That's possible—foolish—," He added even as he allowed the optimism to seep through. "But possible."

"Let's hope—." He froze as his eye caught something more than simply out of the ordinary. "What the hell?" Confused, he pulled the spyglass away and squeezed his eyes shut for a moment before bringing it back to his face.

"Miroku?"

Looking threw the optics Miroku waited and didn't respond, allowing his brain time to process what he had seen. "That's impossible." He whispered as he pulled his face away and blinked several times not believing for a moment that what he had seen was real.

The hairs on the back of Inuyasha's neck and ears stood on end as he looked at his son's horrified face. "What?"

"People—it can't be?" Miroku's jaw went slack and he crinkled his eyebrows before looking out again. Sure enough the same image as before played over his eyes.

Beside Naraku's distant ship, there were small figures scaling the waves caused by the storm. They trailed after the vessel as well, jumping over its wake, and then sliding down it as if performing some sort of strange dance. They were merely fuzzy forms to Miroku's human vision but he could tell they were of every shape and size and every color and shade. More than anything, though, they were something he easily recognized: people. The spyglass slipped from Miroku's grip without him realizing it and clattered to the floor. The sound was nothing compared to the booming thunder in the distance but it still seemed loud. The spyglass rattled as it rolled across the deck between Miroku's feet, making its way to Inuyasha who jumped but did not lose his grip on the wheel.

"Miroku!" He called as he swooped down and grabbed the instrument with one hand still maintaining their heading expertly. "What did you see?" He asked, not bothering to take the time to hold the spyglass up to his own eye. After all, he trusted Miroku enough not to worry himself with conducting his own assessment.

The man barely responded to his name, his whole face lined with abject horror. "There are," He opened his mouth like a fish that's been plucked from a pond, terrified and gasping for water. "People," He blinked and stared at the Thunder in the distance, unable to take his eyes off the ship. "Walking right beside her."

"What?" Inuyasha nearly lost his grip on the wheel as something within him tore a little. It was as if his soul had already understood what Miroku meant, even though he had no idea who his son was referencing. "People—on the water?"

"Naraku's men," Miroku turned slowly his expression one that Inuyasha could honestly say he had never seen on anyone's face before. "They're walking by the ship—right on top of the waves." His mouth hung open for a moment clearly indicating his own disbelief. "They're not confined to the ship."

In all his years of exploring the world, Inuyasha had never heard of something like this being possible. Not one breed of demon, to his knowledge, could walk on water. That is, could walk on water well. Some of them could fake it for a few seconds, fifteen at the most, but no demon could simply walk across the ocean in a chaotic storm like it was second nature. "Impossible." He snapped but the look on Miroku's face told him the man was positive about his evaluation.

"No—," He spoke slowly, his eyes so wide that they could have seen everything in the world in that moment. "It's real."

There was nothing Inuyasha could say to Miroku's words. As he looked into the other man's face, he knew they were true. Part of him, though, still wanted to ask Miroku to double check or, better yet, yank the spyglass up to his own eye and verify the conclusion with his sharper vision. But, he didn't. Inuyasha turned to look out at the Thunder in the distance, the wheel in one hand and the spyglass unused in the other. "No cannons?" He whispered out loud forcing himself to think instead of deny. "A man sails a ship into a battle without weapons—why?" He looked at Miroku not expecting an answer and not bothering to wait for one. "Because he has a better one—one that changes how you fight at sea." The dog demon felt a lump of denial over the formation of those words in his throat but he pushed it down. "How do you fight at sea?"

Miroku answered not carrying if his father wanted one or not. "You use distance—cannon fire at a distance."

"If they can walk on—across—waves." Inuyasha picked up where Miroku had left off, his face contorting into a look of utter frustration. "Then we can't fight him from a distance. He's forcing us to fight him head on!" Inuyasha snarled and slammed the hand with the optic into the wheel as he yanked his neck around so he could look at the Shikuro behind him. The tall, proud ship was trailing behind them by approximately two thousand feet or so. Even from that great a distance, however, he could make out his wife. She had climbed up the riggings, much to his chagrin, and was currently in the crow's nest, her bow poised and ready in front of her. "This changes everything." He told himself as he whipped his head around to look at the Thunder out ahead of them and then towards the Shikuro behind them once more. "If his men can walk—then they can board—they can—." He felt a curse bubble up his throat and didn't stop it from leaving his mouth. "Shit!"

"Well," Miroku ignored his father's indignation in favor of moving on from the anger stage of mourning to acceptance. "What are we gonna do?"

The dog demon closed his eyes and tried to contain his own panic as his stomach started to eat itself. "I probably have an ulcer from this!" He thought as he clutched the handles of the wheel tightly. "What do I do?" He asked himself and the question felt far more complex than it sounded in his brain. "Damn it!" His eyes snapped opened as he cursed and he followed the line of his sight until the sails of the Thunder haunted his irises. "If we go into battle against demons that can fucking walk on waves then—I—can't protect her." He gritted his teeth and bit back a howl of irritation. "What the hell do I do?"

"Trust yer gut, boy."

He blinked as the words formed in his brain, taunting him. He had neither seen his Captain since the incident with Onaconah, nor heard his voice but now he remembered those words. "My gut." He whispered and, not bothering to look at Miroku's confused gaze, he breathed slowly imagining the man peeling an apple indifferently with his knife. "My gut—a good Captain trust's his gut." He closed his eyes, those words swirling in his brain. He wasn't a good Captain, he was a damn fine one, one of the best, and he wasn't stupid enough to deny that truth but—. "I'm a Captain and a husband." He felt his stomach knot and his heartbeat quicken. "I have to think of both of those things—not just one over the other."

"A good husband trusts his wife."

Never in his life had his Captain said those words. Really, the man had never once given him marriage advice but that didn't mean others had not. "Trust—everyone keeps saying that but I do—." He argued with himself even as his subconscious decided to point out a fact he hadn't bothered acknowledging. "I don't." His mind stopped thinking for a moment and he could have sworn he felt Kagome right beside him, nodding her head, acknowledging that she agreed with those words.

"But you should." He heard her somewhere deep inside his soul and instantly his whole demeanor calmed. "And you know you do."

"Otou-san." Miroku's voice was louder than even the sound of Inuyasha's blood in his ears. "What are we gonna do?"

He inhaled deeply through his nose and turned to look towards Kagome over his shoulder. From her position in the crow's nest she seemed so high above him. Her hair was caught by the throngs of Kagura's wind. It beat against her brow as she looked out across the sea. He had no idea what she was seeing but in that moment he didn't care. He just wanted to see her. He wanted to see her face, he wanted to see her curls, he wanted to see her smile, he wanted to see the slight dimples around her cheeks, he wanted to see her natural rosy complexion, and he wanted to see her eyes. In a flash of brilliance in his mind, he saw those eyes. They looked straight at him, deep and wise beyond their years.

"Do you trust me?" They seemed to say and he wondered if she had actually spoken.

"Always." His nostrils flared and a spark he hadn't felt since they had arrived in Nippon, ignited in his body.

"Otou-san?" Miroku tried again, desperate for his father to respond.

"What are we gonna do?" Inuyasha repeated Miroku's question as his eyes flared with the demon in his blood and the human as well: red, brown, and gold. "Follow my gut." He finally replied as he swallowed all of his fear and pride and obeyed that lesson from so long ago. Snapping his neck back around, orders began to flow from his mouth completely unhindered. "Sesshoumaru! Takeshi!" He yelled down at his brother, not bothering to wait before he continued. "Naraku's got people walking alongside his ship."

In an instant Sesshoumaru bent his knees, throwing his body up across the deck as if the action took no effort what-so-ever. Takeshi scrambled to follow his father, bending his knees in just the same way and jumping with slightly less grace. They both landed within seconds of each other beside Miroku on quiet feet but it was only Sesshoumaru's eyes that sparked with skepticism. "Impossible." The word was dangerous as it left his mouth but his younger brother seemed more amused by it than anything else.

"That's my new favorite word." He clicked his tongue and shrugged his shoulders even as he spun the wheel a little bit adjusting their heading to more fully face the Thunder. "But it ain't." He threw the spyglass toward his brother, not even bothering to acknowledge if the other demon caught it or not. "Look through the glass if ya want."

Sesshoumaru's caught the device but didn't move to bring it towards his face. Instead, he passed it to Takeshi who stared at the long tube completely confused as he ran his hands over it. His Aunt landed beside him having overheard the call of Sesshoumaru and Takeshi's names. He glanced at her, holding up the little cylinder object confused. "What is it?" He asked her but she only shrugged in response, she didn't know either.

"Do you have a plan?" Sesshoumaru pressed, ignoring his son in favor of focusing on something far more important.

"Sure do." Inuyasha bluntly told the older man before yelling down at his crew. "Henry!"

"He's on the Shikuro, sir!" An almost disembodied voice replied.

"Damn it!" The Captain cursed and rolled his neck popping it loudly before he tried again. "Morgan!"

"Here, sir!" A man appeared almost out of nowhere, landing on the deck as if he had expected to be called.

"You're on the helm." Inuyasha easily commanded, holding the wheel out to the man who took it without pause. "Keep the heading faced straight towards the Thunder," He pointed out across the water, noting that they were quickly approaching the other ship. "No more than fifteen minutes, maybe?" He growled low in his throat, the sound barely heard by those around him. "Understand me!?"

"Aye, sir!" Morgan nodded his head and placed his other hand on the helm, holding onto it tightly as his Captain moved over to his nephew.

Inuyasha grabbed the glass straight out of Takeshi's hands without a word, pulling it to his face for the barest of seconds before depositing it in Miroku's hands. "So, plan," He spoke quickly and unapologetically as he turned to Miroku, grabbing the younger man's shoulder purposefully. "Incapacitate the walking wonders until Kagome or I can purify them." He spoke quickly, blatantly, and with no form of decorum what so ever. "Aim for the legs," He addressed his son without bothering to wait for Sesshoumaru to even think of a question. He slapped his own leg as if to reiterate his point. "Or just hit something not life threatening at the very least—shoulder—things like that."

"But they're on the water, if they fall won't they dr—." Takeshi started but his uncle was already far ahead of him.

"Kagura," He addressed her without looking towards her or his nephew. "Your feather—," He glanced upwards collecting his thoughts before snapping his chin down, directing his vision so that he could make eye contact with her. "Get on it and collect 'em as we take 'em out."

"But—."

"After we purify 'em." Inuyasha continued on his mind processing so quickly that it was easy to see why he had become a Captain so young. "Everyone wounds, Kagome and I purify, Kagura will collect." He pointed at Miroku before the man could voice any form of concern. "Is it perfect? Hell no, but neither is life." He inhaled once deeply before continuing on as if no one had thought to interrupt him. "Kagome will figure it out—she knows me better than anyone." He rolled his eyes as he subconsciously registered the fact that she might even be listening into his thoughts. "I really should check to see if her mind reading has a distance ratio." He thought to himself offhandedly before he started dishing out order again. "So—attack if they get close, we will purify them as they fall." He resisted the urge to rub his temple, to do so would be a sign of weakness, so he opted for a touch of sarcasm as a diversion. "This is first for me; usually I just kill—takes less thought."

The youngest among them, Takeshi, pulled his ears back as he tried to follow his uncle's plan. "How will," He began and nearly swallowed his own tongue when his uncle turned to look at his with slightly crazed eyes. "Ano—how will Kagome-obaa-sa—."

"She just will." Inuyasha growled as he cut off Takeshi and rolled his eyes at the boy. "One day you'll have a mate and she'll annoy you as much as mine!" He winced slightly waiting to hear Kagome's voice in his head but he didn't (much to his own surprise). "Please Kagome—please figure it out." He licked his lips and started towards the staircase leading downwards towards the little vessel's quarterdeck. "And Kagura," He threw over his shoulder as if issuing some sort of afterthought. "Get em and dump them on the ship—whatever ship's closest."

"What-to if it doesn't work?" She called after him as her heart clenched in her chest. These were her friends, her comrades, people she had suffered with, and nearly died with, she couldn't just hope this would work; it had to work. "What-to if they not be purified?"

"Then," He stopped just before he reached the staircase, turning towards her in once swift motion. "We come up with a new plan." He sent her his most confident smirk, one that was boyishly charming and cocky and just a little bit insulting to those who received it. "But trust me, Kagura." He spoke with more confidence than he actually had and she believed him. "That's rule number one on my ship." He had the audacity to wink at her as that fangy grin made the wind demon want to slap him and hug him all at the same time. "Trust my insanity."

"When did that become a rule?" Miroku threw out and the Captain laughed and clapped his hands together loudly.

"About five seconds ago." He offered and turned his back on all of them as he looked out over his crew.

His crew was running back and forth, preparing cannons and guns, polishing swords and maintaining sails. His hand twitched and before he really acknowledged what he was doing, he grabbed the sword at his side, ripping it from its sheath. Zentai screeched as he removed it from his belt and flashed bright red once as it transformed. Whether the sound caught their attention or the flash of light, he didn't know and he didn't care as he watched every man on board the ship (his crew or not) jump, their necks snapping towards him.

"Everyone!" He yelled for good measure, knowing that the sound of his voice couldn't have been ignored even by the dead. "We face a challenge ahead." He paused, his eyes scanning the crowd, proud to see every pupil dilated with thought and their bodies frozen with both respect and fear. Satisfied that every man had stopped to listen, he continued. "Naraku's men can walk on water."

The crew mumbled underneath him but he wasn't hindered in the least.

"Don't look at me, I won't pretend to understand how." He threw a hand up in front of him in a sign of acceptance, after all, it was best to admit when you simply didn't know something. "But that brings a dilemma." He dropped the hand down but left the sword up above his head. "As Miroku already ordered, you are to wound and not kill these men." His eyes turned darker and more molten as he spoke, his hands on the sword tightening. "Aim for their legs, aim for their arms, slow them down!" He thrust the sword suddenly downwards as he spoke, pointing it viciously at his crew. "But do not kill 'em." He lowered the sword so he could look over it, staring at his crew down the crisp edge of the blade. "My wife and I will take care of the rest and Kagura will collect them." He didn't even bother to wait for acknowledgement before he threw the sword up above his head once more as if it were more an order than even his words. "Those are my orders." His eyes scanned the faces of his crew their eyes were firm and strong much to his pleasure. "Any man who wishes to disobey," He paused for a moment allowing the unspoken words to sink in before he actually said them. "Can get off my ship!"

Everything went silent as the men looked at their leader, the man who had kept them alive for years. The most dangerous man most of them had ever meet, the strongest, the most formidable, but also the wisest and fairest man they had ever known.

"Does everyone understand!?" His voice didn't waver for even a second as he looked out as his crew daring them to deny his words with just the blazing quality of his eyes.

The crew didn't even have to think before they responded with eyes just as bright and voices just as strong. "Aye, Captain!"

The men yelled as one, the sound of their voices rising above his head should have made him more confident; the sound of those voices should have relaxed him as they would have in the past; but, this time, they did nothing but make him more anxious. "Will this work?" He thought to himself, lowering the sword downwards but not letting go of it as his breath quicken.

"I think it will."

The dog demon wanted to laugh or cry as the sound of her voice invaded his brain. "Kagome." He closed his eyes against the feel of her, glad that he had been right. "You always hear me, don't you?" He asked and the brush of her energy against his very soul made him smile.

"It's a nasty habit, I know." She spoke to him, a soft giggle hidden in her sarcastic comment. The giggle faded within seconds though, replaced by steady confidence. "This will work."

He threw his eyes opened at her confidence, allowing it to become his own as he pointed the sword straight upwards towards the darkening sky. "To battle!" He screamed and his men followed suit, their voices ringing out all around him, mirroring his own belief in himself.

-break-

Naraku leaned against the railing of the helm's deck, his dark eyes watching everything before him and around him with interest. He could see the two ships in the distance and, with the aid of the evil within him, he could even see the people on those ships. With eerie concentration, he squinted until he could see the form of Inuyasha with his sword above his head. His face twisted with barely contained mirth as he realized the dog demon was making a call to arms. "How—futile." He thought to himself as he leaned back and titled his head to his left where he found the actual Shikuro. Deep within him, he felt a quake of anger from the sight of the ship, and his smile fell.

His hands on the railing opened, releasing the wood as he growled low in his throat. His eyes narrowed dangerously and he tightened his hands into fist. Anger, uncontrolled and unnatural bubbled within him, but he didn't pull his eyes away from the source of such hatred. Instead, Naraku forced himself to straighten, while his back and neck popped as they were forced to unbend to his full height. Black pupils, surrounded by black irises, focused so as to see the source of his anger from an impossible distance.

Standing high above the Shikuro, nestled in the crow's nest was Kagome O'lionsigh. He watched as the wind whipped her hair about her face, and he stared as her deep, grey eyes gazed outwards, unaware he was seeing them. The bow, her weapon of choice, hung limp in her hands, but he knew it could be ready to fire at any moment. His lips pulled back with frustration and rage; his stomach turned as he ripped his eyes away from her.

"She needs to die." He spoke to both no one and to Hiten in the same moment.

The thunder demon, unable to move, didn't acknowledge Naraku's curt words, but his mouth did twist into an odd shape. "Kagome—O'lionsigh." He thought to himself, knowing exactly who she was and why Naraku wanted her dead. "The one who can stop him."

Unconcerned with Hiten's thoughts, Naraku licked his lips slowly an idea already formulating in his mind. "I need her dead and," His eyes glanced at Hiten, the only man left on the ship for him to look at. "And you're going to do it for me."

If Hiten could have controlled his expression, his eyes would have widened, and his mouth would have opened.

"Brilliant." Naraku told himself with a soft laugh. "Oh, how brilliant." He took a step forward towards the helm, one of his hands rising nonchalantly before lowering to his side with a slight flick. Instantly, a man appeared from over the side of the ship, his body wet from sea spray and rain.

Hiten stared in disbelief as the man he recognized as Jacob walked right towards him, emotionless and unaware of anything. A tremble ran through him body and he felt the uncontrollable urge to let go of the wheel. "Damn it!" He cursed mentally as his fingers snapped opened against his will. For the briefest of moments, the wheel spun from the action but Jacob caught it with little to no effort.

"You won't need to worry about the wheel any longer, Mr. Hiten." Naraku spoke evenly, the spark of amusement in his person apparent. "I have a better job for you."

Hiten's feet shuddered against the ground and his heart accelerated in his chest but he was only responsible for the later. The dead weight of one boot lifted in the air before falling, slamming into the ground. The other boot followed shortly thereafter and he managed to hiss in an effort to control his own actions.

"It's not worth it Mr. Hiten." Naraku commented as he leaned his elbows deliberately against the railing, his back touching the bar and his eyes focused on Hiten. "I have a job for you, and you're going to do it whether you like it or not."

The thunder demon lifted his eyes upwards, able to move them even under Naraku's control. "Go to hell!" He wanted to open his mouth and scream, but Naraku's control was beyond him.

"Are you wondering what it is?" Naraku clicked his tongue and smiled dangerously. "Or have you already figured it out?"

Neither question was meant to be answered but Hiten couldn't help but answer them. "I know—and I refuse!"

Naraku frowned as if he had heard Hiten's thoughts but didn't say a word as he brought one hand up and over his head. He held it palm opened and closed his eyes in wait and, within seconds, a flash of light as bright as the sun blinded Hiten. The thunder demon would have gasped and would have closed his eyes had he been able but in his current state he could do no more than whimper as his eyesight returned. Unable to blink away the spots that tainted his vision, he only saw black for several moments before blurry outlines began to fill her retinas. The dark outline of Naraku's hair, followed by the length of his jacket, and the sketchy railing behind him became clear after some minutes but there was still something his mind couldn't process. There was a line, held up above Naraku's head, as if the demon was holding something Hiten hadn't seen before.

"Isn't controlling thunder," Naraku's voice was like a phantom in the blur of his poor eyesight. "A wonderful quality."

The thunder demon's heart dropped and he felt his lips tremble as he realized exactly what was in Naraku's hand.

"I want you—to kill her." Naraku stepped forward, the sound of his feet an echo of thunder. "And I know you will—you'll enjoy it."

Hiten felt his hand open as his vision became perfect once more. His spear, with tipped metal perfect for conducting the energy within him, fell into his hand. He inhaled deeply of his own accord as the weight of the weapon in his hand made him dizzy.

"You'll enjoy it Hiten." Naraku continued on watching as Hiten's chin tilted upwards, forcing the demon to look at him. "Because she killed your brother."

He wanted to shake his head, he wanted to deny Naraku in the moment, but he couldn't. A darkness, deep inside of him yanked at his heart. "She killed my brother." The words were said out loud but it was hard to tell whether they were Naraku's or Hiten's.

Naraku smirked and reached out to run one long, black claw over the edge of Hiten's spear. "So," He leaned forward his energy seeping out of his body in a deep, purple mist that seemed to infuse with the weapon at his fingertips. "She must die."

-break-

High above the Shikuro, Kagome positioned her bow in front of herself purposefully. One hand held onto the long smooth wood, while the other hovered waiting to create an arrow of pure energy. Her fingers twitched as they lingered patiently. Her grey eyes narrowed in thought and she licked her lips as the storm in the distance intensified by Naraku's doing. A flash of brilliant, hot-white lightning caught her eyes and she bristled as the rolling sound of thunder hit her ears like a shattering canon blast.

"Mercy." She whispered under her breath as the sound vibrated within her, followed shortly by a curt wind. A shiver ran the length of her body and she forced herself to inhale deeply to calm her racing heart. "You're okay." She silent coached herself as she squinted, looking out at the distant ship; the real Thunder. In the back of her mind Inuyasha's plan echoed, and her fingers splayed opened impatiently. "I can't see them clearly enough yet." She thought as she reached within herself anyway, pulling at the well of energy deep inside.

Izayoi's training kicked in as her energy swelled within her and, unconsciously, she allowed the power to seep from her body. Without proper training, anyone would have noticed the slight disturbance in the air as it expanded silently away from the young miko, but Kagome was well trained in the art of looking without sight, and her movements went undetected by all. Clear and focused, her power crept outwards across the essence of the sky in search of something that human eyes could not see from such a great distance. Her skin tingled as she felt the demonic energy of Eion, Paedar, Aengus, and the crew below. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end as she felt that same yet different energy from the demons on the other ship: Sesshoumaru, Takeshi, and (of course) Inuyasha.

"Further—." She gulped, forcing herself passed him and into the tempest that lay beyond. "Don't get distracted." She squeezed her eyes shut with that thought and pushed on. Kagura's flighty energy brushed against her psyche, and Kagome smiled from the feel of it. Kagura was different than any other demon she had ever felt; she was free and almost charismatic like the wind itself. "So opened." She thought to herself as she tilted her chin upwards but didn't open her eyes. "Honest even."

The thought died in her mind as her mouth suddenly went dry, the hairs on her arms and legs went ridged, and she shifted backwards subconsciously, trying to remove herself from the energy she felt next. It almost slapped her in the face, the power that flared in her mind, consuming her with blatant hate and demonic lust. A dark swirling mass of energy, just like the Shikon jewel itself, overwhelmed her, and she actually took a step backwards in the crow's nest out of a mixture of fear and shock. In the back of her mind, an image of Naraku formed but it was tainted by something else, a different face from a different time in her life. Before the face could take shape, she forced her eyes opened with a long hiss, the bow in her hands making a popping sound from the severity of her grip.

Without a moment's hesitation, she lifted her chin up into the world, waiting for the image to become a person. It didn't take long for a shadow, picked up just out of the peripheral of her eye, to appear. "What—?" She felt her breath hitch almost painfully in her throat as she lowered the bow, the new sight too unbelievable to aim at. A darkened cloud, the color of nightmares was coming towards the Shikuro at a remarkable rate of speed. "That doesn't look natural." She thought as the object went straight over Inuyasha's ship in the distance, the demon Captain's vessel doing nothing to stop it. "—can they see it?" She asked herself even though she knew that she was the only one, currently, who had. It was far too high to notice, and moving far too swiftly to be picked up, and, besides even that, it wasn't meant to be seen. "They could see it but they won't look up without feeling it—," She blinked with sudden understanding. "And they can't feel it, so they don't realize what it is."

A wave of energy from the cloud hit her abruptly in the stomach, and she gasped horrified. Her knees gave out without her consistent causing her to drop to the floor with a clatter. Air rushed into her lungs as dizziness overcame her followed by an image appearing in her mind of a man she knew all too well. She saw his linear face, tan skin, and dark black hair as it haunted her recollections. Flashes of his demented smile ran the breadth of her memories, and she couldn't help but shudder as her skin crawled with them. She remembered the sight of him as he threatened the shop owner, the sound of his voice as he commanded Shippo treating the boy like a rat, but, most of all, she remembered his brother's hands grabbing her as Shippo played the dirty trick that had brought the young kit onto the ship and to her. The sound of his brother's words sank into the pit of her stomach: rape or dismemberment, those are your choices.

The bow slipped down a little lower, her body freezing and her mind blanking as the name finally entered her mind, "Hiten—Mr. Hiten." The air rushed from her lungs as the cloud supporting the demon's weight filled every corner of her vision. "But didn't Kagura—?" Her mouth opened as the name slipped from her mouth. With great effort, she pushed herself to her feet and up above the edge of the crow's nest, so she could look out once more towards the ambiguous cloud. "Naraku's controlling him—he can't—he can't stop."

With her eyes focused on the cloud still, her heart stopped dead in her chest. Without even having to try, she could see him now, because he was nearly to the Shikuro. In only a matter of seconds, he had crossed a great expanse. Her jaw dropped as she took in his dead eyes and her hands went limp upon her bow forgetting that she had the power to end this with a single arrow. She watched as Hiten raised his hands up above the cloud revealing the long, smooth weapon of a thunder demon. Blank eyes, completely unaware of what they were doing, bore into her as he pointed the weapon right at her.

As a shout came from down below, Kagome realized that someone had finally noticed the thunder demon, but she didn't move. The world slowed down all around her, her breath coming in slow controlled pants as an odd feeling welled up inside her. An urge she didn't understand, nor thought to disobey, pressed against her very soul. Part of her knew she could fight him, she could easily end this, and yet something told her not to.

"Jump."

The voice echoed throughout her soul and blinded her to any other thought. Without any more consideration she turned on her heel just as the air around her filled with a rush of electricity: the coming of lightening. One of her hands reached for the railing while the other held on tightly to her bow. The muscles in her arms tensed as she pushed herself upwards, off her feet so as to throw herself over the side of the crow's nest without a second thought. An explosion followed her, the heat of lightning scorching her back even as her eyes caught their first glimpse of her three hundred feet drop. The feeling of weightlessness did not even faze her as her body rushed downwards, and her eyes took in the sight of crisp water rushing up to greet her.

Curious and oddly calm, she twisted in the air forcing herself to look over her shoulder. Her eyes caught the Shikuro's crow's nest as it began to burn, the lighting having caught the ropes and wood on fire. "How strange?" She thought as the world began to speed up around her, a yell from someone in the distance barely catching her ears. "Inuyasha—no—Aeng—." The thought didn't finish in her mind as her body slammed into the water of the ocean; her back practically hitting a brick wall.

-break-

Kagome's eyes snapped opened, absolute confusion running throughout her as she inhaled air and not water. Completely baffled, she threw herself round realizing only vaguely that she was suspended in obscurity. For miles and miles, leagues and leagues all around her there was nothing except black emptiness. She completed a circle as she hung in the opaque world, her body hovering, and her mind racing.

"Nothing?" She whispered and was surprised to hear her voice echo around her instead being muffled by water. "How is that—?" She started to ask herself but her breath caught in her throat before she could finish speaking.

In the distance, a soft twang, a plucking of string greeted her ears and she froze: one—pause—two—pause—three to four—pause—one. In her current state she couldn't have named the notes if she tried, but she knew without having to know that the sound came from a violin. The soft whispers of that four count melody drifted in the expanse around her repeating itself over and over. It was so soft to her ears like a cradle song sung by a mother to her child as the sun sinks below the horizon making way for night. She felt a shuttering breath come up her throat, hanging there as she tried to swallow. Unhurriedly, she allowed her body to waft and her eyes to close, as the sound of that sweet lullaby soothed her very soul.

"It's so beautiful." She thought and for the briefest of moments she wondered if it was the sound of death she was hearing. She brought her hands up, pulling them to her heart and crinkled her eyes as she met with a lack of resistance from what should have been water and also a lack of weight from what should have been a bow. "I'm unarmed!" She felt a slight swell of panic as the sound of that unfamiliar melody made a lump form in her throat of both dread and indescribable grief.

Hesitantly, she forced her eyes opened and much to her surprise encountered a blurry form in the murk in front of her. Her fear was instantly replaced by an unnatural ease as the blurry white shape began to take form right before her eyes. The outline of a person came to her. She could see the curve of a shoulder, the faint recesses of a long neck, the sloop of a cheek, the arc of a violin as it pressed into that cheek, and the delicate swell of a hand as it balanced against strings. Part of her wanted to call out towards the figure but was stopped as the soft four beat melody was joined by words:

"Long ago, be-f-fore time,

Light was born out of the dark."

A woman's voice, so lovely it brought tears to her eyes flooded the air around her. Her voice was a gorgeous mezzo-soprano, somewhere between glass shattering and the tweak of a tiny bird. It flittered and fluttered through Kagome's ears, calling to her just as a siren must call to a wounded sailor.

"Both are one—and one are both,

That i-ss the truth—the base of—"

The figure swayed as she, if her voice was any indication, sang. The form steadily became more and more solid with each slow rock from side to side. First, Kagome made out the edge of a skirt long and made from dense, layered fabric. Color flooded the elegant material in the form of bright red that ran the gamut of dark blood to near pink as it flowed up to her waist. The deep and fading scarlet along its hem was broken only by tiny white petals of some unknown exotic flower the likes of which Kagome had never seen.

"—every—thing—that—has

Ever existed-d or will come

To live in this constantl-y-y coupled world."

Kagome felt her breath come in pants as she watched the red of the skirt travel upwards becoming lighter and light until it reached the woman's waist where it faded to near white. A bunched up green apron, which had been shoved into the edge of a thick brown belt with a golden buckle, rested just underneath her ample bosom. Her breasts were covered with a low-cut, white peasant blouse that was barely connected to wide sweeping sleeves that started just off her shoulders. She had rolled them, it appeared so she could hold the violin in her hands without tangling it up with those large sleeves. A clunky necklace, covered with coins from all over the world (if the multitude of languages that adorned them was a proper indicator), jingled with her finger's plucking motion.

"Tell me-e,

Can you see that truth?"

As her words hung in the air, the woman's hair suddenly took shape. Kagome blinked, and her mouth went dry as the long, curly mass of silver caught her completely off guard. Silver tresses, not straight as she was used to but wavy and kinky, created a curtain all around her body, falling over her shoulders in waves. Tears that Kagome couldn't contain formed in her eyes as she followed those tresses upwards until they turned into forelocks around two very human looking ears. Her chin wobbled as she gazed at those forelocks which contrasted so heavily with the white, not believing her eyes for even a moment. They were long, blackish brown braids with traces of red and blond.

"Open up your eyes

To that great falsehood-d—."

Kagome's heart skipped a beat as her eyes moved with their own free will, and finally, gazed upon the girl's all too familiar face. "Impossible." She shook her head from side to side, but even her denial didn't stop the truth.

His chin—her nose—his cheekbones—her ears—his lips—her forehead—his tan skin—her thin eyebrows—his dark eyelashes—his—her—.

"Open your eyes." Kagome begged as a sob jumped into her throat but the sound was drowned out by the violin and her voice.

"There is no dark and there is no ligh-t-t-t—."

The woman lowered the violin, her voice eliciting the most beautiful vibrato Kagome had ever heard.

"Tell me, O-o-kaa-san,

do yo-u-u see grey?"

The woman's eyes fluttered opened and Kagome did—she saw grey.

End of Chapter

Please Review

A/N: Ten points if you saw that coming…

Thank you for your reviews and thoughts. I'm glad everyone appears to be enjoying the story, even if there is now a love/hate relationship going on to a degree. I actually find my favorite stories develop that love/hate relationship, personally.

Thank you for reviewing:

Hoot Hoot, Aiydan Warrior, Ninja Sellers, KassidyR, Snyx, Amy's journal, Glon Morski, Mylilkai, VEENA4, avarianna, kan78, tiffamira, btheleaf, InuRiotGrrl

YOU ARE ALL FABULOUS!

Next Chapter:

The Captain

See you then!

UNEDITED

8/29/2015